finnCap Group plc ("finnCap" or the “Company”), a leading adviser and broker to ambitious growth companies both public and private, is delighted to announce that it has successfully completed its fundraising with institutional and retail investors, raising £5 million (before expenses)(the “Placing”). This consists of £3.75 million of new money which will be used to partially fund the cash consideration for the Acquisition and £1.25 million on behalf of selling shareholders. The Placing and Acquisition are conditional on, amongst other things, Admission which is expected to occur on 5 December 2018.

finnCap’s core focus is on providing the financial services expertise to help ambitious companies grow, whether public or private. Its principal activities are equity capital market focused and delivered through teams specialising in corporate finance and broking, equity sales, agency trading and market making and research. Since 2007, finnCap has demonstrated its fundraising and advisory capabilities and has raised over £2.6 billion for its clients. finnCap is retained as financial adviser or broker to 127 quoted companies.

The acquisition of Cavendish, a leading independent M&A adviser to the UK mid-market will bring a capability in sell-side M&A advisory services, exit planning and debt advisory services with a focus on mandates relating to companies with an enterprise value of up to £500 million.

The Board believes there is a compelling opportunity to offer the services provided by Cavendish to finnCap’s existing client base and post-Admission, the Group will provide an integrated offering to growth companies for raising private and public equity and debt, together with M&A advice on acquisitions and disposals with a mission to help ambitious companies grow. Its strategy will be to expand its successful equity capital market business, add additional services of which the acquisition of Cavendish forms a key part, and to focus on the recognition of its brand in its core markets.

Sam Smith, Chief Executive Officer of finnCap said: "We are delighted to be going ahead with our IPO in what are very difficult market conditions and are very pleased by the support from our institutional and retail investors. The proposed acquisition of Cavendish will enable the Group to expand its suite of services and strengthen its market position as well as enhancing the fundraising capabilities across public capital, private markets and debt funding.”

Camel Financial, a cross-border fintech company and the financial arm of DHgate, is now processing online payments in Latin America with EBANX, a global fintech company with Latin American DNA that offers local payment solutions from the region to international websites. This partnership enables DHgate, a global ecommerce giant that sells to 222 countries, to accept over 100 local payment methods from Brazil, Mexico, Argentina, Colombia, Chile, Peru, and Ecuador.

Businesses and people from these seven nations are now able to pay for their online purchases on DHgate's website using local payment methods like cash vouchers, bank transfers, local debit and credit cards (that can only process local currencies), and other alternative payment methods. "With an impressive growth pace, Latin America is a key-market for Camel Financial and DHgate's global strategy. Our goal with the acceptance of local payment methods is to offer an even better user experience for our customers in the region and to boost our already strong presence within these nations", said Carson Huang Mihan, CEO of Camel Financial. "EBANX is very important in this strategy, for it gives the expertise, solutions, and backup needed for outstanding payment and customer experiences", Carson completes.

For EBANX, this partnership means the continuity of its purpose, which is to bridge the gap between Latin Americans and the best global products and services available. "We are very proud to be processing payments for DHgate, one of the most important ecommerce merchants in the World. This means that even more people in Latin America will be able to access all DHgate has to offer", said Alphonse Voigt, co-founder and CEO of EBANX.

The importance of local payment methods in Latin America

In Latin America, 49 percent of the adult population is unbanked, according to the World Bank's data. This means that almost half of the economically active population in the region have no access to financial services and products such as a credit card, either local or international (that can process foreign currencies). This is one of the reasons why local payment methods are used by many. 

Around 126 million people are unbanked in Brazil, Mexico, and Argentina. There are more unbanked adults in these three Latin American countries alone than there are people in England, Ireland, and Italy combined. It is a considerable amount of potential customers that foreign ecommerce merchants cannot reach unless they offer local payment methods.

Not to mention people that do have access to financial services and products, but choose to pay for online purchases using cash methods, for instance. Such fact was observed in a research conducted by EBANX in 2017: 71% of people that paid their international online purchases using boleto bancário, a very traditional Brazilian cash voucher, had at least one checking account. 

Considering these numbers, it is easy to see why international ecommerce merchants decide to go beyond and accept more than international credit cards in Latin America. To these merchants, accepting boleto bancárioin Brazil, OXXO voucher in Mexico, Vía Balotoin Colombia, cupón de pagoin Argentina, and other methods means reaching all their potential consumers in the region – even the unbanked ones – and offering a better purchasing experience.

