Millennial super fund Spaceship has raised $19.5 million – and tackled the biggest criticisms it faced
Millennial superannuation app Spaceship has responded to critics by cutting fees, increasing its exposure to tech stocks, launching a new investment option and forming an advisory board. Some in the finance industry argued the 1.6% fee that the startup charged was not competitive. Another criticism of Spaceship, which opened to applications early this year, was that while it was marketing itself as a tech- and future-focused super option for millennials, it wasn’t actually investing in tech stocks any more than traditional pension funds. Stockspot founder Chris Brycki, in a column for Business Insider in March, called Spaceship “clever marketing”. “They get full marks for the use of flashy marketing and […]
How to avoid a crowd-sourced equity disaster
The last few years have seen the rise of crowd-sourced equity funding (CSEF). Hailed by entrepreneurs and investors as a democratic form of investing, it allows the public to invest in fledgling businesses that have previously been the domain of high net-worth individuals, family offices and professional investors. Legislation supporting CSEF has been passed by more than 15 countries and this year Australia’s Parliament passed legislation allowing unlisted public companies to advertise their campaigns on licensed crowdfunding portals and raise up to $5 million a year. Investors earning less than $250,000 a year and owning less than $2.5 million in assets would be limited to investing $10,000 per company per […]
Why people are investing in Fintech
Finance and technology are two of the biggest industries in the world. The combination of the two is not only exciting for those industries, but it’s appealing for those who stand to make money from it. Here’s why people think fintech is a sound investment. The business world continues to evolve, thanks to modern technology. One of the most talked-about tech phenomena today is fintech, or financial technology. This is the use of modern technology, whether it’s software or another form of tech, to design and deliver financial services. PayPal, for example, is arguably the most well-known fintech company and worth almost $50 billion, which is more than Netflix, Twitter […]
Real-time payments to be launched after Australia Day
A new payments systems is “on track” to be able to deliver real time bank transfers and the ability to ditch BSB numbers from Australia Day. While most people take a break over summer, banks will be putting the finishing touches on the biggest overhaul in the payments system in years. The new payments platform or NPP is a $1 billion project to deliver real-time payments between customers of different banks, and the company to run the system says it will be rolled out to the public after Australia Day next year. The long-running project has been scheduled to be launched this quarter, and despite industry chatter about some banks […]
finder Awards 2017: Innovation finalists announced
Entrepreneurs, start-ups and leading businesses are among this year’s finder Awards finalists. Finalists have been named across seven innovation categories following an extensive judging process in a range of industries from finance to technology, retail and travel. Fred Schebesta, co-founder and director of finder.com.au, says the annual awards have uncovered a diverse range products and brands which challenge the status quo – all with innovation at their heart. “From new smartphone apps to bite-sized property investing, these outside of the box ideas have the potential to change lives,” he says. “We were blown away by the calibre and number of entries this year; all of the finalists are finding solutions […]
What is Bitcoin, and how does it work?
If you find the concept of Bitcoin confusing, you are not alone. The virtual currency has been a constant source of controversy, but it is still not well understood. On Tuesday, one Bitcoin was worth USD$4,394. Are Bitcoins those coins I see in photographs? No. Those coins are novelty items that newspapers used in photographs because they couldn’t find anything else to illustrate their stories about Bitcoin. A Bitcoin is a digital token — with no physical backing — that can be sent electronically from one user to another, anywhere in the world. A Bitcoin can be divided out to eight decimal places, so you can send someone 0.00000001 Bitcoins. […]
Square expands its Australian offering with iconic Square Stand
After 18 months of strong local growth, Square continues to expand its presence in the local market, introducing more products and services to help a wider range of Australian businesses. From today, the iconic Square Stand for contactless and chip is available across the country. Gone are the days of large point-of-sale systems, clunky cash drawers, piles of paper receipts, and cluttered countertops. Square Stand for contactless and chip is the first out-of-the-box solution to turn an iPad into a fully integrated point-of-sale system, allowing businesses to take payments and run their entire operation from their countertop device. With tens of thousands of businesses now using Square across the […]
Peppermint enter lucrative gateway services market
ASX listed fin-tech player Peppermint Innovation’s rollout of its unique technology platform has taken a big step forward after the Perth-based company struck a further deal with UCPB, one of the Philippines’ largest banks. Peppermint, who are currently focused on the commercialisation and development of their mobile-phone based bill payment technology said they had inked a deal with UCPB to roll out internet payment “gateway services” in the Philippines for the giant lender. UCPB’s online mobile banking system is already powered by Peppermint technology and the latest deal relating to gateway services represents an extension of the commercial relationship between the two parties. UCPB’s internet payment gateway, facilitated by Peppermint, […]
