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FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Aurora Financial Systems and Mistral Mobile

By David Penn Posted on April 27, 2015
Categories: Aurora Financial Systems, FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek, Mistral Mobile

There are just a few weeks to go before FinovateSpring 2015 in San Jose. And while our Sneak Peek preview series is already six editions deep, we’ve a few more presenting companies we’d love to introduce you to.

Today’s edition of our Sneak Peek Preview features a Finovate newcomer as well as a conference veteran, Aurora Financial Systems and Mistral Mobile. Both companies will join 70 other innovators on stage 12/13 March for two days of the best of fintech in 2015. To get your ticket and save your spot, visit our registration page today.

If you’ve missed an edition of our Sneak Peek Preview series, the links below will help you get up to date. Stay tuned for more previews of our FinovateSpring 2015 presenters this week.

Aurora is a program manager and issuing processor focused on delivering real-time, transactional data with its interoperable platform.

Features

The NOTE Card. A stylish and effective solution for overspending
Powerful, real-time messaging capabilities
Connect to multiple leading PFMs

Why it’s great
Aurora is partnering with Fintech leaders such as MX and Finicity to give consumers better choices and better experiences with their financial applications.

Presenters

Scott Stagg, CEO, Founder

Stagg has spent the lat 20 years in the financial services industry, having been the managing member of a $500 million hedge fund before turning his efforts to creating better financial products.
LinkedIn

Chris Melendez, Chief Strategy Officer

Melendez is passionate about improving the financial lives of consumers and spent 10 years at American Express where he helped hundreds of clients maximize the value of their transactional data.
LinkedIn

m-Aegis from Mistral Mobile is the only comprehensive, multifactor, telco-independent authentication and security solution for mobile applications and OTP replacement.

Features:

One-stop, integrated solution to protect against a whole array of risks
Multifactor authentication of device and user identity
Supports mobile banking, mobile payments, and mobile commerce

Why it’s great
No more trade-offs between high level of security and usability. M-Aegis delivers both.

Presenters

Ludwig Schulze, CEO

Schulze has held executive roles in mobile and enterprise software companies and was a consultant with BCG. Prior to founding Mistral, Schulze was general manager for Nokia’s Mobile Financial Business.
LinkedIn

Paul Yoo, Chief Commercial Officer

Yoo has worked at HoganLovells and Cooley LLP and was covering partnerships and commercial relationships as well as IP and regulation at Nokia’s Mobile Financial Services business.
LinkedIn

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on April 27, 2015
Categories: Aurora Financial Systems, ayondo, BioCatch, D3 Banking, DRAFT, Encap, ID.me, itBit, Loop, Mistral Mobile, NICE Systems, peerTransfer, Telenor banka, TradeHero

On Finovate.com

FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Aurora Financial Systems and Mistral Mobile

Around the web

D3 Banking unveils its new mobile app.

American Banker takes a look at itBit and its plan to become a trust company in New York State. See itBit at FinovateSpring 2015.

PYMNTS.com’s roundup of the “Mobile Wallet Wars” features LoopPay.

Everett Blog previews version 3.0 of Encap’s smart authentication solution.

Financial-SpreadBetting.com interviews Sarah Brylewski, managing director at Ayondo.

BioCatch and Mistral Mobile win spots on Red Herring 2015 Top 100 Europe. See Mistral Mobile at FinovateSpring 2015 in San Jose.

TradeHero releases version 3.1.0 of its Android app.

DRAFT featured at LaunchingNext. See DRAFT’s Finovate debut at FinovateSpring in San Jose next month.

NICE Systems partners with Capgemini to deliver a new Robotics Automation Hub.

Washington Business Journal interviews Blake Hall, CEO of ID.me.

peerTransfer to provide its international tuition payments service at another 56 educational institutions.

TechCrunch’s guest column on “industry convergence” in financial services highlights Telenor Banka.

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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What We Are Talking About at FinovateSpring 2015

By David Penn Posted on April 24, 2015
Categories: FinovateSpring 2015

As our review of the themes of FinovateSpring 2015 reveals, fintech entrepreneurs are talking about their innovations in dramatic new ways.

