The Weekly Wrap: all you need to know by Friday COB | January 12th

By Puja Sharma

The Weekly Wrap is published every Friday and recaps the week’s main stories and deals, as well as upcoming events and announcements. For Prime subscribers only.

The Big Story

China approves Mastercard for domestic payments: Mastercard’s joint venture in China, Mastercard NUCC Information Technology (Beijing), has received formal approval to start domestic payments.

The PBOC granted Mastercard in-principle approval over three years ago to begin the formal preparations needed to set up a domestic bankcard clearing institution.

Payments firm claims it has already laid the foundation for its infrastructure, rules, structures, and standards as per local regulatory requirements, including obtaining requisite certificates.

Ling Hai, chairman of the board of Mastercard NUCC and co-president, international markets at Mastercard, said the venture aims to act “as an active partner, working to expand issuance and acceptance of Mastercard-branded products for the benefit of local businesses and consumers”.

Deals of the week

• Paytm to invest $12m in GIFT City for AI-driven cross-border payments
• Swiss PayTech Rivero raises $7m Series A to supercharge growth
•  Mylapay, Indian FinTech start-up raises $550k in seed round
• UK FinTech ZILO raises $27m Series A funding
• Yellow Card & Coinbase to expand access to digital assets in Africa
• ACI Worldwide to power payments for UK retailer Co-op in cloud
• Emirates Islamic launches digital wealth offering & equity trading on its mobile banking app
• Visa and CIBC collaborate for instant global remittances
• ACI Worldwide to power payments for UK retailer Co-op in cloud

Be on the lookout for

A major FinTech and digital finance event in Asia, Wiki Finance Expo Hong Kong is scheduled for May 17, 2024. A prominent fixture on the global financial calendar, this event attracts industry experts, decision-makers, and innovators from around the globe.

The Wiki Finance Expo Hong Kong 2024 is part of the Wiki Finance Expo series, which hosts large-scale summits in major financial centers such as Singapore, Sydney, Dubai, Malaysia, and Bangkok. Hong Kong is aiming to establish itself as a premier global destination for virtual asset companies this year. The Expo aligns perfectly with Hong Kong’s ambitions, dedicated to supporting the growth and prosperity of the city’s FinTech and Web3 ecosystem.