Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: ACI Worldwide, Bluefin Payment Systems, Checkbook.io, Compass Plus, Fenergo, Finastra, nCino, NetGuardians, Ping Identity, Q2 Holdings, Revolut, Scalable Capital, Stratumn, Trustly

Around the web

  • ACI Worldwide supports cross-border e-commerce in Brazil with integration of payment processor and gateway, PagBrasil.
  • Revolut is the latest fintech to apply for a European banking license.
  • Fenergo teams up with Opus to improve integration of risk-relevant information in the KYC process.
  • KAMCO Investment Company chooses Fusion Invest from Finastra to accelerate growth.
  • Bluefin Payment Systems unveils PCI P2PE sub-listing option for users of its Decryptions as a Service (DaaS) offering, Decryptx.
  • Ping Identity adds support for companies seeking PSD2, open banking compliance.
  • Trustly tops €10 billion in total payment processing volume since inception.
  • Q2 Holdings named to Deloitte Technology Fast 500 for second consecutive year.
  • Stratumn completes a blockchain experimentation connecting 14 insurance companies in France.
  • nCino debuts in top half of Deloitte’s 2017 Technology Fast 500.
  • Scalable Capital hits €500 million in assets.
  • Checkbook.io disrupts class action payments.
  • Compass Plus assists Almazergienbank to support the issuing and acquiring of JCB cards.
  • NetGuardians and Swisscom launch fraud prevention service.

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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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: eToro, Stratumn, Xero

Around the web

  • eToro taps George Verbitsky as managing director for Russia.
  • Stratumn tests use of blockchain technology in enhancing information flows for French insurers.
  • Xero and Worldpay partner to make invoicing easier for SMEs.

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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FinovateAsia 2017 Best of Show Winners Announced

FinovateAsia 2017 Best of Show Winners Announced
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: AApay Technology, Bambu, Best of Show, OCR Labs, YUKKA Lab

FinovateAsia 2017 is in the books. And after two days of live fintech demos from 32 innovative companies from around the world, our Finovate attendees have made their preferences known as to which companies should win Best of Show trophies.

One of the most interesting aspects of our Best of Show awards is how they provide an insight into which technologies are truly being put to work to solve real-world financial problems for financial institutions, merchants, and consumers alike.  Whether the challenge is making payments safer and easier, helping individuals and families meet their financial goals, or fighting fraud and cybercrime, the companies that earn Best of Show at Finovate conferences are the ones that have shown our attendees that they have the solutions that the rest of the competition is still searching for.

This is why it is no surprise that so many of the companies that have earned the title of Best of Show have made such a significant impact in fintech – either as an emerging industry leader in their chosen field or as the sought-after acquisition from a larger firm eager to leverage a specific set of skills to broaden their own ability to serve a wider range of customers.

So with no further ado, let’s take a look at the award winners for Best of Show at FinovateAsia 2017 (in alphabetic order):

AApay Technology for its unique payment app that enables consumers to automatically split bills and gives businesses access to multiple payment methods to better manage all of their electronic transactions.

 

 

 

Bambu for its machine learning model, People Like Me, that goes beyond traditional roboadvisory to help users better identify and reach their financial goals.

 

OCR Labs for its Orbit ID SDK that enables enterprises to stop fraud, reduce friction during the onboarding process, and help manage KYC/AML obligations.

 

 

 

 

 

 

YUKKA Lab for its technology that leverages natural language programming and machine learning to provide real-time analytics into the financial markets.

 

 

 

 

We hope you enjoyed FinovateAsia 2017 and our new expanded format including panel discussions and keynote speeches from major fintech thought leaders. We had a great time bringing our fintech conference to Hong Kong for a second year in a row, and are looking forward to being back again next year. As always, a thousand thanks to all those who attended, sponsored, partnered with, and demoed their latest and greatest innovations live on stage. We’ll see you again in 2018!

Notes on methodology:
1. Only audience members NOT associated with demoing companies were eligible to vote. Finovate employees did not vote.
2. Attendees were encouraged to note their favorites during each day. At the end of the last demo, they chose their three favorites.
3. The exact written instructions given to attendees: “Please rate (the companies) on the basis of demo quality and potential impact of the innovation demoed.”
4. The four companies appearing on the highest percentage of submitted ballots were named “Best of Show.”
5. Go here for a list of previous Best of Show winners through 2014. Best of Show winners from our 2015 and 2016 conferences are below:
FinovateEurope 2015
FinovateSpring 2015
FinovateFall 2015
FinovateEurope 2016
FinovateSpring 2016
FinovateFall 2016
FinovateAsia 2016
FinovateEurope 2017
FinovateSpring 2017
FinovateFall 2017

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Welcome to Day Two of FinovateAsia!

