<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/04/banner-1251-1.webp" alt="Account Aggregator" title="" id="9hxp4jacw" width="100%" height="479">Data is a gold mine that drives insights and efficiencies across industries. Gartner predicts that by 2023, companies that actively leverage shared data will outperform their peers in crucial metrics. With 180+ zettabytes of data estimated to be created by 2025, businesses across industries need to devise strategies to gain access to relevant consumer information. Such access will drive insight-driven decisions to boost revenue, <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/why-is-risk-based-authentication-rba-critical-for-banks/">mitigate risks</a>, and reduce costs.<h2 class="heading-node" id="134f" style="text-align: justify">Consent-based digital access to data</h2>Account aggregators or financial data aggregators play a significant role in enabling data access to financial institutions, businesses, and individuals. Prioritizing fiduciary consumer relationships, account aggregators share digitally signed and encrypted data upon explicit consumer consent.<h2 class="heading-node" id="160d" style="text-align: justify">Financial data aggregation in India</h2>India launched its Account Aggregator (AA) network in September 2021, as the first step towards open banking. Built on the Data Empowerment and Protection Architecture (DEPA), the account aggregator framework is the world’s leading consensual data-sharing infrastructure.This digital data access structure serves as a substantial digital enablement initiative after the launch of public infrastructure for digital identification (Aadhaar) and <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/the-rise-of-digital-payments/" target="">digital payments</a> (UPI). Millions of customers can now digitally access and share their financial data in a compliant manner.<h2 class="heading-node" id="019c" style="text-align: justify">Potential to transform efficiencies</h2>The AA framework holds the potential to transform the efficiencies and profitability of financial institutions and businesses in India. Banks, fintechs, and NBFCs can use consumer data to widen target-base, personalize services, lower risks, enhance customer experience, and future-proof their product portfolio. Collecting, cleansing, and synthesizing pertinent data helps enhance insight-driven decisions and executions.Democratization of data access via account aggregator networks has brought in a win-win scenario for businesses, consumers, and <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/digital-lending-open-credit-enablement-network/">new-age digital lenders</a> with advanced underwriting algorithms and a larger risk appetite. They have broken the data monopoly of digital and financial services firms by transferring data sharing power to individuals.<h2 class="heading-node" id="a06c" style="text-align: justify">So, who are account aggregators in India?</h2>Account aggregators are NBFC-AA licensed entities that are regulated by the RBI. Contrary to the name, they cannot ‘aggregate’ data. They only enable consensual data sharing and access between consumers and financial institutions in the network. Account aggregators cannot read or resell data. They can carry data from one financial institution to another based on individual consent and direction. Consumers also have the choice to revoke data already shared.<h2 class="heading-node" id="b934" style="text-align: justify">How account aggregation happens?</h2>Data gathering, collation, and dissemination are enabled through open <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/api-the-power-that-drives-new-age-banking-ecosystems/">Application Programming Interface (API</a>) connections.<h2 class="heading-node" id="e756" style="text-align: justify">Do account aggregators benefit individuals?</h2>The answer is yes.Account aggregators help consumers get rid of laborious paperwork, effort, and security issues involved in notarizing, stamping, signing and scanning physical copies of bank statements. Users need not have to expose themselves to vulnerabilities of sharing login credentials and financial history to a third party.With mobile-based digital data access and sharing process, account aggregators eliminate the conventional hassles of data access and sharing. People across demographics will get access to experiential, preference-based financial services and products. While the affluent will experience value through customized investment and insurance options, the popular masses will enjoy greater inclusiveness through friction-free access to formal credit.<h2 class="heading-node" id="0dd3" style="text-align: justify">Participants in the AA network</h2>While individuals and small businesses form the epicentre, the AA network comprises the three participants listed below.1. Financial Information Providers (FIP)&nbsp;— Data sources like banks, tax platforms &amp; insurance providers.2. Financial Information Users (FIU)&nbsp;— Data recipients such as banks, NBFCs, and <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/fintech-a-catalyst-for-financial-inclusion/">fintech</a> firms.3. Account Aggregators (AA)&nbsp;— RBI-regulated entities that facilitate real-time data sharing.