Automated mortgage transaction technology firm Roostify has announced Frank Gelbart as its new chief revenue officer; Frank Gelbart has over 20 years of experience with technology companies and was previously president, CEO and co-founder of Appfluent Technology; Roostify is a fast growing startup and is currently partnering with JPMorgan for mortgage lending technology innovation. Source
Five Star Bank will join the technology ecosystem of SmartBiz Loans; as an SBA loan partner, Five Star Bank's loans will now be available as a loan financing option for small businesses seeking funding on the SmartBiz Loans platform; in addition to matching services, SmartBiz Loans also helps to support fast and efficient loan processing through its bank-enabling technology; the partnership will help increase the availability of loans for small businesses on the platform and also support new business development for Five Star Bank. Source
CommondBond has expanded its loan offerings to include undergraduates; its products now include loans for undergraduate and graduate students, refinancing options for graduates and employer student loan benefits; its newly launched in-school loans have variable APRs starting at 2.87% and fixed APRs starting at 5.50%; they will also include a range of repayment options; in combination with the new loan offerings CommonBond will also partner with Pencils of Promise to support the educational funding of a child in need for every new loan funded on the platform; additionally, CommonBond has announced new online tools for comparing loans; the firm is also building out its employer student loan benefits product which involves integration with Gradible, which it acquired last year. Source
Online lender Upgrade is opening an office in Phoenix; founded by former Lending Club CEO Renaud Laplanche, the firm launched in April with a fundraising of $60 million; the Phoenix office will be its first expansion from its San Francisco headquarters and the firm plans to hire 100 employees this year. Source
The SEC has agreed to reconsider its review of the Winklevoss bitcoin ETF rejection following a petition from the Bats exchange; a comment period is now open for support or opposition of the Disapproval Order until May 15; the SEC has not approved any bitcoin ETFs for trading also rejecting the listing of SolidX on the NYSE Arca. Source
Statistics show that volatile incomes are a factor affecting financial stress for many families; in today's market, many fintech companies are seeking to target those families with solutions that help reduce their financial stress; the Wall Street Journal provides details on apps for this target market including Even, Digit and Prism; while services for financially stressed families have reported significant interest from fintech developers, skeptics caution that achieving profitability for these businesses could be challenging. Source
States have voiced their opposition against the OCC's fintech charter proposal and could be a factor limiting the charter from proceeding; with the charter, fintechs can be granted special purpose national bank status which includes national governance with exemption from state laws; many states have actively integrated regulations and processes for alternative lenders, including state usury laws and regulations for payday lenders; opposing states say the charter would complicate existing state level laws and initiatives. Source
Recent comment letters in response to the OCC's fintech charter show increased criticism for the agency's proposal; consumer protection groups, community banks and state regulators have all voiced opposition while supporters have been disappointed by the process for the charter; supporters are concerned that financial inclusion plans and other provisions for the charter might be overly burdensome; consumer protection provisions are also a point of emphasis with groups suggesting specific consumer protection measures such as interest rate caps, default rate limitations and underwriting standards; lack of details on a number of business factors including capital requirements and balance sheet versus off balance sheet funding have also reduced confidence in the charter. Source
Project Catalyst is a CFPB initiative designed to allow the Bureau to collaborate with startups, nonprofits and banks on new financial innovations; Patrick McHenry writes about the initiative's failed attempt for innovation through its no-action letter provision and instead says the Bureau should favor using sandbox programs; in Patrick McHenry's opinion editorial he argues for a better innovation testing environment, stating, "Congress needs to provide our federal regulators the ability to create a permanent beta testing environment that allows the agencies to test whether financial products are what they claim to be, while allowing a startup's compliance officer - who is usually the company's founder - peace of mind." Source
Robinhood has announced details of its latest funding round which raised $110 million for the firm giving it fintech unicorn status with a valuation of $1.3 billion; investors in the Series C funding round included DST Global, NEA, Index Ventures, Ribbit Capital, Thrive Capital and Greenoaks Capital; the firm also announced that it now has over two million users; the firm says: "Our two million users have transacted over $50 billion and saved nearly half a billion dollars in commission fees. Robinhood Gold, our margin and extended hours service, is also experiencing significant growth, with signups surging 17% month over month."; the firm plans to use funds from the Series C funding round for expansion of the platform's products and services. Source