Finovate Alumni News

Around the web

  • Digital Finance Institute features Ethoca, Financeit, Flybits, Horizn, On Deck Canada, Salt Edge, Sensibill, and TickSmith in its look at the top fintech companies in Canada in 2019.
  • AdviceRobo launches new pan-European PSD2 categorization and default prediction API for lenders, CatRobo.
  • Thomson Reuters purchases regtech collaboration platform, HighQ.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Financeit to Power Mobile POS Financing for ServiceTitan

Financeit to Power Mobile POS Financing for ServiceTitan


Point of sale lending company Financeit teamed up with ServiceTitan this week to help Canadian home service contractors offer their homeowner clients immediate, integrated financing options.

“Alleviating home renovation debt and accelerating the home improvement business is an important focus for Financeit,” said the company’s Founder and CEO Michael Garrity. “Through this partnership, we’re providing ServiceTitan’s Canadian customers an integrated and efficient way to finance any project quickly and hassle free, beneficial to both homeowners and contractors.”

ServiceTitan is an all-in-one software solution for home services businesses such as residential HVAC, plumbing, and electrical. The company’s tools range from client scheduling and service dispatching to accounting, payroll, marketing, and more.

The Financeit integration, which taps Financeit’s payment plans, will help ServiceTitan’s contractor clients close larger deals more easily, as well as sell upgrades and higher-end products.

Financeit made its U.S. debut at FinovateFall 2013 in a joint demo with fellow Finovate alum FIS. In 2017, the company closed an investment round with Goldman Sachs that gave the financier a majority stake in the Toronto-based fintech.

Founded in 2011, Financeit has amassed more than 7,000 merchant partners and processed more than $3 billion (C$3.6 billion) in loan applications. The company has raised $38.4 million.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Kazakh Eurasian Bank Upgrades Cash Tech with Fiserv.
  • Token.io Teams Up with Omnio Group to Boost Open Banking.
  • Financeit to Power Mobile POS Financing for ServiceTitan.
  • Expensify Integrates with Southeast Asia Ridesharing Company Grab.

Around the web

  • The Five Minute Founder podcast interviews Jake Tyler, Finn AI CEO.
  • STRANDS and adorsys expand their partnership for digital transformation for global financial services.
  • Signifyd to power fraud protection for Solupay’s NetSuite SuitePayments.
  • Kony ships Kony Quantum for Microsoft Azure and Kony DBX digital banking suite on Kony Quantum for Azure.
  • Connect Financial Software Solutions partners with CuneXus to offer the CuneXus perpetual loan automation platform to its credit union clients.
  • Georg von Brevern joins Ixaris as Chief Legal and Compliance Officer.
  • Telenor to acquire majority stake in the Finnish telecom operator DNA.
  • Crypterium launches Crypterium SX, an AI-based system that ensures all transactions get the best exchange rates available.
  • Omnio Group and Token.io partner to deliver open banking and PSD2 compliance to Omnio’s financial institution customers.
  • Raiffeisen Bank International partners with Feedzai to bring advanced ML to European banking to fight fraud.
  • Jack Henry’s ProfitStars unveils Gladiator Total Protect, a suite of managed IT, network security, and compliance services to enhance banks’ cybersecurity and compliance management.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Onfido to Power KYC for Arro Money.
  • IdentityMind Global Introduces Anti-Fraud Solution for ICOs.
  • Entrust Datacard Teams with Gemalto.

Around the web

  • Fiserv sells 55% of Lending Solutions business to Warburg Pincus.
  • Lendio announces new Lendio franchise in New Hampshire’s Seacoast Region.
  • Financeit appoints Dante Tamburro as general counsel and Chief Compliance Officer.
  • Ripple to power instant payments to China courtesy of new partnership with LianLian International.
  • The Future Laboratory leverages technology from Quid to build its Trends of the Trends 2018 report.
  • Mint2Save reviews universal mobile wallet app, Soundpays.
  • Gartner recognizes NICE as a leader in Workforce Engagement Management for a second year in a row.
  • PYMNTS interviews Jumio Director of Product Management, Reinhard Hochrieser on the challenges of abandonment in online banking.
  • Expensify unveils website enhancements to improve credit card import, simplify billing currency section.
  • Lend Street Financial and Marqeta earn spots in The Tech Tribune’s list of the 10 Best Tech Startups in Oakland.
  • National Australia Bank (NAB) to allow business customers to make payments directly via Xero’s accounting platform rather than its own online banking site.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Financeit Recapitalizaton Gives Goldman Sachs Majority Stake

Financeit Recapitalizaton Gives Goldman Sachs Majority Stake

Point-of-sale financing provider Financeit completed an investment round today with existing shareholder Goldman Sachs. The round gives the firm a majority stake in the Toronto-based fintech.

