FinTech Aus calls on Parliament to pass consumer-friendly laws
Voluntary promises by the Australian Banking Association on behalf of the big four banks can’t be relied on, and Parliament should pass consumer-friendly legislation, like Comprehensive Credit Reporting, without delay, according to FinTech Australia. FinTech Australia voiced concerns that there may have already been attempts by the banks to delay or roll back on the promise, and suggested it could have been a tactic to prevent compulsory regime. CEO of FinTech Australia, Brad Kitschke, said trusting the banks to share data on a voluntary basis would end in poor consumer outcomes, and delaying legislation would only be in the interests of the banks. “Allowing the big banks to control or […]
Lessons from Australian businesses on cracking the US market
Colin Weir, CEO and founder of Moroku is planning to spend two weeks in mid-September on the west coast of America meeting at least two banks each day. Moroku is an Australian fintech which sells white label mobile app technology for banks, which allows banks to build their own apps using the mobile application development platform or they can use the pre-built apps from Moroku, such as Chore Scale – a mobile banking app for kids, launched in 2017. “The problem we are trying to solve is how do we make banking fun so banks can differentiate with their offering and customers can pay attention and get skilled at managing […]
Banks will prioritise tech, data and new partnerships this year
Currently, 58% of banking leaders are not actively partnering with fintechs, regtechs or other startups. Over the coming 12 months, 37% of Australian banking leaders are looking to invest in business transformation and technology and 33% are planning to invest in digital offerings and data. One in five banking leaders say they’ll be investing in new alliance partnerships over the coming year, to gain more market share and compete globally. These findings come from a new Banking Industry Report released today by technology provider TAS, which spoke to senior Australian banking executives to analyse their thoughts and priorities for the year ahead. Unsurprisingly, one in three banking leaders are concerned […]
The key to investor confidence in cryptocurrencies
Cryptocurrency markets plummeted this week with the market capital of the entire cryptocurrency market falling below $200 billion USD for the first time this year. This comes off the back of a barren 6 months for the cryptocurrency market which has seen that market capital more than halve in that time, a far cry from the stratospheric heights it reached at the end of 2017. Much of the recent negative market sentiment has been attributed to persistent reluctance by the US Securities & Exchange Commission to approve a Bitcoin Exchange Traded Fund (ETF) with the most recent decision by the SEC to delay a decision expected this week to the […]
HashChing settles over $1 Billion in Australian home loans in 3 years
When breakthrough home loan marketplace HashChing launched into the Australian home loans market in August 2015 – never did the founders believe the far-reaching impact their unique online business would have on the Australian mortgage market. Fast forward nearly three years and the results speak for themselves. Over one billion dollars worth of Australian home loans have been settled through the platform, $675 million worth of which were finalised in the last 12 months alone. HashChing has helped over 2,200 borrowers save more than $10 million in combined interest during the first year of their home loans. The platform has also collected more than 3,100 reviews on over 500 brokers […]
SocietyOne celebrates 6th anniversary as total lending approaches $500 million
SocietyOne, Australia’s pioneering and leading marketplace lender, has celebrated its sixth anniversary of operations as total lending since inception approaches $500 million. After making its first loan in August 2012, SocietyOne has now helped more than 20,000 customers thanks to more than $480 million provided by its investor funders. Based on current lending volumes, SocietyOne expects to achieve $500 million in total lending in September – making it the first marketplace lender to achieve this milestone. Since the beginning of 2016, total lending has grown nearly 6 times and SocietyOne’s loan book now totals over $220 million, up from $41 million at the start of 2016. “The last 12 months […]
Drury still making his mark on strategy at Xero
Rod Drury may have stepped down from the role of chief executive of Xero, but in the eyes of shareholders he’s still a big driver of long-term strategy. Having unanimously voted Mr Drury to return as a non-executive director of the company, shareholders at Xero’s annual general meeting quizzed chairman Graham Smith and new chief executive Steve Vamos about Mr Drury’s role and why he had taken on the title of a non-executive director when it appeared he was still very much involved in the future direction of the company. “It’s freed me up to do what I’m passionate about. I’m having a huge amount of fun focusing on the […]
Fintechs fill the void left by commission
Fintechs are filling the gap in SME lending as the big four banks concentrate on the fallout from the royal commission, according to one online lender. The fintech commercial lending space opened up in around 2013 and since then has reported an annual growth rate of around 79%. According to chief commercial officer at Moula, Matt Leeburn, part of this growth has been down to fintechs focusing on lending to SMEs, which make up more than 97% of all Australian businesses. He said that while the space is still “a while off” being a significant threat to the banks, there is a huge opportunity to help the “underserved” SME market. […]
