• Xfers and SEBA Bank joint proposal among 15 finalists selected from over 300 applications globally 

• Proposal to be presented publicly at Singapore Fintech Festival in November 

• Selection builds on SEBA Bank’s successful CBDC experiment with the Banque de France in June 

SEBA Bank, a FINMA licenced Swiss Bank providing a seamless, secure, and easy-to-use bridge between digital and traditional assets, today announced together with Xfers, a Southeast Asia based payments leader holding a Major Payment Institution (MPI) license for e-money issuance, that they have been named among the 15 finalists for the Global Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) Challenge organised by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

Launched by the Monetary Authority of Singapore and in partnership with the International Monetary Fund, World Bank, Asian Development Bank, United Nations Capital Development Fund, United Nations High Commission for Refugees, United Nations Development Programme, and the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), the Global CBDC Challenge calls for FinTech companies, financial institutions and solution providers around the world to submit innovative retail CBDC solutions to enhance payment efficiencies and promote financial inclusion.

The joint proposal submitted by Xfers and SEBA Bank was shortlisted from over 300 applications representing over 50 countries and will be presented to the public and a panel of judges at the Singapore Fintech Festival on 08 November 2021. 

Aymeric Salley, Head of StraitsX, said, “We are delighted to be named finalists for the CBDC challenge by the MAS. We look forward to continuing leveraging our experience as Singapore’s first stablecoin issuer, and working closely with our partner, SEBA Bank, which comes with a wealth of expertise and practical experience in developing CBDCs, having just completed a CBDC experiment with Banque de France in June this year."

In June this year, SEBA Bank completed a successful CBDC experiment with the Banque de France, which demonstrated the capacity of distributed ledger technologies to communicate with the Eurosystem’s settlement platform TARGET2-Securities for the settlement of listed securities. This testing is an important contribution towards the development of an EU wide CBDC. 

Matthew Alexander, Head of Digital Corporate Finance & Asset Tokenisation SEBA Bank, commented, “We are thrilled to have been selected by the MAS for this CBDC challenge amongst such a prestigious group of institutions. We look forward to working with our partner Xfers and contributing both our Digital Asset capabilities and recent experience working with the Banque de France CBDC to support the MAS and the Singapore financial centre. At SEBA Bank, we are constantly striving for innovation in the development of digital currencies and digital asset infrastructure. This selection, alongside our partners Xfers, by MAS as a finalist in the CBDC challenge, is a significant validation of our innovation in the development of digital currencies, and builds on our work supporting the Banque de France in CBDC testing. The shortlisting by MAS is testament to SEBA Bank’s extensive network and operations in APAC, with the recent appointment of Sam Lin as APAC CEO, and headcount growth in our Singapore and Hong Kong hubs, further solidifying our presence in the region.” 

85’000 merchants in Switzerland can now conveniently offer crypto payments through seamless integration in the Worldline payment infrastructure powered by Bitcoin Suisse

Today Worldline and Bitcoin Suisse announce the go-live of their omnichannel crypto payment solution for the more than 85’000 Swiss merchants in the Worldline network. Now all merchants in Switzerland using the Worldline point-of-sale and e-commerce payment services can let their clients pay in Bitcoin and Ether as easily as with other traditional payment options.

As the largest and most popular cryptocurrency in the world, Bitcoin has gained wide interest in recent years. Now thanks to the collaboration between Worldline, the European leader in the payments and transactional services industry, and Bitcoin Suisse, the Swiss market leader in crypto-financial services, payments with cryptocurrencies become widely available for merchants and their customers in Switzerland.

The integrated service offered by Worldline and Bitcoin Suisse, named WL Crypto Payments, lets merchants accept Bitcoin and Ether as a payment option at the point-of-sale (POS) and in e-commerce. Merchants can easily download the WL Crypto Payments mobile app or conveniently install the Worldline payment plugin for their webshop. Clients paying with crypto may do so through their usual mobile crypto wallet application. Prices shown by the merchant in CHF, can be, upon selection by the customer, alternatively quoted in Bitcoin or Ether in real time, paid for with crypto, and get confirmed to the merchant instantly. WL Crypto Payments enables merchants to offer payments with cryptocurrencies without being exposed to volatility risks, as the crypto transaction is securely converted into Swiss Francs straight after payment confirmation. Merchants benefit further by settlement in Swiss Francs and pay-out processes bundled with other payment options, like credit cards.

The crypto payments collaboration between Worldline and Bitcoin Suisse was first announced in November 2019. The rollout to all Worldline merchants in Switzerland was preceded by a successful pilot program.