<img src="https://miro.medium.com/max/1400/1*UnkSCGfGWZf-YpOqny9J7w.jpeg" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="384">Source: PIB Delhi<h2 class="heading-node" id="72d9" style="text-align: justify">Banks in the AA network</h2>The top eight banks (listed below) that cater to over 300 million consumers have joined the AA network.1. Axis Bank2. ICICI Bank3. IndusInd Bank4. HDFC Bank5. Kotak Mahindra Bank6. IDFC First Bank7. Federal Bank8. State Bank of India<h2 class="heading-node" id="d405" style="text-align: justify">What kind of data does AAs share? How are they different from Aadhar eKYC, credit bureau, and CKYC?</h2>Central Know Your Customer (<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/know-your-customer-kyc-the-need-for-authentication/">CKYC</a>) registry and paperless Aadhar Electronic Know Your Customer (<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/know-your-customer-kyc-the-need-for-authentication/">EKYC</a>) capture identity verification and only shares data such as name, address, and gender. And credit bureaus reveal only the credit score, loan, and repayment history of consumers.On the other hand, account aggregators facilitate transaction data sharing from savings, <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/how-can-banks-and-nbfcs-leverage-the-potential-of-digital-fds/">deposits</a>, or current accounts. They share data pertaining to consumer bank transactions, tax, pension, securities, insurance, and much more.<h2 class="heading-node" id="5e7e" style="text-align: justify">Is data sharing via AA network secure?</h2>Data shared on the account aggregator network is completely secure. It is encrypted by the sender and can be decrypted only by the intended recipient. End-to-end encryptions and digital signatures remove vulnerabilities and secure the process.<h2 class="heading-node" id="42b2" style="text-align: justify">What if consumers choose not to share data?</h2>By all means, a consumer can choose not to share any data. Joining the AA network or registering for data sharing is completely voluntary. They can link the account of their choice, enable or revoke data access at any point in time.<h2 class="heading-node" id="b9c4" style="text-align: justify">Use cases for account aggregator network</h2>Here are use cases in which account aggregators can drive efficiencies and add value to consumers and financial institutions.Personal finance management&nbsp;— Consumers can analyze personal spends across accounts, which will help generate recommendations to streamline expenditure. This process will enable better personal finance goals and budgetary adherence for consumers.Cashflow-based lending&nbsp;— Consuming data from FIPs, FIUs can get better visibility into the cash flow of applicants. Cashflow-based lending will accelerate mainstream lending, especially in SME and MSME credit space.Alternate data for credit assessment&nbsp;— Evaluating a consumer’s creditworthiness is a true challenge if there is inadequate data on his income or payment history. If credit applicants who do not have formal credit access could share their telecom bill payment to the lender, this will generate an alternate data set to assess creditworthiness.Loan monitoring for predictive default analysis&nbsp;— Every lender will want visibility into the borrower’s financial behavior to ensure discipline in repayments. The income and outflow from a person’s bank account could reveal his financial behavior. And this could help lenders predict default patterns.Selling customized financial products&nbsp;— Accessing data concerning consumer behavior with financial products will help financial institutions involved in wealth management and insurance customize their products.Wealth management&nbsp;— Imagine a customer has invested in insurance from A, mutual fund from B, Gold deposits from C, and savings account from D. An account aggregator can unify all this data and help wealth managers handle customers' portfolios more efficiently.Accounts reconciliation for small businesses&nbsp;— With account aggregators, SMEs and MSMEs would not require to manually feed in Tally/ QuickBooks for their daily invoices. They can simply consent to platforms to consume data from FIPs and derisk manual errors.Unified nomination register&nbsp;— Nominations in financial products today are decentralized, hence have to be managed individually. A joint collaboration between the account aggregator and the unified nomination register can solve this.Now, these are not all. We have just scratched the surface of the use cases that account aggregators could have. When more pipelines get enabled on AA network, the use cases will grow exponentially. Then they will have to address concerns surrounding platform stability, data privacy, and grievance redressal mechanisms.M2P believes in democratizing credit by empowering lenders with alternate data/ surrogate channels. Should you be looking for a partner who could help you look beyond conventional credit applicants' data, write to us at&nbsp;<a class="link" href="mailto:business@m2pfintech.com">business@m2pfintech.com</a><a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/newsletter/">Subscribe</a>&nbsp;to our newsletter and get the latest fintech news, views, and insights, directly to your inbox.Follow us on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/m2pfintech/mycompany/">LinkedIn</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/m2pfintech">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for insightful fintech tales curated for curious minds like you.

