fintech Archives - Page 11 of 13

December 16, 2015

nTrust’s Rod Hsu on differentiating in the competitive payments space

card.com is an alternative to bank branches

Rod Hsu is the president of nTrust.

What is nTrust?

We’re here to help people access, move, and use their money — instantly. Whether you’re squaring up with a friend, or supporting loved ones overseas, you can use nTrust to transfer money through your mobile phone, tablet or desktop to anyone, anywhere. Send money across the table or around the world, without expensive fees or inconvenient delays. It’s about leveraging technology to liberate money and create a world of connections between friends, families, and businesses.

Payments is getting really competitive. How do you differentiate versus other players?

The retail payment space is certainly crowded and competitive. We play in a different space of payments; we focus on person-to-person transfers. Without being tied to any financial institution or instrument, nTrust provides an agnostic means to move money to others, which extends to 20 countries globally. In practice, you could have a Canadian, Australian and United Kingdom bank account linked to your nTrust Cloud and move money easily between them, which is a completely different model than other players on the market.

While the funding side is ubiquitous and flexible, the beauty comes from being able to freely, securely and instantly move money (even micro amounts) to others. The platform is built on a social premise and elements are incorporated to bridge the gap between finances and social media. A product is only as good as the experience it offers, which is why we prioritize UX as the forefront of every feature we implement. As an example, traditional account statements provide a load of filtering and search capabilities but in reality, only a fraction of those are used on a frequent basis. So we’ve taken a different approach in using custom hashtags for transactions, which not only leverages the social aspect but can also quickly filter the important activities that mean something to you.

Moving money should feel seamless and easy so you can focus on other things in your life.

Why is the space attracting so many entrepreneurs and VC money?

I think there are two parts to this – the generation gap and access to technologies. The movement of a new generation of consumers is forcing a shift in the way money and payments are viewed in the financial sector. Things aren’t what they use to be and the need to keep pace with this change in financial interactions isn’t happening fast enough in the incumbent system. That’s why we are seeing more initiatives being taken in this space by entrepreneurs, leaders and VCs. As the cost of entry is becoming more and more affordable, there is less risk to start an initiative. Seeing disruptions happen in other industries, like hospitality (AirBnB) and transportation (Uber), creates a new wave of seekers that know changing the way the world thinks isn’t something that requires loads of overhead and capital. As more startups sprout up, it becomes increasingly difficult to ignore this movement.

What’s it like building a global fintech platform from Canada? What do you think are its strengths and challenges?

Canada has a great talent pool, financial and regulatory infrastructure, and an environment that helps foster innovative thinking. These provide a strong backbone in creating great standards when looking at growing out globally. While these are fantastic ingredients for a start up, this also has challenges in keeping pace with change. As much as we wish to push the boundaries of what our product could become, we need to ensure it plays nicely in the regulatory environment as well. This extends beyond just regulations; it means involving industry players big or small, like FIs, the private sector, and local partners. We want to align and amplify the innovation output. This also means established companies looking to support this movement must be open-minded about collaborating and executing innovation more quickly in order to stay ahead of the curve.

What should we expect to see from nTrust in 2016?

As we continue to push forward on the P2P Canadian market, we are working with various providers in the space to further tune an end-to-end, seamless experience. Concurrently, we are in discussions on an international scale to provide a greater reach and access points for consumers in other markets. With the world feeling smaller and border lines becoming less visible, nTrust is poised to become a leader in connecting people financially no matter where they are.

Photo credit: itsmeritesh via VisualHunt / CC BY-SA

December 9, 2015March 16, 2017

DriveWealth’s Robert Cortright on the benefits of building a global investing platform

Robert Cortright is the CEO of DriveWealth

Investors used to be satisfied investing at home, but technology seems to be opening up investment opportunities internationally. What’s driving that and how do you think that plays out?

Robert Cortright - CEO, DriveWealth — Robert Cortright – CEO, DriveWealth

US investors have always had the ability to invest globally through the US ETF market and, in the last decade, we have seen many US investors buy into “BRIC” assets through the US listed securities market. However, international investors have not had access to the US listed securities market, which offers access to global ETFs and ADRs in a liquid and relatively secure environment.

Over the last decade, emerging market individuals have built a wealth of investible assets and they are looking for a place to invest those assets as their domestic markets are becoming more volatile and continue to be limited in size and market cap. DriveWealth gives these individuals the opportunity to open a US-based, SIPC protected brokerage account and build globally diversified portfolios.

