Erik Howell

Today, we at @IRISSolutions are reaching another #milestone with the official launch of our latest innovation – the IRISPay app! At IRIS Solutions, we’ve always strived to redefine the way businesses handle payments, and IRISPay is the next step in our #mission. This app is designed to make transactions faster, safer, and simpler for businesses of all sizes. 🌟 With IRISPay you are getting: 🥇Lightning-fast transactions – payments processed in under 10 seconds. 🥈Direct deposits to your chosen bank account – no additional accounts or terminals needed. 🥉Over 50% lower transaction fees compared to traditional payment methods. 🏅Completely cashless and hassle-free – a true step into the future. I’m incredibly proud of the hard work and dedication of our team that made this possible. IRISPay is more than just an #app – it’s a promise to businesses that payment solutions can be seamless, affordable, and innovative. To all our current and future partners: let’s shape the future of #payments together. The journey is just beginning! 📈 Learn more about IRISPay here: https://lnkd.in/ddynJw2F Here’s to innovation, progress, and making payments smarter! #IRISPay #OpenBanking #Innovation #PaymentSolutions #Cardlesspayment

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opening up access to NFC functions on all smartphones and implementing interoperability protocols between payment systems are the basis for Mobile Payments Roaming. BLIK and Swish (both member of EMPSA European Mobile Payment Systems Association) are in the right direction.

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⬇ Today we’ll focus on the #Payments ecosystem in #Cyprus from our white paper, "Key Players in the EU Payments Landscape 2024": https://lnkd.in/eZCqN7j7 🌐 Originally a cash-based country, the degree of digitalization of payments in Cyprus grew heavily between 2019 and 2022. Some alternative payment methods have emerged in collaboration with major Cypriot banks, with important players such as Apple Pay, Google Pay, Xiaomi Technology Pay and Garmin Pay. Revolut is an important player in the Cypriot market and is a commonly used payment method. Other players include the English solution Settle and the local solution sKash. 📈 Cross-border payment solutions are also present with ECOMMBX as a leader in this field. The company specializes in e-account management, cross-border payments, personal & business cards, acquiring, and multi-currency conversions. 🏦 As of 2024 the Central Bank of Cyprus, CBC, identified five credit institutions as systemic banks429 among which can be found the Bank of Cyprus, Hellenic Bank, Eurobank Cyprus, AstroBank and Alpha Bank Cyprus. The Cypriot banking sector is heavily concentrated with the five largest banks capturing over 90% of the total market share. In 2023, Eurobank Cyprus acquired a 17% stake in Hellenic Bank and as of march 2024 the bank’s parent Eurobank acquired a majority stake in Hellenic Bank. Other players worth mentioning in the Cypriot banking system are cdbbank (The Cyprus Development Bank Public Company Ltd), Société Générale and Ancoria Bank. 📶 In the realm of payment processing, many companies stand out such as payabl., JCC Payment Systems, Nuvei and Unlimit. payabl. is an EU-regulated PSP which specialises in acquiring, issuing, mobile payments and banking services. The company processes Visa and Mastercard but also other payment methods such as PayPal, Apple Pay, Google Pay or Klarna. The Payments Association EU is proud to work with many important players in the Cypriot payments landscape, including payabl. and ECOMMBX. Key Takeways💡: “The payments industry in Cyprus has been continuously evolving in recent years through the rapid introduction of new players and modern technologies such as mobile wallets. The increasing accessibility and adoption of such technologies by the wider population of the island demonstrates..” “The payments landscape in Cyprus is evolving rapidly, driven by EU regulations like PSD2, which promote open banking and innovation. The rise of fintech solutions, including mobile payments and e-wallets, reflects …” Want to read the full “Expert Opinion” from Deloitte professionals George Nathanael and Elsa Abdo on the Cypriot payment landscape? Download the report here: https://lnkd.in/eZCqN7j7

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If you want a window into what the future of consumer lending will look like, you should check out my latest podcast with Misha Esipov, the CEO and Co-Founder of Nova Credit. His company has created a complete set of tools for lenders to expand their universe of borrowers without expanding their credit box. Listen to the full episode or read the transcript here: https://lnkd.in/g33afh5W #fintech #creditinnovation #cashflowunderwriting

