Latest news with #crossborderfinance
Finextra
6 days ago
- Business
- Finextra
Noah and VelaFi to bring real-time stablecoin B2B payments to Latin America
VelaFi, Latin America's leading provider of stablecoin-based financial infrastructure, and Noah, one of the world's most established stablecoin-powered payment networks, announce a strategic partnership to expand access to virtual USD and EUR accounts with real-time stablecoin settlement. 0 This alliance brings together two complementary forces in modern finance: VelaFi's regulatory-grade infrastructure and regional leadership in Latin America, and Noah's globally licensed stablecoin rails for virtual accounts, FX, and international payouts. Together, they're delivering a new standard in cross-border finance with compliant, efficient, and borderless payments for businesses navigating complex global markets. And the timing couldn't be better. Stablecoins are surging, growing from USD 160 billion in 2024 to over USD 250 billion by mid-2025. In Latin America alone, the B2B cross-border payments market is projected to reach USD 57 billion by 2030 as institutions increasingly demand efficient and compliant ways to scale across regions. This seismic shift is creating the conditions for a new kind of financial infrastructure - one that VelaFi and Noah are now building together. Through this partnership, VelaFi's institutional clients gain direct access to over 70 international payment corridors powered by Noah's global infrastructure. This includes USD and EUR virtual accounts, which serve as the foundation for faster and more cost-effective settlements using stablecoins such as USDC and EURC. With payouts available in local currencies across multiple markets, the integration improves treasury efficiency, foreign exchange management, and cash flow visibility for business clients operating in regions like Mexico, Hong Kong, and Singapore. This collaboration signals a broader shift in how modern enterprises move value across borders. By combining VelaFi's leadership in Latin America with Noah's global infrastructure, the partnership enables a new generation of cross-border payments where business clients can operate with greater speed, clarity, and control through embedded access to modern tools like multi-currency virtual accounts and instant, stablecoin-based settlement. Noah, in turn, deepens its reach into Latin America by partnering with VelaFi's regulatory-compliant infrastructure and growing enterprise client base. This expansion reinforces Noah's commitment to building seamless global financial connectivity, starting with strategic markets such as Mexico, Argentina, Brazil, and Colombia. 'This partnership with Noah marks a new chapter in our mission to connect LATAM with the world through modern, compliant infrastructure,' said Maggie Wu, CEO and Co-Founder of VelaFi. 'We are moving beyond traditional barriers and offering institutions the kind of cross-border tools that were previously out of reach: transparent, real-time, and built to scale.' 'This partnership brings our vision for borderless business payments to life. By offering virtual USD and EUR accounts with real-time stablecoin settlement, we're enabling enterprises in LATAM and beyond to move money globally with the speed, transparency, and control they expect from modern infrastructure,' said Shah Ramezani, CEO & Founder at Noah. 'Together with VelaFi, we're setting a new standard for compliant, scalable cross-border payments.'
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Asia Morning Briefing: Asia's Banks Look to Stablecoins to Prevent Deposit Flight
Welcome to Asia Morning Briefing, a daily summary of top stories during U.S. hours and an overview of market moves and analysis. For a detailed overview of U.S. markets, see CoinDesk's Crypto Daybook Americas. While stablecoins (USDT, USDC) dominated U.S. headlines last month amid the GENIUS Act and Circle's (CRCL) blockbuster IPO, Asia's quieter yet strategic adoption is reshaping the region's cross-border finance. Asian banks increasingly see stablecoins like USDT and USDC as defensive tools against deposit flight and lost transaction revenue. Behind the scenes, stablecoins are already playing an important role in the region's financial plumbing. Fireblocks' Head of Asia, Amy Zhang, said in a recent interview with CoinDesk that major banks across Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong are proactively exploring local-currency stablecoins to mitigate these threats. 'If I'm not one of the banks banking Circle or banking Tether, am I going to lose deposits?' Zhang told CoinDesk. 