Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com:

  • Xignite Raises $20 Million in New Partnership with Tokyo’s QUICK Corporation.

Around the web:

  • Tandem, a British banking startup launched by Azimo co-founder Ricky Knox, selects the Agility platform from Fiserv.
  • Barclays and Xero forge strategic partnership.
  • Indiana’s Old National Bank completes online and mobile-banking transition to Digital Insight.
  • Let’s Talk Payments features Ayasdi, Context Relevant, and WorkFusion in a roundup of startups helping companies innovate with artificial intelligence.

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

Around the web:

  • ACI Worldwide helps deliver Domino’s secure, seamless payment experience during SuperBowl Sunday.
  • Britain’s One Financial Markets announces partnership with Swipestox to enable mobile trading. See Swipestox at FinovateEurope 2016.
  • Let’s Talk Payments features Sureify and BankBazaar in a look at insurancetech startups.
  • Wipro wins five-year, IT infrastructure transformation contract with Sweden’s ASSA ABLOY Group.
  • Trade Bank of Iraq forges strategic partnership with Misys.
  • CR2 unveils new logo, new corporate identity.
  • The Telegraph highlights Yoyo, Nutmeg, and True Potential in a column on calculating risk with facial scans.

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.

 

Advisor Software Launches Robo-advisor Platform, ASI Digital Advisor

Advisor Software Launches Robo-advisor Platform, ASI Digital Advisor

ASI_Digital_Adviso_homepage_Feb2016

Advisor Software this week introduced its white-label, robo-advisor platform, ASI Digital Advisor. The technology, announced at the TD Ameritrade National LINC conference in Florida, makes it easier for wealth managers and financial advisors to begin providing their clients with automated digital investment advice.

“By building our application in a modular fashion using APIs,” said company VP of Product Management Kevin Kraus, “we were able to develop a digital advice solution that is the most flexible and scalable on the market today.”

AdvisorSoftware_FinDEVrSF2015_stage

Pictured: Advisor Software VP of Product Management Kevin Kraus and VP of Engineering Archana Rao demonstrating their Wealth Management Cloud at FinDEVr San Francisco 2015.

ASI Digital Advisor gives wealth managers the ability to generate model portfolios, build risk- and goal-based portfolios, and automate processes such as client onboarding and rebalancing, all with a responsive design to a state-of-the-art user experience.

Chairman and CEO of Advisor Software Andrew Rudd said that the new technology was a standard-setter in terms of “usability, scalability, and flexibility in the digital advice space.”

“Competitive platforms often ask advisors to make too many compromises,” Rudd said. “With our solution, advisors can easily modernize the user experience for their clients without having to alter the way they do business.”

Advisor Software’s new solution arrives just a few weeks after the company announced major hires for the position of Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Sales. David Cooper, a former senior executive at Fiserv and Greendot, will take the helm as CTO, and Tom Flint, co-founder of Tiburon Wealth Management, will become Advisor Software’s next VP of Sales.

Founded in June 1995 and headquartered in Walnut Creek, California, Advisor Software demonstrated its Wealth Management Cloud platform at FinovateFall 2015. In its FinDEVr debut a month later, Advisor Software showed how the more than 100 APIs on its platform help developers build and deploy a wide variety of wealth management apps.

Finovate Alumni News

Around the web:

  • Blackhawk Network acquires NimbleCommerce, a digital commerce platform and network.
  • Wipro wins seven-year, IT-infrastructure contract with international insurer RSA.
  • Visa unveils its new Visa Developer Program, giving developers API-based access to many of Visa’s payment technologies.

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.

German P2P Bitcoin Lending Innovator Bitbond Launches its API

German P2P Bitcoin Lending Innovator Bitbond Launches its API

Bitbond_homepage_Feb2016

Lending and borrowing money using bitcoin just got a lot easier.

P2P bitcoin lending platform, Bitbond, has released its API for investors and developers. Quoted at Usebitcoins.info, company CEO and founder Radoslav Albrecht said the API “reflects Bitbond’s desire to make the lives of investors on our platform as easy as possible.”

Bitbond_stage_FEU2015

Pictured (left to right): Bitbond co-founders Robert Nasiadek (CTO) and Radoslav Albrecht (CEO) demonstrating Bitbond AutoInvest.

