OurCrowd’s New Partnership Promotes Startup Investment in Europe

OurCrowd’s New Partnership Promotes Startup Investment in Europe

Equity crowdfunding platform OurCrowd formed a partnership this week with NOAH Advisors to boost investment for European startups.

NOAH Advisors, a European corporate finance boutique, will work alongside the Israel-based company as it expands its portfolio into European startups. The two will focus on Germany, Switzerland, and the U.K.

“Europe is practically next door, with many Israeli startups choosing to focus on this market,” said OurCrowd CEO Jon Medved. “There are amazing innovations being developed in Europe now, and now is the time to bring Israel and Europe closer, collaborating on new ideas and innovation finance.”

As a part of the agreement, NOAH Advisors’ clients, executives, and investors will gain access to OurCrowd’s investment opportunities.

Founded in 2013, OurCrowd’s crowdfunding platform allows its network of 33,000 individual investors to participate in startup investment opportunities alongside VCs and institutional co-investors at the same terms. The company prides itself on its curated deal selection process that requires a team of investment professionals to review thousands of companies, meet with selected management teams, and select opportunities to open to investors. Since opening its doors, the company has vetted over 10,000 companies.

At FinovateSpring 2016, the company debuted the OurCrowd mobile app. Since then, the company marked $1 billion in assets under management; a milestone OurCrowd reached last year. The company was recently featured in Forbes and was ranked by Pitchbook as the most active Israeli VC firm.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • OurCrowd’s New Partnership Promotes Startup Investment in Europe.
  • Five Degrees Teams Up with Bankingblocks.
  • nCino to Power Digital Banking for South State Bank.
  • Digital Banking Platform Alkami Lands New $55 Million Investment.

Around the web

  • Voleo to participate in Google’s Digital Strategy program to boost user acquisition on its social trading application.

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.

Paysend Reaches Crowdfunding Goal of $5.3M

Paysend Reaches Crowdfunding Goal of $5.3M

London-based fintech Paysend announced late last week that it had reached its fundraising goal of $5.3 million (£4.2 million) after a three-day campaign on Seedrs. The company noted that more than 200 investors have participated in funding round, which was led by VC’s Plug & Play, Digital Space Ventures, and Marcorp Fintech. The funding puts Paysend’s total capital at more than $25 million and gives the company a valuation of more than $158 million (£1.25 million).

“We believe that (transferring money) should be as easy and immediate as sending an email, and finally the digital age is being able to facilitate this,” Paysend CEO Ronald Millar explained. He blamed the banking and payments industry for “conditioning” customers into believing that the difficulty of transferring money justified the complex process that most bank customers endure. “I have always been a firm believer that earning money can be tough but spending shouldn’t be,” Millar said.

The company said the funds will be used to fuel Paysend’s international expansion goals, including new partnerships with FIs. Paysend is currently active in 70 countries around the world, and Millar noted that the company is adding new customers at a pace of 2,000 a day. In fact, Paysend’s funding announcement comes as the company reports adding another six countries to its money transfer network. India, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Nepal, Pakistan, and Turkey are all slated to be brought onboard this year.

“We are on a major expansion path,” Millar told The Courier UK. “We’ve just launched the global account and we want to continue to grow the business and establish the operational team and launch more marketing.”

Founded in 2016 and headquartered in London, U.K., Paysend demonstrated its Global Account at FinovateSpring 2018. The solution enables users to store both fiat and crypto currencies in their wallet, exchange funds between currencies, send funds to other Global Accounts, and make payments from their account both online and in-person. The account comes with a prepaid card (both physical and virtual) that can be linked to the currencies in the user’s wallet, enabling them to make everyday transactions in the currency of their choice as easily as spending with a debit card. Users can also use their Global Account card to withdraw cash in 125 currencies.

Paysend has more than 750,000 users of its technology, and facilitates more than two million transactions a month. In May, the company announced the launch of its new payments app, Paysend Link, which enables users to send money to anyone, anywhere using only the recipient’s mobile phone number. Also in May, Paysend reported that its new stablecoin would be available on the Stellar Network this summer.

ACI Invests in Indian Payments; Brazilian Fintech Picks Up $200M from Japan

As Finovate goes increasingly global, so does our coverage of financial technology. Finovate Global: Fintech News from Around the World is our weekly look at fintech innovation in developing economies in Asia, Africa, the Middle East, Latin America, and Central and Eastern Europe.