Worldline Switzerland CEO Marc Schluep commented: “The launch of cryptocurrencies acceptance at the POS in Switzerland is a great proof of our ambition: Worldline wants to bring tangible value to merchants across the globe and to facilitate smooth and modern payments in all the markets we operate in. We’re happy to collaborate with Bitcoin Suisse on this forward-looking project.”

Bitcoin Suisse CEO Dr. Arthur Vayloyan added: “This is a historic milestone for crypto adoption in Switzerland and beyond. It is a great pleasure working together with Worldline to bring user-friendly crypto payments to the market in Switzerland. This step proves once again that Switzerland is a leader in collaborative innovation and a pioneer in the crypto and blockchain industry.”

Video on simple payment in crypto currencies:  WL Crypto Payments

Expands Direct Market Solutions to cover 50% of global meetings – complementing its 100+ market coverage model, improves market voting deadlines and lowers overall costs to custodians

Broadridge Financial Solutions, Inc today announced the significant expansion of its Direct Market Solutions (DMS), a custodian focused local market “golden copy” event sourcing and vote execution service extension to Broadridge’s leading Global Proxy solution. The innovation in DMS services is across three areas:

-       Grows coverage to 20 key markets in 2021 (which represents the significant majority of client holdings and ~50% of global meetings) with more markets to follow in 2022 and 2023. This complements Broadridge’s existing leading voting solutions that already provide 100% coverage across 100+ markets

-       Improves market deadlines and extends voting windows by up to three days, allowing investors more time to make their elections

-       Reduces costs to custodians due to Broadridge’s ability to mutualise event sourcing and execution across the industry, and pass those savings to participating clients

DMS enables issuer market “golden copy” meeting information to be communicated to investors on the day of the meeting announcement, where required.  It also extends the voting window by up to 3 days for investors by removing market inefficiencies in the traditional voting process, allowing votes to be placed directly from the investor to the issuer or its agent in these markets. 

“Today’s announcement is part of our ongoing innovation to enable higher standards of corporate governance and investor stewardship,” said Demi Derem, GM, International Investor Communication Solutions at Broadridge. “Broadridge has long advocated and invested in more efficient and innovative local market models through its DMS service launched in 2015.  Shareholder Rights Directive II (SRD II) obligated European issuers to provide the market with “golden copy” machine readable issuer meeting information. Since SRD II was put into effect in September 2020, we have completed over 300 new retail and institutional client implementations and processed over 89,000 meetings for clients that trust in our global proxy credentials and ability to continually drive the market forward for the benefit of all participants.”

DMS markets covered in 2021 include Australia, Belgium, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Malaysia, Netherlands, New Zealand, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Spain, Switzerland, Taiwan, UK and US. 

With its track record of over 30 years leading the industry in voting-related managed services, Broadridge has the scale, global coverage, and the ability to provide an iron-clad, multi-lingual 24/7 client service solution that enables every vote to get to the right place at the right time. The investments involved in building this infrastructure are substantial, but Broadridge is deeply committed to making sure its clients always get the most advanced voting service possible.

• The latest launch is a further development on its partnership with Decision Tech following the successful rollout of its energy switching service
• The widening of Zopa’s marketplace offering shows its commitment to helping people get the most out of their money
• On average, people could save £276* by switching internet providers

Neobank Zopa has today launched a broadband comparison and switching service within its app. Free to use for anyone with the Zopa app, the new service will be offered alongside Zopa’s existing energy switching service, making it possible for customers to find even more of the best money-saving deals on the market.

As many people continue to work flexibly, heavily relying on broadband for both work and entertainment is now the norm and Brits are cautious when it comes to switching providers. A recent Which? survey** highlighted that one in five people said they’d never switched providers because they hadn’t been able to find a better deal. With internet speeds, reliability and price all to consider, it's understandable that switching takes time and consideration. However, MoneySuperMarket data has revealed that people could save £276* just by switching internet providers.

Zopa is now making it easier to find the right deal by launching a broadband comparison and switching service in its app. The tool enables app users to view internet speeds and prices all in one place in order to find the best deal for them in three minutes. This is the second partnership rollout between Decision Tech and Zopa, following the successful introduction of the energy switching service in the Zopa app earlier this year.

