General News

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

February 10, 2017 @ 3:22 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

BNP Paribas, alongside its partner Plug and Play, announced on Friday they are launching a fintech and insurtech acceleration program in Paris. According to BNP Paribas, the three-month program will be held twice a year and offer 10 startups with the following services: Business plan… Read More

February 10, 2017 @ 2:13 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Innovate Finance, the independent membership organization representing UK’s global fintech sector, announced on Friday it has issued a Call for Input on the demand and feasibility of an Industry Sandbox in the UK.  The organization stated that the proposed Sandbox would enable startups, financial institutions,… Read More

February 10, 2017 @ 10:04 am By JD Alois  |  

Therese Torris, Senior Contributing Editor for Crowdfund Insider, recently visited the offices of Misys to discuss alternative finance. Misys is a large UK based financial services software provider offering solutions for retail and corporate banking along with capital markets applications.  Misys claims more than 2000… Read More

February 10, 2017 @ 8:39 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

UK-based Octopus Labs announced it celebrated the five fintech startups that participated in twelve-week accelerator program at The Gherkin in London. Nearly 200 fintech investors and financial advisers reportedly gathered to celebrate the program on Wednesday.  The twelve-week accelerator program, which was launched last year, saw Octopus support five… Read More

February 9, 2017 @ 7:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

FINRA, or the “Financial Industry Regulatory Authority”, is one of the most powerful financial regulators in the United States. It is also a private corporation that performs its duties as a “self-regulatory organization” (SRO). FINRA oversees the thousands of broker-dealers and other financial industry participants… Read More

February 9, 2017 @ 4:35 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Blockchain regtech startup, Coinfirm, announced on Wednesday it secured $700,000 from Luma Ventures during an ongoing seed round to continue its growth and development. Coinfirm has built a blockchain risk and compliance platform. The company’s platform notably brings transparency and security to its blockchain transaction… Read More

February 9, 2017 @ 2:46 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

UK-based private equity firm, IW Capital, announced on Thursday the release of its 2017 investor index. This new report reveals the impact of 2016’s biggest events, which consists of Brexit, Donald Trump’s U.S. Presidential win, and Theresa May. According to IW Capital, the new research… Read More

February 9, 2017 @ 11:03 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Biz2Credit announced on Thursday it has formed a partnership with Tradeshift to expand access to capital through a new platform app. According to Biz2Credit, companies that use Tradeshift will gain access to Biz2Credit’s small business lending marketplace through the app. Users will receive an instant… Read More

February 9, 2017 @ 10:31 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

NextGen Crowdfunding announced on Thursday the first round winners of its Crowdfunding Video Awards (CVAs), which recognizes the best pitch videos from both reward and equity crowdfunding campaigns. The company’s CVAs provides campaign organizers new ways to promote crowdfunding campaigns and products to backers as well as… Read More

February 9, 2017 @ 10:06 am By JD Alois  |  

The Deal from Beauhurst: Crowdfunding Platforms Emerge as True Alternative for Later Stage Finance The most recent edition of the Deal, published by Beauhurst, includes some disappointing news. According to the UK research house, investment in UK startups has dropped by the largest amount in… Read More