As Finovate goes increasingly global, so does our coverage of financial technology. Finovate Global: Fintech News from Around the World is our weekly look at fintech innovation in developing economies in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe.
Middle East and Northern Africa
- Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) inks memorandum of understanding (MoU) with U.K.’s Innovate Finance.
- Emirates NBD leverages technology from Tata Consultancy Services to upgrade its payment system.
- Al Monitor looks at the “fast-changing landscape” of fintech in Iran.
Central and South Asia
- Alipay drives Pakistan’s first blockchain-based cross-border remittance service.
- India’s Reliance Jio prepares to enter the PoS devices market.
- ZestMoney receives venture debt funding from Alteria Capital.
Latin America and the Caribbean
- Cosan SA to launch “the Alipay of Brazil,” processing payments and money transfers via smartphone.
- Latin American PSP allpago expands payment service to Chile.
- Forbes.com features a glowing review of new legislation in Mexico to regulate fintech.
Asia-Pacific
- Loanstreet to offer first online platform for motorcycle insurance in Malaysia.
- Vietnamese payment app, Momo, picks up Series C investment in round led by Warburg Pincus.
- SBI Holdings and Germany’s Wefox partner to launch new insurtech venture, SBI Wefox Asia, in Japan.
Sub-Saharan Africa
- London Stock Exchange Group honors African fintech 4G Capital.
- Business Insider’s Pulse reviews the top lending platforms in Nigeria.
- South Africa’s Personal Finance shares a few predictions on fintech in South Africa for 2019.
Central and Eastern Europe
- Take a look at our feature on the rise of fintech in CEE: Finding Fintech’s Future in Emerging Europe.
- Sberbank partners with Russian supermarket chain Azbuka Vkusa to enable payment by fingerprint.
- Allianz Bank Bulgaria partners with Software Group to launch a new digital transformation project.