FrontFundr | Victoria Bennett | April 25, 2019

International business leader and executive, Prof. David R. Beatty C.M., O.B.E., F.ICD, CFA has joined as Chairman of the Board of Silver Maple Ventures Inc., doing business as FrontFundr and SMV Capital Markets.

Toronto, Canada, 23 April 2019 FrontFundr today announced Prof. David R. Beatty C.M., O.B.E., F.ICD, CFA as Chairman of the Board of Directors. Professor Beatty has served on 39 different boards of directors and been chairman of nine public companies in five different countries. He was on the board of the Bank of Montreal (BMO Financial Group) for over 20 years, including seven terms as Chairman of the Risk Review committee. In 2018, he was awarded the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) Lifetime Achievement award. ICGN is an investor led organization that includes over 200 Asset Managers who manage over $US34 trillion.

Peter-Paul Van Hoeken, FrontFundr’s Founder and CEO said of the appointment:

“As Canada’s largest investment crowdfunding platform, we have democratized investing in private companies. The appointment of such an experienced business leader as David, reflects our transition into the next phase of mainstream financial services. I look forward to working with him to take our position as leading online private capital markets platform to the next level - unlocking investing in private companies to the wider investor community and building out our trusted brand.”

Beatty responded,

“I have been impressed how FrontFundr, and most recently SMV Capital markets has led the way in opening access to capital for private companies and investing in the private capital markets for all Canadians. I look forward to working with the team to make this the norm for businesses seeking capital and individuals looking to get access to investment opportunities in private companies.”

FrontFundr continues to expand in the private capital markets, helping more Canadian companies get funded. From start-ups that are looking for seed capital and growth companies looking for expansion capital.

Founded in Vancouver four years ago, FrontFundr now operates its fully bilingual online investing platform in eight provinces, including Quebec. Last year, the firm opened a Toronto office, solidifying its leading position as an online private markets platform in Canada.

Silver Maple Ventures Inc. (SMV) operates an online investing platform that empowers Canadians to find and make direct investments in the private companies they believe in - and become stakeholders in their future. SMV’s online Exempt Market Dealer (EMD) status plus its modern technology enables users across Canada to easily invest in innovative growth businesses in under 12 minutes and starting from $250. Invest in the Future.

Professor David R. Beatty C.M., O.B.E., F.ICD, CFA is the Conway Chair of the Clarkson Centre for Board Effectiveness, Rotman School of Management, University of Toronto. He has served on 39 different boards of directors and been chairman of 9 public companies. He was the founding Managing Director of the Canadian Coalition for Good Governance (2003-2008). At the University of Toronto, he created the Directors Education Program (DEP) and remains curriculum overseer. Internationally, he created Saudi Aramco’s Joint Venture Director Training and he has been a member of the IFC’s GCGF advisors. In 2018, he was awarded the International Corporate Governance Network (ICGN) Lifetime Achievement award. In 2013, he was inducted into the Order of Canada the nation’s highest civilian honor and in 1994 he was made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire (the O.B.E. above) by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II for his services to Papua New Guinea.

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

Navigating the Great Reset: Fintech in Canada in 2020

December 12, 2019

Remillard Consulting Group | Richard Remillard | Dec 11, 2019 At this time of year, predictions for 2020 are starting to rain down with as much frequency as occurs in Vancouver in the winter months. At the risk of waterlogging readers and, hopefully, with slightly more accuracy than weather forecasters in the era of climate change here are some fearless predictions for what might stay the same and what might change next year – and what to do about it. The Big Picture: The Great Reset We are decidedly in the midst of several upheavals in the relations between nations, between corporations and between individuals. Relations between the US and China, between the European Union and Great Britain, between Russia and Ukraine are shifting tectonically, with uncertain outcomes on all fronts. Nevertheless, it looks like President Trump will survive impeachment by the Democrats and get re-elected. The US economy remains very strong, there have been no new messy foreign entanglements, stock markets are up, and there’s bipartisan consensus on getting tough with China. And, he can chalk up a USMCA in the win column. Similarly in Canada, the governing Liberal party will still be in power in twelve months’ time, ...
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Hyperion Technologies announces Lisa Cheng as new CEO

December 11, 2019

Hyperion Technologies Release | Dec 10, 2019 VANCOUVER, British Columbia — Hyperion Technology Inc. (Hyperion) is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms. Lisa Cheng as the new CEO and the transition of Mr. Michael Zavet to the role of President. Lisa Cheng states “I’m thrilled to join Hyperion’s team and I’m very excited for the opportunity of leading the company towards its goal of developing the seminal unified exchange for all classes of digital assets. Michael Zavet has done a tremendous job in building relationships and brand awareness for Hyperion, including establishing key partnerships, such as its relationship with the Delaware Board of Trade (DBOT) Alternative Trading System. I plan on continuing this trend and expanding Hyperion’s vision to include solving the broader issues in the digital assets sphere.” Michael Zavet states “We are very fortunate that Lisa has agreed to join and lead Hyperion. I believe as one of the early pioneers in the blockchain space combined with her talent in developing platforms, Lisa will bring to Hyperion a significant advantage in reaching its goals.” Podcast:  Gearing up Hyperion Exchange, Hybrid Models and Security Tokens with Michael Zavet, Founder, Hyperion Technologies About Hyperion Technologies Based in Toronto, Canada, ...
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Can Blockchains Give You Competitive Advantage?