Why is it important for investors to access to international investment opportunities?

Diversification is important to every investor, but US investors have historically had the most choice. It’s important to give all investors the same choice. Diversification is one of the most important tenets of investing and goes beyond asset classes and sectors- a well balanced portfolio will give investors exposure to different geographic locations as well. With a platform like DriveWealth, investors all over the world can build globally diversified portfolios of US listed stocks, ETFs, and ADRs.

Why is it important for the institutions that service investors to provide international investment opportunities?

As I mentioned earlier, investors in emerging market economies are looking for a place to invest their wealth and the US listed securities market provides an opportunity for them to do so in a liquid, regulated environment. By gaining access to the US listed securities market through a US-based brokerage account, international investors will have the ability to build globally diversified portfolios.

Furthermore, many large international companies, such as Alibaba, are listed in the US, which means that Chinese investors cannot own Alibaba without a US brokerage account that offers the ability to trade ADRs of global companies. DriveWealth gives investors around the world this ability.

Increasingly, customers are realizing that they can get global exposure through US listed ETFs and ADRs for an affordable cost. The US stock market is becoming an attractive place for people, domestic and international, to deposit money.

Doctors don’t go into surgery without practice — but investors seem to do that. Why? Is there a better way?

Investors need to be financially educated, especially if they are investing in the US Stock market for the first time. Often, investors begin investing without practice because they simply don’t know that there are resources out there to help them. In the past, people weren’t given the knowledge and tools to invest affordably and with confidence. This is one of the reasons which DriveWealth has developed an intuitive way for people to invest.

With the release of our Passport 2.0 investing app, DriveWealth is offering fractional shares to help people build diversified portfolios over time by investing a fixed dollar amount in the companies they know. With Passport 2.0, people don’t have to be stock pickers or experts, they can invest in a portfolio over time and get the benefits of dollar cost averaging. In addition, investors will have the opportunity to invest in the products they use in their daily lives.

You’re building a global platform. For fintech companies looking to expand internationally, do you have some advice on build/buy decisions? Things you would do differently in retrospect?

Financial services is a highly regulated industry. Most fintech companies focus on product because it doesn’t require a deep, full-carrying license to operate, but the real key is distributing all the great financial services products that the US market has to offer. A strong fintech company also has strong licenses behind it. If businesses have really great financial products, they should look to partner with someone that can distribute their products.

At DriveWealth, we believe strongly that “FinTech” disruption will come thru the global retail distribution channels rather than the traditional “face to face” banks and brokerage business relying on hired registered representatives. We view ourselves as a platform where we aggregate retail investors and give them access to the best financial products. With ecommerce firms expanding rapidly in the emerging markets and clients having smartphone technology in the palm of their hands, customers will expect to have the ability to execute financial transactions with the few clicks on a mobile application.

What’s in the plans for 2016?

We will be releasing Passport 2.0 in early 2016. With Passport 2.0, investors will have the ability to invest real-time in fractional shares and create dollar-based, self-directed portfolios. If you want to start investing with $20 and own 10 stocks, for example, you can do it. The introduction of fractional shares and dollar-based investing means that our investors don’t have to be speculators. They can build well-diversified portfolios for a low, fixed cost and become disciplined investors and savers. We believe that giving retail investors globally affordable access to save and invest through their mobile phone is extremely powerful.

Also, as wealth is transferred from baby boomers to younger generations, it becomes increasing important to offer intuitive investing tools in a mobile environment to cater to the lifestyles of our mobile-first, cashless society. With Passport 2.0, younger generations of investors will be able to manage their entire financial life from the palm of their hand. Owning a Brokerage account providing access to the powerful products of the US Securities markets will be a key to their long term success.

Photo credit: Mukumbura via VisualHunt.com / CC BY-SA

December 7, 2015

The Startups: Who’s shaking things up (Week ending December 6th, 2015)

[alert type=yellow ]Every week, Tradestreaming highlights startups in the news, making things happen. The following is just part of this week’s news roundup. You can get these updates delivered direct to your inbox by signing up for the Tradestreaming weekly newsletter.[/alert]

ApplePie Capital’s Denise Thomas on enabling investors to lend money to the right franchises, franchise owners (Tradestreaming)
Online lending marketplaces are changing the way capital is deployed and ApplePie has an interesting approach: small business loans to franchisees.

