Established European fintech firms are experiencing some relief this year following a challenging 2023. Last year, venture-growth companies faced difficulties due to several factors, including the withdrawal of tourist investors, increased volatility, lower returns, and weak public market valuations. However, 2024 is showing signs of improvements, with deal values and valuations increasing significantly Q1 2024, data newly released by PitchBook show. The figures, shared in the “Q1 2024 European VC Valuations Report”, reveal a positive note in European venture-growth valuations this year, with ..read more

Die Finanzinfrastruktur-Plattform Stripe gab gestern eine Partnerschaft mit der Bezahl-App TWINT bekannt. Die Kooperation eröffnet Stripe-Nutzern weltweit die Möglichkeit, TWINT als Zahlungsmethode zu integrieren, und erschliesst damit den Zugang zu mehr als fünf Millionen aktiven Nutzern von TWINT in der Schweiz. TWINT ist mit einer Abdeckung von über 76 Prozent im Schweizer E-Commerce eines der beliebtesten Zahlungsmittel der Schweiz. Nahezu alle Schweizer Banken bieten ihren Kunden TWINT als mobile Bezahllösung an. TWINT-Nutzer können direkt und bargeldlos von ihrem Bankkonto aus Zahlungen ..read more

Digitalization and technology are introducing a number of benefits to banks, allowing them to improve efficiencies, cut cost and enhance customer experience. However, these advancements also introduce risks, including operational, reputational, and strategic risks, according to a new report by the Bank for International Settlements (BIS). The report, titled “Digitalisation of Finance” and authored by the BIS’s Basel Committee on Banking Supervision, examines the ongoing digitalization of finance on banks, highlighting both the advantages and risks of new technologies and the rise of new techno ..read more

Der Zahlungsdienstleister Payrexx integriert Click to Pay mit Visa ab sofort bei mehr als 7’000 Online-Shops kleiner und mittlerer Unternehmen in der Schweiz – darunter die Automobilplattform Carvolution, das Energieunternehmen BKW und die Zweifel Pomy-Chips AG. Mit Click to Pay können die Online-Händler den Bezahlvorgang per Karte vereinfachen und ihre Chance auf erfolgreiche Kaufabschlüsse erhöhen, ohne dass ihnen zusätzlicher Aufwand oder Kosten entstehen. Santosh Ritter «Das Bezahlen im Internet ist oft noch zu kompliziert. Click to Pay ist angetreten, um die Kartenzahlung im Netz so ei ..read more

Trotz breiter Skepsis, immer mehr Retailbanken bieten Kryptowährungen als vollwertige Anlageklasse an. Während einige Banken gezielt eigenes Know-how rund um Blockchain aufbauen, greifen die meisten auf Drittanbieter zurück. Dies zeigt eine neue Studie der Hochschule Luzern. Nach Rekordwerten im Jahr 2021 und einem darauffolgenden Einbruch sind die Preise von Kryptowährungen in den letzten Monaten wieder deutlich gestiegen. Verschiedene Retailbanken haben sich entschlossen, ein Angebot an Kryptowährungen aufzubauen. Gemäss einer Studie der Hochschule Luzern (HSLU) bieten 28 Prozent der Retailb ..read more

Finastra, a global financial software provider, has been chosen by private bank LGT to launch instant payment services in Austria and Liechtenstein, with plans to expand to other markets. LGT will utilise Finastra’s payment hub, adopting a model bank implementation approach to expedite compliance with the EU’s instant payments regulatory timeline. By separating payment processing from its core banking system, LGT aims to manage anticipated growth in instant payment volumes and ensure 24/7 service availability. Finastra’s payment hub is designed to offer a scalable and resilient payment process ..read more

A jury of 20 decision-makers and opinion leaders from the Swiss fintech sector has selected the finalists for this year’s Swiss Fintech awards from over 60 applications. The finalists in the “Early Stage Start-up of the Year” category are Climada and Neur.on AI. In the “Growth Stage Start-up of the Year” category, GenTwo and Payrexx reached the finals. The Early Stage Finalists Swiss Fintech Awards 2024 Climada Technologies aims to provide financial service companies with transparent and regulatory compliant climate change reporting with a high degree of automation. The open-source platform p ..read more

2023 acted as a reset year in the venture capital (VC) ecosystem as investments witnessed their first significant drop since 2017. In 2024, investors anticipate a gradual growth in both the number and size of funding rounds compared to 2023, with massive opportunities for fintech startups in the areas of generative artificial intelligence (gen AI), sustainable finance, business-to-business (B2B) solutions and tokenization, a new report by American VC firm Plug and Play says. The “Fintech Megatrends 2024” report, released in March 2024, shares the major fintech trends to look out for this year ..read more

Fabrick, an Open Finance operating company based in Italy, continues to execute its international growth and consolidation strategy in a growing market, and announces agreement to acquire finAPI GmbH, one of the leading German operators of Open Finance solutions. The operation, subject to approval by the German and Italian supervisory authorities, is carried out through an agreement signed with SCHUFA Holding AG, from which Fabrick will acquire 75% of finAPI. The other 25% of the shares will remain with the two founders of finAPI, Dr. Florian Haagen and Dr. Martin Lacher, who will both continu ..read more

A new study conducted by tech marketing agency Z3x reveals that while business-to-business (B2B) fintech companies are active on social media and maintain blogs to connect with their audiences, there is room for improvement, particularly in creating an engaged developer ecosystem and offering developer portals. The research, which polled 200 business-to-business (B2B) fintech companies worldwide and analyzed their websites, sought to evaluate the sector’s marketing strategies and technical details, aiming to provide insights to industry specialists. Key findings indicate that 95% of B2B fintec ..read more