Digital advice: from robo revolution to enterprise evolution
As digital financial advice gains ever-growing traction among superannuation providers, the hype around “robo-advice” gives way to enterprise-level requirements. Decimal Software CEO Nic Pollock says B2C wealth management and enterprise-grade digital financial advice serve very different needs, and customers. Federal Treasurer Scott Morrison recently told a G20 conference in Germany of his plans to encourage more robo-adviser start-ups to launch in Australia. Undoubtedly he believed doing so would enhance opportunities for more Australians to gain access to financial advice and in turn provide better financial security and retirement outcomes. But his comments highlight a general lack of understanding of the differences between “robo-advisers” and the digital advice needs of the […]
PropertyShares taps Australian Dream
The Australian dream has always been of property. For generations Australians have pined and toiled, with the dream of one day owning their own home. The lure has been strong enough to build cities. When Canberra, the nation’s capital was built, the commonwealth government promised three bedroom red brick bungalows to attract workers to the public service. So it only made sense that when P2P arrived on Australia’s shores, it would go for property. “Australia has always had a strong love affair with property,” says Scott Price, founder of PropertyShares. “People were told from a very young age about the great Australian dream of owning your own home. The birth […]
Auswide Bank is increasing equity stake in P2P lender MoneyPlace
Auswide Bank Ltd is increasing its equity stake in peer-to-peer lender MoneyPlace Holdings Pty Ltd. Today’s announcement means Auswide Bank will have a controlling interest of at least 51% in MoneyPlace with the prospect of increasing that interest up to 75% dependent on the final take up of other MoneyPlace shareholders in a capital raising initiative being undertaken by MoneyPlace. Auswide Bank acquired a 19.3% equity stake in MoneyPlace in January 2016 while also committing funding to the Melbourne-based P2P lender’s consumer lending program. Managing Director, Martin Barrett said Auswide Bank has been impressed with the platform, skills, capability and performance of MoneyPlace over the last 12 months. “Our funding […]
Crowd-sourced equity funding bill to pass Senate
Retail investors will soon be able to buy up to $10,000 of equity in their favourite business ideas, with “crowd-sourced funding” legislation set to pass the Senate with Greens support. The legislation will allow unlisted public companies with annual turnover or gross assets of up to $25 million to advertise their business plans on licensed crowdfunding portals, and raise up to $5 million a year to carry them out. Investors can put up to $10,000 a year each into an unlimited number of ideas, with a 48-hour cooling off period applying. “Crowd-sourced equity funding will offer a new funding option for small businesses,” said Treasurer Scott Morrison while introducing the […]
Fintech sector falling short on adviser-focused solutions
To the frustration of many Australian financial advisers, the fintech sector has not yet delivered effective tools for the financial planning industry. Most of the current activity in the sector is focused on offering solutions for individuals – and these offerings are struggling to convince consumers to pay directly for them. There is a clear unmet need in the adviser space. Wayne Robinson, InvestmentLink Chief Technology Officer, believes that the industry should be focused on meeting this unmet demand. He says it’s also the market that will be willing to pay for the right solution. “We think that advisers will be happy to pay for a platform that delivers what […]
BetaSmartz automated investment launches in Asia
BetaSmartz, the B2B automated investment platform for all sizes of investors, from institutional to retail, today announced it had opened offices in Hong Kong. BetaSmartz offers ‘hybrid ‘ digital investment or ‘robo’ advice that combines automated and face-to-face financial advice. Newly appointed Managing Director Asia, Zak Allom, said this model had been well received since its launch in 2015, with several clients now live including two in the U.S. “Robo has been a big buzzword, but for the most part the actual delivery hasn’t been different from the automated financial planning software we’ve been used to since the 90s,” he said. “BetaSmartz is much more than a sexy front end […]
Lender invests $100k in fintech start-up
A leading specialist lender has partnered with a fintech incubator to back a start-up in a program aimed at “re-inventing the financial services sector in Australia”. After hosting a two-day hackathon in December, which saw 20 entrepreneurs from different sectors come up with solutions to “revolutionise” the industry, Pepper Money and Pollenizer have chosen fintech start-up SmallStash to receive 12 weeks of training and financial support to further progress its ideas. The group’s focus is financial education for children, assisting parents to better educate them regarding money and savings. Pepper Money has invested almost $100,000 in the 12-week incubator program, with the funds contributing to supporting the start-up, including the […]
Peer to peer economy now worth over $15 billion a year
Higher levels of consumer trust in the sharing economy, have coincided with a $600 million increase in size over the past six months, according to a newly released report. The bi-annual Sharing Economy Trust Index, produced by peer-to-peer lender RateSetter, showed that trust in ride sharing platforms such as Uber and online marketplaces like eBay have grown the most. “Our research found that trust levels in the sharing economy have increased substantially over the last six months,” said Daniel Foggo, RateSetter CEO. With the sharing economy now worth over $15 billion a year, the study revealed that over two thirds of Australians actively participate in the market – whether by […]
