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Finovate Global Australia: CBA Launches Tech Hub, ANZ Plus Reaches 100K Customer Milestone, Aussie Regulators Target AMEX

Finovate Global Australia: CBA Launches Tech Hub, ANZ Plus Reaches 100K Customer Milestone, Aussie Regulators Target AMEX
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Finovate Global

Commonwealth Bank of Australia Launches Tech Hub in Brisbane

Over the summer, Australia’s Commonwealth Bank (CBA) unveiled its latest technology hub in Melbourne. This week, we learned that the financial institution’s hub-building game is still strong, with word that that CBA has established another technology hub, this time in the city of Brisbane.

The goal of the new hub, located in Brisbane’s central business district, is to help build the technology community in Queensland writ large. The bank is collaborating with The University of Queensland (UQ), Queensland University of Technology (QUT), and TAFE Queensland to enable students and graduates to participate in CBA’s Tech Associates and Graduate programs. The new hub will also create job opportunities for technology professionals including engineers, cyber specialists, and data scientists.

Commonwealth Bank of Australia Chief Information Officer Brendan Hopper pointed to COVID era trends as one reason why CBA has become especially interested in Queensland. “The COVID pandemic saw many of our technology professionals choose to relocate to Queensland to pursue a change of lifestyle,” Hopper explained. “By having the tech hub in Brisbane, our people based there will still have access to major technology employers like DBA and can make an impact in their work without having to relocate interstate.”

The technology hub in Brisbane is the third such opportunity CBA has launched this year. In February, the bank opened a technology hub in Adelaide.

The Commonwealth Bank of Australia is a multi-national institution with operations in Australia, New Zealand, the U.S., and the U.K. The financial institution, one of the four biggest banks in Australia (along with National Australia Bank (NAB), ANZ, and Westpac) was founded in 1911 by the Australian government and privatized in 1996. CBA had more than one trillion in total assets as of 2020.

ANZ’s Digital Bank Reaches 100,000 Customer Milestone

Speaking of Australia’s big banks, ANZ announced this week that its digital bank, ANZ Plus, has reached 100,000 customers, and more than two billion in deposits.

“New features, better security, along with a suite of tools and coaches to help people save more, combined with competitive rates are driving more people to ANZ Plus than ever before,” ANZ Managing Director of Design and Delivery Peter Dalton said. “(It) is the fastest growing new digital bank in Australia.”

Launched in March, ANZ Plus offers accountholders an everyday account that tracks spending, and a savings account with features to help users reach their financial goals. ANZ Plus offers 3.5% interest on savings for ANZ Save balances under $250,000; and charges neither monthly account fees nor withdrawal fees at major Australian bank ATMs. Additionally, ANZ Plus customers can schedule one-on-one sessions with a financial coach to help them uncover ways that they can enhance their financial wellness, including tips on spending less and saving more.

“We are continually adding new features to improve customer experience,” Dalton said, “and have begun piloting our digital home loan product with staff.”

Other features available on ANZ Plus include biometric logins for iOS users, as well as dynamic CVV, BPAY, pay to PayID, and the ability to join with an international passport.

ANZ – which stands for the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group Ltd – is the second biggest bank in Australia by assets. Headquartered in Melbourne, Victoria, ANZ was founded in 1970 as part of the largest bank merger in Australian history at the time. In the decades since then, ANZ has grown into a multinational banking and financial services entity with more than 51,000 workers, nine million customers worldwide, and more than one trillion in assets.

Australian Regulators Take AMEX to Court

While Australian banks are expanding opportunities for technology professionals and creating new resources for financial technology users, Australian regulators are cracking down on what they believe represents bad behavior on the part of one of financial services’ biggest players.

We learned this week that the Australia Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) is alleging that a pair of credit cards issued by the local unit of American Express and co-branded with retailer David Jones did not provide adequate explanations about how the cards actually work.

Specifically, regulators have filed a lawsuit claiming that customers were confused about whether they had applied for a loyalty card or a credit card. Further, the lawsuit charges that American Express did not limit distribution to customers that were exclusively interested in cards that enabled them to earn points and receive other benefits. Regulators assert that AMEX was aware of the issue as early as February, but failed to act until July.

“Product providers must monitor and review whether consumers are receiving products consistent with their needs and cannot bring a ‘set and forget mindset’ to product governance,” ASIC Deputy Chair Sarah Court said in a statement. “It is critical that providers respond to poor outcomes they identify by making changes.”

As of this time, neither AMEX nor the company that owns the David Jones department store chain have commented on the lawsuit.

Here is our look at fintech innovation around the world.

Asia-Pacific

  • Tencent’s financial division, Tencent Financial Technology unveiled a new cross-border payments business, Tenpay Global.
  • Tonga Development Bank partnered with Europe-based payments platform BPC.
  • Al Rajhi Bank Malaysia launched a new digital offering, Rize.

