Featured Headlines

March 21, 2023 @ 9:13 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

There’s new regulation requiring individuals using digital payment apps to report their earnings – over $600 – directly to the IRS. This change significantly impacts business owners, side hustlers, and gig economy workers. These individuals must file Form 1099-K, creating an extra step during tax… Read More

March 21, 2023 @ 6:27 pm By Omar Makkawy  |  

Currency devaluations and inflation erode investment returns, reducing a company’s valuation and the value of its total addressable market (TAM). However, several sectors have demonstrated resilience in such conditions and can actually generate substantial shareholder value in difficult economic times. A major example is Egypt… Read More

March 20, 2023 @ 5:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

In 2020, rules were approved by the European Union to facilitate cross-border online capital formation for issuers raising up to €5 million. For platforms, they must seek approval from the relevant authority in their home member state. While the process has been a bit slow,… Read More

March 19, 2023 @ 7:10 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

We recently caught up with Ofir Shabtai, CTO of Shield, an Israel-based Regtech firm. Banks are crawling toward hybrid cloud solutions. Given this key trend, Ofir Shabtai from Shield talked abut how to balance the modern need for the cloud with the security of on-premise… Read More

March 16, 2023 @ 7:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

FedNow, the US Federal Reserves – a near real-time transfers platform that will soon be made available to all banks in the United States, will enable individuals and businesses to move their money in a frictionless manner. In development for years, FedNow is currently scheduled… Read More

March 16, 2023 @ 6:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

We recently connected with Oren Barzilai, CEO at EquityBee, the startup employees’ stock options funding solution. Oren Barzilai from EquityBee talked about what led to them compiling their latest report on startups. Barzilai also discussed how common stock options have become at startups. In addition… Read More

March 16, 2023 @ 3:29 pm By JD Alois  |  

Stripe, a leading Fintech in the payments and transaction sector, has raised $6.5 billion (€6.15 billion) at a $50 billion (€47 billion) valuation. The “Series I” round took a significant haircut from its last round. In 2022, Stripe raised money at a $74 billion valuation. … Read More

March 15, 2023 @ 12:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

Chancellor of the Exchequer Jeremy Hunt delivered the Spring Statement today, making several big announcements, including a huge change in retirement planning. Hunt said that the Conservative government’s approach to the economy is “on the right track” while noting they “remain vigilant” and will take… Read More

March 14, 2023 @ 5:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

Prior to the US government’s decision to backstop all deposits, under the management of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), bank accounts were ONLY insured up to$250,000. While this amount has not been much of a problem in the past, last week, the world changed,… Read More

March 14, 2023 @ 5:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tasneem Dohadwala, Founding Partner of VC Excelstar Ventures, has shared her thoughts on the demise of several banks and the federal government’s decision to guarantee all deposits. Some observers have criticized the “government bailout” while others have noted that if the Feds had not taken… Read More

March 14, 2023 @ 10:08 am By JD Alois  |  

Last month, CI hosted a webinar to review the securities crowdfunding market of 2022 as well as expectations for 2023. While the consensus of the group was that online capital formation softened in the waning months of 2022, panelists participating in the webinar were more… Read More

March 12, 2023 @ 6:47 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Department of Treasury, FDIC and Federal Reserve have joined to protect all account holders at the Silicon Valley Bank (NASDAQ:SIVB), which was taken over by the federal government on Friday. The exceptional action means that accounts holding over $250,000 will have access to… Read More

March 10, 2023 @ 11:20 am By JD Alois  |  

Seedrs, a top UK-based investment crowdfunding platform that operates across Europe, is reporting £84 million in investment across all securities offerings during the month of February. In US dollars, this equates to over $100 million, so Seedrs could top USD $ 1 billion during 2023…. Read More

March 9, 2023 @ 11:39 am By JD Alois  |  

Like the day is followed by night, we can count on politicians piling on a debacle when they can craft a sound bite that fits their desired narrative. As was reported yesterday, Silvergate Capital Corporation (NYSE:SI) has decided to wind down its operations following the collapse… Read More

March 9, 2023 @ 10:50 am By JD Alois  |  

In a diplomatically worded missive, the Securities and Exchange Commission, Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee, has posted a “Parting Perspective Letter” regarding its efforts in recent years while outlining its recommendations – that the Commission has ignored. The letter, signed by Committee Chair Carla… Read More

March 9, 2023 @ 9:02 am By JD Alois  |  

SeedBlink, a European securities crowdfunding platform that is based in Bulgaria but is expanding across Europe, has announced the launch of a secondary trading marketplace, thus providing liquidity for private securities. SeedBlink received its ECSPR approval last fall, enabling it to solicit investors across all… Read More

March 8, 2023 @ 4:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

Silvergate Capital Corporation (NYSE:SI), the holding company for Silvergate Bank, has decided to wind down operations and voluntarily liquidate the Bank in an “orderly manner and in accordance with applicable regulatory processes.” Shares in Silvergate are trading down by over 30% in after-hours trading. Silvergate was… Read More

March 7, 2023 @ 9:45 am By JD Alois  |  

Later this week, the Subcommittee on Capital Markets, part of the House Financial Services Committee, will hold a hearing entitled U.S. Public Markets Built for the 21st Century: Exploring Reforms to Make Our Public Markets Attractive for Small and Emerging Companies Raising Capital. As the… Read More

March 2, 2023 @ 4:33 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

We recently caught up with Sarah Howell, SVP of Partner Programs at Infinant, a financial technology company that provides pioneering infrastructure to help banks build embeddable financial products above their legacy banking technology. Sarah Howell shared her insights on the origins of the ecosystem strategy,… Read More

March 1, 2023 @ 10:56 am By JD Alois  |  

Klarna, a buy now pay later platform, posted 4th quarter and full year 2022 results yesterday. Pointing to a challenging market, Klarna shared that it had lost SEK 10.4 billion (about $1 billion) for the year and lost SEK 1.9 billion (about $182 million) during… Read More