• 04.12.2018 -- 06:50 am

Financial IT interview with Glenn Shoosmith, CEO of BookingBug at MoneyLive 2018

250 participants attended Infrachain 18, the first blockchain conference focused on the public sector and infrastructure. Federal Councillor Ueli Maurer welcomed the conference attendees at Stade de Suisse in Bern, stating that: “Switzerland has a great hand of cards when it comes to the development and use cases of the blockchain technology.” To keep its pole position, six existing laws will be amended. The report by the Federal Council will be published in two weeks. 

Switzerland is globally known for its pioneering role in the development and application of the blockchain technology. One of many reasons is the continuous knowledge transfer and exchange between entrepreneurs, startups, public authorities, politicians and developers in and around Crypto Valley. 

Today, organizations such as EY, Tezos, Swisspower, Postfinance, die Post, SICPA, B3i and elblox gathered for once not in Zug but in the Swiss capital to show their use cases and projects in front of renowned politicians and members of the public sector. Adrian Hasler, Prime Minister of Liechtenstein, introduced the new blockchain-law of Liechtenstein, which recently made global headlines. 

The Infrachain conference was founded and organized by the Swiss Blockchain Federation, which is campaigning for Switzerland as the global main hub for blockchain developments.

Swiss Minister: Number of blockchain applications will explode

Federal Councilor and Minister of Finance, Ueli Maurer, is convinced that the number of blockchain applications will explode over the coming years. Switzerland has the best requirements due to the local entrepreneurs, developers, scientists and go-getters, but according to Maurer it is also important to not underestimate the international competition. 

Maurer defined the following goal: “Switzerland will be leading the way in blockchain development and use-cases.” To get there, legal certainty and purposeful legislation will be of the essence. Maurer also emphasized that at the same time, regulation should not “strangle” blockchain entrepreneurs and developers in early stages but provide guidance instead. It should encourage startups to realize their ideas in Switzerland and attract foreign talent. 

This is also the tone of the Blockchain/ICO report, which the Federal Council will publish in about two weeks by an appointed working group. “Switzerland doesn’t need new special regulations for blockchain. But we will have to amend six existing laws, to include this new technology, that will impact many industries in the future”, says Maurer. 

Jörg Gasser, State Secretary for International Finance, is leading the working group which is reviewing the legal framework for financial sector-specific applications of blockchain technology to point out concrete need for action. He agrees with Maurer and said later at the conference that there will be specific and purposeful amendments in civil law and financial market legislation. The state is putting general guidance in place, aiming to strengthen and further expand Switzerland’s position as a hub for fintech and blockchain innovation. 

Switzerland as leading hub for fintech and blockchain startups

Federal Councillor Maurer is convinced that Switzerland can keep its pole position as a prime location for blockchain startups. According to Maurer, some of the advantages of Switzerland are short decision-making processes as well as the continuous dialogue between politicians and the industry. This is one of the most important requirements in the world of blockchain, as changes happen fast and on a monthly basis. 

Furthermore, it is important for politicians to keep the dialogue with the blockchain industry going, to understand current developments and needs. Switzerland should be proud of its achievements. Despite humility being part of the Helvetic DNA, that commendable trait now has to be exchanged for courage on all levels. 

Senior claims executives from leading insurance companies will participate in a live and free webinar hosted by Insurance Nexus, exploring whether AI can be the solution for efficient, hyper-personalized claims at scale.

As insurance’s ‘moment of truth’, the claims process is often regarded as the ‘face’ of insurance; the majority of customers’ interactions with their insurance carrier are when they are making a claim and so it is essential for carriers to make this process as easy, efficient and personalized as possible. Accordingly, a recent Insurance Nexus survey of over 700 claims executives found 83% in agreement that ‘AI and Machine Learning will have the greatest impact on claims over the next three years’ and 68% agreed that claims simplification ‘will impact greatest on customer experience’.

