General News

June 2, 2017 @ 8:14 am By JD Alois  |  

Draper Esprit (AIM: GROW, ESM: GRW) has raised £100 million via new and existing investors. The listed VC said a further £60m in new capital has been raised via their EIS, VCT and secondary co-investment funds which invest alongside their PLC. The additional capital, totaling £160… Read More

June 1, 2017 @ 9:54 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Trov has launched its on­-demand insurance platform in the UK, in partnership with AXA Insurance. Users are provided with a personalized quote and can quickly turn insurance on (or off) for an item without the need for any interaction with a traditional insurance agent. Items protected through… Read More

June 1, 2017 @ 8:13 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Frankfurt-based company aescuvest, an equity crowdfunding platform specializing in the innovative healthcare market and targeting new areas for growth outside Germany has penned a  deal with new Chinese partner Shenzhen-based Touwho Network & Fund, a medtech and biotech crowdfunding platform, and the Medical Valley European Metropolitan Region Nuremberg. “Startups and entrepreneurs… Read More

June 1, 2017 @ 7:42 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Flywire, an international payment solutions provider (formerly peerTransfer),  announced that its acquisition of London-based PACE Invoice, a multi-currency invoicing platform provider and an alumni of Startupbootcamp FinTech London. With the acquisition, Flywire adds international invoicing to its cross-border payments and receivables services, enabling its business,… Read More

June 1, 2017 @ 7:13 am By Erin Hobey  |  

LendInvest Capital, a UK-based specialist real estate lender and fund manager, has announced that its flagship private debt fund, the Montello Real Estate Opportunity Fund, is now managing over £100 million ($128m) on behalf of private and institutional clients. “In such a consistently low-yield interest… Read More

May 31, 2017 @ 10:53 am By JD Alois  |  

Elevate Credit, Inc. (NYSE: ELVT), a provider of online credit solutions for non-prime consumers, has announced their Elastic product has surpassed $200 million in total principal outstanding, with more than 120,000 open accounts. Elevate has originated $4 billion in non-prime credit to more than 1.6 million… Read More

May 31, 2017 @ 8:03 am By JD Alois  |  

The team at Crowdfunding.de is out with their 2017 Barometer report for the crowdfunding market in Germany. Started two years ago, the Barometer interviews approximately 1000 people in Germany to gauge their exposure and understanding of the crowdfunding market. For this year’s Barometer, the report… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 11:07 am By Jonathan Nieh  |  

On Friday of last week, London-based fintech firm Alfa Financial Software’s shares began being publically traded on the London Stock Exchange. Shares opened at 325 pence, giving the company an initial valuation of about 975 million pounds or US $1.2 billion, making it the UK’s… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 8:15 am By Erin Hobey  |  

You scream, I scream, we all scream for ice cream… and gelato. It’s that wonderful time of year when the weather warms and the gelaterias and ice cream shops reopen. Enter Ice Wave.  Crowdcube Spain investors quickly responded to Ice Wave‘s equity crowdfunding campaign, helping… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 7:39 am By JD Alois  |  

Banco BNI Europa, a Lisbon based digital only banking group, has announced a strategic agreement with Raize, Portugals largest peer to peer lender. Banco BNI Europa will invest €10 million to boost SME lending via Raize over the next two years. The announcement by the… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 7:26 am By Erin Hobey  |  

China Minsheng Investment Group, one of the China’s largest private investment groups and helmed by Dong Wenbiao, has led a RMB1.8 billion ($262 million) pre-IPO investment round in Chinese P2P lender Tuandaiwang, according to multiple news sources. Beijing Yisheng Innovation Technology and Beihai Hongtai Investment also invested in this… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 5:37 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Indian online P2P lending platform Faircent.com announced a new semi-secure student loan product in collaboration with Bangalore-based micro-lending startups.  Lenders ay also opt for a partly-secured alternative-investment opportunity that delivers a higher return. Under the partnership, college students may fund purchase of items such as laptops, books and… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 5:20 am By Erin Hobey  |  

UK P2P lender RateSetter announced that the platform has raised £13 million in equity funding from its existing shareholders, including city fund managers Woodford Investment Management and Artemis, according to Business Insider. The funding will be put towards launching “Innovative Finance ISA,” a new product that allows consumers… Read More

May 30, 2017 @ 5:01 am By Erin Hobey  |  

UK alternative lender Growth Street has revealed that 37.4% of its investors are under the age of 35, contradicting public figures who have chastised millennials for not thinking about saving and investment. Growth Street’s news follows comments made by property mogul Tim Gurner earlier this month…. Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 8:40 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Bank Negara Malaysia has approved four firms to operate within its regulatory sandbox, aiming to grow Malaysian fintech in line with global trends, according to multiple news sources. The Financial Technology Enabler Group (FTEG) was established by Bank Negara Malaysia in June 2016 to support innovations that… Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 6:27 am By Erin Hobey  |  

At this writing, donation-based crowdfunding campaigns LaunchGood and GoFundMe have raised more than a combined $700,000 from over 15,000 people for the three men who stood up for two Muslim women being harassed by Jeremy Joseph Christian. Christian killed Ricky John Best, 53, and Taliesin Myrddin Namkai Meche, 23…. Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 5:59 am By Erin Hobey  |  

BTCjam, a P2P marketplace launched in 2012 to borrow and lend using bitcoin, announced the company has made “the difficult decision” to close up shop, according to multiple news sources. The platform cited regulatory challenges around bitcoin and the difficulties introducing bitcoin technology to poor communities around… Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 5:33 am By Erin Hobey  |  

A new Spanish blockchain consortium spearheaded by Cecabank and professional services firm Grant Thornton is aiming to build tools designed to combat money laundering and boost KYC (know your customer) efforts. Without “naming names,” the partners claim that the consortium already comprises 33% of the Spanish banking… Read More

May 29, 2017 @ 5:23 am By Erin Hobey  |  

The Bank of Canada, along with Payments Canada, R3 and seven commercial banks, today disclosed the results of Project Jasper phase II, an experimental wholesale interbank payment system using digital ledger technology (DLT) which is considered the backbone of cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin. First launched in 2015,… Read More

May 28, 2017 @ 3:15 pm By JD Alois  |  

CommonBond, an online lending platform and community that is targeting the student loan space, has launched a new competition that is giving away $10,000. In partnership with Pencils of Promise, CommonBond has launched the Social Impact Award. According to their site, CommonBond and Pencils of… Read More