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VONAGE PARTNERS WITH FINANCIAL SERVICES PROVIDER MOLLIE
Mollie, one of the fastest growing financial services providers in Europe, announced it has been selected by Vonage, a global cloud communications leader, as a strategic payment provider for Vonage’s Jumper.ai product across Europe.
Vonage’s end-to-end conversational commerce solution is called Jumper.ai. It lets businesses of all sizes develop consumer purchasing experiences that are messaging-first on well-known messaging, social, and web platforms. The platform will work with Mollie to help businesses engage customers and increase sales.
Conversational commerce has emerged as a key driver of business expansion in the modern day as more customers prefer to shop online and the social commerce market is predicted to triple by 2025. It is essential to provide a unique, pro-active, and in-the-moment consumer experience.
“Vonage’s Conversational Commerce solution, Jumper.ai, enables businesses to meet new and existing customer needs now and well into the future, with embedded commerce capabilities to simplify the way they serve, connect with, and sell to their own customers from anywhere, on any channel,”
“Vonage is excited to partner with Mollie to provide businesses throughout Europe with this ability to engage customers in their preferred channels, turning conversations into engagements into sales, all while offering a best-in-class payment solution.”
Yash Kotak, Sr. Director Product Management at Vonage and Founder of Jumper.ai.
During a conversation that a customer initiates, customer service representatives can effortlessly upsell and sell goods or services. Agents can take money in the middle of a conversation by using in-chat payments. They can also contact potential customers again after cart abandonment, let them know about a replenishment, give them a refund for broken items, or let them submit a deposit for an in-person order. Because the entire payment process is completely frictionless, users are able to monetize the micro-moments and forge relationships with their clients through one-on-one discussions.
Businesses can direct clients to the items they love through multichannel chats like Facebook Messenger and WhatsApp thanks to Mollie’s interface with Vonage. In order to give clients a seamless purchasing experience, Vonage and Mollie will work together to help businesses increase sales and power chat discussions using Mollie’s best-in-class payment solutions. Customers can also be sent to the payment page by sharing payment requests with them directly via chat.
“We’re delighted to be selected as a strategic payment provider for Vonage’s Jumper.ai solution and to grow our presence in the conversational commerce space,”
“Conversational commerce offers huge potential to engage with customers more directly and drive sales. We look forward to working with Vonage to help retailers differentiate themselves and bring their shoppers the best end-to-end user experience possible.”
Michaela Weber, Vice President of Partnerships at Mollie.
HSBC BRINGS FIRST BLOCKCHAIN TRANSACTION FOR MIDDLE EAST AUTOMOTIVE’S INDUSTRY
The international bank, HSBC has conducted the first Blockchain transaction for the Middle East Automotive Industry. The transaction was facilitated by the Blockchain platform, Contour, between the Chinese carmaker SAIC Motor and Taajeer Group, the authorized dealer of MG cars in Saudi Arabia.
“The firm’s digitizing at scale implies making customers’ lives easier. With Contour, digitizing means the firm is cutting costs, reducing risk and speeding up trade”
Chaker Zeraiki, the head of global trade and receivables finance for HSBC UAE.
Local reports claim that the Contour platform made it possible for Taajeer group to import a cargo of cars from SAIC by enabling end-to-end digitization of the credit documentation. This process was approximately 10x faster than utilizing physical documents.
HSBC said that distributed ledger technology has the capability to reduce transaction times from between five and ten days to under 24 hours thus, enabling additional trade to be held between markets.
Because data shared on the network is transparent, Contour’s platform increases the security of the transactions. The platform deploys digital networks using decentralized technologies to speed up data movement across international commerce channels and the world’s current fragmented ecosystems.
“The transaction is a first of its kind in Saudi Arabia where increased digitization is placed in accordance with the Vision 2030 initiative.”
“Blockchain can significantly reduce friction and increase the pace of trade for companies trading with Saudi Arabian entities.”
David Leslie, General Manager of the Trade Finance Business at SABB.
The platform intends to digitize $53 billion in global trade finance, according to the study.
GOLDMAN SACHS CUTS 2023 U.S. GDP FORECASTS
Goldman Sachs cut its forecast for 2023 U.S. Gross Domestic Product as it projects a more aggressive Federal Reserve tightening policy through the rest of this year, and sees that pushing the jobless rate higher than it previously projected.
Goldman Sachs had earlier posted a forecast of 1.5% growth in GDP of the United States.
The most recent reduction in GDP growth projections coincides with growing anxiety over a potential Federal Reserve rate increase.
