Alumni News—February 2, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgThe Telegraph features SigFig and Motif Investing in its list of the 10 best apps for new investors.
  • PostConnect to deploy customer communications management technology from GMC Software Technology.
  • Heckyl Technologies chooses Gurpreet Sidana for President-Sales.
  • Tom’s Guide column on identity theft quotes Adam Levin of IDTheft911.
  • American Banker reports: Green Dot to start offering credit lines to its customers.
  • TechVibes: “Trulioo Launches $100,000 Developer Fund to Support Financial Inclusion Efforts”
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 Populate the FinTech50

Looking for the most innovative startups in fintech? The FinTech50 is a great place to start.

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It also turns out to be a great place to find Finovate alums. Of the 50 companies recognized by FinTechCity’s panels of judges as being “game-changers transforming the future of finance,” nearly half are alumni of Finovate conferences – including our upcoming event in London.
Here is the list of alums in alphabetical order:
According to Chris Skinner, who was one of the panelists, more than 700 companies competed for spots in the FinTech50. The selection panel included veterans of finance and technology from companies ranging from American Express and Google to Silicon Valley Bank and UBS. The FinTech50 winners were announced at an invitation-only event in London.
Speaking of London, Five Degrees, InvoiceSharing, Ixaris, mBank, and Trunomi will be in town next month, demonstrating their latest solutions at FinovateEurope 2015, February 10 and 11. More information on the event available here.

Alumni News– January 30, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgWipro wins multi-year, IT outsourcing contract from Allied Irish Banks (AIB). Join Wipro in London for FinovateEurope 2015 next month.
  • The Financial Services Blog features more than 20 Finovate alums in its look at the 50 most innovative FinTech firms.
  • MasterCard PayPass partners with St. Petersburg Metro to bring contactless payments to Russian subway.
  • Blackhawk Network unveils Blackhawk Engagement Solutions to build customized incentive and rewards programs.
  • FinovateEurope 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 6 is now up.
  • American Banker highlights Cloud Lending’s role with banks.
  • PYMNTS interviews TSYS Merchant Solutions’ Tom Boyer about changes in the payments acquiring space.
  • Bolstr Raises $1.7 Million in Seed Funding.
  • The blog herald shares an infographic detailing online security methods: Nymiband, Myris, Eyeverify, BehavioSec, Entersekt.
  • Lifehacker features Betterment, Mint, Personal Capital as tools to manage your investments.
  • Bitcoinist features Bitbond. Check them out at FinovateEurope February 10 & 11.
  • BetaBoston: After a successful 2014, student services company SimpleTuition rebrands as Valore.
  • Mitek Q1 revenue up 21% YOY; reports 3,300 financial institutions now signed & 2,700 live.
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.

FinovateEurope 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 6

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February is only a few days away, which means that the first Finovate conference of the year – FinovateEurope 2015 – is almost here. We are well on our way to surpassing last year’s record crowd of 1,000. So don’t delay, get your tickets to join us in London on February 10 and 11. 
We’ve just revealed the official list of presenters to help whet your appetite for what some of fintech’s most innovative companies will demonstrate live on stage.
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Today’s installment of our FinovateEurope 2015 Sneak Peek series features Bitbond, Revolut, Smart e-Money, TiViTz, TransferTo, and Wipro.
Previous installments of our Sneak Peek series are below:

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Bitbond is a global peer-to-peer bitcoin lending platform. Get access to affordable loans and profitable savings from all around the world.
Features
With Bitbond AutoInvest:
  • Build a loan portfolio automatically
  • Define regions and risk categories to invest in
  • Re-invest received loan repayments
Why it’s great
Bitbond AutoInvest creates a portfolio of profitable loans for you at 0% fees according to your preferences.
Presenters

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Radoslav Albrecht, Co-founder and CEO
Background in economics. Prior to founding Bitbond, Albrecht was Senior Consultant at Roland Berger Strategy Consultants. Previously with Deutsche Bank London in structured equity.

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Robert Nasiadek, Co-founder and CTO
Programmer since childhood. Before joining Bitbond, Nasiadek started the Ruby on Rails development company, El Passion. Board advisor at Gimmy.pl.

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Revolut is a personal money cloud allowing you to avoid all hidden banking costs.
Features
You can exchange currencies at interbank rates, send them through social networks and spend with a multicurrency card acceptable anywhere.
Why it’s great
Revolut – Personal Money Cloud
Presenters

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Nikolay Storonsky, CEO
Storonsky has eight years experience in financial services (trading). Most recently he worked for Credit Suisse and Lehman Brothers.

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Vlad Yatsenko, CTO
Yatsenko has 12 years experience in developing IT projects in major financial institutions including Credit Suisse, UBS, and Deustche Bank.

