Interactions Raises More than $9 Million in New Funding

Interactions Raises More than $9 Million in New Funding

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The rumors are true: Interactions has raised $9.5 million in new funding.

We reached out to Interactions for confirmation, and they were generous enough to reply with a quote from Interactions CEO Mike Iacobucci:

“This new round of funding further supports our momentum in the market and represents an investment in Interactions’ expansion strategy following the recent acquisition of the AT&T Watson research and technology program.”

“We’re happy to have the continued support of our investors, who share Interactions’ vision of a highly accurate, multimodel interface for any application, device, or service.”

The new investment takes Interactions’ total capital to more than $100 million. Participants in this latest venture round were not disclosed. But previous investors in the company have included Cross Atlantic Capital Partners, North Hill Ventures, and Sigma Partners, all of which participated in funding rounds for the company in 2011 and 2013.

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Above: Dan Fox, marketing manager for Interactions, demoed at FinovateSpring 2014 in San Jose.

Interactions’ technology is used by several Fortune 100 companies looking to leverage natural language understanding technology to make customer interactions both more efficient and more engaging. For banks and financial institutions, this includes providing a wide range of services—replacing lost or stolen cards, transferring money between balances, locating nearby ATMs—without the intervention of a live human agent. Interactions’ platform provides conversational solutions for customers in spoken language (including Spanish), as well as being able to respond by text, and email.

Recent headlines for Interactions include the company’s performance at the 19th MITX Awards this month, earning finalist honors in both the “Best Work Productivity Technology” and “Best Consumer Tech that Makes Life Easier” categories. The company’s virtual assistance technology was also recognized by TMC as a CUSTOMER Contact Center Technology Award winner for 2014.

The company’s acquisition of AT&T’s Watson speech-recognition and natural language understanding platform in December was a major coup that, according to Iacobucci, “will enable the development of highly intuitive interfaces for virtually any device or service and deliver on our vision for the ‘Interface of Things.'”

Interactions was founded in 2004 and is headquartered in Franklin, Massachusetts. A multiple Finovate alum, and two-time Best of Show winner, the company last demoed its technology at FinovateSpring 2014 in San Jose.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Meet the Presenters: Check out FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 4
  • MoneyStream Launches to Public, Receives $3.2 Million in Funding
  • CurrencyFair Springs $10.7 Million More in Funding

Around the Web

  • Thomson Reuters unveils ASKTRPS to help fixed-income professionals meet reporting requirements.
  • MasterCard to sponsor Smart City App Hack.
  • Alabama Teachers Credit Union and Greater TEXAS Federal Credit Union to launch SmartwearApps for the Apple Watch courtesy of Malauzai Software. See Malauzai at FinovateSpring 2015 in San Jose next month.
  • Former Salesforce chief architect Scott Hansma joins Lending Club as senior vice president of technology.
  • MasterCard partners with Alliance for Financial Inclusion to support AFI’s Public-Private Dialogue Platform.
  • American Banker’s highlights from Prosper and Lending Club at this week’s LendIt conference.
  • News.com.au’s Investing highlights SocietyOne’s role in “dude-to-dude” lending.

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.

FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 4

FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 4

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FinovateSpring is less than one month away. Our annual spring conference returns to the City National Civic building near the campus of San Jose State University for a first look at the financial technologies of 2015. If you’ve been thinking about joining us the 12/13 of March for two days of live demos and professional networking, now is a great time to pick up your ticket and save your spot.

Today’s Sneak Peek preview brings you another handful of companies that will be presenting their technologies live on stage at FinovateSpring 2015 next month. In this edition, we introduce you to:

Check out the previous three installments of our Sneak Peek series below. And stayed tuned for Sneak Peek #5 next week.


CurrencyCloud_logo_FS15Transform the way your business makes international payments with Currency Cloud’s Payment Engine featuring an enhanced API for maximum efficiency.

Features:

  • Reach new customers
  • Benefit from real-time wholesale rates
  • Leverage a fast, secure payment network

Why it’s great
Powering global payments—Currency Cloud has built a technology-based payment engine that simplifies international payments and offers an easy integration for businesses of all sizes.

Presenters

CurrencyCloud_TLatham_crop2Todd Latham, Vice President of Marketing

Latham has extensive experience in the technology and financial service sectors, and he is fascinated at how technology is transforming people’s lives for the better.
LinkedIn

 

CurrencyCloud_RNienaber_cropRachel Nienaber, Vice President of Engineering

Nienaber is fluent in Ruby and Java, carrying 10+ years of experience in bespoke development projects. She is also responsible for ongoing technology development.
LinkedIn

 


DreamPayments_logo_FS15Accepting payments just got easier. Introducing Dream Payments, a next-generation mobile payment platform accepting all forms of payment.

