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

Securrency raises $30m

Securrency, Inc., a leading developer of institutional-grade blockchain-based financial and regulatory technology, has announced that it has raised USD $30 million in its Series B funding round, with participation by WisdomTree Investments, Abu Dhabi Catalyst Partners Limited (ADCP), State Street, and U.S. Bank, among other investors.

26 April 2021

Company update/regulation

Blockchain outfit Paxos scores provisional trust charter

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) today announced preliminary conditional approval of the application to charter Paxos National Trust, New York.

23 April 2021

Company update/startups

ZTLment joins Danish FSA regulatory sandbox

ZTLment, a fintech company enabling cross-border trade between SMEs via programmable money, announces that it joins the regulatory sandbox of the Danish Financial Supervisory Authority (Danish FSA) as the first company in 2021.

22 April 2021

Company update/wholesale

DBS Bank and Contour broaden digital trade offerings to four new markets in Asia-Pacific

To further push the digitalisation of trade finance in major trade hubs in the region, DBS Bank has expanded its offerings on Contour’s rapidly growing trade finance network to corporate customers in four key markets in the Asia-Pacific region (APAC).

22 April 2021

Company update/wholesale

R3 Development Fund invests first $10 million in over 20 start-ups

Global enterprise software firm R3’s Development Fund has reached the milestone of USD 10 million in capital deployed across over 30 investments in more than 20 of the most promising early-stage blockchain and confidential computing companies.

21 April 2021

News/wholesale

Digital Asset raises $120m

Digital Asset has raised over $120 million in Series D funding to expand its Daml data network, which is used by a host of FS giants to transform disparate data silos into synchronised networks.

21 April 2021

News/sustainable

Stacs raises $3.6m for DLT-based ESG tech

Hashstacs (Stacs), a Singaporean startup using DLT to help financial institutions meet their Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) needs, has raised US$3.6 million in pre-Series A funding.

21 April 2021

Company update/Blockchain

Blockchain-based savings community app crowned in Finastra’s Hack to the Future

Finastra has announced the winner of its recent hackathon - Hack to the Future 3.

20 April 2021

Company update/crypto

Circle picks Signature Bank for USDC integration

Circle, a global financial technology firm that provides payments and treasury infrastructure for digital businesses announced today that Signature Bank (Nasdaq: SBNY), a New York-based, full service commercial bank, will become their leading financial institution to hold billions of dollars in reserve deposits related to USD Coin (USDC), the fastest growing digital dollar in the world.

19 April 2021

News/retail

Open Bank Project and API3 partner to unite banking and the blockchain

Open Bank Project (OBP) has formed a partnership with the API3 Foundation to deliver banking and open banking data oracles to the decentralised web.

19 April 2021

News/wholesale

Rishi Sunak announces UK Treasury and BofE fintech taskforce to explore CBDC

Chancellor of the exchequer Rishi Sunak announced today the launch of new fintech taskforce to “coordinate exploratory work on a potential central bank digital currency,” led by the UK Treasury and Bank of England.

19 April 2021

News/payments

JP Morgan uses blockchain to improve global transfers

JP Morgan is working with a group of Taiwan banks to test the use of blockchain technology to improve global funds transfers.

16 April 2021

News/crypto

SocGen issues structured product as security token on public blockchain

Societe Generale has issued the first structured product as a security token directly registered on the Tezos public blockchain.

15 April 2021

Company update/retail

Bankhaus von der Heydt fuels blockchain and crypto business growth with Appian

Appian (NASDAQ: APPN) today announced that Bankhaus von der Heydt is using Appian to automate back-office operations and grow its banking business through new FinTech offerings.

15 April 2021

Company update/wholesale

Emirates NBD's E20. partners with MoniMove to support supply chain management for SMEs

Emirates NBD, a leading banking group in the MENAT (Middle East, North Africa and Turkey) region, is partnering with award winning fintech platform MoniMove to complement the bank's E20. digital business bank initiative that aims to empower entrepreneurs, startups, SMEs and other businesses in the UAE.

14 April 2021

Company update/crypto

Shinhan Bank joins Hedera Governing Council

Shinhan Bank (KRX: 055550), the leading bank in South Korea, has joined the Hedera Governing Council, the body that oversees distributed governance of the Hedera network.

14 April 2021

News/markets

Nyse launches 'First Trade' NFTs

The New York Stock Exchange is joining the NFT craze, launching a series of collectibles that commemorate the first time six major companies were traded publicly.

14 April 2021

News/crypto

FS giants join $65m ConsenSys funding round

JP Morgan, Mastercard and UBS have joined a $65 million funding round for blockchain software engineering firm ConsenSys.

13 April 2021

Company update/wholesale

VTB to set up blockchain centre of excellence

VTB Bank, together with other members of the Russian Fintech Association, has become the founder of a blockchain operator that will develop distributed ledger technology in Russia.

13 April 2021

News/markets

Interoperability crucial for DLT in post-trade processes - ECB

Market participants working on the use of DLT in post-trade processes need to ensure interoperability if the technology is to succeed, according to a European Central Bank report.

13 April 2021