Paul Schulte, Advisor, Banking and Financial Services
August 22nd, 2019
Paul Schulte is the Founder and Managing Editor of Shulte Research based in Singapore. Paul's roles[...]
Category Archives: Online Funding Portals
Lock BTC, Get DAI: Lending Firm Bridges Bitcoin-DeFi Divide in Latin America
Coindesk | Leigh Cuen | Oct 29, 2019
Canadian startup Ledn, which offers bitcoin-backed fiat loans, now also offers dollar-pegged DAI loans, connecting bitcoin users with ethereum’s decentralized finance (DeFi) ecosystem.
Ledn co-founder Mauricio Di Bartolomeo, a Venezuelan expat, told CoinDesk this new partnership with stablecoin promoter MakerDAO was driven by customer demand.
Out of “thousands” of users, more than half of Ledn’s users are in Latin America, Di Bartolomeo said, where ethereum-backed DAI is increasingly seen as an alternative to strictly regulated dollar transfers. In fact, this past weekend the central bank of Argentina restricted civilians to buying only $200 in USD per month, down from the previous $10,000.
“In Argentina, if you receive a bank transference in USD they convert it immediately to ARS (Argentinian Nuevo peso), and you lose money,” Nadia Alvarez, MakerDAO’s head of business development in Latin America, told CoinDesk. “We know BTC hodlers don’t want to sell their BTC, but they need liquidity, for their daily expenses. That is why we think this is relevant for Latin America.”
Ledn isn’t the first company to notice that bitcoiners are eager for access to the ethereum community’s experimental loan products. Silicon Valley startups in the Cross-Chain Working Group are also working on a different solution to allow wrapped bitcoin tokens directly on the ethereum blockchain.
Plus, later this month Maker token holders, who govern the stablecoin ecosystem, will vote on whether to include bitcoin among the upcoming multi-collateral version of DAI. (Currently, DAI tokens are only made by locking up ether tokens in smart contracts that monitor ether prices and automatically liquidate the ether collateral if the price plummets.)
See:
In the meantime, Ledn will buy ethereum-backed DAI from over-the-counter traders and manage bitcoin custody for loan clients. Di Bartolomeo said clients across Latin American have reported banking issues comparable to Argentina, although unique for each context, which is why they are turning to DAI. He added Colombians make up 16 percent of Ledn’s user base, the largest demographic in Latin America, followed by Venezuelans at 12 percent.
“Several users have expressed that they would like to use stablecoins like DAI to purchase additional digital assets and others to access more financial services,” he said.
DeFi boom
Ledn users will soon be able to lock up their bitcoin and spend DAI at 750 merchants across Colombia, Venezuela, Argentina and Brazil, according to MakerDAO’s Alvarez.
Separate from the loan startup, MakerDAO is partnering with product-provider Pundi X, and planning to install point-of-sale devices across Latin America so that DAI users can spend crypto directly on goods and services. In addition, brick-and-mortar locations will enable a user in Argentina to send fiat or DAI to Venezuela, for example, with Pundi X’s debit card–esque Xcard.
“The [Ledn] DAI loan gives bitcoiners the opportunity to enter into the DeFi world, and all the projects inside the ecosystem,” Alvarez said.
Di Bartolomeo told CoinDesk he’s excited to work with MakerDAO precisely because they have “boots on the ground” where his customer base lives. Dozens of people have attended DAI meetups in Mexico City, Bogota and Buenos Aires over the past year. Globally, MakerDAO records currently show more than 60,000 DAI wallet addresses in October 2019.
Continue to the full article --> here
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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NEO and Silver Maple Ventures Inc. Introduce DealSquare to Disrupt Canadian Private Markets for the Better
DealSquare | Peter-Paul Van Hoeken | Oct 22, 2019
Launch of Canada’s first B2B centralized digital platform for private placements
Toronto, October 22, 2019 – NEO is pleased to introduce DealSquare, Canada’s first centralized platform to simplify private placements in Canada, by digitally connecting capital raisers to dealers and their investment advisor networks. DealSquare is a technology solution developed by NEO in partnership with Silver Maple Ventures Inc., the company behind Canada’s leading online B2C private markets investment platform, FrontFundr, DealSquare will support the entire private placement process from marketing investment opportunities and electronically managing the due diligence and subscription process, through to efficiently closing the deal.
By utilizing NEO Connect technology, exempt securities will be seamlessly integrated into client accounts and back office systems. With broader and more efficient access to private placement offerings, the costs and operational risks of raising private money will go down, ultimately expanding investment opportunities. It’s a win-win for capital raisers, dealers, investment advisors and investors.
Over the past ten years, investors have flocked to the private markets looking for superior returns and to add balance to their portfolios. However, despite the overall growth in private markets compared to public markets, asset managers and capital raisers of all sizes and stages are still limited in their ability to complete private placements without facing debilitating financial, operational and regulatory burdens. Private placements have also traditionally relied on friends, family and business relationships, inefficiently raising money from a very small subset of the investing community.
See: FrontFundr announces new chair of the board
DealSquare officially launched today, with three dealers immediately connected to the platform and six active private placement offerings.
“Private market investment continues to outpace the public markets; however, access to private offerings has been fragmented, marketed through word-of-mouth and transacted using archaic technology. Today, that changes,” stated Jos Schmitt, President and CEO, NEO. “Together with the team from Silver Maple Ventures, we are making access to private markets easier, more efficient and with less operational risk through DealSquare.
At NEO, our vision from day one has been to bring competition and innovation to all facets of the Canadian capital markets, including the private markets space. We are very proud to continue to deliver on our vision with the introduction of DealSquare. As of today, asset managers and capital-raising companies of all sizes can now partner with NEO to raise capital through multiple channels, whether through the public or private markets, on or off exchange.”
How DealSquare Works
Dealers connected to DealSquare can publish their approved deals to their investment advisors in an organized and centralized manner. They also have the option to open their deal rooms to other dealer networks. Due diligence teams can review all deal information in one place, then choose to approve an offering to be marketed to the advisor network. Registered advisors can download investor-ready documentation and share deal pages with their clients. Investment documents will be digitally executed on the platform, with reporting documentation instantly consolidated and organized. Upon closing, NEO Connect technology will be used to facilitate the electronic settlement of exempt securities into dealer
back office systems and client accounts.
“The private markets have been lagging the public markets with regards to access and efficiency in processing investments,” says Peter-Paul Van Hoeken, Managing Director of DealSquare. “With DealSquare, we simplify the private placement exchange and transaction between dealers and advisors in a fully digitalized and efficient online environment.
We are thrilled to partner with NEO on this opportunity. Our online capital raising and investment processing capabilities, combined with the NEO Connect technology, delivers a highly innovative and powerful private markets solution to the Canadian investment industry.”
