First State Super to expand VC platform
First State Super chief investment officer Richard Brandweiner spoke about his fund’s continuing investment in venture capital at the H2 Ventures Fintech Expo in Sydney yesterday. The $52 billion super fund announced a $110 million investment in technology venture capital firm Blackbird Ventures in September 2015 alongside Hostplus, which made a smaller contribution. Mr Brandweiner said he wants to build out a venture capital platform “triangle” within First State Super’s portfolio, with broad technology, fintech and ‘bio sciences’ at the corners. “Broad tech is the biggest area; fintech has great relevance for us as a retail financial services provider; and a large part of our membership is in the health […]
Lend2Fund lured to London by friendly fintech regulation
One of the10 fintech start-ups that joined a UK Trade & Investment delegation to London last month has decided to relocate there, suggesting governments and regulators need to lift their game to keep entrepreneurial talent in Australia. Lend2Fund, a marketplace lender for commercial property deals, says Britain’s financial regulator, the Financial Conduct Authority, is more transparent and collaborative than the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. It also says UK financial services licensing is more accommodating towards Lend2Fund’s business model, which creates a digital marketplace to offer commercial property loans to professional investors with debentures. The move also reflects better opportunities for seed funding in the UK, where the Conservative government […]
Melbourne fintechs rival Sydney, but help needed
Melbourne peer-to-peer lender MoneyPlace has identified a rash of new fintechs that have started up in the city in the past five years, but argues they in danger of being lured offshore without government help. The first survey of Melbourne’s fintech scene by the lender’s founder Stuart Stoyan has uncovered more than 500 people being employed by 52 companies – three-quarters of which are less than two years old. KPMG released a study of fintechs in Australia in late 2014. It identified 950 start-up businesses in Sydney and about 350 in Melbourne. It has no exact figures for what proportion are fintechs, but estimated there are at least 150 based […]
Fintech firm GetCapital ties up with China’s Alibaba | The Australian
In its last financial year, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba generated $US394 billion ($537bn) of transactions on its platforms as businesses around the world sourced and sold a bewildering range of goods. It is the sort of number that has not been missed by the swarm of new fintech (financial technology) companies scouring for partners to increase the number of customers. After flying under the radar since its formation in early 2013, GetCapital, a fintech that lends to small businesses, will today unveil a deal with Alibaba in which Australian importers and exporters can get finance on the platform. The company hopes to help businesses that struggle to get working capital […]
H2 Ventures and KPMG call for established and emerging startups to nominate for the FinTech 100 list – Startup Daily
Australian FinTech-focused investment firm H2 Ventures and KPMG are calling on local fintech startups to nominate themselves for the global FinTech 100 list, which will celebrate 50 established startups and 50 ’emerging stars’, or undiscovered companies. The established startups will be ranked according to criteria including total capital raised, rate of capital raising, and location and degree of sub-industry disruption, as well as the judging panel’s ratings on the degree of product, service, customer experience, and business model innovation. Given global fintech investment tripled in 2014, it’s clear there’s a huge number of startups doing interesting things in the space. Last year’s inaugural 50 Best FinTech Innovators of 2014 list […]
Equip Super teams up with fintech start-up | Money Management
Multi-sector industry superannuation fund, Equip Super, has partnered with an automated investment service to provide digital advice to the younger demographic that rarely seeks face-to-face financial advice. The super fund has teamed up with Melbourne-based financial technology start-up, Clover.com.au, which will use a goals-based approach to advice and portfolio construction, and algorithms to create portfolios that are intermittently rebalanced to meet clients’ goals. Equip Super chief executive, Danielle Press, said the partnership would allow the $7 billion fund to extend financial advice to those who do not seek it through traditional advice avenues. “We believe super funds have no option but to integrate fintech into their service offer,” she said. […]
Accel Partners’ Rich Wong: Australian start-up sector now a global player
More fantastic news on the Australian FinTech industry, and this one line sums it up best – “Australia is now on the radar of tech investors globally” The local start-up sector is increasingly being recognised as a player in the global technology arena as competition for Australian companies heats up among international venture capital funds.Accel Partners’ Rich Wong has backed more local technology companies than any other US fund and has wryly welcomed the growing interest from fellow Silicon Valley-based funds. “Australia is now on the radar of tech investors globally,” Mr Wong told Fairfax Media in San Francisco. “It creates more competition for us and we’d like to keep […]
Optus Business behind fintech startup hub Stone & Chalk – ARN
Great to see other big Australian businesses getting behind Australian FinTech Hubs and Companies to help in their growth. Optus Business is the founding communications partner for new fintech startup hub Stone & Chalk, a Sydney-based, not-for-profit Innovation Centre that houses 41 fintech start-ups. The telco will supply ICT services to a 2300 square metre collaborative facility in Bridge Street, Sydney delivering Internet, managed security and managed Wi-Fi technology and services. Optus Business managing director, John Paitaridis, said he was delighted to partner with Stone & Chalk to encourage innovation and entrepreneurship in the Australian fintech sector and support local start-ups. “Innovation and responding to change is a critical challenge […]
