Alumni News– February 19, 2015

  • Finovate-F-Logo.jpgAmerican Banker: Retail Banking Vet Deanna Oppenheimer Joins Tech Vendor Finsphere.
  • American Banker: Federal Payments Website Partners with PayPal, Dwolla.
  • Kantox Surpasses $1 Billion in Foreign Exchange Transfers.
  • Pindrop Security Raises $30 Million.
  • eToro launches its Popular Investment Programme to recognize and reward the network’s top traders.
  • Phroogal reviews Motif Investing.
  • MaxMyInterest brings consolidated tax reporting functionality to its cash optimization platform.
  • Encap Security CEO Thomas Boström Jörgensen and Ping Identity Managing Director EMEA Jason Goode weigh-in on Touch ID banking.
  • Digital Retail Apps featured in Toronto Star’s coverage of Canada’s first financial technology cluster.
  • Azimo launches its money transfer service in China.
  • Finsphere Lands $1.8 Million, Partners with Visa.
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.

Encap Security’s Integration of Touch ID Helps Authenticate High-value Financial Transactions

EncapSecurity_logo_high-res.jpgThis post is part of our live coverage of FinovateEurope 2015.

The team from Encap Security is making its way to the stage. Encap develops technology that enables mobile authentication for financial service providers.
Encap Security is the first authentication company in the world to integrate Apple Touch ID. Encap is demonstrating how financial institutions can use Touch ID to provide access to authenticate high-value financial services transactions. Touch ID integration showcases how Encap technology can detect and use device capabilities to layer on new authentication factors as they come to market. Financial institutions can then take advantage of these factors as they see fit, to ensure they are delivering the highest level of usability and security.
Presenters: CEO Thomas Bostrøm Jørgensen; Sales Director, Europe, John Burman
 
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Product launch: June 2014
Product distribution strategy: Direct to Business (B2B), through financial institutions, through other fintech companies and platforms
HQ: Oslo, Norway
Metrics: With locations in Oslo, and Palo Alto, California, Encap Security’s management team has an unrivaled stature in authentication and mobile financial services. CEO Thomas Bostrom Jorgensen and the Encap Security executive team of 15 employees together combine more than 60 years of experience across mobile financial services, identity management and mobile-app security. The total investment made in Encap Security is 4.8 million euros.
Twitter: @encapsecurity

Alumni News– January 23, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgInternet Retailer looks at the relationship between product reviews and revenue courtesy of a new report from Baazarvoice.
  • Xero highlighted as “our best purchase of 2014” by Business Betties.
  • MakeMoneyYourWay profiles EZBOB and its new business loan promotion, the New Year’s Revolution.
  • Zee News’ Money Guru interviews Abhishek Dwivedi, vice president operations at BankBazaar.com.
  • Liverpool Echo features Toshl Finance in its list of must-have apps for busy moms.
  • Investopedia’s guide to choosing roboadvisors spotlights nine Finovate alums: Betterment, FutureAdvisor, JemstepLearnVest, Motif Investing, Personal Capital, SigFig, TradeKing, and Wealthfront.
  • Benzinga Fintech Awards publishes its video interview with Gary Zimmerman, CEO of MaxMyInterest.
  • American Banker covers OnDeck’s small business loan marketplace for institutional investors.
  • Pymnts interviews René Lacerte, CEO and Founder of Bill.com about how to simplify B2B payments.
  • Mifos welcomes new partners: SkooliLabs and iSystems
  • Google Cloud Platform releases beta of Google Container Registry for secure hosting, sharing, and management of private container repositories.
  • BlueVine Grabs $18.5 Million to Increase Small-Business Lending.
  • Encap Security CEO Thomas Bostrom Jorgensen asks if biometrics provide a “false sense of security” in a column for Bob’s Guide.
  • Akimbo Financial acquired by Payment Data Systems.
  • Kreditech Secures $200 Million Line of Credit.
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.

