Cryptocurrency wallet temporarily restricts Australian dollar deposits
Popular cryptocurrency wallet CoinSpot has stopped accepting deposits in Australian dollars, blaming local banks for being “unwilling to work” together. In a blog post updated this morning, CoinSpot said the restriction on all forms of AUD deposits will remain in effect until at least the first week of the new year. “We assure you we are just as unhappy with the situation as you,” the platform writes on its blog. “But unfortunately Australian banks have been so far unwilling to work with the digital currency industry which leads to frequent account closures and strict limits on accounts whilst they remain operational, in effect debanking our industry.” The digital wallet service […]
Australian startups share tips on how to raise early stage funding
The early stage funding could be challenging for several startups, including those from Australia. Some Australian startups admitted they did not have the expertise or knowledge of how to raise funds, a new survey has found. The new Startup Muster, a poll of the Australian startup ecosystem, showed that 12.9 percent said they did not possess the expertise to raise funds. SafetyCulture CEO and founder Luke Anear offered an advice, saying startups must not go to an investor meeting and ask for cash. Anear said the approach should be like in dating. A startup needs to know the investor first before accepting an investment. “You don’t get married on your […]
Australian fintech company BRICKX has had a 2017 to remember
It’s been a BIG year for Australian fintech company BRICKX. In the last 12 months BRICKX has: Helped more than 6,000 people access property investment Expanded our portfolio to 14 properties across three States Grown to 15 dedicated team members Attracted investment from the Westpac backed venture capital firm Reinventure BRICKX also won a swag of awards including: REA’s Excellence Award for Game Changer of the Year CANSTAR’s Innovation Excellence Award Talent Unleashed’s Best Startup for Tech or Digital Innovation Fintech Australia’s FINNIE for Excellence in Establishing Market Presence Fintech Business Award for Platform Innovator of the Year FinTECH Award for Best FinTech Communications Campaign What’s next? By […]
The time is now for financial advisers to embrace fintechs
Advisers need to think about fintech services as more than just potential competitors for their market and start thinking about how to capitalise on the sectors’ strengths, writes Sharesight’s Douglas Morris. Recently, the Financial Planning Association of Australia (FPA) released a white paper on fintech titled Mapping Fintech to the Financial Planning Process – Why Fintech is Not a Threat. “Not a threat” meaning fintech provides an opportunity for financial advisers as opposed to eating a financial planner’s lunch. The FPA has done a commendable job assessing the landscape, asking the right questions and separating out what really should concern financial advisers. Disruptive moments are paired with opportunity and they’ve […]
Traders brace for volatile bitcoin futures launch
The newest way to bet on bitcoin will arrive when futures of the cryptocurrency that has taken Wall Street by a storm begin trading. The first bitcoin future trades are set to kick off at 6pm New York time on Sunday (10AM AEDT Monday) on CBOE Global Markets Inc’s CBOE Futures Exchange. This has given an extra kick to the cryptocurrency’s scorching run this year. Bitcoin’s price soared so far this month, but it has made sharp moves in both directions in recent days, falling by almost a fifth on Friday after surging more than 40 per cent in the previous 48 hours. On Sunday, bitcoin was up about 3 […]
Why most Australians don’t invest in shares
The vast majority of Australians have never invested in shares, and there’s no great mystery why – they can’t afford it. But the rise of fintech solutions such as Acorns has made share trading more accessible to everyday Australians, a survey by comparison site Finder suggests. The online survey of 2017 Australians aged 18 to 90 found that three out of four people had never invested in shares. Men are nearly twice as likely to have invested in shares as women, with 35 per cent of men having tried it compared with 17 per cent of women. The majority of shares investment is traditional ASX investing, which one in five […]
Credible founder Stephen Dash comes home for biggest ASX tech IPO of 2017
A 33-year-old Australian tech entrepreneur, who left Australia five years ago for Silicon Valley, will return home to ring the bell at the Australian Securities Exchange on Friday as his fintech company Credible becomes the biggest local tech float of the year. Stephen Dash, a former investment director at Mark Carnegie’s private equity, venture capital and advisory firm M.H. Carnegie, already raised over $US20 million ($26.5 million) in external funding for the US-focused online student loan marketplace before raising $68 million through an initial public offering, which valued the company at $306.6 million. Credible has carved out a potentially lucrative niche in the US market, where students have typically paid […]
Bitcoin shakes off bubble warnings in race past $US16,000 mark
Bitcoin touched $US16,000 for the first time on Thursday, extending its advance this month to almost 70 per cent as concerns mounted the cryptocurrency’s rapid rise masks risks. The world’s biggest cryptocurrency is surging on expectations that new bitcoin derivatives products expected to begin trading this month will boost mainstream demand. Some of the world’s biggest brokerages criticized those plans on Wednesday, telling regulators the contracts have been rushed to market without enough due diligence. Bitcoin jumped as much as 23 per cent to $US16,374, before paring gains in New York trading, according to Bloomberg prices. That takes the digital currency’s surge this year to more than 1,500 per cent […]
