How cashless payment technology is helping local business thrive
The days when a trip to the ATM was compulsory before strolling to your local market are numbered. Instead small businesses now find themselves faced with the new breed of “cashless consumer”, and adapting to suit. According to a recent survey by the RFi Group, 32 per cent of Australians believe they can go cashless. Fortunately, the advent of low-cost and low-fuss technology allows local businesses, including sole traders, to sell their products and services quickly and easily, whether it’s a small item or a more expensive impulse purchase. A shift in mindset Michael McQueen, retail trend forecaster and bestselling author of How to Prepare Now for What’s Next, says […]
Open banking will drive better customer deals and responsible lending outcomes for mortgages and credit cards
The first phase of Australia’s open banking regime should be designed to assist Australians get a better deal on mortgages and credit cards.
Afterpay sales up 400 per cent in the third quarter
Buy-now pay-later tech solution Afterpay Touch Group (ASX: APT) has recorded another strong result with sales up 400 per cent in the latest quarter. In a business update released on Wednesday, Afterpay says more than $1.45 billion of total underlying sales were processed through the Afterpay platform in the first three quarters of FY18. The value of total sales is up significantly from the same time last year when the company recorded $290 million during the first three quarters of FY17. Afterpay’s in-store option has also seen considerable growth this year, as more than 7000 individual shopfronts, including all stores operated by Super Retail Group (ASX: SUL), now offer the […]
Open banking a solution to royal commission lending concerns
The government’s “Open Banking” regime will allow banks to meet stricter requirements to lend responsibly that may flow from the Hayne royal commission, experts say, because it will allow each major bank to get the actual income and expenses data from new customers’ existing banks, avoiding the need to rely on estimates or benchmarks. After the banking royal commission expressed concern about ANZ Banking Group not checking borrower expenses submitted by mortgage brokers, ANZ’s business services head, Nigel Dobson, told The Australian Financial Review Banking & Wealth Summit that open banking will “help us to enhance our responsible lending obligations, as we will have more precision and transparency around a […]
Prospa appoints Non-Executive Directors and Chairman
Prospa, Australia’s #1 online lender to small business, has today announced the appointment of Gail Pemberton AO and Fiona Trafford-Walker as Independent Non-Executive Directors to the Prospa Board. In addition, current Non-Executive Director Greg Ruddock has been appointed to the role of Chairman of the Board, having recently stepped down from the Board of Eclipx Group Limited to focus on Prospa. The new Board members will join existing Non-Executive Directors Avi Eyal from Entrée Capital, James Cameron from AirTree Ventures, and Executive Directors and Co-Founders Greg Moshal & Beau Bertoli. Joint CEO Greg Moshal commented: “Prospa’s success has been the result of a group of smart, talented and passionate people […]
Private Equity and Venture Capital technology investments key for investors
Chief Executive Officer of Crestone Wealth Management Michael Chisholm says investor access to the quickly growing technology sector is an important investment and social consideration in the current market cycle. Mr Chisholm said access to private equity or venture capital funds, which are uncorrelated to traditional asset classes, can help cushion portolios against any equity market downturn. Crestone recently invited a group of Australia’s leading venture capital (VC) investors to provide their views on technology. The panel included Paul Bassat, Co-Founder and Partner from Square Peg Capital, Daniel Petre, Co-Founder and Partner from AirTree Ventures, Niki Scevak, Managing Director and Founder from Blackbird Ventures, Emma Weston, Co-Founder and CEO from […]
Westpac strikes deal with Assembly Payments
Westpac Banking Corp has bought an equity stake in Assembly Payments and will work with the Melbourne-based fintech to integrate the bank’s merchant terminals with customers’ point-of-sale (POS) software, removing the need for transaction amounts to be entered into retailers’ systems twice. For workers in the nation’s restaurants and coffee shops, entering the dollar amount of a transaction into a banking terminal to complete a sale might be a small frustration, but the extra process can add up to real dollars for business owners. Westpac estimates that for a typical Sydney CBD cafe – which completes between 1000 and 1500 transactions a day – the three to five seconds of […]
Successful crowdfunding venture paves way for profit in triple-digit growth suburb
The success of a Sydney investment management firm acquiring over 5 acres of land means future investment in an extremely high growth NSW-based suburb could be a reality for investors. KSI Investments recently announced the success of raising $6.4 million through DomaCom’s crowdfunding platform for 5.23 acres in Rossmore, located five kilometres away from the upcoming Badgerys Creek airport. The suburb has incredibly high growth prospects as Smart Property Investment’s best suburb data puts the median three-year growth at 119.01 per cent. Acquiring the land is a significant milestone for all Australian property investors, according to Robin Luo, CEO of KSI. “We have successfully gathered together a group of like-minded […]
