The Payments Council reported its latest dashboard for the new Current Account Switch Service, covering the first full 12-month period from the start of October 2013 to the end of September 2014. 

More than two-thirds of people (69%) in the UK are now aware of the Current Account Switch Service - up from 60% in October 2013. Customer confidence in the new service is similarly high, increasing slightly from 61% to 62% over the same time period.

Nasdaq  (Nasdaq: NDAQ) has announced that the trading in Global Warning System Production AB (shortname: GWS) shares commenced on First North at Nasdaq Stockholm. Global Warning System belongs to the Technology sector and is the 33rd company to be admitted to trading on First North’s Nordic markets (Stockholm, Helsinki, Copenhagen and Iceland) in 2014.

The automation of IT processes is a crucial factor in the success of future technologies and trends such as big data and cloud services, according to new research released by Automic. Looking at technologies and trends including big data, cloud services, mobile applications and consumerisation of IT, the findings reveal that across the board middle managers consider IT Automation to be more important than other groups.

Neonet, the independent agency broker and execution specialist, has announced that it is providing access for clients to Aquis Exchange, the subscription-based European equities exchange.

“We are very pleased to welcome Neonet as a new Member of Aquis Exchange,” said Graham Dick, Head of Sales & CRM at Aquis Exchange. “Neonet is the latest addition to Aquis’s growing list of participants, who are attracted by our unique subscription pricing model and innovative new products.”

As an operator of financial market infrastructure, SIX supports the intention of the Federal Council to regulate financial market infrastructure and derivatives trading through a law. SIX recognizes that the legislation proposed at the beginning of September is pragmatic and feasible, and that it is largely based on international standards.

MasterCard and Visa has recently released the technical specifications for tokenization. Tokenization is the next generation security for mobile cloud based payments and other secure mobile services.

The market size and app richness in the new payments area begs the question, where is this all going? And what should the perfect payment solution of the future look like? In this final part of the blog series I look at issues that should be addressed to fast-forward the way we conduct payments.

Hermes Investment Management has selected Calastone, the global funds transaction network, for their global order routing services. 

Hermes has chosen Calastone’s global transaction network for their UCITS fund range in UK, Europe and Asia, enabling them to reach wider distribution channels through electronically automated STP.

Dion Global Solutions (Dion) (BSE: 526927), technology partner to the financial services industry, has launched a new module within its NOVA suite to support the Shanghai – Hong Kong Stock Connect scheme.

With just three months until UK GAAP is dramatically altered, IRIS Software is warning accountants to act quickly or risk failing their clients.

UK GAAP is being brought into alignment with the International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS) and has been designed as a global language for businesses to simplify and modernise financial reporting. This comes into effect for accounting periods commencing on or after 1 January 2015, when FRS 101 and FRS 102 compliance will be a legal requirement.