December 11, 2019

Forbes | Alison McCauley | Dec 11, 2019 Blockchain executives call the tech a team sport. They speak about industries joining together to build blockchain platforms that drive value for all participants. But, put bluntly, what’s the point? Both the tech and our understanding of how to use it is raw—making this an expensive, uncharted sport to play. Why invest if your competitors will benefit? I’ve been asking execs working at the front edge of the technology this question: if competitors all have access to the same platform, then what new competitive advantage can come from blockchains? Here’s what they shared: Smart Companies Understand There Are Multiple Angles Two themes emerged from these conversations. First, while the main investment trigger right now is solving high-pressure problems that plague everyone in an industry, there was a belief that once a blockchain platform is in place, smart companies could discover ways to use it that could deliver competitive advantage. See:  Red Cross boosts disaster-prone communities with blockchain ‘cash’ Secondly, executives observed that the new functionality blockchains make possible could arm blockchain-natives with new tools to attack long-standing value chains. In this case, investment is preventative, employed to stay ahead of disruption. Think ...
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UK: New Peer to Peer Lending Rules Kick in on December 9th: “A Watershed Moment for P2P”

December 10, 2019

Crowdfund Insider | JD Alois | Dec 10, 2019 New peer to peer lending rules come into effect on Monday, December 9th. The new rules were the result of a review by the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). The UK largely created the entire sector of peer to peer lending. One of the most prominent sectors of Fintech, P2P lending has emerged as a viable asset class generating better risk-adjusted returns in a low-interest rate environment. While not without a few growing pains, P2P has been a net positive for both credit markets and for smaller investors seeking higher rates of return on their money. At the time the updated rules were announced in June of 2019, the FCA stated: “[The] P2P sector had developed a wider, more complex, range of business models. Many platforms in the sector are now taking a much more active role, by taking decisions on behalf of the investor. In addition, we explained that we had also seen some poor business practices, for example, in disclosure of information to clients, charging structures, wind-down arrangements, and record-keeping.” The response by platforms has mostly been positive with some questioning if the net effect will be to dim ...
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Bei­jing Launches Fin­tech Reg­u­la­tory Sand­box with Cen­tral Bank Back­ing

December 10, 2019

China Banking News | Dec 5, 2019 Bei­jing Launches Fin­tech Reg­u­la­tory Sand­box with Cen­tral Bank Back­ing The Bei­jing mu­nic­i­pal gov­ern­ment has an­nounced the launch of a new pi­lot scheme for fin­tech reg­u­la­tion. On 5 De­cem­ber the Bei­jing mu­nic­i­pal fi­nan­cial reg­u­la­tor an­nounced via its of­fi­cial web­site that Chi­nese cap­i­tal was “tak­ing the lead in launch­ing fin­tech in­no­va­tion reg­u­la­tory tri­als, and ex­plor­ing the es­tab­lish­ment of an ac­com­mo­dat­ing and pru­den­tial Chi­nese-edi­tion ‘reg­u­la­tory sand­box.'” Ac­cord­ing to the an­nounce­ment the new trial is be­ing launched with the guid­ance and sup­port of the Chi­nese cen­tral bank, and has the goal of es­tab­lish­ing Bei­jing as a “na­tional tech in­no­va­tion cen­tre and na­tional fi­nan­cial reg­u­la­tory cen­tre.” The Bei­jing fi­nance reg­u­la­tor said that it would ap­ply “soft reg­u­la­tory meth­ods” that in­volve open in­for­ma­tion, prod­uct no­tices and joint su­per­vi­sion. Ac­cord­ing to its an­nounce­ment the goal is to drive fin­tech in­no­va­tion and qual­ity and ef­fi­ciency im­prove­ments in fi­nan­cial ser­vices, un­der the pre­con­di­tion that li­censed fi­nan­cial in­sti­tu­tions com­ply with laws and reg­u­la­tions, and pro­tect the rights and in­ter­ests of con­sumers. Xin­jing­bao re­ports that Bei­jing mu­nic­i­pal­ity has ap­proved 46 fin­tech trial pro­jects Continue to the full article --> here China Banking News | Dec 5, 2019 Chi­nese Cen­tral Bank Flags For­mu­la­tion of New Fin­tech and Blockchain Stan­dards The Peo­ple’s Bank ...
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Corporate venture capital deals hit new record as banks invest in fintech competitors