These themes remind us just how dynamic the concept of “financial technology” has become. From machine learning to social spending, the innovators of FinovateSpring 2015 show us how technology can help make financial services a more rewarding, engaging, and friction-free world for both businesses and individuals.

Our full list of presenters for FinovateSpring 2015 is below. We can’t wait for the conference on May 12 and 13 in San Jose, California, and are looking forward to seeing you at the show. Tickets are on sale now, so register today and save your spot.

Can’t get enough? Check out our Sneak Peek Preview Series for more information and background on the innovators of FinovateSpring 2015.

Questions? Visit our FAQ page for answers.

FinovateSpring 2015 is sponsored by The Bancorp, CapitalSource, City National Bank, Envestnet, Financial Technology Partners, Hudson Cook LLP, KPMG, Kyriba, Life.SREDA, and Zions DirectTV.

FinovateSpring 2015 is partners with Aite Group, American Banker’s Association (ABA), Bank Innovators Council, Bankers Hub, BayPay Forum, bob’s guide, Breaking Banks, California Bankers Association, Canadian Trade Commissioner Service, Celent, ebankingnews, Filene Research Institute, fin-tech.org, HotWire, Javelin Strategy & Research, Mercator Advisory Group, The Paypers, SME Finance Forum, and Western Independent Bankers.

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Alt-Lender EZBOB Deepens Pockets by $46 Million

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on April 24, 2015
Categories: EZBOB, Funding, Wonga

U.K.-based alternative lending company EZBOB this week announced it pulled in $46 million in funding. The full amount of the Series C round was supplied by Oaktree Capital and brings the company’s total funding to $66.5 million.

According to The Telegraph, EZBOB will use the new funds to refinance existing debt and increase its loan offerings to small businesses.

This is the company’s second large announcement this year. In February, EZBOB purchased Everline, Wonga’s lesser-known small business finance arm. Both EZBOB and Everline are now rolled up underneath an umbrella group, Orange Money.

Combined, the two companies have furnished U.K.-based SMEs with more than 6,000 loans totaling $83+ million.

Orange Money, which offers an average interest rate of 16%, does not view its services as competitive toward traditional banks. Orange Money CEO Tomer Guriel says, “We’re complementary to the banks and are there to provide access to capital for business owners that have been rejected by their bank.”

EZBOB demonstrated its online application process at FinovateEurope 2014 in London. Wonga debuted its iPhone app at FinovateFall 2010 in New York.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on April 24, 2015
Categories: CSI globalVCard, EZBOB, FIS, GMC Software Technology, Infosys, Kapitall, Motif Investing, Personal Capital, ReadyForZero, Revolut, Sedicii, SigFig, SmartAsset, TransferWise

On Finovate.com

SigFig Brings on New Advisory Board Members and $1 Million in Funding

Alt-Lender EZBOB Deepens Pockets by $46 Million

What We Are Talking About at FinovateSpring 2015

Around the web

InvestorCentral looks at market simulators and trading with Kapitall.

Alaska Air picks FIS as its partner for upcoming strategic payment initiatives including EMV.

Delicious Nutritious chooses globalVCard Spend Secure for its business payments.

Kiplinger highlights Motif Investing among “brokers that pay you to open an account.”

GMC Software Technology to provide GMC Inspire to Mail Handling Services.

Personal Capital launches app for the Apple Watch.

ReadyForZero interviews Michael Carvin, CEO of SmartAsset. Check out SmartAsset’s new technology at FinovateSpring.

Revolut and Sedicii win finalist spots in the Innotribe Startup Challenge.

American Banker features bitcoin exchange itBit. Watch itBit’s live demo at FinovateSpring.

TechCrunch: Infosys to acquire Kallidus for $120 million.

A look at “billion dollar” British startups at Forbes.com features TransferWise.

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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FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 6

By David Penn Posted on April 23, 2015
Categories: Credit Sesame, Hip Pocket, itBit, Kofax, Mitek, NAMU Systems, Persistent Systems

FinovateSpring 2015 is right around the corner. And with news this morning that attendance has already topped 1,000, now is a great time to register and save your spot at our annual spring event on May 12 and 13.

A total of 72 companies will be on stage at the City National Civic in San Jose, California, to demonstrate the latest in financial technology live in front of our audience of industry professionals, venture capitalists, bankers, media, and more. And along with more than 500 minutes of live demos, we make sure you’ve got plenty of time to meet, greet, and network with presenters, sponsors, and fellow attendees alike.