Account Aggregator 101- Democratizing data access and sharing

<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/Artboard-1-copy-8-2-2.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="529">Cybercrime is quickly evolving into an escalating issue across the physical and virtual universe. More than 80% of online businesses have reported an increase in cyberattacks since 2020.The digitization of finance has further widened avenues for hackers to create loopholes in financial infrastructure with sophisticated tools and techniques. Wherever there is a software application or a network involved, cybercriminals infiltrate the system to steal sensitive personal information and financial credentials. Vulnerable financial applications don’t stand a chance before the mushrooming attacks and give way to compromised data, loss of money, identity theft, and data breaches.<h2 class="heading-node" id="d923" style="text-align: justify">Nipping vulnerabilities in the bud</h2>As responsible facilitators of digital banking, payments, and lending services, fintech companies take cybersecurity very seriously. According to the Sixth Annual Bank Survey, more than 70% of fintechs vow to treat information security as their top concern in 2022. They adopt technologies, tools, and even philosophies that will help them nip vulnerabilities right in the bud.<h2 class="heading-node" id="d555" style="text-align: justify">Transition to DevSecOps</h2>Standing at the forefront of technological innovation, fintechs need to deliver secure deployments, application releases, and updates at supersonic speed. But as with every new-age technology, fintech <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/the-world-of-apis-how-they-power-fintech/">APIs</a> are prone to security risks. These risks reduce go-to-market speed, delay update releases and impair code quality.Even though standard practices such as DevOps delivers tremendous deployment velocity with zero downtime, cloud readiness, robust security, and compliance management, it still fails to address security risks at the grass-root level. That’s why financial software developers mandate the need to integrate security into the DevOps process. They began transitioning towards the DevSecOps to build secure and efficient applications at top speed.DevSecOps quickly evolved as the future of financial software development, as it made cybersecurity a fundamental part of the production pipeline, which comprises architecture design, coding, and testing phases. Today, it is a crucial application development methodology for successfully developing fintech applications in regulated and unregulated domains.<h2 class="heading-node" id="dbbb" style="text-align: justify">What is DevSecOps?</h2>DevSecOps, a blend of development, security, and operations, refers to the adoption of security right at the beginning of the software development lifecycle (SDLC). It is more a philosophy than a tech approach that calls for increased collaboration between development, security, and operation teams.<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/DevSecOps-blog-banner-02.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="hasokqmme" width="100%" height="529">It resonates deeply with the view of Cloud Security Alliance (CSA) which goes, “Security can be achieved only when it has been designed in. Applying security measures as an afterthought is a recipe for disaster.”This is exactly what DevSecOps solves for.<h2 class="heading-node" id="1b91" style="text-align: justify">Why DevSecOps?</h2>During the days of DevOps, security was included late in the lifecycle only after the development and operation phase. Technological advancements in cloud platforms, microservices, and containers could not move forward, as security turned out to be a major bottleneck. Catching security issues late in the cycle resulted in a lot of rework and late releases. These were some of the reasons why fintech application developers shifted to agile DevSecOps practices for quick and modern application development and deployment.By shifting security left, DevSecOps integrates testing checks between the development and operation functions of every sprint. It integrates security into DevOps by tackling issues within Continuous Integration (CI) and Continuous Delivery (CD) pipelines. In doing so, DevSecOps accelerates software delivery, reduces the duration between code change, production, deployment, and release while reducing security risks.<h2 class="heading-node" id="dbb0" style="text-align: justify">Resolving contentions</h2>The fundamental area of contention between development, security, and operation teams is their change implementation, security monitoring, and stability principles. They become a source of friction that often leads to lags in the software development cycle. DevSecOps serves as an effective tool to resolve this friction by providing a culture that empowers the teams to work in sync.<h2 class="heading-node" id="79ef" style="text-align: justify">Functions of DevSecOps</h2>DevSecOps aims at designing novel solutions that simplify complex processes within the agile framework. It ensures that customers suffer no technical glitches after deployment or release of any update, or application.Encompassing threat modeling and security testing processes in the pipelines saves time, effort, and cost. The automation in security testing helps test for vulnerabilities keeping futuristic risk possibilities in mind. Security reports can be easily generated to identify risk patterns in CI and CD. The continuous feedback process at every phase of development and code integration strengthens rectification and delivery infrastructure.<h2 class="heading-node" id="63bb" style="text-align: justify">4 simple steps to develop a DevSecOps culture</h2>For sustained focus on security and application effectiveness, companies need to build a DevSecOps culture. Developing a ‘Security as Code’ philosophy is a vital step towards creating this culture. It calls for consistent, compliant, and collaborative efforts between development, operations, and security teams.Follow the steps below to make DevSecOps culture a breeze.<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/DevSecOps-blog-banner-03-03.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="wnvu7jjqw" width="100%" height="529"><ul class="list-node" id="l13bfyfvi"><li>Garner cooperation&nbsp;— Team silos and conflicts are key reasons why DevSecOps tends to fail in most companies. Garner cooperation through knowledge sharing and reward mechanisms that promote continuous improvement.</li><li>Grant authority and autonomy&nbsp;— Nobody likes dictatorships. Authorize your teams to identify and resolve issues on their own. This autonomy will boost their solidarity and collaboration.</li><li>Appoint strong leaders&nbsp;— Groom or bring in leaders who prioritize security. Make security a top-down mandate. This is a crucial step to building a DevSecOps culture.</li><li>Educate and align&nbsp;— Educate team members on the importance of security, and align the learnings towards DevSecOps tasks. Focus on risk training while also briefing security teams about DevOps methodology.</li></ul>The fundamental goal of the exercise is to make cybersecurity an organization-wide priority, with DevSecOps as a crucial tool.<h3 class="heading-node" id="0f3f" style="text-align: justify">Crucial imperative for fintech application development</h3>A common myth is that developing applications with security in mind impedes innovation. But the security left DevSecOps methodology steers innovation in the right direction and saves a lot of time, effort, and cost.If you are in the business of developing fintech applications, then it’s imperative&nbsp;that you deploy DevSecOps tools and processes as an organization-wide philosophy. As forerunners in implementing the DevSecOps philosophy, we deliver pre-built workflows and AI-powered automation capabilities to deliver secured risk-based authentication at every step. We redefine the software development lifecycle process to accelerate software deployment, product quality, and controlled release cycles and processes.Want to know more about how your business can benefit from the DevSecOps process?Ping us at&nbsp;business@m2pfintech.com.<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/newsletter/">Subscribe</a>&nbsp;to our newsletter and get the latest fintech news, views, and insights, directly to your inbox.Follow us on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/m2pfintech/mycompany/">LinkedIn</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/m2pfintech">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for insightful fintech tales curated for curious minds like you.

