Don’t Miss Your Last Chance to Save £200 via a FinovateEurope 2013 Very-Early Bird Ticket

By Eric Mattson Posted on
Categories: Uncategorized

btn1_ov.png

With FinovateEurope 2013 a little less than 3 months away, we’ve begun sorting through the THICK stack of applications we’ve received from hot startups and leading established players with new fintech innovations to debut.

It’s already an incredible list and it is growing every day as the final application deadline of Friday November 30 draws near (please email us at [email protected] ASAP if you still need info on applying).

There is so much innovation going on in Europe in everything from mobile to security to lending to PFM to payments to wealth management — and much more. Based on the quality and number of applications we’ve seen so far, next year’s FinovateEurope is going to be our biggest and best yet. And, with the expansion to a two-day format, it’s your chance to see even more new ideas in a single show.

If you’d like to attend and watch the cutting-edge of European fintech
debut via our fast-paced, demo-only format, very early-bird tickets are still available at
the discounted price of £995.00 (£200 off) through this Friday. Tickets are limited so please lock in your seat today to guarantee your ability to attend (and these savings). We’ll see you in London in February!

FinovateEurope 2013 is sponsored by: Bluerock Consulting, Financial Technology Partners & The Bancorp

FinovateEurope 2013 is partners with: Financial Services Innovation Centre and Hotwire PR 

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

aSpark, DCisions Both Acquired in Separate Deals

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: aSpark, DCisions

Recently, two Finovate alums announced that they had been acquired. We were excited to see two successful exits:

Thumbnail image for aSparkLogo.jpg

aSpark, an idea-incubation company that generates cloud-based mobile solutions for FIs
Founded: 2011
Acquired by: LiquidHub, provider of management and IT consulting
Finovate demo: FinovateFall 2012

Co-founder and CEO, Raj Patil, and his team will now continue operating under the company name LiquidHub.

Thumbnail image for DCisionsLogo.jpg

DCisions, data analytics company that operates InvestorBee, a consumer-based service that provides investment data
Founded: 2005
Acquired by: Interactive Investor, a guide to UK finance and investing
Finovate demo: FinovateEurope 2012 and FinovateSpring 2012

DCisions will conclude independent data services on December 31, 2012, at which point the FTSE DCisions Index Series and InvestorBee service will stop.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

FinTech Innovation Lab Accepting Applications Through December 19

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Uncategorized

Fintech-Logo-Horizontal.jpg

Last week we met with the President and CEO of the FinTech Innovation Lab, Maria Gotsch, to learn more about the program. The Lab is currently accepting applications through December 19.

For those not familiar with the Lab, it is a program that connects early- and growth-stage financial technology companies to a group of 14 leading financial services firms:

  • Ally Financial 
  • American Express 
  • Bank of America 
  • Barclays 
  • Capital One 
  • Citigroup 
  • Credit Suisse 

  • Deutsche Bank 
  • Goldman Sachs 
  • JPMorgan Chase 
  • Morgan Stanley 
  • New York Life 
  • State Street 
  • UBS

Goals
The program has two main goals:

1. Create a stronger fintech sector in New York City. Because many startups look to the West Coast for their headquarters, the lab aims to keep them in New York. 

2. Expose its 14 financial institution partners to cutting edge technology. The Lab facilitates a dialogue between financial institutions and fintech companies, ensuring that their products and services are addressing real needs.

FinTechInnoLabHomepage.jpg

Benefits
Companies find the biggest benefit of the Lab is the feedback and mentoring from senior executives (CTO/CIOs) from large financial services firms. The tech companies receive more direct feedback than what they would receive in a typical sales call.

Challenges
The biggest challenge for participants is committing to the 12-week time requirement. Companies have to be prepared to spend 12 weeks on-site in New York and attend weekly panel discussion meetings. Because participants still need to run their business, they must balance the two.

Selection Process
Companies submit written descriptions of their product. About 20 of those are brought in to pitch to the financial institution representatives. Of those, six or seven are selected to go through the full program. 

Ideally, the Lab receives a mix of early and growth stage companies that, at a minimum, have a well-developed and working beta. The Lab will even accept well-established companies for the program if they have a new and innovative product. 

How to Apply
The Lab is accepting applications through December 19. Go to fintechinnovationlab.com to apply or learn more about the program.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Finovate Alumni News– November 28, 2012

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Bazaarvoice, Betterment, Capital Access Network, CashStar, Compass Plus, Credit Sesame, Enloop, Jingit, Klarna, SafetyPay, Social Money, Tradeshift

Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpg

  • Payelp Global partners with SafetyPay to expand online payment options for merchants and customers worldwide.
  • Enloop releases the next generation of its business planning app to help entrepreneurs plan businesses.
  • Social Money announces launch of new product, CorePro, with a new partner, The Bancorp.
  • Tradeshift announces partnership with Verbella CMG, an SAP Content mgmt. solutions provider.
  • Anton Commissaris, a founding exec of Mint.com, joins Credit Sesame as COO.
  • Betterment enhances advice for life goals.
  • Capital Access Network names advisory board to guide launch and growth of latest offering to small businesses, CapTap.
  • CNBC reports CashStar, WEX partner to provide eGift card services.
  • New partnership with Klarna helps 3dcart reach European customers.
  • Compass Plus earns high ranking in annual PayX report.
  • AdExchanger interviews Bazaarvoice Media GM Barkow.
  • Team Bronson Moneymakers reviews Jingit.
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.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

ActivePath Merges with PowerInbox, Raises $10 Million in New Funding

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: ActivePath

Competitors in the interactive e-mail space have now become companions as ActivePath announced its merger with former rival PowerInbox early this week.