See: Why Partnerships Are the Future for Fintech
Dealer and Investment Advisor Access to DealSquare
DealSquare is available to all Canadian investment dealers. Independent investment dealer Aligned Capital Partners Inc. is one of the first three dealers to pioneer DealSquare.. Investment advisors from these firms can request access to DealSquare to open a registered account and access, analyze and transact private market deals. For more information on how to register, please visit the DealSquare website
“We recognize this innovative solution will give our advisors access to private investment deals that will add opportunity and balance to their client portfolios,” said Christopher Enright, Founding Partner, President & Managing Director, Aligned Capital Partners.“ Like Aligned Capital, NEO is focused on providing efficient services and innovative solutions that put the needs and interests of their clients at the forefront. As a strategic partner they helped forge our relationship with DealSquare and we are proud to pioneer this private market deal platform.”
Digital execution will be enabled with the full roll-out of the DealSquare platform, expected during the first half of 2020. During the pilot phase, PDF documentation and manual execution will be faciliated by the DealSquare team.
Raising Capital on DealSquare
Any Canadian private or public company – large or small - can use the platform for private placement offerings. Asset managers can also leverage DealSquare to provide investors with innovative investment opportunities. Working with a dealer to market a private placement on DealSquare will provide broader reach to secure investment interest. A streamlined, electronic investment process will make it easier and more efficient for advisors to subscribe and invest on behalf of their clients. This will lead to a reduction in the cost of raising capital, as access and interest in the private investment opportunity goes up.
See: Debt vs. Equity Financing: Pros And Cons For Entrepreneurs
To learn more about how DealSquare connects Dealers, Advisors and Capital Raisers and how it makes it easy to find, analyze and share private market opportunities, please visit:
https://www.dealsquare.io/About
About DealSquare
DealSquare is a centralized digital platform that gives registered users the ability to efficiently find, analyze and transact private market deals. With the complete roll-out of the platform during the first half of 2020, this dealer-to-dealer platform will digitally support the private placement process: capital raisers publish their private placement opportunities; dealers complete their due diligence; and advisors electronically subscribe to a deal, with exempt securities seamlessly integrated into client accounts and back office systems utilizing NEO Connect technology. DealSquare is a joint initiative between NEO and Silver Maple Ventures to make private markets better and more efficient.
https://www.linkedin.com/company/dealsquaretech/ | https://twitter.com/dealsquaretech
About NEO
NEO or the NEO Group comprises Aequitas Innovations Inc. and its subsidiaries, a group of established fintech companies that provide capital markets infrastructure designed for and led by the industry. Our competition, innovation and advocacy enable change, for the better. NEO is currently home to two capital raising solutions, NEO Exchange, a progressive stock exchange that brings together investors and capital raisers within a fair and transparent environment, and NEO Connect, a technology platform that enables the distribution of financial assets not listed on a stock exchange. To learn more, please visit: https://www.aequitasneo.com
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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When fintech met crowdfunding
AltFi | Luke Lang | Oct 21, 2019
Something special is happening at the intersection of retail investors and financial technology, writes Crowdcube's Luke Lang.
It became clear that fintech companies began to prize crowdfunding three years ago. Monzo crashed our servers in 2016 when it raised £1m in 96 seconds. Last December, the now-serial crowdfunding neobank raised £20m from retail investors.
The staggering thing about Monzo’s raise – and it speaks volumes about where crowdfunding and fintech have reached – is that it did not need to raise the £20m from any of us on the street. In October – i.e. just two months shy of the raise – the bank had closed an £85m round led by VC firm Accel. Raising £20m is no walk in the park. You need to build a prospectus, which is a lengthy and expensive process. Monzo’s crowdfunding raise capped all investments at £2,000, meaning the team chose to have more investors to look after.
See: Canada Update: Alberta Updates Crowdfunding Regulations but Where Does Canada Stand in the National Harmonization of Rules? What about Fintech Development?
The world’s leading fintechs are using crowdfunding to cement and enhance their relationship with their customers. The latest Unicorns report from Beauhurst, an independent analysis firm, identifies the UK’s 21 unicorn companies – those worth $1bn (around £760m) or more. Of the 21, six are fintechs, and two are digital banks: Monzo and Revolut. Both have turned to crowdfunding – at a time when they are the darlings of the tech scene and its investors – to raise capital.
Why?
To answer that, I believe we have to go back to the financial crisis. After 2008, a chasm opened up in financial markets, encouraged by a profound lack of trust. We’re well-versed with the outcomes. The banks that survived had to change their ways, and new players came onto the scene. A decade later, it is the novel relationship between these latest entrants and consumers that gives us an idea of what the future looks like: a world where any business-to-consumer company knows that sharing ownership with its customers is fundamental to long-term success. This is the cooperative movement of the twenty-first century, and it is driven by technology.
Curve, Nutmeg, Freetrade – all these leading fintech companies that want as many as possible to profit from their success. In the last 12 months, we have facilitated the raising of £67m across 21 fintechs. By giving people skin in the game, these firms are securing a base of customers, and champions. From a commercial perspective, each customer’s lifetime value is hugely enhanced. Our customers find that their shareholders are less likely to move providers, more likely to refer friends and family, and more likely to buy more products and services.
Making consumers owners and giving them a say has become integral to how these companies run. Indeed, many are now building their own platforms to manage ownership. What does this tell us about the future? Here are businesses offering equity – not for money, not because they want to list, but to build an affinity with their customers. As these relationships evolve, both sides benefit: greater engagement – better products – more customers – growth – profit – both sides capitalise. It could be called the democracy of building business.
See:
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Architecting a New World: Investment Crowdfunding and Digital Assets
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Early-stage Investing – The Public gets a Seat at the Table
Technology is making this shift around the consumer possible not just in finance, but across markets. While the former has emerged as the vanguard, there are other non-tech sectors that have leapfrogged traditional ownership structures and cemented their own success. Food and beverage, historically underserved by the financial world, was an early adopter of crowdfunding. BrewDog is the poster child for this – a four-time Crowdcube funded brewery. It has 120,000 investors, aka Equity Punks, who, in its words, kick-started the craft beer revolution and, presumably, enjoy its beer. The prospect gets so much more exciting when you start to think of the markets that are hardest to disrupt, build a community around, and fight injustices: insurance, mining, the coffee industry, healthcare.
We are going to see another huge change: big businesses are signalling they’re stepping up beyond paying lip-service with grandiose CSR initiatives.
