New Licensing Requirements for BNPL Companies to Protect Consumers

New Licensing Requirements for BNPL Companies to Protect Consumers
New Licensing Requirements for BNPL Companies to Protect Consumers

Hey FinTech Fanatic!

In Australia, Treasury has proposed reforms to the National Consumer Credit Protection Act, requiring Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services like Afterpay, Zip, and Humm to obtain a credit license and conduct thorough lending checks.

These measures aim to address issues such as unaffordable lending, poor complaint resolution, excessive late fees, and lack of transparency.

The changes, aligning with Treasury's previously suggested models, intend to integrate parts of the BNPL sector into existing consumer credit laws, ensuring lenders verify a customer's financial situation.

While some BNPL companies may need to adjust significantly, the industry broadly supports the initiative for fair regulation.

The draft laws have been released for public consultation until April 9, reflecting a move towards better consumer protection and industry standards.

More industry updates are listed for you below and I'll be back with more tomorrow!

Cheers,

Marcel


POST OF THE DAY

The German FinTech Ecosystem by Payment & Banking - PBA Experts GmbH.

Which 🇩🇪 companies are missing in this overview below? 👇


#FINTECHREPORT

The digital revolution is sweeping across Asia Pacific (APAC), and incumbent banks are facing a critical crossroads. Mambu's latest report explores the imperative of core modernization, unveils the risks of inertia, and presents a strategic approach to transformation that ensures future success.

Click here to learn more 


FINTECH NEWS

🇺🇸 Marqeta exceeds $1 billion in single day total processing volume (TPV). This new company milestone highlights the firm's ability to grow with its customers. With more brands embedding financial products into their offerings, its expertise in operating card programs at scale positions it well to meet market demands.

🇦🇺 ‘Lack of transparency’ to force credit licences on BNPL. Buy now, pay later services such as Afterpay, Zip and Humm will be required to hold a credit licence and conduct more onerous responsible lending checks under draft reforms released by Treasury. 

🇺🇸 Visa has teamed up with SAP-owned supply chain finance outfit Taulia to make embedded finance accessible to businesses worldwide. Visa and Taulia’s partnership will simplify payments across the business ecosystem by enabling virtual payment credentials to work natively across SAP business applications. 

🇺🇸 VoPay strengthens U.S. expansion with Cross River alliance. The collaboration aligns with VoPay's ambition to broaden its service offerings, facilitating access to an extensive range of sophisticated financial solutions and significantly enhancing its market presence.

🇲🇽 MeaWallet provides tokenization services for Mexican challenger Fondeadora. Tokenization and Digital Enablement lie at the heart of the MeaWallet and Fondeadora partnership. By replacing sensitive card information with unique digital identifiers, payment tokenization ensures secure transactions without exposing sensitive data


OPEN BANKING NEWS

🇬🇧 Bank payment company GoCardless has been named as a supplier on Crown Commercial Service’s (CCS) Open Banking Dynamic Purchasing System (DPS) framework, the ‘one-stop-shop’ for all open banking services for the public sector. This means GoCardless will be eligible to bid for AIS and PIS Request for Tenders issued by any UK public sector body that uses the DPS.

🇺🇸 Mastercard simplifies subscription management with Smart Subscriptionsan open-banking powered subscriptions management solution that financial institutions can easily plug into their consumer banking applications, leveraging Mastercard’s Subscriptions Control solution, which enables consumers to cancel, pause and resume their subscriptions.


DIGITAL BANKING NEWS

🇺🇸 Treasury Prime grows a bank network with OMB Bank to offer innovative embedded banking solutions to customers in the FinTech space. The partnership marks the latest addition to Treasury Prime’s industry-leading bank network, which now totals more than 15 financial institutions nationwide. 

🇬🇧 Metro Bank said it expects to deliver a further £30 million ($38.4 million) of cost cuts, as the lender continues an overhaul following its rescue in October. The bank plans to achieve more cost savings by year-end, in addition to the £50 million anticipated in Q1. Currently, the organization is reducing 1,000 roles, which accounts for 22% of its staff.

🇺🇸 Goldman Sachs Asset Management is reportedly planning a major expansion of its private credit portfolio. The Wall Street giant aims to grow that portfolio to $300 billion in five years, up from $130 billion, a senior executive told Reuters on March 12.  

🇺🇸 JPMorgan to launch biometric checkout next year. The bank’s payments unit plans to engage in more pilots this year before rolling out the checkout service broadly next year, said JPMorgan’s executive director of biometrics and identity solutions.


BLOCKCHAIN/CRYPTO NEWS

Coinbase announces offering of $1B in convertible notesThe notes would mature in 2030, according to the company, and would be offered to institutional investors. The stock jumped 18% in the past week after bitcoin notched new all-time highs and US bitcoin ETFs continued to beat records. 


DONEDEAL FUNDING NEWS

🇬🇧 PPRO, announced the completion of a dual tranche funding round totalling €85 million to pursue growth in key markets and further enhance its global network of local payment methods. “PPRO had a stellar 2023, delivering record revenue.” said Rahul Raswant, Chief Financial Officer, PPRO.


M&A

🇺🇸 TabaPay working on a deal to acquire Synapse, sources sayTerms of the deal could not immediately be discerned, including whether or not TabaPay is considering acquiring Synapse in its entirety or acquiring assets through a bankruptcy proceeding, given Synapse’s potential legal and regulatory exposure.

🇨🇭Levenue, Europe’s largest revenue based financing company, has acquired MidFunder, a Zurich based FinTech that provides financing for companies with recurring revenue. The acquisition marks a strategic move to enhance its Swiss operations. Read the full article.


MOVERS & SHAKERS

🇺🇸 Mastercard appoints Kiki Del Valle to lead North Division for Latin America and the Caribbean. With over 15 years of dedicated service to Mastercard, Kiki Del Valle brings a wealth of experience to her new role. Beyond her professional achievements, she is a gender advocate, actively championing diversity and inclusion within Mastercard. 


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