DevSecOps, the future of financial software development

<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/06/Artboard-1-copy-8-9.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="284">Using <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/prepaid-cards-101-a-definitive-guide-for-growth-and-profitability/">prepaid cards</a> is a great way to control business expenses, improve efficiencies and generate revenue streams. However, the time and effort involved in card issuance in-house are super crazy.If you want to hit the market with prepaid cards quickly within weeks, you need APIs.Yes, <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/api-the-power-that-drives-new-age-banking-ecosystems/">Application Programming Interfaces (APIs).</a><h2 class="heading-node" id="2e39">Accelerates access and speed</h2>APIs speed up and democratize the card issuance and management process for businesses. Teams need not divert CAPEX or resources into building in-house prepaid card applications, compliance, partnerships, and support systems. Instead, an API call is all that it takes to create prepaid cards within weeks and onboard customers in a seamless manner.<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/the-world-of-apis-how-they-power-fintech/">APIs</a> help customize onboarding and shopping experiences without diluting brand expectations and manage card usage and security. Though card networks like VISA, Mastercard, American Express, and Discover issue cards, <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/">API-providing fintech firms</a> are the ones that facilitate card access, operations, and management.<h2 class="heading-node" id="534d">Empowers diverse ecosystems</h2>It doesn’t matter whichever part of the globe you are operating from or whatever industry you belong to. APIs can be tailored to specific geographics, industry use cases, and needs.Fintech firms factor in diverse demographics, currencies, regulatory and compliance challenges, digital payment standards, and infrastructures before getting started with card issuance. They nullify entry barriers and provide opportunities for every business to gain from the benefits of prepaid cards. Customized APIs cater to multiple industries and serve multiple purposes such as payroll, gifting, <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/cross-border-payments-a-swift-money-flow-across-borders/">cross-border payments</a>, intercity-transit, international travel, government benefit disbursal, insurance, health savings, and incentivizing employees.<h2 class="heading-node" id="dcfe">Delivers top-notch user experience</h2>The card issuing APIs take a human-first approach while aligning data, processes, and consumer platforms. They prioritize experience design and enable hyper-personalized card issuance in an instant.Both physical and <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/all-you-need-to-know-about-virtual-cards/">virtual cards</a> can be customized and built for ultimate customer experience and personalized seamless transactions. As APIs prioritize security, businesses and end-consumers can be confident about not having to deal with data theft or loss of money. This drives greater customer experience, retention, and conversion.<h2 class="heading-node" id="2ff0">Stringent security management</h2>Strongly encrypted with stringent security controls in place, it is next to impossible to hack into the physical or virtual card ecosystems that APIs create. Right from enabling <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/know-your-customer-kyc-the-need-for-authentication/">e-KYC</a> to countering processor breach, identity theft, to ‘friendly fraud’ (intentionally shared password) and false disputes, <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/the-world-of-apis-how-they-power-fintech/">fintech APIs</a> can manage all without hassles.Program managers nip risks in the bud with strict red flag compliance, identity validation, and <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/pci-dss-a-quick-guide-to-its-levels/">PCI DSS</a> compliance programs. Artificial intelligence modules identify fraud trends and track transactions to block vulnerabilities early in the lifecycle.So, in a nutshell, APIs can make it quick, easy, and secure for you to issue cards to your customers and employees. They also help businesses track and control expenses while improving customer experience and accessibility.But, hey wait. Don’t go yet.If you are at this part of the article. We understand you are looking to issue cards.And we have a pro tip for you!<h2 class="heading-node" id="506c">Pro Tip: Align business objectives, focus on core competencies</h2>Issuing <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/prepaid-cards-101-a-definitive-guide-for-growth-and-profitability/">prepaid cards</a> can be done in-house or by partnering with a licensed fintech. Whichever direction you choose to move, remember to align business objectives with the card program. You also need to sort out legacy infrastructure issues, regulatory risks, fraud monitoring, compliance, and points of authorization. And if you are launching prepaid cards on a global scale, you’ll have to manage country-specific licenses, contracts, and integrations to keep the card program alive. So, before proceeding, remember to brainstorm about the time, effort, and resource allocation.Or you can just focus on your core competencies and leave card issuance, compliance, and program management to PPI licensed card issuance experts.Need help in issuing prepaid cards?Get in touch with us at&nbsp;<a class="link" href="mailto:business@m2pfintech.com">business@m2pfintech.com</a><a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/newsletter/">Subscribe</a>&nbsp;to our newsletter and get the latest fintech news, views, and insights, directly to your inbox. Follow us on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/m2pfintech/mycompany/">LinkedIn</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/m2pfintech">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for insightful fintech tales curated for curious minds like you.

Why should APIs be your holy grail for prepaid card issuance?

