EMEA Daily: Ukraine Conflict Leads to $242M Crypto Liquidation; Polish eCommerce Company Allegro Reports 34% Growth in 2021

In today’s top Europe, Middle East, and Africa news, the Russian invasion into Ukraine triggered more than $242 million in liquidations in the crypto market, while Allegro, one of the largest eCommerce websites in Europe, reported its revenue was up nearly 34% last year compared to 2020.

Plus, wealth aggregator Finary raised $8.9 million in a Series A funding round, the International Monetary Fund warned the United Kingdom that deregulation of the country’s financial system poses questions about its competitiveness, and a bipartisan group of U.S. lawmakers urged President Joe Biden to persuade European Union leaders to amend the proposed Digital Markets Act (DMA) because it targets U.S. tech companies.

Ukraine Conflict Leads to $242M Crypto Liquidation

Russia’s invasion of Ukraine triggered more than $242 million in liquidations in the crypto market. Coindesk reported, most of those liquidations, $72 million, were in Bitcoin-tracked futures, followed by ether futures at $70 million.

The total market capitalization of crypto dropped nearly 7.8% in early Asian hours, Coindesk said. Bitcoin fell almost 8%, while stock futures in Asia and Europe dropped 1.5% on average.

Polish eCommerce Company Allegro Reports 34% Growth in 2021

Allegro, one of the largest eCommerce websites in Europe, reported its revenue reached 5.35 billion Polish zloty (about $1.3 billion) last year, up nearly 34% compared to 2020, the company reported.

The Polish company with 13.5 million customers and a formidable rival to Amazon.com in Poland, predicted it will repeat the growth rate in 2022.

French Startup Finary Raises $9M Series A to Reinvent Private Banking

Wealth aggregator Finary raised $8.9 million in a Series A funding round (8 million euros) just a few months after its 2.2 million euros ($2.4 million) May 2021 seed round.

The capital will be used to build a private bank and put tools into the hands of wealthy investors, the company said.

Rosbank Operating in ‘Normal Manner’ Amid Ukraine Invasion

French bank Societe Generale says its Russian unit Rosbank was open Thursday (Feb. 24) amid Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, and said that it was adhering to all applicable regulations.

Russian tanks and ground troops entered Ukraine with airstrikes hitting the capital city of Kyiv and a dozen other cities.

IMF Sounds Alarm Over UK’s Decision to Toss EU Financial Rules

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned the United Kingdom that deregulation of the country’s financial system presents issues over the role of the Bank of England (BoE) in competitiveness.

In a 94-page assessment of the U.K.’s financial stability, the IMF said it expects that its strength will be further enhanced, but stresses over policies to improve the competitiveness of the U.K. financial system have surfaced.

HandCash App Integrates Circle, Fabriik Tools To Offer Top-Ups

Bitcoin Satoshi Vision (BSV) trading wallet company HandCash announced its partnership with payments platform Circle and Canadian FinTech firm Fabriik to allow users the opportunity to top up their accounts within the app.

HandCash contacted both companies with their design for the fiat ramps system, the company said.

Meal Kit Service Gousto Lands $230M

U.K. meal kit company Gousto has landed $230 million in funding from investors led by Japan’s SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Bloomberg reported Thursday (Feb. 24).

The company, known for its red recipe boxes, offers users all ingredients they need in the proper proportions to prepare a meal at home. Gousto says these recipes are developed by a team of chefs, with the selection of meals updated weekly.

US Lawmakers Urge Biden to Persuade EU to Change Digital Markets Act

A bipartisan group of 30 lawmakers are urging President Joe Biden to persuade European Union leaders to change the proposed Digital Markets Act (DMA) because it “unfairly” targets U.S. tech companies.

Led by U.S. Reps Suzan DelBene and Darin LaHood, the lawmakers wrote in their letter that they “are greatly concerned that EU’s proposed approach to promoting competition among digital platforms unfairly targets American workers by deeming certain U.S. technology companies as ‘gatekeepers’ based on deliberately discriminatory and subjective thresholds.”

