EDM Council, a cross-industry trade association for data management and analytics, has released its first research report providing first-hand insights and recommendations for implementing best practices related to environmental, social and governance (ESG) data management for corporate reporting entities.

The report takes a close look at:

• Data management challenges firms face with reporting and disclosure of ESG data

• Who’s responsible and accountable for ESG reporting

• Data management plans and strategies to support ESG reporting

• ESG data quality related to direct and indirect data sources

• Data management capabilities related to internal and external audit and assurance

ESG reporting is still in the early stages as standards and regulations develop and evolve. ESG reporting provides important information about a company’s performance, risks, and overall strategy, and the resulting data is used by multiple stakeholders across the ESG Ecosystem, including investors, asset owners, regulators, customers, suppliers, and employees. The focus on ESG, including carbon emissions, biodiversity, water consumption, employee health and safety, gender diversity, wage equality, child labor, and culture and ethics, creates a unique set of challenges due to the complexities associated with the underlying data, and the management of this data.

This paper was developed by the EDM Council’s ESG Workgroup, which was formed in 2020 to investigate current data challenges across the ESG Ecosystem. The Workgroup approached the exercise by looking at the problem through the lens of a data professional in each constituent group –Corporate Reporting Entity, Data Aggregator/Research/Rating firm, Investment/Product Creation firm, and Asset Owner. 

“Everyone is trying to understand how to incorporate ESG principles into their organizations’ strategies and use ESG data throughout the ESG Ecosystem. Data is the glue that connects everything. As a result, ESG data and data management are critical to all constituents and it’s still in the early stages of development,” said Eric Bigelsen, EDM Council Head of Industry Engagement and Head of the ESG Workgroup. “This paper examines considerations such as data reporting preparations, where data responsibility lies, and specific advice from our ESG Workgroup on key steps to enhance ESG best practices within any organization.”

This EDM Council ESG Corporate Reporting Entities paper is the first part in a series of papers that will contain the results of a nine-month study detailing ESG data challenges and recommendations. The report incorporates input from data professionals across multiple industries, corporate sustainability reporting professionals, ESG subject matter experts, and other business leaders in an effort that spans over 80 participating organizations and over 150 professionals. 

For more information and to download the full EDM Council ESG Corporate Reporting Entities report, please visit: https://app.smartsheet.com/b/form/45e8fb7e57844ff5bb39098733818e70 

PCI Pal the global provider of cloud-based secure payment solutions, has today announced that the leading European Contact Centre as a Service (CCaaS) provider, Puzzel, has extended its reseller partnership agreement to include PCI Pal’s Digital and IVR payment security solutions to its portfolio.

Having originally joined PCI Pal’s partnership program in 2018, Puzzel incorporated the flagship PCI Pal Agent Assist solution into its overall contact centre portfolio to offer a PCI compliance telephone-based payment security solution to customers.  Since then, Puzzel has successfully implemented Agent Assist into multiple customer infrastructures, including Business Growth and Lifeplus.  

Following this success, Puzzel has now added PCI Pal’s full complement of products to its portfolio. The team is now able to help customers handle payments across multiple engagement channels, including telephone, email, SMS, social media, webchat, or via automated IVR solutions, supporting customers’ omnichannel strategies.

Darren Gill, Chief Revenue Officer for PCI Pal said, “We are delighted that Puzzel has extended its partnership agreement to now offer organisations secure payment solutions that support a true omnichannel approach. In addition to our Agent Assist solution for telephone-based payment security, Puzzel has now incorporated our IVR and Digital solutions to its extensive portfolio to secure payments, no matter what communications channel is used.”

Acknowledging the extension of the partnership agreement, Rob Wiles, Director of Channel Partnerships, Puzzel said, “The PCI Pal suite has been extremely well received by our customers who need a seamless, cloud-based solution that can be integrated with existing payment service providers, gateways and CRM solutions. The PCI Pal solution never fails to deliver, and the service we receive from the team is excellent; extending our partnership to add IVR and Digital means we have a fully comprehensive portfolio that complements our customers’ increasing omnichannel payment security needs.”

For more information regarding the PCI Pal Partner Program, visit www.pcipal.com/why-us/partners-integrations/.