December 10, 2019

CNBC | Kate Rooney | Dec 10, 2019 Key Points Investments by financial services firms into start-ups hit a new record in this year, according to a new report by CB Insights. Total corporate venture capital deals by banks and other financial services firms have surged 500% from 2014 through the third quarter of 2019. Citi Ventures has been the most active, followed by Goldman Sachs’ private investing arm. Venture investing is becoming increasingly popular for banks as they look to diversify as their key profit engines get squeezed by falling interest rates. There’s also pressure from new fintech options debuting the same services with zero fees. See:  Goldman Sachs is slashing employee pay as it ramps up new tech ventures like the Apple Card Corporate venture capital funding is at an all-time high and banks are leading the charge. Investments by financial services firms into start-ups hit a record 329 deals worth a total $8 billion in 2019, according to a report by CB Insights published Tuesday. Nearly half of that deal activity this year came from banks.The third quarter saw the highest deal activity on record by financial services venture capital. A handful of established companies — from Google ...
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FrontFundr Further Expands Investor Access to Private Investment Deals

December 10, 2019

FrontFundr Release | Dec 10, 2019 Canada’s largest equity crowdfunding platform connects to DealSquare, a centralized platform for private placements TORONTO, Dec. 10, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Silver Maple Ventures Inc. is pleased to announce new synergies between its two fintech platforms designed to enable robust investor access to private market deals and further simplify the transaction process. FrontFundr, Canada’s leading equity crowdfunding platform and exempt market dealer, has officially become a participating dealer on DealSquare, Canada’s first centralized dealer platform for private placements. The team at Silver Maple Ventures is excited to be first movers in providing widespread investor access to private market deals, digitally connecting capital-raisers to all investors, investment dealers and their advisory networks. “In recent years, the private markets have been growing twice as fast and producing 3-4% higher returns than the public markets, but the average retail investor hoping to diversify their portfolios have traditionally been locked out and unable to participate. With FrontFundr, all investors can get in on the private market action,” says Peter-Paul Van Hoeken, Founder and CEO of Silver Maple Ventures Inc. “The synergies work both ways. On the one hand, FrontFundr can now make its private placements available to other dealers ...
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The Enterprise Automation Imperative—Why Modern Societies Will Need All the Productivity They Can Get

December 9, 2019

ITIF | Robert D. Atkinson and David Moschella | November 12, 2019 Contrary to common belief, enterprise automation is not a cause for alarm, but instead a societal imperative. Modern nations will need all the productivity they can get to address today’s ever-more-resource-constrained challenges. Key Takeways Increased automation can significantly boost societal productivity, which would help address challenges such as wage growth, aging populations, rising health-care costs, environmental restorations, global competitiveness, and public sector debt. The EU and U.S. economies are in a productivity slump, which is one of the reasons wage and GDP growth have stagnated, making it increasingly difficult for governments and residents to meet their civic and financial obligations. Productivity increases in the EU and the U.S. would reshore work, make the costs of aging populations affordable, boost wages and living standards, reduce debt-to-GDP levels, and free up human capital and other resources for new societal tasks. Large enterprises—both public and private—must drive automation and its ensuing productivity gains, because many of today’s most promising digital initiatives can only be brought to fruition by large organizations and the sectors they serve. Public policies should support the transformation of large enterprises and their associated industries and ecosystems by ...
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Global AI Survey: AI proves its worth, but few scale impact

December 9, 2019

McKinsey & Company | Nov 2019 Most companies report measurable benefits from AI where it has been deployed; however, much work remains to scale impact, manage risks, and retrain the workforce. A group of high performers shows the way. Adoption of artificial intelligence (AI) continues to increase, and the technology is generating returns. 1 The findings of the latest McKinsey Global Survey on the subject show a nearly 25 percent year-over-year increase in the use of AI 2 in standard business processes, with a sizable jump from the past year in companies using AI across multiple areas of their business. 3 A majority of executives whose companies have adopted AI report that it has provided an uptick in revenue in the business areas where it is used, and 44 percent say AI has reduced costs. The results also show that a small share of companies—from a variety of sectors—are attaining outsize business results from AI, potentially widening the gap between AI power users and adoption laggards. Respondents from these high-performing companies (or AI high performers) report that they achieve greater scale and see both higher revenue increases and greater cost decreases than other companies that use AI. 4 The findings, ...
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HSBC’s plan to move $20B in assets to blockchain could be a watershed moment

December 6, 2019

Computerworld | Lucas Mearian | Dec 6, 2019 The investment bank's trust of blockchain is likely to spur confidence in the nascent technology. Investment bank HSBC Holdings is using a blockchain distributed ledger technology (DLT) to digitize transaction records of private investments, enabling clients globally to access the details of their assets online in near real-time. The London-based company, the seventh largest bank in the world, plans to move $20 billion in assets that include equity, debt and real estate onto its new Digital Vault blockchain, a shift away from its current use of paper records to respond to client search requests. "The Digital Vault is live in Asia and will be rolled out in the U.S. and Europe in the first quarter of 2020," an HSBC spokesperson said via email. By getting investors to interact with this data on the blockchain through decentralized applications (dApps) supported by friendly user interfaces, HSBC is helping build the on-ramps and infrastructure needed to take blockchain DLT mainstream, according to Avivah Litan, a Gartner vice president of research. See:  The Decade in Blockchain — 2010 to 2020 in Review "Presumably, millions of potential investors and users will be on-ramped to blockchain interfaces and ...
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