Between November 2016 and November 2017, Bitcoin saw its market-cap increase by 1034% to a record breaking value of $128,982,906,067 on coinmarketcap.com. November 2017 also saw Bitcoin hit a new all-time high against the British Pound and US Dollar, with xe.com valuing a single bitcoin at £5889.18 and $7720.66 respectively.

With bitcoin’s market expanding, value increasing, and its near-global adoption favoured for its decentralised system, it’s no wonder that more people are looking to earn, spend, and even gamble with the cryptocurrency.

KnowBe4, Inc., the provider of the world’s most popular security awareness training and simulated phishing platform, shares an insider’s perspective of cybersecurity trends to expect in 2018. The list of six predictions are founded on the company’s deep insight into threats that organisations experience today and should expect tomorrow.

BNP Paribas, a leading European provider of banking and financial services, and GTS,  a New York-based global electronic market maker, today announced a strategic collaboration marking a new era for banks and electronic market makers.  This collaboration will enable BNP Paribas to leverage GTS' trading and technology capabilities with the goal of providing BNP Paribas's clients with deeper liquidity, tighter spreads and further improved pricing in the US Treasuries secondary market.  

Financial firms and their senior management teams currently face an uphill battle to be ready for the vast overhaul of European market rules that come into force on January 3^rd with MiFID II. 

Research from leading communication technology business, TeleWare, reveals that seven in ten (71%) financial firms impacted by the directive are upgrading current IT infrastructure to improve business efficiency. Nearly two thirds, (66%) have invested in people training and almost half (47%) are recruiting new members of staff.

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 New research from Celent (commissioned by Finastra) which examines the future transformation of capital markets, identifies six key drivers of change over the next five years to 2022:

 Xpress Money, one of the most dependable money transfer brands in the world, has announced a strategic partnership with Travelex, a leading global expert in foreign exchange and cross-border international payment solutions, to provide instant global money transfers in its physical stores. With over 100 Travelex locations, including ones at prominent airports, the new partnership means that Xpress Money can expand its operations and customer base in the UK.

 Workday, Inc. (NASDAQ: WDAY), a leader in enterprise cloud applications for finance and human resources, today announced extended capabilities and tools delivered through a single, intuitive user interface to help organisations create a more connected and engaging digital experience for their people.

UK insurtech and pioneering brand Guevara announced in September that it had closed down, creating a shockwave and offering lessons to be learned for innovative insurance propositions, particularly those built on a peer-to-peer model, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company.

This week is International Fraud Awareness Week, an initiative designed to highlight the impact fraud has on society and boost awareness and understanding of how to spot and prevent fraudsters. And with fraud on the rise, it’s never been more relevant.

Demonstrating its commitment to deliver a comprehensive suite of solutions to assist the financial services industry in complying with impending January 3, 2018, MiFID II reference-data requirements, Thomson Reuters has enhanced its reference-data capabilities, available on its integrated data and analytics delivery platform, DataScope.