PrePay Solutions (PPS), subsidiary of Edenred, the global leader in payment solutions for the working world, has been granted an E-Money Licence from the National Bank of Belgium (NBB) and has opened an office in Brussels.

UK-based PPS is the leading digital banking and payment services provider in Europe. It serves over 200 clients across 30 countries around the world, processing in excess of 1.6 billion transactions worth  $35 billion in 2018. The licence will enable the company to continue powering fintech companies residing in the EU regardless of the outcome of the UK Brexit negotiations

With the new licence under its belt, PPS has opened its “PPS EU” base, located in  Brussels, which is supporting PPS’ E-Money, Payment and Mastercard issuing services in the EEA.

Ray Brash, CEO, PrePay Solutions, said: “Even before the UK referendum vote in 2016 it was clear that being part of the European payments space was crucial for PPS and our clients. A large part of our business is in the EU and this market has massive opportunities and digital payments will continue to grow for many years. Our decision to establish an office in Brussels and obtain our issuing licence was a natural extension of this strategy. It’s often said that certainty is critical for business and PPS can now give certainty to its clients. Of course we welcome prospective customers looking for issuing and processing services within the EEA zone and I encourage those with concerns around Brexit to contact us.”

Through dedicated banking partners, the Meniga Rewards app allows consumers to earn personalised, card-linked rewards, discounts and cashbacks, while offering retail brands a unique way of communicating relevant offers to customers.

European Cybersecurity Forum CYBERSEC has already become one of top cybersecurity events in Europe. This year, CYBERSEC will be organised for already the 5th time and in order to celebrate the event’s successful run, the organisers have gone one step further and have come up with an entirely new format: CYBERSEC EXPO. From now on, during the Kosciuszko Institute’s event the companies will be able to present their latest achievements in the cybersecurity field, while the attendees will not only see the accomplishments of technological giants, but also innovative solutions presented by start-ups.

Cybersecurity is no longer a technical issue concerning only IT departments. Today, it’s an integral part of strategies of nearly all companies. It is estimated that total global losses in the public and private sector arising from cybercrimes amount to ca. 1% of global GDP. Analysts expect that by 2021, these losses will have exceeded USD 6 trillion a year. Limited availability and high costs of the sector’s employees amplify the problem even further. It is therefore crucial to apply comprehensive products and services in order to scale company’s cybersecurity efforts.

To allow that there is a need to boost a dialogue and share experiences between both large technological companies as well as developing innovative start-ups – a place where the industry will be able to present its latest solutions and discuss innovations for cybersecurity. To meet these needs and expectations, the Kosciuszko Institute has created CYBERSEC EXPO – largest cybersecurity fair in the CEE region.

“CYBERSEC EXPO was created with the idea of connecting companies that need to secure their digital transformation with innovative solution providers who can help them in achieving that. We hope that by creating annual regional platform for cybersecurity market, our EXPO will become a permanent element in the Central and Eastern Europe IT landscape. On the list of already confirmed partners and exhibitors are such giants as Microsoft, Samsung, BAE Systems, CISCO or T-Mobile, but also regional scale-ups and startups such as Nethone, Cryptomage or Secfense” says Robert Siudak, Advocacy and Strategic Projects Director at the Kosciuszko Institute, who is responsible for the organisation of CYBERSEC EXPO.

CYBERSEC EXPO will gather in Katowice more than 3,000 participants on 3,000 square metres during two days on 29th-30th October. Business representatives will be provided with an opportunity to establish new business contacts and present their technological solutions. It’s also a one-of-a-kind chance to build brand, win over new clients and sell innovative products. Visitors will also have a unique opportunity to see technological novelties and learn how digital security measures work. However, CYBERSEC EXPO is so much more than just a fair. Numerous panels, lectures and presentations will be held in special conference zone as well as workshops and networking meetings.

With the next phase of PSD2 due to come into effect on September 14^th 2019, the experts behind Yolt Technology Services are available to provide expert analysis, commentary, and predictions about the impact PSD2 is expected to have. Will this deadline be a slow start or the beginning of a fundamental shift, affecting everyone from payment providers to SMEs and large banks?

As a pioneer in the Open Banking space and the first TTP to successfully connect to all CMA9 banks using the APIs, the Yolt team is uniquely positioned to comment on the potential implications of the legislation for businesses, banks and their customers. As well as what the rest of Europe can expect after the PSD2 deadline.