Sub-Saharan Africa

  • South African fintech Ukheshe secured new funding from DPI and Fireball Capital.
  • In a bid to boost digital payments, the Central Bank of Nigeria put a limit of $45 on daily ATM withdrawals.
  • Finclusion, a credit-based neobank based in the Republic of Mauritius, raised $2 million in equity financing and rebranded officially to “Fin.”

Central and Eastern Europe

  • Ukraine will be the first country to benefit from the new cross-border payments partnership forged between Mastercard and Paysend.
  • Deutsche Bank announced a partnership with NVIDIA to encourage the use of AI and machine learning in financial services.
  • German corporate financing platform FinCompare partnered with ING Germany.

Middle East and Northern Africa

  • A pair of Egypt-based fintechs – consumer financing platform One Finance and BNPL provider ADVA One – announced a partnership this week.
  • Saudi Araban fintech Tweeq secured an e-money license from the kingdom’s central bank, SAMA.
  • bondIT, a fixed income investment technology company based in Israel and New York, raised $14 million in funding.

Central and Southern Asia

  • U.K.-based financial services platform Tide went live in India with its app and business account.
  • The State Bank of Pakistan announced that it is drafting legislation ahead of a planned CBDC launch in 2025.
  • SBM Bank India reported that it is pursuing funding to support the development of its BaaS platform.

Latin America and the Caribbean

  • Latin American cryptocurrency platform Bitso announced a partnership with remittance company Félix Pago to enable WhatsApp-based crypto-powered payments.
  • Brazil-based digital bank C6 partnered with Thought Machine for its core banking technology.
  • Argentine fintch Ualá to offer personal loans to customers in Mexico courtesy of a partnership with ABC Capital.

Photo by Steve Weir

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BondIT Secures $14 Million in Funding in Round Led by BNY Mellon

BondIT Secures $14 Million in Funding in Round Led by BNY Mellon
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, BondIT, Daily news, Funding
  • Fixed income technology innovator bondIT has raised $14 million in new funding.
  • The investment round was led by BNY Mellon and brings bondIT’s total equity capital to more than $32 million.
  • bondIT made its Finovate debut at FinovateFall in 2016.

Credit analytics and fixed income technology company bondIT has raised $14 million in new funding. The strategic investment was led by BNY Mellon and featured the participation of existing investors, as well. BNY Mellon will join bondIT’s Board of Directors as part of the investment. Valuation information was not provided when the funding was announced but, according to Crunchbase, the funding brings bondIT’s total equity capital to more than $32 million.

“This investment will help us accelerate innovation and offer clients a unique holistic solution for fixed income investing,” bondIT founder and CEO Etai Ravid said. “As bond investors are keen to lock in higher yields, our versatile technology and data-driven approach can help them increase automation to improve efficiency and performance, and better mitigate risk.”

Headquartered in New York and Herzliya, Israel, bondIT provides front office investment technology. The company leverages data science, explainable AI, and other advanced technologies to enable its customers to build, analyze, and manage investment portfolios. bondIT’s technology helps its clients accomplish in minutes what previously took hours or even days. Predictive credit analytics enable bondIT customers to anticipate potential changes in corporate credit risk and take advantage of potential investment opportunities before they manifest themselves in the market

“Collaborating with bondIT will allow us to deliver innovative digital solutions for fixed income investors by enabling investment professionals to explore new investment options more easily through the use of AI, further expanding their portfolio optimization capabilities for clients,” BNY Mellon MD John Goodheart said.

bondIT’s relationship with BNY Mellon extends back to 2021, when bondIT participated in BNY Mellon’s startup accelerator program. In the months since then, bondIT added David Curtis as Partner and Head of Global Client Business, and teamed up with MEAG, the asset manager of Munich Re and ERGO. The MEAG partnership, announced almost exactly one year ago, will digitize MEAG’s credit risk workflows. The Munich, Germany-based company will also use bondIT’s Scorable Credit Analytics to enhance its own credit research processes. A component of bondIT’s fixed income technology solutions suite, Scorable Credit Analytics analyzes more than 250 data points a day and translates raw data from a wide variety of financial and market data sources to provide actionable insights for investors.

“Working with bondIT is another important step in driving technological progress across our organization,” MEAG CIO of Public Markets Prashant Sharma said. “We aim to continuously increase the quality and efficiency of our investment process, and technology plays a crucial part in this.”

Photo by Pixabay

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AvidXchange Taps Wise to Power Cross-Border Payments Solution

AvidXchange Taps Wise to Power Cross-Border Payments Solution
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, TransferWise, Wise
  • AvidXchange partnered with Wise this week.
  • The partnership enables AvidXchange to expand on the global payments capabilities it launched last month.
  • The partnership will help AvidXchange offer its U.S.-based clients an embedded payment experience, creating a more convenient payment process.

