Penfold, the first digital-only pension helping modern workers ‘forget about the future’, has partnered with NorthRow to accelerate its onboarding process and help users set up a pension in "five minutes".

A third of adults in the UK don’t currently pay into a pension. Even worse, less than a fifth of the UK’s five million self-employed workers have a pension at all. There are two primary reasons for this trend: they find it difficult to formulate a regular habit of saving into a pension as regular earnings aren’t easy to forecast, and because traditional providers do not adequately cater for the most people not in full-time employment. 

Penfold, the modern digital pension provider, has built a simple to use app specifically for the underserved worker of today - those with multiple pensions, small pots and the self-employed. Users can easily set up, combine, manage and track their pensions online or via their mobile devices. 

Traditional pension providers create unnecessary barriers for entry. The process is often littered with jargon and the guidance at HMRC is deliberately vague - a minefield unless you have an accountant. Added to this the volume of paperwork involved and the cumbersome compliance hurdles often results in a poor onboarding experience and for a high abandonment of the end user.

Penfold identified the opportunity to provide a tailored solution that focused on flexibility, engaging guidance, more transparency over return on investment and reducing withdrawal restrictions. Over the last 12 months, Penfold has increased its user base by 6-fold and has raised more than £5m from investors.

It was imperative for Penfold to offer an effortless onboarding experience for users, without compromising their regulatory compliance obligations. Penfold partnered with NorthRow to not only accelerate the client due diligence and Know Your Customer processes from the point of onboarding, but also to enable continual monitoring of their customers changing risk status throughout the customer lifecycle. Workers can now sign up and be activated in just "five minutes", as well as easily combine their old pensions into one simple pot.

Pete Hykin, co-founder of Penfold, said “Our aim is to make pensions as accessible and engaging as banking has become. To deliver our vision of creating a completely digital pension service, Penfold needed a first-class technology partner that shared its mantra of flexibility, ease and security. Our new relationship with NorthRow has made this possible, by accelerating our client onboarding processes for Penfold users whilst ensuring the highest levels of compliance."

Adam Holden, CEO at NorthRow said: “The world of work has changed and it is fantastic to see a solution that can now deliver an innovative way to provide a flexible approach to pension saving. We are pleased to support the onboarding process to make this as easy as possible for investors whilst ensuring Penfold remains compliant at all times."

Nebulon, Inc^® announced today the availability of smartInfrastructure^TM, a server-embedded, infrastructure software delivered as-a-service, which offers the benefits of the public cloud on-premises, from core to edge for any application: containerised, virtualised or bare-metal. Leveraging Supermicro Ultra servers, this data centre service enables self-service infrastructure provisioning, infrastructure management-as-a-service, and enterprise shared and local data services. Nebulon also introduced two new smartInfrastructure solutions: Nebulon smartCore^TM and Nebulon smartEdge^TM. Finally, Nebulon announced its first smartEdge customer with Supermicro, UK-based service provider DC Intelligence Limited (DCI).

The public cloud, COVID-19, and the growth of 5G and IoT at the edge, have increased the demand from application owners for a more scalable, cloud-like experience for their on-premises enterprise application infrastructures. According to the 2020 Gartner Critical Capabilities for Hyperconverged Infrastructure Software report, “I&O leaders are starting to leverage HCI for edge-computing use cases, but scale, cost, performance, security and management challenges remain.”¹ For those organisations looking to modernise at the core or at the edge, these challenges, combined with server overheads and related density issues as well as virtualisation-only workload restrictions, limit the effectiveness of HCI. 

Nebulon smartInfrastructure delivers a public cloud experience on-premises for enterprise application infrastructure. Similar to the cloud management benefits of smart home technology, this server-embedded, infrastructure software delivered as-a-service enables IT administrators and application owners to benefit from simple deployment and rapid time-to-value, zero-touch remote management, easy at-scale automation, AI-based insights and actions, and behind-the-scenes software updates. 

