Today in FinTech: Margin Calls; Instant Wages, Digital Africa, Network Tokenization, Investment Screenings

In today’s FinTech news, margin calls are on the rise as bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies fall, meanwhile digital payments in Africa are expanding further across the continent as MFS Africa picks up more funds. Plus, Grubhub drivers can get wages deposited daily to a debit or prepaid card.

Bitcoin Plummet Triggers $1B in Margin Calls

Investors have settled more than $1 billion in margin calls in the past 24 hours as falling bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies continue to fall. Crypto’s total market capitalization was roughly $975 billion on Monday (June 13) from a November high of close to $3 trillion.

Grubhub Offers Drivers Instant Wages After Partnering with PayPal, Visa

Food delivery platform Grubhub has teamed up with PayPal and Visa to give the gig workers on its platform more ways to have instant access to wages. Instant Cashout, in partnership with Chase, rolled out in 2019 giving drivers instant cash to their bank accounts. The tie-up with PayPal and Visa enables drivers to add wages to debit cards or prepaid cards.

MFS Africa Raises $100M in Extended Series C

Digital payments network MFS Africa raised a total of $200 in its extended Series C following an infusion of $100 million in additional capital. The new funds will be used for furthering its growth across Africa and into Asia through its team up with LUN Partners and to enable cross-border digital payments between Africa and China.

US Lawmakers Push Bill That Could Block FinTech, AI Investments in China

Congress is pressing ahead with legislation that would propose creating a Committee on National Critical Capabilities to screen investments in countries seen as adversaries as a way to protect U.S. technology and rebuild critical supply chains. Which agency to oversee the committee has not yet been decided.

Spreedly Launches Network Tokenization Program with Mastercard

Payment orchestration platform Spreedly teamed with Mastercard for network tokenization. The partnership gives merchants the flexibility of network token transactions while also allowing ongoing transactions with other payment service providers or acquirers that are developing network token capabilities.