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🔍Here’s the latest news in payments that Vixio Regulatory Intelligence covered in the last week: 1️⃣ Latvia, Mastercard Launch Anti-Fraud Campaign The Latvian Financial Industry Association and @Mastercard have launched an #antifraud campaign to combat phone scams, particularly targeting the elderly. Latvia reported 4,195 fraud cases in the first five months of 2024, with phone scams accounting for 2,448. 2️⃣ Singapore Probes Banking Accessibility for Visually Impaired The @Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) faced questions about banking services for visually impaired customers. Initiatives include "talking ATMs" and enhanced digital banking apps. MAS received four instances of feedback from 2021 to 2023. 3️⃣New Zealand's Open Banking Consultation New Zealand’s Commerce Commission is consulting on an agreement to enhance the country's #openbanking framework, allowing banks and fintechs to collaborate on API services. Stakeholders can provide feedback until July 15, 2024. 4️⃣ Lithuania Fines Former Majestic Financial Board Member The Bank of Lithuania fined a former Majestic Financial board member €50,000 for anti-money laundering (AML) violations following the firm's license revocation in April. 5️⃣ UK’s Open Banking Standard v4.0 Released Open Banking Limited has published Standard v4.0, aligning with global norms and ensuring security and efficiency. This update followed extensive industry consultation. 6️⃣ Kuwait Launches Instant Payments System The Central Bank of Kuwait has approved WAMD, a new instant payments system, joining more than 70 countries that have deployed #instantpaymentsystems, which can typically deliver payments from sender to receiver in less than 60 seconds. 🔗 Read the full blog here: https://bit.ly/4cCzZA8 #PaymentsIndustry #RegTech #Vixio #Compliance #FraudPrevention #FinancialRegulation #GlobalFinance #Innovation 💸🌐📈

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Online payment fraud is on the rise and fraudsters are becoming more sophisticated, utilising AI tools to automate their activities. This hurts the consumers - and the brands that they associate their fraud experiences with. This is why businesses need to invest in robust fraud prevention systems, starting with their financial technology platform. Read our story in Estonian media outlet Ärileht here

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Great article from Elizabeth Lumley at The Banker talking about #UniCredit's push into #BaaS. 'Shaul David, a fintech and embedded finance consultant, said the deal is a validation for the Baas business model.' 'Lars Markull said (Vodeno with) the addition of Aion Bank has made the deal interesting because now Unicredit can make a play in the Baas space without having to manage the compliance in-house.' 'Vodeno’s platform plus Aion’s banking capabilities and geographic spread will allow UniCredit to be more nimble in delivering digital banking to broader segments and markets, said Neil Chandler, CEO of Aion Bank.' https://lnkd.in/esed8iZe

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Lithuanian fintech Okredo raises $1.2 million seed round to expand in EU #Okredo, a Lithuanian #fintech company specializing in open data solutions, has secured €1.2 million in funding from the European Union, marking a significant milestone in its mission to transform SME credit scoring. Founded by Gerda Jurkoniene, PhDė, Okredo is set to develop an advanced AI/ML-driven scoring system aimed at revolutionizing how businesses across Europe assess and manage credit risk. This new funding will accelerate the development of Okredo’s multi-modular scoring system, a project valued at €1.5 million, designed to analyze data from over 30 million EU companies. By leveraging cutting-edge AI and machine learning technologies, Okredo’s platform will provide deep insights into the financial health of SMEs, initially focusing on markets in the Baltics, Poland, and the UK. The platform aims to enhance the accuracy and reliability of credit assessments while reducing operational costs for businesses. Okredo’s innovative approach, termed "Creditdoctorship," acts as a financial assistant for SMEs, helping them identify actions to improve their financial health and credit scores. With plans to expand its data integration to include an additional 15 million SMEs from across Europe, Okredo is not only addressing a critical gap in the current market but is also positioning itself for potential global scalability. The article on FinTech Global in the first comment. Want to stay up to date with the market? Here my newsletter: - Linkedin: https://lnkd.in/d4h8zqKA  - Substack: https://lnkd.in/dzfGJzmW