• In Q3 2021, worldwide downloads of the top 5 cryptocurrency apps reached a total of 46M downloads on iOS and Google Play (an increase of 75% year-over-year), highlighting growing consumer interest.
• PayPal held the #1 spot in worldwide downloads in the United Kingdom.
• In fact, based on an analysis of fourteen global regions, PayPal held the #1 spot in worldwide downloads in all regions except for India, Russia, and South Korea.
• Although PayPal offers traditional payment features, what makes it attractive is its ability to allow users to explore curated deals and buy, sell, and even check out with cryptocurrency such as Bitcoin (which recently reached record highs) without leaving the app.
• As digital currencies increase in value, we’ve also seen greater interest in buying and selling accentuated by the growth of digital exchanges highlighted by increasing time spent in-app.
• Binance, the world’s number one cryptocurrency exchange by trading volume, saw a 25% growth in average total time spent per user year-over-year in Q3 2021, while DMM Bitcoin, an APAC cryptocurrency exchange, saw a 280% growth over the same time period.
• As crypto currency becomes more mainstream, we’ll likely see more fintech apps tap into crypto capabilities to compete on mobile.

Consortium will aim to establish new methods of economic and statistical analyses, moving beyond GDP and addressing wider societal challenges

A new research consortium, or Chair, exploring ‘Economic Measurement beyond GDP’, has been created at the Paris School of Economics (PSE). The Chair aims to enhance the methods used for economic statistics—particularly by promoting the use of new data sources and the development of real-time forecasting tools, also known as nowcasting.

The research consortium brings together five organisations—the Paris School of Economics, AI and big data specialist QuantCube Technology, Société Générale, the French National institute of Statistics and Economic Studies (INSEE) and asset management firm CANDIRAM. It aims to continue the initiative led by the Stiglitz Commission to enhance the statistical measurement of economic performance and society’s well-being, beyond GDP.

To achieve the Chair’s aims, partner organisations will share knowledge and resources to:

• Promote new data sources for the development of short-term economic forecasting (nowcasting) tools, moving beyond GDP.
• Understand how statistics can be used to deliver insights beyond economic projections, such as assisting in meeting national sustainability targets and other societal challenges.
• Bring together researchers and experts from across the globe, encouraging the exchange of ideas through seminars, training sessions and major conferences, as well as fund doctoral and postdoctoral grants in relevant fields of study.

Speaking of its involvement with the Chair, QuantCube Technolgies’ CEO and co-founder, Thanh-Long Huynh said: “QuantCube is honoured to participate in the ‘Economic measurement beyond GDP’ research programme in partnership with the Paris School of Economics, INSEE, Candriam and Société Générale. For some time now, eminent economists across the globe have argued that we need to measure economic value and well-being beyond the production of goods and services, to incorporate social factors such as public services, people’s living standards and long-term sustainability. Until now such information has only been available sporadically and there is no agreed standard for what should be measured.”

In close collaboration with its consortium partners, QuantCube Technologies will use its cutting-edge AI and big data analytics tools and expertise to uncover new methods of economic analyses.

“QuantCube is using AI and big data analytics to collect and process huge volumes of relevant data, creating timely nowcasting indicators that can be evaluated by the research team. Long term we aim to collectively agree and standardise on an approach for measuring economic value beyond GDP,” Huynh, said.

Jean-Oliver Hairault, Director, Paris School of Economics, said: “With this Chair, the Paris School of Economics reaffirms its commitment to a quantified approach to economics, and its desire to be involved in the major challenges facing society. The conception of economic and social statistics must evolve in order to have real time data, particularly useful in times of crisis, and richer data to open up new fields of analysis, first and foremost that of the environmental transition. PSE is delighted to be able to gather around this project partners whose expertise and support will greatly contribute to the advancement of knowledge in concert with our researchers.”

Mojo Mortgages has announced it will be relocating its head office to Manchester city center as the business enters its next phase of growth.

The online mortgage broker, based in Macclesfield prior to the pandemic, has been operating as a remote-first business over the past 18 months with new members of staff joining the team from across the UK. The new office will provide a hub for staff to collaborate and provide a space for those who wish to work from an office when desired.

Based out of Manchester’s WeWork at Dalton Place, the permanent office will play a critical role in the company’s growth plans in the North West following the announcement it is to be acquired by RVU, owners of Uswitch, Confused.com, and money.co.uk. 

Richard Hayes, CEO, and co-founder of Mojo Mortgages, said:

“We are delighted to be opening a permanent office in our new home in the heart of Manchester. The city is a real hub of talent - particularly in the fintech and software space - which will be crucial to the continued growth of Mojo over the next few years. 

