Security is one of the main fortes of Coinut as a cryptocurrency exchange. Following the recent high-profile incidents like the collapse of FTX and the crash of LUNA, the importance of having a robust security infrastructure has never been more evident. Having 9 years of being in the business, Coinut takes a step forward in keeping its clients’ digital assets or cryptocurrencies secured and ensured from cyber hacks and other causes of loss of funds by signing up with qualified and regulated cryptocurrency custodian, Coinbase Custody.

Coinbase, as a leading global crypto company, has obtained various licences and regulatory approvals from different regulatory bodies worldwide. Coinbase is registered with FinCEN and licensed as a money transmitter in various states and US territories. Coinbase is also a BitLicense holder in New York State. Additionally, Coinbase complies with applicable provisions of the BSA, OFAC, and other pertinent regulations. Coinbase recently received In-Principle Approval (IPA) as a Major Payments Institution licensee from the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). With its ability to hold over 360 different assets in custody and $320 million in insurance protection, Coinbase provides an institutional-grade, secure and reliable solution for crypto custody.

At Coinut, security is of utmost importance, and the company recognizes the need to protect clients' assets from cyber-attacks and other causes of loss of funds. This has been amplified with the biggest crypto crashes last year, such as the crash of LUNA, and the recent collapse of the third biggest crypto exchange, FTX, which have raised concerns in both investors and regulators about the security and insurance of cryptocurrencies and crypto exchanges to protect those who invest in them.

To address this concern, Coinut keeps the cryptocurrency exchange platform safe and secure, guaranteeing the existence of the digital assets or cryptocurrencies in the platform and engaging a qualified cryptocurrency custodian, Coinbase Custody, to hold the assets.

Xinxi Wang, founder & CEO of Coinut, said, “As a crypto hodler, I believe in "not your keys, not your crypto." As an exchange, we painstakingly uphold our fiduciary duty of taking good care of the assets. Crypto is still in its early stage. We still have a long way to go. There is no need to rush. Do what we should do.”

RISK DISCLOSURE:

Digital payment token investments, such as cryptocurrencies, are not guaranteed by service providers or cryptocurrency exchanges and the government. It is crucial to exercise caution in investing, including the awareness that a part or all of the capital may be lost and may not be recovered especially in cases of high price volatility or down market, bankruptcy, seizures and other factors. Hence, the user’s risk tolerance, investment appetite or capacity for loss should be set firstly and they should observe safe and knowledgeable investment practices accordingly. For more information, please visit MAS' website.

Coinut.com is a financial entity regulated as a Money Services Business in Canada and an exempt entity under the Payment Services Act in Singapore. Please be reminded that cryptocurrency trading is highly risky and is not suitable for the general public. For more information please refer to Risk Warnings and Risk Statements.

Qredo, a leading provider of institutional-grade digital asset self-custody solutions, is pleased to announce its participation as one of the institutional partners in the Avalanche Spruce testnet. 

Avalanche has provided Qredo with access to the Spruce testnet via MetaMask Institutional and WalletConnect. Qredo will be utilising the Spruce testnet to assess various applications and assets so as to understand the potential benefits of on-chain trade execution and settlement. 

Qredo sees Avalanche Spruce, and more broadly, Avalanche Evergreen Subnets, as a meaningful step in exploring the transformative possibilities of digital finance. According to Qredo's CCO, Julien Auchecorne: 

"We are excited to experiment with this technology to determine its suitability for institutional workflows and its potential to reduce costs, thus adding value for our users." 

The Spruce testnet aims to remove risks and barriers to entry for buy- and sell-side institutions when engaging with public blockchain infrastructure. By using valueless tokens, institutional participants can experience the full functionality of Avalanche's Subnet architecture without putting capital at risk. 

In the current phase of Spruce, institutional partners will use DeFi applications to trade foreign exchange (FX) and interest rate swaps. Other areas are also actively under research and development. The potential benefits of on-chain FX and cross-border payments include payment-vs-payment transactions, atomic settlement, and reduced counterparty risk. 

