Finextra Research: Latest fintech news, analysis, interviews, features and opinion by industry experts

Canadian fintech investment plummets

Investment in Canadian fintech companies dropped three-fold in the first half of 2023 as valuations continued to slide to levels not seen since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic, driven primarily by macroeconomic concerns, according to KPMG.

18 August 2023

News/crypto

Survey suggests industry divided on CBDCs

The majority of finance professionals do not support the launch of central banking digital currencies (CBDCs) according to recently published research.

17 August 2023

News/payments

Big names join Brazil's CBDC pilot phase

Brazil's central bank has picked 16 proposals - from firms including Nubank, Microsoft, Visa and SETL - for the pilot phase of its Drex CBDC project.

16 August 2023

News/crypto

Microsoft and Aptos Labs partner to combine blockchain and AI for banks

Microsoft has teamed up with Aptos Labs on an effort to combine the power of AI and the blockchain to drive web3 into the mainstream.

09 August 2023

News/crypto

Tel Aviv Stock Exchange taps Fireblocks for digital assets push

The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange (Tase) is making a move into digital asset products and services after inking a deal with vendor Fireblocks.

04 August 2023

News/markets

Deutsche Börse Group to acquire FundsDLT

Deutsche Börse Group is to acquire the remaining shares in FundsDLT, a Luxembourg-based company which uses distributed ledger technology for fund distribution and processing.

03 August 2023

News/crypto

Palau and Ripple pilot Government-backed stablecoin

Western Pacific island state the Republic of Palau has teamed up with Ripple on a government-issued stablecoin pilot.

27 July 2023

News/wholesale

Commerzbank makes blockchain-based trade finance transactions

Commerzbank has completed a blockchain-based Letter of Credit transaction for a client on the Contour digital trade finance platform.

27 July 2023

News/identity

Sam Altman's Worldcoin project launches

Worldcoin, Sam Altman's project to build an identity and financial network by giving away free crypto tokens to people who agree to get their irises scanned, has launched in several cities around the world.

24 July 2023

News/crypto

NY Fed and banks upbeat on digital dollar pilot results

The Federal Reserve Bank of New York says that proof-of-concept run with a host of banks has demonstrated the feasibility of a regulated digital asset settlement platform supported by shared ledger technology.

07 July 2023

News/crypto

Mastercard pilots tokenized bank deposits

Mastercard has unveiled the latest step in its exploration of digital assets and blockchain technology, a ‘Multi-Token Network’ (MTN) that will act as a testbed for developing live pilots – beginning with tokenised bank deposits.

29 June 2023

News/crypto

Bitpanda crypto exchange spins out with €30m funding

Digital asset exchange Bitpanda Pro has spun out from its parent company and raised €30 million in a funding round led by Peter Thiel’s Valar Ventures.

29 June 2023

News/crypto

Schroders explores digital asset fund in Singapore

Global asset manager Schroders has teamed up with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to develop a tokenised digital asset fund.

27 June 2023

News/crypto

Italian banks launch CBDC pilot project

The Bank of Italy has launched a pilot to assess the viability of a central bank digital currency (CBDC).

23 June 2023

News/crypto

Crypto.com gets licence in Spain

Cryptocurrency platform Crypto.com has been granted virtual asset service provider (Vasp) registration by the Bank of Spain.

23 June 2023

News/sustainable

Blockchain platform issues first digital green bond

The European Investment Bank (EIB) has issued its first digital green bond on a blockchain-based platform developed by SEB and Credit Agricole.

23 June 2023

News/crypto

US asset managers apply to SEC for bitcoin ETFs

The ongoing effort to persuade the SEC to approve crypto investment products continues, following news that many of the country’s largest asset managers, BlackRock, WisdomTree and Invesco, have applied to the SEC for permission to launch a spot bitcoin ETF.

22 June 2023

News/sustainable

EBAday: Banks are seeking new approaches to level up sustainable strategies

In the panel ‘Sustainable finance: Assessing shades of green across payments and banking’, hosted by Finextra’s own Madhvi Mavadiya, speakers explored how the European banking landscape is adopting sustainable strategies.

22 June 2023

News/inclusion

Majority of consumers trust generative AI for financial planning

The majority (53%) of consumers trust generative AI technology to be used for its financial planning, suggests recently published research.

20 June 2023

News/crypto

BIS and Bank of England complete CBDC project

A pilot project involving central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) jointly run by the Bank of England (BoE) and the Bank of International Settlements (BIS).

16 June 2023