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Payoneer Lands $25 Million Series D Funding Round Led by Susquehanna Growth Equity

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on March 6, 2014
Categories: Funding, Payoneer

Cross border payments company, Payoneer, whose aim it is to simplify global commerce, announced yesterday that it received a $25 million boost.

The funding round was led by new investor Susquehanna Growth Equity. Existing investors also contributed:

Carmel Ventures Greylock IL Vintage Venture Partners

The New York-based company plans to use the funds to:

Accelerate its product roadmap Expand into new verticals and markets Increase sales and marketing investments More actively pursue acquisitions

Prior to this round, Payoneer received $8 million in Series B, $4 million in Series A, and $2 million in Seed funding. Combined, this brings the company's total funding to $39 million.

Check out Payoneer's live demo video from FinovateAsia 2013.

Finovate Alumni News– March 6, 2014

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on March 6, 2014
Categories: Arxan Technologies, Banno, Billeo, GMC Software Technology, iQuantifi, Jack Henry, Kensho, Kony Solutions, PayNearMe, Plutus Software, SecureKey

iQuantifi launches financial advice platform to general public. Billeo and Danal partner to create a mobile ID solution for Billeo's XpressBuy checkout service to make it easier by autofilling forms with your relevant information. Nerdwallet features PayNearMe. GMC Software Technology and Kony partner to develop next-gen document tech solutions for businesses. SecureKey Concierge Service tops one million-credential mark. American Banker takes a look at Jack Henry & Associates and its acquisition of Banno. FinovateEurope: Behind the Scenes with Arxan Technologies, Kensho, and Plutus Software. 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.

FinovateEurope: Behind the Scenes with Arxan Technologies, Kensho, and Plutus Software

By David Penn Posted on March 5, 2014
Categories: Arxan Technologies, FinovateEurope 2014, Kensho, Plutus Software

We hope you have been enjoying our "behind the scenes" look back at FinovateEurope 2014.

In our first installment, we shared with you some insights from our conversations with AdviceGames, Nous, and Yseop. We followed that with a peek at how CRIF, Mobino, and SaaS Markets were helping bring fintech innovation to businesses and consumers alike. And just last week, we presented a behind the scenes look at NF Innova, Vaamo, and Best of Show winner, Tink.

This week we bring you another handful of companies from FinovateEurope 2014. First up for today are three innovators from the fields of mobile app security, big data analytics, and lending to the underbanked in emerging markets.

Arxan Technologies What They Do: Arxan Technologies specializes in mobile app security, providing solutions that make it more difficult for fraudsters and criminals to tamper with apps. The…

Hacking for Social Good: FinCapDev Sets Deadline for 2014 Competition

By David Penn Posted on March 5, 2014
Categories: FinCapDev

Got an idea to help improve the financial lives of the unbanked and underbanked? FinCapDev wants to hear from you.

The mobile app development competition hosted by the D2D Fund and the Center for Financial Services Innovation is accepting proposals for its 2014 event. The deadline is April 7.

And to better help inform the fintech community about FinCapDev, they are hosting the first of a series of free webinars Wednesday at 6pm Eastern.

Now in its second year, FinCapDev was founded with the goal of promoting what Shaheen Hasan, Innovation Strategist at the D2D Fund, calls "hacking for social good." "FinCapDev is hoping to create an ecosystem of players in all sectors to help move the needle to create better products and services for the unbanked and underbanked," she said. "Especially using the mobile channel." Proposals for the 2014 competition will be evaluated based on degree of innovation,…

Fintech Four: Banno, Borro, Personetics & Auction.com are on a Roll

By Jim Bruene Posted on March 5, 2014
Categories: Loans & Credit, Mergers & Acquisitions, Personal Financial Management, Real Estate

It's been a crazy week in fintech, and it's only Wednesday morning. Because my brain can hold no more than four stories at a time (and that's a stretch), it's time to publish a "fintech four" mid-week. I don't know which of these is more dramatic, so I'll go in alphabetic order:

1. Auction.com joins the billion-dollar fintech club

I'm not sure everyone considers Auction.com a fintech play, but as an online asset sales platform (which moved $7 billion last year), it's close enough for me. It just raised a fresh $50 million from Google Ventures at a valuation of $1.2 billion. So I'll be adding Auction.com to our "Fintech billion-dollar club."
>>> Metrics and more from Bloomberg here. 2. Banno acquired by Jack Henry

While we don't know the $$ number, given the traction Finovate alum Banno had in the market (375 bank clients), and the…

iQuantifi Launches Financial Advice Platform to General Public

By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on March 5, 2014
Categories: iQuantifi

Earlier this week, iQuantifi launched its virtual financial advisor to the public. Now everyone can sign up for iQuantifi's platform that helps users identify, prioritize, and achieve their financial goals.

Its Core Planning Algorithm helps users pay down their debt and achieve their financial goals that are personalized for each individual user.