In order to provide insurance carriers with a strategic roadmap to achieving AI-enabled, personalized claims at scale, Insurance Nexus are holding a webinar on Thursday, December 6; “Humanizing Claims with Artificial Intelligence”. Insurance Solutions Group Managing Partner, Stephen Applebaum will moderate the discussion alongside Natalie Kaschalk (Head of Auto Claims Strategy, Farmers Insurance), David S. Williams (VP Claims, Texas Windstorm Insurance Association) and   Andrew Pelcin (VP – Claims Data Analytics Implementation, Chubb)

“AI & Analytics is enabling carriers to better meet customer demands at scale across the enterprise, including Underwriting, Claims and CX,” said Stephen Applebaum, Managing Partner, Insurance Solutions Group and webinar moderator. “These technologies reveal insights with real impact.  Carriers are partnering with InsurTechs and other partner segments to accelerate their pace of adoption. We are excited to provide forums like this webinar for all participants to learn and network”.

Attendees to the webinar can expect to tackle issues including which existing data sets can be used to enhance the claims process, how to create fully-automated business workflows that augment the efficiency and productivity of claims handlers, as well as how AI can help fight fraud by picking up inconsistencies and suspicious patterns in claims, freeing up investigators for more complex cases.

The “Humanizing Claims with Artificial Intelligence” webinar is being held in conjunction with Insurance Nexus’s third annual Connected Claims USA Summit 2019. The conference, which will welcome over 700 senior claims executives, takes place June 5^th and 6^th, 2019, at the Marriott Marquis Chicago, Chicago, Illinois. For more information about the conference, please visit the website: https://events.insurancenexus.com/connectedclaimsusa/

Register for the webinar here: http://bit.ly/2P7EWFt

Contact

Mariana Dumont, Insurance Nexus

P: +44 (0) 207 422 4369

Toll Free: 1 800 814 3459 ext 4369

E: mariana.dumont@insurancenexus.com

Libra Internet Bank assessed Allevo’s FinTP-Connect solution, given the requirements of the revised Payment Services Directive – PSD2.

The solution achieves centralized management of requests initiated by financial services providers on behalf of the final customer, for banks (s)he collaborates with. From a functional point of view, FinTP-Connect retrieves these requests, transfers them to the Core Banking system, processes them and returns the legitimately requested responses back to the PISP/AISP (Payment Initiation Service Providers or Account Information Service Providers). Requests can be received as JSON/XML – ISO 20022 and they are sent to the internal systems of the bank in native format.

By installing and configuring the FinTP-Connect Proof of Concept, Libra Internet Bank made a technical and functional assessment of the solution, looking to extend it together with Allevo teams involved in requirement analysis, development, test and implementation.

The scenarios covered by this Proof of Concept encompass:

• End user (Libra Internet Bank client) multi-factor authentication by means of a financial services third party provider (TPP) app and the bank’s authentication server.
• Financial services third party provider (TPP) authorization by the end user (Libra Internet Bank client), to grant it access to the history of transactions of own bank accounts on his/her behalf.

As per the architecture proposed by Allevo, the complete version of FinTP-Connect ensures the following functionalities:

• API management
• TPP identification
• TPP verification and validation for access to services
• Rules management for applying Strong Customer Authentication (SCA)
• User activity tracking: TPP Management and Fraud Risk Management
• Log of services run by users through the TPP
• Native format configuration: requests from the TPP and responses from Core Banking systems

“We are constantly concerned with the adoption of new technologies in our services. As such, we responded with great interest to Allevo’s proposal to assess the FinTP-Connect Proof of Concept for alignment to PSD2 requirements”, says Alexandru Dionian, IT Manager, Libra Internet Bank.

“We are very pleased about the collaboration with Libra Internet Bank and their openness to embark on such a large scale project, which has benefited from the enthusiastic involvement of our entire team. Once the business requirements and technical details were pinpointed, both the bank’s and our team joined efforts to perfect this solution in a record time, animated by the financial industry’s rapid and broad evolution”, adds Sorina Bera, CEO, Allevo.

Travelex, the leading global foreign exchange and money transfer specialist, today released its study into attitudes towards cash and other payment technologies: Do we really want a cashless society?

The study, which looks at cash and cashless technology usage in four markets—the UK, Australia, Brazil, and South Africa—shows that a cashless society may not be a realistic ambition. In fact, the survey revealed an “immovable” 24% of consumers who will never abandon cash—no matter what technological advance or leap forward is available to them. 