Cookies Wants To Become The Venmo Of Europe (TechCrunch)
Cookies is all about paying your friends without any fees. And now it intends to massively expand in Europe.

Trulioo’s Stephen Ufford: “Missing element to provide financial services for the 2.5 billion unbanked lies in a digital footprint” (Tradestreaming)
User identification is a seemingly simple problem, yet it stands in the way of truly opening up fintech applications. Until now, doing it well has remained elusive. Trulioo is trying to change that.

Number26 Launches Its Bank Of The Future In 6 New Countries (TechCrunch)
If you don’t like your current bank, Number26 may appeal to you. The German startup has been trying to reinvent the average banking experience in Germany and is now expanding throughout Europe.

Wealthsimple acquires online brokerage pioneer ShareOwner (Newswire)
Largest Canadian roboadvisor ($400M), Wealthsimple acquires online brokerage, ShareOwner.

SoFi’s Mike Cagney on valuation (Business Insider)
SoFi CEO Mike Cagney thinks the company could be a $30 billion business. Will he be right?

Startups raising/Investors investing

Australian Fintech Tyro Payments Raises $72M Led By Tiger Global (TechCrunch)
Australian financial tech company Tyro Payments plans to challenge the country’s leading retail banks after scoring AUD $100 million (about $72 million).

Bee Raises $4.6 Million to Deliver Banking Services (WSJ)
Banking startup Bee (which provides bank accounts, debit cards and financial services aimed at people who live in low- and middle-income neighborhoods) secures investment capital.

Clearpool secures $8 million investment (Finextra)
The electronic trading software development and agency execution business announced it has received an $8 million investment from growth equity firm, Edison Partners.

SMB Lending Technology Provider Mirador Secures $7M (Let’s Talk Payments)
Lending as a service getting more traction…and more money. Companies like Mirador help banks compete in online lending.

Q2 Acquires Social Money in $10 Million Deal (Finovate)
Formerly known as Smarty Pig, Social Money helps financial services companies better engage their customers by offering them savings solutions such as GoalSaver, a customized, bank-audited goal-saving system.

Startup Tracker’s Jeremiah Smith on how Twitter is a great distribution medium for his complement to CrunchBase (Tradestreaming)
Startup Tracker is changing the way investors and competitors research startups.

Prosper’s BillGuard Unlocks Premium Features for All Users (Finovate)
On the heels of being acquired by Prosper, the expense-management and fraud-tracking application made some of its most popular premium features available for free.

Green Dot to Enter Lending Space with Loan Marketplace (Bank Innovation)
Prepaid player Green Dot is stepping into the lending game with a marketplace for loans. The move will happen in 2016, CEO Steve Streit announced this week.

Photo credit: V31S70 / VisualHunt.com / CC BY

December 7, 2015July 6, 2016

Wayerz has a creative solution for a last holdout of old banking: interbank wire transfer

Menny Shalom is CEO of Wayerz.

What are the core challenges in transferring money between financial institutions?

Today using the banking system to wire money is almost unrealistic – as it represents the old-banking world – very expensive service for very poor service. Both parties (the sender and the receiver) don’t know when the wire will complete, what would be the total cost and how it is going to be divided between them. The “surprising” part is that even the banks involved – the sender’s bank and the receiver’s – don’t know that.

Further, the banks today send the money between them in random paths. They just move the money to the next bank – hoping it will find the beneficiary – while they are somewhat indifferent as to the cost, time and risks associated with the executed route. We believe that could and should be different.

How does Wayerz solve or fix these problems? Does the crowd play a role?

Wayerz provides a GPS-like solution that calculates the optimal route for each and every wire, in real time. Optimal could mean the cheapest route, the fastest route, the least riskier route and so on. On top of the ability to provide those routes we allow every bank to determine what is optimal for it — based on its policies, internal considerations and commercial preferences. We are enterprise software, optimizing the benefits for our clients (the banks) so the general crowd is being “counted” through the banks’ interests. We do however monitor the routes and get statistical insights as to the global payment map.

Where did you come up with the idea for Wayerz?

Reality is always the best motivation for innovation. I was approached by a bank who asked me to source similar software for them. I then approached 25 banks worldwide and asked what software they use. They all gave me the same 2 answers: (a) we don’t have it and (b) if you create it, we’ll be happy to buy it from you.