The US Federal Reserve has been ruthlessly raising benchmark interest rates to combat rising inflation in the US economy.
In June and July 2022, the Federal Reserve raised interest rates in a row by 75 basis points. Currently, the advertised benchmark interest rates range from 2.25% to 2.50%.
In the upcoming monetary policy committee meeting, the US Federal Reserve is expected to raise interest rates by an additional 0.75%, according to Goldman Sachs. By the end of 2022, the global investment bank anticipates that the interest rate will be between 4% and 4.25%.
According to economists, the Federal Reserve’s harsh tactics regarding the tools used to control inflation might seriously hurt the domestic economy of the United States.
“Numerous times over the past few weeks that his staff will continue to use all available economic instruments to keep inflation rates under control.”
Jerome Powell, the chairman of the US Federal Reserve.
The US Fed’s officials are working to reduce inflation rates down below the desired 2% level. The US economy’s employment level will also deteriorate, according to economists, as the outlook for economic output is not very encouraging.
Investors and economists have been paying close attention to the US Federal Reserve’s increases in interest rates.
Due to the US Federal Reserve’s aggressive interest rate strategy, the capital markets in the US are likewise very volatile. Major US indexes have repeatedly experienced significant losses over the past few weeks as Jerome Powell has continued to promote the idea of tightening monetary policy to manage inflation.
ICAPITAL ANNOUNCES PARTNERSHIP WITH TIKEHAU CAPITAL
Tikehau Capital, the global alternative asset manager, and iCapital, a global FinTech platform driving access and efficiency in alternative investing for the asset and wealth management industries, announced a partnership to increase wealth managers’ access to Tikehau Capital’s private market investing opportunities.
In order to provide wealth managers and their high-net-worth clients in the EMEA region with Tikehau Capital’s portfolio of alternative services, the two companies will collaborate to develop a customized marketplace powered by iCapital’s technology.
Wealth managers will initially have access to alternative investments through the digital solution, which is often exclusively available to institutional investors. It contains the third vintage of Tikehau Capital’s exceptional opportunities strategy, which enables investors to take advantage of credit opportunities across market cycles and credit dislocation, as well as the second vintage of the Impact-driven real estate value-add strategy.
The largest fund distribution network in the world, Allfunds, will also make Tikehau Capital’s offers accessible. In June 2021, iCapital and Allfunds announced a strategic alliance under which iCapital will offer its clients access to private market investment options.
While institutional investors have had access to alternative investment alternatives for a long time, high-net-worth individuals and their advisors have historically encountered substantial obstacles such as high investment minimums and challenges in getting in touch with top asset managers.
“We are delighted to partner with iCapital, the leading platform in the alternative investment market for the asset management industry. This strategic partnership is a key step for Tikehau Capital, allowing us to expand our investor base and provide investors with solutions across multiple assets classes,”
Antoine Flamarion, co-founder of Tikehau Capital.
The technology used by iCapital automates the subscription process, offers transparency into every step of the investing process, and seamlessly integrates performance and reporting for alternative investments in an end-to-end digital platform, thereby materially enhancing the effectiveness and client experience of alternative investing.
“Today marks another important milestone in our global expansion, and we are extremely pleased to partner with Tikehau Capital, a highly respected alternative asset manager, to provide EMEA wealth managers and their clients with institutional-quality private market investment opportunities,”
Lawrence Calcano, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of iCapital.
ZIP, FIRST AUSTRALIAN BNPL COMPANY TO BE ADDED TO PPRO’S DIGITAL PAYMENTS INFRASTRUCTURE
Zip, which includes Zip Pay and Zip Money, becomes the first Australian BNPL method to be added to PPRO’s digital payments infrastructure and sits alongside other Australian local payment methods. PPRO merchants will soon have the ability to integrate buy now, pay later services from Australian provider Zip at the point of checkout.
With the new connection, Australian online shoppers may now use their preferred checkout method when they shop with PPRO’s global partners and their merchants.
“Australians are ahead of the curve when it comes to using alternative payment methods like instant bank transfers, digital wallets, and BNPL products to transact online. In fact, the popularity of BNPL continues to grow in the country, it will soon overtake credit and debit cards as a preferred payment method. The addition of Zip to our Australian payments mix enables us to better serve our PSP partners and their merchants, giving them greater access to Australian consumers and the country’s booming e-commerce sector.”
Tristan Chiappini, VP and head of partnerships Apac at PPRO.
