Global investment in fintech ventures tripled to $12,21 billion in 2014, confirming the sector to be a hot ticket for everyone thinking about becoming a “unicorn” enterprise, making a breakthrough in technologies or changing consumer experience. A new startup field boomed 5-7 years ago in the USA is gradually building its momentum in Russia. A confusing …
Since 2013, the Russian legislation on electronic payments has undergone several changes, in parallel with the development of a national payment platform. This article reviews the most significant developments as far as international players are concerned. E-wallets and prepaid cards In 2011, the law on payment systems changed Russia’s e-payments scene dramatically, with all e-wallet issuers and …
From bank cards to e-wallets: How new legislation is changing the Russian e-payment scene Read More
Sergei Solonin, general director and co-owner of Qiwi, a leading, NASDAQ-listed Russian payment operator, announced that his company plans to issue a Russian crypto-currency, called the BitRuble, in 2016. Qiwi intends to use either the Blockchain technology, which is the foundation for the Bitcoin, or the Bitshares financial platform, which is a sort of decentralized crypto-currency …
Earlier this month Sberbank, Russia’s national savings bank, and Uber announced that they signed a Memorandum of Understanding “to explore the co-development of financial technology with global potential.” For example, Uber could use Sberbank’s sophisticated mobile payment technologies to improve the ease with which new Uber users verify their account and pay securely. “Paying for your ride electronically …
Sberbank and Uber agree financial technology partnership Read More
Russian banks now offer customers a new way to pay for purchases. In mid-July, Alfa Bank started selling Austrian Watch2pay watches, and it was soon followed by Center-Invest, based in Rostov-on-Don. Gazprombank and AK Bars in Kazan, however, introduced the gadget even earlier, in April 2013. The watch has a built-in bank card with MasterCard …
Payment watches take first steps in Russian market Read More
Over the past few weeks Russian National Payment Card System (NPCS) reached agreements with American Express, Mastercard and Japan’s JCB about the issuance of co-badged cards. Announced in June at the St. Petersburg Economic Forum, the agreement with Mastercard came as the first international co-badged card project for Russia’s young national payment system. Similar agreements were announced in early July with …
Earlier this month BitFury, a major Bitcoin Blockchain infrastructure provider and transaction processing company, secured $20 million in funding from Russia’s iTech Capital, Georgian Co-Investment Fund and DRW Venture Capital. No details of the deals were disclosed. BitFury declined to answer EWDN’s questions. The raise, its third in two years, brings the company’s total to $60 million, …
Last week IQcard, a startup offering prepaid cards and monetization instruments for retailers’ loyalty programs, has raised an undisclosed amount from Finteca Holdings, a new fintech fund investing in Russia and Eastern Europe. Inspired by such international models as Greendot in the USA, IQcard was founded in 2012 by Fastlane Ventures, a Moscow-based startup investment firm and incubator. In 2013, the …
“A Russian scientist made a breakthrough”: this is how many global media outlets have described the new quantum key protection technology for bank cards developed by Viktor Petrik. The scientist seemingly proposed a brilliant solution for the problem of data leakage. According to Petrik, the magnetic strip and the electronic chips are the weakest link in the …
New technology for bank card protection: breakthrough or scheme of the century? Read More
Qiwi Venture, the investment arm of Russian electronic payment giant QIWI Group, has committed itself to invest an estimated $150,000 in Krawlly, as reported by Russian tech blog Firrma. This Russian startup is developing an Android mobile app, christened “AnyBalance,” that displays in one interface the balances of a user’s bank, mobile or ISP accounts. The startups claims …
Qiwi Venture invests $150,000 in mobile payment app AnyBalance Read More
Last week PayPal blocked a Russian account that was intended to fund large-scale publication of a critical report about Russia’s role in the Ukraine crisis. Released on May 12, the report was initiated by opposition leader Boris Nemtsov before he was murdered earlier this year. The US company explained that its service “does not offer the option of using its system to receive …
Yesterday Qiwi, a major, NASDAQ-listed Russian payment operator, announced the full acquisition of SAER, a holding company that owns the Contact money transfer system and the Rapida payment processing system. Under the terms of the agreement, QIWI will issue 5,593,041 class B shares to the current owner, Russian financial group Otkritie. Based on Qiwi’s current stock price on the …
Qiwi acquires payment operators Contact and Rapida Read More
