UK fintech ‘unicorn’ Ebury heads to Australia
British fintech firm Ebury has set up shop in Sydney, having identified the Australian market as a good foothold for southern hemisphere expansion.
Cointree and Gobbill partner to let Aussies pay their bills with cryptocurrency
Major telcos, utility providers and insurers may not have jumped on the cryptocurrency bandwagon, but thanks to two local fintech startups that no longer matters, with cryptocurrency owners now able to pay any bill in crypto. Cryptocurrency exchange Cointree and automated billing platform Gobbill will let Australians pay bills with cryptocurrency, regardless of whether the business itself accepts the digital currency. Gobbill acts as a go-between, taking the funds from its users and paying the bills on their behalf. Gobbill co-founder Shendon Ewans admits that he was late to the cryptocurrency party, only beginning to dabble in it early last year, but said that’s what made a partnership with Cointree […]
Woolworths Rewards available through Google Pay
Shoppers at Woolworths can now earn reward points by using Google Pay. The retail giant’s launch of Google Pay marks the first of the Australian supermarkets to implement the mobile payment service in-store while providing its 11 million Rewards members with a more convenient way to earn and redeem loyalty points. In justifying Woolworths’ decision to offer Google Pay in-store, Ingrid Maes, the Director of Woolworths Loyalty program posts, “We’re seeing digital wallets grow in popularity because they offer quick, seamless and hassle-free payments for customers”. RFi Group data reinforces Maes’ assertion finding, 39% of consumers who are aware of mobile payment services have used a mobile payment service to […]
Bendigo Adelaide launches “all-in-app” digital bank
Bendigo and Adelaide Bank has become the latest institution to launch a new pure play digital bank. Dubbed ‘Up’, the separately branded neo play will come in the form of a dedicated and separately branded app, as Bendigo attempts to snatch younger customers disillusioned with the offerings of the Big Four. Australia’s fifth largest retail institution claims the the new mobile-centric service, now in beta, will be Australia’s first fully licenced “all-in-app” mobile banking platform. It will come with native phone payment and mobile wallet functionality in what is essentially a plastic-free play. Global payments scheme mastercard has come along for the ride and gets to bolt its mobile debit […]
Can Afterpay’s magic run continue?
As Elon Musk and Tesla have shown us, when dizzy valuations and high short interest collide, the results can be spectacular. If the Australian stock market has a battleground stock to rival Tesla it is the buy now, pay later juggernaut Afterpay, which has doubled to a market capitalisation of over $3 billion in just six weeks. In that time, the shorts have been decimated as Afterpay successfully kicked off its US adventure. As it stands, Afterpay which closed on Friday at $14.57 is now valued at 100 times forward earnings and at 50 times based on fiscal 2020 earnings forecasts. So is the run done? Not even close, if […]
InLoop has made the 2018 AFR Most Innovative Companies List
InLoop Group was honoured to be recognised as one of Australia and New Zealand’s most innovative companies. The prestigious annual list, published by The Australian Financial Review, is based on a rigorous assessment process managed by Australia’s leading innovation consultancy, Inventium, in conjunction with a panel of industry expert judges. InLoop ranked #25 on the overall list, from over 1000 nominated organisations across Australia and New Zealand. The full Top 100 list can be viewed here. The assessment measures a top innovation implemented in the past twelve months. Specifically, the judges look at how valuable the problem is that the innovation is solving, the quality and uniqueness of the solution, […]
Zip targeting $1b of sales and 1m customers
More than half a billion dollars of sales went through credit card disrupter Zip Co’s payment system over the latest financial year, more than twice the volume of the previous year but only a quarter of that spent on competitor Afterpay. But as the popularity of “buy now, pay later” offerings continues to surge among Millennial shoppers, Zip – of which Westpac Banking Corp owns 17 per cent – is targeting $1 billion of sales over the coming year. “We are only just beginning and are well positioned for a bumper 2019 financial year,” said CEO Larry Diamond. Zip announced a $1.2 million loss at the cash earnings level for […]
Fintech start-up QPay gets $1M in funding from Angels and Sharks
Student marketplace and payments app, QPay, has secured a $1 million cash injection after funding from the Sydney Angels Sidecar Fund 2 was supplemented by a $380,000 combined investment by Steve Baxter and Naomi Simson in exchange for 8.4 per cent of the firm’s equity during last night’s episode of Shark Tank. Funds were also received from American Express, and from the Chairman of the Australian British FinTech Cyber Catalyst, Andrew Chick, to make up the total $1 million. The funds will primarily be used to extend the reach of QPay’s recently launched student-targeted MasterCard to the 4,000-plus students on its waiting list, as well as to build a sales […]