PPRO bought Alpha Fintech earlier this year in a deal that will increase its position in the Asia Pacific and provide it the ability to provide a plug-and-play orchestration layer that will allow its clients to integrate goods and services more quickly and at scale.
The partnership gives Zip access to PPRO’s ecosystem of cross-border payment service providers and merchants. Zip is looking for a buyer for its UK division and recently scrapped a proposal to acquire US-based Sezzle.
“This exciting new alliance will allow us to globally scale our partner ecosystem by supporting our core markets, and better manage our partner onboarding process.”
Tommy Mermelshtayn, chief strategy officer at Zip.
PAYHAWK OPENS NEW YORK OFFICE AND LAUNCHES US CREDIT CARD
Payhawk, the spend management solution with a presence across the UK and Europe, has officially launched in the US. The unicorn has opened an office in New York and is introducing a US credit card to support companies with multiple offices across the UK, Europe, and the US. The US launch is a key part of Payhawk’s expansion strategy, following a record year of growth that has seen its revenue grow 524% and its employee headcount grows 250% year to date.
The transatlantic expansion makes Payhawk the first and only company in the sector to offer the most popular card types in each country, in addition to making its spend management system available to US consumers. Payhawk now accepts a variety of credit cards and debit cards. As a result, finance teams can utilize a single expenditure management system in many regions. Payhawk is well positioned to service these with activities that overlap across the two continents given that there are more than 2.6 million enterprises with more than 100 employees in the UK, Europe, and the US.
Payhawk distinguishes itself in addition to having a distinctive worldwide reach by having a strong enterprise emphasis. It offers multi-entity management across international borders on a single platform, spending policy capabilities to assist finance leaders in implementing governance and control at scale, and market-leading native integrations with numerous business ERP systems for real-time reconciliation. Payhawk currently provides services to scaleups and businesses in 32 nations.
Payhawk’s product offering is tightly matched with corporate purchasing practices in each market with the launch of its first credit product in the US. The US VISA credit card has a broad appeal worldwide, with credit limits of up to $250,000, and individualized spending guidelines.
Clients may now sign up for a waiting list to receive an offer of up to 1.5% cashback, with the first customers becoming live in October. Payhawk is a sponsor of the Silicon Valley SaaStr Annual to further show its support for the US SaaS sector.
“Our goal is to focus on providing the best solution on the market for global scaleups and enterprises. Naturally, these businesses have an international presence, and we want to cater for that. Today, more than 10% of our customer base is already on a waiting list for our US credit card,”
“A significant proportion of scaling companies in Europe have US operations, and before today, they were forced to use multiple credit card issuers, making the controlling and reconciliation process for finance teams a nightmare. The same is true for US companies with European operations where the number of currencies and payment systems can be daunting.”
“Our expansion to the US is yet another exciting step on our journey to better support our international client base, and simplify the tech stack of global finance teams.”
Hristo Borisov, co-founder and CEO of Payhawk.
NORTHZONE RAISED €1B: INVESTING FROM SEED TO GROWTH IN CATEGORY-DEFINING ENTREPRENEURS
London-headquartered Northzone has announced that its newest fund has raised in excess of €1 billion. Not only is this the firm’s largest raise to date, but one of the biggest venture capital refuelings across the European ecosystem. While the VC arms race of 2021 might be a once-in-a-lifetime occurrence, Northzone is still forging ahead, this time bringing home in excess of €1 billion for its 10th fund.
Having been founded in 1996, Northzone has raised over $2.8 billion in LP funding during the course of the firm’s 26 years of operation over 10 funds. With no fewer than 45 exits, including Spotify’s direct listing, which gave the company a value of $26.5 billion, and PayPal’s acquisition of iZettle for $2.2 billion, it is obvious that investing in Northzone is a relatively wise choice.
Northzone, which claims to have made over 150 investments to date, says it will utilize the fresh funding to build on its record of success by investing in fintech, healthtech, SaaS, office software, consumer apps, and entertainment firms throughout Europe and the US, from seed stage through IPO.
“The tech, the talent and the growth trajectories are an order of magnitude greater than a decade ago. Raising €1 billion recognizes the enormous ambition of European founders and the capital they need to create world-beating businesses.”
Jessica Schultz, Northzone Partner.
Looking beyond simply the money, Northzone started to broaden its offering to the founders it chose to support with the conclusion of its 9th fund or IX as it has been dubbed, one that saw $500 million flow into the coffers. The firm’s statement last week that the position of Head of Sustainability will be created and that Anna Skarborg would be appointed to the job, in addition to the marketing, talent, and business development efforts and services available, maybe the most obvious.