'That's a huge risk for banks.' In Korea, eight major banks, including KB Kookmin and Shinhan, are forming a consortium to launch a Korean won stablecoin by 2026, a direct response to surging local use of USDT and USDC for cross-border transactions. Japan's banking giants MUFG, SMBC, and Mizuho are piloting yen-pegged stablecoins to streamline trade finance and reduce dependence on traditional cross-border rails. Hong Kong's Bank of East Asia also recently piloted its own USD and HKD stablecoin settlement network. Payment service providers (PSPs) are aggressively fueling the adoption of stablecoins, shifting away from costly traditional banking channels. "A year ago, PSPs were asking if they should do stablecoins," Zhang said. "Now they say, 'I'm moving a millions of client flows; I need a better wallet.'" Fireblocks, which processed over $3 trillion in digital assets last year, reports that stablecoins now account for about half its transaction volume. Zhang cited growing usage among Asian e-commerce giants. Recent media reports say that China's plans to cut supplier-payment costs dramatically using stablecoins, which is an example of what Zhang mentioned. PSPs such as Hong Kong's Tazapay use Circle's USDC to efficiently route cross-border payments into USD and HKD disbursements to help with instant payouts for content creators and gamers in Asia's emerging markets. A dashboard from Visa Analytics shows that weekends have 30% higher stablecoin volumes, underscoring their role in retail and gig use. Tether's USDT dominates stablecoin flows in emerging Asian markets, driven by its liquidity and ease-of-access Zhang said, and by contrast, USDC gains traction in highly regulated financial hubs like Singapore and Hong Kong. As the region's financial institutions adopt stablecoins defensively and corporate users operationalize them pragmatically, Asia's quiet transformation in cross-border finance infrastructure could become the next headline in stablecoin's evolving history. The question is, what will be the next IPO to capitalize on this? Bakkt Holdings (NYSE: BKKT) is preparing to join the growing ranks of public companies allocating capital to bitcoin, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday. The SEC filing shows that Bakkt is looking to raise $1 billion through a mix of securities, common stock, preferred stock, debt, warrants, and units to buy BTC. The move comes as corporate BTC treasury strategies gain momentum globally. Companies like Metaplanet in Japan, Bridge Biotherapeutics in Korea, and Semler Scientific in the U.S. have made headlines by adding BTC to their balance sheets. The registration follows a wave of negative news: Bakkt recently lost two of its largest clients, Bank of America and Webull, responsible for a significant chunk of its loyalty and crypto service revenues. In February of last year, the company warned that it might not be able to continue operations. A few months later, Trump Media was reportedly said to be looking into an acquisition, but since then, nothing has materialized. Bakkt is also said to be exploring the potential sale or wind-down of its loyalty division as it refocuses on crypto payments and trading infrastructure. BTC: Bitcoin held steady above $107K Thursday ahead of a major $40B options expiry on Deribit, with a $102K max pain price and no clear directional bias from traders, while Core Scientific surged 33% on takeover rumors. ETH: Ethereum is trading at $2,420 as it tests major resistance between $2,500–$2,600, with analysts saying a breakout could pave the way to $2,800 or even $4,000 amid falling exchange reserves and record user activity. Gold: Gold slipped to $3,331 on Thursday despite a weaker dollar and falling Treasury yields, as strong U.S. jobless claims and durable goods data offset recessionary GDP revisions and added uncertainty over the Fed's future leadership. Nikkei 225: Asia-Pacific markets are poised to rise Friday, tracking Wall Street gains after the White House downplayed concerns over upcoming tariff deals. S&P 500: The S&P 500 rose 0.8% Thursday, nearing a record high after a $9.8 trillion rebound from April lows, capping a 23% rally driven by easing tariff fears and renewed market optimism. Hong Kong sharpens crypto hub focus amid rising global competition (SCMP) Real-World Asset Tokenization Market Has Grown Almost Fivefold in 3 Years (CoinDesk) What's Next for Tokenization? (CoinDesk)
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Asia Morning Briefing: Asia's Banks Look to Stablecoins to Prevent Deposit Flight
