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Finovate Blog
Tracking fintech, banking & financial services innovations since 1994
The return of live events is delivering yet another opportunity for fintech enthusiasts and financial services professionals to rejoice: the Finovate Awards Ceremony is back!
The third annual celebration, to be held the evening of September 13th at the Edison Ballroom in New York City, will reveal the winners of this year’s 20+ highly contested categories. Check out our list of Finovate Awards finalists. In addition to honoring this year’s award winners, the event will feature live entertainment and all-evening-long opportunities for networking with new friends and old colleagues.
From digital banking and consumer lending to alternative investment solutions and excellence in decentralized finance, the Finovate Awards recognize the breadth of innovation that is driving fintech forward today. Leveraging the wisdom of more than 20 fintech and financial services experts who served as this year’s judges, the third annual Finovate Awards celebrate the organizations and individuals whose efforts are bringing financial wellness, inclusion, and opportunity to communities around the world.
BankiFi announced a $4.8 million funding round today led by Praetura Ventures.
The U.K.-based company will use the funds to expand into the U.S. and inch closer toward its mission to serve two million SMBs across four continents by 2024.
The Series A round brings BankiFi’s total funding to $8.5 million.
Embedded banking solutions firm BankiFilanded $4.8 million today to help fuel its expansion into North America. The Series A round brings BankiFi’s total funding to $8.5 million. The investment round is led by Praetura Ventures and will help U.K.-based BankiFi further its mission to serve two million SMBs across four continents by 2024.
“BankiFi has proven to be an industry-leading open cash management provider in Europe, Australia, New Zealand and other countries,” said Praetura Ventures Managing Director David Foreman. “Now that they have launched in North America, BankiFi has an opportunity for dramatic growth.”
Founded in 2018, BankiFi empowers banks to offer their small business clients a cash management platform that helps with accounting, access to working capital, invoicing, and payments. By embedding a bank within their clients’ existing accounting systems, it becomes part of the business’ daily workflow.
“Our mission is to make all aspects of cash management and payments easier for SMBs everywhere, and this investment is another huge step to making that a reality,” said BankiFi Americas CEO Keith Riddle.
In April, BankiFi launched its Open Cash Management Platform, or what it calls a “super app” for small business banking that bolstered the company’s previous offering by combining embedded banking and open banking. Earlier in the year, the company was tapped by U.K.-based TSB to launch a new app that helps small businesses get paid faster.
BankiFi has offices in Ohio, Manchester, Sydney, and Antwerp, and recently appointed Tom Shen as chair of its board of directors. Mark Hartley is CEO.
Paytech Finix secured $30 million in funding last week.
The investment takes the San Francisco, California-based payment facilitator’s total capital to $133 million.
Founded in 2015, Finix includes Kabbage, Pay Theory, and Passport among its customers.
San Francisco, California-based paytech Finix announced a $30 million investment last week. The funding featured participation from both new and existing investors, and brings the company’s total capital raised to $133 million. Finix reported that it will use the new financing to support the addition of new features to make it easier for software platforms to better manage their payments and merchants.
“The next generation of fintech is all about businesses embedding financial services when and where their customers need them most,” Bain Capital Ventures Managing Director and Finix board member Matt Harris said in a statement. “Finix is a leading example of the type of state-of-the-art payments infrastructure provider that makes this embedded experience possible.”
Calling Q2 2022 its best quarter to date in terms of new deals closed, Finix helps software platforms enable and enhance payment processing. The payment facilitator’s white-label API gives companies the ability to accept payments, manage payouts, and onboard merchants, in order to help produce greater revenues from the payment process. Underwriting, reconciliation, and dispute management are also features of Finix’s platform.
The investment comes as Finix acknowledges a number of significant accomplishments. These include becoming a registered payment facilitator, doubling total annual payments volume from 2020 to 2021, and expanding its suite of in-person payment devices and capabilities. In a blog post at the company website in May, Finix co-founder and CEO Richie Serna highlighted the firm’s recent achievements, concluding “if you compared Finix to Nilson’s 2021 list of top U.S. merchant acquirers, we would rank in the top 50 based on TPV and merchant count.” Serna noted that Finix supports more than 12,000 active small businesses, schools, and places of worship each month.
