The Monday Roundup: what we are watching this week | March 18th

By Puja Sharma

The Monday Roundup sets the scene for the week’s biggest news stories, industry deals, and upcoming events. For Prime subscribers only.

My Mutual Fund GPT

Klarna, the AI-powered payments network and shopping assistant, has begun to roll out open banking-powered settlements in the UK.

The launch follows that consumers can pay Klarna directly from their bank account instead of using a debit card, bypassing card networks. Klarna has already launched open banking settlements for its Pay Now instant payment option, and ‘Pay in 30’ and ‘Pay in 3’ are scheduled for later in 2024.

The launch of Klarna’s 18 million UK customers gives open banking a significant boost in the UK, where approximately 5 million Brits use open banking payments each month.

For consumers, open banking settlements are simple, secure, and instant. There is no need to enter payment details into an unknown retailer’s website. To make the payment, a consumer clicks on ‘Pay by bank,’ which takes them to their mobile banking app, where they complete the payment quickly and securely.

Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC (ABSLAMC), incorporated in the year 1994, has launched its latest innovation, MyMutualFundGPT, an information tool designed to elevate the overall investor experience across their digital platforms.

MyMutualFundGPT is the first search assist tool for investor queries. The Gen AI-based tool goes beyond traditional keyword matching by comprehending the context of queries and generates responses based on the meaning.

The tool addresses investors’ queries regarding Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC Limited’s products and services. In addition, it also helps Investors to conduct research on our top-performing funds, fund managers, and related topics.

Long-term payment partnership

Visa, Merex Investment, and PayMate have partnered to digitise rental collections through Visa’s BPSP solution provided by PayMate.

Visa’s BPSP solution allows payment to be made on card rails to be received by non-card accepting suppliers into their bank account by integrating with PayMate’s platform. By adopting this solution, Merex Investment will be able to collect rental receivables into their bank account through commercial card payments made by their tenants in the UAE.

“We are pleased to partner with Visa and PayMate to transform rental collections in the retail B2B sector. By leveraging Visa’s BPSP solution, we digitize payments, enhance efficiency, and drive transparency. This strategic alliance reflects our commitment to tenant experience and growth, empowering us with valuable insights for informed decision-making and improved business planning. With industry-leading solutions from Visa and PayMate, we look forward to delivering exceptional services to our valued tenants”, said Shahram Shamsaee, CEO, Merex Investment.

Worldline Italia, a specialist in payments services, has entered exclusive negotiations with Cassa Centrale Group to launch a long-term payment partnership.

The collaboration provides services along the value chain of digital payment acceptance and international acquisition for the 66 Group’s Bank Affiliates, owning 1,480 branches in Italy. The project involves the supply and management of POS terminals and the exclusive acquisition of international circuits for more than 90,000 POS terminals, generating transacted volumes of more than Є9 billion in 2023.

Stefano Calderano, CEO of Worldline Merchant Services Italy, said, “We are particularly pleased and honoured to have been selected by a major group like Cassa Centrale. This is a recognition of our distinctive ability in the Italian market with a competitive and cutting-edge offering, but most importantly, with a winning business support and assistance model for banks. This partnership allows us to combine our international experience with our Italian know-how and attention to the territory, thanks to the numerous existing partnerships with major Financial Institutions in the country, including BNL / BNP Paribas, Banco Desio, and Banca del Fucino.”

What is the buzz

Increased compliance regulations from the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) might lead banks to favor partnerships with larger FinTech firms for co-branded card ventures. Bankers express concerns over potential non-compliance with RBI regulations, fearing that smaller fintech companies may lack the necessary expertise and resources to fully comprehend and adhere to regulatory mandates.

Following amendments to credit and debit card regulations by the RBI on March 7, banks have grown cautious about collaborating with smaller fintech companies for co-branded cards. The central bank’s revisions to the master direction on credit and debit cards now require issuers to implement a strong system for monitoring fund utilization.