Fintech investment thriving in the UK
Financial technology, or fintech, is thriving in the UK, with many start-ups leading innovation across the country. With new advances in fintech it is increasingly easy to check your balance on the go, or to utilise contactless technology wherever you may be. It’s developing at such a rate that technologies such as paying with your phone or fingerprint technology at a checkout will soon become the norm. How much is it growing in the UK? A report from UK Fintech said that industry investment had increased by over 50% each year since 2008. To put things in perspective this is twice as much growth as in the Silicon Valley, which […]
Fintech: Why It Matters So Much to Your Investment
Fintech is a term that combines two words; Financial and Technology. It means emerging financial services that are fast expanding to include inventions in financial literacy, retail banking, education, investing, and cryptocurrencies. While fintech was initially only applied to conventional technologies that were applied to back-end established clients and financial institutions, the term now refers to how to people operate their enterprises ranging from double-entry accounting to currency invention. Notably, financial technology has grown explosively as mobile internet revolution advances. Facts about Fintech and their applications today In their latest report, Accenture established that international investment in fintech blast through the roof in just a couple of years. From $ […]
Digital currency exchange Coinbase raises $100 million, hits $1 billion valuation
Digital currency exchange Coinbase announced on its blog on Thursday that it has raised $100 million in so-called “Series D” funding led by U.S. venture capital firm IVP, making it the first bitcoin start-up to achieve a valuation of at least $1 billion. Start-ups with a $1 billion valuation are part of what is called a “unicorn” club in the venture capital industry. The $1 billion valuation was estimated by data and research provider Pitchbook. Series D is generally the fifth stage of funding, following a seed investment, and series A through C rounds. With the new investment, Coinbase has raised $217 million since it launched in 2012. It raised […]
Vantiv seals $10 billion Worldpay acquisition
Vantiv Inc. agreed to acquire U.K. payments processor Worldpay Group PLC for about GBP8 billion ($10.4 billion) in cash and stock, one of the biggest deals in the fast consolidating sector. The tie-up, according to a joint statement Wednesday, will create a trans-Atlantic payments processing giant with a combined market value of more than $20 billion. The companies disclosed their negotiations last month as the Ohio-based Vantiv appeared at the time to ward off a potential rival bid from J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. The combined entity will be called Worldpay. Payments businesses are under pressure to join forces in part to cut costs as greater regulatory scrutiny and rising […]
The 10 Biggest Fintech Companies in America
Financial technology companies in the U.S. raised $3.5 billion in the first half of 2017, according to KPMG, as investors rushed to place bets in buzzy sectors like insurance and digital currencies. The U.S. is now home to 13 fintech unicorns who have scored valuations of at least $1 billion. This year alone, Robinhood (free trading), AvidXChange (automated invoicing for small businesses) and Symphony (Wall Street messaging platform) all joined the billion-dollar club. Here are the ten most valuable private venture-backed fintech players based in the U.S.: 1. Stripe Value: $9.2 billion* Founded: 2010 Founders: Patrick and John Collison CEO: Patrick Collison Allows merchants to accept online and mobile payments […]
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) […]
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 […]