Top 14 Neobanks that Reinvent Banking Experience in India

<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/Artboard-1-copy-1.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="1790">Never underestimate what good chai can do to your life!One such stimulating chai conversation ignited the origin of M2P, the brainchild of Madhu, Muthu, and Prabhu.<h2 class="heading-node" id="b82a" style="text-align: justify">Genesis of M2P</h2>The candid chat on the disruptive potential of fintech led our founder trio to envision an inclusive world where every business, bank, and NBFC gets equal access to technology-enabled financial services, irrespective of their size, scale, or locale. Giving entrepreneurial wings to their fintech dream, they founded M2P in 2014.Today M2P specializes in building financial ecosystems that accelerate digital payments, banking, and lending worldwide. With an active presence in the Asia Pacific (APAC), the Middle East, North Africa (MENA), Southeast Asia, and Europe, M2P strives to future-proof fintech transformation while boosting business agility and customer lifetime value.<h2 class="heading-node" id="39f0" style="text-align: justify">Founding Trio</h2><img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/06/Artboard-1-copy-8-2.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="529">Madhu, Muthu, and Prabhu possess over a decade of rich experience leading financial and technology innovations in leading global firms. Madhu, a knowledge powerhouse and a passionate chef steered the prepaid and financial inclusion product division for VISA, Citi, and Thomas Cook. Muthu, an avid sportsman, and technologist managed technology delivery for Paypal, Movida, Fujitsu, and Satyam before cofounding M2P. And Prabhu, a deep space tech enthusiast, drove key technology projects at Cognizant, Verizon Data Services, and iGate.<h2 class="heading-node" id="778b" style="text-align: justify">Uphill Climb - YAP</h2>M2P’s initial journeys were fraught with struggles and fallouts. Even though our domain expertise, innovation potential, and technology proficiency were among the best, gaining opportunities by breaking conventions was a major challenge to growth.Pooling in personal savings and resources, the founding team quietly began their bootstrapped journey. They built YAP, the API platform that allowed businesses to quickly create and deploy fintech products by customizing all relevant workflows through plug-and-play solutions.YAP simplified the ability of banks and PPI licensed entities to support back-end products by facilitating technology integration, settlement and operational support. Within a short timeframe, M2P powered neo banking, cross-border payments, card issuance, program management, new-age lending, and investments for several clients.Our robust, secure, and customizable fintech APIs enabled banks, fintech firms, and businesses to go to market at incredible speed with excellent efficacy. M2P’s tech stack has passed numerous regulatory audits and is backed by industry-leading certifications such as PCI DSS ver 3.2.1, ISO 27001:2013, and ISO 22301:2012. We also completed RBI PPI Information Security Audit Compliance as per the RBI Master Direction DPSS.CO.PD. №1164/02.14.006/2017–18 and implemented the “Data Localization” protocol as per Reserve Bank of India (RBI) guidelines.<h2 class="heading-node" id="f2ad" style="text-align: justify">Quantum Leap</h2>The first breakthrough for M2P happened when we launched our first Visa-powered card program in partnership with DCB Bank. Later, we created several marketing programs with Rupay, MasterCard, Visa, Amex, Mercury, and China Union Pay. We also became Visa’s Fintech Fast Track partner across the APAC region and preferred partner for MasterCard globally.By fostering diverse partnerships with 23+ banks, issuers, acquirers, prepaid issuers, emoney license holders, and industry partners across Travel and Forex, Fleet and FasTag, Digital Lenders, Neo-Banking, NBFCs, Gig-Economy players, and traditional bank programs, M2P processed more than $10 billion transactions in 2021. More than 500 engagements and 100 Fintech programs went live in a matter of few years.And our team strength too grew tremendously from 60 in the formative years to over 300 in 2020, and is expected to reach 700 (by March 2022).<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/06/Artboard-1-copy-11-1.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="0gemdejro" width="100%" height="529"><img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/06/Artboard-1-copy-10-2.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="534weeytw" width="100%" height="529"><img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/06/Artboard-1-copy-9-2.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="mkg9f1kdm" width="100%" height="529"><h2 class="heading-node" id="4ed5" style="text-align: justify">Cashless Surge</h2>Post-February 2020, the pandemic triggered a surge in cashless payments. As a result, banks, NBFCs, and businesses needed fintech services and APIs to sustain omnichannel commerce, as economies began encouraging digital touchless payments. This was an excellent opportunity for us to realize our dream of delivering financial inclusion among banks, NBFCs, and other businesses.And, there was no turning back from there. Projects started flooding in, and we needed more capacity strength and funding to bolster the surge.<h2 class="heading-node" id="beae" style="text-align: justify">Funding and Acquisitions</h2>In the beginning, the founding team chose not to be distracted with funding activities. Instead, their strategy was to chisel and scale up the API platform first and then seek funding for overseas expansion. As the India business was and has always been self-sufficient, no external capital infusion was required at that point in time.In early 2020, angel investors such as Amrish Rau, Pine Labs CEO, Jitendra Gupta, Jupiter Money founder, Kunal Shah, CRED founder, Vikram Chachra of 8i Ventures, Peifu Hsieh of Karbon and Abhishant Pant, Founder of The FinTech Meetup pitched in to raise Rs 10 Cr for the team. We used this funding to develop newer technology stacks, boost team strength, and grow in newer markets outside India.In July 2020, series A funding happened, and we raised $4.50 million through venture capital firms Beenext, 8i Ventures Fund, DMI Group, and Better Capital. Angel investors such as Alok Mittal, Indifi Technologies founder, Ashneer Grover, BharatPe founder, Amrish Rau, Pine Labs CEO, and Jitendra Gupta, Jupiter founder, also participated in the Series A funding.In the meantime, M2P grew rapidly and became the fintech enablement partner of choice for SBM Bank. Our partnership grew from strength to strength covering all facets of Retail banking. This model is now being emulated by other large private banks in India.We also acquired companies such as Wizi and Origa, and made strategic investments in firms like LivQuik to strengthen our cards, credit, and payments ecosystem and improve go-to-market speed.In less than a year, we raised another $10 million in Series B funding from Flourish Ventures and Omidyar Network India, Beenext, 8i Ventures, and Better Capital. Now, we have raised another $35 million through Series C funding led by Tiger Global.<h2 class="heading-node" id="a1ac" style="text-align: justify">Future of Fintech, here and now</h2>From the chai conversation in 2014 to funding rounds, global expansions, innovations, partnerships, and acquisitions in 2021, M2P has come a long way.But this is not time to rest on our laurels.We believe that the future of fintech is here and now.And, we are geared up with futuristic fintech products that are data-driven with AI-ML engines, disruptive R&amp;D, and innovative propositions.<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/newsletter/">Subscribe</a>&nbsp;to our newsletter and get the latest fintech news, views, and insights, directly to your inbox. Follow us on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/m2pfintech/mycompany/">LinkedIn</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/m2pfintech">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for insightful fintech tales curated for curious minds like you.

