Okoora, the Israeli-Swiss fintech startup, has announced its entry into the Polish market as part of its strategy to expand within the European Union. The company, known for its AI-based cloud platform for global payments, banking, and risk management, aims to broaden its EU footprint through this strategic move.

In Poland, Okoora will establish sales offices, a marketing team, customer service operations, and an R&D center to further enhance its product development. By entering this market, Okoora aims to help businesses plan, manage, and execute cross-border foreign exchange transactions. Its Automated Business Currency Management (ABCM) platform assists companies in managing the risks associated with currency exchange rate volatility. Additionally, Okoora offers Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) via APIs, enabling fintech companies, banks, and other financial institutions to integrate banking services with transaction and risk hedging capabilities.

This expansion follows the opening of Okoora’s offices in Limassol, Cyprus, which primarily ensures compliance with EU regulations. However, Poland represents Okoora’s first major European market where it will actively market and sell its services to the local business community. Poland’s membership in the European Union, while retaining its own currency, the złoty, and its robust fintech industry, made it an attractive choice for Okoora. Research by Okoora and Mastercard (Map of Polish Fintech) reveals that Poland hosts 368 fintech companies, with global firms like Binance, Curve, Kevin, Revolut, and Tink establishing R&D centers there.

Poland’s banking sector holds total assets estimated at €564 billion. Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), Okoora’s primary target audience, constitute 99% of the Polish economy, exporting around 50% of their products and services and contributing 45.3% of the GDP.

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Beni Avraham, founder and CEO of Okoora, commented, “We are entering the Polish market with the belief that foreign exchange management solutions can and should undergo a revolution. When we assessed the European market, Poland scored high due to its developed banking sector, extensive foreign trade, and other economic indicators. Additionally, Poland offers economic incentives that make establishing an R&D center feasible. We believe this is the best place to kick-start our expansion into the European market.”

Avraham added, “Another reason for choosing Poland as our entry point into the European market is the substantial volume of currency exchanges between the Israeli shekel and the Polish złoty on our platform, ranking fifth among EU countries, ahead of Spain and France.”

Since the launch of the ABCM platform, Okoora has saved businesses in Israel over NIS 11 billion in international forex transactions, while addressing increased financial risks in Israel in 2023 due to judicial reforms and the conflict in Gaza. The platform saw an 83% growth in the number of clients in 2023, with around 15,000 customers registered. Over the past year, the company experienced a 465% increase in payment transactions by its clients and a 161% rise in transaction volumes hedging against currency exchange rate fluctuations.

Founded in August 2021 by Beni Avraham, the founder of Ofakim Group, Israel’s leading financial risk management company, Okoora reached profitability in 2023 and operates without external investor funding. The company employs about 100 professionals across Israel, Switzerland, Germany, Cyprus, and India, and is recruiting dozens more employees for its Israeli branch to support its domestic and international growth.

Source: jpost.com

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American best-selling author, businessman, and investor chooses Propy’s onchain real estate platform to list Golden Beach, Florida, house.

MIAMI, July 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — Propy, a technology company revolutionizing real estate via blockchain and AI, today announced that high-profile American entrepreneur Grant Cardone has listed a Golden Beach, Florida, private property for sale on Propy’s blockchain-based real estate platform with an asking price of $42,000,000 accepting cryptocurrency. This marks the first venture into emerging technologies in proptech for Cardone, a serial founder, best-selling author, equity fund manager, and business and real estate investor. The home is listed on the Propy marketplace with the deed minted onchain.

Propy simplifies the home-purchasing experience and eliminates fraudulent transactions by using a decentralized title registry and an escrow settlement protocol for securely storing land records and facilitating transactions, as well as accepting or converting cryptocurrency if a buyer chooses this form of payment. Leveraging the immutability of the blockchain, Propy ensures that buyer and seller private information is secure throughout the transaction. Automating and bringing the entire process online and onchain enables closing on a property to be faster, easier, and more secure than the outdated, traditional real estate transaction model.

Commenting on the listing, Grant Cardone said, “We are all in on blockchain revolutionizing real estate. We are leveraging top-tier technology to make transactions seamless and unstoppable. This is the future of real estate, and we’re leading the charge!” 

