Digital Financial News

Systematic investment plans through mutual funds (MFs) are the best way to meet your long-term financial goals. Financial planners or advisers will vouch for that. Yet, not many retail investors stay committed to their long-term plans. Only 54% of retail money remained invested in equity mutual funds for more than two years in 2020, as per data from the Association of Mutual Funds in India. The rest was redeemed for various reasons. Notably, investors do have the option of borrowing money against their MF units. Not many are exercising this option. Thus, a very small fraction of assets under management of the MF industry has been pledged. Firms like Bajaj Finance and Mirae Asset Financial Services, and startups such as VoltMoney are now working to change this scenario.

The warm months of 2023 haven’t been a vacation for Charles Schwab Corp.

UPI), crossed 10 billion monthly transactions in August, confirmed the Reserve Bank’s non-profit agency, National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI). In a tweet, the body confirmed that payments made on UPI crossed this feat on Wednesday. Monthly transaction count on UPI crossed 10.24 billion on 30 August, with net transaction value of ₹15.18 trillion.

Spanning diverse industries, from technology and finance to healthcare and consumer goods, these companies have impacted the corporate landscape through their visionary leadership and holistic approach to business. The stories of these companies demonstrate resilience and strides towards making contributions to India's economic progress.1. Marolix Technology Solutions Pvt LtdMarolix Technologies, a pioneering software solution and consulting company, is at the forefront of India's digital transformation landscape.

Qraft Technologies, a fintech firm aiming to drive growth in the asset management industry through its innovations in artificial intelligence (AI) and investing, has announced a strategic alliance with Hex Trust, a fully-licensed and insured digital asset custodian led by veteran banking technologists and award-winning financial services experts. This partnership, solidified by the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding («MoU»), will see Qraft developing digital asset products rooted in its AI-driven asset allocation models, tailored specifically for Hex Trust's clientele.

A digital asset company called Prometheum Ember Capital LLC has recently gained attention for being named the first Special Purpose Broker-Dealer (SPBD) for digital assets. Republican members of the House Financial Services Committee have expressed reservations about this decision, leading them to  ask   the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for explanation.

Central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), sometimes known as digital versions of fiat money backed by governments, are acquiring a substantial amount of traction around the globe. 93% of central banks are now involved in operations connected to CBDCs, and four retail CBDCs are already in full circulation, according to statistics from the Bank for International Settlements.

CME Group, a leading global derivatives marketplace, in collaboration with CF Benchmarks, a prominent provider of cryptocurrency benchmark indices, has announced the launch of two new APAC-specific reference rates for Bitcoin and Ether. These rates, named the CME CF Bitcoin Reference Rate APAC (BRRAP) and CME CF Ether-Dollar Reference Rate APAC (ETHUSD_AP), are set to be introduced on September 11. They will offer a daily reference rate for the U.S. dollar value of these two digital assets, with the publication time slated for 4 p.m. Hong Kong/Singapore time.

HUAWEI CLOUD, the cloud service division of global technology titan Huawei, has officially entered into a «Memorandum of Understanding (MoU)» with COBO, a frontrunner in digital asset custody solutions. This landmark announcement was made during an exclusive, closed-door event.

On August 15, Google unveiled a transformative series of updates to its iconic search engine. These changes, rooted in advanced generative AI technologies, are set to redefine the paradigms of online content discovery and comprehension.

OKX, a global beacon in the crypto exchange and Web3 technology realm trusted by over 50 million users, and CoinRoutes, renowned for its algorithmic trading strategies and standing as a pinnacle in institutional-grade crypto trade Execution Management System (EMS), have announced the deepening of their collaboration. This OKX CoinRoutes collaboration aims to provide a comprehensive suite of API-enabled trading services, specifically tailored for the growing demands of institutional users.

Unified payments interface (UPI)has crossed the historical mark of 10 billion transactions for the first time in the month of August, National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) said on Thursday. «Drumroll please! UPI has just shattered records with an astonishing 10 billion plus transactions. Join us in celebrating this incredible milestone and the power of digital payments.