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateAsia 2017

FinovateAsia yesterday was packed full of the newest fintech and we’re excited to continue the excitement today with another day showcasing the newest in fintech. We’ll be intermixing our demo-only format with keynotes, panel discussions, and an accelerator showcase.

We’ll have coat and bag check available at registration today and don’t forget to download our mobile app in the app store to find the full agenda and more. Here’s an overview of today’s agenda:

Registration begins at 08:00

08:00 – 09:00: Registration & Breakfast

08:45 – 09:10: Welcome Remarks

09:10 – 10:10: Accelerator showcase
A showcase of the leading accelerators and incubators in Asia. Each accelerators will have a one minute intro and each startup will have a three minute pitch.

  • Mark Wales – Co-Founder, Galileo Platforms / Cyberport
  • Bass Chiu – Marketing Manager, InstaReM / Cyberport
  • Vivek Mohindra – Co-Founder & Responsible Officer, Kristal.AI / Cyberport
  • Erich Hoefer – Co-founder & Head of Growth and Strategy, Starling Trust Sciences / Cyberport
  • Ovidiu (Ovi) Olea – Founder & CEO, Valoot Technologies Ltd. / Cyberport
  • Shan Luo – Program Instructor, FinTechBase Taiwan
  • Anson Suen – CEO & Co-Founder, FundPark / FinTechBase Taiwan
  • Chao-Yueh Liu – C-Founder & General Manager, Quanffett Financial Technology Company / FinTechBase
  • Taiwan
  • Joanna Yang – Founder & CEO, Robo Web Tech Co., Ltd. / FinTechBase Taiwan
  • Zac Yang – Co-Founder & UX Director, TOZZI / FinTechBase Taiwan
  • Veronika Kuznetsova – Managing Director, SuperCharger
  • Brian Elders – Director, KYC-Chain / SuperCharger
  • David Rosa – Co-founder & CEO, Neat Ltd. / SuperCharger
  • William Bao Bean – Managing Director and SOSV partner, Chinaccelerator
  • Adrian Pollard – Chief Creative Officer, bitHolla / Chinaccelerator
  • Sebastien Gaudin – Co-founder & CEO, The CareVoice / Chinaccelerator
  • Colin Bogar – CEO, Property Passbook / Chinaccelerator

10:10 – 10:40: Keynote: How and Why China has pulled ahead of the US in the AI battle Royale
Paul Schulte – Founder & Editor, Schulte Research

10:40 – 11:10: Refreshment and networking break

11:10 – 12:00: Demo session #3

12:00 – 13:00: Lunch and Networking

13:00 – 13:30: Panel: Are Consumers Ready to Embrace P2P Payments?

13:30 – 14:40: Demo session #4

14:40 – 15:10: Refreshment and networking break

15:10 – 15:30: Panel: The AI Advantage

15:30 – 16:00: Panel: New Opportunities in Asia with Blockchain and Cryptocurrency Technologies

16:00 – 17:30: Reception and networking

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Welcome to Day One of FinovateAsia!

Welcome to Day One of FinovateAsia!
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateAsia 2017

FinovateAsia is back in Hong Kong for two days of live demonstrations and deep-dive keynotes and panel discussions on the themes that are driving innovation in fintech today. Whether you are interested in mobile banking or P2P lending, wealth management or banking for the unbanked, artificial intelligence or the blockchain, FinovateAsia is a great opportunity to see how the region’s most innovative and insightful companies are leveraging technology to help businesses and consumers better manage their financial lives.

With 17 demos, four panel discussions, a pair of keynote addresses, and a 90-minute end-of-day networking session, our schedule for Day One of FinovateAsia promises to be a great start to our annual, late autumn event. Whether you are here with us in person in Hong Kong, or catching up with all the action via Twitter @Finovate, we think you’re going to like what you see and here from our FinovateAsia 2017 innovators.

Here is the agenda for today.