Available with complete documentation, the Bitbond API gives investors and developers the ability to “customise and automate” the entire loan process, while providing ready access to Bitbond’s entire loan history data. “This allows investors to analyze data and to craft individual investment strategies based on it,” Albrecht explained. “We are sure that developers and investors alike will get terrific value from the Bitbond API.”

A few Bitbond statistics:

  • More than 23,000 active users in more than 120 countries
  • More than 1,1000 loans originated for a loan volume of more than $340,000
  • Loans available up to $10,000 at rates beginning at 7.7%
  • Terms range from six weeks to five years

Recent headlines for Bitbond include the launch of its bitcoin purchasing power index in November, and the beginning of its bitcoin affiliate program in September. Last summer, Bitbond was recognized as a “rising fintech startup” by Coin Telegraph.

Founded in January 2013 and headquartered in Berlin, Germany, Bitbond demonstrated its AutoInvest feature at FinovateEurope 2015. The company has raised more than $940,000 in funding; its most recent investment was an angel round led by Point Nine Capital in May 2015.


For more developer-friendly news, be sure to visit our sister blog, FinDEVr.com. And remember that Very Early Bird discounts to FinDEVr New York 2016 end this Friday.

Finovate Alumni News

Around the web:

  • Nomis Solutions introduces new version of its Dynamic Pricing solution with behavioral attribute pricing and active recalibration.
  • ReBusiness Online looks at Bazaarvoice and its move into new offices in Austin.
  • Bank Innovation: Dwolla updates its API to facilitate better ACH transactions.
  • Business Insider quotes itBit CEO Chad Cascarilla on banks and the blockchain.

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 Alums Are Top Tech Startup Fundraisers in Four States

Finovate Alums Are Top Tech Startup Fundraisers in Four States

TheUSofStartups_infographic

An interesting infographic from CB Insights reveals four Finovate/FinDEVr alums to be the most well-funded tech startups in their respective states.

“Using CB Insights data, we analyzed the most well-funded startups by state, based on disclosed equity funding,” read the CB Insights blog accompanying the map. The survey did not include debt funding and companies that had to have raised at least $5 million. The survey also excluded Alaska or Hawaii, which had no qualifying startups.

Avalara_FinDEVr2015_logoAvalara (Washington State)

CashStar_Grayscale_Logo_No_TagCashStar (Maine)

edo_Interactive_logoedo Interactive (Tennessee)

 

Kabbage_logoKabbage (Georgia)

For more on funding for Finovate alums, check out our funding year-in-review, Finovate Alums Raise More than $3 Billion in 2015.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com:

  • A Cartographer’s Guide to FinovateEurope.

Around the web:

  • Thinking Capital to power new Staples Business Loans program for small businesses in Canada.
  • Markit lands three new customers for its KY3P (Know Your Third Party) platform, including fellow alum, Luxoft.
  • VentureBeat looks at Expensify and its plans for European expansion.
  • Currency One launches Valuto in Europe. See the live demo at FinovateEurope next week in London.
  • American Banker: OnDeck Capital adds former E-Trade exec to board.
  • Insuritas to power insurance solution for Bank of England and Bank of England Mortgage.

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:

  • BlackRock’s FutureAdvisor Collaborating with RBC Wealth Management.

Around the web:

  • LHV, Estonia’s largest domestic bank, integrates with the TransferWise API.
  • Quorum Federal Credit Union implements automated workflow solution from Jack Henry & Associates’ Symitar division.
  • FIS launches ATM TestBench, providing banks with automated testing for their physical ATMs.
  • Online trading platform Investfly integrates with the Tradier brokerage API.
  • Malauzai surpasses 1 million SmartApp downloads.
  • Product Review publishes positive assessment of Cortera Pulse.
  • Kasasa launches in-branch-sales Tool Builder with optional identity protection.

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 Alums Raise More Than $3 Billion in 2015

Finovate Alums Raise More Than $3 Billion in 2015

moneybag_goldcoinsMaybe it’s passé to say another year was a “banner year” for investment in fintech. But there is no better way to describe the more than $3 billion in funding raised by Finovate alums in 2015.

We previewed our alum funding for 2015 a few weeks ago with a look at investment in European-based alums. Now we present the numbers for the entire world.