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Last December I wrote an article about how the growth in UK open banking payments is slowing – from 171% (by volume of transactions) in 2022, to 90% in 2023. I forecast that growth would slow again to 59% in 2024, predicting there would be 44m txns in the first quarter this year, 93m in the first half and 206m for the whole year. The actual numbers were 45m payments for the first quarter and 97m for the first half – and my revised figure for 2024 is 225m payments, a 73% increase on 2023, better than I predicted last December, but only by 19m payments and still down on the 2023 percentage growth. My benchmark for a successful new payment method is the contactless card, the largest and most successful new commercial payment product introduced in the UK this century. According to UK Finance, there were 19bn contactless transactions last year, over a third of all UK payments. Open banking has a long way to go to match this, but its addressable market - ecommerce and bill payments is enormous. As a start, to have a meaningful impact, open banking payments need to reach at least 5% share of UK payments, or 2.5bn payments. My forecast for open banking payments over the next five years is shown in the graph. The blue bars continue the current trend of positive, but declining annual growth rates, the orange bars show volumes if growth is sustained at 73% per year, my growth prediction for 2024. For context, in their first 10 years (ignoring the first two years after launch), contactless annual volume growth ranged between 116% and 257% and Faster Payments between 20% and 49%. We shall see in due course which path open banking takes to reach 2.5bn payments. It is unlikely that open banking will emulate the fast growth in contactless card transactions, but it is growing at a quicker pace than Faster Payments at a similar stage. Open banking has a commercial impetus behind it, with over 20 bank and non-bank payment providers driving it - with the right product-market fit, they have all to play for. #payments #openbanking #fasterpayments #contactless

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Security is a key component of open banking, yet it is one of the most complicated things to implement. And while Section 1033 is introducing regulated open banking to the US, it does not specify an open banking standard nor security standards. In our upcoming live masterclass on December 3rd we'll explore the industry front-running Financial Data Exchange Standard's security framework in depth. I’ll be joined by a panel of industry experts: Eyal Sivan (Mr. Open Banking, GM North America, Ozone API), Chris Wood (Principal Architect, Ozone API) and Dinesh Katyal (VP API Products at JPMorganChase). We’ll cover: - How the FDX security framework is structured and its relationship to OpenID standards like OAuth 2.0 and FAPI. - How FDX security compares to global open banking standards and what lessons the U.S. can draw from them. - Certification and registration in the context of FDX governance. - Q&A from the audience - submit your questions in the registration form. Date & Time: December 3, 2024, 12-1pm EST Register here: https://lnkd.in/ggHUQka2 #OpenBanking #OpenFinance #FDX #Security

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How E-commerce checkout experiences have deteriorated and the role of Alternative Payments in This Shift Five years ago, when I started working as the VP Biz Dev for bit, the most popular payment wallet in Israel (I call it the Israeli Venmo...), I sought creative ways to convince companies to integrate our digital payment option into their e-commerce checkouts. While it wasn't long ago in terms of years, it feels like light-years away when considering the adoption of alternative payment methods (APMs). One graph from the Baymard Institute that I encountered during my research back then showed the reasons for cart abandonment during checkout. Among several factors affecting abandonment rates, I focused on one: customers abandoning carts because they "couldn't find their preferred payment method." Five years ago, this was 6%. I seized this data point and built a strong sales pitch around it: "Don't just offer credit cards," I told merchants, "Include bit as an additional payment method, and you’ll increase conversion rates." This approach worked well for me in those early days. Today, the situation is quite favorable for APMs. According to recent studies, nearly half of all e-commerce transactions worldwide are conducted using APM's. However, in a recent study I conducted for a client, I came again across Baymard Institute's graph, and to my surprise, the situation has worsened! Not 6% but 13% of customers now abandon their carts due to a lack of suitable payment options—the number has more than doubled. I tried to understand its origin. The answer isn't simple, and several factors contribute to this widening gap: 🥝 Increased Awareness of APMs: Consumers expect more APMs, and merchants simply don’t keep up the pace. 🍉 Emerging Technologies: Not only does awareness grow, but new types of APMs are constantly emerging, and not all merchants manage to understand and adopt them. 🍊 Costs: Integrating multiple APM's can be costly, and some merchants might not see an immediate return on investment. 🍓 Accounting Challenges: Merchants often prefer to avoid the extra time and effort required to manage multiple payment providers, which complicates their accounting processes. Instead of closing the gap between APMs at checkout, it's widening, leading to increased cart abandonment at the most crucial stage. Website owners, you've worked so hard. You have amazing products and a smooth optimal funnel but if I want to buy something from an unfamiliar site, I'll look for PayPal, Apple Pay, or Google Pay. If they're not there, I move to your competitor, becoming part of that 13% who abandon your cart. 🙈 🙉 🙊 If you want to dive deeper into this crucial topic, contact me. I'll be more than happy to provide some consulting and help you increase your checkout conversions. #Ecommerce #Payments #DigitalWallets #Fintech #ConversionRates #APMs #CheckoutExperience