Continue to the full article --> here
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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REGISTER WITH NCFA 25% DISCOUNT CODE -> BLOCKCHAIN-19 (case sensitive) |
2019 Canadian Fintech & Funding Directory
Last Revised: January 31, 2019
This is an ever evolving and growing directory of active (or beta) online financial technology platforms and service providers in Canada including sectors such as blockchain, crowdfunding, alternative finance, real estate, P2P lending, regtech, insurtech, aggregators, consultants and ecosystems. To request to be listed in the directory you need to be a member of NCFA and also email us directly with your request at casano@ncfacanada.org and we'll do our best to make updates periodically. To become a member of NCFA please click here.
| Type | Name | Description | Base | URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Service Provider | Accesswire | Flat Fee News Distribution | US | Site |
| Portal | Art Market Canada | Creative and Artistic Projects | ON | Site |
| Portal | ArtsFunding.ca | Crowdfunding for the Arts | ON | Site |
| Portal | ATB BoostR | Crowdfunding for local businesses in Alberta | AB | Site |
| Service Provider | Bennett Milner Williams Consulting | Crowdfunding consultant | AB | Site |
| Lending Portal | Borrowell | Loans for responsible Canadians | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Brix | Real Estate Equity crowdfunding | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Canadian Media Fund | Canadian Crowdfunding Resources | ON | Site |
| Portal | Chimp | Canadian Charities | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | CoinPayments | Integrated payment gateway for cryptocurrencies and ICO marketplace | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | Commercial Passport | Blockchain Document Custody KYC | QC | Site |
| Equity Portal | ConsiderFunding.com | Equity Crowdfunding Platform | BC | Site |
| Portal | Cookiee Jar | General Purpose Awareness and Fundraiser | ON | Site |
| Royalty Portal | Corl | Revenue based financing for tech startups and companies | QC | Site |
| Portal | Crowd Amplify | Multi-purpose platform aimed at users inexperienced with crowdfunding | NB | Site |
| Service Provider | Crowdfund Beat | Crowdfunding news and info (Canadian edition) | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Crowdfund Suite | Crowdfunding Management + Consulting | BC | Site |
| Portal | Crowdfundfusion | Crowdfunding aggregator | MB | Site |
| Service Provider | Crowdfunding Dojo | Direct marketing techniques for reward based campaigns | ON | Site |
| Portal | Crowdfunding.ca | General Crowdfunding (WIP) | SK | Site |
| Service Provider | CrowdfundingADR | Dispute Resolution Services (North America - office in LA) | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | CrowdFundOffice.com | Investor Services, Accounting and Compliance | ON | Site |
| Portal | Crowdhelps | Crowdfunding campaigns to help women | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Crowdmatrix | Equity Crowdfunding Platform | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Crowdrating.ca | Crowdsourced ratings | QC | Site |
| Portal | CrowdSurfer | General | AB | Site |
| Service Provider | Curexe | Send and Receive Funds Globally | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Donorhut | White label fundraising software for charities and non-profits | MB | Site |
| Service Provider | Equibit Group | Blockchain solutions for the securities industry | ON | Site |
| Portal | Fan.si | Subscription-based crowdfunding for musicians and fans | ON | Site |
| Portal | FANPUSH | Music & Entertainment | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | FinTech Growth Syndicate | Business Accelerator | ON | Site |
| Portal | Flipgive | Crowdfunding for non-profits through product sales & donations | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Foregrowth | Institutional Quality Investments | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | FrontFundr | Online Investment Platform | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | Fundica | Crowdsourced access to grants, tax credits, loans and equity funding | QC | Site |
| Equity Portal | FundingNomad | Crowdfunding for Entertainment, Media and Real Estate Investment | ON | Site |
| Portal | Fundo | Crowdfunding | QC | Site |
| Portal | FundRazr | Rewards and cause based crowdfunding | BC | Site |
| Lending Portal | FundThrough | Small Business Loans | ON | Site |
| Portal | FutureFunder.ca | Carleton University | ON | Site |
| Portal | Giveffect | Crowdfunding for Charities | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Global Blockchain Technologies | Public Investment fund focused on blockchain | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Gotroo | Equity Crowdfunding Platform | QC | Site |
| Service Provider | Grow | Digital Banking Solutions for Financial Institutions | BC | Site |
| Portal | Haricot | General purpose | QC | Site |
| Portal | HeroX | Crowdsourcing global solutions and crowdfunding incentive prizes | BC | Site |
| Equity Portal | Homebound | Invest in Crowdfunded Real Estate Properties (beta) | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | IgnitionDeck | Wordpress Crowdfunding Plugin | AB | Site |
| Service Provider | Integral Transfer | Share Transfer Agency | ON | Site |
| Portal | Invest Local BC | Community Futures Stuart Nechako | BC | Site |
| Equity Portal | InvestX | Private equity for every investor | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | Katipult | White Label Crowdfunding Software | AB | Site |
| Service Provider | Kreativ Thotz | Concept development to retail market services | ON | Site |
| Portal | La Ruche | Projects impacting Quebec City and surrounding areas | QC | Site |
| Portal | Labfundr | Crowdfunding for Science | NS | Site |
| Portal | Launchopolis | Full service crowd venture | ON | Site |
| Lending Portal | Lendified | Small Business Loans | ON | Site |
| Lending Portal | Lending Loop | Online Lending Marketplace | ON | Site |
| Lending Portal | LendMart | Small business lending options service | QC | Site |
| Portal | Lendpool | Crowdfunding for projects | ON | Site |
| Portal | Luevo | Crowdfunding Fashion | ON | Site |
| Portal | Make a Champ | Athletes and Sporting Organizations | QC | Site |
| Portal | Make Giving Happen | Crowdfunding platform that is customizable to your brand and goals | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Matterealize | Product Design Consultancy | AB | Site |
| Portal | Meatme.ca | Farm to table crowdfunding | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | MLG Blockchain Consulting | Global blockchain development and consulting firm | ON | Site |
| Portal | My Class Needs | Canadian Classrooms K-12 | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | NexusCrowd | Accredited Investor Crowdfunding | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Niko / Nikola Tesla Unite | Niko Coin Ecosystem | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Open Avenue | Real Estate Crowdfunding | ON | Site |
| Portal | Opportunity International Canada | Funding individuals, groups and businesses that work to end poverty | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Optimize Capital Markets | Private placement for Accredited Investors and Institutions | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Pegasus Fintech | ICO Advisory Services | ON | Site |
| Portal | Picatic | Ticketing and Event Management | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Polymath Network | Blockchain Securities (beta) | ON | Site |
| Lending Portal | Progressa | Consumer loans - helping Canadians build credit | BC | Site |
| Portal | Project Her INC | Crowdfunding for women entrepreneur owned & led businesses | BC | Site |
| Portal | Projexity | Urban Change Projects | ON | Site |
| Portal | Pursuit | Canadian Athletes | NS | Site |
| Equity Portal | R2 | Online marketplace for Real Estate Debt/Equity Capital and Investments | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | RealStarter | Real Estate Equity Crowdfunding | QC | Site |
| Service Provider | REMITR | International Money Transfers for Business | ON | Site |
| Portal | Rocket | Security Token Crowdfunding | BC | Site |
| Service Provider | Seeding Factory | Crowdfunding Consulting and Management | QC | Site |
| Portal | Seeds of Change | McGill University Projects | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | SeedUps Canada | Fundraising services | AB | Site |
| Portal | ShareSpring | Community Fundraising | BC | Site |