Welcome to Asia Morning Briefing, a daily summary of top stories during U.S. hours and an overview of market moves and analysis. For a detailed overview of U.S. markets, see CoinDesk's Crypto Daybook Americas. While stablecoins (USDT, USDC) dominated U.S. headlines last month amid the GENIUS Act and Circle's (CRCL) blockbuster IPO, Asia's quieter yet strategic adoption is reshaping the region's cross-border finance. Asian banks increasingly see stablecoins like USDT and USDC as defensive tools against deposit flight and lost transaction revenue. Behind the scenes, stablecoins are already playing an important role in the region's financial plumbing. Fireblocks' Head of Asia, Amy Zhang, said in a recent interview with CoinDesk that major banks across Korea, Japan, and Hong Kong are proactively exploring local-currency stablecoins to mitigate these threats. 'If I'm not one of the banks banking Circle or banking Tether, am I going to lose deposits?' Zhang told CoinDesk. 'That's a huge risk for banks.' In Korea, eight major banks, including KB Kookmin and Shinhan, are forming a consortium to launch a Korean won stablecoin by 2026, a direct response to surging local use of USDT and USDC for cross-border transactions. Japan's banking giants MUFG, SMBC, and Mizuho are piloting yen-pegged stablecoins to streamline trade finance and reduce dependence on traditional cross-border rails. Hong Kong's Bank of East Asia also recently piloted its own USD and HKD stablecoin settlement network. Payment service providers (PSPs) are aggressively fueling the adoption of stablecoins, shifting away from costly traditional banking channels. "A year ago, PSPs were asking if they should do stablecoins," Zhang said. "Now they say, 'I'm moving a billion of client flows; I need a better wallet.'" Fireblocks, which processed over $3 trillion in digital assets last year, reports that stablecoins now account for about half its transaction volume. Zhang cited growing usage among Asian e-commerce giants. Recent media reports say that China's plans to cut supplier-payment costs dramatically using stablecoins, which is an example of what Zhang mentioned. PSPs such as Hong Kong's Tazapay use Circle's USDC to efficiently route cross-border payments into USD and HKD disbursements to help with instant payouts for content creators and gamers in Asia's emerging markets. A dashboard from Visa Analytics shows that weekends have 30% higher stablecoin volumes, underscoring their role in retail and gig use. Tether's USDT dominates stablecoin flows in emerging Asian markets, driven by its liquidity and ease-of-access Zhang said, and by contrast, USDC gains traction in highly regulated financial hubs like Singapore and Hong Kong. As the region's financial institutions adopt stablecoins defensively and corporate users operationalize them pragmatically, Asia's quiet transformation in cross-border finance infrastructure could become the next headline in stablecoin's evolving history. The question is, what will be the next IPO to capitalize on this? Bakkt Holdings (NYSE: BKKT) is preparing to join the growing ranks of public companies allocating capital to bitcoin, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Thursday. The SEC filing shows that Bakkt is looking to raise $1 billion through a mix of securities, common stock, preferred stock, debt, warrants, and units to buy BTC. The move comes as corporate BTC treasury strategies gain momentum globally. Companies like Metaplanet in Japan, Bridge Biotherapeutics in Korea, and Semler Scientific in the U.S. have made headlines by adding BTC to their balance sheets. The registration follows a wave of negative news: Bakkt recently lost two of its largest clients, Bank of America and Webull, responsible for a significant chunk of its loyalty and crypto service revenues. In February of last year, the company warned that it might not be able to continue operations. A few months later, Trump Media was reportedly said to be looking into an acquisition, but since then, nothing has materialized. Bakkt is also said to be exploring the potential sale or wind-down of its loyalty division as it refocuses on crypto payments and trading infrastructure. BTC: Bitcoin held steady above $107K Thursday ahead of a major $40B options expiry on Deribit, with a $102K max pain price and no clear directional bias from traders, while Core Scientific surged 33% on takeover rumors. ETH: Ethereum is trading at $2,420 as it tests major resistance between $2,500–$2,600, with analysts saying a breakout could pave the way to $2,800 or even $4,000 amid falling exchange reserves and record user activity. Gold: Gold slipped to $3,331 on Thursday despite a weaker dollar and falling Treasury yields, as strong U.S. jobless claims and durable goods data offset recessionary GDP revisions and added uncertainty over the Fed's future leadership. Nikkei 225: Asia-Pacific markets are poised to rise Friday, tracking Wall Street gains after the White House downplayed concerns over upcoming tariff deals. S&P 500: The S&P 500 rose 0.8% Thursday, nearing a record high after a $9.8 trillion rebound from April lows, capping a 23% rally driven by easing tariff fears and renewed market optimism. Hong Kong sharpens crypto hub focus amid rising global competition (SCMP) Real-World Asset Tokenization Market Has Grown Almost Fivefold in 3 Years (CoinDesk) What's Next for Tokenization? (CoinDesk) Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Zawya