Nebulon smartInfrastructure supports any application: containerised, virtualised and bare-metal, and is available anywhere, from core to edge to hosted data centres, serving the requirements of applications today and in the future. Furthermore, Nebulon smartInfrastructure is designed such that zero server resources are consumed in delivering enterprise data services, eliminating the HCI limitations on server density and keeping 100% of the server resources usable for applications. 

“Supermicro’s Ultra server solution with Nebulon smartInfrastructure is a significant benefit to our customers,” said Eric Sindelar, GM of Operations and Advanced Technology Development, Supermicro. “We are seeing a lot of interest in Nebulon smartInfrastructure with our Ultra server line from both enterprises and service providers who are looking to simplify their core and edge data centre deployments.”

DCI, a service provider specialising in providing data centre colocation and cloud solutions, specifically chose Supermicro, known as a leader in high-performance, high-efficiency server technology innovation, with Nebulon’s smartEdge solution, to run its edge offering ‘DataQube’. DataQube utilises a liquid immersion cooling technology, to efficiently maintain temperatures of racks comprised of Nebulon-enabled Supermicro servers. With DataQube immersion cooling technology, DCI can deploy a modular, 5G-enabled data centre without the need for traditional cooling infrastructure. 

This approach means DCI can rapidly deploy a distributed cloud anywhere, anytime and deliver significant energy savings to its customers while reducing costs. The smartEdge-based DataQube is ideal for remote areas and heat-intensive regions such as Africa, where DCI is currently developing a solution for deployment of field hospitals as part of a charitable initiative.

“These hospitals are located in remote areas with hot climates and have specific IT needs for storing and processing patient data, viewing charts and using collaboration tools such as video calling with other physicians,” said Chris Ward-Jones, CTO, DCI. “These capabilities must be extremely reliable and be delivered at a low cost. With zero-touch remote management and improved density compared to traditional HCI, we can use the Nebulon smartEdge solution to flexibly and cost-effectively scale at the edge in a way previously not possible.”

Nebulon smartCore and smartEdge solutions were designed to simplify management of on-premises enterprise application data with a hyperscale, API-first cloud control plane connected to IoT endpoints in the customer application servers to deliver self-service application infrastructure ease and cloud-like operations for any application from core to edge. With both smartInfrastructure solutions, enterprises can enjoy a single top-down cloud-managed approach to address application deployment, management and maintenance challenges common at the core, and address density, costs and remote management challenges experienced at the edge.

“Customers want the cloud experience for their on-premises infrastructure across their core, hosted and edge deployments,” said Siamak Nazari, Co-founder and CEO of Nebulon. “Supermicro with Nebulon smartInfrastructure, and specifically the Nebulon smartEdge solution, allows customers and partners like DCI to make this a reality.”

For more information on the Nebulon smartInfrastructure in collaboration with Supermicro, please visit nebulon.com/partners/oem/supermicro/.

¹Gartner, Critical Capabilities for Hyperconverged Infrastructure Software by Philip Dawson, Jeffrey Hewitt, Julia Palmer, Tony Harvey. 9 Dec 2020

E-wallet provider STICPAY is signing a partnership agreement with Synvestment NV, which

will allow its gamer community in Europe and Canada to almost instantly deposit funds and claim rewards.

Synvestment runs a range of games on its Betvili website, including old favourites and new games such as Tomb Raider, Blackjack, Reactoonz, Book of Dead and Bonanza.

STICPAY’s e-wallet will give gamers faster transfer payments than international bank transfers and users don’t have topay deposit and withdrawal fees, as transfer fees are covered by the betvili.com. The e-wallet can support users in multiple currencies including crypto. It also has enhanced anti-fraud features to protect funds.

London-based STICPAY, which works with over 700 merchants worldwide, has experienced year-on-year growth of 300% across its global user base that now numbers over 100,000. Over 60% of transactions come from Asia, which hit average monthly growth rates of 28% last year.

In addition to gaming and gambling, STICPAY customers use their wallets for e-commerce, transfer of funds to family members and for forex trading, both for seasoned professionals and individuals. 

Synvestment NV comments: “STICPAY offers our users quick, secure and seamless access to funds, so they can get on with their gaming and punts. And it’s just as important they can withdraw rewards easily, which STICPAY’s e-wallets deliver.”