Central and Southern Asia

  • ACI Worldwide invests in Mumbai, India-based payments innovator, Mindgate Solutions.
  • Pakistan’s Bank of Khyber to deploy new core banking system from Temenos.
  • Infosys earns recognition as a ‘leader’ in the IDC MarketSpace: Worldwide IT Service Management (ITSM) Implementation Services 2019 Vendor Assessment.

Latin America and the Caribbean

  • Brazilian fintech Creditas picks up $200 million investment from Japan’s Softbank, boosting the company’s valuation to $700 million.
  • Crowdfund Insider reveals the 3 Biggest Fintech Trends Shaping Latin America.
  • Amero-Isatek to open its first brick and mortar cryptocurrency exchange in Mexico’s Nuevo Leon, Monterrey.

Asia-Pacific

  • Splitit partners with EFTPay to bring installment payments to merchants in Hong Kong and Macau.
  • Vietnam’s MSB (Maritime Bank) picks SunTec for its customer centricity system.
  • Morocco-based BMCE Bank of Africa to leverage technology from Temenos to drive new corporate banking and trade finance operation in China.

Sub-Saharan Africa

  • Global Finance investigates the rise of Africa’s entrepreneurial class in the private banking industry.
  • Finextra looks at three reasons why fintech is driving change in Africa.
  • Standard Bank introduces new Mastercard-powered ditital trade solution, SimplyBlu, for SMEs in South Africa.

Central and Eastern Europe

  • Wallet, the PFM app from Prague-based fintech BudgetBakers, earns license from Czech National Bank to join the bank’s APIs.
  • New lending platform for “multi-credit” services, Omnicredit, goes live in Romania.
  • Global Finance interviews Alexey Krgulov, Acting Director of Digital Business Platform with Sberbank.

Middle East and Northern Africa

  • Turkey’s Isbank partners with Russian PSP Yandex.Checkout to support e-commerce between the two companies.
  • Disrupt Africa features MerQ, an Egyptian startup that leverages AI to promote financial literacy.
  • AMEinfo publishes its report on banking and fintech in the Middle East and Africa.

Top image designed by Freepik

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Synapse Receives $33m for Backend Fintech.
  • Paysend Reaches Crowdfunding Goal of $5.3 Million.

Around the web

  • Worldline and Trapeze deliver a hands-free payment solution for public transport.
  • Sberbank to Open First Branch in McDonald’s Restaurant.
  • James Hale appointed Head of Product at alternative investing firm Artivest.
  • Finastra named 2019 Microsoft Alliance Global ISV Partner of the Year.

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.

Synapse Receives $33 Million for Backend Fintech

Synapse Receives $33 Million for Backend Fintech

Synapse, a San Francisco-based fintech startup, has raised $33 million in a series B round led by a16z, with participation from existing investors Trinity and Core and unnamed individual investors, including 9Yards Capital, reports Henry Vilar of Fintech Futures, Finovate’s sister publication.

This brings the start-up’s total raised to $50 million, following a $17 million series A round in September 2018. Synapse says it has over three million clients using its cloud-based tools, with 10,000 new signups and five million API requests every day.

In total, Synapse says it has facilitated more than $10 billion in transactions to date. The company reports facilitating more than $2 billion as automated clearing house (ACH) and $40 million in payment card transactions for over 100 companies so far this year.

Synapse provides payment, deposit, lending, and investment products as APIs to financial technology companies, which in turn launch consumer-facing financial services.

The fintech plans to build direct processor integrations with both Mastercard and Visa, which it expects will speed up API calls around card issuance and open up features like just-in-time funding and dynamic spending controls.

The company also intends to launch a brokerage account product and to enhance its loan origination and servicing API. This will make it easier for developers to apply for a warehouse line of credit and add automated text and phone loan collection support.

Toward the end of this year, the goal is to launch services in Europe and Canada, starting with payments, deposits, and debit card issuance. Lending and investment products will follow.

The firm plans a chatbot platform to answer customer questions, along with self-servicing tools for developers, a seed investing program. Synapse will also improve its security tools, including its ID verification and video authentication stack, add-ons around duplicate profile detection, and fraud and transaction monitoring.

