August 25, 2015 @ 11:00 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  Propel(x), a platform for investing in deep technology startups, is making it easier for angel investors to participate in a wide range of deep technology investments with the introduction of Propel(x) LLCs, lowering the initial threshold from a typical minimum angel investment of $25,000, to as… Read More

August 25, 2015 @ 8:30 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  As the co-founder and CEO of CityFunders, a New York-exclusive real estate crowdfunding platform, David Behin leads a team of seasoned real estate experts who bring neighborhood knowledge and relationships to each deal. Within the tri-state area and Pennsylvania, David has been involved in more than $3… Read More

August 21, 2015 @ 1:16 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  Waking up to a screeching alarm clock–on the third try–from a fitful nap disguised as sleep, I’ve questioned the need for schedules. As one of the newest features for a campaign now crowdfunding on Kickstarter, BedJet v2 offers to make your alarm clock obsolete by working with… Read More

August 20, 2015 @ 1:48 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

Peer-to-peer lender RateSetter is now offering secured personal loans, and will focus on the automotive loan market to start with, according to Business Insider Australia. RateSetter has partnered with car finance broker Stratton, which is majority owned by Carsales.com.au. Carsales also holds a 20 percent equity… Read More

August 13, 2015 @ 2:45 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  “Finding the right balance between financial reform and risk prevention will be one of the most important issues of our time,” writes Ruizhe Zhang of Dagong Global Credit Rating Co Ltd, in a recent China Daily op-ed on ECNS. Following the release of Internet finance guidelines… Read More

August 12, 2015 @ 9:40 pm By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  “Trying.” states Rory Eakin’s Twitter bio, which could describe its owner as well as the company Rory co-founded, CircleUp. But perhaps Rory’s bio needs one more word: “Succeeding.” In the last two years, the company has launched several notable products, such as the Consumer Growth Fund,… Read More

August 11, 2015 @ 2:09 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

Syndex, welcome to the world of peer-to-peer lending. The New Zealand-based company today launched one of the country’s first online exchanges for buyers and sellers of proportionally-owned assets, according to a press release from farm investment company MyFarm. Shares in MyFarm’s $550 million of rural assets under… Read More

August 11, 2015 @ 1:13 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  While shares of Mogo Finance Technology Inc. have slid from $10 to $6 since the IPO–the company was the first Canadian online lender to go public–all is far from lost. After the $50-million IPO on June 25, Cormark research analysts Jeff Fenwick and Richard Tse believe the stock will… Read More

August 10, 2015 @ 12:23 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  In the UK, more than 100 peer-to-peer lenders have applied for full authorization from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), which took over regulation of P2P last year, notes the Financial Times. Nearly 180 companies have interim permission to operate, according to figures obtained from the FCA… Read More

August 7, 2015 @ 12:49 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

    Would a “Safe Room,” a storage facility filled with 80 tonnes of silver and a tonne of gold, worth about S$120 million total, increase your confidence about participating in a peer-to-peer loan platform? Silver Bullion, a Singapore-based bullion retailer, is counting on it. The company just launched… Read More

August 5, 2015 @ 2:26 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  London-based Stockflare has become the first fintech startup to gain an investment pledge from the London Co-Investment Fund (LCIF), supported by the London Mayor’s office, as it raises seed capital on Crowdcube. The company, which makes it easier for private investors to pick stocks that are right… Read More

August 5, 2015 @ 1:33 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  Recently, the first back-to-school ads popped up on my music streaming service, accompanied by the scent of the school year–anticipation of the new. I paused, remembered what it felt like to use an eraser and be dropped off at the curb daily, then kept writing. A computer… Read More

July 30, 2015 @ 3:15 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  While the crew behind a great movie may think outside the box to create the flick, the single-occupant Solo Theater, from Japanese design house Lucy Alter Design, means you can now watch a film in a box, using your smartphone or tablet–all by yourself. Now overfunding on Japanese platform Makuake,… Read More

July 29, 2015 @ 1:38 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

You might not have the time to thoroughly read a fact-check of a politician’s statements, but a 90-second animated video with what appears to be an adorable and clumsy chicken might be harder to resist. That’s what the young professionals behind Pagella Politica, an Italian independent fact-checking project… Read More

July 28, 2015 @ 2:54 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  When filming a documentary about crowdfunding, crowdfunding seems only natural as the way to fund it. Enter “Capital C,” among the first crowdfunded feature-length documentaries about crowdfunding–or as the tagline states, “Crowdfunding. Crowdsourcing. Bottle Koozies.” “Capital C” successfully raised $84,298 with 586 backers on Kickstarter. For the documentary, filmmaking… Read More

July 28, 2015 @ 1:08 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  Moody’s Investor Service on Monday said that tighter regulations in China, which is Aa3 stable, have been successful in slowing the growth of core “shadow banking” activity. However, other alternative banking activities have been expanding more rapidly–a situation akin to pushing down on an inflating air mattress and watching the surrounding space rise… Read More

July 27, 2015 @ 3:35 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  Asset-backed finance has been chosen as the next round of lending for the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI), which was set up in 2014 to offer low-cost loans to lenders, according to a recent story in the Independent. The SBCI, led by Scotsman Nick… Read More

July 24, 2015 @ 3:29 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

Richard Stallman, founder of the Free Software Foundation (FSF) and the GNU Project, has formed a type of partnership with Crowd Supply, a crowdfunding company mainly focused on open source hardware and software projects, according to Ars Technica. According to Crowd Supply founder Josh Lifton, the partnership… Read More

July 23, 2015 @ 10:15 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

As the founder of Merchant Cash and Capital (MCC), a small business alternative lending company that has also worked with companies from UPS to Pita Pit, Stephen Sheinbaum oversees a company that is using leading technology to change the way small businesses get capital. Prior… Read More

July 23, 2015 @ 12:01 am By Midori Yoshimura  |  

  Developed by music tech company Sunhouse, Sensory Percussion combines a hardware sensor that clamps to the side of drum with software to yield a new instrument that lets you control electronic sounds with your own drumsticks and drums. The device is now overfunding on Kickstarter after reaching its $80,000 goal, and… Read More