AUSTRAC begins oversight of cryptocurrency
AUSTRAC has implemented new laws that will see it regulate digital currency exchanges operating in Australia. The new laws came into effect on Wednesday and will require Australian cryptocurrency service providers to register with AUSTRAC as well as meet the government’s anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing (AML/CTF) compliance and reporting obligations. AUSTRAC released a draft consultation paper in January regarding amendments to AML/CTF regulation to extend it to digital currency providers. In a statement, AUSTRAC chief executive Nicole Rose said the new laws strengthen AUSTRAC’s ability to help cryptocurrency exchanges defend against cyber crime. “It’s recognised that this reform will help protect their business operations from money laundering and terrorism […]
Fintech heads list of growth companies across Asia-Pacific
When Prospa launched in Australia in 2011, the online lender to small companies had an intimidating task before it: taking business from the country’s biggest banks. Small companies in search of working capital had long relied on traditional lenders, before the global financial crisis curtailed banks’ appetite for risk. Seven years on, Prospa has topped this inaugural list of high-growth companies, in revenue terms, from the Asia-Pacific region. The expansion of digital services combined with a desire for flexible financing fuelled Prospa’s growth. It is hardly a lone disrupter. Hot on its heels at the top of the list are New Zealand-based fintech firms Pushpay, a mobile payments service, and […]
Blockchain is ready for prime time despite its critics
By John Heaton – Moneycatcha CTO Over the last few years the hype around Blockchain has been brought to the forefront via mass entry into cryptocurrencies. This is not too dissimilar to when online trading systems became publicly available in the late 1990s early 2000s. The pattern of behaviour is similar with an opportunity being presented and individuals trying to make a return on investment. As with the online trading systems, there will be individuals who manage to make significant returns on investment but the vast majority made marginal or no returns. Before technology is fully commercialised it endures certain growing pains such as awareness, decision to adopt, initial use […]
Afterpay sales up 400 per cent in the third quarter
Buy-now pay-later tech solution Afterpay Touch Group (ASX: APT) has recorded another strong result with sales up 400 per cent in the latest quarter. In a business update released on Wednesday, Afterpay says more than $1.45 billion of total underlying sales were processed through the Afterpay platform in the first three quarters of FY18. The value of total sales is up significantly from the same time last year when the company recorded $290 million during the first three quarters of FY17. Afterpay’s in-store option has also seen considerable growth this year, as more than 7000 individual shopfronts, including all stores operated by Super Retail Group (ASX: SUL), now offer the […]
CashDeck releases software to help brokers and borrowers prepare for tougher lending measures
There’s no doubting that the Hayne Royal Commission will bring about changes to the way borrowers, brokers and bankers behave. As lenders are required to more carefully scrutinise loan applications and living expenses, it is expected that home buyers borrowing power will be greatly reduced. A recent UBS report suggests that credit availability could be cut by 21 to 41%, depending on income. While nobody can tell exactly what measures will come about, change is certain, and smart brokers will already be making changes to their business processes. Compliance will be top of the list, and for brokers this will mean more accurately assessing living expenses—an onerous task. Technology must […]
Initial coin offerings challenge traditional venture capital
Satoshi Nakamoto, whoever he or she is, probably didn’t consider the effect blockchain would have on the innovation ecosystem when they launched the first usable blockchain in 2009. Regardless, amid all the cryptocurrency hype, it’s clear a new pathway for start-ups is emerging. With a growing number of technology projects turning to initial coin offerings (ICOs) for fundraising, it seems the whole “idea-to-market” process has been turned on its head – revolutionising the lean start-up methodology: Decades ago it used to be the case of “build something, get funded, market it”. The lean method tried to lower the founder’s risk by decreasing the costs to market and introducing the idea […]
Australia lags on digital banking revolution: Oracle survey
Would you be prepared to give a little-known business access to your most sensitive financial data, if it meant getting a better deal on your home loan? This type of question is set to become increasingly relevant in the coming years, as the big data revolution joins forces with a push for greater competition in banking. Data is one of the most valuable assets in the financial world, and there’s a clear trend towards policies that put more of this value back into the hands of consumers, rather than large corporations. The only catch is that often, the way for consumers to squeeze more value from their data it to […]
How to find out what those strange charges are on your credit card
Credit card bills, with lists of charges from businesses you’ve sure you’ve never heard of, are sometimes harder to translate than an alien message left on a moon circling a distant sun. Stuart Grover founded a company, Look Who’s Charging, in 2016 after puzzling over expenses at his previous business, 3D Printing Studios. He was wasting hours of time trying to reconcile and categorise the often cryptic transactions within the bank feed of his accounting software. “The more research we did the more we realised that this wasn’t just a big problem for small business owners and bookkeepers but that it is also a significant problem for consumers and financial […]