“After 2019, our goal is to add support for two key markets each year, plus one underserved market, where we will build consumer-facing products until developer ecosystems are built,” said cofounder and CEO, Sankaet Pathak.

As a part of the series B, a16z’s Angela Strange and Michael Hoffmeyer, director at the Crews Center for Entrepreneurship at the University of Memphis, have joined Synapse’s board of directors.

Founded in 2015, Synapse demoed its white label loan issuance at FinovateSpring last year. The tool originates and services unsecured consumer and business loans while providing customizable decisioning, automated compliance, smart notifications, and an origination and servicing UI.

Women in FinTech: “The Ability to Serve Customers in the Best Manner Possible is Where I Draw Energy.”

Women in FinTech: “The Ability to Serve Customers in the Best Manner Possible is Where I Draw Energy.”

As part of our #WomeninFinTech series, we sat down with Kristin Marcuccilli, executive vice president and chief operating officer at STAR Financial Bank.

We talked about her transition from the world of college football to the world of banking and finance, what technology she thinks will lead the way, and why it is important to work with like-minded individuals to drive a business forward.

Finovate: How did you start your career?

Kristin Marcuccilli: STAR Financial Bank is a privately-owned family bank that’s been around for more than 75 years; in fact, my grandfather’s name is the “T” (Thomas) in STAR. Despite this family history, I didn’t always aspire to become a banker. I earned a bachelor’s degree in psychology and pre-medicine from the University of Notre Dame, and my student work in football operations and player development ultimately led me to my first job in the Notre Dame Football office for three years.  It wasn’t until later that I decided to pursue a master’s degree in business administration and management from Indiana University.

While working toward my master’s degree, I asked my dad about potential opportunities with the bank – though I still was unsure if this was the right path, I became more curious as I progressed in my studies and job experiences. When an opportunity to join the bank arose, I had to follow the same process as anyone else. Our bank has strict rules about family employees: we must work somewhere else for five years first; new positions won’t be created just for family members; and we must pursue an MBA or banking certification to even be considered for a senior management role.

In 2008, I joined the bank as a project manager, and haven’t looked back since. Over the past 11 years, I have worked my way up to chief operating officer, and I now help oversee our technology partnerships, project management efforts, bank operations and strategic direction. During my time at the bank, I’ve helped establish a strategic vision, oversaw a website redesign, helped implement 55 Interactive Teller Machines and have enhanced our digital banking strategy.

Finovate: What sparked your interest in fintech?

Marcuccilli:My interest in fintech stems from the reason I choose to work in community banking – it’s a relationship business, and our team’s involvement in creative thinking that will ultimately help change and influence the way people and businesses interact with their bank is an ever-present and ever-evolving challenge. A passion for fintech calls for an entrepreneurial spirit and the ability to embrace failure and change nearly every day. For me, that’s an exciting challenge.

Finovate: What technologies have you seen lately that have excited you?

Marcuccilli: New technology seems to appear overnight. Years from now, we expect that real-time payments will be the norm – no more waiting for money to move overnight or over the course of several days via check. The application of biometrics and advanced analytics for enhanced security will continue to expand and evolve, and artificial intelligence will support personalized customer experience through digital channels. Electronic delivery of documents, signatures and account opening will also likely be dominating a once paper-intensive banking environment. Self-service kiosks will also have advanced to replace much of the standard transaction activity both as in-branch and as standalone options. All of this excites me, as the ability to serve our customers in the best manner possible is where I draw energy.

Finovate: Why is it important for banks to embrace new tech? How is Star Financial Bank doing this?

Marcuccilli: In our rapidly changing industry, banks that are slow to adapt risk falling behind and losing critical business. Bankers have a significant advantage when it comes to building valuable relationships and supporting their local communities, but they must also add modern technology to remain nimble and relevant.

At STAR, we place a strong emphasis on maintaining our community focus while optimizing delivery channels and meeting customers where they are on their financial journey. We take a collaborative approach when evaluating and implementing new technology, starting at the top with our CEO who encourages the team to embrace change.

I am proud to be part of a powerhouse team, working alongside innovators and leaders who dedicate significant time and effort toward studying technology and client behavior to best meet our community’s needs. We have a group of smart, data-driven individuals who ensure our technology and services align with our business and customer demands.

Finovate: Where do you think the future of fintech is heading?