While a number of factors have led to a slowdown in venture capital activity recently, as demonstrated by not only Northzone’s raise but also EQT Growth’s announcement of a new $2.2 billion fund, backers are utilizing the current period of uncertainty to stockpile funds and prepare to charge into battle when futures appear to be somewhat more certain.
MARQETA TEAMS UP WITH BREAD FINANCIAL
Marqeta, the global modern card issuing platform, today announced that it has been chosen by Bread Financial, a tech-forward financial services company that provides simple, personalized payment, lending and saving solutions, to enhance the in-store checkout experience for shoppers using Bread Pay, its flexible suite of Buy Now, Pay Later products.
Using Marqeta’s platform, Bread Financial will provide the Bread PayTM One-Time Use Card, providing Pay in 4 and installment loan solutions both in-store and online. This gives customers more ways to pay in the channel of their choosing. For a better, more frictionless experience for both the customer and the retailer, in-store consumers at selected stores will have the option to apply for and immediately use their preferred Bread Pay product without downloading a third-party application.
“Bread Financial is at the forefront of innovation in the BNPL space, and this relationship is a continuation of our dedication to creating tech-forward and industry-changing solutions that give shoppers more flexibility and choice,”
“We are proud to partner with Marqeta to offer new flexible payment options that will keep the merchant’s brand at the forefront of the path to purchase and deliver a more seamless experience for the end user.”
Val Greer, EVP and Chief Commercial Officer at Bread Financial.
The development of the “Buy Now, Pay Later” sector has been significantly aided by Marqeta’s cutting-edge card issuing platform, which has also contributed to the rise in the popularity of flexible payment options in recent years. A BNPL solution was employed by nearly half (47%) of consumers polled by Marqeta in 2021, an increase of 27% from 2020. Bread Financial will utilize many Marqeta platform features, including virtual card issuance, industry-leading Just in Time Funding Capabilities, and tokenization advancements while working with more than 600 merchants across a range of sectors.’
“Consumers demand flexible and convenient payment solutions, and growing demand for BNPL has led merchants across industries to look into new ways to offer that flexibility,”
“Marqeta is constantly evolving our platform and seeking ways to offer our customers the latest advancements in payments. We’re excited to work with Bread to streamline its BNPL offering and make it simpler for customers to implement BNPL across their checkout experiences.”
Simon Khalaf, Chief Product Officer at Marqeta.
FOMO Pay becomes SWIFT member; obtains Business Identifier Code
The payment company FOMO Pay, which has its headquarters in Singapore, declared that it has earned its Business Identifier Code and joined SWIFT as an official member (BIC), also known as SWIFT Code: FOMPSGSG.
This club marks a tremendous success for FOMO Pay in its pursuit to offer greater efficient, secure, and dependable price services. The business enterprise stated it’ll make use of the SWIFT Code to dispose of guide errors, lessen switch costs and times, and streamline enterprise transaction processes, accordingly improving its clients’ international series and payout experiences.
SWIFT is one of the world’s main economic messaging provider providers, connecting greater than 11,000 banks and economic establishments in over 2 hundred countries. SWIFT Code is used to pick out economic establishments and permit them to speak with each other for seamless fund transfers.
‘Bridging crypto and fiat’
Founded in 2015, FOMO Pay is regulated below the Payment Services Act in Singapore. It is certified through the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to behavior Cross-border Money Transfer Services, Domestic Money Transfer Services, Digital Payment Token Services, and Merchant Acquisition Services.
The organization claims to be the one-forestall virtual price and banking answer provider, which is likewise constructing Asia’s first certified gateway assisting establishments and agencies to attach among fiat and cryptocurrency.
The organization gives its 3 flagship products:
FOMO Payment, the virtual price answer for merchants, corporates, and economic establishments; FOMO iBank, which helps agencies’ normal necessities for transactional banking needs; and FOMO Crypto, “Asia’s first certified gateway” bridging crypto and fiat.
Save launches the first ESG-focused savings program in the U.S.
Save®, a fintech company that helps people get a higher return on their spending and savings, today announced that it has added a new environmental, social and governance portfolio (ESG) yields from the iShares ESG Aware ETF, among other ETFs. According to Morningstar Direct, global sustainable fund assets stood at $2.24 trillion at the end of September. With Market Savings, Save responds to this market opportunity with its first bank-driven savings product. ESG.
