How to buy Bitcoin: Crypto currency making a comeback with investors
Ever wondered what $50,000 looks like in cash, gold and silver? While piles of $100 notes or ingots of silver might make the money hungry salivate, the equivalent value in gold is a paltry #g bar and almost doesn’t seem worth acknowledging. But spare a thought for those who invest their hard-earned money in an item that delivers even less of a visible return but which has rapidly grown in popularity around the world: Bitcoin. A $50,000 “piece” of the crypto currency is rendered physically as a mere printout of a QR code on a piece of card. Hardly inspiring stuff. Yet, the way Australians invest their hard-earned cash seems […]
Fractional investing company BrickX adds Adelaide to its portfolio
BUYING pieces of a property — rather than an entire house — is gaining traction as Australians seek fresh ways to enter the increasingly expensive real estate market. Fractional investing company BrickX this week launches its first property in Adelaide — its first purchase outside the big cities of Sydney and Melbourne — and plans to buy in Brisbane and Hobart within the next 12 months. But BrickX’s platform — which divides a residential property into 10,000 units or “bricks” for buyers to share in its growth and expenses — is not only appealing to a traditional investment crowd. More than half of the 6500 users it has attracted since […]
Australians are being ripped off on currency exchange
Australians are being ripped off by poor currency exchange rates and fees, an analysis by researcher Capital Economics shows. The researcher estimates in 2016 Australian holidaymakers and work travellers paid well over $1 billion in fees and poor exchange rates on their currency exchanges. This figure includes more than $110 million in poor exchange rates and fees for cash exchanged before travelling overseas. It includes more than $930 million on dud exchange rates applied to card purchases abroad, and almost $170 million in charges for overseas cash withdrawals. It’s not only individuals who are losing out. Small and medium-sized businesses are forgoing almost $150 million a year in poor exchange […]
Broker channel needs to be ‘undercut’, says fintech boss
The founder of an online mortgage marketplace says there is too much “fat” in the home loan value chain and believes there is space for a non-advice model in mortgage distribution. Joust managing director Mark Bevan, who worked at CBA and Westpac before launching the online mortgage bidding platform in 2015, said that Joust is focused on lowering the cost of origination for lenders and borrowers. Joust targets Australian borrowers with good credit scores and simple needs. While he understands that customers with more complex needs will require the services of mortgage brokers, Mr Bevan believes that his model offers a cheaper alternative to traditional third-party distribution. “The mortgage broker […]
The future will be fuelled by data
The digital disruption rippling through business and government today is merely a curtain raiser for what comes next. The combination of artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain technologies and quantum computing will usher in new operating models, new industries, new possibilities. The future will be fuelled by data and technologies that harvest, protect, analyse and take action based on that information. Professor Mary-Anne Williams, director of the innovation and enterprise research lab at the University of Technology, Sydney, believes that cognitive computing is already a game-changer. “Cognitive computing is able to convert vast volumes of complex data into decision-making models that can be used take action autonomously without human oversight or intervention. […]
Who is using bitcoin in Australia?
If you’re wondering who are the major bitcoin users in Australia, they are white males under the age of 34 living on the eastern seaboard, according to research undertaken last month. The research, carried out by Bitcoin.com.au, shows millennials are adapting to bitcoin, the peer-to-peer (P2P) digital currency, just like other systems of “collective commons” such as Uber and Netflix, which provide greater savings and efficiency to customers. Most of those Australians surveyed said they were using bitcoin for the purpose of investment. With the price of one bitcoin rising more than 500 per cent in the past 12 months (August 2016: $US600; August 2017: $US3200), it’s historically been a […]
Igniteme heats up crowdfunding
Australia’s newest fundraising platform, Igniteme, is looking to push the crowdfunding barrow beyond its traditional confines, having raised more than $1 million since its inception. Igniteme, put together by Australia’s first winner of The Apprentice, Andrew Morello, and former Australian Property Institute associate Kristjan Geering, covers a host of funding options, including charity donations, and private lenders offering loan facilities. There’s also a crowd-sourced equity funding feature that will come into play once the Australian equity crowdfunding legislation comes into effect late next month. The platform’s biggest project to date is raising money for an independent Australian full-length documentary on NSW one-punch attacks called The Polisher. It’s a bit left-field […]
Bitcoin Cash just exploded in value
Bitcoin Cash is the latest major cryptocurrency to surge in value, with prices more than doubling over the past two days. Following Bitcoin’s split on August 1, the alternative Bitcoin Cash traded consistently at around $US300. Demand then spiked and a short time ago, prices had shot up to more than $US700. The price surge means that Bitcoin Cash is now the world’s third biggest cryptocurrency by market capitalisation, behind Bitcoin and Ethereum. Prices for Bitcoin were holding steady this morning at just over $US4,100, but down from their record highs earlier in the week above $US4,400. Amid the recent surges in both Bitcoin and Bitcoin Cash, Ethereum prices have […]
