Amazon is unbundling financial services from every angle, according to a recent report by CB Insights
Merchants on the platform will qualify for funds ranging from $200 all the way up to $500,000, depending on the nature of their business
Karsten Wenzlaff, Advisor
August 26th, 2025
Karsten Wenzlaff is a Crowdfunding and Fintech Expert from Germany. He is Secretary-General of Digit[...]
Category Archives: P2P, Lending, Digital Bonds, BNPL, Private Credit
No going back: New imperatives for European banking
McKinsey & Company | By Matthieu L, Debasish P, Ildiko R, Hiro S, and Marcus S | May 18, 2020
Now is the time for Europe’s banking leaders to reimagine how their institutions operate and their role in society.
COVID-19 remains an unresolved health challenge that has resulted in tragic loss of life. The economic contraction emerging in its wake will likely be the deepest since World War II and the road to recovery will be long and challenging.
Over the past few months, banking leaders have displayed resolve and resilience, moving swiftly to protect the health of employees and customers, ensure the continuity of basic banking services, and build up capital, liquidity, and cost buffers to strengthen their institutions. In the coming months, banks will start to return to something resembling normal service, reopening offices and branches. But so much has changed over the past few weeks: customers’ financial needs, the way they engage, how employees work, and even society’s expectations of banks.
See: Dealing with a crisis: FinTech versus Bank
The industry will likely face a prolonged period of economic pressure and banks’ actions in the coming months will set their performance trajectory for the years ahead. Banks have shown during the lockdown what is possible in terms of speed and innovation. There is no going back. Now is the time for banking executives to reimagine how their institutions operate. Bold vision and disciplined execution on a set of key imperatives will ultimately differentiate the leaders from the laggards as this crisis abates.
The crisis will put banks under prolonged
It is too early to predict the full impact of the pandemic. The outcome will depend on the length of lockdowns, the drop in demand, and the shape of the recovery. The scale of government support will also be critical—in the last month, some European governments have rolled out packages worth up to 30 percent of GDP and this level of intervention might continue.
All companies must think through possible scenarios to plan their next steps. Based on a recent survey of nine scenarios developed by the McKinsey Global Institute, more than a third of European executives expect a muted recovery. This is the basis of the analysis that follows, but we must keep in mind that other scenarios, both more optimistic and pessimistic, are also plausible.
See: Visa’s digital dollar concept opens a door to central bank currencies
The muted-recovery scenario translates into a drop in GDP of 11 percent across the Eurozone in 2020, and recovery in late 2023. 1 For banks, this would lead to sharp drops in revenue, a squeeze on capital and a hit on return on equity.
No going back - 6 imperatives to win
The crisis has upended the world in which banks operate in terms of customer behavior, ways of working, and government actions.
McKinsey’s European customer survey shows how customer behavior and needs have changed over the past month: digital engagement levels have climbed up to 20 percent, the use of cash has halved, 30 to 40 percent of customers have expressed a greater need for advice, while 20 to 40 percent want products to help them through the crisis. 4 Pension shortfalls are a particular challenge with those close to retirement facing a very immediate problem. Banks will need to reflect on the propositions and channels through which they can best meet these evolving needs.
See: Open banking review faces ‘worrying’ delay as pandemic drives Canadians to fintech
- Innovate new products and propositions. COVID-19 has triggered a range of new financial needs that are waiting to be addressed.
- Lock in the shift to digital sales and service, and reshape physical distribution. In just a couple of months, customers’ adoption of digital banking has leapt forward by a couple of years.
- Create a structurally leaner and scalable cost base. To offset the effect of spiking risk costs and sluggish income, and to free up resources for building digital capabilities, banks need to aim for a cost improvement of 25 to 35 percent (or 20 to 30 percent net increase after reinvestments) over the next two to three years.
- Reset the organization and technology for speed. During the lockdown, many bank teams turned agile overnight and delivered the impossible—such as enabling thousands of employees to work from home, or deploying new digital journeys in record time.
- Double down on risk and capital management. Credit losses will be the defining differentiator of performance over the next year. Early detection and proactive intervention are critical to manage non-performing loans.
- Rebalance the business mix and seek targeted M&A deals. Industry landscapes are often redrawn after crises.
