British Overseas Territories Are Up In Arms Over Proposed Changes To Financial Transparency Laws

tmcadmin Breaking News, Doing Business Overseas, economy, money transfer, Payments, Personal Finance, Remittance, Trade & Industry

Despite initially indicating that it did not want to damage the autonomy of its overseas territories, the UK government now looks set to pass a bill that will force the likes of the British Virgin Islands, Bermuda, Gibraltar and the Cayman Islands to reveal and publish the names of the beneficial owners of the offshore companies registered there by 2020. Read more “British Overseas Territories Are Up In Arms Over Proposed Changes To Financial Transparency Laws”

TransferWise First Fintech Non-Bank To Be Accepted To BoE’s RTGS

tmcadmin Breaking News, Doing Business Overseas, General, money transfer, Payments, Personal Finance, Remittance, Trade & Industry

In another sign that fintech firms are increasingly beginning to rival major banks for the provision of core mainstream personal finance services, money transfer startup TransferWise announced in April that it has been accepted to join Britain’s Faster Payments Scheme. Read more “TransferWise First Fintech Non-Bank To Be Accepted To BoE’s RTGS”

Digital Banking App Revolut – London’s Latest Fintech Unicorn Disrupting International Money Transfer, Reviewed

tmcadmin Breaking News, Fintech, General, money transfer, Payments, Personal Finance, Remittance

The big news in London fintech circles this week is a reported $250 million fundraising round which has gone to Revolut, the digital banking app that offers a range of money-related products, but is probably best known for its payments technology, and international money transfer service. Read more “Digital Banking App Revolut – London’s Latest Fintech Unicorn Disrupting International Money Transfer, Reviewed”

£1.6bn or £16bn? The Amazing Truth About The UK’s Overseas Money Transfer Industry

tmcadmin Breaking News, consumer protection, Doing Business Overseas, economy, money transfer, Personal Finance, Remittance, Travel

It may seem astonishing, especially in a world increasingly viewed through a prism of facts, figures and stats, that the UK does not officially measure remittance flows or international money transfers into or out of the country.

But it is true: according to the University of Oxford’s Migration Observatory, which provides “impartial, independent, authoritative, evidence-based analysis of data on migration and migrants in the UK”, estimates concerning the amount of money that is transferred annually between Britain and the rest of the world vary from approximately £1.5bn, to over £16.5bn – a substantial difference, by any measure! Read more “£1.6bn or £16bn? The Amazing Truth About The UK’s Overseas Money Transfer Industry”

South East Asia & South America Stand Out As Expat Destinations Where Money Goes Furthest

tmcadmin Breaking News, Doing Business Overseas, lifestyle and fashion, money transfer, Personal Finance

Money can be one of, if not the biggest headache when it comes to living abroad. How to spend it, how to access it, what currency to deal in, and whether and where you be should be saving it. Read more “South East Asia & South America Stand Out As Expat Destinations Where Money Goes Furthest”

Sun, Stability & Growth; Why The Spanish Property Market Is Hottest Destination For Overseas Investment In Europe

tmcadmin Breaking News, lifestyle and fashion, money transfer, Moving Abroad, Personal Finance, Property Purchase, Travel

What is it that makes Spain such an inviting destination for those looking to emigrate abroad?

Is it the climate, which, at its best, is the envy of the world? Read more “Sun, Stability & Growth; Why The Spanish Property Market Is Hottest Destination For Overseas Investment In Europe”

What Happens When An Overseas Money Transfer Goes Wrong?

tmcadmin Breaking News, consumer protection, Doing Business Overseas, lifestyle and fashion, money transfer, Personal Finance, Remittance, Travel

Sending money overseas ought to be a straightforward operation, particularly within a modern, tech-savvy society, but from time to time, things can go wrong. Luckily, The Money Cloud is here to help you learn what courses of action to take in the event of a mishap. Read more “What Happens When An Overseas Money Transfer Goes Wrong?”

Can Cryptocurrencies Like Bitcoin & Ripple Become The Future of International Money Transfer?

tmcadmin blockchain, Breaking News, money transfer, Payments, Personal Finance, Travel

Recently, 2 Money Transfer giants; Western Union, and MoneyGram, began working with the cryptocurrency Ripple.  Ripple is a blockchain based solution that could have been purpose built for the money transfer industry. It is part real-time-gross-settlement (RTGS) operation; a genuine SWIFT payments rival; and part currency exchange mechanism, capable of using its distributed ledger technology to move money across all of the world’s remittance corridors on behalf of businesses, or individuals. Read more “Can Cryptocurrencies Like Bitcoin & Ripple Become The Future of International Money Transfer?”

