Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Finovate Debuts: Moonraft Innovation Labs

Around the web

  • Huron Community Bank of Michigan to leverage Insuritas to launch insurance agency.
  • Experian partners with reporting and analytics platform dv01 to enable dv01 clients to access to richer borrower credit attributes.
  • FIS teams with Verifone to enable consumers to pay at the point of sale using loyalty points linked to a credit or debit card.
  • Business Insider names Gusto, App Annie, and BlueVine as 3 startups to bet your career on in 2017.
  • Token announces strategic partnership with VirtusaPolaris.
  • TransferTo to provide bridge linking between EcoCash and Mama Money mobile money services.

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

Around the web

  • Virtual Piggy brings on President &CEO of Broad Street Consulting Advisors as its Senior Advisor.
  • Cachet streamlines RDC check settlement process for Banks and Credit Unions.
  • Finovate/FinDEVr alums populate TradeStreaming Fintech’s companies to watch in 2017 list.
  • Finance Disrupted interviews Xignite CEO and founder, Stephane Dubois.
  • Venmo, LearnVest, Qapital, Level Money, and PayPal featured in PC Mag’s Best Mobile Finance Apps of 2017.
  • From Founder to CEO talks with GainX founder & CEO Angelique Mohring. See GainX at FinovateEurope 2017 in London in February.

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.

FinDEVr APIntelligence

FDNY17_EventLogo_v1(wdate)FinDEVr Silicon Valley was a success! Tickets for upcoming FinDEVr London and FinDEVr New York are at their lowest prices now. Register today for London or New York to save your spot!

On FinDEVr.com

  • Avalara Adds New CMO Jeremy Korst.

The latest from FinDEVr Silicon Valley presenters

  • Finovate Debuts: Sindeo Revamps the Mortgage Application Process.

Alumni updates

  • Flybits CEO Hossein Rahnama interviewed in TechRepublic feature on IoT trends in 2017.
  • ScientiaMobile recognized by CIOReview as one of the most promising CDN solution providers of 2016.
  • AFK Insider lists Craft Silicon’s Uber-challenging app, Little, in its look at major technology developments in Africa in 2016.
  • FinDEVr alum Streamdata.io joins Google Technological Partner program.
  • Inc. lists Xero and PayPal among 8 business apps that will crush it in 2017.
  • LTP: Trulioo CEO Stephen Ufford writes about the problem of gift card fraud.

Stay current on daily news from the fintech developer community! Follow FinDEVr on Twitter.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Polly Portfolio Unveils Bespoke Custom Investing Platform for Financial Advisers”
  • “Top Direct-to-Consumer Wealth Tech Plays”

Around the web

  • CashStar announces digital gift card agreements with online marketplace OpenSky and Marcus Theatres.
  • Nasdaq.com profiles Moven, “the future of banking.”
  • Charlotte Business Journal names Passport among its Fast 50 award winners for its more than 475% revenue growth from 2013 to 2015.
  • Inc. lists Xero, Gusto, and PayPal among 8 business apps that will crush it in 2017.

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

FinDEVr APIntelligence

FDNY17_EventLogo_v1(wdate)FinDEVr Silicon Valley was a success! Tickets for upcoming FinDEVr London and FinDEVr New York are at their lowest prices now. Register today for London or New York to save your spot!

On FinDEVr.com

  • Nubank Raises $80 Million in Series D Funding”

The latest from FinDEVr Silicon Valley presenters

  • Aerospike announces 100% year-over-year bookings growth.
  • NuData Security partners with Arvato Financial Solutions to combat fraud and enable a smoother customer experience.

Alumni updates

  • InComm partners with MOL Global to launch PlayStation Network prepaid products to be distributed through 7-Eleven stores in Indonesia.
  • Commerce Bank chooses Temenos to upgrade core deposit banking system.
  • Token signs memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Fidor Bank for digital payments.
  • PYMNTS.com interviews Nick Thomas, cofounder of Finicity, in the wake of his company’s latest funding round.
  • Arxan Technologies wins six industry IoT security awards.
  • TemenosMarketPlace receives the Banking Technology Readers’ Choice Award for “Best emerging/innovative technology product/service” at the Annual Banking Technology Awards.
  • InComm expands partnership with Target Australia to offer gift cards in stores and online.
  • PayPal teams up with Citibank, FIS to expand cross-channel presence.