In addition to Save’s sustainable investment strategy, the program supports sustainable projects, through a US-based tree planting project in partnership with Reforest’Action. For the program, Save guarantees the planting of one tree for every $5,000 deposited in ESG Market Savings, a deposit of up to $250 million, supporting the planting of up to 50,000 trees in Northern Ireland and New York State.
Forests are the largest terrestrial carbon sink in the world, and forest ecosystems are home to 80% of the world’s biodiversity. Planting trees offers many benefits, including improved climate, biodiversity, health and jobs. Save-sponsored trees are located in Cobleskill, NY, on a former organic dairy farm. Chestnut, hazel, red oak, Acadia, persimmon and black walnut are varieties that will limit soil erosion and improve soil quality.
ESG portfolios aim to deliver returns similar to general market standards while maximizing ESG characteristics and excluding companies with certain practices. The ETFs that makeup Save’s ESG portfolio select companies deemed acceptable for specific governance, social, and environmental rules. Since the launch of the ESG wallet, about 10% of Market Savings subscribers choose the Save ESG wallet.
“Consumers are increasingly turning to ethical choices in all aspects of life including investments. We see it as our fiduciary responsibility to offer ethical investing through our Market Savings program for those consumers who seek these choices,”
Michael Nelskyla, Founder and CEO of Save.
Save, an investment advisor registered with the SEC, expects the return potential of the Market Savings program on its innovative Savetech platform to far exceed the potential of traditional high-yield savings accounts. , while client deposits are still FDIC-insured.1 Program effectiveness is not guaranteed but will vary based on underlying market performance.
Empaxis and exl join forces to help wealth management firms
Empaxis, a logistics and intermediary operations specialist for wealth and wealth managers, has announced a partnership with EXL, a leader in data analytics and operations and digital solutions.
Combining Empaxis’ extensive expertise in intermediaries and back-offices with EXL’s proven capabilities in data, analytics and digital operations, this alliance will enable both companies extend their inheritance.
When it comes to helping property managers increase productivity, automate manual processes, and reduce unnecessary costs, Empaxis and EXL both bring decades of expertise. The companies will work together to develop solutions and services designed to help asset management companies automate back-office and logistics operations.
“We’re excited to be working with EXL. They’re an excellent partner,”
“Combining efforts allows us to offer our highly dedicated and robust middle- and back-office services to enterprise-scale, global wealth managers. This partnership will provide exceptional value to clients in this space.”
Stephen Van de Wetering, Founder and CEO of Empaxis.
“Working together with Empaxis, we are able to provide the wealth management industry with the right combination of breakthrough technology, data-led operational improvement solutions and human ingenuity to transform their businesses,”
“By combining our two businesses, we can provide our clients end-to-end support services that will help streamline their operations to gain a competitive advantage.”
Narasimha Kini, executive vice president and Head of EXL’s Emerging Business.
Splitit and Worldline Sign a North American Partnership Agreement to Simplify the Adoption of Next-Generation Card-Based Installment Payments
Splitit, the only white label service that allows customers to pay in installments using the credit existing on their payment card at checkout, and Worldline, the world leader in payment services, announce the signing of entered into a partnership agreement with Worldline to provide card installment services with integrated payment solutions to Worldline’s vast network of merchants and markets.
This partnership combines Worldline’s position as the preferred partner of many of the world’s leading merchants with Splitit’s innovative Payouts-as-a-Service platform to drive additional value. for both companies. Initially, Worldline will integrate Splitit into its North American processing platform and enable the Splitit API through the user interface to provide merchants with a seamless way to apply for card payments. Worldline and Splitit will continue to explore other geographies after the initial launch.
Splitit’s white-label platform offers one-click payments integrated with the merchant’s existing payment flow. The merchant brand experience, jointly powered by Splitit and Worldline, reduces the clutter and confusion of multiple checkout logos at checkout, ensures brand consistency, and drives loyalty and purchases repeat row.
“The growing merchant demand for next-generation installment options provides a significant opportunity,”
“Splitit delivers a unique white-label installment service that provides consumers with a way to utilize existing credit better to split the cost of purchases while providing merchants more control over the entire experience. We want to enable our customers with value-added payment services that are quick and easy to implement, and Splitit provides that.”
Anthony Chalhoub, Managing Director, North America at Worldline.
“We are delighted to be partnering with Worldline. Our partnership provides an exceptional opportunity to deliver considerable value to Worldline’s current and future customers,”
“Worldline processes billions of transactions globally for some of the most respected brands in the world. Their Merchants will soon be able to benefit from a best-in-class installment service that drives frictionless conversion through a white-label experience.”
