Building on its commitment to drive positive change through its data and insight, Refinitiv has today announced the launch of the Future of Sustainable Data Alliance (The Alliance) in conjunction with the World Economic Forum, United Nations, IIF, OMFIF, Tsinghua University, ASIFMA, GFMA, Climate Bonds Initiative, FinTech4good, Everledger, Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs, Bank of Africa-BCME, GoImpact and other founding member firms. The objective of The Alliance is to accelerate the mobilization of capital into sustainable finance. The Alliance will solve the question: What data do investors and governments need to meet the requirements of both regulators and customers for sustainable investments and products in pursuit of the 2030 Agenda.

The Alliance: “Fundamental ESG data access and additional alternative data sets are seen as key drivers to help investors make sustainable investment decisions and positively contribute to the UN Sustainable Development Goals.”

Climate change and the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) continue to accelerate the drive towards sustainable finance, however information to quantify, measure and compare impact is in its infancy. Companies both public and private require disclosure standards on tracking, managing and reporting such information to their stakeholders. The lack of actionable data and standards results in capital markets that are unable to fully understand and integrate sustainability considerations, and as a result allocate capital to inefficient and sometimes environmentally or socially damaging activities, projects and assets. Fundamental ESG and alternative data are required to make sustainable investment decisions and to positively contribute to the UN SDGs. The Alliance aims to identify and consolidate the data required now and in the future.   

David Craig, CEO of Refinitiv, said: “The need to channel capital towards the UN SDGs is urgent and the financing requirement immense. Today, many asset managers state that they don’t have enough data to help finance major transitions such as changes in demographics, climate change or addressing the shifts in global markets. It is therefore critical to define and make ESG more of a science than an art. Refinitiv is proud to be a founding member of the Future of Sustainable Data Alliance and is committed to providing investors with the data they need to channel capital towards the financing of the SDGs.”

Mainstreaming climate and environmental data into capital markets in decision-useful form requires standardization. With greater support and collaboration for standardization and innovation, investors will have the guidance and tools needed to tailor their investments and fulfil their fiduciary duties through: better quality and more widely available data on sustainability and performance; superior data analytics through the advent of artificial intelligence and machine learning; and more informed judgements of strategic resilience.

The Alliance is expected to grow over the coming months to include different stakeholder groups with deep expertise in areas covered by the UN SDGs. Its creation was inspired by Refinitiv’s partnership with the UN Secretary General’s Task Force on Digital Financing of the SDGs and the Future of Finance report, which shows that the availability of reliable ESG data and SDG impact data is crucial for accelerating more SDG investments at scale. 

Matthew Blake, Head of Financial & Monetary System Initiatives, Member of the Executive Committee, World Economic Forum, said: “Access to data is central in the transformation to a low-carbon, sustainable economy.  Only through access to fundamental ESG data can firms make informed sustainable investment decisions and comply with UN Sustainable Development Goals. We are delighted the Future of Sustainable Data Alliance is forming to take on this critical role ensuring that this much needed commodity is structured and made widely available.”    

Tim Adams, President and CEO of the Institute of International Finance, said: “Reaching the ambitious targets set forth in the UN SDGs will require mobilizing trillions of dollars’ worth of funding for sustainable projects. Currently the world is sitting on more than USD 300 trillion in global wealth, but there are obstacles to tapping this pool of capital—including a lack of high-quality, accessible, and actionable data. The Future of Sustainable Data Alliance is a critical step towards breaking down these barriers and scaling up funding for the Sustainable Development Goals.”

Last year, Refinitiv made several pledges in support of the SDGs. Refinitiv is now carbon neutral and 100% powered by renewable energy. Our next generation of sustainability goals will further strengthen our greenhouse gas emissions targets and disclosures, and we will continue to robustly assess all climate risks and opportunities across the business.

Refinitiv is a strategic partner to the UN Task Force on Digital Financing of the SDGs committed to harnessing the power of data to bring about insight and drive informed decision making. As members of the UN Global Compact, Refinitiv is part of a community of 9,000+ businesses across 135 countries that are committed to operating with responsible business practices at its core. Refinitiv is also a member of the Technical Expert Group (TEG) on Sustainable Finance advising the European Commission on the sustainable agenda alongside other private sector experts.

