Investment Platforms and Marketplaces

March 7, 2016 @ 8:40 am By JD Alois  |  

Investment crowdfunding platform Crowdcube has gained some high-profile investors. Three Dragon’s Den stars are “battling it out” on Crowdcube as they invest in companies listed on the platform. GripIt is being backed by Deborah Meaden as it cruises past its £1.5 million at £2 million… Read More

March 7, 2016 @ 8:06 am By JD Alois  |  

Property crowdfunding platform, Property Partner, has raised £15.9 million in a series B funding round. The investment was led by Octopus Ventures with participation by Index Ventures and Dawn Capital (£12.9 million).  Silicon Valley Bank provided a £3 million venture debt facility as part of… Read More

March 7, 2016 @ 7:28 am By JD Alois  |  

Uncle Buck, a short term or payday lender, has received Financial Conduct Authority authorisation (FCA), according to information provided by the platform.  Representatives state the FCA approval comes following extensive assessment of business practices and management. Uncle Buck has welcomed the increased regulation of the… Read More

March 6, 2016 @ 8:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

SoFi, perhaps the fastest growing marketplace lending platform, is investigating the possibility of launching a Real Estate Investment Trust (REIT). This is according to a report in Bloomberg that cited people with knowledge of the preparations.  SoFi is said to be considering the option as… Read More

March 6, 2016 @ 5:31 pm By JD Alois  |  

DealFlow was founded by Steven Dresner, a veteran of Wall Street finance and founder of DealFlow Media – company that was eventually scooped up by TheStreet (NASDAQ: TST). Dealflow was launched to make raising capital in the private markets more efficient leveraging improvements in securities laws… Read More

March 6, 2016 @ 4:50 pm By JD Alois  |  

Investing via online platforms, be they a marketplace lender /P2P site, or a real estate crowdfunding platform, takes time and typically entails jumping from platform to platform.  As the internet finance industry matures, it is inevitable that new channels crop up to help facilitate investors… Read More

March 6, 2016 @ 11:06 am By JD Alois  |  

Last week global equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd announced a significant partnership with United Overseas Bank (UOB).  The OurCrowd arrangement is part of the platforms deeper push into Asia and the robust startup scene. UOB is the third largest bank in Southeast Asia by total assets…. Read More

March 5, 2016 @ 9:49 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Offering up a bit of an insight into Indiegogo’s creation, co-founder Danae Ringelmann sat down with Real Business to discuss the creation of the global crowdfunding platform. Danae revealed why she, Slava Rubin and Eric Schell developed Indiegogo: “Finance was broken and needed to be… Read More

March 4, 2016 @ 3:16 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Friday, marketplace lending platform, Promise Financial, announced it has surpassed $5 million in loan originations and now arranges more than $1 million of financing each month. Promise Financial revealed it is experiencing rapid growth by addressing a growing need in the U.S. where there… Read More

March 4, 2016 @ 1:42 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Thursday, Kickstarter announced it has filed an amicus brief with sixteen other companies to support Apple in its fight to protect the privacy and security of its millions of customers. Following the devastating shooting in San Bernardino last December, a federal court ordered the technology giant… Read More

March 4, 2016 @ 10:28 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

This week, Swedish crowdfunding platform, FundedByMe, announced it has received approval from the FSA for its loan making process. FundedByMe revealed: “In light of the material FSA has received, in the request, judges FSA to FundedByMe Crowdfunding Sweden Aktiebolag [does not] need to take any… Read More

March 4, 2016 @ 9:53 am By JD Alois  |  

Estonia-based marketplace lending platform Bondora is now 7 years old. Hard to believe the platform has been around such a long time. CEO and co-founder, Pärtel Tomberg, commented on their anniversary. “It’s a great pleasure to celebrate Bondora’s 7th birthday with our community of investors and… Read More

March 4, 2016 @ 8:36 am By JD Alois  |  

  According to Roofstock, the single-family rental sector is out of date. It is an industry that is ripe for disruption and, in their opinion, they are leading the way. Roofstock is backed some well-known investors too. Roofstock raised a $6.25 million Series A in last May that was… Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 4:46 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Thursday, New Zealand-based crowdfunding platform PledgeMe announced it has formed a new partnership with charity organization, Ākina Foundation, to reportedly help Kiwi social enterprises tap into their networks and expertise for funding. PledgeMe CEO Anna Guenther stated the partnership would be powerful for New Zealand’s social… Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 3:19 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Biz2Credit announced on Thursday that it has release a new study that revealed the average annual revenues and loan approval percentages of women-owned companies increased significantly last year. The online  credit marketplace analyzed more than 35,000 applications from business owners on its platform during 2015…. Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 2:49 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

iAngels, an Israel-based angel investment crowdfunding platform that grants private investors exclusive access to early-stage technology companies alongside leading angels and venture funds, announced on Thursday it has secured $14 million to expand globally. The round was led by Alex Waislitz of Thorney Investment Group. Since launching… Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 10:56 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Ascenta Finance Corp. (Ascenta), an exempt market dealer registered in the provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba and Ontario, announced this week the launch  of “Bay Street Cannabis,” which is considered as Canada’s first equity crowdfunding portal dedicated to the cannabis sector. The new… Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 9:41 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

On Thursday, crowdfunding platform for independent films, Seed&Spark, announced it has completed a distribution arrangement to extend its reach to millions of cable customers across the U.S. Through this new agreement, major cable providers will now have access to Seed&Spark’s library of excellent independent content… Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 7:55 am By Erin Hobey  |  

The Dublin-based fintech start-up Deposify has raised €1.1million to fund its US expansion from a number of sources including Bank of Ireland’s Start-Up and Emerging Sectors Equity Fund, which is managed by Delta Partners. “It is fantastic to see Deposify expanding their innovative business model into… Read More

March 3, 2016 @ 6:31 am By Erin Hobey  |  

The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau took action against online payment platform Dwolla for deceiving consumers about its data security practices and the safety of its online payment system, according to a release. The CFPB ordered Dwolla to pay a $100,000 penalty and fix its security… Read More