See: COVID-19: A Test Of The Stakeholder Approach
The role of banks in society: A time for purpose-driven choices
Crises often prompt self-reflection and change and this may be a perfect time to reset what has been, at times, a challenging relationship with society. Banks have already been involved in economic support measures, but some may want to be even more proactive, as in Switzerland for example, where banks supported the government-initiated COVID-19 small-business loan program. This could also be a time for banks to rethink their culture. Moving from a control-based culture to one based on strong values supported by smart controls might prove far more effective in steering European banks towards recovery in the volatile future.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Dealing with a crisis: FinTech versus Bank
The Finanser | Chris Skinner | May 15, 2020
The chasm between start-ups and incumbents is massively exposed by coronavirus. I realised this early on, when I saw that FinTech firms who were born on the internet were far more ready for working from home than traditional banks who depend on branches, buildings, office and physicality. A good example is how traditional banks who depend upon physicality completely shutdown in the lockdown, whilst challenger banks who were born digital had planned for this. Monzo and Starling actually trialled a lockdown process in February, and were ready for a government ordered stay at home process … most traditional banks were caught like rabbits in car headlights.
In fact, this pandemic may be a defining moment for those who could cope and those who could not.
This obviously applies at the micro level – some people are blossoming in this crisis whilst others are crumbling – but it also applies at the macro level. At this level, in finance, we see many of the young financial firms creating and innovating whilst the old financial firms are reacting like something out of a Disney film … Frozen.
Case in point: challenger versus traditional bank.
During the crisis, the challenger banks have been working hard to deliver ideas and results, with Starling Bank and Chime being the biggest headline grabbers in this space.
See: NCFA Open Letter: Government should collaborate with Fintechs
The UK challenger bank, Starling Bank, rolled out a connected card, to allow customers to give a payment card to a friend or carer to do their shopping for them; whilst the American digital bank Chime were offering cash advances direct to their app for citizens, ahead of the $1,200 stimulus payments announced by the US Government.
“Funding Options, a UK fintech, technology allows it to link prospective lenders to suitable borrowers quickly. The firm has relationships with over 200 lender partners and some of the largest commercial banks in the UK; many of its partners are implementing the UK government’s coronavirus business interruption loan scheme (CBILS). When a traditional bank is unable to offer a business a loan, it can refer the prospective borrower to Funding Options, which helps search for an alternative lender.”
And they note that Funding Circle, Kabbage, Toborrow and Credible offer similar propositions.
I even joined a Zoom call the other day where a few FinTech firms shared new ideas about how the government could deal with this crisis faster. Railsbank had rolled Lightning Aid, enabling Government departments, NGOs and community groups to distribute financial support directly to those who need it most; Curve were issuing prepaid financial tokens for communities who appreciate their local restaurants and stores to #saveyourlocal; and SETL were generating distributed ledger forms that could use social security numbers to distribute benefits from government to citizen direct.
Fantastic.
Then you come to the traditional banks.
My own experience with one of the major high street banks has been awful, as I blogged about the other day. Their call centre closed with no notice, their internet portal was broken, they were uncontactable by phone of online. When they fixed it, things worked a little but then the government introduced CBILS, Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Schemes, for small businesses … and the system ground to a halt.
See:
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Lendio Facilitates More $5.5 Billion in Relief Funds to Over 50,000 Small Businesses Through the Paycheck Protection Program
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Bridge to Recovery: The Bank’s COVID-19 Pandemic Response | Open Banking Consultations Delayed in Canada
I tried to get a CBILS loan, and found the bank firstly didn’t respond. When they eventually did, after almost a month, there were several roadblocks in the way such as a demand for 2019 accounts which didn’t exist – they’re not due for filing with Companies House until late summer.
Now, I understand why this might be – the UK government only backed CBILS for 80% of the risk – but, even so … so, thank goodness for the UK government’s bounce back loan scheme.
This was introduced on the 4th May – May the Fourth be with you – and is 100% backed by government. The promise was that this would be in your small business account within 24 hours of application.
Unsurprisingly, thousands of small businesses applied – UK banks approved almost 70,000 loans worth billions on day one – but my bank proved interesting.
Their application form was simple but kept saying there were errors. I didn’t see any errors and tweeted about it. Someone replied: “do not enter your company number and it will go through”. It did, but this was interesting. It’s a form with seven questions and my bank could not even get that right. One of their seven questions was asking for my company number and, if I entered it, the online form would fail (bear in mind, you cannot call this bank – their call centre closed when India closed).
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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How is Amazon disrupting the financial services sector?
Fintech Magazine | | May 13, 2020
Amazon is unbundling financial services from every angle, according to a recent report by CB Insights
The report, Everything You Need to Know About What Amazon is Doing in Financial Services, recognises Amazon’s building of a host of financial services products and tools in the areas of payments, cash and lending.
These, it notes, “support its core strategic goal: increasing participation in the Amazon ecosystem”.