Today in our Sneak Peek Preview series, we’re featuring another seven companies to help you get to know a little more about the companies that will be presenting next month at FinovateSpring 2015.

Check out the previous installments of our Sneak Peek series below. And stayed tuned for more introductions to our FinovateSpring 2015 presenters next week.

Credit Sesame helps millions of consumers access, monitor, and manage their credit, improve their finances and protect their credit and identity for free.

Features:

Mobile integration combined with the power of voice control and TouchID
Manage, monitor, and protect your credit and identity anytime, anywhere
White label / turn-key solution

Why it’s great
Credit Sesame makes it easier than ever for mobile users to access, monitor, and manage their credit, improve their finances, and protect their identity on the go.

Presenters

Adrian Nazari, CEO
Nazari is a serial entrepreneur, an acknowledged industry expert, and founder of Credit Sesame Inc.
LinkedIn

Jesse Levey, Head of Product
Levey is a product innovator and growth expert with more than 12 years experience in technology and financial services.
LinkedIn

Hip Pocket engages your mobile and website visitors by using social influence and personalized consultation to generate new, qualified mortgage leads.

Features:

Unique peer-group comparisons
Real-time integration and personalization savings estimates
Results and call-to-action are customized to each user’s situation

Why it’s great
Hip Pocket allows your institution to provide an engaging, intuitive user experience that marries the emotional and logical decision-making processes.

Presenters

Mark Zmarzly, CEO, Founder
Zmarzly is a passionate innovator and thought leader in the financial industry. He has delivered multiple TEDx talks and presented for the ABA, BAI, and JD Power & Associates.
LinkedIn

Todd Cramer, Head of Digital Experience & Design
Cramer is a MBA with more than five years of experience in branding, user experience and eCommerce for a $5B bank enterprise.
LinkedIn

itBit is a global bitcoin exchange offering institutional and retail investors a powerful platform to buy and sell bitcoin.

Features:

Trusted, institutional-grade exchange
Available around the clock
Offers the best security, privacy, and asset protection

Why it’s great
itBit is the most trusted and secure platform for trading bitcoin.

Presenters

Charles Cascarilla, CEO, Co-founder
As a bitcoin early adopter with more than 15 years’ experience in financial services, Cascarilla has a unique perspective and interest in integrating bitcoin with traditional systems.
LinkedIn

Bobby Cho, Director of Institutional Client Group (ICG)
As the head of itBit’s ICG team, Cho provides tailored client relationships trading services to itBit’s global network of institutional clients.
LinkedIn

Anyone can hit a baseball thrown straight down the middle, but Kofax’s robust mobile new account opening platform can accommodate curveballs, screwballs, and the off-speed pitches in life.

Features:

Mobile capture of IDs and supporting documents
Intelligent decisioning allows complex exception and compliance management
Seamless multichannel customer experience

Why it’s great
Paramount to mobile onboarding is giving customers the right product at the right time with the right risk-assessment profile in a completely automated fashion.

Presenters

Drew Hyatt, Senior Vice President, Mobile Applications
Hyatt is a leading domain expert in mobile image-capture and is responsible for Kofax’s mobile product roadmaps, go-to-market strategies, and product positioning.
LinkedIn

Diane Morgan, Senior Business Development Manager
As Senior Mobile Business Development Manager at Kofax, Morgan partners with financial institutions to identify, develop, and execute their mobile capture and imaging strategies.
LinkedIn

Mitek, the leading innovator of mobile imaging for financial transactions and identification, will demonstrate how to optimize mobile for secure customer acquisition.

Features:

Increase mobile form completion by 30-50%
Double number of accounts booked via mobile
Meet KYC requirements and complete ID check in mobile channel

Why it’s great
Mobile account opening starts are dramatically increasing while desktop is declining. Mitek’s next innovations will do for account opening what it did for check deposits.

Presenters

Michael Nelson, Vice President for Business Development
Nelson leads the business-development team focused on expanding mobile-imaging usage within banking and beyond.
LinkedIn

Sarah Clark, Vice President Product Owner
Clark directs product strategy and the roadmap for our mobile-imaging platform and suite of products including mobile deposit, our market leading MiSnap SDK and Mobile Identity product line.
LinkedIn

With the growing importance of the user experience and customer intelligence in digital channels, NAMU Systems sets a new standard in mobile banking.

