“Cash is king” and “if it ain’t broke don’t fix it” are common phrases heard in the payments industry. However, digital payments have had an undeniable impact in the sector, and according to new research from Boku, the global network for localised payment solutions, there has been a continued decline in the market share of traditional card payments.

Produced in collaboration with Juniper Research, the Boku report, titled 2024 Global Ecommerce Report: The Changing World of Payments surveyed 10,500 consumers. It analysed data from 37 major markets across the globe to identify global, regional and country specific trends. The findings highlight significant and rapid consumer shifts in e-commerce payments away from the traditional card networks (and in emerging economies cash on delivery) towards local payment methods such as digital wallets.

Nick Maynard, VP of fintech market research, at Juniper Research said: “Our research for this report from Boku highlights that against a backdrop of continued strong growth in e-commerce, the global card schemes (credit, debit and card-linked wallets) continue to lose share to regional and local payment methods. This is a trend seen at an aggregate global level but also repeated in every region across the world.”

Emergence of A2A payments

Further findings revealed that account-to-account (A2A) payments (instant payments and bank transfers) such as PIX in Brazil, UPI in India, or iDEAL in the Netherlands are revealed as the fastest-growing payment method within e-commerce. A2A payments are forecast to more than double and become the fastest growing local payment method within e-commerce. This accounts for 18 per cent of all e-commerce transactions by volume by 2028 globally (up from eight per cent in 2023).

Furthermore, instant A2A and non-card-linked wallets will account for over 50 per cent of e-commerce transaction value globally by 2028.

Declining card transactions and growing local payment methods.

The report also found that card values will decline to 19 per cent of transaction value by 2028 (down from 31 per cent in 2023). By volume, card payments will account for just 30 per cent of e-commerce transactions in 2028 ( down from 41 per cent in 2023).

By 2028, local payment methods will account for 58% of ecommerce transaction values (up from 47 per cent in 2023), accounting for a majority of transaction value online for the first time. Boku also estimated that in four years 37 per cent of all individuals globally will actively use local payment methods.

Younger generations are paving the way

Payment choice is key for consumers around the world. Today’s mobile-first generations – with whom access to and affinity with card networks is low – prioritise the convenience and seamless nature of paying with digital wallets, direct carrier billing and Instant A2A payments. As with the adoption of many new technologies, the adoption of localised payment solutions by younger generations and populations is paving the way for adoption by older consumers.

Stuart Neal, CEO of Boku said, “Our research shows the way the world transacts online is changing fast, and that change is being driven in the main by a consumer preference for convenient, seamless payment methods like digital wallets, direct carrier billing and Account to Account transfers.

“Merchants now realise that the key to their future global growth and success lies in their ability to offer consumers more payment choice. At Boku, we’re excited to provide the world’s largest merchants with access to our global network of localised payment solutions so their customers can more easily pay for the things they love, the way they want – no matter where they are in the world.”

Regional takeaways include:

Africa & Middle East

Africa & Middle East is in many ways already a local payments and mobile money success story, with the region’s services such as M-PESA and MoMo seeing strong adoption. As such, merchants require highly localised payments strategies in these markets to ensure continued results.

Asia Pacific

Asia Pacific payment requirements are changing quickly. While card payments will continue to account for a significant amount of payments – around a third of e-commerce payments by volume by 2028 – local payment methods are fast gaining traction, winning market share from card payments.

Europe

Europe, in particular, will see a dramatic shift away from cards, with the proportion of e-commerce transaction volume featuring cards dropping from 53 per cent in 2023 to just 30 per cent in 2028. A2A payments will experience massive growth from 16 per cent volume of transactions in 2023 to 25 per cent in 2028, due to the ability it provides in moving money without additional intermediaries.

Far East and China

Far East and China is a mobile wallet-dominated market, with great emphasis on ‘super apps’ such as WeChat and Alipay. E-commerce payment methods are anticipated to stay somewhat consistent with this over the forecast period with little shift in the payment methods used, due to how well-established the market already is.