Alumni News– January 21, 2015

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgYour Personal Financial Mentor profiles EZBOB.
  • BrightScope releases AdviceMatch, a free online service to help consumer choose financial advisors.
  • OnDeck Marketplace emerges from pilot program. Platform helps institutional investors buy small business loans.
  • Venture Burn takes a look at Azimo and the West African remittance market.
  • Kreditech named Germany’s leading digital innovator of the year by Focus Magazine.
  • Arroweye Solutions CEO Render Dahiya urges issuers on EMV adoption.
  • Check out FinovateEurope 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 3.
  • Coinbase Raises $75 Million from BBVA, USAA, NYSE, & Others.
  • Millennial-focused BankMobile app is powered by Malauzai Software and uses Mitek to power mobile customer on-boarding.
  • Roostify describes its experience with Yodlee’s FinDat Disruptor program.
  • PayPal to use InComm to support PayPal’s digital gifts services in Canada.
  • Yale Undergraduate selects Wall Street Survivor to help students understand investing and personal finance. 
  • Technical.ly/ Baltimore looks at how TIO Networks powers Baltimore’s online bill pay system.
  • Tradeshift wins Circular Economy Digital Disruptor Award held at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
  • CustomerXPs and EY, a tax advisory firm, partner to help companies deal with fraud.
  • iBillionaire updates mobile app & releases new High Dividend Index.
  • Payment Data Systems to acquire Akimbo for $3 million.
  • Be sure to check out FinovateEurope Sneak Peek #2 featuring AlphaPoint, Avoka, Encap Security, investUP, Nostrum Group, and StreetShares.
  • True Link Raises $3 Million in Round Led by Cambia Health Solutions.
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 2015 Sneak Peek: Part 2

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It’s hard to believe, but it’s true: we’re less than one month away from the first Finovate show of the year.

FinovateEurope 2015 is returning to Old Billingsgate Market Hall in London for what promises to be our biggest event in Europe yet. We hope you will be able to join us as 70 companies from across Europe and around the world demonstrate some of the latest in financial technology.  
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To that end, here’s the second part of our Sneak Peek series to give you a taste of what some of this year’s innovators will be showing on stage in February. (Part One available here.)


AlphaPoint_hires_logo_box.jpgAlphaPoint’s Digital Currency Exchange Platform allows institutions to establish their own internal digital currency exchanges.

Features
    • 24-hour run-time capabilities
    • Military-grade security practices
    • New order types, improved scalability, and an even faster processing speed
Why it’s great
AlphaPoint’s secure, scalable, and customizable exchange platform is easing the adoption of digital currencies across the globe.
Presenters

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Joe Ventura, CTO
Ventura has over 15 years of software architecture experience specializing in secure, scalable, and high performance financial systems for companies such as Deutsche Bank, UBS, and Merrill Lynch.

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Scott Bambacigno, VP of Sales
Bambacigno joined AlphaPoint at the start of 2014 and has led the acquisition of over a dozen global clients.

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Avoka enables your omni-channel digital banking business with frictionless account openings.
Features
    • Fast time to market – deploy digital applications in weeks
    • True Omni-Channel solutions – responsive design on any device
    • Improve conversion with reporting and analytics – make changes and publish
Why it’s great
Create an engaging digital loan application from any device in 3 minutes or less.
Presenters

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Derek Corcoran, Chief Experience Officer
Corcoran has over 20 years experience in financial services globally, delivering frictionless customer experiences for digital sales and service transactions.
Kevin Mortimer, Technical Director


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Encap Security will demonstrate how financial institutions can use Touch ID and Encap’s authentication platform to provide access to and authenticate high-value financial services transactions.
Features
    • Easily integrate Apple Touch ID into financial services applications
    • Utilise smart device capabilities to improve authentication
    • Enable proportional security to drive adoption and use
Why it’s great
Authentication works best when a number of factors are used – and the factors used are contextually appropriate to the risk of the activity taking place.
Presenters

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Thomas Bostrøm Jørgensen, CEO 
Jorgensen has over 10 years experience in the mobile financial services, identity management, and mobile application security sectors.
John Burman, Sales Director, Europe


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investUP is the crowdfunding supermarket, allowing you to lend & invest across all your favorite P2P, debt, and equity sites.
Features
    • Discover more deals – use m
      ore sites and find more great deals
    • Saving you time – invest on all your favorite sites through UP
    • Keep track – have just one account and one portfolio with UP
Why it’s great
Only with UP can you enjoy one account and one portfolio, yet still lend and invest across all your favorite crowdfunding sites.
Presenters

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James Tuckett, CEO and Founder
Tuckett is a full-time crowdfunding evangelical from an aerospace engineering and accountancy background. Founded UP in 2012.

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Nostrum Group is pioneering digital lending – providing customers with the ability to service their own accounts where and when they want.
Features
    • Digital
    • Automated
    • Mobile
Why it’s great
Loan technology that re-imagines what a customer wants from banks and how they can interact with financial products.
Presenters

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Richard Carter, CEO
Carter leads the organization and is responsible for setting the company. He is passionate about customer experience, innovation, and technology – inside and outside financial services.