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Mastercard value added service appears to bring ease (via aliases) to crypto wallet addresses in Europe and Latin America. May be a good time to also test it in Turkey as the upcoming crypto regulation will pave the way to emergence of many new exchanges. https://lnkd.in/d-PyZ5vX

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Instant Payments. If the target to reach is now clear, the how to achieve it can still be tricky for numerous PSPs. The increase in the maximum limit per transfer at the customer's request and “at any time” is causing those in charge of fighting fraud to break out in a cold sweat. Particularly in markets where such practices are not yet commonplace. Another source of concern is the end of the timeout period; If funds are available in the payer's account, the transfer order must be executed immediately, even if the amount exceeds the ceiling set by the PSP, for reasons of security or customer segmentation. How can this be brought into line with the (increasing) need to prevent Spoofing or other types of social engineering scams? Answer reside in multichannel Strong Customer Authentication and customer alerts (in app or push notification, by emails and even offline), but also in awareness, financial education and advanced behavior and transactions analytics in order to proactively identify abnormal use. The book is not yet finished, with many chapters still to be written.

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Monetizing #OpenBanking for the commercial business has been on my agenda since 2016, as I started looking at Open Banking and PSD2 the first time. This regulation is not solely a compliance initiative but a strategic choice and priority. There are today numeral ways to take advantage of it and I'm excited to introduce this webinar where we look deeper into it. How is Personal Banking in Central Europe taking Advantage of Open Banking? Whats the value they see? How can the Nordics take advantage from their successes and their learnings? Join me for this webinar as I'm talking with Alessandro Vilardi from CRIF and Craig Harris from Strands, two companies helping financial institutions take advantage of the Open Banking Data to create more income to the same risks levels, find new business and help banks understand their customers better. Are you in Personal banking, working with consumers? This is for you! #openbanking #enablebanking #banking #personalbanking Sign up link here and in the comments: https://lnkd.in/dDj2FmDS

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One of the key requirements of the new Instant Payment Regulation is the mandatory deployment of a Verification of Payee (VoP) for all credit transfers. The VoP service will check if the provided IBAN and the account holder name mach. The heart of this service is the name matching functionality. If you want to know why this name matching is more than a simple string comparison, please read my new blog.   https://bit.ly/3WdUMEs

