Fintech Weekly | Issue 43

New York credit card fintech startup Petal receives $200 million in debt financing

Recently, Petal, a financial technology company headquartered in New York, announced the acquisition of a $200 million debt financing from Victory Park Capital and a term loan of up to $20 million from Trinity Capital. Petal stated that it will use this funds to expand its credit card program and help new consumers who are in contact with credit establish credit using their personal bank historical data

Information link:

TechCr unchhttps://techcrunch.com/2023/05/10/petal-raise

Comment: So far, approximately 400000 consumers have been approved to use Petal credit cards - with three different options, ranging from free to $59 per year, as well as different cash back rewards and credit limits.

 

Musk's brain computer interface company Neuralink has completed a new round of $280 million financing

Recently, Musk's brain chip startup Neuralink completed a new round of $280 million financing, led by the Founders Fund of Peter Thiel, the godfather of Silicon Valley venture capital. A few months ago, the company obtained approval from US regulatory agencies to conduct its first human clinical trial. The company did not disclose the valuation of the financing.

Information link:

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/08/08/tech/neuralink-brain-musk-fundraising-founders-fund/index.html

Comment: In June of this year, there were reports that the company's valuation reached approximately $5 billion in privately executed stock transactions.

 

Ant Group sold Paytm shares of "Alipay" in India for US $628 million

On August 7, 2023, Ant Group (Netherlands) Holdings Limited stated in a document that the company would sell 10.3% of its shares to Paytm founder and CEO Vijay Shekhar Sharma for $628 million. After this transaction, Ant Group will no longer be Paytm's largest shareholder, and its shareholding ratio will be reduced to 13.5%.

Information link:

https://www.mpaypass.com.cn/news/202308/07161007.htm

Comment: In February of this year, Alibaba Group had sold all of its shares in Paytm. Softbank Group of Japan also reduced its stake in Paytm through secondary market transactions, and its shareholding ratio decreased to 9.18% after the latest transaction.

India's debt collection service platform Credgenics received $50 million in B-round financing

Recently, the debt collection "software as a service" (SaaS) platform Credgenics announced a $50 million financing, with multiple institutions including Westbridge Capital, Accel, Tanglin Ventures, Beams Fintech Fund participating. The platform's valuation reached $340 million. Credgenics was launched in 2019 and provides users with multiple debt solution services, including digital payment, payment analysis, litigation management, on-site payment mobile applications, agent performance management, and payment platforms led by artificial intelligence and machine learning.

Information link:

https://entrackr.com/2023/08/credgenics-raises-50-mn-in-series-b-from-westbridge-accel-and-others/

Comment: Currently, its users have covered over 100 private banks, fintech companies, non bank financial companies, and asset restructuring companies from the Indian and Southeast Asian markets.

Insurance Verification Process Technology Company Modives Born

Recently, several insurance industry experts announced the establishment of the insurance technology company Modives, focusing on achieving automation of insurance verification and solving a major pain point for property insurance companies and car dealers. Founder Waite is an experienced insurance industry entrepreneur who founded the software platform BCF and was acquired by Vertafore. He also founded the data analysis platform Yodil and was later acquired by Duck Creek.

Information link:

https://modives.com/

Comment: Modives is said to be able to optimize the insurance verification process for homeowners, real estate management companies, and car dealerships, reducing time and cost while meeting current data regulatory requirements, thereby bringing a better consumer experience.

 

Insurance Technology Surer collaborates with DirectAsia to customize car insurance products

Insurance Technology Surer announced the establishment of a partnership with Direct Axia Singapore Insurance Company. Both parties will collaborate to empower insurance intermediaries, achieve digital operation, and provide highly customized car insurance products to consumers, allowing policyholders to experience greater flexibility. According to the cooperation content, Surer will provide a digital platform for insurance intermediaries to obtain flexible and innovative car insurance products from DirectAsia.

Information link:

https://surer.sg/in-the-news/surer-partners-with-directasia-to-allow-intermediaries-access-to-its-highly-customisable-car-insurance-product/

Comment: Although customized products are more complex, intermediaries will still be able to provide real-time quotation services for policyholders and achieve a fully digital process from quotation to issuance

 

Insurance broker PCF Insurance received $400 million to strengthen its acquisition capabilities

PCF Insurance has completed a $400 million incremental debt financing led by Blue Owl, a global alternative asset management company. The financing scale of PCF has expanded from $300 million to $400 million to cope with strong loan demand from new and old lending institutions.

Information link:

https://www.sumologic.com/glossary/pcf/

Comment: The last time PCF Insurance took action in the capital market was in February 2023, when it received a $500 million preferred stock investment led by Carlyle's global credit platform and private equity firm HGGC.

Ansheng acquired Laya Healthcare from AIG for 650 million euros

AXA has reached an agreement with Corebridge Financial Inc., a subsidiary of insurance technology giant AIG, to acquire Laya Healthcare. This transaction will cost AXA Group 650 million euros, but they will gain Laya's leading position in the Irish healthcare market, with AXA Group currently holding 28% of the market share.