STICPAY’s client service director James Bay says: “The new deal shows our commitment to increase the options for gamers and those that want a flutter to access funds cheaply, and withdraw winnings with no fuss, on gaming platforms.”

Refinitiv today released the findings of its Wealth Management report titled ‘The Gold Standard: The Race for Digital Differentiation’. The report is the second in a two-part series and examines how investors’ trading activities, data needs and digital expectations have changed and continue to evolve.  

‘The Race for Digital Differentiation’ report is based on research commissioned by Refinitiv that surveyed 1,030 self-directed and advised mass affluent investors, located in nine global financial centers: Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore, Switzerland, the UK and U.S.

The study finds that self-directed and advisory clients’ needs are rapidly changing in this new, more digitally oriented operating model. In the future, they will need new data and digital capabilities to take advantage of promising investment opportunities and avoid potential risks, supported by more advanced tools that allow for better digital collaboration and personalisation of the experience.

Key findings of the study include: 

• Only 37% of investors globally give their platforms top scores for the digital experience 
• 20% of Advisory clients will consider switching providers compared to 11% of self-directed investors
• 43% of investors use mobile applications to access their investments and 72% of investors say better integration of news updates is a key area for improvement by platforms
• 80% of investors say real-time data would enhance their analysis and 20% of investors are not receiving alerts they would find helpful

Charles Smith, Head of Digital Solutions, Wealth at Refinitiv, said: “The consequences of COVID-19 have emphasized just how vital it is to have a robust, customer-centric digital experience enriched with deep insights and analytics. Rather than settling for digital transformation progress in 2020, platforms need to set their sights higher and deliver a digital experience that meets and exceeds expectations."

Ashley Longabaugh, Senior Analyst, Wealth Management Practice at Celent, said: “The wealth management industry is at an inflection point between serving NextGen clients and creating innovative platforms for a NextGen workforce—all against the backdrop of an accelerated transition to remote and digital service models. As we move through 2021, we will see wealth management firms accelerating their digital initiatives by prioritizing proven technologies while adjusting their business models to serve a breadth of clients more effectively on a scalable platform. A key takeaway from engaging in a remote-only wealth management experience was the realization that the client journey was an area of improvement for many FIs.”

April Rudin, CEO and Founder at The Rudin Group, said: “The era of hyper-personalization in wealth management is here to stay, and in the minds of investors, financial advisors are only as good as their last client experience. Refinitiv's latest report shows that only 37 percent of investors give their digital experience top marks. This means that there is significant room for improvement, and wealth platforms must accelerate their efforts in order to win 'The Race for Digital Differentiation.”

Will Jan, VP & Lead Analyst, Outsell, said: “Client investors have become more selective in choosing wealth managers and investment platforms, in search of those offering the best recommendations and insights. Digitalization has become more critical in delivering and enabling the understanding of information quickly, thus a powerful competitive differentiator among institutions serving these clients.”

For a copy of the Refinitiv wealth management report titled ‘The Gold Standard: The Race for Digital Differentiation’, please visit:  https://www.refinitiv.com/en/resources/special-report/the-race-for-digital-differentiation.

This report is the second in the “Gold Standard of Wealth Management” thought leadership series commissioned by Refinitiv. The first report titled: ‘Redefining Investor Data Needs’ focuses on the investors’ need for new data sources to take advantage of promising investment opportunities and avoid potential risks. For a copy of the Refinitiv wealth management report titled ‘The Gold Standard: Redefining Investor Data Needs’, please visit: https://www.refinitiv.com/redefining-data-needs. 

Refinitiv has a rich history of servicing the Wealth Management industry from front to back office. Over the last two years, the firm has invested heavily in the business and is committed to bringing the most advanced solutions to market. The ongoing transformation includes building out the firm’s solutions through strategic acquisitions such as Scivantage and the launch of Refinitiv Digital Investor and Refinitiv Workspace for Wealth Advisors. Refinitiv wealth management solutions empower firms with faster time to market for digital properties while offering a flexible framework consisting of web-based components, pre-built pages, APIs, mobile apps, and collaboration tools such as video, co-browsing and secure chat that can be precisely configured for clients. A developer toolkit provides an additional level of control for in-house teams to design new and enhanced digital solutions.

