Finovate Alums Shine in 2019 Forbes Fintech 50 Roster

Finovate Alums Shine in 2019 Forbes Fintech 50 Roster

A baker’s dozen of Finovate alums has been honored this week with spots on the 2019 Forbes Fintech 50, an annual aggregation of what the editors called “the most innovative companies in fintech.”

Here are the Finovate alums that made the cut. Read the full list.

“Recognition as a leading innovator in fintech is tremendous validation for the hard work we’ve done at Marqeta to open the industry up to the possibilities and opportunities of modern card issuing,” company CEO and founder Jason Gardner said. Marqeta is among the 20 companies to make its first appearance on the Forbes Fintech 50 roster.

Also earning their first appearances on Forbes Fintech 50 roster are New York based mobile investment platform Stash and San Francisco supply chain payments innovator Tradeshift.

“Very excited to be included in the 2019 Forbes Fintech 50!,” Stash tweeted once the news was released at the start of the week, “Monday = made.”

“We made the list!” Tradeshift tweeted this morning.

Summarizing this year’s selection of top fintechs, the editors noted that while 19 out of the 50 fintechs featured are unicorns with valuations of more than $1 billion, a nearly equal amount – 20 startups – are making their first showing on Forbes top fintech list. The two areas where newcomers were more prevalent, according to the editors, were payments technology and startups serving the un- and underbanked.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Credit Karma Acquires Noddle to Launch in the U.K.

Around the web

  • Moneyhub announces integration with PensionBee API.
  • Outsystems unveils new program, outsystems.ai, to leverage AI and machine learning to improve software development.
  • Finastra introduces Open Banking Readiness Index for Asia Pacific region.
  • Trulioo reports ability to verify five billion people via its identity verification platform, Global Gateway.
  • Wipro collaborates with Check Point Software to offer cloud security services.
  • Unison expands with Goldwater Bank Partnership.
  • Flywire partners with the Dallas-Fort Worth Hospital Council to offer members payment solutions.
  • How I Built This podcast features Betterment founder Jon Stein.
  • Roostify names Courtney Keating Chakarun as new Chief Marketing Officer.

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

On Finovate.com

  • Fighting for Customers: Will Tech Giants or Big Banks Win the Data War?
  • PayPal’s Walmart Partnership Makes a Move for the UnderBanked

Around the web

  • UK payments startup SumUp launches a 3G-powered credit card reader.
  • Worldpay extends real-time payouts to 50+ countries.
  • TD Bank Group and Flybits expand Canadian banking technology relationship to provide TD customers enhanced, personalized mobile experiences.
  • BlueRush lands co-selling agreement with Valeyo’s network of more than 95 Canadian financial institutions.
  • Tradeshift teams with credit insurer Coface to ensure greater financial transparency between buyers and suppliers.

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

On Finovate.com

  • Gro Solutions Helps Vermont FCU Deliver Better Banking Experiences.
  • Bringing Legacy Banks into the 21st Century.

Around the web

  • Forbes features SMRTSVR from Vaultz and Best of Show winner Golden in its look at PFM apps for people over 50.
  • Blockchain technology pioneer, Dr. Stuart Haber, joins Endor’s scientific advisory board.
  • Bpm’online adds enhancements to accelerate sales, marketing, operations, service, and citizen development in its latest update.
  • IDC Financial Insights includes CREALOGIX in its top 100 fintech ranking.
  • Dorsum launches its MyWealth wealth management app at Dubai banking conference.
  • Betterment introduces new Trust Account Opening feature for its Betterment for Advisors platform.
  • Onfido announces partnership with international remittance platform, Remitly.

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.

 

Forbes Names 17 Finovate Alums on the Forbes Fintech 50

Forbes Names 17 Finovate Alums on the Forbes Fintech 50

Forbes has released the third* Fintech 50 list, which this year features 17 Finovate alums, many of which have made the list for the third time. The Fintech 50 list highlights the top private fintechs that have operations, customers or impact in the U.S. The list excludes public companies and divisions of public companies.

Here are the alums honored in this year’s compilation:

Ayasdi

Among 22 newcomers to this year’s list.

Betterment

The company’s third time making the list.

Blend

Among 22 newcomers to this year’s list.

Blockchain

Among 22 newcomers to this year’s list.

Chain

The company’s third time making the list.

Coinbase

The company’s second time making the list.

Credit Karma

The company’s third time making the list.

Feedzai

Among 22 newcomers to this year’s list.

Gusto (formerly ZenPayroll)

The company’s second time making the list.