The impact of PSD2 for the sector

The success rate for UK Open Banking API (Application Programming Interface) calls is approaching 98% and millions of consumers across the UK are already benefiting from innovative new services, utilising API connections.¹

Following the full adoption of PSD2, the open banking opportunities will present a more level playing field as the number of APIs available increases creating new opportunities for a wide range of third-party providers, including incumbents and those yet to be founded. Already, Yolt has seen increases to the number of successful API calls from June 2018, to July 2019 and this trend will likely increase and accelerate demand for connections.

How do businesses and banks obtain compliant API connections?

Yolt has been at the forefront of PSD2’s implementation in the UK since the very start, firstly launching its consumer app and then more recently, Yolt Technology Services (the technology that powers the Yolt consumer app). 

YTS is now offering its tried and tested API technology to financial institutions and businesses enabling them to develop new, innovative experiences and revenue models via account information services (AIS) and payment initiation services (PIS). Since its launch in February, YTS is currently providing its services to various ING Business Units, as well as leading fintechs Payvision (the Netherlands-based global acquirer and payment processing platform) and Funding Options (the business funding comparison platform). YTS is also the proven provider of the technology with its eponymous consumer app, Yolt, which has attracted over 1 million registered users since launch across 3 markets – Italy, France and the UK.

YTS

YTS, short for Yolt Technology Services is part of the Yolt brand which also includes the Yolt app (the smart thinking money management app) and it was the first TTP to successfully connect to all CMA9 banks using Open Banking APIs in September 2018. The app surpassed half a million registered users last year and now has over a million registered users. Just as the number of users has risen, Yolt’s activity has also grown: from just 3 API calls on 16^th January 2018, to completing over 250,000 million API calls to date. This means that Yolt is responsible for around 50% of all Open Banking API calls in the wider UK market.

MetaBank®, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Meta Financial Group, Inc.® (NASDAQ: CASH) ("Meta") and a leader in delivering innovative payment, financing and banking solutions to partners throughout the country, today announced a three-year extension of its relationship with NationalLink. Meta began working with NationalLink as its ATM sponsor in 2005.  

NationalLink is one of the largest independent ATM companies with over 15,000 ATMs serving customers across the U.S. It also has ATMs in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands. Through its ATM sponsorship services, Meta provides NationalLink ATMs with access to national and regional debit networks.

"NationalLink is a leader in the ATM industry, with deep expertise and a wide reach," said Sheree Thornsberry, Meta EVP and Head of Payments. "We're thrilled to extend our 13-year relationship with them. We look forward to working together to develop creative financial solutions for their partners and clients."

"Meta has been an exceptional business partner to us for more than a decade," said Sam Kandah, NationalLink President and CEO. "They offer the breadth and depth we need in an ATM sponsor partner, and offer a unique combination of relationships and resources that help us succeed in an evolving market."

Meta is a leader in providing innovative financial solutions to consumers and businesses in under-served niche markets, and believes in financial inclusion for all.

Meta works with high-value niche industries, rapid-growth companies and technology adopters to grow their businesses and build more profitable customer relationships. MetaBank is one of the largest issuers of prepaid cards in the U.S., having issued more than a billion cards in partnership with banks, program managers, payments providers and other businesses, and offers a total payments services solution that includes ACH origination, wire transfers and more.

equensWorldline, a subsidiary of Worldline [Euronext : WLN], the European leader in the payments and transactional services industry, introduces the first browser-based strong customer authentication* solution to the market and is now able to support banks in offering a frictionless universal strong customer authentication solution adapted to each user profile. With this development, banks now also have a strong customer authentication solution for users who are not equipped with a mobile device.

With regard to strong customer authentication, banks have to face multiple challenges:

• to propose strong customer authentication for cases of remote payment and account access;
• to replace the current authentication solution based on OTP SMS (One-Time Password sent by SMS to approve 3DSecure payment transactions) because this solution does not meet the two-factor authentication criteria;
• to propose a solution that can cover the whole user population.

An innovative authentication solution to provide universal coverage

equensWorldline’s solution, named WL Trusted Authentication, is available for mobile applications (smartphones) and web browsers (mobile phones and computers). It is unique in the market due to its universal coverage, and the technical innovation that makes the browser version simple from a deployment point of view.