Moving Abroad. Is It Better To Rent Or Buy?

tmcadmin Breaking News, General, lifestyle and fashion, Personal Finance, Property Purchase

If you are reading this post then it is probably safe to assume that you have decided to move overseas, or are at least considering it.

Of course, this is a big decision in anybody’s life and it is rarely taken lightly. The worst part is that making the decision to move abroad is just the first step in a process that may take years before you feel properly “at home” somewhere again! Read more “Moving Abroad. Is It Better To Rent Or Buy?”

When It Comes To Overseas Money Transfer Deals, Millennial Men Are The Ultimate Bargain Hunters

tmcadmin Breaking News, General, lifestyle and fashion, money transfer, Payments, Personal Finance

When it comes to hunting the best overseas money transfer deals, it seems that millennial men, amongst all the demographics, are desperate to stay ahead of the game.

Data from The Money Cloud reveals that a surprising 63% of all site visitors are male; accounting for nearly two thirds of all traffic; and that just over 40% of all visitors are aged between 25-34; meaning millennial men really do aspire to be society’s hunter-gatherers when it comes to scouting money transfer deals. Read more “When It Comes To Overseas Money Transfer Deals, Millennial Men Are The Ultimate Bargain Hunters”

UK Sends More Money To Nigeria Than To Any Other Country, Says Data From World Bank

tmcadmin Breaking News, Doing Business Overseas, economy, money transfer, Personal Finance

The World bank studies the global remittance industry closely and its data is often revealing, especially because it is not always easy to track the real amounts of money sent overseas from one country to another – there are many different ways it can be done, and many different reasons for doing so.

Finder.com recently used World bank data to reveal that Nigeria is the most popular destination for outward remittances from the UK. The country accounts for almost 15% of all money sent abroad from the UK, followed by India (14.1%), France (6.7%), Pakistan (6.7%), and Germany (4.9%). Read more “UK Sends More Money To Nigeria Than To Any Other Country, Says Data From World Bank”

The Role Of Import, Export & Exchange Rates On BoE’s Interest Rate Decision, & What It Means For The Rest Of 2018

tmcadmin Breaking News, economy, Personal Finance

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney announced today that the BoE’s Monetary Policy Committee have voted unanimously to hold interest rates at 0.5%, before warning; don’t be surprised if we raise them twice before the year is out.

Carney and the BoE are battling rising inflation, which has fallen 0.1%, to 3% from November to December. It’s not enough, they say, and have now set a target of bringing the level down below 2% within 2 years, as opposed to the 3 year timeframe that had previously been indicated. Read more “The Role Of Import, Export & Exchange Rates On BoE’s Interest Rate Decision, & What It Means For The Rest Of 2018”

How Does Bitcoin Trading Work? A Quick Look At The Fundamentals

tmcadmin Breaking News, Fintech, Personal Finance

2018 is already being labelled the year when the “plumber and the hairdresser” started buying and selling the digital currency bitcoin.

There has certainly been an incredible uplift in the number of people learning about bitcoin – searches for the phrase “buy bitcoin with credit card”, for example, were reported by Google to have “skyrocketed” towards the end of December, when the digital currency was on its magnificent bull run.

The price of the cryptocurrency hit $10,000 in December, for the first time in its 8 years of existence, and went on to climb to above $16,000, in a little under a week. Read more “How Does Bitcoin Trading Work? A Quick Look At The Fundamentals”

QROPS Pension Charge Ruling Leads To Petition By Aggrieved Expats

tmcadmin Breaking News, Personal Finance

Qualified, Recognised, Overseas Pension Transfers, QROPS for short, made headlines last year when Chancellor Philip Hammond announced that a 25% charge would be levied on all UK pensions being transferred overseas, effective the very next day.