Kabbage

The company’s second time making the list.

Kensho

The company’s third time making the list.

Plaid

The company’s third time making the list.

Qapital

The company’s second time making the list.

Ripple

The company’s third time making the list.

Symbiont

Among 22 newcomers to this year’s list.

Symphony

The company’s second time making the list.

TransferWise

The company’s third time making the list.

In 2016, the list contained 20 Finovate alums, including Betterment, Chain, Coinbase, Credit Karma, Gusto, Kabbage, Kensho, Klarna, Motif, Personal Capital, Plaid, Qapital, Quantopian, Ripple, Signifyd, SoFi, Symphony, TransferWise, TrueAccord, and Xignite.

The list from three years back also contained 20 Finovate alums. Algomi, Betterment, Braintree, Chain, Credit Karma, HelloWallet, Kensho, LearnVest, Motif, Personal Capital, Plaid, Prosper, Quantopian, Ripple, Simple, TransferWise, TrueAccord, Vouch, Wealthfront, and Xignite made the list.


*Forbes skipped this compilation for 2017.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • AutoGravity Tops $2 Billion in Financing Requested Milestone.
  • Geezeo Powers PFM Platform for F&M Bank of Virginia.
  • Signicat Raises $2 Million to Build Out its Identity Assurance as a Service Technology.

Around the web

  • Forbes: Atlanta Startup Pindrop Makes Its Push To Power Security For The Voice Economy.
  • Chevy Chase Trust selects FIS for Unified Wealth Management Technology Platform and Services.
  • eMoney Advisor and Capital One announce new API data sharing agreement.
  • Check Point Technologies announces Infinity Total Protection, a new security model to prevent ‘Gen V’ threats and attacks
  • Investment News: Betterment beefs up 401(k) advisory board with ex-Vanguard expert.
  • BMO Financial Group chooses Up Real -Time Payments solution from ACI Worldwide.
  • Global payment providers IDT and Mercury FX to use Ripple’s XRP.
  • The Paypers interviews Roberto Valerio, CEO of Risk Ident, on getting the best from fraud prevention solutions.
  • First Data expands agreement with SBI Card.

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.

Betterment Celebrates the Season of Giving with New Share Donation Feature

Betterment Celebrates the Season of Giving with New Share Donation Feature

Robo advisory platform Betterment made an announcement today that it is not only making it easier to give to charities, it is also giving consumers more reasons to do so.

Starting November 28, on Giving Tuesday, Betterment investors will be able to donate shares of long-term investments from their taxable accounts directly to charitable organizations. While the act of giving may grant users a warm heart, Betterment has made a point to emphasize the self-serving part of the equation– tax benefits. Investors who donate can eliminate capital gains tax on the contributed shares and can also deduct the value of the gift on their tax return. To make the process as easy as giving cash, the company does four main things:

  • Tracks how much of your account is eligible to give to charity (i.e., it sorts for stocks that you’ve held for more than one year)
  • Estimates the tax benefits before you complete your gift
  • Moves assets of up to $1 million from your account to a charitable organization’s account without any paperwork
  • Emails a tax receipt after the donation is complete

At launch, investors can give to eleven charities, including UNICEF USA, Wounded Warriors Family Support, Hour Children, Against Malaria Foundation, DonorsChoose.org, GiveWell, Save The Children, Feeding America, Big Brothers Big Sisters of NYC, World Wildlife Fund, and Breast Cancer Research Foundation. Betterment is soliciting user requests for new charities to be added.

Founded in 2008, Betterment CEO Jon Stein debuted the company’s Multiple Goals feature at FinovateFall 2011. This summer, the New York-based company received a $70 million investment from Sweden’s Kinnevik, bringing Betterment’s total capital to $275 million and boosting it up to a valuation of $800 million.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • TransferTo and Fern Software Receive Grant from UN Capital Development Fund
  • EyeLock Partners with ViaTouch to Bring Iris Authentication to Smart Shelf Vending
  • Betterment Celebrates the Season of Giving with New Share Donation Feature

Around the web

  • PPRO, Klarna team up for credit payment methods across Europe.
  • Mastercard plans its own blockchain.
  • GeoAwesomeness profiles San Francisco startup, MapD.

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

On Finovate.com

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

Around the web

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

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

New Investment Boosts Betterment Valuation to $800 Million

New Investment Boosts Betterment Valuation to $800 Million

It’s a Funding Friday here at Finovate! In addition to news of a strategic investment in Klarna, and new funding for credit scoring startup, Aire.com and DoubleNet Pay’s latest investment, we learn today that robo advisor Betterment is now that much closer to achieving unicorn status – courtesy of a $70 million investment from Sweden’s Kinnevik. The investment takes Betterment’s total capital to $275 million, and gives the robo advisor a valuation estimated at $800 million.