Participating in Finix’s recent investment were The General Partnership (TheGP), Franklin Templeton, American Express Ventures, Acrew Capital, Bain Capital Ventures, Cap Table Coalition, Homebrew, Insight Partners, Inspired Capital, Lightspeed Venture Partners, Precursor Ventures, PSP Growth, and Vamos Ventures. Founded in 2015, Finix currently includes Kabbage, Passport, and Pay Theory among its customers.
Credas has appointed Geraint Rogers as Chief Strategy Officer.
Rodgers formerly worked at Experian U.K., where he served as the company’s Product Director for Identity, Fraud, and Financial Crime.
Rodgers will also serve on Credas’ executive board, which includes Barnett and company CTO Kevin Smith.
Digital identity verification platform Credas is bolstering its team this week. The U.K.-based company has appointed Geraint Rogers as Chief Strategy Officer.
Credas anticipates Rodgers will aid the company in the launch of its new Digital Identity wallet later this year. Company CEO Tim Barnett said that Rodgers will “help Credas stay at the forefront of the market.”
Rodgers comes to Credas from Experian U.K., where he served as the company’s Product Director for Identity, Fraud, and Financial Crime. He has almost 30 years of experience in product development and has worked across banking, risk, and compliance departments in senior roles at both Experian and LexisNexis Risk Solutions.
Outside of his role at Experian, Rodgers currently serves as a board member of the Open Identity Exchange, helping to shape industry standards for digital identities and wallets; and he is certified with the U.K. Government’s Digital Identity and Attributes Trust Framework.
Rodgers will also serve on Credas’ executive board, which includes Barnett and company CTO Kevin Smith.
Founded in 2017, Credas offers biometric facial recognition, document authentication, and eSign technologies to help businesses across a range of sectors streamline their onboarding processes, conduct due diligence, and remain compliant.
Having worked in the fintech industry for four years, Kristiane Mandraki has developed a passion for emerging technology and has seen ebbs and flows of success and failure in the industry. Mandraki is currently the Director of Business Development and Marketing at Praxent, a 22-year old fintech experience design and development firm that helps financial companies succeed in their digital transformation efforts.
We recently spoke with Mandraki on some of the best practices in customer experience, digital transformation, and Web 3; as well as top trends she’s anticipating in the next year.
When it comes to customer experience, what are some of the top mistakes you’ve seen banks and fintechs make, and how can they avoid them?
Kristiane Mandraki: Banks and fintechs often make the mistake of trying to be all things for all people, which only leads to exhaustive mediocrity. Instead, it’s critical to pick a focus, your North Star. Narrowing in on a main priority or differentiator allows financial services providers to prioritize and innovate, setting the stage to truly excel at something instead of being average at everything.
Another mistake we often see banks make is implementing off-the-shelf technology without viewing the experience through the holistic lens of the customer’s journey. We see this often in account opening or loan origination experiences where the customer’s journey starts on the website and ends on the fintech product. It’s important to carefully consider the experience as part of the bank’s brand experience and ensure it’s configured in a user-friendly way. There are many opportunities to differentiate the brand by prioritizing the website and product configuration as a critical component of the digital experience which often requires UX/UI expertise.
What advice do you have for banks navigating this era that’s stuck between digital transformation and Web 3?
Mandraki: Some emerging technologies are fairly polarizing, like Bitcoin. You have the optimists and then those who see the headlines and are quick to write it off. What can’t be ignored is that blockchain technology unlocks much more than an asset class. It has created another sphere like the Internet.
The industry is currently in a transitionary period, or Web 2.5; we’re starting to evolve beyond Web 2.0 but Web 3.0 isn’t quite a mainstream reality. We’re facing a major user experience challenge, which is a huge opportunity for innovation.
