Author: David Penn

Kapitall Announces $13 Million in Funding in Round Led by Linden Venture

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Kapitall

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In a new round led by Linden Venture Fund LLC and joined by Bendigo Partners, Kapitall has added $13 million to its corporate coffers. Kapitall’s total funding now stands at more than $20 million.

“We are impressed by Kapitall’s track record to date,” said Linden Venture Fund managing partner Oksana Malysheva. “(We) know the leadership team has a winning combination of expertise in investing, gaming and interactive design to spark a true revolution among emerging investors.”

Kapitall relies on its graphical user interface and ramification to make it easier and more engaging for investors to research and analyze investments in stocks, mutual funds, and exchange-traded funds (ETFs). The company plans to use the additional funding to help develop new products and boost the growth of its community of users.

Company CEO Jarrett Lilien said, “We acquire, engage, and profitably interact with emerging investors – individuals that the traditional firms don’t handle well. We want these investors and we have an experience tailor made for them.”
A few interesting metrics for Kapitall:
  • More than 170,000 community members
  • More than 15,000 real and virtual trades executed monthly
  • More than 115,000 portfolios built, tracking real and virtual assets of more than $10 billion
Click here to watch a YouTube introduction to Kapitall.
Kapitall was founded in March 2008 by Gaspard de Dreuzy and Serge Kreiker, and is headquartered in SoHo, New York. Kapitall was recognized as a Webby Honoree in Financial Services in 2013.
See Kapitall’s FinovateFall 2010 demo here.

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Wallaby Launches Google Glass Payment App

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Wallaby Financial

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While the Finovate research team was busy helping put on the company’s biggest FinovateEurope to date, alums like Wallaby Financial were no less busy taking advantage of the convergence between wearable technology and mobile payments.

The result is Pay With Wallaby for Google Glass, a new app – currently in beta – from Wallaby Financial that is the first app native to Google Glass that provides payment type decision-aing in real time for consumers.

The idea behind leveraging geolocation to make mobile commerce more efficient is a notion that has gained traction among offers and rewards innovators as mobile device use has grown. Wallaby’s focus is different, specializing in helping consumers choose and use the best payment card option for a given transaction at the point of sale. 

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But the strategy of combining Google Glass’s location data and the company’s own database of card offers and rewards could help lead the way for more financial app development that is optimized for wearables – from smart eyeglasses to smart watches and beyond. Recent fintech journalism on wearable technology has focused such innovations, introducing us to pilot programs and initiatives by banks like Westpac in New Zealand and Banco Sabadell in Spain.
Matthew Goldman, CEO and founder of Wallaby Financial said:
“We think that Google Glass will grow substantially in the near future and we want to be among the first to write helpful, user-friendly, native applications that deliver real value via this breakthrough technology.”
Watch a brief video of Pay With Wallaby for Google Glass here. 
Wallaby Financial was founded in August 2011, and is headquartered in Pasadena, California. Named one of CNN Money’s top 15 financial apps last month, Walllaby demoed its Wallaby Wallet Boost technology as part of FinovateSpring 2013. See the company in action here.
And to learn more about the companies that will be on stage for FinovateSpring this year, check out our FinovateSpring 2014 presenter post.

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Finovate Alumni News– February 24, 2014

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Arxan Technologies, BBVA, HelloWallet, Kasasa, Kashoo, MasterCard, NICE Systems, Realty Mogul, Simple, TransferWise
  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgNICE Systems named to Fast Company’s 50 most innovative companies list.
  • American Banker takes a look at BBVA’s acquisition of Simple.
  • MasterCard brings in-app payments to MasterPass; acquires m-wallet startup, C-Sam.
  • CNBC Finance hosts Kasasa CEO Gabe Krajicek to discuss the drive to local banks and credit unions.
  • Arxan Technologies partners with IBM to protect mobile apps against attacks.
  • HelloWallet launches Insights app to help HelloWallet users better understand their financial habits.
  • InterAksyon features TransferWise in column about transferring money overseas.
  • Realty Mogul’s real estate portfolio surpasses $85 million mark.
  • ExactCPA Tax Solutions introduces its app of the week: Kashoo Accounting.
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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Loop Launches Secure Mobile Wallet for Point of Sale Transactions

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Loop

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Ladies and gentlemen, the LoopWallet has landed.

Now available in the Apple App Store, the LoopWallet app allows consumers to make their mobile device their primary, point-of-sale payment method instead of cash or cards. 

The Android edition of the app is expected to be available in April.

Will Graylin, Loop CEO states, 
“Just download the free LoopWallet app, order a Loop AppCessory, swipe your cards into your smartphone, and pay at almost everywhere in the world.”
Loop AppCessory’s are tools – fobs, charge case, primarily, with more to come – that allow users to swipe their cards and store information alongside their mobile device. Credit, debit, gift, ID, membership, rewards … most of the kinds of plastic currently stuffing the average wallet can be stored in the LoopWallet app.