Registration begins at 08:00

08:00 – 09:00: Registration & Breakfast

09:00 – 09:20: Welcome Remarks

09:20 – 09:50: Keynote: P2P Lending in China

09:50 – 10:10: Panel Discussion: The Future of Peer Lending

10:10 – 10:40: Networking Break with Refreshments

10:40 – 12:00 Demo Session #1

12:00 – 13:00: Lunch and Networking

13:00 – 13:20: Keynote: A Glimpse into Hong Kong’s Fintech Scene

13:30 – 14:50: Demo Session #2

14:50 – 15:20: Networking with Refreshments

15:20 – 15:50: Panel Discussion: Mobile Banking is Booming

15:50 – 16:10: Panel Discussion: Revolutionizing the Insurance Industry

16:10 – 16:30: Panel Discussion: Transforming Investment and Wealth Management

16:30 – 18:00: Reception and Networking
Best of Show winners will be announced tomorrow

All demo videos will be available for free in a few weeks in our video archives.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: BBVA, DefenseStorm, Expensify, Leondrino Exchange, Revolut

Around the web

  • Leondrino Exchange launches its own digital currency, XLEO.
  • BBVA forges global strategic agreement with Telefónica.
  • Revolut announces plans to build its own in-house processor.
  • Cybersecurity specialist DefenseStorm hires Terrie O’Hanlon as Chief Marketing Officer.
  • Expensify and Wells Fargo ink data exchange agreement.

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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See Tomorrow’s Fintech Today at FinovateAsia 2017

See Tomorrow’s Fintech Today at FinovateAsia 2017
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: FinovateAsia 2017

FinovateAsia 2017 is almost here! And we can’t wait to show you the new features we’ve added to this year’s event.

In addition to our signature, 7-minute live technology demonstrations on Tuesday and Wednesday, FinovateAsia will also include keynote addresses and panel discussions. Topics covered range broadly from P2P lending and payments, mobile banking, wealth management, and the rise of artificial intelligence. We will also take a look at some of the leading fintech accelerators and incubators in Asia in a special showcase on Wednesday.

So if that sounds like a great opportunity to learn more about fintech in the Far East, here are a few last minute details to ensure you are able to make the most of your time at FinovateAsia this year.

First, know that FinovateAsia 2017 is a two-day fintech conference featuring some of the most innovative companies and technologies developing and marketing solutions for the Asia-Pacific market. With more than 450 attendees and more than 30 presenting companies, each day will feature a combination of both live fintech demonstrations as well as keynotes and panel discussions. Our single track format means you will be able to see every minute of every presentation. Check out our agenda for more information on what’s coming.

Second, this year FinovateAsia will be held at the JW Marriott, Pacific Place, 88 Queensway, Hong Kong. Easily accessible via public transportation, including rail, the JW Marriott is a world-class venue located in the heart of Hong Kong.

The conference takes place on Tuesday, November 7 and continues through Wednesday, November 8. Registration begins at 8:00 on Tuesday, and the program begins at 9:00 with Welcome Remarks. There are two live demo sessions on Day One – the first beginning at 10:40 and the second at 13:30 – two keynote addresses and four panel discussions.

On Wednesday, Day Two, registration begins at 8:00, with Welcome Remarks at 8:45. The accelerator showcase starts the program at 9:10, followed by our first keynote of the day. The first live demo session on Wednesday begins at 11:10 and the second at 13:30. Day Two will feature a total of three panel discussions. See our agenda for more details.

Last but not least, be sure to join our FinovateAsia community on our event app. Search for “Finovate” at your preferred app store, download the app, and use the same email address you used to register for the conference to login. The FinovateAsia app provides access to the agenda, more information about our demoing companies, as well as our speakers, sponsors, and partners. You can also use the app to reach out to your fellow attendees, make connections, and schedule meetings. If you have any trouble with the app, please email us at asia@finovate.com or ask one of our Finovate staffers at the registration desk at the venue.

Remember FinovateAsia tickets are still available. If you’re interested in learning how innovative fintech companies are leveraging exciting technologies like artificial intelligence, the blockchain, machine learning and more, then FinovateAsia is the place to be this week. So be sure to pick up your ticket and save your spot. We’re looking forward to seeing you here in Hong Kong!

FinovateAsia 2017 is sponsored by: Invest Hong Kong, CeleritiFintech, Lleida.net, and Barlings Capital.

FinovateAsia 2017 is partners with: 500 Startups, Agorize, Aite Group, Asia Cloud Computing Association, BankersHub, BayPay, Banking Technology, BeFast.TV, BigData-MadeSimple.com, BlockExplorer, Breaking Banks, Byte Academy, CB Insights, Celent, Conventus Law, EbankingNews, FemTech, Financial IT, FINOLAB, Fintech Association of Hong Kong, Fintech Finance, Fintech News Hong Kong, FinTechTime, Forrester, Headcount, Holland Fintech, Hong Kong Economic Times, The Hong Kong Foreign Financial Institutions Association, IBS Intelligence, Innovate Finance, Insight Alpha, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Mercator Advisory Group, NexChange, The Nilson Report, Ovum, The Paypers, Plug and Play, PR Newswire, Regulation Asia, RFi Group, Singapore FinTech Association, SME Finance Forum, Swiss Finance + Technology Association, WHub, and World Fintech Association.

