Tandem is a banking app to help individuals manage their finances; according to the Financial Times, the acquisition will provide GBP80 million ($103.8 million) of capital as well as a banking license; Tandem lost their banking license earlier this year after a failed investment by a Chinese conglomerate; the firm was concerned about whether China's State Administration of Foreign Exchange would approve the transaction; the acquisition still has to go through regulatory approval but if approved will allow Tandem to offer savings accounts. Source
The Ranger Direct Lending Fund announced its second quarter 2017 dividend; the Fund has decreased its dividend to 24.26 pence per ordinary share; the lower dividend was a result of ongoing issues with investment in the Princeton Alternative Income Fund which had exposure to troubled lending platform Argon Credit; the Fund's returns have also been lower over the past few months and it has increased its cash holdings. Source
The People's Bank of China (PBoC) requires all third-party payment institutions to channel transactions through a newly established central clearing platform called Nets Union Clearing Corp. (Wanglian); the trial operations started in April and will be put to formal use on July 1, 2018; by that time, all third-party payment firms (including Alipay and TenPay), will not be able to conduct transactions, such as bank transfers, outside of regulator's supervision. Source
A WeBank employee wrote a post in WeChat Moment, announcing that the loan amount of Weilidai (WeBank's micro loan product) is over RMB100 billion ($14.92 billion); Weilidai's loan amount has increased almost 300% over the past seven months; according to its financial results, WeBank lost RMB583 million ($86.97 million) in the first year (2015); but in 2016, it made a profit of RMB401 million ($59.82 million); in the first four months of 2017, WeBank made a profit of RMB500 million ($74.59 million); in terms of product, WeBank has launched an enterprise-grade product, "Weiyedai"; Weiyedai provides unsecured loans of up to RMB3 million ($447,507) to enterprises, with annual percentage rates ranging from 10.95% to 16.43%. Source (Chinese)
CB Insights provides a market map with 102 lending, investing and personal finance startups; gives retail consumers an array of options to choose from; includes companies providing innovative solutions across the entire retail banking market. Source
The idea behind Humaniq was to bring the underbanked, a number that estimates around 3.5 billion worldwide, into the banking world; in an interview with the Huffington Post, Humaniq CEO Dinis Guarda talks about the solution they are bringing to the market; they are working with emerging economies where people live on $2.50 a day and have access to a smartphone; the Humaniq banking app will allow these individuals to have access to chats, wallets, payments, microloans and peer-to-peer lending services; they are doing an initial test in Ghana, allowing users to chat and make payments with their phones to local merchants; offering the underbanked a solution is something that can help lift communities and ultimately countries out of poverty. Source
LendingCrowd will give investors GBP150 ($195) for every GBP2,500 ($3,257) investment they make on the platform through August 31; the offer is open to new and existing investors and can also be obtained through investment in the firm's new IFISA; the Edinburgh-based peer-to-peer lending platform is primarily focused on SME loans and has originated GBP15 million ($19.5 million) in cumulative lending from 182 loans. Source
Ping An is investing 7.77 billion yuan ($1.16 billion) in technology research and development this year with artificial intelligence as the focus; the firm's Ping An Technology division is supporting the efforts; the group has been focusing on solutions for finance and healthcare with plans to expand to other industries; the company's goals are also in line with a government initiative announced by China's State Council; current efforts for Ping An have been centered around recognition software for identity and claims management. Source
The People's Bank of China says in a report that it is considering expanding its risk-assessment system beyond banks to include major online financial businesses; the Wall Street Journal comments that China's central bank is increasing its monitoring of the loosely regulated fintech sector. Source
The Series A fundraising included both debt and equity capital; investment was led by K2 Venture Capital with participation from STI Financial Group and Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper who made his first investment in an Indonesian startup; firm will use the funds to expand its lending and build its technology with plans for adding new research and development centers for machine learning and algorithm design; platform provides short term micro-loans of between US$75 and US$350 for a maximum of 30 days. Source