Australia leads the way when it comes to Digital Banking
When it comes to cashless banking in Australia, Sydney and Canberra lead the way according to a report by card company Visa. The report recognises both cities as being digital leaders in large part as a result of Australia’s advanced digital banking payments system. Aussies are already very accustomed to online banking and there are a large number that make use of the system. 100 cities were looked at The report looked at more than 100 cities around the world and analysed their development in terms of cashless payments and banking. The report showed that 18 cities spread across Asia, Europe and the United States were deemed to be “digitally […]
Fintech firms welcome regulatory pathway for new bank entrants
A group of over 180 fintech firms strongly believes the country’s financial regulator should pursue steps to ease licensing for new entrants to the banking industry. In a submission paper to the Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA), FinTech Australia agreed that APRA should utilise a “phased approach” to help potential applicants navigate the licensing process, while at the same preserving entry standards. A discussion paper by APRA released last year initially suggested the phased approach idea to stoke further competition. “The phased approach is intended to support increased competition in the banking sector by reducing barriers for new entrants being authorised to conduct banking business, including those with innovative or […]
Putting the service back into ‘Financial Services’
Founded in 1998, well before Fintech had emerged as a moniker for disruptors in the finance industry, OFX (formerly OzForex) has been at the forefront of international money transfer services for nearly 20 years. From humble beginnings in a garage in Dee Why, the company has grown from an information only facility, providing up to the minute insights to the best available foreign exchange rates, to a global organisation, handling over $100B in transactions. Fuelled by a desire to ‘give Australians a fair go’ when it came to foreign exchange, the Company has consistently stuck to its ‘fair go’ and ‘great service’ roots. Developing partnership networks with a panel of […]
Peppermint entering lucrative international remittance market
Peppermint has created a wholly owned subsidiary, Peppermint Payments Pty Ltd (PPPL) to provide international remittances in the Australian market. Reflecting Australia’s history as a “land of immigrants”, this market is already large and growing faster than GDP, but supply has been shrinking due largely to increased compliance requirements. PPPL is registered with Austrac as both a remitter and a remittance network provider, and our AML/CTF program has been approved by our Australian bank. PPPL will use the brand “BIZMOTO” which is being trade-marked in both Australia and the Philippines. Agreements have been signed with multiple providers reflecting a carefully planned “best of breed” approach and architecture. Emphasis on proven […]
FinTechs present a policy wish-list
Improvements to the R&D initiative and government-mandated open data controls are top of the Australian FinTech industry’s wish-list, while gender diversity remains a major issue for the sector, a new survey has found. The 2017 EY FinTech Australia Census, released late last week, surveyed 166 local FinTech companies. This is the second year of the census and is the only industry-backed survey of its kind. The biggest things thing these companies said would help them to grow was improvements to the research and development scheme, with nearly 90 percent of the companies supporting this. The industry is still waiting on the government to respond to the controversial ‘Three F’ review […]
Finch raises $2.25m for Gen Y finance app after ‘proving it can rival’ Silicon Valley fintechs
Australia publishes draft laws for relaxed fintech regulation
The Australian government published draft laws on Tuesday that would let financial technology companies operate without a full licence, a measure it said would encourage innovation without compromising existing levels of consumer protection. The draft laws would let companies test “a broad scope of activities…without the need to meet all the existing licensing requirements of the Australian Securities and Investments Commission,” Treasurer Scott Morrison said in a statement, referring to the corporate regulator. Financial technology companies would be able to test products involving non-cash payments, crowdfunding, consumer credit and provide financial advice on pension funds, life insurance and domestic and international securities. The draft laws, which Morrison has opened for […]
Verrency announces Series A funding round and global expansion Innovative fintech to launch operations in US and Asia
Payments platform Verrency has announced a $US 15 million Series A funding round as it continues to expand internationally. The growth-stage fintech provides payments innovation-as-a-service that enables issuers to deliver the latest payment capabilities, fast and cost effectively, through their existing payments infrastructure. By giving consumers unprecedented flexibility and control over how they pay, Verrency’s cutting edge features ensure that their issuer’s brands are top of wallet and top of mind, driving revenue. The Australian-based startup has recently completed an oversubscribed pre-commercialisation funding round raising $US 4 million and is looking to raise a further $US 15 million to expand into key international markets. Verrency aims to close the […]
