Expensify launches expense claim reimbursement in Australia
Expensify, the world’s fastest-growing expense reporting software, announced today expense claim reimbursement capabilities for Australian customers. Rather than reimburse employees via payroll or cheques, Expensify customers can now issue reimbursements from Expensify, making the expense claim process easier than ever for companies of all sizes. Reimbursement will work with all major Australian banks including NAB, CBA, Westpac, and ANZ. This announcement comes during the Accounting Business Expo, Australia’s largest business and technology conference for finance and accounting professionals. “Our vision is for expense management to happen entirely automatically, behind the scenes, without business travelers and employees wasting any time tracking receipts or even opening our app,” says David Barrett, CEO […]
Square Peg has $US180m to invest in tech start-ups
Paul Bassat’s Square Peg Capital has officially closed the books on a $US180 million ($234 million) raise for its first fund, in another sign of the revival of the venture capital asset class in Australia. The Australian Financial Review can reveal the Melbourne-based start-up investment firm recently completed the fundraising process for its first fund, exceeding its original $200 million target. Square Peg was set up by Mr Bassat, a co-founder of employment website Seek, in 2012. It has invested hundreds of millions of dollars into start-ups since then, including taking an early stake in the world’s most valuable private tech firm, Uber. But until now it has been structured […]
Midwinter adds Omnium to its Fintech Ecosystem
Midwinter has announced the completion of its integration between AdviceOS and Ominum’s OmniLife. This allows the real-time flow of insurance premium product data from OmniLife into the AdviceOS Fact Find, Client Portal and Statement of Advice generator. It also allows client data from AdviceOS to be pre-populated into OmniLife, ensuring a synchronised connection between the two solutions. Midwinter has been forthright in their philosophy regarding open architecture software, believing that advisers of today need software systems that can speak to each other. This allows for freedom of choice as well as eliminating the double entry of data across multiple systems. Stressing this point, Managing Director of Midwinter Julian Plummer said […]
Equity crowdfunding bill passed, but proprietary companies still excluded
Retail investors will from September be able to buy up to $10,000 of equity in their favourite business ideas, after crowd-sourced funding legislation passed the Senate. The legislation will allow unlisted public companies with annual turnover or gross assets of up to $25 million to advertise their business plans on licensed crowdfunding portals, and raise up to $5 million a year to carry them out. Investors can put up to $10,000 a year each into an unlimited number of ideas. A 48-hour cooling off period had applied to the legislation which passed the House of Representatives in February, however the Labor Opposition successfully amended this to five days, with support […]
Indonesian Australian Business Week review – FinTech opportunities over our back fence
by Joe McGuire, Global Head of Sales for Airwallex We wade through the Jakarta traffic amongst the sour looks and disdain from our fellow commuters. Disdain because we have a police escort. Out front, a police motorbike beeps and harangues cars to the left lane. “Make way for the delegates” he shouts in bahasa as he beeps and swerves at others trying to negotiate the famous Jakarta sprawl. I’m here for the Indonesian Australian Business Week (IABW). An Austrade event designed to forge connections between Aussie businesses and our closest neighbour. With nearly 260 million people and a forecast of nearly 6% GDP growth this year, Indonesia is […]
Facebook meets FinTech
Banking has come a long way since the stamped passbook. Social media has come a long way since the simple status update. Can the two intersect? Social media is transforming banking relationships almost as quickly as it has changed our interpersonal communications. With the rise of interfaces such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram as well as fintech start-ups such as Tyro and Coinjar, financial outlets can use social media for everything from improving customer service to allowing users to send money to others via online platforms. Emerging fintech companies like Movenbank are using social media data to help people get access to credit or even simply open a bank account. […]
ASIC to offer blockchain guidance to businesses
This year businesses will move from talking about the potential of distributed ledger technology inspired by Bitcoin’s blockchain to actually implementing and trialling it, the Australian Securities and Investments Commission’s chairperson, Greg Medcraft, today told the organisation’s annual forum. As a consequence, ASIC is planning to shortly release an information sheet for businesses that are implementing and testing distributed ledger solutions, Medcraft said in remarks prepared for the forum. “The information sheet provides a framework to help industry and ASIC to assess whether using the solution would meet the relevant technology and risk management requirements,” the ASIC chairperson said. “This information sheet will be relevant for both existing licensees and […]
The federal government wants to buy $900 million of tech from Australian startups
The federal assistant minister for digital transformation has declared he is targeting a spend of $900 million each year on entrepreneurial tech suppliers, to move away from traditional providers like IBM. “The government can support innovative companies without resorting to handouts. If we want to transform the entrepreneurial or digital government sector in Australia, the most important thing we can do is be a better customer,” assistant minister Angus Taylor told media in the Blue Mountains, west of Sydney. Technology work in the public sector, worth $9 billion a year, is traditionally dominated by big consulting firms or large companies such as IBM, as in the case of the census, […]
