Finovate Alumni News– May 16, 2013

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  • FamZoo, LendUp, Money Desktop, PayNearMe, and TipRanks win Best of Show honors at FinovateSpring 2013 in San Francisco.
  • Blaze Mobile earns three NFC mobile payment patents.
  • OpenCoin announces completion of an angel funding round from Google Ventures and IDG Capital Partners.
  • ForexThink interviews QuantConnect founder and CEO Jared Broad.
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.

Prestadero’s Peer-to-Peer Lending Platform Places Borrowers in Complete Control

This is a part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

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Closing out FinovateSpring for us this afternoon, 
Prestadero demoed its peer-to-peer lending platform:
“Prestadero uses its proprietary management software to originate loans in an extremely efficient way. Our platform allows us to parse out declined loans in seconds and determine rates for approved loans in less than 1 minute.  
Our web interface allows lenders to view their entire portfolio in detail. Lenders can also view specific graphs and scorecards that allow them to make better investment decisions, even if they are not investment professionals. We provide lenders with tools, such as our “diversification index,” which quickly and comprehensively lets them know their risk exposure depending on the diversification of their loans. Our software also enables lenders to select multiple loans at once by filtering through the user’s selected criteria. They can also choose to reinvest their returns based on the same or a different set of criteria.
Through their online account, borrowers have full control over their loan’s entire process, from filling out the application to paying it off completely. We also charge the borrower’s bank accounts directly when their payments are due, diminishing delinquencies and providing a better service for our customers. The entire process is streamlined and coded with peer-to-peer finance in mind, reducing human interaction on the back-end of the technology and providing more accurate, up-to-date information on our front-end.”
Product Launch: June 2012
HQ: Mexico City, Mexico
Founded: April 2011
Metrics: 4,000+ registered users, $70M pesos in loan requests, $400K raised
Twitter: @prestadero
Presenting Gerardo Obregon (CEO & Founder) and Alejandro Ramos (Partner)

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Plastyc Demos the Backend of its BankingUP Platform

This is a part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

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Next up this afternoon, Plastyc showed off the administrator-facing side of its BankingUP platform:
“Plastyc is demonstrating the administrator-facing side of the BankingUP platform, allowing issuing banks and program managers to:
    • Monitor and analyze cardholders’ financial activity in real time;
    • Monitor and analyze cardholders’ non-financial activity; e.g., usage of mobile apps and web, customer support interactions;
    • Communicate instantly with programmable subsets of cardholders via web inserts and smartphone push notification for marketing/upselling and product alerts.
This is a departure from traditional batch mode financial-transactions only reporting obtained from processors.”
Product Launch: November 2012
 
HQ: New York, NY
Founded: 2006
Metrics: 5K direct-to-consumer opened to date; platform deployed for a 3M card portfolio; 10 employees; $10M raised so far
Website: plastyc.com
Twitter: @ibankup
Presenting Patrice Peyret (CEO) and Colette Oliver (Director, Marketing)

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Zooz Consumer Driven Payment Platform Brings One Tap Checkout for Consumers and Higher Conversion Rates for Merchants

Thumbnail image for ZOOZLogo.jpgThis post is part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

Next up is Zooz, presenting their consumer-driven payment platform, which generates smart consumer insights to help merchants boost conversion rates while providing customers with a seamless buying experience.
“Zooz will show an exciting new feature that demonstrates an important use case of the Zooz consumer driven platform capabilities.”
Product Launched: March 2012
HQ Location: Raanana, Israel
Company Founded: June 2010
Metrics: Raised $3.5 million; 15 employees; more than 5,000 registered apps and sites
Website: zooz.com
Twitter: @ZooZpayments
Presenting Noam Inbar (VP Business Development) and Ronen Morecki (CTO & Founder)

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Adobe Introduces the Digital Marketing Cloud to Help FIs Manage Marketing Campaigns

adobe_logo.jpgThis post is part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

A complete set of analytics, social, advertising, targeting and web experience management solutions is what you’ll find in Adobe’s Digital Marketing Cloud, next up here at FinovateSpring.
“Capture data-driven customer insights and boost customer loyalty through useful online experiences. Captivate and connect with customers across business-critical digital channels using the Adobe Marketing Cloud. Maximize the value and impact of your institution’s online presence and drive online customer conversion using the robust analytics and powerful visualization tools in Adobe Marketing Cloud. 
Launch, analyze, and refine lead generation campaigns across channels, including web, mobile and email. Get real-time insight into online campaign performance and engagement. Modify in-progress campaigns to increase response rates, conversion rates, and revenue. Then refine and personalize experiences to encourage repeat visits.”

Product Launched: October 2012

HQ Location: San Jose, California
Company Founded: December 1982
Website: Adobe.com
Twitter: @AdobeMktgCloud
Presenting Chris Young (Director, Industry Strategy, Financial Services) and Aaron Johnson (Principal Solutions Consultant)

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LendUp Ladder Helps the Underbanked Borrow and Build Credit

Thumbnail image for LendUpLogo.jpgThis post is part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

Socially responsible lending to the underbanked? Meet LendUp and their program to use small dollar loans to help borrowers build credit.
“The LendUp Ladder changes the dynamics of a small dollar loan; rather than being a dangerous first step into a cycle of debt, small dollar loans become an opportunity to learn good financial behavior and to build credit.”

