Global

August 14, 2019 @ 3:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

Fincera Inc. (OTCQB: YUANF), a China-based peer to peer lending platform providing access to capital for SMEs, has become the target of a local government attempt to shut down P2P lenders. According to a note from Fincera, the Hebei provincial government, where Fincera is based,… Read More

August 14, 2019 @ 1:06 pm By JD Alois  |  

Last week, online lender Funding Circle (LSE:FCH) released its 6-month report and the shares have responded positively to the numbers. Six-month Revenue was reported at £81.4 million versus H1 2018 at £63.0 million – up 29%. Loans under management rose 37% to £3.54 billion and… Read More

August 14, 2019 @ 12:45 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Board of the  Banking Competition Remedies Ltd (BCR) has announced the awards of the “Capability and Innovation Fund Pool C.” This Fund is designed to “facilitate the expansion of business offerings to include lending or payments services to SMEs in the UK or international… Read More

August 14, 2019 @ 11:00 am By JD Alois  |  

Earlier this month, leading UK investment crowdfunding platform Crowdcube rebranded after multi-year stint of a fairly consistent design. Crowdcube explained the move in a blog post declaring “crowdfunding 1.0 is dead.” To quote Crowdcube: “Today’s savvy entrepreneurs want Crowdcube 2.0; they want funding that fuels… Read More

August 14, 2019 @ 8:32 am By JD Alois  |  

“Another clear sign that cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum and XRP are not only part of mainstream finance, but also the future of money.” deVere Group CEO Nigel Green believes recent actions by UK tax authorities are signs that cryptocurrency is winning the battle of becoming… Read More

August 14, 2019 @ 8:14 am By JD Alois  |  

Singularity Studio, the for-profit spin-off of SingularityNET (SNET) – a non-profit Netherlands foundation building a decentralized blockchain AI platform, has signed a “Strategic Cooperation Memorandum” with PICC Finance Services. PICC is a subsidiary of the Fintech arm of the People’s Insurance Company of China Holding… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 10:55 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Cambridge Centre for Alternative Finance (CCAF) has partnered with the World Economic Forum (WEF) to jointly launch a research project addressing Artificial Intelligence (AI) in financial services. CCAF is an academic research institute at Cambridge Judge Business School, University of Cambridge, and is the… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 10:18 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The UK Government’s Department of Work and Pensions (DWP) is taking a stab at using DLT (distributed ledger technology) to make pension payments more efficient and secure. The UK’s welfare ministry, however, has “abandoned” the tech in the past, Attack of the 50 Foot Blockchain… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 8:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

Digital Banks are the New Shiny Global Fintech deals tallied 838 rounds worth $15.1 billion in the first six months of 2019 but the number VC backed Fintech deals dropped to the lowest number since Q4 of 2016, according to CBInsights quarterly Fintech report. While… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 12:42 pm By JD Alois  |  

New Zealand appears to be the first country to officially approve paying employees in crypto. According to a Tax Bulletin published by the Commissioner of Inland Revenue, the New Zealand tax authority, crypto-assets may be used in remuneration as long as it adheres to certain… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 8:11 am By JD Alois  |  

Challenger bank Tandem has announced the impending launch of a new “crowd-designed” mortgage product for UK consumers.  In a release, Tandem said it plans to offer competitive mortgages to first-time buyers and “property ladder hopefuls” based on a range of financial data points. Tandem said… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 7:30 am By JD Alois  |  

EstateGuru, a crowdfunding platform based in Estonia, is out with a release predicting it will claim €3-5 billion of the European real estate financing by 2025 EstateGuru adds that approximately 70% of SMEs lack access to credit and this is a major constraint to their… Read More

August 13, 2019 @ 1:13 am By Cali Haan  |  

“Australia happens to be the only developed country where retirement money, superannuation money, can very easily be invested into cryptocurrencies,” Zebpay crypto exchange CEO Ajeet Khurana told a Financial Review reporter recently. Zebpay, a cryptocurrency exchange, announced last year that it was shutting down in response to… Read More

August 12, 2019 @ 5:54 pm By Cali Haan  |  

The UK division of US-based cryptocurrency exchange Coinbase has sent letters to customers telling them to convert their ZCash coins or remove their balances by August 26th, Coindesk reports. Balances not relocated will be converted to British pounds. ZCash is a so-called “privacy coin” that… Read More

August 12, 2019 @ 5:49 pm By JD Alois  |  

Seedrs co-founder and Executive Chairman Jeff Lynn has responded to a critical article published in the Sunday Times this past weekend. The article in question portrayed Seedrs as struggling claiming: “crowdfunding site halts trading as reserves dwindle,” as it reportedly pursues a new funding round…. Read More

August 12, 2019 @ 10:03 am By JD Alois  |  

Hedera Hashgraph, a speedy blockchain that seeks to power enterprise services, has added IBM and Tata Communications to its Governing Council. Hedera reports that curretntly there are 39 multinational entities participating on the Council as it pursues the “next generation” distributed ledger technology (DLT). Council… Read More

August 12, 2019 @ 9:33 am By JD Alois  |  

  Technology is at its best when it is ubiquitous and unobtrusive. We want tech to be available wherever and whenever we need it but it should not be something that is hard to access. It must be simple to use. Today, most tech services… Read More

August 12, 2019 @ 8:39 am By JD Alois  |  

This is something you do not see that often – a company offering to buy back all of the tokens (CLN) issued in an initial coin offering. Colu DLT, a subsidiary of Colu Group based in Gibraltar, has issued a release stating it will “voluntarily… Read More

August 12, 2019 @ 7:20 am By JD Alois  |  

Online property finance marketplace LendInvest has received a £200 million investment from the National Australia Bank (NAB). The investment was supported by HM Treasury. Chris Philp, PPS to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, commented on the announcement: “This very substantial investment from NAB into LendInvest… Read More

August 11, 2019 @ 8:02 pm By X.Y. Ng  |  

Thanks to the rise of peer-to-business (P2B) lending, the concept of Small and Medium Enterprise (SME) debt as an asset class has altered for the better. With low risk of default and high-interest rate returns, it is now possible to invest in SME debt at… Read More