Clare Gambardella, Chief Customer Officer at Zopa said: “At Zopa, we want to help people improve their finances. Reducing monthly bills not only helps to save money but can also improve your credit score by increasing your disposable income. That’s why we have introduced money-saving services like Broadband switching in our app.  We hope this will help customers to spend just minutes comparing deals to find the best value for them” 

Anyone can use Zopa’s comparison switching service simply by downloading the Zopa app. The broadband switching service sits alongside a host of other free services within the Zopa app all built to help people improve their financial health. App users can also find Zopa’s energy switching service and its unique credit health tool Borrowing Power that gives users tangible ways to improve their credit score and find better Zopa loan rates. Since Borrowing Power was launched, more than 30% of customers have progressed their score. Other products from Zopa can also be found in the app, including its innovative credit card and personal loans product.

Against the backdrop of a very difficult year for all, Path Solutions has been honored with the ‘Best Islamic Technology Provider’ award at the Triple A Islamic Finance Awards 2021 organized by The Asset Publishing and Research Ltd.

The Asset Triple A Awards are Asia’s defining recognition for excellence in the financial services industry and represent the industry’s most prestigious awards for banking, finance, treasury and capital markets. The world’s largest awards programme has expanded year-on-year, reflecting unparalleled industry understanding and notable momentum in distinguishing best-in-class organizations.

Upon receiving the news, Mohammed Kateeb, the Group Chairman & CEO of Path Solutions quoted, “This prestigious accolade celebrates the resilience, strength, commitment and focus of our people at a particularly challenging time. While the pandemic has disrupted our lives in ways we could never have imagined, it has also forced industry stakeholders to think beyond their processes and strategies and adopt digital innovation in a more agile approach to improve the overall customer experience. Path Solutions has been the first provider of Islamic banking software with a customer-first approach, which made it thrive and differentiated itself amid industry disruption. Our objective is to ensure that we are always incorporating new technologies that improve customer experience, provide convenience as well as cutting-edge security, and deliver additional value to our clients”. 

To date, Path Solutions is the most awarded Islamic financial software provider at the Triple A Islamic Finance Awards. The company has won this category seven consecutive times.

Path Solutions is an industry-leading open banking solution provider that helps banks adapt successfully in a new era of digital and behavioral transformation. Additionally, it is the only AAOIFI-certified financial technology firm. Such a certification offers a clearly distinct advantage over its rivals.

The Asset Triple A Islamic Finance Awards 2021 premiere will be broadcasted live at 5:00 pm (HKT) on 15 September 2021 on TheAsset.com. The awards results have been published at www.TheAsset.com and will be published again in The Asset September 2021 issue.

Celent recognizes standout capabilities with awards for breadth of functionality, customer base and support

 Finastra has been named a leader in corporate digital banking platforms by Celent. Two reports, which cover North America and the rest of the world, recognize Finastra’s standout capabilities in this sector.

The reports, titled ‘Corporate Digital Banking Platforms: North America Edition’ & ‘Corporate Digital Banking Platforms: EMEA/APAC/LATAM Edition’, are aimed at banks looking to enhance their corporate digital banking offering and highlight Finastra as an attractive platform in this market. Finastra has excelled in the ‘Breadth of Functionality’ and ‘Customer Base and Support’ categories.

Patricia Hines, Head of Corporate Banking, Celent, said, “Banks looking to capture a greater share of the corporate banking wallet must think carefully about their investment decisions in order to ensure they meet their clients' unique demands for ease of use, flexibility, and convenience. […] Banks must vigorously analyze their corporate digital banking platform, the linchpin to effectively deliver a bank's products and services to its customers. Finastra’s solution has shown stand out capability to support banks as they embark on their digital transformation journeys.”

Veena Rao, Vice President, Fusion Corporate Channels, at Finastra said, “We are thrilled that a much-respected industry analyst house has recognized the success and potential of our corporate digital banking solution. The platform paves the way for step-by-step transformation, with standard APIs and a microservices approach that supports digital transformation. Moreover, connectivity with our FusionFabric.cloud development platform drives open innovation and co-creation of value-added solutions.”

Patricia Hines added, “Finastra is the only provider in this analysis that supports nearly every functionality attribute in the Celent taxonomy and the majority of digital channels, demonstrating notable breadth of functionality. Finastra also stood out in new deals over the past two years, number of clients on the latest software version, customer references, breadth of training types, and annual client conference.”

Finastra’s Fusion Corporate Channels solution delivers portal technology to unify trade, supply chain finance, cash, lending, and treasury services for corporate clients. More than 100 financial institutions and multinational corporations use the technology, benefitting from flexible, intuitive channel applications that can be delivered on demand, globally, and on any device.

