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Following a period of rapid digital innovation, the global digital banking market is now maturing, shifting from developing and implementing new features to reevaluating banking services and improving user experience (UX), a new Deloitte study found.

The Digital Banking Maturity 2024 report, released in October, surveyed 349 banks in 44 countries to understand the state of digital banking around the world and offer a comprehensive analysis of how banks are evolving in the digital era.

A shift toward redefining existing offerings

The report compares its findings with the previous 2022 edition, revealing a noticeable stagnation in the adoption of new functionalities in banking apps. Instead of focusing solely on introducing new functionalities, banks are now placing greater emphasis on refining existing features and enhancing the overall user experience, the study found.

This shift is particularly evident among “Digital Champions” – those excelling in digital innovation, seamless customer journeys and real-time services – which are redesigning customer interaction channels and expanding relationship ecosystems, especially in areas like investment services.

Overall, the study found that remote, digital onboarding is now common practice across the sector. However, Digital Champions are going the extra mile by adding user-centric features such as information on the application status, real-time validation and a “save and finish later” option.

According to the report, this strategy aims to generate outstanding value for customers, offering them with a full range of key banking operations and fulfilling all financial needs. It aligns with the growing importance of customer experience as a key differentiator.

The rise of super-apps

The report identifies another dominant approach that banking leaders are adopting. In this strategy, banks are focusing on adding many new functionalities and to provide comprehensive “super applications”. These platforms streamline end-to-end remote product offerings while enabling users to manage various aspects of their financial lives in one place.

According to the study, Digital Champions are largely leading this revolution, providing savings and investment solutions 2.5 times more frequently than their competitors. Additionally, many top players are integrating fully digital cash loans into their standard services, and an increasing number are extending their digital capabilities to mortgage products.

Some of these apps have gone a step further, expanding beyond traditional banks to include a range of features such as mobility services, insurance options, and real estate tools, enabling customers to manage various aspects of their lives via a single platform. By providing an all-in-one solution, these institutions aim to keep users engaged within the app for more than just financial tasks, enhancing customer loyalty and convenience.

According to the report, this approach has gained prominence in the Middle East and Asia, where Digital Champions are now offering such services 2.5 times more often than other banks, with significant differences seen in healthcare (6.5x) and public services (5.9x).

Real-estate, personal financial management to improve customer engagement

The research found that banks are also innovating in mortgage lending by introducing real estate marketplaces. These marketplaces are designed to facilitate home purchase, as part of the mortgage process and the only marketplace available, or they can make part of a bigger property-related ecosystem.

Banks are also actively seeking new methods to improve customer engagement, introducing personal financial management functionalities and enhancing financial knowledge and awareness. These strategies aim to increase the duration and frequency of mobile app usage. They also create cross-selling opportunities, further driving customer interaction and loyalty.

According to the report, Europe is the global leader in digital banking, with the highest number of Digital Champions at 17.

In the European neobank sector, the UK’s Revolut leads the market with 50 million customers, followed by Wise with 12.8 million, Bunq with 10 million customers, Monzo with 9.7 million, and N26 with 8 million, according to Statista.

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Reuters Events has announced its “Future of Insurance Europe 2025” conference, set to take place on 7-8 May in Amsterdam.

The event will address key challenges and opportunities in the European insurance sector, including AI integration, risk management, and evolving customer demands.

The conference will bring together over 200 leaders from more than 35 countries.

Attendees can expect discussions and insights on topics such as AI, technology, inflation, risk, talent, strategy, and customer engagement.

Sessions will include panels, roundtables, workshops, hackathons, and presentations featuring prominent industry experts.

Key speakers include Arturo Lopez-Linares, Chief Claims Officer at AXA; Henrik Ryden, CEO Nordics at Marsh McLennan; and Barbara Lieich-Steiner, Chief Digital Officer at UNIQA.

Discussions will revolve around four key themes:

Digital Transformation & AI-Powered Innovation: Exploring technologies like generative AI and advanced analytics to revolutionise underwriting, claims processing, and customer service.

Customer-Centric Strategies & Product Development: Addressing ways to develop insurance products that are transparent, simple, and tailored to evolving customer needs.

Risk Management & Resilience: Examining strategies to mitigate emerging risks such as climate change and cyber threats while promoting sustainable solutions.

Talent & Workforce Evolution: Focusing on upskilling, attracting, and retaining talent, with AI playing a role in building dynamic workplaces.

The event brochure, which includes details and a €200 discount available until 20 December, can be accessed here.

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Swiss-based cryptocurrency app Relai has secured US$12 million in funding to drive its expansion across Europe.

The investment was led by ego death capital with participation from Plan B Bitcoin Fund, Timechain, and Solit Group.

The heavily oversubscribed funding round will enable Relai to enhance its platform, streamline the Bitcoin buying process, and educate users on the benefits of the crypto as a savings tool.

Relai also shared its plans to obtain the Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA) license to gain access to a potential user base of 400 million.

The company has reported significant growth, with a 300% year-on-year increase in user adoption, and is on track to reach 1 million downloads by 2025.

Founded by Julian Liniger and Adem Bilican in 2020, Relai’s self-custody feature allows users to independently manage their Bitcoin while simplifying the buying process.

Jeff Booth, Founding Partner at ego death capital, said,

“Julian and Adem have built an incredible team and platform by focusing relentlessly on long-term value to users – helping them to both understand Bitcoin and to buy it safely and securely.

They are already a European leader and are well positioned to become a household name.”

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finpension ist 2024 stärker gewachsen als je zuvor. Die verwalteten Vermögen haben um mehr als eine Milliarde Franken auf über drei Milliarden Franken zugelegt.

Durch einen temporären Gebührenverzicht auf die neu lancierte Anlagelösung will finpension das Wachstum weiter an-kurbeln.

Dynamische Marktentwicklung mit erhöhter Wechselbereitschaft

finpension konnte im Jahr 2024 bereits mehr als 15’000 Eröffnungen registrieren. Damit hat sich das Wachstum gegenüber dem Vorjahr mehr als verdoppelt. finpension führt das erhöhte Wachstum einerseits auf die breitere Produktpalette zurück, andererseits auf eine höhere Wechselbereitschaft der Schweizer Bankkundinnen und -kunden. Um maximal von der erhöhten Dynamik am Markt zu profitieren, verzichtet finpension 2025 auf die Gebühr von 0.39 % der Anlagelösung fürs freie Vermögen.

Lösung zur Anlage von Kapitalbezügen aus der Vorsorge

Der Ursprung der Anlagelösung lag im Wunsch von bestehenden Kundinnen und Kunden, ihre Vorsorgegelder auch nach der Pensionierung durch finpension verwalten zu lassen. Das Angebot setzt auf kostengünstige ETF und eine tiefe Verwaltungsgebühr. Es ermöglicht auch den Vermögensaufbau mit einem Sparplan und die Geldanlage in Private Markets ab einem Franken.

Die Gebühr für diese Anlagelösung fürs freie Vermögen wird nun temporär auf 0.00 % reduziert. Die Fee-Holiday, wie ein Gebührenverzicht auf English genannt wird, gilt sowohl für alle Neukund:innen als auch für alle bestehenden Kund:innen.

Vom Nischenplayer zur All-Finanz-App- Banklizenz im 2025?

Bisher war finpension in der Vorsorge mit einer Wertschriftenlösung präsent. Seit dem Jahr 2024 bietet finpension auch ein Vorsorgekonto mit 100 % Cash an. Zudem konnte die Anlagelösung fürs freie, nicht in der Vorsorge gebundene Vermögen lanciert werden. Langfristiges Ziel von finpension ist eine All-Finanz-App, wozu auch Zahlungsdienstleistungen und das Hypothekengeschäft gehören. Dazu strebt finpension eine Banklizenz an.

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N26 announced the launch of Ready-Made Funds, a new offering added to its existing Stocks & ETFs trading.

Ready-Made Funds allow customers to select a multi-asset portfolio made up of Exchange-Traded Funds (ETFs) and Index Funds, managed by investment experts from BlackRock. These funds are allocated across equity, fixed income, and non-traditional investments and offer more diversification than investing in a single asset class. The range also allows customers to choose a fund option to match the risk level they are most comfortable with: Mindful, Balanced or Ambitious.

Simplifying Investment Decisions

Ready-Made Funds are the latest addition to N26’s trading offering and are designed to be easy, cost- and time-efficient. Users can select a fund based on their risk appetite and resulting estimated yearly return, directly within the N26 app. The funds offer three different target allocations, with varying risk and yield ranges, fully managed by investment experts. Users can seamlessly access their fund via the N26 app to monitor holdings, deposit or withdraw funds, manage investment plans, and view fund details.

Mayur Kamat, Chief Product Officer at N26, said:

“Investing in the capital markets is an increasingly important way to build wealth over the long term. With Ready-Made Funds, N26 customers can now embark on their investment journey in a couple of taps, backed by the expertise of seasoned professionals.”

This new product is available in Germany, Austria, Spain, Ireland, The Netherlands, Denmark, Finland, Norway, and Belgium and will be gradually made available to eligible customers over the next few days, starting from today. Ready-made funds are offered in cooperation with BlackRock, giving customers access to their global investment and multi-asset investing expertise.

Timo Toenges, EMEA Head of Digital Wealth at BlackRock said:

“We are delighted to work with N26 to bring Ready-Made Funds to their customers. These multi-asset funds are part of a simple investing process that make it easy and affordable to invest. With our global investment expertise, we aim to empower more Europeans to take their first steps into investing with confidence and ease, harnessing the benefits of different asset classes in a few taps.”

Until 1 April 2025, N26 will waive its fees for this new product for all eligible customers. Thereafter, Ready-Made Funds will be available for annual fees starting at just 0.29% of the total investment value.

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After 18 months of economic and geopolitical uncertainty, marked by recession fear, macroeconomic stability is making a comeback. This recovery is driving a resurgence in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the media sector.

The first half of 2024 recorded a 17% year-on-year (YoY) increase in deal volumes in the sector, climbing from 60 transactions to 70, according to a new report by Collingwood, a consulting and advisory firm specializing in the media sector. This growth was driven by Europe and the UK, which recorded 42 deals in H1 2024, up 35% YoY.

Events businesses, which specializes in conferences, trade shows, awards, and one-on-one meetings, emerged as the most active area for dealmaking in Europe in 2024 with 69 deals. The UK, in particular, players a central role in this surge, the report says, hosting several prominent and private equity-backed event organizers such as Clarion Events, CloserStill Media, Hyve Group, Informa, Nineteen Group, and RX Global.

Meanwhile, information businesses, which generate revenue from high-value content subscriptions and other recurring revenue models, also drove significant M&A activity in Europe, with 62 deals recorded compared to 42 in the US.

Though Europe and the UK led the media M&A landscape in H1 2024, the report notes that the US remained a principal market, particularly in the media vertical, which encompasses publishers that generate revenue from multichannel sponsorships, content marketing, and demand- and lead-generation services.

The US led globally with 70 media-specific transactions in 2024, ahead of Europe with 46 deals. The trend is driven in part by the country’s larger marketing market size, and the activities of private equity-backed consolidators like Endeavor and BridgeTower Media. These firm are looking to acquire business-to-business (B2B) digital marketing revenue platforms, the report says.

Key deals underscored this rebound in late 2024. Notably, media company Axel Springer sold its German finance platform, Finanzen.net and associated trading platform to private equity firm Inflexion for a staggering EUR 400 million, according to media reports. The transaction was one of the largest fintech deals in Germany this year.

In December, Dow Jones acquired London-based WorldECR for an undisclosed amount. WorldECR is a provider of news, data and analysis for compliance professionals. WorldECR will integrate with Dow Jones Risk and Compliance, which reported a 16% YoY increase in Q1 2025 earnings to US$81 million.

Information businesses remain most valuable, followed by media companies

According to the Collingwood report, valuation multiples this year remain broadly consistent across business models.

In 2024, information businesses continued to be considered the most valuable, with EBITDA (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization) multiples typically standing between 13x and 16x. These high valuations stem from their recurring business models and high margins.

Media businesses followed, with multiples typically ranging between 8x and 12x. Modern and data-led media businesses stand in the higher end of this range, while traditional publishing or ad-led businesses are seen as riskier, exhibiting thus lower multiples.

Finally, events businesses are typically valued lower, at 7x to 11x EBITDA. However, they can command higher multiples if they host scaled trade shows, have a strong recurring business (e.g., high rebooking rates for trade shows) or exhibit international expansion opportunities.

Optimism ahead for 2025

Looking ahead to the remainder of 2024 and 2025, the media M&A landscape appears promising, the Collingwood report says. With inflation easing and interest rates beginning to fall, the cost of capital is decreasing, creating favorable conditions for dealmaking. In addition, political uncertainty is expected to diminish in 2025, further stabilizing the market, the report says.

Buyers are anticipating M&A activity to continue to increase over the next 18 months, moving back towards 2022 levels. The event vertical is expected to remain a focus point, driven by its profitability and growth potential.

According to a report by A Media Operator, major players such as Informa and EasyFairs, but also PE firms are actively pursuing strategic acquisitions and looking for smaller firms for consolidation.

Informa, a prominent British publishing and exhibitions group, has already spent some US$3 billion over the past few years on assets like Industry Dive, Tagus, Ascential, and others. However, the company still has the capacity for big acquisitions, the report says.

Meanwhile, EasyFairs, a Brussels-based international events company, secured PE investment earlier this year to launch new events, broaden its geographic and sector presence, and tap strategic M&A opportunities.

Questex is another information and events company reportedly on the lookout for acquisitions, media or events, seeking deals that would likely fall into the US$50 million to US$60 million range, according to the report.

BridgeTower Media, which specializes in B2B media and events, and HW Media, publisher of HousingWire, RealTrends and Reverse Mortgage Daily, are also said to be looking at M&A opportunities.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Retail investors are showing distinct behavioral patterns when trading cryptocurrencies compared to traditional assets such as gold and stocks. Traditionally, investors tend to sell their stocks and gold when prices rise.

In contrast, when cryptocurrency prices increase, retail investors are more likely to hold or buy more. This aligns with a “momentum-like” strategy, reflecting the belief that rising prices signal greater future adoption and value, a new research found.

The research, published in September by finance academics from the US and the UK, analyzed trading behaviors for cryptocurrencies and traditional assets, using a dataset of trades from 200,000 individual retail accounts on brokerage eToro between 2015 and 2019.

The analysis used the 200 most traded stocks on eToro, which account for over 91% of stock trading on the platform during the sample period. Similarly, it focused on the three most traded cryptocurrencies, namely bitcoin, ether, and ripple, which constitute over 78% of cryptocurrency trading during the sample period.

For stocks and gold, the research found contrarian tendencies, where retail investors actively rebalanced their portfolios when prices went up, and put money into stocks when the prices went down.

An analysis for the full set of traders in the dataset found that a 1% increase in stock prices was associated with a 1.2% decrease in the portfolio share due to rebalancing, translating to a 0.28% decrease in total portfolio share of stocks.

Similarly, in gold trading, a 1% increase in gold prices was associated with a 38.1% decrease in the portfolio share due to rebalancing, translating to a 37.3% decrease in total portfolio share of gold. This strong contrarian behavior is explained in part by gold returns having much lower volatility than other asset classes as well as the high leverage used by retail investors when trading gold.

Buy and Hold and Double Down on Surges

In contrast, cryptocurrency investors tend to hold onto their assets after large price movements. Some even double down on cryptocurrencies during price surges. An analysis of trading activity found that a 1% increase in prices is associated with a 0.67% increase in the total portfolio share of cryptocurrencies, reflecting this trend.

According to the report, these results are not the outcome of inattention, differential preferences for lottery-like assets, differences in fees, or the lack of cash flow information about cryptocurrencies. Instead, they reveal that retail investors are applying a model of cryptocurrency pricing in which positive returns increase the likelihood of future widespread adoption, which in turn leads them to update their price expectations in the direction of the price change.

Unlike traditional assets, where adoption is already well-established, cryptocurrencies are a nascent industry, with their value tied to expectations of future growth. This explains the contrarian behavior when trading cryptocurrencies compared to more established assets like stocks and commodities, and the momentum-like tendencies.

Booming crypto trading activity

Crypto trading has undergone drastic evolution over the past decade, shifting from being a niche market among tech enthusiasts to becoming a mainstream financial phenomenon influencing global markets.

Despite criticism on their speculative nature, extreme volatility, and lack of regulatory oversight, cryptocurrencies have gained significant traction among supporters.

The State of Cryptocurrency Ownership Worldwide in 2024 report estimates that the number of digital currency users reached 562 million people this year, up 34% increase from 420 million in 2023. This figure implies that 6.8% of the world’s population are now crypto owners, with crypto ownership rising by a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 99% between 2018 and 2023.

Institutional interest has also surged. A study by EY-Parthenon found that 94% of the 277 institutional investor decision-makers surveyed believe in the long-term value of blockchain and digital assets, with 79% considering them crucial for portfolio diversification.

38% of respondents said they had already committed between 1%-5% of funds to digital assets or crypto-related investments, and in the case of family offices, nearly half are in that allocation range. Traditional hedge funds are reaching for digital assets gains even more aggressively than their peers, with 22% allocating greater than 5% of funds.

Last month, crypto trading hit a new milestone, exceeding US$10 trillion across spot and derivatives markets for the first time in November, according to CCData, a data and index solutions provider specializing in the digital asset market.

Spot trading volume rose 128% month-on-month (MoM) to US$3.43 billion, marking the second-highest monthly total since the previous peak in May 2021. Derivatives trading volumes, meanwhile, surged 89.4% to US$6.99 trillion, surpassing the previous all-time high set in March 2024.

This surge was fueled by significant events including Donald Trump’s election victory, which spurred expectations of a pro-crypto regulatory shift. Since election day on November 05, the price of bitcoin climbed more than 40%, crossing the US$100,000 mark on December 06.

South Korea also played a key role in the global trading surge, driven by an altcoin frenzy. Aggregate trading volumes across major South Korean exchanges, including Upbit and Bithumb Korea, reached a record of US$254 billion, representing a 294% MoM increase. South Korea now accounts for 7.38% of the total spot trading volumes on centralized exchanges.

Institutional trading also soared, with CME’s aggregate trading volume hitting US$245 billion in November. Bitcoin futures volume rose by 72.2% to US$186 billion while ether futures volume increased by 122% to US$33.6 billion, a new all-time high for both the instruments.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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The role of Google in the financial services industry has evolved significantly, shifting away from direct consumer-facing offerings to becoming a critical technology enabler for fintech startups and financial institutions, a new report by C-Innovation, a French fintech-focused research firm, says.

The analysis, released in November, explores Google’s expanding role in the financial services industry, focusing on how technologies such as Google Cloud, artificial intelligence (AI) tools, and Google Wallet, are empowering banks and fintech companies to swiftly innovate, scale and enhance customer experiences.

Google Cloud: supporting growth and improving efficiencies

The report highlights the growing influence of Google Cloud in the financial services industry. Google Cloud is a suite of cloud computing services offered by Google. It provides infrastructure, platforms, and software that allow businesses and developers to build, deploy, and scale applications, store and analyze data, and more.

In the financial services industry, Google Cloud allows banks and fintech startups to meet changing customer demands, scale their operations efficiently and manage large user bases without the need for substantial investments in IT infrastructure.

Meanwhile, Google Cloud’s AI tools are designed to improve operational efficiencies. Lending Doc AI, for example, is an AI-driven tool designed to streamline the processing of loan documents. The tool uses advanced machine learning (ML) to extract, classify and analyze data from complex documents like mortgages applications, tax forms, and financial statements.

Today, over 200 companies within the financial services sector rely on Google Cloud, cementing its position as a major force in the digital banking landscape. Notable customers include industry leaders such as Deutsche Bank, HSBC, BBVA, Revolut, Monzo, and Starling Bank.

The report highlights the case of Revolut, which uses Google Cloud’s infrastructure to enhance infrastructure scalability, automation and security. Through Google Compute Engine, Revolut has optimized its infrastructure, enabling automated deployments and updates that allow the company to scale in response to growing demand efficiently.

Revolut also makes use of Google Cloud APIs and automation tools to further streamline processes and improve scalability across its operations in over 35 countries.

Another example is the partnership between Google and GoHenry by Acorns, a fintech company focused on children’s financial education. This collaboration focuses on enhancing financial literacy through wearable technology, integrating GoHenry’s financial education tools with Google’s Fitbit Ace LTE.

It allows children under 13 to manage money safely using GoHenry debit cards linked to Google Wallet. Parents, meanwhile, can set spending limits and monitor transactions, providing kids with real-world financial responsibility in a controlled and secure environment.

