Financial Services are significant in Europe, accounting for over 9% of economic output. London and Frankfurt
EU DORA: What Financial Firms and FinTechs Must Know
The EU Digital Operational Resilience Act became mandatory on 17.01.2025 and seeks to improve operational risk and business continuity in EU financial services. With 70+ pages and hundreds of requirements, DORA sets a new standard for financial services ICT
EU DORA: Regulators announce Critical ICT Third-Party Providers
On 18.11.2025 the European Supervisory Authorities announced 19 information and communications companies as Critical Third-Party Providers (CTPPs) under DORA.
Fintech in Estonia: Europe’s Digital Finance Leader
Estonia has 200-250 fintech companies. Key segments of the industry are Digital Lending, Payments, Neobanking, Crypto Assets and Regtech. Understand the environment, trends and key players.
What is payment tokenization? How PSPs improve a payment journey
Payment tokenization is a technique that replaces sensitive card data, such as name and primary account number (PAN), with a unique random code. Tokens are ideal for storing sensitive data against financial crime such as unauthorised access (internal fraud) and data breaches (external hack). Tokens increase sales by reducing the need to re-key data,
The credit card payment journey: Key players and risks
Credit cards are a huge market. In the US, they are the dominant payments method, accounting for 31-40% of total with an annual value of USD 5tn. 800m credit cards are in circulation with total debt exceeding USD 1.2 tn, the average cardholder has 3.9 credit cards and USD 6.7k debt. In
What is Electronic Money? Considerations for Corporates and EMIs
To be classified as e-Money, certain characteristics must be fulfilled: What are examples of Electronic Money? Why does Electronic Money Matter? For corporates, e-Money is an alternative to traditional bank accounts and payment rails. e-Money is flexible and able to cover numerous use cases, currencies, and enable real-time transactions. Often cheaper
What are interchange fees and why do they matter?
Interchange fees are the costs applied to a merchant when a customer makes a credit or debit card payment. The fee is collected by the payment acquirer and then apportioned to the card issuer, card network and acquirer. Example of interchange fees? For an EUR 100 card payment the unit economics
Trends in global Financial Crime 2024
According to NASDAQ, USD 3.1tn in illicit flows and money laundering activity flowed through the global financial system in 2023. The most prevalent money laundering crimes were USD 783bn in drug trafficking, USD 347bn in human trafficking and USD 12bn in terrorist financing. Money laundering estimates are the money flowing […]