Author: Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz)

Guardian Analytics Appoints New CEO

Guardian Analytics Appoints New CEO
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Guardian Analytics

GuardianAnalyticsHomepage2.16

PacalinBanking fraud prevention company Guardian Analytics appointed a new president and CEO today.

Laurent Pacalin will take the place of Terry Austin who had been with the company since 2009.

Pacalin, who holds a master’s degree in electrical engineering from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, is an expert in analytics, financial crime and e-Commerce. He most recently worked as Group VP of Oracle Sales Cloud. Prior to that, Pacalin served as CMO of FICO.

Additionally Pacalin is co-founder of Clean Tech Open, an accelerator for clean tech startups helping to reduce climate change.

Guardian Analytics board member Skip Glass notes a bright future with Pacalin as chief executive:

“Laurent’s leadership skills and ability to scale high-growth organizations combined with a customer-centric approach and passion for innovation will have an immediate impact on the company’s success.”

Guardian Analytics is based in Mountain View, Calif., and was founded in 2005. The company demoed its FraudXCHANGE solution at FinovateFall 2012 in New York.

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PayPal Unveils Carrier Partnerships & NFC Payment Capability

PayPal Unveils Carrier Partnerships & NFC Payment Capability
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: PayPal

PayPalHomeopage2.16

Last week, PayPal upgraded its mobile app with a cleaner user interface, quick PIN login and other enhanced features. Today, the San Jose-based company announced further updates, powered by partnerships that will offer it access to Vodafone’s 454 million users and America Movil’s 286 million subscribers.

The payment company’s partnership with Vodafone enables European-based Vodafone wallet users to make NFC payments at brick-and-mortar POS locations. The combined solution is powered by partnerships with Raphaels Bank and Carta Worldwide.

This marks the first NFC payment availability for PayPal users, who can connect their PayPal account to their Vodafone wallet and pay using Visa or MasterCard credit and debit cards, as well as prepaid cards. To promote the new offering, Vodafone is rewarding users up to 1GB of bonus data each time they use PayPal to recharge their Prepaid Combo plan online.

VentureBeat cites Anuj Nayar, PayPal’s global head of product communications, who highlights the mutual benefit of the partnership, stating, “From PayPal’s point of view, Vodafone gets access to our integrated platform — in app, online, in-store, and can offer our services to their customers. PayPal will gain access to millions of users.”

Vodafone wallet, launched in 2013, is available in Germany, Spain, the U.K., Italy and the Netherlands. The PayPal integration is now available to users in Spain and will launch in the four remaining countries later this year.

Additionally, PayPal announced similar partnerships with Mexico-based Telcel and Brazil-based Claro (both America Movil subsidiaries). Starting this spring, the telcoms’ users will have the option to use their PayPal accounts to manage and make everyday purchases on their mobile devices.

NewMoneyThese partnerships are a part of PayPal’s new brand campaign titled New Money, in which the company aims to showcase how it is, “enabling a faster, simpler and more inclusive way for people to manage and move money, whether online, in-app, in store or in new contexts.”

At the end of 2015, PayPal counted 179 million active users. Dan Schulman is CEO.

Next month FinDEVr New York 2016 will feature a presentation from PayPal’s Braintree (along with 50+ other fintech companies) that will showcase new trends and tools for developers. Check it out and register today.

Braintree last presented at FinDEVr San Francisco 2015 and at FinovateSpring 2013 in San Jose.

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Finovate Alumni News

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: CopSonic, Corezoid, Currency Cloud, Dashlane, DriveWealth, Entersekt, Fiserv, GMC Software Technology, Kasasa, LockByMobile, PayPal, Xero

On Finovate.com

  • “Best of Show Winner DriveWealth Inks New Partnership with Stoxs”
  • “CopSonic and Natixis Team Up to Launch UltraSound Payment Solution, SwipeSonic”
  • “PayPal Unveils Carrier Partnerships, NFC Payment Capability”

Around the web

  • LockByMobile is working with Visa APIs to enhance consumer transaction controls.
  • Kasasa launches new auto loan direct marketing program, Kasasa Fuel.
  • GMC Software teams up with SundaySky to improve customer experiences via video.
  • Fiserv announces that 25 credit unions have committed to CUnify, its account processing platform.
  • Corezoid is among the first Ukranian startups to participate at Startup Grind (in Ukranian).
  • Xero teams up with Google, bringing gmail and Google Apps for Work to its platform.
  • Dashlane web engineer Thomas Guillory explains why his company is building its next web app using React.js.
  • FirstBank to deploy Transakt, a multi-factor authentication technology from Entersekt.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

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United Capital Acquires FlexScore

United Capital Acquires FlexScore
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FlexScore, Mergers & Acquisitions

FlexScoreHomepage

FlexScore, a platform that gamifies financial planning, was purchased by California-based advisory firm United Capital this week. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

United Capital, which holds $15 billion in assets under management, plans to use FlexScore as a tool to help its advisers engage clients.