Expanding Google Wallet capabilities for banks and fintech startups

The C-Innovation report also notes the expansion of Google Wallet, which now offers digital identity (ID) solutions alongside its traditional payment features. These products and features are providing new ways for digital banks to improve onboarding and facilitate cross-border services.

By enabling users to store digital versions of government-issued IDs, Google Wallet allows for seamless identity verification, simplifying the onboarding process for neobanks, reducing friction and enhancing user experience with secure biometric authentication.

While Google services offer significant benefits to financial services companies, including enhanced scalability, cost efficiency and operational effectiveness, C-Innovation cautions against the risks of deep integration into Google’s ecosystem, highlighting concerns including over-reliance on Google products, regulatory challenges, and privacy issues.

In addition to its business-to-business (B2B) services, Google also has a strong customer-facing presence in financial services.

Google Pay is a mobile payment service that powers in-app, online, and in-person contactless purchases on mobile devices, enabling users to make payments with Android phones, tablets, or watches. Launched in 2011, Google Pay has amassed approximately 150 million users worldwide, recording US$110 billion in transaction value in 2019. The service is available in over 60 countries and territories.

Google has also expanded its services through partnerships with banks and financial services providers. In India, Google is partnered with banks like Axis Bank and ICICI Bank to offer consumer and business loans. Google is also teamed up with Affirm and Zip, two major buy now, pay later (BNPL) players, to offer BNPL options to Google Pay users.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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In Europe, fintech has risen to prominence as a leading startup sector, with some of the continent’s biggest tech companies operating in the field.

These success stories have not only driven innovation but also cultivated some of Europe’s most active angel investors, who are now playing a critical role in nurturing the growth of their local ecosystems, according to a new report by Atomico, a London-based venture capital (VC) firm.

The 2024 edition of the State of European Tech report, released in November, looks at the evolution of the European tech ecosystem, the progresses made, but also the hurdles to overcome for sustained success.

According to the report, European companies valued at more than US$1 billion have proliferated in recent years, with the number of unicorns created in the past decade standing five times higher than pre-2015 levels. In particular, the finance sector led this surge, accounting for 24% of all unicorns formed in the past five years.

Fintech: a leading tech sector in Europe

Responses to a survey of industry stakeholders conducted for the report underscore this dominance, with fintech companies like Revolut, Klarna, Adyen and Wise standing out as emblematic of the growth of the European tech sector over the past ten years.

Revolut was named by 15% of respondents, ranking second after Spotify (26%). These companies are followed by Klarna and Adyen, with 110+ and 90+ mentions, respectively, underlining Europe’s characterization as a global centre of excellence for finance. Wise is another fintech company named, cited more than 50 times.

Revolut is a neobank and fintech company headquartered in London that offers banking services for retail customers and businesses, including currency exchange, debit and credit cards, virtual cards, Apple Pay, interest-bearing “vaults”, personal loans and buy now, pay later (BNPL), and stock trading.

Founded in 2015, the company serves over 45 million retail and 500,000 business customers globally, operates in more than 140 regions and supports over 25 currencies.

Recently, Revolut reached a US$45 billion valuation after a secondary share sale, making it worth more than some of Europe’s biggest banks, Reuters reported. In July, it was granted a UK banking license after a three-year wait, though with some restrictions.

Klarna is a leading global payments and shopping service, boasting 85 million active end-users, and more than 575,000 merchants in 26 countries. Founded in 2005 in Stockholm, Klarna offers direct payments, pay after delivery options and installment plans in a smooth one-click purchase experience.

Klarna achieved net income of SEK 216 million (US$19.8 million) in Q3, up 57% year-over-year (YoY) and marking the second profitable quarter for the company.

Klarna recently filed for an initial public offering (IPO) in the US. While no financial details have been provided, analysts in October put Klarna’s implied valuation at about US$14.6 billion.

Adyen is a Dutch payment company with the status of an acquiring bank that allows businesses to accept e-commerce, mobile, and point-of-sale (POS) payments. Founded in 2006, Adyen provides end-to-end payments capabilities, data-driven insights, and financial products in a single global solution, serving the likes of Meta, Uber, H&M, eBay, and Microsoft.

Adyen is listed on the stock exchange Euronext Amsterdam with a market capitalization of more than US$47 billion.

Finally, Wise, formerly known as TransferWise, is a global tech company, specializing in cross-border transactions. Serving both individuals and businesses, Wise allows its customers to hold 40 currencies, move money between countries and spend money abroad.

Launched in 2011, Wise is one of the world’s fastest growing, profitable tech companies, supporting around 12.8 million people and businesses, and processing approximately GBP 118.5 billion (US$151 billion) in cross-border transactions in its fiscal year 2024. Wise is listed on the London Stock Exchange under the ticker, WISE.

Fintech entrepreneurs shape the European tech ecosystem

Europe’s fintech success stories extend beyond operational growth to fostering local innovation. This manifests both in the number of investments Europe’s fintech founders make, but also their contribution to building their local market.

Taavet Hinrikus, co-founder of Wise, is currently the most active angel investor in Europe. Hinrikus has made more than 90 investments to date with roughly half based in either the UK or Estonia, Wise’s two key hubs.

Another prominent angel investor is Tom Blomfield, co-founder of GoCardless and Monzo based in the UK. Blomfield has made more than 40 investments to date, with 60% of these investments being based in the UK. He is the fourth most active angel investor in Europe.

Other fintech founders in the leaderboard include Maximilian Tayenthal, co-founder of N26, ranked 8th with more than 30 investments to date, and 68% of these investments being in Germany; and Stefan Jeschonnek, co-founder of SumUp, ranked 9th with more than 30 investments and 45% of these investments being in his home country of Germany.

Europe’s tech momentum

Europe has become a global leader in technology. The continent is now home to over 35,000 startups, a fourfold increase from fewer than 8,000 in 2015. Growth-stage companies, meanwhile, saw an eightfold increase to over 3,400.

The tech workforce has also expanded significantly, with 3.5 million people now employed in the sector. The vast majority of those employees have joined over the past decade with close to 3 million jobs created over that time frame. It’s growing at a 24% compounded annual growth rate, comparable to the US.

Total funding over the past decade is ten times higher than that of the previous decade, having soared from US$43 billion to US$426 billion. This year, investment levels are on track to reach around US$45 billion, three times as much as the US$15 billion recorded in 2015.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Mambu has announced the acquisition of Numeral, a French payment technology provider for banks and fintechs.

The acquisition strengthens Mambu’s position as an industry leader, in a move that underscores market confidence and growing demand for modern financial experiences.

With Numeral’s platform, Mambu is set to drive new value from wider audience segments that will increase its overall share of the market. It also offers a unique strategic fit to the foundation of the cloud banking leader’s long-term expansion efforts.

“This acquisition marks a considered move to deliver a more modern, comprehensive payment offering which is now an integrated part of Mambu’s product portfolio. Numeral’s advanced payments platform will enable us to address changing customer demands, strengthen existing product lines and expand our market reach, while offering businesses advanced capabilities to meet an extensive range of needs.”

Fernando Zandona, CEO at Mambu.

Speaking about why Numeral was the ‘right fit’ for Mambu, Zandona added:

“Numeral’s values, proven agility, and robust onboarding processes match perfectly with our growth mindset as a business. We look forward to welcoming their talented team as we unlock new growth opportunities together.”

Founded in 2021, Numeral is a fast-growing payment technology provider that offers financial institutions a universal gateway to connect to partner banks and access schemes and a modern payments hub to automate payment processing. The Paris-based firm processes more than €10 billion in payments annually and has established a strong presence in Europe, having expanded its operations to the UK last year.

The size of the market opportunity for bank payments is striking. In 2022, the value of bank payments in the Eurozone stood at €191 trillion, that is 58x more than card payments (€3.3 trillion). This vast global market is transforming rapidly, driven by the rise of instant payments as a catalyst for modernising core banking and payment platforms. With its robust bank integrations, a modular API and modern dashboard, Numeral’s platform will enable Mambu to capitalise on this market opportunity.

The cloud banking platform will also benefit from Numeral’s roster of partnerships with some of Europe’s leading banks, including BNP Paribas, Barclays, HSBC, and ABN AMRO.

“Payments are at the heart of how companies do business around the world, yet they remain trapped in systems designed decades ago, unfit for the ongoing instant payments revolution,”

said Numeral co-founder and CEO, Édouard Mandon.

“This is a problem that Mambu intimately understands having helped banks and financial institutions worldwide to migrate from rigid, traditional core systems to agile and adaptable cloud infrastructure. Bringing together our dedicated payments technology with Mambu’s leading cloud banking platform and global customer base, we can enable more companies to make their payments future-proof and ever-compliant while eliminating hidden payment complexity at scale.”

The integration of Mambu and Numeral’s advanced payment platform will enable banks, fintechs, and non-financial service firms to seamlessly manage end-to-end payment workflows, support multiple payment methods, and provide real-time transaction capabilities. This will drive greater operational efficiency, improved customer experiences, and accelerated time-to-market for innovative financial solutions.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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In the last two years, some large banks have been hit with very public, lengthy – over 10 hours – disruption of their digital banking services.

And that’s just the incidents we are aware of. Cases like these highlight the fears bankers may have in moving away from legacy systems in the name of innovation.

Such unreliability erodes customer trust, impacts revenue, and perhaps most importantly, raises the ire of regulators.

This fear factor also makes it harder for traditional banks to embrace going digital to fight neobanks and other digital-first financial institutions.

Thus, many bankers and C-suites take a conciliatory route to keep boards, customers, and regulators happy: small innovations here, a product-only digital makeover there.

Rarely, if ever, are legacy systems changed. Unfortunately, half-measures can only last so long in the uber-competitive BFSI space, especially with the increasing rollout of digital banking licenses across different Southeast Asian markets.

Huawei’s 4 Zeros to resilience

At the recent Singapore Fintech Festival 2024 (SFF), Huawei advocated that redefining financial resilience in the AI era be guided by Huawei’s 4 Zeros goal.

Jason Cao, CEO of Digital Finance Business Unit, Huawei, said legacy banks in China have already made the jump into the deep end, choosing the visionary route and making wholesale changes to their foundations from a business standpoint.

“Visionaries think that I have to do it, because if I don’t do it, my whole bank will lose capability for innovations.

This requires not only a particularly strong focus on technology but also a comprehensive focus on the legacy systems as a whole: hardware, software and also engineering middleware, database.

“So we take a holistic view of banks that want to make this change: we learn about the whole architecture, the business, and their business targets,”

he told Fintech News Singapore on the sidelines of SFF.

From legacy to software-defined banking

In China, over 80% of China’s top financial institutions have migrated critical applications and core banking from legacy to cloud infrastructures.

There’s the Postal Savings Bank of China (PSBC), which boasts 650 million customers. With Huawei’s architecture, PSBC has moved its legacy applications from a monolithic structure to cloud-native applications on a private cloud, delivering more than 5,000 microservices, reducing the rollout time of composable products from two weeks to T+1, and achieving a transaction volume of 67,000 transactions per second (TPS).
Cao said,

Cao said,

“We’ve also managed to help both traditional and neobanks build resilience with no legacy architecture, instead basing it on user journeys.

The Shenzhen-based China Merchants Bank removed its legacy system entirely and is now a software-defined bank with over 137 million credit card users and more than 188 million mobile banking customers. In 2022, it rolled out more than 50,000 products and five million functioning points, essentially turning them into a giant Internet company from a traditional bank.

“On the neobank side, Huawei’s solutions have helped ensure WeBank’s reliability: its system availability in 2023 was 99.999%, with daily transactions peaking at more than 1.1 billion, at an IT O&M cost per account of 30 US cents.

Our clients enjoy omni-channel secure service access, real-time interaction for better experience, core transaction and risk management, as well as SLA assurance through fast fault isolation,”

he added.

Huawei builds new resilience to surpass mainframes and achieve 99.999% availability by focusing on nine foundational technology domains: transactional databases, financial-grade platforms (PaaS), the R&D tool chain, cell-based architecture, software and hardware collaboration acceleration, chaos engineering, data security, lossless upgrade projects, and cloud native deterministic O&M.

With Southeast Asian traditional banks fighting for the piece of the digital banking pie with non-BFSI competitors as well as lithe neobanks and digital wallets, Huawei’s 4 Zeros resilience solution deliverables have also attracted customers like the Philippines’ UnionBank, which has more than 15 million customers.

In an impressive 35-day timeline, Huawei and its partner launched a cloud-based core banking system for UnionDigital Bank, enabling access to financial services for millions of unbanked Filipinos. Such a project usually requires three to six months to complete.

Global ecosystem partners

In a post-payments world, Huawei has upgraded its finance industry strategy, Cao said.

“We provide comprehensive solutions which combine hardware and software, so it’s an ecosystem to help customers. But now our customers want us to solve more complex issues, beyond simply replacing their legacy systems.

“So Huawei is growing its ecosystem by working with global partners, for example, like Temenos, a top player for core banking. On the other hand, we also work with a lot of regional leading fintech players in our ecosystem.

With our top partners from China, we launched the Huawei Financial Partner Go Global Program (FPGGP) in 2021.

Today there are more than 30 partners in FPGGP, and we want to introduce all these top-performing partners to the global market.

“While we have access to global customers, we don’t do applications. Our partners work on applications, we work on the platform.

Bringing our Chinese partners to the global market is just the first step – next we want to bring partners from across all the regions onto our global platform, giving them global access,”

Cao said.

To date, Huawei has served over 3,700 financial customers in more than 80 countries and regions, including 53 of the world’s top 100 banks. Huawei has also established strategic partnerships with more than 80 large banks, insurers, and securities companies across the globe, becoming their trusted partner in digital transformation.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Digital markets and tokenizations represent a potential avenue of growth for the rapidly evolving private credit market. Tokenization, in particular, is poised to address some of the underlying challenges inherent in private credit, while enhancing efficiency and enabling broader investor participation, a new report by S&P Global says.

The report, released in October 2024, explores how tokenization could unlock new opportunities in private credit by enabling fractional ownership on blockchain platforms, mitigating liquidity risks and addressing operational inefficiencies that deter many investors.

Private credit refers to a non-banking type of loan typically offered to companies but also individuals. In the private credit market, investors make loans to entities or individuals who may have trouble accessing credit from banks or the public markets. Because of the heightened risk, investors typically collect higher interest rates on private credit than they would earn on bonds or other debt investments.

Despite these prospects, many investors are still hesitate to participate because of inherent challenges related to private credit. A year-end 2023 survey by Coalition Greenwich found that a majority (70%) of the wealth and asset managers would have allocated more to private credit investments if it weren’t for liquidity risks and/or high management fees. Additionally, a substantial share (38%) of survey respondents cited concerns about transparency.

These issues are where tokenization offers transformative potential. Tokenization enables easier trading of fractionalized assets on digital marketplaces, making private credit more accessible by improving liquidity. Furthermore, the use of smart contracts reduce back-office costs and improve operational workflows. Finally, shared ledgers enabled by the use of blockchain technology enhance transparency and thus trust through real-time immutable records of records of ownership and transaction history.

Strong growth potential

Though still in its early stages, the tokenized private credit market is growing rapidly. According to S&P Global, there is currently about US$500 million of tokenized private credit globally, but that market has surged by 66% over the past 18 months.

With the broader private credit market currently standing at about US$1.7 trillion in investment globally, there remains significant room for growth, signaling a positive outlook for the market in the years to come.

Diving into the current state of the tokenized private credit market, the report notes that there are currently two main ways in which private credit is being tokenized: first, by tokenizing existing private credit funds like Hamilton Lane’s SCOPE fund, which includes corporate loans; or by creating tokenized debt directly on decentralized lending platforms.

Currently, decentralized platforms make up for the bunch of the tokenized private credit market. Centrifuge, for example, is a specialized blockchain designed for individuals and businesses to borrow against traditional financial assets from decentralized finance (DeFi)-based lenders. The platform had US$289 million of active loans outstanding as of July 26, 2024, focused on consumer asset backed securities (ABS), real-estate bridging loans, and trade finance.

London-based digital finance company Greengage has taken a different route, focusing instead on small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) financing. The company announced in July a partnership with Coinbase to issue tokenized private credit to provide e-money account services to SMEs.

Asset tokenization gains momentum

Asset tokenization, which refers to the process of digitalizing ownership rights to physical or intangible assets, is gaining traction across the financial services sector. By leveraging blockchain technology and smart contracts, tokenization allows financial institutions to improve efficiency through programmable, composable financial instruments. It also allows for increased liquidity through fractionalization, and unlocks new revenue streams with innovative financial products.

Formerly known as Onyx, Kinexys is the permissioned blockchain of banking giant JP Morgan. The platform allows users to trade tokenized assets like US Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, and has exceeded US$1.5 trillion in notional value, processing an average of more than US$2 billion daily in transaction volume.

Similarly, Goldman Sachs launched in January 2023 its Digital Assets Platform in partnership with blockchain software provider Digital Asset. Using Digital Asset’s purpose-built Canton Network blockchain, Goldman Sachs’ platform facilitates the issuance, registration, settlement, and custody of various tokenized assets.

While the adoption of tokenization remains nascent, the tokenized assets market is gaining momentum. Roland Berger estimates that the tokenized assets market size reached US$400 billion in 2023. By 2030, asset tokenization is projected to grow to become a market worth at least US$10 billion, representing a 40-fold increase in the value of tokenized assets between 2022 and 2030.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Having surpassed the milestone of 100’000 customers, VIAC is expanding its offering with VIAC Invest, taking another step into the future of cost-effective wealth management.

With Invest, the Basel-based fintech is opening a new chapter and entering the private client sector. Until now, VIAC has primarily focused on retirement planning, managing assets of approximately CHF 4 billion. This has established VIAC as one of Switzerland’s leading digital investment platforms.

VIAC Invest broadens the existing service by offering fund savings plans for free savings. Similar to its retirement solutions, customers can use passive funds to create personalized savings or withdrawal plans. These plans are just as simple, flexible, and transparent as VIAC’s retirement offerings, with investments starting from as little as CHF 1. This provides a cost-effective, diversified investment option tailored to the needs of existing customers.

Launch Offers

To celebrate the launch of VIAC Invest, customers can invest without any administration fees until the end of 2025. In addition, they will receive a lifelong fee-free allowance of CHF 2’000. The first 25’000 customers will also receive a third welcome gift: a sign-up bonus of up to CHF 100.

Even after 2025, VIAC will continue to set new standards for automated fund savings with its low administration fee of just 0.25% per year.

«We are proud to have 100’000 customers who trust us. With VIAC Invest, we want to offer them an even broader range of opportunities to save for their future»,

says Daniel Peter, co-founder of VIAC.

«Our goal is to revolutionize everyday banking and provide everyone with the tools they need to achieve their financial goals».

VIAC Invest is available immediately via the app.

More information about the new fund savings plans can be found at viac.ch/en/products/invest/

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Zug-based startup Splint Invest has raised CHF 2.5 million from its Pre-Funding Round with 815 investors, exceeding its target and cancelling the planned public campaign. To date, the company has raised a total of CHF 4 million to pursue its European growth.

MARK Investment Holding, the brains behind this platform, has announced that it has secured CHF 4 million in pre-funding and crowd-investing campaign.

The pre-funding round raised CHF 2.5 million from 815 investors, sufficiently above the target which leads to the planned public campaign being cancelled.

With over 200 assets to invest in on its platform, it already counts over 15,000 investors, one-third of which are from the EU. Over EUR 21 million has been invested in tokenized shares (Splints). The company is expecting a revenue increase of 280% annually relative to last year, so it is likely that it will continue to grow rapidly.

The web-based savings platform Splint Invest successfully closed a CHF 1.5 million financing round with business angels and new investors. So far, the company has secured a total of CHF 8.3 million in funding, from recognized investors like Lukas Speiser, Jürg Schwarzenbach, and Patrick Mollet, as well as investment companies Haute Capital Partners and Kick Fund.

Featured image credit: Splint Invest team: Dmitry Patuk (Head of Growth & Co-Owner), Djuro Kojic (Head of Product), Mario von Bergen (Head of Investments & Co-Founder), and Aurelio Perucca (CEO & Co-Founder)

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Juniper Research revealed the 10 trends that are poised to transform the financial landscape in 2025.

Each year, Juniper Research’s team of market experts identify the key trends that will drive the fintech market for the year ahead.

