Author: David Penn

Revolut Readies for $500 Million Series D

Revolut Readies for $500 Million Series D
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Funding, Revolut

Revolut, the multi-functional cross-border card and app, is planning a $500 million Series D investment round, potentially enlisting tech giants like Softbank to its roster of investors, reports Henry Vilar of Fintech Futures (Finovate’s sister publication).

According to City AM, the fintech has aggressive plans for expansions, with plans to launch in the U.S. after the investment round. Revolut has seen major regulatory shortcoming preventing it from starting operations there.

Australia and Japan are also on Revolut’s radar.

The round, set to take place early next year, would give the fintech the necessary boost to enter the U.S. market, a particularly difficult geography to crack.

This comes after the firm’s last funding, which had the shocking figure of $250 million.

The unicorn, which has already surpassed the $1.7 billion valuation, has grown fivefold in the past year, despite reporting annual losses.

It is not known whether Revolut’s previous backers, which include Index Ventures, Draper Esprit and DST Global, will sign on to its next round.

Earlier this year, Softbank said it planned to invest around $200 million into fintech, from its $100 billion Vision Fund.

Founded in 2013, London-based Revolut demonstrated its multi-currency card at FinovateEurope 2015. Nikolay Storonsky is founder and CEO.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

GreatHorn Unveils Comprehensive Email Security Solution for the Enterprise

GreatHorn Unveils Comprehensive Email Security Solution for the Enterprise
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: GreatHorn

Cloud-based email security specialist GreatHorn announced a major expansion of its flagship solution, GreatHorn Email Security, transforming it into a comprehensive platform to defend institutions against email-borne threats from time of delivery to post-delivery.

The new addition, GreatHorn Mailbox Protection, gives users immediate, ready access to relationship and risk data to help them when interacting with their email messages. The solution lets users know the strength of their relationship with the sender, the date of their last outbound communication with the sender, the likelihood that the sender is from the domain they say they are, and the relative risk of any embedded links within the message.

Chris Fraser (VP of Strategic Accounts and Founding Team Member) and Sean Varga (Senior Account Executive) demonstrating the GreatHorn Inbound Email Security platform at FinovateFall 2017.

“The security industry continues to treat users as the ‘weakest link’ in their security practices, rather than as intelligent, informed, and vital parts of a true security posture,” CEO and co-founder of GreatHorn Kevin O’Brien explained. In contrast, GreatHorn’s solution turns this conventional wisdom on its head, empowering “end users to take action from the front lines” to fight malicious email messages.

The solution also enables users to confirm and quarantine email phishing attempts, build personal sender block lists, and easily tag spam email and transfer it to the trash. Currently in beta, GreatHorn Mailbox Protection will be available soon through the Microsoft Office and Google Chrome Web stores.

“GreatHorn is known for industry-leading phishing protection,” O’Brien said in discussing the new comprehensive platform. “With GreatHorn Email Security, we have expanded that protection to offer enterprises a truly comprehensive email security platform, tuned to safeguard them from the full range of today’s advanced email-borne threats.” O’Brien added that, as the “most critical business communication system in existence,” email deserves “best in-class protection, not just a small point solution, plug-in, or add-on.”

GreatHorn demonstrated its Inbound Email Security platform at FinovateFall 2017. The company leverages machine learning and automated response technology to spot and counter highly targeted, malicious message-based threats before the damage takes place. The platform’s security is provided without the need for major overhead, traditional network routing solutions, or perimeter blocking.

This fall, GreatHorn announced a new partnership with dmarcian, a North Carolina-based firm that specializes in DMARC accessibility for businesses. DMARC is an email security protocol that defends against phishing, social engineering, and other impersonation-based cyberattacks. And while widely adopted by the federal government agencies, the private sector has been to embrace DMARC, with adoption rates of 21%.