In order for iQuantifi to help users build their goals, they need to answer a few basic questions about:

Family status Income Expenses Debts Accounts and policies

A subscription for iQuantifi costs just under $10 per month. However, it is currently running a Refer a Friend promotion that grants users free access to the platform if they share iQuantifi on Facebook or Twitter.

To see iQuantifi's Best of Show demo, check out a video of its live demo at FinovateSpring 2012.

Finovate Alumni News — March 5, 2014

By David Penn Posted on March 5, 2014
Categories: Ignite Sales, ProfitStars, Tradeshift, Trustev

Margin Maximizer Interactive from ProfitStars added to ICBA Preferred Service Provider program. Trustev partners with Datameer to combine big data analytics with its real-time ID validation technology. Ignite Sales announces availability of AccountAdvisor sales solution for community banks and credit unions. Spend Matters looks at Scentan Ventures, the Firm Behind Tradeshift's $75M Round. 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.

Finovate Alumni News — March 4, 2014

By David Penn Posted on March 4, 2014
Categories: CUneXus Solutions, Digital Mailer, Fiserv, Jack Henry, LICUOS, MasterCard, MicroStrategy, VerifyValid

Jack Henry & Associates completes acquisition of Banno. VerifyValid announces new iPhone app, Mobile Checkbook. Finovate alums Fiserv, MicroStrategy, Digital Mailer, LICUOS, and CUneXus demo at Bank Innovation 2014 DEMOvation event. Catch Fiserv and CUneXus at FinovateSpring 2014 in San Jose. MasterCard expands presence in Africa, entering seven new markets. 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.

VerifyValid Launches New iPhone App, Mobile Checkbook

By David Penn Posted on March 3, 2014
Categories: VerifyValid

Combining the security and convenience of checks with the reduced costs of avoiding bankcard interchange fees is the goal behind VerifyValid's Mobile Checkbook app, now available for download at the Apple App Store.

The new app makes it easy for small businesses and their customers to write, sign, receive and deposit electronic checks ("eChecks") using their iPhone, iPad, or other iOS-powered device. All that is required to send someone an eCheck is the recipient's email address, and new VerifyVaild customers can begin using the service by way of a free, 5-check, "starter" checkbook.

Said VerifyValid CEO Paul Doyle, "While consumers gain the freedom to pay for goods and services directly through the app, our business customers experience greater convenience in accepting payments anytime, anywhere, without incurring costly interchange fees associated with card transactions."

VerifyValid maintains a record of all transactions in the user account, and data is stored on the…

Finovate Alumni News — March 3, 2014

By David Penn Posted on March 3, 2014
Categories: Actiance, CashStar, Fiserv, IDology, Leaf, ShopKeep POS, Tactile Finance

Leaf adds chief operating officer, vice-president of finance, and vice-president of engineering as company expands to bigger offices. Fiserv appoints Kevin Gregoire as group president of financial institutions group. CashStar launches new edition of digital gifting platform, CashStar 5. Actiance Socialite available through the EMC Select Program. IDology's ExpectID Global launches in Canada. Tactile Finance PRO's new features target mortgage loan officers' ability to compete and increase referrals. See its live demo at FinovateSpring next month. Pikanik Bakery discusses its experience with ShopKeep POS. 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.

Launching: Credible Will Refi Your Student Loans Through Cooperating Lenders

By Jim Bruene Posted on February 28, 2014
Categories: Launches, Student Loans

On Monday, Credible debuted its student loan refi platform at Jason Calacanis's Launch Festival (see demo below). The demo was a judge favorite, with three of the five judges naming it their favorite among the eight demos in that session. And the company ended up taking home the trophy (and optional investment) as the best established company demo. The overall winner was Connect, an address book that maps your contacts from social networks.

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How it works
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The business model is similar to Lending Tree. Users answer eight questions, all from memory:

1. Do you have a PRIVATE student loan? (Yes/No)
2. What year did you graduate? (choose 2001 to 2012)
3. What was the last school you graduated from?
4. Do you have graduate or postgraduate degree? (Yes/No)
5. What is your approximate income? (slider $0 to $200,000+)
6. What is your approximate student loan…

PrivatBank Launches HCE Mobile NFC Payments Solution

By David Penn Posted on February 28, 2014
Categories: PrivatBank

Here's some good news out of the Ukraine: the country's PrivatBank (FinovateEurope 2013) has introduced a mobile NFC payments service.

Based on host card emulation (HCE), the Liqpay app works with Android-powered NFC smartphones (Android 4.4) and lets users register both MasterCard and Visa cards for use at contactless, POS terminals.

Host card emulation is a technology that lets NFC applications function as smart cards. For consumers, this enables mobile payments via that NFC app. For banks and financial institutions, the technology allows them to save money by maintaining payment accounts in the cloud.

The technology was first deployed in 2012 and is seen as a way to speed mobile NFC adoption by card companies like Visa and MasterCard. By replacing the Secure Element traditionally used to host NFC applications, HCE technology promises an easier deployment for merchants, with lower costs and few changes to existing payment infrastructures.

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