The solution has a European patent, and was designed several years ago to meet the growing needs of banks in the area of strong customer authentication. It is already deployed in many European banks (more than 120 million transactions per year).

The new, browser-based solution is innovative because it enables banks to provide strong customer authentication without the need for external hardware (tokens, for example), smartphones, or software installed on the user’s computer. The user enrolls his browser in a simple and transparent way, and can then perform strong authentication with the same kinematics as if he/she just entered credentials to access his online bank. In this browser-based solution the same security measures have been applied as on mobile phones.

Integration methods adapted to the bank's strategy

Several integration modes are available to optimally suit the different digital strategies and calendar constraints of banks. There’s a mobile solution that can be integrated into the bank's existing mobile application, a mobile white-label solution which can be customized to the bank's look-and-feel, and a Worldline-labelled mobile solution for rapid deployment. In addition, there’s now thus also a browser solution, accessible simply from any computer, tablet, or phone browser, and requiring no installation, for all business or home users, who do not use smartphones.

A constantly evolving solution

*"Strong customer authentication" means an authentication based on the use of two or more elements categorized as knowledge (something only the user knows), possession (something only the user possesses) and inherence (something the user is) that are independent.

Wolf Kunisch, Chief Business Division Officer at equensWorldline.

"As a leading player in the payments industry, we enable our clients to meet the continuously developing market demands and requirements. The mobile solution is tending to be deployed more and more in digitalized populations. This new browser solution is an inevitable complement to the mobile channel, both for populations not equipped with smartphones (or as bypass solution, in the event of a telephone failure). What’s more, with the next version of this module, using the WebAuthn API defined by the W3C (World Wide Web Consortium), it will be possible to offer biometric control also on the browser, and thus offer the same authentication factors that currently exist on the mobile application."

CoinCorner’s CEO, Danny Scott, commented:

“It’s been announced that France plans to block Facebook’s Libra cryptocurrency in the EU over concerns that it poses a threat to the sovereignty of national currencies. This comes as no surprise given the regulatory backlash Facebook has received since the announcement of Libra back in June.

It’s unrealistic to think that a single, private entity could be accountable for that level of control, and the French Economy and Finance Minister thinks so too. At a conference this week, Bruno Le Maire stated that Facebook is a “sole actor with more than 2 billion users on the planet” - clearly Facebook is out for world domination, something I’ve actually suggested before. It’s also important to remember that this isn’t the first time Facebook has tried to enter the financial space, in fact, they’ve had numerous failed attempts before. Unfortunately, it just so happens that this time they’ve launched into an emerging industry which receives global attention and the result is that they’ve managed to gain momentum with this project.

We understand that it can be confusing to the public as to why a cryptocurrency concept like Libra can be banned, whereas it would be much harder to ban an actual cryptocurrency, like Bitcoin. It’s important to remember the difference between the two; Libra is completely controlled by a single entity (Facebook) and Bitcoin is not as the control lies with the everyday people using it. This is called decentralisation and is one of the fundamental features of Bitcoin that make it so unique.

We expect to see this ban having somewhat of a domino effect, with more countries following suit to ban Libra over the coming months.”

Clinc, the creators of the most sophisticated, conversational, natural language AI in the world, today announced that OCBC Bank, the oldest Singapore bank and the second-largest financial services group in Southeast Asia, has launched a voice-enabled mobile banking assistant powered by Clinc to all OCBC Bank customers. This assistant is the first of its kind in Singapore.

All of OCBC Bank’s mobile banking customers now have access to bank services in a natural and conversational way via the OCBC Banking Assistant on the OCBC Mobile Banking app. With no special keywords, phrases to memorize or templated questions to learn, customers can pay bills, get smart insights about their finances, and get help locating an ATM – all via natural language voice or text.

“This is the first full production roll out of its kind,” said Jason Mars, Clinc CEO. “It’s not a chatbot or virtual assistant-type experience that people are familiar with. Rather it’s Clinc’s signature voice-first human-like AI experience used to create a mobile bank assistant that enables OCBC Bank customers to get spending insights, account and transaction details, and pay bills, all by using unscripted, everyday, messy language. This is a milestone for Clinc, our partners at OCBC Bank, and the financial industry as a whole.”