The decision has ultimately outraged sections of Britain’s expat community, who believe that the ruling blatantly discriminates against some – but not all –  of them. Read more “QROPS Pension Charge Ruling Leads To Petition By Aggrieved Expats”

$500m Crypto Heist Puts Bitcoin, Digital Currency Security Issues In Spotlight Again

tmcadmin blockchain, Breaking News, economy, Fintech, Personal Finance

Bitcoin, and the crypto-economy that it presides over as the king of the digital currencies, is enduring a tough January. Read more “$500m Crypto Heist Puts Bitcoin, Digital Currency Security Issues In Spotlight Again”

Top 10 US Fintech Firms Now Worth $130bn; Outperforming “Financial Incumbents” Says VC Firm

Edmund Ingham Breaking News, Fintech, Personal Finance

This content is sourced and brought to you by The Money Cloud – comparing the best rates for sending money overseas offered by hand-picked, regulated brokers and money transfer agencies.

Fintech firms had a stellar year in 2017.

To those of you who are thinking “well, I know about the hype, but where’s the proof?”, a new tracker from VC firm Matrix, the Matrix U.S. Fintech Index is a weighted index that tracks the performance of a portfolio of 10 of the leading fintech companies in the US.

The index reveals that, not only, in 2017, did these firms crash through the $100bn dollar mark in terms of total market capitalisation (it is closer to $130bn now), collectively, they also delivered 89% returns over the course of 2017. Read more “Top 10 US Fintech Firms Now Worth $130bn; Outperforming “Financial Incumbents” Says VC Firm”

The 5 Reasons You’ll Be Sure To Make International Payments In 2018?

Edmund Ingham lifestyle and fashion, Personal Finance, Travel

This content is sourced and brought to you by The Money Cloud – comparing the best rates for sending money overseas offered by hand-picked, regulated brokers and money transfer agencies.

“Why would I need to send money abroad?”

Famous last words. International money transfer is one of those things that we rarely plan for, so when the inevitable happens and we have to make a transfer overseas, we have a tendency to panic, rush the process and end up paying a severe financial penalty. Read more “The 5 Reasons You’ll Be Sure To Make International Payments In 2018?”

MasterCard’s Digital Prepayment Platform For Millennials Is Holistic, But Restricted & Might Even Worry Millennials

Edmund Ingham Breaking News, lifestyle and fashion, Personal Finance

MasterCard’s new product – a holistic digital platform that offers a range of “money management” capabilities, such as balance checking, budgeting, setting savings goals and near real-time payments to peers – has just launched in the US.

The US may not be about to embrace a new set of digital payments service directives such as those Europe faces, with the introduction of PSD2 on January 18th, but it’s encouraging to see that the region is preparing for a shift in the way that its population wants to bank.

There’s just one catch, however. Read more “MasterCard’s Digital Prepayment Platform For Millennials Is Holistic, But Restricted & Might Even Worry Millennials”

What Does 2018 Have In Store For Bitcoin? 5 Bold Predictions

Edmund Ingham blockchain, Breaking News, Fintech, Personal Finance

This content is sourced and brought to you by The Money Cloud – comparing the best rates for sending money overseas offered by hand-picked, regulated brokers and money transfer agencies.

Bitcoin has been the talk of the second half of 2017, but can the digital currency continue to exert the same fascination, and the same obscene (to some, to others it’s undervalued!) valuation as we enter a new year?

Try as we might to gaze into our crystal balls, it is very hard to predict what factors may affect the short term price, long term adoption, or medium term public perception of bitcoin, yet these are the very factors upon which the cryprocurrency stands or falls.

Below, we list 5 things that we think could affect bitcoin fortunes in 2018, and examine what the potential fallout might be. Sadly we cannot tell you what the price of one bitcoin will be at this time next year, but the below may help you frame your own thoughts and predictions. Read more “What Does 2018 Have In Store For Bitcoin? 5 Bold Predictions”

Facebook Messenger Pay Arrives In The UK & France – Infographic Reveals How Brits Feel About Being Paid Back

Edmund Ingham Breaking News, General, Payments, Personal Finance

2 years after it was launched in the US, Facebook Messenger Pay has finally crossed the Atlantic. Now it’s possible to make a P2P transaction across the platform in both France and the UK, simply by tapping the blue plus icon to the left of the chat bar, and choosing the green cash icon.

Facebook said in a blog post that it is “not just the transactional act of paying someone back, it’s the emotional importance of doing so”, and said that this is backed up by research they have conducted on Messenger, which you can see in the infographic below. Read more “Facebook Messenger Pay Arrives In The UK & France – Infographic Reveals How Brits Feel About Being Paid Back”