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Nigerian Payments Fintech Startup Cleva Secures $1.5 Million in Pre-Seed Funding
10.1.2024
The Y Combinator-backed Nigerian fintech startup has reportedly raised $1.5 million in pre-seed funding. Tolu Alabi, the CEO of Cleva, expressed confidence in her and fellow co-founder Philip Abel’s ability to navigate the competitive fintech market, citing their background as a factor that counts...
Russian Experts: 2024 Will Be a Big Year for Cross-border Crypto, CBDC Payments
9.1.2024
Source: hamara/Adobe Russian legal and tech experts think that 2024 will mark a turning point for the use of crypto and CBDCs like the digital ruble in cross-border payments. Per RBC, Andrey Tugarin, the head of the law firm GMT Legal , said: “The main trend to look out for in 2024 will be...
Bitcoin is a Liberating Force for an African Village Mining It
5.1.2024
Source: AdobeStock / Riccardo Niels Mayer A village in Malawi is full of “happy people” – thanks to Bitcoin mining. The village is called Bondo. Rather, it’s a cluster of villages in the foothills of Mount Mulanje, in a remote Malawi region near Mozambique’s border. It’s an impoverished...
China Raises Alarm Over Corrupt Officials Exploiting Cold Storage Cryptocurrency for Illicit Cross-Border Transactions
2.1.2024
Image Source: Pexels Official Chinese media sources have raised concerns regarding the exploitation of cryptocurrencies by corrupt officials for illicit activities. The use of cold storage methods for cryptocurrencies, in particular, has become a cause for alarm as it allows these individuals...
China Looks to Ramp up ‘Cross-border’ Digital Yuan Spending
1.1.2024
Source: Keitma/Adobe Chinese bank chiefs are looking to start 2024 by driving up “cross-border” digital yuan spending. Per the Haikou Municipal Commerce Bureau (via Hainan News), the tourism hub of Haikou has begun issuing over $706,000 worth of “offshore tax-free coupons” for digital yuan-paying...
India’s De-Dollarization Push Flounders as Oil Suppliers Cite Rupee Repatriation Concerns
28.12.2023
The Indian Oil Ministry recently acknowledged that the country’s push to pay for oil with rupees has failed because suppliers are not sure if they will be able to repatriate their funds. The decision is intended to help diminish India’s reliance on the U.S. dollar when settling...
41% of Central Banks Expect to Have Operational CBDCs by 2028 — Study
26.12.2023
Some 41% of central banks that participated in the Official Monetary and Financial Institutions Forum (OMFIF) study said they expect to have an operational central bank digital currency (CBDC) by 2028. The survey found that the sentiment towards CBDCs is turning positive with 30% of the respondents...
Chinese Bank Seals First-ever Cross-border CBDC-powered Precious Metals Deal
21.12.2023
Source: pla2na/Adobe The Bank of China has completed the world’s first cross-border CBDC-powered precious metals deal – a gold transaction worth some $14.1 million. Per the Shanghai Securities News and the China Securities Network, the deal involved the Shanghai Branch of the Bank of China,...
Bank Of China Completes First Cross-Border Digital Yuan Commodities Trade
16.12.2023
The Bank of China Hong Kong, the second largest bank in the region, has completed its first cross-border digital yuan-based trade. The transaction, finalized with its sibling bank, the Bank of China, served to receive the payment for an imported iron ore commodity bulk trade, establishing...
Ripple Releases Framework on the Future of CBDCs Highlights Benefits and Challenges
15.12.2023
Source: AdobeStock / photo_gonzo Blockchain payment firm Ripple has rolled out a whitepaper on the state of Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs), their utility in cross-border payments as well as challenges towards adoption in several jurisdictions. The framework published on Dec 14 explains...
Hong Kong Firms Make First Cross-border Digital Yuan Commodity Payments
15.12.2023
Source: leungc/Adobe Hong Kong-based firms have made the first “cross-border” commodity payments with the Mainland Chinese digital yuan, as the CBDC takes its first international steps. Per Hong Kong Today, several Hong Kong firms took part in the Bank of China (Hong Kong)’s “Enterprise Digital...
Nigerian Crypto Firm Bitmama to Pay $1 Million for Startup That Raised $3 Million in February
8.12.2023
The Nigerian crypto platform Bitmama is reportedly set to acquire the African remittances startup Payday for $1 million. Reports of Payday’s acquisition come almost a year after the startup raised $3 million in a funding round. Bitmama’s Pivot From Crypto The Nigerian crypto platform...
Russia’s Exved Launches Cross-Border Payment Service Powered By Tether’s USDT Stablecoin
7.12.2023
Source: Adobe Russian digital settlement exchange Exved has officially debuted with the goal of empowering local legal entities to conduct cross-border digital payment services using Tether’s USDT. Russia's Exved platform launches as one of the first cross-border payment solutions...
More Hong Kong Banks Set to Join Digital Yuan Pilot, Gov’t Confirms
1.12.2023
Source: dmitriy/Adobe Hong Kong’s government says more banks based in the country are preparing to join Mainland China’s digital yuan pilot. Mainland China’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China (PBoC), wants to expand its CBDC’s cross-border applications. And it seemingly wants even more...
How DeFi Can Bridge the Forex Gap in Africa, According to Banking CEO
30.11.2023
Source: AdobeStock / Confidence Neobank Canza Finance‘s decentralized finance (DeFi) tech provides decentralized foreign exchange (FX) for African currencies, its CEO and co-founder Pascal Ntsama IV said. Canza website stresses that access to financial services and products is “a...
China Links Digital Yuan to ‘World’s Biggest Commodities Market’
27.11.2023
Source: kitti/Adobe A state-owned Chinese bank will link the digital yuan to the “world’s biggest small commodities market” via the latter’s payment platform. Per the People’s Daily, the new “cross-border” CBDC drive is the brainchild of the Bank of China and the city of Yiwu. Not to be confused...
Africa-Focused Remittances Fintech Zazuu Shut Downs After Failing to Secure Additional Funding
21.11.2023
An Africa-focused remittances firm, Zazuu, has become the latest fintech startup to close shop after it failed to raise extra funding. Zazuu and other African fintechs’ funding problems are said to be linked to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in the U.S. Zazuu Shuts Down Just Over a Year...
Cambodia’s Bakong Digital Currency Teams Up with Alipay for Expanded Reach
21.11.2023
Source: Adobe / anekoho In a move to enhance cross-border payments, Cambodia’s Bakong digital currency system, a component of the National Bank of Cambodia (NBC), has entered into a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Chinese payment provider Alipay, Cambodia’s Phnom Penh Post recently...
People’s Bank of China Tests Digital Yuan Payment Integration in Hong Kong
18.11.2023
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) and the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) are in the second phase of the integration tests of the digital yuan for payments and cross-border transactions in Hong Kong. This new phase includes more banks and the ability to use the Fast Payment System to...
IMF Chief Says Central Bank Digital Currencies Can Replace Cash — Urges Public Sector to Prepare for CBDC Deployment
18.11.2023
International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Kristalina Georgieva says central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) can replace cash. She has urged the public sector to “keep preparing to deploy CBDCs and related payment platforms,” emphasizing that these platforms “should...