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The payment landscape is evolving quickly, and 2025 will deliver many developments full of new challenges and opportunities! Here are six of the best to keep an eye on: 1. SEPA Instant Payments in Europe   Get ready, Europe! Starting January 9, 2025, European banks will need to be prepared to receive SEPA instant payments, with the capability to send them out by October 9, 2025. During this transition, banks will introduce a Verification of Payee service to help reduce fraud and enhance the overall customer experience. It might be a bit of a tricky transition, but it holds great promise for positive changes! 2. Transitioning to ISO 20022   In the US, banks are preparing to adapt to the ISO 20022 messaging standard for FedWire payments by March 10, 2025. The global SWIFT coexistence period (MT to MX) will wrap up in November 2025, so there's an urgency for banks to find solutions as they embark on this change. 3. Account-to-Account Payments Are Moving Forward  Thanks to advancements in Open Banking, account-to-account (A2A) payments are gaining momentum. New UK, US, and Canada regulations prioritise A2A payments, which will broaden their use beyond traditional transfers into bills and e-commerce. While there are a few hurdles to overcome, it’s wonderful to see conventional card networks expanding A2A services to keep up with popular peer-to-peer options! 4. Instant Payments Across Borders  Cross-border payments are expected to grow by 5% annually until 2027 at least, reaching a whopping $250 trillion market! The speed of delivery has hardly improved since the 1970s, primarily relying on banks. The G20 has kicked off an initiative to enhance the speed, transparency, accessibility, and affordability of these services. With positive strides since 2020, we’re eager to see more real-time payment systems emerge globally by 2025! 5. The Importance of Collaboration in Fighting Financial Crime  Fraud is a significant concern, accounting for $500 billion of the estimated $3.1 trillion in illicit funds globally in 2023. In the UK alone, 3.6 million fraud incidents were reported between June 2023 and 2024. While initiatives like the UK’s APP fraud reimbursement are steps in the right direction, there’s still work to be done. As most fraud occurs online, especially on social media, companies must take accountability in helping combat these issues. 6. The Rise of AI in Payments   AI is poised to make the most significant impact in the payments world! Over half of banks (54%) plan to incorporate AI into their operations to boost efficiency. Those who embrace this technology will have a competitive edge, so it’s an exciting time to hop on the AI juggernaut! We’d love to hear your thoughts! If you have any other trends or interesting insights to share, please comment below. #GOGlobalFX

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💳 The most recent (autumn 2024) Payment Radar published by Latvijas Banka suggests that the ratio of non-cash payments to cash payments in Latvia was 77% to 23% in August 2024. The ratio has remained unchanged from February 2024, representing the largest-ever share of non-cash payments.

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⬇ Today, we’ll dive into the #Payments ecosystem in #Austria, from our white paper  "Key Players in the EU Payments Landscape 2024": https://lnkd.in/dVYy5rTP 💳 Despite the strong cash culture, Austria is shifting towards a more digital-friendly payment environment. Contactless payments have seen substantial growth, now accounting for over 75% of all cashless transactions. The country has also a high bank account penetration rate of 98.2%, with 1.81 cards per capita, primarily dominated by debit cards. 🌐 Alternative payment methods: Digital wallets are fast becoming a preferred method for online transactions, making up about 25% of all online transactions. PayPal remains the top choice for Austrian consumers, while other players include Amazon Pay, Apple Pay, WebMoney, Seqr, Skrill, and Google Pay. Local solutions such as Raiffeisen Bank International AG ’s ELBA-pay, Erste Group’s George and Electronic Payment Standard (EPS) are also popular. 🏦 Banks: The Austrian banking system is well-organized, with banks grouped into industry associations based on their specific focus. The largest Austrian banks in terms of total assets in 2024 are Erste Group (245,7 billion €), Raiffeisen Bank International AG (152,2 billion €), UniCredit Bank Austria AG (101,66 billion €), BAWAG Group (45,66 billion €), and Raiffeisenlandesbank Oberösterreich AG (37,2 billion €). Other important banks include Oberbank, Steiermärkische Bank und Sparkasse, and HYPO NOE Landesbank für Niederösterreich und Wien AG. 📶 Payment processing & gateways: Key local players include DIMOCO Payments (founded in 2000, offering over 100 payment methods) hobex AG Payment Systems, and Paysafe. PAYONE, popular in Austria and Germany, facilitates various payment methods like Visa, Mastercard, and PayPal. Unzer serves over 70,000 merchants across Europe and recently expanded its POS solutions in Austria. Other notable regional providers include Concardis GmbH jetzt Nexi, Netcetera , Qenta Inc., Worldline and Global Payments Inc. ⚙️Infrastructure providers: PSA Payment Services Austria GmbH is a transaction service provider and has been the competence center for cashless payment in Austria for many years. The company focuses on transaction processing and helping banks ensure smooth payment operations for their customers. 🌟Austria is also home to our prestigious members Funanga AG and DIMOCO Payments. Key Takeway💡: “In Austria, the payments landscape is balanced between cash and digital methods, with a strong preference for cash among different age groups. However, there is a trend towards…” Want to read the full “Expert Opinion” from Deloitte professional Thomas John on the Austrian payment landscape? Download the report here: https://lnkd.in/dVYy5rTP

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