Sydney at the centre of booming Australian Fintech industry
Sydney is home to over half of Australia’s Fintech companies and is helping to drive unprecedented growth in the industry, according to a new report by the Committee for Sydney and KPMG. The report, Scaling the Fintech Opportunity: For Sydney and Australia, finds that the number of Fintech start-ups in Australia has increased from less than 100 in 2014 to 579 companies today, with around 60% of all Fintech companies basing themselves in Sydney. It will be launched at a special event at 7pm this evening by NSW Minister for Trade and Industry, the Hon. Niall Blair. Fintech is by-and-large driven by local companies, with 512 Australian and […]
This Australian Bitcoin exchange startup just raised $815,000 to expand globally and add Ethereum to its platform
An Australian Bitcoin trading startup has secured $815,000 in a series A round it says was oversubscribed by double the original target amount. Melbourne-based Bitcoin.com.au that allows everyday Australians to buy and sell Bitcoins — including the ability to have cash handed over at more than 1,200 physical locations including Commonwealth Bank and Westpac branches, and selected newsagents. Business Insider understands the startup was seeking $500,000 for the round, but ended up having more than $1 million offered to it for overseas expansion and diversification into different types of cryptocurrencies. Bitcoin.com.au was formed in 2015 and charges a 5% fee on the spot rate to generate revenue. Sydney’s Alium Capital […]
In relief rally, bitcoin jumps more than 20% from June low
Bitcoin quickly bounced back from the lows of June, amid improved sentiment about the future of the digital currency. Bitcoin traded higher Saturday near USD$2,680, up more than 20 percent from a June low of USD$2,185.96 hit Thursday that had erased gains for the month, according to CoinDesk. Worries about overexuberance in digital currencies overall and heated debate among developers about how to upgrade bitcoin’s technology weighed on its price. “A proposal was accepted to merge the two upgrade methods, making them compatible,” Brian Kelly, a CNBC contributor and founder of BKCM, which runs a digital assets strategy, said Friday. “So we have seen a relief rally on this progress.” […]
OnDeck launches ‘Turn That No Around’ campaign
Small business loan specialist OnDeck Australia has kicked off a campaign, #turnthatNOaround, targeted at small business owners who are looking to seize growth opportunities, but are unable to do so due to lack of funding from traditional sources. The campaign, which is already running on radio, is scheduled to run across outdoor, social (LinkedIn and Facebook) and digital media to encapsulate an integrated multi-channel outreach. With the #turnthatNOaround campaign, OnDeck aims to reach small business owners who have experienced a “no” from their banks, giving them an opportunity to secure a loan that is much faster than the banks – it takes just one business day. “Small business owners, which […]
UK’s open banking revolution has lessons for Australia
There’s a revolution going on in British banking. The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issued its final order on “open banking” in February. The new regime – on track to come into force next year– is set to have a profound impact on the sector in the coming decades and beyond. Banks have been told that information such as transaction and loan repayment data does not belong to them, but their customers. Those who want to use that data to access better financial products or services will be able to do so in a safe and secure manner. Delivery will be via application programming interfaces (APIs), software that allows […]
SETL wants to settle and clear equities in competition with ASX
The ASX is facing competition for clearing and settling equities, with blockchain start-up SETL pledging to build a post-trading system cheaper and to deploy it quicker than the replacement for the existing CHESS infrastructure, which is being developed by the ASX itself and US group Digital Asset Holdings. London-based SETL is raising capital from some Australian brokers and has retained local lawyers to prepare regulatory applications to approve its system. The move comes as the federal government considers whether to remove the ASX’s monopoly over equities settlement and clearing – the vital “pipes” that underpin the operation of Australia’s equity markets – later this year, if regulators can devise a […]
Bitcoin price plunges after SEC rejection
Regulator says no to first ETF to track the digital currency. The US Securities and Exchange Commission has denied a request to list what would have been the first US exchange-traded fund built to track Bitcoin, sending the price of the digital currency plunging. Investors Cameron and Tyler Winklevoss have been trying for more than three years to convince the SEC to let them bring the Bitcoin ETF to market. CBOE’s Bats exchange had applied to list the ETF. In response to the rejection, the digital currency’s price fell as much as 18 percent in trading before rebounding slightly. It last traded down 7.8 percent to US$1098. Bitcoin had scaled […]
Government urged to test blockchain’s potential
Blockchain technology might help prevent a repeat of the Centrelink data-matching disaster, says investment banker turned business professor Christine Helliar. Blockchain is the technology behind cryptocurrency Bitcoin, but is increasingly viewed as having applications elsewhere in business and government. In simple terms, blockchain is a tamper-proof digital ledger that keeps a continuous record of all transactions that take place. Each transaction is time stamped and stored as part of a detailed history that builds up over time. The information can be shared among a network of computers.Professor Helliar, who works for the University of South Australia, said blockchain could be used to link all tax and welfare payments, reducing the […]