Payment automation solutions company AvidXchange announced this week it has selected international money transfer company Wise (formerly known as Transferwise) to expand its international payment capabilities.

“Partnering with Wise to provide our customers with best-in-class international payment capabilities was an easy decision because of their market-leading platform and seamless integration capabilities,” said AvidXchange Chief Growth Officer Dan Drees. “Together, we stand firm as leaders and remain dedicated to making our customers’ payments process more efficient regardless of country lines.”

AvidXchange launched its global payments last month to create an embedded cross-border payment solution for its middle market business clients and their suppliers. Piloting the launch is Oracle NetSuite. The company will enable its clients to access the tool using AvidXchange’s SuiteApp within NetSuite’s SuiteCloud platform.

AvidXchange offers a range of payment automation products, which include invoicing, electronic bill payment, accounts payable automation software, purchase order requisitions, and more. The company serves a range of industries, including real estate, construction, financial services, hospitality, healthcare, and more.

Today’s partnership with Wise helps AvidXchange offer its U.S.-based clients an embedded payment experience that creates a more convenient payment process. The integration enables users to pay both domestic and international suppliers, all within the AvidXchange platform. Wise also offers AvidXchange clients more visibility into fees, gains, and losses to help them better control costs and view cash flow.

“Current systems don’t allow businesses to easily send, spend, or receive money internationally,” said Wise Platform Head Steve Naude. “Through our collaboration with AvidXchange, Wise is helping businesses gain access to a faster, more cost-effective and seamless way to manage finances with domestic and international suppliers in multiple currencies and countries. With 50% of transfers sent instantly, always at the mid-market rate, AvidXchange customers can now have confidence knowing they are saving time and money with each transaction.”

With more than 50 bank and business clients, Wise is one of the best-known players in the international remittance market. The London-based company was founded in 2010 with a simple mission: money without borders.

AvidXchange was founded in 2000 and currently processes over $140 billion transactions annually across its network of more than 680,000 suppliers. Despite its long tenure in the space, AvidXchange has only been a public company for a little over a year. The company debuted on the NASDAQ in October of 2021 and currently has a market capitalization of $1.69 billion.

Photo by Cup of Couple

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Canadian Cross Border Payments Innovator Buckzy Raises Series A Funding

Canadian Cross Border Payments Innovator Buckzy Raises Series A Funding
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Buckzy Payments, Daily news, Funding
  • Canadian real-time cross border payments company Buckzy has raised $14.5 million in Series A funding.
  • The investment was led by Mistral Venture Partners and Uncorrelated Ventures, and featured participation from new investors Luge Capital and Blue 9 Capital, as well as existing investor Revel Partners.
  • Buckzy made its Finovate debut in 2019 at FinovateFall.

In a round led by Mistral Venture Partners and Uncorrelated Ventures, Canada-based real-time, cross border payments company Buckzy has secured $14.5 million in Series A funding. Valuation information was not immediately available. This week’s investment takes the company’s total equity funding to more than $23 million, according to Crunchbase.

“This round of financing is a validation of Buckzy’s vision to create an intelligent and automated international payment system,” Buckzy CEO Abdul Naushad said. “We’re on a mission to build the plumbing for real-time money movement globally, the same way high-speed internet fundamentally shifted the communications industry.”

New investors Luge Capital and Blue 9 Capital, and existing investor Revel Partners, also participated in the round. Luge Capital General Partner Karim Gillani will join Buckzy’s board as an advisor.

Buckzy offers real-time, cross border payments and Banking-as-a-Service capabilities via an embedded finance platform. The platform offers multi-currency bank accounts, local settlement accounts, and real-time FX quoting and booking. A licensed money transfer company, Buckzy has signed up more than 140 bank, neobank, and fintech customers since going live with its platform in 2020.

Calling the cross-border payments market a $150 trillion market globally – and one that is still underserved – Mistral Ventures Partners Managing Director Code Cubitt praised Buckzy for its ability to deliver “a much better customer experience, more automation, and lightning-fast payments.” Cubitt said the company had “the right blend of experience, expertise, and insight to build the next generation of cross border payments.”

Buckzy’s funding news comes at the same time that the company announced the appointment of Seema Rai Nair as VP of Customer Success and Network Expansion. Nair will be responsible for growing the company’s partnership network of banks, fintechs, ecommerce platforms, and other financial service providers.

“Demand for real-time and near real-time international payment services is rising around the world, and companies are increasingly turning to alternative providers such as Buckzy to address their need for fast, secure international payments,” Nair said in a statement.

Headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Buckzy was founded in 2018. The company made its Finovate debut at FinovateFall in New York the following year.