M2P Growth Story: From Chai Conversations to Fusing Fin with Tech

50 Popular Fintech Terms You Must Know

<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/04/banner-1251.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="pwxzxj8z1" width="100%" height="661">A few years ago, banking was always considered an arduous task with its complexity. But now, when we think of banking, ‘digital transaction’ springs up to our minds immediately, which makes our job simpler. Thanks to Neo banks, it redefines banking in the most user-friendly way and makes it more popular in recent years. Ergo, many customers now prefer using fingers for banking rather than their feet to visit the brick-and-mortar banks.Why such hype for Neo banks?What makes it stand out in the banking sector?We have unraveled everything you need to know about Neo banks in this blog. So, let’s get started right away.<h2 class="heading-node" id="299c" style="text-align: justify">What is a Neo Bank?</h2>Neo Bank is a type of digital bank that works entirely online without a physical branch. It is a customer-focused banking sector that attracts present-day tech-savvy users. They are also recognized as fintech that is demystifying the financial ecosystem actively. With Neo banks’ advanced features, the users can manage money wisely by using only their mobile phones. Moreover, compared to traditional banks, neo banks offer cheaper and faster banking services that include money transfers, lending, mobile-first financial solutions, and many more.<h2 class="heading-node" id="8b98" style="text-align: justify">Three working modes of Neo Banks</h2>Though Neo banks appear to be an app that controls financial services, the working is differentiated into three modes.<h3 class="heading-node" id="c677" style="text-align: justify">(i) Partners with Traditional banks</h3>It is a&nbsp;front-end focused&nbsp;neo bank which does not carry a banking license on its own and partners with a traditional bank to offer a wide range of core banking services. These types of neo banks include non-licensed fintech companies affiliated with existing licensed banks that offer seamless services and products for the bank’s customers. This collaboration ensures banks as their partner and not their opponent.<h3 class="heading-node" id="b6a7" style="text-align: justify">(ii) Bank’s Digital Avatar</h3>Here, the traditional banks develop their own digital-only initiative like neo banks to offer their services more digitally to their customers. They also go on par with the technology advancements to launch neo banking services. The banks that offer digital services through online portal comes under this category of neo banks.<h3 class="heading-node" id="c67b" style="text-align: justify">(iii) Neo Banks with a digital banking license</h3>They are called a&nbsp;Full-Stack&nbsp;neo bank that works only in countries that approve stand-alone digital entities and acquire a license from the Central Bank or the corresponding authority.<h2 class="heading-node" id="8e50" style="text-align: justify">Neo Banks Vs. Digital Banks Vs. Traditional Banks</h2>Banking is now a field where people are offered a lot of options to choose from. There are different kinds of banks that offer different services and qualities. The below image brings out the characteristics between three popular banks — <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/neo-banking-the-rise-of-new-age-banking/">Neo Banks</a>, Digital Banks, and Traditional Banks.<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/04/int.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="69y0499an" width="100%" height="529">As the name says, traditional banks are the oldest of all with the most trustworthy customer relationship. They also specialize in a wide range of services and products but with tons of paperwork and, at times, online data, which demands extremely long wait times. But nowadays, traditional banks have also adopted digital tools like e-mail, SMS, application, website, etc.The next entrant is the digital banks, which are similar to Neo banks since they also offer banking services online. To simply put, they are traditional banking with a digital touch that allows users to manage finance 24/7 via an electronic/online platform. Digital banks eliminate customers’ visits to physical bank branches and automate traditional banking services with no paperwork. They uplift traditional services with a simple equation —&nbsp;Online Banking + Mobile Banking = Digital Banking.As you can see, Neo bank is an upgraded version that suits the present-day banking needs digitally and is user-friendly. Neo banks stand out with their simplified customer-centric banking approach with wise financial management. Users are satisfied with their 100% quick and easy digitized services with anywhere anytime accessibility, making them the most profitable business model.<h2 class="heading-node" id="9b30" style="text-align: justify">What makes Neo banks a lucrative fintech offering?</h2>Neo banks are one of the profitable business models that emerged in the recent few years. With their ingenious services, these financial institutions are hitting the jackpot in ways that benefit themselves and their users. The below-listed features substantiate neo banks’ success:<ul class="list-node" id="kzvx0pa02"><li>Fewer fees and faster banking services make it more popular and cost-effective even among underbanked sectors.</li><li>Neo bank is a customer-centric banking avatar as they automate services according to their users’ preferences.</li><li>They blend emerging technologies like Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning to end the tedious banking process.</li><li>Customers enjoy various financial services like account creation, international transactions, or any services, quicker at any time and any place.</li><li>AI and data insights-driven app that tracks every transaction and generates reports as per user’s requirements.</li><li>Smart saving and Investment options are now possible with just a smartphone.</li><li>Neo banks act as a digital crust, making the core banking services crisper and accessible for their users.</li><li>They fill the digital gap and enable traditional banking services to Gen Z.</li><li>Collecting and analyzing data to give their users highly personalized and customized services.</li></ul>As a result, banking turned smarter with neo banks and easily reached out to unbanked and underbanked sectors. It also impacts banking today and tomorrow with its unmatchable digitized financial services.<h2 class="heading-node" id="smmjd1o8d" style="text-align: justify">Neo bank and its rising popularity</h2>The Covid-19 pandemic was the main reason which triggered its popularity when people were concerned about physical cash for safety reasons. People were more exposed to digital banking, which made brick and mortar banks have a healthy collaboration with neo banks. Their out-of-the-box strategies gave sudden popularity for neo banks.Starting from targeting the Gen-Z audience with product marketing, neo banks focus on the end-user experience by tailoring their User Interface to give the best possible user experience. Also, the customer gets to enjoy a better interest rate minus the need for lengthy paperwork.Furthermore, neo-banks have the ability to offer services based on popular customer opinion, and they further improve the stickiness by tailoring the services individually. When customers feel their opinions are being heard and fulfilled, they stick with the service provider. Neo banks now deploy this strategy to target specific audiences.These digital-only banks are ruling the banking space since 2017 with their innovative strategies and methods. We have&nbsp;Finin&nbsp;India’s first consumer-facing neo bank, fueled by our own <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/">M2P’s</a> API, which gives users a better track of their finances. Finin offers features like a detailed break-up of user spending and completely digital services with high bank-level security.Backed by banking licenses of the traditional banks, neo banks are adding increasing value by the day to the financial ecosystem; in fact, they can be termed as the new-age banks of today.<h2 class="heading-node" id="1101" style="text-align: justify">Turning stumbling blocks into stepping stones</h2>Even though it is one of the profitable business models in the industry, challenges are to everyone. Neo banks have limited banking services and products, unlike traditional banks, since they are relatively new. Indeed, we could see this challenger bank with a wide range of products and services in few years.Traditional banks being a string participant for decades with unbeatable trust relationships with their customers, neo banks find it difficult to gain trust. But, with collaboration with traditional banks, they are definitely coming up with great strategies and services to establish as a trustable one among customers.Neo banks are withstanding in this ambitious field with many robust financial institutions around. Every entrant, including traditional banks, would have faced their stumbling blocks and crisis, which led to the products and services we enjoy now. So, neo banks being an active player is turning every stumbling block into a stepping stone in its way.<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/newsletter/">Subscribe</a>&nbsp;to our newsletter and get the latest fintech news, views, and insights, directly to your inbox. Follow us on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/m2pfintech/mycompany/">LinkedIn</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/m2pfintech">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for insightful fintech tales curated for curious minds like you.