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FinovateAsia Begins This Week– Are You Ready?

FinovateAsia Begins This Week– Are You Ready?
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: FinovateAsia 2017

Fintech in Asia is hotter than ever, with Asian fintech startups seeing record funding this year. This week is your chance to see which new technologies are shaping the region. FinovateAsia launches on Tuesday, November 7 and extends through Wednesday, November 8 (tickets still available). The two-day conference will host demos showcasing the newest ideas in fintech, plenty of networking, and lots of interactive discussions with industry experts to answer your questions about the latest trends.

To keep you organized, here’s everything you need to know at-a-glance:

When
On Tuesday, November 7, registration opens at 8 a.m. and opening remarks will begin at 9 a.m. We will have refreshments and a continental breakfast available, so be sure to come early to save your seat.

Where
The show will take place at the J.W. Marriott Hong Kong. Check out our website to plan your visit.

Presenting companies
You can find a full list of presenting companies on the Finovate blog. And be sure to take a look at our Sneak Peek blog series which offers an inside view into the new technologies companies will demo on stage.

Full agenda
We’ve added keynote speakers, panel discussions, and more this year. Visit the agenda to catch the highlights.

And don’t forget to download our mobile app (search Finovate in the app store of your choice).  In case you missed it, check out which regional trends will rise to the top at FinovateAsia. For specific enquiries or customer service needs, please visit our website for contact information.

FinovateAsia 2017 is sponsored by: Invest Hong Kong, CeleritiFintech, Lleida.net, and Barlings Capital.

FinovateAsia 2017 is partners with: 500 Startups, Agorize, Aite Group, Asia Cloud Computing Association, BankersHub, BayPay, Banking Technology, BeFast.TV, BigData-MadeSimple.com, BlockExplorer, Breaking Banks, Byte Academy, CB Insights, Celent, Conventus Law, EbankingNews, FemTech, Financial IT, FINOLAB, Fintech Association of Hong Kong, Fintech Finance, Fintech News Hong Kong, FinTechTime, Forrester, Headcount, Holland Fintech, Hong Kong Economic Times, The Hong Kong Foreign Financial Institutions Association, IBS Intelligence, Innovate Finance, Insight Alpha, LexisNexis Risk Solutions, Mercator Advisory Group, NexChange, The Nilson Report, Ovum, The Paypers, Plug and Play, PR Newswire, Regulation Asia, RFi Group, Singapore FinTech Association, SME Finance Forum, Swiss Finance + Technology Association, WHub, and World Fintech Association.

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Symbiont Wins Distributed Ledger Technology Award for Second Year in a Row

Symbiont Wins Distributed Ledger Technology Award for Second Year in a Row
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Symbiont

When it comes to award-winning, buy-side, distributed ledger technologies, the smart contract solutions from Symbiont are apparently pretty hard to beat.

For the second consecutive year, the New York-based company has won the Buy-Side Technology Award for Best Distributed Ledger Technology Project by Waters Technology. In accepting the award, Symbiont CEO and co-founder Mark Smith emphasized the technology’s applicability to the buy-side, calling it a “founding principle” to help “upgrade settlement processes in capital markets via blockchain and smart contracts.” Smith highlighted the decentralized nature of Symbiont’s platform, with each network node being equal, as another advantage. “Because there are no gatekeepers in Symbiont networks,” Smith said, “the balance of power is fair to everyone and we appreciate the buy-side recognizing the value of this.”

Adam Krellenstein, Symbiont CTO and co-founder, during his presentation, “Distributed Ledgers and Smart Contracts” at FinDEVr New York 2016.

Symbiont Chairman and President Caitlin Long was even more specific, adding that the “long-only buy-side” is likely to be the biggest beneficiary of blockchain technology. This is because many of the costs increasingly borne by the buy-side – latency, capital requirements, counterparty risk – can be reduced with blockchain-based solutions, Long explained.