29-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia may approve more cross-border financial products
HONG KONG/SYDNEY - Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia are considering allowing more cross-border financial products, authorities said on Thursday, as the two markets seek to deepen financial ties amid rising trade uncertainties. An exchange-traded fund tracking bonds issued by the Saudi government started trading in Hong Kong on Thursday, the first fixed-income fund listed in the territory to offer such exposure. Apart from the fund, more products - such as a sharia-compliant Sukuk bond and a real estate investment trust - are "in the pipeline" for approval to trade between Hong Kong and Riyadh, said Julia Leung, CEO of Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission. "We're very comfortable in the cross listing of whatever products," Leung told those attending the Capital Markets Forum organised by Saudi exchange operator Tadawul Group. Hong Kong launched Asia's first ETF tracking Saudi equities in November 2024, as the two markets look to spur capital flows as diplomatic relations warm between Beijing and Riyadh. In the last few years, Hong Kong has been seen wooing Saudi Aramco to list in the city, a deal that would allow investors in the Asian financial hub easier access to the Saudi state oil giant. Apart from stocks, there are opportunities for bonds, derivatives and other financial products between Hong Kong and the Middle East, Hong Kong's Financial Secretary Paul Chan said at the forum, when asked about the progress of a potential listing of Saudi Aramco. The expansion of cross-border products coincides with rising trade tensions after U.S. President Donald Trump unleashed sweeping tariff measures in April roiling global markets. A U.S. trade court on Wednesday blocked the tariffs from going into effect, ruling that the president overstepped his authority by imposing across-the-board duties on imports from nations that sell more to the United States than they buy. Asked how countries and companies should navigate the uncertainty of trade deals following the U.S. court block, Chan said the move would "at least bring President Trump to reason". (Reporting by Selena Li in Hong Kong; Scott Murdoch in Sydney; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Kate Mayberry)
CNA
29-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
Hong Kong, Saudi Arabia may approve more cross-border financial products
HONG KONG/SYDNEY :Hong Kong and Saudi Arabia are considering allowing more cross-border financial products, authorities said on Thursday, as the two markets seek to deepen financial ties amid rising trade uncertainties. An exchange-traded fund tracking bonds issued by the Saudi government started trading in Hong Kong on Thursday, the first fixed-income fund listed in the territory to offer such exposure. Apart from the fund, more products - such as a sharia-compliant Sukuk bond and a real estate investment trust - are "in the pipeline" for approval to trade between Hong Kong and Riyadh, said Julia Leung, CEO of Hong Kong's Securities and Futures Commission. "We're very comfortable in the cross listing of whatever products," Leung told those attending the Capital Markets Forum organised by Saudi exchange operator Tadawul Group. Hong Kong launched Asia's first ETF tracking Saudi equities in November 2024, as the two markets look to spur capital flows as diplomatic relations warm between Beijing and Riyadh. In the last few years, Hong Kong has been seen wooing Saudi Aramco to list in the city, a deal that would allow investors in the Asian financial hub easier access to the Saudi state oil giant. Apart from stocks, there are opportunities for bonds, derivatives and other financial products between Hong Kong and the Middle East, Hong Kong's Financial Secretary Paul Chan said at the forum, when asked about the progress of a potential listing of Saudi Aramco. The expansion of cross-border products coincides with rising trade tensions after U.S. President Donald Trump unleashed sweeping tariff measures in April roiling global markets. A U.S. trade court on Wednesday blocked the tariffs from going into effect, ruling that the president overstepped his authority by imposing across-the-board duties on imports from nations that sell more to the United States than they buy. Asked how countries and companies should navigate the uncertainty of trade deals following the U.S. court block, Chan said the move would "at least bring President Trump to reason".