| Portal | Smallchangefund | Grassroots community projects | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Smarter.loans | Loan Directory for Any type of Loan or Financing | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | SVX | Social Venture Exchange for Impact Ventures, Funds and Investors | ON | Site |
| Portal | The Funding Portal | Access to government grants, tax credits, accredited investors and private capital | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Thrinacia | Donation/reward-based White Label Platforms | BC | Site |
| Portal | Tilt Canada | Group payments | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | TODA.Network | Foundational Layer for Decentralized Networks | US | Site |
| Equity Portal | TokenFunder | Blockchain Crowdfunding. Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) *Beta | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | Touchstone Services | Crowdfunding Back office | ON | Site |
| Portal | TrackieProfile | Crowdfunding for track and field athletes | ON | Site |
| Service Provider | TravelCoin Foundation | Transforming the Travel Industry | UK | Site |
| Service Provider | Travis Southin | Crowdfunding Research | ON | Site |
| Portal | Trend Trunk | Creative crowdfunding for non-profits & charities | ON | Site |
| Portal | Truth North Strong | Northern Credit Union Communities | ON | Site |
| Portal | UNU Fund | General Purpose | ON | Site |
| Portal | USEED | For groups/organizations and programs at University of Alberta | AB | Site |
| Service Provider | Vanbex | Globally recognized Blockchain consulting and expertise | BC | Site |
| Lending Portal | VaultCircle | Digital Lending Investment Platform for Accredited Investors | ON | Site |
| Equity Portal | Vested | Equity crowdfunding for startups | BC | Site |
| Portal | Yoyomolo | Social fundraising platform | QC | Site |
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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BIS | Agustín Carstens | Nov 14, 2019 Keynote speech by Mr Agustín Carstens, General Manager of the BIS, at the 55th SEACEN Governors' Conference and High-level Seminar on "Data and technology: embracing innovation", Singapore, 14 November 2019. Introduction It is a great honour to address this distinguished audience today. We meet against the backdrop of the Singapore Fintech Festival and the opening, here in Singapore, of one of the first three BIS Innovation Hub Centres. Singapore has positioned itself as a centre of innovation, research and development at the heart of the world's most dynamic economic region.1 The impressive achievements in fintech relate in no small part to the work of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Singaporean authorities in creating a solid public infrastructure to foster innovation. This morning, I will discuss the role of personal data in digital financial innovation. The use of new technology with such data holds great promise, but it also presents new and complex policy trade-offs, and a clear need for domestic and international policy coordination. I would also like to share some thoughts on how the work of the BIS can contribute to this debate. The value of personal data Personal ...
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Canadian Securities Administrators | Nov 12, 2019 Montreal and Singapore - Members of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have signed a fintech co-operation agreement with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The members are the securities regulatory authorities in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Québec and Saskatchewan. The agreement extends the work of the CSA Regulatory Sandbox Initiative and the MAS Fintech and Innovation Group. Notably, it includes a referral mechanism for innovative businesses, and will enhance and clearly define information-sharing between these jurisdictions. “This agreement with MAS will allow innovative businesses in Canada and Singapore access to new regulated markets,” said Louis Morisset, CSA Chair and President and CEO of the Autorité des marchés financiers. “Flexible regulatory environments with appropriate investor protection measures are best-placed to support the rapidly growing fintech industry.” “Singapore and Canada are no strangers in fintech collaboration. MAS and Bank of Canada had collaborated on a project to explore cross-border payments transactions on blockchain. This co-operation agreement will strengthen our co-operation between the 2 countries, specifically in developing innovative solutions for the securities sector,” said Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer, MAS. The co-operation agreement exchange ceremony was held at the Canadian Pavilion ...
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Finextra | Nov 6, 2019 Non-banks now account for a quarter of the institutions offering payment services or payment instruments, up from 14% in only six years, according to a fresh batch of statistics from the Bank for International Settlements. The data comes from the Basle-based BIS's annual Red Book report on payments and financial infrastructures. It reveals increasing incursions by non-bank competitors into both retail and wholesale payments. "The traditional bank-based ecosystem is being disrupted from below by fintechs and from above by well established big techs," states the report. "When asked which financial products and services are most affected by technological developments and competition, banks often rank payments the highest - both today and over the next five years." Non-bank providers now account for 10% of direct participants in RTGS systems in jursidictions covered by the BIS-convened Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures. In contrast, non-banks accounted for only four percent in 2012. The payments landscape continues to morph, says the BIS: "Driven by innovation and shifts in consumer preferences, new systems, new methods and new players are shaping the future of payments." The report also checks in on the drive towards a cashless society. It finds the ...
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CNBC | Jeff Cox | Nov 13, 2019 Key Points Google plans to offer checking accounts next year. The project, code-named Cache, will be run in conjunction with Citigroup and the Stanford Federal Credit Union. Google will offer checking accounts next year, according to a source familiar with the company’s plans, representing Big Tech’s boldest move yet into the consumer banking business. Most previous efforts have focused on credit cards and payment platforms. The accounts for the project will be run by Citigroup and the Stanford Federal Credit Union, the source said, confirming a report in The Wall Street Journal. As part of a project code-named Cache, the company will become the latest Silicon Valley leader to try its hand at the banking space. Previous attempts by Apple and Facebook faced obstacles, with consumers growing increasingly skeptical over providing large technology companies with their personal information. Google does not intend to sell customers’ data, Caesar Sengupta, an executive at the firm, told the Journal. “If we can help more people do more stuff in a digital way online, it’s good for the internet and good for us,” Sengupta said. For years, banks had been concerned about competition from small, nimble ...
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11fs Pulse | Joanne Kumire | Aug 27, 2019 Introduction to Open Banking in the UK The first step towards banking automation came in 1967 following the installation of an ATM in the UK. Over 50 years later, Open Banking arrived, ushering in a new era of digital banking, which ironically is lessening the need for ATMs. It is no secret that the financial industry was in dire need of a makeover, I mean except for a few bankers (if that), no-one really understood how most of banking worked even though it plays an integral role in our everyday lives. The 2008 global financial crisis was evidence of that and this disaster led to a review of regulations, from which Open Banking – the first enactment of PSD2 – was birthed. Since January 2018, we have heard a lot about Open Banking, the regulation that has released the financial data of consumers from the banks’ ownership and into the hands of consumers. That means regulated banks in the UK are now required to let customers share their transaction data such as spending habits and regular payments with authorised third-party providers (TPPs) offering other services – as long as the customer ...