The FlexScore platform assesses and scores the user’s financial health and assigns action steps (as seen below) to improve their score. The goal is to reach a top score of 1000, which signifies financial independence.

flexscoremystepsUnited Capital CEO Joe Duran commented to Investment News that FlexScore fits the “missing piece” from the company’s digital suite for clients and advisers. Additionally, Duran stated, “The right intersection is not technology alone, or people alone, but when you have an interactive engaging experience that is powered by people.”

In the future, Duran plans to implement the scoring tool within retirement plans to stimulate engagement. The company is in talks with potential partners for this use case.

United Capital began its relationship with FlexScore in 2014 when it purchased FlexScore’s parent company, Valley Wealth, in a deal that excluded FlexScore.

FlexScore co-founders Jason Gordo and Jeff Burrow launched the startup at FinovateSpring 2013. Since then the San Francisco-based company has raised $4.7 million and created a mobile version of the app (launched at FinovateFall 2014 in New York).

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FinovateEurope the Musical (Yes, Really)

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2016

With all the buzz from FinovateEurope last week, there’s plenty of post-show media to review in the form of articles, blogs, podcasts, and even videos.

However, there’s one piece that stands apart from the rest. Fintech Finance wrote and directed a song* about FinovateEurope 2016, and it’s unlike any coverage we’ve seen before. It’s worth checking out:

Fintech Finance managed to gather and record 47 fintech companies, including presenters, audience members, and analysts, to sing through the fintech melody. Here’s the chorus (sung to the tune of Renegades by X Ambassadors):

But I said wait/
This is great/
Legacy we shall update/
Finovate!

For those less musically inclined, watch Fintech Finance’s (non-musical) video summary (below) or check out the 62 individual company interviews.

*Fintech Finance discloses, “We do not own any copyright of the song – this is a parody based on the original amazing song “Renegades” by X Ambassadors. Original Song: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8j7. Audio Provided by: http://www.inchstudio.com/”

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Finovate Alumni News

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Credit Karma, Dwolla, ebankIT, FlexScore, Striata, Vantiv

On Finovate.com

  • “Credit Karma Unveils New Mobile App Design”
  • “United Capital Acquires FlexScore“

Around the web

  • Striata launches Secure Document Repository solution in the U.S. marketplace.
  • Credit Karma launches redesigned iOS and Android apps.
  • Vantiv Integrated Payments announces the second phase of its Security Pays initiative.
  • KPMG recognizes ebankIT as one of its top 10 “Emerging Stars” in the global market.
  • CoinDesk looks at Dwolla and its new focus on the blockchain.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

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Modo Payments Closes $2 Million in Funding

Modo Payments Closes $2 Million in Funding
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Funding, Modo Payments

ModoHomepage

Payments connection startup Modo Payments closed on a fresh $2 million in funding this week.

Notable contributors to the round include:

  • Tim Keith: CEO of Central Texas Partners
  • John Beletic: partner at Oak Investment Partners
  • Jay Kassing: owner of fintech company Marquis

ModoCOINToday’s round, when added to the Texas-based company’s 2014 Seed round of $2 million, brings its total funding to $4 million.

The Dallas Business Journal discussed Modo’s growth with the startup’s CEO Bruce Parker, who stated, “Over the course of the year, we’re looking to double on almost every dimension*…. Last year, we did $1.7 million in bookings.”

Additionally, Parker noted that Modo will partner with a PayPal competitor this spring, connecting it to U.S. retailers.

Modo’s new initiative, dubbed COIN, works as the “plumbing” in the payments industry. COIN sends money from just about any source, whether it’s a legacy system or new, cloud-based system, and delivers it to any destination. Modo describes COIN as a “shipping container” for intermodal payments.

Modo CEO Bruce Parker describes COIN in his FinDEVr San Francisco presentation titled, Mobile Payments are Dead . . . Long Live Digital Payments.

ModoDEVr15Demo

Modo CEO Bruce Parker at FinDEVr San Francisco 2015.

*Meaning everything from bookings to employees.

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Akamai’s New Bot Manager Offers Insight into Bot Activity

Akamai’s New Bot Manager Offers Insight into Bot Activity
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Akamai

AkamaiHomepage

Akamai, a security company that helps businesses secure and deliver online content and applications, introduced a new offering today, the Akamai Bot Manager.