In this article, we look more closely at Amazon’s activity in the payments sector.
The modern banking experience
There is ongoing speculation around the entry of Big Tech companies such as Amazon into the financial services sector.
See:
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Cash, Plastic or Hand? Amazon Envisions Paying With a Wave
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Shopify displaces RBC to become Canada’s most valuable company
However, says CB Insights, to understand the implications of such a move, it is important to analyse the company’s current financial services strategy.
To date, says the report, there is little sign of Amazon working to build the next generation of banks. Rather, the company has built and launched tools with the aim of:
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Increasing the amount of merchants on Amazon and enabling them to sell more
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Growing the number of customers on Amazon and allowing them to spend more
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Continuing to reduce any buying or selling friction that exists.
The company has also made a number of fintech investments in international markets aimed at building a pool of partners that can achieve its overarching strategic goals.
While these don’t equate to a traditional banking experience, CB Insights explains that
“Amazon has taken the core components of a modern banking experience and tweaked then to suit [its] customers.” It adds that “In a sense, Amazon is building a bank for itself - and that may be an even more compelling development than the company launching a deposit-holding bank”.
Payments
Investment in payments infrastructure has been a core focus of the company, says CB Insights. Amazon Pay, for example, no offers a digital wallet to customers and a payments network for online and brick-and-mortar merchant service.
See:
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Amazon, Walmart, the Secret Battle for FinTech Supremacy: Part II
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Google and Gates Foundation to help spread digital payments in developing countries
It is, however, the latest iteration of more than a decade’s worth of forays into payments functionality from the brand, which includes products such as Pay with Amazon and Amazon Webpay.
The report notes several techniques that have been employed by Amazon to improve its payments experience, including digital wallet technology, mobile payments developments and partnering with other merchant acquirers.
On possible future developments in the payments sphere, CB Insights points to Amazon’s announcing an integration with Worldpay in 2019, which acts as a back-end intermediary between banks and credit card companies.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Shopify expands capital lending program to help Canadian merchants weather COVID-19
Financial Post | James McLeod | Apr 20, 2020
Merchants on the platform will qualify for funds ranging from $200 all the way up to $500,000, depending on the nature of their business
Shopify Inc. will begin providing cash advances directly to online merchants in Canada, as the Ottawa-based ecommerce giant rushes out products to support small businesses through the COVID-19 pandemic.
In an interview with the Financial Post, chief operating officer Harley Finkelstein said that merchants on their platform will qualify for funds ranging from $200 all the way up to $500,000, depending on the nature of their business.
Originally launched in 2016, Shopify Capital was originally only available to ecommerce merchants in the United States, but in late March the company expanded eligibility to the United Kingdom.
See: Fintech: The Fourth Platform
Shopify took great pains to emphasize that the Shopify Capital program provides “cash advances” — not loans — to the merchants who use their platform.
“It’s not a loan. It’s a cash advance, because if you don’t sell anything tomorrow, we’re not taking anything out,” Finkelstein said.
“No credit checks, no deadline on the repayment. The business is not obligated to pay for anything if they’re not making sales. There’s no interest; it’s a factor rate, which is different. And it’s not secured with any collateral.”
The cash advances are insured by Export Development Canada, and Shopify says that the advances are low risk and seamless, because the company can see the merchant’s selling history and has all of the necessary financial data to make underwriting decisions.
Finkelstein said Shopify is adjusting eligibility criteria on the fly, as the COVID-19 pandemic upends markets and dramatically changes consumer behaviour.
“It’s really good to be a tech company in that way, because we can basically change our underwriting algorithms, we can change our machine learning, kind of on a dime,” he said. “So we don’t necessarily need to look back over a year, we can look back over a week or two or three, and say, ‘OK, we see how this business is changing.’”
Finkelstein used a meat wholesaler in Ottawa as an example of how Shopify Capital can help.
See: A global view of how consumer behavior is changing amid COVID-19
“If you’re going to change your business from being a wholesale meat supplier for restaurants to being a direct-to-consumer meat retailer like premiummeats.ca, you may actually need a little bit of capital to change those things around,” he said.
“You may need money for marketing, you may need money for inventory, so waiting three weeks in this current climate is not acceptable.”
In March the company also announced that it will make an extra US$200 million available for Shopify Capital. With more than US$800 million already provided in cash advances since the program started in 2016, the company is on pace to pass the $1 billion mark this year.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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UK Government Adds COVID-19 Program to Support Early State Ventures. Is it Enough?
