General News

February 16, 2017 @ 4:30 am By Erin Hobey  |  

 PayPal has gained ground  in the underbanked bill payment space by acquiring the North American processor TIO Networks for $233 million, according to a release. Founded in 1997 and still led by its CEO founder, Hamed Shahbazi, Vancouver-based TIO Networks serves underbanked customers utilizing an online and mobile… Read More

February 15, 2017 @ 11:05 pm By JD Alois  |  

  The Australian Fintech industry and Jobs for NSW have joined to launch new awards to celebrate the achievements of Australia’s financial technology pioneers. Deputy Premier and Minister for Regional NSW, Skills and Small Business, John Barilaro, stated that Jobs for NSW will provide $80,000… Read More

February 15, 2017 @ 5:02 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

With the 2017 OurCrowd Global Investor Summit set to take place tomorrow (February 16th) at the International Convention Center (ICC), Binyenei HaUmah, the Israel-based crowdfunding platform announced that a total of 6,000 guests from 82 countries have registered for the upcoming event. This doubles the number of participants that attended the 2016… Read More

February 15, 2017 @ 3:38 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance at University of Cambridge Judge Business School, Australian Centre for Financial Studies at Monash University and Tsinghua University Graduate School at Shenzhen have teamed up to launch the 2016-2017 Asia-Pacific Region Alternative Finance Industry Survey.  The consortium has gained the… Read More

February 15, 2017 @ 11:16 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Royal Bank of Scotland’s NatWest announced it is set to launch its very own digital SME lending platform called Esme. The new platform is notably set to offer new and existing NatWest customers with unsecured loans that are worth up to £150,000 for a maximum… Read More

February 15, 2017 @ 9:17 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Crossflow Payments, a tech-driven alternative finance platform delivering supply chain finance solutions, announced on Wednesday it has signed a deal with UK electronics retailer, Maplin Electronics. The company reports that the three-year deal will give it the opportunity to fund £360 million of SME payables. … Read More

February 14, 2017 @ 11:55 am By JD Alois  |  

Ohio is next on the list to consider intrastate crowdfunding legislation. If the current bill passes (HB 10), Ohio will join 30+ states that have already signed legislation into law that allows for raising capital online for businesses based in their states. Today, issuers have… Read More

February 14, 2017 @ 9:05 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Marketplace for small business loans, Lendio, announced on Tuesday the results of its latest survey, which showed that small business owners’ perception of Trump’s presidency three weeks in is split. According to the survey, 56% of small business owners stated they believe the economy will… Read More

February 14, 2017 @ 6:44 am By Erin Hobey  |  

In the news again, Abu Dhabi Global Market (ADGM), the international financial centre in Abu Dhabi, is pleased to be a member partner of the industry working group, the Market Infrastructure Group, established by the London-based fintech company, EquiChain. The Group, comprising global industry & financial leaders,… Read More

February 14, 2017 @ 6:08 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Singapore-based fintech startup Bambu was the winner of the Best Early Stage Startup Award at Fintech Finals 2017 in Hong Kong last month. Other highlights from the Fintech Finals 2017 included Ayannah winning the overall title, Best in Show, while DarcMatter won for Best Growth… Read More

February 14, 2017 @ 5:42 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Grameen Koota, a pioneer in rural lending, is expanding its product portfolio and venturing into individual lending for its rural customer base by partnering with fintech firm Artoo. Grameen Koota plans to develop a digital lending model to launch individual business loans utilizing Artoo’s intelligent digital platform… Read More

February 13, 2017 @ 10:50 pm By Jessica Pham  |  

Crowdfund Insider interviewed Jake Fisher to discuss his new startup, Crowdfund Research, which launched earlier this month. What can you find on their page? “Our mission is to provide crowdfunding investors with the same level of research a VC fund would perform. We do this by… Read More

February 13, 2017 @ 3:34 pm By JD Alois  |  

NCFA Canada Focuses on Innovation Finance and Fintech Trailblazers from Across the Country. The National Crowdfunding Association of Canada (NCFA Canada) will be holding its third annual Canadian Crowdfunding Summit (CCS2017) in Toronto this month. The event opens on February 28th and continues for a… Read More

February 13, 2017 @ 2:20 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Hong Kong’s peer-to-peer lending platform Monexo announced on Monday it now has an undisclosed strategic partner. Founder and CEO of the online lender, Mukesh Bubna, reportedly stated that the new partner may be a domestic private equity fund. Bubna shared: “In 2017, our aspiration is… Read More

February 13, 2017 @ 11:24 am By JD Alois  |  

Venture capital firm Draper Esprit (AIM: GROW, ESM: GRW) has appointed Nicola McClafferty to the Dublin office. She will join Brian Caulfield as the VC seeks to identify the next generation of Irish tech firms poised for success. McClafferty was most recently CEO of  Covetique.com, a… Read More

February 12, 2017 @ 3:35 pm By JD Alois  |  

Gust Launch is a relatively new addition to the Gust portfolio of services for startups. Gust Launch is described as; “one platform to easily incorporate, start, and run your company like a seasoned entrepreneur—designed by experienced startup founders, investors, and lawyers to help you from… Read More

February 12, 2017 @ 2:22 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Extreme Tech Challenge 2017 (XTC) completed this past week with the three finalists competing for the grand prize at Sir Richard Branson’s Necker Island in the Caribbean (no word if former President Obama was in the audience). Calling it a “photo-finish”, Vantage Robotics was… Read More

February 12, 2017 @ 9:36 am By JD Alois  |  

Ruth Hedges, an early advocate of the potential of crowdfunding, has landed Microsoft as its lead sponsor for her annual Global Crowdfunding Convention (GCC). Hedges commented on the addition of Microsoft to help with the event; “We are very excited to have Microsoft’s sponsorship for… Read More

February 11, 2017 @ 8:09 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Crowdfunded brewing company BrewDog announced on Friday it will open its first U.S. pub on Monday, February 20th, in Canal Winchester, a Columbus, Ohio suburb. As previously reported, BrewDog has raised more than $30 million in its ongoing crowdfunding offers in the UK, called Equity For… Read More

February 10, 2017 @ 3:28 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) has published its first benchmarking report covering alternative finance in the African and Middle East markets. Produced with the support and backing of Energy4Impact, UKAid and CME Group Foundation, the CCAF report states that alternative finance totaled more… Read More