Information link:

https://www.layahealthcare.ie/

Comment: This Paris based insurance company will also leverage Laya's annual revenue of 800 million euros. With its innovative digital platform and strong direct distribution network, AXA will provide customers with healthcare services through Laya.

The UK government explores the use of open bank payments

Recently, the UK government announced that it will explore the use of open bank driven digital payments for public services. In an article, Amanda Dahl, the head of digital services for the UK government, stated that the plan will become part of a broader plan to provide new features for paying for government services. This includes extending the use of GOV.UK Pay to local authorities' services.

Information link:

https://www.weiyangx.com/427772.html

The EU's new payment system Cesop will be launched in January 2024

According to foreign media reports, the new electronic payment information system (Cesop) will be launched in various EU member states from January 1, 2024. The system aims to achieve the goal of cracking down on tax evasion by collecting data from various banks in a unified manner. Due to the rapid development of e-commerce, there is an increasing number of tax evasion and evasion behaviors. The main function of the EU's proposed new system is to crack down on consumer fraud in cross-border sales of goods and services from various countries.

Information link:

https://taxation-customs.ec.europa.eu/taxation-1/central-electronic-system-payment-information-cesop_en

The Brazilian central bank's digital currency is named DREX and will be launched in 2024

Recently, the Brazilian central bank announced the naming of its planned central bank digital currency next year as DREX, which combines multiple innovative elements, such as D representing numbers, R representing reality, E representing electronics, and X representing trading. It is reported that DREX will use distributed ledger technology (DLT) to settle large-scale interbank transactions, and can also fully convert them into cash and traditional bank deposits.

Information link:

https://g1.globo.com/economia/noticia/2023/08/07/drex-o-que-e-a-nova-moeda-digital-brasileira.ghtml

The London Stock Exchange is collaborating with Microsoft and others to develop AI models

Recently, it was reported that the London Stock Exchange (LSE) is collaborating with Microsoft and several banks to create customized generative artificial intelligence (AI) models, indicating that the financial services industry is seeking to utilize this technology without exposing proprietary data. David Schwimmer, CEO of LSE, said, "We are discussing with clients to give them the opportunity to leverage our existing large amount of data and integrate it with their data in a secure and proprietary manner

Information link:

https://beincrypto.com/lseg-ai-trading-solution-microsoft/#: ~: text=The% 20London% 20St

The EU has passed laws to reduce emissions from transportation, vehicles, and energy consumption

The European Council has announced the adoption of a series of laws and regulations aimed at achieving the EU's climate goals, including regulations to reduce energy consumption throughout the EU by 2030, as well as mandatory deployment of more alternative fuel charging and refueling stations in Europe, and reduction of emissions from the maritime transport sector.

Information link:

https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_15222720

IOSCO calls for regulatory agencies to include new IFRS sustainability reporting standards

The International Securities Organization (IOSCO) is an international policy forum and standard setter for the world's leading securities regulatory body. Recently, IOSCO stated that it has called on its 130 member jurisdictions to consider incorporating the new IFRS standards into their regulatory framework, which collectively regulate over 95% of global financial markets.

Information link:

https://www.iosco.org/news/pdf/IOSCONEWS608.pdf

The Canadian government will gradually eliminate fossil fuel subsidies

The Canadian government has recently announced a series of initiatives aimed at reducing government support for the fossil fuel sector, including the immediate release of a framework and guidelines for the elimination of "inefficient" fossil fuel subsidies. According to the government's new framework statement, this initiative is part of the Glasgow Declaration signed by Canada at the 2021 Climate Change Conference (COP 26), which is an agreement reached by 34 countries to shift public finances from fossil fuels to support the energy transition.

Information link:

Finance.astmoney.com/a/202307252791813485.html

India Announces New ESG Fund Disclosure and Investment Rules

According to new regulations issued by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), ESG funds in India will need to invest at least 80% of their assets in securities consistent with their specific strategies, and asset managers will be required to provide monthly ESG ratings for their holdings.

Information link:

https://investor.sebi.gov.in/index.html

The EU has passed laws to reduce emissions from transportation, vehicles, and energy consumption

The European Council has announced the adoption of a series of laws and regulations aimed at achieving the EU's climate goals, including regulations to reduce energy consumption throughout the EU by 2030, as well as mandatory deployment of more alternative fuel charging and refueling stations in Europe, and reduction of emissions from the maritime transport sector.

Information link:

https://www.thepaper.cn/newsDetail_forward_15222720

IOSCO calls for regulatory agencies to include new IFRS sustainability reporting standards

The International Securities Organization (IOSCO) is an international policy forum and standard setter for the world's leading securities regulatory body. Recently, IOSCO stated that it has called on its 130 member jurisdictions to consider incorporating the new IFRS standards into their regulatory framework, which collectively regulate over 95% of global financial markets.

Information link:

https://www.iosco.org/news/pdf/IOSCONEWS608.pdf

The Canadian government will gradually eliminate fossil fuel subsidies

The Canadian government has recently announced a series of initiatives aimed at reducing government support for the fossil fuel sector, including the immediate release of a framework and guidelines for the elimination of "inefficient" fossil fuel subsidies. According to the government's new framework statement, this initiative is part of the Glasgow Declaration signed by Canada at the 2021 Climate Change Conference (COP 26), which is an agreement reached by 34 countries to shift public finances from fossil fuels to support the energy transition.

