Ripple makes a green push; Splitit gets credit from Goldman

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Bitcoin shop

Bank technology company Nymbus is partnering with crypto financial services firm NYDIG to accelerate bank uptake of bitcoin products.

The collaboration comes as Visa suggests it may work with cryptocurrency partners to expand payment adoption, and PayPal's expanding support for buying and selling cryptocurrencies. That suggests increased competition and an opportunity for the smaller banks and credit unions that make up Nymbus' base.

NyDIG and Nymbus say they can help smaller institutions become a "trusted partner" to bring new merchants and consumers into cryptocurrency.

Bloomberg

Credit for POS credit

Splitit has signed a $150 million receivables funding facility with Goldman Sachs that will fund the expansion of its lending business with a focus on adding merchants and new jurisdictions.

The New York-based Splitit is part of the point-of-sale credit market, which includes buy now/pay later firms like Klarna, Aterpay and Affirm. The market has grown quickly and attracted new investment as more consumers use point of sale credit to avoid credit card debt.

Splitit's model is different from most other point of sale credit companies. It uses consumer's existing credit cards to support installment payments, which go directly to merchants.

Slow down

U.K. regulators are examining the country's payment system overhaul over its potential impact on competition and other risks.

The Payments System Architecture, which has been under development for about five years, will combine the U.K.'s Faster Payments and Bacs interbank payment system, consolidating clearing and settlement. The U.K.'s Payment Systems Regulator says the PSA has unacceptably high risks, reports Finextra.

The regulator hopes to ensure the project has rules that promote competition and that central infrastructure service prices are set using objective, proportionate and non-discriminatory criteria.

Club zero

Shortly after Mastercard pledged to reach carbon neutrality by 2035, Ripple has committed to reach that goal by 2030.

As part of Ripple's project, the XRP Ledger Foundation, Energy Web and Rocky Mountain Institute will decarbonize public blockchains starting with the XRP Ledger. The coalition will use open-source technology and research with universities to evaluate energy consumption across credit card networks, cash and digital assets.

Ripple consumes less energy than most crypto currency related companies, and slightly less than the card networks, though Ripple's payment volume is less.

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