Marcuccilli: Delivery channel optimization (to ensure convenient and engaging customer experience), security threats and payments are all rapidly evolving and will continue to be a major focus in the fintech space. To effectively address these trends, there will be a growing demand and emphasis on the selection of third-party partnerships.  Finding the right technology partner – both a technical and cultural fit – will be important in facilitating the best experience for customers.

Finovate: Why is the #WomeininTech movement important?

Marcuccilli: There is a general lack of female representation in financial services, especially when it comes to the technology side of the house.  As industry professionals, we can help influence this by supporting and encouraging women to join and contribute to the field. Series like these are a powerful way to highlight how women are innovating and making a difference in their local communities through financial services and technology.

Finovate: What piece of advice would you give women starting out their career in finance/ fintech?

Marcuccilli: My advice is to be open to different possibilities within the financial services and fintech space as there are no shortage of opportunities. It’s important to surround yourself with strategic and smart individuals who help build up the team, supporting professional goals and development. I’d also encourage women to become involved in their local communities. Learning and growing from individuals outside of your organization can also be key to professional success. When we commit to staying attuned to business and industry trends and recent developments, we’re able to better support an ecosystem of entrepreneurship and growth in our local communities.

Finovate: And what piece of advice do you have for other banks to attract and retain more star female talent?

Marcuccilli: At STAR, we prioritize collaboration and innovation, and that’s been very attractive to top talent. Showing potential employees that the bank cares about exploring new ideas from all levels of the institution, not just from management or the C-suite, can be a powerful differentiator. Institutions that break down silos, encourage cross department collaboration and transparency, and embrace change will find more success in attracting and retaining star female talent.

PayPal Democratizes Access to eCommerce Tools

PayPal Democratizes Access to eCommerce Tools

With the launch of the PayPal eCommerce Platform PayPal announced this week, the alternative finance provider will be helping small businesses gain access to ecommerce tools typically reserved for larger businesses.

In the company’s blog post announcement, COO Bill Ready said, “The PayPal Commerce Platform is designed to meet the specific needs of marketplaces, e-commerce solution providers, crowdfunding platforms and more by bringing together the most comprehensive set of technologies, tools, services, and financing for businesses of all sizes around the globe.”

With the new tool, businesses can access PayPal’s 277+ million active users. They can also operate on a more global scale, leveraging PayPal’s capability to accept more than 100 currencies. Perhaps most notably, however, the PayPal eCommerce Platform takes care of two headaches– compliance and security. Changing regulatory compliance mandates and constantly evolving security standards can make it difficult for businesses to keep up. PayPal’s eCommerce Platform meets demands regulators across 200+ markets and provides AI-powered fraud detection tools.

Previously, these tools were reserved for leading platforms such as BigCommerce, Facebook Marketplace, Instagram, Lightspeed, and Yahoo! Small Business. PayPal eCommerce Platform enables more businesses, and ultimately more people, to participate in the digital economy. “We want to help more businesses get started, grow and thrive in today’s complex digital world. It’s that simple,” said Ready.

This week’s launch may have something to do with the company’s back-to-back acquisitions made last year. Last June PayPal purchased merchant payout platform HyperWallet for $400 million and just weeks later acquired fraud prevention and risk management specialist Simility for $120 million.

PayPal Commerce Platform is available in France, Germany, Italy, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States. The company hopes to expand it to more than 40 markets by the end of this year.

PayPal was founded in 1998 and has a market capitalization of $134.6 billion. The company showcased its Instant Account Creation feature at FinovateFall 2012.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

Around the web

  • Startup Here Toronto features Sensibill.
  • Paysend announces expanding network and latest funding round.
  • Tinkoff announces the launch of Tinkoff Capital management company.
  • Entrust Datacard completes acquisition of nCipher Security.

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.

Lighter Capital Launches New Financing Options

Lighter Capital Launches New Financing Options

Startup financing company Lighter Capital is broadening its horizons this week. The Seattle-based company announced it is now offering a more diverse set of financing options to fuel entrepreneurs with working capital.

Now, in addition to its flagship, revenue-based financing option that has provided $150 million to over 300 startups in more than 500 rounds of financing, Lighter Capital offers lines of credit and term loans. Similar to the revenue-based financing option, the Lighter Line of Credit and Lighter Term Loan are non-dilutive, meaning startups don’t have to give up equity, or offer board seats.