Juniper Research‘s VP of Fintech Market Research, Nick Maynard, commented:

“Fintech and payments is changing rapidly, with alternative payment methods gaining popularity, fraud presenting a bigger challenge than ever, and regulations evolving quickly. As such, Juniper Research predicts that 2025 will see dramatic shifts, with these 10 trends representing the most impactful developments.”

Top Ten Fintech & Payments Trends 2025

1.  Apple NFC to Boost Competition in Digital Wallets
2. Virtual Cards to Revolutionise B2B Expenses and Procurement
3.  Behavioural Biometrics Driving Shift to Passive ID Verification
4. eCommerce Merchants to Adopt ‘Glocal’ Payments
5. Regtech to Accelerate Amid BaaS (Banking-as-a-Service) Compliance Challenges
6. Banks to Invest in PSD3 and PSR1 Readiness
7. Capital One’s Acquisition of Discover to Challenge Visa & Mastercard
8. Wero and Instant Payments Harmonisation to Transform European Payments
9. AI Hype to Diminish as Fraud and Identity Drive Innovation
10. Sustainable Fintech Becomes Key Differentiator for Banks

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Während vielen Jahren waren Sparpläne eine Nische. Inzwischen bieten auch Neobanken Sparpläne an.

Zudem sind Mindestgebühren bei vielen traditionellen Banken inzwischen Geschichte. moneyland.ch hat die aktuellen Sparplan-Angebote von 36 Anbietern aus der Schweiz unter die Lupe genommen .

Mit einem ETF- oder Fondssparplan können Sparerinnen und Sparer regelmässig einzahlen und so Schritt für Schritt in den Aktienmarkt investieren. Ein Sparplan richtet sich an Kundinnen und Kunden, die zum Beispiel jeden Monat einen Betrag investieren wollen.

Während vielen Jahren haben insbesondere etablierte Banken einen Sparplan angeboten. Viele Angebote waren unattraktiv, da die Fondssparpläne teure Strategiefonds enthielten. Für den Kauf von Anteilen sowie für die Depotführung fielen hohe Mindestgebühren an. Das hat sich inzwischen geändert: Nur noch relativ wenige Banken verrechnen Mindestgebühren.

«In letzter Zeit ist viel frischer Wind in den Markt gekommen»,

sagt Ralf Beyeler, Experte von moneyland.ch. So bieten inzwischen auch die Smartphone-Banken Neon, Radicant und Yuh sowie Online-Broker wie Saxo Bank und Swissquote Sparpläne an. Manche Anbieter, zum Beispiel Swissquote und Yuh, ermöglichen den Kauf von Bruchteilen eines Anteils – sogenanntes Fractional Trading. Auch bei Robo-Advisors sind Sparpläne erhältlich.

Die Vorsorge-App Viac hat den Start eines Sparplanes angekündigt, wobei die Konditionen bisher noch nicht bekannt sind. Bei Alpian wird es noch in diesem Jahr möglich sein, automatisch regelmässig in ETF zu investieren. Nicht immer haben die Produkte den Begriff Sparplan im Namen. Doch die Funktionsweise ist ähnlich: In regelmässigen Abständen wird ein definierter Betrag in Fonds oder ETF investiert.

Unterschiedliche Tarifsysteme

Die verschiedenen Anbieter setzen auf verschiedene Gebühren, was einen Vergleich der verschiedenen Angebote komplexer macht. Bei allen untersuchten Sparplänen müssen die Sparerinnen und Sparer die Produktkosten der Fonds und ETF übernehmen, die in der Regel als TER ausgewiesen werden. Zudem verrechnen alle Anbieter die Umsatzabgabe weiter. Bei vielen Anbietern kommt die Mehrwertsteuer zusätzlich hinzu. Nur ganz wenige Anbieter betonen ausdrücklich, dass die Mehrwertsteuer enthalten ist.

Einige Anbieter verrechnen eine Gebühr für den Kauf und/oder den Verkauf von Anteilen. Bei den Anbietern, die eine solche Gebühr verrechnen, beträgt diese bis zu 1.5 Prozent. Es wird jedoch keine Mindestgebühr verrechnet. Ein anderes System wendet Swissquote an, die eine Pauschale von mindestens 3 Franken pro Transaktion verrechnet. Viele Anbieter wie zum Beispiel Raiffeisen, Berner Kantonalbank und Valiant verrechnen eine Depotgebühr von meist 0.2 bis 0.5 Prozent. Bei den teuersten Anbietern beträgt die Depotgebühr 1 Prozent.

Immer mehr Anbieter setzen statt auf Courtagen für Kauf und Verkauf sowie die Depotgebühr auf eine einzige Pauschalgebühr. Darin sind die Transaktions- und Depotgebühren bereits enthalten. Je nach Anbieter beträgt die Pauschalgebühr bis zu 0.9 Prozent.

Eine wichtige Rolle spielen auch die über einen Sparplan angebotenen Fonds und ETF.

«Zu empfehlen ist eine breit diversifizierte Anlagestrategie mit Aktien in aller Welt. Dies ist mit einem ETF oder Indexfonds auf einen Welt-ETF, aber zum Beispiel auch mit einer Anlagestrategie von einem Robo-Advisor möglich», erklärt Ralf Beyeler. «Voraussetzung ist jedoch, dass man noch ruhig schlafen kann, wenn der Wert der Anlagen sinkt. Kann man das nicht, so ist ein solcher Aktien-Sparplan keine optimale Anlagemöglichkeit»,

ergänzt Ralf Beyeler.

Es ist unbedingt empfehlenswert, auf die Kosten der Fonds oder ETF zu achten. Diese werden oft als TER angegeben. Bei den günstigsten im Rahmen eines Sparplans angebotenen Produkten beträgt die TER 0.03 Prozent, bei den teuersten sind es über 2 Prozent. Aufgepasst: Bei Produkten mit niedrigen TER handelt es sich teils um Geldmarkt- oder Obligationenfonds, die fürs Aktiensparen nicht geeignet sind.

Kostensimulation von moneyland.ch zeigt grosse Unterschiede

Um trotz der unterschiedlichen Gebührensysteme einen Vergleich vorzunehmen, hat moneyland.ch eine Kostensimulation erstellt. Für die Kostensimulation wurde angenommen, dass eine Kundin oder ein Kunde während zehn Jahren jeden Monat 200 Franken einzahlt. Nach zehn Jahren kündigt die Kundin oder der Kunde den Sparplan, verkauft die ETF oder Fonds und lässt sich den Betrag überweisen.

Die Kostensimulation wird als Bandbreite angegeben, mit den günstigsten sowie teuersten Kosten eines Sparplans. Insbesondere aufgrund der Gebühren eines Fonds oder ETF gibt es grössere Unterschiede, ausserdem kennen manche Anbieter je nach Fonds unterschiedliche Konditionen bei der Courtage, der Depotgebühr oder der Pauschalgebühr. moneyland.ch hat die Bandbreite zwischen dem teuersten und dem günstigsten Fonds berechnet, aber für die Kostensimulation nicht berücksichtigt, welche Art von Fonds im Sparplan enthalten ist.

Die Kostensimulation ist eine Vereinfachung, so wurde der Wertzuwachs nicht berücksichtigt. Da die Gebühren oft auf dem Wert basieren, sind die Gebühren effektiv noch höher. Ebenfalls ignoriert wurden Mindestbeträge bei der Ersteinzahlung.

Das sind die günstigsten Aktien-Sparpläne

Der günstigste Aktien-Sparplan wird von der Saxo Bank für Kundinnen und Kunden angeboten, die der Saxo Bank die aktive Wertpapierleihe erlauben. Über die Zeit von zehn Jahren fallen für den Sparplan mit einem ETF auf den S&P-500-Index mit 500 US-amerikanischen Aktien Kosten von 80 Franken an. Bei der Variante ohne Wertpapierleihe sind es hingegen 346 Franken. Würden Anlegerinnen und Anleger in einen geografisch breit diversifizierten ETF auf den Welt-Index MSCI World investieren, würden sich die Kosten auf 261 Franken mit Wertpapierleihe und 527 Franken ohne Wertpapierleihe belaufen.

Die weiteren Plätze auf dem Podest belegen die Smartphone-Banken Neon (193 Franken) und Yuh (325 Franken). Bei beiden Anbietern besteht der Sparplan aus jeweils einem ETF auf den S&P-500-Index mit 500 amerikanischen Aktien. Der Sparplan mit dem günstigsten weltweit diversifizierten ETF umfasst sowohl bei Neon als auch bei Yuh jeweils einen ETF auf den FTSE All-World. Die Kosten betragen dabei 301 Franken (Neon) respektive 386 Franken (Yuh).

Die Kosten für den günstigsten Sparplan sind bei Avadis und der Basellandschaftlichen Kantonalbank zwar geringer. «Aber die im Sparplan enthaltenen Geldmarkt- und Obligationen-Fonds sind für den Vermögensaufbau nicht geeignet», merkt Ralf Beyeler an. Beide Anbieter bieten auch Fonds mit Anlagen in Aktien an, diese sind jedoch wesentlich teurer.

Interessant ist auch der Blick auf die Bandbreite der Angebote der drei günstigsten Anbieter: Bei Saxo kann der Sparplan bis zu 1592 Franken kosten, bei Neon bis zu 1402 Franken und bei Yuh bis zu 1365 Franken. Dies zeigt einmal mehr, dass es je nach ETF grosse Unterschiede gibt.

Bei einigen Anbietern kosten die Sparpläne mit einem teuren Fonds mehr als 3000 Franken für zehn Jahre. Das teuerste Angebot kostet 4263 Franken.

So schneiden traditionelle Banken ab

In der Sparplan-Analyse von moneyland.ch wurden die Angebote von 19 traditionellen Banken berücksichtigt.

Der günstigste Sparplan einer traditionellen Schweizer Bank mit einem Aktienfonds kommt von Raiffeisen. Über zehn Jahre gerechnet entstehen für den Sparplan mit einem Indexfonds auf den S&P-500-Index Kosten von 636 Franken. Mit einem Fonds auf den weltweit diversifizierten MSCI World kostet der Sparplan von Raiffeisen 733 Franken.

Oft beinhalten die günstigsten Sparplan-Angebote bei einem Anbieter einen Geldmarkt- oder Obligationenfonds. Bei Postfinance beispielsweise umfasst der günstigste Fondssparplan einen Geldmarktfonds mit einer TER von 0.13 Prozent, der günstigste Aktienfonds ist mit einer TER von 0.6 Prozent erheblich teurer. Die Mehrkosten entsprechen in unserer Kostensimulation über zehn Jahre insgesamt 569 Franken.

Der Blick auf die Sparplan-Angebote der grössten Schweizer Banken zeigt folgende Bandbreiten für die Kostensimulation über zehn Jahre:

Eine ausführliche Tabelle mit sämtlichen untersuchten Banken ist als PDF verfügbar. Sie können sich die Tabelle als PDF in der Box unterhalb des Artikels kostenlos zustellen lassen.

So teuer sind Sparpläne bei Smartphone-Banken und Robo-Advisors

In der Analyse hat moneyland.ch auch die Sparpläne von vier Smartphone-Banken sowie sieben Robo-Advisors untersucht. Bei Neon können die Kundinnen und Kunden für den Sparplan aus 98 ETF auswählen, bei Yuh aus 81 ETF und Tracker-Zertifikaten. Das ist eine vergleichsweise grosse Auswahl für einen Schweizer Sparplan. Sowohl Neon wie Yuh werben damit, dass Anlegerinnen und Anleger ausgewählte ETF im Rahmen des Sparplans ohne Gebühren kaufen können. Beim Verkauf fallen jedoch die üblichen Gebühren an.

Bei der Wahl eines günstigen ETF gehören Neon und Yuh zu den günstigsten Anbietern. Beide Anbieter haben allerdings auch vergleichsweise teure ETF mit einer TER von knapp unter einem Prozent im Angebot. Die Kosten für zehn Jahre Sparplan gemäss Kostensimulation betragen bei Neon zwischen 193 und 1402 Franken, bei Yuh zwischen 325 und 1365 Franken.

Alpian und Radicant entsprechen bei den Sparplänen eher dem Dienstleistungsangebot von Robo-Advisors. Diese erstellen eine individuelle Anlagestrategie, in der Regel basierend auf ETF und allenfalls Indexfonds. Oder anders gesagt: Die Anbieter stellen für die Kundinnen und Kunden individuell einen Korb mit verschiedenen ETF zusammen.

«Typische Sparplan-Kundinnen und -Kunden investieren jeden Monat einen Teil ihres Einkommens in Aktien. Viele Angebote von Robo-Advisors richten sich jedoch nicht an diese Kundinnen und Kunden»,

erklärt Ralf Beyeler. Denn manche Robo-Advisors verlangen eine Mindesteinlage von über 1000 Franken, je nach Anbieter gar bis zu 8500 Franken. Damit sprechen diese Anbieter ein Kundensegment an, das neben dem Notgroschen bereits etwas gespart hat, diese Ersparnisse in Aktien investieren und zudem regelmässig in einen Sparplan einzahlen möchte.

* Hypothetische Berechnung ohne Berücksichtigung der Mindesteinlage.

Drei Online-Broker bieten Sparpläne an

Die drei Online-Broker Cash – Banking by Bank Zwei Plus, Saxo Bank und Swissquote bieten Sparpläne an. Konkurrent Cornèrtrader wird im Verlaufe des Jahres 2025 mit einem entsprechenden Angebot starten.

Die Online-Broker haben eine vergleichsweise hohe Auswahl an unterschiedlichen Produkten, in die Kundinnen und Kunden im Rahmen eines Sparplanes investieren können. Bei der Saxo Bank sind es über 100 ETF und bei Swissquote sind es 94 ETF. Swissquote bietet zudem die Möglichkeit, regelmässig in 298 Aktien, 44 Kryptowährungen und 38 Themes-Trading- Produkte zu investieren. Cornèrtrader gab an, ab 2025 insgesamt über 5000 ETF anbieten zu wollen.

Bei der Analyse fallen die grossen Kostenunterschiede zwischen den verschiedenen Anbietern auf. Saxo Bank ist mit Kosten von 80 bis 1326 Franken (mit Wertpapierleihe) beziehungsweise 346 bis 1592 Franken (ohne Wertpapierleihe) für zehn Jahre gemäss Kostensimulation günstiger als Swissquote (1205 bis 2343 Franken) und Cash – Banking by Bank Zwei Plus (1976 bis 4263 Franken). Ein Grund dafür sind die verglichen mit der Konkurrenz relativ hohen Depotgebühren, bei Swissquote sind es mindestens 80 Franken im Jahr. Bei Swissquote ist der Sparplan kein eigenes Produkt und dürfte damit eher Kundinnen und Kunden ansprechen, die Online-Trading nutzen und zusätzlich noch regelmässig Wertschriften kaufen möchten.

Titel-Bild Nachweis: Bearbeitet von freepik

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The Zurich-based private bank Maerki Baumann is to establish a Technology Advisory Board headed up by Marc P. Bernegger from 1 January 2025.

The new expert body, which will also include PD Dr Alexander Ilic and Sandra Tobler, will focus on strategic topics related to technology.

This step has been guided by the family-owned company’s belief that disruptive technologies and new companies such as fintech firms will have a major impact on the financial and banking industries going forwards. The Technology Advisory Board will actively support the private bank’s Board of Directors and Executive Board in the further development, digitisation and innovation of its business model.

Technologies such as artificial intelligence, blockchain and robotics are increasingly permeating the economy and society in general. Their potential to trigger change will be felt in all sectors of the economy and will also see the market for financial services, in particular, undergo a fundamental transformation.

This development is likely to see a shift in the competitive landscape, with new business models, such as those of fintech firms, becoming established.

The Board of Directors and Executive Board have entrusted Marc P. Bernegger with responsibility for Maerki Baumann’s Technology Advisory Board.

Marc P. Bernegger has been a founder, board member and managing director of numerous technology-focussed companies for over 20 years. In the recent past, he has been active as a successful entrepreneur in the areas of blockchain, crypto and longevity.

In his role as Head of the Technology Advisory Board, Marc P. Bernegger will report to the Chairman of the Board of Directors, Hans G. Syz-Witmer, and the Chief Executive Officer, Dr Stephan A. Zwahlen, of Maerki Baumann. The new committee will advise the two management bodies as well as various key individuals at the private bank on strategic issues relating to technology.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Quirin private bank has been using the digital wealth platform from the Swiss wealth and insurtech company 3rd-eyes analytics for its client advisory services since June 2024.

With the help of 3rd-eyes, the financial goals and wishes of Quirin private bank’s clients can not only be calculated, but above all visualised and optimised.

‘3rd-eyes convinced us because their software can depict exactly what we want to experience with our clients during the advisory process. We provide a visual answer to the question: Can I achieve my personal financial goals and wishes? This has impressed us and has been very well received by our customers,’

comments Karl Matthäus Schmidt, CEO of Quirin private bank, on the collaboration.

‘The interactive planning solution – implemented by us as the Q-Navigator – ensures that customers can simultaneously view the development of their assets in different constellations. This motivates them to scrutinise their own goals and wishes and actively shape their own financial journey.’

Wealth development is calculated by 3rd-eyes using a modern asset liability management (ALM) methodology that considers all assets, liabilities, cash flows, goals and market conditions. With the 3rd-eyes software, the individual wealth development of each client can be calculated for the first time in 1,000 realistic capital market and inflation scenarios. In addition, the achievability of personal goals is simulated and optimised.

Due to the pleasing success of the project and the high level of acceptance of the 3rd-eyes software, Quirin Privatbank also acquired a financial stake in the Swiss wealth tech company, which is headquartered in Zurich. In addition, Karl Matthäus Schmidt, CEO of Quirin private bank, and Stefan Schulz, CFO of the Quirin subsidiary ‘quirion’ and member of the extended management of Quirin private bank, joined the board of directors of the Swiss company.

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Die siebte Ausgabe der Studie „Digitalisierung & Kundenerfahrung im Schweizer Retailbanking 2024” von Colombus Consulting zeigt, dass die Retail-Banken auch 2024 weiter in digitale Medien investieren.

Die mobilen Apps werden immer aktueller und beliebter, die sozialen Netzwerke generieren mehr Engagement, und die Budgets für digitales Marketing steigen um 23 % auf über 58 Mio. Schweizer Franken pro Jahr. Das Web steht dem in nichts nach, da Tools zur Optimierung der Kundenerfahrung oder Chatbots eingesetzt werden, aber die Aufmerksamkeit für digitale Verantwortung oder ethische KI noch gering ist.

Ein seit zwei Jahren unverändertes Podium

Die gleichen Banken bilden auch 2024 das Spitzentrio: UBS, PostFinance, Raiffeisen. Durch das Ausscheiden von Credit Suisse aus dem Panel und die Fortschritte von Swissquote in den Bereichen Web und mobile Apps kann die digitale Bank diesem Trio dicht auf den Fersen bleiben. Andere Banken machen Fortschritte wie Yuh und die
Migros Bank, die in unserer Rangliste auf Platz 7 bzw. 8 stehen.

Die Anstrengungen im digitalen Bereich lassen sich in allen Kanälen feststellen. Das Publikum wächst insgesamt um 13,5 % (fast 30 Millionen Besuche pro Monat), die Investitionen in das digitale Marketing bleiben stark (+23 %, d.h. mehr als 58 Millionen Schweizer Franken pro Jahr), der NPS der mobilen Apps wächst um 5 Punkte (67 %) und das Engagement in den sozialen Netzwerken steigt um 64 % auf insgesamt fast 100.000 Interaktionen pro Monat.

Das Web angetrieben von Kundenerlebnissen und digitalen Produkten

Die Optimierung des Kundenerlebnisses bleibt das A und O mit der Einführung neuer Webanalyse-Tools in diesem Sinne bei der FKB, N26 und Neon oder der Entwicklung des direkten Kontakts über Chatbot bei der BKB und Neon. Die Digitalisierung erfolgt auch über naturgemäss digitale Angebote und den nunmehr möglichen Zugang zu Kryptowährungen bei PostFinance und ZKB, in der gleichen Reihe wie die Kantonalbanken von Luzern, St. Gallen und Zug, mithilfe von Partnerschaften mit Akteuren, die auf diese Art von Vermögenswerten spezialisiert sind (Sygnum Bank und Crypto Finance AG).

