Author: David Penn

Spiff Raises $150,000; Adopts Tech Talent from Fink

Spiff Raises $150,000; Adopts Tech Talent from Fink
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Spiff

Spiff_homepage_July2016

Spiff is now $150,000 (NOK 1.3 million) closer to its planned launch in Norway this fall. The financing was announced by Spiff CEO and founder Carl Nicolai Wessman on Shifter.com and shared with readers on the new Spiff blog. The investment comes a year after the company raised more than $300,000 (NOK 3.5 million) from a group of investors including Founders Fund, and Sverre Munck, the chairman of Opera Software.

The current financing was led by Silvija Sere and Mildrid Raade, veteran investors in the industry, and the company’s first female angel investors. “We built a product for women, so it makes sense to want women on-board,” Spiff’s blog post read this morning. “However there are actually very few women that make angel investments today. That’s why we’re incredibly excited to introduce our first female angel investors.”

Spiff_stage_FEU2016b

From left: CMO Kristin Moller and CEO Carl Wessmann, founder, demonstrated the Spiff app at FinovateEurope 2016 in London.

“I started Spiff (two) years ago from my own savings with Steve Mellbye-Stolen,” Wessman says. “Now we (raise) NOK 1.3 million, and (we are) particularly pleased that it came from two women investors.” Silvija Seres is a partner at TechnoRocks and serves on the boards of a number of financial services and technology companies, including Nordea. Mildrid Raade is a marketing strategist and private angel investor who recently finished an executive MBA thesis on disruption in banking.

In addition to the funding news, Spiff reported that it is joining forces with Fink, a developer startup with experience working for companies such as Microsoft as well as fellow Finovate alums Telenor and Encap Security. Fink will handle engineering with founding partner Svein Halvorsen joining Spiff in August. Calling Fink a match in terms of values, Spiff’s Wessmann praised the team of full-stack developers as “perhaps among Europe’s best.”

Founded in January 2015 and headquartered in Oslo, Norway, Spiff previewed its savings app and service designed especially for women at FinovateEurope 2016 in London. Check out our Finovate Debut post on Spiff from this spring.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Aire, Bill.com, EverSafe, Fiserv, Kasasa, Moven, Ormsby Street, Revolut, Spiff, Student Loan Genius, TickSmith

On Finovate.com

  • Revolut Lands $8.7 Million, Launches Crowdfunding Campaign
  • Spiff Raises $150,000; Adopts Tech Talent from Fink

Around the web

  • Asset TV interviews CEO Tony Aguilar, founder, Student Loan Genius.
  • Business Quarter profiles Ormsby Street MD, Martin Campbell.
  • TechCityNews features Aire in an issue devoted to artificial intelligence.
  • TickSmith upgrades its TickVault Platform with file inventory module.
  • Bank Info Security interviews Fiserv anti-fraud specialist, Andrew Davies.
  • CNBC column on financial fraud and retirees quotes Liz Loewy, general counsel for EverSafe.
  • Bill.com launches Bookkeeping Accelerator Program.
  • CNBC features Moven founder and CEO Brett King speaking about his newest book, “Augmented: Life in the Smart Lane.”
  • Kasasa Named One of the Best Places to Work in Austin for a Second Consecutive Year.

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.

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Financial Guard Acquired By Legg Mason

Financial Guard Acquired By Legg Mason
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Financial Guard

FinancialGuard_homepage_July2016

Legg Mason has acquired a majority stake in online investment adviser Financial Guard. Terms were not disclosed. Financial Guard will become a part of Legg Mason’s alternative distribution strategies business which specializes in helping the global asset manager’s investment affiliates leverage financial technology to serve customers better.

Global Head of Distribution for Legg Mason, Terence Johnson, highlighted this point, saying that technology has played a major role in “redefining consumer expectations” and that financial services companies “need a comprehensive, accessible, secure technology solution to serve their clients in this dynamic environment.” Johnson praised Financial Guard’s “simple and scalable platform” for both active and passive investing, saying the combination of the online technology platform and Legg Mason’s investment offerings would be a boon for its partners and their customers.