Features:

  • Sell anywhere; accept all payments
  • Save time; grow your business
  • Create customer experiences
  • Safe and secure transactions

Why it’s great
Sell anywhere, anytime, in any format. Dream Payments enables merchants to accept payments anywhere, anytime, using mobile commerce solutions. Dream Payments are the future of mobile commerce.

Presenters

DreamPayments_CAli_cropChristian Ali, Vice President, Business Development

Ali has been a trusted advisor to the North American payments industry for nearly 20 years and currently serves as vice president of business development at Dream Payments.
LinkedIn

 

DreamPayments_ATailor_cropAnant Tailor, COO

Tailor is the chief operating officer at Dream Payments where he is responsible for the daily operations of the company including product management; go to market strategy; and all customer engagements.
LinkedIn

 


HipPocket_logo_FS15Hip Pocket engages your mobile and website visitors by using social influence and personalized consultation to generate new, qualified mortgage leads.

Features:

  • Unique peer-group comparisons
  • Real-time integration and personalization savings estimates
  • Results and call-to-action are customized to each user’s situation

Why it’s great
Hip Pocket allows your institution to provide an engaging, intuitive user experience that marries the emotional and logical decision-making processes.

Presenters

HipPocket_MZmarzly_cropMark Zmarzly, Founder, CEO

Zmarzly is a passionate innovator and thought-leader in the financial industry. He has delivered multiple TEDx talks and has presented for the ABA; BAI; and for JD Power & Associates.
LinkedIn

 

HipPocket_TCramer_cropTodd Cramer, Head of Digital Experience and Design

Cramer holds an MBA and has more than five years of experience in branding, user experience and eCommerce for a $5B bank enterprise.
LinkedIn

 


Inetco_logoThe INETCO analytics software application provides financial institutions with the game-changing knowledge of where, when, and how customers interact with their channels.

Features:

  • View transaction data on-demand, across all banking channels
  • Reduce failed customer interactions and resolve issues faster
  • Adopt data-driven strategies that improve customer engagement

Why it’s great
INETCO Analytics will accelerate your omnichannel strategy with powerful, on-demand insights into customer behavior.

Presenters

INETCO_MBorbas_cropMarc Borbas, VP Product Marketing

With 12+ years of experience working with financial technology startups, Borbas drives the product strategy for INETCO’s real-time transaction-monitoring and customer-analytics solutions.
LinkedIn

 


LoanNow_logoAs a responsible lender, LoanNow’s motivational lending platform helps deep subprime borrowers secure affordable credit, then actively reduce APR within the loan term.

Features:

  • Repayment-motivation algorithm incentivizes good financial behavior
  • Active reduction in APR during loan for positive behaviors
  • LoanNow to debut new features to lower the cost of credit

Why it’s great
LoanNow allows people to be more than a credit score and to actively reduce their cost of credit through positive financial behavior and loan management.

Presenters

LoanNow_HLangenberg_cropHarry Langenberg, CEO, Co-founder

Since graduating from the Wharton Business School, Langenberg has been a pioneer in bringing innovation to consumer finance. He’s founded Optima Tax Relief, SuperMoney, and Debtmerica.
LinkedIn

 

LoanNow_MLulic_cropMiron Lulic, President, COO, Co-Founder

Lulic has spent his entire career at high-growth technology-driven companies. At LoanNow, Lulic leads product management, design, and marketing while also overseeing all other operations.
LinkedIn

 

LoanNow_ZPeracha_cropZahur Peracha, CTO

After more than a decade of building and launching new products for Silicon Valley startups and Amazon.com, Zahur now leads all technology at LoanNow.
LinkedIn

 


WealthForge_logo_FS15_200pxWealthForge has launched the Invest Button, transforming the way private capital is raised by making the entire process faster, cheaper, and more compliant than ever before.

Features:

  • Simple, turnkey technology
  • Straight-through processing
  • Reduced transaction risk

Why it’s great
The WealthForge solution makes private placement transactions more efficient. The entire process has been reduced from months to weeks, costing nickels on the dollar, from risky to fully compliant.

Presenters

Wealthforge_AWeissman_cropArthur Weissman, Head of Sales and Marketing

Weissman is an industry expert in helping to lead the move of private investing from offline to online. Weissman heads sales and marketing helping to make raising private capital faster and more efficient.
LinkedIn

 

WealthForge_MDellorso_cropMat Dellorso, Co-Founder, President

Dellorso is a leading innovator in venture finance and has worked directly with FINRA and the SEC to establish regulations for online private investing.
LinkedIn

 


Yodlee_logo_FS15A global financial technology leader, Yodlee’s cloud-based platform powers dynamic innovation and solutions for digital financial services.