Information link:

Finance.astmoney.com/a/202307252791813485.html

India Announces New ESG Fund Disclosure and Investment Rules

According to new regulations issued by the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), ESG funds in India will need to invest at least 80% of their assets in securities consistent with their specific strategies, and asset managers will be required to provide monthly ESG ratings for their holdings.

Information link:

https://investor.sebi.gov.in/index.html

The Monetary Authority of Singapore will strengthen the money laundering risk prevention of single family offices

On July 31, 2023, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) conducted a public consultation on the revised framework to strengthen the monitoring and defense of money laundering (ML) risks in the Single Family Office (SFO) sector in Singapore. The revised framework will introduce a unified category exemption for SFOs and propose specific requirements to ensure that all SFOs are subject to anti money laundering controls.

Information link:

https://www.medanswering.com/menu.taf

2023 Trust Industry Report Released: Opening up a New Battlefield for Family Service Trusts

KPMG, the world's top accounting service agency, released the "2023 Trust Industry Report". The report points out that from the perspective of operating income, it is difficult for the trust industry to reproduce the trend of significant growth before 2015. In 2022, the operating income, total profit, and per capita profit of the trust industry decreased by 30.46%, 39.76%, and 38.69% respectively compared to 2021. Trust companies face significant operating pressure. Among them, monetary funds, asset management plans, and insurance funds account for over 95% of the asset composition of family trusts.

Information link:

https://kpmg.com/cn/zh/home/insights/2023/07/kpmg-trust-industry-report-2023.html

Softbank Vision Fund achieved profitability for the first time in six quarters

SoftBank Group has multiple investment branches including Vision Fund 1, Vision Fund 2, and Latin America Fund, and has invested in well-known startups such as Uber, Alibaba, and WeWork. Recently, the company's investment department announced its first profit in nearly six quarters, totaling approximately $1.1 billion. In June 2023, SoftBank founder Sun Zhengyi revealed to investors that the company would bid farewell to the "defense mode" and be committed to becoming a leader in the era of artificial intelligence revolution.

Information link:

https://finance.sina.com.cn/tech/roll/2023-08-09/doc-imzfqvxz6869173.shtml

Payment and Clearing Association: As of the end of last year, there were 4775 licensed institutions engaged in payment, clearing and settlement services in China

On August 10th, the China Payment and Clearing Association released the "China Payment Industry Annual Report 2023". As of the end of 2022, there are 4775 licensed institutions engaged in payment, clearing and settlement services in China, mainly including banking and financial institutions, payment institutions, infrastructure operation institutions, etc. In addition, there are a large number of upstream and downstream unlicensed institutions such as outsourcing service institutions, financial technology companies, hardware equipment providers, and testing and certification agencies.

Information link:

https://news.cnstock.com/news , bwkx-202308-5104499.htm

Japan will provide tax incentives for battery and chip production

According to Nikkei News, Japan will provide tax incentives for companies that increase domestic semiconductor and electric vehicle battery production. The Ministry of Economy and Industry will start promoting tax law amendments from April 2024, with the goal of strengthening economic security and supporting decarbonization. The specific details of the tax law amendment will be decided before the end of the year, referring to the US Inflation Reduction Act.

Information link:

https://36kr.com/newsflashes/2382894592881157

Malaysia's Ministry of Science and Technology Innovation is considering integrating ChatGPT into government services

On August 10, 2023, Malaysian Minister of Science, Technology and Innovation (Mosti), Chang Lih Kang, stated at the AI Unplugged Conference held in Kuala Lumpur that the department may consider integrating ChatGPT into government services to handle public inquiries. Chang also stated that he believes that the application potential of artificial intelligence in industries such as agriculture is enormous, especially in strengthening food security.

Information link:

https://www.mostifuneralhome.com/

Disney established a task force to explore artificial intelligence

According to reports, Walt Disney Company has established a special working group to study artificial intelligence and how to apply it in this entertainment group. Several sources have stated that the group was established earlier this year before the Hollywood screenwriter strike, hoping to develop artificial intelligence applications within the company and establish partnerships with startups.

Information link:

https://www.ithome.com/0/711/176.htm

PayPal launches the US dollar stable currency PYUSD

This week, PayPal, a payment giant, launched PayPal USD (PYUSD), a stable currency denominated in US dollars, which is issued and managed by Paxos, supported by US dollar deposits, short-term US treasury bond bonds and similar cash equivalents, and can be converted into US dollars 1:1. PayPal stated that this stable currency is designed specifically for digital payments and Web3, and is compatible with the most widely used exchanges, wallets, and Web3 applications. In the coming weeks, PayPal USD will gradually be opened to US customers.

Information link:

https://www.paypal.com/us/digital-wallet/manage-money/crypto/pyusd

Disclaimer: The content is from the Internet, WeChat official account and other public channels. We are neutral about the points in the article. This article is only for reference and exchange.