EU’s Vestager Wants EU Digital Laws to Inspire Others

On Tuesday (Feb. 22), European Commission Vice President Margrethe Vestager told students at the University of California Berkeley’s Law School of the importance of the European Union legislation to regulate digital platforms, and how other countries are sharing the same views and adopting similar regulations.

Vestager said the EU recognizes that a handful of key platforms act as gatekeepers to much of the internet. These gatekeepers have a special responsibility to act fairly, and the Digital Markets Act will be there to remind the gatekeepers of this obligation that with great power comes great responsibility.

German Delivery Platform Karla Raises $3.8M

German delivery startup Karla has raised $3.8 million in pre-seed funding, and has also launched an app designed to optimize deliveries and provide transparency for eCommerce orders.

The Berlin-based firm, founded last year, provides a customer communication platform for merchants to help retailers make shopping more convenient, according to Karla co-founder Philippe Padrock.

UK’s Open Banking Chief Calls on Regulators to Streamline, Accelerate the Technology

The leader of U.K.’s open banking organization has called on regulators to accelerate debut of the technology. Charlotte Crosswell, chair of the Open Banking Implementation Entity (OBIE), has said that simplifying regulations should be a priority.

OBIE was created by the U.K.’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to deliver the application programming interfaces, data and security infrastructures for developers to harness technology.

EU’s New Data Act May Compel US Firms To Share More Data

The European Commission proposed new rules Wednesday (Feb. 23) to complement existing legislation governing data. The proposed Data Act is the second main legislative initiative resulting from the European strategy for data that intends to boost the EU’s leadership in the regulation of the data-driven society.

While the proposed rules are not intended to limit the capacity of Big Tech companies to collect data generated in Europe, these rules may oblige them to share more data with EU firms and consumers.

Ukraine Caps Cash Withdrawals, Suspends Use of Digital Wallets

After martial law was declared in Ukraine, the central bank suspended the country’s currency markets, stopped the circulation of all securities, limited cash withdrawals and halted the use of both electronic currency and digital wallets.

As Russian troops entered the country, the National Bank of Ukraine passed several temporary resolutions, including capping daily cash withdrawals to the U.S. equivalent of roughly $3,339.13 and suspending digital money transactions.

ECOMMPAY Partners With Nium to Extend International Payout Offerings

Global payments provider Nium has partnered with international payment service ECOMMPAY to offer merchants a “closed-loop system” for international payouts.

Nium provides global payments and card issuance solutions and operates payouts for businesses in over 190 countries in over 100 local currencies. Through the partnership, ECOMMPAY will be able to offer payouts to merchants made directly to bank accounts, in the country of choice and using a secure local network.

Zilch CEO on Why BNPL Needs a Revamp

The use of buy now, pay later (BNPL) has exploded in the past few years as more and more consumers tap into the opportunity to pay for retail purchases in several installments. This boom has also created fierce competition in the BNPL space as established players compete with new entrants vying for a seat at the table.

To stand out, Zilch CEO Philip Belamant said the firm has created a BNPL 2.0 product that plugs the holes created by the traditional credit cards and the first-generation BNPL products on the market today.

PiggyVest Seeks to Boost Consumer Savings and Investment in Nigeria’s ‘Low Trust Environment’

There aren’t many FinTech start-ups born out of viral Twitter posts, but in 2015, a tweet from a Nigerian woman who opened a wooden box said she had saved 1,000 Naira (about $5) daily for a year. The tweet sparked a conversation about a savings solution for Nigerians, most of whom had multiple bank accounts but were not using them to save money.

“My co-founder actually brought the tweet to our group chat and that catalyzed the conversation around what a digital wooden box for young Nigerians [will] look like,” Odunayo Eweniyi, co-founder and chief operations officer at online savings and investment platform PiggyVest, told PYMNTS in an interview.