After realizing there is a need and an opportunity, I sat down and for 9 months, wrote 130 pages of a research document – covering the whole bank-to-bank lifecycle. It covered the human factor, technology, commercial aspects, IT, privacy, risks and many other aspects. I was surprised to learn that it’s a HUGE industry but very old and traditional, with relatively few people involved (mainly for relationships) and almost no technology. The most sophisticated banks are using an amazing technology called . . . .Excel to manage their correspondent banking relationships, services, and billing.

That phase also helped me to learn about additional needs in that arena – on top of the wiring optimization, like intra bank billing and financial institutions onboarding. Banks receive hundreds of invoices and statements from other banks – every month. They come in many different file formats, different currencies, and different languages. Even two English-written statements would not be comparable as they have different design layout and use different financial terminology to describe similar banking services.

Wayerz has built a proprietary billing engine that unifies ALL those bank-to-bank invoices into a unified and simplified format – allowing the banks now to compare invoices (and service providers . . . ), to group them, to match them and so on. They can now see all those invoices grouped by logos (counter-bank), country, currency, business unit, or service (cash, securities, trade finance and more). They can then reconcile them (so they can see if they were charged correctly by the counter-bank) and open an investigation – all through the Wayerz platform.

Why create an optimization engine for an existing process? Why not take on SWIFT head on with a better model?

Well, we do both 🙂

First you need to understand – SWIFT is used for messaging. Banks are using it to send each other financial messages. Separate from that there is bank-to-bank settling – where banks actually settle the amounts, wires, and funds between them. Wayerz was created because there are significant gaps between the messaging and the settlement.

As to messaging, I believe SWIFT is, and would remain, the trusteed logo by name for financial messaging. It is not realistic to expect banks would move away from it tomorrow. SWIFT is owned by the banks and it services them and those tight relationships are probably here to stay. However, one (like Wayerz . . . :-)) can improve and optimize it and that is what we are doing. By the way – we also do it directly with SWIFT, as we have advanced and detailed discussions as to how we can add the Wayerz functionality to their existing platforms.

As to reinventing the financial messaging world – we are developing our own blockchain-based financial messaging platform. We are NOT using it for value transfer (ie settlements) like most blockchain application do, but merely to improve financial messaging between multiple parties

What’s next for Wayerz in 2016? What should we expect to see from you and your team?

Many (Menny’s) good things –

We expect to keep growing – doubling our team every quarter. After NY, we expect to open offices in London, Frankfurt and Singapore
We expect to announce 3 global partnerships with tier-1 tech behemoths
We’ll rollout 4 new bank-to-bank solutions
We’ll keep having fun and harvesting our olive trees
We believe in colorful shirts

Photo credit: brizzle born and bred / VisualHunt.com / CC BY-ND

December 2, 2015July 6, 2016

Citi’s Andres Wolberg-Stok: “The bank of the future understands how to become a whole-life partner for every one of its clients”

Andres Wolberg-Stok is the Global Head, Emerging Platforms and Services at Citi.

What are some of the most transformative things you’re seeing to impact banking? What are some of the most overblown?

The most impactful thing happening today in banking -and in fact it’s happening not just in banking but across pretty much every consumer-facing industry- is the digitization and the user-experience revolution. Now that we all spend so much of our time on our smartphones, those apps we use all the time have reset the bar for what we expect of every interaction. We all demand that everything be as simple and intuitive as the best apps out there from digital companies. It sets a really high standard for everyone else to strive for, and in some cases it requires a reinvention of the entire underlying process. And all of that is a good thing, of course.

You were the first bank to have an app for the Apple Watch. Can you share your thinking about mobile/wearable banking?

At Citi, we are always looking for ways to put our clients in control of their finances and to help them bank however and whenever they want. We’ve been on a journey of innovation for decades, led by that principle, working to bring your accounts ever closer to you. We pioneered the ATM in the 1970s, so you wouldn’t even need to step inside a branch. We were one of the early leaders in online banking, in the early oughts, so you could bank from home or from your office. We were the first major U.S. bank to offer a downloadable mobile banking application, back in 2007, putting the bank in your pocket. Last year, we became the first major U.S. bank to offer no-login access to your accounts (we were issued a U.S. Patent for that this year). And as you point out, this year, we became the world’s first bank with an app for the Apple Watch. You can see the progression, right? Ever closer, ever more available and closer to you. Wearables are here to stay, and your money has a rightful place on them. I just don’t know what we’ll need to do in order to get closer to you next time — what’s next, banking implants?