Strong momentum in the cybersecurity market, in which sector valuations have hit historic highs over the past 12 months, are resulting in predictions of a record year for M&A and fundraising activity in the sector. Driven by investors and acquirers ready to deploy large funds to gain a key foothold in the market, and with cybercrime remaining a major threat costing the global economy $600bn annually, ICON Corporate Finance is forecasting stellar valuations in its April 2021 cybersecurity sector report, says Florian Depner, report author.                                                                                                                                      

Key insights: 

Cybersecurity fundraising activity is on track for another record year: in Q1 2021 $3.7bn was invested by VCs globally, an increase of +35%. That looks set to shatter 2020’s record $8.3bn (+22%)

·         The resilience of the market was demonstrated as more than $22bn in M&A deal value was transacted,­­­ despite the challenges of a global pandemic

·         Public cybersecurity stocks have traded at all-time highs, seeing the sector more than double in value since lockdown restrictions began in March 2020. ICON’s Cybersecurity Sector Index shows that the sector is now trading at 11x revenues

·         ICON predicts a wave of cybersecurity businesses ready to capitalise on the extraordinary market opportunity, boosted by VCs flooding the industry with necessary funding

The report sets out the background to the sector’s phenomenal growth, adapting seamlessly to a rapidly evolving threat landscape as organisations have recognised the need for increased fortification of their IT estates and networks. 

Report author Florian Depner, Director of ICON Corporate Finance, explains: “94% of organisations worldwide have suffered a data breach as a result of a cyber-attack in the past 12 months. The Covid-19 pandemic has exacerbated this. Cybersecurity is now a mission-critical business investment category, with a market worth greater than $150bn. Investors and acquirers are recognising this trend, and there’s a lot of dry powder ready to be deployed. That means the market is on course to outpace last year’s record funding and M&A activity.” 

Compounding this further, the shift to a digitally transformed enterprise ecosystem, with scattered workforces and online consumers, has put unprecedented pressure on governments to adapt data protection requirements, address data privacy and surveillance issues, and protect critical national infrastructure from cybercrime.

ICON’s report highlights 2021’s hot sectors, and predicts that healthy sector fundamentals, attractive business models and a buoyant public market provide the right ingredients for an exciting deal environment and continued strong growth of the industry.

New data from Barclaycard Payments, which processes almost £1 in every £3 spent in the UK, shines a light on the economic impact of the 12^th April changes to social distancing, which included the re-opening of non-essential retail, outdoor hospitality, and hair and beauty businesses.

Just one week since the changes came into force, Barclaycard Payments has already recorded significant growth across all the sectors that were allowed to re-open, stemming from the country’s pent-up demand for returning to pre-pandemic activities.

Last week’s changes caused a stampede of customers rushing back to hairdressing and beauty businesses – the overall amount spent was not only 438 per cent above where it was the previous week, it was also 62 per cent higher than the same week in 2019, before the pandemic.

Spending at pubs and bars also saw a huge spike, surging 1,390 per cent week-on-week. This was even more pronounced over the weekend, with Saturday’s warm weather causing transaction volumes to rise by a whopping 1,897 per cent compared to the Saturday before. However, the sector was still 40 per cent behind where it was in 2019. This is likely because venues are not yet back to full capacity – only outdoor hospitality venues are currently open – as well as a degree of caution from Brits who are not yet fully comfortable socialising in close proximity to others.

It was also a very positive week for clothing – a sector that has struggled over the past year – with transactions values jumping 32 per cent week-on-week, and even rising above pre-pandemic levels, with an 8 per cent increase compared to the same week in 2019. It was a similar story for the retail sector as a whole, with transactions up 67 per cent compared to the previous week, and up 6 per cent compared to the same week in 2019.

