TechCrunch reports that OmiseGO (OMG) and Qtum both surpassed $1 billion in market cap; they became the first subtokens built on ethereum and subsequently sold to investors to pass the $1 billion mark; both companies have achieved this in staggeringly short amounts of time; OMG raised $25 million in July and now tokens are valued at over $11 compared to $0.27 at the time of the raise; Qtum raised $15.6 million in March with tokens now priced over $17; both companies do not have an actual product available in the market. Source
Financial institutions are becoming more involved with fintechs as the new entrants show advantages in speed, agility and emerging innovation; CoinTelegraph reports on the industry integration, noting examples from Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan and HSBC; discusses the benefits for financial institutions from working with fintechs and the capital support needed by fintech startups which is making the two groups interdependent. Source
Banking and finance software specialist Temenos has worked with Baxter Credit Union to launch the Temenos Lifecycle Management Suite on Microsoft Azure; the loan platform includes modules for collection service and loan origination; its launch marks the first use of the Lifecycle Management Suite in the cloud through integration with Microsoft Azure and Baxter Credit Union says it is currently focusing on a strategic initiative to move all of its technology to the cloud. Source
The Fundrise Income eREIT previously sold out and was closed to new investors; the platform has re-opened the Income eREIT and requires minimum investment of $1,000; the Income eREIT is focused on investments in real estate debt and has posted a 10.5% annualized dividend yield. Source
LendIt has partnered with SeedInvest to include live fundraising at this year's PitchIt @ LendIt Europe competition; through the partnership LendIt Europe delegates and SeedInvest's 185,000 users can invest in the eight startup finalists during the event; these finalists will present before an audience and panel of judges on October 10 from 11:00 am to 1:00 pm. Source
Renaud will kick off day two of LendIt Europe with a keynote speech discussing online lending 2.0 as well as the US online lending industry and its role within fintech overall; Laplanche is currently the CEO of newly founded US consumer lending platform Upgrade; the platform raised $60 million from a Series A fundraising and launched in April 2017. Source
PitchIt @ LendIt Europe is one of the industry's most popular startup competitions providing eight finalists with unparalleled access to industry expertise and funding opportunities as well as invaluable exposure, branding and more at the event; hosted in partnership with Startupbootcamp, the event also offers fast-track status to the finalist round for Startupbootcamp Fintech Accelerator as one of its prizes; interested startup companies must submit their application by September 4 and finalists will be announced on September 10; more details about the competition can be found here. Source
National Internet Finance Association (NIFA) of China on August 30 released ICOs risk alerts; the Association highlights two kinds of risks: 1) some projects raise money in the name of ICO with misguided publicity and this may lead to illegal fundraising; 2) the assets of some ICO projects remain unclear and the information disclosure is far from sufficient. Source (Chinese)
ICOINFO, one of China's largest ICO exchange platforms, announces the suspension of new project launches, awaiting relevant regulatory rules; users will not be able to add value to their accounts during the suspension. Source
The Brazilian Central Bank has proposed allowing fintech companies to lend money without taking deposits; the bank is set to hold public hearings for the next two and a half months on the proposed rules; according to Central Bank Director Otávio Damaso the rules do not need congressional approval; the Brazilian fintech industry has grown sixfold in the past few years and now the regulators are looking to make the country more fintech friendly; banks will also be able to create their own fintech arms when the new rules take effect. Source