Author: Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz)

FinovateFall Sneak Peek: Tala Security

FinovateFall Sneak Peek: Tala Security
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateFall 2018, FinovateFall 2018 Sneak Peek, Tala Security

A look at the companies demoing live at FinovateFall on September 24 through 26, 2018 in New York. Register today and save your spot.

Tala is a startup that enables enterprises to deliver the most secure and trusted web experience to their customers across PC and mobile devices.

Features

  • Comprehensive protection against server-side, client-side, and third-party attacks
  • Completely automated and easy to manage
  • Agent-less, no change to the website or end user device

Why it’s great
With Tala, enterprises can increase site conversion rates and customer satisfaction, prevent loss of customer data, and recover lost online revenue.

Presenters

Aanand Krishnan, CEO
Krishnan is an experienced technology and security leader with a track record of introducing industry leading products. His previous firms include Symantec and Morgan Stanley.
LinkedIn

Siddhesh Yawalkar, Senior Software Engineer
Yawalkar is a Senior Software Engineer at Tala and works on Threat Intelligence and Analytics. He has an MSEE from Georgia Tech.
LinkedIn

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SigFig Buys SmartWealth from UBS

SigFig Buys SmartWealth from UBS
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: SigFig

Wealthtech company SigFig announced a big purchase today. The San Francisco-based company bought SmartWealth roboadvisory technology from UBS for an undisclosed amount.

In a memo, UBS’ Eva Lindholm, head of Wealth Management U.K., and Reto Wangler, chief operating officer of Global Wealth Management, said the company found “limited short-term potential” for SmartWealth after launching it in 2017. The SmartWealth technology was aimed to serve wealthy investors, requiring a minimum investment of $19,500. Though the Swiss bank originally aimed to expand the roboadvisory service, a management reorganization resulted in a redistribution of resources, ultimately cutting off funds for SmartWealth.

Under the sale, SigFig will receive the SmartWealth technology (not the clients). “We’re pleased, however, to have entered into an agreement to sell the intellectual property relating to UBS SmartWealth to SigFig – a financial technology firm that we have an equity stake in and with whom we’ve been working for two years in the U.S.,” the memo added.

SigFig CEO Mike Sha said, “This acquisition underscores our strong, growing relationship with UBS, as we work together to provide better digital financial solutions to advisors and their clients.” UBS has been working with the fintech for the past two years. “We saw this deal as a perfect opportunity to quickly establish a veteran technology team and UK compliant offering,” added Sha.

Launched in 2007 under the name Wikinvest, SigFig is a wealth-tech pioneer with more than $114 million AUM. Co-founder Parker Conrad debuted the company’s Actionable Advice offering at FinovateFall 2011. Earlier this year, the company closed on $50 million in funding, bringing its total capital to $117 million.

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Deserve Raises $17 Million in Equity Funding

Deserve Raises $17 Million in Equity Funding
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Deserve, Funding, SelfScore

Credit-building payment card innovator Deserve just closed $17 million in equity funding this week. Contributors to the round include new investor Sallie Mae, as well as existing backers Accel, Pelion, Aspect Ventures, and Mission Holdings. This brings the company’s combined debt and equity funding to $95.5 million.

The California-based company will use the funds to build out its platform and add partners to its reward programs. The company currently offers users deals with six partners, including Amazon Prime, T-Mobile, and Wikipedia.

Originally known as SelfScore, Deserve rebranded in 2017 to enhance its focus on serving college students and Generation Z. The company offers Mastercard-branded credit cards for young, financially underserved consumers and others with thin credit files. The cards are made to appeal to international students and others, such as the company’s Founder and CEO Kalpesh Kapadia, who have recently moved to the U.S. and are having difficulty accessing credit. When it came to applying for credit in the U.S., Kapadia told Business Insider, “I got rejected every time. It was mostly for credit cards and student loans, given that I didn’t have a credit card history in the country.”

Deserve has three card options: Deserve Edu, which offers student benefits such as 1% back on all purchases and a free subscription to Amazon Prime Student; Deserve Pro, which offers no foreign transaction fees and 1% to 3% back on purchases; and Deserve Classic, which is specifically designed to help users build their credit.

The company leverages non-traditional data such as current financial health, education history, future employability, and projected potential earnings. Deserve combines those factors into a machine learning algorithm to determine applicants’ credit eligibility. The company’s cards are open to U.S. citizens, green card holders, registered international students, and H1B or L1 visa holders.

Founded in 2012, Deserve demoed a consumer behavior analytics service at FinovateFall 2014 under the name SelfScore. The company’s accounts are issued by Utah-based Celtic Bank. In April, Deserve closed on $50 million in debt financing to drive growth in accounts receivables.

