General News

January 16, 2019 @ 2:17 am By JD Alois  |  

Dow Jones has published their Q4 VentureSource report today and while investment in European companies “held steady” deal flow dropped. According to the report, the UK garnered the bulk of the activity with no Brexit impact visible. At least just yet. The report indicates that… Read More

January 15, 2019 @ 12:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

Even while much of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is on furlough due to the US government shutdown, today the SEC announced charges against nine defendants for participating a hack into the SEC’s EDGAR system – the database that hosts all mandated securities filings…. Read More

January 15, 2019 @ 9:51 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Visa announced on Tuesday the launch of its new global initiative, She’s Next, Empowered by Visa, to champion women-owned small businesses everywhere. Through the initiative, women small business owners are able to build, sustain, and advance their businesses. According to Visa, She’s Next, will be supported… Read More

January 15, 2019 @ 9:06 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Airtm, which operates a blockchain and bank-connected digital wallet and the P2P exchange platform AirPlatform, aims to provide globally-connected financial services to consumers and businesses in the developing world. The platform is now focusing its efforts on Venezuela, specifically in the new Airdrop Venezuela campaign. “Over the… Read More

January 15, 2019 @ 3:20 am By Erin Hobey  |  

The German IoT platform Ameria successfully closed its €5.5M Companisto Series C/Growth Capital campaign at midnight, raising  the full €5,500,000 from 770 investors. Funding will be utilized to further develop the company’s existing CX Ecosystem and ensure innovation leadership. Investors include CEMA AG CEO Thomas Steckenborn, Carlos Dennis and Süddeutsche Privatkapital AG… Read More

January 14, 2019 @ 8:12 am By JD Alois  |  

Seeking to boost their prominence as an equity financing hub in Asia, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) has announced a grant of S$75 million to help businesses raise funding via the Singapore equity market. Singapore is one of the most business-friendly jurisdictions in the… Read More

January 12, 2019 @ 8:18 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Alex Sunnarborg, a crypto fund manager at Tetras Capital has questioned user numbers claimed by operators of the “decentralized prediction market” platform Augur, Cointelegraph reports. On Jan 10th, Sunnarborg claimed on Twitter that, in its most recent weekly report, Augur had inflated its user numbers by… Read More

January 11, 2019 @ 6:29 am By JD Alois  |  

Perkins Coie has added to its tech and blockchain team with the addition of John Delaney as a partner in the New York City office. Delaney joins the firm’s Technology Transactions & Privacy (TTP) practice. Perkins Coie said Delany is the fifth lateral to join… Read More

January 10, 2019 @ 10:23 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last month, the Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) published their annual report on alternative finance covering the Americas. “Reaching New Heights” covered online alternative finance data in North, South, and Central America as well as the Caribbean. CI wrote about the report when it first came… Read More

January 10, 2019 @ 6:33 am By Erin Hobey  |  

This week UK based crowdfunding platform Crowdcube touted its best year to date when measured by multiple metrics; Q4 was said to be the most successful quarter in the history of the platform. Crowdcube channelled 166 million euros in 198 capital campaigns for European companies this… Read More

January 9, 2019 @ 10:25 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Police and Norwegian media are reporting that the wife of one of Norway’s richest people went missing from her home October 31st, and hasn’t been seen since. According to Norwegian police, “the main hypothesis” is that 68-year-old Anne-Elisabeth Hagen was abducted. Police say they found… Read More

January 9, 2019 @ 8:22 am By JD Alois  |  

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) at the University of Cambridge Judge Business School,  Asian Development Bank Institute and FinTechSpace have formed a partnership to launch the ASEAN Fintech Industry Survey – the first study of its kind. According to CCAF, the research will focus… Read More

January 9, 2019 @ 7:01 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Cross River, a bank that delivers advanced financial and compliance products/services to the fintech industry, has partnered with Stripe to help those in the marketplace economy by giving them real-time access to earnings using push-to-card payments. The API-first, integrated platform aims to improve the way independent… Read More

January 8, 2019 @ 3:36 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

South by Southwest (SXSW) Conference & Festivals has announced the finalists for the 11th annual SXSW Pitch event (formerly SXSW Accelerator), to take place March 9th-10th during the Entrepreneurship & Startup Track at the Downtown Hilton Austin. SXSW reported that 50 startup finalists will compete in each of the 10 technology… Read More

January 8, 2019 @ 2:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

Fintech Predictions for 2019. Financial innovation continues to evolve at a rapid pace. Startups launch and shutdown with regularity. Traditional financial firms experiment and partner with more agile firms. It’s all about the digitization of finance where services are ubiquitous and instantaneous – all available… Read More

January 8, 2019 @ 8:13 am By Erin Hobey  |  

æternity, the blockchain 3.0 platform, has partnered with weiDex, a decentralized cryptocurrency exchange. The Liechtenstein-Bulgaria partnership includes a $100,000 USD investment that will facilitate the development of the first decentralized exchange by weiDex, which will operate on the æternity blockchain utilizing the protocol’s technological stack…. Read More

January 7, 2019 @ 5:01 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The President of the Chartered Financial Analyst Institute, Paul Smith, has taken to the media to call out shrinking IPO markets in the US and call for the restoration of fair and secure investment opportunities for retirement savers. Smith points at “alarming changes” in US… Read More

January 7, 2019 @ 3:09 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

The Dubai Financial Services Authority (DFSA) announced on Monday it has accepted seven new firms into its cohort process, which permits companies to apply for an Innovation Testing Licence (ITL). According to DFSA, the ITL forms part of the DFSA’s commitment to support innovation and… Read More

January 7, 2019 @ 12:36 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Mastercard announced on Monday it is dropping its name from its iconic brand mark in select contexts. The financial giant reported that the interlocking red and yellow circles, which is referred to as the Mastercard Symbol, will now stand on its own across cards using the… Read More

January 7, 2019 @ 11:08 am By Cali Haan  |  

Management consultancy McKinsey & Company have published an elegant analysis of enterprise blockchain called “Blockchain’s Occam,” stating: “A key to finding the value is to apply the technology only when it is the simplest solution available.” Blockchain has been touted as a revolutionary technology capable… Read More