Thumbnail image for ActivePath.jpg

The combined entity, which will be called “PowerInbox” also announced $10 million in new funding from Atlas Ventures and Longworth Partners, as well as from Battery Ventures, Genesis, GIMV and Correlation Ventures. 
While PowerInbox’s strength has been in the consumer market, ActivePath has made inroads into the enterprise space.  The new company will feature ActivePath CEO Jeff Kupietzky as the new chief executive officer. PowerInbox co-founder, Dileep Thazhmon will serve as COO.
To learn more about ActivePath, please see the company’s most recent demos at Finovate Fall 2011 here and Finovate Fall 2010 here.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Finovate Alumni News– November 27, 2012

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: AcceptEmail, ActivePath, Andera, Betterment, BlinkMobile Interactive, DCisions, DeviceFidelity, Experian, Giftly, Holvi, InComm, Jingit, Kapitall, Klarna, Luup, Mortgagebot, On Deck Capital, Personal Capital, SapientNitro, ThreatMetrix, TIO Networks, ValidSoft
  • Interactive Investor purchases DCisions, closes InvestorBee service.

Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpg

  • Finextra reports Rabobank Australia and NZ selects ThreatMetrix to secure online channels.
  • InComm & SkyMall Ventures partner to launch electronic gift card program.
  • Opus Research report recognises ValidSoft as leader in voice biometrics.
  • AloStar Bank of Commerce chooses Andera’s oFlows for online account opening.
  • TIO adds mobile bill pay app to its suite of services for El Paso Electric.
  • Radian Mortgage Insurance now available through Mortgagebot’s loan origination system.
  • E-invoicing Platform features AcceptEmail.
  • Xconomy examines how Giftly will disrupt traditional gift card market.
  • Luup signs partnership with Arab Link, provider of money transfer and exchange services in Abu Dhabi.
  • Personal Capital launches Android app.
  • Crunched lists On Deck in top 25 startups to work for.
  • TechCrunch reports Holvi Plans To Disrupt Traditional Bank Accounts With Simple But Powerful Services.
  • Citi Innovation Lab and SapientNitro honored at National Infocomm Awards in Singapore for next-generation banking experience.
  • ActivePath merges with PowerInbox.
  • Experian expands debt-collection product suite with TrueTrace.
  • DeviceFidelity launches moneto prepaid MasterCard.
  • BlinkMobile announces five more councils to adopt BlinkForms.
  • Klarna earns 2012 Entrepreneur of the Year award from European Tech Tour Association.
  • Money Smart Life reviews Betterment and Kapitall.
  • American Banker reports Betterment deepens finance advice features.
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.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

New Report Published: The Best of FinovateAsia 2012

By Jim Bruene Posted on
Categories: FinovateAsia 2012, National Australia Bank, Online Banking Report

image Our first Finovate in Asia did not disappoint. With 350 attendees, it was smaller than recent U.S. shows, but it had a ton of energy. While that made it hard to herd folks back to the auditorium amidst all their animated conversations, it’s  exactly what we hope for. And we are looking forward to a return next year.

FinovateAsia featured 35 companies, each delivering a seven-minute demo. As is our habit, we’ve summarized the innovations from the crowd favorites and are deliver it to subscribers in the latest report:

The Best New Products at FinovateAsia 2012

Each of the four companies voted Best of Show by the attendees at the event (note 1) are profiled:

  • CurrencyFair showed off its new Marketplace for
    peer-to-peer international transfers
  • Finantix launched Sharp digital banking platform to
    improve sales and service interaction
  • SocietyOne debuted its ClearMatch technology used
    to streamline the loan application process 
  • Ubank, a unit of National Australian Bank (NAB), launched 
    its  peer-spending comparison tool, People like U

__________________________________________________________________

About the report
__________________________________________________________________

The Best New Products at FinovateAsia (link)
A look at the four "Best of Show" winners

Author: Julie Schicktanz, Finovate Group Research Analyst
Editor: Jim Bruene, Finovate Group Founder

Published: 21 November 2012

Length: 32 pages; 7,000 words

Cost: No extra charge to OBR subscribers, US$125 for others
The printed version will be mailed to subscribers next week.

_________________________________________________________________

Note:
1. See Best of Show methodology here.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Jingit Raises $7 Million

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Funding, Jingit

JingitLogo9.11.jpg

Jingit, the startup that pays users to watch ads online, announced last week that it raised $7 million from undisclosed investors.

