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bne Tech
March 22, 2019 www.intellinews.com I Page 26
Serbia’s central
bank grants Telekom Srbija permit to issue electronic money
Serbia’s central bank has allowed the majority state-owned telco Telekom Srbija to issue elec- tronic money, Indikator.ba reported on March 20. This is the first telecom in the country allowed to issue virtual money.
Telekom Srbija will be able to provide payments
via internet and mobile phone applications and to allow online purchase of goods and services.
So far, only one company was allowed to issue electronic money in Serbia – iPay See, which got a licence in 2016. The company provides payment services as a payment institution.
Yandex and Hyundai to cooperate on driverless technologies
Russian internet major Yandex and Hyundai Mobis, a subsidiary of South Korean car major Hyundai, have signed a cooperation deal on driverless technologies, Yandex said on March 19.
"Good news," BCS Global Markets commented on the announcement, pointing out that "Yandex has already been fairly successful with its initial foray into the autonomous cars area."
Yandex contributes its research on machine learning and vision, as well as its previous experience in pilot driverless projects, while Hyundai would supply the hardware, such as radars, lidars, cameras, sensors, and access to transformable automobiles.
The cooperation is aimed at developing driverless vehicles of fifth level (absolutely autonomous) and fourth level (able to navigate with high-resolution maps and other data) and plan to produce
prototypes in the second half of 2019 based on Hyundai and Kia models.
In 2018 Yandex and the government of the federal republic of Tatarstan signed an agreement on the development of driverless transportation, under which Yandex created a test zone for driverless vehicles in Innopolis, the satellite city and special economic zone of Tatarstan's capital Kazan.
Now, "the partnership with the top auto company should improve the prospects of the [driverless] endeavour, enriching Yandex’s technology with the partner’s expertise on hardware, vehicle software and distribution side," BCS analysts believe.
Yandex is actively developing in transportation segments, with the major joint venture between its Yandex.Taxi and Uber in Russia and CIS, as well as other services in carsharing and carpooling markets.