Product Launched: October 2012

HQ Location: San Francisco, California
Company Founded: November 2011
Website: lendup.com
Twitter: @LendUpLoans
Presenting Sasha Orloff (CEO & Co-Founder) and Jacob Rosenberg (CTO & Co-Founder)

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Gremln’s Secure Social Media Helps Regulated Companies Make the Most of Social Media

GremlnLogo.jpgThis post is part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

Social media like Facebook and Twitter offer both opportunities and challenges for most financial institutions looking to use these tools to better engage with their customers. Coming next to the stage is Gremln, with technology specifically geared toward helping FIs take advantage of social media.
“Gremln is introducing its new Secure Social Media version, designed for financial services companies. This new product creates the ability for marketing and compliance departments to work together toward the common goal of utilizing social media to build business and retain customers through engagement; all without violating guidelines set forth by regulatory bodies like the SEC, FFIEC, and FINRA.
Keyword and phrase filtering, abstract concept matching, a structured approval process, archiving and custom permission settings for each department and team member. All posts are subject to an approval process that you custom design. Maximize your use of social media fearlessly.”
Product Launched: November 2012
HQ Location: San Francisco, California
Company Founded: May 2011
Metrics: $750,000 raised; 10 full-time employees; more than 130,000 registered users
Website: Gremln.com
Twitter: @Gremln
Presenting Ryan Bell (CEO) and Michele Lain (Customer Service Manager)

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Tradeslide Launches the Tradeslide Challenge to Gamify the Learning Process for Traders

This is a part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

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Third up this afternoon, Tradeslide launched the Tradeslide Challenge:

“The Tradeslide Challenge is a gamified learning process where traders compete to develop the skills that make up a solid trader (risk management, discipline, etc.), in the right order, one badge at a time.”

Product Launch: May 2013
HQ: London, England
Founded: March 2012
Metrics: €900,000, 10 employees, 1,000 pre-registered users, 2,000 unique visitors/month pre-launch
Twitter: @tradeslide
Presenting Juan Colón (CEO) and Javier Colón (COO)

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Micronotes Showcases Real Results from its Cross-Sell Solution

This is a part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

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Second up this afternoon, Micronotes showcased its Cross-Sell solution through one of its customers:
“Micronotes Cross-Sell is simply the most productive digital cross-sell tool on the market. One of our customers is demonstrating this by showing the product, sharing results and explaining what those results mean to his financial institution.”
Product Launch: July 2011
HQ: Cambridge, MA
Founded: June 2008
Metrics: $3.4M raised to date; 8 employees
Website: micronotes.com 
Twitter: @micronotes
Presenting Ariel Taylor (Product Manager) and Kris VanBeek (CEO, USAlliance Credit Union)

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Persint Debuts Consumer Analytics Application

This is a part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

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Starting off the final session today, Persint debuted its consumer analytics application:
“Persint’s consumer analytics application integrates with account aggregation and is designed to complement existing PFM. Leveraging public data sources mapped to conform to aggregation categorization, Persint delivers performance context through comparison to U.S. household peers. 
Just five demographic inputs can segment a household into one of over 100 unique peer groups. Other solution features include:
        • performance navigation through color-coded decision trees
        • data representative of all U.S. households
        • local cost of living adjustments
        • alternative peer group formation
        • composite score based on net worth, cash flow and risk management
        • performance classification and scoring system
        • solution mapping of opportunities to actions”
Product Launch: September 2013
HQ: Atlanta, GA
Founded: March 2012
Metrics: Privately held, self-funded and seeking investment; 2 principals leveraging contractors; pre-launch and pre-revenue
Website: persint.com
Twitter: @persint
Presenting Steve Cotton (CEO & Founder) and Curry Pelot (CIO & Co-Founder)

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BrightFunds Brings an Investment Approach to Individual Philanthropy

Thumbnail image for BrightFundsLogoSm.jpgThis post is part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

Our final presenter ahead of the break is BrightFunds. The company’s innovation addresses a growing need in online charitable giving.
“Bright Funds offers a simple, elegant tool to the financial services sector for effective charitable giving management. With Bright Funds, individuals create personalized giving portfolios and contribute to thoroughly researched funds of highly effective nonprofits addressing the greatest challenges of our time. Bright Funds combines the power of research, the reliability of a trusted financial service, and the convenience of centralized contributions and tax reporting.”
Product Launched: Beta November 2012; official launch May 2013
HQ Location: San Francisco, California
Company Founded: February 2012
Metrics: Raised $350,000; 4 full-time employees; thousands of members; signed enterprise partners
Twitter: @BrightFunds
Presenting Ty Walrod (CEO & Co-Founder) and Rutul Dave (Chief Products & Marketing & Co-Founder)

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ValidSoft Uses “SMART” Technology to Protect Mobile Payment and MBanking Transactions

This is a part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2013.

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Then, ValidSoft took the stage to demo its Secure Mobile Architecture for Real-time Transactions, SMART:

“ValidSoft’s SMART platform caters for the disparity in mobile networks and devices, use cases and the corresponding transactional risk intrinsic in mobile payment applications. SMART achieves this by providing a layered architecture of voice and mobile network‐based security protocols and technologies, both visible and invisible, to protect mobile payment and M‐banking transactions alike.”

Product Launch: February 2011
HQ: London, United Kingdom
Founded: 2003
Website: validsoft.com
Twitter: @ValidSoft
Presenting John Petersen (Global Head of Business Development) and Emmanuelle Filsjean (Global Head of Marketing)

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