LatAm

LatAm is a market in motion – e-commerce payment methods are changing rapidly, which means merchants must alter their acceptance strategies, or they will fail to take advantage of e-commerce growth. PIX is the obvious early success story, but CoDi in Mexico, as well as PSE in Colombia are also winners.

North America

North America is a heavily-developed market in regards to e-commerce, with the majority of consumers having access to bank accounts and plastic cards. One of the greatest concerns for e-commerce consumers across North America is the ability to checkout seamlessly, as well as having the ability to pay in installments resulting in growth of lower friction payment methods such as; Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL), A2A payments and non-card-linked wallets.

The Indian Subcontinent

The Indian Subcontinent is seeing an increasing shift towards local payment methods, with A2A payments in particular gathering momentum. Local payment methods are anticipated to have a sizable share of payment methods by 2028, equating to 72 per cent of e-commerce transactions by value, an increase from 58 per cent in 2023.

India is the largest driver of both volume and value within the Indian Subcontinent, therefore it is unsurprising that the highly successful UPI scheme is driving local payments forward, providing a template for future growth.

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has begun ‘Project Ensemble’, a new wholesale central bank digital currency (wCBDC) project, to support the development of the tokenisation market in Hong Kong. 

Through the new project, Hong Kong Monetary Authority will explore innovative financial market infrastructure (FMI) that will facilitate seamless interbank settlement of tokenised money through a wholesale CBDC.

The project will initially focus on tokenised deposits, a digital representation of commercial bank deposits, issued by commercial banks and made available to the general public. With wCBDC as the foundation, tokenised deposits will be used for tokenised asset transactions, hoping to unlock new opportunities for optimisation and innovation in the tokenisation era.

Eddie Yue, chief executive of the HKMA, explained: “Hong Kong has always championed innovation and international collaboration. Project Ensemble will provide fresh impetus to our vibrant financial industry and reinforce our forefront position in tokenised money and assets. We welcome global talents and industry players to come to Hong Kong and be part of this very exciting tokenisation journey.”

As part of Project Ensemble, later this year, HKMA will launch a new wCBDC Sandbox. The sandbox will support further research and test tokenisation use cases that include, among others, settlement of tokenised real-world assets (such as green bonds, carbon credits, aircraft, electric vehicle charging stations, electronic bills of lading and treasury management).

It could forge a new FMI that bridges the gap between tokenised real-world assets and money in transactions.

All eyes on the future 

To set industry standards and a future-proof strategy, the HKMA will form a wCBDC Architecture Community consisting of local and multinational banks, key players in the digital asset industry, technology companies and the CBDC Expert Group.

The HKMA will also continue to partner with Cyberport and Hong Kong Science and Technology Parks Corporation to foster the development of asset tokenisation and support homegrown fintech innovation.

Project Ensemble forms a key part of the HKMA’s broader portfolio of initiatives to facilitate the development of the tokenisation market, comprising e-HKD and collaboration with the BIS Innovation Hub Hong Kong Centre such as mBridge, Dynamo and Genesis.

It will also build on the experimentation of tokenised deposit use cases that the HKMA conducted with HSBC, Hang Seng Bank and Ant Group last year. The HKMA will engage relevant international stakeholders, including other central banks and organisations, to join future experiments and exploration in the wCBDC Sandbox.

Should the sandbox garners sufficient interest from the financial industry, the HKMA could eventually conduct a ‘live’ issuance of the wCBDC.

In late December 2023, STICPAY, the global e-wallet service provider and payment gateway introduced new local payment methods for money-in across various countries. Expanding its digital footprint in the payments space, specifically in the Asia region, STICPAY has announced various new partnerships with local payments providers.

Previously, STICPAY had enhanced the user payment experience in Australia, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand, Colombia, India, Malaysia and China with its local payment methods. With the newly announced partnerships, STICPAY is making its payments offering more accessible, integrated and cost-effective

Across China, India, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Singapore, Indonesia, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia, STICPAY has integrated a wide range of both traditional and challenger local payment methods. These include:

• Alipay and Wechatpay (China and Hong Kong)
• GCash (Philippines)
• PayNow (Singapore)
• QRIS (Indonesia)
• MonoPay (Vietnam)
• PromptPay (Thailand)
• UPI (India)
• TNG Wallet (Malaysia)

Bank transfer and mobile payment, plus many others are also being enabled by the new partnership.

