8.14.2016

THE SKINNY

When You Stick to the Plan …

Even though Britain said yes to Brexit, it’s still got lofty goals to be the center of all things fintech. (BTW, Brexit means that time Britain voted to leave the European Union then immediately regretted it).

When You Keep On Keeping on…

Two years. That’s how long it’ll take for Britain to exit stage left (if it actually happens). It’s also the deadline that Britain’s Competition Market Authority (CMA) is giving British banks to stop being stingy with their customers’ data.

When You Know What’s Up…

CMA is very aware that bank fees can be…excessive. Customers are paying up but aren’t getting what they deserve. Enter fintech companies. CMA is drinking the ‘fintech koolaid’ and wants banks to share customer data with fintech startups and third party apps. Bank customers must approve first of course.

When ‘Many People Are Saying It…’

CMA thinks by 2018, fintech will not only help save British bank customers money and get them better services but also earn the economy the top spot in “fintech” around the world.

When You Need to Watch Your Back…

About that Brexit thing. No one knows exactly how Britain saying ‘bye’ to the EU will play out. But, Germany’s taking full advantage. It’s on a full on recruitment mode to get fintech companies based in London to hop on over to Deutschland. Do you blame them?

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

Lies, Fairytales, and Fallacies…

Chip and pin cards (we’ve covered this; those cards you dip instead of swipe) were supposed to protect us from thieves. But, it’s not as safe as you think. Payment technology company NCR just unveiled a way for fraudsters to still get at your money. Apparently, they’ve used their genius for evil to figure out how to make chip cards seem cardless. Then, it’s off to the races. Retailers are thinking, ‘more reason not to buy those EMV card reader machines.’ But, it’s not all a lost cause, even with this security flaw, chip and pin cards are still slightly safer than regular ole swipe cards. 

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’ 

Thanks to Square Capital aka Square’s lending business, the company’s stock is wayyy up. It should feel blessed. Square Capital doles out loans to the company’s existing merchants in exchange for a piece of merchants’ sales. It’s all love all around (for now). Merchants love that they can get loans fast (within a few days) and low default rates. Investors love it too. But, to keep growing, Square Capital will have to do something else (e.g., handing over $$$ to non-Square merchants). 

The war on cash in Boston is on its way. Boston area eateries like Sweet Green, Amsterdam Falafelshop, and Clover Food trucks want to go cash-less. They’ve picked up on the trend that young people are choosing plastic over paper when it comes to payment. But, a little known law in Massachusetts makes it illegal to turn down cash. The law and how it’s enforced is all very wishy-washy. But, seems like shops are willing to take the risk. 

Been Around the World, Uh Huh 

India’s mobile phone game is strong (smartphones are up 220 million making it the second largest market in the world). Should be good news for financial inclusion but not so much. Not many rural and underbanked folks are using their phones for banking or payment. And, taxes for use aren’t helping. But, the Indian government won’t be giving up on this. 

The Nigerian Central Bank likes to walk the road less traveled when it comes to remittances (transferring money across borders from one country to another). The rest of the world wants to cut down costs on remittances. But, no. Not Nigeria. It’s going the opposite way. No secret that Nigeria’s economy is struggling. So to ‘maintain the exchange rate’ it’s up-ing the price on remittances. 

In other news dealing with the continent, the Brookings Institute (U.S. think tank) says more regulations protecting consumers will help grow financial inclusion and innovation in countries like Kenya, South Africa, Uganda, Rwanda and Nigeria. Interesting since, a lack of banking regulations is a major reason money transfer service M-PESA is a success in Kenya … 

Australia’s postal service is looking to the future. It’s looking into applying blockchain technology to the mail – mainly for identity reasons.