FinancialGuard_stage_FF2013

Left to right: Business Development Director A.J. Remlinger and President Kevin Pohmer demonstrated Financial Guard at FinovateFall 2013 in New York.

“We are excited to combine our intuitive, wide-ranging technology solution with Legg Mason’s diverse investment capabilities, scale and global reach,” said Cary Jenkins, chief innovation officer for Financial Guard. “As adoption of technology-enabled advice grows, we believe we will be well-positioned to serve the adviser channel.”

Jenkins also highlighted the retirement market in particular as an area where Financial Guard may be especially helpful to plan sponsors and “the smaller segment of the market that will continue to need advice.” As part of the acquisition, Legg Mason will also be adding to the Financial Guard platform with other investment solutions from its nine independent investment advisers, including from QS Investors.

Founded in 2010 and headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, Financial Guard demonstrated its technology at FinovateFall 2013. The company, which has been profiled in Barron’s, Bloomberg.com, Employee Benefit News, launched its enhanced fee-transparency service in May of last year.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Cachet Financial Solutions, Corezoid, Dwolla, Experian, Financial Guard, FIS, Gusto, iSignthis, Jwaala, Neustar

On Finovate.com

  • Experian and Neustar Partner to Empower Marketers with More Data
  • Financial Guard Acquired by Legg Mason

Around the web

  • FIS wins “Most Disruptive” award at 2016 PYMNTS.com/Alexa Challenge.
  • Corezoid’s Alexander Vityaz talks chatbots and the mobile OS market in Venture Beat.
  • iSignthis to provide automated, digital KYC solution for TRADOLOGIC.
  • Cachet Financial launches two new enhancements to its Select Business Merchant Capture Solution.
  • Dwolla hints at a new dashboard for white-label integrations.
  • Entrepreneur interviews Josh Reeves, Gusto co-founder and CEO.
  • Jwaala now powers mobile banking for Avadian CU.

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.

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defi SOLUTIONS to Launch Full-Service Analytics and Reporting Platform by Year’s End

defi SOLUTIONS to Launch Full-Service Analytics and Reporting Platform by Year’s End
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: defi Solutions

defisolutions_homepage_July2016

When the going gets tough, the tough get analytics (and reporting).

Auto-lending loan-origination service (LOS) provider defi SOLUTIONS will soon offer lenders a full-service analytics and reporting platform. Pointing to the difficulties lenders have in gaining meaningful insights from increasingly sizable and diverse customer data, defi SOLUTIONS’ ANALYTICS platform promises lenders “big company analytics and strategic insight at an affordable price.”

defi SOLUTIONS’ founder and CEO Stephanie Alsbrooks said the new analytics platform will help lenders manage data in the same way her company’s signature solution helps lenders improve their loan-origination system-process. The reporting feature of ANALYTICS will enable lenders to track loan originations, as well as credit-risk performance and profitability. And courtesy of a partnership with Integrated Fintech, defi ANALYTICS will provide lenders with risk management and strategic consulting, as well. The solution, with a base reporting module, is expected to be available at the end of 2016, with additional modules added in 2017.

defiSolutions_stage_FS2014

Left to right: CEO Stephanie Alsbrooks, founder, and Senior Engineer Chris Holt demonstrated defi SOLUTIONS at FinovateSpring 2014 in San Jose.

In the meanwhile, defi SOLUTIONS has already had a very busy start to its summer. In June alone, the company promoted its director of quality, Robert Dufalo, to chief technology officer; announced that Heritage Acceptance Corporation would go live with its LOS technology; and helped Jet Capital launch the latest version of its loan application-processing solution, which included core evaluation software from defi SOLUTIONS. In May, the company announced a partnership with First Access Funding Corporation, bringing its automated LOS technology to the Canadian non-prime automotive finance company.

Founded in 2012 and headquartered in Grapevine, Texas, defi SOLUTIONS demonstrated its technology at FinovateSpring 2014.