Crowdfund Insider | | Apr 20, 2020
In a widely anticipated move, HM Treasury announced a new package of bailout programs for early-stage ventures that did not qualify for programs initially set into place to support the COVID-19 battered economy. There have been profound concerns that younger, entrepreneurial firms that require ongoing funding would simply cease to exist – potentially eliminating an entire generation of startups.
The program includes a new £1.25 billion coronavirus package to aid innovative young firms including a £500 million investment fund for high-growth companies impacted by the crisis, made up of funding from government and the private sector.
An additional £750 million of grants and loans were targeted for SMEs focusing on research and development.
Launching in May, the £500 million “Future Fund” will be delivered in partnership with the British Business Bank. The fund will provide UK-based companies with between £125,000 and £5 million from the government, with private investors at least matching the government commitment.
These loans will automatically convert into equity on the company’s next qualifying funding round, or at the end of the loan if they are not repaid. To be eligible, a business must be an unlisted UK registered company that has previously raised at least £250,000 in equity investment from third-party investors in the last five years.
See: Survey finds Canadian small businesses seeing 50 percent revenue decline amid COVID-19
Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak commented on the new aid packages:
“Britain is a global leader when it comes to innovation. Our start-ups and businesses driving research and development are one of our great economic strengths, and will help power our growth out of the coronavirus crisis. This new, world-leading fund will mean they can access the capital they need at this difficult time, ensuring dynamic, fast-growing firms across all sectors will be able to continue to create new ideas and spread prosperity.”
Alok Sharma, Business Secretary, said that the packages will “protect some of the most dynamic sectors of our economy” while Secretary of State for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, Oliver Dowden said that the UK is the tech and creative capital of Europe.
“It is crucial we maintain our place,” Dowden stated.
Charlotte Crosswell, CEO of Innovate Finance – the leading voice in the UK for Fintech innovation, welcomed the announcement from HM Treasury. Crosswell said this was about protecting the innovation in finance that will be vital for the UK’s recovery efforts.
“These new measures will help Fintech businesses to raise the funds needed to survive the crisis. It will support a sector full of early stage companies, which are more prone to struggle in these volatile times. The UK is already known globally as a leader in Fintech and we want to ensure companies have support and funding in place to continue their development at this crucial time.”
Luke Lang, co-founder of Crowdcube and Founding Partner of the Save Our Startups campaign, lauded the news of the new programs. Lang and many other prominent members of the UK entrepreneurial ecosystem published an Open Letter addressed to the UK government earlier this month calling on officials to address the looming startup crisis.
“The UK Government has finally stepped up and taken action against the looming crisis for Britain’s celebrated startup and scaleup community. The funding package outlined today will undoubtedly make a real difference to thousands of fast growth businesses. It’s now vital we focus on getting this investment to the right businesses swiftly so we minimise any damage caused by Covid-19 and ensure Britain’s most ambitious businesses not only survive this crisis but are able to thrive again once the bounce back begins.”
See: NCFA Open Letter: Government should collaborate with Fintechs
Lang explained that the new measures followed weeks of lobbying the UK government. The Save Our Startups program was endorsed by high profile names like; Baroness Lane-Fox, Co-founder of Lastminute.com; Alex Chesterman, Founder of Cazoo, LoveFilm and Zoopla; Arnaud Massenet, Co-founder of Net-a-porter; Mike Muller, Co-founder of ARM; Anthony Fletcher, CEO of Graze; Guillaume Pousaz – Founder & CEO, Checkout.com; Louise Hill, Co-founder & COO of gohenry, Will Butler-Adams, Founder and CEO, of Brompton Bicycle; Annabel Jack, Chief Commercial Officer of Made.com and Ines Ures, CMO of Deliveroo.
“Great Britain and London has long been seen as the startup capital of Europe and the envy of our European neighbours but that was under threat from Covid-19 and the subsequent weeks of inaction from the UK Government while other European countries raced to rescue its startup and tech communities with multi-billion Euro funding packages,” added Lang.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Lendio Facilitates More $5.5 Billion in Relief Funds to Over 50,000 Small Businesses Through the Paycheck Protection Program
Online lending platform Lendio announced on Friday it facilitated more than 50,000 small businesses across the U.S. through the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). Lendio reported that PPP applications approved through its online marketplace and bank partnerships total more than $5.5 billion.
As previously reported, the PPP is part of the $2 trillion CARES Act signed on March 27, 2020, aimed at getting small business owners back on their feet and millions of Americans back to work following the COVID-19 pandemic. Lendio launched its PPP loan application for small business owners on April 3rd and Small business owners were able to apply directly through the lender’s portal and were connected with one of the approved capital providers in Lendio’s extensive network of banks, credit unions, and fintech lenders.