The move by STICPAY means that a broader segment of the Asian population can now benefit from e-wallet services. The integrations also mean that local users in Asia – both individuals and businesses – can use tailored, local payment options that are familiar and convenient to them. This in turn enables them to manage their finances, pay bills and undertake everyday transactions more easily.

The partnerships will also make transitions far more cost-effective. Local payments considerably reduce or eliminate transaction fees compared to international transactions.

APAC and beyond

In addition to the Asian partnerships, STICPAY has also launched new partnerships with local payment providers in Australia (PayID) and Colombia (Nequi) as it looks to expand its partnerships with local payment providers around the world.

According to research from Juniper, more than 60 per cent of the world’s population will use digital wallets by 2026, with emerging markets driving much of this uptake. Indonesia, for example, is forecast to have 202 million mobile wallet users by 2025, with digital wallets helping boost growth in emerging market economics where banking infrastructure is often outdated, inaccessible and poorly distributed.

Sean Park, STICPAY CEO, said: “STICPAY’s introduction of new local payment methods marks a significant stride towards creating a global financial ecosystem that understands and respects users’ unique needs in various countries. By prioritizing convenience, trust, and cost-effectiveness, STICPAY is not just offering a service; it’s fostering a financial experience tailored to the diverse preferences of its users.

“As we move forward, this innovative approach solidifies STICPAY’s commitment to being a leader in the digital finance realm, shaping the future of finance one region at a time.”

Saldo Bank, the Finnish digital neobank, is starting its operations in Sweden; arriving in the country with high-interest rates on fixed-term deposits.

Saldo Bank offers an interest rate of as much as five per cent for a year’s deposit. According to Saldo CEO, Jarkko Mäensivu, the fintech is all about increasing ‘fairness’ in fixed-term deposits. The digital neobank with a Finnish background also hopes it can lift the interest rate competition of the fixed-term deposits to a new level in Sweden.

The bank, which will start operating in Sweden this month, is looking to offer a drastically more attractive option than other local competitors. According to the comparison website Compricer, the next highest offer sits at 4.4 per cent. This plan has worked before; when the bank started in Finland in October 2023, several Finnish banks had to raise their own interest rates.

Mäensivu explains: “In our opinion, the interest paid on the fixed-term accounts has been very low for a long time. Interest rates paid to customers should reflect at least market interest rates.”

Targeting Sweden is a key plan for the digital bank, which is looking to use local funds to grow its loan portfolio in the country. Ultimately, Saldo Bank is trying to develop into a digital international bank that provides digital banking services to consumers and, eventually, businesses.

Backed by the Lithuanian fintech hub

Currently, Saldo Bank only operates online in Sweden, with no intention of establishing a branch network there. Saldo Bank offers consumers fully automated loan solutions and fixed-term deposit services.

The company’s advanced scoring and analytics system ensures responsible lending, and its own lending system also supports international business growth.

Saldo Bank has a Finnish background. However, the company’s core banking operations are in Lithuania and are supervised by the Bank of Lithuania. In addition, Saldo Bank’s technology development centre is located in Vilnius, after establishing itself in Lithuania in 2021. Saldo Bank also holds a specialised bank licence from the European Central Bank and employs a team of over 60 people.

“Favourable regulatory environment has been attracting fintechs and other financial companies to Lithuania for some time now. Saldo Bank has also benefited from both the fintech-friendly regulation and the hub of tech knowledge in Vilnius,”  Mäensivu explained last year.

The Scottish Government has launched its first Techscaler hub in Silicon Valley, as part of an initiative to help promising startups from Scotland build contacts with international investors and customers.