Splitit CEO Nandan Sheth.
Instead of creating new consumer loans, Splitit unlocks existing consumer credit on payment cards at 0% interest, in installments. Any consumer with available credit on their credit card is automatically eligible to use Splitit for the value of that available credit. No apps, registrations or redirects and no additional interest, hidden fees2 or credit checks.
Credit Karma Wants to Help Members File Their Taxes and Get Cash Instantly With TurboTax Refund Advance
Credit Karma, a consumer technology platform with more than 120 million members in the United States, has announced plans to offer a tax refund-focused experience with Intuit TurboTax. This experience will help members navigate each phase of the 2022 tax season, including helping them estimate refunds and provide personalized recommendations on how to optimize refunds. based on the information in their Credit Karma profile.
Eligible members will also have options to get cash fast this tax season, including the ability to get a refund up to 5 days in advance22 when they deposit it into their Credit Karma Money™ account, 3, or get a prepaid loan4 in just 1 minute of being approved by the IRS.5 Together, Credit Karma and TurboTax strive to provide a personalized tax experience by helping Americans estimate their refunds. them, plan how they will use their refund, and eligible members, they can access the money faster.
“Americans are strapped for cash as high inflation, challenging market conditions and rising interest rates hold steady. As a result, Americans’ reliance on their tax refund may be more significant than in the past,”
“By providing members options for accessing money more quickly, along with recommendations for how to best utilize the money, like paying down debt or building credit, we hope to help Americans make smart financial decisions that set them further down the path of financial progress. Together, we can help put money back in the pockets of hard-working Americans, while also providing a suite of tools and recommendations to help them make the most of their money.”
Poulomi Damany, SVP and GM of assets and tax at Credit Karma.
Members can now log into Credit Karma to estimate their refund for the tax year 2022. Credit Karma members will benefit from a richer, more personalized experience, where their Credit Profile information Karma will automatically be pre-populated in the Return Estimator, just a quick review of the information to get their Refund Estimate. Members can also get recommendations on how to use the cashback based on their credit profile.
For example, a member can get an offer to start saving by depositing part of their refund into a Credit Karma Money™ Save account, which currently offers an APY of 3,30%,6 or Open the Credit Builder package to ‘help’. improve their low scores while saving money.
“Taxes can be stressful and overwhelming for many Americans. We want to change this dynamic by making it even easier for people to file their taxes and gain faster access to the biggest paycheck of the year for many — their refund,”
“By integrating the best of TurboTax and Credit Karma, we’re making a dramatically simplified tax experience for members that makes it noticeably faster for them to get their taxes done and quickly have their refund in hand.”
Varun Krishna, Intuit’s Consumer Group General Manager.
Credit Karma and TurboTax will provide members with a variety of ways to quickly access cash this tax season, including early access to their refunds through Credit Karma Money, as well as the prepaid loan. These options will be available to Credit Karma Money members who are eligible to receive a federal refund in the tax year 2022.
CPS Announces New FinTech-Driven Automotive Financing Platform Enhancements
Consumer Portfolio Services, Inc., an independent FinTech dedicated to providing indirect auto finance to people with credit problems, low incomes or limited credit histories, continues to aggressively deploy solutions. machine learning and artificial intelligence to provide more flexible and more efficient payment capabilities. processing car loans. The company ended the year with three major partnerships to improve efficiency, significantly reduce funding times, and provide more payment options for borrowers.
The company chose Informed.IQ to automatically calculate earnings and collect and clear agency credit rules and documents, creating a better experience for agents and consumers throughout the checkout process. car loan. CPS expects Informed.IQ’s AI tools significantly reduce funding times.
For decades, CPS has focused on improving auto loan intelligence, becoming a leader in FinTech initiatives that improve the initial review process and financial decision-making. CPS now also helps automate backend service experiences and has partnered with Prodigal to better manage collections as well as labor and service processes. Prodigal is a Consumer Financial Intelligence solution that uses AI to analyze agent and borrower conversations and improve profitability, experience, and compliance.
From the customer’s point of view, CPS has designated PayNearMe as its primary payment partner. This partnership will accelerate the auto lender’s digital transformation and deliver a seamless customer experience across all types of digital payments. PayNearMe will eliminate on-site cash payments, significantly reduce the number of customers paying by check, and move the majority of customers to electronic payments with more payment options.