Features:

  • Provides actionable financial advice
  • Makes personalized recommendations
  • Leverages Yodlee’s advanced data network

Why it’s great
Yodlee capitalizes on its unique data network and key data-driven insights to fundamentally change the digital banking experience.

Presenters

Yodlee_JBird_cropJohn Bird, VP, Product Marketing and Alliances

Bird, as VP of product marketing and alliances at Yodlee, is responsible for the marketing of the Yodlee platform to financial institutions and startup financial technology companies.
LinkedIn

 

Yodlee_KGibson_cropKaty Gibson, VP Product Applications

Gibson, as VP of product applications at Yodlee, is responsible for the creation and execution of product strategy for Yodlee’s suite of financial management applications.
LinkedIn

Ripple Labs Taps Former Yahoo Executive Brad Garlinghouse as New COO

Ripple Labs Taps Former Yahoo Executive Brad Garlinghouse as New COO

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The latest news in digital currencies is a major personnel pickup for Ripple Labs. Brad Garlinghouse, a former executive at both Yahoo! and AOL, will join Ripple Labs as its new COO.

Ripple Labs CEO and co-founder Chris Larsen said Garlinghouse will help the company as it transitions “from building a strong pipeline to execution and exceptional growth.” Garlinghouse was president of applications and commerce at AOL, and spent six years at Yahoo! He was also CEO of Hightail (formerly YouSendIt), and sits on the board of Ancestry.com.

BGarlinghouse_RippleLabs_cropGarlinghouse (pictured) echoes one of Larsen’s favorite themes—the “Internet of Value”—in talking about Ripple’s unique contribution to financial technology. “The opportunity to define the actual framework for the Internet of Value is an order of magnitude bigger than anything else underway in payments today,” he said.

Ripple Labs developed and supports Ripple, a settlement protocol that enables financial networks to securely transfer funds in any currency in real-time. The technology has been integrated and deployed by financial institutions like Fidor Bank AG, currency-exchange businesses like Saldo.mx, and market makers like GSR Markets.

For more on Larsen and the Internet of Value, check out our review of his presentation at the Bank Innovation Conference earlier this year.

Ripple recently made headlines with news of a $30 million investment that put the company’s valuation at more than $100 million. The company opened up its developer portal in March, and lent its technology to the new accelerator for digital currencies launched by CrossCoin Ventures.

Ripple Labs made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring 2013 (as OpenCoin). The company was founded in September 2012, and is headquartered in San Francisco.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Xero and ZenPayroll Win Honors at CPA Practice Advisor 2015 Reader’s Choice Awards
  • Finovate Debuts: Using Financial Media Solutions’ MAPPS to Create Videographics

Around the Web

  • MasterQueue, powered by Intellaegis, partners with Whitepages Pro.
  • Bitpost lists Coinbase and Blockchain as 2 of the top 5 bitcoin wallets on Android.
  • EVO Payments partners with Boomtown to simplify tech support for POS developers and merchants.
  • Fintech Today reports: With Paydiant, PayPal Will Be a Huge Hit with Merchants.
  • Blackhawk to integrate Kofax Mobile Capture SDK into its digital services platform.
  • Team One CU to pilot MShift’s AnyWhereMobile payment-network with a locally owned restaurant in Michigan.
  • SecondMarket’s Bitcoin Desk Relaunches as Genesis Trading.
  • Taulia named by AlwaysOn as a 2015 OnFinance Top 100 Company.
  • According to Gartner, Check Point Software Technologies lead the worldwide market share for firewall equipment in Q4 2014 and FY 2014.

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.

 

Xero and ZenPayroll Win Honors at CPA Practice Advisor 2015 Reader’s Choice Awards

Xero and ZenPayroll Win Honors at CPA Practice Advisor 2015 Reader’s Choice Awards

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Two Finovate alums, Xero and ZenPayroll, have won first place in their respective categories at the CPA Practice Advisor 2015 Reader’s Choice Awards.

According to CPA Practice Advisor, more than 5,000 readers participated in the 11th edition of the awards. The goal is to give accounting firms a “professional-to-professional” opinion as to which systems are “most beneficial” for those working in the tax and public accounting industry.

