Prospa raises $20m from Partners for Growth
Online business lender Prospa has raised $20 million from Silicon Valley-based Partners for Growth through a tailored debt facility that will allow it to ramp up loans and further develop its technology allowing credit assessments to be made in seconds. Prospa, which has lent more than $400 million to small businesses, up from $250 million in February after a strong fourth quarter, has deals with 4000 distribution partners, including finance brokers and cloud accounting platforms. It also has a referral partnership with Westpac Banking Corp. Prospa chief financial officer Ed Bigazzi said some of the new capital will be used for product development, including in invoice financing, and a stronger […]
Australia leads non-core markets in fintech investment deals, but what does the sector need to grow?
Australia has emerged alongside Brazil as a leading fintech market after facilitating the largest fintech investment deals outside of the core markets of Asia, Europe and North America in the past 12 months, a report from CB Insights has found. The Global Fintech Trends report analysed global trends and found that half of the 10 largest fintech deals outside of core markets took place in Australia between the second quarter of 2016 and the second quarter of 2017. The remaining four took place in Brazil, and one took place in South Africa. Online small business lending platform Prospa topped the five Australian deals that made the list with its AirTree Ventures-led $25 […]
H2 Ventures hosts fourth annual Sydney Fintech Expo to support aspiring start-ups
H2 Ventures together with the ASX and Investec Australia, will today host the fourth annual H2 Ventures Expo. Fintech industry leaders and investors will join H2 Ventures, one of Australia’s leading fintech investment firms, at its annual Fintech Expo which aims to bring together a collective of early stage venture capitalists, entrepreneurs and thought leaders to promote growth and continue to drive change in the financial series industry in Australia. The Expo features a panel discussion with industry leaders, discussing the state of the Ecosytem. The panel includes Elaine Stead of Blue Sky Funds, Katherine McConnell of Brighte and Wyatt Roy of Afiniti, moderated by Cathy Kovacs from […]
DomaCom launches two crowdfunding campaigns
DomaCom has launched two crowdfunding campaigns that will seek to raise $6 million and $4.3 million, respectively, that will offer investment opportunities in affordable housing for the retirement sector and clean energy infrastructure and jobs in regional Australia. The first campaign, Akuna Residential Estate, which would seek to raise $6 million with $1.4 million already pledged, would aim to provide affordable housing for the ageing population. According to the company, the money would be used to purchase the land in Cobram, complete development approvals and build the community facilities. Following this, the developer would build and sell 147 houses on a Residential Land Lease Community (RLLC) model. The project was […]
This Australian Bitcoin exchange startup just raised $815,000 to expand globally and add Ethereum to its platform
An Australian Bitcoin trading startup has secured $815,000 in a series A round it says was oversubscribed by double the original target amount. Melbourne-based Bitcoin.com.au that allows everyday Australians to buy and sell Bitcoins — including the ability to have cash handed over at more than 1,200 physical locations including Commonwealth Bank and Westpac branches, and selected newsagents. Business Insider understands the startup was seeking $500,000 for the round, but ended up having more than $1 million offered to it for overseas expansion and diversification into different types of cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin.com.au was formed in 2015 and charges a 5% fee on the spot rate to generate revenue. Sydney’s Alium Capital […]
CommSec founder Paul Rickard is investing in HashChing and joining its board
CommSec founder Paul Rickard and finance media figure Marty Switzer are joining the board of Australian online mortgage marketplace startup HashChing after joining in the company’s $6 million capital raising round. “The HashChing business model of connecting home loan borrowers with customer reviewed brokers and the best rates is unique, and I am excited by the investment opportunity,” said Rickard. Rickard founded the CommSec online retail stockbroking service in 1994, and served as its managing director until 2002. He also served as Commonwealth Bank’s executive general manager for payments and business tech until 2009. HashChing, which has been recently incrementally extending out from purely mortgages to services like home insurance […]
Former Wallabies captain Stirling Mortlock makes the jump to robo-advice
Robo-advice is the new black – or the new gold as the case may be – with former Wallabies captain Stirling Mortlock jumping ship from NAB to join former UBS fund manager Chris Brycki at Peak Advisors. There is little detail on Peak’s website about its business or its staff: “We work with high-net-worth individuals and families providing expert advice, personalised service and tailored financial outcomes,” it says. But we know that Brycki is the founder of automated investment adviser Stockspot, and that Peak – like Stockspot – is a bet on robo-advice. This is the catch-all phrase for the new wave of digital investment services that are expected to […]
Ignition Wealth to open in Ireland
Ignition Wealth CEO Mark Fordree has announced two significant appointments, with a view to opening Ignition Wealth Ireland. Irish fintech expert Peter Oakes has joined the Ignition Wealth executive team as a member of the Advisory Board. Peter Oakes is renowned in the Irish financial services industry for his astute knowledge and innovative attitude. As a former senior executive at both the Central Bank of Ireland and Bank of America Peter holds an excellent international banking pedigree. As an early adopter, and advocate of financial technology and ‘regtech’ Peter will provide guidance to Ignition Wealth globally and advise on the current capital raise in Ireland. In addition, leading […]