Praising the “strong partnership” between his firm and Kinnevik, Betterment CEO Jon Stein said that the investment will enable the company to “continue to build products that put even more money back in our customers’ pockets. The Kinnevik-led round, an extension of Betterment’s Series E from last year, featured participation from existing Betterment investors, Bessemer Venture Partners, Francisco Partners, and Menlo Ventures.

Senior Investment Director for Kinnevik, Chris Bischoff explained the nature of the extended Series E, saying that his firm’s approach was to “(invest) over multiple rounds into high-performing technology-enabled companies.” He added, “after a year of investment, we saw additional opportunities for growth and proposed the financing to Betterment. We are excited about the opportunity to deepen our relationship.”

Betterment CTO Dustin Lucien during his presentation with Quovo co-founder and CTO Michael Del Monte (not pictured) at FinDEVr New York 2016.

The news from Betterment arrives on the heels of the company’s launch of its Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) Portfolio. SRI enables investors to grow their capital while avoiding investments in companies whose products, services, and overall corporate behavior are considered to have a “negative social impact.” Instead, as VP of Financial Advice and Planning Alex Benke explained at the Betterment blog, “companies deemed to have strong social responsibility practices, such as Microsoft, Google, Proctor & Gamble, Merck, CocaCola, Intel, Cisco, Disney, and IBM may make up a larger portion of the SRI portfolio.”

A year ago, Betterment celebrated more than $5 billion under management. Today, the robo advisor boasts of nearly $10 billion AUM. In addition to its fully-automated, algorithm-managed investment portfolio, Betterment unveiled a new hybrid robo advisory service in June that includes either annual or unlimited check-ins with Betterment’s team of certified financial planners. Stein told Bloomberg Markets the company would use the new capital to grow the hybrid service, in particular.

Founded in 2008 and based in New York City, New York, Betterment demonstrated the Multiple Goals feature of its platform at FinovateFall 2011. More recently, the robo advisor joined Quovo at FinDEVr New York 2016, where Betterment CTO Dustin Lucien and Quovo co-founder and CTO Michael Del Monte presented “The Power of Aggregation Demonstrated by Quovo and Betterment.” The firm was named to CB Insights Fintech 250 list last month – along with 43 of its fellow Finovate/FinDEVr alums. We featured the robo advisor in our look at Passive Investing in our Savings Tech Horizon series this spring.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Aire Pulls in $5 Million, Lands Partnerships with Zopa and Toyota Financial Services.
  • New Investment Boosts Betterment Valuation to $800 Million.
  • Klarna Announces Strategic Investment from Permira.

Around the web

  • PayPal extends partnership with JP Morgan Chase, providing greater payment options for consumers.
  • Taulia joins European E-invoicing Service Providers Association.
  • Persistent Systems agrees to acquires Swiss firm Parx Werk in deal valued at $16 million.
  • ID Analytics partners with Acxiom to strengthen risk assessment and combat fraud.
  • Dwolla adds Multi-User Feature to the Access API Dashboard.
  • Neener Analytics joins Plug&Play fintech accelerator.
  • Tavant selected by Fairway Independent Mortgage To Transform Its Digital Lending Experience.

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

On Finovate.com

  • EquityZen Secures $3 Million in Round Led by Draper Associates.
  • Karmic Labs Lands $17.2 Million to Grow Enterprise Payment Solutions.
  • Innovation Acceleration: Incubators and Incubation Labs Drive Development in Fintech.

Around the web

  • MoneYou integrates Mitek’s identity solutions for real-time digital onboarding.
  • Xignite launches the Xignite Channel Partner Program to offer partners integrated cloud-based market data solutions.
  • Betterment launches new Socially Responsible Investing (SRI) Portfolio.
  • Forbes profiles Unison in look at the challenges facing homebuying millennials.
  • CrowdFlower adds former Amazon AI product specialist Robert Munro as VP of Machine Learning.
  • NuCypher introduces its decentralized key management system, NuCypher KMS.
  • AltFi talks about the role of “platformification” in supporting innovation in fintech with Avoka CEO Phil Copeland.
  • IDG Connect interviews Xpenditure CEO Boris Bogaert on current trends in banking including blockchain R&D.
  • IBM opens new data centers in London, U.K.; Sydney, Australia; and San Jose, California.

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.