Photo by Andre Furtado

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Finastra Integrates Clinc’s Conversational AI into its Digital Banking Platform

Finastra Integrates Clinc’s Conversational AI into its Digital Banking Platform
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Clinc, Daily news, Finastra
  • Finastra and Clinc have partnered to integrate Clinc’s conversational AI technology into Finastra’s Fusion Digital Banking platform.
  • Finastra will offer its 8,600 financial instiution clients access to Clinc’s AI virtual assistants to help mitigate the load on call centers while providing quality answers to end users.
  • Finastra was founded in 2017 as a merger between Misys and D+H.

Financial software company Finastra has tapped conversational AI fintech Clinc this week. The two have partnered to integrate Clinc’s Virtual Banking Assistant technology into Finastra’s Fusion Digital Banking platform. 

The added capabilities will enable Finastra’s 8,600 financial institution clients to increase digital engagement with their customers. Clinc’s Virtual Banking Assistant helps banks manage common banking requests through different channels, which ultimately helps reduce the volume of calls into the call center.

Clinc was founded in 2015 to build what it calls a “human-in-the-room” level of virtual assistant powered by AI technology and machine learning. The company’s solution understands natural language and leverages elements from the user’s inquiry– such as wording, sentiment, intent, tone of voice, time of day, location, and relationships– to craft an answer that is not only human-like, but also useful in answering the original question.

“We are incredibly pleased to be able to offer our AI solution to banks in collaboration with Finastra, whose FusionFabric.cloud platform is viewed around the world as a leading financial technology ecosystem,” said Clinc CEO Jon Newhard. “Our Virtual Banking Assistant, which can be integrated seamlessly as part of a digital transformation strategy, enables financial institutions to engage customers efficiently but without losing the personal touch. This is vital in an era when increasing numbers of consumers are demanding authentic and intuitive experiences from chatbots.”

Clinc’s technology will be available in Finastra’s FusionFabric.cloud, a marketplace that helps financial services firms find pre-built, ready-to-integrate apps into their Finastra products. Since launching in 2017, FusionFabric.cloud has had 566 customers sign up and has helped form more than 153 partnerships.

“Financial institutions worldwide will benefit from increased access to Clinc’s innovative chatbot technology,” said Finastra Chief Product Officer, Universal Banking Narendra Mistry. “Understanding how real people talk and interact is critical as banks and credit unions work to ensure that the customer experience remains strong while embracing new technologies. We’re delighted to welcome Clinc to our technology ecosystem, and for Finastra’s customers to be able to easily offer conversational AI as part of their digital strategy.”

Finastra was founded in 2017 as a merger between Misys and D+H. The latter acquired Mortgagebot in 2011 for $232 million. Mortgagebot was among the first companies to demo at a Finovate event. The company won Best of Show at FinovateFall 2007. Finastra’s technology spans lending, payments, treasury and capital markets, and universal banking. The U.K.-based company counts 90 of the world’s top 100 banks as clients.

Photo by Miguel Á. Padriñán

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5 Tales From the Crypto: Fidelity’s New Offering, Ledger’s Card, Kriptomat’s Exchange, and More!

5 Tales From the Crypto: Fidelity’s New Offering, Ledger’s Card, Kriptomat’s Exchange, and More!
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Cryptocurrency, Daily news, Ledger

Fidelity Brings the Bitcoin

If you’ve been crying over your crypto wallet due to all the negative headlines about digital currencies, then now is the time to dry your eyes and thank Fidelity for giving crypto enthusiasts the greatest sign of approval since BTC and ETH peaked last year.

Fidelity announced this week that it has enabled cryptocurrency trading in retail accounts. Fidelity Crypto, as the offering is called, enables retail accountholders to buy and sell both Bitcoin and ethereum with as little as $1. The new functionality will be available in 35 U.S. states initially – California, Florida, New Jersey, New York, and Texas are among them. Fidelity plans to bring the technology to other states; the company is offering an early-access sign-up to let interested customers know when Fidelity Crypto is approved in their state. Similarly, the company is examining other cryptocurrencies with the potential to “expand trading opportunities over time.”

The fallout from FTX and the collapse of even the most widely traded cryptocurrencies have been only a few of the headwinds that might have convinced Fidelity to wait longer to launch its crypto trading capability. As recently as this month, a group of senators including Elizabeth Warren asked the company to reconsider its plan to enable its customers to invest up to 20% of their retirement savings in Bitcoin. Clearly those eager for signs of spring amid this crypto winter need look no further than Fidelity.

Ledger’s Crypto Card

Meanwhile, on the other side of the Atlantic, French fintech Ledger has launched its crypto debit card in the U.K. and Europe. The new Crypto Life card enables users to transfer crypto between Ledger’s hardware wallets and card accounts via Ledger’s Ledger Live app. Crypto Life offers 1% crypto rewards in both Bitcoin and USDT, as well as offering 2$ in BXX, the native token of Baanx. Baanx is the U.K.-based fintech that developed the technology for Crypto Life.