In Brazil and South Africa, where cash use is more common, there is a strong desire for wider acceptance of cashless technologies such as payment cards and digital wallets. In both markets, 60% say that they are worried about having cash stolen from them which suggests fear of theft is a key driver rather than convenience. 

In the UK and Australia, however, where the use of cashless technologies is more widespread, people are happier with their use of cash. Around 80% of people in both markets say that they are comfortable using cash.

Respondents across all countries saw cash as part of their day-to-day lives. They carry cash at all times, replenishing their wallets and purses regularly at ATMs, and are unwilling to go that last extra mile and never use cash again.

Key takeaways: 

• Most people neither expect nor desire an end to cash. Instead, they want a mix of payment methods to be available, including cash
• ATM use is remarkably consistent, no matter how far along a country is on the “cashless journey”. Even if people have good access to cashless technology, they still want access to cash
• There is a core of people who will never give up cash, no matter how convenient cashless payment technology becomes
• Cash is no longer king—but neither is it dead. The cashless society is on hold, at least for now

The findings suggest that cashless technologies will not replace cash completely; instead people are happier with an equilibrium between the two.

“While the proliferation of cashless payment technologies has generally led to a reduction in cash usage across developed economies, banknotes have unique properties that consumers value, such as security against fraud,” said Michael Batley, Head of Strategy, Travelex. “As long as this is the case it’s unlikely that any attempts to abandon cash completely will succeed. Even Sweden’s bid to go cashless, touted as a successful model, has seen pushback. Ultimately, only consumer demand will drive the change towards a truly cashless society and our research indicates this is further away than many realise.”

As well as revealing a lack of appetite for a cashless society, the study also reveals that opinion is split on whether it is even possible. The UK, the most ‘cashless’ country surveyed, represented the highest proportion (47%) of respondents that do not see an end to cash, closely followed by Australia (42%). 

Travelex commissioned Sapio Research to survey 1,000 consumers regarding their attitudes to cash and cashless technology across four markets: the UK, Australia, Brazil and South Africa. These four countries are at different points in the “journey towards cashlessness”, as defined by Mastercard’s Measuring progress toward a cashless societyreport, and together give a representative overview. 

ONPEX, a leading provider of multi-currency IBAN accounts, has partnered with the Lithuanian eMoney institution, SatchelPay. The partnership will see ONPEX provide SatchelPay with tailor-made banking and payment services it needs to boost SWIFT payment capabilities.   

Regulated by the Bank of Lithuania and passported in 31 European countries, SatchelPay already offers a unique EUR IBAN solution, which allows them to serve clients in the SEPA zone. However, in response to growing client requests for international multi-currency pay-in and pay-outs, the eMoney institution needed a partner to expand its banking network and to provide cross-border payment capabilities.

SatchelPay uses ONPEX’ flexible Application-Program-Interface (API) to integrate SWIFT payments and facilitate the management of multiple currencies and therefore provides an advanced IBAN solution for its clients. As a result, the Lithuanian-based service provider is now able to offer its clients cross-border sending and receiving of funds in 25 different currencies, all using just one multi-currency IBAN account per client.   

In addition, SatchelPay’s clients are able to hold an IBAN account in their own name and unique reference number – making reconciliation even quicker and more efficient than before. 

Speaking about the new partnership, Christoph Tutsch, CEO at ONPEX, explained: “ONPEX provides SatchelPay with the bespoke solutions it was looking for to meet its customers’ needs and facilitate the types of transactions they want to make. In a competitive financial services market, SatchelPay needed simple and innovative solutions, which would bring value to its operations and to its customers. With the help of ONPEX, SatchelPay can now deliver a seamless experience for its clients.”   

Thomas Jackson, CEO at SatchelPay, continued: “We were seeking highly-skilled specialists to take our IBAN offering to the next level – ONPEX’s expert team proved to be the perfect fit. One of the greatest benefits of our collaboration was the fact that ONPEX was able to deliver in a fraction of the time a tailor-made solution via the use of its flexible API-driven approach. This has led to a number of cost and time savings across SatchelPay as an organisation, which means that we can also share these benefits with our clients. In short, ONPEX has given SatchelPay an even greater competitive edge in a crowded market.”

To find out more about ONPEX’s multi-currency IBAN accounts, visit www.onpex.com.