Finovate alums by year

Highlights from 2015

  • Worldwide, 116 Finovate alums raised $3.1 billion
  • Credit Karma raised the largest amount of capital, pulling in $175 million in June. Kabbage came in second with $135 million in October.
  • April may be poetry’s cruelest month, but for Finovate alums, it was the most lucrative with $400 million raised by 15 companies. January was a close second, with $340 million raised by 14 companies.
  • April was also the biggest month for number of deals with 15. January, May, and July were a close second with 14 deals each.

Alum funding by month

December

November

October

September

Mergers & Acquisitions: Prosper signals Move into PFM with $30 Million Acquisition of BillGuard.

August

Mergers & Acquisitions: FutureAdvisor acquired by BlackRock.

July

June

May

Honorable mention: Zenefits raises $500 million (company founded by serial entrepreneur Parker Conrad, founder of alums SigFig and Wikinvest).

April

Mergers & Acquisitions: SaveUp purchased by Chicago-area entrepreneur, Paul J. Bart; Early Warning acquires Authentify

March

Mergers & Acquisitions: Multi-Factor Authentication Specialist Toopher Acquired by Salesforce; ReadyforZero Acquired by Avant in cash and stock deal; printer-giant Lexmark to acquire Kofax for $1 billion; LearnVest acquired by Northwestern Mutual for more than $250 million.

February

Mergers & Acquisitions: Samsung acquisition of LoopPay puts Apple Pay on notice.

January

Mergers & Acquisitions: Akimbo Financial acquired by Payment Data Systems.


*New alum; funds raised prior to Finovate appearance.

Funding that companies received before they first appeared at Finovate was not counted in overall totals.

Questions? Comments? Email us at research@finovate.com.

Former HP Exec Rob Binns Appointed New CFO at Misys

Former HP Exec Rob Binns Appointed New CFO at Misys

Misys_homepage_Feb2016

Rob Binns will join Misys as the company’s new CFO; he formerly served as the head of treasury and investor relations at Hewlett-Packard.

Misys CEO Nadeem Syed said that hiring Binns will help the company continue the “outstanding financial performance” that is central to its long-term strategy. “I am excited to welcome Rob on board at at time when we are looking to further accelerate our growth.”

Misys_stage_FEU2015

Pictured (left to right): Misys Director of Innovation József Nyíri, and Senior Marketing Strategist Alex Kwiatkowski demonstrate FusionBanking Essence Digital at FinovateEurope 2015 in London.

“(Misys) is well placed to take pole position as the number-one provider of financial software,”added Binns. “(I am) looking forward to contributing to the next stage of Misys success.”

Misys_RobBinnsBinns joined HP in 2007 and served as VP of Software Field Operations and VP of Investor Relations before being named Vice President and CFO, HP Software in 2014. Binns won the Tech IR award from Institutional Investors Magazine in 2014 and 2015, and is a fellow of the Chartered Association of Certified Accountants in the UK.

A global banking solution provider, Misys announced in December that Habib Bank (HBL) in Pakistan will implement its FusionBanking Corporate Channels technology. This follows the company’s successful rollout of FusionBanking Essence Islamic in the summer of 2015. More recently, Misys unveiled FusionCapital, its capital markets trading platform in December. Last November, Misys earned recognition in the Readers’ Choice component of the 16th Annual Banking Technology 2015 Awards.

Founded in 1979 and headquartered in London, Misys demonstrated its FusionBanking Essence Digital platform at FinovateEurope 2015. The company won Best of Show at FinovateEurope 2014.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com:

  • Former HP Exec Rob Binns Appointed New CFO at Misys.
  • Ripple Partners with SBI Holdings to Meet Demand in ASEAN Countries.
  • Sparkroom Acquired by Digital Media Solutions.
  • Finovate Alums Raise More Than $3 Billion in 2015.

Around the web:

  • United Nations Federal Credit Union ($4.3 billion in assets) to deploy DNA core processing platform from Fiserv.
  • Which.co.uk compares money transfer innovators like CurrencyFair to banks to find the best way to send money overseas.
  • eToro launches its first, major UK advertising campaign: “Take the Bull by the Horns.”
  • Taulia Wins GABA’s 2016 Startup and Innovation Award.

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.