Global 2018 digital banking sales report finds Australia again leads the way
Avoka, the global leader in digital customer acquisition for financial services, today released its third annual Digital Sales Report which found that Australian banks continue to excel compared with their peers in North America and Europe. The report analysed the digital account opening capabilities of the 50 largest banks in these regions (32 in 2017) and found that as banks capitalise on opportunities in the face of increasingly stiff competition, Australian banks once again lead in digital readiness. Avoka’s study focused on breadth of offer and ease of use, with the capability of 11 Australian banks assessed in the report. Commenting on the global findings, Avoka Chief Executive Phil Copeland […]
BGL releases the first SMSF Artificial Intelligence in Simple Fund 360
BGL Corporate Solutions, Australia’s leading supplier of SMSF administration and ASIC corporate compliance solutions, is proud to announce the release of Stage 1 of its Artificial Intelligence (AI) Assistant for Simple Fund 360. This is a first in the SMSF admin software industry. “This is a huge achievement by our Simple Fund 360 Team” says “BGL Managing Director, Ron Lesh. “BGL has been working on AI for over 12 months. We needed to teach the AI Engine about SMSF transactions through a process known as Deep Learning. This results in Simple Fund 360 providing a level of confidence on where transactions have been allocated in the ledger based on the […]
Venture capital investment in FinTech reaches record US$27.4 billion high
Global investment in FinTechs by venture capital grew to a record $27.4 billion in 2017, spurred on by high deal value in the US, UK and India. Digital payments and lending services attracted the most investment capital. FinTech (financial technology) startups continue to draw the interest of venture capital around the world. Venture capital firms and funds continue to see great potential in the disruptive FinTech firms which are providing user-friendly financial services and products through modern and innovative technology: digital payments services and online lending platforms the foremost among them. Confidence in FinTech has accelerated venture capital financing in the industry to a record level of $27.4 billion in […]
Commonwealth Super signs technology partner
The Commonwealth Superannuation Corporation inked a deal with an ASX-listed wealth management technology provider for greater efficiency in administering insurance claims. The CSC has signed a long-term contract with Bravura to implement its Sonata platform as a managed cloud service. The partnership intends to enable greater efficiency in the administration of claims for death and disability benefits within the CSC’s defined benefit schemes.It will also enable greater servicing of Australian Defence Force personnel entitled to benefits under ADF Cover legislation. Sonata’s defined benefit capability was added just last month, with LGIAsuper signing on as the first client. “The Sonata defined benefit solution, which supports different styles of defined benefit business […]
“Have we actually delivered?” FinTech Australia chair calls out fintechs, banks
Stuart Stoyan stressed the crossroads the industry will face in 2018. It’s been a good year for Australian fintech. The 2017 Startup Muster survey turned out a glowing report card of a maturing industry; monthly revenue growth for post-revenue fintechs was up 208% over a 12-month period and 24% of fintechs surveyed reported revenue growth of 700%. The EY FinTech Adoption Index ranked Australia fifth out of 20 global markets with an adoption rate of 37% – more than double that of our result in 2015 (13%). FinTech Australia chair Stuart Stoyan discussed these figures in a keynote at this week’s AltFi Australasia Summit, but rather than using them as […]
Fintech adoption speeds up in Australia
Australia is growing faster than most of the global markets and is now outplacing the US in terms of fintech adoption, says Noah Breslow, the chief executive of US online SME lending company OnDeck Capital, which has delivered more than $US8 billion in loans to 80,000 small businesses globally. He told the third AltFi Australasia Summit in Sydney on Monday that Australia is now the second-largest alternative finance market in the Asia-Pacific region. “We are looking at an industry that did $10 million of annual volume – these are numbers from KPMG in 2013, and in 2016 that had grown to $220 million.” Breslow said according to OnDeck estimates, “based […]
Novatti makes commercially astute blockchain move
Online payments processor Novatti Group (ASX: NOV) has made a commercially-astute move into blockchain payments by integrating its proprietary payments platform with The Stellar Network, an open-source protocol for exchanging money used via shared servers and “forming a global value exchange network”. In essence, Stellar is a blockchain-payment and asset transfer platform connecting banks, payment systems and customers with a network of low-cost financial services providers, including financial institutions, payment aggregators and technical specialists. The prime feature which attracts users is the commonly-shared commitment to support a new and inclusive global infrastructure for payments. Stellar is growing rapidly and sports a proprietary “native asset” digital currency called the Lumen. Its […]
School’s out: a budgeting lesson for kids
By Mario Hasanakos, Founder of Spriggy While the school holidays are a wonderful opportunity for parents to spend quality time with their kids, it can end up being an incredibly expensive few weeks. Between family outings, playdates, daytime entertainment and meals on-the-go, just a few days in and it can seem like you’re constantly reaching for your hip-pocket. We live in an increasingly cashless society and while kids might see you tapping away with your card, it can be difficult for them to understand where that money comes from and what it means. Given that a third of parents are concerned their kids don’t understand the true value of money, […]