Stay current on daily news from the fintech developer community! Follow FinDEVr on Twitter.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • “Socure Raises $13 Million in New Capital”
  • “Investment from Rakuten Boosts Kreditech’s Total Capital More Than $10 Million”
  • “Personal Capital’s Growth Leads to Additional $25 Million in Funding”

Around the web

  • eToro forges strategic partnership with Lufax Holding, China’s largest internet financing company.
  • PayPal teams up with Citibank, FIS to expand cross-channel presence.
  • NICE Systems celebrates record year in customer acquisitions.
  • SocietyOne appoints Maria Loyez as chief marketing officer.
  • NuData Security partners with Arvato Financial Solutions to combat fraud and enable a smoother customer experience.
  • Quantopian hires Marc Volpe as chief financial officer.

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

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • “SigFig to Power Digital Wealth Management for Citizens Bank”

Around the web

  • IBM helps The Mahindra Group test blockchain technology to innovate supply-chain finance in India.
  • Digital River World Payments integrates its online payments platform with ACI PAY.ON Payment Gateway from ACI Worldwide.
  • Bank Innovation looks at the Secure Private Login launched by Civic.
  • Avoka wins AWS financial services competency status with its account-opening solution.
  • Kasasa named a BankNews Innovative Solution Award Winner.
  • PayPal revamps its business app with new capabilities.
  • CAN appoints Parris Sanz, chief legal officer, as the company’s interim CEO while CEO Daniel DeMeo takes a leave of absence.

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

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • “Fintech Favorites: Blockchain, the Banks, and the Underbanked”
  • Lleida.net Brings Connectaclick to Ecuador’s Banco Pichincha.

Around the web

  • Swiss fintech innovator Net Guardians to deploy its security solution, FraudGuardian, with National Bank of Malawi.
  • iSignthis partners with Leverate Financial Services, providing the online FX and CFD broker with its full Paydentity solution.
  • YourStory profiles Finovate newcomer MarketsMojo and its plan to make equity investing mainstream.
  • Frankfurter Allgemeine features Fintura in a look at the fintech scene in Frankfurt.
  • True Potential wins approval as workplace pension adviser from The Pensions Regulator.
  • PayPal reports mobile shopping represented a third of sales on Thanksgiving and Black Friday.
  • Lighter Capital named the fastest growing private tech company in Washington state.
  • LTP lists BankBazaar, CoverHound, InforcePRO, and Sureify on its list of revolutionary insuretech startups.

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

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Bambu Wins Spot in Hong Kong SuperCharger FinTech Accelerator.

Around the web

  • Lending Stream leverages Decision Management Suite from FICO to build new credit platform.
  • EVRY wins six-year contract extension with Sparebank 1, an alliance of 16-strong Norwegian savings banks.
  • SEB partners with Ripple to build blockchain-based real-time payments system.
  • Wipro launches Open Banking API platform.
  • Riyaz Ladiwala joins Heckyl as CEO for India operations.
  • Guardian Analytics introduces Guardian Analytics Sentinel Treasury Management for fraud protection.
  • Linkable Networks launches platform enhancements to enable retailers to verify purchases.
  • Staples to leverage Tuition.io for student loan repayment benefit option.
  • ProActive launches its 2.0 back end.
  • How Filene and Larky’s Mobile Rewards Pilot Will Promote Stronger Member Loyalty.

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.

Look Who’s Making AI Intelligent Again

Look Who’s Making AI Intelligent Again
screen-shot-2016-10-31-at-12-25-38-pmCapital One was the first bank to go live with an Alexa integration. Other banks are following suit.

Artificial intelligence (AI) is not new to fintech, but in the past two years we’ve seen a jump in the sophistication and scale of its use across the industry. The advances in chatbots and IVR solutions have done a lot to spur the growth of machine learning and AI.

In a Fintech Trending post earlier this month, we highlighted Capital One’s live integration and Lloyd Bank’s proof of concept with Amazon’s Alexa. We noted that Cap One was the only bank with a Skill (an Alexa-specific app) that’s currently live. Over the past couple of weeks, however, a handful of banks and financial services companies have launched their own A.I. initiatives in voice forms such as Alexa and GM’s OnStar Go, as well as text, such as Facebook Messenger.