There is a need to bridge the gap between banks and cryptocurrencies so institutions can offer these products in a way that’s intuitive and user-centric. No matter where bankers stand on the debate, they must educate themselves and remain open to how they might be able to leverage emerging technologies moving forward. Savvy investors are strongly considering digital assets within their wealth portfolios. In order to build trust with those clients, financial advisors in banks and credit unions must develop a strong understanding of the space to advise them responsibly.
I hope women in particular take the opportunity to help shape this new financial system to be more inclusive, especially since they weren’t in a position to do so when traditional financial systems were created.
How can banks offer digital services while maintaining human touch?
Mandraki: A primary issue is that for too long, banks have relied on experiences that are system-centric, ultimately forcing customers to jump through several hurdles to satisfy internal IT systems. This typically results in a process that is cumbersome, requiring customers to rekey information and leaving no room for human empathy.
Community financial institutions excel in customer-intimacy, as they move much of their customer interaction to the digital space, it’s critical they offer experiences that are human-centric.
This is where exercises and tools like a customer journey map, envisioning the customer journey in the context of use, provide significant value. Once the work is done to identify points of delight and frustration within the customer journey, the proper prioritization and investments can be put in place to overhaul the experience with the customer at the center.
What are the top trends you’ve seen so far this year, and what’s coming next year?
Mandraki: Going back to common mistakes we see in financial services, an exciting trend is that many banks and credit unions are starting to pay much closer attention to their ‘digital front doors’ or website experience. Strategic institutions have started to realize that a marketing department of one or two people, usually without any user experience or design background, is simply not enough of a resource to modernize and maintain their websites. Having a modern website that shares relevant information and options with intuitive navigation is just as important as the money being spent on things like modernizing loan origination systems or account opening tools.
We are also seeing many more financial services providers striving to identify a niche when it comes to investing and wealth management. There is a massive opportunity to reach and serve this group of Millennials and Gen Z that soon stand to inherit significant wealth but who have so far been hesitant to engage traditional financial advisors.
Linqto has acquired Trustline, a platform that offers decentralized financial services.
“We acquired Trustline for its advanced blockchain technology and IP including $200,000 worth of XRP grants issued from the XRPL Grants Program,” said Linqto Founder and CEO Bill Sarris.
Linqto plans to leverage Trustline to continue developing its decentralized exchange for private market securities.
Private investing firm Linqto has solidified its interest in the blockchain this week with the acquisition of Trustline, a platform that offers decentralized financial services. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Trustline leverages the XRP Ledger to offer payments, trading, and lending to accredited investors. Because Trustline run on XRP, it is able to offer its financial services in a more efficient and cost-effective manner than traditional firms.
“We acquired Trustline for its advanced blockchain technology and IP including $200,000 worth of XRP grants issued from the XRPL Grants Program,” said Linqto Founder and CEO Bill Sarris. “Trustline will help us build on our vision to provide access, affordability and liquidity to accredited investors. But the most valuable asset we acquired is the new association with Matt Rosendin, a progressive thinker and leader in the global blockchain community.”
Linqto plans to leverage Trustline to continue developing its decentralized exchange for private market securities. Using Trustline’s proprietary technology, Linqto’s exchange will be auditable, publicly transparent, and 100% on blockchain.
The acquisition comes shortly after Trustline abandoned plans for its stablecoins, Aurei and Phi, due to regulatory conflicts with the SEC, which viewed the coins as securities. “Trustline is thrilled to join the innovative and groundbreaking work that Linqto is doing in making private investing simple for individual investors who have been shut out of traditional private equity asset class,” said Trustline CEO Matt Rosendin. “Our two companies are perfectly aligned to democratize private markets investing for qualified investors.”
Rosendin is now VP of Ledger at Linqto.