Future phases of Spruce will welcome additional applications, assets, and processes, including the exploration of tokenized equity and credit issuance, trading, and fund management. Participating partner institutions' feedback about Subnet architecture, integrations, and capabilities will be crucial in ensuring a successful and scalable Mainnet implementation. 

Upon onboarding, Qredo's wallet addresses will be granted access and be placed in an allowlist, monitoring access at the chain level. Smart contract deployers who have integrated key infrastructure and applications will also undergo this onboarding process for their activity on Spruce.

Qredo looks forward to continuing its collaboration with Avalanche in exploring the potential of digital finance through Spruce and Avalanche Evergreen Subnets. 

Rapid Enterprise, a division of Rapid Finance delivering Lending-as-a-Service (LaaS) solutions to enterprise clients, announced the successful integration of its digital end-to-end lending platform, Decisioneer, with Rutter’s universal API to enhance LaaS capabilities for business lenders nationwide.

Rutter offers a single API for obtaining and standardizing financial data from any accounting, e-commerce, or subscription billing site, enabling business lenders to leverage alternative data to support underwriting. Decisioneer, a core system in Rapid Enterprise’s LaaS technology platform, leverages this API to accelerate business loan decisioning and underwriting processes.

Through this integration, SMB lenders gain access to a much more intelligent view of borrowers’ true financial profile based on relevant ratios and patterns in cash flow and other parameters. This allows lenders to base lending decisions on a holistic view of borrowers’ credit and financial profiles, thereby enabling more accurate and competitive risk-based pricing while minimizing default risk. Through the system’s portfolio monitoring service, Decisioneer also enables lenders to continuously monitor the health of their portfolio throughout the loan lifecycle.

"We are excited to be partnering with the Rapid Enterprise team to power its innovative Decisioneer platform with a more granular and holistic view of any business's accounting, commerce, or payment platform data through Rutter's Universal API,” said Peter Zhou, co-founder and CEO, Rutter. “We can't wait to continue working with the team to push the boundaries with what's possible in the data-driven lending space.”

“Our integration with Rutter is a natural fit as both of our organizations are committed to improving business financing through innovation,” said Kunal Sehgal, Head of Sales, Rapid Enterprise. “The Financial Profile and Portfolio Monitoring Module is a robust tool that enables lenders to make informed decisions and stay on top of their portfolio health. This module builds upon Decisioneer’s holistic borrower profile views and will continue to evolve as a key component of our product roadmap. As lenders ourselves, we know that this is an integral component in optimizing loan approval and servicing decisions while minimizing risk.”

Today, FloQast, a provider of accounting workflow automation software created by accountants for accountants, released the results of its latest survey, Controller’s Guidebook: The Great Recalibration - The Role of Technology in Retaining and Recruiting Accountants. Highlighting the impact of the talent crisis, The Great Resignation, and “Quiet Quitting” on the accounting industry, FloQast’s survey reveals more than half of accountants aren’t confident they’ll stay with their current company in the next year, and a majority of that group may not stay in the industry at all.  

The new survey is the third chapter in FloQast’s Controller’s Guidebook survey series - Controller’s Guidebook: The Great Recalibration - The Role of Technology in Retaining and Recruiting Accountants takes a deeper look into what influences accountants to remain in their current accounting role and what prompts them to explore a new one, and analyzes the impact technology has on both decisions.  

Conducted in partnership with the University of Georgia Consumer Analytics Program, the survey includes the perspectives of 203 accounting and finance professionals. FloQast looked for individuals and organizations that varied in title, tenure, company size, and IPO status, as well as their fulfillment in their jobs, and the tools and training they had received. 

The survey revealed the accounting industry is in the midst of a “Great Recalibration” — in which accountants (much like other employees) are rethinking how much of their time and energy their work should require of them. Survey findings revealed an alarming talent crisis in the industry, with the effects of the Great Resignation and “Quiet Quitting” taking a disproportionate toll on the field.  Key insights include: 

1.       Retention is very much in question - About half of accountants (53%)  are not entirely sure they will stay with their current company in the next year. Of those, some (63%) aren’t even sure they will stay in the industry at all. 

