Opinion

May 14, 2019 @ 5:41 pm By JD Alois  |  

Early stage investing is a very risky endeavor yet this is where most of the big money is made. Today, an initial public offering (IPO) is too frequently more of an exit opportunity than a chance to generate wealth as companies wait as long as… Read More

May 12, 2019 @ 6:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

The United Kingdom has long been a global leader in financial innovation. Of course, London holds a long history as a prominent financial center for both Europe and the world. This established base has combined with a strong entrepreneurial spirit and access to capital to… Read More

May 9, 2019 @ 10:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce has polished her pen once again with another thought-provoking speech addressing Fintech innovation and, more specifically, digital assets. Speaking at the Securities Enforcement Forum, East Palo Alto, California (by video), Peirce pointedly criticized the Commission for stifling the emergence of security… Read More

May 9, 2019 @ 6:00 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier this week, the inaugural meeting of the Small Business Capital Formation Advisory Committee (SBCFAC) took place at the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in Washington, DC. The new Committee brings together a diverse group of small business proponents including several Fintechs. Led by Martha… Read More

May 9, 2019 @ 5:00 pm By Cali Haan  |  

Cryptocurrency pundits on Twitter are claiming that Bitcoin markets are being manipulated and propped up by whales. In response to a comment from another pundit surprised that the price of Bitcoins didn’t drop substantially upon news of the $41 million USD hack this week on… Read More

May 6, 2019 @ 9:42 pm By Anthony Zeoli  |  

Here’s a question for all of you. Between coins, tokens, stamps, tickets, vouchers, and chips, which of these qualifies as a “security” under U.S. Securities laws? It’s actually a trick question, they all do! Well, technically speaking, they all could potentially qualify as securities. The… Read More

May 4, 2019 @ 4:15 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has talked up their innovation cred and support of Fintech for years. Under previous Chair Mary Jo White, the SEC held the very first Fintech Forum which saw both industry participants and policymakers engage with each other in collaborative… Read More

May 3, 2019 @ 3:03 pm By JD Alois  |  

Crowdfund Insider reported earlier today that more rumblings on Facebook’s entrant into the cryptocurrency sector have emerged. In a WSJ report, it was disclosed that Facebook is expected to issue its own crypto dubbed FBCoin. The digital currency, most likely a stablecoin pegged to fiat,… Read More

May 3, 2019 @ 8:51 am By JD Alois  |  

The US District Court Southern District of New York has greenlighted the lawsuit against the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency filed by the New York Department of Financial Services (DFS). The legal battle is an ongoing attack by DFS to challenge OCC’s Fintech… Read More

May 1, 2019 @ 12:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

The crypto world is still regrouping from the reality that Bitfinex/Tether is being pursued by a lawsuit filed by New York Attorney General Letitia James. Stablecoin Tether, operated by the owners of Bitfinex, is a big part of the fraud allegations leveled by the state…. Read More

April 26, 2019 @ 3:29 pm By Craig Unsworth  |  

Find a business partner who’s your skills opposite Building a business is hard. The plan for my company had been in my head for some time, But I didn’t want to build it alone. Whilst I knew my target markets, clients, partners, users, and the… Read More

April 24, 2019 @ 4:48 pm By JD Alois  |  

Small businesses create the majority of jobs in the US – just like many other developed economies. With jobs comes wealth and prosperity. If this job creation engine shuts down, as we have seen in the last recession, its a disaster. According to the US… Read More

April 24, 2019 @ 9:52 am By JD Alois  |  

Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is on his way out. Originally, Carney was expected to step down in June of 2019. At the request of the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Carney was asked to extend his term as the UK attempted to manage Brexit… Read More

April 23, 2019 @ 11:00 pm By Max Lyadvinsky  |  

There’s no doubt blockchain is a revolutionary technology changing what is possible in many areas of modern life. However, there are both pleasures and pains in being early adopters and forming a company based on blockchain technology. Security and flexibility are offset by regulation and… Read More

April 22, 2019 @ 9:53 pm By JD Alois  |  

This one is a bit of a mess. Recently, Crowdfund Insider tripped across a press release from a company named “VToken”. In the release, the company claims to have obtained a “US STO License”. To quote the release: “On March 18, 2019, VToken, a world-renowned… Read More

April 22, 2019 @ 11:08 am By JD Alois  |  

Last week, Nasdaq CEO Adena Friedman sat down with CNBC to discuss the initial public offering market. Recently, multiple high profile issuers have completed an IPO or have indicated their intent to do so in the not so distant future. On the day Friedman was… Read More

April 21, 2019 @ 8:39 pm By Timothy Li  |  

It’s hard to believe that the most attended Fintech conference LendIt Fintech USA had its 7th birthday in the Mecca of Fintech, San Francisco this past week. Thousands of attendees from all over the world descended into San Francisco’s Moscone Center for this once a… Read More

April 19, 2019 @ 11:52 am By JD Alois  |  

Mining is a vital part of the cryptocurrency industry today. While some industry followers believe that crypto mining will go away in the not so distant future, it remains an active pursuit for individuals and companies to mint digital money using racks of computers. In… Read More

April 18, 2019 @ 9:34 pm By Alex McDougall  |  

The tech world is abuzz with tangible, albeit unofficial, news that Facebook could be diving into crypto and launching a coin or token. Conventional thinking says that they will use their coin to add crypto asset-based transfers to messaging apps to enable users to instantly… Read More

April 18, 2019 @ 11:52 am By JD Alois  |  

Recently, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) published its Small Business Lending Survey for 2018. Included within the report was an ongoing discussion of “non-bank lenders” or online lending platforms including direct and marketplace lenders. First, the FDIC acknowledges the profound importance of small business… Read More