Linqto, which now counts more than 100,000 accredited investors in its global network, enables users to invest in a range of pre-IPO startups, including Upgrade, Uphold, Ripple, SoFi, Blockchain Coinvestors, Kraken, and even in its own company. Linqto’s will demo its newest innovation at FinovateFall next month in New York. Register today to secure your spot.
A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.
Linqto makes investing in private companies accessible, affordable and efficient. Wealth managers can diversify client portfolios with investments in unicorns.
Features
Simple to use interface on web and mobile app
$5K and $10K minimum investment sizes
Get liquidity by selling shares on the platform
Why it’s great
Linqto offers the same benefits of public markets – immediate access and settlement of private equity shares at affordable prices with the ability to get liquidity for shares purchased at any time.
Presenter
Patty Brewer, Chief Product Officer Industry veteran with over 25 years experience in strategic product management with fintech companies like Digital Insight, Intuit, and Nav. Passionate about customer driven and iterative innovation. LinkedIn
A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.
ID R&D’sIDLive Doc is the first product dedicated to protecting digital onboarding from document spoof attacks, where fraudsters present an image of an ID on a screen instead of one in their possession.
Features
Detects a variety of attacks, including screen replay
Needs only a single image; frictionless for the user
Works across all types of global identity documents
Why it’s great
Document spoofs are likely causing more fraud than companies realize. Businesses can help prevent these types of attacks with the first-ever product specifically designed for this purpose from leaders in liveness.
Presenter
Alexey Khitrov, CEO Khitrov has over 20 years of C-level experience at biometrics and financial services. In 2016, he launched ID R&D with a focus on developing innovative, best-in-class biometrics and liveness. LinkedIn
A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.
Stratyfy’sUnBias allows financial institutions and fintechs to uncover, understand, and undo bias in complex financial decisions that impact the lives of millions.
Features
Proprietary next generation transparent ML
Detailed reports with actionable recommendations
Results in as little as two weeks
Why it’s great
Addressing bias proactively means less risk, more diverse customers, and increased returns.
Presenter
Laura Kornhauser, CEO & Co-Founder Laura Kornhauser is the Co-Founder/CEO of Stratyfy. Previously, Kornhauser spent 12 years at JPMorgan, building and delivering risk and credit products. She has a BSE from Princeton & an MBA from Columbia. LinkedIn
A look at the companies demoing at FinovateFall in New York on September 12 and 13. Register today and save your spot.
NYDIG delivers Bitcoin products across industries, from banking and insurance to fintech and nonprofits. NYDIG fuses stringent regulatory standards with ironclad technology to make Bitcoin universal.
Features
NYDIG’s Bitcoin Savings Plan:
Integrates directly with a company’s payroll services
Allows an employee to seamlessly convert a portion of their paycheck to bitcoin
Offers new cutting-edge benefits
Why it’s great
For the BSP, there is little direct competition in the space. NYDIG’s value proposition is that employees are offered an easy-to-use way to buy, sell, and hold bitcoin without having to pay high fees.
Presenter
Rahm McDaniel, Head of Banking Solutions Rahm McDaniel is Head of Banking Solutions with NYDIG, partnering with banks and credit unions to serve their communities with innovative digital asset services, such as Bitcoin trading. Prior to NYDIG, he was VP of Strategic Solutions for Q2, helping to build Q2’s Banking as a Service business. He lives in Austin, Texas with his family. LinkedIn
With a little over a month to go before FinovateFall 2022 in New York City, our agenda for the autumn event is still being finalized. But there are a few highlights we can share with you this week to further whet your appetite for the fintech feast to come on September 12 through September 14. Today we’ll take a look at the mastermind keynote speakers we have scheduled for FinovateFall, each of whom was selected for their unique understanding of what’s driving innovation in financial technology today.
Day One will feature a Mastermind Keynote from Chris Cox, Chief Operating Officer of Apiture. Titled “Closing the Data Intelligence Gap”, Cox’s address will look at ways that financial institutions can better process and analyze available data while simultaneously (1) helping their businesses, (2) supporting their customers, and (3) maintaining regulatory compliance. Cox will examine ways that banks and credit unions can close the “expertise gap” that may be preventing them from innovating in the ways their customers want.