Ledger users can use Crypto Life at approximately 90 million merchants and online stores across the U.K. and Europe that accept Mastercard. Ledger VP of International Development JF Rochet called the new offering an “easy and secure solution to pay with crypto that also allows you to self-custody until you want to top up.”

Headquartered in Paris, France, and founded in 2015, Ledger demoed its technology one year later at FinovateEurope 2016. The company specializes in trusted hardware solutions for Bitcoin and blockchain applications, which it distributes both directly via online sales as well as through an international network of retail merchants.

Kriptomat Adds Real Time A2A Payments via Volt Partnership

Sticking with the crypto-across-the-pond theme, we read news that Kriptomat, a cryptocurrency platform based in Estonia, has teamed up with U.K.-based payment gateway provider Volt. The goal of the partnership is to give customers the ability to make account-to-account payments, in real-time, to buy, sell, and trade cryptocurrencies.

More than 500,000 cryptocurrency traders and investors on the Kriptomat platform are expected to benefit from the partnership. Previously, Kriptomat customers were required to use methods such as bank transfers, credit cards, and even e-wallets to make their transactions. Integrating with Volt payments will enable customers to be seamlessly directed to their banking app when paying with Volt, where they can authorize payments using their preferred authentication method. The result is a faster, more streamlined, and less costly way for Kriptomat customers to fund their crypto purchases.

“Today’s new crypto users are more like car owners, who expect to turn the key and have it work immediately – without learning the ins and outs of the processes that happen in the background,” Kriptomat CEO Srdjan Mahmutovic said. “Volt’s technology has helped us provide that level of usability to our customer base.”

BlockFi’s “We’re Not FTX”-Based Bankruptcy

The news that many feared was coming to BlockFi arrived this week as the cryptocurrency company, which carved out a niche in the space as a lender for small cryptocurrency investors, filed for bankruptcy. The company’s Chapter 11 filing follows the bankruptcy filings of other cryptocurrency lenders such as Celsius Network and Voyager Digital, both of which tapped out in July. But the far more looming shadow over BlockFi’s misfortunes is clearly the collapse of cryptocurrency exchange FTX, with which BlockFi was financially entangled.

That said, both BlockFi’s bankruptcy declaration and the opening statement from BlockFi attorney Joshua Sussberg in court yesterday were attempts to do as much untangling as possible. Sussberg referred to BlockFi, which FTX both financially supported and – at one point – moved to acquire, as the “antithesis of FTX.” He credited BlockFi for its “focus on creating an opportunity for people that otherwise don’t have access to the financial system.”

Dimon’s Crypto Curious Bank: JP Morgan Gets Crypto Wallet Trademark

If Fidelity can be credited for the “giant leap” in crypto this week, should we salute JP Morgan’s “small step” of securing a crypto wallet trademark?

There’s a certain sport in highlighting any pro-crypto moves by JP Morgan – given the the outspoken crypto-skepticism of the bank’s legendary CEO Jamie Dimon. As a refresher, Dimon has referred to cryptocurrencies as “decentralized Ponzi schemes,” and said that the “notion that (crypto) is good for anybody is unbelievable.”

But that’s not stopping the bank he runs from expressing some crypto curiosity including, this week, news that the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office has approved of the J.P. Morgan Wallet. According to the registered trademark, the J.P. Morgan Wallet supports “virtual currency transfer + exchange, crypto payment processing, virtual checking accounts, and financial services.”

JP Morgan has been open about its interest in launching a digital wallet since October. Despite the disinterest of the bank’s CEO in most things crypto, JP Morgan has worked with Fidelity and New York Bank Mellon to offer various cryptocurrency related services and, earlier this month, completed the first cross-border transaction using decentralized finance (DeFi) on a public blockchain.

Photo by Anna-Louise

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Cion Digital and upSWOT Team Up to Bring Embedded Finance Solutions to Commercial Loan Brokers

Cion Digital and upSWOT Team Up to Bring Embedded Finance Solutions to Commercial Loan Brokers
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Cion Digital, Daily news, UpSwot
  • Cion Digital and upSWOT have teamed up to bring embedded finance and embedded business management solutions to commercial loan brokers.
  • Courtesy of the partnership, the two companies will enable wealth managers and commercial loan officers the ability to identify ideal financing solutions, as well as broaden their offering with new embedded financial and business management tools.
  • Cion Digital made its Finovate debut earlier this year at FinovateSpring. Making its Finovate debut in 2000, upSWOT returned to the Finovate stage in September for FinovateFall.

