How incubators are empowering fintech startups
Of all the technological innovations taking the world by storm, fintech has certainly been one of the most prolific. Hundreds of new startups are entering the space, offering products including everything from lending to more specialised fare. Older, more experienced bankers and financial experts leaving their industries have created many of these startups. But just as many have started through young up-and-comers – and they’ve needed a little helping hand along the way. This is one of the reasons incubators and accelerators have been such a key part of the fintech industry. All over the world, fintech businesses have been flocking to incubators in droves. In the United States, the […]
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 […]
Ignition Wealth previews single page financial wellness profile
Ignition Wealth took the stage at last week’s dynamic Class CUP Connect conference event to unveil the latest development in their world leading digital financial technology. Ignition Wealth presented at the Class CUP Connect conference as partners of Class Super. The Ignition Wealth technology stack is fully integrated with Class Super, the leading cloudbased SMSF administration software. Class Super customers can now seamlessly access Ignition Wealth digital financial advice via the Class Super portal. Using the latest in cloudbased financial aggregation technology the new Ignition Wealth technology provides consumers with a holistic, interactive, personal financial wellness profile. One simple registration process allows the consumer to aggregate all of […]
Kerry Agiasotis of WUBS: Win-win when rivals turn partners
One of the world’s largest non-bank providers of international business payment solutions says aspiring fintech companies should seek to pursue partnerships with their big company rivals rather than fighting them if they want their ideas to reach their full potential. The chief executive of Western Union Business Solutions, the dedicated business payments unit of the New York Stock Exchange-listed Western Union Company, said the firm was increasingly looking to partner with fintechs and other start-ups. WUBS is primary spot foreign currency trading provider to 20 per cent of the SME market in Australia and secondary provider to another 20 per cent, including the big four banks. It has more than […]
SelfWealth take out Australian Business Award for Software Innovation
SelfWealth has been recognised as an ABA100 Winner in The Australian Business Awards 2016 for Software Innovation. The award recognises SelfWealth’s achievements in the Financial Technology (fintech) industry through the research and development of SelfWealth INTELLIGENCE & TRADING. Andrew Ward Founder and Managing Director of SelfWealth says the award recognises the transformative nature of SelfWealth INTELLIGENCE & TRADING. “Winning the ABA100 award for Software Innovation in the Australian Business Awards means a great deal to us, we are passionate about providing financial technology to help investors achieve greater returns. Our team have worked tirelessly over the last few years building a solution that fits all investor’s needs. Winning this award […]
zipMoney – User Experience
We here at Australian FinTech are mad mountain bike riders. So when one of us – me – decided it was time to buy a new bike, this time a road bike, I thought that instead of just walking in and paying cash or dumping it yet again on the credit card, why not utilise an Australian FinTech company to assist with the purchase, interest-free. And here are the reasons: We here at Australian FinTech wanted to see how these FinTech companies work, how easy it is and how they perform; how much effort it is to apply and get interest-free credit; how ingenious the technology is; we wanted to […]
The fintechs targeting SMEs
Fintech companies have increasingly started targeting SMEs looking for ways to finance their businesses, but fintechs shouldn’t expect a revolution without a few setbacks. At least, that’s the view of some of the industry’s own experts and participants. With the market having had a few years to run its course, digital lenders, payment platforms and other financial technology firms have been given a warning: change, or face extinction. The changing face of fintech In lieu of more banking alternatives, fintech companies have increasingly started targeting more specific niches. It’s these businesses – not just those offering simple loans – that will end up surviving a glut of entrants, experts say. […]