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When shopping, consumers place their smart device near the swipe slot on the POS terminal, and press the transmit button to make the transaction.
Loop is Level One PCI-compliant, and data is encrypted and stored in secure memory in the LoopAppCessory. That said, the company’s relationship with card issuers is such that Loop can provide per transaction, dynamic card data, making it impossible for fraudsters to clone your card.
Watch Loop’s intro video here.
Loop was founded in 2013 by Will Grayin and George Wallner, and is headquartered in Woburn, Massachusetts. The company has raised more than $10 million, and is among the innovators scheduled to demo at FinovateSpring 2014 in San Jose in April. To learn more about the event, visit our FinovateSpring page here.

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SecureKey Wins Deployment at Royal Canadian Mint

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: SecureKey

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Thanks to SecureKey, users of the Royal Canadian Mint’s new cloud-based digital currency, MintChip, will have the benefit of multi-factor authentication when it comes to securely accessing their digital dollars and cents.

SecureKey’s briidge.net Connect Mobile SDK will be embedded into the MintChip mobile app. Authentication is based on a unique device ID that connects the unit to the user account in the cloud, and a four-digit PIN.

Charles Walton, CEO at SecureKey states: 
“(This deployment) offers an excellent example of how our briidge.net Connect service can make the benefits of strong, multi-factor authentication available in an extremely friendly way for consumer-facing mobile apps.
Consumers will simply enter their QuickCode PIN on their mobile device to authenticate to their MintChip cloud account.”
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The MintChip project was announced in 2012. Backed by the Canadian government, the “digital cash-like product” in the words of Royal Canadian Mint chief emerging payments officer, Marc Brûlé, is designed to facilitate small denomination shopping (i.e., $10 and below) such as buying coffee or fast food, as well as for online transactions.
The secure smart card supports both MicroSD for use with mobile devices and USB for use with PCs. Merchants with significant transaction volumes can take advantage of a secure hardware option.
SecureKey won Best of Show for their authentication technology at FinovateFall 2010 in New York. The company has raised more than $49 million, and is headquartered in Toronto, Canada.

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Finovate Alumni News– February 18, 2014

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Azimo, Betterment, BillGuard, BlinkMobile Interactive, CAN Capital, DeviceFidelity, Doxo, EyeVerify, Fenergo, FIS, Matchi, Personal Capital, planwise, Taulia, Wealthfront, Xero
  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgScotiabank selects Fenergo’s regulatory onboarding solution.
  • FIS announces partnership with Microsoft Cybercrime Center.
  • Azimo credits Indian expansion for surge in new cash pick-up points.
  • Betterment, Personal Capital, Wealthfront featured in Boston Globe column on personal wealth.
  • DeviceFidelity unveils RF technology behind its latest stand-alone, NFC microSD card.
  • Find Biometrics interviews Toby Rush, CEO of EyeVerify.
  • Vincent Turner, Planwise CEO, gives a closer look at the Planwise Solid Earth partnership.
  • Forbes examines how CAN Capital reinvents financing for SMBs.
  • City of Prosser launches on doxo to simplify bill pay and add mobile interaction.
  • BillGuard now offering free card monitoring for unlimited number of cards.
  • Taulia triples revenue growth in 2013.
  • BlinkMobile enters Europe, eyes U.S.
  • Xero adds a new chairman, director, and CEO of North America.
  • Matchi hires new CEO, David Milligan.
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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FinovateEurope 2014: Twitter on the Thames

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2014

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It’s only fitting that our biggest FinovateEurope ever would feature the liveliest Twitter feed in FinovateEurope history as well.

Maybe you were one of those retweeting support of not just “demos that taste good”, but “demos with good taste,” too. Perhaps you were among the many marveling at those great sketch summaries of FinovateEurope from follower @jonohey of FinovateEurope 2012 alum, Nutmeg. 

But however you may have enjoyed FinovateEurope 2014, there is no doubt that social media was a big part of the story this year.

You’ll have to go see some of the saltier tweets on your own. But here are a handful of highlights (click for larger version):

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See you in San Jose in April!

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Mobino Presents Its Universal Mobile Payments Solution

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2014, Mobino

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This post is part of our live coverage of FinovateEurope 2014.

The team from Mobino is making its way to the stage now with their innovative approach to bringing mobile payments to the masses.

“The new Mobino app delivers superior convenience for customers with a seamless integration of many payment scenarios:
  • Peer-to-peer money transfer
  • Payment for goods and services in shops
  • POS and cash register integration
  • Quicker and safer e-commerce payments
  • Fluid payment flow for mobile commerce
  • Cheap and efficient international remittances
  • Registration and KYC process for unbanked
  • Cash-in/out operations at agents and ATMs
We are looking for distribution partners and investors to expand our reach in Europe and worldwide.”
Presenting Jean-Francois Groff (CEO) and Bea Beyer (Evangelist)
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Product Launch: November 2013
Product distribution strategy: Direct to Consumer (B2C), Direct to Business (B2B), through financial institutions, through other fintech companies and platforms, licensed
HQ: Geneva, Switzerland
Founded: March 2011
Website: mobino.com
Twitter: @mobino

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Temenos Presents its Treasury Management Dashboard Tablet App

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2014, Temenos

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This post is part of our live coverage of FinovateEurope 2014.