“Corporate email not only serves as a company’s lifeblood, but also as a brand ambassador as workers connect with the outside world,” dmarcian CEO Tim Draegen explained. “Yet we have to recognize that universal deployment of DMARC will take years to achieve. That’s why it’s so critical for organizations to use GreatHorn to protect their email from external domain spoofs and impersonations, as well as non-authentication-related threats.”

GreatHorn has raised $8.8 million in funding, and includes TechStars, ff Venture Capital, Uncork Capital, and .406 Ventures among its investors. The company is headquartered in Belmont, Massachusetts, and was founded in 2015.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

FinovateAfrica Sneak Peek: Yoco

FinovateAfrica Sneak Peek: Yoco
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateAfrica 2018, FinovateAfrica 2018 Sneak Peek, Yoco

A look at the companies demoing live at FinovateAfrica on November 27 and 28, 2018 in Cape Town, South Africa. Register today and save your spot.

Yoco is an African technology company that builds tools and services to help small businesses get paid, run their businesses better, and grow.

Features
Yoco Capital includes:

  • Fast, simple access to a cash advance
  • No security or collateral required
  • One-of-a-kind payback method with no debit orders or late fees.

Why it’s great
Yoco Capital is the simplest, fastest way to access a cash advance for your business with an effortless, one-of-a-kind payback method.

Presenters

Bradley Wattrus, CFO and Co-Founder
Highly experienced in business strategy and venture development, Wattrus enjoys the daily challenges of the fintech industry.
LinkedIn

 

Clayton Brett, Capital Product Owner
Brett has 15 years of financial industry experience in business analysis and project management.
LinkedIn

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

FinovateAfrica Sneak Peek: OUTvest

FinovateAfrica Sneak Peek: OUTvest
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateAfrica 2018, FinovateAfrica 2018 Sneak Peek, OUTvest

A look at the companies demoing live at FinovateAfrica on November 27 and 28, 2018 in Cape Town, South Africa. Register today and save your spot.

OUTvest is a new generation wealth platform. The company has integrated wealth planning and execution and management, online or with human advisors.

Features
OUTvest built its own capabilities to design proprietary advice algorithms, investment exposures and user experience, and deliver it in a simple client experience.

Why it’s great
Imagine if investing was as easy as driving a car: all the technology is there, it’s just as easy to use.

Presenters

Grant Locke, Head of OUTvest
Locke is a CFA charterholder and has worked in the investment industry for more than 15 years in the U.K. and South Africa. He is a passionate advocate that investing is a personal finance solution.
LinkedIn

 

Niel de Bruin, Head of Operations
de Bruin is a CA(SA) and has been in the financial services industry since 2002. “He is one hell of an operator and a phenomenal business partner,” says Grant Locke.
LinkedIn

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

FinovateAfrica Sneak Peek: DocFox

FinovateAfrica Sneak Peek: DocFox
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: DocFox, FinovateAfrica 2018, FinovateAfrica 2018 Sneak Peek

A look at the companies demoing live at FinovateAfrica on November 27 and 28, 2018 in Cape Town, South Africa. Register today and save your spot.

DocFox automates compliance for the new FICA Act with document processing, client screening, risk rating, and bank account verification.

Features

  • Automate cumbersome and manual processes in compliance
  • Breeze through regulatory audits
  • Branch into new areas of business previously too high risk to enter

Why it’s great
DocFox handles the compliance needs of any organization, of any size, serving all types of clients from individuals to complex offshore structures.

Presenter

Richard Cohen, Director and Co-Founder
Cohen has been a shareholder and board member of DocFox from the inception of the company. He is a qualified economist, Chartered Accountant and a Chartered Financial Analyst.
LinkedIn

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Finovate Global: Fintech News from Around the World

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Finn.ai, Finovate Global, Ondot Systems, Tinkoff Bank

As Finovate goes increasingly global, so does our coverage of financial technology. Finovate Global: Fintech News from Around the World is our weekly look at fintech innovation in developing economies in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe.