2.       Accountants aspire to uplevel their roles but don’t have the time - More than 60% of accountants report they struggle with imbalance between work and life, doubting they can complete the work they’ve been assigned and, yet, still aspire to take on a more strategic role in their organizations. 

3.       A sense of on-the-job fulfillment is critical to retention - When a sense of professional fulfillment is high, accountants are almost five times more likely to stay with their current employer than when fulfillment is average. They’re also more than 12 times more likely to stay compared to someone with low fulfillment.  

4.       The relationship between technology and talent cannot be overstated - More than 60% of accountants say technology is more important in their job satisfaction today than it was two to three years ago, and 43% say they are extremely likely to ask about technology when interviewing for a new role. 

5.       The ball is in employers’ courts - When accountants have a strong belief that their company is capable of understanding and addressing these issues, they are three times more likely to stay with that company than when they aren’t sure.  Additionally, 76% of accountants who strongly believe in their company say they are likely to stay in their jobs. 

“At FloQast, we recognize that the industry is facing a massive talent crunch and are dedicated to creating powerful solutions that empower accountants and make their lives easier,”  says Mike Whitmire, CEO and co-founder of FloQast, CPA. “Our research demonstrates that as more and more organizations leverage automation technology, the broader accounting industry becomes far better positioned to attract and retain accounting talent.”  

Expanding on this, FloQast’s latest survey results detail clear actions for employers: 

6.       Take a proactive approach to assessing the technology accountants use in their work 

7.       Seek integrated technology solutions that are purpose-built by accountants, for accountants to protect the sense of fulfillment that accountants gain from their work 

8.       Ensure the organization is capable of identifying, procuring, and deploying those solutions in ways that reinforce the accountant’s belief in its abilities 

9.       Be prepared to address questions about technology solutions when recruiting new accountants 

By leveraging these solutions, organizations are better positioned to remain competitive and continue attracting and retaining accounting talent. 

This survey marks the third chapter of FloQast’s Controller’s Guidebook series, following Controller’s Guidebook: Is Your Relationship with Technology a Solution to Burnout or a Source of Stress?, which examined the relationship between burnout and technology available — or unavailable — to employees.  FloQast plans to release more research in 2023, expanding on the findings from past Controller’s Guidebook surveys, developing deeper analysis into the future of the accounting and finance industry.  

Jack Henry™ announced today that Georgia United Credit Union has launched its digital banking platform to deliver more personal, custom member experiences.

The $2 billion-asset credit union wanted a platform that would scale with its growth goals and meet the evolving needs of its members. Jack Henry’s digital banking platform provides a flexible, open-API infrastructure that gives the credit union control of its custom features and functions, allowing for faster rollouts of new products and services.

Since launching the platform in October 2022, the credit union has introduced more than a dozen custom developments. These developments are part of a larger effort to streamline the member experience across the credit union’s channels. Members now have access to a variety of self-service options that they can use to improve their financial health.

“Jack Henry enables us to focus on meeting our members’ needs while delivering the best digital experience,” said Mark Bartholomew, chief information and operations officer at Georgia United. “Our developers now can easily work on custom solutions that set us apart from the competition and go live with those customized solutions much more easily and efficiently. As an industry, we’ve been talking about creating seamless user experiences for more than a decade. Providers like Jack Henry are delivering the open banking infrastructure that makes this possible.”

Georgia United is receiving positive feedback from both members and team members. The platform has 88,000 total users – with more than 90 per cent of existing users migrating to the new platform. Jack Henry’s digital banking app is one of the highest-rated and fastest in the Apple app store, so Georgia United members now can launch their mobile banking experience in milliseconds. Credit union team members manage back-end technology more easily and benefit from a consistent source of data due to tight integration with the core. Integrated data helps the credit union offer members a more consistent experience by seamlessly connecting members with data from a variety of sources; the platform provides more reliability and stability, helping the credit union service members with minimal interruption.