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StreetShares connects businesses with retail and institutional investors who compete to lend to businesses. Business lending meets social affinities.
Features
    • Blends social and affinity group loyalty with traditional bank underwriting
    • Small businesses pitch their loan request at no cost or obligation
    • Investors compete through online auction technology
Why it’s great
StreetShares borrowers get funded at competitive rates while investors get the returns they’re looking for. Everyone wins.
Presenters

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Mark Rockefeller, Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder
Rockefeller’s goal is to breathe new life into the American dream for a new generation of small business owners.


Tickets for FinovateEurope 2015 are on sale now. Visit our registration page today and save your seat at the show.

Alumni News– November 13, 2014

  • Finovate-F-Logo.jpgKili acquires NFC microSD pioneer DeviceFidelity.
  • American Banker lists Currency Cloud, BioCatch, Linqto, VerifyValid, and Rippleshot as top 10 tech companies to watch.
  • Fintech in the fall: themes and company updates from CAN Capital, Encap Security, Fuze Network, Guardian Analytics, Larky, Ripple, and Xpenditure.
  • American Banker examines 2015 plans for FIS, Fiserv and Diebold.
  • Forbes looks at the success of RoboAdvisors: Betterment, Wealthfront, Personal Capital, and SigFig.
  • Forbes examines Kantox’s P2P FX trading technology.
  • TSYS partners with FICO to deliver a marketing product for card issuers called TSYS Targeted Messaging.
  • Digital Insight enters reseller agreement with Guardian Analytics to deliver anomaly detection services to financial institutions.
  • Trulioo wins 2014 Canadian Technology Companies to watch award from Deloitte.
  • Huffington Post interviews Andrea Gellert, SVP Marketing at OnDeck.
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.

Fintech in the Fall: Themes and Company Updates

Fall is in full swing and there has been plenty of news to keep the fintech world busy.

I spent last week at Money20/20 where the themes centered around Apple Pay, Bitcoin, and Millennials. In between listening to industry experts on these and other topics, I sat down to chat with seven Finovate alums. Here are a few notable updates:

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CAN Capital (fka Capital Access Network) has supplied just over $4 billion in funding to more than 55,000 small businesses. It continues to expand, reporting double-digit growth from last year.

CAN’s financing works well for small businesses who cannot obtain funding through traditional bank loans. Its 60%+ approval rate is made possible by the robust tech and big data analytic capabilities that enhance market insight. This ultimately broadens CAN’s access to prospective clients and enables it to provide customers with a lower priced loan.

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In June, it launched the beta version of CAN Connect, a set of 4 APIs. One of these APIs is called CAN Instant Quote (IQ). It pulls data from software that a small business uses frequently, such as scheduling or accounting software, to pre-approve them for instant financing.

In November, CAN announced a partnership with Yodlee to extend funding through its small business offering. This will enable Yodlee’s financial institution clients to offer customers access to funding via CAN’s Instant Quote API. The service will be available by Q1 of 2015.

While fixed term loans are still CAN’s core product, it is currently looking into offering flexible payment terms in 2015.

See CAN Capital’s demo from FinovateFall 2013 where it debuted Mobile Funder.

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Encap Security offers Smarter Authentication, a seamless way for banks to authenticate users across multiple channels, without disrupting the user experience.

Several weeks ago, Encap partnered with Feedzai to leverage its analytic engine that authenticates users. When the customer’s identity is in question, they are sent challenges to authenticate themselves, rather than being shut out of the system entirely.

Other partnerships are in the works, but all are confidential at this point.

Additionally, Encap has recently integrated Apple’s Touch ID to replace users’ PINs. While Encap’s Smarter Authentication will still be the underlying technology, Touch ID will help authenticate the user at each point of interaction.

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The company plans to incorporate other biometrics in the future.

Watch Encap demo Smarter Authentication at FinovateSpring 2014.

Fuze_Network.jpg

As we tweeted last week, Fuze was recently acquired by Ingo Money, a company that specializes in mobile check cashing services for underbanked consumers. Ingo enables customers to instantly deposit checks onto a prepaid card, bank account, or mobile wallet.

The acquisition will combine Ingo’s mobile check cashing with Fuze’s swipe-to-pay and swipe-to-load features to give users more control over their money. Ingo will also leverage Fuze’s existing network of more than one billion cards, which includes:

    • 50 million prepaid cards
    • 459 million debit cards
    • 576 million credit cards
    • 531 million private label cards
    • 137 million other types

Ingo is also working on solutions to help users avoid late fees by enabling them to send funds to a location of their choice, such as their landlord. Additionally, it plans to expand the number of retail locations where customers load cash and move money from card to card.