Founded in 2015, Symbiont has supported a number of major blockchain projects including its joint venture with Ipreo – a 19-party pilot for syndicated loans – and its work with the Delaware Blockchain Initiative. Last month, the company joined the Wall Street Blockchain Alliance as a corporate member, and this summer, Symbiont announced a strategic investment from Medici Ventures. A partnership with Privatemarket.io to build an alternative investment marketplace for closed-end funds announced in June and an investment from China’s Hundsun Technologies in May further characterize a busy year for Symbiont.

Company CTO and co-founder Adam Krellenstein presented “Distributed Ledgers and Smart Contracts” at FinDEVr New York 2016 where he explained the differences between Symbiont’s Smart Securities system and traditional distributed databases.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Betterment, CardFlight, Diebold, Neustar, PayNearMe, Revolut, Symbiont, Xero

On Finovate.com

  • Symbiont Wins Distributed Ledger Technology Award for a Second Year in a Row.

Around the web

  • FinTech Insider News interviews Revolut founder and CEO Nikolay Storonsky.
  • Diebold Nixdorf SVP of Software Alan Kerr talks omnichannel ecommerce with PYMNTS.com.
  • Betterment’s Nick Holeman discusses spotting bull markets on CNBC.
  • CardFlight to power mobile POS offering from Beyond.
  • Quotatis Pro highlights Xero in its list of top apps to help you run your business.
  • Neustar joins Visa ID Intelligence as a digital identity partner.
  • PayNearMe teams up with New York City Department of Finance to enable parking ticket fines at more than 100 area 7-Elevens.

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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TransferWise Raises $280 Million in Series E

TransferWise Raises $280 Million in Series E
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Funding, TransferWise

In a round led by Old Mutual Global Investors and venture capital firm IVP, TransferWise has raised $280 million in new funding. The new capital, which takes the London-based fintech’s total financing to more than $396 million, will be used to help the money transfer innovator grow its services and expand its global presence – particularly in Asia. The Series D also will enable TransferWise to build on its newly-launched service that helps SMEs reduce or even avoid conversion fees by letting them hold money in different currencies.

Also participating in the round were new investors Sapphire Ventures and World Innovation Lab, as well as existing investors Andreessen Horowitz, Ballie Gifford, and Richard Branson. TransferWise now has an estimated valuation of $1.6 billion.

Quoted in Reuters, TransferWise finance director Matthew Briers noted that the company was “moving significant amounts of money on a monthly basis,” but there is still room for growth. “There are still many trillions of dollars that are moving cross-border,” he said. In addition to plans to expand into the Asia-Pacific region, TransferWise added that it will launch in India “within the next year.” An API that will enable financial institutions to readily access Transferwise’s platform is also in the cards, the company said. Bloomberg’s coverage of the news also featured company chairman and former CEO Taavet Hinrikus hinting at the “very high likelihood” of TransferWise becoming a public company, though Hinrikus added it was “still quite a number of years away.”

TransferWise demonstrated its platform at FinovateEurope 2013. Founded in 2010, the company has more than two million customers and more than 750 currency routes. Last month, TransferWise unveiled new fees for GBP transfers, a month after the company was named to the European Fintech Awards & Conference’s European Fintech 100. Bringing its Borderless Accounts solution to Canada in August, TransferWise announced in July that its customers could use ApplePay to send money globally via its platform – the same month co-founder Kristo Käärmann took over as CEO of the company. With more than $1 billion in transferred funds each month, TransferWise reached profitability in May of this year.

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FinovateAsia Sneak Peek: Chekk

FinovateAsia Sneak Peek: Chekk
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Chekk, FinovateAsia 2017, FinovateAsia 2017 Sneak Peek

A look at the companies demoing live at FinovateAsia on November 7 and 8 in Hong Kong. Pick up your tickets today and save your spot.

Chekk is a B2B2C digital identity ecosystem. For consumers, it offers a mobile app to own, manage, and share personal data. For businesses, it provides a web portal and API to request access to data at on-boarding and during periodic refreshes.

Features

  • Is easy, secure, and reusable consumer data wallet
  • Offers a business portal to manage customers, send new data requests, and refreshes
  • Has more coming including OCR, data and document verification, and secure messaging

Why it’s great
It enables the shift of personal data ownership from the businesses to the individuals, to the benefits of both, simplifying KYC cross-businesses, cross-industry (banks, insurers, etc.) and cross-borders.

Presenter

Benjamin Petit, Hong Kong Country Manager
After having co-founded a boutique M&A in Paris supporting SMEs and start-ups, Petit came to Asia and gained 13 years of experience in large scale, private-public utilities projects.

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