Tech Mahindra, a leading provider of digital transformation, consulting, and business re-engineering services and solutions, today introduced green transportation for employees in its Noida campus. The green transportation initiative aims to strengthen Tech Mahindra’s zero carbon footprint ambition and improve fuel economy while reducing harmful emissions.

public comments on a proposal putting in place additional measures for the account aggregator framework to curb misuse of financial information like fraud and mis-selling. The Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) had placed a consultation paper on August 1 seeking comments on the proposal by August 31. «It has been decided to extend the timeline for submission of comments to September 15,» the regulator said in a notice. An Account Aggregator (AA), a RBI-regulated Non-Banking Finance Company (NBFC), helps an individual securely and digitally access and share information from one financial institution they have an account with to any other regulated financial institution in the AA network. AAs cannot see or store customer data since the data processed through them is encrypted, they merely transmit it from one financial institution to another based on a customer's direction and consent. In its consultation paper, Sebi stated that there could be certain situations in the securities market when the «financial information» of a client could be sought using the AA framework.

The bulls have not favored Fantom (FTM) and Cardano (ADA), as both saw a drop in prices on weekly charts. Yet, Everlodge attracts an impressive amount in its presale. Fantom (FTM) is one of the leading DeFi services.

critical network downtime in the metropolis, as service providers are suffering from widespread «intentional» fibre cuts by local cable operators (LCOs) across several localities, the Cellular Operators Association of India claimed on Thursday. Such «unwarranted coercive actions» from unauthorised entities to «skew» fair competition and limit the customers' choice of service providers, is «completely unfair and unjustified», it said in a statement. The telecom service providers (TSPs) are not even being allowed to acquire fresh connections by the LCOs, the COAI claimed. «The telecom industry is facing a critical network downtime situation in Kolkata, as the TSPs are suffering from widespread intentional fibre cuts/damage by Local Cable Operators (LCOs) across several localities within the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and surrounding non-KMC areas, which is resulting in the customers suffering due to lack of essential digital connectivity,» it said. «The field team(s) of our member TSPs are also being prevented from restoration work, by being threatened/manhandled and hostilely obstructed by the LCOs, leading to exorbitant delays, which is affecting their commitment to restore connectivity within the minimum turn-around time,» COAI Director General Lt Gen S P Kochhar was quoted as saying in the statement.

India is one of the biggest edtech centres in the world and is among the key markets of US-based Anthology, its recently-appointed CEO Bruce Dahlgren said. Anthology, a global edtech company, is operational in 80 countries and has 150 million consumers. It is present in India since 2000 and has three offices — two in Bengaluru and one in Chennai. «I made it a point to ensure that I come to India in my first few weeks itself because of the importance of technology and the people here,» Dahlgren, who is visiting the country for the first time after taking charge of the Florida-based company a few weeks earlier, told PTI. Without sharing details about its India presence, the company said they are among the global leaders in the edtech sector. Dahlgren said more than 25 per cent of its employees are Indian. «Much of the innovation and concepts around the future come from India.

Although America is penned “the land of the free,” our freedom comes with exceptions. While some of these restrictions are in the name of civilian safety, what’s happening online isn’t for the greater good — it’s just for lining Big Tech’s pockets and consolidating digital power to the few.

digital economy and exports, including a cross-border logistics partnership with India Post. According to a report by ET Government, the plan extends e-commerce export opportunities to numerous small enterprises, while also collaborating with Indian Railways for faster delivery. Reportedly, Amazon aims to introduce AI-based seller assistance and open logistics capabilities for D2C brands.

The banking co-operative in June announced that it was working with more than a dozen financial institutions and market infrastructures to test the use of its messaging network as a means to instruct the transfer of tokenised value over a range of public and private blockchain networks.Participants in the project include Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Limited (ANZ), BNP Paribas, BNY Mellon, Citi, Clearstream, Euroclear, Lloyds Banking Group, SIX Digital Exchange (SDX) and The Depository Trust & Clearing Corporation. Web3 services platform Chainlink was used as an enterprise abstraction layer to securely connect the Swift network to the Ethereum Sepolia network, while Chainlink’s Cross-Chain Interoperability Protocol (CCIP) enabled interoperability between the source and destination blockchains.Transfers of simulated tokenised assets took place - between two wallets on the same public distributed ledger technology network; between two wallets on different public blockchains; and between a public and private blockchain network.Tom Zschach, chief innovation officer at Swift says the findings have the potential to remove significant friction slowing the growth of tokenised asset markets and enable them to scale globally as they mature."For tokenisation to reach its potential, institutions will need to be able to seamlessly connect with the whole financial ecosystem," he says.

Kelleher International, is undoubtedly one such individual. With her extensive expertise as a world-renowned relationship expert and professional matchmaker, Amber has not only transformed her family's boutique matchmaking firm into a global powerhouse but has also made an indelible mark on the history of matchmaking itself. Amber's journey in the world of matchmaking began over two decades ago when she took the reins of her mother's San Francisco-based matchmaking company.