Features:

Highly visual user experience—connecting money with memories
Targeted advertising based on social spending patterns
Google-like search in banking

Why it’s great
NAMU helps your customer to have joyful banking experiences with relevant connection to memories and a beautiful user interface backed by NAMU’s patent-pending platform.

Presenters

Thomas Ko, President, Co-founder
Ko is ex-global head of mobile banking at Citibank, developing the most successful corporate mobile banking solution worldwide.
LinkedIn

Piotr Budzinski, CEO, Co-founder
Prior to NAMU, he led strategic technology projects for European banks and U.S. asset managers, including UniCredit and Franklin Templeton.
LinkedIn

BuddyPay from Persistent Systems is a real-time payment-switching mechanism. The control of payment is shifted from buyer to payer for online/in-store purchases of products and services in real-time.

Features:

The Payment Switching Mechanism can be used while selling/fulfilling literally anything
Sell physical goods, insurance, billpay, flight and hotel booking
Intuitive mobile app

Why it’s great
You can “sell” products/services to people who don’t have money to “buy” it!

Presenters

Abhiram Modak, Principal Business Analyst & Industry Expert
Modak has multiple years of diverse experience and is an innovator at heart. He can come up with solutions to most complex business problem with his domain knowledge and technology understanding.
LinkedIn

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Fintech Fundings: 18 Companies Raise a Cool $1 Billion Week Ending April 24

By Jim Bruene Posted on April 23, 2015
Categories: Funding

money_tree The alternative lending sector, especially in China, is soaking up funds at an unprecedented pace. This week alone, more than $750 million went to startup lenders, 80% earmarked to China (Lufax $485 million and Jimubox $84 million), while Funding Circle (London, $150 million), EZBob (London, $45 million), Smava (Germany, $16 million), and Assetz (London, $4.5 million) rounded out the sector’s inflow.

Across the total fintech sector, 18 companies raised $1.03 billion this week. And three new unicorns were officially unveiled: Lufax, Funding Circle, and Oscar, a U.S. health insurance startup.

In addition to EZBob ($45 million), two other Finovate alums brought in new cash this week: eToro which added $12 million to its already-announced $27 million round and SigFig took in another $1 million.

Here are the fintech funding rounds by size between 18 April and 23 April:

Lufax
P2P consumer loans
HQ: Shanghai, China
Latest round: $485 million (at $10 billion valuation)
Total raised: Unknown
Tags: Peer-to-peer lending, crowdfunding, investing, Ping An Insurance (investor)
Source: Wall Street Journal

Funding Circle
P2P consumer loans
HQ: London, United Kingdom
Latest round: $150 million Series E (at $1 billion valuation)
Total raised: $273.2 million
Tags: Crowdfunding, loan marketplace, peer-to-peer, unicorn, P2P, underwriting, investing
Source: Crunchbase

Oscar
Health insurance
HQ: New York City, New York
Latest round: $145 million Series A (at $1.5 billion valuation)
Total raised: $295 million
Tags: Insurance, analytics, healthcare, medical payments
Source: Crunchbase

Jimubox
P2P small business & consumer loans
HQ: China
Latest round: $84 million Series C
Total raised: $131.2 million
Tags: SMB, peer-to-peer lending, underwriting, investing
Source: FT Partners

EZBob
P2P small business loans
HQ: London, United Kingdom
Latest round: $45 million
Total raised: $66.5 million (which includes $11 million of debt)
Tags: Crowdfunding, marketplace lender, underwriting, SMB, investing, Finovate alum
Source: Crunchbase

CompareAsia
Asian financial comparison site
HQ: Hong Kong, China
Latest round: $40 million Series A
Total raised: $46 million
Tags: Financial lead generation, sales, insurance, banking, investing, MoneyHero, MoneyMax, MoneyGuru, Money101, SingSaver, MoneyHalo (brand names)
Source: Crunchbase

Perseus
High-speed global network for trading and other financial services
HQ: New York City, New York
Latest round: $20.5 million
Total raised: $20.5 million
Tags: Network, connectivity, trading, infrastructure, Goldman Sachs (investor)
Source: Crunchbase