Cion Digital, which offers technology to help businesses find the right loan products that suit their needs, has partnered with fintech platform upSWOT. Together, the two Finovate alums will provide wealth managers and commercial loan brokers with embedded finance and embedded business management solutions. These tools will empower these businesses to offer their customers access to a wide variety of tools – including accounting, ERP, payroll, e-commerce, CRM, marketing, and POS business applications – via more than 200 API-enabled apps.

“Cion Digital is focused on using data and machine learning to help financial advisors and commercial loan brokers secure financing for their clients that meets their clients’ unique financial objectives and curate high-value relationships for lenders and financial institutions,” Cion Digital Chief Product Officer Taylor Adkins said. Adkins noted that the partnership with upSOT will make available a wealth of data sources and insights that can be used to further help business owners identify the financing solutions they need – as well as add to their offering with embedded finance and business management resources.

“Fintech has incredible power to dramatically reshape the success of SMBs,” upSWOT CEO Dmitry Norenko added. “The institutions that enable SMBs to take advantage of these dramatic shifts in technologies are institutions that care about their customers and ensuring that they will still be here in a decade.”

A Finovate alum since 2000, upSWOT most recently demoed its technology on the Finovate stage in September as part of FinovateFall. At the conference, upSWOT showed its white-label, digital-banking-embedded solution that connects to more than 200 integrated SaaS applications, delivering actionable insights, cash flow forecasts, and more. Earlier this month, the Charlotte, North Carolina-based fintech announced a partnership with Standard Chartered to launch a pilot project in Singapore that would give Standard Chartered’s SME customers intelligent forecasting capabilities. Founded in 2019, upSWOT has raised more than $5 million in funding.

Cion Digital demoed its Crypto Dealership Platform at FinovateSpring 2022. In October, the company launched its wealth advisor lending platform, which gives wealth management firms and registered investment advisors (RIAs) curated loan offers and a streamlined application approval process. The platform connects firms and advisors directly to banks and other lenders; the new offering supports not only traditional assets and securities but also crypto assets, as well.

Headquartered in Austin, Texas, and founded in 2021, Cion Digital has raised $12 million in funding. The company’s investors include 645 Ventures and Green Visor Capital.

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Featurespace Secures Funding to Develop AI-Powered AML Prototype

Featurespace Secures Funding to Develop AI-Powered AML Prototype
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Featurespace
  • U.K.-based fraud and financial crime prevention company Featurespace secured funding to help build an AI-powered prototype to fight money laundering and other financial crimes.
  • The funding comes from both the U.S. and U.K. governments, and is part of an initiative supported by Innovate UK, the U.S. National Science Foundation, and messaging network SWIFT.
  • Featurespace made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in 2016.

Fraud and financial crime prevention specialist Featurespace has secured funding from both the U.S. and U.K. governments to build an AI-powered technology to help financial services institutions – including banks and payment service providers (PSPs) – to detect and stop financial crime. The goal specifically is to enhance the ability of financial institutions to combat cross-border money laundering, application fraud, and APP fraud, in particular. The U.K.-based company, headquartered in Cambridge, will build a prototype, leveraging AI, that will be trained on “sensitive private payments data.” Featurespace will apply federated deep learning to the data, using privacy-enhancing techniques such as k-anonymity and local differential privacy. Organizations will not have to reveal, share, or combine their raw data in the process.

“U.K. and U.S. governments want banks to work together to stop fraud and money laundering,” Featurespace Director of Innovation David Sutton said. “This type of privacy-preserving collaboration AI is a hard problem that no one has yet solved. We are confident we can meet this challenge. We’re the only company in this project that has deployed innovative tech to fight worldwide financial crime – and we have the banking customers to prove it.”

The funding comes courtesy of the privacy enhancing technologies (PETs) Challenge Prize, an effort begun in July by Innovate UK and the U.S. National Science Foundation. The initiative also is supported by bank-owned messaging network SWIFT. Featurespace has been given a deadline of January 24 to build the prototype. Upon completion, if the project is successful, it will be showcased at the second Summit for Democracy to be convened in the U.S. in the first half of 2023.

“A successful outcome of this project is to make money laundering across borders and between banks much more difficult,” Sutton said. “If you make it harder to launder money, you make criminal activities less profitable. This will benefit businesses, society, and consumers.”

Founded in 2008, Featurespace made its Finovate debut at FinovateEurope in 2016. More than 70 direct customers and more than 200,000 institutions ranging from HSBC and Worldpay to fellow Finovate alums like TSYS and Marqeta, rely on Featurespace’s technology to protect themselves against fraud and financial crime. An innovator in the field of fraud prevention, Featurespace has developed technologies like Adaptive Behavioral Analytics and Automated Deep Behavioral Networks to profile both authentic and fraudulent behavior to combat financial crime in real-time. Both technologies are components of Featurespace’s ARIC Risk Hub.

