Politics, Legal & Regulation

April 27, 2020 @ 1:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

The UK government has announced a new loan program for smaller firms. The “Bounce Back Loans” are 100% backed by the government providing access to credit ranging from £2,000 to £50,000. The loans will be interest-free for the first 12 months, and businesses can apply… Read More

April 27, 2020 @ 11:15 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Fintech unicorn SoFi announced on Monday it has helped funnel more than $75 million in loan applications to lenders for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) established by the CARES Act, through its extensive network of lenders and Lantern, the product comparison site operated by SoFi…. Read More

April 27, 2020 @ 7:30 am By Dror Futter  |  

  If your venture is confronting a down round, you should not wear it as a badge of shame. Even in normal times, few ventures make an uninterrupted march up and to the right on the valuation curve. More importantly, if you are doing a… Read More

April 26, 2020 @ 7:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

  The British Business Bank has announced multiple new lenders added to the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). Today, the British Business Bank has revealed the approval of the Allied Irish Bank (GB)/AIB (NI), ThinCats, Paragon Bank and IGF. These four lenders will join… Read More

April 25, 2020 @ 5:52 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Netherlands-based Bittr, a Bitcoin (BTC) savings service, is reportedly closing down its business. Ruben Waterman, the company’s founder, said that newly-enforced financial regulations were the main reason why Bittr decided to shut down its services. The AMLD5 became effective July 9, 2018, and required the… Read More

April 24, 2020 @ 2:20 pm By JD Alois  |  

Earlier today, President Donald Trump signed into law the H.R. 266 or the “Paycheck Protection Program and Health Care Enhancement Act.” The law adds about $500 million in funding to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) under the previously approved CARES Act. The PPP provides payroll… Read More

April 24, 2020 @ 12:47 pm By Samantha Hurst  |  

Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs announced on Friday the launch of his new platform, Our Fair Share. According to the Entrepreneur and Media Mogul, Our Fair Share is a platform built to help minority entrepreneurs and small businesses access to much-needed funding amid the economic devastation caused… Read More

April 24, 2020 @ 10:34 am By JD Alois  |  

The long march of crypto enforcement actions continued today when the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) revealed charges against Dropil and founders Jeremy McAlpine, Zachary Matar, and Patrick O’Hara pertaining to an initial coin offering (ICO). As has become fairly commonplace, the SEC is alleging… Read More

April 23, 2020 @ 10:49 am By JD Alois  |  

The Blockchain-based Service Network (BSN) in China aims to change the existing problem of the high cost of developing and deploying blockchain applications by providing public blockchain resource environments to developers. According to BSN, just like the internet, the ubiquity of access can greatly reduce… Read More

April 23, 2020 @ 8:01 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Banking and finance industry organization UK Finance announced on Thursday that its latest data revealed more than £2.8 billion has been lent to SMEs so far through the Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS). The organization reported that total lending under CBILS has doubled in… Read More

April 22, 2020 @ 3:57 pm By JD Alois  |  

Yesterday, Crowdfund Insider covered the news that LendingClub (NYSE:LC), the largest Fintech consumer lender in the US, was furloughing and eliminating jobs due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis has apparently driven the elimination of 471 individual jobs. Shockingly, LendingClub’s President saw his position eliminated…. Read More

April 22, 2020 @ 11:01 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Lendsmart and Griffin Technologies, two U.S. fintechs that are building software for banks and credit unions, announced on Wednesday they have partnered to provide their customers a complete end-to-end solution for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP), which was created under the original CARES Act following the COVID-19… Read More

April 22, 2020 @ 10:01 am By JD Alois  |  

Rangewell, a firm that works with UK SMEs and their advisors to help them find, compare, and apply for business finance, has published another 0pen letter directed to Chancellor of the Exchequer Rushi Sunik. Late last month, Rangewell published a different open letter addressing the… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 10:30 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

  The Japan Security Token Offering Association (JSTOA) recently published self-regulatory guidelines which cover how to separately manage client assets and digital record transfer rights and obligations. The guidelines may now be accessed through JSTOA’s official website. The security token management association said that the… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 10:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

Ripple has been pushed to the edge, according to a blog post today. The crypto-firm is suing YouTube – part of Google. In a document filed in the US District Court, Northern District of California, Ripple Labs, and Bradley Garlinghouse, slammed YouTube for: “irreparable harm… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 5:26 pm By JD Alois  |  

The US Senate has unanimously approved more funding for the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) created under the original CARES Act that was tapped dry several days ago. The approval by the Senate now queues up a vote in the US House of Representatives later this… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 3:39 pm By JD Alois  |  

  The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has filed fraud charges against Steven L. Brickner of South Florida. Brickner allegedly committed fraud in relation to $5.5 million raised to invest in Cannabis-related companies including one called “High Country” in Colorado. According to the SEC, Brickner… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 12:11 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Blockchain Association has created a Security Token Working Group to collaborate with industry participants, policymakers and regulators. The group will be co-chaired by Georgia Quinn, General Counsel of CoinList, and Alex Levine, Chief Legal Officer of TokenSoft, two primary issuance platforms that are regulatory… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 7:56 am By JD Alois  |  

Oneplanetcrowd, a crowdlending platform, has received € 1 million in growth finance from the European Investment Fund to support social entrepreneurship. The funding from the EIF came via the EU’s Employment and Social Innovation Programme Capacity Building Investments window. According to a statement by the… Read More

April 21, 2020 @ 7:52 am By Samantha Hurst  |  

Barclays announced on Monday it has opened up the Coronavirus Large Business Interruption Loan Scheme (CBILS) to help large corporate banking clients that are impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Barclays reported that through the program, which is backed by a UK Government guarantee, it will… Read More