Two of Britain’s fastest growing fintechs are going after a huge pot of money: pensions
Fast-growing online investment startups Moneyfarm and Scalable Capital are both planning to launch pension products later this year, hoping that accessing the huge UK retirement market could super-charge their growth. Moneyfarm announced plans to launch a pension product later this year when it announced its full year results on Friday. Those results show that the startup, which launched in Italy in 2012 and the UK last year, currently has £260 million in assets under management. It offers personal investment and ISA products. Paolo Galvani, Moneyfarm’s cofounder and chairman, told Business Insider: “We will launch a UK pension product in the fourth quarter and next year Italy. For the next few […]
Fintech Kantox raises £4.6 million from investors as it targets profitability
Foreign exchange fintech company Kantox has raised £4.6 million from its existing investors as it aims for profitability. Filings with Companies House show Kantox raised the sum at the end of July. CEO and founder Philippe Gelis confirmed the fundraise with Business Insider over email, saying the company raised the money from existing investors Partech Ventures, IDinvest Partners, and Mundi Ventures. Gelis told Business Insider: “We indeed raised some more money with our existing investors. We are progressing well and focusing on building sophisticated software solutions for our clients. “We have great traction so we did not want to look for new investors (something which is always very time consuming) […]
Hong Kong Stock Exchange to launch Blockchain-powered market in 2018
The Hong Kong Stock Exchange (HKEX) is planning to launch a blockchain-powered private market aimed at helping smaller firms obtain financing. HKEX chief executive Charles Li detailed the plan, which would play out through a separate venture dubbed HKEX Private Market, in an August 1 note. The disclosure came in response to a question about tapping local technology resources – and whether Hong Kong is positioned to do so. Though no firm launch date has been disclosed, Li said that the platform would kick off sometime in 2018. “The Private Market will serve as a ‘nursery’ for early stage companies before they are ready to enter public markets,” he explained. “They can […]
For fintech inspiration, LPL turns to Acorns, not Betterment
LPL isn’t shying away from the task of building up a new technological foundation for a fiduciary-focused, digital advice era. The largest independent broker-dealer spent $77 million last year on technology upgrades alone, an effort that includes developing a digital advice platform with BlackRock’s FutureAdvisor, transitioning to a new advisor and client management platform and launching a mobile app for clients to connect and interact with advisors. But even though LPL envisions a future where advisors are using automation and behavioral management alongside portfolio and planning services, its top technology executives say robo advisors like Betterment or Wealthfront aren’t sources of inspiration. “We’ve looked at market and are trying to […]
Bank of America files for 3 new Blockchain patents
Three new patent applications reveal that the Bank of America has been working on using distributed ledger technology (DLT) to validate the veracity of information – and those who handle it. First filed in February 2016, the details of the three applications were made available to the public last week by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. One case cites a process for using a blockchain to track and validate user identification. For example, the document details how a distributed database system would be able to update a new user’s identification information, and subsequently store and timestamp additional details as time progresses. Data such as “signatures, physical attributes, or locations of the user are identified,” the […]
Singapore’s GIC leads $220 million funding round for Chinese P2P lender Dianrong
Chinese peer-to-peer lending platform Dianrong has raised $220 million from Singapore sovereign fund GIC Pte Ltd [GIC.UL] and other investors to fund R&D in China and potential ventures elsewhere in Asia. Other investors in the funding round included CMIG Leasing, a unit of China’s biggest private investment conglomerate China Minsheng Investment Group (CMIG), and South Korean fund manager Simone Investment Managers, Dianrong said on Wednesday. The Shanghai-based firm will use the funds to automate some of its new branches across China, for research and development and potential acquisitions, Dianrong’s co-Chief Executive Soul Htite told Reuters. “Now we’ve graduated to another level, so people that know finance are also seeing us […]
Oxford University is getting into fintech
Oxford University, the centuries-old British education institution, is branching out into fintech. The university’s Saïd Business School announced on Wednesday that it will launch an online short course in fintech — financial technology for the uninitiated — that is designed to help prepare business executives for a future where more and more financial services functions are based around tech. “Oxford Saïd has a commitment to preparing global executives for the challenges of both today and tomorrow,” Peter Tufano, the Peter Moores Dean and Professor of Finance at the school, told Business Insider over email. “Our faculty have been active in fintech research and teaching, up to and including starting fintech […]
Fintech funding on the rebound as Irish start-ups play part
Global fintech investment more than doubled from the first to the second quarter on the back of a sharp rise in European funding deals. Ireland played its part, recording fintech investments of more than $230 million (€194 million) in the three-month period, led by Plynk which raised €25 million in a Series A round from Swiss Privée in June. Total global funding to fintech firms rose to $8.4 billion (€7.1 billion) from $3.6 billion (€3 billion) with European fintech investment jumping to over $2 billion (€1.7 billion). This is well below the peak investment high of $5.8 billion (€4.9 billion) seen in the fourth quarter of 2015, but up on […]
