July 19, 2017 @ 6:09 pm By JD Alois  |  

Chief Deputy Whip Patrick McHenry, the Vice Chairman of the House Financial Services Committee has partnered with Congressman Gregory Meeks to introduce HR 3299 entitled, “Protecting Consumers’ Access to Credit Act of 2017“. This bill is designed to “restore consistency to our nation’s lending laws… Read More

July 19, 2017 @ 8:12 am By JD Alois  |  

Nesta , a global innovation foundation, has announced the twenty Fintech firms that will participate in the Open Up Challenge. Nesta announced the competition this past February. The Open Up Challenge is a global search for organizations who would use new open banking Application Programming… Read More

July 12, 2017 @ 12:40 pm By JD Alois  |  

Alternative finance data aggregator Crowdsurfer has rebranded as TAB or insidetab.io. The new name was selected in response to customer and partner feedback, according to management. TAB stated; “With TAB, we have created a brand that reflects these changes through our best-in-class data technology, market… Read More

July 5, 2017 @ 10:00 am By JD Alois  |  

ROBO.CASH and Latvian Alternative Financial Services Association have announced their intent to develop peer-to-peer technologies in Latvia. ROBOS.CASH is a part of the European financial holding group with affiliated credit companies in Spain (Prestamer.es), Russia (Zaymer.ru, FinTerra) and Kazakhstan (Zaimer.kz). The group, founded by Sergey… Read More

July 2, 2017 @ 7:53 am By JD Alois  |  

The presentation embedded below is an interesting perspective on the growth of alternative finance, specifically in Europe. There has been a certain amount of discussion regarding the tepid growth of investment crowdfunding in the US (not including marketplace lending) and the reasons why the sector… Read More

June 24, 2017 @ 9:57 am By JD Alois  |  

This trend is picking up speed. Fast growing Fintech firms are looking to receive regulatory approval to operate more like a bank. Klarna, a Sweden based payments platform, was granted a full banking license by the Finansinspektionen, (the Swedish Financial Supervisory Authority) last week. Klarna management… Read More

June 19, 2017 @ 5:34 pm By JD Alois  |  

Following a period of change and introspection, One Spark will return this October with a new venue, a new partner , and a new outlook. What was once a weeklong urban street festival has now been revamped as a two-day event held in the U.S Assure… Read More

June 2, 2017 @ 3:19 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Jay Clayton published a request for comments today tackling a controversial topic. Chair Clayton addressed the Department of Labor’s “Fiduciary Rule” that deals with the conduct of investment advisors and broker dealers. It will also impact… Read More

May 14, 2017 @ 7:01 pm By JD Alois  |  

Tennis star and Seedrs advisor Andy Murray has invested in three early-stage UK businesses. The Seedrs listed companies include Den, Morpher and Landbay. Murray’s Seedrs originated portfolio now stands at over 20 companies, according to the platform.  As has been the case in the past, Murray… Read More

May 4, 2017 @ 4:41 am By Erin Hobey  |  

Co-founded in 2011 by Helen Boyle and Claire Ollard, The Dip Society offers healthy dips and pâtés in several British retailers and independent shops including Selfridges, Booths and Ocado. Primed for further growth, the all-female executive team has paired with Seedrs to raise £300,000 by way of… Read More

April 25, 2017 @ 9:49 am By JD Alois  |  

Chichester Member of Parliament Andrew Tyrie has announced he will not stand for election this coming June. Tyrie has been the highly influential Chair of the Commons Treasury Select Committee since 2010. The MP released a statement on his decision, saying; “After very careful thought,… Read More

April 13, 2017 @ 12:34 pm By JD Alois  |  

BrewDog released impressive news this week. The UK-based craft brewery received £213 million for a 22% investment from private equity firm TSG – an entity with $5 billion in assets under management. The investment delivered a £1 billion valuation on the fast growing brewery –… Read More

April 5, 2017 @ 4:38 pm By JD Alois  |  

Fundrise is adding a new investment vehicle to its growing list of opportunities for smaller investors. This time the real estate marketplace has filed a Form 1-A with the SEC for a “Fundrise For-Sale Housing eFUND”. Fundrise started as a pure real-estate crowdfunding platform offering… Read More

March 27, 2017 @ 9:28 am By JD Alois  |  

Entrepreneurial Scotland is preparing for its forthcoming Entrepreneurial Scotland Summit scheduled to take place this coming May. Scotland’s leading entrepreneurial membership network says it has assembled a world-class roster of speakers who will share their insights with Scotland’s entrepreneurial leaders. During times of Brexit and… Read More

March 24, 2017 @ 3:16 pm By JD Alois  |  

The Subcommittee on Financial Institutions, part of the House Financial Services Committee, has scheduled a hearing on the state of bank lending in the US. The hearing will take place at 2PM Tuesday, March 28th. Typically these hearings are live-streamed on the HFSC website. The… Read More

March 24, 2017 @ 5:33 am By Erin Hobey  |  

“I was attracted to the MNP Auctioneers business because it will bring new opportunities to South East Asia as evidenced by the success of Christie’s and Sotheby’s for this industry,” Dato Wei Chuan Beng commented. “I think ECF provides value to MNP as it opens the… Read More

March 9, 2017 @ 5:04 pm By JD Alois  |  

The House Financial Services Committee (HFSC) approved six bills today, each designed to improve the environment for small business. All of these bills had previously passed the Committee in a prior iteration. Several had been approved by the full House. HFCS Chairman Jeb Hensarling commented… Read More

March 6, 2017 @ 7:30 am By JD Alois  |  

LendInvest, an online property finance marketplace, is demanding the government to revise its treatment of small and medium-sized property investment and development companies. Noting that four in five SMEhouse builders have disappeared since last housebuilding boom, LendInvest is calling on the government to recognize the… Read More

February 21, 2017 @ 8:58 pm By JD Alois  |  

  Sara Hanks is well known in the alternative finance/crowdfunding space. Hanks is CEO and founder of CrowdCheck –  a due diligence, disclosure and compliance services for online capital formation. She is a Board member of CFIRA and is the current Chair of the SEC’s… Read More

February 14, 2017 @ 4:59 pm By JD Alois  |  

Lending Club (NYSE:LC) has reported Q4 2016 earnings along with forward-looking statements for 2017. Lending Club reported that loan originations in Q4 of 2016 were $1.99 billion, or 1% higher compared to the $1.97 billion reported in Q3 of 2016 and down 23% compared to $2.58 billion in the… Read More