Clinc’s bill payment competency is being used in its entirety for the first time by millions of OCBC customers. The bill payment skill enables payments to be made by voice to billers including credit cards in Singapore, telcos, utility companies and town councils.

Using their voice, customers can:

●      Pay bills

●      Transfer funds between accounts

●      Check spending history and patterns

●      Locate the nearest ATM

●      Receive spending advice

●      Review transactions

“We are always open to forging new partnerships that allow us to reimagine banking for our digital customers. We chose to work with Clinc because of their superior conversational AI platform and their next-generation natural language processing capabilities. This partnership is the next step towards making our customers’ mobile-first interactions more seamless and natural,” said Mr Aditya Gupta, Head of Digital Business, Singapore & Malaysia, OCBC Bank.

Clinc has enjoyed tremendous success since launching its first product in 2016 and pioneering the conversational AI category. With dozens of partners and deployments on 3 continents, the company has built virtual assistants and conversational AI experiences for some of the most well-respected financial institutions in the world including Barclays, USAA, Isbank and OCBC Bank. Clinc has also brought its AI platform to automakers, quick-service restaurants and healthcare companies. The Clinc platform is currently accessible to over 35 million users.

Tassat, a global provider of financial technologies and products for traditional and digital asset markets, has partnered with AlgoTrader to provide institutional clients with its automated, quantitative trading software including direct access to Tassat’s cryptocurrency derivatives to be offered soon on a regulated exchange. 

Tassat LLC is preparing to launch its derivatives products, the first of which will be a physically-deliverable, margined Bitcoin swaps available for institutional investors, brokers and other eligible contract participants. Through this partnership, institutional clients of AlgoTrader will be able to access and incorporate these instruments into their quantitative trading strategies with access to liquidity and the regulatory oversight that institutions require.

The partnership will extend the reach of both parties’ customer footprints. AlgoTrader clients will be able to send orders directly to Tassat’s US-based exchange affiliate, while Tassat will gain access to a larger pool of hedge funds and institutions. Together, the partners will strive to build a global institutional-grade cryptocurrency trading ecosystem for institutional and qualified investors.

Michel Finzi, Chief Commercial Officer, Tassat said: “We pick our partners thoughtfully and focus on those who align with our philosophy to serve the institutional crypto marketplace. AlgoTrader has a unique service delivery model, offers clients more control and flexibility and most importantly, has a singular mission to create a high-impact trading experience. Like us, they’re driven to create a modern cryptocurrency ecosystem with no compromise on integrity and we’re excited to have them be our first partner for exchange connectivity and distribution.”  

Richard Chmiel, Chief Revenue Officer of AlgoTrader said: “Our goal at AlgoTrader is to establish a global crypto asset management ecosystem to help fuel innovation and adoption of the crypto derivatives market which may be poised for exponential growth. Tassat is one of the most professional institutional focused organizations and we are excited to partner with them and to continue to extend our global footprint with a likeminded firm.”

Konsentus and Hampden & Co announced today that Hampden & Co has selected leading RegTech provider Konsentus to support the roll-out of their offering to implement the second Payment Services Directive (PSD2) for their Private Banking clients.

PSD2 is an industry-wide programme enabling banking clients to better harness the value of their transactional banking data. Konsentus’ regulatory and identity checking solution will be integrated into Hampden & Co.’s digital banking platform to ensure access is only given to fully authorised and regulated third parties.

As a SaaS cloud-based platform powered by an API, Konsentus offers a simple solution to check the identity and regulatory status of Third Party Providers enabling Financial Institutions to minimise the risk and provide an easy to use service for their clients.

Graeme Hartop, CEO Hampden & Co stated: “At Hampden & Co we aim to provide our clients with an exceptional banking service. While this is primarily delivered in person by our Private Bankers, we know that many of our clients also value the convenience that digital services can bring. This will enable our clients to take advantage of the freedoms offered by PSD2, while being confident they are receiving a secure and trusted experience. It has been great to work with Konsentus and to implement their straightforward solution.”

Mike Woods, CEO at Konsentus, commented: “We are delighted to provide our regulatory & checking services to Hampden & Co. By offering a fast, secure and easy to implement solution, we will enable Hampden & Co to provide their clients with an effortless experience, confident in the knowledge that account data will only ever be provided to third parties who are fully authorised.”