“Our whole business has become artificial intelligence and machine learning-driven, from credit to servicing,”
“Adding these three partners to our backend and front-end system at the start of the new year enables us to make the loan funding process easier, provide more accessible payment options for our customers, and use AI to effectively improve collections by reducing the workload.”
Mike Lavin, Chief Operating Officer with CPS.
Since the company began operations in 1991, as of September 30, 2022, the company has purchased over $19.7 billion in contracts and manages a total portfolio of approximately 2 $0.7 billion with about 185,000 customers. Artificial intelligence and machine learning have taken business decision-making to the next level.
At the end of the first quarter of 2023, the company will introduce a new AI-based credit decision model that will improve fraud detection, reduce credit losses, and increase approval rates. Later this year, CPS will introduce an AI-driven dashboard for its take-back and take-back system. This system will combine delinquent data with machine learning allowing the company to better analyze when to retrieve vehicles.
Rakuten france launches new integrated payment and cashback solution, club r pay
Rakuten France announces the launch of a completely new integrated payment solution, Club R Pay, thus becoming the first e-commerce company to offer such a system on the market. A globally integrated payment solution, Club R Pay makes it easy for the 12 million members of the Club R loyalty program to shop at more than 2,000 locations while enjoying their Rakuten rewards.
This new initiative allows Rakuten to streamline the purchasing process and assist its partners in digitization and growth.
Simplify and shop securely on over 2,000 websites
As people increasingly spend online, security and ease of use are key in the buying process. According to FEVAD, France’s national European e-commerce association, the French will spend €129 billion on internet purchases in 2021, and online purchases now account for 14.1% of retail commerce. It is in this context that Rakuten is launching Club R Pay, a new payment solution within its partner ecosystem.
With Club R Pay, Rakuten offers its members a simple and transparent payment process within a vast ecosystem of more than 2,000 partners (Nike, Lego, Marionnaud, Hotels.com, etc.).
“At Rakuten France, tomorrow’s e-commerce is a shopping platform that provides an optimised, simplified, secure customer journey that builds loyalty by rewarding purchases within an ecosystem of partners in complete freedom. Tomorrow’s business meets real, concrete needs. It is a business that allows you to have fun while controlling your budget,”
Fabien Versavau, CEO of Rakuten France.
Through a strategic partnership with Mastercard, a global payments network operating in 210 countries and territories, and Marqeta, the state-of-the-art global card issuance platform, that will power single-use virtual cards, Club R Pay offers an additional guarantee of security and reduces payment risks.
“Our work with Rakuten in France represents an exciting evolution for Marqeta in Europe. By tapping into the power of modern card issuing, we are helping one of the world’s most innovative e-commerce platforms build loyalty and engagement with their marketplace users,”
“Club R Pay allows members to shop and make a purchase on any of the 2,000 partner sites using their Club R Pay membership card. The membership card allows simple payment at checkout without entering their card details as it is part of the ecosystem, and the card collects Rakuten reward points that can be redeemed in cash or spent on Rakuten site. Our partnership with Rakuten will not only result in less cart abandonment, it also will increase revenue as shoppers are more likely to shop with partner brands as they can collect and pool the rewards and receive real discounts.”
Jeff Parker, SVP and Managing Director, International at Marqeta.
Support people’s purchasing power
As 2022 draws to a close, purchasing power remains one of the main concerns of the French. Launched 4 years ago, Rakuten’s Club R loyalty program is now the most generous online shopping platform in France. Its 12 million members can withdraw between 5% and 35% of their purchases on the marketplace or one of Rakuten France’s 2000 partners.
Club R Pay simplifies the process for Club R members, who automatically earn Rakuten Points from their purchases with partner brands. With the launch of Club R Pay, they will receive an additional 5% off their purchase.
Offers brand traffic acquisition at a lower cost
R Club provides partner brands with the right resources to grow digital revenue on their own websites, experience less cart abandonment, and get traffic at a competitive price. . A true marketing acquisition partner, Club R helps brands reach 12 million loyal and committed buyers in France, providing an important transition to generating growth.
Club R Pay is also designed to help partners optimize their marketing spending. By providing a performance-based pricing model, partners only pay when a user makes a purchase. This plug-and-play payment solution does not require complicated development partners. Popular and ubiquitous, it’s easy to integrate into the buying process.
This solution is part of a strategy to focus on the buying journey to create value for both buyers and brands. Aware of the evolution of society and driven by the digitization of the buying and selling process, Rakuten France reaffirms its mission to bring its expertise in innovation to serve millions of consumers. and valuable retail partners.
