Few deals drive FinTech volumes, record number of mid-market M&A transactions, but European capital markets remain elusive for FinTech

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The banking sector faces a moment of reckoning. Bitcoin is legal tender in El Salvador and accepted at outlets from Home Depot to Starbucks. Traditional banks face growing competition from specialists, digital challengers and non-bank brands. Branches are a thing of the past.

For banking management, this is much more than just a shift in market dynamics. The digitization forces currently at work threaten the very foundations of our finance and economy, creating the need for new modes of banking innovation, monetary policy and financial inclusion.

Steffen Vollert, Co-Founder & CTO at Volt,

“With at least 135m contactless cards in circulation and the technology accounting for 9.6bn payments a year, there’s no doubt that the new contactless limit brings new opportunities for many. Consumers will benefit from greater flexibility and convenience; merchants could see an increase in sales and operational efficiencies; payment service providers might experience an uptick in transaction volumes.

Susannah Streeter, senior investment and markets analyst, Hargreaves Lansdown

‘’Regulators have been tip-toeing round the crypto world, shouting out occasional warnings to the crowds of speculators, but we now have the firmest indication yet that they will soon be stepping in to break up the block party.

The Deputy Governor of the Bank of England Sir Jon Cunliffe clearly believes the speculation has reached such a level that a crypto time-bomb is now ticking, which could blow up in the face of the financial sector.

Historically, IT and tech infrastructure at banks has never been focused on the customer. The design underpinning these labyrinthine networks was centred on the delivery of distinct outputs and functions relating to different financial products. These individual products, whether they be credit cards, current accounts, mortgages or indeed any product relating to family life and responsible adulthood as we know it, were designed to be managed in siloes.

Russian Railways self-service terminals use advanced Smart Engines technologies to sell tickets for long-distance trains. The integration of the Smart ID Engine software product for passport scanning into terminals simplifies the routine procedure of manually entering passenger personal data and speeds up the ticket sales process.

- Three-quarters rely on traditional VPNs for remote access while a third also use zero trust as part of their remote access strategy

- Over half plan to reduce third party/contractor access to systems due to security risks

 Contis, the European leader in Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS), today announced it will be launching variable contactless limits for consumers, driving more flexibility, security, and payments possibilities for everyone.