The World Federation of Exchanges (“The WFE”), the global industry group for exchanges and CCPs, has agreed its 2018 business priorities will focus on areas including regulatory coherence; CCP recovery & resolution issues; cyber security; FinTech; and SMEs. 

Europe’s first international Blockchain Centre launched its operations in Vilnius - the capital of Lithuania - on 27th January, 2018.  The launch attracted entrepreneurs, investors, key decision-makers and experts from around the world.  It is the first facility of its kind on the continent.  The global network of Blockchain Centres includes Melbourne, Shanghai, and now, Vilnius.  It is a not-for-profit knowledge-hub, co-working space and incubator for blockchain technology companies. 

From IoT to peer-to-peer offerings, the PPRO Group - specialists in cross-border electronic payments - have predicted key online payment trends for the year ahead. With digitisation in the world of payments progressing by leaps and bounds, the following seven developments are expected to make waves in 2018.

Internet of Payments

Today Cisco announced the completion of its acquisition of BroadSoft. BroadSoft accelerates Cisco's cloud strategy and collaboration portfolio by adding the industry's leading cloud calling and contact center solutions to Cisco's leading calling, meetings, messaging, customer care, hardware endpoints and services portfolio.

Alipay, the world’s largest mobile payment and lifestyle platform, operated by Ant Financial Services Group, today announced that a group of Chinese travelers have concluded the first ever cashless journey to Finland, with all transactions throughout their trip made via their Alipay accounts.

For many of the 68 million workers in the gig and sharing economy in the United States, waiting for a distant payday is a luxury they can’t afford. They have urgent expenses that require payment for their services now.

Thanks to advanced technologies, we now have natural language robotics and facial recognition that can measure and match unique characteristics for the purposes of authentication and identification. With personalised assistance machines, we are more able to detect, prevent and deal with various threats on society.  In the digital world, facial biometrics have the potential to be integrated anywhere you can find a camera.  This is what we can expect to have next on our mobile phones.

As part of the LHoFT delegation at the Paris Fintech Forum held on January 30 & 31 at the former stock exchange in the very heart of Paris in Palais Brongniart, the Luxembourg House of Financial Technology Foundation (LHoFT) is pleased to announce the signature of a new Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Belgian Fintech hub B-Hive on Tuesday, 30 January. 

The Agency for Housing Mortgage Lending («AHML») and Tinkoff Bank have signed an agreement to set up a joint venture to offer mortgage lending on a special electronic platform. The agreement was signed by Alexander Plutnik, CEO of AHML, and Oleg Tinkov, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Tinkoff Bank.

EBC Foundation, the company behind the blockchain Fintech project EBCoin, officially announced that they will launch a new cryptocurrency trading exchange based in Japan.