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Diebold Nixdorf Receives $650 Million Capital Commitment

Diebold Nixdorf Receives $650 Million Capital Commitment
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Diebold, Funding

Financial services, software, and hardware provider Diebold Nixdorf secured a commitment of $650 million in capital this week. The loan is coming from two unidentified, institutional lenders and repayment is due in August 2022.

The Ohio-based company will use the loan to acquire remaining shares of Diebold Nixdorf, repay debt, and fund its DN Now operational improvement plan. The loan is expected to be completed within the coming days.

Bloomberg reported earlier this month that the company may be experiencing a “potential liquidity crisis” and that “Diebold is trying to negotiate easier terms with its lenders, the second change in four months, to allow for greater leverage in its debt covenants.”

Diebold Nixdorf demoed on the Finovate stage alongside Zenmonics at FinovateFall 2014, showcasing an in-lobby terminal. Founded in 1859, the company is partnered with almost all of the world’s top 100 banks and most of the top 25 global retailers. Diebold Nixdorf’s employees help bring solutions to more than 130 countries.

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A Framework for Your 2019 Fintech Strategy

A Framework for Your 2019 Fintech Strategy
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateFall 2018

FinovateFall is going beyond the demos again this year to bring you more content. In addition to two days of live demos from 80 fintech companies, we’ll have an extra discussion day to help you break down and digest some of the new technologies. You’ll also have a chance to present your own thoughts and questions to fintech thought leaders.

The discussion day will take place on September 26, following two days of demos on September 24 and 25, at the Marriott Marquis Times Square in New York. These are the conversations that will shape your bank’s 2019 strategy, so be sure to register.

Here is just a handful of topics we’ll cover:

The future of payments

Payments have changed since the dawn of fintech. However, many old habits, such as writing checks and swiping magstripe credit cards, have not changed. Other ideas, such as mobile wallets and tap-to-pay technologies have struggled to gain ground. We’ll discuss these thoughts, as well as voice-driven payments, new technologies, and how millennials are determining the future of digital payments.

Digital transformation

Is digital transformation simply a buzzword or is it a requirement for success and survival in 2019? Digital Transformation involves a broad scope of banks’ operations and we’ll have a chance to hear the experts break down what it means to them and why they think it’s worth paying attention to.

Cybersecurity and risk management

In order to stay one step ahead of hackers, techniques in cybersecurity are constantly advancing by leveraging technologies such as AI and the blockchain. We’ll host a team of analysts, bankers, and hackers as they discuss the threats and opportunities in this space.

Voice banking

AI, natural language processing, conversational banking, and chatbots have bubbled to the top as some of the hottest new fintech trends this year. Voice has been called the next user interface and there’s been plenty of discussion on how consumers will usher in the new era of conversational banking. We’ll hear from banks, analysts, and successful startups on developments they’ve seen in this space and advice they have on where to invest for the future.

Blockchain uses and crypto exchanges

It wouldn’t be a fintech conference without a blockchain discussion– and for good reason. The enabling technology has opened up new possibilities for old banking ideas such as currency, payments, contracts, audit compliance, and more. If you’re feeling behind on leveraging blockchain opportunities, be sure to tune into one of these sessions. And don’t miss discussions on crypto exchanges– because the blockchain and cryptocurrencies are way more than just bitcoin.

Building partnerships

While we can’t settle the build vs. buy dilemma for you, we will offer up our thoughts on the importance of partnerships in banking and fintech. Most fintechs need banks to survive, and many banks thrive off the new ideas and capabilities that fintech companies open up for their institutions. These sessions will capture ideas on how to create a win-win partnership that focuses on utility and efficiency.

Data

From its role in alternative credit scoring technologies to the latest robo advisory tools, data has a place across the fintech sector. As evidenced by the title of our data session, Data as Oxygen, we think it’s a pretty important resource. We’ll hear from top-tier banks, startups, and other financial services companies as they discuss how they use data and where they see the data revolution headed next.

Financing

As a staple banking activity, lending will take one of the starring roles in our discussion day. While lending basics have remained the same, new enabling technologies have recently opened up new opportunities in the space. Artificial intelligence and machine learning have changed the way underwriters look at risk and credit scoring, while point of sale financing technologies have advanced far beyond layaway thanks to real-time risk analyses. These are just some of the topics that will be featured on the Digital Lending Stage at FinovateFall next month.