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The terms of the acquisition, which is set to be finalized by the end of this year, were undisclosed.

Fuze Network last demonstrated at FinovateFall 2011 where it debuted Swipe2Pay.

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With a swell in data breaches this year, security has become a hot topic with the half-billion personal identities stolen in the last 8 months.

The increasing number of new solutions and capabilities banks now offer has opened up fresh opportunities for fraudsters to compromise users’ identities. To combat this, Guardian Analytics has added capabilities that gather user reputation data, such as their IP address.

Guardian Analytics is working with more than 300 financial institutions and has expanded its partnerships outside of banks. In the last year and a half, it has partnered with two non-bank institutions, Fiserv and Digital Insight.

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In the future, the California-based company plans to expand its analytics-based security solutions, since rules-based security is failing under the ever-expanding number of requirements needed to protect institutions.

Guardian Analytics debuted FraudXCHANGE at FinovateFall 2012.

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Larky, a company that provides card-linked discounts and offers on a mobile platform, signed six new financial institution clients across Alabama, Michigan, and New York in October.

Each new client is using a white-labeled version of Larky’s platform coupled with a package of local offers and rewards. The offers not only save users money, but also drive traffic to local business, and increase card usage.

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Check out Larky’s demo from FinovateFall 2014.

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Open source payments protocol, Ripple,announced a partnership with Yantra, which specializes in electronic payment systems. Specifically, Ripple will use Yantra’s risk management capabilities.

The Ripple network increases the speed and velocity of transactions, which add to its risk. To mitigate the liability, it leverages Yantra’s technology to create context and conditionality to its money movement processes.

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Yantra will augment the data collected about transactions and is adding new tools, such as custom search fields, to better analyze the data, and all within seconds.

Ripple debuted at FinovateSpring 2013.

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When we last spoke with Xpenditure at the beginning of this year, the company had $2.2 million in Angel funding and 15 employees. By the end of 2014, it will have raised $3.5 million in total funding and expects to have 25 employees.

It is also expanding its operations. It recently opened offices in São Paulo and New York City. In fact, the U.S. is its fastest growing market and accounts for 30% of its customers.

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In late October, it launched a partnership with MasterCard and its expense management system will be available as a part of MasterCard’s Business Owner ToolBox in Canada.

Check out Xpenditure’s demo from FinovateEurope 2014.

Alumni News– October 27, 2014

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgFeedzai and Encap Security team up to combine behavioral profiling with device credentialing to build better security for banks and merchants.
  • CB Insights lists Nutmeg, TransferWise, The Currency Cloud, and Azimo among the 10 top fintech startups from the UK.
  • The Guardian Money section looks at peer-to-peer lender including Zopa.
  • TWiST (This Week in Startups) interviews FutureAdvisor Co-Founder and CEO Bo Lu.
  • Prosper reaches $2 billion, reaching the second billion dollars in just 6 months.
  • Payment processing solutions provider, Bill2Pay, partners with PayNearMe to digitize cash collections.
  • The Australian Business Review features Matt Symons, SocietyOne co-founder.
  • EVO* Snap launches mPOS Solution Supporting Apple Pay and EMV Globally.
  • MedicalMine and Bluefin Partner for Integrated Patient Payments.
  • Check out our feature on Xignite: Inspiring the Future of Finance with Easy and Speedy APIs
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.

Alumni News– October 21, 2014

  • Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Thumbnail image for Finovate-F-Logo.jpgTechCrunch: Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong talks about the future of Bitcoin at Disrupt London.
  • Jumio launches BAM Checkout: a credit card and ID scanning app for mobile merchants.
  • Encap Security integrates Apple Touch ID into its Smarter Authentication platform.
  • Fiserv adds document-to-document comparison functionality to the Comparalytics module of its LoanComplete solution.
  • Firebase joins Google Cloud platform to make it easier to build mobile apps.
  • Tradier appoints former E*TRADE President & COO Jarrett Lilien to its Board.
  • Dubai Financial Market signs memorandum of understanding with Kony to develop a series of “Smart Borse” applications.
  • The Financial Brand: How PayPal’s Venmo is winning the battle for social payments.
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.

Alumni News– July 9, 2014

  • Finovate-F-Logo.jpgBank Systems & Technology: Consumers CU Expands National Footprint with Andera’s Online Account Opening Solution.
  • Lendio launches free version of prospect mgmt software, Pipeline, for the business loan process.
  • Encap Security joins the Fast Identity Online (FIDO) Alliance to change the nature of online authentication by reducing reliance on passwords.
  • LendAcademy takes a look at $146 million in new loan originations in June for Prosper.
  • And speaking of Prosper, Altifi.con’s This Week in Crowdfunding features Prosper CEO Ron Suber.
  • Rebranded version of Ripple Client, Ripple Trade emerges from two-month soft launch.
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.