The month-long pilot Techscaler programme provides office space by Mindspace for 12 startups in San Francisco, one of the world’s leading startup communities, close to Silicon Valley, the city’s venture capital finance district. The new businesses are developing entrepreneurial ideas in areas from health technology to space tech.

Technology incubator CodeBase is running the programme and is aiming to create a permanent hub enabling business owners to remain in Scotland in the longer term while maintaining easy access to the San Francisco tech community.

Launched in November 2022, Techscaler is a nationwide tech startup support programme to build the Scottish tech ecosystem, and was established following the key recommendations of the Scottish Technology Ecosystem Review (STER), authored by Mark Logan, chief entrepreneurial advisor to the Scottish Government.

Ahead of a speech in Edinburgh disccuding on priorities for the Wellbeing Economy, Net Zero and Energy portfolio, Mairi McAllan, Wellbeing Economy Secretary, commented: “Our £42million Techscaler network is showcasing some of Scotland’s most promising startups on the global stage. The pilot Techscaler San Francisco hub is helping businesses make connections in the world’s leading startup community.

“The benefits are clear, our startups are expanding their networks and engaging with communities of like-minded individuals of owners, startups and investors. This will help increase their visibility and grow their businesses in the global marketplace.

“Activities like this demonstrate Scotland’s ambition to become one of Europe’s leading startup communities, we are setting an example internationally and helping drive a fair and growing economy.”

All eyes on Silicon Valley

Daniel Grant, founder of notation.dev, one of the first companies to use the Techscaler hub, commented: “Joining the San Francisco hub has energised me, and enabled me to connect with people from around the world working at the forefront of tech.

“The power of San Francisco is the velocity at which information moves through the city. It is a hyper-charged network that accelerates innovation, and connects founders with collaborators, prospects and investors faster than anywhere else in the world.”

The Techscaler programme offers startups in the region a range of benefits, to help grow their network, including:

• Guidance and support from experts, including industry operators, educators, founders, and investors
• In-person, online, and hybrid events to meet other founders and industry experts to expand their network
• Flexible hotdesking, dedicated offices, meeting rooms and event spaces in its seven Scottish hubs
• Access to curated content, toolkits, and playbooks created by founders with startup growth experience

Dan Zakai, co-founder and CEO of Mindspace, also added: “Mindspace works with governments from several countries to create landing spaces for startups. It’s amazing that the Scottish Government has joined that list. We have seen first hand the value of exposing startups to the San Francisco tech ecosystem. We hope to do more in future and to make the Techscaler hub a permanent fixture.”

The opportunities available across Latin America are clear, but firms should respect the region’s fragmentation and recognise the differing needs from country to country, says NovoPayment.

Here, Anabel Perez, CEO of NovoPayment, the Banking as a Service (BaaS) provider for the Americas, discusses her experience of implementing digital financial products in LatAm – and her view on dealing with the challenges presented by the fragmentation of the region.

In the highly fragmented Latin American financial ecosystem, the opportunity for interoperable financial infrastructure solutions is obvious. What’s less obvious, however, are the challenges of creating a transnational framework that serves the unique regulatory needs of individual countries.

Too often, BaaS companies and other institutions have made the mistake of thinking there’s a viable ‘one size fits all’ service that can cater to an entire region with a single formula. To deliver financial solutions that empower Latin America, we must address the region’s fragmentation with due diligence and recognise not only divergent demands from each country, but also the diverse needs of the banks and their respective stakeholders.

When I founded NovoPayment, I saw an opportunity to transform how financial services and payments were delivered across the Americas. Headquartered in Miami with offices in Mexico, Colombia, Peru, and Ecuador, we provide a multi-currency API cloud-based platform that powers digital banking, payment infrastructure and card solutions to clients throughout 15 markets in Latin America and the US.

I’ve seen firsthand the critical need for seamless collaboration, as it drives value for each player and gives businesses of any size room to innovate as they adapt to an evolving financial ecosystem.

