BFC FinTech Monitor 5th – 13th March

Stay up-to-date on all the all the latest FinTech news and information from around the world in the BFC FinTech Monitor.

Around the World:

Amsterdam will play host to the Money 20/20 international FinTech conference in mid-June. Confirmed speakers include experts from Goldman Sachs, Netflix and Airbnb.
According to a number of sources, Facebook would like to launch its cryptocurrency Libra before China, potentially as soon as October.
A new banking trojan capable of bypassing Google’s two-step authentication system is threatening Android users.
HPS is helping to develop a QR code-based payment system for the Saudi Arabian market.
A bill has been introduced in the United States to regulate cryptocurrencies. If passed, control of the digital asset market will be assigned to the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).
Maxim Postnikov, founder of the Vilnius startup accelerator Baltic Sandbox, discusses how FinTech has become Lithuania’s new trademark.

Russia:

Russian company Spektr has released a report on the main banking trends of 2019-2020. According to the report, there has been (and will likely continue to be) a rise in the number of “super apps” and non-banks. Additionally, the report highlights that financial institutions are exploring new segments of business and working to develop voice-responsive interfaces.
Banking Review and ru materials detail how Russian financial institutions became the main drivers of artificial intelligence (AI) development in the country as well as how AI is likely to be used by the banking industry and others in the future.

Ukraine:

Kyiv will host the 8^th international BlockchainUA conference on May 22. In total, more than 1,000 people are expected to participate in this conference, including 60 speakers from 20 countries.
Ukraine’s first neobank (Monobank) has reached the 2 million customer mark.
The Ukrainian edition of PaySpace Magazine highlights the top 10 most successful neobanks in Europe.

Uzbekistan:

Uzbek regulators have issued authorization for the country’s first digital bank, Anor Bank, to operate within the country.

Kazakhstan:

The volume of non-cash payments in Kazakhstan has increased5 times, amounting to KZT 13.3 trillion.
In early 2019, Kazakhstan opened the doors for a digitized insurance market. Kaptial.kz provides an overview of the progress made so far.

Armenia:

Kaspersky Lab has revealed that only 0.16% of mobile device users in Armenia encountered banking trojans last year.
Digital bank Evocabank has become the first in Armenia to partner with the money transfer ecosystem of Russia’s Sberbank.