Australian Fintech is broadening their industry census to better understand how companies can expand overseas, interact with regulators and handle gender diversity; Ernst & Young is partnering with Australian Fintech on the census and the deadline is set for September 3rd; "Last year's inaugural census - released as part of our 2016 Collab/Collide Summit - provided an extremely robust evidence base to help FinTech Australia advocate on behalf of the industry. This year's census will be even more important as it will for the first time give us trend-based information about the industry," FinTech Australia Vice-Chair Stuart Stoyan tells AltFi. Source
Only a few months ago Mark Cuban was criticizing cryptocurrencies as a bubble, he is now backing a new fund; Runa Capital principal Nick Tomaino founded the fund 1confirmation, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission; "I think Nick is one of the sharpest minds in the space, and I'm a big believer that there will be transformational apps built on blockchain," Cuban told CoinDesk; the recent change in opinion by Cuban points to a trend from Wall Street that shows more traditional finance players accepting the value of cryptocurrencies; the fund will make $100,000 to $500,000 investments and focus exclusively on cryptocurrency assets. Source
Steve McLaughlin has a wealth of knowledge when it comes to M&A in fintech, having advised on many deals in the space; he founded his firm FT Partners when he was 32 years old; according to data from KPMG, M&A was down in 2016 by 68% compared to 2015; McLaughlin shares his thoughts on what has contributed to the decline and where the industry is going from here; believes that the ability for companies to raise financing rounds has contributed to the lower amount of M&A deals; many companies in fintech are also fairly young when it comes to the earnings which makes M&A not as attractive to banks; McLaughlin also talks about the deals that have occurred in fintech and the sectors that are hot in 2017. Source
As online financial services expand, marketers are seeking new ways to get in front of their customers; Facebook Messenger chatbots are one example and TD Ameritrade is taking full advantage of this source; it has launched a Facebook Messenger chatbot that gives customers instant updates on their portfolios and trades; the firm has worked through a number of security and encryption issues and is now offering one of the industry's leading Facebook Messenger chatbot services. Source
SuperMoney has developed new auto loan technology to provide consumers with auto lending offers; it signed on 20 auto lenders for the product's launch and is able to provide interested borrowers with options for secured and unsecured loans, refinancings, and private-party auto loans; the firm is seeking to simplify the search process for finding an auto loan and compares its technology to current services for buying an airline ticket. Source
Indonesia-based mobile payments and micro-loan startup Pundi-Pundi raised $4 million in a pre-A round of funding; the company plans to use the funds for user and partner growth in Indonesia and expand into other Southeast Asian markets like Singapore; they have over 100,000 users and 500 merchants in Indonesia; Pundi-Pundi translates to "wallet" and they are looking to help create a cashless society in Southeast Asia. Source
The accelerator is being launched by the founder of venture capital firm Boldstart Ventures, Ed Sim, and is the first accelerator dedicated to the Hyperledger Fabric blockchain; Sim tells CoinDesk: "We feel like there's a tremendous amount of corporates working and using Hyperledger Fabric, but there aren't as many startups working in that area. We'd like to bridge the gap."; the program, will last eight weeks helping companies to build with the open-source code and they will receive an undisclosed amount to help them along the way. Source
The company says it is recommitting to being a technology company and refocusing on product development; the recommitment will cause less of a focus on customer growth which it has been emphasizing following its new relationship with partner bank Compass; it plans to return to its original mission of being a technology company focused on product development for its customers; the company already offers a number of innovative tech solutions including a checking account product that allows customers to itemize savings for specific goals; the new focus has resulted in the termination of five executives and a 10% reduction in staff. Source
RiverNorth's total portfolio consisted of 10,173 loans with an average loan size of $10,176 at the end of July; in the note to investors RiverNorth shared that investors are becoming more comfortable with online lending assets with more awareness likely to drive further growth; highlights two recent positive events in the industry including Prosper's recent securitization and Lending Club's Q2 2017 results. Source
The company is estimating a full year loss and its CEO has resigned; it is also being investigated by the FCA and cutting its dividend; the surprise estimates and regulatory investigation are key factors influencing the stock market losses; the company serves 2.4 million customers through a door to door lending process with a focus on the underbanked. Source