Crowd-sourced quant investment firm Quantopian lands in Australia
Quantopian, the crowd-sourced quantitative investment firm, will launch in Australia this weekend with a series of outreach events for local practicing and aspirational quants. Quantopian, which was founded in the US in 2011, provides an open platform where anyone can research, backtest, and execute their algorithmic strategies. The firm picks the best-performing algorithms and allocates capital to them. The algorithm authors are paid a percentage of profits earned by the algorithm, and retain the rights to it as their intellectual property. An Australian was among the first to receive an allocation from the firm for his algorithm in 2015. In addition to its platform, Quantopian offers free lectures and materials to help […]
SelfWealth announces new product offerings
Peer-to-peer investment start-up SelfWealth is preparing to launch two products at the end of this month aimed at addressing “the frustrations” that consumers face in financial advice today. Known as SelfWealth INTELLIGENCE and TRADING, founder Andrew Ward said the two products are targeted at simplifying stock trading by allowing a larger number of investors to enter the market and take control of their investments. “We’re a peer-to-peer investing group that uses the intelligence of the community to construct portfolios for investors,” Ward said. “Fintech is all about challenging the current norm [and] the end consumer is the number one piece in the puzzle. When you focus on that, [you are] […]
Stockspot set to revolutionise the investment landscape with new technology
Fintech company Stockspot is set to revolutionise the Australian investment landscape, by becoming the world’s first automated investment service to offer clients the option to personalise their portfolio with investment themes. Stockspot Themes is a new offering that lets qualifying investors steer the direction of their portfolio, by choosing from 14 different investment themes, including socially responsible shares, global shares, property and international bonds. Themes are combined with the Stockspot Model Portfolios to create personalised portfolios that are diversified across thousands of companies. “Some of our clients already own Australian shares, so want more of a tilt towards global shares in their portfolio. Likewise we have clients coming to us […]
Personal finance start-up MoneyBrilliant bought by AMP
AMP has acquired Sydney fintech start-up MoneyBrilliant, after first investing in the company in 2014. The start-up, formerly known as Cha-Ching, is an app-based personal finance platform offering users a “fun and easy” way to get their finances in order. It gives users automatic access to their bills, spending and savings to see if they are tracking in the green or are slipping into the red. The bank (AMP) made the acquisition through its ventures arm, AMP New Ventures, for an undisclosed amount, and will continue to operate the platform under the MoneyBrilliant brand. The takeover follows AMP’s investment of $1.5 million in 2014. Co-founder and CEO Jemma Enright, who […]
Investec buys into H2 Ventures
This is great news for Ben and Toby Heap, the brains behind H2 Ventures, with Investec Australian taking a stake in their businesses. This is also great news for the Australian FinTech industry. Investec Australia has taken a stake in the fintech accelerator H2 Ventures, a move the specialist lender believes will put it in the box seat to win work from entrepreneurs as they scale their businesses. The amount of Investec’s investment in H2 has not been disclosed but is understood to be several million dollars. David Phillips, the head of principal investing at Investec Australia, will join the board of H2, whose only other two shareholders are the […]
MoneyMe gets $30m capital raise
Consumer fintech firm, MoneyMe, has announced a $30 million capital raise from an ultra-high net worth Australian family office, which has branched out into fintech after investing mostly in large scale property on the eastern seaboard. The capital raise includes both debt and equity, and will fund the launch of a series of niche financial products aimed at millennial throughout 2016. MoneyMe chief executive, Clayton Howes, said the millennial market was important for fintech as they were inclined to spend big on lifestyle and convenience, and were willing to pay a premium for it. “Fintechs with the ability to create niche products that are delivered in a tailored way that […]
VC tells fintech start-ups to target superannuation sector
Australian fintech start-ups are being told to focus their efforts on selling services to the $2 trillion superannuation industry in order to attract venture capital funding. Melbourne-based Trimantium Capital is looking to deploy $700 million during the next 12 months into financial services technology, or “fintech”, ventures and its managing director Phillip Kingston said the super industry was in clear need of better technology automation options to lower administration costs and cut fees. “To date most large funds have either shied away from that challenge or tried to undertake large technology projects in house, which typically hasn’t worked out too well,” Mr Kingston said. An attempt by five of Australia’s […]
A big US fintech startup just launched in Australia that turns pocket change into investments
US fintech startup Acorns Grow, which turns small change into an investment portfolio, launches in Australia today after a successful trial period with 22,000 people. The service’s aim is to be an inexpensive, easy way to get into the sharemarket and is targeted at people younger than 35, of which 75% made up its trail customer base in Australia. It allows users, whether on through the website or mobile app to add their bank account so that it can see their spendings, round up daily purchases, and automatically invest the change into diversified portfolios of index funds. It can be anything from a $3.50 coffee which gets round up to […]
