CBDC developments fuel debate

Most central banks are working on developing some form of sovereign digital currency. But are they paying attention to the right things?

Political opposition from the likes of Donald Trump have not stemmed the flow of global projects aimed at developing CBDCs.

130 countries are exploring a CBDC, 19 of the G20 countries are now in advanced stages, and 11 countries have fully launched a digital currency.

There are those who question whether we need a fiat digital currency at all and whether projects address more pressing monetary concerns.

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Trump’s $355M Penalty: New York Lawyer Breaks Down the Impacts - WSJ

A New York judge ordered Donald Trump and his business to pay $355 million for misrepresenting his wealth for financial gain. Veteran New York trial and appellate lawyer Mark Zauderer explains what’s at stake for Trump’s business empire.

A Collaborative Approach to Fighting Financial Crime

Tony Sio, Head of Regulatory Strategy and Innovation of Nasdaq's Anti-Financial Crime division, discusses how Nasdaq helps root out bad actors in the financial industry by providing tools like Nasdaq Market Surveillance and Nasdaq Trade Surveillance.

Remember WeWork? Well Adam is Back!

Adam Neumann has been trying to buy WeWork - the company he cofounded out of bankruptcy — allegedly with the help of the hedge fund manager Dan Loeb of Third Point. 

Neumann’s new real estate company "Flow" has sent a letter to WeWork requesting that they consider its takeover approach. Flow has already raised $350 million from the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz, disclosed in the letter that Loeb’s Third Point would help finance a transaction. 

The Financial Times contacted Third Point to verify their involvement in the deal and were told that the fund had only held “preliminary conversations with Flow and Adam Neumann about his ideas for WeWork.” They went on to say that they have made “no commitment to participate in any transaction.”

Why Bitcoin ETFs Flopped So Badly

For the past few months the much anticipated approval of Bitcoin spot ETFs has been the major driver of sentiment in the crypto markets. 

On January 11th the ETFs were indeed approved. But in the fist 2 weeks since launch the inflows have been paltry and the Bitcoin price has declined by ~15%. 

So why did the ETFs fail to live up to expectations?

AI & Business Efficiency

Artificial intelligence is transforming the way businesses operate, and many are seizing the opportunity to gain a competitive edge through automation.

Although forward-thinking businesses are embracing AI to streamline their operations, others are approaching this emerging technology with caution. And by doing so, they may be overlooking the potential benefits, especially if they continue relying on outdated systems and manual processes.

In a recent PaymentsJournal webinar, Ahsan Shah, Senior Vice President, Data Analytics, at Billtrust, and Christopher Miller, Lead Analyst of Emerging Payments at Javelin Strategy & Research, delved into just how far AI has come over the past few years, particularly in the realm of generative AI and deep learning, and how businesses can successfully leverage AI within their operations.

Read more HERE.

The 50 Hottest FinTech Startups That Are Driving The Industry

The past year has been painful for the financial technology industry, with publicly traded fintech stocks languishing 50% below their late 2021 peak, even as the S&P 500 has surged to new highs. Venture capital funding for fintech startups is even more depressed–it fell more than 70% from $141 billion worldwide in 2021 to $39 billion in 2023, according to CB Insights. Both layoffs and fire sales have spread. 

Yet Forbes' new 2024 Fintech 50 list is packed with extraordinary entrepreneurs who have adapted and flourished in this environment. Three categories that primarily serve other businesses—Payments, Wall Street & Enterprise and Business to Business Banking–made the strongest showing, accounting for 27 of our 50 picks and seven of the 13 first-time honorees on this year’s list, Forbes ninth annual honor roll of the most innovative private businesses in fintech. 

Forbes Senior Editor, Jeff Kauflin, and reporter Emily Mason sat down in studio to break down this year's list and highlight some of its newcomers and trends.