ZenPayrollLogoZenPayroll won the payroll category, beating out competing technologies from QuickBooks, AMS, PayChex, and ADP. Xero won best “Online Invoicing/Bill Payment Solutions” in a category that included solutions from Intuit, Bill.com, and FreshBooks.

We recently featured ZenPayroll and the company’s $60 million funding in a round led by Google Capital. The company opened up its API to small-business technology providers last September 2014.

An alum of FinovateSpring 2014, ZenPayroll is headquartered in San Francisco, and was founded in October 2011 by Joshua Reeves (CEO), Tomer London (CPO), and Edward Kim (CTO).

Xero_logo_hi-resXero participated in FinDEVr San Francisco 2014, and is an alum of Finovate conferences, as well, most recently FinovateSpring 2011 in San Francisco. Earlier this week, we reported on Xero’s partnership with TransferWise to help small and medium-sized businesses save on international currency-transfer fees.

Xero was founded in July 2006, is headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, and has offices in Los Angeles, Atlanta, New York, Denver, and San Francisco, where the company’s U.S. headquarters is located. With more than 400,000 customers in more than 100 countries, Xero has raised more than $250 million in funding, and is led by CEO and Executive Director, Rod Drury.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Xero & TransferWise Team Up to Save SMBs on Foreign Currency Exchange Fees

Around the Web

  • Bloomberg interviews LendingTree founder and CEO Doug Lebda.
  • Nashville Business Journal features iQuantifi and its recent study on millennials and their money.
  • Safeco grants Insuritas “Premier Partner” status.
  • Fenergo appoints former Adobe Systems executive Colm Heffernan to chief operating officer.
  • Mitek launches DoubleNet Pay financial app to help workers pay bills and fund savings. See the technology live at FinovateSpring in San Jose.
  • PYMNTS.com looks at the status of Prosper as tech’s latest “unicorn.”
  • Realty Mogul launches commercial offering.
  • BBVA acquires leading user experience firm Spring Studio.
  • Toshl Finance launches new features with WalletGear 2.0.
  • New York Tech Journal profiles Qapital.
  • InComm Partners with KUBRA to Simplify Cash Payments for Customers.
  • Tuition.io launches flex395.com, an employee-benefits product that enables employers to contribute directly to their employees’ student loans.
  • Air France-KLM to use Tradeshift for global e-invoicing.

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.

AuthenticID Teams Up with MyECheck to Provide Document Authentication

AuthenticID Teams Up with MyECheck to Provide Document Authentication

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What happens when you combine a biometric ID-authentication specialist with an innovator in the field of electronic checks?

AuthenticID is partnering with MyECheck to bring Automated Forensic Document Authentication to electronic checking. Blair Cohen, founder and CEO of AuthenticID, said that his company’s technology will help MyECheck spot counterfeit documents, as well as documents that have been tampered with. Said Cohen, “[MyECheck] will benefit from our cloud-based, real-time solution that runs on the web, mobile devices, and tablets and its readily available APIs.”

The partnership means AuthenticID’s CatfishAIR ID-authentication technology will be integrated into MyECheck’s mobile payment solution, MyEPay. This includes AuthenticID’s check imaging technology, as well.

Ed Starrs, chairman and CEO of MyECheck, says that his company has a strong record of defending against fraud. He pointed out that after clearing more than 10 million electronic checks, his company has “no incidences” of fraud. “But by partnering with AuthenticID and integrating biometric facial recognition technology into our mobile app,” Starrs says MyECheck is “furthering its commitment to security.”

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AuthenticID founder and CEO Blair Cohen demonstrated his company’s technology at FinovateFall 2013

AuthenticID’s biometric authentication works by combining Automated Forensic Document Authentication (AFDA) and a Facial Recognition Engine (FRE). Consumers take a selfie-style picture of themselves with their mobile phone, which is then compared to a photo of the consumer that is on the official ID document such as that on a driver’s license or passport.

The result is a two-factor biometric authentication-solution that is unique, fast, and accurate. Starrs said the technology would help provide authentication that was “light-years ahead of other payment methods.”

An alum of both FinovateSpring and FinovateFall in 2013, AuthenticID was founded in January 2012 and is headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • AuthenticID Teams Up with MyECheck to Provide Document Authentication

Around the Web

  • OEM agreement between Kofax and BlackHawk Network enables mobile capture on GoWallet digital wallet.
  • Early Warning and BioCatch to collaborate in new data-sharing consortium.
  • Q2 teams up with Acculynk to provide real-time P2P payment service.
  • The Netbanker Blog is Moving to Finovate.com.
  • Lending Club and Citi partner with Varadero Capital to facilitate up to $150 million in loans to provide affordable credit to underserved borrowers and communities.
  • Options trading tool, Orca, partners with Tradier for its Brokerage API.
  • Prosper and OnDeck partner to offer customers more lending options.
  • GDS Link integrates MiiCard’s DirectID into its Credit Risk Management platform to reduce risk and increase conversion rates.
  • Lendio acquires Business Bounce to accelerate business lending on its marketplace platform.
  • PaySimple awarded Marketing Team of the Year by Marketo.
  • TechCrunch reports: SecondMarket launching product to put more control over secondary sales in the hands of startups.