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Ping Identity Unveils Security, Usability Upgrades to IDaaS Platform

Ping Identity Unveils Security, Usability Upgrades to IDaaS Platform
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Ping Identity

PingIdentity_homepage_July2016

Ping Identity launched a series of enhancements to its Identity-as-a-Service (IDaaS) technology to improve security and ease-of-use for end users. Ping Identity founder and CEO Andre Durand said the upgrades would “(ensure) that enterprises can create trusted mobile experiences with very little friction, while also supporting IT’s need to move quickly without compromising quality.”

On the security side, key upgrades to the platform include secure, privileged access and support for Windows Remote Desktop, including multifactor-authentication support. To improve usability, Ping Identity has built a consistent UX across mobile devices and improved the UI both for PingOne and the PingOne cloud. FIs and other organizations will benefit from opportunities to co-brand or white-label Ping’s mobile multifactor authentication as well.

“Mobility, combined with unrelenting phishing attacks, have caused multifactor authentication to evolve from a ‘nice-to-have’ to a ‘must-have,'” Durand said. “But it can’t come at the cost of the seamless experience people have come to expect.”

Founded in 2003 and headquartered in Denver, Colorado, Ping Identity demonstrated its PingFederate, Cloud Identity Connectors, and integrations with third-party solutions at FinovateEurope 2012. This February, Ping Identity announced a series of new features to its Ping Federate solution, including elastic scalability, which enables IT to dynamically change the size of AWS and OpenStack environments, and contextual multifactor authentication, that gives IT the ability to change system access requirements under various circumstances.

Ping Identity was acquired by private equity firm, Vista Equity Partners, in June for an undisclosed sum. The company had raised more than $128 million in funding prior to being purchased.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Buzz Points, Coinbase, defi Solutions, eMoney Advisor, Holvi, iSignthis, Ixaris, Jack Henry, Lending Club, Misys, Ping Identity, ProfitStars, Risk Ident, WattzOn

On Finovate.com

  • Ping Identity Unveils Security, Usability Upgrades to IDaaS Platform.
  • defi SOLUTIONS to Launch Full-Service Analytics and Reporting Platform by Year’s End
  • Coinbase Lands $10.5 Million in Strategic Investment from Bank of Tokyo Mitsubishi UFJ

Around the web

  • Misys honored by Celent Model Bank Awards for its work with Russia’s Alfa-Bank.
  • Holvi launches new debit card, Holvi Business MasterCard.
  • Risk Ident CEO Roberto Valerio writes about fighting account-takeover fraud.
  • Ixaris helps Amadeus build prepaid B2B wallet.
  • WattzOn unveils three new web and mobile tools for monitoring and managing utility bills.
  • The Street: Lending Club ‘Platform Investors’ Are Slowly Returning Despite Recent Hiccups
  • Buzz Points joins Jack Henry’s Symitar Vendor Integration Program.
  • iSignthis integrates with XM.COM to deliver due diligence Digital KYC service.
  • ProfitStars Ranked Among Top-50 Providers in MSPmentor 501 Global Edition.

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.

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Ripple Adds Multi-Sign Functionality to its Consensus Ledger Technology

Ripple Adds Multi-Sign Functionality to its Consensus Ledger Technology
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Ripple

Ripple_homepage_July2016

Is the new multi-sign feature on the Ripple Consensus Ledger (RCL) the answer to preventing security breaches like the cyber-heist that cost the Bangladesh Bank more than $100 million?

That’s how Ripple sees it. Pointing to the problem of “outdated single-signature methods” of legacy payment networks, Ripple has introduced new multi-sign functionality for its RCL. Combined with the inherent transparency of the consensus ledger, the additional layer of control gives financial institutions another tool to combat fraud and unauthorized transactions. Pointedly, Ripple notes, this tool is not available via SWIFT, which is a major problem for FIs and a potential source of opportunity for companies like Ripple.

OpenCoin_Ripple_stage_FS2013

CEO Chris Larsen demonstrated the Ripple network at FinovateSpring 2013 in San Francisco.