“This move reaffirms our commitment to the North West which has served us so well since the business launched in 2017 and we’re excited to welcome our staff - old and new - back to the office to collaborate and catch up in person whenever they would like.

“Our marketplace for mortgages has changed significantly as a result of the pandemic with more people than ever before seeking mortgage advice online and as part of our growth plans, we will be looking to add more over the next few years.”

Technology increases the amount and quality of data that can be efficiently and cost-effectively obtained from a small DNA sample

Manufacturing of the first product from a new technology platform is underway with expected commercial availability in early 2022; early access programs with renowned research institutions are ongoing  

Cambridge Epigenetix (CEGX), a life sciences tools and technology company revolutionizing genome sequencing, today announced the signing of an $88 million Series D financing, bringing the total funds raised to date to $146 million. Temasek led the Series D round with participation from new investors including Third Point and existing investors such as GV, New Science Ventures, Ahren Innovation Capital and Sequoia.

Proceeds from the financing will be used to commercialize the company’s proprietary genetic and epigenetic sequencing technology, which easily integrates into existing sequencing platforms to enable more information to be read from DNA. The technology has been validated by leading genomic research institutions of which several, including Professor Dennis Lo of The Chinese University of Hong Kong, and Professor Wolf Reik of the Babraham Institute, have continued using the technology through early access programs.

Professor Sir Shankar Balasubramanian FRS, founder of Cambridge Epigenetix, said, “We are pleased to have raised a significant Series D round from high-profile investors to support the commercial launch of the first product from our new multi-omic platform, and the expansion of our organization. Importantly, our sequencing technology works with all sequencers and enhances their accuracy as opposed to replacing or competing with them. Further, our technology has the potential to dramatically reduce the cost of genome sequencing, as the low sample requirement and streamlined workflow facilitate its cost-effectiveness and ease of use without sacrificing accuracy. We look forward to product and to making game-changing contributions to DNA sequencing, epigenomic research and precision medicine.”

CEGX’s product unambiguously identifies five letters of DNA – four genetic bases (A-T-C-G) plus methylated cytosine (5mC or 5hmC) – in a single sequencing workflow with a low DNA sample requirement and high accuracy. Epigenetic marks are a vital source of biological information that will enable the next generation of diagnostics such as those for early cancer detection. The laboratory component of CEGX’s product is in manufacture and these kits, combined with software, are expected to be available for purchase in early 2022. This will be followed by the launch of additional platform products, the next being a 6-letter kit.

Eventus Systems, Inc., a leading global provider of multi-asset class trade surveillance and market risk solutions, and Tradovate, a leading online brokerage firm for active, self-directed futures traders, announced that Tradovate has deployed the Eventus Validus platform for trade surveillance.

Rick Tomsic, Founder & CEO of Tradovate Holdings, LLC, said: “We love the Validus platform. It’s been a great tool for us to help our trade desk identify and drill down into any potential trade irregularities. The combination of pre-built surveillance procedures, with reports and protocols we can customize based on our needs and client base, is extremely powerful. Validus gives us the ability to dive deeply into any suspicious or unusual order flow activity at a very granular, detailed level, giving us comfort both from a trade desk and compliance standpoint.”

Tomsic said that the firm uses Validus to monitor more than 2.5 million orders per month to identify patterns or dangerous activity within the order flow, as well as to meet certain operational requirements, such as monitoring and ensuring the proper use of regulatory tags.

Eventus CEO Travis Schwab said: “Firms like Tradovate with extensive retail activity appreciate the ability to rapidly follow up and explore any unusual order flow patterns. This is a great example of how our platform can be used not only by compliance and regulatory teams but by front-office supervisors. We commend the firm for going above and beyond what’s required in order to stay ahead of any potential issues and leverage the many capabilities Validus has to offer.”

Tradovate Trade Desk Manager Terry Nelligan said: “Eventus does a great job of offering views that make it easy to visualize the market with respect to customer orders. We’re able to find suspicious patterns within a single client account or those that may emerge between multiple clients. Validus makes it simple, easy, and intuitive, providing a visual representation of activity for the period when an alert is triggered that goes beyond what we would be able to monitor on our own. Eventus does a great job of understanding our goals and then helping us customize the platform to implement that.”