Your own work experience is truly global. Is that a competitive advantage in your role?

Citi is the world’s leading global bank. We operate in some 160 countries or jurisdictions, with consumer operations in 24 markets at this point. Globality is in our DNA, and it helps us cross-pollinate the best ideas from our colleagues around the world. It also allows transfusions of talent, and of regional perspectives, around the globe, and it helps us serve well those of our clients who are global themselves. To be succefully global, you have to be global and you also have to be local everywhere you are. In fact, together with digitization and urbanization, globalization is one of the three major strategic themes that drive our work.

We read a lot about the competitive pressures on banks. What will a bank look like in the future? What will be its main role and value proposition to customers, the financial ecosystem, etc.?

The bank of the future recognizes that every man, woman and child carries a supercomputer in the shape of a smartphone. It knows people want to pick and choose their experiences, and that they probably do not want to depend for everything on a single supplier of financial services. The bank of the future is the one that understands how to become a whole-life partner for every one of its clients, how to earn a spot at the heart of their individual web or assembly of financial services, and how to be by their side every step of the way for their day-to-day needs as well as for the major moments in life. That bank of the future works with, not against, the fantastic ideas coming out of the Fintech ecosystem – it figures out how to become an integrator of Fintech value for its clients. That’s what, here at Citi, we call “Fintegration”: the integration of Fintech. Banks have the heavy compliance machinery, the track record, the know-how to keep your money safe. Fintech companies can come up with great new experiences, and they need the scale. Fintegration is a win-win all around, starting with the client.

December 1, 2015

Trulioo’s Stephen Ufford: “Missing element to provide financial services for the 2.5 billion unbanked lies in a digital footprint”

Stephen Ufford is CEO & Founder of Trulioo

What is Truiloo? What was the inspiration/genesis story for why you founded the company?

Data has been around for decades, but the industry has drastically evolved in the last 10 years thanks to the Internet. I fell into the industry quickly after moving to the U.S. after high school. As a Canadian living in America, the experience of proving my identity and establishing credit was horrendous and inefficient. I have spent years building a good credit history for myself in Canada, but when I crossed the border and entered into the states, it felt like someone just hit the reset button and my identity was non-existent. I instantly knew this was a huge problem that could easily be fixed and launched iQuiri.com, one of the first companies that made consumer credit reports and scores available online. This was my first foray into the data economy.

Fast-forward 9 years and I’ve successfully launched and exited three data-driven companies with my co-founder, Tanis Jorge. We both decided our next company would have a more meaningful and significant impact on lives around the world. We wanted to go after something profound that would improve quality of life – not just for you and me – but for the man in Chile who doesn’t have access to financial services and wants to start his own business, or the woman in India who works 12-hour days and walks another 2 miles at the end of her day to pay for water. The missing element that could help provide access to financial services for the 2.5 billion unbanked citizens of this world lies in a digital footprint.

Why is identity verification important? What kind of opportunities does doing it at scale open up?

In today’s digital world, trust is the backbone to the success of this truly global phenomenon. What really greases the wheels of today’s fast-growing global economy is trust. As in most online interactions and transactions, anonymity becomes the biggest threat to trust, hence why identity verification is an important element for creating a framework of trust online.

The ability to instantly verify identities around the world will break down the walls that create barriers for cross-border commerce, payments, communication, and consumption. Verified identities helps build the first layer of trust between consumers, merchants, financial institutions – pretty much anyone doing business online.

Has the proliferation of social media made it easier/harder to identify people correctly?

Social media is a double-edge sword. While it offers an abundance of unique data about consumers, there are also ways to create fake accounts. When verifying identities online, it’s best practice to have a layered approach that leverages multiple data sources in combination with advanced machine learning algorithms and fraud prevention tools so that you can weed out the fake accounts before they engage in nefarious online activities.

What’s it like for a Canadian fintech/big data company to compete globally? Are there unique challenges/opportunities?

Globally, Canadian companies have the upper hand in big data thanks to the country’s revolutionary privacy laws and transparency. We have the legal framework, expertise, and know-how needed to be a global leader in the data-driven economy.

