LONDON, July 10, 2018 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Midpoint Holdings Limited (TSX.V:MPT) (“Midpoint” or the “Company”) is pleased to provide a progress update, including the achievement of key milestones in automation and service levels. In parallel, the Company is in advanced discussion with several banks and global financial institutions to offer virtual bank accounts, including IBANs. This is subject to the required regulatory approval by the UK FCA (Financial Conduct Authority)

Highlights:
Virtual Accounts and Banking
Midpoint is in advanced discussion with several banks and global financial institutions to offer virtual bank accounts, including IBANs, subject to the necessary regulatory approval.

“This approval would elevate Midpoint to a higher level of supervision — since we will be holding customer funds, it has required us to conduct a thorough review and upgrading of our operational processes. Key areas being addressed are: safeguarding of client funds, upgrade of security and handling of sensitive data, capital adequacy, governance & internal controls, and business continuity planning. We anticipate the regulatory lead time to approval will be 6 to 9 months and, if successful, should result in a significant re-rate of the business,” David Wong, CEO of Midpoint commented.

“There are multiple benefits of ‘direct banking relationships’ to the Company. It would afford us greater control over our operational flows resulting in vastly improved customer service, lower per transaction costs, and allow us to develop new products and services for our clients,” Brad Lemkus, Midpoint’s Operations Director added.

On-Boarding and KYC
Midpoint has partnered with GBG, the global specialist in identity data intelligence. GBG’s ID3global allows Midpoint to on-board and verify new clients in seconds via an automated electronic process. This removes the need for manual intervention or paper-based verification methods and provides real-time automated sanctions check for all transaction. “It is essential that we are able to quickly, efficiently and accurately identify our clients and comply with all applicable payments and wire transfer regulations,” said Brad Lemkus. 

Data Privacy
On May 25, 2018, The General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) came into force. “Europe is now covered by the world’s strongest data protection rules and by extension, all our international clients including those residing outside of the EU are also protected,” David Wong added.

Acceleration of Software Development Cycles
Midpoint’s development and engineering team continues to shorten its development cycles, focusing on rapid iterations of its platform. For the past two months, the Company has been releasing updates on a weekly cycle.

“The impact of closing the frequency gap with our competitors’ release cycles is that we exponentially improve both our user experience and our learning through faster, more rigorous testing and user feedback cycles,” Brad Lemkus concluded.

The Company aims to progress from a weekly to a daily release cycle in the near future.

About Midpoint

Headquartered in London, Midpoint is an FCA authorized payments institution specializing in cross-border payments and foreign exchange. SMEs, overseas professionals, property owners, foreign students, individuals and anyone involved in international payments, use Midpoint’s US patent protected platform for transparent, multi-party, multi-currency services.

Midpoint is currently handling transactions in 23 currencies with the ability to collect and transfer across 72 countries.  This highly secure platform provides customers with the most cost-effective FX at the midpoint of the interbank buy/sell rate therefore removing the spread as well as hidden costs and fees.

Midpoint Holdings Limited is listed on the TSX Venture Exchange and cross-listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.

For further information, please contact:

Corbin Comishin, CFO
Midpoint Holdings Ltd.
Tel:  (250) 352-7667
 David Wong, President and CEO
26 Finsbury Square, EC2A 1DS, London,
United Kingdom
Tel:  +44 20 7448 3081

Neither the TSX Venture Exchange (the “TSXV”) nor its Regulation Services Provider (as that term is defined in the policies of the TSXV) accepts responsibility for the adequacy or accuracy of this release and has neither approved nor disapproved of the contents of this news release.

Forward-looking information

This news release contains certain “forward-looking information” within the meaning of applicable securities law. Forward looking information is frequently characterized by words such as “plan”, “expect”, “project”, “intend”, “believe”, “anticipate”, “estimate”, “may”, “will”, “would”, “potential”, “proposed” and other similar words, or statements that certain events or conditions “may” or “will” occur. These statements are only predictions. Forward-looking information is based on the opinions and estimates of management at the date the information is provided, and is subject to a variety of risks and uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual events or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking information. For a description of the risks and uncertainties facing Midpoint and its business and affairs, readers should refer to Midpoint’s Management’s Discussion and Analysis. Midpoint undertakes no obligation to update forward-looking information if circumstances or management’s estimates or opinions should change, unless required by law. The reader is cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking information.

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