Latest global banking news

August 31, 2022 12:02 PM

This week in global news, Afterpay makes way for Block's Cash App, Singapore plots a crypto crackdown, U.K. calls for fintech deregulation, and more.

Here's what's happening around the world.

AfterPay

Afterpay shutters Money app ahead of Cash App launch

Buy now/pay later firm Afterpay, a unit of Block, has stopped accepting new consumers for Money, an app that offers savings accounts and other financial services through a partnership with Westpac. Money, and the partnership with Westpac, will formally end on October 10. Money is being shut down as Block, which acquired Afterpay in 2021, prepared to launch Cash App in Australia. Westpac will help Afterpay transfer funds and will also make "offers" to consumers who remain with Westpac, reports AFR, a financial publication in Australia, which also reports Block views Westpac as a competitor since the firm, formerly known as Square, makes loans in the country. —John Adams

Adobe Stock

Singapore plots crypto crackdown

The Monetary Authority of Singapore may restrict consumers from trading cryptocurrencies, citing the economic risks and volatility. In remarks on Monday, Ravi Menon, MAS managing director, said many retail investors are not fully aware of the risk, and the MAS may "add frictions" such as customer suitability tests and restricting credit facilities for crypto trading. Menon also said Singapore is investigating the use of stablecoins and central bank digital currencies, adding wholesale CBDCs, which are designed for transactions between banks and central banks, are a more likely option in Singapore than retail CBDCs, which would be used by consumers. The MAS is investigating uses for a variety of digital assets, and considers Bitcoin trading to be a small part of the overall ecosystem. —John Adams

Brent Lewin/Bloomberg

CIBC links to MoneyGram to expand international transfers

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce is expanding its global money transfer service, adding cash pickup through a partnership with MoneyGram. The bank's BMT Cash pickup, which dates to 2015, is available in more than 40 countries including India, the Philippines, Sri Lanka, Mexico and Jamaica. Users can add a MoneyGram reference number that the recipient gets via email to access the funds on the same day. Single transfers of up to about $2,100 are covered, with a 24-hour limit of about $3,100. The service also includes incentive marketing. —John Adams

India's ICICI Bank boosts state-operated card network

ICICI Bank has partnered with the National Payments Corporation of India to issue credit cards on RuPay, which is a government-backed alternative to Visa, Mastercard and other private payment networks. The ICICI Bank Coral RuPay Credit Card is a contactless card that offers incentives for paying utility bills, shopping, restaurants, complimentary access to domestic airport and railway lounges, discount movie tickets and waiving the fuel surcharge. The card is also tied to accident insurance and a financial concierge service. Visa in the past has alleged that India's government favors RuPay over other networks, and both Visa and Mastercard have sparred with Indian regulators over requirements to store payments data inside the country. —John Adams

Meta launches e-commerce grocery shopping in India

Meta's WhatsApp has rolled out a shopping feature enabling shoppers in India to buy groceries and other items through a partnership with Indian e-commerce platform JioMart, reports TechCrunch. The move could help Meta monetize WhatsApp through chat-based shopping and increase e-commerce competition in the region where FlipKart — owned by Walmart — and Amazon are already deeply entrenched. WhatsApp has about 500 million active users in India. —Kate Fitzgerald

UBS signs carbon reduction deal with Climeworks

Zurich-based UBS has hired Climeworks, a firm that removes carbon from the atmosphere through direct air capture, a process that supports a chemical reaction to extract carbon dioxide and allow other parts of the air to pass through. Firms such as Stripe, MIcrosoft and Swiss Re have hired Climeworks to offset their carbon emissions. UBS has set a goal of producing zero net carbon emissions by 2050. Climeworks' facilities pump the captured air underground, where it can be stored for thousands of years, or upcycled into carbon-neutral fuels and materials. —John Adams

Abu Dhabi forms crypto committee

In an effort to tap into the digital asset industry while mitigating fraud and other financial crimes, Abu Dhabi has created a government agency to regulate and promote virtual assets, including cryptocurrency and other products that use distributed ledgers. The committee will focus on creating rules and best practices to guide risk management for money laundering and terrorist financing. The government has recruited executives from Abu Dhabi Global Market, state wealth funds ADQ, Abu Dhabi's Investment Office and Mazars, a professional services firm. —John Adams

U.K. Parliament members call for fintech deregulation

(Parliament PSO image shared with AB)The U.K. has become a major hub for fintech development, but regulations are holding the sector from further growth, according to a group of lawmakers who are pushing a "1980s-style" regulation to provide more competition for traditional banks. In a report from the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Challenger Banks and Building Societies, the MPs contend an easing of regulations would make it easier for challenger banks to improve financial inclusion and combat economic imbalances. Its recommendations include extending open banking, which allows data sharing between banks and third parties to allow consumers to access more financial services, requiring banks to offer branches slated for closure to fintechs and to push financial education in schools. —John Adams

Visa supports inclusion project for Venezuelan refugees

The World Economic Council of Credit Unions and USAID teamed with Visa in August to launch "Enko," a free business-training tool accessible through mobile devices, for refugees from Venezuela living in Ecuador and Peru. The newest tool provides 15-minute video lessons on business administration, finances, marketing and sales, building on two previous education modules. The program is part of the Economic Inclusion Project established in 2020 to build financial support for 100,000 Venezuelan migrants and refugees seeking economic security in Latin American countries. —Kate Fitzgerald

South Africa clings to cash

South African banks see physical money remaining key to their business as almost a third of their customers aren't ready to go cashless, according to a survey. While 86% of people already use digital banking, almost all customers said they still withdraw cash at least once a month to meet various needs, according to the survey conducted by Discovery Bank and Boston Consulting Group. As long as a significant percentage of the population uses cash, the country can't move to a fully cashless system, according to the report. "South Africa still has a high reliance on cash relative to some other countries," Hylton Kallner, chief executive officer of Discovery Ltd.'s banking unit, said in Johannesburg. "But the direction, and the acceptance by consumers and embrace of digital payments, and the fact that they see the future in that direction, is accelerating." —Adelaide Changole, Bloomberg News