Canada is uniquely positioned to take advantage of the growth in the data economy, especially after the recent safe harbour rulings in the European Union. U.S. companies are now scrambling to find a solution for their data storage needs leaving the door of opportunity wide open for Canadian companies.

Designed to protect both the consumers and the companies that are collecting personally identifiable information (PII), the Personal Information Protection and Electronic Documents Act (PIPEDA) was enacted in April of 2000. PIPEDA provides individuals with the right t know why any group collects or discloses their personal data. This level of transparency offers consumers peace of mind when they are looking to invest, buy products from, or associate with Canadian businesses. PIPEDA also ensures that the companies collecting an individual’s data only use the information for a specific purpose with consent from the individual.

Due to the increasing number of data breaches, how PII data is being handled by businesses and government is at top of mind of consumers, policymakers, and regulators. Exporting PII across countries and jurisdictions is a recipe for disaster, increasing risk for data breaches and regulatory compliance issues. Canadian companies are in the best position to enable the enterprise to leverage their global data assets with advanced technologies in a secure, highly regulated environment.

Where is your business headed in 2016? New products/services/geographies?

We are very excited to announce that our global identity verification API or platform, GlobalGateway, now verifies over 4 billion consumers around the world, the largest Know Your Customer (KYC) coverage in the market. Riding on the heels of China, we recently secured unique data sources in India, which will enable our clients to quickly expand into emerging Asian markets that are dominating our global economy with its unprecedented growth.

We are on a mission to provide verified identities for the entire global population, making Trulioo the largest marketplace for global data where businesses and organizations have instant access to consumer information to perform specific checks and activities granted by the user (consumer).

We will continue to disrupt traditional data aggregators around the world with our unique market place model while raising the bar for consumer consent and privacy protection. I believe that Trulioo will play an essential part of developing Canada’s global reputation as a safe haven for digital information into a robust new industry and major contributor to our economy.

Photo credit: charlesdyer / VisualHunt.com / CC BY

November 30, 2015

The Startups: Who’s shaking things up (Week ending November 29th, 2015)

Stephen Klein: LOYAL3 is turning IPO stock into a powerful, new brand engagement currency (Tradestreaming)
With LOYAL3, it’s not just investing in companies you know – it’s investing in brands you love. The company is building an interesting distribution model connecting investors with brands and brands with their customers.

RealtyMogul Completes Innovative Debt and Equity Combo Transaction (BusinessWire)
RealtyMogul announces a first of its kind, full capital stack transaction combining debt and equity with the successful purchase of a 112-unit apartment in North Carolina. Investors using equity crowdfunding for real estate are getting treated to a lot of innovative investment opportunities.

The emergence of regtech as a catalyst for innovation (BANKNXT)
What are regtech (regulation technology) startups working on, and can they solve banks’ compliance headache? This article describes what regtech is and how it can jumpstart a lot of innovation across the fintech ecosystem.

Fundrise’s Brandon Jenkins on the need to keep raising the quality of real estate deals online (Tradestreaming)
Fundrise is seeing a lot of success with its online real estate investing platform. And now, it just raised $50M for an e-REIT for everyone as part of the new crowdfunding rules.

VCs investing over $500 Million in follow-on funding for companies crowdfunding (Crowdfund Insider)
If over $500M of follow-on funding happened off your platform, you’d want a piece of that, too, right? That’s one big reason why Indiegogo is interested in getting into the equity crowdfunding game.

StockTwits and Robinhood: Teamed up to Provide Social Trading (Howard Lindzon)
As part of a wider integration push, Robinhood announced an integration with the investor social network, StockTwits. Like an investment idea your connection is pitching? Click and trade – for free.

Bleu Unveils its Beacon-Powered Point-of-Sale Solution (Finovate)
Bleu’s solution around Bluetooth technology can move payment data over long distances and ranges: from a nearby transaction at a fast casual restaurant terminal to reaching a terminal in a fancier restaurant that may be several meters away.

Apple Pay to Be Available in China by February 2016 (Let’s Talk Payments)
In the latest quarter, China amounted to 27% of Apple’s revenues and now the WSJ reports Apple is launching its payments into the Chinese market early next year.

Trōv: a new way to insure the things people care about (Daily Fintech)
“Trōv is an app that collects data about your things, builds it into a list, then provides machine enhanced risk pricing for single item coverage. Trōv provides micro-duration policies (down to the second), charges micro-premiums (down to the cent) and uses chat robots to manage claims.”