Validus employs a multi-step approach to alert classification by first casting a wide net to ensure that all potential or near-miss alerts are considered, followed by machine learning and robotic process automation to go deep into each alert and identify market behavior that could lead to regulatory or reputational consequences. The platform's visualizations and flexibility allow front-office supervisors to quickly and efficiently detect problematic behavior.

A safer, more secure and private way to pay with iPhone and Apple Watch.

Arbuthnot Latham & Co., Limited, the private and commercial bank, today brings its clients Apple Pay, a safer, more secure and private way to pay that helps clients avoid handing their payment card to someone else, touching physical buttons or exchanging cash — and uses the power of iPhone to protect every transaction.

Clients simply hold their iPhone or Apple Watch near a payment terminal to make a contactless payment. Every Apple Pay purchase is secure because it is authenticated with Face ID, Touch ID, or device passcode, as well as a one-time unique dynamic security code. Apple Pay is accepted in grocery stores, pharmacies, taxis, restaurants, coffee shops, retail stores, and many more places.

Clients can also use Apple Pay on iPhone, iPad, and Mac to make faster and more convenient purchases in apps or on the web in Safari without having to create accounts or repeatedly type in shipping and billing information. Apple Pay makes it easier to pay for food and grocery deliveries, online shopping, transportation, and parking, among other things. Apple Pay can also be used to make payments in apps on Apple Watch.

Security and privacy are at the core of Apple Pay. When clients use a credit or debit card with Apple Pay, the actual card numbers are not stored on the device, nor on Apple servers. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is assigned, encrypted, and securely stored in the Secure Element, an industry-standard, certified chip designed to store the payment information safely on the device.

Apple Pay is easy to set up. On iPhone, simply open the Wallet app, tap +, and follow the steps to add Arbuthnot Latham’s credit or debit cards. Once a client adds a card to iPhone, Apple Watch, iPad, and Mac, they can start using Apple Pay on that device right away.

For more information on Apple Pay, visit: https://www.apple.com/uk/apple-pay/

For more information on Arbuthnot Latham, please visit https://www.arbuthnotlatham.co.uk/

Logiq, Inc. (OTCQX: LGIQ, NEO: LGIQ), a global provider of award-winning customer acquisition solutions, announced its board of directors has approved a plan to separate its DataLogiq and AppLogiq businesses into two independent publicly traded companies.

Following a strategic review of the company's growth strategies and structure, the board determined that creating two standalone businesses would best position DataLogiq and AppLogiq to capitalize on their respective growth opportunities in the rapidly evolving global e-commerce and fintech landscape, and would be the best path to creating shareholder value.

The plan calls for the AppLogiq business to be acquired by another existing or newly formed publicly traded company. The AppLogiq segment includes mobile e-commerce solutions, a recently announced mobile fintech platform for microlending, and the company’s beneficial stake in PT Weyland Indonesia Perkasa (WIP). WIP is the operator of the AtozGo™ food delivery service and AtozPay™ mobile e-wallet.

The separation of the two businesses is expected to result in shareholders of Logiq receiving shares in the company that acquires the AppLogiq business upon consummation of the transaction. However, the final structuring of the transaction remains subject to execution of definitive agreements and may change, as well as to subject to satisfaction of market, regulatory and other customary closing conditions.

“We believe separating AppLogiq and DataLogiq into two ‘pure-play’ publicly-traded companies would unlock additional value for our shareholders,” stated Brent Suen, president of Logiq. “As independent companies, each would have a sharper focus and greater flexibility to pursue M&A opportunities in their respective markets for e-commerce in the U.S. and fintech markets in Southeast Asia.

“We see this also enabling considerably higher peer valuations compared to where Logiq is at today with AppLogiq and DataLogiq combined. As one analyst recently pointed out, for Logiq, ‘the sum of the parts is greater than the whole.’ Based on comparable public market valuations and private equity funding for companies in the emerging markets fintech sector, it would imply that AppLogiq’s standalone valuation could justify $100 million.”

There are several companies that Logiq has partnered with in emerging markets that are currently reviewing a potential acquisition of, or merger with, AppLogiq. Such a transaction could form a substantial platform for digital services to be offered in high-growth emerging markets.

Logiq recently announced engaging a leading U.S. investment bank, The Benchmark Company, to assist Logiq with this transaction and potentially others. Logiq plans to complete the separation before the end of the year, subject to customary conditions and approvals.