Michael Garrity, CEO and President of Financeit, said the investment was a sign of Goldman Sachs’ “continued confidence in our leadership team, our business model, our platform, and the ability to grow our service.” He highlighted the recent integration with Centah, a SaaS workflow and lead management solutions provider, as an opportunity to expand into the home improvement industry “from lead generation to closing the sale.”

Financeit helps merchants increase closing rates and transaction sizes by enabling them to offer customers affordable monthly or bi-weekly payment plans. The cloud-based technology provides a fast and transparent application process for consumers, and helps merchants better manage cashflow, get paid sooner, and offer customers additional payment options. Financeit is free to use, and requires no merchant fees.

But Financeit adds a twist. “We service the transaction on both sides,” Garrity explained during his Finovate demo. “On one side we have a set of merchant partners who rely on us to power sales at the point-of-sale every day with our innovative solutions. On the other side, we have a set of financial institutions who rely on us to originate and to manage these loans on their behalf in their name and within their compliance framework.”

Financeit most recently demonstrated its technology at FinovateFall 2014, during which the company, in partnership with fellow Finovate alum FIS, launched its U.S.-compliant POS financing platform. Founded in 2011, Financeit was named to CB Insights’ Fintech 250 list in July and in June, the company received new funding capacity of $85 million from a “major Canadian life insurance company.” Since inception, the company has worked with more than 7,000 merchant partners in Canada and processed more than $2.5 billion in loan applications.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Net Neutrality: Pay Up for Fast Fintech or Let the Invisible Hand be Your Guide?
  • Financeit Recapitalization Gives Goldman Sachs Majority Stake
  • Symbiont Smart Contracts to Simplify Index Data Sharing for Vanguard

Around the web

  • Pindrop and Lloyds Banking Group win Gold Award for ‘best risk and fraud management programme’ at the European Contact Centre & Customer Service Awards.
  • Socure named one of the Top AI Companies in the world by CB Insights.
  • GreenKey joins Symphony Software Foundation.
  • Argentine digital consumer lender Wenance chooses Mambu’s SaaS engine.
  • Finicity integrates its asset verification tool into Black Knight’s LoanSphere Exchange Digital platform.
  • HousingWire features Roostify and its focus on the consumer experience.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

44 Alums Populate CB Insights’ Fintech 250 List

44 Alums Populate CB Insights’ Fintech 250 List

This week, CB Insights unveiled its Fintech 250 list. The research outfit selected 250 emerging, private companies in 17 sub-sectors of fintech that are changing the face of financial services. The roster includes 44 Finovate and FinDEVr alums that were selected using CB Insights’ data-driven process that analyzes company momentum, market participation, funds raised, and investor quality.

The list is in alphabetical order.

Algomi

AutoGravity

Avalara

Behalf

Betterment

Blend

Chain

Coinbase

Credit Karma

Currencycloud

CurrencyFair

Fenergo

Financeit

Gusto (formerly ZenPayroll)

Juvo

Kabbage

Kensho

Kreditech

Klarna

LendUp

Moneytree

PayNearMe

Payoneer

Personal Capital

Plaid

Quantopian

Quovo

Revolut

Ripple Labs

Roostify

Signifyd

SocietyOne

Socure

Tink

Token

Tradeshift

Transferwise

TrueAccord

Trulioo

VATBox

Wealthfront

Xignite

Zooz

Zopa

Financeit Receives New Funding Capacity of $85 Million

Financeit Receives New Funding Capacity of $85 Million

Point-of-sale consumer financing company Financeit announced $85 million in new funding capacity this week. The funds are made available to the Canada-based company through a $75 million renewable securitization facility and $10 million warehouse line of credit.

The warehouse line of credit comes from a major Canadian life insurance company. While Financeit declined to name the specific contributor, the company said it is a “major” player in the space. Financeit COO Casper Wong said, “We have a history of managing successful securitization programs, and we’re thrilled to be launching this new partnership.” He added, “We see this as the natural evolution of our growth and a major milestone. The company is a known leader in this space and we’re proud to be working with them.”