Middle East and Northern Africa

  • Fintech digital crowdsourcing platform, Fintech Galaxy, honors leaders of MENA’s fintech industry at its FinX – Excellence in Fintech awards.
  • Entrepreneur magazine looks at how recent investment trends are impacting the growth of fintech in the MENA region.
  • ADGM announces partnership with Bahrain’s central bank to encourage innovation in financial services in both the UAE and Bahrain.

Central and South Asia

  • Bangladeshi sales automation and credit assessment firm ShopUp picks up $1.62 million in seed round led by Omidyar Network.
  • Kazakhstan’s Bank CentreCredit buys 111 ATMs with integrated security and monitoring technology from BS/2.
  • TechCrunch interviews ZestMoney CEO Lizzie Chapman on the building a fintech startup in India.

Latin America and the Caribbean

  • Decision Report features Finn AI in a look at how chatbots are revolutionizing the financial sector. In Portuguese.
  • Banco Ficensa of Honduras goes live with new core banking technology from e-IBS.
  • Brazil’s Banco Bradesco partners with Japan’s MUFG Bank to develop Ripple-based cross-border payments service.

Asia-Pacific

  • Singapore’s Grab raises $50 million in new funding from Thailand-based Kasikornbank; unveils co-branded mobile wallet, GrabPay by KBank.
  • Courtesy of a joint venture with China’s LianLian, American Express becomes the first foreign card scheme to gain direct access to China’s payment card market.
  • Ondot Systems announces new end-to-end digital card services platform for Asian banks.

Sub-Saharan Africa

  • Kenyan fintech startup Pezesha unveils financial education academy to help educate would-be borrowers.
  • Rand Merchant Investment Holding (RMI) via AlphaCode, awards R16 million to eight South African fintech startups.
  • Nigerian Vice President Yemi Osinbajo urges the nation’s banks to make reforms in order to “cope” with what he called “a quick convergence between technology and financial products.”

Central and Eastern Europe

  • Tinkoff Mobile extends service to seven additional areas of Russia including Smolensk and the Republic of Mordovia.
  • Czech Republic’s Moneta embraces cloud-based banking with test of automatic application deployment in the AWS environment.
  • Russian microfinance company MFC Zaymer joins automated P2P platform, Robo.cash.

Top image designed by Freepik

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Prosper Plans HELOC Product Launch in 2019

Prosper Plans HELOC Product Launch in 2019
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Prosper

P2P lender Prosper announced today that it will expand its offerings next year to include a new digital Home Equity Line of Credit (HELOC) product.

“We are taking advantage of our expertise in consumer credit and personal loans to build a product that removes the complexity and time-consuming barriers in applying for a HELOC,” Prosper Marketplace CEO David Kimball explained. “For many of our customers, a HELOC could be a better choice for their financial needs and we’re thrilled to be working with our bank partners to render the traditional process obsolete with a new digital HELOC process that is simple, fast, and painless.”

In a press release, Prosper cited a TransUnion study that indicated rising home values encourage homeowners to consider HELOCs as an option for financing. The study estimated that 10 million consumers would pursue HELOCs between 2018 and 2022, more than 2x the number of HELOCs taken out between 2012 and 2016.

Prosper and its bank partners will look to serve this demand by streamlining the HELOC application process, including offering an online application that can be completed in minutes, and an instant HELOC prequalification offer. No origination fee will be charged with HELOCs originated via Prosper, which pledges to offer the same competitive rates as the banks.

Founded in 2006 and one of Finovate’s earliest alums, Prosper demonstrated its P2P platform at our first conference in 2007. Since then, the company has originated more than $13 billion in loans to help borrowers finance debt consolidation, home improvement projects, medical expenses, and special occasions.