UBS pilots Amazon’s Alexa

Last week news broke that UBS is soon to follow with an Alexa Skill of its own. The Swiss investment bank will launch a pilot program next month that allows a select group of UBS clients and non-clients to interact with Alexa.

However, compared to Capital One’s integration and Lloyd’s proof of concept, the UBS pilot is a bit stunted. In the UBS pilot, when users begin their inquiries with, “Ask UBS,” Alexa currently answers only general financial and economic questions, such as, “What is inflation?” and “How is the EU economy doing?” The pilot aims to test users’ comfort levels with spoken bot interactions.

Bank of America’s Erica

img_1489Also this week, Bank of America demo’d its smart chatbot, Erica, said to be coming in “late 2017.” While many banks offer this capability, Bank of America’s bot shows more emphasis on the intelligence piece of artificial intelligence. As Daniel Latimore, senior vice president of Celent’s banking practice, said in an interview with CNBC, “Though many banks have bots with some level of artificial intelligence, the customer experience has not always been great. Consumers are now accustomed to the types of seamless mobile experiences provided by apps like Uber and Airbnb and want better banking experiences.”

Erica will use AI, predictive analytics, and cognitive messaging to enable customers to make payments and check their account balances. She will even help them save money and offer advice to pay down debt by directing them toward educational videos and articles. Bank of America had a lot of consumer-usage data to draw upon while it was building Erica. In Q3 of this year, the bank saw 246+ billion payments and 950 million mobile banking sessions across 21 million active users.

Mastercard’s Facebook Messenger chatbot

Mastercard (F14) launched its own chatbot this week to deliver a personalized customer experience in messenger platforms. The company partnered with Kasisto to create Mastercard KAI, a bot for banks, which will launch next year on Facebook Messenger. The bot was created in-house in Mastercard Labs. It aims to offer a way for merchants to allow consumers to shop and transact in messaging platforms and check out with Masterpass.

30270931092_7092cd6235_o

The payments giant also announced partnerships with GM and IBM (FD16) this week to launch Masterpass payment functionality on OnStar Go, a digital platform that will be embedded in 2 million GM vehicles by the end of 2017. The OnStar Go platform will feature a marketplace of select merchants from which drivers can order and pay directly from their vehicle. Over time, OnStar Go learns the consumer’s purchasing behaviors and is able to push personalized and contextual offers to the driver. ExxonMobil, Glympse, iHeartRadio, MasterCard, and Parkopedia are the first brands to join the platform.

paypalinmessengerPayPal expands Facebook Messenger capabilities

PayPal (FD16) first announced it was integrating with Facebook Messenger last month, when the social media giant unveiled payments capability within Messenger. This week, the company announced further integration. In the U.S., PayPal will not only serve as one of the payment options within Messenger, but also:

  • Roll out as a payment option across more of Facebook’s commerce experiences (including Messenger)
  • Make it easy for PayPal customers to link their PayPal accounts to Facebook and Messenger at PayPal checkout
  • Offer the ability to get notifications in Messenger, facilitating receipt management for PayPal transactions in one place

The biggest takeaway is that as Messenger rolls out a native payment experience, merchants can accept PayPal payments directly within their bots. As an early pilot of this capability, PayPal’s Braintree partnered with Facebook and Uber in December 2015 to allow users to hail and pay for an Uber directly within the app.

Contrary to some reports, PayPal’s integration isn’t a chatbot. I learned this the embarrassing way when I typed “balance” in a Facebook message to PayPal and a half-hour later received a message from an actual person:

screen-shot-2016-10-26-at-3-37-06-pmThat awkward moment you learn you’re chatting with a real person, not a chatbot

SimplyTapp launches mobile payments app with chatbot

SimplyTapp’s (FD14) newly launched mobile payments app, Gane, works on both Android and iOS and offers tap-and-pay functionality at the POS. With the companion mobile app, users can collect and apply discount offers. Aside from mobile payment and offer-redemption capability, Gane works with chatbots embedded in Facebook Messenger, iMessage, Kik, and Telegram messaging platforms. The company plans to integrate with additional platforms in the future.

screen-shot-2016-10-26-at-2-53-18-pm

Why all the AI?

