An overview of digital currencies
By now you may have heard about cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin being used to trade and purchase goods and services, but here’s a fact you may not be aware of. As of 2016 the United Nations recognises 180 different currencies, everything from the Abkhazian Apsar to the US dollar, however does not recognise a single crypto-currency as legal tender. Despite not receiving official recognition as a currency, the various crypto-currencies are being used around the world in order to carry out trade for goods and services. The most popular of crypto-currencies, Bitcoin, has a market cap of over US$10 billion. Currently there are 654 crypto-currencies in circulation, a trend that […]
Fintech platform launches new digital loan push
To digital mortgage service uno, the ideal customer is one who doesn’t want to discuss home loans face-to-face or over the phone. “Traditional brokers are for people who want to go see someone face-to-face or have someone come to their house,” uno founder and chief executive officer Vincent Turner told Australian Broker. “For people who don’t want that, they’re going to find a digital mortgage service like uno as more suitable for their needs.” The firm’s recent marketing push – including an ad in which prospective buyers inspect a house in which some rooms are closed off – highlights the public’s feeling of not receiving all the necessary information on […]
Fintech start-up Openpay begins $10m pre-IPO raising as it takes on Afterpay
Openpay, a new challenger to soaring ASX-listed fintech start-up Afterpay, has launched a pre-IPO capital raising, seeking $8-10 million ahead of a planned ASX listing next year. The company is run by former BDO national head of retail Simon Scalzo and, like Afterpay, lets people buy and use goods and services now, but pay for them in instalments with no interest. Afterpay is up more than 155 per cent since listing in May, and Openpay also plans to go public in mid-2017 to raise the funds for further growth. Mr Scalzo said it had already attracted interest from a number of investors in its capital raising. “The process to raise […]
Wilsons, Bell Potter in market for hot fintech Afterpay
Payments company Afterpay is seeking to raise $30 million in a placement through Bell Potter Securities and Wilsons on Monday. Afterpay shares went into a trading halt on Monday morning as its brokers started drumming up interest from potential backers. The brokers were seeking to raise $30 million at $2.40 a share. The offer was priced at a 5.9 per cent discount to the last close of $2.55. Afterpay is seeking the equity injection to fund growth, with the payments company experiencing a strong number of retail merchants seeking its online payments technology. Bids were due at 4pm on Monday, according to terms sent to fund managers. Afterpay has traded […]
Money for millennials: six popular investment options
Millennials have been locked out of the housing market, so are there other avenues of investment open to them? Certainly, the finance industry is working hard on creating products for younger people, but where to turn? The plan for young Aussies has always been: work hard, save your money, buy a house, start a family, then worry about the rest later. Now that the average 20 per cent deposit in Sydney and Melbourne sits at $156,000 and $115,200, respectively, part three (buy a home) in that classic four-point plan is changing. Claire Mackay, a director at Quantum Financial, says that whatever investment choice is made by a millennial investor, the […]
Can robots beat humans as financial advisers?
Jason Lim wants to save enough for a deposit on an apartment but was earning next to nothing by having his money with his bank. He wanted to get some advice on where to invest his money, but a traditional adviser was not for him. “I wanted to earn more than I could get with the bank but was not confident about the level of professionalism in financial advice,” Lim says. The 24-year-old from Melbourne opted for “robo-advice” instead. Robo-advice, or automated advice, is provided online as well as usually on smartphones and iPads. Investors answer a series of questions about themselves and, in response, they receive an investment recommendation. […]
Morgan Stanley’s Jeffrey McMillan says collaboration is key in fintech
It makes more sense for a global banking giant such as Morgan Stanley to collaborate with innovative fintech start-ups than to try to be innovative itself, according to the bank’s chief analytics and data officer, Jeffrey McMillan. “Probably 75 per cent of our technology that we build is coming from the fintech sector,” Mr McMillan told The Economist’s Finance Disrupted conference in New York. “We don’t really want to be innovators — that’s not what we’re really good at. “We have $US2 trillion ($2.8 trillion) of assets, 2.2 million customers, 16,000 advisers and that’s our intellectual capital. But we’re not known for being nimble and quick. ”But the bank wants […]
FinTech Security from the team at Entersoft
Security forms the foundation of the financial services industry. One side is the cautious, steady moving world of banks and financial institutions while the other is the dynamic, entrepreneurial environment of software and technology companies which are moving into the FinTech space. Aside from convenience, keeping customer information secure is the biggest responsibility of all FinTech companies. A single security breach can be a big blow to the reputation of a financial institution. The rapidly emerging fintech sector is throwing up serious challenges in this extremely important area. And the issue is as much related to cultures as it is to technology. Here is a comprehensive set of resources for FinTech, created and […]
