F|T: FinTech Times – TikTok plans squeeze payments

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Briza CEO steps down as insurtech startup cuts almost half of staff (BETAKIT)

Briza’s CEO and co-founder, Ben Munro, stepped down from his role before the startup laid off about 26 of its employees, according to communications from now-former Briza employees seen by BetaKit.

TikTok parent ByteDance pushes in payments with help from JP Morgan (FORBES)

JP Morgan has been quietly working with TikTok parent ByteDance on payments technology that will help the Chinese giant expand into more than two dozen markets and reach millions of users. The partnership is just one part of ByteDance’s broader push into the fintech space.

Payments Canada Writes Open Letter to Finance Minister to Expand Organizational Membership Eligibility (BETAKIT)

14 signatories signed a joint letter calling for Payments Canada’s membership to be expanded to include payment service providers registered under the Retail Payments Activities Act (RPAA), such as local credit unions and “financial market infrastructure operators.”

What needs to happen before the IPO window opens again in 2023? What trends will affect the world’s largest economies? And how likely is the risk of a global recession or energy crisis?

Find out in RBC’s Global Market Outlook

Ant Group founder Jack Ma to give up control in key upgrade (CNBC)

Ant’s $37 billion IPO, which would have been the world’s largest, was canceled at the last minute in November 2020, prompting a forced restructuring of the financial technology firm and speculation that the Chinese billionaire would have to relinquish control.

Celsius Network Wins Ownership Rights to Clients’ Crypto Deposits (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)

A bankruptcy judge ruled that digital coins deposited in Celsius Network LLC’s interest-bearing accounts belong to the firm, ruling against thousands of customers and settling a key legal issue in crypto-related insolvencies.

More than 100 bitcoins linked to defunct crypto exchange QuadrigaCX have been mysteriously transferred (THE GLOBE AND MAIL)

It’s not clear who moved the 104 bitcoins this month, worth about $2.4 million, nor how anyone could do it. Bankruptcy trustee Ernst & Young Inc. said in 2019 that it was unable to access the wallets, meaning the funds could not be recovered to help compensate users who lost money when the exchange went out of business.

BetaKit Hiring Across Canada (BETAKIT)

The publication of record for Canadian startups is growing and needs your talent.

Editor, British Columbia (Jobbio / Gaulin Media)
Editor, Alberta (Jobbio / Gaulin Media)
Editor, Québec (Jobbio / Gaulin Media)
Staff writer (1-year contract) (Jobbio / Gaulin Media)

Silvergate Capital lays off 40% of staff as FTX-induced contagion strikes again (CRUNCHBASE)

Silvergate Capital reported that investors pulled more than $8 billion in deposits from the crypto-focused bank as FTX’s sudden, spectacular implosion left them reeling. The bank also announced that it will cut 40 percent of its workforce – around 200 employees. As BetaKit’s last year’s review podcast discussed, “FTX and its collapse [was] just the icing on the cake that has been crypto” in 2022.

Crypto Lender Genesis Considers Bankruptcy, Lays Off 30% of Employees (THE WALL STREET JOURNAL)

Massive crypto lender Genesis Global Trading Inc. laid off 30% of its employees and is considering filing for bankruptcy, according to people familiar with the matter, the latest sign of financial turmoil at the crypto lender.

The layoffs were not limited to one department and were across the company, some of the people said. Genesis has 145 employees left after Thursday’s layoffs.

Tokens.com’s Metaverse Subsidiary Acquires NFT Coining Platform CocoNFT (BETAKIT)

Metaverse Group, a Tokens.com subsidiary, announced on Tuesday that it acquired Coco to promote the latter’s offering and integrate it with Metaverse’s virtual world B2B products.

Indian fintech BharatPe CEO Suhail Sameer leaves top job (TECHCRUNCH)

The New Delhi-headquartered startup, backed by Sequoia India, Tiger Global, Coatue, Dragoneer and Ribbit Capital, said Sameer will transition to a strategic advisory role on January 7 and current CFO Nalin Negi will take over as interim director. CEO.

Coinbase Expands Its Canadian Crypto Operations (THE GLOBE AND MAIL)

Lucas Matheson has been hired as the new head of Canada for Coinbase, the company told The Globe and Mail. He most recently worked as a senior director at Shopify Inc. and previously held other leadership roles at Deloitte and Toronto-Dominion Bank.