Stellar collaborates with UNHCR to provide money via USDC to Ukrainian refugees.
UNHCR, the UN Refugee Agency, and the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF), the non-earnings that help the boom and improvement of the Stellar blockchain network, introduced these days after the release of a pilot first-of-its-type blockchain price answer for virtual coins distribution to internally displaced persons (IDPs) and different war-affected human beings in Ukraine.
UNHCR, in collaboration with United Nations International Computing Centre (UNICC), the UN’s generation answers provider, is among the primary to pilot the brand new Stellar-primarily based totally useful resource disbursement answer, which guarantees the transport of coins help immediately into the fingers of these being assisted quickly, efficiently, and securely with complete fee switch traceability and accountability.
The pilot section of the undertaking is designed specially for Ukraine however may be tailored worldwide. UNHCR confirms eligibility and distributes help in Circle Internet Financial’s USD Coin (USDC) — a stablecoin wherein one USDC is identical to 1 US Dollar — immediately right into a recipient’s Vibrant virtual pockets which they are able to download onto a smartphone.
This affords a steady region to maintain and shipping budget in USDC, a strong shop of fee, permitting human beings to journey in the us or pass borders without the want to hold coins.
When recipients select to transform to coins, whether or not it’s miles dollars, euros, or neighborhood currency, they are able to withdraw their budget at any international MoneyGram location, along with over 4,500 MoneyGram places in Ukraine.
The application is being piloted in Kyiv, Lviv, and Vinnytsia and could make it bigger for different cities and towns in Ukraine. The cash will offer humanitarian help to a number of the human beings maximum impacted and susceptible because of the war, to assist them cowl fundamental wishes like a lease of accommodation, food, hospital treatment and heating all through the winter.
The answer has been drastically examined over the past six months and is anticipated to be increased to attain extra war-affected human beings internal Ukraine in addition to refugees from Ukraine in early 2023.
This blockchain initiative enhances UNHCR’s dreams to similarly make bigger the systematic and fast use of Cash-Based Interventions. Since 2016, whilst UNHCR issued its first Policy on Cash-Based Interventions, UNHCR has introduced nearly USD five billion in coins help to a few 35 million human beings in one hundred countries.
UNHCR is devoted to similarly increasing the supply of coins, which is usually the favored help modality through human beings forcibly displaced, because it offers them the liberty and dignity to themselves determine the way to prioritize the help given, primarily based totally on their private want.
“Ukraine is a global leader in the development of technical solutions to increase access to social protection, including assistance for displaced people. Across the world, UNHCR has been collaborating for years with the tech sector, which has played a crucial role in helping us to innovate to deliver assistance faster, as speed is of the essence in humanitarian action. It’s also essential to provide people with a range of options for receiving aid, as one size does not fit all. Programs need to be designed with the people they are meant to serve at the center. I am very pleased that UNHCR and the SDF have chosen Ukraine for this launch, and look forward to expanding it beyond this pilot, so it can benefit many thousands more people in need of assistance as a result of the war,”
Karolina Lindholm Billing, UNHCR Representative to Ukraine.
“SDF, together with UNHCR, is realizing the promise of blockchain and pioneering a new future for the delivery of billions of dollars in aid disbursed annually. Using Stellar, we are helping get funds into the hands of those who need them – and doing it quickly, transparently, and without the need for bank accounts or credit or debit cards. We are proud to work with UNHCR to deploy blockchain innovations that will play a role in assisting those in crisis”,
Denelle Dixon, Stellar Development Foundation CEO and Executive Director.
“Today, we can see how blockchain technology allows us to scale humanitarian efforts in a way that wasn’t possible before. For fleeing Ukrainians, and primarily for those whose banks are inaccessible, this pilot project providing humanitarian assistance using a digital wallet will serve as a possible lifeline for survival. The project itself is a vivid example of how blockchain has the potential to transform and revolutionize the way humanitarian funds are allocated. The use of blockchain technology allows humanitarian organizations such as UNHCR to be more transparent and accountable and ensure that the most vulnerable people will have access to funds provided in their name. In this way, humanitarian efforts around the world will be strengthened in an unprecedented way. The Ministry of Digital Transformation of Ukraine is grateful to SDF and UNHCR for standing with the people of Ukraine and doing this in such an efficient & modern way,”
Deputy Minister of Digital Transformation of Ukraine on IT industry development Oleksandr Bornyakov.