Global news roundup

March 16, 2022 2:01 PM

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors.

In global news this week, 7-Eleven puts holograms at the point of sale; the U.K. shores up security for online payments while cracking down on Bitcoin ATMs; and more organizations find ways to send aid to Ukraine.

Here's what's happening around the world.

7-Eleven tests hologram payments in Japan

Payment technology plays a major role in convenience stores in Japan, where 7-Eleven is piloting self-checkout kiosks that use holographic displays to support contactless payments at seven locations in Tokyo. The displays use touch sensor tech from Neonode to project images in mid-air, and consumers interact with the images as they would a touch display. The convenience chain and technology firm are positioning the deployment as a way to lean into the contactless payment surge while freeing up space inside stores for more products. —John Adams

Nikolay Storonsky

Bloomberg

Revolut offers payment services for war refugees

More than 2.6 million people have reportedly fled Ukraine following Russia's invasion, leading London fintech Revolut to ease requirements for the displaced to set up accounts. Registering for an e-money account in the European Economic Area usually requires proof of residency, though many of those fleeing Ukraine may lack documentation. Revolut will also offer payment processing for Ukranian refugees. Nik Storonsky, the Russian-born founder and head of Revolut, recently condemned Russia's invasion. Storonsky, 37, emigrated to the U.K. when he was 20 and is now a U.K. citizen. —John Adams

Bloomberg

Ukraine's Ministry of Digital Transformation launches crypto donation portal

The Ukrainian Ministry of Digital Transformation has partnered with the Bahamian cryptocurrency exchange FTX and the decentralized staking provider Everstake in Kyiv, Ukraine, to launch an official donation website that accepts both cash and various cryptocurrencies, according to a press release. Using FTX’s exchange, donations of digital coins such as Bitcoin and Ethereum are converted into traditional currency and then sent to the National Bank of Ukraine, where they can be used to further support humanitarian efforts.
—Frank Gargano

Markus Braun

Bloomberg

Former Wirecard CEO faces charges

Prosecutors in Munich have accused Markus Braun of a series of crimes connected to Wirecard's accounting scandal, with allegations including fraud, misappropriation of corporate assets, accounting fraud and market manipulation. Braud allegedly approved financial reports he knew were false, and Wirecard recorded revenue that did not exist, reports the Associated Press. Braun, who had been CEO of Wirecard since 2002, resigned in 2020 following reports that Wirecard was missing $2.1 billion. That was part of a chain of events that led to arrests and criticism of the level of oversight by German bank regulators. It also resulted in sales of several former Wirecard units. —John Adams

Bitcoin Bucks S&P Correlation Trend With Uptick Amid Ukraine War

Bloomberg

U.K. cracks down on Bitcoin ATMs

The Financial Conduct Authority has ordered all ATMs that dispense cryptocurrencies to be registered with the government and comply with money laundering regulations. The FCA says that none of the firms that operate crypto ATMs have done so, and the agency has ordered ATMs in the country to be shut down until their operators are in compliance. There are only about 100 crypto ATMs in the U.K., according to U.K. fintech news service Finextra. —John Adams

Bloomberg

Ghanian fintech Dash draws capital

The private equity and venture capital firm Insight Venture Partners, which is based in New York, has led a $33 million investment in Dash, an Accra, Ghana-based company that's attempting to build a network of disparate mobile money systems across Africa. Dash is offering a unified digital wallet that will work with multiple mobile network operators for interoperability between payment systems. —John Adams

Bloomberg

U.K. adds security steps for online transactions

Shoppers in the U.K. must provide a second form of verification — such as text-message confirmation on a separate device — with each online transaction under new rules that took effect March 14. The policy, enforced by the U.K.’s Financial Conduct Authority, was originally planned to go live in 2019 but was delayed a second time by the pandemic. The U.K.'s new rules align with similar strong customer authentication procedures that took hold in Europe in January as part of the second Payments Services Directive. As merchants began rolling out the new system last month, 14% of consumers said they noticed an increase in the number of e-commerce transactions declined, according to a survey London-based Barclaycard conducted in February. –Kate Fitzgerald

Bloomberg

Paytm Payments Bank hit with onboarding ban

The Reserve Bank of India says there are "supervisory concerns" at Paytm Payments Bank, and has ordered the firm to stop onboarding new customers and appoint an IT audit firm. The RBI did not provide a specific reason for the action, though the Economic Times in India reports Paytm Payments Bank allegedly allowed data to move outside India in violation of national regulations, and did not properly verify its clients. RBI inspections found the company was sharing information with parties in China that own a stake in Paytm Payments Bank, which is a subsidiary of Paytm, a company owned by its founder, Vijay Shakar Sharma. One97 is a partial owner of Paytm, which says it's in compliance with local regulations, according to reporting from TechCrunch. -John Adams

Signage is displayed outside of a Royal Bank of Canada (RBC) branch.

Bloomberg

RBC partners with educational tech firm

Royal Bank of Canada has partnered with the Canadian educational technology firm ApplyBoard in Kitchener, Ontario, to help potential exchange students obtain proof of financial independence for their applications, according to a press release. Through the International Student Guaranteed Investment Certificate program, students can apply for a GIC from the $1.84 trillion-asset Toronto bank to bolster their study permit request and show evidence of their ability to support themselves financially when studying in the country.
—Frank Gargano