This comes after the $3.5 million round the Minnesota-based company raised last year, bringing the total investment amount to over $10 million.

Jingit demoed at FinovateFall 2011, where it announced that U.S. Bank will provide the Jingit debit card that users can swipe to spend the cash they earned watching ads. No word on the status of that trial.

To learn more about Jingit, watch its FinovateFall 2011 demo.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Finovate Alumni News– November 26, 2012

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: BancBox, DeviceFidelity, Entrepreneurial Finance Lab, Expensify, Kashoo, MoneyDesktop, Q2ebanking, SecureKey, Simple, TradeHero, Virtual Piggy, WeSeed
  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgAmerican Banker reports MoneyDesktop aims to make PFM more appealing.
  • Bass Pro Shops and Zappos.com added to Virtual Piggy’s digital distribution channel.
  • The Globe and Mail features SecureKey.
  • The Austin Statesman reports: Workers Praise Q2ebanking’s “Family-Type Environment”.
  • TransCard to use DeviceFidelity’s NFC tech to offer a new white-label mobile wallet. 
  • Kashoo Accounting version 2.0 for iPad now available on iTunes. 
  • Tech in Asia calls TradeHero “probably one of the best startup ideas in Singapore.”  
  • Ian McKenna takes a detailed look at innovations demoed at FinovateAsia.
  • Shamir Karkal, Simple CFO, explains where Simple’s ideas came from and how the project got off the ground.
  • The Banker interviews Bailey Klinger, Co-founder and CEO of EFL.
  • BancBox to set up a development center in Chandigarh, India.
  • Greedful.com features WeSeed: “The Stock Market Game that Pays Off”. 
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.

Share this:

Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

Oklahoma Employees Credit Union Posts Seven Specials for Black Friday and Cyber Monday

By Jim Bruene Posted on
Categories: Advertising & Promotion, Capital One, Credit Unions, Holiday promotions, ING Direct

imageDuring the past few years we’ve reported on Black Friday and Cyber Monday promotions at financial institutions (last year). ING Direct is the only large bank that has consistently used the post-Thanksgiving holiday in its marketing (see below) and we are glad to see it continue under Capital One ownership.

imageThis year we found another new entrant for our database of holiday offers, 42,000 member Oklahoma Employees Credit Union. It has a prominent black tag on its homepage announcing a "Black Friday Money $ale" (see first screenshot). 

And from the looks of it, the CU has created a pretty hot offer, leading with car loans as low as 1.49% with no payment due for 90 days (well after holiday spending subsides). But that’s just one of the seven holiday offers (second screenshot). The CU is also offering:

From Black Friday to Cyber Monday (Nov 23 to 26)

  • 1.49% APR* on New or Used Auto Loans 
  • 1.00% APR^ Off Unsecured Loans
  • Surcharge Free Gift Cards***
Black Friday to the End of the Year (Nov 23 to Dec 31)
  • 90 days no pay**
  • $149 Mortgage Loan Origination Fee^^
  • $49 Credit*^ with New MasterCard
  • 0.49%tt Business Loan Origination Fee

———————————–

    Oklahoma Employees Credit Union homepage with Black Friday specials (Wed, 21 Nov 2012)

      image

    Black Friday landing page (link)

    image 

    ING Direct homepage with Black Friday offers (21 Nov 2012)

    image

    ING Direct Black Friday teaser page (link)
    Note: The bank does not reveal the actual offers until midnight Thursday

    image

    —————————–

    Fine print on Oklahoma Employees Credit Union offers:

      *Annual Percentage Rate. 640+ credit score. Max term 60 months; estimated payment $17.31 per $1,000 borrowed. Min amount $10,000. Existing OECU loan min advance $2,500. Requires automatic payments and eStatements. 
      ** Borrower may defer initial auto loan payment up to 90 days. Interest will accrue from date of advance. 
      ^ Annual Percentage Rate. Reduction from regular earned rate as determined by credit score. 
      *** Up to 5 cards
      ^^ Max 12 years up to $250,000 and 75% loan-to-value as determined by appraisal or AVM. 
      *^ Initial transaction must be made by 1/10/13. Credit to be issued by 2/10/13. 
      tt Owner occupied commercial real estate. Max loan $500,000. Additional closing costs may apply. Normal lending policies apply.

      Share this:

      Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook

      Bazaarvoice Raises $6.7 Million To Close Merger Deal

      Bazaarvoice Raises $6.7 Million To Close Merger Deal
      By David Penn Posted on
      Categories: Bazaarvoice
      bazaarvoice_logo_newThe funding comes as Bazaarvoice completes its acquisition of Longboard Media Inc. According to this report from the Austin Business Journal, three investors provided the $6.7 million in additional financing.
      The total value of the deal is $33 million in cash and stock.
      Accompanying the announcement was news that long-time CFO Stephen Collins will step up to replace to outgoing CEO and co-founder Brett Hurt. Hurt will remain on the company’s Board of Directors.
      To learn more about Bazaarvoice, please see the company’s latest demo at Finovate Spring 2012 here.

      Share this:

      Send Post Twitter LinkedIn Facebook