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Smart e-Money’s LockByMobile is an anti-fraud security solution which allows you to lock and unlock your cards in real-time using your mobile phone.
Features
  • Provides an extra layer of security for your added peace of mind
  • Easy-to-use interface to lock/unlock your cards with a simple swipe of the finger
  • Customizable lock settings and built-in alerts
Why it’s great
Feel secure when using your card locally or even abroad. With LockByMobile, you have the power to prevent fraud from happening.
Presenters

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Angelito Villanueva, VP & Head of Innovation
With over 20 years experience, Villanueva is the lead in unlocking the huge potential of e-money by introducing digital payments innovations for financial inclusion including building a dynamic ecosystem.

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Guillaume Danielou, Senior Product Manager
With 12 years experience in IT Development/Consulting/Product Development, Danielou has experience working throughout the entire product development life cycle process in international environments.

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TiViTz College $avings Game-a-thon is a fully automated, easy-to-use, market-disrupting, patent-pending, activity-based fundraising tool for children’s college savings.
Features
  • Complements existing financial savings vehicles
  • Creates new college savings accounts and relationships
  • Provides a marketing tool for consumer and business banking
Why it’s great
The Game-a-thon provides families with a solution to afford higher education by significantly increasing children’s savings, while improving their math skills and financial literacy.
Presenters

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Siobhan Mullen, CEO
Former aerospace executive, Special Advisor to the NASA Administrator, and experienced high-tech entrepreneur in launch services, satellite communications and data distribution.

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Stephen Scully, President


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TransferTo’s Value Remittance service is an innovative and unique remittance solution that enables migrants to determine how the funds they send are allocated.
Features
Value Remittance provides direct payment of services such as electricity, mobile airtime, and education, while providing a new revenue stream for financial institutions and MTOs.
Why it’s great
Value remittance allows senders to know exactly how their money is being spent and provides the receiver with instant access to the selected service.
Presenters

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Eric Barbier, CEO
As founder and Chief Executive Officer, Barbier oversees the strategic direction of the company as well as manages the relationships with many of TransferTo’s customers and partners.

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Charles Damen, EVP Global Business Development
Damen is responsible for the development of new services, strategic partnerships, and the growth of global accounts with over 18 years of experience in telecommunications, Internet, and payments.

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Wipro ngGenie Smart Banking Assistant provides the “next generation banking experience” for customers. It helps by providing you with right information at the right place.
Features
A personalized, contextual, next generation user experience for banking customers that can result in reduced costs of serving customers and an increased cross sell / up sell opportunities.
Why it’s great
Wipro myAdvisor helps in day-to-day transactions and acts as your personal financial advisor.
Presenters

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Mukund Kalmanker, General Manager
Kalmanker is a general manager at CTO office and has a rich background in the banking domain. He had earlier handled the banking business for Wipro under the Analytics and Information Management domain.

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Sudhakar Babu Tamminedi, Practice Head
Tamminedi has over 15 years of experience in Consumer and Enterprise Mobility applications across industries. He has provided end-to-end mobility solutions form conceptualization to deployment.

Pick up your tickets for FinovateEurope 2015 today! Want more info? Visit our FAQ page.

Spreedly Raises $150,000 in New Funding

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North Carolina-based payments specialist Spreedly has secured a new investment of $150,000. Information on the investors was not immediately available. The new funding takes the company’s total to more than $2 million.

Spreedly’s “credit card vault in the cloud” technology gives merchants and aggregator platforms the ability to work simultaneously with multiple payment gateways. With its single API and secure credit card tokenization, Spreedly’s solution provides both greater flexibility and control over the payments process.

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Spreedly recently reported processing $50 million in credit card transactions in December 2014, the company’s 22nd month since its re-launch to its current incarnation. Spreedly launched a collaboration with PayItSimple in December, as well, helping the Israel-based POS consumer financing company integrate with 70% of U.S. payment gateways. Spreedly currently serves more than 70 gateways in more than 80 countries.
Founded in 2008, Spreedly demoed its technology at FinovateSpring 2014. Justin Benson is CEO.

Alumni News– January 29, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgTinkoff Bank to deploy fraud prevention solution from Iris Analytics.
  • EagleBank implements EnAct client management and sales software from Fiserv.
  • KDnuggets interviews Anthony Bak, principal data scientist for Ayasdi.
  • Red Zebra Analytics brings its card-linked offers service to Germany.
  • Ripple Labs raises $30 million in Series A round.
  • CNBC Tech Check interviews Tradeshift CEO Christian Lanng.
  • Computer Business Review features Venmo and Flint Mobile in its list of “5 mobile apps to turn your wallet digital.
  • Datamonitor analyst describes why he’s looking forward to watching Advice Games’ demo at FinovateEurope 2015.
  • Simple now works on BillGuard.
  • Google Cloud Platform now available to VMware customers.
  • TechCrunch explores Coinbase’s recently launched U.S. exchange.
  • Cachet Financial Solutions integrates with Apple Pay.
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.