From Geneva, Switzerland, the team from Temenos is up next with their solution for managing treasury operations.

“The Temenos Treasury Management Dashboard Tablet App has been developed for Microsoft Windows 8 and enables the transformation of treasury operations. It provides a dynamic dashboard user interface, accessing real time, accurate business-critical information in relation to the bank’s overall position against the market, enabling them to spot opportunities and manage risk from wherever they are and at any time. 
This app allows better access, increased mobility, and stronger collaboration for information sharing in the workplace whilst enabling treasury managers to be far more responsive and effective in making critical business decisions – ultimately producing higher returns and managing risk.”
Presenting Adam Gable (Product Manager) and Mike Williams (Sales Director, Temenos Channel Solutions)
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Product Launch: May 2014
Metrics: 3,700 employees worldwide; 1,500 customer deployments; $450 revenue in 2012
Product distribution strategy: Direct to Business (B2B)
HQ: Geneva, Switzerland
Founded: 1993
Website: temenos.com
Twitter: @Temenos

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NF Innova Presents its Personal Experience Module to Boost Customer Engagement

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2014, NF Innova

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This post is part of our live coverage of FinovateEurope 2014.

Making their way to the stage now is the team from NF Innova, a software company that specializes in omni-channel customer interaction products.

“Personal Experience Module, a part of iBanking product suite, enables banks to offer their customers a truly unique and tailored user experience. Namely, instead of static, CRM-based rules used for segmentation, this module provides for the adaptive behavior of the entire system, tailoring the user interface for each individual client, without the administration by the bank’s staff. 
It monitors the subscribed products and services, user’s behavior on the digital touch points (portal, mobile devices, etc.), and automatically provides the exact mash-up of functionalities that are most appropriate for the specific customer at the given time and the communication device.”
Presenting Eldar Banjica (CEO) and Dejan Petkovic (Director, Products & Strategy)
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Product Launch: iBanking: June 2012, Personal Experience Module: February 2014
Metrics: 42 employees, estimated €1.5 million in revenue in 2013, estimated 1 million named users of iBanking in 2013
Product distribution strategy: Direct to Business (B2B), through other fintech companies and platforms, licensed
HQ: Vienna, Austria
Founded: March 2013
Website: nfinnova.com

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PhotoPay Cloud Simplifies Paper, PDF Bill Payment on Mobile Devices

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2014, PhotoPay

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This post is part of our live coverage of FinovateEurope 2014.

Our next presenter is the team from PhotoPay, debuting PhotoPay Cloud:

“Send any kind of payment related document from your mobile device to PhotoPay Cloud service and it will automatically extract necessary payment data for very simple, one tap payment experience. PhotoPay Cloud will handle any type of bill or invoice customers can receive – photo of a paper bill, PDF document and other types of electronic documents.
“Besides simple payment, PhotoPay Cloud can archive documents for users and provide banks with a deeper understanding of customer financial behavior.
PhotoPay Cloud service can be integrated as a mobile banking feature or as a stand-along product. It can be used as a private, on premises installation or through a secure cloud API.”
Presenting Damir Sobol (Founder & CEO) and Jurica Cerovec (Lead Engineer)

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Product Launch: February 2014
Metrics: Self-financed, 8 employees, 8 bank customers in 5 countries
Product distribution strategy: Private cloud setup or secure cloud API, direct licensing, through other fintech companies and platforms
HQ: Zagreb, Croatia
Founded: April 2013
Website: photopay.net
Twitter: @photopay

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SecureSafe Emphasizes Connectivity, Security in Cloud Storage

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2014, SecureSafe

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This post is part of our live coverage of FinovateEurope 2014.

Our next presenter is the team from SecureSafe, demoing their Swiss online storage that is as safe as a bank vault.

“The financial services ecosystem suffers from the fact that each service provider has its own portal through which data is delivered in a 1:1 fashion. SecureSafe presents a platform that connects banks, EAA, POA, FIM, SNE customers, and private customers. Documents can be sent from banks to professional partners such as EAA, which then can be shared with the assigned end customers. 
Metadata that is passed together with the documents allows for an improved experience and processing on all levels. Professional teams can seamlessly and securely work together with the high-privacy platform run in Switzerland.”
Presenting Tobias Christen (CEO and Co-Founder) and Tim Kahrmann (Head of Marketing)

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Product Launch: February 2014
Metrics: 500,000 registered users, 10 full time employees
Product Distribution Strategy: Direct to Consumer (B2C), Direct to Business (B2B), through financial institutions, through other fintech companies and platforms, licensed
HQ: Zurich, Switzerland
Founded: January 2008
Twitter: @SecureSafe

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