Lot’s of Payments News stories flying about this month. Unsurprisingly Open Banking is hitting the headlines, a focus on fintech in the UK, innovation and talk of the Kodak moment in financial services. Check out the following top payments news stories for March 2018:

1. Payments News – Cyber Security

• Equifax to notify another 2.4 million US customers that they were affected by the hack
• UK Finance shine a light on payment fraud in the UK, highlighting £236 million was lost through authorised push payment scams (APP or authorised bank transfer scams)
• Mastermind behind the Carbanak and Cobalt malware attacks responsible for €1 billion bank robbery is arrested
• Swiss watchdog Finma reports that cyber attacks pose the biggest risk for banks in 2018

2. Payments News – Mobile Payments

• WorldPay analysis indicates that mobile payments are reaching a tipping point
• MasterCard and the Co-op trial an app that allows shoppers to shop-scan and go by paying in the aisle
• Telenor Group partners with Ant Financial to enable mobile payments and digital financial services in Pakistan
• Nordea launches contactless payments for Fitbit and Garmin smartwatches
• Barlays – bPay partners with 7 watch brands to deliver contactless payments
• Wagamama launches “walk out and pay” with Mastercard

3. Payments News: Blockchain / Digital / Crypto-currencies

• Credit Suisse and ING complete a security lending transaction using R3’s Corda blockchain platform
• Fleetcor and Ripple partner to modernise payments using blockchain
• ‘Japan Bank Consortium’ to launch a mobile app “MoneyTap” which uses Ripple to settle transactions instantly 24-7
• US Judge says cryptocurrencies are commodities
• Coinbase through Barclays gets access to UK’s Faster Payments Scheme
• Financial Stability Board (FSB) publishes letter to G20 setting out the FSB’s priorities, and the need for strong and sustainable growth
• Swiss based Saga Foundation looks to launch non-anonymous, reserve backed, blockchain based digital currency
• China’s central bank governor talks of the development of a digital currency as “inevitable”

4. Payments News: Banks

• RFi Group research shows digital banks are losing appeal over globally
• Deutsche Bank is on Instagram
• BBVA embarks on “invisible payments” strategy
• Bank of America enables its customers to add their credit/debit cards to their Paypal account through the BofA app
• HSBC partners with Paypal to allow corporate customers to make payments to beneficiaries with PayPal accounts
• Barclays online and mobile banking services will be unavailable Saturday 23:30 – Sunday 15:30 in order to meet regulatory requirements

5. Payments News: Fintech

• WSJ reports that Amazon talking to other major US banks with a view to creating a checking account
• Fintech firm TrueLayer links up with Starling Bank to access account data at held by Starling Bank via a secure API
• Revolut introduces Euro direct debits
• Bank of England to establish a Fintech Hub
• Uber Technologies has applied to the Dutch Central Bank for a European Payments processing license

6. Payments News: Europe – SEPA, PSD2, Open Banking

• European Banking Authority (EBA) publish Fintech Roadmap
• Open Banking Europe signs up 30 financial institutions and industry service providers
• EY survey reveals Open Banking is a big opportunity for UK fintechs
• European Commission proposes cheaper cross border payments and improved currency conversions

7. Payments News: SWIFT

• Swift Business Forum takes place in Helsinki
• Swift completes Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) Proof of Concept
• Swift Business Forum moves to Toronto, Canada
• Swift launches universal real time payment tracking via gpi Tracker

8. Payments News: Reports

• Mark Carney, Bank of England Governor, speech: The Future of Money
• World Economic Forum – Innovation-Driven Cyber-Risk to Customer Data in Financial Services
• European Commission – Fintech Action Plan
• Bain & Company – Banking’s Amazon Moment
• Andrea Enria, European Banking Authority, speech: Designing a Regulatory and Supervisory Roadmap for FinTech
• UK HM Treasury – Cash and digital payments in the new economy
• Bank for International Settlements – Central bank digital currencies could impact payments, monetary policy and financial stability
• Yes Bank – India Fintech Opportunities Review (IFOR) – read the report here
• BBVA – Can Banks be a threat to Big Tech?
• Financial Conduct Authority – Regulating innovation: a global enterprise
• UK City Minister speaks at Innovate Finance Global Summit
• UK government launches Fintech Sector Strategy or see the summary
• Malaysian Central Bank’s Deputy Governor speaks of the Kodak Moment at the Asian Banker Digital Finance Convention 2018

That’s it folks! Let me know below if I missed anything important…

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