Ripple Labs Raises $30 Million in Series A Round

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The Wall Street Journal, Crunchbase, and other sources are reporting that open payments protocol specialist, Ripple Labs, has raised $30 million in new funding. Although the company has not confirmed some of the details of the deal, participating investors are believed to be IDG Capital Partners, Google Ventures, and Andreessen Horowitz.

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This latest infusion of capital follows successful angel and seed funding rounds which raised $9 million in 2013, and takes the company’s total capital to nearly $40 million. WSJ further reported that the investment puts Ripple Labs’ valuation at $100 million.
(Crypto Coins News helpfully compares this valuation to Ripple’s “primary value in XRP” to arrive at a very different figure.)
Ripple Labs developed the Ripple protocol, a distributed open source payment network that enables the real-time transfer of funds in any currency. The technology was deployed by Fidor Bank AG last May, and in September Cross River Bank and CBW Bank became the first U.S. banks to incorporate the Ripple protocol into its settlement operations. In January, Ripple Labs named Gene Sperling, former Chief White House Advisor, to its board of directors.
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The investment comes at a time of resurgent optimism for digital and cryptocurrencies like Ripple. Recent investment in bitcoin exchange Coinbase, which opened its first U.S. exchange this week, has helped restore interest in the technology after the price of bitcoin dripped below $300 and fell to as low as $178.
Founded in 2012 and headquartered in San Francisco, Ripple demonstrated its technology at FinovateSpring 2013 in San Francisco. Chris Larsen is CEO.

Alumni News– January 28, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgEasier Finance features Azimo in its list of the top money saving apps for 2015.
  • The Credit.com Blog writes about how Global Debt Registry can help consumers track down old debts.
  • Sonavation hires Karl Weintz as president and CEO.
  • Jim Siegienski of iQuantifi wins “CTO of the Year” award from 2014 Nashville Technology Council.
  • Fenergo earns top 100 ranking among risk technology providers according to Chartis.
  • CheBanca! to deploy digital banking platform from Backbase.
  • Insuritas to provide Tulsa FCU with insurance agency solution inside Tulsa’s existing insurance agency platform.
  • My Bank Tracker lists Expensify as 1 of 6 best apps for preparing your tax return.
  • Intuit and Uber partner to enable Uber drivers to import their earnings into the QuickBooks software.
  • ThreatMetrix enhances multi-factor authentication solutions for financial services institutions.
  • Credit Sesame and Identity Theft Council bring identity theft awareness to 100 cities.
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.

Red Zebra Analytics Brings its Card-Linked Offers Service to Germany

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Courtesy of a five-year extension of its partnership with Red Zebra Analytics, cash-back offers are coming to customers of Germany’s Wüstenrot Bank.

“We bring together consumers, banks, and retailers, with highly targeted rewards based on spending patterns,” explained Red Zebra Analytics CEO Attul Sehgal. 

“With our innovative card-link loyalty programme, banks build a closer relationship with their customers by personalizing the services and cash-back offers according to individual preferences.”
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Red Zebra notes that its card-link offers service is the “first of its kind in Germany and second in Europe.” Without relying on vouchers or coupons, the service automatically presents customers with offers when they log into their online bank or credit card accounts. Customers choose the offers they want, and those offers are activated when the customer purchases the item or service using their bank debit or credit card. Discount are granted as cash payments on a monthly basis.
Red Zebra’s technology takes advantage of real-time data to enable the kind of targeted campaigns that will better engage and retain customers. Consumers benefit from increased savings on the debit and credit cards they are already using.
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(Above, left to right: Ina Meixner, Marketing Manager, Europe; Attul Sehgal, CEO at FinovateEurope 2014)

The Wüstenrot Bank launch is the product of a collaboration that began in June 2013, and was piloted in Stuttgart and Ludwigsburg.
Founded in 2011 and headquartered in London, Red Zebra Analytics demoed its 3D OFFERS loyalty program at FinovateEurope 2014. It was around that time that the company earned a “seven-figure investment” from SBT Venture Capital, widely believed to be in the area of $8 million. 
We talked with Red Zebra Analytics CEO Attul Sehgal last week about the company’s 2014 as well as the year ahead.