Startups raising/Investors investing

Vanare | NestEgg Raises $3.25 Million in Seed Capital to Drive Fintech Innovation (Biz Journals)
Last week, Vanare announced the launch of Synapse, the first-ever fully customizable white-label roboadvisor API. The simple, flexible and scalable solution allows financial service firms the ability to create their own user interface (UI) so that their clients have a seamless experience using the firm’s existing website.

Interview with Santander InnoVentures managing partner Mariano Belinky (Business Insider)
Santander InnoVentures managing partner Mariano Belinky talks blockchain, roboadvisors, and challenger banks.

Online Lender LoanDepot Tries Plan B After Canceling IPO (American Banker)
Bryan Sullivan, the CFO at LoanDepot, talks about its growth prospects without fuel from an initial public offering, how getting consumers to opt for home equity lines of credit is tough, and why he considers the nonbank a disruptor.

Photo credit: V31S70 / VisualHunt.com / CC BY

November 19, 2015May 13, 2019

[podcast] LendKey’s Vince Passione: There’s no Uber-ization of finance because the banks will adopt technology. Eventually.

As the interest in fintech and financial services in general continues to grow, there’s been chatter of an Uber-like disruption by the startups in the space.

Our next guest, Vince Passione would beg to differ. He’s the CEO of LendKey which provides the incumbent banking system the digital tools it needs to sufficiently compete in marketplace lending. The issue right now isn’t whether marketplace lending is going to grow, it’s more of who takes the lead in this space. It’s worth listening to Vince because he’s been a major part of the move to digitize financial services, leading Citi’s move online and Ameritrade’s Institutional Client group.

This move to online lending started with pure play disrupters like Lending Club and Prosper and is moving to a more collaborative environment with traditional institutions following quickly with their own offerings powered by companies like LendKey. The company has 320 clients and has helped originate over $1 billion in loans with its banking clients.

In Vince’s opinion, there will never be an Uberization of finance because banks and credit unions do eventually adopt technology. They survive. Same thing happened in Internet banking.

There is an entire system of trust and regulatory framework built around banks making them very hard to disintermediate. In this sense, LendKey is providing the shovels and pickaxes for the marketplace lending goldrush and it’s selling them to the big boys.

Listen to the FULL episode

In this podcast, you’ll hear about the following:

How and why lending-as-a-service is being adopted by traditional lenders
Why banks aren’t being Uber-ized
How this whole land grab for online lending will play out
New consumer demands for increased transparency, speed, and customization in payment terms
How future clients desire to engage with digital lending brands
How digital decision making is occurring at top performing banks

This week’s sponsor

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Choose one of the thousands of automated trading strategies at Collective2, and trade it in your brokerage account.

To learn more, go to www.collective2.com/tradestreaming and as a Tradestreaming listener, you will get $55 off the first strategy you publish to Collective2.

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November 18, 2015

5 trends we’re watching this week

Every week at Tradestreaming, we’re tracking and analyzing the top trends impacting the finance industry. The following is a list of important things going on we think are worth paying attention to. For more in depth trendfollowing, subscribe to Tradestreaming’s weekly newsletter (published every Sunday).

1. Computers vs. Humans: Who wins the investment game? (Tradestreaming)
Do humans have an innate ability to pick winning stocks or should we turn everything over to the machines. A frank conversation with 2 experts moderated by Tradestreaming’s managing editor, Zack Miller and hosted on Dealbreaker.

2. A Future Where Virtual Reality and Finance Converge (Finance Magnates)
In this week’s Fintech Spotlight, Finance Magnates delves into how virtual reality could become a big data tool of the future in the finance industry.

3. The Next Fintech Boom: Resource Maximization (Bank Innovation)
Former Thomson Reuters CEO, Tom Glocer predicts fintech startups to begin squeezing more out of the financial system. “Think of all the underutilized financial resources out there — credit lines, savings, advisory, illiquid assets. All are ripe for maximization.”

4. Why Every Financial Institution Needs a Digital Champion Now (The Financial Brand)
Is anyone spearheading your organization’s digital strategy? Here’s what banks and credit unions should look for when creating this new role.