See: NCFA Open Letter: Government should collaborate with Fintechs
Lendio revealed that with only $349 billion in government funds set aside for the nation’s 30 million small businesses, the SBA announced on April 16th that the funds had been exhausted. Speaking about the process, Brock Blake, CEO and Co-Founder of Lendio, stated that the Lendio team worked tirelessly to ensure that their applications were meeting the Small Business Administration (SBA) requirements and guidelines for fully-completed applications, and they submitted every completed application to our funding lenders.
“We processed more applications in two weeks than we have in the last 12 months combined. We are devastated for the thousands of Lendio customers that didn’t receive a confirmation before the program hit its cap—we are already preparing their applications to make sure they are ready to be approved if Congress increases the fund size.”
Blake also revealed that Lendio’s average PPP loan size was just more than $110,000, with the national average being more than double that (just under $240,000).
“With only 1.6 million of the 30 million U.S. small businesses approved, we are heartbroken for the applicants that weren’t approved by the SBA before the funds ran dry.”
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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Credit Science: the new discipline OakNorth created to redefine borrowing for the Missing Middle
The Fintech Times | | Apr 18, 2020
OakNorth credit science
When it comes to commercial lending, credit analysis is an essential part of the process. Banks use it to assesses the ability of a business to sustain a certain level of debt and repay its loan. A bank can only lend money if it understands the viability of the business and therefore the risk of potentially not being repaid.
This process involves a combination of skill and human judgement and has always encountered difficulty in comparing one business to another. A steakhouse on Wall Street catering to investment bankers, will be nothing like a vegan restaurant in Greenwich Village, even if the two happen to be in the same area. Their clientele, their offerings, their pricing model, and how they respond to different economic stresses, will vary significantly. This is compounded by the fact that veganism wasn’t a popular concept until very recently so there is very little comparable data on the sector available. This lack of data is ironic given that we are inundated on all fronts by data – much of which is difficult to digest and make sense of.
Credit analysis therefore faces three related challenges:
- how to find all the data required to answer a credit question
- how to make sense of this data – given both the volume of data that exists and the gaps in that data – and derive insights from it
- how to apply these insights to understand a business and answer specific credit questions about it
Unless these challenges are met head-on, credit analysts can end up spending the vast majority of their time trying to find data and massage it into a useable format, rather than actually doing analysis. They therefore risk missing crucial insights in the deluge of data points and producing analysis that is weak and not grounded in facts, or worse still, is hampered by their own biases and not applicable to a changing world.
See: Just 1.4% of firms enquiring about UK coronavirus business loans successful
At OakNorth, we’ve created a framework to tackle these challenges, known as “credit science”:
The foundation of the pyramid is data. We are constantly looking for additional data sources to enhance our understanding and just as importantly, for ways to connect these data sources The foundation of the pyramid is data. We are constantly looking for additional data sources to enhance our understanding and just as importantly, for ways to join these data sources together to form an intelligible whole. We combine data from numerous sources into a common data platform which can be used to benefit the bank partners using our platform, whilst ensuring their data is fully confidential.
We build on this with the use of data science, which derives insights from this data in a robust and scientific manner:
– We construct predictive models to forecast future performance of companies.
– We use clustering to group companies and find outliers.
– We look for drivers– leading indicators which might help us foresee when a particular company or even a whole sector may run into difficulties.
– We use data science to join the dots between data sources, filling in the blind spots using inference and deduction so the picture of a business that emerges is much more focused and filtered than anything available in a single source.
See: Ep20-Jan 11: Bitcoin Backed Loans and 2x Credit – Putting Your Crypto to Work
The fact is that commercial lending hasn’t changed for decades – banks are still using the same methods and data sources they used in the 80s, despite the fact that the world has moved on. The internet for example brought with it social media, online reviews, lower sales and distribution costs, new revenue streams, etc. As a result of climate change, consumers are becoming more conscious of purchasing goods and services from businesses that conduct themselves in an environmentally and socially-conscious way.
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The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA Canada) is a financial innovation ecosystem that provides education, market intelligence, industry stewardship, networking and funding opportunities and services to thousands of community members and works closely with industry, government, partners and affiliates to create a vibrant and innovative fintech and funding industry in Canada. Decentralized and distributed, NCFA is engaged with global stakeholders and helps incubate projects and investment in fintech, alternative finance, crowdfunding, peer-to-peer finance, payments, digital assets and tokens, blockchain, cryptocurrency, regtech, and insurtech sectors. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: www.ncfacanada.org
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