Consumers have consistently demonstrated their support for local, independent businesses throughout the pandemic. Last week was no exception – across all sectors, small and medium-sized businesses saw the value of all transactions grow by 42 per cent compared to the previous week, and by 14 per cent compared to the same week in 2019.

Rob Cameron, CEO of Barclaycard Payments, said: “We are now seeing the economy start to gather pace as restrictions continue to ease, and more sectors are allowed to reopen. This is welcome news for all UK businesses, especially for those smaller businesses which have struggled over the past 12 months. As a nation, we have really got behind local independent traders throughout the pandemic – now that the end is in sight, and the economy is starting to turn a corner, it’s vital that shoppers continue to show them support as the road to recovery gets underway.”

• Value of credit and debit card transactions in the UK falls 17.5% over the last month¹

Alex Robinson, Payment and Banking Expert at Featurespace, says: “This latest data shows the pandemic has accelerated consumers’ use of contactless payments to make purchases.

“The fall in the value of credit and debit card transactions can be partly attributed to consumers reining in spending in January after the Christmas period and as a result of enforced closure of non-essential retail outlets."

“The accelerated shift towards contactless card payments was initially driven by fears over contracting coronavirus which triggered a shift in consumer behaviour towards favouring payments that helped reduce the risk of transmission. The proportion of debit and credit card purchases made through contactless payment means is likely to rise further once firms implement the necessary conditions to facilitate the higher £100 contactless payment limit."

“However, despite providing a more convenient means to make purchases, the high share of contactless payments may provide opportunities for fraudsters to conduct financial crime. Banks and payment providers need to be alive to this potential threat. Strengthening internal fraud and AML controls will reduce the likelihood of banks’ customers being the victim of financial crime.”

Sources:

¹UK Finance: Card Spending Update, January 2021

Sage, the market leader in cloud business management solutions launches a brand-new series, Inspire Me, a compelling event centred around living, working and adapting to a changing world.

Kicking off on 20^th April 2021, the Inspire Me Series has been curated exclusively for any accountant or bookkeeper in practice looking to have the edge on competition as they steer through the challenges of today head-on. Likeminded professionals will have the opportunity to watch three, individual sessions hosted by former ITV Chief Political Correspondent Daisy McAndrew who will introduce the keynote speakers. The initial session will see discussions from pioneering female futurist, Nancy Giordano (20^th April, 12pm).

With sought-after insights given from industry leaders, the Inspire Me series is set to maximise potential and enhance capabilities bringing about a unique set of perspectives and ways of working. Events can be watched live by registering here, and also available on demand. Sage’s thought-provoking event series offers aspiring and established small business owners new knowledge to not only elevate individual performance, but ultimately maximise their businesses’ potential and unparalleled success.

FICO’s identity proofing and digital banking survey shows identity theft is a tangible threat for people in the UK – 4 percent said they know their identity has been stolen and used by a fraudster to open an account, while a further 10 percent believe it is likely to have happened.   

Along with a whole-hearted preference to open and manage financial accounts online, according to the FICO research there is also a widespread eagerness to comply with security checks. 

More information: https://www.fico.com/en/latest-thinking/ebook/united-kingdom-consumer-survey-2021-identity-proofing-and-digital-banking

FICO will discuss the results in a session at its free virtual event Success Realized: Digital Transformation Delivered, which runs April 26-30. In addition, FICO has released two podcasts for the UK featuring FICO’s fraud experts and Iona Bain, founder of the pioneering Young Money Blog, the UK's foremost blog dedicated to young people's finances: Identity Theft, COVID-19 and Digital Acceleration and Digital Natives, Disruption and Application Abandonment.

Understanding ID Proofing

Two-thirds (66 percent) of respondents recognized that identity proofing happens for their protection. Most people are not cynical about the reasons their identity is confirmed. While 46 percent recognize there is an element of regulation driving providers to carry out more checks, only 13 percent think this is done to enable financial institutions to sell more. 

A majority (61 percent) of respondents also saw identity proofing as a way for banks to protect themselves, and 56 percent regard it as a tool to prevent money laundering.