“Georgia United is an example of how open infrastructure can give financial institutions new ways to grow,” said Julie Morlan, senior managing director of Jack Henry digital solutions. “Offering streamlined banking experiences for members helps strengthen their connection to their credit union and meet their financial needs in a timely manner. We love being able to work with clients like Georgia United – institutions that are dedicated to improving member experiences and strengthening their communities.”

Mercuryo, the all-in-one cryptocurrency platform, is proud to announce its partnership with Simpledo, an emerging crypto provider in Turkey. This partnership is aimed at expanding Mercuryo's global presence and enhancing its services for customers in Turkey.

Simpledo offers a range of crypto solutions to its customers in Turkey, including on/off ramps, crypto swaps. With this partnership, Simpledo will be able to leverage Mercuryo’s expertise to provide its customers with a seamless experience.

Mercuryo, founded in 2018, offers Banking- and Crypto-as-a-Service, KYC, KYB, AML, fraud monitoring, and much more, providing ready-made solutions for crypto platforms and traditional banking institutions. Through its partnership with Simpledo, Mercuryo will be able to offer Simpledo’s customers in Turkey a secure and reliable crypto platform that meets their unique needs.

"We are excited to partner with Simpledo to expand our global presence and provide our customers in Turkey with a world-class all-in-one crypto solution," said Andrey Ilinsky, CPO at Mercuryo. "Our partnership with Simpledo will allow millions of people in Turkey to have a seamless experience and make it easy for anyone to start their crypto journey".

Simpledo, with its expertise in the Turkish market, will leverage Mercuryo’s deep expertise and enable Simpledo to ensure that all services are compliant with local laws and regulations.

"We are thrilled to partner with Mercuryo, this partnership will allow us to offer a world-class crypto service in Turkey," said Murat Eren, CEO of Simpledo Financial Technologies Inc. "Our goal is to make it easy for everyone to access the crypto world, we believe that crypto assets are the future, and we want to make it easy for everyone to be a part of that future ".

Simpledo services through Mercuryo will allow Crypto enthusiasts in Turkey to buy crypto (with fiat currencies such as TRY, USD, and EUR) easily and securely with Credit Cards, Apple Pay, and various payment methods without having to rely on crypto exchanges.

Digital Asset Research (DAR), a leading provider of crypto asset data and research, today announced the release of its April 2023 Crypto Exchange Vetting results. In an environment where cryptocurrencies trade across hundreds of lightly regulated or unregulated exchanges, DAR’s vetting processes apply institutional-level diligence to digital asset markets to meet an industry-wide need for reliable crypto data.

Over 450 exchanges were evaluated to identify 15 Vetted Exchanges. The following exchanges continue to maintain their status as Vetted Exchanges: Binance.US; bitbank; Bitfinex; bitFlyer; Bitstamp; Bittrex; CEX.IO; Coinbase; Coincheck; Gemini; itBit; Kraken; LMAX; and Okcoin. GMO Coin Co. is added as a new Vetted Exchange. Bitso, BTC Markets, CrossTower, and Zaif are no longer Vetted Exchanges.

Eight exchanges are now considered Watchlist Exchanges for potential future inclusion on the Vetted Exchanges list: Binance; CoinTiger; Crypto.com; Gate.io; Huobi; KuCoin; LATOKEN; and Phemex. Bitrue and CoinEx are no longer Watchlist Exchanges.

The Exchange Vetting process combines quantitative and traditional qualitative due diligence to identify exchanges reporting accurate volumes and eliminate exchanges that are not appropriate for determining an accurate market price.

“Our mission is to provide the highest quality data in the industry,” said Doug Schwenk, DAR’s CEO. “Our quarterly analysis of digital asset exchanges underpins our prices for 10,000+ crypto assets. In addition, it helps our institutional customers identify venues with more reliable market activity, less likely to have been manipulated.”

The Exchange Vetting process follows an Asset Vetting process that was completed in March and evaluated over 1,000 digital assets to identify assets appropriate for various institutional use cases. During the Asset Vetting process, digital assets are evaluated to determine if they meet institutional investor standards for codebase construction and maintenance, community, security, liquidity, and regulatory compliance.