“Evaluating small startups and providing small loans requires a sophisticated technology platform and data science,” Lighter Capital CEO BJ Lackland told GeekWire. “Our fintech lending platform pulls in 6,500 data points through APIs, creates projections that are 97 percent accurate on average, and automates much of the funding process.”

The new offerings are called the Lighter Line of Credit and the Lighter Term Loan. The Lighter Line of Credit is a revolving working capital line that enables startups to draw and return capital numerous times to even out their cash needs. The Lighter Term Loan provides startups growth capital with predictable payments and offers them the right to get additional capital for a period of time.

The two new credit offerings are meant to complement revenue-based financing. Startups can combine all options for a total of $3 million.

Founded in 2010, Lighter Capital most recently demoed at FinovateFall 2013 where it showcased loan analysis and monitoring tools. Last year, the company launched a new Client Perks Program and increased its funding limit to $3 million.

Credit Agricole Plans $17 Billion Tech Investment in Four Years

Credit Agricole Plans $17 Billion Tech Investment in Four Years

Credit Agricole, the French bank for the agricultural sector, has allocated $16.9 billion (€15 billion) for technological transformation for “greater efficiency,” reports Henry Vilar of Fintech Futures, Finovate’s sister publication.

This capital will be invested over the next four years, aiming to achieve a data-centric architecture in 90% of the group by 2022, as well as $338 million (€300 million) “in increased IT efficiency.”

The group aims to have the totality of its IT staff trained in new technologies at the “new IT university.” This is part of the plan to retrain its staff to be able to handle the new technologies that the financial group aims to test and implement throughout its business lines.

A document issued by the bank says that “100% of emerging technologies” will be tested for new services. That’s right, all of them.

The bank forecasted a very slow level of profit growth for the next four years, as it faces low interest rates and a potential deterioration in its loan portfolio.

In its previous plan, Credit Agricole had targeted a 10% increase in net profit from 2016 until this year but managed to deliver that a year ahead of schedule. The bank reported a 25% profit increase over the two years to 2018.

The bank expects an annual net profit of roughly over $5.6 billion (€5 billion) in 2022, according to its report.

Founded in 1885, Credit Agricole demoed its in-house app store at FinovateEurope 2013.

BanQu Closes Extension on Series A Round

BanQu Closes Extension on Series A Round

Blockchain-based identity startup BanQu announced it closed an extension of its Series A round today. The funds come from Anheuser-Busch InBev’s venture arm ZX Ventures. The amount of the funding was undisclosed but adds to the company’s previous funding total of $2.6 million.

“After BanQu’s outstanding pilot performance in our 100+ Accelerator, we are pleased to solidify the partnership with Ashish, Jeff, and the entire team at BanQu through an equity investment,” said Tony Milikin, Chief Sustainability and Procurement Officer at AB InBev. “Together, we are working to improve access to modern banking for thousands of farmers in underserved rural markets, driving inclusive growth and contributing to our own 2025 Sustainability Goal as well as the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.”

Minnesota-based BanQu won Best of Show at FinovateSpring 2016 for its blockchain-as-a-service company that aims to lift people out of extreme poverty by connecting them with global supply chains, brands, organizations, and governments. The company connects the unbanked population to the global economy via a distributed ledger of financial and personal records using blockchain technology. Once users create a transaction history on the BanQu blockchain, they create a trackable personal history that serves as a form of identity, providing a baseline for them to participate in the global economy.

BanQu originally launched its partnership with AB InBev in August of last year after piloting its identity technology with 2,000+ cassava farmers in Zambia. Since then, the company has rolled out programs in Uganda and India, and is planning efforts in Brazil.

“ABInBev has been an incredible partner to BanQu over the past year, and together we have innovated and scaled the BanQu platform across multiple countries and thousands of farmers. Farmers at the world’s “last mile,” traditionally excluded from the global economy and lacking a verifiable economic identity, are now visible, financially empowered, and connected in the global supply chain of AB InBev,” said BanQu Co-Founder and CEO Ashish Gadnis. “The ZX investment takes this partnership to a whole new level of commitment on both sides. It cements our core shared vision of making the world a better place while being good business stewards.”

BanQu currently has operations across 12 countries including Costa Rica, India, Indonesia, Jordan, Malawi, Somalia, South Africa, Syria, Uganda, United States, and Zambia. The company has plans for additional rollouts in China and Mexico later this year.