The new product comes in response to a recent finding that more than 60% of a company’s web traffic may be generated by bots.

BotMGR

Bot activity consists of anything from screen scraping, to automated clicks, to illegitimate transactional activity. While bot activity is considered part of the cost of doing business, it is difficult for companies to determine exactly what that cost is. Bot Manager educates companies about what types of bot traffic are frequenting their site, and offers remediation to help businesses make decisions and take action.

As Stuart Scholly, SVP & GM of Akamai’s Cloud Security Solutions explains, “We’re giving our customers the power and flexibility to put a true bot management strategy in place that best fits their business goals and objectives.”

Bot Manager will be commercially available at the end of this month.

At FinovateEurope 2015, the company launched its Client Reputation service designed to help FIs forecast security issues and protect against DDoS attacks, web attackers, screen scrapers, and scanning tools.

Akamai was founded in 1998 and is based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Dr. Tom Leighton is CEO.

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FinDEVr APIntelligence

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Aerospike, FinDEVr APIntelligence, Markit, Mitek, Venmo, VISA, Wallaby Financial

FinDEVrNY16-V2(wdate)We’re taking our FinDEVr developer showcase to New York on March 29 & 30, 2016. Register today.

Developer news

The latest from FinDEVr San Francisco 2015 presenters

  • Aerospike unveils version 3.7 of its NoSQL database.
  • Mitek to combine its Mobile Verify solution with fraud prevention and risk management technology from IdentityMind Global.
  • Wallaby’s Chrome 2.0 provides access to credit card advice in the browser.
  • Markit acquires systems integration technology from JP Morgan.

Alumni updates

  • VISA launches consumer transaction controls for card-issuing FIs.

Stay current on daily news from the fintech developer community! Follow FinDEVr on Twitter.

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Venmo Processes $1 Billion in January

Venmo Processes $1 Billion in January
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Braintree, PayPal, Venmo

VenmoHomepage

If there was ever a question if Venmo has achieved mainstream status, today’s news has the answer: The startup – owned by online payments processing company Braintree, which PayPal purchased for $800 million in 2013 – just exceeded $1 billion in payments processed in the month of January, the highest volume in a single month.

This is more than 2.5x the volume Venmo processed in January 2015 and more than 10x the amount processed in 2014.

Venmo’s short blog-post announcing the news doesn’t comment much on the achievement, other than to say, “We thought this was a pretty big milestone, so we wanted to share it with you.”

GametimeVenmoThe startup’s peer-to-peer payments service is popular among millennials. It enables users to link their debit card to the platform to transfer money for free; paying with a credit card carries a 2.9% fee. PayPal CEO Dan Schulman reports the average user sends money through the app several times weekly.

This week’s announcement comes on the heels of Venmo’s report that it plans to start monetizing its service by opening Braintree’s iOS v4 SDK and Android v2 SDK to U.S. merchants. Payments will be free for end users, and merchants will be charged 2.9% plus $0.30 for each transaction. Food delivery service Munchery and event ticket seller Gametime (pictured right) are piloting the program with a limited number of beta users.

Braintree debuted Venmo Touch at FinovateSpring 2013. More recently, at FinDEVr San Francisco 2015, PayPal’s Justin Woo discussed how developers can increase checkout conversion.

You can catch Braintree’s latest presentation to developers at FinDEVr New York 2016 next month. Register now to save your seat or send your developer.

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FinovateEurope 2016 in the Press

FinovateEurope 2016 in the Press
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateEurope 2016

FEUNetworking

We’re surfing a wave of momentum from FinovateEurope last week. The sold-out show, dubbed by Business Insider as the “debutante ball for innovative financial technology startups,” featured new fintech from 70 companies. The ideas that flowing from onstage offered analysts, bloggers, and press plenty to write about.

If you missed it, you can check out our live coverage on Twitter.

Here is what the press is saying:

Aite
FinovateEurope 2016: A Change of Approach
By Virginie O’Shea

Aixigo
7 Minutes of Fame or How it Feels to be at FinovateEurope
By Mario Alves

Arctic Startup
Norwegian Startup Unveils First Savings Service For Women
by Tarmo Virki

BankInnovation
Breaking Banks: Finovate and London FinTech [AUDIO]

BankNXT

Benzinga
This Benzinga Fintech Award Nominee Just Won ‘Best In Show’ At Europe’s Largest Fintech Conference

bobsguide

Business Insider

Business.com
Top FinTech Trends, Fresh From Finovate Europe 2016

Byte Academy

Chris Skinner’s Blog
Reflections on Finovate Europe 2016
By Chris Skinner

Crowdfund Insider

Der Brutkasten
Change FinTech Startups Rules in the Fight Against Fraudsters
By Fabian Graber