“Maintaining a balanced marketplace that provides value to both borrowers and investors remains our highest priority,” Kimball summarized when the company’s Q2 results – and its milestone of more than one million loans originated – were announced in August. “Throughout 2018, Prosper has been raising interest rates and significantly tightening credit in order to ensure that we continue to provide a fair price for borrowers and a solid risk-adjusted return for investors,” he said.

The company unveiled Q3 2018 financial results this week, underscoring Prosper’s emphasis on “credit and pricing discipline” as well as plans for new products like the new digital HELOC offering.

Prosper has raised more than $428 million in funding, most recently closing a $50 million Series G round led by FinEx Asia.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Nvstr Brings Brokerage Optimized Investing to the Masses

Nvstr Brings Brokerage Optimized Investing to the Masses
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Finovate Debuts, Nvstr

New York-based Nvstr demonstrated its machine learning-powered stock selection platform just over a year ago at FinovateFall. By leveraging technology and the collective wisdom of the investing crowd, Nvstr offers individual investors access to the same sort of “smart processes” to discover good investment opportunities and build profitable portfolios that professional investors have long enjoyed.

“Roughly half the U.S. population is invested in the stock market. But in reality, many people do not learn about investing formally. This makes it incredibly difficult to find information on investing intelligently – or to even know what to look for,” Nvstr co-founder and CEO Bernard George (pictured) explained in an email conversation.

“We understand that building a stock portfolio can be time consuming and intimidating, and that’s why we created Nvstr. Studies suggest that Americans are leaving $60 billion on the table each year due to poorly allocated portfolios,” he said.

We caught up with George to talk about the company’s technology and plans for the future. The company recently launched a promotion to add up to $500 to any newly-opened brokerage account.

Finovate: What does Nvstr do and how does it do it?

Bernard George: Our social trading platform empowers individuals to invest smarter by leveraging technology and the collective experience of other investors to make more educated investment decisions. Our software is based on independent Nobel Prize-winning research that works behind the scenes to guide users towards intelligent portfolio allocations in just one click.

Finovate: Who are your primary customers?

George: Our primary customers are individuals who already have some experience in investing. However, anyone can create a free simulated trading account to familiarize themselves with our platform and to practice investing risk-free. This is a great way for beginners or intermediate investors to get more comfortable investing before having to commit real money.

Finovate: How does Nvstr solve the problem better?

George: Existing brokerages are not designed to help customers achieve their fundamental goal, which is to build wealth by intelligently allocating their money for the long-term. Nvstr fills this void by bringing a social, technology-driven approach to investing. First-time users can buy and sell stocks (at cheaper fees than many competitors) with a front row seat for what other really successful investors are thinking and doing.

Not only can they view their portfolios, but they can collaborate and discuss investment ideas and their pros/cons. To make things better, everyone’s input on each stock is automatically summarized. This means everyone can access the key benefits – and risks – of each stock at a glance.

Finovate: Tell us about a favorite feature of the Nvstr platform.

George: Nvstr’s machine learning technology is used behind the scenes throughout the product to surface relevant and interesting ideas to the Nvstr community.  One of the most exciting implementations is the Collective Intelligence filter. This filter lets users quickly find stocks that our algorithm determines will be most interesting in based on a user’s actions on the site.

It will even tell them how these stocks might fit into their current portfolio. This list can be further filtered by traditional data like market cap, P/E ratio, industry, and more. It’s like browsing for a new TV series on Netflix, but for stocks.

Finovate: What in your background gave you the confidence to tackle this challenge?

George: We’ve been professional investors at some of the world’s most sophisticated institutions, but we’ve also experienced the frustrations of personal investing. Nvstr’s leaders are former hedge fund managers, game designers and ed tech engineers who left those industries to make intelligent investing easy and engaging.

Our team has spent time working for companies like J.P. Morgan, Merrill Lynch, The Carlyle Group, and Electronic Arts, and we know where the gaps in this market lie, and that’s what we have set out to fix.

Finovate: Where do you see Nvstr a year or two from now?