“The new features found in distributed fintech solutions, such as multi-signing, are not available in traditional systems like Swift,” Ripple asserts. “Blockchain technology delivers a more robust and distributed security architecture for banks.” The multi-sign functionality on RCL will enable account holders to require more than one stakeholder to sign off on transactions. These signatures can be required from other users, other institutions, and/or other devices, making it that much more difficult for someone to make an unauthorized or fraudulent transaction.

And because Ripple’s multi-sign is “enforced by the RCL” rather than the FI itself, there is a greater chance of detecting fraud—particularly internal fraud—than with those traditional methods even if they rely on some measure of multi-signing. Ripple adds that multi-sign functionality won’t end with the RCL; the company also plans to make the technology an added feature of its Interledger Protocol (ILP).

Founded as OpenCoin in 2012, and rebranding as Ripple in 2015, the company’s founder and CEO Chris Larsen introduced the Ripple network at FinovateSpring 2013. Ripple announced that it added seven banks to its list of FIs testing cross-border payments using its technology in June, the same month the company received a BitLicense to trade virtual currencies in New York.

 

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NICE Unveils New Recording Technology for Skype for Business

NICE Unveils New Recording Technology for Skype for Business
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: NICE Systems

NICE_homepage_July2016

Now your Skype for Business conversations can be recorded for quality assurance purposes, too.

NICE unveiled the new edition of its recording technology for Microsoft’s Skype for Business communications platform. Designed to help financial institutions meet increasingly challenging regulatory and compliance standards, NICE Skype for Business supports dynamic, selective recording that is customizable to specific compliance policies. In addition, the technology features advanced search and monitoring, automated capture and retention, and instant retrieval.

NICE_stage_FEU2015

Left to right: Jade Kahn, marketing strategy manager; Elad Hoffman, director of sales, EMEA; and Audelia Boker, director of demand generation, EMEA, demoed NICE’s real-time authentication at FinovateEurope 2015.

Calling the new recording functionality a “natural extension” of the company’s commitment to helping financial markets meet compliance needs, NICE Executive Vice President Chris Wooten said, “More broadly, we expect Skype for Business to disrupt the enterprise-based unified-communications market across the board in coming years.” The new solution builds upon NICE’s six-year relationship with Skype for Business predecessor Microsoft Lync.

With more than 25,000 organizations in more than 150 countries using its technology, NICE counts more than 80 of the Fortune 100 among its customers. Founded in 1986 and headquartered in Raanana, Israel, NICE has made recent headlines as an enabler of smaller tech companies. NICE participated in the $3 million, Liberty Global Ventures-led investment in fellow Finovate alum, CallVU, in June, and acquired customer experience specialist, inContact, for $940 million in May. Also in May 2016, NICE announced that its automation technology was deployed to fight credit card fraud at Italian bank, Banca Popolare di Sondrio.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: ACI Worldwide, CustomerXPs, Jack Henry, Jumio, NICE Systems, PayActiv, Ripple, Stocktwits, ThreatMetrix, Token

On Finovate.com

  • Jumio to Power KYC & AML Services for Krypto Commerce
  • NICE Unveils New Recording Technology for Skype for Business
  • Ripple Adds Multi-Sign Functionality to Consensus Ledger Technology

Around the web

  • New York Times DealBook looks at new payday options such as PayActiv.
  • ACI Worldwide taps Marco Bravo as VP for Latin America.
  • PYMNTS talks to Token CEO Steve Kirsh about how Token helps banks comply with the EU’s PSD2.
  • Clari5 Enterprise Fraud Management from CustomerXPs named Best Fraud Detection Product Award at Operational Risk Awards held by Operational Risk magazine and Risk.net.
  • David Foss officially appointed new CEO at Jack Henry.
  • ThreatMetrix sees 52% YOY revenue growth, now serves 17 top global FIs.

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.