Directors Talk Interviews
Q&A with Jeremy Nicholds, the new Non-executive Director at Vipera Plc
By Amilia Stone

Ewise blog
FinovateEurope: the place to be if you’re a fintech enthusiast
By Dean Young

Financial Observer
Opinion – Global players seek out fintech partners
By Mark Fordree

Financial Planning
More Risk than Reward for Early Tech Adopters
By Miriam Rozen

Finance Magnates
Finovate Europe: Fintech’s ‘Give-and-Take’ With Institutions Shifting
By Anna Reitman

Finextra

FindBiometrics

Fintech Finance
FinovateEurope video series

The Fintech Times
Finovate
By Bird Lovegod

Forrester’s Benjamin Ensor’s Blog
Finovate 2016: Automation and Personalization Take Centre Stage
by Benjamin Ensor

Forrester’s Oliwia Berdak’s Blog
The Gods of Fintech Are Harsh And Fickle
By Oliwia Berdak

FStech
Finovate Europe 2016 winners announced

Het Financieele Dagblad
Nederlandse start-ups presenteren zich in Londen aan financiële sector
By Rutger Betlem

HTEKONOMI
Finovate Londra’ya FinTech katıldı

IBSintelligence
Finovate 2016 round-up: biometrics, blockchain and deep web risk assessment
By Alex Hamilton

IT Finanzmagazin
Innovative financial and banking technology: Finovate Europe 2016 in London – FinTech for banks
Sven Korschinowski

Inn Poland
Polskie firmy w awangardzie technologii finansowych
By Barbara Żbik

Jewish Business News
Capitali.Se Wins Finovate Europe ‘Best In Show’
By Viva Sarah Press

L’Atelier
#Finovate : la carte du futur sera un ordinateur à part entière
By Aurore Geraud

Medium
FinovateEurope & Social Data
By Noel Peatfield

Mondato
Fitnech: London’s New Big Bang?

MoneyMorning
I Might Have Found the Next ‘Xero’ at Europe’s Best FinTech Conference
By Sam Volkering

Nasdaq
More Risk than Reward for Early Tech Adopters

Nic Sheen’s Blog
Finovate Day 1

NoCamels News Flash
Fintech Startup Capitalise Wins Finovate Europe Competition

Nostrum Group blog
Nostrum Reports on Finovate Europe Day 1

The Official English Blog of the Krakow Start-Up Scene (K’Sup)
VoicePin Wants You to Throw Away your Passwords
By Paul Chen

Octo Talks
FinTech – Finovate 2016 Londres – notre résumé
By Sylvain Fagnent

PaymentEye
What will be the hottest trends of 2016?
By Ben Rabinovich

Polskie Radio

ShiftDelete.net
FinTech İstanbul, Finovate Londra’da

Silicon Republic
Israeli fintech AI start-up wins Finovate Europe ‘Best in Show’
By Colm Gorey

TeknoYo!
FinTech İstanbul uluslararası ilk adımını Londra’da attı

Time Turk
Finovate Avrupa 2016 Konferansi

Tech in Asia
A fintech VC on the best startups at a less-than-stellar Finovate London
By Vladislav Solodkiy

Verdict Financial

VoicePIN blog
Finovate Europe 2016

Webrazzi
FinovateEurope 2016, Avrupa’nın finansal teknoloji girişimlerini ağırladı
By Firat Demirel

World Finance
Finovate 2016

We’ll update the list as more press comes in. If you’ve published a piece you’d like us to include, please email the link to research@finovate.com.

Thanks to everyone for attending, presenting, and covering the conference on Twitter and in the press. We’re already looking forward to next year’s event!

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Finovate Alumni News

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: ACI Worldwide, AdviceRobo, Billhighway, eWise, Fiserv, Lending Club, NICE Systems, planwise, Prosper, SafetyPay, Temenos, wipro

On Finovate.com

Around the web

  • AdviceRobo nominated to European Fintech 100 rankings.
  • KeyBank selects NICE Actimize for Enterprise Fraud Solutions.
  • ACI Worldwide announces joining real-time payment initiative launched by The Clearing House.
  • Temenos reports 23% profit gain in FY 2015; says developed markets driving growth.
  • Wipro buys U.S.-based HealthPlan Services for $460 million.
  • ProgrammableWeb features Planwise in its Daily API RoundUP.
  • Prosper raises rates on loans.
  • SafetyPay reports 2015 growth: opened offices in Chile and Ecuador, now operates in 19 countries.
  • Lending Club now offers TurboTax integration for Form 1099s.

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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