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Artemis | Steve Evans | Nov 7, 2019 A blockchain based parametric weather insurance product has made its first payouts, after severe weather impacted smallholder farmers covered by the product in Sri Lanka. The parametric insurance was launched in a pilot phase a year ago, as Oxfam in Sri Lanka teamed up with insurance and reinsurance broker Aon and insurtech blockchain solutions provider Etherisc, alongside local insurer Sanasa, to deliver a responsive risk transfer solution that could be rolled out affordably in developing regions, with the goal of making automated payouts to smallholder farmers when extreme weather conditions occurred. The pilot launched with around 200 farmers enrolled that were exposed to the risk of losing their crops due to extreme weather. After the first year, the system has made some pay-outs to farmers in this initial operations phase, the parties behind the product announced. Now, the parties involved will move onto the next phase of the project as cropping season starts in November, seeking to solve any issues raised during the pilot with the goal of refining the system’s efficiency and increasing the scale the number of farmers that will benefit from the parametric microinsurance. “We are proud to have ...
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Mylo | Ted Liu | Nov 5, 2019 Mylo Raises $10M Series A From Major Canadian Financial Institutions Montreal, November 5, 2019 – Mylo, the Montreal-based fintech, has secured $10M in financing for its app that helps Canadians automate their saving and investing. The Series A round was led by National Bank’s corporate venture capital arm, NAventures, with follow-on investment from Desjardins Capital, Ferst Capital Partners and Tactico. This brings the company’s total funding up to $14M. “Mylo’s mission has always been to help Canadians achieve their financial goals. With over 450,000 Canadians creating accounts to save and invest on our platform in only two years, we know we’re on the right track,” said Mylo Founder and CEO, Phil Barrar. “This investment from important strategic partners lets us start the next phase of our mission. Our team is focused on building innovative new products to help Canadians overcome any financial roadblocks that stand in the way of their goals.” The investment by National Bank reinforces the institution’s commitment to innovation. “We see great alignment between Mylo’s mission and our own focus on providing individuals with the digital tools they need to manage their finances,” said Igal Ohayon, Director of Venture ...
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Osgoode Professional Development York University | Nov 2019 Strictly Legal, an Osgoode Professional Development podcast, is about all things legal. Each episode, we unpack current issues affecting the legal landscape with the help of some of the industry's leading thinkers. Heated fights over intellectual property are nothing new in promising technology markets. Are we poised for a revolution in the protection of all types of IP? The blockchain can be used to control and track the distribution of protected IP. Imagine a world where you could easily register and claim ownership over your original creative works – from music to photos to blogs. With the use of blockchain technology, that world is not so far away. As the world reacts to the current blockchain mania, many businesses in the community are having discussions on what the future of innovation in the blockchain space looks like. This week's guest: Paul Horbal, Bereskin Parr (@horbal) BIO: Paul Horbal is a partner with Bereskin & Parr LLP. He is a member of the firm’s Electrical & Computer Technology group and is Chair of the Financial Technology group. His practice focuses on patent, industrial design and technology law, with an emphasis on securing and leveraging ...
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Reuters | Sharon Lam | Nov 8, 2019 Recession gatecrashes Hong Kong’s fintech party HONG KONG (Reuters Breakingviews) - Hong Kong’s economic travails are an unwelcome guest in the city’s fintech party. Enthusiasm for online-only banks was palpable at the Fintech Week conference. Yet months of political unrest have hit small businesses, and the added risks may delay local launches by the likes of Standard Chartered and Tencent. Attendees this week descended on Hong Kong’s Lantau Island for the financial hub’s fourth annual gathering. With appearances from top officials like Financial Secretary Paul Chan to executives at Singapore’s $14 billion Grab and other rising stars, there was plenty of buzz. Hot topics included central bank digital currencies and cross-border payments. See: News on China cryptocurrency and more reforms Virtual banks, as these branchless outfits are known in Hong Kong, took centre stage. Earlier this year, Hong Kong authorities granted eight licenses for such firms to offer payments, deposits and other services, in a long overdue shakeup. HSBC, Bank of China Hong Kong, Hang Seng Bank and Standard Chartered account for some three-quarters of the city’s mortgages and two-thirds of retail loans. Online challengers, including a joint venture between Chinese handset ...
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TLT Solicitors | Daniel Lloyd | Sept 2019 Who is liable when AI goes wrong? Let us take the example of Tesla, whose vehicles have been involved in two similar fatal crashes since 2016. In both cases the vehicle failed to see a lorry cross its path and travelled into the lorry shearing off the top of the car, thereby causing both drivers to suffer fatal injuries. Should Tesla be liable for the crash? At what point should a driver no longer have any liability for what the car is doing? At the moment the Department of Transport in the USA adheres to the automation standards set out by the SAE which run from “level 0” (no automation) to “level 6” (full automation). It is accepted that Tesla’s Autopilot driverless software system is no more than a level 2 or 3 on this scale, both of which require the driver to remain in control of the vehicle when driving. So from a public law perspective at least, Tesla is not being held liable for the two crashes that occurred if, as appears to be the case, the drivers were not in control of the vehicles at the time they crashed ...
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BIS | Agustín Carstens | Nov 14, 2019 Keynote speech by Mr Agustín Carstens, General Manager of the BIS, at the 55th SEACEN Governors' Conference and High-level Seminar on "Data and technology: embracing innovation", Singapore, 14 November 2019. Introduction It is a great honour to address this distinguished audience today. We meet against the backdrop of the Singapore Fintech Festival and the opening, here in Singapore, of one of the first three BIS Innovation Hub Centres. Singapore has positioned itself as a centre of innovation, research and development at the heart of the world's most dynamic economic region.1 The impressive achievements in fintech relate in no small part to the work of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) and Singaporean authorities in creating a solid public infrastructure to foster innovation. This morning, I will discuss the role of personal data in digital financial innovation. The use of new technology with such data holds great promise, but it also presents new and complex policy trade-offs, and a clear need for domestic and international policy coordination. I would also like to share some thoughts on how the work of the BIS can contribute to this debate. The value of personal data Personal ...
