Insights Archive

November 23, 2021

Four Banks Struck With Hefty Fines From Hong Kong Regulator

Financial institutions operating on the island have been fined for failing to comply with anti-money laundering regulations, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority has announced.

November 23, 2021

BNPL Costs May Outweigh Value, Kansas Fed Warns

If buy now, pay later (BNPL) becomes a preferred payment method, the service may cost more for merchants than what it brings in, the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas has warned, adding that it is unlikely for U.S. regulators to step in to mitigate merchant costs.

November 23, 2021

Georgia's Prime Minister Weighing Online Casino Ban

During a government meeting on Monday, the Georgian Prime Minister announced plans to raise taxes for online casinos, ban gambling ads and raise the legal age for gambling to 25, but warned he is also considering a total ban on online casinos.

November 23, 2021

Tanzania Advertising Code Includes TV, Radio 'Blackout'

The Gaming Board of Tanzania has proposed a new code of practice for gambling adverts which would see a TV and radio “blackout” from Monday to Friday between 6am and 9am.

November 23, 2021

Federal Judge Throws Out Florida-Seminole Compact, Halts Sports Betting

A U.S. District Court judge late Monday night invalidated the Seminole Tribe’s landmark new gaming compact with the state of Florida, bringing an abrupt end to the state’s mobile sports betting offering.

November 22, 2021

FinCEN Says Payments Processors Must Report Suspected Environmental Crime

The U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) has released an advisory document, guiding financial institutions on how to file suspicious activity reports related to environmental crime, after finding an upward trend in this type of crime.

November 22, 2021

Cybersecurity Rules Tightened For U.S. Banks

The three federal US financial regulators have issued a new cyber rule for banks - meaning that they need to report cyber incidents within 36 hours.

November 22, 2021

ECB: We Don’t Want To Compete In the Payments Landscape

The digital euro is an instrument, not a commercial product, a European Central Bank (ECB) official has told members of the European Parliament.

November 22, 2021

India’s Paytm Loses Quarter Of Share Value, While Regulator Plots New IPO Rules

India's largest initial public offering (IPO) ended on a sour note as shares in mobile payments app Paytm tumbled 27 percent on the first day of trading. Meanwhile, regulators look to tighten rules relating to IPOs as stock market activity reaches fever pitch.

November 22, 2021

California Tribes Urged To Embrace Risks Of Sports Betting

Tribes in California and other Indian gaming markets have been advised to focus on on-premises mobile sports betting and embrace the risks associated with legal sports wagering, rather than view it as a mere amenity within their casino-resorts.

November 22, 2021

Malta Gambling Conference Draws Flak Over COVID-19 Protocols, Strip-Tease Act

The SiGMA Europe conference in Malta last week was dogged by controversies ranging from concerns about COVID-19 precautions to a strip-tease act at an exhibitor’s booth that was quickly squelched.

November 19, 2021

Urgent Intervention Needed For Stablecoins, Warns ECB

Central banks should take advantage of stablecoins current low risks and build up a regulatory framework, the European Central Bank (ECB) has declared in its Financial Stability Review.

November 19, 2021

PSR Would Require Banks To Publish APP Fraud Data And Offer Mandatory Reimbursement

The UK Payments Systems Regulator (PSR) has published a consultation paper on authorised push payment (APP) scams, proposing further measures to fight this form of fraud, which has grown significantly within the first half of the year.

November 19, 2021

Week In Brief - November 19, 2021

A short roundup of some of the week's payments news you may have missed. This week we look at AML breaches in Switzerland, N26’s exit from the United States, changes to direct debit rules in Canada and new laws aimed at reducing wastage from digital products and services in France.

November 19, 2021

Off The Hook For Now? Swedish Authorities Conclude Investigation Against Klarna

The Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority (Finansinspektionen - FI) has “written off” its investigation into the buy now, pay later kingpin.

November 19, 2021

UK Review White Paper To Address Affordability, Online Stakes

Affordability and online restrictions similar to those imposed on fixed-odds betting terminals (FOBTs) will be looked at in the government's impending white paper on the Gambling Act review.

November 19, 2021

Arkansas Mobile Sports-Betting Rules Include Restrictive Revenue-Share Provision

Arkansas regulators voted Thursday to take the first step toward permitting mobile sports betting in the state, but potential operators expressed concern about a provision that would keep a majority of mobile revenues in the hands of Arkansas casinos.

November 19, 2021

Blackstone Offers $5.5bn In Third Bid To Buy Out Crown Resorts

Financial services heavyweight The Blackstone Group has launched a third attempt to acquire struggling Australian casino operator Crown Resorts.

November 19, 2021

News In Brief: November 15-November 19, 2021

British police warn against a growing trend of lottery fraud and Maryland issues delayed sports-betting licenses.

November 18, 2021

MEP Stresses Importance Of Full Implementation And Strong Enforcement Of EU AML Package

The EU has a chance to fill the gaps in its anti-money laundering (AML) framework, but it requires full implementation, strong enforcement and cooperation, the co-rapporteur of the proposal has said.

November 18, 2021

Visa Denied! Amazon To Start Blocking UK Payments From US Card Giant

In a case of bigtech v big scheme, Visa’s credit cards will no longer be able to be used for transactions on Amazon’s platform.