Mobile Apps werden beliebter und zu mehr Sicherheitsdiensten Die mobilen Apps der Banken sind in diesem Jahr ein grosser Erfolg. Der NPS steigt um 5 Punkte auf 67 % und auch die Anzahl der Aktualisierungen pro Bank steigt mit durchschnittlich 30 Aktualisierungen, 6 mehr als im Jahr 2023. Es gibt jedoch weiterhin eine Spaltung zwischen Neo-Banken und traditionellen Banken (64 Updates gegenüber 24). Die innovativsten neuen Dienstleistungen werden von der Neobank Revolut dank der automatischen Steuerung von Investitionen und eines verbesserten Schutzes gegen den Diebstahl von Telefonen angeboten. Swissquote setzt ebenfalls auf Sicherheit mit einer 2-Faktor-Authentifizierung für die Validierung der sensibelsten Transaktionen.

Soziale Netzwerke: Engagement getragen von Instagram und LinkedIn

Die Reichweite der sozialen Netzwerke ist in diesem Jahr geringer: Die Zahl der Abonnenten ist um 26 % (insgesamt 2 Millionen) gesunken, was auf das Fehlen von Credit Suisse und FlowBank im Panel sowie auf den Rückgang von Facebook zurückzuführen ist.

Das Engagement ist auf dem Vormarsch und wächst um 64 %, vor allem dank Instagram und LinkedIn, und erreicht fast 100.000 Interaktionen pro Monat. Die Inhalte sind sichtbarer und ermutigen die Abonnenten, sie zu liken, zu kommentieren oder zu teilen, vor allem dank des Influencer-Marketings von UBS mit dem F1-Team und dem Fahrer George Russel. Raiffeisen wendet sich mit einer eigenen Instagram-Seite und einem aktiven und engagierten TikTok-Konto, das mehr als 700.000 oder sogar 800.000 Aufrufe für einige Videos generiert, an die jüngsten und netzwerkaktiven Zielgruppen.

Erobert (generative) KI die Schweizer Banken?

Während Privatbanken wie Pictet und Vontobel kürzlich mit auf generativer KI basierenden Assistenten zur Optimierung ihrer internen Produktivität und Kundeninteraktionen den Weg geebnet haben, zieht die UBS über ihren KI-Assistenten, der in den letzten 12 Monaten intern entwickelt wurde, um Unternehmensdaten im Rahmen von Fusionen und Übernahmen zu analysieren, nach.

Temenos, ein Schweizer Anbieter von Banking-Lösungen, bietet nun eine Reihe von Lösungen an, die mit generativer KI angereichert sind. Seine Kundenbanken können damit einzigartige Informationen und Berichte generieren oder auch Produkte in Echtzeit nach Kundenpräferenzen erstellen, um die grundlegenden Bankaktivitäten und die kritischsten Geschäftsfunktionen zu unterstützen.

In der gleichen Logik haben andere allgemeine Anbieter wie Oracle, Salesforce und Microsoft ihre Lösungen mit generativen KI-Modulen angereichert, um die verfügbaren Funktionen zu erweitern und gleichzeitig eine starke Geschäftslogik beizubehalten.

Digitale Verantwortung noch im Werden

Der bereits im letzten Jahr in unseren digitalen Index aufgenommene digitale Verantwortung misst die Umweltauswirkungen der Websseiten der Panelbanken, indem er deren Komplexität, Gewicht und Ressourcenoptimierung analysiert. Die im Jahr 2023 festgestellten halbherzigen Ergebnisse bleiben auch 2024 mit einem nahezu unveränderten EcoIndex-Durchschnitt von 36/100 noch aktuell.

Swissquote bleibt mit einem ausgezeichneten Ergebnis von 95/100 Punkten allein an der Spitze. Die CA Next Bank und LUKB haben sich gut entwickelt, ohne jedoch die 50/100 zu überschreiten, und die schlechtere Bewertung von Akteuren wie BCV, N26 und Yuh konnte nicht ausgeglichen werden. Es bleibt abzuwarten, ob die Banken in den kommenden Monaten die digitale Verantwortung stärker in den Mittelpunkt ihrer digitalen Strategie stellen werden.

Auf dem Weg zu einer ethischeren und verantwortungsvolleren Art Banken?

Die Themen rund um die Ethik und die Verantwortung der Banken entwickeln sich an allen Fronten, insbesondere auf regulatorischer Ebene in Europa (und zweifellos langfristig auch in der Schweiz), wobei die CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive) und das KI-Gesetz an erster Stelle stehen.

Zur Erinnerung: Die CSRD verlangt von den Unternehmen eine detaillierte nichtfinanzielle Berichterstattung über ihre Auswirkungen auf Umwelt, Soziales und Governance und damit die Verpflichtung, auf diesen Achsen zu handeln, und das KI-Gesetz verlangt, dass KI-Systeme nach Risikoniveaus klassifiziert werden, mit Verpflichtungen je nach ihrer Nutzung. Die Schweizer Banken sind nicht alle im gleichen Boot: die internationalen Banken mit einer europäischen Ausrichtung, die daher diese Richtlinien befolgen müssen, und die anderen, die eher lokal ausgerichtet sind, aber letztendlich davon betroffen sein werden.

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BX Digital announced the planned appointment of Lidia Kurt as its new Chief Executive Officer.

BX Digital is a sister company of the Swiss exchange BX Swiss and part of the Boerse Stuttgart Group.

BX Digital aims to create a transparent, accessible and liquid market for digital assets based on blockchain technology in Switzerland.

“With the appointment of Lidia Kurt, we intend to continue on our dynamic path,”

says Lucas Bruggeman, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BX Digital.

“We have the ambition of becoming the first licensed DLT trading system in Switzerland. The application has been submitted to FINMA.”

Lidia Kurt holds a PhD in Finance from the University of St. Gallen, is the author of the book Digital Assets and Tokenisation and has extensive expertise at the interface of financial systems and innovative technologies. Since founding vision& in 2017, she has been working as a consultant for digital assets and has successfully supported numerous tokenisation projects. Previously, she was Managing Partner of a quantitative finance consultancy and gained valuable experience at J.P. Morgan and Swiss Re in Zurich, London, and Hong Kong.

Since 2021, she has been involved at Boerse Stuttgart Group on Blockchain specific topics as an external consultant.

“I am looking forward revolutionising financial market structures with BX Digital at the forefront, opening up new avenues for efficiency and innovation,”

says Lidia Kurt.

“The possibility of trading digital assets such as tokenised shares, bonds and certificates on a regulated secondary market for the first time in the future is groundbreaking for the financial centre.”

Transactions can be processed within minutes via a public blockchain, without the need for centralised financial intermediaries such as central securities depositories or clearing houses.

“As Boerse Stuttgart Group, we are pioneers in the field of digital assets and with BX Digital we want to shape the future European market infrastructure for tokenised securities. We are therefore delighted that Lidia Kurt will contribute her extensive expertise and experience to the management of BX Digital and thus contribute to our success.”

added Dr. Matthias Voelkel, CEO of Boerse Stuttgart Group.

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Inflexion, an European mid-market private equity firm, announced that it has agreed an investment in Finanzen.net Group, a digital broker and market leading financial information portal in the DACH region, alongside the founders.

According to a Reuters report the company value could be around 400 millions Euro.

The investment is being made by Inflexion’s Buyout Fund VI and is the second investment in the DACH region after Tierarzt Plus Partner since Inflexion opened its office in Frankfurt earlier this year.

The Group consists of three divisions: high-growth low-cost digital investment platform, also known as a neobroker, called Zero, a capital markets information platform called Finanzen.net, and a trading software platform for semi-professional retail investors called TraderFox. The business will be acquired from Axel Springer, a leading transatlantic media company.

Inflexion will work with Finanzen.net Group’s founders and management to carve-out the business as a standalone integrated company and drive future growth. In particular, Inflexion will support the launch of additional saver and investing products.

Inflexion has a strong track record in carving out businesses from large corporates, and this will be the sixth carve-out in four years following investments into Marlowe (GRC), GlobalData Healthcare, Curinos, aosphere and Giacom.

This transaction exemplifies the power of collaboration between regions and sectors, with our Frankfurt team working with our Financial Services specialists in London, leveraging the full capabilities of Inflexion, including our extensive experience in supporting carve-outs. Such collaboration will be pivotal in driving the future growth of Finanzen.net, as we aim to create a leading digital investment platform in the DACH region.

Florencia Kassai, Managing Partner and Head of Buyout Fund, Inflexion

The goal is clear: We want to develop Zero in connection with the financial news business into the broker of choice for investing, trading and saving. More than ever, the focus of Finanzen will be on delivering innovative technological solutions for capital markets. I am thrilled that with Inflexion we are partnering with a successful investor who will support us in executing on this strategy with investments in products and technology. Special thanks are due to the excellent Finanzen team and our shareholder Axel Springer who provided us with entrepreneurial freedom, thereby creating the conditions under which we have been able to open this new chapter of our growth story.

Maximilian von Richthofen, CEO, Finanzen.net Group

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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In 2023, Switzerland’s marketplace lending witnessed a significant contraction, with the volume of new debt capital issued on online platforms falling by 10.8% year-over-year (YoY) to approximately CHF 18.6 billion, a joint report by the Lucerne School of Business and the Swiss Marketplace Lending Association (SMLA) says.

The Marketplace Lending Report Switzerland 2024, released in October, provides a comprehensive analysis of online debt financing trends for corporations, public entities, and private individuals in Switzerland. It focuses on online platforms directly connecting lenders and borrowers, offering an overview of the current state and emerging trends within the Swiss marketplace lending landscape.

This year’s report reveals a decline in marketplace lending volumes, with key subsegments of the markets, including crowdlending and mortgage financing, facing the steepest drops.

In 2023, crowdlending plummeted by 20% YoY to CHF 389.1 million in new loans, down from CHF 497.5 million in 2022. Similarly, mortgage loans brokered on platforms and financed by institutional and professional investors fell by 20%, falling from CHF 6.2 billion in 2022 to CHF 5 billion in 2023.

Meanwhile, the subsegment of loans and bonds targeting mid-sized and large corporations, as well as public and near-public entities, showcased the most resilience, declining by just 6.7% YoY to CHF 13.2 billion.

Crowdlending: a market led by real estate but in decline

Within crowdlending, real estate continued to lead the subsegment, generating CHF 203.9 million in 2023 and accounting for 52.4% of the market. The sum, however, represents a major YoY decline of 27.9% from CHF 282.7 million in 2022.

That volume mainly consisted of loans to companies in the real estate development business, many of which were issued as short-term credits, later redeemed by banks.

Business crowdlending was the second-largest subsegment, contributing CHF 132.8 million or 34.1% of the market. While it saw a milder drop of 6.4% YoY, this performance reflects ongoing interest despite broader market pressures.

At the end of 2023, 16 crowdlending platforms were active in Switzerland, with increased involvement by banks and insurance companies, as well as market consolidation, the study found.

Lend acquired Lendico from PostFinance in 2019, and in a reciprocal move, PostFinance acquired a stake in Lend; Basellandschaftliche Kantonalbank is a strategic investor in Swisspeers; and Funders is a platform launched by Luzerner Kantonalbank in 2016.

Mortgage loans witness first decline in a decade

In 2023, the mortgage brokerage subsegment recorded its first decline in ten years, reaching approximately CHF 5 billion, down from CHF 6.2 billion in 2022.

The report anticipates that in 2024, some platforms will exit the business-to-consumer (B2C) mortgage market, with further consolidation expected moving forward. This will be driven by a number of factors, including a lower growth rate than expected, as well as relatively low margins per transactions, it says.

At the end of 2023, 12 different platforms operated in the mortgage vertical, serving a professional investor base of banks, insurance companies and pension funds as lenders.

Key players included UBS key4 mortgages, through which UBS offers its own mortgages and mortgages from third parties, and BrokerMarket from Thurgauer Kantonalbank, which operates as an intermediary platform connecting mortgage borrowers with lenders through mortgage brokers. Several independent mortgage brokerage firms were also present, including RealAdvisor, Resolve, topHypo ,Hypohaus, PropertyCaptain and Hypo Advisors.

Loans and bonds for public entities and corporations

Finally, loans and bonds for entities and corporations, another key subsegment in the Swiss marketplace lending landscape, remained a dominant force within the sector in 2023, capturing a 71% share of the market with CHF 13.2 billion in new loans issued.

This section includes two types of loans or private placements: firstly, the online market for loans to public or near-public entities; and secondly, the market for loans to mid-sized and large corporations. Investors in both subsegments are banks and institutional and professional investors, such as asset managers, family offices and pension funds.

Two market participants were currently active in this segment in Switzerland in late 2023. Loanboox, launched in 2016, has grown rapidly in the loan market for public entities with now more than 3,000 transactions and CHF 30 billion in volume closed. Cosmofunding, meanwhile, is a platform launched in 2018 by Bank Vontobel. The company focuses on public and corporate borrowers.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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The regulatory landscape for cryptocurrencies has undergone significant transformation in 2024, with the European Union (EU) leading the charge through landmark initiatives such as the Markets in Cryptoassets (MiCA) regulation, but also guidelines on stablecoins as well as updates to the so-called “travel rule” for crypto transfers, a new report by Elliptic, a British blockchain analytics firm, says.

These efforts represent some of the most significant crypto regulatory advancements of the year, highlighting the EU’s pioneering role on the global stage, and setting the stage for regulatory trends in other regions.

MiCA: a groundbreaking regulation

The report, released in September 2024, highlights MiCA as a pivotal step in the global regulation of cryptocurrencies. The regulation, which aims to harmonize crypto regulations across the EU, marks the first comprehensive framework introduced by a major global economy.

A major component of MiCA is the licensing requirement for cryptoasset service providers (CASPs), which obligates them to adhere to strict market conduct, consumer protection and prudential standards.

Once licensed by a national supervisory authority in one EU member state, a CASP is allowed to extend its services across the entire bloc, creating significant business opportunities.

The rollout of MiCA is being conducted in phases. Provisions on stablecoins took effect on June 30, 2024, while the remaining parts of the regulation will start to apply on December 30, 2024.

Updates on the “travel rule”

Another key regulatory development in 2024 was the EU’s updates to its travel rule to cover crypto transfers.

The travel rule refers to regulations that require financial institutions to share information about the sender and receiver of financial transactions. It’s designed to combat money laundering, terrorism financing and other illicit financial activities.

The new guidelines, released by the European Banking Authority (EBA) in July 2024, specify the informations required to accompany every crypto transfer, regardless of their amount. They also outline steps for payment service providers and CASPs to address missing or incomplete details, and establish measures for managing non-compliant transfers.

The update aims to ensure a consistent EU-wide approach to tracing transfers for anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) purposes, taking effect from December 30, 2024, and replacing earlier guidance.

Stablecoin rules

Finally, stablecoins, because of their growing importance in the crypto ecosystem, have come under increased regulatory scrutiny.

Under MiCA, stablecoin issuers are required to obtain approval from relevant member state authorities before offering their tokens within the EU, or when offering stablecoins pegged to the euro or other member state currency.

They must maintain adequate reserves with a one-to-one ratio and partly in the form of deposits. They must also provide redemption rights to token holders at any time and free of charge, and must have a registered office in the EU.

Outside of the EU, other jurisdictions have also released stablecoin regulations over the past year. In Switzerland, the Financial Market Supervisory Authority published on July 26, new guidance, clarifying the obligations of stablecoin issuers.

The guidance, which emphasizes AML/CFT compliance and default guarantees, requires issuers to determine whether their tokens qualify as deposits or investment schemes and comply with banking license requirements if applicable.

New challenges for industry players

Although these regulatory developments are providing greater clarity for businesses operating within the crypto space, they also introduce new compliance challenges to industry stakeholders.

Critics argue that MiCA could increase costs for providers and create significant burdens for startups and smaller players, raising barriers to entry and stifling innovation.

Meeting the new standards may prove challenging for some companies as they involve costly licensing applications, adjustments to the business operations to meet the requirements of the license, including capital and AML and compliance functions, as well as ongoing obligations for monitoring and reporting, KPMG warns.

This dynamic is expected to give larger companies with substantial financial resources a competitive edge, enabling them to acquire, at a discount, smaller crypto companies unable to comply with the new legislation.

Such consolidations are already taking place. In July, British crypto trading platform Iconomi acquired Triaconta, a Dutch crypto investment platform to grow and develop in the Netherlands and wider EU market. In September, Kraken, a leading American crypto exchange, completed its acquisition of BCM, one of the Netherlands’ oldest and most renowned registered crypto brokers.

In addition, some companies are navigating these challenges by choosing jurisdictions with less stringent regulatory environments. For example, OKX, one of the world’s largest crypto exchanges by trading volume, selected Malta over France as its EU hub, citing “more lenient … compliance”. Similarly, Israeli broker eToro chose Cyprus as its EU hub where it secured a CASP registration in September 2023.

The Elliptic report, titled Global Crypto Regulation Landscape 2024, provides an update on regulatory progress related to cryptoassets. It highlights key trends and advancements in 2024 so far, offering a detailed overview of global and regional developments in crypto regulations.

Featured image credit: image via freepik

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Sifted, a tech media brand backed by the Financial Times (FT), has released its annual ranking of Germany’s fastest-growing startups, showcasing the resilience and dynamism of the country’s tech ecosystem.

The Sifted 50: Germany Leaderboard, released in September, ranks the 50 startups with the strongest revenue growth in the country over the past three financial years. These companies have achieved remarkable revenue growth despite double-digit inflation and sharply rising interest rates.

This year’s average two-year revenue compound annual growth rate (CAGR) stands at a remarkable 162.08%, with the top three companies surpassing the 500% CAGR mark.

Geographically, Berlin leads as the hub for innovation, with 22 of the top 50 companies based in the capital, followed by Munich with nine and Cologne and Hamburg with three each.

Combined, these 50 companies have raised EUR 6.98 billion in funding and generated revenues of EUR 3.03 billion over the past three financial years.

This year, fintech dominates the leaderboard, with 12 companies offering cutting-edge solutions in areas including personal finance, expense management and regtech. This underscores fintech’s prominence in Germany.

Today, we look at the 12 fintech companies that made it into this year’s Sifted 50: Germany Leaderboard, highlighting their value propositions and recent achievements.

Anybill (+328.17% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2019, Anybill allows retailers of all sizes to issue receipts digitally, directly at checkout. The solution integrates with merchant apps, wallets, banking, and payment apps, bridging gaps in payment infrastructure.

Anybill, which is based in Munich, has secured EUR 5 million in funding, and recorded a two-year revenue CAGR of 328.17%. The figure makes it the 6th fastest-growing German startups of the past two years, according to Sifted.

Finanzguru (+168.67% revenue CAGR)

Launched in 2018, Finanzguru is a financial assistant app that leverages artificial intelligence (AI). The platform allows users to manage all of their banking accounts and contracts in one place, and provides them with advice on insurance and financial products based on a digital analysis of their banking data.

Operated by Frankfurt am Main-based dwins, Finanzguru claims more than 1.5 million registered users, making it the largest bank-independent financial app in the German market. The company achieved a revenue CAGR of 168.67% these past two years, making it the 15th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

HeyData  (+144.9% revenue CAGR)

Established in 2020, HeyData is a leading compliance startup headquartered in Berlin. The company provides an all-in-one compliance solution, helping more than 1,500 small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and startups manage their data protection and compliance requirements.

HeyData secured a EUR 3.3 million seed funding round in September 2022 to fund its product expansion and venture into new markets. The company achieved a revenue CAGR of 144.9% during the prior two years, making it the 18th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

Circula (+140.48% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2017, Circula is a leading expense management solution for SMEs in Europe. The platform helps businesses manage employee expenses, such as travel costs, out-of-pocket expenses, and benefits. It automates the process of submitting and approving expense reports, and seamlessly integrates with existing enterprise resource planning (ERP), accounting and human resources (HR) software.

Circula claims 2,000+ business customers. The company has secured US$25 million in venture capital (VC) to date, and recorded a revenue CAGR of 140.48% in the last two years, making it the 20th fastest-growing German startup.

Hawk (+105.74% revenue CAGR)

Founded in Munich in 2018, Hawk uses explainable artificial intelligence (AI) to revolutionize anti-money laundering (AML) and regulatory compliance for financial institutions. The company’s technology combines AML transaction monitoring, payment screening, know-your-customer (KYC), and fraud detection to provide comprehensive tools that help institutions fight financial crime effectively while saving costs.

Hawk, which works with leading financial institutions and partners such as Moss, Mambu, Visa, and LexisNexis, has raised US$27 million in funding. The company recorded a revenue CAGR of 105.74% in the last two years, making it the 25th fastest-growing German startup.

Bezahl (+102.96% revenue CAGR)

Bezahl is a digital payment management platform for car dealerships. The platform automates, digitizes and simplifies the entire receivables process, from payment request to 100% data quality for automated posting in accounting systems.

