Just don’t call us payday lenders
More than 20,000 Australian small business owners have trouble accessing finance (Deloitte Access Economics). Are they denied access because they aren’t good candidates for loans? Yes, in some cases. However, a significant number (37%) of these businesses are denied finance because they don’t have collateral (be it a home or considerable assets) to secure a loan against. Interestingly more than 40 per cent of rejected applications examined by the NSW Business Chamber were for amounts less than $100,000 – it seems traditional providers aren’t interested in small loans, or small business. Archaic systems and processes which serve the interests of incumbent big business are being dismantled in the current global […]
Fintechs ‘on the front line’ for brokers
A recent meeting has highlighted that when it comes to serving customers in the third-party channel, “there’s a space for everyone”, and that fintechs can act to bolster and expand the businesses of their broker counterparts. The meeting last week was attended by both brokers and fintechs in Sydney and asked the question: “Disintermediation and diversification: what impact will fintech have on finance brokers?” On the night, founder and CEO of uno Vince Turner highlighted that technology has firmly entered it’s “third wave”. “The first wave was simply building the internet. HTML, dial-up, all this kind of stuff in the ‘90s,” Mr Turner explained. “The second wave was building an […]
HashChing brings to market a loan for new business founders and entrepreneurs
Talk to anyone who’s ever tried to get a home loan without a regular payslip or evidence of recurring earnings – and the answer is almost universal – NO. In a regulatory environment being ever tightened by APRA – it would appear the risk profile of lenders is forever shrinking, virtually closing the door on home loan options for start up founders and entrepreneurs. Until now. HashChing, the online marketplace for pre-negotiated cheap home loan deals has a new product just for founders and owners of start up businesses. The home loan, from a leading Australian specialty lender, is available to start up business owners with no […]
SMEs need protection from online Payday Lenders
In 2015, online SME lending in Australia was around $250m, up from a zero base two years ago. Growth will continue exponentially and online SME lending will become a significant alternative source of funding for Australia’s SMEs. Online lenders perform an important role by lending to thousands of SMEs that would otherwise struggle to attract support from a bank. I am a big supporter of this sector but am concerned that many SMEs don’t understand what they are getting themselves into when they borrow from some lenders that could be more accurately described as SME payday lenders to SMEs. These concerns together with suggestions as to how the interest of […]
LoanDolphin exceeds $100m in home loan auctions
LoanDolphin, Australia’s leading loan bidding platform, has reached a significant milestone with more than $100 million worth of home loans through its platform. LoanDolphin launched in February 2016 and the $100 million mark was surpassed August 2016. LoanDolphin is a free online platform for people to refinance or obtain new home loans at rates not advertised by banks or lenders. Customer’s using LoanDolphin have already begun saving tens of thousands of dollars on their mortgage. Lenders and bankers bid to win customers’ business on LoanDolphin, which have delivered an average savings of $5254 per year to homeowners, according to LoanDolphin CEO Ranin Mendis. “The simplicity, efficiency and negotiating power provided […]
The Pulse of Fintech
‘ The Pulse of Fintech ’ is a quarterly report created by KPMG along with KPMG Enterprise’s Global Network for Innovative Startups and CB Insights (the ‘go to’ name for insights related to venture capital investment) which launched on August 17th, 2016. The series analyses the latest global trends in venture capital investment data on the fintech sector. Given the significant interest in fintech globally, and its ongoing evolution in terms of market drivers, technologies and potential use-cases, KPMG and CB Insights are partnering to bring you the pulse on fintech investment globally. Each quarter, we’ll highlight key fintech deals, issues and challenges around the world, in addition to key […]
Money for nothing, cheques for free in the sharing economy
THE bank of mum and dad is receiving a welcome cash injection as a growing number of households put a price on the things they previously gave away for free. More households are renting out a spare room, car sharing, selling goods and services and even lending to each other as the “sharing economy’’ expands, research shows. According to polling by RateSetter, some households are earning up to $120 a month. On the downside, however, all those people who benefited from the “free economy” are now having to wait their turn, or pay for it. Free rides, spare rooms, and even the kids’ old books and toys are increasingly thin […]
P2P lifts in popularity amid miserable year for banks
With deposit rates at low levels and the local share market still choppy, peer-to-peer lending has become an interesting alternative for Australian investors over the last few years. But some cracks in the model appeared in the US recently when one of the biggest peer-to-peer platforms was caught up in a scandal that it is now scrambling to fix, offering a warning for the Australian industry about the importance of transparency. LendingClub had been seen as one of the leading lights of this space in the US, amid a range of players that use technology to match investors with borrowers, cutting out the overheads incurred by banks and aiming to […]