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.

AlwaysOn’s OnFinance Top 100 Features 30 Finovate Alums

AlwaysOn’s OnFinance Top 100 Features 30 Finovate Alums

AlwaysOn_homepage

More than a quarter of the companies recognized in AlwaysOn’s first OnFinance Top 100 roster are Finovate alums.

The OnFinance Top 100 is designed to recognize the Top 100 private companies in fintech. The list was chosen by the AlwaysOn editorial team, along with several venture capital firms and industry experts. The criteria included degree of innovation, market potential, commercialization, stakeholder value, and “media buzz.”

The list is divided into six categories, and Finovate alums are well represented in each. Category winners will be announced at Always On’s event at the NASDAQ OMX in New York City at the end of April 2015.

Banking and corporate finance

Big data and analytics

Capital markets and investing

Digital currencies

Payment platforms

Personal finance management

Headquartered in Menlo Park, California, AlwaysOn was founded in 2003 by Tony Perkins, founder and editor of Red Herring magazine. The company serves as a networking and social media platform for technology professionals in variety of fields, and has a membership of more than 5,000.

SaveUp Purchased by Chicago-area Entrepreneur Paul J. Burt

SaveUp Purchased by Chicago-area Entrepreneur Paul J. Burt

SaveUp_homepage

SaveUp has officially been sold to Chicago-based entrepreneur Paul J. Burt.

SaveUp helps millennials and Gen Y consumers improve their personal finances through a combination of behavioral economics and gamification. Founded in April 2011 by the late Priya Haji and Sammy Shreibati, the company demonstrated its technology at FinovateSpring 2012 and again at FinovateSpring 2014, where it won Best of Show honors.

As part of the deal, SaveUp has been relocated from Silicon Valley to Lake Forest, Illinois. The purchase was made in December 31, 2014, and closed on April 8, 2015. Terms were not disclosed. SaveUp had raised $7 million in funding as of July 2012.

SaveUp_PaulJBurtPaul J. Burt is the founder and CEO of Westlake Financial Group, an employee benefits company for mid- to large-sized companies. The firm has more than 50 employees, and serves more than 150 corporate and healthcare clients around the country.

Burt is also the founder of an incubator program, Entanglement, also based in Lake Forest. Entanglement provides a forum for local students and community members interested in new technologies. He founded Cera Solutions in 2013, which developed a mobile employee-benefit onboarding solution.

SaveUp is free and available on both iOS and Android, as well as online at SaveUp.com. To use the platform, users link their credit, student loan, savings, and other accounts, and then earn points for every dollar they spend toward either reducing debt or growing savings. Points can then be used to play games and enter contests to win prizes, as well as compete for a $2 million jackpot.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • AlwaysOn’s OnFinance Top 100 Features 30 Finovate Alums
  • SaveUp Purchased by Chicago-Area Entrepreneur Paul J. Burt

Around the Web

  • Turk Ekonomi Bankasi (TEB) launches digital banking service developed by Monitise.
  • Dragon Wealth earns spot in Startupbootcamp FinTEch’s inaugural Singapore program.
  • Ayeyarwady Bank (AYA Bank) to deploy Bankworld ATM platform from CR2.
  • Virtual Piggy hires Viant Capital to provide financial advice on strategic options.
  • MasterCard presents its PFM “in-reach” benefits-platform to help issuers engage millennials.
  • iQuantifi teams up with MTSU Jones College of Business to produce inaugural Millennial Money Mindset Survey.
  • Motif updates its iPhone app to enable search-and-browse capability of motif catalogues directly from the app.
  • FreeAgent launches first iOS app to help manage invoices and expenses on the go.
  • PYMNTS features predictions from Blackhawk Network, Bluefin Payments, CashStar, Experian, FIS, Fiserv, and SimplyTapp.
  • Xero Denver named Top Workplace by Denver Post.
  • American Banker examines how Malauzai is helping small banks get a head start on Apple Watch.
  • PayPal confirms bitcoin acceptance option in SEC filing.

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.