Smava
P2P consumer loans
HQ: Berlin, Germany
Latest round: $16 million Series B
Total raised: $29.1 million
Tags: Loan marketplace lender, underwriting, investing
Source: FT Partners

Gravie
Health insurance services for employers
HQ: Minneapolis, Minnesota
Latest round: $12.5 million Series B
Total raised: $25.6 million
Tags: Enterprise, employee benefits, health insurance
Source: FT Partners

eToro
Social trading and investment network
HQ: Limassol, Cyprus
Latest round: $12 million (addition to $27 million round in Nov 2014 of which $10 million is debt)
Total raised: $72.9 million
Tags: Trading, sharing, currency, fx, investment management, investing, CommerzBank (investor), Silicon Valley Bank (creditor), Finovate alum
Source: Finovate

SureCash
Mobile banking platform in Bangladesh
HQ: Bangladesh
Latest round: $7 million Series B
Total raised: $7+ million
Tags: Mobile banking, payments, Hong Kong (investor)
Source: Crunchbase

Assetz Capital
P2P business loans
HQ: London, United Kingdom
Latest round: $4.5 million
Total raised: $4.5 million
Tags: Lending, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer, SMB, underwriting, investing
Source: Crunchbase

Cardfree
Mobile point-of-sale technology
HQ: Scottsdale, Arizona
Latest round: $4 million Series
Total raised: $14 million
Tags: Merchants, payments, acquiring, mobile, POS
Source: FT Partners

OpenFin
Financial services development platform
HQ: New York City, New York
Latest round: $3 million Series B
Total raised: $9.6 million
Tags: Development tools, desktop financial services, investment management, IT
Source: Crunchbase

New Media Insight
Mobile payments (mPaay)
HQ: Phoenix, Arizona
Latest round: $2 million
Total raised: $2 million
Tags: Payments, SMB, acquiring, mobile
Source: FT Partners

CoinTent
Micropayments
HQ: San Francisco, California
Latest round: $1.1 million Seed
Total raised: $1.1 million
Tags: Payments, mobile, micropayments, SMB, digital content
Source: Crunchbase

SimplyInsured
Group health insurance quotes
HQ: San Francisco, California
Latest round: $1 million Seed
Total raised: $1.8 million
Tags: Insurance, healthcare, SMB, lead gen, Y Combinator
Source: Crunchbase

SigFig
Online portfolio/investment manager
HQ: San Francisco, California
Latest round: $1 million Series
Total raised: $16 million
Tags: Robo-adviser, ETF, asset allocation, investing, Finovate alum
Source: Finovate

——–

Related
Not a technology company, but a part of the fintech ecosystem (not included in total funding amount)

untapt
Fintech software developer recruiter
HQ: New York City, New York
Latest round: $3.1 million Series A
Total raised: $4.2 million
Tags: Developers, builders, recruiting, headhunter
Source: Crunchbase

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SigFig Brings on New Advisory Board Members and $1 Million in Funding

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on April 23, 2015
Categories: Funding, SigFig

Robo-adviser platform SigFig today announced it added five members to its advisory board. Four of the new board members are investors in Nyca Partners, which furnished the San Francisco-based company with $1 million in new funding.

SigFig founder and CEO Mike Sha says he is more excited about the connections that Nyca has to offer than the funding it supplied.

SigFig, launched in 2007 as Wikinvest, has since garnered a total of $30 million in funding.

According to SF Gate, SigFig tracks around $350 billion in assets for its users. The company declined to comment on its total amount of assets under management.

SigFig demonstrated its automated investment platform at FinovateFall 2011.

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Finovate Alumni News

By David Penn Posted on April 23, 2015
Categories: Bluefin Payment Systems, Financial Guard, Global Debt Registry, Jemstep, LendingTree, Malauzai Software, Motif Investing, Nymi, PayNearMe, Rippleshot, ThreatMetrix, TickSmith

On Finovate.com

Check out our FinovateSpring 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 6

Around the web

Financial-Planning provides an in-depth profile of Motif Investing.

Rippleshot to join SixThirty accelerator’s Spring 2015 cohort.

The Globe and Mail highlights Nymi’s take on wearable security.