Access the report extract here:

·       North America

·       Rest of World

Financial providers and banks now benefit from an end-to-end digital transformation solution 

Today, Ohpen and Yellowtail announce they have entered-into a long-term strategic partnership. Banks and financial providers across the Netherlands and Benelux region can now utilize Ohpen's modern digital retail banking platform combined with Yellowtail's smart data-driven front-end platform to give their customers innovative and personalized banking experiences. 

The collaboration spans across core financial products like mortgage, loans, savings, investments, and is already proving successful in the pension market for several large clients.  For these pension clients, Yellowtail offers smart data-driven pension portals where participants get insights into their pension and personal financial situation, while Ohpen takes care of the unit administration and portfolio management processes. This combination provides pension companies with communication, unit administration and investment perspectives related to portfolio management and personalized and real-time insights in participants’ pension performance. 

Ohpen acquired Davinci Group in September 2020 with the aim of strengthening its SaaS platform by adding a modern mortgage component to the platform and serving customers with all retail banking products. Davinci's consultancy and services organization was then resold by Ohpen to Yellowtail | Conclusion, which makes for a better strategic fit. 

Matthijs Mons, Managing Director Yellowtail | Conclusion adds: "The collaboration with Ohpen fits perfectly into our growth strategy. Yellowtail likes to work with strong, winning brands like Ohpen. Both sides complement each other very well. Ohpen has a particularly good future-oriented SaaS platform for the financial sector, and we are very good at implementing complex, domain-specific software. Especially when there is innovation at play. We look forward to further shaping the market together with Ohpen." 

Matthijs Aler, CEO of Ohpen provides further perspective: "Consumers demand financial transparency and better banking experiences making digital transformation projects crucial. To ensure both business- and consumer needs are exceeded, collaboration, deep domain knowledge and modern scalable technology are key. Yellowtail's proven track record, expertise and front-end technology perfectly complements Ohpen's platform technology and strategic vision.”  

Ixaris becomes a Nium business unit and will enable companies in the travel, media, marketing, and insurance sectors optimise billions of dollars in outbound payments  

Leading fintech acceleration platform Nium, today announced the completion of its acquisition of London-based, Ixaris, a leader in payments optimisation for the travel, media, marketing, and insurance sectors. Nium has received all regional jurisdiction regulatory approvals for the acquisition and welcomes Ixaris as its latest payments business unit. The definitive agreement to acquire Ixaris was announced on June 7. All of Ixaris’ 86 employees in London and Malta are now part of the Nium family.  

“Ixaris has earned a reputation for delivering superior payment solutions, especially for the travel sector. It introduced Europe to virtual credit cards for travel payments back in 2014, which have since become the industry standard.  We look forward to extending their digital payments influence to new growth markets, beyond Europe, including Asia, Africa and North America. Together we will deliver the payments infrastructure this industry has long deserved.” - Prajit Nanu, CEO and Co-Founder at Nium. 

In the wake of the global pandemic, hardest hit sectors, such as the travel industry, are reimagining new payment technologies to replace outdated systems. Modern solutions, including virtual cards are gaining traction as a new and improved way to make B2B travel payments. These highly automated solutions offer complete control over payments and remove the need for manual reconciliation.  

Ixaris has established itself as one of the clear leaders in the B2B travel payments space, with more than 10 million virtual cards issued in 2019. In partnership with Ixaris, Nium published its latest ebook which makes a compelling case for why travel agents should adopt virtual cards to transform their payment strategy. 

Haitong International, one of China’s leading financial institutions in Hong Kong, has chosen the Avaloq Wealth platform, which offers a state-of-the-art client experience based on real-time intelligence, helping wealth managers to provide highly personalized investment advice.

The Avaloq Wealth platform offers a modern microservice architecture, allowing financial institutions to consistently scale the growth of their wealth management business. Haitong International is going to implement Avaloq Wealth’s specialized solutions over the coming months for its Private Wealth Management operations in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Austin Luo, Haitong International’s Head of Private Wealth Management, said: “As in most other similar industries, we are seeing a strong trend towards digitalization in wealth management. We endeavour to help our clients optimize their portfolios by designing top-notch investment solutions for them. We look forward to the partnership with Avaloq to bring premium experience to our clients.”

Pascal Wengi, Managing Director for North Asia at Avaloq, said: “We are delighted to welcome Haitong International to the growing Avaloq Community. As a digital and core-agnostic platform, Avaloq Wealth is designed to seamlessly integrate into existing IT landscapes. It is therefore ideally suited to unleash the full growth potential of Haitong International’s Private Wealth Management business.”

Editor’s note: Learn more about Avaloq Wealth here