Refinitiv has been serving the financial industry with fully integrated and objective ESG data and solutions for over 15 years, providing a fully transparent resource that is trusted by investors and corporates to drive positive impact and make more informed investment decisions.

Taking stock of the identity verification landscape, Keith McGill, Head of Fraud & ID at Equifax, expects rapid adoption of biometrics in 2020 as it enters the mainstream:

“The biometrics industry has been at a crossroads, with verification technology solutions until now viewed as a roadmap item for many businesses, but as it enters the mainstream we expect adoption rates to accelerate.

“Research by Cifas* last year pointed to a rise in ID fraud, and this trend is still on the up. In the current escalating threat environment it’s increasingly easy for fraudsters to operate and fly below the radar, and this is where technology has a constructive role to play.

“As the strongest form of authentication, the benefits of biometric solutions are two-fold, stemming the tide of third-party fraud losses and offering a sleeker customer experience. Brits are increasingly on board, with nearly three quarters happy to do away with pins and passwords to access their mobile phones in favour of a biometric solution**. The challenge for businesses is crafting optimal deployment routes to harness this potential.

“Biometrics also have a central role to play in the multi-factor Strong Customer Authentication (SCA) requirements coming into force in 2021, which add an extra layer of security to payment processes, such as a fingerprint verifier. The hurdle for most retailers is finding ways to offset the additional friction and avoid ‘abandoned’ online shopping baskets. The market is finding solutions and it’s vital that merchants achieve alignment in time for a swift transition to these more robust requirements.  

“With the risk landscape more pronounced than ever, there’s no doubt that businesses must take increasing precautions to protect consumers, so expect biometrics to have a more hands-on role in the fight against identity theft.”

New UK digital bank Vive has received a banking licence with restriction from the Bank of England.

French neobank Qonto has raised $115 million in Series C funding from Tencent and DST Global to double down on existing markets, develop new features to tailor its products to specific markets, and grow staff numbers from 200 to 300 during 2020.

Six of the world's central banks have come together to share their knowledge and experiences in assessing the potential cases for central bank digital currency (CBDC) in their home jurisdictions.

Flutterwave, a payments startup operating in Africa, is looking to expand across the continent after closing a $35 million funding round and securing partnerships with Visa and WorldPay.

Asian cryptocurrency exchange platform, Zipmex, has gained the license to provide digital assets and exchange services in Thailand, following a 12-month wait.

Headquartered in Singapore, the trading platform currently operates in Indonesia and Australia, standing at a current valuation of $18 million after having raised $5 million to date. The bitcoin trading license follows Zipmex's $3 million pre-Series A funding round just last September, led by Infinity Blockchain Holdings.

Zipmex Expands Operations into Thailand, Heating Up Competition

Following reports that only four out of a total of 20 cryptocurrency firms were granted the same license in early 2020, Zipmex now joins the growing list of firms operating in Thailand. The other four newly licensed firms are Bitcoin Exchange, Bitkub Online, Satang Corporation, and Huobi Thailand.

At the same time, it should be noted that two other firms - Cash2coin and Southeast Asia Digital Exchange - were rejected from their applications , due to "inconsistent'' Know-Your-Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering processes.

Ever since Thailand's SEC began regulating under its Emergency Decree in Digital Asset Business B.E. 2561, only a few firms have been granted the green light following its prudent regulatory requirements.

Having begun the process early in 2019, Zipmex had to meet several stringent conditions prior to receiving the green light from Thailand's Ministry of Finance and SEC. One of them necessitated a shareholder equity of at least $1.6 million (approximately 50 million baht).

Attaining the regulatory nod from Thailand's Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) puts the young Asian cryptocurrency firm on the global map, adding credibility to their remarkable growth in present time.

Nothing short of a major achievement for the young cryptocurrency platform, Co-founder of Zipmex and CEO of the exchange's Thailand unit expressed:

"Being licensed and regulated by the SEC was always our main priority as we believe that being a regulated entity will help provide trust to newcomers looking to enter the digital assets market."

Growing Popularity of Cryptocurrency in Southeast Asia

The market for cryptocurrency trading and virtual assets is growing markedly in the Southeast Asia region, with Thailand as one of the first few countries to enact cryptocurrency legislations .