George: Nvstr is the best place for people to discuss stocks with friends and find new trade ideas from their network and a community of smart investors. As our community continues to grow, more investors will benefit from the advanced portfolio allocation and machine learning technology within the platform.

Our ultimate goal is for Nvstr to be the platform of choice for investors of all skill levels to gain insights and to build and manage their portfolios – all in one place.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Anorak Raises $6.5 Million in Series A

Anorak Raises $6.5 Million in Series A
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Anorak, Funding

In a round led by Kamet Ventures – an insurtech startup studio backed by AXA – life insurance recommendation engine Anorak Technologies has raised $6.5 million (£5 million) in new funding. The investment, which takes the U.K.-based company’s total equity financing to more than $11.6 million (£9 million), will be used to fuel further development of and applications for its technology. In a press release, Anorak specifically highlighted plans to use its life insurance recommendation engine as the basis for an advisor platform.

“The life insurance sector is on the verge of transformation and Anorak is leading the way,” Anorak co-founder and CEO David Vanek said. “Kamet’s investment enables us to deliver on our vision. We are committed to using cutting-edge technology to bring (the) life insurance sector into the digital age and make protection advice accessible to the millions unprotected in the U.K.”

Anorak leverages AI, and advanced data science, and actuarial science to build a fully automated advice platform for life insurance consumers. Designed to serve the nine million families in the U.K. that Anorak estimates are underserved, Anorak’s technology and APIs enable distribution partners to offer life insurance recommendations alongside other financial, investment, and e-commerce services.

Guillaume Borie, Chief Innovation for AXA, praised Anorak’s technology as “transformational” and underscored how the recommendation engine could be deployed in a variety of contexts. “(The technology) enables carriers to create a new breed of distribution partnerships from banking to gig economy platforms, whilst also reinventing the experience of existing intermediaries networks,” Borie said.

Anorak Technologies made its Finovate debut at the beginning of the year, demonstrating its platform at FinovateEurope. In September, the company announced that it would provide life insurance advice for users of money management app, Yolt. Also that month, Anorak teamed up with Starling Bank to provide insurance advice for customers of the U.K. mobile-only bank. The company was founded in 2016 and is headquartered in London.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Avaloq Launches New Venture Capital Fund

Avaloq Launches New Venture Capital Fund
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Avaloq

Avaloq has unleashed a new subsidiary, Avaloq Ventures, to offer venture capital funding and join the hunt for start-ups and fintech action, reports Antony Peyton of Fintech Futures (Finovate’s sister publication).

Zurich-headquartered Avaloq Ventures will enable funding for fintechs partnering with Avaloq, e.g. by offering their solutions on Avaloq’s Software Exchange.

It will be led by Johannes Minho Roth, an alternative investments and fintech entrepreneur. He worked for FiveT Capital and Baader Bank among others. Avaloq founder and group chairman Francisco Fernandez will be chairman.

Roth said: “We will look to identify, fund and support the most innovative start-ups and companies with the greatest growth potential. They will be able to leverage their access to Avaloq’s client community of more than 150 banks and wealth managers worldwide.”

Avaloq Ventures will look to partner with third-party investors such as banks, wealth and asset managers, and established fintech companies in providing capital. The size of funding will be decided on a case-by-case basis.

It naturally plans to use the Avaloq Community and Avaloq’s connections. The latter says more than 1,300 third-party fintech developers work with it and over 90 third-party fintech solutions are available on its market place.

Avaloq is confident as in April this year, for instance, the firm acquired a 10% stake in Metaco, a Lausanne-based blockchain and cryptocurrency specialist. In the future, Avaloq says it will continue to identify potential M&A deals at a group level while facilitating fintech funding through Avaloq Ventures.

Along with this news, Avaloq said it is launching 150 API endpoints during the second half of 2018.

Headquartered in Switzerland, Avaloq has more than 2,000 employees; three R&D centres in Zurich, Edinburgh and Manila; and four service centres in Switzerland, Singapore and Germany.