Financeit will use the new funds to “execute on its growth strategy.” Since acquiring TD Bank’s home improvement financing assets in September 2016, Financeit has experienced notable growth. The company’s founder Michael Garrity said last December that the deal had “transformed the business” and doubled its loan value and revenue. Because of this success, Garrity went on to state that he is open to considering more acquisitions.

In October 2016, Financeit closed on $17 million in venture funding from the Pritzker Organization and DNS Capital to fund the $339 million purchase of TD Bank’s home improvement financing assets and to fuel the company’s growth. Earlier in 2016, Financeit debuted its direct-to-consumer financing platform, Financeit Direct, which enables consumers to apply for funds via their mobile device. At FinovateFall 2014, Financeit made its U.S. debut in conjunction with FIS.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Sandstone Technology Inks Digital Banking Deal with SBS Bank.
  • Financeit Receives New Funding Capacity of $85 Million.

On FinDEVr.com

Around the web

  • Misys adds Synechron to its InFusion Partner Program.
  • Fiserv leverages robo-advisory and automation technology from fellow Finovate alum Trizic to enhance its wealth management solutions.
  • Bento Chief Operations Officer Sean Anderson discusses the future of regtech and the problem of one-size-fits-all compliance programs.
  • The 2017 NSS Labs gives Check Point Software Technologies a ‘Recommended’ rating.
  • Money Marketing features Scalable Capital.
  • City of Memphis to leverage Tuition.io to offer student loan debt reduction program for employees.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Behavioral Biometrics Startup Zighra Lands $1 Million in Seed Funding
  • Tuition.io Appoints Former Yahoo CEO Scott Thompson as New CEO

Around the web

  • Commerce Bank chooses Temenos to upgrade core deposit banking system.
  • ThetaRay earns recognition from CIO Review as a top 20 financial services provider for 2016.
  • Financeit reports a doubling of its business since acquiring the home improvement financing assets of TD Bank.
  • Green Dot teams with WalMart to encourage Americans to build savings.
  • Bizfi expands its business lending capabilities through a new partnership with InterNex Capital.
  • OnWallStreet recommends advisers keep their eyes on Wealthfront’s Andy Rachleff; SigFig’s Mike Sha; and Betterment’s Jon Stein.
  • Passport acquires Arizona-based mobile parking payment startup ParkX.
  • P2P lender SocietyOne facilitates $126 million in loans in 2016, finishing a record-breaking year.
  • InComm expands partnership with Target Australia to offer gift cards in stores and online.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Financeit’s Fresh $17 Million to Fund TD Financing Acquisition

Financeit’s Fresh $17 Million to Fund TD Financing Acquisition

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Today, Financeit pulled in a $17 million venture funding round that was led by new investors Pritzker family business interests advised by The Pritzker Organization and DNS Capital. Existing investors also contributed. The new installment boosts the Canada-based company’s total funding to more than $38 million since it was established in 2011.

This comes less than a month after Financeit announced the acquisition of TD Bank Group’s indirect home improvement financing assets. Today’s installment will be used to fund the $339 million transaction, which included the purchase of more than 800 merchant dealer agreements. Once things have settled from the deal, Financeit will be servicing 45,000 existing TD consumer loans.

The secondary purpose of today’s round will be to “support the ongoing needs of the company as it continues its rapid growth.” In a press release, Michael Garrity, founder and CEO of Financeit, said, “As more merchants embrace the benefits of offering cloud and mobile-based financing options to their customers, Financeit expects to increase its sizable signature in this market. We continue to focus on innovation for our merchant partners and market growth through both organic tactics and acquisition.” The company has already increased its lending activity in the home improvement industry by almost 2X since 2015.

Last month, Financeit made headlines when it recruited Ian Hanning, the CFO from Capital One Canada. Earlier this fall the company debuted its direct-to-consumer financing platform, Financeit Direct, which enables consumers to apply for funds via their mobile device. At FinovateFall 2014, Financeit made its U.S. debut in conjunction with FIS.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • A Deep Dive into the Upcoming FinDEVr Silicon Valley 2016

Around the web

  • Idaho Central CU to deploy Alkami ORB platform.
  • Thomson Reuters unveils blockchain dev platform, BlockOne ID.
  • Banking Technology looks at Misys and its plans for a November IPO.
  • Revolut partners with Bank of Lithuania to promote cross-border payments.
  • Hyperwallet introduces its Tax Compliance Services initiative.
  • Cloud Lending Solutions appoints new chief revenue officer and chief financial officer.
  • Yandex.Money to offer mobile money-transfers and support-group chats for crowdfunding via Apple’s iMessage.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.