TransferWise Raises $58 Million in Round Led by Andreessen Horowitz

Thumbnail image for TransferwiseNewLogo.jpgTransferWise is starting off the year with a funding bang: the company has raised $58 million in a Series C round led by Andreessen Horowitz.

The investment takes TransferWise’s total capital to more than $90 million. Existing investors Richard Branson, IA Ventures, Index Ventures, Valar Ventures, and Seedcamp also participated in the round.
Taavet Hinrikus, co-founder of TransferWise said: “Andreessen Horowitz’s investment in TransferWise shows how ripe financial services are for disruption.” 
“For too long, legacy providers’ dominance of the market has allowed consumers to be hoodwinked into paying huge hidden charges for services as basic as currency exchange.”
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Ben Horowitz, founder of Andreessen Horowitz, referred to this insight the discovery of “an important secret” and called TransferWise “uniquely prepared to pursue it.” 
He added: “Not only is (TransferWise’s) solution 10 times better than the old way of exchanging foreign currency, but it could not have come at a better time.” Both Hinrikus and Horowitz pointed to the lack of innovation as a “massive opportunity” for companies like TransferWise.
The company plans to use the capital to drive global expansion. TransferWise is opening an office in the United States in February according to reporting by TechCrunch, and are looking to open offices in Germany and Austria in the first half of 2015, as well. The goal for the year is to open an additional 300 “currency routes.”
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(Above, left to right: Kristo Kaarmann and Taavet Hinrikus, co-founders of TransferWise at FinovateEurope 2013)

TransferWise enables money transfers between the U.S. and Canadian dollars as well as the euro, British pound, Swiss franc, and another 10 European currencies. Customers using the platform can also transfer these currencies into a number of Asian currencies including the Australian, Hong Kong and Singaporean dollars, and the Indian rupee. See the full list here.
A few metrics for TransferWise:
  • Launched in 2011
  • Headquartered in London
  • Staffs 250
  • Maintains more than 290 currency routes
  • Enabled customer transfers of £3 billion for a savings of £135 million
The company has been making headlines, as well, appearing in Motley Fool’s list of fintech startups that can help consumer handle their money in 2015, and with its peers Azimo and CurrencyFair in a recent look at disruption in traditional money exchange from Forbes.com. In December, TransferWise was named one of  KPMG’s Fintech Innovators of 2014
TransferWise demoed its technology as part of FinovateEurope 2013.

Alumni News– January 26, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgMIT Technology Review features Feedzai and Zumigo in a discussion on mobile authentication technologies.
  • Loan origination platform LoanLaunch (formerly Common Origination Platform) now available from Fiserv.
  • Experian partners with BillGuard to boost effectiveness of its anti-fraud solution, ProtectMyID.
  • Misys unveils FusionBanking Lending.
  • American Banker takes a look at the relationship between Google and Lending Club.
  • Kabbage named one of America’s top 100 Most Promising Companies 
  • Coinbase to open the first regulated Bitcoin exchange in the U.S. 
  • Actiance announces support for IBM Verse and IBM Connections Social Cloud.
  • Credit Sesame launches iOS app with Siri integration in its credit monitoring feature.
  • Google Wallet partners with WePay to put its Instant Buy API in 200,000 e-commerce shops.
  • TransferWise Raises $58 Million in Round Led by Andreessen Horowitz.
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.

FT Partners Publishes Post-IPO Profile of Lending Club

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Now that the dust has settled on fintech’s biggest startup IPO ever, FT Partners has put together an extensive profile of Lending Club. Lending Club’s IPO last year was one of the major events that helped put fintech in the headlines of not just technology news, but business news, as well. And FT Partners’ report so far serves as the definitive document on just how the alternative lender did it and gives clues to what comes next.

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The data-rich, 60-page document focuses mostly on Lending Club, though small business lender, OnDeck, is also covered. The review of Lending Club before, during, and after its public offering includes industry reaction as well as summaries of analyst coverage.
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Key milestones in the rise of Lending Club are shown graphically, from its launch in 2007, through the company’s first $25 million institutional investment five years later. An industry timeline shows Lending Club’s place in the evolution of the alternative lending market (interestingly contrasted with a graph of the U.S. 10-year Treasury yield).
The report discusses Lending Club’s competitive strengths, opportunities for growth, and includes seven pages of loan statistics and another nine pages of financial analysis focusing on revenue and revenue comparisons.
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Perhaps my favorite part is the 16-page section “Selected Alternative Lending Transactions.” Looking at the variety of financing, M&A, and other transactions in both the consumer and small business markets provides a robust sense of the history and diversity of the alternative lending space.
The full report is available here.
Financial Technology Partners is an investment banking firm dedicated to the financial technology sector. The company was founded by Steve McLaughlin and is headquartered in San Francisco, California.