Zurich, 14 January 2020 —responsAbility, a leading Swiss impact asset manager, has announced the first close of its new energy access fund. The private debt fund addresses the lack of access to clean power globally with a strong focus on Sub-Saharan Africa and South and Southeast Asia. It is set up as a blended finance structure offering different risk tranches and has received commitments from a number of prominent public […]
Tyme stands for 80% of adults regularly using their accounts to meet 80% of their financial needs, simply and efficiently, giving our customers the opportunity to unlock their potential. Our vision is simple – provide financial services that help people embrace their human potential. To make this happen, Tyme introduces “The Tyme 5” – our commitment to current and future customers, investors, partners, and regulators to: Build and then re-build […]
Financial institutions are under pressure. Strategic, technological, and competitive shifts are forcing them to devise innovative strategies to adapt to change, attract and keep clients, and remain relevant. Across markets, new technologies are transforming the economics of financial service delivery, as well as customers’ experiences and expectations. The rise of “superplatforms”—internet giants such as Apple, Google, Facebook, and Amazon—in financial services, partnerships between banks and fintech companies, blockchain, big data, […]
Originally posted on Fintechnews Singapore’s website. Ever since Hong Kong issued 8 virtual banking licenses earlier this year, regulators around Asia are clamoring to come up with their own framework to facilitate this new breed of banks. While Hong Kong has reinvigorated Asia’s interest in virtual banks, one of the earliest instances of virtual banks was actually formed in Japan in 1999. Sakura Bank (now known as Sumitomo Banking Corporation) led […]
Originally published on AltFi’s website. RM Funds’ Pietro Nicholls on how the lending industry is maturing. Image source: Pexels Arguably when we look back at the .com bubble almost 20 years ago, the retail sector was the only industry to truly be disrupted by the birth of e-commerce. Since then, the e-commerce sector has matured and its impact on retail has been staggering – the UK’s high streets are forever […]
Originally published on Shell Foundation’s website. Press Release: Announcing the launch of the US$120 million Energy Entrepreneurs Growth Fund to provide affordable access to energy for homes and businesses Amsterdam, Netherlands – December 5, 2019 Shell Foundation, a UK-registered charity, together with FMO, the Dutch entrepreneurial development bank, announces the launch of the US$120 million Energy Entrepreneurs Growth Fund (EEGF), with an initial close of US$45 million, providing catalytic financing […]
STORY HIGHLIGHTS A new World Bank diagnostic provides a snapshot of the state of Nigeria’s digital transformation, and provides recommendations for future growth The report notes that while Nigeria has made some progress, strategic investments and innovations are needed to reach its full digital potential The diagnostic is part of the World Bank Group’s Digital Economy for Africa Initiative in support of the African Union’s digital transformation agenda ABUJA, November […]
Organized by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), the Singapore FinTech Festival and the Singapore Week of Innovation and Technology (SFF x SWITCH) took place from 11-15 November 2019, which attracted more than 60,000 participants from 140 countries. The event also saw a record 569 speakers, close to 1,000 exhibitors and 41 international pavilions. The event featured the FinTech Conference with a new AI in Finance Summit and Global Investors’ Summit. There were also traditional […]
Digital payments alone are not a compelling value proposition for merchants because cash is ubiquitous, free, and works very well in retail commerce. Very compelling value propositions, however, can be created on top of the payments element, for example, by leveraging the data generated to resolve some of the many pain points faced by merchants. Merchants worldwide tend to experience three groups of pain points that can be easily addressed using […]
By Mike Quinn, co-founder and former Group CEO of Zoona Recently, Lauren Cochran, Managing Director at Blue Haven Initiative, wrote a thought-provoking article on NextBillion called “Rethinking the ‘Africa Play’: Why We Held Back from the Africa Investment Frenzy.” She made a compelling argument that the “growth-at-all-costs” approach to scaling is “an unsustainable concept” in Africa. Her rationale is sound: Tech-driven businesses in Africa require ongoing human engagement with customers that […]