Each week we take a look at some of the latest fintech news to hit the UK sector. This week, Yapily launches open banking solution on AWS Marketplace and Over a third of millennials say financial anxiety is hindering job performance.
Atom take on the Big 6 with new savings rates
Atom bank has increased the rates on its range of Instant and fixed-rate savings products for the second time this year, as it leads the drive to put value back into the UK savings market.
Atom’s Instant Saver now offers 75x times more rewards than Lloyds, HSBC and Barclays’ equivalent products.
Mark Mullen, Chief Executive Officer at Atom, said: “In contrast to most banks, who continue to offer rock bottom rates to savers, we have increased the rates across our savings range for the second time this year. Savers have had it rough for a long time, and traditional high street banks have done very little to support them for many years. The notion that many banks take away the umbrella just as it starts to rain is clearly illustrated by their reluctance to pass on the returns they are making and the recent base rate movements to savers.”
Charities adopt ‘new digital’ by using expense management app
Community charities are turning to digital apps to help them go cashless and improve their operational effectiveness, say expense management app provider Expend.
Johnny Vowles, founder and CEO of Expend explains: “Charities which focus on social support for their clients often need to manage cash, as part of the process of helping with daily tasks, such as shopping.
“Covid restrictions meant that cash handling became an infection risk, so charities turned to Expend for technology which could help. Through the use of an expense management app, community charities have been able to continue with cashless operations. So, they can continue to serve their local neighbourhoods safely and effectively. Also, an expense management app reduces the security risks associated with handling cash.”
Digital Pound Foundation announces partnership with CryptoUK
The Digital Pound Foundation (DPF) has announced a new strategic partnership with CryptoUK as part of its plans to foster a stronger ecosystem for new forms of digital money in the UK.
Ian Taylor, Executive Director of CryptoUK commented: “We are always looking for ways to ensure our community evolves and grows in relation to the challenges the crypto industry in the UK faces. Partnering with DPF to enable the success of the work both organisations are driving around advocacy and regulation will prove to be an essential element of the whole crypto ecosystem in the UK. We look forward to working with them to support both our objectives, and those of our community.”
Crypto exchange Paybis lowers its minimum purchase limits to USD 5
Paybis, an online crypto exchange, has lowered its minimum purchase limits for its crypto transactions. Customers can now buy Bitcoin and dozens of other popular currencies starting from just $5. This makes Paybis the only major crypto exchange to offer this service.
With the new limits, Paybis hopes to encourage more people who are interested in crypto to actually make their first purchase. If they already have some crypto, this is a great opportunity to diversify their portfolio.
Guiide raises more investment to improve retirement outcomes
Scottish fintech Guiide has undertaken another round of funding for further innovations based on its retirement planning platform.
Primarily the funding will be used to develop Guiide+, an extension to its free online pension modelling tools. One key feature, the Dashboard and Track function will be the first fully holistic retirement dashboard, allowing users to include live pension pots values, along with non-pension savings and income all in one place.
Founder of Guiide Kevin Hollister stated “Our continued goal is to simplify the word “pensions”, for as many savers as possible, helping them understand how to get the best retirement outcome and protecting them against bad outcomes at no cost to them and the recent funding round will support Guiide to achieve this goal.”
London Royal Parks install contactless giving devices
GoodBox, the fintech revolutionising how we give, has partnered with The Royal Parks charity to offer their award-winning contactless devices throughout the parks. The aim is to help increase donations from the general public to raise much-needed funds for the conservation, maintenance and upkeep of the parks.
The Royal Parks charity is keen to raise awareness of the importance of the parks to London and the need for donations to keep these precious spaces beautiful. The eight Royal parks provide exceptional green spaces right in the heart of the capital, allowing locals and visitors to escape from the hustle and bustle of the city.
GoodBox Co-Founder & Managing Director Francesca Hodgson says, “The team at GoodBox are so pleased we could help the iconic Royal parks in London with our contactless technology. 2021 was another tough year for charitable donations, but I am sure the generosity of the UK public will help the charity to raise much-needed funds.”
Yapily launches open banking solution on AWS Marketplace to expand cloud offering
Open banking infrastructure provider Yapily has launched its first listing on AWS Marketplace, a digital catalogue featuring more than 12,000 products and services.
The collaboration brings wider access to Yapily’s next-generation financial data and payment initiation solutions for customers already using AWS cloud services. This will enable businesses across Europe to develop more innovative and personalised experiences for their customers.
Christian Ball, Head of Partnerships at Yapily, said: “This is an exciting development in our work with AWS. Together, we are bringing access to open banking infrastructure to a wider audience, helping organisations design and develop more inclusive and efficient products and services in the Cloud. Open banking is just the start of the journey towards open finance; it’s critical that organisations have simple and seamless access to the right technology, as well as the ability to test their services, along the way.”
Over a third of millennials say financial anxiety is hindering job performance
Mintago surveyed 436 UK adults, all in full-time employment and aged between 18 and 34. It found that while 48% consider their workplace pension to be a significant workplace benefit, 51% do not know how much they pay into their pension each month. 66% of young employees do not check on their pension savings regularly. The majority (54%) say they find pension savings to be daunting. Over a third (36%) of 18-34-year-olds feel their job performance is being negatively impacted by financial worries. Conversely, just 9% of employees aged 55 and over feel this way.
Chieu Cao, CEO of Mintago, said: “An employer should not just auto-enrol staff in a workplace pension and then consider this box to be ticked. Businesses must help employees to better understand their pension scheme, the benefits of saving and make it easier for employees to change their contributions. Improving access to financial information for employees, such as the size of their pension pots and how best to manage them, needs to be prioritised by organisations. Doing so will benefit employees by putting their mind at ease and enhancing their overall wellbeing.”
