Sydney fintech firm MoneyMe to invest $10m in Newcastle operations
SYDNEY-based fin-tech firm MoneyMe plans to invest up to $10 million in Newcastle and create about 100 jobs over the next three years. Co-founder Clayton Howes says the move to set up a Hunter office by MoneyMe, which specialises in offering fast credit up to $15,000 via mobile, has been a year in the making. The company will soon temporarily move 10 staff in the DASH co-working space in Charlestown and has earmarked permanent offices in the East End. Mr Howes said the company was impressed by Newcastle’s smart city credentials and innovation culture and saw its proximity to Sydney as an advantage. “It’s a bit like how San Francisco […]
Prospa contributes $3.65 billion to Australian GDP
Prospa, Australia’s number one online lender to small business, today revealed new research into the economic impact of its lending to small business in Australia. Prospa undertook the economic impact assessment in partnership with RFi Group and the Centre for International Economics (CIE). The project considered the value of funds lent by Prospa over the period 2013 – 2018 and assessed how funds have benefited Prospa’s customers through increases in revenue and employment and the flow-on effects of these funds to the wider economy. The results of the research showed: For every $1m in lending by Prospa there is a corresponding $4m increase in GDP Since 2013, Prospa has contributed […]
Neobank Douugh wants to take HENRYs from the big four after Regional Australia Bank deal
Douugh, an Australian fintech start-up run by SocietyOne co-founder Andy Taylor, has secured the last piece of the puzzle it needed to join the race to knock off the big four banks as one of an emerging group of neobanks. The company, which has developed a so-called “smart” bank account, with an artificial intelligence-based personal finance assistant known as Sophie, has secured a wholesale banking deal with Armidale-based Regional Australia Bank, meaning it will be able to offer full bank accounts later this year. The partnership agreement means Douugh will bypass the need to go through the APRA approval process, which saw Volt Bank announced as Australia’s newest bank on […]
Will the Samsung Galaxy S10 come cryptocurrency-ready?
If you need a smartphone that will also work as a mobile cryptocurrency wallet, Samsung may have a handset for you. Photos tweeted by leaker Ice universe on Wednesday purport to show the Samsung Galaxy S10 with support for cryptocurrencies and sporting a Blockchain KeyStore. Text on the handset’s screen calls the KeyStore a “secure and convenient place for your cryptocurrency.” Blockchain is an encryption technology best known for underpinning bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies. But investor ardor over bitcoin has waned in the past year, with the cryptocurrency trading for about $3,555 on Wednesday after being worth more than $17,000 in December 2017. Samsung is widely expected to unveil the Galaxy S10 at an […]
Big four banks consider creating their own digital brands
Each of the big four banks have considered launching new digital bank brands to attract new, young, digital-savvy customers. Apart from National Australia Bank’s UBank, the plans have been non-starters, getting lost among layers of bureaucracy, management changes and restrictions on new investment. But the pending launch of Volt Bank, which on Tuesday received an unrestricted banking licence from the prudential regulator, and with Up already in the market, the majors might be forced to reconsider whether creating entirely new standalone digital brands, or partnering with emerging players in the emerging “neobank” space, is needed to stay on the front foot in the fast-moving world of digital banking. NAB is […]
Australia prepares payments for digital age
The Australian Payments Council (APC) is inviting businesses, NGOs, government and consumers to comment on what’s needed to support payments in the digital economy of the future. Chairman of the APC Robert Milliner says: “We are renewing our strategic vision for the payments system and are looking for views on how we can collaborate to navigate the rapidly changing landscape.” With this mind it has today (22 January) launched a consultation paper – “2019 Consultation – Payments in a Global, Digital World” – as it seeks to make this a reality Down Under. To give you some background, in 2015, the APC consulted across the country to develop the Australian […]
Australia Post pilots Sniip bill-paying app to save customers time
Australia Post is pleased to be offering its customers a new choice for paying bills by piloting state-of-the-art mobile payments app, Sniip. General Manager Payments and Financial Services at Australia Post, Deanne Keetelaar, said Sniip’s mobile payment technology means customers can pay their bills from their smartphones within seconds. “Australia Post is very excited to be working with Sniip on this pilot project, which supports our commitment to continually improving the bill payment experience for customers,’’ Ms Keetelaar said. “We will initially be offering our customers the ability to pay bills from selected billers using Sniip and seeing how they respond. Sniip has proven through its current billing partners that […]
72% of Aussies now using digital payments
Latest numbers from Roy Morgan reveal 72.4% of Aussies are using at least one form of digital payment, with adoption tipped to rise as society edges towards a cash and cardless environment. Results stem from Roy Morgan’s Digital Payment Solutions Currency Report, citing face-to-face interviews with 50,000 consumers in the twelve months to November 2018. Norman Morris, Roy Morgan Industry Communications Director, asserts the change poses a threat to traditional payment methods – e.g. cash and credit cards – exacerbated by the growth of wearable technology such as smartwatches. “The increasing use of new payment technologies is being aided by the growing proliferation and development of smart phones and wearables […]
