Logging on to the future of financial advice
For hundreds of thousands of investors around the world, the future of financial advice is already here. There is as much as $US300 billion ($392 billion) of funds under the management of robo advisers – computers powered by algorithms that can buy and sell on your behalf – with that figure expected to rise to $US2.2 trillion by 2020. To put that into perspective, these robo advisers could buy every company on the Australian Securities Exchange and still have a trillion dollars left over. While not all robo advisers have the authority to buy and sell, and others are rebadged offerings, the benefits of digitising and automating some of the […]
Acurity Online to launch actionable advice solution for superannuation funds
IRESS has accelerated online superannuation portal Acurity Online to draw on IRESS’ advice technology to demonstrate the direction of integration for Acurity and XPLAN, and enhance member engagement. The announcement follows IRESS’ acquisition of Financial Synergy last month. The solutions draw on XPLAN’s multi-channel advice technology. Acurity Online is an online superannuation portal for members, employers, advisers and administrators. It is an API- enabled digital portal that leverages the Acurity superannuation and wealth management registry, which administers approximately four million superannuation accounts and $250 billion in member funds. The solutions were previewed to representatives of superannuation funds and third-party administrators at the Acurity Client Conference in Melbourne yesterday. IRESS’ Managing […]
How this fintech startup is improving content marketing and lead generation
Financial marketplace startup, Neu.Capital, claims cost per acquisition has dropped by 60 per cent and content marketing quality has gone up after implementing an inbound marketing and sales platform. The company was formed in 2015, and provides an alternative capital marketplace for established mid-sized Australian and New Zealand companies looking to raise debt or equity of up to $100 million. The matchmaking service officially launched in August with six deals live in the platform, two to launch in coming weeks, then several more in January 2017. It also plans to launch in the UK in Q1 next year. Neu.Capital co-founder, Joshua Khoddami, told CMO lead generation activity had been going […]
Moneysoft launches new package designed to boost client engagement, satisfaction and revenue
Leading personal financial management (PFM) software provider Moneysoft has launched a complete package of resources and tools to help financial advisers introduce an effective, profitable budgeting and cashflow management service to their clientbase. Developed in conjunction with advisers, the Moneysoft Business Processes toolkit contains a series of eBooks, video tutorials, blogs, and client-facing brochures and templates. It is a complete, step-by-step guide on how to build and deliver a relevant goals-based, money management proposition; how to grow and diversify practice revenue; and how to achieve a deeper client engagement through “cashflow as a service”. According to Peter Malekas, managing director of Moneysoft, the ready availability of cloud-based Software as a […]
New tech solution for advisers
Fintech firm, Your Technology Made Lite (YTML), is integrating its Highlighter platform technology for advisers’ in-house Excel solutions to boost accessibility and integration with online systems. YTML chief executive, Kevin Liao, said that Highlighter had already been used for advice web apps and automated with an adviser’s existing IP. “Highlighter automates the development of a web app,” he said. “As long as advisers have the flow of data entry organised… we can configure and upload it into Highlighter and convert it into a web app for them. “Advisers, accountants and SMSF [self-managed superannuation fund] specialists have so much capability sitting within their practices, and by partnering with technology solutions such […]
Fintech launches robo-planner for SMSFs
Australian fintech start-up, A.S.A.P, is launching a digital advisory platform for SMSFs in response to the removal of the accountants’ exemption from the financial services licensing regime. A.S.A.P chief executive, Jim Hennington, said that the eponymous platform had been developed to fit the changing needs of SMSF clients and accountants. “We… have found a way to use technology as the elegant solution to disruptive changes in the law,” he said. “It helps SMSF trustees and their accountants, while supporting an important public policy objective.” Hennington said plenty of SMSF accountants had yet to decide whether to refer client questions to licensed advisers in the period from 1 July, or whether […]
Banks team up with their FinTech competitors
These are challenging times for the incumbent heavyweights of the financial services sector. Beset by regulatory, governance, technological, capital, and investment issues, they are increasingly facing competition for business from a whole host of new players, primarily from ‘FinTechs’. Growth of marketplace lending In the case of online lenders, this trend began in the UK in the mid-2000s when Zopa, the world’s first digital and now Europe’s largest peer-to-peer (now called marketplace) provider, launched, quickly followed by the likes of Prosper, Lending Club, and OnDeck in the US. Eleven years on, Zopa has lent around 1.8 billion pounds to more than 150,000 borrowers funded by 63,000 investors of whom 53,000 […]
LoanDolphin completes $1.1 million seed funding
LoanDolphin, Australia’s leading loan bidding platform, has successfully raised a total of $1.1 million from key investors to expand its presence in major capital cities in a bid to claim a stake in Australia’s $1.5 trillion home loan market. Strategic investor Barry Lambert provided $1 million, with the remainder from fintech investment firm H2 Ventures. Mr Lambert founded Count Financial in 1980 and sold the company to Commonwealth Bank in 2011 for $373 million. The seed funding values the Sydney-based fintech startup at $5 million post capital raising rounds. LoanDolphin is a free online platform for people to refinance or obtain new home loans at rates […]
