Financial Services

We’re seeing record bankruptcies among VC-backed startups. Factors include rate hikes, investment shortages, and bank collapses. AI funding rises, but potential oversaturation looms.

Crypto-friendly Revolut to end crypto services to US customers: The UK neobank blamed regulatory uncertainty as lawsuits drag on and crypto bills limp toward the US Senate.

Response to FDIC special assessment suggests banks are writing off 2023: Replenishing the deposit insurance fund after a $15.8B drawdown to cover the March regional banking crisis was never going to be cheap or easy.

PayPal USD could be a market mover and expand stablecoin payments adoption

Rolling out cards in Latin America’s largest ecommerce market can help Amazon capture more volume as it grows its financial solutions

But the metric doesn’t take into account the full picture of consumers’ financial health

Personalized service and problem-solving still send consumers to branches: But they agree that for most transactions, apps get the job done best. Now a survey suggests a third way—a Zoom call with a banker.

US adults are fairly evenly split on using mobile payment apps online versus in-store—except with PayPal, where 36% of users use the platform online most often, compared with 29% of users who use the app in-store, according to CivicScience.

On today’s podcast, we are talking about digital account-opening trends, who’s opening bank accounts digitally, and what they want or expect when going through that process. Here’s a look at what we’re talking about this week: • In our “Headlines” segment, we discuss how in-flight deposits and Gen Z will drive account openings in 2023 and to what extent new account openings are the result of high deposit rates and an incentive-laden environment. • In “Story by Numbers,” we examine how being able to set up direct deposit when consumers open checking accounts is extremely important and the importance of deposits being protected. • In “For Argument’s Sake,” we suppose there’s a new US banking regulation requiring all banking products to be applied for and opened online. We debate (nicely) how the industry dynamics would change if everything in banking were digitized and moved online. Tune in to the conversation with host Rob Rubin, managing principal of financial services consulting at EPAM Systems Alex Jimenez, and our analyst Tiffani Montez.

What’s driving bank switching: A survey found that dissatisfaction with digital experiences and being treated like a number, not a person, is the surest way to send customers to a competitor. And those chatbots aren’t helping.

Regulators respond to the rise of the finfluencer: As advice and plugs for financial products proliferate on social media, the UK's Financial Conduct Authority is refreshing its guidance on financial promotions.

How smaller banks are handling targeted outreach to women: Despite women’s rising financial power, their financial literacy continues to lag behind men’s. Here are a few banks that are trying to change that.

But as the company relies on Cash App’s success, any future faltering could spell trouble

The fundraising highlights the industry’s interest in alternative credit models

Integrating credit cards with the UPI will be a game changer for card volume in India

The definitive guide to finfluencers: The quieter summer news cycle gave us time to do a deep dive into how and why “finfluencers” came into the world, what’s the secret behind their appeal to the TikTok generation, why investment advisors kind of hate them—and what financial services marketing teams can learn from them.

Total payment volume grew 11% YoY in the second quarter since restructuring, despite declines in active accounts

This highlights the popularity of the credit card’s investment feature and should continue to bring in more cardholders

Making sense of a Kansas community lender’s collapse: It’s the fifth bank to fold this year. Smaller banks are showing other signs of stress amid changing interest rates and lingering financial system instability.