Bluefin Payment Systems partners with Paydunk to offer an all-in-one mobile security and integrated e-commerce payment solution.

ThreatMetrix wins Best Anti-Malware Product and Hot Company in MFA at 2015 Cyber Defense Magazine Awards.

Orion Advisor Services partners with Jemstep to bring independent advisers who use Orion’s platform the benefits of robo-adviser automation.

PayNearMe enables Philadelphia bike-share program-members to pay their fees using cash.

TickSmith adds Book Replay Module to Its TickVault Platform.

Barron’s feature on robo-advisers quotes Kevin Pohmer, president of Financial Guard.

Global Debt Registry names Kathy Simmermon as EVP of business development.

Fox Business interviews Lending Tree CEO Doug Lebda.

Feature on card controls highlights solutions developed by Malauzai Software. See Malauzai at FinovateSpring 2015 in May.

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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FinDEVr 2015 San Francisco: We’re Bringing Builders Back

By David Penn Posted on April 22, 2015
Categories: FinDEVr 2015 San Francisco

For two days in October, the city by the bay once again will be a bastion of fintech builders.

We are excited to announce our second annual event for fintech developers, software architects, CTOs, and other IT professionals: FinDEVr 2015 on 6/7 October in San Francisco, California.

Last year’s event featured speakers from 50 key fintech backbone companies such as Yodlee, PayPal, Visa, MasterCard, TD Ameritrade, and Google, along with startups like Forte, Plaid, and Knox Payments (full list here). And we expect even more this year.

Earlier this year we talked to most of last year’s presenters and many attendees about our inaugural FinDEVr conference in 2014. We found overwhelming support for an event focused on the TECHNOLOGY used in building modern financial services.

And that’s why we’re heading back to our favorite venue in San Francisco: the conference center on the campus of UCSF Mission Bay. It’s convenient and super comfortable, but it holds only about 700 people, so act fast as tickets will sell out.

Last year we experimented with various presentation lengths. Based on feedback, we are standardizing with TED-style, 20-minute speaker slots focused on financial tools and technology, along with actual case study detail. At least five minutes of each presentation will be devoted to questions submitted by the audience.

And to allow attendees to better fine-tune their schedule to their technical interests and needs, FinDEVr will be dual-track for both days.

Finally, all the presenters will be readily accessible during lunch, breaks, and end-of-the-day happy hour to answer your questions and resolve hurdles you may be facing in adopting specific technologies.

We hope you’ll join us. Tickets for fintech builders are currently less than $500 (50% off) as part of our “presale.” So act now and save.

And if you’d like to be one of our presenters at FinDEVr 2015, please send us an email at sanfran@findevr.com. Let us know how you’re applying the latest technologies to help make financial services faster, safer and more efficient for businesses and consumers everywhere.

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Game On: What Banking Can Learn from Fitbit

By Jim Bruene Posted on April 22, 2015
Categories: Game-based, Personal Financial Management, TD Bank

I’ve always been a “wanna be” tracker. I like watching the stats closely, but I also lose interest if the process, either capturing the data or compiling it, becomes tedious. But thanks to mobile (including wearables), the drudgery is disappearing and that has big implications for banking and financial services.

Some examples: I’ve used Mint since 2007 for personal and business expenses, so I have a massive database of transactions, which in theory should make it easy to locate just about anything I’ve charged to a credit or debit card in the past eight years. However, it’s never quite perfect because I will go for long periods without doing the required maintenance to keep every aggregated account flowing. Recently, I just fixed one of my main credit cards which has been on hiatus for two years. So, there are big holes in the data.

Then there’s BillGuard, another service I love and have been using for years. I love how it alerts me to questionable items as they hit my card accounts. However, BillGuard’s database is so good, that I rarely hear from them any more. This is good news for me (no questionable items), but less so for them. Because what’s invisible, loses its perceived value.

And I’ve tried tracking other things over the years, both financial and personal. And nothing seems to stick. Until now. I just hit my two-year anniversary using Fitbit, usually glancing at its tiny readout several times per day. So what is it about Fitbit that makes it addictive? And more importantly, how can financial institutions do the same for money management?