The private address is minted on PropyKeys protocol – an onchain tokenized address market developed on the Base network (Coinbase Layer 2 on Ethereum). PropyKeys brings real estate onchain through NFT home addresses and aims to bring one million home addresses onchain by 2025. The Propy marketplace also grants prospective buyers the option to pay using Bitcoin or US dollars.

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Natalia Karayaneva, Founder and CEO of Propy, said, “It is a privilege for us to be the platform of choice for high-end property sellers, enhancing our offering to our community of high net-worth individuals, investors, and crypto buyers. With Propy’s advanced blockchain rails, compliant crypto and dollar payments, and unwavering focus on privacy, our clients can confidently navigate the closing process. The inclusion of Cardone’s listing in BTC and USD on Propy, minted with our latest privacy deed feature, highlights our leadership in the intersection of real estate and crypto.”

Additional details on the Cardone property are available on Propy’s website. Interested parties should contact the listing agent for viewings and further details.

Natalia Karayaneva, Founder and CEO of Propy, is available for interview upon request.

About Propy:

Propy is a US-licensed title company and a pioneering platform leveraging blockchain and AI technology to facilitate seamless transactions of real-world assets (RWA), specifically focused on revolutionizing global real estate markets. As an industry leader, Propy specializes in providing secure and efficient solutions, ensuring an enhanced experience for buying and selling properties worldwide.

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Global revenue declines year-over-year due to lagging equities performance in the U.S. and EMEA

NEW YORK, July 2, 2024 /PRNewswire/ — The global securities finance industry generated $2.53 billion in revenue for lenders in the second quarter of 2024, according to DataLend, the market data service of fintech EquiLend. The figure represents a 16% decrease from the $3.00 billion generated in Q2 2023.

Global broker-to-broker activity, where broker-dealers lend and borrow securities from each other, generated an additional $696 million in revenue during Q2, a 9% decrease year-over-year.

Regionally, equity revenue fell 33% in EMEA and 19% in North America compared to the same period last year. A 22% decline in fees in North America and a 23% dip in EMEA accounted for the majority of the decreased revenue. Equity revenue in APAC increased 8% thanks to a 13% increase in fees.

Global fixed income performance declined by 11% in Q2 year-over-year. While revenue from government securities was roughly flat, corporate debt revenue fell by 32%, a regression of a trend which saw corporate bonds running hot through much of 2022 and 2023.

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In June 2024, the global securities finance industry generated $790 million in revenue for lenders. The figure represents a 11% decrease year-over-year from the $888 million generated in June 2023. Broker-to-broker activity totaled an additional $207 million in revenue in June, also an 11% decrease year-over-year.

The top five earners in June 2024 were Lucid Group (LCID US), Trump Media & Technology Group (DJT US), Canopy Growth Corporation NPV (CGC US & WEED CN), Beyond Meat Inc. (BYND US) and ImmunityBio Inc. (IBRX US). In total, the group generated $56 million in revenue in the month.

Bloomberg Terminal users can subscribe to EquiLend’s exclusive Orbisa securities lending data by entering terminal shortcut APPS ORBISA or clicking the following link: https://blinks.bloomberg.com/screens/apps%20orbisa.

About DataLend 

DataLend, the market data service within EquiLend’s Data & Analytics Solutions group, tracks daily market movements across more than 200,000 securities, covering $35 trillion in lendable assets and $2.6 trillion in on-loan assets for the securities finance market. www.datalend.com

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About EquiLend

EquiLend is a global financial technology firm offering Trading, Post-Trade, Data & Analytics, RegTech and Platform Solutions for the securities finance industry. With offices in North America, EMEA and Asia-Pacific, EquiLend operates across various jurisdictions worldwide, adhering to the highest regulatory standards. The company is committed to excellence and innovation and is consistently recognized for its contributions to the industry. EquiLend is Great Place to Work Certified^™ in the U.S., UK, Ireland and India and has been honored as the Best Post-Trade Service Provider Globally, Best Market Data Provider Globally and for its outstanding Diversity & Inclusion initiatives in the Securities Finance Times Industry Excellence Awards 2023. www.equilend.com

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View original content:https://www.prnewswire.co.uk/news-releases/datalend-securities-lending-revenue-down-16-year-over-year-to-2-53-billion-in-q2-2024–302188137.html