Investment Platforms and Marketplaces

October 4, 2018 @ 3:30 am By Erin Hobey  |  

No fees for international transfer? Global remittance company TransferGo has reportedly launched the first “completely free” international money transfer service. Customers may transfer money around the world at “absolutely no cost”, averred the platform; in lieu of fees, the money transfer will be offered at the mid-market… Read More

October 3, 2018 @ 9:25 am By Cali Haan  |  

$1.3 billion dollars has been stolen from crypto exchanges in the past 8 years and cryptocurrency investors using exchanges still bear a lot of risk, say researchers at ICORating, who yesterday issued a report detailing security levels at crypto exchanges handling more than $1 million… Read More

October 3, 2018 @ 9:03 am By JD Alois  |  

Funding Circle (LSE:FCH), the leading online lender in the UK providing financing options for SMEs, completed its initial public offering (IPO) on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) this past week. Shares began unconditionally trading today (October 3rd). Originally priced at 440 pence per share, Funding… Read More

October 3, 2018 @ 8:56 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Tuesday, online lending platform SoFi announced it has formed a new partnership with home improvement platform Kukun to offer advanced new tools to help homeowners gain a greater understanding of how much their home improvement project could cost and how it can affect the resale value of… Read More

October 3, 2018 @ 8:01 am By JD Alois  |  

LendInvest, an online lending platform for property finance, has announced the addition of Chief Financial Officer, Angelie Panteli, to the board of directors. According to LendInvest, Panteli joined the company in January 2018 and is responsible for all financial aspects of the business including financial… Read More

October 2, 2018 @ 10:30 am By JD Alois  |  

A note from UK based investment crowdfunding platform Volpit indicates they have been acquired by Zion Capital. Deal terms were not revealed. Volpit was launched in 2014 by Patrick O’Flaherty and Simon Oberman, and received full FCA approval, but struggled to gain traction in the UK… Read More

October 2, 2018 @ 10:10 am By JD Alois  |  

BitMEX (Bitcoin Mercantile Exchange), a sophisticated cryptocurrency trading platform, has hired Angelina Kwan as its new Chief Operating Officer. Kwan was previously Managing Director and Head of Regulatory Compliance for Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX). Kwan also spent eight years working at the Securities and… Read More

October 2, 2018 @ 7:33 am By JD Alois  |  

VentureFounders has appointed Michael Gray to build their Channel Islands presence. Gray is the founder of MMG Consulting Limited (MMG), a consulting advisory firm, and a non-Executive Director of various companies and private equity groups in Europe, UK and Japan. VentureFounders states that until recently… Read More

October 2, 2018 @ 7:29 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

UK-based online lender LendInvest announced on Tuesday it has reduced its rates across its Bridging product range and introduced a new Bridge to Term transition service. LendInvest reported it has cut rates on its Residential and Commercial Bridging, Development Exit and Auction Finance products. The lender… Read More

October 1, 2018 @ 5:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last week, CI reported that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had charged LendingClub Asset Management LLC (part of Lending Club), and former President Renaud Laplanche with fraud for improperly using fund money to benefit LendingClub. A settlement was quickly agreed to by all parties… Read More

October 1, 2018 @ 4:07 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The government of Sierra Leone, the U.N. Capital Development Fund, the U.N. Development Programme and technology and micro lending non-profit Kiva are partnering to build a “blockchain” identity and credit-score system to enhance financial security in Sierra Leone. The project will use distributed ledger built by Kiva,… Read More

October 1, 2018 @ 10:43 am By JD Alois  |  

Israel is red-hot when it comes to entrepreneurship and startups in general. The country has been recognized for years as punching above its weight class when it comes to an innovation driven economy. One of the hottest sectors for startups is Artificial Intelligence (AI). A… Read More

October 1, 2018 @ 7:33 am By JD Alois  |  

Crowd2Fund is out with a note on platform performance. The UK peer to peer debt platform states that current default levels stand at 1.42% and their best case model APR standing at 8.51%.  The crowdfunding platform says the current worst-case model, which assumes all defaults… Read More

September 30, 2018 @ 1:44 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

UK-based equity crowdfunding platform Crowdcube announced on Friday it has internationally expanded its partnership with Amazon Launchpad. According to the funding portal, the partnership with Amazon Launchpad was established in 2015 originally to increase the visibility of its successful crowdfunding campaigns (also known as Funded Club)… Read More

September 28, 2018 @ 2:43 pm By JD Alois  |  

LendingClub (NYSE:LC) has responded to the just announced charges and settlement by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) pertaining to allegations of misconduct by former executives. Specifically, LendingClub Asset Management, along with former Executives Renaud Laplanche and Carrie Dolan, have entered into a settlement with… Read More

September 28, 2018 @ 2:07 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has charged LendingClub Asset Management LLC, and former President Renaud Laplanche with fraud for improperly using fund money to benefit LendingClub.  LendingClub Asset Management, Laplanche, and former CFO Carrie Dolan, also were charged with improperly adjusting fund returns. The… Read More

September 28, 2018 @ 10:28 am By JD Alois  |  

Funding Circle has set the share offer price at the low end of the range, according to a note published by the company. Previously, Funding Circle had announced it would offer up to 136,039,416 shares at a price between 420 pence to 530 pence per share…. Read More

September 27, 2018 @ 1:33 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed a complaint against real estate crowdfunding platform iFunding, along with co-founders William Skelley and Sohin Shaw. The complaint alleges that Skelley and Shaw pursued a “fraudulent scheme to misappropriate investor funds.” CI Senior Contributor and securities attorney… Read More

September 27, 2018 @ 8:32 am By JD Alois  |  

UK Peer to Peer Lending Hurdles £1 Billion During 2nd Quarter The UK Peer to Peer Finance Association (P2PFA) has published their second quarter 2018 numbers from member platforms.  According to their data, the peer-to-peer lending industry contributed more than £1 billion to the UK… Read More

September 27, 2018 @ 7:36 am By JD Alois  |  

Neufund, Europe’s first security token issuance platform, has partnered with Liechtenstein-based Blocktrade to provide additional liquidity in security tokens. Neufund has previously announced partnerships with the Malta Stock Exchange, Binance and BitBay for secondary transactions.  The move is designed to boost liquidity in the nascent security… Read More