Large banks in emerging markets must begin with a vetted, reliable foundation

When working with financial service providers, our process is to prioritise and invest in the highest industry standards and regulatory compliance, extending that to our financial clients and partners. Practical compliance is vital, and by that, I do not mean just passing exams; we’re living and breathing the regulations throughout all our initiatives.

These efforts benefit banks, fintechs and their respective ecosystem partners as they design and build solutions that give their end customers the power to choose how they interact with providers in a more contextually practical way. The priority, however, is ultimately the consumer because they increasingly want a say in how they make transactions and move money. The challenge is that these service providers, businesses, and consumers want to interact seamlessly, but their countries’ respective realities may not be as compatible with this expectation as they are.

We’re closely paying attention to specific market dynamics and how regulations are evolving. Consumers want flexibility in how they pay merchants, whether physical or digital. The latter continues to see rapid innovation, and consumers want the power of choice in their day-to-day financial lives. Preferences range from remote banking to tap-to-phone payments, QR codes, or a combination of several transaction options. In many ways, our clients are the real heroes for designing customer journeys that can offer that flexibility in an accessible way.

But to get to a point where they can build, service providers must start with a robust foundation and service offering that aligns with regulatory standards and technical components to digitise and streamline those innovative journeys.

Small businesses need the support of financial infrastructure to scale

Financial infrastructure is all about supporting banks that support people, and in my time working with domestic and international markets, we’ve developed a process to both discern credibility and enable banks to keep innovating. The first question we address is how we ensure clients maintain growth and improve margins while following the required standards at a localised level.

Through the proper approach, we can support our customers’ visions and execution of their respective strategies. We provide a platform for solving our clients’ problems and retrofitting old processes with emerging technologies. By doing so, we’ve helped large companies scale up and expand in addition to empowering small businesses and mom-and-pop shops to modernise their transactions.

NovoPayment works with one of the largest financial networks for mom-and-pop shops in Mexico, which we helped migrate from analogue to digital so that they could route domestic transactions from different banks that facilitate services to underserved areas. Their previous model was outdated, with a highly fragmented type of integration and disjointed interactions within the communities that they serve. We were able to help them migrate from that to a more efficient enablement that brings them visibility, reduces their costs of operation, accelerates access to data, and ultimately streamlines their money flow. This financial network is exemplary of what our industry should strive toward: bringing innovation to the small businesses and communities who want to connect with a broader market.

Latin America’s financial fragmentation requires localised approaches. The result is that large and mid-sized banks will streamline their operations, and small businesses can access financial products that help them provide services to their customers. Building infrastructure with solid regulatory foundations and adapting to localised business needs are cornerstones of seamless financial interaction, and only then can we successfully connect communities, businesses, and people.

Visa Canada is partnering with Plug and Play, the venture capital and accelerator firm, by supporting its entrance into the Canadian fintech market and jointly creating a platform helping local fintechs to flourish.

Through the new collaboration with Plug and Play, fintechs in Canada will gain access to the scale, trust, and security of the Visa global network. Invited fintechs can also attend exclusive, interactive events where they can learn, collaborate, network, and connect with new partners to grow their business.

The Canadian fintech industry is currently significant growth with an expected compound annual growth rate of 25 per cent through 2029.

The new partnership builds on Visa’s previous successful collaboration with Plug and Play in the US: which saw the two organisations launch an Inclusive Fintech Accelerator programme, to help foster diversity and inclusivity in the sector by addressing some of the unique challenges faced by diverse founders in the tech industry.

Saeed Amidi, founder and CEO of Plug and Play, explained: “Our joint efforts with Visa will amplify the impact of fintech startups across the region in Canada. Together, we will showcase our dedication to fostering innovation and supporting the growth of groundbreaking ideas within the global entrepreneurial community.”

Shaping ‘the future of payments through strategic collaborations and product offering’

The partnership also aligns with Visa’s commitment to enhancing the payment ecosystem by working alongside fintechs through several programmes created to support the industry.

Chris Ferron, head of digital partnerships and fintech at Visa Canada, also gave his view on the partnership: “Fintechs spark and enable innovation – they can enhance our capabilities, help clients reach new audiences and constructively challenge us. At Visa, we embrace fintechs – large and small.

