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Fintech

·Mar. 31, 2017

Bank of America to Invest $1.5mn in Charlotte Fintech Initiative

Bank of America says it will invest $1.5 million in a Charlotte fintech initiative over the next three years; the investment is the first for the city from a financial services company; regarding the investment, Cathy Bessant, Bank of America's chief operations and technology officer, said: "Charlotte has proven to be a place where a sustainable company can be founded, emerge and grow. Fintech is a significant, new opportunity for Charlotte that connects our strong finance and technology infrastructure with innovatively minded people, creating tech jobs and new paths to economic mobility."; Charlotte Mayor Jennifer Roberts is expected to publicly announce more details on the initiative in the next few months. Source

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Fintech News Roundup

·Mar. 31, 2017

Nonbank Fintech Companies Reporting Disruption to One-Stop Banking

Innovative banks and fintech companies are disrupting the traditional one-stop banking model; a 2016 report from Accenture says bank customers are purchasing low margin products but looking elsewhere for brokerage accounts, auto loans and home mortgages; in 2016 nonbank mortgage lenders reported a significant milestone with 51.4% of the market's loan issuance an increase from 9% in all of 2009; as the trend continues, banks will have to increasingly monitor customer activity and offer new products that match nonbank competition. Source

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Fintech News Roundup Online Lending Regulation USA

·Mar. 31, 2017

Senate Banking Committee is Skeptical of a Full Dodd-Frank Reform

The US Senate's Banking Committee majority leader says a full reform of Dodd-Frank is unlikely but the Committee will seek to pass targeted reforms; the Banking Committee majority leader also sees larger regulatory changes coming mainly from the independent agencies; the outlook means the Financial Choice Act led by House Financial Services Committee Chairman Jeb Hensarling is also unlikely to be passed in the Senate; "The Choice Act is our omnibus legislation, but we will also reintroduce its component bills," says Hensarling; a previous executive order from President Trump which halts new federal regulations or requires regulators to repeal two rules for every new one issued is also slowing the regulatory process. Source

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Asia/Pac Fintech News Roundup

·Apr. 3, 2017

Thai Payments Startup Omise Seeks Funding of Up to $16mn Using Ether

Omise is planning a funding round through digital cryptocurrency; the blockchain digital payments startup will sell digital ether tokens with a fundraising target of up to $16 million; the fundraising will begin in May and the service plans to launch in the fourth quarter; the digital cryptocurrency fundraising represents a new funding alternative to venture capitalist investing and allows the firm to gain public participation from a broad set of stakeholders without selling equity in the company. Source

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Fintech News Roundup USA

·Apr. 3, 2017

New Fundraising for Robinhood Values the Stock Trading App at over $1bn

Robinhood is currently undergoing a new fundraising deal that values the company at approximately $1.3 billion with investment from DST Global; the undisclosed funding will add to previously raised capital of $66 million; the firm offers commission free trading on US stocks and has also launched a premium Robinhood Gold option for faster money transfers and margin trading. Source

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Fintech News Roundup USA

·Apr. 3, 2017

Carvana Announces Details of Its IPO

Carvana has filed for a US initial public offering (IPO) and plans to list its shares on the New York Stock Exchange with the ticker symbol CVNA; the online auto dealership sells its cars from vending machines located across the US; the company is planning to raise $100 million from the IPO and is working with investment bankers at Wells Fargo, Bank of America, Citigroup and Deutsche Bank on the deal; its registration statement reports significant risks including higher public registration costs and profitability uncertainty. Source

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Europe Fintech News Roundup

·Apr. 3, 2017

Jaidev Janardana on Zopa’s Banking Endeavor

Zopa's Jaidev Janardana spoke at AltFi Europe this week on the firm's plans for building a bank; he provides insight in a blog post; the bank will build on Zopa's successful track record in lending with new savings accounts and credit product but the firm will not offer a current account; the UK has been dominant in challenger bank development and the Zopa bank will provide UK customers with another alternative banking option which is currently in high demand in the region; the above chart highlights the competitive advantages Zopa has in the market. Source

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Fintech News Roundup Regulation USA

·Apr. 3, 2017

Director of CFPB, Richard Cordray, Provides Thoughts on Fintech Innovation

In a speech last week to the US Chamber of Commerce, CFPB Richard Cordray provided thoughts geared towards fintech companies stating, "One message we are sending to the industry is, you are not going to be able to take advantage through arbitrage of our regulatory system. It's not fair for you to not have to meet the same expectations that banks have to meet. If you're trying to get an advantage by not meeting the same standards, that is not acceptable and we're trying to send that message loud and clear."; Cordray also spoke on finding the right balance of fintech regulation, modernizing regulations and the Bureau's look at debt collectors and payday lenders. Source

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Fintech News Roundup

·Apr. 4, 2017

Chart of the Week: CB Insights Reports on AI in Fintech

CB Insights has provided a market map of artificial intelligence (AI) companies in fintech; the map is grouped by nine categories; top companies using innovative AI solutions for credit scoring and direct lending include Affirm and ZestFinance; the analysis also provides insight on each of the firm's investors. Source

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Europe Fintech News Roundup

·Apr. 4, 2017

Robo Advisor Scalable Doubles AUM in Three Months

UK robo advisor Scalable has doubled its assets under management in the last three months to EUR 200 million ($213 million); this includes approximately 5,000 client portfolios with an average value of EUR 40,000 ($42,659); the firm says it continues to grow steadily adding EUR 1 million ($1.07 million) in assets under management per day; Scalable launched in the UK in the summer of 2016; it has since expanded to Germany and Austria and has reported significant growth from a partnership with Siemens Private Finance for employee investment plans. Source

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