October 18, 2016 @ 4:37 pm By JD Alois  |  

A report in the Korean Herald has pointed to Hanwha Life Insurance purchasing a 4.1% equity stake in Lending Club (NYSE:LC).  Hanwha Life spent 75 billion won or approximately USD $66.25 million as they believe its stock is undervalued. PulseNews reported last year that Hanwha… Read More

October 18, 2016 @ 1:17 pm By JD Alois  |  

Prosper Marketplace has updated investors on their estimated returns for the month of September. According to the online lender, returns are just above 7% – a slight drop of 14 bps from August. Prosper said this number was impacted by: a slightly lower percentage of… Read More

October 18, 2016 @ 9:29 am By JD Alois  |  

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has published its final report on the investment and corporate banking sector.  The document was created to help foster competition in the this sector of finance.  The report reflects the interim publication that was released this past April. Christopher Woolard,… Read More

October 17, 2016 @ 1:25 pm By JD Alois  |  

Republic, the Reg CF crowdfunding platform related to AngelList, has had its first successful funding round.  Youngry, described as the ESPN for entrepreneurship, successfully completed its equity crowdfunding offer topping its goal by 130%. Youngry successfully raised $65,920 from 143 investors in its 75 day crowdfunding… Read More

October 17, 2016 @ 12:35 pm By JD Alois  |  

Fitch Ratings is out with a note on Goldman Sachs’ foray into the online lending market. Fitch says that Marcus, Goldman’s recently launched lending platform, seeks to combine the best of both Fintech and the stability of being a more traditional bank. Marcus is differentiated from… Read More

October 17, 2016 @ 11:47 am By JD Alois  |  

Hong Kong-based SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator has renewed its partnership with Hong Kong Exchange and Clearing (HKEX). For a second consecutive year, HKEX has established its supporting organization status behind one of Asia’s leading Fintech accelerators. The partnership will also provide SuperCharger finalists with mentors from… Read More

October 16, 2016 @ 2:14 pm By JD Alois  |  

XY Findables (né XY Find It) is crowdfunding under Reg A+ on StartEngine. XY Findables originally launched a rewards based campaign on Kickstarter back in February of 2014. At that time, XY Findables raised over $200,000 from more than 4000 backers for their Bluetooth tracking device… Read More

October 16, 2016 @ 12:36 pm By JD Alois  |  

Late last year, FlashFunders co-founder and CEO Vincent Bradley stated in an interview; “The recent passing of Title III is a clear sign that the SEC believes this industry is a viable solution for companies to raise capital. By creating further regulatory processes in regards to… Read More

October 16, 2016 @ 12:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

The evolving Chinese peer to peer lending sector took another twist in the regulatory path, as the government issued a special work plan this past week. According to ECNS, the plan incorporated a list of restrictions for P2P lenders to help curb investor and borrower… Read More

October 16, 2016 @ 10:29 am By JD Alois  |  

CircleBack Lending has stopped making loans. This is according to a report by Bloomberg. The online lender said that funding had vaporized as some borrowers failed to repay their loans.  CircleBack provides unsecured consumer credit for loans from $3000 to $35,000. Michael Solomon, CEO and co-founder… Read More

October 16, 2016 @ 8:00 am By JD Alois  |  

Last week, the North American Securities Administrators Association (NASAA) issued a statement in support of updating Rule 147 and Rule 504 of Reg D – rules that impact intrastate crowdfunding.  The statement by NASAA supported a letter sent out by several members of the Congress… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 5:07 pm By JD Alois  |  

Siddhartha Jajodia, Lending Club‘s Chief Investment Officer, has forwarded a letter to the platform’s investor’s updating the key stakeholders on credit and interest rate changes. The letter from Lending Club (NYSE:LC) was disclosed in an 8-K filed with the SEC today (October 14, 2016). In… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 3:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

PwC has published a report on venture capital indicating that $10.6 went into early stage companies during the 3rd quarter of 2016. The MoneyTree Report, based on data provided by ThomsonReuters, showed that venture capital declined by 36% in total number of deals and by… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 12:57 pm By JD Alois  |  

H2Ocean, the Fintech fund that expected to list shares on the ASX, has pushed pause in its public float as funding fell short of goal.  In a letter to prospective investors, Ben and Toby Heap, creators of H2Ocean, explained their challenge; “As you may know,… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 10:52 am By JD Alois  |  

Senator Elizabeth Warren is rattling cages once again. This time, she is blasting SEC Chair Mary Jo White asking President Obama to fire or demote Chair White in a public letter. According to her letter, Warren states, “enough is enough” that Chair White has undermined… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 10:32 am By JD Alois  |  

Affirm has received a $100 million lending facility from Morgan Stanley. Affirm will use the new capital to expand its Point of Sale (PoS) financing to more retailers. The company stated it expects to triple its loan volume for the year. Affirm was launched by… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 10:03 am By JD Alois  |  

Capgemini is out with a report on Blockchain that predicts consumers are poised to save “$16 billion dollars” on banking and insurance fees. Their premise is that “smart-contracts” for retail and investment banking, alongside insurance, will eliminate the need for paper-based documentation saving everyone time and… Read More

October 14, 2016 @ 9:00 am By JD Alois  |  

The advent of the sharing economy is forcing car manufacturers to rethink their business models. Uber and Lyft are two of the highest profile companies at the forefront of this transformation. By disrupting existing car hire services with a better price and superior service, cab… Read More

October 13, 2016 @ 10:52 pm By JD Alois  |  

Reg CF investment crowdfunding (Title III of the JOBS Act) has only been actionable since May of this year. At the end of May, there were 10 FINRA/SEC approved Regulation CF platforms with only a handful listing live investment opportunities. The approved platforms at the… Read More

October 13, 2016 @ 5:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

Louise Beaumont, the long-time Head of Public Affairs & Marketing of GLI Finance has departed the firm. According to her LinkedIn profile, Beaumont has taken a position as Vice-Chair of the Open Bank Working Group. Beaumont has been an outspoken advocate of alternative finance and the… Read More