TDB Digest – What’s Cooking in the FinTech and Banking Industry (Issue 2)

Fintech News updates

• Bond, a US start-up which focuses on creating enterprise platforms which helps banks engage with brand partners, connect with them and scale operation to drive revenue, has recently closed $32M in Series A funding. The round was led by Coatue with new investors Goldman Sachs, Mastercard and B Capital.
• The UK Government’s independent Fintech Strategic Review has announced that it began the process of reviewing the UK Fintech industry which “is estimated to be worth around £7 billion to the economy and employs around 60,000 people nationwide”. The review led by Ron Kalifa OBE, former CEO of Worldpay will help establish the need for resources, priority areas to ensure the success of the Fintech industry. 

Blockchain

• Project Ubin – a collaborative project between Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), R3, a DLT company and 9 financial institutions (DBS, SGX, HSBC, UOB, etc) was launched in 2016, to develop and test a payment system prototype across various financial institutions using Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT). On 13^th July 2020, MAS announced the conclusion of the final phase of project stating that payments network will provide interfaces for other blockchain networks to connect and integrate seamlessly, conditional payments and escrow for trade, as well as payment commitments for trade finance. MAS also announced the project is on track for commercial use.

Fintech investment in Singapore

• In line with MAS’s drive to make Singapore the “ Fintech Hub” of ASEAN while promoting innovation and financial inclusion, investments in the Singapore Fintech industry reached a total of S$650 million as of H1 2020, with a record 19% increase in equity funding amounting to S$462 million as compared with last year’s same period.