How this fintech startup chief facilitated $50 million in Australian business loans without stepping foot in the country
Business loan marketplace Lending Express launched in Australia in 2016, and since then it’s facilitated $50 million in small business loans. But it was only last month that co-founder and chief executive Eden Amirav first set foot on Australian soil. Now the Israeli startup has secured $US2.8 million ($3.7 million) in funding, Amirav has plans to further improve the artificial intelligence-enabled platform, and to get his message to even more Aussies. Using artificial intelligence and machine learning, Lending Express connects small businesses seeking loans with alternative lenders. The business owner fills in an application via the online platform, and Lending Express runs an algorithm, immediately identifying the lenders that would […]
Moss junior fires up blockchain, crypto investment firm
It’s been a wild year for digital currencies but that hasn’t deterred Stephen Moss from setting up blockchain assets and investments firm, Decentralised Capital. Street Talk understands Moss, the son of former Macquarie Group stalwart Bill Moss, plans to offer over the counter trading and asset management services for high volume customers interested in digital assets and cryptocurrencies. Decentralised Capital has the backing of boutique financial services firm Aura Group, proprietary trading group Tibra Capital co-founder Kinsey Cotton and Vicknesh Pillay, founding partner at TNB Ventures Singapore. The new group is said to have already engaged with the corporate regulator, Australian Tax Office and has signed up with the Australian Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (AUSTRAC). Prior to founding Decentralised […]
Banks face a bigger threat than rival banks as customers seek best experience
Innovation and media specialist Tom Goodwin had some pertinent advice for companies, big and small, during a recent visit to Australia from New York. If banks think they are competing with other banks in terms of the functionality and appearance of their app, they are wrong. Ditto for airlines if they believe they are in competition only with rival airlines. In an increasingly connected world, argues Goodwin, consumers’ expectations are being set by the best experience anywhere. He says: “Increasingly, when we experience something amazing, it sets the bar for everyone. You get off the plane in Shanghai and you can see your Uber driver’s face and his name and […]
Ripple CEO: Bitcoin will eventually stop driving the crypto markets
Coins need start solving real problems, not each other’s problems, to be valued in their own right. If you want to know how your coin’s going, just look at bitcoin prices. When bitcoin goes up, so do all other cryptocurrencies. When bitcoin drops so does everything else. To date the crypto markets have simply tended to swim along as one amorphous blob, with the most distinctive anomalies usually being the result of foul play, accidental failure or deliberate price manipulation. Even as bitcoin’s market dominance waned the effect stayed strong. “There’s a very high correlation between the price of XRP [Ripple] and the price of bitcoin, but ultimately these are […]
Tic:Toc boss calls out HEM issues and ‘questionable’ third parties
The CEO of online mortgage lender Tic:Toc Home Loans says that no human judgement need enter the equation when it comes to assessing the expenses of a mortgage applicant. With the first weeks of the banking royal commission now behind us, Tic:Toc founder and CEO Anthony Baum believes it has become clear that there is an opportunity for the mortgage industry to reconsider how customers are assessed for finance. “One key flaw that’s been exposed is the failure to conduct basic checks and balances on the applicants’ household expenses. This includes instances where judgement on a customer’s borrowing capacity has been handed to a raft of questionable third parties,” the […]
Cryptocurrency is a new ‘coin of the realm’ for loyalty programs
Rene Konrad earns bonus miles from four airlines, plus loyalty points from six retailers and credit cards. But the one loyalty program he is most excited about now offers him something different: digital coins. Before he jumps on the train to Zurich most mornings, Konrad grabs a bottle of Caffe Lattesso. The 41-year-old can get about 12 Lattessocoins by entering a code from the bottle into a website. In a few months, the accumulated coins – which only became available in April – should become tradeable for other digital tokens, as well as cash. “I don’t know how many airline miles I lost because I didn’t use them fast enough,” […]
Crowdfunding in Australia – the first 4 months of equity crowdfunding
Equity crowdfunding started in Australia in January this year for public unlisted companies. It is early days but we are pleased to report that in this short period there have been two significant successful raises that a worthy of global note. One of the first campaigns off the block was the Xinja, Australia’s first 100% digital bank or ‘neobank’ which successfully raised $2,419,000 through the crowdfunding platform Equitise. At the end of April this early record raise was topped by DC Power Co. which raised $2,454,700 with OnMarket. What was interesting about this raise is that it attracted a whopping 17,574 investors making it the world’s largest equity-crowdfunding offer by […]
IBM partner props up Aussie payment tech player’s bottom line
Cyber security provider and IBM partner Decipher Works, which was acquired by local financial technology provider Transaction Solutions International (ASX:TSN) late last year, has played a major part winding back its new parent’s annual losses. Transaction Solutions International, which is publicly-listed on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX), told shareholders on 29 May that it had narrowed its annual net loss for the year ending 31 March to $590,000. The year prior, the financial payments and technology company reported a $1.3 million loss. It appears the change came largely as a result of the company’s increase in revenue, which rose from $91,766 for the year ending March 2017, to $2.36 million […]