“As a leader in digital payments, we work with fintechs to shape the future of payments through strategic collaborations and product offerings that help push the boundaries of payment technology and user experiences. We look forward to working with Plug and Play to advance the mission of fintechs, as well as making money movement easy.”

Visa’s ‘Fintech Fast Track‘ programme is one example of the initiatives it offers: which was designed to help fintech and crypto companies bring new payment solutions to market – by harnessing the capabilities and security of VisaNet, Visa’s global payment network.

Through this programme, approved fintech startups can significantly strengthen global payout service offerings, expand capabilities, and gain access to Visa’s growing partner network of 4.1 billion cards and 80 million merchant locations worldwide in over 200 countries and territories.

Despite the fintech sector in Australia enjoying significant success and demonstrating growing maturing, some of its local success stories are increasingly tempted to focus their efforts offshore, EY has revealed.

Limited local capital, complex regulatory hurdles, and overseas direct investment strategies are some of the most significant factors driving Australian fintechs abroad, according to the eighth EY FinTech Australia Census. Fifty per cent of the Australian fintechs surveyed are now generating revenue overseas, up from 40 per cent in 2022.

The Census, a collaboration between Ernst & Young Australia (EY), and FinTech Australia, highlights that the region’s fintech sector is still vibrant, but is in need of a refreshed focus to continue to drive economic growth and remain a world leader.

In total, 88 per cent of fintech respondents reported that they are post-revenue, the highest proportion recorded since the Census’ inception, and 43 per cent are now turning a profit, compared with 30 per cent last year.

However, EY also found significantly fewer younger companies in the fintech ecosystem. Just three per cent are one year or younger, compared with 10 per cent in 2022, suggesting that start-ups may be facing significantly higher barriers to entry than they were 12 months ago.

These entry barriers are reflected in data around raising capital, which reveals a two-speed economy for fintech funding in Australia, with early-stage start-ups struggling more than mature companies.

In an uncertain macroeconomic environment, capital raising is also becoming more difficult across the sector, with the overall proportion of fintechs that said they had not met their capital raising expectations in the past 12 months surging to 41 per cent in this year’s Census – up from 29 per cent in 2022.

Fintech concerns

Fintechs rank raising equity capital as their top concern for the year ahead, with 61 per cent of Census participants citing it as their biggest challenge, well ahead of the uncertain economic climate which ranked second at 47 per cent.

With traditional funding down, fintechs increasingly rely on founder funding, with 57 per cent of founders dipping into their own funds to meet companies’ goals (up from 50 per cent in 2021 and 2022).

Malia Forner, EY Oceania fintech leader, said: “The Australian fintech sector has a strong track record of innovation, transformation and growth but, to continue this positive trajectory, it’s clear some immediate changes are required to make Australia a more attractive environment to start and grow a business.

“In the coming years, embedded finance and other fintech trends will be increasingly essential components of the digital commercial infrastructure required to drive the next growth stage in Australia’s financial and non-financial sectors. After a decade of investment in fintech success, we can’t afford to let this important growth sector fall behind other global financial hubs just as it is about to move to the next level.”

Innovative use cases

Throughout the next 12 months, fintechs are planning more investment in growth areas that will deliver strategic advantage, such as artificial intelligence and machine learning (85 per cent); cybersecurity (77 per cent); APIs (74 per cent); cloud systems (61 per cent); and mobile and internet applications (57 per cent).

Rehan D’Almeida, general manager at FinTech Australia, also commented: “We’ve hit a critical inflexion point where we are either going to see the ecosystem spring up or spiral down. The challenging investor landscape and a lack of new entrants highlight an urgent need for renewed government focus and support from visionary investors. It is crucial we keep our best and brightest fintechs focused on Australia to empower our nation’s continued economic vitality.

“We are seeing a range of innovative use cases, such as new fintech models enabling renters to access the housing market, changing how and when workers access their pay, managing and measuring diversity, equity and inclusion, improving money management and education, helping financial institutions deliver new digital consumer services, and even using banking data to track individual carbon footprints. This is what a mature, innovative and successful fintech sector looks like.”

