Freetrade raises £30m from existing and new investors
January 16, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

IG Group Acquires Freetrade in £160m Deal

The move is expected to bolster IG's trading and investment offerings in the UK, helping to expand its reach to new customer segments and enhance its technological capabilities. The deal will be funded in cash from IG’s existing capital resources. Completion is expected in mid-2025. Breon Corcoran, CEO of IG, said it is a “rare…

Read more
equiti logo
January 15, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Equiti Gains In-Principle Approval to Launch Investment Fund

It marks the inaugural product under its newly introduced platform, Equiti Wealth, aimed at offering diverse wealth management solutions tailored to long-term investment needs. The Equiti Global Balanced Fund is designed to provide investors with access to a wide array of professionally managed funds, with a minimum investment threshold set at $1,000.  "Today signifies a…

Read more
Clearstream
January 15, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Euro Route to Romanian Bond Market Opened by Clearstream

The international central securities depository of Deutsche Börse Group explained that the development, achieved in partnership with BRD Groupe Société Générale and the Romanian central securities depository, Depozitarul Central, allows international investors to invest directly in Romanian government and corporate bonds through their existing Clearstream accounts. The move is expected to enhance market access and…

Read more
January 15, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

CFPB Sues Capital One: Says Company Cheated Consumers Out of Over $2bn in Interest Payments

The lawsuit alleges that Capital One deceived customers about its 360 Savings accounts, promising "best" and "highest" interest rates while freezing those rates at low levels despite rising interest rates across the market. The CFPB further claims that Capital One simultaneously introduced a similar product, the 360 Performance Savings account. This is said to have…

Read more
January 14, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Thunes and Hyperwallet Expand Payout Access Across Asia-Pacific

Hyperwallet is a PayPal service for global payouts. The partnership lets Hyperwallet's customers send real-time payments to over 450 million mobile wallets and bank accounts in countries including Bangladesh, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, South Korea, and Vietnam. The company said the new alliance comes in response to the rapidly growing digital wallet usage in Asia-Pacific,…

Read more
January 14, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Worldline Extends KBC Partnership in New 6-Year Agreement

The new six-year agreement will see Worldline continue to provide issuing and transaction processing services for KBC in the Belgian market. Furthermore, the renewed partnership is expected to build on a strong foundation of trust and co-creation between the two companies, aiming to support KBC's ambitions in the financial sector.  Worldline’s customer-centric solutions and service…

Read more
Robinhood app on mobile
January 14, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Robinhood to Pay SEC £45m in Penalties

The SEC order found that Robinhood failed to comply with a broad spectrum of regulations.  These are said to include delays in investigating and reporting suspicious transactions, inadequate measures to safeguard customer data from identity theft, and failing to adequately address a cybersecurity breach that compromised user data.  “Today’s order finds that two Robinhood firms…

Read more
HKEX
January 13, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

OTC Clear to Accept China Government Bonds as Collateral for All Derivatives

The announcement follows approval from the Securities and Futures Commission (SFC), the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA), and the People's Bank of China. HKEX explained that the initiative allows international investors holding these bonds through Bond Connect to use them as margin collateral for OTC derivatives. Initially implemented for Northbound Swap Connect, OTC Clear expects…

Read more
CME Group
January 13, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

CME Group's International ADV Reaches a Record High in 2024

The derivatives marketplace firm said the growth reflects heightened trading activity outside the United States, driven by significant gains across various product categories. The Energy sector led the surge with a 31% increase in ADV, followed by Metals at 27%, Agricultural at 25%, Interest Rate products at 12%, and Foreign Exchange products at 10%.  "We…

Read more
Plus500 reports strong H2 2019 with revenues up 40% compared to H1
January 13, 2025 BY Sam Boughedda

Plus500 Revenue 'Meaningfully Ahead' of Market Expectations

In a trading update on Monday, the company reported revenue of approximately $768 million, with an EBITDA of around $342 million, reflecting strong financial performance. The company added that its financial position remains “highly robust” and debt-free, with cash balances of approximately $900 million as of 31 December 2024.  Furthermore, Plus500 said its proprietary marketing…

Read more