Thailand has made significant progress in a bid to encourage more cryptocurrency trading firms to begin operating in the country. In March 2019, Thailand began development of its own digital asset platform and the SEC approved the country's first Initial Coin Offering (ICO) portal .

Following suit, the Philippines recently issued a regulatory framework to boost investor protection, on top of regulating the acquisition of crypto assets in the country. Likewise, one of Singapore's bigger food court operators, Kopitiam, began accepting payments in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

The pivot to digital assets indicates the growing interest and movement in the crypto space in the Southeast Asia region. All of these developments are signals to trading exchange platforms, like Zipmex, the emergence and growth of a highly competitive marketspace.

Ignite Sales, Inc., the financial industry leader in customer engagement technology, announced the company experienced an impressive year in 2019 in terms of growth, industry recognition, and product enhancements.

As the financial industry focuses more intently on technology to drive outstanding customer engagement, financial institutions are recognizing that Ignite Sales’ highly developed and proven technology empowers bankers and their customers to easily discover and meet financial needs.

The company’s leading-edge Customer Engagement Platform, Ignite Neuro, continues to see rapid adoption by leading banks and credit unions across the U.S., with implementations in branches by new clients exceeding 2,900. This technology provides customized, customer-facing guided conversations intended to help bankers and customers better understand life circumstances and needs. Ignite Neuro then analyzes those needs across the institution’s entire suite of products to serve up highly accurate recommendations.

As a result, product adoption rates are likely to grow by more than 100 percent, and customer loyalty is extended by as much as two years for every engaged customer or member, new and current. In fact, financial institutions using Ignite’s customer engagement platform have seen customer satisfaction increase by nearly 40 percent. Because of the success of its products, Ignite was named an award finalist by The AIconics, the world-renowned awards celebrating the drive, innovation, and hard work in the international AI community.

“We have a propensity to embrace new technology, especially one that improves our sales process and makes employees’ jobs easier,” said Dan Westhues, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer of Central Bank, one of Ignite’s partners. “Ignite’s solutions were made with the bank’s sales team in mind and truly provide that extra element to drive meaningful conversations. Central Bank has enjoyed partnering with Ignite to achieve more focused conversations to help customers reach the endgame faster.”

To facilitate Ignite’s growth in 2019, the company hired two key players. Kelly Schilling joined Ignite as SVP, bringing seasoned relationships to the team. Schilling is responsible for driving new business with enterprise customers. Ignite also hired credit union expert Whitney Loe as Director of Business Development for Credit Unions. Loe has helped Ignite expand its business development within the financial industry, specifically in the credit union space.

“We are thrilled to empower banks and credit unions with greatly enhanced capabilities to improve the financial wellness of individual consumers and small businesses,” said George Noga, Ignite Sales CEO. “As our company continues to achieve rapid growth, it is very important for us to always provide the best technology, most insightful analytics and experienced professional guidance to all of our clients working to attract and retain customers by deepening relationships and providing ongoing value. We look forward to seeing where our strong momentum will take Ignite in 2020.”

Computop,  a leading global payment processor, today announced that it will be exhibiting at Euroshop, the retail trade fair in Dusseldorf, Germany (February 16-20). The company will be showcasing its new, Android-based card terminal, Computop Next A920, providing demonstrations for visitors to the event.

Also on display on the stand (Hall 6, E24) will be Computop’s biometric-based authentication solution, which allows retailers to offer the very latest in log-in and secure payment processing using fingerprint, face scan or voice recognition, and ensure they are fully compliant with SCA requirements. 

Omnichannel will be a strong focus area of the exhibition, and Computop will show how it’s Paygate payment solution supports seamless integrated payment processes, online, offline and on mobile. Demonstrations will show how retailer data, regardless of the sales channel, is stored in a central database, providing a clear overview of all transactions and analyses in one place.

Computop’s Partner Relationship Manager, Moritz Baer, will be presenting ‘From point of sale to point of service’ on the Omnichannel stage on the 19^th February. He will make reference to how the Computop Next A920 can help retailers transform their checkout into a service station, to generate additional turnover and will also talk about how typical POS payment mentods can be integrated into real omnichannel solutions.