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MaxMyInterest Celebrates Third Anniversary with Support for TD Bank

MaxMyInterest Celebrates Third Anniversary with Support for TD Bank
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: MaxMyInterest

MaxMyInterest_homepage_July2016

Max, the intelligent cash-management solution for high-net-worth individuals, announced its third anniversary last week with news that the platform now supports TD Bank accounts. This brings the total number of checking and brokerage accounts supported by Max to ten, with more on the way.

In an email, the company reflected on 2015, highlighting some of the year’s biggest highlights: Max built its Common Application, which makes managing multiple accounts easier, and its Advisor Dashboard gives advisers the ability to better work with clients on the platform. 2015 was also the year that Max added support for accounts from FIs including Fidelity, Goldman Sachs, and US Bank. “We see an exciting year ahead and look forward to helping our members continue to more effectively manage their cash,” the email read.

Max_stage_FF2014

(Left to right): CEO Gary Zimmerman (founder) and Richard Wu, director of engineering, demonstrated MaxMyInterest at FinovateFall 2014 in New York.

MaxMyInterest helps to mass affluent and high net worth investors and to make the most of their cash in this low-interest rate environment. The technology dynamically allocates the client-cash to make sure  it is earning the highest possible interest rate as well as ensuring that cash levels per account remain below FDIC limits. The platform also provides investors with other cash-management tools such as a monthly cash sweep and an intelligent funds transfer solution that makes it easier for investors to allocate funds between different accounts. The company says that those using its platform typically earn 0.7 to 0.9% more than they currently earn at traditional banks. Read our Finovate Debuts feature on MaxMyInterest for more.

Founded in 2013 and headquartered in New York City, MaxMyInterest demonstrated its intelligent cash-management solution at FinovateFall 2014. The company launched its client-invitation feature in May, making it easier for advisers to onboard clients, and last fall, MaxMyInterest was honored by UBS, earning a finalist spot in its Future of Finance Challenge.

 

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Twilio to Help Amazon Web Services Deliver SMS Messages

Twilio to Help Amazon Web Services Deliver SMS Messages
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Twilio

Twilio_homepage_July2016

Twilio announced this week that it was partnering with Amazon Web Services to help deliver SMS messages via Amazon’s Simple Notification Service (SNS). And while details remain scant, Twilio told TechCrunch that Amazon’s SNS will “leverage the benefits of Twilio’s Super Network.”

“Amazon Web Services truly embodies the spirit of iteration upon which Twilio was built,” Twilio CEO and co-founder Jeff Lawson said. “With this latest collaboration, we’re strengthening the communications ecosystem with scalable, efficient tools that ensure the best option for delivering a message is available.” AWS VP for Mobile and IoT Marco Argenti pointed to the importance of “efficient, scalable technology solutions” that help developers build great apps instead of simply “managing infrastructure.” He added that the two companies would “continue to work together to help empower developers to communicate with their users seamlessly across devices.”

Twilio_stage_FF2015

Marc Boroditsky, VP and GM of authentication at Twilio, demonstrated Authy OneTouch authentication at FinovateFall 2015 in New York.

This week’s announcement represents a continuation of Twilio’s relationship with Amazon and Amazon Web Services. Twilio has long used AWS to host its platform, and Amazon was one of the investors in Twilio’s $130 million Series E round last summer. Moreover, the news comes just days after Twilio’s successful initial public offering which saw its stock climb by more than 90% on its first day of trading last Thursday. Twilio trades on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol TWLO and closed at $28.79 on its opening day after being initially priced at $15 per share. Twilio’s market capitalization is $2.8 billion.

A specialist in cloud communications, Twilio’s technology enables developers to add voice, messaging, and video functionality to their mobile apps and web sites. Twilio demonstrated Authy One Touch at FinovateFall 2015, and presented its technology at FinDEVr 2015 in San Francisco later that year. The cloud communications company was founded in 2008, is headquartered in San Francisco, and has offices in New York, London, Hong Kong, Germany, Estonia, and Columbia. Last month, Twilio was named to the CNBC Disruptor 50 list for 2016 for its third consecutive year. Read more about the company’s Authy division in our Finovate Debuts feature from earlier this year.

 

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