Westpac increases investment in mortgage broker start-up uno Home Loans with $5m
Westpac Banking Corporation has increased its majority stake in digital mortgage broking platform Uno, ploughing another $5 million into the company. The big four bank has now invested about $26.5 million into the venture and owns 92 per cent of ordinary shares, according to Australian Securities and Investments Commission documents. Factoring in shares that are subject to vesting, on a fully diluted basis Westpac still owns more than three quarters of the company. Founder and chief executive Vincent Turner told The Australian Financial Review the funding provided by Westpac had given the fintech start-up a leg up it couldn’t have had otherwise. “If we wanted to move fast, learn fast […]
From UNSW to Silicon Valley: young entrepreneur attracts major funding
One UNSW student’s experience with a startup company illustrates the unpredictable nature of entrepreneurship and the value of programs like UNSW Startup Launch. Last year, UNSW Sydney Computer Science and Engineering student Stefan Qin was accepted into the University’s Startup Launch pre-accelerator program for high-potential founders with innovative startup ideas. His start-up, Dime, went on to win first prize at a Startup Launch pitch night, with a concept that used blockchain technology to significantly reduce the cost and time delay of foreign exchange transactions. Now, the 20-year-old has closed a $US3.18 million funding round for his new business, Virgil Capital, a global venture in cryptocurrency trading and investment management in […]
Millennial super fund Spaceship has raised $19.5 million – and tackled the biggest criticisms it faced
Millennial superannuation app Spaceship has responded to critics by cutting fees, increasing its exposure to tech stocks, launching a new investment option and forming an advisory board. Some in the finance industry argued the 1.6% fee that the startup charged was not competitive. Another criticism of Spaceship, which opened to applications early this year, was that while it was marketing itself as a tech- and future-focused super option for millennials, it wasn’t actually investing in tech stocks any more than traditional pension funds. Stockspot founder Chris Brycki, in a column for Business Insider in March, called Spaceship “clever marketing”. “They get full marks for the use of flashy marketing and […]
How Crowdfunding has influenced start-ups
You have a great idea that you would like to bring to the market. However, you have little to no capital in kick-starting product development. Furthermore, you don’t really have the business acumen and the research and development needed to make a solid business presentation to a group of investors. So, how do you go about finding the seed funding you need to start turning your idea into a reality? Many entrepreneurs in recent years have turned to crowdfunding as a way to reach a large audience to fund product ideas and business models. What Is Crowdfunding? Crowdfunding is an alternative way for businesses, and especially start-ups, to source capital […]
IDC names top 10 fastest growing fintech companies in A/NZ
IDC Financial Insights has unveiled a list of 10 fast-growing fintechs in Australia and New Zealand (A/NZ) as part of the broader FinTech 101 list for Asia/Pacific. “IDC’s FinTech Fast 101” refers to the fast-growing fintech players in Asia/Pacific based on extensive on-ground analysis of the dominant fintech players within the region. 10 Fastest Growing FinTechs in Australia and New Zealand Afterpay Touch Group Airwallex CoinJar Data Republic Harmoney HashChing identitii Prospa SocietyOne Xero Note: List is arranged alphabetically, Source IDC, 2017 IDC’s fintech list makes a reference to the Financial Insights’ Triple U framework — ubiquity, utility, and usability. This is a framework that evaluates fintech data across key metrics such as addressable […]
No reason why Australia should not be a global leader in the fintech sector
by Scott Morrison MP, Federal Treasurer Digital disruption in financial services is changing the world. The opportunities that spring from this disruption, in a region with an Asian middle class increasingly empowered by choice, are there for our taking. Recently I travelled to Beijing to lead our representation at the Strategic Economic Dialogue with the Chinese government, and meet with major Chinese firms who are investing in Australia. Among the encouraging signs of China’s pursuit of sustainable economic growth, the prudency in which it is addressing debt and its continued openness to trade and investment, is the pace of digital change within their economy. While Silicon Valley, London or Singapore […]
‘Banking for blockchain’ platform raises AUD$37m in pre-ICO round
ASX-listed blockchain solutions company DigitalX has announced Bankera has successfully closed its Pre-Initial Coin Offering (ICO) round by raising €25m (AUD$37m). Bankera, a digital fintech solution platform based in Europe, has closed €25m via the sale of 2.5 Billion Banker (BNK) tokens at €0.01 each. Bankera is building a regulated bank for the blockchain era, so it means it will be a digital bank with traditional banking services (eg, giving out loans) and will support both cryptocurrencies and regular currencies. With DigitalX as its corporate advisor, it held the token sale to fast-track the development of a ‘digital bank’ for consumers operating in the blockchain era. “This announcement is an […]
Digital banking has way to go: neobank Xinja’s Eric Wilson
The way neobanks see it, digital banking has barely scratched the surface, with newfangled banking apps nothing more than digitised versions of analog capabilities. It’s a view strongly endorsed by former National Australia Bank executive Eric Wilson, who is the co-founder of Australia’s first neobank Xinja — a 100 per cent digital bank (presently under construction) that’s designed entirely for the mobile market. Xinja’s submission to the Productivity Commission’s consultation paper on competition in the financial system, lodged yesterday, encapsulates why it stands alone in this country, in contrast to the proliferation of neobanks in countries like Britain (Monzo, Starling, Atom Bank and Tandem), and Germany (N26 and Fidor). Thankfully, […]
