Online real estate lending platform PeerStreet has partnered with Wealthfront; PeerStreet will integrate with Wealthfront's Path offering; the integration has been facilitated by Quovo and will allow PeerStreet customers to view their PeerStreet investments holistically within their entire Wealthfront investment portfolio. Source
The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC) released its fintech charter in March; many state regulators oppose the charter saying the OCC doesn't have the authority to offer the charter and that the charter is dangerous, unnecessary and violates state sovereignty; Brian Knight from the Mercatus Center at George Mason University discusses these arguments and how state legislation may evolve with the introduction and debate of the fintech charter. Source
The New York Department of Financial Services continues to thoroughly investigate the business practices of online lenders; a proposal is in process that would require increased regulation for online lenders; specifically new regulations would be instituted for all lenders making personal loans of $25,000 or less and business loans of $50,000 or less and would also apply to online lenders involved in soliciting loans and buying loans. Source
Offering products to retail investors is something a lot of online platforms have struggled with as they look for diverse funding sources; the panel at LendIt USA 2017 entitled: New Models of Raising Debt and Equity Funding: eREITs & More with Kendall Davis of Fundrise, Jilliene Helman of RealtyMogul.com and moderator Mesh Lakhani of Mark 2 Capital discussed one of these retail options; panelists focused on how they source deals, inbound versus outbound sales teams, and how you must learn to be selective when looking at dealflow; the eREIT is a good portfolio addition for investors, it is long term and lacks volatility; panelists also discussed their thoughts on the new Trump administration and future innovative ideas for their platforms. Source
Lending Club and Prosper were the first and for a long time the only online lending platforms available to retail investors; recently companies have leveraged Regulation A+ in order to open offerings across real estate and small business lending to retail investors; Lend Academy outlines additional companies open to retail investors including: Fundrise, RealtyMogul.com, Groundfloor and StreetShares. Source
Firm has been providing working capital financing for small and medium size businesses (SME) for three years; reported working capital funding of approximately $200 million in 2016 and estimates total funding through 2017 to reach $700 million; firm primarily lends to retail, IT services, business services, media and entertainment, engineering and construction through its flexible working capital financing and Flex Credit product which offers revolving business credit lines of up to $100,000. Source
The Trump administration has announced a White House innovation office that will focus on modernizing technology of federal government departments; his son-in-law, Jared Kushner, will oversee the innovation office; private sector technology executive advisors to the innovation office include Tim Cook from Apple and Bill Gates from Microsoft. Source
Global Debt Registry (GDR) will partner with TransUnion for data to enhance GDR's eValidation services; the data partnership will help to improve eValidation's verification for investors and issuing creditors also providing more in-depth analytics on borrowers; GDR President Charlie Moore says, "Their data allows our investors to gain more confidence in the underlying assets through verification, validation and enhanced credit risk tools." Source
Collectly has created an online debt collection platform that utilizes machine learning technology to track and learn about debtors through each interaction; the platform's technology connects with its clients to provide greater transparency on delinquent debt; the company also seeks to provide structured repayment terms for debtors through personalized communication. Source
Crowdfund Insider provides details on how to launch a real estate crowdfunding platform in the US; discusses different types of offerings and securities; also outlines business planning, capital funding and licensing. Source