We’ll also feature highlights such as:

  • Analyst all-stars
  • Debates on the future of digital financial services
  • Accelerator showcase

And be sure to check out our loaded list of 80 demoing companies that will take the stage on September 24 and 25. On the Finovate blog, we’re highlighting select companies in our Sneak Peek series to give you an advanced look at what to expect on stage.

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Mint Brings User Interface into 2018

Mint Brings User Interface into 2018
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Mint

The last time I covered Mint was in 2014. And the company’s last press release was in 2016. So it was good to see an update from Mint today, even if that update is slightly underwhelming– an announcement of a refreshed user interface.

The Intuit-owned company has updated the design of its iOS app to offer a sleek design as well as a simplified view of important changes in users’ finances. Mint listened to user feedback and brought financial data to the foreground, requiring fewer clicks to find it.

Along with these changes, the company is also rolling out Mintsights, a new feature to help iOS users stay on top of their budget. The tool leverages users’ financial data to offer data-driven insights and money saving offers. Mintsights will be launched to iOS users in the next few months and the company reports that updates to its Android and web interfaces are coming soon.

Founded in 2006, Mint found early fintech success when it was acquired by Intuit in 2009. The company’s founder, Aaron Patzer, demoed the budgeting technology at the very first Finovate conference in 2007. While Mint has remained fairly quiet since its introduction of Mint Bills in December 2016, the company has stayed focused on the consumer-facing side of its business, publishing blog posts and adding investment, credit, insurance, and lending offers targeting millennials.

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Entrust Datacard Sees Fruit from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory

Entrust Datacard Sees Fruit from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Entrust Datacard

Identity authentication and secure card issuance company Entrust Datacard announced enhancements to its Mobile Smart Credential solution this week. Overall, the changes help guard against security threats without compromising the user experience.

The Minnesota-based company’s main enhancement to its password-free mobile login experience is the addition of Bluetooth login support. The Mobile Smart Credential solution’s Bluetooth enhancement offers proximity-based VPN and workstation admittance, as well as access to cloud applications, legacy applications and physical door access. Instead of  passwords or two-factor authentication, the user’s mobile device is their key.

Ryan Zlockie, global vice president of authentication solutions for Entrust Datacard, called mobile devices “an extension of our identity.” He added, “Like a mobile wallet for payments, Mobile Smart Credential is a virtual employee ID that provides unfettered access to all of the digital and physical places where employees need to do their job. And, by removing friction to the authentication process, organizations are able to streamline operations, increase productivity and provides a better user experience for their employees, which leads to greater overall employee satisfaction.”

The Bluetooth functionality, which Entrust Datacard sees as another step in its journey to “zero-factor authentication,” is the result of the company’s collaboration with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). In December of 2017, Entrust Datacard participated in an advanced authentication lab at JPL to test authentication experiences that increase security.

Entrust Datacard was founded in 1969 and presented at FinDEVr Silicon Valley 2016. Jason Soroko, Security Technologies Manager, and Matt Rose, Technical Sales Consultant, spoke to the audience of developers on Safeguarding Your Banking Applications. Last month, the company acquired cloud security firm SMS Passcode and made a strategic investment in cloud security expert CensorNet.

With 2,200 employees in 34 locations across the globe, Entrust Datacard is a privately held company headquartered in Shakopee, Minnesota. The company issues 10 million+ identity and payment credentials daily and manages billions of transactions on an annual basis.

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Finovate Alumni News

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: BBVA, Entrust Datacard, InComm, Taulia

On Finovate.com

  • Entrust Datacard Sees Fruit from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

Around the web

  • Taulia releases a record-breaking $6 billion in early payments for suppliers in the second quarter – up from $4.5 billion in the previous quarter.
  • BBVA enhances security by enabling customers to manage security levels on their smartphones from a single point in the app.
  • InComm launches Google Play gift cards in Thailand as it celebrates its 10th anniversary in the Asia-Pacific region.

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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Deutsche Bank Takes Equity Stake in Modo Payments

Deutsche Bank Takes Equity Stake in Modo Payments
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Funding, Modo Payments

Payments technology company Modo Payments announced this afternoon it received an equity investment from Deutsche Bank. The amount was undisclosed. Prior to today’s announcement, Modo had raised a total of $11.3 million since it was founded in 2010.

The German bank plans to leverage Modo’s technology to expand its digital business-to-business and business-to-consumer payments. Specifically, Deutsche hopes to extend its payment capabilities into non-traditional channels, such as the mobile wallets and peer-to-peer networks of Alipay, Paypal, M-Pesa, and WeChat.

John Gibbons, head of global transaction banking at Deutsche Bank, refers to payments as the “bloodline of banking.” In the press release, he noted that Modo will give Deutsche “more flexibility” in facilitating non-traditional transactions. “Going forward, we will be able to directly process payments to mobile wallets and app-based payment solutions,” Gibbons added.