Neo Banking 101: All you need to know

<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/banner1251-3-1.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" id="ilmzze2wy" width="100%" height="317">The world has been churning the Open Banking mill for years, and India recently joined the bandwagon. The Indian government set the scene for the Open Banking system with the advent of UPI in 2016. However, in the last two years (post-pandemic period), the nation witnessed an extensive acceptance and adoption of Open Banking in the BFSI sector, fast-tracking fintech innovations. This feat is directly proportional to the government's nationwide campaigns that include the roll-out of IndiaStack, the launch of scalable Open Banking initiatives by banks, and improved funding to Banking-as-a-Service platforms. Today, India is at the forefront of Open Banking with a market size of around 3 to 4 million customers and is expected to grow by 46% by 2026.<h2 class="heading-node" id="h3j68aay1" style="text-align: justify">What is Open Banking?</h2>Open banking is a new-age banking practice that provides Third-party Service Providers (TSPs) open access to consumer and financial data from banks and Non-Banking Financial Companies (NBFCs). It uses <a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/blog/api-the-power-that-drives-new-age-banking-ecosystems/">Application Programming Interfaces</a> (APIs) to converge data from the banking world with the rest of the financial universe.It is imperative to note that financial data is made accessible to TSPs only after explicit customer consent. Thus, customer data is transparent yet secure and accessible anytime.Expected to hit $48 billion in 2026, open banking has accelerated technology innovation and adoption. It has facilitated a level-playing ecosystem via data portability and interoperability across the country. As trailblazers in enabling open banking ecosystems, fintech firms are aggregating data from various financial institutions and giving people and businesses more freedom in leveraging financial information.Open banking helps personal finance businesses analyze spending habits and offer personalized product recommendations. Lenders can comprehensively view customer’s financial situation, assess risk levels and offer optimal account terms. Customers can also leverage open banking to understand their financial situation before making financial decisions. By providing a window into customer behavior and expectations, open banking helps reshape customer experience and frictionless commerce.Before we go further, let’s explore the roots of open banking.<h2 class="heading-node" id="a0b5" style="text-align: justify">Origin of Open Banking</h2>The concept of Open Banking dates back to the 80s in Europe. Fast-forward to 2007, the arrival of a Payment Service Directive 1 (PSD1), harmonized payment services regulation and increased competition among financial service providers in the EU.The primary aim of PSD was to harmonize consumer protection with the rights and obligations of payment service providers and users. It established an integrated payments market that offered best-in-class security and infrastructure to the end users.&nbsp;PSD also allowed countries to include sections that are explicitly valid for their payment industry. It was released as legislation on November 1st, 2009, and accepted by all EU and EEA member states.However, even though PSD offered a comprehensive framework, it was not inclusive when considering international payments outside the European Union (EU). Furthermore, it was not designed for TSPs in its scope.These bottlenecks led the EU to build a more robust framework for this directive, which resulted in Payment Service Directive 2 (PSD2). It came into force on January 13th, 2018 with new rights for certain third-party providers (TPPs) to directly access online payment accounts with explicit customer consent through the bank's dedicated interface (built on APIs).Customer authentication is the main element of PSD2, and it encompasses the following points:<ul class="list-node" id="4wrs9fhmn"><li>Strengthen customer trust by deploying the highest standards of security</li><li>Offer a better pricing model to the consumers</li><li>Make transactions safe and secure</li><li>Level the playing field for payment service providers for both current upcoming players</li><li>Transparency in payment services</li></ul>Since this legislation has been out and about, many fintech, merchants, and tech players have been vigorously channeling their resources in becoming TPPs. PSD2 categorizes the TPPs into two categories.1. Payment Initiation Service Providers (PISPs): Regulated TPPs can initiate payments directly from the customer’s accounts based on their explicit consent.<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/Artboard-1-copy-9-3.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="253">2. Account Information Service Provider (AISP): Regulated TPPs who access customer data and provide them a single view of all their accounts for better financial management. Even this action requires the customer’s explicit consent.<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/Artboard-1-copy-10-2-1.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="253">PSD2 laid the groundwork for open banking, a practice that is very relevant, safe, quick, and easy to use.<h2 class="heading-node" id="29wqtnyhx" style="text-align: justify">Need for Open Banking</h2>The world of financial services is a dynamic environment. It can be primarily ascribed to the rise of new technologies in the digital banking ecosystem, heightened regulation scrutiny, and constant change in customer behavior and expectations. Besides these, the relentless search for a sustainable service model for underserved markets and additional revenue streams also define the landscape of financial services. &nbsp;In addition, FIs are obliged to stay compliant, manage costs, and maintain security and trust, and governments look for ways to boost innovation and competition across the banking sector. &nbsp;To manage complex customer needs and drive innovation and opportunity far beyond banking, the financial services industry needed to break through the conservative wall around the customer's financial data. Thanks to PSD2, banks and fintechs can now make the data useful and relevant. It now serves as the key to enhancing collaboration between financial services providers, rendering superior products and services for customers, reducing risk, pursuing strategic growth opportunities, and adapting to the new-age banking ecosystem.