Smarter Authentication from Encap Security Combats CNP Fraud

Smarter Authentication from Encap Security Combats CNP Fraud
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This post is part of our live coverage of FinovateSpring 2014.

Our next presenter is the team from Encap Security.  The company’s Smarter Authentication solution helps provide a secure, seamless omnichannel experience for financial institutions and their customers.

“In the wake of Target and other large retail breaches, Encap has the first solution that can be used to combat CNP fraud – the way most compromised cards are used. Encap is demoing our authentication solution with an emphasis on the importance of thinking outside the traditional ‘authentication’ box.
Because Smarter Authentication is complex, secure, and provides a simple and seamless user experience, it is ideally suited to address not only mobile and online banking transactions, but also CNP transaction approval.”
Presenting: Adam Dolby (VP Business Development) and David Nayes (Director of Sales)

Product Launch: November 2012
Metrics: Based in Oslo and Palo Alto, Encap Security’s management team has more than 60 years experience and an unrivaled pedigree in authentication, identity management, mobile app security, and mobile financial services. Following a recent funding round, the total investment in Encap Security stands at $6.6 million. Encap Security’s solution is used by major financial institutions, enterprises, and technology integrators including Santander Consumer Bank Norway, EnterCard, and Sparebaken Vest.
Product distribution strategy: Direct to Business (B2B), through financial institutions, through other fintech companies and platforms.
HQ: Palo Alto, CA
Founded: October 2012
Twitter: @encapsecurity

Where the Alums Are: A Remembrance of FinovateSpring Past

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It is hard to believe that it is almost time for FinovateSpring 2014.

There’s still plenty of time for you to get your tickets to our upcoming event in San Jose, California on April 29 and 30. Our final Sneak Peek preview post is up, all the companies who were prepping under the radar are now out of stealth, and we can’t wait for you to see what this year’s spring crop of fintech entrepreneurs and innovators has in store.

Before we do, however, let’s take a moment to take a look back at last year’s FinovateSpring alums. As we scrolled through blog archives, several themes jumped out: the appetite for startups remains as passionate as ever, with three of our Spring 2013 alums being acquired by such financial sector potentates as Intuit and PayPal. And venture capitalists continue to see innovation in this space as a more than worthwhile investment, with 20 separate fundings for Spring 2013 alums

We’ve grouped the achievements into four categories: Exits, Fundings, Awards, and Acquisitions. Enjoy!

EXITS
  • Jack Henry buys Banno for undisclosed sum
  • The rumors are true: eBay’s PayPal acquires Braintree for $800 million in cash
  • Intuit buys tax planning/preparation specialist GoodApril
  • TaxAct acquires Balance Financial
FUNDINGS
  • CardFlight secures $1.6 million in seed funding from ff Venture Capital
  • Encap earns seven-figure investment from ProVenture Seed
  • EyeVerify earns $2.3 million in Series A funding
  • Jemstep raises $4.5 million in Series A round
  • Kabbage brings in $270 million in debt financing to provide small businesses with funding of their own
  • Kabbage brings in $75 MIllion in debt financing
  • Leaf raises $20 million from Heartland Payment Systems
  • Alternative lender LendUp raises $14 million in new funding
  • D3 Banking creator Lodo Software Brings in $3 million
  • Narrative Science secures $11.5 million in Series C funding
  • OpenCoin wins investment from Google Ventures, IDG Capital Partners
  • P2BInvestor raises $1.2 million in Series A round
  • PayNearMe leverages Family Dollar Partnership; raises $20 million
  • PayNearMe raises $10 million in Series D funding, launches Express Merchant Onboarding Option
  • Prestadero raises 5 million pesos ($400,000 USD) in first round of funding
  • Quantopian raises $6.7 million in Series A round
  • Realty Mogul raises $9 million in round led by Canaan Partners
  • SeedInvest raises $2 million in crowdfunded investment campaign
  • SeedInvest Raises $1 million in round Led by Jumpstart New Jersey Angel Network
  • Zooz Closes $2 million Series A round Led by XSeed Capital
AWARDS
ACQUISITONS
  • OpenCoin acquires SimpleHoney
  • Kofax acquires data integration software provider Kapow Technologies
  • NICE to acquire Causata to enhance customer experience management