“The Modo team is focused on doing the most good for the most people by reducing friction in payments. That is why we do what we do every day, and this partnership with Deutsche Bank is a great opportunity to work with one of the world’s largest payment providers that can implement our technology on a global scale and further our reason for being” said Bruce Parker, founder and CEO at Modo. “We’re excited to see where this relationship can take us and how we can continue creating interoperability between payment systems around the world.”

Modo exchanges payment data across platforms on behalf of banks, payment networks, and providers, enabling them to store, share, and track payment event data. The company presented at FinovateFall 2016, where it showcased its Modo Digital Payments Hub. Late last year, Modo appointed former CEO of Klarna North America, Brian Billingsley, as its Chief Revenue Officer. More recently, the company earned top honors at the ETA TRANSACT Payments Pitch-Off earlier this year.

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PaySimple Adds New Integrations for Targeted Email Marketing

PaySimple Adds New Integrations for Targeted Email Marketing
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: PaySimple

Service commerce platform PaySimple announced its latest integrations today, unveiling partnerships with MailChimp and Constant Contact.

By integrating with these email marketing platforms, PaySimple is enabling its merchant clients to automatically synchronize their customer records from PaySimple reports. Merchants can leverage their customer purchase data to segment customer lists, create targeted marketing campaigns, and make more informed marketing decisions.

“We designed this integration to help our merchants promote their businesses, keep their customers engaged, and generate more sales by leveraging powerful payment data in their email marketing,” said PaySimple President, David Sharp. “Ultimately, this is part of PaySimple’s mission to empower SMBs to reach their full potential.”

Founded in 2006, PaySimple focuses on making enterprise-scale efficiencies available to small businesses at a reasonable cost. The Colorado-based company offers technology to help businesses accept payments, manage customers, and automate billing.  PaySimple is making today’s integrations available as a part of its PaySimple Pro account offering.

The company serves 17,000 clients in a range of industries, from fitness to professional services. At FinovateFall 2012, PaySimple CEO Eric Remer demonstrated how the company uses early payment incentives to help small businesses get paid faster. Earlier this spring, PaySimple launched a real-time data integration with Quickbooks Online to offer business owners a better view of their business’ financial health.

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FinovateFall Sneak Peek: Crypterium

FinovateFall Sneak Peek: Crypterium
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Crypterium, FinovateFall 2018, FinovateFall 2018 Sneak Peek

FinovateFallA look at the companies demoing live at FinovateFall on September 24 through 26, 2018 in New York. Register today and save your spot.

Crypterium, the world’s first cryptobank, will help you to spend your crypto holdings with the same ease as cash. Pair your crypto account with the virtual card in Crypterium’s app and pay with it as you go.

Features

  • Spend cryptocurrency at over 42 million points of acceptance
  • Transfer money worldwide in seconds using just the recipient’s phone number
  • Buy cryptocurrency instantly with your bank cards

Why it’s great
Crypterium believes cryptocurrency is the future of money, and it’s time to make it go mainstream. With its app, you’ll be able to pay with crypto anywhere in the world.

Presenters

Marc O’Brien, CEO
O’Brien is former CEO of Visa U.K., the company’s second most important market. He is also a key advisor on some of the most exciting startups in the U.K., including Revolut, Britain’s first digital bank unicorn.
LinkedIn

Austin Kimm, COO
Kimm is former CEO of Renaissance Life and Pensions (in Russia and Ukraine) and CEO Renaissance Insurance Group. The company was sold for approximately $200 million in 2013.
LinkedIn

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FinovateFall Sneak Peek: Round Pegs

FinovateFall Sneak Peek: Round Pegs
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateFall 2018, FinovateFall 2018 Sneak Peek, Round Pegs

FinovateFallA look at the companies demoing live at FinovateFall on September 24 through 26, 2018 in New York. Register today and save your spot.

Round Pegs’ early stage validation of digital opportunities unlocks corporate innovation in a result-driven approach, connecting corporate assets with the startup way.

Features

  • Validate digital opportunities as a startup would
  • Reach executive consensus and avoid larger investments
  • Co-create your product with beta users

Why it’s great
From increasing your digital channels engagement to creating your own fintech, Round Pegs has enabled companies to reach consensus in digital innovations valued at over $45 million.

Presenter

Pedro Donati, CEO
Donati was a former IT director at the largest e-commerce in Latin America and was former channels director at Itau Unibanco, the largest non-government owned bank in Latin America.
LinkedIn

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