<h2 class="heading-node" id="i8q4vgmvm" style="text-align: justify">Closed Banking Vs. Open Banking</h2><img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/Artboard-1-copy-11-4.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="253"><h2 class="heading-node" id="dc6a" style="text-align: justify">How do APIs work in Open Banking?</h2>APIs are the backbone of Open Banking infrastructure for two reasons.<ol class="list-node" id="6ipr9y3o8"><li>It facilitates the exchange of information between two financial parties</li><li>It offers secure interoperability that is compliant with region-specific laws and regulations</li></ol>The world of finance sees it as an open source platform that allows legacy financial institutions to collaborate with modern age fintech platforms.&nbsp;With APIs at the forefront, customers will get a consolidated view, and financial providers such as lenders will get the required data to make the right decisions. This empowered banks and FIs to revamp their products and services to meet ever-changing customer needs.&nbsp;The APIs can be classified into three categories:&nbsp;<ul class="list-node" id="z7d94jny8"><li>Public APIs are the most popular connectors for open banking. They give TPPs access to customer information from the bank, but they don't store or save that information for later use.&nbsp;</li><li>Partner APIs are specific APIs designed to allow the exchange of data between two companies or businesses. They facilitate vendor-to-vendor communication channels.&nbsp;</li><li>Internal APIs are proprietary APIs used by an organization to secure and manage its own database.</li></ul><h2 class="heading-node" id="6a44" style="text-align: justify">Use Cases in Open Banking</h2>Financial ServicesOpen banking is all set to reinvent the way financial services are now perceived. The highlight of this reinvention is that they do not intend to eliminate the players but give them a new avatar. In simple terms, there is no customer data without banks.A bank’s responsibility is to provide the necessary platform for its customers to have their pick of the services. As fintechs are now offering that choice, banks are pressed to reinvent and partner with these new age fintechs to retain the competitor status. Today, several leading banks have formed successful partnerships with fintechs to offer the following services.<ul class="list-node" id="ypujhtj6f"><li>A comprehensive view of core banking accounts</li><li>Payment services and choice of networks</li><li>Commercial and personal loan histories</li><li>Tailored investment portfolios</li><li>Native bank apps and enriched experiences</li></ul>Small businessesAkin to individual customers, small business owners can use open banking to gain insightful visibility into their financial management. They will be able to understand the realities and ripple effects of their financial decisions such as loans, mortgages, and expansions. Small business owners can leverage the understanding to improve their cash flow. Likewise, lenders can devise practical loan offerings with an expedited delivery timeline to meet business needs.InsuranceInsurance providers can access a complete, dynamic, and current portfolio of the applicant’s finances. They can use the data to draw sound insurance decisions that matches the client’s best interest and business profitability. The customers also get an unparalleled view into spending behavior resulting in diligent financial decisions.CustomersOpen banking is all set to provide customers with a supermarket aisle experience where they can pick and choose the financial products they want. This tailored experience offers several advantages to new-age customers as listed below.<ul class="list-node" id="a66wr4nq7"><li>Augmented account visibility and security</li><li>In-depth visibility into spending habits and behaviors</li><li>Instantaneous access to market investments</li><li>Interoperable online and physical payment options</li></ul><h2 class="heading-node" id="uv1rt4xby" style="text-align: justify">Challenges in Open Banking</h2>Open banking removes interpersonal relationships between the customer and the bank. As everything is handled digitally, the human connection takes a dive.Customers might not be willing to share their details, and there could be a lack of apathy/credibility from the customer. Convincing them about the benefits and converting them into leads might take a while.Security concerns play a huge role in this field as it is a relatively new field, and it is filled with many trial and error situations that are yet to happen.<img src="https://m2p-website-file.s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/m2p-website-file/marketing-cms/m2p-blog/2022/05/Artboard-1-copy-12-1.webp" alt="M2P Fintech" title="" width="100%" height="253"><h2 class="heading-node" id="47f6" style="text-align: justify">Opportunities in Open Banking</h2>The open data philosophy will improve the transparency and democratization of the banking platform. It will provide access to the credit deprived and also facilitate entry into foreign markets. The most important benefit of all would be the ideation and creation of apps that will be fielded in the market by upcoming fintech players. Tools like Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning will be able to predict solutions based on customer spending habits. Automation will be a game changer for many services.Intrigued about the forthcomings of open banking and financing?Reach out to us at <a class="link" href="mailto:business@m2pfintech.com">business@m2pfintech.com</a> to know more.<a class="link" href="https://m2pfintech.com/newsletter/">Subscribe</a>&nbsp;to our newsletter and get the latest fintech news, views, and insights, directly to your inbox.Follow us on&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://www.linkedin.com/company/m2pfintech/mycompany/">LinkedIn</a>&nbsp;and&nbsp;<a class="link" href="https://twitter.com/m2pfintech">Twitter</a>&nbsp;for insightful fintech tales curated for curious minds like you.

M2P Blog

Tag: "Apis (26)"

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M2P Growth Story: From Chai Conversations to Fusing Fin with Tech

50 Popular Fintech Terms You Must Know

Neo Banking 101: All you need to know

Open Banking- A primer

Embedded Finance 101: The bridge connecting tech and financial services

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