Operated by Aufinity Group, a company founded in 2018 and based in Cologne, Bezahl claims it has already won more than 80% of the top 100 German car dealers and is now starting its internationalization in Europe. In the last two years, Bezahl achieved a revenue CAGR of 102.96%, making it the 26th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

Secjur (+84.8% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2018, Secjur is a Hamburg-based company that provides an automated compliance platform using AI technology. The company’s platform, known as the Digital Compliance Office (DCO), helps businesses streamline compliance processes in areas such as data security, AML and whistleblowing.

Secjur has already gained significant traction with partnerships established with the likes of Mercedes Benz, Samsung and Tomorrow Bank. The startup secured EUR 5.5 million in December 2022. It recorded a revenue CAGR of 84.8 in the last two years, making it the 33rd fastest-growing German startup.

Timeless (+76.27% revenue CAGR)

Timeless is a wealthtech startup specialized in unique collectibles such as art, watches, classic cars, and whiskies. Through its digital platform and the use of blockchain technology, Timeless enables fractional investments starting at just EUR 50, allowing individuals to benefit from the value appreciation of these tangible assets.

Timeless, a brand of New Horizon, a company based in Berlin and founded in 2018, claims it has tokenized over 600 collectibles to date, totaling more than EUR 27 million in value. The company achieved a revenue CAGR of 76.27% in the last two years, making it the 35th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

Spotixx (+73.21% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2019, Spotixx specializes in AI-driven solutions for financial crime detection. The company’s advanced solutions help banks effectively address the challenges of fraud and money laundering.

With safeAML, a large-scale project developed in collaboration with industry partners, Spotixx connects banking data to create a powerful tool in the fight against financial crime. At the same time, its add-on products AMALIA and FREDDY bring AML- and fraud monitoring into the AI-era, enhancing banks’ existing systems with advanced AI capabilities.

Spotixx achieved a revenue CAGR of 73.21% in the last two years, making it the 38th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

ProNoblis (+66.4% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2013, ProNoblis is a SME financing company based in Berlin. The company’s core product is a buy now, pay later (BNPL) solution for business-to-business (B2B) clients that helps SMEs financing the purchase of goods.

ProNoblis leverages a strong distribution network, strategic partnerships, and AI-driven technology to deliver scalable, automated financial solutions through its flagship product, CreditEngine. CreditEngine is a digital platform that offers a fully automated credit process with a three-minute decision time, self-service features, and AI-powered rating.

ProNoblis achieved a revenue CAGR of 66.4% in the last two years, making it the 41st fastest-growing startup in Germany.

Prestatech (+41.42% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2021, Prestatech is a cloud-based platform that provides modern underwriting solutions for lenders and innovative embedded finance products for commercial players. Through its platform, Prestatech offers banks API solutions based on AI, algorithms and big data. The services focus on end-to-end digital credit processes.

Prestatech is currently active with major European players including Fabrick and Banca AideXa. The startup achieved a revenue CAGR of 41.42% in the last two years, making it the 46th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

Pair Finance (+35.32% revenue CAGR)

Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Berlin, Pair Finance s a leading fintech for digital debt collection and receivables management. The company is transforming the debt collection industry with its sustainable, digital, efficient, and customer-centric approach. Using AI, behavioral psychology and data science, Pair Finance is setting a new standard in debt collection that supports businesses and consumers alike.

Pair Finance, which claims more than 500 business customers, achieved a revenue CAGR of 35.32% in the last two years, making it the 49th fastest-growing startup in Germany.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Die Bedeutung von Kryptowährungen hat in den letzten Jahren stark zugenommen.

In der Schweiz investieren 11 Prozent der Bevölkerung in Krypto-Anlagen. Die meisten Personen tun dies aus Interesse und Neugier mit verhältnismässig kleinen Beträgen – und weniger aus Rendite- oder Diversifikationsgründen.

Mit der zunehmenden Verbreitung von Kryptowährungen bieten immer mehr Banken den Handel mit digitalen Anlagen über das E-Banking und Mobile Banking an. In einer Studie hat die Hochschule Luzern (HSLU) im Auftrag von PostFinance untersucht, wer in Krypto-Anlagen investiert und aus welchen Gründen dies geschieht.

Es ist die erste umfassende und repräsentative Studie zum Thema Krypto-Anlagen von Privatpersonen in der Schweiz.

Hohe Bekanntheit – moderates Interesse

Das Interesse an Krypto-Anlagen ist in der Schweizer Bevölkerung insgesamt mässig. Rund 8 Prozent sind eher stark oder sehr stark daran interessiert, wobei das Interesse bei jüngeren Generationen, bei Männern und bei Personen mit hohem Einkommen stärker ausgeprägt ist (Abbildung 1).

Gleichzeitig kennt die Mehrheit der in der Schweiz lebenden Personen inzwischen zumindest die bekanntesten Kryptowährungen wie Bitcoin (87 Prozent) und Ether (35 Prozent) (Abbildung 2). Trotzdem haben 82 Prozent der Bevölkerung noch nie in Krypto-Anlagen investiert.

Nur wenige handeln aktiv und mit grösseren Beträgen

Krypto-Anlagen geniessen zwar in den Medien hohe Aufmerksamkeit, wie Studienautor Prof. Dr. Andreas Dietrich von der HSLU sagt.

«Das erweckt den Eindruck, dass viele in der Schweiz wohnhafte Personen aktiv in diesem Markt investieren oder handeln.»

In Wirklichkeit besitzen aktuell nur 11 Prozent der Bevölkerung Krypto-Anlagen. Von dieser Gruppe handelt nur etwa jede siebte Person aktiv oder mit grösseren Beträgen. Dietrich:

«Dies bedeutet, dass Krypto-Anlagen insgesamt derzeit wohl lediglich für etwa 1 bis 2 Prozent der Bevölkerung eine hohe Bedeutung haben.»

Neugier statt Rendite und Diversifikation

Die Mehrheit der Krypto-Investorinnen und -Investoren engagieren sich mit kleinen Beträgen in dieser
Anlageform. Dies deutet laut Andreas Dietrich darauf hin, dass viele Investitionen einen eher experimentellen Charakter haben. So halten 31 Prozent der Befragten weniger als CHF 1’000 in Krypto-Vermögen. Als Hauptmotiv für diese Investitionen nennen die Anlegerinnen und Anleger vor allem die Neugierde (Abbildung 2).

Die populärsten Kyrpto Handelsplatformen in der Schweiz: Revolut, Swissquote und Binance

Die Nutzung von Renditechancen und die Diversifikation des Portfolios sind nicht unwichtig, spielen aber insgesamt für viele Investorinnen und Investoren (noch) eine untergeordnete Rolle. Die bei Krypto-Anlegerinnen und Anlegern populärsten Anbieter für den Handel von Krypto-Anlagen sind Revolut, Swissquote und Binance.

Wachstumspotenzial von Krypto-Anlagen

Die potenziellen Krypto-Anlegerinnen und -Anleger lassen sich in drei Gruppen unterteilen: Jene, die aktuell in Krypto-Anlagen investieren, jene, die es noch nie getan haben und Ehemalige, die es momentan nicht mehr tun. Die Analyse zeigt, dass es herausfordernd ist, Neukunden zu gewinnen, die bisher keinen Kontakt mit Krypto-Anlagen hatten.

Aus Sicht von Andreas Dietrich liegt das grösste Potenzial für Finanzdienstleister bei den bestehenden Investorinnen und Investoren über den Ausbau ihrer Investments. Es ist aber auch möglich, dass die Befragten das langfristige Potenzial selbst unterschätzen. Dazu sagt Dietrich:

«Die Integration von Krypto-Anlagen in die Angebote etablierter Schweizer Banken verdeutlicht den wachsenden Einfluss dieser Anlageklasse. Durch den einfachen Zugang über das E- und Mobile-Banking wird die Verbreitung von Krypto-Anlagen in der Bevölkerung weiter steigen.»

Ein Hinweis auf das Potenzial zeigt sich auch darin, dass Wertschriften-Anlegerinnen und -Anleger deutlich häufiger in Krypto-Anlagen investieren als Personen, die nicht in Wertschriften anlegen.

Gemäss der Studie legen 18 Prozent der Wertschriften- Anlegerinnen und Anleger in Krypto-Anlagen an. Damit sind diese Krypto-Anlagen zwar weniger bedeutend als klassische Anlagekategorien wie Aktien, Fonds oder Obligationen. Es wird aber deutlich häufiger in Krypto-Anlagen investiert als in Derivate (z.B. Optionen).

Titel-Bild Nachweis: Bearbeitet von freepik

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The London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) has partnered with IDVerse to strengthen its digital identity verification services.

LSEG aims to combat the growing threat of digital deception, including synthetic media and deepfakes.

This collaboration will integrate IDVerse’s advanced technology, including its fully automated “Zero Bias AI,” which leverages regenerative AI, into LSEG’s existing spectrum of risk solutions.

This AI-powered tool aims to provide accurate identity verification while minimising potential bias based on race, age, and gender.

The partnership will focus on improving the speed and reliability of document and biometric checks, addressing issues of accessibility and fraud prevention.

This is crucial in today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape where IDVerse reports that one in four fraud attempts now involve some form of digital deception.

Both companies emphasise the importance of creating interoperable systems that can be customised to meet the specific needs of each customer.

This offers a next-generation workflow without compromising on security or user experience.

By enhancing digital identity verification, LSEG and IDVerse aim to improve access to vital services while ensuring legal and regulatory compliance for global operations and maintaining trust and security.

Daniel Flowe, Head of Digital Identity at LSEG, said,

“Onboarding IDVerse complements LSEG’s identity verification capabilities and adds yet another means of low-friction, high assurance identity verification for our customers. IDVerse’s ability to scale across a huge variety of geographies and customer verification use cases allows us to offer our customers a future-proofed solution to digital identity verification.

To give our customers confidence, we extensively tested IDVerse’s interoperability, performance, and agility to ensure that it matched our existing best-in-class standards. This combination gives us a truly next generation workflow to bring to market.”

John Myers, CEO, IDVerse added,

“The pace of evolution in digital deception that identity platforms like LSEG required a tool that adapts to new fraud vectors whilst giving a great customer experience to good customers. This is illustrated by IDVerse now experiencing 1 in 4 fraud attempts involving digital deception.

The partnership with LSEG allows businesses to remain open to new opportunities whilst adapting to a changing world. Their spectrum of risk solutions, all from one trusted partner, helps organisations efficiently navigate risks, avoid reputational damage, reduce fraud and ensure legal and regulatory compliance around the globe”.

Featured image credit: Edited from freepik

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Twelve Swiss companies representing various aspects of the Swiss financial system will participate in the Singapore Fintech Festival 2024 (SFF 2024), held from 6 to 8 November at the Singapore Expo.

This marks the eighth year of Swiss presence at the festival, organized under the Swiss Pavilion by Switzerland Global Enterprise (S-GE) and the Swiss Business Hub South East Asia + Pacific.

The Swiss delegation aims to demonstrate the strengths of their fintech industry, emphasizing Switzerland’s reputation for trustworthiness, quality, and innovation.

SFF 2024 will focus on six key themes, including the Roadmap for AI & Quantum, Blueprint for Digital Assets, Next-Gen Transactions, Sustainability in Action, Bridging the Financial Gap, and Talent of Tomorrow.

The event is expected to attract global leaders from government, finance, investment, and technology sectors.

Returning participants are aiming to build on their existing presence in Singapore and the broader ASEAN market.

Switzerland’s financial sector is recognized for blending tradition with innovation, contributing to its standing as a global leader in financial services.

The country has retained its top-ranked position in the 2024 Global Innovation Index by WIPO, marking 14 consecutive years of leadership in innovation.

S-GE, acting on behalf of the Swiss Confederation and cantons since 1927, supports more than 5,500 Swiss companies in expanding internationally each year.

It also facilitates foreign companies’ investments in Switzerland through its global network, including the Swiss Business Hub South East Asia + Pacific.

Renee Koh, Deputy Head of Swiss Business Hub South East Asia + Pacific said,

“The steadfast support from Swiss financial institutions and fintech companies at SFF 2024 underscores our commitment to bringing innovative Swiss enterprises to Singapore, empowering them to establish a strategic foothold in Southeast Asia.

Swiss solutions are globally acclaimed for their robust, time-tested reliability and strict adherence to regulatory frameworks. This proven excellence positions Swiss companies as invaluable partners for Asian market players, providing a clear competitive edge in navigating the region’s complex and dynamic environments”.

Featured image credit: Edited from freepik

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Swissquote announced the launch of its new fractional trading feature, along with a new “Saving Plan” order type.

These innovations are designed to meet the growing demand for flexible and affordable investment options, enabling investors to build a diversified portfolio over time, regardless of their budget.

In today’s market, many investors seek the possibility to invest smaller amounts across a broad range of assets, spreading risk and enhancing potential returns. Until now, Swissquote’s platform supported only the trading of full shares, which limited clients to strategies constrained by share prices rather than their available cash. This new feature allows investors to purchase fractions of the most popular stocks, ETFs, cryptocurrencies and Themes Trading products, providing them with the opportunity to invest any amount and gradually build a robust portfolio.

Jan De Schepper, Chief Sales and Marketing Officer at Swissquote, emphasised the significance of these advancements:

“Our mission at Swissquote has always been to democratise investing and empower our clients with the tools they need to achieve their financial goals. With the introduction of fractional trading and the new “Saving Plan”, we are offering our clients unprecedented flexibility and control over their investments. This solution not only meets the market demand but sets a new standard in the industry.”

Swissquote’s “Saving Plan” allows clients to set up recurring investments with the freedom to adjust them based on their available funds, ensuring they can maintain their desired level of diversification.

Investing starts as of today at the reduced price of CHF 3 per trade for shares, making fractional trading an accessible and attractive option for all investors.

These platform upgrades and the new reduced pricing are now available to all Swissquote clients.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Artificial intelligence (AI) is taking center stage in banks’ digital transformation plans as financial institutions seek to improve customer experiences and operational efficiencies. According to a new study conducted by Publicis Sapient, a leading American digital consulting company, banks are spending 29% of their investments in customer experience digital transformation on machine learning (ML), AI and generative AI (genAI). Banks are also placing AI as their biggest focus for digital transformation over the next three years.

These findings come from the Global Banking Benchmark Study 2024, which surveyed more than 1,000 senior retail and commercial banking leaders in early 2024. The study, which sought to explore the maturity of banks’ digital transformation initiatives, reveals that banks are actively exploring AI’s potential, with executives highlighting data and AI as the most critical areas for digital transformation, followed by genAI for internal use.

Interestingly, developing existing talent is executives’ third most common functional focus for digital transformation, suggesting that executives are equally focused on the human side of the human-machine equation and recognize the need to prepare their employees to work with AI.

The study also found strong interest from banks in deploying genAI across both internal and customer-facing use cases. 61% of respondents want to use genAI to streamline transaction-related functions such as credit analysis, underwriting, and contract management. Additionally, 55% are focused on deploying genAI for employee and internal functions such as developer tools, search capabilities, and virtual assistants. Meanwhile, 49% are targeting customer-facing roles, such as marketing and customer service.

The study, which categorized banks into four groups based on their digital transformation maturity, found that the top performers, labelled “Transformation Leaders”, are at the forefront of AI adoption. These banks allocate 34% of their digital transformation budget to AI, ML, and genAI, a proportion that’s 6% more than the least mature banks, or “Laggards”, and which stands above the industry average.

Transformation Leaders aren’t just spending more on AI, ML and genAI, they are spending differently. 44%  prioritize AI tools for internal use, while just 25% of Laggards do. Moreover, 84% of Transformation Leaders agree that it’s better to take time to develop custom-made AI tools rather than save time by using third-party solutions, compared to just 70% of Laggards.

Transformation Leaders are also laying the groundwork to support AI integration. These players are heavily investing in key areas such as cloud infrastructure and migration, data and analytics, and organizational culture changes.

Despite the clear commitment to AI and digital transformation, banks are facing growing challenges. The study found that the process of digital transformation has become more difficult over the past years, with respondents citing regulatory challenges, the lack of operational agility, and outdated legacy technology as their top barriers in the past 12 months.

Budget constraints are another significant obstacle. In 2024, 32% of banking executives cited budget limitations as a key hurdle to digital transformation, up from 19% in 2022.

But despite these challenges, the outlook for AI adoption in the banking sector remains strong. Gartner predicts that by 2026, more than 80% of banks will have adopted genAI, driven by the technology’s potential to improve efficiencies, customer service and risk management. McKinsey and Company estimates that across the global banking sector, genAI could add between US$200 billion and US$340 billion in value annually, or 2.8 to 4.7% of total industry revenues, largely through increased productivity.

Featured image credit: freepik

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In Switzerland, financial institutions are increasingly recognizing the long-term potential of blockchain and integrating the technology into their growth strategies.

According to a new study by the University of St. Gallen, in collaboration with vision& and mintminds, more than 80% of Swiss banks are either planning to develop and actively expanding their blockchain offerings, with a particular focus on cryptocurrencies.

Conducted between April to June 2024, the study polled 19 banks in Switzerland, including retail (47%), private banks (37%), universal (11%) and investment banks (5%) to understand the blockchain strategies, priorities, and challenges these institutions face as they integrate blockchain technology, cryptocurrencies and tokenized assets.

The research found that over 60% of banks in Switzerland are pursuing concrete plans related to cryptocurrencies, with half of these institutions considering the development and expansion of their crypto offerings as highly prioritized. This underscores growing interest and acceptance of cryptocurrencies within the traditional banking sector, the report says.

A focus on crypto custodian, trading and ETP products

When looking at planned crypto offerings, the study found that approximately 60% of banks are either looking to implement or have already implemented custodial services, underscoring the importance of these offerings in the crypto space.

Trading services, which allow for the buying and selling for cryptocurrencies, are another critical component of the crypto industry, prioritized by around 60% of banks.

Exchange-traded products (ETPs) and certificates, which are financial instruments that track the value of cryptocurrencies and which can be traded on traditional stock exchanges, are also perceived by Swiss banks as critical. Around 60% of respondents intend to offer these products, highlighting ETPs as an attractive alternative for investors to participate in the crypto space.

Cryptocurrencies are still in the early stages of market development. Currently, only 0.53% of total assets under management (AuM) are invested in the asset class. While this figure may appear low at first glance, it is significant. Many Swiss banks have only recently introduced their crypto offerings, suggesting substantial interest in the asset class and considerable growth potential, the report says.

The rise of tokenized assets

Swiss banks are also showing strong interest in tokenized assets. These are physical or digital assets that have been converted into digital tokens on a blockchain, making them easier to trade, divide and track.

According to the study, 47% of the Swiss banks polled are planning to develop a tokenized asset offering, reflecting a clear interest and confidence in the future of this technology. However, most banks remain in the nascent stages of implementing tokenized asset offerings, indicating that many institutions are just starting to familiarize themselves with the technology and its application possibilities.

Industry stakeholders are optimistic about the prospects of tokenization due to its transformative benefits, including increased liquidity, transparency, and efficiency. Global consulting firm Boston Consulting Group (BCG) and digital exchange ADDX forecast that asset tokenization will expand into a US$16.1 trillion business opportunity by 2030, driven by greater access to private markets, improved liquidity, and increased recognition by monetary authorities.

Blockchain strategy

The study conducted by the University of St. Gallen revealed that nearly 60% of the banks surveyed have already developed or are working on a blockchain strategy. This includes 16% of institutions that rank blockchain topics as highly prioritized. Almost all banks with an existing strategy have management support and launched their first blockchain offering in 2023 or earlier.

When asked about their motivations for adopting blockchain, more than 40% of the institutions said they viewed the technology primarily as an innovation driver. Additionally, 21% of the institutions are investing in blockchain as a growth driver, pursuing an offensive strategy and expecting strong growth in managed assets and customer numbers. In contrast, nearly 11% of all banks are adopting a defensive approach, investing in blockchain as a means against customer losses and withdrawals of managed assets.

Swiss banks are also exploring more advanced applications of blockchain technology, with 58% reporting active efforts in this area. Their primary motivation is a general willingness to innovate.

The study also found that larger banks and those with more employees involved in blockchain projects are more likely to integrate advanced blockchain applications into their business strategies. This implies that bigger banks with more resources tend to be further along in implementing blockchain.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik here and here

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Das Schweizer Fintech Relio, das als Anbieter von Geschäftskonten mit Schweizer IBAN bekannt ist, lanciert internationale Transaktionen, Fremdwährungen (FX) und Multi-Währungs-Konten.