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Canadian Securities Administrators | Nov 12, 2019 Montreal and Singapore - Members of the Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) have signed a fintech co-operation agreement with the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS). The members are the securities regulatory authorities in Alberta, British Columbia, Manitoba, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, Ontario, Québec and Saskatchewan. The agreement extends the work of the CSA Regulatory Sandbox Initiative and the MAS Fintech and Innovation Group. Notably, it includes a referral mechanism for innovative businesses, and will enhance and clearly define information-sharing between these jurisdictions. “This agreement with MAS will allow innovative businesses in Canada and Singapore access to new regulated markets,” said Louis Morisset, CSA Chair and President and CEO of the Autorité des marchés financiers. “Flexible regulatory environments with appropriate investor protection measures are best-placed to support the rapidly growing fintech industry.” “Singapore and Canada are no strangers in fintech collaboration. MAS and Bank of Canada had collaborated on a project to explore cross-border payments transactions on blockchain. This co-operation agreement will strengthen our co-operation between the 2 countries, specifically in developing innovative solutions for the securities sector,” said Sopnendu Mohanty, Chief FinTech Officer, MAS. The co-operation agreement exchange ceremony was held at the Canadian Pavilion ...
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Finextra | Nov 6, 2019 Non-banks now account for a quarter of the institutions offering payment services or payment instruments, up from 14% in only six years, according to a fresh batch of statistics from the Bank for International Settlements. The data comes from the Basle-based BIS's annual Red Book report on payments and financial infrastructures. It reveals increasing incursions by non-bank competitors into both retail and wholesale payments. "The traditional bank-based ecosystem is being disrupted from below by fintechs and from above by well established big techs," states the report. "When asked which financial products and services are most affected by technological developments and competition, banks often rank payments the highest - both today and over the next five years." Non-bank providers now account for 10% of direct participants in RTGS systems in jursidictions covered by the BIS-convened Committee on Payments and Market Infrastructures. In contrast, non-banks accounted for only four percent in 2012. The payments landscape continues to morph, says the BIS: "Driven by innovation and shifts in consumer preferences, new systems, new methods and new players are shaping the future of payments." The report also checks in on the drive towards a cashless society. It finds the ...
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CNBC | Jeff Cox | Nov 13, 2019 Key Points Google plans to offer checking accounts next year. The project, code-named Cache, will be run in conjunction with Citigroup and the Stanford Federal Credit Union. Google will offer checking accounts next year, according to a source familiar with the company’s plans, representing Big Tech’s boldest move yet into the consumer banking business. Most previous efforts have focused on credit cards and payment platforms. The accounts for the project will be run by Citigroup and the Stanford Federal Credit Union, the source said, confirming a report in The Wall Street Journal. As part of a project code-named Cache, the company will become the latest Silicon Valley leader to try its hand at the banking space. Previous attempts by Apple and Facebook faced obstacles, with consumers growing increasingly skeptical over providing large technology companies with their personal information. Google does not intend to sell customers’ data, Caesar Sengupta, an executive at the firm, told the Journal. “If we can help more people do more stuff in a digital way online, it’s good for the internet and good for us,” Sengupta said. For years, banks had been concerned about competition from small, nimble ...
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11fs Pulse | Joanne Kumire | Aug 27, 2019 Introduction to Open Banking in the UK The first step towards banking automation came in 1967 following the installation of an ATM in the UK. Over 50 years later, Open Banking arrived, ushering in a new era of digital banking, which ironically is lessening the need for ATMs. It is no secret that the financial industry was in dire need of a makeover, I mean except for a few bankers (if that), no-one really understood how most of banking worked even though it plays an integral role in our everyday lives. The 2008 global financial crisis was evidence of that and this disaster led to a review of regulations, from which Open Banking – the first enactment of PSD2 – was birthed. Since January 2018, we have heard a lot about Open Banking, the regulation that has released the financial data of consumers from the banks’ ownership and into the hands of consumers. That means regulated banks in the UK are now required to let customers share their transaction data such as spending habits and regular payments with authorised third-party providers (TPPs) offering other services – as long as the customer ...
Read More
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Artemis | Steve Evans | Nov 7, 2019 A blockchain based parametric weather insurance product has made its first payouts, after severe weather impacted smallholder farmers covered by the product in Sri Lanka. The parametric insurance was launched in a pilot phase a year ago, as Oxfam in Sri Lanka teamed up with insurance and reinsurance broker Aon and insurtech blockchain solutions provider Etherisc, alongside local insurer Sanasa, to deliver a responsive risk transfer solution that could be rolled out affordably in developing regions, with the goal of making automated payouts to smallholder farmers when extreme weather conditions occurred. The pilot launched with around 200 farmers enrolled that were exposed to the risk of losing their crops due to extreme weather. After the first year, the system has made some pay-outs to farmers in this initial operations phase, the parties behind the product announced. Now, the parties involved will move onto the next phase of the project as cropping season starts in November, seeking to solve any issues raised during the pilot with the goal of refining the system’s efficiency and increasing the scale the number of farmers that will benefit from the parametric microinsurance. “We are proud to have ...
Read More
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Mylo | Ted Liu | Nov 5, 2019 Mylo Raises $10M Series A From Major Canadian Financial Institutions Montreal, November 5, 2019 – Mylo, the Montreal-based fintech, has secured $10M in financing for its app that helps Canadians automate their saving and investing. The Series A round was led by National Bank’s corporate venture capital arm, NAventures, with follow-on investment from Desjardins Capital, Ferst Capital Partners and Tactico. This brings the company’s total funding up to $14M. “Mylo’s mission has always been to help Canadians achieve their financial goals. With over 450,000 Canadians creating accounts to save and invest on our platform in only two years, we know we’re on the right track,” said Mylo Founder and CEO, Phil Barrar. “This investment from important strategic partners lets us start the next phase of our mission. Our team is focused on building innovative new products to help Canadians overcome any financial roadblocks that stand in the way of their goals.” The investment by National Bank reinforces the institution’s commitment to innovation. “We see great alignment between Mylo’s mission and our own focus on providing individuals with the digital tools they need to manage their finances,” said Igal Ohayon, Director of Venture ...
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Osgoode Professional Development York University | Nov 2019 Strictly Legal, an Osgoode Professional Development podcast, is about all things legal. Each episode, we unpack current issues affecting the legal landscape with the help of some of the industry's leading thinkers. Heated fights over intellectual property are nothing new in promising technology markets. Are we poised for a revolution in the protection of all types of IP? The blockchain can be used to control and track the distribution of protected IP. Imagine a world where you could easily register and claim ownership over your original creative works – from music to photos to blogs. With the use of blockchain technology, that world is not so far away. As the world reacts to the current blockchain mania, many businesses in the community are having discussions on what the future of innovation in the blockchain space looks like. This week's guest: Paul Horbal, Bereskin Parr (@horbal) BIO: Paul Horbal is a partner with Bereskin & Parr LLP. He is a member of the firm’s Electrical & Computer Technology group and is Chair of the Financial Technology group. His practice focuses on patent, industrial design and technology law, with an emphasis on securing and leveraging ...
