Carney cuts through the fintech hype with clear-eyed take on risk
Financial Stability Board chair Mark Carney’s status as one of the world’s great fintech boosters makes his occasional musings on the associated risk to the financial system all the more striking. The Basel-based FSB, which makes recommendations to G20 nations, is thinking deeply about the appropriate regulatory response to fintech’s risks and rewards and will report its conclusions to the G20 in July. Carney revealed some preliminary thoughts at the same G20 conference in Germany attended by Scott Morrison, where the Federal Treasurer told global economic leaders that Australia was strongly pursuing blockchain technology and wanted to unlock the “enormous” potential of the nation’s data. Fintech, he said, was about […]
Co-working boom, but no room
Nearly three-quarters of start-ups are now based in co-working spaces, up from half a year ago, according to a major survey of founders, and the sites are running out of room. The 2016 Startup Muster survey released on Wednesday shows the NSW government’s plan for a 15,000 square metre start-up hub in or near the Sydney CBD is desperately needed. Co-working spaces were home for 72.3 per cent of the 685 verified start-ups that responded to the survey, up from 49 per cent in the 2015 Startup Muster. The arrival of international co-working brands such as Rocketspace and WeWork have helped popularise the concept, according to Brad Delamare, general manager […]
DomaCom clears regulatory hurdle for Mortgage Crowdfunding
A recent squeeze on investment loans for new customers by banks have led listed crowdfunder DomaCom to offer investors the opportunity to invest in residential mortgages after clearing a regulatory hurdle. The news broke this week that the fractional property investment firm was given ASIC approval to extend its crowdfunding model to securities, which means it can now offer fractional investment in corporate bonds as well as peer-to-peer mortgage bond sub-funds. According to the Australian Financial Review, the DomaCom platform allows investment in fractions of real property through collective investment schemes and crowdfunding. Its offerings target self-managed super funds and are on the approved product list of 41 financial adviser […]
Midwinter : Reputational risk still a determining factor for advisers when it comes to Social Media
It appears that the Australian advice industry is split when it comes to whether reputational risk prevents them from participating on social media channels, according to research carried out by Midwinter Financial Services in conjunction with Jenesis Consulting. In 2016, Midwinter surveyed 153 advisers of varying backgrounds and specialisations on Digital and social media, with the results revealing mixed feelings on many aspects in regards to how the industry engages with these tools. The responses were compiled and put together in Midwinter’s Digital and Social Media Survey Report. Of particular interest was that 87.3% of planners surveyed believed there to be some degree of reputational risk involved in engaging on […]
UK fintech delegation heads to Australasia
A trade delegation of eleven UK fintech companies will visit Australia and New Zealand in March. The UK’s Department for International Trade (DIT) will bring a trade delegation of eleven successful UK fintech companies to Australia and New Zealand in March. The trade mission will build on the success achieved by several UK companies in Australia, such as Ratesetter, ThinCats, TruRating and OTCX by promoting opportunities in Australian and New Zealand fintech, including in the emerging regtech, insurtech and blockchain sectors. It will provide a platform for UK and Australian counterparts to exchange ideas, best practice and discover potential areas for collaboration. The selected UK companies will participate in a […]
ASX bullish on fintech stock listings
The Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) expects to see technology listings on the ASX proliferate in the near future, with fintech companies to play a significant role. Speaking to InvestorDaily, Eddie Grieve, head of listings and issuer services at the ASX, said the institution is encouraged by recent activity from technology companies, and those specialising in financial services in particular. “The broader tech sector has been a key focus of ASX for some time, and we see fintech playing a significant part in the sector’s future growth,” Mr Grieve said. Tech listings in 2016 were at the highest number since the dotcom boom of 1999/2000, Mr Grieve explained, with the fintech […]
ATO signs up as first client for fintech start-up Mainframe Cloud
Fintech start-up Mainframe Cloud (“MfC”) has signed a contract with the Australian Taxation Office (“ATO”) to deliver a suite of mainframe modernisation solutions to the Australian Government’s major revenue collection agency. The contract follows an extensive and successful Beta testing exercise in 2016 and the achievement of a minimum viable product by MfC. Based at the Stone & Chalk fintech hub in Sydney, MfC simplifies mainframe operations by providing applications that focus on improving productivity and efficiency. The global application development market for mainframes is estimated to be US$23 billion per annum. Mainframes process approximately 80% of the world’s data and are at the core of most of the world’s […]
Cashless society on horizon as Aussies embrace digital transactions
The march towards a cashless society is gathering momentum, with a rise in digital wallet use prompting more companies to offer online only products and services. A report by UK-based Juniper research predicted that digital wallets- in the form of smartphones and other devices used to make online payments- will account for $1.35 trillion in global spend by the end of 2017- a 32 per cent increase on 2016. The research comes just over a year since the Westpac Cash Free report revealed the majority of smart phone users believed Australia could become cashless as early as 2022. Smart phone users already made 53 per cent of their payments digitally […]