Der erweiterte Service profitiert von der fortschrittlichen AML- und Compliance-Technologie von Relio, welche das Monitoring von Transaktionen anhand von über 100 Datenpunkten auf jeden Kunden zuschneidet und so einen reibungslosen und effizienten grenzüberschreitenden Zahlungsverkehr gewährleistet.

Globales Business, Schweizer Zuverlässigkeit.

Vor einem Jahr lancierte Relio, als eines von nur fünf Instituten mit einer Fintech-Lizenz der FINMA, voll digitale Geschäftskonten für Freelancer, KMU, Start-ups und Firmenkunden.

Dieses Angebot umfasste Schweizer IBANs und CHF-Konten für Inlandszahlungen. Nun erweitert Relio seine Funktionen mit internationalen Zahlungen, Fremdwährungen und Multi-Währungs-Konten. Zum Start unterstützt der Service CHF, EUR sowie GBP und ermöglicht Transaktionen in über 40 Länder. Weitere Währungen und Länder werden demnächst hinzugefügt.

Maximale Compliance und minimale Reibung.

Grenzüberschreitende Transaktionen sind oft mit komplexen regulatorischen Anforderungen verbunden, die von den Finanzinstituten verlangen, die Rechtmässigkeit der Geldflüsse zu überprüfen, die Herkunft der Gelder zu dokumentieren und den Zweck der Transaktionen nachzuvollziehen. Typischerweise sehen sich Unternehmen bei internationalen Zahlungen mit Verzögerungen und Unterbrechungen konfrontiert, die auf regulatorische Herausforderungen und falsch positive Compliance-Warnungen zurückzuführen sind.

Relio will mit seiner neu entwickelten Technologie die Compliance im internationalen Zahlungsverkehr neu definieren. Die Plattform automatisiert viele AML- und Compliance-Workflows und sammelt über 100 Datenpunkte während des Kunden-Onboardings, um sowohl einfache als auch komplexe Geschäftsmodelle zu unterstützen.

Das automatisierte Compliance-System von Relio beschleunigt die Kontoeröffnung und nutzt die gesammelten Daten für die Transaktionsüberwachung, um dem individuellen Geschäftsprofil eines jeden Kunden gerecht zu werden.

Dieser datengesteuerte Ansatz verbessert die Erkennung verdächtiger Aktivitäten bei gleichzeitiger Minimierung von falsch-positiven Meldungen und sorgt für eine reibungslose, schnelle und zuverlässige Abwicklung. Das Ergebnis ist, dass sowohl die Kunden als auch Relio erheblich weniger Zeit und Ressourcen für die Einhaltung der Vorschriften im grenzüberschreitenden Zahlungsverkehr aufwenden müssen.

Titelbild Nachweis: Bearbeitet von freepik

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Swiss retail banks expect technology to increase competition but not as dramatically as anticipated.

A new study by auditing and consulting firm EY, in collaboration with the University of St. Gallen, reveals that while incumbents are aware that bigtechs, neobanks and fintech companies are driving innovation, they remain confident that their ability to maintain strong customer relationships and deliver high-quality advice will help them retain a competitive edge.

The “Retail Banking 2035” report, released in September 2024, shares insights from 33 retail banks in Switzerland on ten key areas thesis about the future of retail banking. It identifies the most important challenges and opportunities facing the industry through 2035.

Impact of technology is overestimated

The research found that Swiss retail banks expect technological innovations to intensify competition in the medium term. However, the short-term impact of cutting-edge technologies such as artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain and quantum computing are largely overestimated.

Swiss retail banks believe that for a new technology to have a significant impact, it must align with customers. However, these needs are not expected to change dramatically in the next ten to fifteen years. Employees and customers also have to want to use this new technology, the respondents said.

Taking the example of AI, the respondents said that while the technology has received a lot of hype, it is still perceived as merely a tool for increasing efficiency and improving chatbots, with applications like robo-advisors receiving mixed success.

Traditional banks’ strengths over newcomers

Despite the rise of fintech, Swiss banks believe they still maintain several advantages over competitors. These advantages, which include capital strength, brand trust, a diverse product offering and long-established customer relationships, position incumbents well against fintech companies and neobanks, whose market penetration remains limited due to smaller customer bases and challenges in scaling their business models.

The respondents argue that while Switzerland has seen a sharp increase in fintech companies, which grew from less than 200 players in 2016 to nearly 500 in 2023, the experience with these new providers has not been very dramatic so far.

Moreover, fintech companies have not been able to revolutionize the business. If anything, they are actually moving steadily in the direction of the traditional banks.

Finally, Swiss retail banks expect that the vast majority of local customers will continue to seek personal advice in the future, especially during key life events such as buying a home, saving for a pension or wills and inheritance. This means that traditional banks will maintain an edge over new market entrants.

Minimal threat from bigtechs, retailers and telcos

When it comes to bigtechs, Swiss retail banks feel that the country’s small size and peculiarities, such as its four national languages, many cantons and different cultures, represent significant challenges for the likes of Apple and Google.

Additionally, banking regulations and the high level of trust that Swiss customers place in domestic financial institutions make it difficult for bigtech companies to compete directly.

Swiss retail banks are also unconcerned about competition from domestic retailers and telecom companies. Although these players have access to vast amounts of customer data and the tools to use these data to offer financial services through open banking, they would not be able to maintain accounts or lend due to regulatory restrictions. This would limit their potential and ability to compete in the sector.

If competition from outside the banking industry is to intensify, Swiss banks believe insurers are their most likely threat. This is because insurance advisors traditionally have a closer relationship with their customers than bank advisors, giving them an edge in personal interactions and trust.

Overall, Swiss retail banks perceive their biggest competition as coming from within the industry itself. According to the respondents, this is because all of the retail banks in the country are pursuing technological upgrades, and that none of them has achieved groundbreaking results so far. For example, the introduction of digital pension solutions prompted competitors to respond with similar solutions designed to boost volumes. However, in the end, no one saw an increase in volumes.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Die radicant bank und das von der UBS finanzierte Treuhand Fintech Numarics streben den Zusammenschluss an und haben entsprechende Verträge unterzeichnet.

Vorbehaltlich der Zustimmung der zuständigen Behörden wird durch diesen Zusammenschluss ein umfassendes Angebot geschaffen, welches die nahtlose Integration von Finanzdienstleistungen und digitalen Lösungen in den Alltag von Privatpersonen und KMU ermöglicht.

Künftig will man gemeinsam unter dem Namen radicant auftreten.

Durch den Zusammenschluss entsteht eine integrierte Banking- und Administrations-Plattform für Private und Unternehmenskunden. Bestehende Dienstleistungen und Produkte von radicant im Bereich Banking, Investment und Vorsorge für Privatkunden werden durch eine umfassende digitale Administrationslösung von Numarics erweitert.

Gleichzeitig wird das Administrations- und Treuhand-Angebot der Numarics für Geschäftskunden durch ein digitales Bankkonto ergänzt, wodurch ein durchgängiges Angebot entsteht, welches sich vor allem an kleinere und mittlere Unternehmen richtet.

Ganzheitliches Finanzangebot für Privat- und KMU-Kunden

«Wir machen mit dem geplanten Zusammenschluss den nächsten grossen Schritt hin zu einem ganzheitlichen Finanzangebot»,

sagt Anton Stadelmann.

«Privat- und KMU-Kunden werden von einem digitalen Dokumentenmanagementsystem und digitalen Lösungen profitieren können. Das reduziert die Zeit, die sie heute noch für administrative Aufgaben benötigen, auf ein absolutes Minimum. Wir wollen Banking noch smarter machen.»

«Mit der Integration von Bankfeatures in unsere Administrationsprozesse werden wir einen wichtigen Schritt in Richtung Automatisierung und vollintegriertes, digitales Ökosystem schaffen.»,

sagt Kristian Kabashi, Mitgründer von Numarics, und ergänzt:

«Der Vorteil dabei ist, dass sich die Unternehmenskunden ganz auf ihr Kerngeschäft konzentrieren können. Das führt zu einer spürbaren Erleichterung im Alltag und im Geschäftsleben.»

Designierter CEO des neuen Unternehmens wird Anton Stadelmann

Die Basellandschaftliche Kantonalbank (BLKB) bleibt Mehrheitsaktionärin, neben den bisherigen Finanzinvestoren von Numarics, wie Founderful, FiveT, SeedX, Davidson Capital sowie der UBS.

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Die Schweizer Banken arbeiten an Open Banking. Der Bundesrat sieht sogar Fortschritte bei Umsetzung.

Doch die Menschen in der Schweiz spüren davon noch nichts. Das hat damit zu tun, dass «die Ziele […] noch nicht vollständig erreicht sind», so der Bundesrat. Schade eigentlich, denn die Möglichkeiten von Open Banking könnten für Bankkunden einen echten Mehrwert bieten – vor allem, wenn sie mit den Möglichkeiten von KI kombiniert werden.

Bankkunden arbeiten für die Banken

Heute haben Schweizerinnen und Schweizer im Durchschnitt zwei Bankbeziehungen. Ob das für sie immer die besten Bankbeziehungen sind, ist fraglich. Denn Bankkundinnen und -kunden bezahlen oft zu viel Gebühren und erhalten zu wenig Zinsen. Das hat hauptsächlich damit zu tun, dass sie die Konditionen der Banken nicht kennen – auch der Hausbank nicht.

Schweizer Bankkunden «verschenken» so rund 13.4 Milliarden Franken pro Jahr. Allein bei Sparkonten (2.5 Mrd.) und Privatkonto/Debitkarte (2 Mrd.) – also Produkten, die jeder hat – sind das rund 500 Franken pro Einwohner. Schweizerinnen und Schweizer arbeiten also im Durchschnitt eineinhalb Tage, um bei ihrer Bank nicht die besten Konditionen zu haben.

Und trotzdem wechseln sie ihre Bankbeziehung nicht. Warum nicht? Weil sie den Aufwand scheuen. Nicht nur den Aufwand für die Kontoeröffnung, sondern auch den Aufwand, das Geld zu verwalten: «Wäge dem Bitzeli…»

idibeko – mein Traum

Open Banking kombiniert mit künstlicher Intelligenz hat das Potential, den Markt zu verändern. Stellen Sie sich folgendes Szenario vor:

Alle meine Bankkonten sind über Open Banking mit dem (fiktiven) Service «idibeko» («immer die besten Konditionen) verbunden. idibeko kennt die Konditionen (Zinsen, Rückzugsbedingungen etc.) aller meiner Konten – und die aller anderen Banken. Da idibeko Zugriff auf alle meine Konten hat, kann es meinen Liquiditätsbedarf analysieren und eine entsprechende Planung erstellen.

Basierend auf dieser Analyse schlägt idibeko immer die beste Anlagemöglichkeit für meine Finanzen vor. Die Umschichtungsvorschläge können per Knopfdruck akzeptiert werden – die Umsetzung übernimmt idibeko.

Wenn idibeko ein besseres Produkt bei einer Bank findet, bei der ich noch kein Konto habe, bietet idibeko mir direkt die Kontoeröffnung an. Dank der neuen e-ID kann idibeko in Zukunft (vielleicht) die Kontoeröffnung selbst übernehmen und die Überweisung vornehmen, sobald das Konto verfügbar ist.

Da idebko die Rückzugsbedingungen aller Konten kennt, muss ich nur noch einen Bruchteil auf einem (unverzinsten) Privatkonto halten. Denn wenn ich mal mehr Liquidität brauche, zieht idibeko die benötigte Summe von den verschiedenen Banken und Konten zusammen – so dass keine Rückzugslimite verletzt wird.

Damit idibeko nicht einfach macht, was es will, kann ich Limiten und Wünsche definieren. Einfach als Freitext. Zum Beispiel so: «Ich möchte nicht mehr als 100’000 Kunden bei einer Bank angelegt haben. Verteile das Geld so, dass ich jederzeit 50’000 abheben kann. Berücksichtige nur reine Schweizer Banken. Bei der Bank xy möchte ich nie ein Konto.»

Gut für Bankkunden – und für Banken?

idibeko wird unweigerlich die Arbeit der Banken verändern.

Banken, die heute zusätzliche Kundengelder benötigen, müssen sich heute intensiv um diese bemühen. Es reicht nicht, einfach die Zinsen zu erhöhen. Potenzielle Kunden müssen erst einmal vom Angebot erfahren. Es muss Werbung gemacht werden. Vergleichsplattformen müssen die neuen Konditionen publizieren – bei neuen Konten, ist das nicht immer so einfach, wie es tönt. Kunden müssen in Einzelgesprächen beraten und überzeugt werden.

Ein Kampf gegen die Trägheit der Kunden.

Mit idibeko wird das anders. Einfach die Konditionen etwas erhöhen und idibeko optimiert die Verteilung auf die verschiedenen Konten und Banken. Neugeld fliesst schnell und zuverlässig rein – bis eine andere Bank noch bessere Konditionen bietet.

Ja, das wird das Bankgeschäft verändern. Einfach die Zinsen senken und darauf wetten, dass die Kunden träge sind und das Geld nicht abziehen, wird nicht mehr funktionieren. Zinsanpassungen müssen wohlüberlegt sein. Nach oben und nach unten.

Auch für die Bankkunden brechen neue Zeiten an. Endlich kriegen sie etwas ihr Erspartes.

Der alte Slogan «Lass dein Geld für dich arbeiten» wird endlich Wirklichkeit.

Dieser Blog Post erschien zuerst auf dem Blog von Claudio Gisler

Titel-Bild Nachweis: Bearbeitet von Freepik

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Fraud is surging in Europe’s financial services sector, with both the scale and sophistication of attacks growing on the back of advancements in artificial intelligence (AI).

A survey by Signicat, involving 1,206 fraud decision-makers at financial institutions across seven European countries, reveals that 76% of respondents believe fraud is now a bigger threat than three years ago, and 66% specifically view AI-driven identity fraud as a greater concern.

The study, conducted by Censuswide in March and April 2024, found that while fraud is increasing overall, some types of fraud are becoming more popular. Deepfakes and impersonalization, in particular, have emerged among the top three most common types of identify fraud reported by financial institutions.

This trend aligns with Signicat’s own experience in detecting deepfake fraud. In 2021, deepfakes accounted for a mere 0.1% of fraud attempts. However, the figure has soared to 6.5% in 2024, marking a staggering 2,137% increase over the period. This sharp increase in deepfake attempted fraud is part of a broader trend, with overall fraud attempts tracked by Signicat rising by 80% over the past three years.

The rise of deepfakes

More specifically, the research found that deepfakes have risen to become the most prevalent threat in eID fraud. These schemes aim to undermine national digital identity systems either by taking over an existing account or creating a false identity.

eID systems are digital platforms that allow individuals or organizations to prove their identity online, securely and efficiently. These systems are designed to verify a person’s identity electronically, enabling them to access various services, both public and private, without needing physical documents.

While eID are effective against many types of fraud, some criminals are able to subvert these systems, leveraging AI to sample voices and video with striking accuracy to deceive organizations or individuals. For example, a deepfake might prompt a victim to authorize payments where no ID check is required on the fraudster’s end, leaving eIDs ineffective in such scenarios. Deepfakes can also be used to direct victims to fake eID verification sites to steal logins or as part of a “man-in-the-middle” attack.

60% of fraud executives polled for the Signicat study stated that eID fraud is a bigger threat today than three years ago, compared to 74% saying the same of fraud in general. This suggests that while eIDs are helping slow the growth of fraud, they are not enough to fully stop it.

The cost of AI-driven fraud

Overall, findings from the Signicat survey reveal that criminals are increasingly relying AI to conduct fraud. An estimated 42.5% of detected fraud attempts now use AI, the study found, with 29% of them considered successful. For some respondents, that rate is even higher, with one in nine sharing an estimated AI usage in fraud attempts as high as 70% for their organization.

These AI-driven frauds are becoming an increasingly expensive challenge. Respondents estimate that, of the revenue loss to fraud, 38% was due to AI-driven identity fraud. This suggests that, while AI-driven identity fraud is not yet more successful than other means of identity fraud, it is more lucrative and used for more sophisticated, high-value scams.

A separate analysis by Deloitte’s Center for Financial Services predicts that generative AI (genAI) could enable fraud losses to reach US$40 billion in the US alone by 2027, rising at a compound annual growth rate of 32% between 2023 and 2027. This growth is expected to be fueled by advancements in genAI, which will enable the creation of highly realistic images and videos that can convincingly impersonate individuals.

Businesses embrace technology to address evolving fraud landscape

Results from the Signicat study show that financial services providers are aware of the threat of AI. Over three-quarters of the businesses polled have specialist teams dedicated to the issue of AI-driven identity fraud, are upgrading their fraud prevention technology stack, and expect to have more budget to do so.

However, despite this awareness, just under a quarter of respondents have actually started implementing measures. Most are planning to do so in the next year. Smaller organizations are actually further behind, with only 18% having mitigation in place already. This indicates a delay in deploying necessary defenses against AI-driven identity fraud.

Financial services companies are also adopting advanced technologies to combat this evolving threat. JP Morgan, for example, uses the AI to reduce fraud, streamline payment validations, and improve overall customer satisfaction.

Additionally, companies are partnering with tech firms to enhance their fraud detection capabilities. For example, Microsoft has partnered with risk assessment firm Moody’s to develop enhanced risk, data, analytics, research and collaboration solutions powered by genAI.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Fabrick, an Italian Open Finance operating company is expanding its geographical footprint by partnering with TerraPay, a company simplifying global money movement.

Initially focused on the Italian market, this partnership will enable businesses to access a unified platform that streamlines payment processes, reduce operational costs, and ensure compliance with regulatory requirements.

It represents a significant milestone in Fabrick’s international growth and consolidation strategy, building on its strong presence in Italy, Spain, and the United Kingdom.

Following the recent acquisition of finAPI, which enabled Fabrick to enter the strategically important DACH region, Fabrick has continued to solidify its position at the forefront of Europe’s digital payments landscape.

With TerraPay’s extensive global network spanning 7.5 billion bank accounts, 12 billion cards and 2.4 billion digital wallets across 145 countries and by leveraging Fabrick’s Banking-as-a-Service platform model, the two are creating a unified platform with tailored offerings that streamline payment processes, enhance security, and elevate the customer experience for businesses and financial institutions. Moreover, TerraPay’s global infrastructure aligns with Fabrick’s mission to support Open Finance across different domains, including cross-border payments.

TerraPay, regulated by the FCA, the Bank of Italy, and in 30 other jurisdictions globally, excels in international anti-money laundering (AML) and fraud prevention regulations, while Fabrick offers deep knowledge of Italian and EU compliance standards. Hence, both have a shared expertise in navigating the complexities of their respective regulatory environments.

Paolo Zaccardi, CEO and Co-Founder of Fabrick, stated:

“We are delighted to announce our partnership with TerraPay, providing us with a gateway to the world’s most extensive cross-border payments network. By integrating TerraPay’s vast global reach with our innovative solutions, we not only enhance our service offerings but also reinforce Fabrick’s broader strategy of global expansion”.

“This move therefore signifies an important step forward in consolidating our presence in key international markets, enabling us to deliver a comprehensive suite of payment services tailored to the rapidly evolving needs of the financial services sector worldwide, enabling businesses internationally to navigate the complexities of cross-border payments with greater efficiency and security”.

Ani Sane, Co-Founder and Chief Business Officer at TerraPay, stated:

“Our collaboration with Fabrick marks a significant milestone in our efforts to expand our footprint in Europe. By combining our expertise in payment infrastructure with Fabrick’s innovative approach to banking services, we are poised to deliver our value proposition to help Italian and European enterprises and banks to streamline complexity of cross border payment.”

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Apple is changing its payments strategy, stepping away from managing balance sheet-based financial products and focusing more on strengthening its iOS ecosystem and proprietary products.

These changes will transform the competitive landscape, benefiting third-party wallets, BNPL providers and merchants, a new report by the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) says.

The report, released in September, explores Apple’s recent fintech announcements and examines their implications for different markets and players. In particular, it highlights the termination of Apple’s buy now, pay later (BNPL) service, Apple Pay Later, the end of the firm’s partnership with Goldman Sachs, and the opening of its near field communication (NFC) chip and secure element application programming interfaces (APIs) to developers in select regions.

These moves are all part of Apple’s strategy to strengthen its ecosystem and avoid direct involvement in financial products that carry significant risk.

