Last week, Benzinga held its annual Fintech Awards event in Manhattan. The proceedings prior to the actual award presentations included some well known names from both traditional and alternative finance alongside a series of three minute pitch sessions. At the event, representatives from a wide range of traditional finance participated, including; QuickenLoans, JPMorgan Chase, TD Ameritrade, Fidelity, Ernst, and more.
One of the earlier discussions included a panel on how technology will transform finance. Nikhil Lele from Ernst & Young posed questions to Seth Merrin of Liquidnet, Marc Chaikin of Chaikin Analytic, and Adam Dell of Clarity Money. Asked if big tech (ie Facebook, Amazon, Apple, Google, etc.) was going to push further into alternative finance, Dell said absolutely – it’s inevitable. This theme has become the generally accepted consensus as big tech positions itself to offer a broader portfolio of financial services.
Gene Munster, former Apple analyst and Loup Ventures founder, joined with Steve Lau of WorldQuant Ventures and David Teten of FF Venture Capital to share how to win the hearts of VC money.
Kathleen Murphy, CEO of Fidelity, received a Lifetime Achievement award for her accomplishments. She told the crowd that Fidelity needs to look more like Silicon Valley than the old finance crowd.
JPMorgan Chase executive Kelli Keough tackled the subject of innovation solving consumer challenges. Ron Suber, of Prosper, explained we were in an innovation super-cycle while referencing Fintech.
TD Ameritrade CEO Tim Hockey explained the challenge for traditional finance in colorful terms. He said scale can be a hinderance to change and you have to “fight the corporate immune system” which wants to kill off innovation (and protect the old ways of doing things).
The event had a special visit from Kevin O’Leary of SharkTank fame.
O’Leary loves Fintech and he announced the launch of his own venture in the space. O’Leary pitched his new ETF product with an eloquence that only O’Leary can muster.
The pitch came just prior to him delivering a kickass guitar performance. Now that was an awesome experience.
The Benzinga Fintech Winners are Below
Overall Winners
- Winner: AlphaPoint
- Second Place: Unison Home Ownership Investors
- Third Place: WiseBanyan
Category: Alternative Investments
Winner: SAF Platform
Analysis
Winner: TradingView
Digital Mortgage / Real Estate
Winner: Rocket Mortgage
Education / Personal Finance
Winner: FutureFuel.io
Financial Advisor / Wealth Management
Winner: Orion Advisor Services
Forex
Winner: Remitly
InsurTech
Winner: CoverWallet
Lending
Winner: Stilt
Prop Tech / APIs
Winner: OpenFin
RegTech
Winner: Rippleshot
Research
Winner: AlphaSense
Robo-advisor
Winner: Betterment
Trading Execution / Brokerage
Winner: Finvasia
Trading Recommendation
Winner: Chaikin Analytics
Underbanked
Winner: Ovamba
Blockchain / Bitcoin
Winner: AlphaPoint
Finding Alpha
Winner: PortfolioEffect
Institutional Innovators
Winner: PFITR – Bond Price Validation
Investing in Millennials
Winner: Aspiration
Leveling the Playing Field
Winner: DIY.FUND
Solving Problems through Payments
Winner: PayKey
Lifetime Achievement in Financial Services
Kathleen Murphy – Fidelity