Last week, Featurespace announced a partnership with Railsr to help customers of the embedded finance platform better defend themselves from fraud and financial crime. Per the agreement, Railsr’s fraud teams will be able to leverage card and payment fraud prevention and AML solutions via Featurespace’s ARIC Risk Hub.

“As embedded finance increasingly becomes expected by consumers, making sure they are protected from fraud and financial crime must be expected in equal measure,” Featurespace Chief Commercial Officer Matt Mills said. “Railsr (has) recognized this early and added a critical layer of self-learning technology to ensure their customers get only the best experience.”

Photo by Markus Spiske

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Quadient Teams Up with Esker to Help French Businesses Manage New Tax Landscape

Quadient Teams Up with Esker to Help French Businesses Manage New Tax Landscape
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Quadient
  • Business software company Quadient and process automation solutions company Esker have partnered with the French government via a joint subsidiary NCS.
  • The partnership is designed to help businesses comply with new regulations governing the issuance and receipt of invoices between VAT taxpayers.
  • Quadient most recently demoed its technology at FinovateEurope 2018 in London.

Business software company Quadient and process automation solutions company Esker have announced a new partnership with the French government. Via their joint subsidiary NCS, Quadient and Esker will help ensure that businesses are able to comply with upcoming French tax regulations, specifically with regard to electronic invoice receipt and transmission.

The new legislation applies to invoices exchanged between VAT taxpayers, mandating that these invoices must be transmitted in either a structured data format (UBL, UNCEFACT CII) or hybrid format (Factur-X). Rollout of the new regulations begins in the summer of 2024 and continues through January 1, 2026. At that point all micro, small, and medium-sized businesses will be expected to comply.

“The widespread implementation of electronic invoicing over the next three years is a major challenge for the four million companies in France,” Quadient Chief Strategy and Product Officer for Intelligent Document Automation Nicolas de Beco said. “As a major player in the electronic document management market for small and medium-sized businesses, we look forward to our continued partnership with Esker, in which we join forces and expertise to offer businesses straightforward and efficient invoicing process automation.”

Beyond ensuring compliance with impending regulatory changes, the partnership between Quadient and Esker will bring a variety of benefits to French businesses. The list of complimentary services ranges from centralized workflow management and business process automation to invoice archiving, payment reconciliation, and reporting. The interoperability of these services with other business platforms and solutions will give French companies greater capacity to improve operations, pursue digital transformation, and enhance their cash management.

“As long-standing partners, our two companies have demonstrated their ability to work together to deliver innovative solutions that benefit thousands of businesses in France today,” Esker COO Emmanuel Olivier said.

Headquartered in France and founded in 1992, Quadient most recently demoed its technology on the Finovate stage at FinovateEurope 2018. The company’s partnership news with Esker and the French government comes just weeks after Quadient launched its Parcel Pending smart parcel lockers in Ireland to help modernize the residential property market in the country.

Photo by Martijn Adegeest

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Railsr Taps Featurespace for Fraud Prevention

Railsr Taps Featurespace for Fraud Prevention
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Alumni profile, Featurespace

Embedded finance platform Railsr is teaming up with fraud prevention company Featurespace this week to bolster fraud prevention efforts for Railsr as a company, as well as for its clients.

Railsr will leverage Featurespace’s ARIC Risk Hub, combined with its own fraud teams, to provide its clients with a compliance tool to stay on top of regulations. The fraud tools will be available to Railsr clients with a single integration, making it easier for them to focus on growth while remaining compliant.

“As the market accelerates towards embedded finance, consumers expect a frictionless payment experience that is built into the transaction process. With Featurespace’s AI and ML capabilities, Railsr can provide an enhanced level of customer experience, making consumers’ lives simpler and safer,” said Railsr Global Head of Product for Fincrime and Operations Stuart Hartley.

The ARIC Risk Hub will enable Railsr customers to view and manage their fraud analytics, as well as offer them a single place to access Featurespace’s fraud and AML (FRAML) solutions.

“The Railsr platform is a natural fit for Featurespace,” said Featurespace Chief Commercial Officer Matt Mills. “As embedded finance increasingly becomes expected by consumers, making sure they are protected from fraud and financial crime must be expected in equal measure. Railsr have recognized this early and added a critical layer of self-learning technology to ensure their customers get only the best experience.”

Railsr anticipates the new fraud tools will be available within the next year.

Today’s news comes amid a string of high-profile partnerships for Featurespace last month, including with BBVA, Diebold Nixdorf, and Global Processing Services. Featurespace has more than 30 major bank clients including four of the five largest banks in the U.K. Among Featurespace’s customers are HSBC, TSYS, Worldpay, RBS NatWest Group, Danske Bank, ClearBank, and more.

Founded in 2005 by a university professor and his PhD student, Featurespace has raised $108 million, including its most recent investment of $37 million received in 2020.

Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko

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Bank of the West Turns to Extend for Virtual Cards and Spend Management

Bank of the West Turns to Extend for Virtual Cards and Spend Management
By David Penn Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Extend
  • Virtual card and spend management platform Extend announced a partnership with Bank of the West.
  • The collaboration will enable small and medium-sized businesses to take advantage of virtual card technology to enhance spend management.
  • Extend made its Finovate debut three years ago at FinovateSpring 2019, demoing its platform, app, and APIs.

Virtual card and spend management innovator Extend has teamed up with Bank of the West. The collaboration will enable Bank of the West’s small and medium-sized business clients to leverage Extend’s technology to create and control digital company cards and enhance spend management.

Bank of the West cardholders will be able to sign up for Extend in a process that does not require any technical integration. After enrolling their commercial cards, SME users can access Extend online or through a mobile device to create unique virtual cards; send virtual cards to workers, vendors, suppliers, and others directly from the application; attach purchase orders and receipts to transactions; and manage recurring expenses and subscriptions. Companies will be able to provide employees with a budget for issuing virtual cards, and virtual cards can be approved, modified, or canceled at any time.

“Bank of the West is committed to optimizing B2B payments, and our relationship with Extend offers our clients an efficient, easy-to-use solution for better spend management,” Bank of the West Managing Director Dominique Fracchia said. “Using Extend and their Bank of the West cards, businesses can create, distribute, and manage virtual cards to pay vendors, empower employees, track spending, and more.”

The offering is designed to bring the benefits of virtual cards and spend management to small and medium-sized businesses. Extend’s technology helps SMEs manage vendor payments, reconciliation, and other tedious and manual – but essential – payment tasks. In addition to saving time and boosting efficiency, Extend’s solution also helps businesses obtain real-time insights into – as well as real-time control over – company card spending.

“With Extend, Bank of the West is delivering new spend management capabilities that ensure its clients don’t wonder who paid what, when, why, or to whom,” Extend CEO and co-founder Andrew Jamison said. “This is what clients need from payments technology today – the power to run their businesses better, with the support of their preferred financial partners.”

New York-based Extend made its Finovate debut at FinovateSpring in 2019. The company demoed its virtual card distribution platform, its app – which instantly gives employees access to virtual cards – and its APIs that enable fintechs to take advantage of the technology. Founded in 2017, the company has raised $54 million in funding from investors including March Capital, Point72 Ventures, and FinTech Collective.

Bank of the West is headquartered in San Francisco, California, and has more than 600 branches and commercial banking offices in the midwest and western United States. A subsidiary of French banking group BNP Paribas, Bank of the West has more than $94 billion in assets and 1.7 million customers. Nandita Bakhshi is President and CEO.

Photo by Pixabay

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Thomson Reuters to Acquire Tax Startup SurePrep

Thomson Reuters to Acquire Tax Startup SurePrep
By Julie Muhn (@julieschicktanz) Posted on
Categories: Alumni News, Daily news, Mergers & Acquisitions, Thomson Reuters
  • Thomson Reuters agreed to acquire tax automation software company SurePrep for $500 million in an all-cash deal.
  • “The acquisition will support our strategy to empower tax and accounting professionals with the very best technology to simplify workflows, drive insights, and improve efficiency,” said Thomson Reuters President of Tax and Accounting Professionals Elizabeth Beastrom.
  • The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of next year.

Business information services firm Thomson Reuters recently announced it is acquiring tax automation software company SurePrep in a $500 million all-cash deal. The transaction is expected to close in the first quarter of next year.

Thomson Reuters offers four tax and accounting solutions: Checkpoint, a suite of online research and information; ONESOURCE, tax compliance technology; CS Professional Suite, integrated tax and accounting software; and Onvio, cloud-based software to manage projects, billing, and more. Purchasing California-based SurePrep will enable Thomson Reuters to accelerate its investment in advancing the automation and customer experience of its tax tools.

The two companies first partnered in April of this year to offer solutions for tax and accounting professionals. Once the two companies are combined, Thomson Reuters will bring its client base of tax and accounting professionals a suite of complementary solutions.

“Thomson Reuters sees significant value and opportunities in SurePrep,” said Thomson Reuters President of Tax and Accounting Professionals Elizabeth Beastrom. “The acquisition will support our strategy to empower tax and accounting professionals with the very best technology to simplify workflows, drive insights, and improve efficiency.”

SurePrep was founded in 2002 and has since grown to draw more than 23,000 tax professionals to its client base. The company leverages AI to help accounting firms increase productivity by collecting, processing, and extracting data from client documents. SurePrep then enters that data into firms’ tax compliance software. The company is expected to generate approximately $60 million in revenue this year and grow more than 20% each year for the next few years.

Photo by Nataliya Vaitkevich

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