Grounds, Paradice dive into blockchain software float Identitii
The big end of town is piling into a small payments security firm’s initial public offering in the expectation they may have unearthed the next big thing. Street Talk understands UBS Australia chief executive Matthew Grounds, veteran fund manager David Paradice and Sydney-based institutional investors KIS Capital, Terra Capital and KTM Ventures are among the names lining up for a piece of ASX-hopeful Identitii. Identitii is a blockchain software company founded by Australians Nick Armstrong and Eric Knight. Its software is aimed at helping banks and other international payments providers comply with anti money laundering policies by attaching messages to each transfer saying exactly who is making the payment and why. Identitii is an add-on to the SWIFT payments […]
A dive into the US mortgage market could be a Credible move for this ASX fintech
Its latest earnings may have fallen short, but student loan comparison site Credible Labs still has fans as it pushes hard to ramp up its new mortgage loan business. Credible (ASX:CRD) — founded in San Francisco five years ago by Australian investment banker Stephen Dash — hit the ASX late last year, issuing shares at $1.21. Of the $50 million raised through its IPO, $15 million was taken out by the company’s original backers. The bulk of the money, some $31 million, was earmarked to spend developing its platform which targets US consumers. Even though its existing business is centred on student loan refinancing, investors are much more interested in […]
The one ASX company Bronte Capital thinks could be a $100b global tech giant
Bronte Capital’s John Hempton, one of the country’s most vocal and aggressive short sellers, owns just one ASX-listed company in his fund: Xero. And he says the accounting software group, which has a $5.4 billion market capitalisation, has a shot at being a $100 billion company. “If any Australian company has the potential to be a $100 billion tech giant, it’s Xero,” Mr Hempton told The Australian Financial Review. “In order to pull that stunt, they need to succeed in what the global ambition of Xero should be – we are the backbone accounting system all round the world and everyone plugs into us.” Xero, bought at much lower levels, […]
Afterpay surges 20pc after earnings increase
Shares in Afterpay Touch gained as much as 20 per cent after the company said underlying sales has increased by almost 40 per cent to $736 million over the quarter. The buy now, pay later payments provider said group revenue for the 2018 financial year would be around $142 million while earnings before interest, tax depreciation and amortisation was forecast to be around $33 million to $34 million. Afterpay, which allows millennial consumers to pay for goods in instalments by charging merchants, said that $2.18 billion of underlying sales had been processed through its payment platform during the 2018 financial year. That is almost a threefold increase from the prior […]
Prodigal Prospa returns to investors for equity
Online small business lender Prospa has gone back to the drawing board following a dramatic false start to its mooted ASX listing. Following the 11th-hour shelving of its initial public offering last month, Street Talk understands the company is considering a range of options including a private raising The company’s co-founders and joint chief executives Beau Bertoli and Greg Moshal are working through how an additional pre-IPO raising would look and the quantum of funds required to fund Prospa’s near-term growth ambitions. The deal size is expected to be at least $40 million, correlating with the amount Prospa’s existing investors were originally looking to inject into the IPO. The private raise is one of several options being canvassed by Prospa. […]
EML Payments acquires Irish fintech to corner EU market
EML Payments has acquired 74.9 per cent of Irish fintech Perfectcard DAC (Perfectcard) for AUD$9.5 million. Perfectcard is an authorised eMoney institution providing incentive and corporate expense solutions regulated by the Irish Central Bank. Australian listed payments solutions provider EML expects Perfectcard to generate earnings of $400,000-600,000 in FY19 after integration costs. The Irish regulator first needs to approve EML as a majority shareholder before the acquisition can go through, but EML expects the approval to be granted in the coming months. Notwithstanding the approval process, EML says it will consolidate Perfectcard into its financial results from 4 July 2018. EML says the acquisition of Perfectcard will allow the listed […]
Neo-lender Wisr announces record loan growth
Neo-lender Wisr more than doubled personal loan originations in the second-half of the financial year after a strong Q4, the company announced today. Loan origination value in H2FY18 rose by 136% on the previous six months, whilst the number of new Wisr customers climbed 118% during the same period. The result follows the company’s largest single quarter in loan growth – with a 66% increase in loan origination value and 40% in loan origination volume during Q4 compared to Q3FY18. It is the second successive quarter that Wisr has achieved record loan origination growth. According to the 2017 Asia Pacific Alternative Finance Industry Report by Cambridge University and Monash University, […]
Prospa founders admit float lost ‘vital momentum’
The co-founders of small business lender Prospa maintain the company can return to the public markets for a future float, after a last-minute regulatory query this week created “confusion” that sapped the listing of vital “momentum.” Prospa was meant to be one of most-watched floats of 2018, but these plans were thrown into disarray this week as scrutiny from regulators apparently caught the company, and its investment bankers, off-guard. After Thursday night’s decision to postpone the float, on Friday, co-founders Greg Moshal and Beau Bortoli said Prospa was taking the opportunity to “regroup” and one day return to the public markets. Prospa had been due to list around lunchtime on […]
