How Westpac is investing in fintechs and spending $1 billion on digital transformation
Westpac’s annual results show how far the bank has gone to transform itself into a digital showcase and how it has been heavily investing in the rise of disrupting fintechs. Out of a total investment of $1.4 billion, the bank spent more than $800 million in system upgrades, digital transformation, and innovation. CEO Brian Hartzer says the focus has been on delivering technology platforms, while simplifying and automating processes to make banking easier. “We have already migrated 100 applications onto our cloud infrastructure platforms which are now largely complete,” he says. “Additionally we have over 120 APIs in production and another 180 in development.” Among digital initiatives are Siri for […]
Peppermint to receive $1.5m via placement to strategic Fintech investor Smidge Digital Unit Trust
Peppermint Innovation Ltd (ASX: PIL) announce continued strategic and funding support from Smidge Digital Unit Trust (SDUT) with a further investment into Peppermint of $1.5 million. The investment was transacted via a share placement of 60,000,000 shares to SDUT at 2.5 cents per share and represents a 32% premium to PIL’s last traded price of 1.7 cents. The funds will be used to continue to accelerate the roll-out of the Company’s Bizmoto agent network in the Philippines as well as the development of a number of enterprise capabilities in micro finance and international remittance business opportunities. They will also advance work on innovative fintech products and technology platform services (to […]
Aussie fintech startup building an investment platform for rapidly growing global retire early movement
Whether you’re an intern, executive or somewhere in between, everyone wants the option of not having to work, the sooner the better for most. While the end goal is easy to picture, the path to get there seems very complicated, or even imaginary. Housing affordability, negative gearing, royal commissions and fund returns are topical stresses for older Australians. A bigger issue is younger generations not building savings in a world of credit and higher discretionary spending. Younger people work as hard as past generations but have different relationships with. Bad financial discipline results in declining happiness as financial pressure builds and is passed on to future generations. But, according to […]
IRESS releases automated personal advice solution and announces implementation with WA Super
IRESS has today announced a new automated personal advice solution allowing super funds to service members wanting superannuation advice digitally. The multi-advice, multi-channel solution, drawing on information within the fund registry, allows members to set their retirement objectives, review projections and then make choices to optimise their retirement outcomes. Members are provided with a statement of personal advice and can choose to action the recommendations using the solution and monitor progress. Members can also receive automated personal advice for wealth protection, savings and debt management. WA Super has become the first superannuation fund to implement the solution to deliver a personal advice service for retirement planning through its online member […]
Why Bitcoin is here to stay
The real game changer of Bitcoin is the underlying network of highly secure computers that support it. These computers run a new form of database called “blockchain.” Blockchain technology enables money and data to move without having to rely on a trusted middleman. It’s truly revolutionary. Already more than $3 billion a day is transacted across the Bitcoin network without the need for a central clearing authority. That has never happened before and it makes Bitcoin a unique asset. Software developers across the world are building applications designed to piggyback off this network. Over the next few years we’ll begin to see a host of new applications emerge for Bitcoin and the network […]
Fintech revenue growth surges: EY census
Local fintech start-ups are confident revenue growth will continue on the back of the banking royal commission and a majority are planning to expand overseas as more funding is pumped into the sector, although a mostly optimistic outlook is tempered by fears of a skills shortage. Access to developer talent is a concern to almost half of the nation’s fintechs, who also want better access to the government’s research and development (R&D) tax incentives to drive growth. The results are in the annual EY Fintech Australia Census 2018, generated from an online survey of 151 start-ups, which was released on Monday at FinTech Australia’s Intersekt festival attended by 500 people in […]
How one financial planner’s cultural change is helping tackle Australia’s debt problem
Financial planners are helping to tackle Australia’s escalating debt problem as the industry shifts from selling products to providing holistic advice with money management at its core. Australia’s household debt-to-income ratio has risen sharply in recent years and now ranks as one of the highest in the world at about 190 per cent, according to the Reserve Bank of Australia. Meanwhile, more than one in six (18.5 per cent) consumers are struggling under a mountain of credit card debt, according to a report by the corporate regulator, ASIC. Yet only a minority of financial planners offer money management or budgeting advice, citing concerns about the time it takes to offer […]
Women shun financial advisers in favour of money advice from robots
Robo-advisers are reporting a substantial spike in the number of female investors, citing a “perfect storm” of the fallout from the banking royal commission and the empowerment of the #Metoo movement. Six Park reveals that accounts held solely by women have more than doubled in recent months to sit at 40 per cent, up from 20 per cent in January. The firm delivers financial advice online using algorithms and technology in place of a human financial adviser. The greatest number of Six Park accounts are held by 26-35-year-olds and 35-50-year-olds. Average account sizes are $31,761 and $43,342 respectively. Across all ages, the average amount invested by females is almost $55,000. […]