Apple’s BNPL Change

Apple discontinued in June 2024 Apple Pay Later, a BNPL solution that allowed users to pay off purchases of as much as US$1,000 over four installments. Instead, the firm has introduced installment payment options via Apple Wallet in partnership with financial institutions such as Synchrony, Citi, and Affirm in the US, and banks like ANZ in Australia and HSBC and Monzo in the UK. These moves marked Apple’s retreat from offering financial services in-house, likely due to the challenges of overseeing balance sheet-based products, opting instead to integrate BNPL services via third-party providers.

BCG predicts that BNPL players will be the biggest winners of the change since integrating into Apple Wallet means they will gain access to a massive customer base. For example, Affirm’s merchant acceptance is projected to grow from about 290,000 to about 10 million, BCG says.

Another major announcement this year was the opening of Apple’s NFC chip in the European Union in compliance with the Digital Markets Act. The firm proactively did so in seven additional countries: the US, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, the UK, Japan and Brazil. The move will allow developers in these markets access to key elements of Apple Wallet’s infrastructure. This will likely foster greater collaboration with third-party financial providers, significantly altering the digital wallet landscape by increasing competition.

According to BCG, leading paytech and e-commerce companies like PayPal, Cash App and Shopify are expected to benefit from the newly democratized NFC landscape. PayPal, a longstanding leader in e-commerce digital wallets, and Cash App, a popular digital wallet service by Block, will have the opportunity to expand its reach in offline transactions.

BCG also expects many merchants to add NFC payment functionality to their proprietary apps and partner with lenders to offer BNPL options within their wallets, enhancing consumer loyalty through in-app reward and personalized offers.

Most large merchants have enabled contactless payments in their stores but have hesitated to integrate payments with their standalone apps, reflecting the need to invest in new acceptance infrastructure such as QR codes at point of sale (POS). However, the ability to drive consumer loyalty through in-app rewards, personalized offers, and seamless checkout experiences will push many retailers to launch digital wallets and integrate NFC payment functionality as these help them drive both increased consumer engagement and operational efficiencies.

Besides benefiting third-party wallets, BNPL players, and merchants, BCG expects Apple’s recent moves to benefit payment networks like Visa and Mastercard. This new landscape will entrench their presence in card payments and set them up to dominate POS installment payments over time, the firm says.

Featured image credit: edited from Apple

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Venturelab announced the seventh edition of the Venture Leaders Fintech roadshow with a selection of ten ambitious Swiss fintech startups ready to increase their presence and boost their growth on the international stage.

From December 2nd to 6th, the 10 startups will represent Swiss innovation at Fintech Connect in London and will pitch to investors.

After reviewing 50 applications, a jury of investors and financial experts selected ten fintech startups to join the Venture Leaders Fintech 2024 selection.

The roadshow will take the Swiss National Fintech Team to London for investor pitch sessions and customer meetings; the entrepreneurs will also participate in the Fintech Connect conference to meet banking leaders and expand their network. The roadshow is organized by Venturelab in partnership with Swissnex, and supported by EPFL, ETH Zürich, and Walder Wyss.

This year’s Venture Leaders Fintech entrepreneurs join an impressive group of Fintech alumni including high-flying startups such as:

Crypto Finance (acquired by Deutsche Börse), eCollect (acquired by Intrum), Imburse (acquired by Duck Creek Technologies), Qumram (acquired by Dynatrace), Lend, Sonect, TP24, and many more.

Meet the 10 Swiss Fintechs Joining the Swiss National Startup Team in 2024:

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21.co, the parent company of 21Shares – one of the world’s largest issuers of crypto exchange traded products (ETPs), and Crypto.com announced that they have entered into a strategic partnership.

Central to the partnership, 21.co Wrapped Bitcoin (21BTC) will source Bitcoin liquidity from Crypto.com, leveraging the exchange’s liquidity. Looking ahead, 21.co and Crypto.com intend to build on the strategic partnership, with future announcements in the pipeline.

“We are thrilled to integrate 21BTC with Crypto.com, enhancing user access to crypto and marking the starting point of a long-term, strategic partnership. As two leaders in digital asset innovation, know-how and operations, the 21.co–Crypto.com partnership creates a powerful combination,”

said Eliezer Ndinga, Head of Strategy and Business Development, Digital Assets at 21.co.

“Crypto.com is one of the world’s largest digital assets exchanges serving over 100 million users globally. As one of the world’s largest issuers of crypto ETPs, 21.co brings asset management best practices and operational excellence to the world of wrapped assets.”

“This partnership is a strong demonstration of how our exceptional liquidity can support the innovations of companies like 21.co and how Crypto.com is constantly aiming to better serve our existing customers,”

said Eric Anziani, President and COO of Crypto.com.

“21.co is a proven global crypto company, driving innovation across multiple ETP, ETF and tokenization projects. By coming together, we will offer retail and institutional crypto traders the liquidity solutions they need in the market of today and tomorrow.”

Featured image credit: Eliezer Ndinga, Head of Strategy and Business Development, Digital Assets at 21.co and Eric Anziani, President and COO of Crypto.com. Edited from freepik

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2024 continues to be a challenging year for European fintech companies, with funding levels experiencing a significant decline.

In H1 2024, European fintech companies raised EUR 2.9 billion (US$3.2 billion), representing a 24% decline from EUR 3.8 billion (US$4.2 billion) in the same period the prior year, according to a new report by Finch Capital, a Dutch growth capital firm. The number of deals also fell, declining by 19% to 443 rounds.

Valuations remained under pressure, as flat and down rounds accounted for 25.2% of all deals in H1 2024, up from 19.7% in H1 2023. This trend further reflects the challenging fundraising environment.

Regional trends

In H1 2024, the UK remained the dominant player in the European fintech landscape, accounting for 65% of capital raise, up from 58% in H1 2023. Meanwhile, fintech sectors in the Netherlands and the Nordics showed resilience, with funding levels remaining stable despite broader market difficulties.

2024 is also seeing more emphasis on profitability than revenue growth, a trend that’s driving the development of a thriving low- to mid-market mergers and acquisitions (M&A) ecosystem in Europe. Notably, the share of Europe on global M&A deals under EUR 500 million (US$549 million) rivaled the US in size in H1 2024 at 32%. In contrast, the US share of similar exits has shrunk over the past years, declining from 49% in 2021 to 35% in H1 2024.

Digital banks: the bright spot for European fintech

Despite the challenging fundraising climate, digital banks are emerging as a standout area in the European fintech sector this year. According to Finch Capital, banking was the favored fintech verticals in H1 2024, attracting the majority of capital despite being ranked fifth in terms of deal count. This indicates that large rounds led much of the sector’s funding activity.

According to Finch Capital, large rounds of fundraising in the banking sector over the past year have been driven by record profits by challenger banks. Top challenger banks in the UK generated nearly GBP 800 million (US$1 billion) in profit in 2023 compared to just GBP 28 million (US$37 million) in 2022. These strong financial performances have made the UK a hub for fintech funding, with success stories like Revolut, Monzo and Atom Bank contributing to this trend.

Monzo, for example, has raised north of US$610 million in 2024. Monzo claims it is the 7th largest bank in the UK, boasting more than 10 million customers. The digital bank achieved its first full year of profitability in 2024, reporting a pre-tax profit of GBP 15.4 million (US$20.5 million) for the financial year ending March 31, 2024. Monzo is now looking to expand its presence internationally, particularly in the US.

Atom Bank also delivered its first year of operating profit in fiscal year 2023, with operating profit rising to GBP 27 million (US$35.4 million), up from GBP 4 million (US$5.2 million) last year. Founded in 2014, Atom Bank was the first online bank to be granted a full UK regulatory license. Between 2018 and 2023, the bank’s customer base increased significantly, reaching 224,000 in March 2023.

Revolut, meanwhile, delivered record profits and revenue growth in 2023, with group revenue increasing by 95% from US$1.1 billion in 2022 to US$2.2 billion. Profit before tax was US$545 million, and net profit grew to US$428 million, up from US$7 million in 2022. Revolut operates in more than 40 markets globally and claims more than 45 million customers, making it one of the most prominent digital banks in the world.

Outlook for 2025: AI drives growth, BNPL rebounds

Looking ahead to 2025, Finch Capital anticipates several key trends that will shape the European fintech landscape.

In particular, the firm expects continued adoption of artificial intelligence (AI), especially in the insurance sector. According to research, four out of five actuaries are now using AI to improve risk analysis and pricing models and 65% of executives say they will invest more than US$10 million in AI in the next 3 years. This technology is expected to make the industry more efficient.

Another emerging trend is the resurgence of buy now, pay later (BNPL). At the beginning, BNPL was largely restricted to e-commerce. However, the payment method is now gaining traction in physical stores such as grocery stores, restaurants as well as gas stations. Furthermore, improvement in risk management, driven by AI, have helped BNPL firms enhance their lending standards, improving profitability among BNPL players, Finch Capital says.

Swedish BNPL giant Klarna, for example, said in August that it posted a profit in H1 2024, reporting an adjusted operating profit of SEK 673 million (US$66.1 million) in the six months through June 2024, up from a loss of SEK 456 million (US$44 million) in the same period a year ago. Revenue, meanwhile, grew 27% year-on-year to SEK 13.3 billion (US$1.3 billion). Founded in 2005, Klarna is a leading BNPL player boasting over 31 million monthly active users.

Finch Capital also notes that the fintech sector is beginning to see signs of recovery in the job market. Incumbents, in particular, have been hiring en masse, with HSBC, Mastercard and American Express adding more than 700 employees to their engineering teams over the past 12 months. Among digital leaders, Stripe and Revolut were the most active in hiring, expanding their engineering teams by 457 and 320 employees, respectively, during the same period.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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In Q2 2024, global enterprise fintech secured a total of US$4.6 billion in venture capital (VC) funding across 315 deals, a 27.1% year-on-year increase and 2.2% growth quarter-on-quarter, breaking the downward trend of the previous two quarters, data from PitchBook show.

This increase was driven by larger deal sizes. In H1 2024, enterprise fintech companies logged a median VC deal size of US$5 million, up 11.3% from 2023’s median of US$4.5 million. Notably, late-stage deals experienced a 20.1% jump in median deal size to US$9.9 million.

Other stages, however, decreased from their 2023 median, with pre-seed and seed declining 22.8% to US$2.2 million, early-stage VC falling 6.2% to US$5 million, and venture growth decreasing 31.5% to US$17 million.

In Q2 2024, capital markets and CFO stack led VC funding activity. Capital market startups closed 35 transactions, securing a total of US$1.6 billion, or 34.8% of all enterprise fintech deals during the period. The vertical recorded some of the quarter’s largest enterprise fintech rounds including Clear Street’s US$685 million Series B, AlphaSense’s US$650 million acquisition financing to purchase competitor firm Tegus, and Finbourne’s US$70 million Series B.

CFO stack followed capital markets, securing the second highest deal value in Q2 2024 at US$1.2 billion (26%) across 76 transactions. Notable deals included Kapital’s US$165 million Series B, Ramp’s US$150 million Series D2, and FloQast’s US$100 million Series E.

Enterprise fintech exits and M&A

Despite somewhat of a rebound in VC funding, exits and mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the enterprise fintech space remained subdue, with only US$1 billion of recorded exit value across 33 deals in Q2 2024.

Notable acquisitions during the quarter included AlphaSense’s US$930 million acquisition of Tegus, Aurionpro Solutions’ acquisition of a majority stake in Arya.ai for US$16.5 million, Digits’ acquisition of Basis, Stripe’s acquisition of Sumatra, Paystand’s acquisition of Teampay, and Toggle AI’s acquisition of Atom Finance.

Noteworthy deals also took place for public companies, such as Nuvei’s all-cash take-private deal by private equity (PE) firm Advent International, Shift4’s acquisition of a majority stake in point-of-sale (POS) payments company Vectron Systems, and Global Payments’ acquisition of UK-based payment service provider Takepayments.

Only one initial public offering (IPO) occurred in Q2 2024. It involved Trust Fintech, a bank technology provider, which listed on the National Stock Exchange of India and recorded an exit value of US$21.3 million.

BaaS, AI, crypto payments as top enterprise fintech verticals

The PitchBook report also highlights some of the key trends driving enterprise fintech in Q2 2024. First, banking-as-a-service (BaaS) continued to dominate headlines during the quarter amid heightened regulatory scrutiny following the collapse of BaaS platform Synapse.

Synapse filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in April 2024 after a combination of internal mismanagement, failed partnerships, and broader market challenges led to the company’s downfall. The collapse impacted nearly 100 fintech companies and millions of customers, TechCrunch reported, leaving around US$160 million in deposits inaccessible and raising concerns about the stability of the BaaS model and the fintech industry’s heavy reliance on a few service providers.

Despite these setbacks, fintech companies continued to explore BaaS in Q2 2024: FIS launched in May its BaaS platform, Atelio; Equals Money, a payment solutions provider, introduced in June a new BaaS product; Atmos Financial expanded its relationship with banking partner Five Star Bank in June to explore BaaS opportunities; and Velmie announced in May a partnership with Unlimit to bring together Velmie’s platform with Unlimit’s cutting-edge BaaS offering.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is another top trend outlined by PitchBook, with fintech leaders and banks continuing to explore generative AI (genAI) applications in Q2 2024. In May, Visa introduced its new Visa Account Attack Intelligence (VAAI) tool, which uses genAI to detect and prevent enumeration attacks in card-not-present transactions. That same month, JP Morgan unveiled its IndexGPT tool, which provides an automated approach to curating thematic investment baskets.

Finally, crypto payments gained notable traction in Q2 2024 as leading payment players embraced blockchain solutions. In April, Stripe announced it would begin supporting global stablecoin payments using Circle’s USDC. That same month, Block, the company behind Square, Cash App and other services, announced a new program allowing merchants using Square’s solutions to convert a percentage of their daily sales to bitcoin, TechCrunch reported. The firm also unveiled plans to expand its bitcoin mining ambitions from designing chips to developing a full bitcoin mining system.

In Q2 2024, enterprise fintech startups continued to capture the majority share of VC deal value in the fintech sector, making up 51.9% of total VC, according to PitchBook.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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ETF investors are familiar with the problem: finding out which individual securities are included in an investment instrument can only be done with great difficulty using factsheets and supplementary data tables.

Identifying overlaps in a portfolio used to be extremely time-consuming. True Wealth is now changing that.

True Wealth launches the «ETF Lookthrough». This tool allows clients to look through ETFs and index funds: The individual securities held in their portfolio, i.e. stocks and bonds, can be viewed instantly, displayed with just a few mouse clicks and searched.

This unique functionality is not only available to invested clients, but also to all other interested visitors to the website who would like to test True Wealth with a free virtual portfolio.

With the ETF-Lookthrough, True Wealth is once again setting a higher standard in asset management: «Trust and transparency are crucial for our clients. With this new function, we are giving them a tool to better understand the composition of their portfolio,»

explains Felix Niederer, CEO of True Wealth.

No distinction is made between investments in free (untied) assets and Pillar 3a. In addition to ETFs, index funds are also taken into account. For a more meaningful view of the investment risk, shares and bonds from the same issuer are shown in aggregated form.

The aspect of home bias, for example the tendency of some Swiss investors to invest disproportionately in Swiss stocks, is now also apparent to everyone with the tool. For example, the fact that an SMI investment primarily holds three local champions from the food and pharmaceutical sectors (Nestlé, Roche and Novartis).

The question of how much of your own assets are at risk in the event of a company insolvency (across the shares and bonds issued by the company) is also revealing. The tool also shows this optionally in a holistic view that combines free assets and Pillar 3a.

A simplified view of the review down to individual issuers can be seen here in the sample portfolio.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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In H1 2024, mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity in the tech-enabled media and marketing sectors continued to rise, with a 7% year-on-year (YoY) increase in volume, according to data from Ciesco, a London-based M&A advisory firm specializing in the tech, media, healthcare and sustainability sectors.

This trend is expected to accelerate in the second half of the year, a sentiment that’s echoed by Collingwood, a consulting and advisory firm specializing in the media sector. Collingwood anticipates a surge in demand for live events and an increasing need for access to trusted information, fueling M&A activity in the sector.

In H1 2024, 1,129 transactions were announced in the technology and media sectors, representing a 7% YoY increase in deal activity and a 9% increase compared to H1 2022, Ciesco reports. This growth demonstrates a rebound in M&A deals after years of subdued activity.

During the period, traditional media saw the highest YoY increase in buyer interest, followed by agency services, and, events and experiential. Conversely, customer relationship management, digital agency and martech experienced the biggest YoY decline.

Key trends and predictions

Ciesco outlines several key trends shaping the tech-enabled media and marketing sector this year. In particular, it highlights that AI advancements are transforming areas such as enterprise data management, content production, forecasting and customer experience. These technologies are enhancing efficiency and driving innovation in the sector.

Ciesco also highlights the booming influencer marketing industry which has been fostering personalized, authentic engagement between brands and consumers. This sector has proven resilient amid economic uncertainty and an increasingly crowded space, with spending rising roughly 3.5 times faster in 2023 than social ad spending, according to Emarketer’s July 2023 forecast.

Finally, spending on events and experiential marketing is experiencing a strong post-COVID-19 resurgence. A recent study by experiential marketing agency Gradient reveals that 80% of the 750+ senior brand marketers polled have increased their experiential marketing budgets so that they now account for 10-30% of their overall marketing spend. This surge underscores the growing emphasis on immersive marketing strategies and creating memorable, engaging experiences for consumers.

Echoing Ciesco, Collingwood notes that demand for live events is rebounding as both audiences and sponsors continue to place value on the capacity of live events to help them learn, network, and ultimately forge business partnerships. This has spurred increased M&A activity in the events segment representing over 50% of 2023 transactions.

Another trend outlined by Collingwood is the increasing focus on sophisticated marketing services. There is strong interest in businesses that offer advanced client and sponsor propositions, with a shift towards demand generation driven by high-quality content, it says.

Finally, Collingwood notes the growing need for access to trusted, high-quality information, especially in the business-to-business market, highlighting opportunities to leverage quality content to engage audiences, and address currently underserved audience needs. Key areas where information gaps exist include regulatory information, information on industry best practices, information and suppliers and information on emerging technologies.

Notable media deals announced so far this year:

• In June, Keleops, a leading European online tech media company, announced its acquisition of Gizmodo, a renowned tech media company. This acquisition, previously under the ownership of G/O Media and Boston-based private equity firm Great Hill Partners, aims to bolster Keleops’ position in tech journalism and expand its reach within the industry and internationally.
• In July, Britain’s Informa announced that it had reached a deal to buy Ascential, a company specializing in events, intelligence and advisory services for the marketing and fintech industries, for GBP 1.2 billion (US$1.6 billion) in cash. This acquisition is significant because, while the media industry struggles to generate revenue from advertising, live events like those hosted by Ascential are a bright spot for growth. Ascential is one of the last large-scale events companies, running prestigious event series such as Lions and Money20/20.
• In August, Red Ventures, an American digital media and marketing firm, announced that it was selling its tech news and reviews site CNET to Ziff Davis, a publicly-traded digital marketing behemoth, in a deal valued at over US$100 million, sources told Axios. The development marked a surprising twist for CNET, which had previously bought Ziff Davis, then a tech magazine company, in a deal worth US$1.6 billion more than 20 years ago. Founded in 1994, CNET is an American media website that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts and videos on global technology and consumer electronics.
• American news website Axios signed in August 2022 a deal to sell to its most recent lead investor, Cox Enterprises. The cash deal valued the company at US$525 million and included an additional new investment of US$25 million in Axios’ media arm to help the company expand across its local, national and subscription news products. Axios is a news website founded in 2016 by former Politico journalists Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, and Roy Schwartz. It’s known for its concise and reader-friendly format, designed to deliver important information quickly and efficiently.
• In January Thomson Reuters has acquired World Business Media, a London-based provider of subscription-based, cross-platform editorial coverage for the (re)insurance industry.
• In February, US asset manager Franklin Templeton announced a funding round for Blockhead, a Singapore-based digital asset media firm. Blockhead said it will use the proceeds to support the growth and development of blockchain technology and digital assets, and to evolve its business model to become a leading digital asset research platform in the region. Launched in 2022, Blockhead currently operates a news publication covering global stories from the blockchain and digital assets industry, with an Asian focus.