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Reuters | Sharon Lam | Nov 8, 2019 Recession gatecrashes Hong Kong’s fintech party HONG KONG (Reuters Breakingviews) - Hong Kong’s economic travails are an unwelcome guest in the city’s fintech party. Enthusiasm for online-only banks was palpable at the Fintech Week conference. Yet months of political unrest have hit small businesses, and the added risks may delay local launches by the likes of Standard Chartered and Tencent. Attendees this week descended on Hong Kong’s Lantau Island for the financial hub’s fourth annual gathering. With appearances from top officials like Financial Secretary Paul Chan to executives at Singapore’s $14 billion Grab and other rising stars, there was plenty of buzz. Hot topics included central bank digital currencies and cross-border payments. See: News on China cryptocurrency and more reforms Virtual banks, as these branchless outfits are known in Hong Kong, took centre stage. Earlier this year, Hong Kong authorities granted eight licenses for such firms to offer payments, deposits and other services, in a long overdue shakeup. HSBC, Bank of China Hong Kong, Hang Seng Bank and Standard Chartered account for some three-quarters of the city’s mortgages and two-thirds of retail loans. Online challengers, including a joint venture between Chinese handset ...
Read More
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TLT Solicitors | Daniel Lloyd | Sept 2019 Who is liable when AI goes wrong? Let us take the example of Tesla, whose vehicles have been involved in two similar fatal crashes since 2016. In both cases the vehicle failed to see a lorry cross its path and travelled into the lorry shearing off the top of the car, thereby causing both drivers to suffer fatal injuries. Should Tesla be liable for the crash? At what point should a driver no longer have any liability for what the car is doing? At the moment the Department of Transport in the USA adheres to the automation standards set out by the SAE which run from “level 0” (no automation) to “level 6” (full automation). It is accepted that Tesla’s Autopilot driverless software system is no more than a level 2 or 3 on this scale, both of which require the driver to remain in control of the vehicle when driving. So from a public law perspective at least, Tesla is not being held liable for the two crashes that occurred if, as appears to be the case, the drivers were not in control of the vehicles at the time they crashed ...
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Kickstarter accused of union-busting after firing workers
BBC | Sep 16, 2019
Kickstarter has been accused of "union-busting" after firing three employees.
Taylor Moore, the company's head of comedy and podcasts, tweeted that he and another employee were fired on Thursday, while tech and design lead Clarissa Redwine was fired last week.
All three were heavily involved in the formation of a Kickstarter union this year, Mr Moore added.
Kickstarter confirmed the employees were fired, but denied that it was because of their union activity.
Mr Moore tweeted that he had worked at the company for six years.
He said that when Kickstarter fired him they "offered me no real reasons, but one month's severance for signing an NDA" - a non-disclosure agreement. "I will not be signing it."
"The union busting campaign that Kickstarter management is engaging in is illegal and wrong," he added. "It is an unforgivable abandonment of the values of an organisation that I have loved and served with my whole heart."
Ms Redwine also tweeted at the company, saying: "I will not be signing your termination agreement containing a non-disparagement clause. You can keep my severance."
See: A Digitized Staff Compliance Platform is a Must-Have
She added: "Kickstarter's management continues to state that I was fired for performance issues. I find this strange because I not only met but exceeded all performance metrics in Q2. I was great at my job. And I loved it."
In a statement sent to the BBC, Kickstarter said Mr Moore and Ms Redwine were fired for performance reasons, and not because of their union organising. The third employee's role was eliminated from the company.
Continue to the full article --> here
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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Regulation Crowdfunding Surpasses $250,000,000 in Commitments The Model is Working but its Potential is Much Greater
Crowdfund Capital Advisors | Sherwood 'Woodie' Neiss | Aug 7 ,2019
It has been just over 3 years since Regulation Crowdfunding (Reg CF) went into effect and most recently the industry surpassed a quarter of a billion dollars in commitments. Since inception over 1,800 companies in cities all across the United States have filed to raise money under Regulation Crowdfunding. Over 271,000 investors, most of which are friends, followers or customers of these businesses have made commitments to start, scale or expand operations.
The average raise stands around $237,000 which firmly addresses the Valley of Death[1] issue. Most of the successful companies are raising funds in less than 90 days which is far faster than other forms of financing like Venture Capital or Bank Loans. There’s been no fraud or Wild West as opponents had claimed.
“Essentially we built a financing mechanism which is doing exactly what we said it would,” said Sherwood Neiss Principal at Crowdfund Capital Advisors (CCA) “We’re funding local businesses with a vested group of local investors that is creating local jobs and powering local economies.”
Regulation Crowdfunding began on May 16, 2016. It allows any startup or small business to raise up to $1,070,000 online from family, friends and followers (accredited or not) provided issuers use an online investment platform that is registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and disclose information about their company and financial wellbeing.
See: The SEC Publishes Report on Reg CF: “The number of crowdfunding offerings as well as the total amount of funding during the considered period was relatively modest”
Since the industry began, Crowdfund Capital Advisors has been collecting information on every offering in its CCLEAR Database. CCLEAR is the leading Regulation Crowdfunding database that collects, cleans, aggregates and reports on all companies seeking funds via Regulation Crowdfunding as well as those doing parallel 506(c) offerings[2]. This information includes financial performance, security offering, valuation, industry, daily commitments and number of investors. The information is summarized and published on a daily basis on the CCLEAR Regulation Crowdfunding dashboard.
Here are some key data trends:
- Capital commitments – From FY17[3] to FY18 capital commitments increased 178% from $45.7M to $81.1M. The second full FY of Reg CF saw capital commitments increase 139% to $113M. Total capital commitments to date is over $250M.
- Issuers – During the same period the number of companies seeking to raise funds increased 187% from 317 to 592 and 137% to 810 in FY19. Total issuers to date is over 1,800.
- Investors – The number of individual investors grew from 44.5k in FY17 to 92.6K in FY18 to 117.8K in FY19. Total investors to date is over 270,000.
“No matter how you look at it, there’s been an impressive growth of at least 250% in 2 years,” says Neiss. “If we extrapolate out over the next 2 years, we estimate that over 3,400 companies across the United States will receive half a billion dollars by over half a million investors.”
CCLEAR captures a maximum of 56 different industries from Advertising and Marketing, to Healthcare and Utilities. During the first fiscal year there were 44 industries represented. That number increased to 47 last fiscal year. While application software, alcoholic beverages, business services, consumer packaged goods, entertainment, personal services and restaurants were the most common industries seeking funds, financial services, business services, employment services and retail saw the greatest increase in offerings between the first and third fiscal years.