Banks and financial services companies aren’t just trying to farm out the jobs of their tellers and customer service agents to bots that don’t require a salary, paid time off, and health insurance, though that does play a role. Aside from the obvious role chatbots and AI play in answering simple customer inquiries without using up the time of customer service agents, banks’ motives are twofold.

First, it helps them meet customers where they are by operating in the same channels in which their consumers spend hours a day, such as Facebook. Financial services companies can offer a better user experience by not requiring users to open a separate app or launch a new window to view their balance. In cases such as PayPal’s and Mastercard’s integrations with Facebook Messenger, it also serves as a way to become the customer’s preferred payment method in that channel, i.e., becoming top-of-wallet in Messenger.

Second, it establishes the financial services company on the millennial map. Many of the incumbent players are struggling to attract their next generation of clients for payments and wealth management. Offering services that reach into channels such as Alexa and social messenger platforms help banks engage with potential millennial wealth management customers. It’s the same reason established wealth management players are launching robo-adviser—to serve as training wheels.

Note: A Finovate alum’s most recent appearance is shown by a capital F followed by the year; for example, FIS first appeared at Finovate in 2009, so you will see (F09) after their name, with a link to that first demo.

FinDEVr APIntelligence

FinDEVr Silicon ValleyFDNY17_EventLogo_v1(wdate) was a success! Tickets for upcoming FinDEVr London and FinDEVr New York are at their lowest prices now. Register today for London or New York to save your spot!

On FinDEVr.com

The latest from FinDEVr Silicon Valley presenters

  • BBVA chooses Amazon Web Services as its preferred cloud infrastructure services provider.
  • Extended partnership makes Yodlee’s data aggregation available via Backbase’s Open Banking Marketplace.
  • Hyperwallet announces support for real-time, push-to-card payments-solution,Visa Direct.
  • Full Envestnet | Yodlee Integration Give Advisers Big Picture View of Client Finances.
  • Modo to give the Bank of America access to its COIN Operated Digital Payments Hub.
  • Expensify launches direct integration with Zenefits.

Alumni updates

  • InComm launches new brand of solutions for cash-based consumers, VanillaDirect.
  • Temenos launches Digital Engagement modules to offer real-time customer marketing and engagement.
  • Bluefin Payment Systems launches cloud-based hosting option for its DecryptxPCI-validated P2PE product through Amazon Web Services.
  • Intuit expands partnership with PayPal to provide QuickBooks Online customers with a new way of accepting payments via PayPal.
  • Chain launches open-source edition of its distributed ledger, Chain Core Developer Edition.
  • Avoka earns a pair of “XCelent Awards” for service and breadth of functionality from Celent.
  • Trulioo announced that its GlobalGateway platform now reaches 60 countries.
  • On Deck Capital and Kabbage agree to disclose SMB loan pricing.

Stay current on daily news from the fintech developer community! Follow FinDEVr on Twitter.

Finovate Alumni News

On Finovate.com

  • Lendio Closes $20 Million Funding Round
  • Lending Club Launches Car Loan Refinancing Product
  • Check out today’s sneak peeks of upcoming FinovateAsia demos:

Around the web

  • AdviceRobo reaches 900k credit scores
  • Bill.com partners with Intuit to power end-to-end accounts payable within QuickBooks Online
  • Actiance appoints Cynthia Crossland as CMO
  • Entrepreneur Magazine names Cardlytics One of the Best Entrepreneurial Companies in America
  • American Banker: Bizfi Hires Former Lending Club Exec as New CEO
  • Intuit expands partnership with PayPal to provide QuickBooks’ Online customers with a new way of accepting payments via PayPal
  • Farm Credit Services of America picks DNA from Fiserv to support agricultural lending
  • Extended partnership makes Yodlee’s data aggregation available via Backbase’s Open Banking Marketplace
  • Chain launches open source edition of its distributed ledger, Chain Core Developer Edition
  • Avoka earns a pair of “XCelent Awards” for service and breadth of functionality from Celent
  • Trulioo announced that its GlobalGateway platform now reaches 60 countries
  • Hyperwallet announces support for real-time, push-to-card payments solution, Visa Direct

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.