Tuesday, 7 July 2020

Startup Strategy: How can challenger banks differentiate themselves?


Please read what John Ellmore, Director, Know Your Money, has to say on how challenger banks are distinguishable for their modern fintech practices and how they further can differentiate.

Challenger banks have distinguished themselves by revolutionising the banking process. They pose a disruptive presence to retail banking across the value chain. It’s no secret that challenger banks employ attacking business models. With market saturation not far away, challenger banks can differentiate themselves more than ever and stand out from the crowd by -

1. Leveraging data they collect to generate insights, realise value and effect a hyperpersonal approach to their customers

2. Challenger banks would be well advised to seek streams of income from beyond the realm of traditional banking.

3. Driving down costs with digital capabilities by using data and analytics and leverage automation and AI to drive down the cost to serve, minimise human touchpoints and improve both cross-sell ratios and service levels.

4. Challenger banks would be well advised to vie for the finest talent by looking beyond the usual rewards to both attract and retain their workers.

5. Evolve the business strategy models

6. Reshaping the fintech ecosystem

Read on

How can challenger banks differentiate themselves?

Challenger banks are distinguishable for their modern fintech practices-but with market saturation never far away, how can they further differentiate?

FinTech News: Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) to review 14 bids for digital bank licences


The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) Authority of Singapore is to review 14 successful applicants for five available digital bank licences, in a concerted effort to inject competition into the banking sector by enabling non-bank players with innovative digital business models to offer banking services.

Applicants include e-commerce firms, technology and telecommunications companies, fintechs - such as crowd-funding platforms and payment services providers - and financial institutions. The majority of applicants are consortiums, says MAS, with entities seeking to combine their individual strengths to enhance the digital bank’s value proposition.

Publicly known bids include those from wealth management tech supplier iFast, gaming group Razer, ride-hailing firm Grab and telco Singtel, Chinese giant ANT Financial Services and Southeast Asian consumer internet company Sea Limited.

Read on

MAS to review 14 bids for digital bank licences

The Monetary Authority of Singapore is to review 14 successful applicants for five available digital bank licences, in a concerted effort to inject competition into the banking sector by enabling non-bank players with innovative digital business models to offer banking services.

Venture Capital: Sequoia launches $1.35B fund to invest in startups in India and South-East Asia


Sequoia Capital has announced the creation of two new funds totalling $1.35 billion dedicated to investment opportunities in India ans South-East Asia.

The two new investment vehicles of the marquee venture capital fund will be a $525 million venture fund and $825 million growth fund.

In a post on LinkedIn, Shailendra J Singh, Managing Director of Sequoia Capital, said, “Sequoia India now operates seed, venture and growth funds, a structure that allows Sequoia to remain a relevant partner for founders at all stages of their journey. The three Sequoia India funds will continue to invest across India and SEA.”

Read on

Sequoia launches $1.35B fund to invest in startups in India and South-East Asia

Sequoia Capital has announced the creation of two new funds totalling $1.35 billion dedicated to investment opportunities in India. The two new investment vehicles of the marquee venture capital fund will be a $525 million venture fund and $825 million growth fund.

Medical Technology: Rapid Diagnostics Device Developed Using Figure 4 Standalone | 3D Systems


A team of researchers at Imperial College London, led by Dr. Pantelis Georgiou, is tackling this problem head-on with a project called Lacewing for pathogen detection. Offering results within 20 minutes from a smartphone app synced to a cloud server, Lacewing makes disease testing portable, including SARD-CoV-2-RNA, and automates the tracking of disease progression through geotagging.

It is a sophisticated “lab-on-a-chip” platform that promises to fill the access- and information-gaps in the world of diagnostics by combining molecular biology and state-of-the-art technology. Whereas other diagnostics technology requires large and expensive optical equipment, the electrical sensing method and small size of Lacewing is a true evolution in approach.

The Lacewing platform is a molecular diagnostic test that works by identifying the DNA or RNA of a pathogen within a patient sample. This type of test makes it possible to determine not only if someone is infected with a certain disease (dengue, malaria, tuberculosis, COVID-19, etc.), but to what degree, which provides more insight into the severity of the symptoms.

Read on

Rapid Diagnostics Device Developed Using Figure 4 Standalone | 3D Systems

The Lacewing project out of Imperial College London is a lab-on-a-chip platform for diagnosing and tracking diseases, with key components 3D printed using 3D Systems' Figure 4 and biocompatible-capable materials.