Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
BBC | Gordon Corera | Apr 23, 2021

Jeremy Fleming said there was a risk that key technologies on which we rely will no longer be shaped by the West.
"We have to keep evolving our approach if we're going to keep up," he said of the growing challenge from China. "The risk is that the technology is implemented in a way in which we can't assure its security," he warned.
So-called smart cities, which will collect large amounts of data, are just one example, he added.
The UK is a "big beast" when it comes to technology but "we can't take that for granted", the GCHQ director warned, saying this was a moment when we had to decide if we were going to continue to evolve and compete with our adversaries.
Mr Fleming was speaking ahead of giving this year's Vincent Briscoe Annual Security Lecture at Imperial College, and in the wake of the Integrated Review, which placed science and technology at the centre of future security and defence policy.
The challenge from China is uppermost in the minds of intelligence chiefs across Western countries, particularly when it comes to technology.
"The risk, as I see it today, is that we lose control of the standards that shape our technology environment," he told the BBC. "The things that make sure that our liberal Western democratic views are baked into our technology."
Mr Fleming said there were lessons to be learnt from the debate over the role of Chinese company Huawei in building a new 5G telecoms system. It was initially given a role in the UK, before being excluded following US sanctions.
But there were concerns that there were few other companies actually able to supply the latest technology.
"The conversation about 5G was really lost a decade ago, when Western nations decided that they weren't going to invest in the underpinning infrastructures... and the result was we just didn't have the choices," he said.
The imperative was to make sure in the future the UK took the kind of long-range decisions need to ensure it has choice - so there would not be the same concerns over dependency, he said.
That need to look forward prompted a focus on smart cities. These involve a vast number of sensors and cameras built into a city's infrastructure - controlling everything from traffic to utilities such as water and power.
But it also means vast amounts of data will be collected about people's movement and activity. Done in the right way, the GCHQ chief argues this presents a "fantastic opportunity" to increase efficiency and improve services. But he warned it also carries risks around privacy and anonymity.
"If we don't control the technology, if we don't understand the security required to implement those effectively, then we'll end up with an environment or technology ecosystem where the data is not only used to navigate, but it could be used to track us".
China is a leading supplier of smart city technology, with councils in the UK already purchasing cameras from its companies.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Liquid Avatar Technologies | Cara Buckspan | Apr 26, 2021

TORONTO, ON / ACCESSWIRE / April 26, 2021 / Liquid Avatar Technologies Inc. (CSE:LQID)(OTC PINK:TRWRF)(FRA:4T51) ("Liquid Avatar Technologies" or the "Company") a global blockchain, digital identity and fintech solutions company, is excited to announced that it has launched the KABN Prepaid Visa Card in Canada, powered by the XTM Inc. (PAID)(XTMIF) payment platform and its sponsoring financial institution.
Liquid Avatar Technologies has begun to roll out the program in Canada and has plans to expand its card program rollout to other geographic regions subject to all necessary approvals. The KABN Prepaid Visa Card and Card App will provide users with a host of services similar to those of major financial institutions. Additionally, the KABN Prepaid Visa Card will integrate seamlessly with the Liquid Avatar mobile App, providing qualified Liquid Avatar App users with an easy way to apply for and access their KABN Prepaid Visa Card directly from the Liquid Avatar mobile App.
KABN cardholders will automatically be entitled to participate in KABN KASH, an exclusive and customized consumer experience where users can earn cash back on transactions with over 400 major online merchants, like Chapters Indigo, Walmart, Lenovo, Sephora, Viator, Nike and others. Liquid Avatar mobile App users that also have a KABN Prepaid Visa Card will, from time to time, receive additional bonus offers.
As part of its onboarding strategy for KABN Prepaid Visa Cardholders, the Company's state of the art, Verifiable Credentials Ecosystem, will provide users with a digital identity verification and validation services at no charge. Thus, allowing them to prove their identity continuously without the hassle of verifying time and time again to a growing list of online service providers and other value-based programs. In turn, validated users are qualified, subject to permissions and necessary approvals, for unique and customized financial services other value-based opportunities via KABN KASH.
According to Prepaid Cards Canada (Payments Canada 2020) Canadian Payments: Methods and Trends 2020, in 2019, prepaid cards, either plastic or virtual, grew significantly at the Point of Sale ("POS") with respectively, an 8% increase in volume and a 6% increase in value.
Nearly one in five Canadians either purchased or received at least one prepaid card per month. Young adults, those aged 18 to 34, and unbanked Canadians are the most common users of prepaid payments products. This is driven by a lack of access and acceptance of traditional banking products and services. Prepaid cards are starting to be used by a wider base, as those who seek security and identity protection for purchases have turned to prepaid cards as an alternative to cash. As prepaid cards are not directly linked to user account information, they offer an electronic method of payment that carries many of the benefits of cash.
A recent study found that 70 per cent of Canadians are more concerned about fraud today than they were five years ago, which can drive more consumers towards prepaid cards to minimize the risks that come with sharing financial information online or using cards directly linked to banking accounts. The use of prepaid cards has been accelerated by emerging e-commerce and mobile payments trends. Prepaid cards accounted for 10 per cent of e-commerce payments in 2019.
Canadians were three times more likely to use a prepaid payment for e-commerce than they were at physical POS merchant locations. The growing use of mobile payments also plays a significant role in accelerating prepaid card use. In 2019, 80 per cent of prepaid POS purchases were made using closed-loop store cards, with a notable number of prepaid purchases being linked to mobile devices and virtual prepaid cards. Over a quarter of Canadians (28 per cent) used at least one prepaid virtual card. The use of prepaid cards at these establishments is directly linked with rewards and loyalty programs that drive consumer usage.
"The KABN Prepaid Visa Card will give Canadian users access to unique value programs helping to enhance their spending power wherever Visa is accepted, in more than 200 countries and territories worldwide," said Michael Konikoff, Chief Revenue Officer of Liquid Avatar Technologies. "We are excited to be launching this pivotal part of our fintech network and to be working with XTM to accelerate our joint business efforts in Canada."
"Liquid Avatar Technologies' unique business model creates opportunity to convert a growing number of qualified, authenticated users into active program participants," said Marilyn Schaffer, CEO, XTM. "We expect to see rapid growth of this dynamic user base throughout Canada."
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Nova Credit blog | Apr 1, 2021
SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Apr. 1, 2020 - Nova Credit, a global credit bureau enabling immigrants access to credit, has launched a new direct-to-consumer dating service. The app, named “Score!”, matches any U.S. immigrant with a local American, based on analysis of their credit scores and other behavioral insights. It is available on both iOS and Android, and has an early user rating of 4.1 stars. See Score! in action.
Recent data released from the Advanced Population Research Institute of Louisville’s Foreign-born Overseas Observations: Longitudinal Study shows that non-U.S. born residents are not only remaining longer in the U.S. (from an average of 6 years in 2000 to 11 years in 2020), but also more likely to marry a local (from 4% in the 1980s to a peak of 12% last year). Nova Credit Head of Product Melanie Aliperti offered, “as we’ve run deeper user research, we’ve found that the quest for love is becoming a more significant theme and requested feature - particularly as newcomers seek deeper cultural integration and mingling.”
The feedback from early beta users has been promising. Priyanka from India described her experience, “Bumble, Raya, Tinder -- I’ve been on them all. But with Score!, I found an app that felt right for me. I shared stories of my Indian heritage and favourite Bollywood actor Shah Rukh Khan, rather than trying to just fit in with American cultural references of Tiger King. And in meeting [now-partner, name removed for confidentiality], I’ve found an American who values my international perspective.”
Nova Credit’s analytic capabilities in finance remain at the forefront of the application’s design, leveraging the latest trends in behavioral economics and machine learning. Users are prompted to upload their credit score, whether domestic or international, and the algorithm extrapolates their romantic preferences and partnership viability. Nova Credit CEO Misha Esipov expounds:
“The financial industry has known for decades that credit insights are the strongest predictors of personality and ultimately compatibility. We have the richest data insights of any industry as well as some of the best data science talent. With this launch, we are proud to expand the remit of our industry and the impact on our consumers”.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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TechCrunch | Erin Bury | Apr 5, 2021