The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) and the Financial Services Regulatory Authority (FSRA) of the Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen the partnership between them, particularly regarding cross-border trade-related data exchange and business collaboration.

Both the Hong Kong Monetary Authority and the FSRA hope to further promote inclusive and innovative financial services leveraging fintech and data in both markets.

Colin Pou, executive director of financial infrastructure for the HKMA, joined Wai Lum Kwok, senior executive director of authorisation and fintech at the FSRA, in signing the MoU. The exchange of the MoU signifies an important milestone in cementing and strengthening the collaboration between the two authorities, building upon the solid foundation laid by the signing of a cooperation agreement in 2018.

Under the MoU, the two authorities will contemplate joint Proof-of-Concept projects to connect the HKMA’s Commercial Data Interchange to the ADGM’s SME Financing Platform.

Both authorities will also join forces to explore use cases for cross-border data exchange with user consent to address potential pain points in cross-border banking services such as small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) account opening and financing to facilitate cross-border trading.

‘Building a vibrant ecosystem for SMEs’

Discussing the news, Pou explained: “We are delighted to deepen our collaboration and knowledge exchange with the FSRA through this MoU.

“This underscores our shared commitment to advancing fintech development and unleashing the potential of data. Both authorities recognise the importance of creating next-generation data platforms and enabling cross-border data exchange in the age of digitalisation. We trust that our collective effort will foster financial innovation and empower SMEs in both jurisdictions with enhanced financing opportunities.”

Kwok also offered his take on the collaboration: “This MoU further strengthens the strategic partnership between the FSRA and HKMA to foster cross-border trade and business leveraging technological innovation.

“We are excited by the tremendous possibilities that the digital bridge between our platforms can bring, in connecting the marketplace of the UAE and the Greater Bay Area through the respective gateways of ADGM and Hong Kong. We look forward to working closely with the HKMA in building a vibrant ecosystem for SMEs in both jurisdictions.”

A New Zealand dollar-pegged stablecoin has gone live through a partnership with New Zealand crypto exchange Easy Crypto and Australian blockchain development firm Labrys.

In a Nov. 22 announcement, Labrys and Easy Crypto said the NZDD will be backed 1:1 with cash in trust and regulated by the New Zealand Financial Markets Authority.

It’s initially live on Ethereum but has plans to expand to Polygon, the BNB Smart Chain, Arbitrum, Optimism and Coinbase’s Base.

Easy Crypto was motivated to launch the stablecoin as it claimed it was harder for New Zealanders to maximize their profits when using U.S. dollar-pegged tokens.

Easy Crypto co-founder and CEO Janine Grainger said the NZDD bridges the gap with traditional finance and claimed it would “move NZ forward as a nation, giving us a digital, programmable currency that can do everything the NZD can do.”

Related: Binance launches New Zealand-based offices following regulatory approval

Alongside the stablecoin, Easy Crypto introduced a multicurrency self-custody wallet protected by multiparty computation cryptography by enlisting the user’s “trusted social circle” with parts of the key instead of a seed phrase.

Keep an eye out for an upcoming episode with Easy Crypto talking about the new wallet and new #stablecoin!
#NZDD #investing #alternative #assets #realdiversification pic.twitter.com/Wt9EPq1Gri

— Darcy Ungaro (@UngaroDarcy) November 21, 2023

An August report commissioned by the New Zealand’s parliament said the country has taken an “agile” approach to crypto regulation. It recommend that problems are “addressed as they arise and that the government creates “coherent and consistent guidance on the treatment of digital assets under current law.”

Earlier attempts to launch a NZ dollar-pegged stablecoin include the 2021 launch of $NZDs by Australian financial services provider Techemyny.

However, in 2022, the bridge used by the stablecoin was blacklisted after the hack of the DFX Finance protocol in November 2022 leaving a large portion of funds stranded on the Polygon blockchain.

Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom