Sept-Oct 2019 issue

What’s fuelling the Bitcoin bus?

By Andrew McCormack Since the introduction of Bitcoin in 2009, cryptocurrencies have had their share of media frenzy. Even Facebook has gotten in on the action, recently unveiling its Libra digital coin. But Bitcoin was the first, it’s the biggest and with the help of new players on the market, …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

What it means for Canadians

By Brendan Read Open banking promises to provide Canadian consumers and businesses with the ability to control the use of their banking data and access digital banking tools or financial technology (FinTech) services, according to Senator Colin Deacon. He is a member of the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

Visa x Payment Rails

By Peter Misek Earlier this year, FinTech and artificial intelligence (AI) startups across Canada presented their innovative solutions for the payments industry at the Visa-sponsored Future of Payments Pitch Battle, as part of the Canadian Fintech Summit (www.fintechsummit.ca). Amongst 14 startups across a wide range of sectors, one company stood …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

The measured evolution

By Meenaz Sunderji A recent report released by the Standing Senate Committee on Banking, Trade and Commerce warned that Canada is at risk of falling behind if the country fails to create a regulatory environment conducive to open banking. The report called for the federal government to move forward with …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

Removing the payments boundaries

By Brian Weiner The experience of buying and selling has fundamentally changed and there is no sign this will stop. Payments are no longer being constrained by current wire payment infrastructure, thereby opening up possibilities for people even in the most remote parts of the world and giving them access …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

Rebooting international payments

By Lindsay Mulligan It’s difficult for banks to distinguish themselves in today’s digital world. With technology evolving at the speed of light, customer expectations are high, and it is incumbent upon financial institutions (FIs) to provide their clients with the latest technology if they wish to obtain, and retain, their …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

Prepaid sparks FinTech innovation

By Jennifer Tramontana Prepaid currently plays a valuable, though unassuming, role in Canada’s financial ecosystems. With $4.3 billion loaded onto open-loop prepaid products in 2018, reports the Canadian Prepaid Providers Organization (CPPO), prepaid is rising from the shadows as more consumers, businesses and governments discover the convenience and security of …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

It’s a matter of trust

By Brendan Read As Canada prepares to adopt open banking, financial institutions (FIs) are figuring out how to embrace this new level of digital information sharing. Canada is following the lead of other jurisdictions, such as the United Kingdom, Europe and Australia, in giving its citizens more control over how …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

Disrupting the payments ecosystem

By Tyler Anderson Payments in the Canadian ecosystem have evolved beyond the financial service providers. Everyone from early-stage start-ups to tech giants and to other non-financial players wants to be involved in the quickly growing payments ecosystem. At FinTech Growth Syndicate (FGS), we have had a front row seat to …

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Sept-Oct 2019 issue

Connections key for payments

By Patrick Bermingham Canadian start-ups and established business-to-business (B2B) companies alike are increasingly interested in the industrial Internet of things (IoT), with over 81 per cent of medium and large organizations adopting at least one IoT solution. Many of these businesses, however, are missing a trick when it comes to …

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