5. Robo-Advisors Squeeze Advisor Profits, Not Fees (Michael Kitces)
Michael Kitces with a thoughtful analysis of the robo-advisor trend and how it’s impacting the AUM fees investors pay (it’s not what you think it is). While fees don’t seem to be dropping, profit margins are indeed getting squeezed. Worth a read.

November 16, 2015

The Startups: Who’s shaking things up (Week ending November 14th, 2015)

[alert type=white ]Every week, Tradestreaming highlights fintech startups in the news, making things happen. The following is this week’s news roundup. You can get these updates delivered direct to your inbox by signing up for the Tradestreaming weekly newsletter.[/alert]

Funding Circle’s Sam Hodges explains how tech gives SMBs access to much-needed cash (Tradestreaming)
Funding Circle is becoming a massive, global business. And it’s doing so by helping the little guys. Sam Hodges gives Tradestreaming an exclusive interview after his firm’s acquisition in Germany.

PayPal and Lending Club Prove Fintech Is Ready to Sit With Banks at the Grown-Ups’ Table (TheStreet)
Banks are feeling the pinch from fintech and that may be an opportunity for investors.

Mighty Is A Funding Platform For Personal Injury Lawsuits (TechCrunch)
As anyone who has ever been in court knows, lawsuits are often a long, tedious process. This is especially true with lengthy personal injury cases. Mighty is bringing crowdfunding to the rescue.

Openfolio is building a social trading network that works (Tradestreaming)
Openfolio is building a new kind of social trading network built upon transparency and collaboration. Here’s how.

P2P Lending Is Profitable, Even In A Recession (TechCrunch)
A surprising career change finds a battle-hardened entrepreneur turning to peer to peer investing for the next stage in his career. Surprisingly for him, the market has held up in spite of a challenging economic climate.

I (Shall Happily) Accept the 2016 Nobel Prize in Economics on Behalf of Bitcoin creator, Satoshi Nakamoto (HuffPo)
“I am completely serious in suggesting Satoshi Nakamoto for the Prize. The invention of bitcoin – a digital currency – is nothing short of revolutionary.”

Startups raising + investors investing

Fintech investor, Pascal Bouvier on where there’s big money to be made in fintech (Tradestreaming)
Interesting view from fintech investor, Pascal Bouvier on where he thinks current opportunities lie for fintech investors and entrepreneurs and the overcrowded spaces he’s avoiding.

The 2015 Fintech Finance 35: The Financiers Who Place the Bets (Institutional Investor)
For the bankers, venture capitalists and others financing and facilitating the fintech explosion, it’s not just a money game. Strategic vision and networking are just as critical.

CircleUp Banks $30 Million to Help Investors Find Top Food Startups (WSJ)
CircleUp raises a $30 million Series C round led by Collaborative Fund to grow its equity crowdfunding platform for consumer goods.

Peer-to-Peer Marketplace Peerspace Secures $5M Series A (Crowdfund Insider)
PeerSpace, a peer-to-peer marketplace dedicated to uncovering unique short-term commercial spaces for events, announced a $5 million Series A led by Foundation Capital.

Bessemer Backs Consumer Lending Startup, Bread (WSJ)
Bessemer Venture Partners has made its first investment in a new alternative lending startup in about 10 years, leading a $14.3 million Series A round in Bread, the investment firm told VentureWire.

Rakuten establishes $100 million fintech fund (Finextra)
Japanese e-commerce giant Rakuten has established a $100 million fintech fund to invest in disruptive early to mid-stage startups in Europe and North America.

Roostify Garners $500,000 in Funding from Wells Fargo Accelerator (Finovate)
Roostify accelerates and streamlines the home loan and closing experience. The startup joins the Wells Fargo Accelerator Class with the investment.

Anthemis Group Announces North American Expansion (Anthemis)
The new location is an obvious next step for early stage, fintech-focused firm, which counts a significant number of U.S. companies in its portfolio, including Betterment (New York), Trov and Automatic (San Francisco), Payoff (LA), Blueleaf (Boston) and Simple Bank (Portland).

Robo-advisor MoneyFarm raises EUR16M for UK launch (Finextra)
Italian digital wealth management startup MoneyFarm is preparing to enter the UK market after raising EUR16 million from Cabot Square Capital and United Ventures.

NCR Gets $820M from Blackstone to Accelerate Transformation (American Banker)
The investment accelerates NCR’s overall plan to transform itself from a reliance on ATM and other hardware, into a software and services provider.