Results of the Exchange Vetting process determine pricing sources used to calculate DAR reference prices for institutional clients, including Bloomberg, Chainlink, FTSE Russell, the FTSE DAR Reference Price, and Refinitiv.

DAR performs its Exchange Vetting processes quarterly. Results will next be announced in July 2023.

NCR Corporation, a leading enterprise technology provider, has expanded its partnership with Payfare Inc. (TSX: PAY), a leading fintech powering instant payout and digital banking solutions for the gig workforce.

The extended partnership makes NCR a provider of self-service financial solutions for Payfare’s cardholders across the United States for both cash-in and cash-out transactions.

Payfare, which powers instant payouts and loyalty rewards for the largest gig economy platforms in the United States, including DoorDash and Lyft, has been a valued partner of NCR for its Allpoint ATM network, which offers surcharge-free cash access for over 1,200 card issuers at 40,000 ATMs nationwide. Under the expanded partnership, Payfare’s cardholders will gain access to Allpoint+ cash-accepting ATMs, enabling cash deposits in addition to cash withdrawals.

Payfare is also leveraging NCR Pay360, an API solution that allows cardholders to access cash in their account with a simple, secure code via Payfare’s digital banking apps. Such functionality will enable Payfare cardholders to withdraw cash without requiring a physical debit card. With the addition of Allpoint+ and NCR Pay360, gig workers across the country will be able to access cash with greater flexibility, ease and speed at convenient locations they know and trust. 

“Our cardholders have leveraged NCR’s retail-based Allpoint ATM network to access cash where they live and shop, and we are confident that this expanded partnership will offer even more value,” said Marco Margiotta, CEO and Founding Partner at Payfare. “With NCR, we are supporting new transactions and will enhance self-service financial solutions in a safe, secure and efficient manner at scale for gig workers across the United States.”

“Payfare is investing in software and services that will help on-demand economy platforms deliver compliant, reliable payments to their gig workers,” said Don Layden, EVP, President, NCR Banking. “Through NCR’s innovations, Payfare’s users benefit from more efficiency and speed and unmatched density and scale. We’re proud to support Payfare in serving the financial needs of gig workers and bring new capabilities to on-demand marketplaces.”

Veriff, a global identity verification provider, today announced its new Know Your Customer (KYC) Education Center. Offering a comprehensive library of KYC articles and guides, the hub acts as an essential resource for businesses looking to remain compliant with quickly evolving Anti-Money Laundering (AML) and Counter-Terrorist Financing (CTF) regulations.

Increasingly stringent KYC and AML regulations are sweeping the globe, forcing many organizations - from law and accounting firms, to banks and other credit and financial institutions -  to navigate various changing requirements in order to be considered compliant. Most recently in Europe, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published new guidelines on remote customer onboarding impacting all credit and financial institutions that fall under the scope of the Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD).

In Veriff’s KYC Education Center, businesses can digest actionable guides and expert research covering all aspects of KYC requirements and standards. Key features include:

• Access to the latest up-to-date information on AML and CTF regulations necessary for businesses to ensure compliance.
• A comprehensive library of KYC articles, including resources on identity verification, proof of address, and other relevant information.
• A user-friendly design that is easy to navigate and convenient for businesses of all sizes.

“We’re seeing KYC regulations evolve at a rapid pace, and at the same time, regulators cracking down even more on penalties. As a result, it has never been more imperative for organizations to stay on top of their local KYC and AML regulations,” said Janer Gorohhov, co-founder and CPO of Veriff. “This requires businesses to fully understand the particulars of their respective programs as they change. We’re thrilled to roll out our new KYC Education Center tool that organizations can leverage for this very reason, and help them avoid being hit with large fines and reputational damage.”

Veriff provides best-in-class KYC verification with its video-first technology and offers an extra layer of protection for users through location verification. The company’s anti-money laundering (AML) screening capabilities also help customers maintain their regulatory compliance while also actively increasing customer conversions. To learn more about Veriff’s AML and KYC compliance offerings, click here.