1. Make it easy to use: While Fitibit requires zero maintenance once you get it activated, you do have to remember to keep it on you. The same goes double for a bank’s credit or debit card. You not only have to remember it, but also must choose to use it at the point of sale.

Action item: Incent users to get your card loaded into digital ecommerce sites such as Apple Pay, Amazon, iTunes, PayPal, Uber, Spotify and others. Capital One just unleased a great, albeit expensive, program with Uber to credit back 20% of rides to its cardholders (link).

2. Make it easy to see exactly where you stand in real-time: Fitbit provides feedback literally every step of the day. It’s extremely motivating, though at times discouraging when you fall way behind in personal goals. Card issuers today do something similar delivering real-time alerts right to the smartphone homescreen (and soon to the Apple Watch). But transaction alerts still don’t tell you where you are.

Action item: Make notifications smarter by including daily, weekly, monthly transaction summaries and/or credit available. They could be included in the notification, or enabled with a swipe of the transaction alert.

3. Make it easy to compare to previous periods: This is still a missing piece of my ultimate Fitbit experience. The mobile app makes it easy to scroll backwards or look at bar charts to see how you are doing over time. But there are no simple month-over-month or year-over-year comparisons to see your progress in similar time periods.

Action item: Create single-click views of financial activity and balances compared to one month ago, one year ago, two years ago, etc.

4. Provide ongoing incentives: Similar to saving money being its own reward, burning calories by walking and climbing is clearly its own incentive to bump up your Fitbit numbers. But it doesn’t hurt to provide extra incentives along the way. An incentive can not only keep customers engaged, but also appreciative of the game provider. Unlike BillGuard, which so quietly goes about its business that I forget about it, Fitbit delights users with badges and pop-up notifications, for hitting various daily or lifetime milestones. (Fitbit actually needs to do more incentivizing, as experienced users can rarely get a new badge; I haven’t had a new one since last November).

Action item: The badges may be cheesy, but the email congratulations are powerful (see inset from Fitbit the first time you walk 20,000 steps in a day). This has to be one of the simplest things you could do to reinforce good money management. Send an email congratulating a customer when their savings balance, rewards points, interest earned, or whatever, increases compared to a month ago or a year ago. Who doesn’t appreciate an “atta boy or girl” every now and then (even if it is from your bank).

5. Get social: While I’m not of the social media generation, I do understand its appeal. Just today, Fitbit sent me a reminder to add friends. This allows users to compete against friends and family, a potentially motivating way to get you off the couch and moving. And while I’d never share Fitbit data with friends, I do enjoy a friendly competition with my wife. The key is to make sharing highly selective, customizable, and easy to switch on and off.

Action item: While financial information is not as readily shareable as fitness data, Venmo has proven that it has potential. The youthful set who’ve taken to using Venmo (see the Venmo line), enjoy sharing payment activity, but only without revealing the actual dollar amount, and allowing for maximum snark in the share. And there are also plenty of serious use-cases for sharing financial data, such as employees with their employers, kids with their parents, etc. Card issuers should add optional sharing to all card-management platforms.

——–

Screenshot: TD Bank landing page (22 April 20015, link)

—————–

Picture Credit: TD Bank has been giving away Fitbit Flex trackers to new checking account customers (screenshot above). A reader from MaximizingMoney.com contributed this upper-right photo of TD signage in the NYC subway.

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Credit Karma Now Serves Americans with Thin Credit Files

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on April 22, 2015
Categories: Credit Karma, Credit Reporting

In the U.S., 15 million adults have no credit score because they are new to the country or have a short financial history. While such “thin-file” credit customers could create a Credit Karma account, they could do little else on the platform until recently.

This week, the free credit-report service is rolling out its Thin File customer experience to help these customers take action to create good credit.

The San Francisco-based company will enable thin-file consumers to:

Review the information in their credit profile
Learn how to build their credit history
View recommendations for credit cards and loans that might help build credit

Additionally, they have access to Credit Karma’s tools such as an interest rate calculator and personal spending tracker.

Credit Karma debuted at FinovateSpring 2008, the first Bay Area Finovate conference. It has since built out its platform with multiple tools, offers from partners, and a PFM offering.

Serving more than 21 million users, Credit Karma has raised $195 million in financing and was valued at $1 billion after its September 2014 funding round of $75 million.

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