Avaloq demonstrated the “double marketplace” feature of its API marketplace at FinovateAsia last month, winning Best of Show. The feature encourages collaboration between fintechs and FIs by enabling both parties to offer solutions via Avaloq’s ecosystem.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Finablr Takes Majority Stake in Digital Gifting Innovator Swych

Finablr Takes Majority Stake in Digital Gifting Innovator Swych
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Mergers & Acquisitions, Swych

Global payments and foreign exchange solution platform, Finablr, has boosted its stake in – and become a majority shareholder of – digital gifting platform, Swych. The investment adds to Swych’s Series B round, and will enable the company to reach a broader international audience via Finablr’s 160+ country network.

“At Finablr, we facilitate access for consumers and businesses to the digital economy,” Finablr CEO and Executive Director Promoth Manghat explained. He praised Swych for its “distinctive business proposition that complements the services offered by the Finablr network brands.” Those brands include UAE Exchange, Xpress Money, Unimoni, Remit2India, and Ditto.

The partnership will be managed by Swych Blockchain Labs, a Swych subsidiary built to develop and incubate blockchain, payments, digital wallet, and cross border e-commerce solutions. This will enable the two firms to offer Swych’s instant, secure, personalized digital gift and incentive solutions to consumers and businesses globally.

“The presence of Finablr network companies in key international markets with millions of consumers has the potential to greatly accelerate Swych’s mission,”  Swych CEO and founder Deepak Jain said. “Finablr network brands’ entrepreneurial culture combined with its focus on innovation and strong team is highly synergistic with our own core values at Swych. This investment is a testament to the robustness of our business model and will be invaluable as we look to take digital gifting to global audiences.”

Founded in 2016 and headquartered in Plano, Texas, Swych demonstrated its blockchain-based, digital gift card platform at FinovateSpring 2016, winning Best of Show. The company returned to the Finovate stage earlier this year for FinovateSpring. Last month, Swych announced an agreement in which its digital gift card technology will power Travelex Pay, a cashless spending solution from Travelex hosted within messaging app WeChat. In August, the company reported that it was leveraging its acquisition of GiftCardsIndia to bring its blockchain-based gifting solutions to international markets.

Swych has 50,000 registered users in the United States and 100,000 users in India. With total global revenues near $20 million, the company reports more than 50 corporate customers “and growing.”

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Access Softek, AdviceRobo, BehavioSec, BLUERUSH, Bucket, CallVU, Golden, Hydrogen, identitii, iProov, James Finance, Kofax, Kony, Simple, Swych, Systelos, Tinkoff Bank

On Finovate.com

  • Finablr Takes Majority Stake in Digital Gifting Innovator Swych.
  • Simple Appoints Former Amazon Exec as CEO.

Around the web

  • Analyst Ian McKenna highlights six Finovate alums – Access Softek, Bucket Technologies, Systelos, BlueRush, Tinkoff, and Golden – in his roundup of “fintech innovators making waves.”
  • Marketing Technology Insights interviews CallVU CEO Ori Faran.
  • Hydrogen, iProov, Ocrolus, and James Finance are among 20 startups competing for top honors at the India FinTech Awards 2018.
  • The Constant Investor’s Crypto Watch interviews Identitii CEO Nick Armstrong on the role of blockchain technology in fighting cybercrime.
  • Tinkoff Mobile extends service to seven additional areas of Russia including Smolensk and the Republic of Mordovia.
  • Kofax pays $400 million in cash to buy Nuance’s imaging division.
  • Walmart’s in-store Direct2Cash service gives PayActiv users instant cash access to earned wages.
  • Kony enhances Kony AppPlatform to support progressive web apps.
  • CEO Review magazine features AdviceRobo CEO Diederick Van Thiel.
  • BehavioSec launches new features for version 5 of its behavioral biometrics platform.

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.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook