Pomelo Launches Family Credit Cards to Combine Credit and International Money Transfer

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news

Pomelo is launching a family credit card account that gives accountholders up to four cards to give to friends and family overseas. Because the payments run on credit rails, users save on international money transfer fees. Pomelo is launching money transfer capabilities between the U.S. and the Philippines.

Pomelo is the newest fintech in the digital banking scene. The company is launching today with $70 million in Seed funding to change the fundamentals of international money transfer.

Leading the round are Keith Rabois at Founders Fund as well as Kevin Hartz, Co-Founder of Xoom and General Partner at A* Capital. Afore Capital, Xfund, Josh Buckley, the Chainsmokers, and the Weeknd also participated.

Frenkiel, who regularly sends money to family overseas, came up with the idea for Pomelo while he was visiting family in the Philippines and thought, "Why can’t I just give a card to my family instead of having to send money…

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Zogo Finance and MoneyLion Forge Partnership to Foster Financial Literacy

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Zogo Finance

MoneyLion and Zogo Finance announced a new collaboration to bring financial literacy tools to MoneyLion's more than three million users. MoneyLion will integrate Zogo's financial education modules into the Today Feed content section of the MoneyLion app. Zogo Finance won Best of Show in its Finovate debut at FinovateFall 2019 in New York.

Personalized financial content provider MoneyLion is the latest fintech to partner with financial literacy company Zogo Finance. MoneyLion will leverage the new relationship with Zogo Finance to bring enhanced financial education to its more than three million users. The collaboration represents Zogo's largest fintech platform integration since the company was launched four years ago.

"Partnering with a premier (neobank) such as MoneyLion is a pivotal step toward Zogo's goal to bolster investor education for consumers' prosperous financial futures," Zogo CEO Bolun Li said. "This is one of our biggest leaps in the fintech space, driving us…

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Wellness, Inclusion, and Opportunity: Third Annual Finovate Awards Celebrate the Best of Fintech

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Finovate Awards

The return of live events is delivering yet another opportunity for fintech enthusiasts and financial services professionals to rejoice: the Finovate Awards Ceremony is back!

The third annual celebration, to be held the evening of September 13th at the Edison Ballroom in New York City, will reveal the winners of this year's 20+ highly contested categories. Check out our list of Finovate Awards finalists. In addition to honoring this year's award winners, the event will feature live entertainment and all-evening-long opportunities for networking with new friends and old colleagues.

From digital banking and consumer lending to alternative investment solutions and excellence in decentralized finance, the Finovate Awards recognize the breadth of innovation that is driving fintech forward today. Leveraging the wisdom of more than 20 fintech and financial services experts who served as this year's judges, the third annual Finovate Awards celebrate the organizations and individuals whose efforts are…

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BankiFi Preps for U.S. Expansion with Fresh $4.8 Million

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

BankiFi announced a $4.8 million funding round today led by Praetura Ventures. The U.K.-based company will use the funds to expand into the U.S. and inch closer toward its mission to serve two million SMBs across four continents by 2024. The Series A round brings BankiFi's total funding to $8.5 million.

Embedded banking solutions firm BankiFi landed $4.8 million today to help fuel its expansion into North America. The Series A round brings BankiFi's total funding to $8.5 million. The investment round is led by Praetura Ventures and will help U.K.-based BankiFi further its mission to serve two million SMBs across four continents by 2024.

"BankiFi has proven to be an industry-leading open cash management provider in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other countries," said Praetura Ventures Managing Director David Foreman. "Now that they have launched in North America, BankiFi has an opportunity for dramatic growth."

Founded in 2018, BankiFi…

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Paytech Finix Secures $30 Million Investment

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Daily news, Funding

Paytech Finix secured $30 million in funding last week. The investment takes the San Francisco, California-based payment facilitator's total capital to $133 million. Founded in 2015, Finix includes Kabbage, Pay Theory, and Passport among its customers.

San Francisco, California-based paytech Finix announced a $30 million investment last week. The funding featured participation from both new and existing investors, and brings the company's total capital raised to $133 million. Finix reported that it will use the new financing to support the addition of new features to make it easier for software platforms to better manage their payments and merchants.

"The next generation of fintech is all about businesses embedding financial services when and where their customers need them most," Bain Capital Ventures Managing Director and Finix board member Matt Harris said in a statement. "Finix is a leading example of the type of state-of-the-art payments infrastructure provider that makes…

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Credas Appoints Former Experian Director as CSO

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Daily news

Credas has appointed Geraint Rogers as Chief Strategy Officer. Rodgers formerly worked at Experian U.K., where he served as the company's Product Director for Identity, Fraud, and Financial Crime. Rodgers will also serve on Credas' executive board, which includes Barnett and company CTO Kevin Smith.

Digital identity verification platform Credas is bolstering its team this week. The U.K.-based company has appointed Geraint Rogers as Chief Strategy Officer.

Credas anticipates Rodgers will aid the company in the launch of its new Digital Identity wallet later this year. Company CEO Tim Barnett said that Rodgers will "help Credas stay at the forefront of the market."

Rodgers comes to Credas from Experian U.K., where he served as the company's Product Director for Identity, Fraud, and Financial Crime. He has almost 30 years of experience in product development and has worked across banking, risk, and compliance departments in senior roles at both Experian and…

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FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek: Agent IQ

By Madeline Clines Posted on
Categories: Agent IQ, FinovateFall 2022, FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek

A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.

Agent IQ's Lynq personal engagement platform improves communication between financial institutions and their customers, leading to happier, more loyal, and more profitable relationships

Features

Allows customers to select a personal banker Includes configurable, built-in AI that supports a company’s banker to be more efficient Provides real-time insights into what customers are talking about

Why it's great

Agent IQ helps its customers create relationships in the digital world that are just as personal as they are in the physical world, but even more enhanced.

Presenters

Matt Phipps, CMO
Phipps has over a 20 year career in global marketing and branding in which he led digital marketing across Asia Pacific out of Melbourne, Australia for a multi-billion dollar life sciences company.
LinkedIn

Soren Bested, COO
Bested’s industry tenure has spanned…

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FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek: Teslar Software

By Madeline Clines Posted on
Categories: FinovateFall 2022, FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek, Teslar

A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.

Teslar is a configurable lending process automation platform that helps community financial institutions balance portfolios, optimize profits, and effectively serve their customers.

Features

Allows banks to work with business customers to provide financing for mutual customers Expands lending opportunities Customizable to the bank's risk management practices

Why it's great

Expand lending opportunities while the consumer benefits by having the convenience and ease of working directly with the retailer or dealer for financing. Quick and reliable financing.

Presenter

Joe Ehrhardt, CEO and Founder
Ehrhardt began his career as a teller and now has over 20 years’ experience in the industry. Having built Teslar from the ground up, today he leads Teslar’s strategic vision and upholds company culture.
LinkedIn

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FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek: Turnpool

By Madeline Clines Posted on
Categories: FinovateFall 2022, FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek, Turnpool

A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.

Turnpool is an on-chain marketplace for commercial debt on crypto rails. The product enables borrowers to raise debt efficiently, compliantly, and securely, giving lenders opportunities to earn yield.

Features

Borrowers tap into a revolving line of credit Crypto investors get stable yield that is uncorrelated with crypto markets

Why it's great

The goal is to bridge the world of DeFi with real-world assets. Breaking down the barriers of entry, driving adoption, and driving more inclusive capital-efficient access to financing.

Presenters

Jwalin Joshi, Engineer
Joshi is a graduate of UC Berkeley and is interested in the applications of financial technology. He has served as one of the lead engineers and architects of Turnpool's debt marketplace.
LinkedIn

Mary Gooneratne, Co-Founder
Mary Gooneratne, Co-Founder of Turnpool, previously co-founded and sold a…

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FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek: Uplinq Financial Technologies

By Madeline Clines Posted on
Categories: FinovateFall 2022, FinovateFall 2022 Sneak Peek, Uplinq Financial Technologies

A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.

Uplinq delivers the first global credit assessment platform for small business lenders by leveraging billions of statistically validated data sets.

Features

Includes 10,000+ direct connections into SMB data sources in 150+ countries Contains billions of regulatory compliant alternative data sets Serves as a significant extension of existing credit bureau services

Why it's great

Uplinq acquired a mature product that had been in market for 15 years and had served as a foundational component to $1.4 Trillion+ in loan originations and repurposed it into a modern day fintech.

Presenters

Ron Benegbi, Founder & CEO
Benegbi is a serial entrepreneur and the Founder & CEO at Uplinq. Uplinq is Benegbi's fifth startup. He’s a four-time tech founder and had two successful global exits and one flop, too.
LinkedIn

Patrick Reily,…

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Some Do’s and Don’ts of Leveraging Emerging Technologies in Fintech

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Speaker series

Having worked in the fintech industry for four years, Kristiane Mandraki has developed a passion for emerging technology and has seen ebbs and flows of success and failure in the industry. Mandraki is currently the Director of Business Development and Marketing at Praxent, a 22-year old fintech experience design and development firm that helps financial companies succeed in their digital transformation efforts.

We recently spoke with Mandraki on some of the best practices in customer experience, digital transformation, and Web 3; as well as top trends she's anticipating in the next year.

When it comes to customer experience, what are some of the top mistakes you've seen banks and fintechs make, and how can they avoid them?

Kristiane Mandraki: Banks and fintechs often make the mistake of trying to be all things for all people, which only leads to exhaustive mediocrity. Instead, it’s critical to pick a focus, your…

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