The Finanser’s Week: 17th August – 23rd August 2015

Our main stories this week include ...

Mobile wallet wars: Apple Pay vs Samsung Pay vs Android Pay

I know I write about Apple Pay quite often, but was surprised to hear that one of my colleagues recently purchased an iMac in the Apple Store using his Apple Watch and Apple Pay.  Yes, he’s an Apple guy, but really?  A £1,000 purchase with a fingerprint?  I thought, as do most, that you could only make small transactions using contactless payments. In the UK under £20 (£30 from September 1) and in the USA under $25. 

What's happening with mobile money? [Infographic]

I'm a big fan of We are Social who publish a yearly in-depth review of the onward march of the mobile social internet.  The reason is that you can see how things are changing.  For example, in their 2012 stats, mobile subscriptions are highly active across the world, but Africa has a lot of potential.

There's a two-stream friction between old and new over blockchain, says Blythe Masters

I can’t attend every conference everywhere, but I have just found an interesting one I missed recently in New York on July 28.  This was American Banker’s Digital Currencies and the Blockchain Conference, previously known as just Digital Currencies.  It’s gained quite a lot of coverage, with a great summary of the whole day over here at Coindesk.  One of the big draws on the day was Blythe Masters’ opening keynote speech.

Can old banks keep up with new banks?

It’s interesting reflecting on my blog earlier this week from Blythe Masters speech on blockchain.  She mentioned the friction between the old system that works and the new system that’s being built, and how the two have to work together.  You have to migrate the old with minimum risk to the new, and the new needs to be built in such a way as to allow the old to catch up as a result.  This frustrates the new, as they don’t see why any of the old needs to be there; and it frustrates the old, as they want to renew but it’s too darned difficult.

The Finanser interviews: Guga Stocco, Head of Strategy and Innovation, Banco Original, Brazil

Following our regular weekly interview, the Finanser talks this week with Guga Stocco, Head of Strategy and Innovation, Banco Original, Brazil, and Co-Founder of Koolen&Partners Venture Capital.  A pure digital bank in Brazil, Banco Original is launched by the largest meat processing firm in the world, J&F.  Guga Stocco was brought into the business as an internet visionary, to shape up the bank's vision and shake up the market.

This week’s major news headlines include … 

Andy Murray goes on crowdfunding spree - The Telegraph
The tennis ace has made three investments on the Seedrs platform

JPMorgan, Goldman Sachs, Morgan Stanley to form data company: WSJ - Reuters
(Reuters) - JPMorgan Chase & Co , Goldman Sachs Group Inc and Morgan Stanley are working to create a company that will pull together and clean reams of data used to determine pricing and transaction costs, the Wall Street Journal reported.

A Bank for People Who Hate Banks - Bloomberg
Mondo CEO Tom Blomfield doesn't look like a typical banker, and he doesn't want his mobile app to behave like a typical bank.

How three internships cost an American bank $15m - The Telegraph
Bank of New York Mellon has paid $15m to settle claims it gave three internships to relations of clients to win work

A look inside Mondo, a bank that's just an app - Business Insider
Several startups are hard at work right now trying to build new, truly digital banks from the ground up. They include Atom Bank, which has a banking licence, Starling Bank, and Mondo, both of which are applying for banking licences.

Chinese farmer swindles thousands of dollars by opening fake bank - Daily Mail
A Chinese man made thousands of dollar by opening a fake branch of China Construction Bank with card readers, passbooks and three teenage girls at the teller counter. One of the girls was the man's 15-year-old daughter.

Matthias Kröner CEO of Fidor Bank: Why isn't bitcoin being executed by banks? - International Business Times
So far Fidor Bank of Germany is the only mainstream banking operation bold enough to put its money where its mouth is in respect of cryptocurrency.

Bosses earn '183 times average worker' - BBC
The average pay of FTSE 100 chief executives is 183 times more than the average full-time worker, research suggests.

Record wave of finance workers want to move job - The Telegraph
The number of City workers looking to jump ship has doubled in the past year, recruiters say

Bob Diamond makes surprise Wall Street return - The Independent
The former chief executive of Barclays has made a surprise Wall Street comeback just three years after he was ousted from the British bank.