Despite the robust M&A activity, 2024 has also seen notable media closures:

• In June, Fintech Nexus, a fintech media company previously known as LendIt, said that it was shutting down after 11 years of operation and filing for bankruptcy. The company was launched in 2013 to foster collaboration in the online lending industry and quickly grew to host large fintech events across the US, the UK, Europe, China and Latin America. However, external challenges, including the COVID-19 pandemic and the fintech funding downturn, led to financial difficulties, culminating in the sale of its events business 2023 and now a full closure.
• London-based fintech news website Altfi announced in January that it was shutting down after ten years of operation, citing “severe headwinds over the last 18 months.” Set up in 2013 by finance journalist David Stevenson, a columnist at the Financial Times (FT), Altfi provided market-leading news, opinion, insights and events for the alternative finance and fintech community. It organized a series of corporate events in the UK, including the AltFi Lending Summit, the AltFi Awards and the Money Talks webinars.
• In the Philippines, television network CNN Philippines officially ceased operations on January 31, citing “serious financial losses” which was “worsened by the COVID-19 pandemic,” inside sources told Philstar.com.

Read also:

Fintech, Tech and Crypto Media Sector Shows Resilience with Notable Strategic Acquisitions and Funding Rounds in 2023 – Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News – FintechNewsCH

Fintech and Finance Firms Snap Up Media Companies to Gain Audience – Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News – FintechNewsCH

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Summa Equity, a Stockholm-based private equity firm, has acquired NetGuardians, a Swiss-based provider in AI-driven fraud prevention and anti-money laundering solutions.

This opens an opportunity for a collaboration between NetGuardians and Intix, another Summa portfolio company specializing in Know Your Transaction (KYT) data management.

The new group is poised to advance the financial security landscape by driving the development of next generation financial crime solutions.

NetGuardians has earned widespread recognition for its pioneering approach, underpinned by its proprietary 3D AI technology.

Building on this foundation, the synergy between NetGuardians fraud detection technology and Intix’s financial data management make sense.

Speaking on the new group, Gisle Glück Evensen, Partner at Summa commented:

“Money laundering and fraud pose significant challenges to the financial system and society through the harmful activities they support. The combination of Intix and NetGuardians represents the next generation of tools in the effort to combat these. We are very enthusiastic about the continuation of this journey.”

Speaking on the new group, Joël Winteregg, NetGuardians CEO and future group CEO commented:

“Today marks a transformative moment for Intix and NetGuardians. This strategic union provides a unique approach to addressing financial crime challenges, tackling issues from data pipeline and traceability to advanced AI analytics. We are not just expanding our reach but also deepening our commitment to secure, sustainable financial practices”.

Following the acquisition, Sergi Herrero, former Chair of Intix will assume the role of Chairman of the group. NetGuardians’ initial co-founders will play pivotal roles in this new venture and Raffael Maio will spearhead the group’s strategy. Both will be instrumental in shaping the development and strategic direction of the organization.

Featured image credit: Gisle Glück Evensen, Partner at Summa and Joel Winteregg, CEO, Co-Founder and CSO of NetGuardians. Edited from freepik

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Falling interest rates are posing challenges for digital banks, particularly in regions like Europe, the US, and Latin America.

These digital banks, which previously thrived on high margins from savings and loans, now face pressure on their profitability models as central banks worldwide begin lowering rates. In Europe, digital banks are responding to this shift by prioritizing product diversification and innovation to sustain growth, according to a new analysis by C-Innovation, a French fintech-focused research firm.

The report, released on September 23, explores how digital banks around the world have benefited from high interest rates and what the future holds as rates begin to fall. In Europe, it highlights that leading digital banks are implementing different strategies to adapt to this new environment, with some leveraging advanced technology to improve operational efficiency, while others opt instead to expand their product offerings to diversify revenue streams.

Following the global inflation surge that started in 2021, central banks around the world raised interest rates, often at unprecedented speed to bring inflation rates back to target. During this period of elevated interest rates, digital banks capitalized on the widening gap between the interest rates they offered on savings accounts and the higher rates they charged on loans, allowing them to generate considerably more revenues, significantly boosting profitability. They also took advantage of higher savings rates to offer more attractive returns than traditional banks, which drew in new customers, strengthened their customer base and increased their liquidity.

But in 2024, central bankers began the process of easing up on the aggressive stances they took to quell high inflation, lowering interest rates as inflation slows and falls within sight of their targets.

In Europe, the European Central Bank cut its main interest rate to 3.5% in September 2024, marking the second reduction this year following a move in June. Though economists believe rates may not return to their ultra-low levels of 0.25% seen before, C-Innovation argues that this new baseline of around 3% could still offer digital banks opportunities to capture decent margins.

EU digital banks introduce innovation offerings

Across the European Union (EU), digital banks are already adapting to this evolving landscape. Bunq, a Dutch neobank, is leading the way with innovative offerings such as Freedom of Choice, which allows users to control deposit investments, and MassInterest, which offers a 3.36% bonus rate to reward savers. Additionally, Bunq’s entry into the insurance market in May will allow it to diversifying its income streams and reduce reliance on interest margins.

Bunq boasts over 12.5 million customer, and total deposits of over EUR 8 billion. This year, it plans to increase its global headcount by over 70% to expand into new regions including the UK and the US, Bunq CEO and co-founder Ali Niknam told CNBC last month.

In Germany, N26 has expanded into investment products, offering services such as stock and exchange-traded fund trading, as well as portfolio management. This strategic move not only diversifies its revenue streams but also attracts a broader customer base, particularly those looking for easy access to financial markets, C-Innovation says. It also positions N26 as a more comprehensive financial platform that meets both banking and investment needs.

N26 has introduced several new products this year, including Joint Accounts, which allow N26 customers to manage both their personal finances and finances shared with a partner, as well as Instant Savings accounts, which offer customers in 13 European markets up to 4% interest on deposits.

N26 serves eight million customers across 24 European markets. The digital bank reported a 27% increase in revenues to more than EUR 300 million in 2023, and says it is on track to become profitable in the second half of 2024.

Klarna, the Swedish buy now, pay later (BNPL) giant, is a standout example of how digital banks are using advanced technology to stay ahead. The company has implemented solutions that leverage artificial intelligence (AI) to not only reduce operational costs and remain competitive as margins tighten, but also enhance customer experience in the increasingly competitive BNPL space.

These solutions include Kiki, Klarna’s bespoke internal AI assistant. In its first month, Kiki handled 2.3 million conversations, managing two-thirds of Klarna’s customer service interactions. It effectively performs the work of 700 full-time agents, matching human staff in customer satisfaction scores. Used by 87% of Klarna’s employees, Kiki responds to approximately 2,000 inquiries daily, significantly streamlining operations.

Klarna has also introduced an AI assistant for its 150 million customers via its app. This assistant is designed to enhance the shopping and payments experience and is capable of managing a range of tasks, including multilingual customer service, managing refunds and returns, and fostering healthy financial habits.

Digital banks in the UK put a focus on product diversification

In the UK, banks like Starling Bank, Revolut and Monzo are putting a strong focus on product diversification and innovation, allowing them to remain profitable in a lower-rate environment.

Revolut continues to offer a broad suite of services, including travel insurance, stock trading, and budgeting tools, which help diversify its revenue streams and reduce reliance on traditional banking margins. The digital bank has launched a number of new products this year, including Mobile Wallets, a remittance service; Revolut X, a stand-alone crypto trading platform; and Revolut BillPay, a new feature designed to help businesses manage and pay bills to suppliers in over 150 destinations with just a few clicks. It’s now working on a new stablecoin initiative as it seeks to expand its crypto offering.

Additionally, Revolut is pursuing cross-border expansion with plans to enter the Middle East by seeking licenses to operate in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and Dubai. This expansion will enable Revolut to offer remittance services, tapping into a region with significant growth potential. By providing such diverse financial products and expanding globally, Revolut can better withstand interest rate fluctuations, offering value-added services that go beyond core banking.

Revolut, which operates in more than 40 markets globally, claims more than 45 million customers, making it one of the most prominent digital banks in the world.

Similarly, Monzo is positioning itself through product diversification. Recent moves include the launch of a pension consolidation product with BlackRock, which allows customers to combine pots, a free account for 6 to 15 year olds, an “industry-first” Call Status fraud prevention tool that prevents customers falling victim to impersonation scams, the Monzo Investments offering, and an instant-access savings account.

Like Revolut, this broad product range enables Monzo to reduce reliance on interest-based income by generating fee-based revenue from various financial services. Moreover, its Monzo for Under 16s offering allows it to cultivate future loyalty, which will be crucial in maintaining a solid customer base as interest margins shrink, C-Innovation says.

Monzo claims it is the 7th largest bank in the UK, boasting more than 10 million customers. The digital bank achieved its first full year of profitability in 2024, reporting a pre-tax profit of GBP 15.4 million (US$20.5 million) for the financial year ending March 31, 2024.

Starling Bank as well is diversifying its revenue streams, focusing heavily on its expansion into business banking and the provision of tailored services for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). This helps cushion the effects of reduced lending margins.

The digital bank has also been franchising its software to other banks through a service called Engine, with recent partnerships in Australia with AMP and Romania with Salt Bank highlighting the bank’s commitment to scaling this technology​.

Starling Bank, which offers personal, business, and joint accounts through a mobile app, has 4.2 million customers and serves about 9% of the UK’s SME banking market. The digital bank has been profitable for three years now.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Selma Finance hat eine Crowdinvesting-Kampagne gestarted, mit der Möglichkeit Teil vom Schweizer Fintech-Unternehmen zu werden.

Seit letzter Woche Mittwoch läuft Selmas Crowdinvesting-Kampagne. Schon nach 25 Minuten war bereits die 500 000 Euro Marke erreicht.

Nach nur einer Stunde hatte die Kampagne 608’810 Euro eingesammelt. Über Nacht hat sich diese Summe dann nochmals verdoppelt, teilt das Unternehmen mit.

Knapp 24h nach Start der Kampagne waren 1.2 Millionen Euro zusammengekommen. Stand 14:30 Uhr am 30.09.2024 hat die Kampagne über 1.42 Millionen Euro eingesammelt. Aufgrund der weiterhin hohen Nachfrage hat Selma sich dazu entschlossen, nun das ursprüngliche Kampagnenziel anzupassen und die 1.5 Millionen Euro anzupeilen.

Mit den Mitteln wird die digitale Vermögensverwalterin Selma AI weiterentwickeln, das Angebot erweitern und die Position von Selma Finance als führende Finanzberaterin der Schweiz stärken.

“Unser Vorteil gegenüber anderen Schweizer Fintech-Unternehmen ist, dass unser Kerngeschäft bereits profitabel betrieben werden könnte. Mit unserer Crowdinvesting-Kampagne wollen wir nun Menschen einbinden, die an unsere Vision einer demokratisierten und technologiegestützten Finanzberatung glauben und in unsere Weiterentwicklung investieren wollen“,

erklärt Patrik Schär, CEO von Selma.

so Patrik Schär.

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More than 40 private sector financial firms, convened by the Institute of International Finance, will join the Bank for International Settlements and a group of leading central banks in Project Agorá to explore how tokenisation can enhance wholesale cross-border payments.

The BIS and the IIF selected a diverse set of firms from applicants that met the eligibility requirements and other criteria laid out in the public call for participation.

Participating firms must be regulated in a participating jurisdiction as a commercial bank, payment services provider, or financial market infrastructure company; be significantly involved in cross-border payments; and have innovation expertise. These firms represent a diversity of private sector partners in terms of business models, institution size, expertise and geography.

Participating private sector institutions are: (in bolt the Swiss one’s)

• Amina Bank
• Banco Santander
• Banorte
• Banque Cantonale Vaudoise
• Basler Kantonalbank
• BBVA
• BNP Paribas
• BNY
• CaixaBank
• Citi
• Crédit Agricole CIB
• Deutsche Bank AG
• Eurex Clearing AG
• Euroclear S.A./N.V.
• FNBO
• Groupe BPCE
• Hana Bank
• HSBC
• IBK
• Intercam Banco
• JPMorgan Chase Bank N.A.
• KB Kookmin Bank
• Lloyds Banking Group
• Mastercard
• Mizuho Bank
• Monex
• MUFG Bank Ltd.
• NatWest Group
• NongHyup Bank
• PostFinance Ltd.
• SBI Shinsei Bank Ltd.
• Shinhan Bank
• SIX Digital Exchange (SDX)
• Standard Chartered
• Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation
• Swift
• Sygnum Bank
• TD Bank N.A.
• UBS
• Visa
• Woori Bank

Project Agorá will now begin the design phase of the project.

Project Agorá (Greek for “marketplace”) is structured as a public-private collaboration. It brings together seven central banks: Bank of France (representing the Eurosystem), Bank of Japan, Bank of Korea, Bank of Mexico, Swiss National Bank, Bank of England and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. They will work in partnership with the selected financial firms, and the IIF will act as the private sector convener.

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By 2029, account-to-account (A2A) payments are projected to reach 186 billion transactions, marking a staggering 209% from 60 billion in 2024, new estimates by Juniper Research show. This growth is expected to be driven by advances in instant payment rails and open banking technologies, which are reshaping the payment landscape.

A2A payments refer to the direct transfer of funds from one bank account to another, without the need for intermediaries such as card networks or third-party payment processors. These transactions typically rely on traditional bank payment systems such as ACH (Automated Clearing House) in the US or SEPA (Single Euro Payments Area) in Europe, bypassing credit card and third-party payment platforms.

A2A payments have increased in popularity in recent years due to their cost-effectiveness, security, and speed. In 2023, they accounted for 7% of global e-commerce payments last year, according to the Global Payments Report 2024 by Worldpay. Countries including Finland, Malaysia, the Netherlands, and Nigeria led the way in adoption, with A2A payments standing as the leading payment method for e-commerce transactions.

Juniper Research predicts that A2A payments will continue to grow through 2028, fueled by the widespread adoption of open banking initiatives across governing bodies worldwide. Asia-Pacific (APAC) is projected to make up for the bunch of these transactions, accounting for more than half of all A2A consumer transactions by then, outpacing both the Americas and Europe.

Real-time payments and open banking fuel the growth of A2A transactions

The rise of A2A payments has been largely propelled by the development of instant payment rails, Juniper Research says. Historically, traditional A2A payments faced delays in fund transfers, often taking several business days through systems like SEPA. However, real-time payment systems such as the UK’s Faster Payments and the US’s RTP (Real-Time Payments) allow for instantaneous or near-instantaneous transfers between bank accounts. This speed has made A2A payments highly appealing for situations where speed is crucial, such as paying bills, transferring money between individuals, or settling business invoices, leading to increased adoption.

While instant payment rails are crucial to the rise of A2A payments, the report notes that open banking is also playing a significant role by providing the secure infrastructure that allows banks and financial institutions to share data with third-party providers.

Open banking enables third-party providers to initiate payments directly from consumers’ bank accounts, allowing for the development of innovative solutions, including payment initiation services (PIS). These third-party services facilitate the initiation of payments directly from a customer’s bank account, offering more seamless payment experiences, particularly in e-commerce.

The adoption of open banking has seen steady growth in recent years, especially in Europe. In the UK, open banking penetration reached 13% of digitally active consumers by January 2024, with small businesses reporting an even higher rate of 18%, according to the UK’s Open Banking Limited (OBL). The agency estimates that there are now 10 million active users of open banking-powered financial tools and payment apps in the UK.

In Europe, about 5% of digital consumers in France, Spain, Italy, and Germany had used open banking in 2022, according to Rolands Mesters, CEO of open banking provider Nordigen.

Globally, Juniper Research estimates that there were a little less than 100 million open banking payments users in 2023. By 2027, that number is projected to reach 400 million, and by 2028, it could approach 600 million.

Europe: A leader in open banking

Europe is recognized as a pioneer and leader in open banking due to proactive regulation, technological innovation and the collaborative financial ecosystem that has emerged in the region.

The bloc introduced in 2015 the Revised Payment Services Directive (PSD2), a regulatory framework designed to foster competition and innovation in the financial services industry. It mandated that banks open their customers’ financial data to authorized third-party providers with the customer’s consent, effectively kickstarting the open banking movement.

The European Union (EU) is now working on an open finance framework, expanding the access and reuse of customer data across a broader range of financial services, including loans, investments, savings, pension schemes, real-estate and even crypto-assets. The European Commission (EC) put forward the legislative proposal in June 2023. The proposal is now going through the legislative process, including discussions and approvals by the European Parliament and the Council of the EU.

These initiatives are part of the EU’s Digital Finance Strategy, a development plan adopted in September 2020 aimed at modernizing the European financial sector by embracing digital transformation. Other key initiatives under the plan include the Regulation on Markets in Crypto-assets (MiCA), the Digital Identity Framework, and the Instant Payments Regulation.

The Instant Payments Regulation, which entered into force in April 2024, requires banks and payment service providers to offer instant payment services in euros, ensuring that transactions are processed within seconds, 24 hours a day, all year round. It also mandates that instant payments must be offered to customers at the same cost as standard transfers.

Though instant payments bring about a number of benefits for both consumers and businesses, the EC estimates that only 11 % of all money transfers in euro are instant. One in three EU payment service providers does not offer them, and some 70 million payment accounts in the euro area do not allow their holders to use instant transfers.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik

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Pelt8, a Switzerland based sustainability reporting solution provider, has entered into a strategic partnership with the consulting firm EBP.

Additionally, Tenity and SICTIC investors have joined the round as follow-on investors.

This collaboration aims to significantly strengthen the reporting and sustainability efforts of medium and large companies in Switzerland and internationally. To reinforce this commitment, EBP has acquired a minority stake in Pelt8.

The partnership comes at a critical time, with increasing market-driven and regulatory pressure on corporate sustainability. Pelt8’s comprehensive solution supports all sustainability reporting standards. Currently, the Swiss Federal Council is consulting on extending reporting requirements that are in line with new EU CSRD requirements. If passed, it is estimated that an additional 3,000 Swiss companies will need to report on their sustainability by 2027.

Julian Osborne, CEO of Pelt8, expressed his enthusiasm:

“We are thrilled about our partnership with EBP. With a very similar impact-driven culture, their extensive experience and expertise in sustainability consulting significantly enhance our ability to reach our clients’ sustainability goals.”

Christoph Zulauf, CEO of EBP Switzerland, emphasizes:

“Pelt8’s solution and team perfectly complement our Corporate Sustainability Consulting offering. The partnership with a young SustainabilityTech company marks the beginning of a new chapter for EBP.”

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Swiss equity token specialist Aktionariat AG and securities firm Taurus SA announced a new partnership.

Aktionariat’s tokenization tools and Taurus Digital Exchange (TDX) organized trading facility are natural complements. Under the newly announced partnership, Taurus will support selected shares tokenized with Aktionariat on the Ethereum blockchain and Aktionariat will offer client companies a smooth path towards being admitted to trading on TDX as they grow in market capitalization and match admission criteria.

This collaboration brings together Aktionariat’s expertise in tokenizing Swiss companies’ equity with Taurus’ institutional-grade trading technology. It aims to increase liquidity and unlock value for tokenized SMEs and their shareholders by providing access to TDX’s network of banks, professional investors, and retail clients.

Murat Ögat, CEO of Aktionariat, said:

“Our mission is to enable companies to leverage the power of blockchain-based financing. While we already offer tools to enable the sale and limited informal trading of security tokens, there is a lack of licensed marketplaces for security tokens. Taurus fills this gap with its digital marketplace. Having a smooth path to access this market will provide value to our clients and also strengthen the usefulness of our offering for their investors.”

Victor Busson, CMO at Taurus, commented:

“By combining Aktionariat’s expertise with our TDX marketplace, we’re helping to create a robust ecosystem for issuers and investors alike. This collaboration demonstrates how tokenization can increase liquidity and accessibility for the private capital market. We’re particularly excited about the potential for companies like RealUnit to leverage our platform, showcasing the tangible benefits of tokenization for both issuers and investors.”

Among the first tokenized SMEs expected to be admitted for trading on TDX following this partnership is RealUnit Schweiz AG, an investment company focused on real assets, with several additional companies expected to follow in 2025 as the ecosystem of tokenized SMEs expands. RealUnit tokenized its shares with Aktionariat in April 2022 and used its tools to allow investors to hold them using any Ethereum-based crypto wallet. Investors could choose between classic bearer shares and registered shares as tokens – a first in the Swiss capital market.

Dani Stüssi, CEO of RealUnit Schweiz AG, said:

“As one of the first Swiss companies to offer tokenized instruments, we’re excited to be at the forefront of this partnership between Aktionariat and Taurus. Being admitted to trade on TDX is a natural next step in our journey to increase accessibility and liquidity for our investors. This move aligns perfectly with our mission of opening up access to actively managed real asset investments.”

The collaboration is expected to go live in November, enabling the first Aktionariat-tokenized SMEs to begin trading on TDX.

Featured image credit: edited from freepik