“The wide representation of so many industries speaks to the broad appeal of regulation crowdfunding to both companies seeking and investors looking to deploy capital,” says Neiss. “No matter what industry you are in, if you have an engaged group of customers that could be investors, Regulation Crowdfunding is something you should explore.”
Companies in 48 of the 50 States have registered to raise funds via Reg CF.
See: OurCrowd Double IPO Success Provides Crowdfunding Validation
From an employment perspective, the data shows that Reg CF continues to sustain and support local jobs. In the first fiscal year over 1,482 jobs were supported. This grew by another 3,150 in the second fiscal year and another 4,448 in the third.
“Collectively almost 10,000 jobs have been supported around the United States since the launch of Regulation Crowdfunding,” says Neiss.
“We expect this number to grow by another 10,000 in the next 2 years. 20,000 jobs means 20,000 people employed by local businesses and reinvesting their income back into these communities through mortgage payments, groceries, dining out, education and more. This is how we support local economies. And we are doing it despite the current $1M cap on company raises. Imagine what we could do if we increased these caps from $1M to $5M, $10M or $20M? It is easy to see how we could increase this from 20,000 to 200,000 jobs.”
While not all Regulation Crowdfunding companies are revenue generating those that are had over $400M of Revenue in their most recent fiscal year.
“Given that the majority of these firms are growing and reinvesting their earnings, you can only imagine the multiplier effect that this has on local economies,” says Neiss. “Businesses are reinvesting into their local economies by purchasing goods and services to support them and hiring employees. And employees are using their paychecks to support themselves. Together we estimate they are pouring close to a billion dollars into local economies.”
Continue to the full article --> here
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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Early-stage Investing – The Public gets a Seat at the Table
FrontFundr | Peter-Paul Van Hoeken | June 12, 2019
Traditionally, only a small group of investors, angel investors and other venture capitalists, have had access to investment opportunities in startups and growth companies. The public has been locked out from investing in startups.
Investments in early-stage companies are typically high-risk. That is why early-stage investors typically invest in a portfolio of at least 10-20 companies. Those companies that are successful will realize exponential - ‘hockeystick’- growth and deliver huge returns for investors. The success of these companies can usually be attributed to the general public buying products and services from these companies. The same public that has had no access to investing in these companies and share in their success.
The public has been locked out from investing in startups.
Digital technology has been a significant enabler in creating online market places, such as Amazon and Shopify. These market places have dramatically increased access to products and services for every consumer and aggregated demand and supply supporting efficient price discovery that benefits all market participants.
See: [Report] A New North Star: Canadian Competitiveness in an Intangibles Economy
Why not apply the same digital technologies to connect private companies with the wider potential investor community supporting the entire process from discovery of investment opportunities to completion of investment transactions?
Welcome to the new venture capital market – The democratization of investing in early-stage companies where everyone, regardless of how deep their pockets are, can invest in companies they believe in. Investing online in private companies a.k.a. investment crowdfunding or equity crowdfunding. Anyone could become a shareholder of a company for minimum investment as low as $500, enabling the wider investor community to make multiple investments and diversify risk even with a relatively smaller sized investment portfolio.
Investment crowdfunding offers early-stage companies the opportunity to raise capital from the public - The same public that may be the early (and future) customers of these emerging companies. With investment crowdfunding, the public has taken a seat at the early-stage investing table and brought a large pool of available capital.
Investment Crowdfunding could unlock $2.5 billion per year in Canada for in early-stage companies
We estimate that in Canada $2.5 billion per annum of total financial assets held by Canadians could be directed towards investments in early stage companies. This figure is based on a conservative assumption that 1.8% of total financial assets would be directed towards investment in the private markets. $2.5 billion is a significant pool of capital in comparison to $162 million invested in Canadian startups by angel investor and $3.4 billion investments in Canadian startups and growth companies by venture capital and private equity firms in 2017.[1]
Investment crowdfunding can also help address the challenge for early stage companies to attract capital. Startup Genome published its Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2019[2] on May 9th, ranking the top startup ecosystems in the world. No surprise Silicon Valley takes the first place. Toronto-Waterloo ranked 13th, up three spots from last year.
See: $5 million Equity crowdfunding extended to private companies
Vancouver tumbled nine places from last year and ranked 24th. The report mentions that Vancouver as one of the top global ecosystems is hindered by a gap in early-stage funding, $320 million million in the period 2016 to first half 2018 compared to the worldwide average of $1.1 billion.
Investment Crowdfunding is democratizing the venture capital market
Montreal in 49th spot (down 15 places) $600 million went towards early-stage funding. However, even in the Toronto-Waterloo corridor, early-stage funding in startups is relatively low in comparison to its 13th place ranking with US$1.1 billion in 2016 to H1 2018.
Startup Genome ranked London (U.K.) as the 4th global ecosystem for early-stage funding with $4.3 billion in 2016 to H1 2018. EU-Startups highlights London’s exceptional access to venture capital funds, angel investors, crowdfunding platforms, banks and other financial possibilities.[3]
In the U.K., where investment crowdfunding has been around for nearly ten years, it has gone mainstream and is now an integral part of the startup funding ecosystem.
High growth entrepreneurship is key to Canada’s future economic success. Early stage companies drive innovation, economic growth, jobs and wealth creation. We need to help get these startups and growth companies to access the finance they need to grow and thrive. As we have seen in other countries like the U.K., investment crowdfunding can help expand the early-stage capital pool. Moreover, it goes further than helping early-stage companies get funding, investment crowdfunding also enables the public to share the risks and returns on venture capital investments jointly.
See: Architecting a New World: Investment Crowdfunding and Digital Assets
Investment crowdfunding has the potential to unlock a large pool of capital from the public and empowers everyone to invest in companies they believe in and share risks plus returns. Also in Canada, investment crowdfunding is poised to become integral to the venture capital market. Together we can make that happen.
Peter-Paul Van Hoeken is founder and CEO of FrontFundr, a Canadian investment crowdfunding platform. He is a director of the Private Capital Markets Association Canada (PCMA), Advisor to the National Crowdfunding and Fintech Association Canada (NCFA) and member of the Ontario Securities Commission Launchpad Fintech Advisory Committee.
[1] Statistics Canada (2019), Canadian Venture Capital Association, CVCA (2019), National Angel and Capital Organization Canada, NACO (2017), FrontFundr Team Analysis (2019)
[2] Startup Genome (2019), Global Startup Ecosystem Report 2019
[3] EU-Startups (2018), London’s startup ecosystem at a glance (November 20, 2018)
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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