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

Asset manager launches metaverse fund

Invesco, a global asset manager with $1.6 trillion of assets under management, has launched an investment fund focused on the metaverse.

22 August 2022

News/startups

Emirates NBD to run metaverse startup accelerator

Emirates NBD, in partnership with the Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) Fintech Hive and Microsoft, is to run an accelerator programme for metaverse startups.

18 August 2022

News/crypto

Cryptoassets in the metaverse could cause systemic risk - BofE

If an open and decentralised metaverse grows, the risks from cryptoassets may scale to have systemic financial stability consequences, say a pair of Bank of England wonks.

10 August 2022

News/crypto

Standard Chartered-backed Zodia Market secures FCA registration

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has approved crypto brokerage Zodia Market’s registration application on the UK Financial Services Register, allowing the Standard Chartered-backed business to officially launch.

28 July 2022

News/startups

Santander to hold awards ceremony in metaverse

Santander will host an awards ceremony in the metaverse this week to crown the winners of a global blockchain challenge.

12 July 2022

News/crypto

Meta to shut down Novi wallet

Meta is officially closing all accounts on its digital wallet, Novi.

04 July 2022

News/inclusion

Mastercard’s The Belle Block to empower women and non-binary to use Web 3.0

Mastercard brings inclusivity to the forefront by announcing the launch of The Belle Block, an industry group to focus on empowering women and non-binary individuals to use Web 3.0 technology and cryptocurrency.

24 June 2022

News/startups

Italy's Sella launches metaverse accelerator programme

Italian banking group Sella has launched an acceleration programme dedicated to startups focused on finance in the metaverse.

21 June 2022

News/retail

CaixaBank and Microsoft explore the metaverse

Spain's CaixaBank is teaming up with Microsoft on an AI innovation laboratory that will, among other things, focus on building a work environment in the metaverse.

13 June 2022

News/payments

Mastercard partners NFT marketplaces on card purchases

Mastercard is working with a host of non-fungible token marketplaces to make it easy for people to buy NFTs with their cards.

10 June 2022

News/payments

EBAday 2022: 71% believe the future of payments is yet to come

After two years as a virtual conference, EBAday 2022 is back in person for its seventeenth year in Vienna, Austria. The EBA and Finextra Research welcomed a host of board directors, chief executive officers, and payments and technology heads from Europe's leading banks, as well as selected fintechs to the conference.

31 May 2022

News/payments

Worldline establishes metaverse showroom

Worldline has entered the metaverse with the launch of a dedicated virtual showroom to help merchants bridge the gap between virtual and real worlds for commerce scenarios.

31 May 2022

News/wholesale

JPMorgan Summer Reading List arrives in the metaverse

JPMorgan has made its annual Summer Reading List available for perusal in a metaverse library.

27 May 2022

News/retail

Quontic Bank opens metaverse outpost

US digital bank Quontic has opened an outpost in the metaverse, "to connect with customers, offer education, and eventually - as the virtual world evolves - offer banking services".

19 May 2022

News/retail

Instagram starts testing NFTs

Instagram will start testing digital collectables this week, enabling creators and collectors to display their non-fungible tokens on their profiles.

09 May 2022

News/crypto

Vatican announces metaverse plans

The Vatican has announced its plans to enter the metaverse through a strategic partnership with tech company Sensorium.

05 May 2022

News/startups

Santander launches global blockchain challenge

Banco Santander and Oxentia Foundation are inviting startups and scaleups from 11 countries to compete in a blockchain challenge and the chance to win cash prizes.

29 April 2022

News/markets

Fidelity brings gamified education to the metaverse

Fidelity Investments has entered the metaverse, launching a gamified financial education experience in Decentraland.

27 April 2022

News/wholesale

Standard Chartered leaps into the metaverse

Standard Chartered has acquired a virtual plot of land at The Sandbox metaverse’s Mega City district, a culture hub inspired by Hong Kong creative artists.

25 April 2022

News/crypto

Mastercard lists trademarks in the metaverse

Mastercard has filed 15 NFT and metaverse trademark applications as part of a wide-ranging plan to extend its payment processing system, slogans and branding into the new virtual economy.

12 April 2022

Metaverse