USA

While I was COO at Revolut, Vlad Yatsenko - the company’s Co-Founder & CTO - commented a number of times about how opportunity cost of time is typically the biggest cost in a scaling company, and I’ve come to realise this is more and more true.

The US fintech scene is moving like a bat out of hell. But experts have pointed out it was pretty late to the party.

Despite being hailed as transparent and secure, the cryptocurrency industry has been beset by fraud, scams and general crisis in recent months.

It’s the final week of our One Fintech Nation series in association with Tech Nation. Here’s a quick review of our latest incredible podcast episode looking at how we can unite the nation in fintech and how everyone in the industry can work together. You can/should/need/have to listen to it now.

Sharing our stories, our challenges, and the things that truly matter to us. Today we talk to Clouston Mahon who is a UX lead in the 11:FS Pulse team to discuss what makes a great user experience, who is doing it well and looking outside of financial services for inspiration.

Last year, we debated digital payments and whether they’re the future. At the time, it seemed like the answer was a resounding “yes". In the meantime, a global pandemic has emerged and transformed consumer behaviour in all areas of life — including the ways in which we pay. But the question is, will this be a permanent change or will we revert to our pre-pandemic ways once it’s safe to do so? And if we do fast-forward to a completely cashless society, what will the implications be?

So it’s official: Varo Money is well on its way to becoming the first fintech firm with a full-service national bank charter. All it took was three years and a hundred million dollars...

TL;DR: More closures are coming, Libra probably isn’t launching in 2020 (at least not in its current form) and blockchain’s next sleeper hit is already here.

On the last American holiday before Christmas, we look at the performance of three companies across the pond.

Last week, 11:FS hosted its first After Dark in NYC, bringing together the local fintech community and curious thinkers to talk tech trends and the Big Apple’s advantage for startups.

Arguably the most interesting fintech conference around arrived in Las Vegas for its North American installment and there was plenty to discuss.

America has seemed a beacon of prosperity for as long as anyone can remember. But a closer look into the state of American household finances reveals a bleak picture.