As consumers build their wealth, assets are typically tangible: cash, investments, property, cars, jewelry, art. But increasingly we’re adding a new type of asset to the mix: digital assets, whether in the form of cryptocurrency or a new asset class, NFTs.
We’re going through the biggest wealth transfer in history right now, with an estimated $16 trillion expected to change hands in the coming decades. While it’s easy to hand over the reins of a physical asset in the event of an emergency or death, it’s not as simple with digital assets.
When someone dies, they either have a will that dictates how their assets will be distributed, or, if they die without a will, a government formula outlines how their assets will be divided. While a will outlines who should receive what, it typically doesn’t have an up-to-date asset list, nor does it contain passwords or access keys. There’s an estimated tens of billions in unclaimed assets sitting in banks today as a result of a family or executor not knowing about those accounts following an individual’s death.
But an executor can do due diligence by calling financial institutions to double-check whether the person held accounts and get access to those funds, which typically requires providing copies of the will and/or death certificate. With digital assets, it’s not as simple as calling the bank and finding out a relative had a valuable NFT. There’s no directory or central body that governs NFTs or cryptocurrency — it’s purposely decentralized, which is great for privacy but less than ideal for family members who want to figure out if someone held valuable digital assets.
And it’s not just about knowing digital assets exist — it’s about knowing how to access them. A recent study from the Angus Reid Forum, commissioned by Willful, showed that consumers under 35 are way less likely to have shared account access with loved ones (19% of those under 35 have shared account info, compared with 32% of those over 55). This makes sense, since the younger you are, the less likely you are to think about passing on assets after you die. But this tech-savvy younger demographic may leave their families in the lurch if something happens.
So what can consumers do to ensure their digital assets are protected? First, consider using a password manager like 1Password — which can store all of your account information, logins, private keys to digital assets and any other key information — and share the master access password with your executor or store it with your will.
Second, consider using a digital wallet or exchange to store your digital assets — if your family has access to that, it may also include access to your private keys, depending on the wallet’s features, or the exchange itself may have a death-management process.
Third, create an up-to-date list of your assets that your executor and/or key family members have access to — this should include physical and digital assets, and should be reviewed and updated either annually or when you acquire a new asset or change financial institutions. Finally, create a will that clearly outlines how you want your assets to be distributed and provide specific instructions on how you want digital assets to be distributed.
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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