Before becoming COO of Apiture, Cox was General Manager of First Data’s digital banking business. He also led the mobile payment product development efforts at the company. He is a graduate of Miami University in Ohio, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics, and of Duke University, where he earned an MBA.
Day Two will include a Mastermind Keynote from Claudio Cungi, Chief Product Officer, and Alice Menenti, Product Manager, both of Strands. Cungi and Menenti will present “Providing Actionable Insights to Create the Banking Platform of Tomorrow.” This address will review how enabling technologies have given banks the ability to dramatically increase the degree of personalization they can bring to their products and services. Cungi and Menenti will show how financial institutions can use the insights made available through more personalized engagement with customers to build better, more personalized business banking platforms
The final day of FinovateFall 2022 will feature a number of Mastermind Keynotes as part of our various tracks on Payments, AI, Customer Experience, Lending, Cryptocurrencies, and Digital Transformation. Among the day’s highlights are a discussion on the Consumer Financial Protection Board (CFPB) and its priorities for fintech in 2022 and beyond conducted by Thomas Ward, the organization’s current Enforcement Director. The day will also feature a presentation by Tiffany Kaminsky, co-founder and Chief Impact Officer for Symend titled “Upping the Ante: Using the Science of Decision-Making for Effective Customer Engagement.” This presentation will discuss the concepts of behavioral engagement and hyper-personalization and examines initiatives that financial institutions can take to integrate both into their current business strategies.
These are only a handful of the Master Keynotes scheduled for FinovateFall this year. For more information, visit our FinovateFall hub to learn more about our agenda, our speakers, and, of course, how to register today and save your spot at our upcoming fintech event. Pick up your ticket by Friday, August 12 and take advantage of big, early-bird savings!
Western Union is bolstering its partnership with Visa by expanding its integration with Visa Direct.
Visa Direct is Visa’s real-time money movement network.
The expansion will bring Visa Direct to Western Union’s U.S. clients, enabling them to send money in near-real-time to Visa debit cards in Colombia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Romania, and Thailand.
Money transfer firm Western Union is building on its partnership with Visa this week. The Colorado-based company is expanding its integration with Visa Direct, Visa’s real-time money movement network.
Under the agreement, the pair will bring Visa Direct to Western Union’s U.S. clients, enabling them to send money in near-real-time to Visa debit cards in Colombia, El Salvador, Jamaica, Romania, and Thailand. Western Union and Visa first teamed up in 2019 to enable Western Union customers in more than 20 countries across Europe to send and/or receive funds directly to Visa debit card holders.
“Western Union and Visa share a vision for modern money movement, one that ensures cross-border payments are reliable, efficient and transparent, with convenience and the customer’s channel of choice at the center of our customer experience,” said Western Union President of the Americas Gabriella Fitzgerald. “Our partnership with Visa underscores the benefits that collaboration brings to realizing this shared vision for our joint customers around the globe.”
Visa first launched Visa Direct in Europe in 2017 as a real-time payments platform to allow companies to leverage Visa’s global reach and scale for cross-border payments. In addition to Western Union, nearly 550 partners, including Adyen, The Bancorp, Fiserv, and Stripe support Visa Direct solutions.
“Visa is transforming cross-border payments with Visa Direct by helping to bring the ability to securely send and receive funds in near-real-time to more use cases around the world,” said Senior VP North America Head Yanilsa Gonzalez-Ore. “Through this partnership, we are using Western Union’s digital capabilities to help US customers send money to their family and friends and provide a means to help with bills, as a gift, or for an emergency.”
Founded in 1851, Western Union is one of the oldest cross-border money transfer pioneers. The company’s global financial network bridges more than 200 countries and territories and approximately 130 currencies. In a partnership earlier this year, Western Union integratedMarqeta’s payment cards solution into its digital wallet and digital banking platform in Europe.
