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[...]
SEC wants big data tools for monitoring and enforcing cryptocurrency market compliance
Modern Consensus | ,
Move is latest series of steps by regulator to bring clarity and less confrontational approach to regulations enforcement
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission wants to know if the technology to help it monitor major cryptocurrency blockchains for risk and regulatory compliance issues exists.
The SEC is not looking to buy big data analytics tools at this time, but characterizes its interest as “conducting market research to determine the availability and technical capability,” of the tools presently available on the market, it announced in a notice on Jan. 31
What the SEC wants to know about is the “ability to provide the requested data but also an overview of the processes used to extract the data, convert the data into a reviewable format, and the verification steps to ensure there is no loss in data completeness and accuracy due to the data transformation tools and processes applied.”
The software it wants would also make the data easy for SEC staff to read and understand on an ongoing basis, and would provide insights about that data—notably identifying who the data belongs to—as well as a way of ensuring the data is accurate and complete.
See: Designing a data transformation that delivers value right from the start
The request is the latest in a series of recent moves that underline the agency’s commitment to bringing order, clarity, and oversight to the regulation of the cryptocurrency and digital asset market, as well as moving away from the confrontational approach that have characterized its actions in recent years. The SEC’s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) identified digital assets as one of its priorities for 2019, including firms’ portfolio management, internal controls, and asset security among its focuses.
The SEC recently promised “plain English” guidance for developers and investors that will make clear if their cryptocurrencies and initial coin offerings (ICO) qualify as securities under the law, according to “The Distributed Ledger: Blockchain, Digital Assets and Smart Contracts,”
a report issued in November 2018 by the white shoe law firm Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher, and Flom.
That recent promise by William Hinman, director of corporation finance at the SEC, highlights what Skadden calls the agency’s “recent efforts to encourage engagement and collaboration with developers regarding their blockchain-related projects rather than emphasizing enforcement actions.”
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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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Guest Post | July 14, 2020 Technology is never staying in one place and is regularly developing. You might think that the technologies that you use now cannot be improved and that there is nothing that can be better than this, but then in a couple of days, you read a new article about some exceptional discovery, and you realize that this is not it. Technology is an integral part of your whole life. Just think for a moment. You buy your morning mocha only with a wave of your watch, send money to a person that is hundreds of miles away from you, and complete many other money transactions thanks to the improvements in the financial technology field. See: Can Fintech Make the World More Inclusive? Over the last couple of years, fintech companies have been evolving extremely fast, and recently they have begun to manage student loan debt. They offer students everything that they possibly can – an opportunity to become fluent in financial literacy, loan refinancing, educate the students in the ways they can pay off their loans. However, such companies are not suitable for every student. But the good thing is that they provide some outstanding ...
Read More
Betakit | Meagan Simpson | Jul 14, 2020 Wealthsimple is set to expand into the cryptocurrency trading space with the launch of Wealthsimple Crypto. The new product offering will provide commission-free trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum through a mobile trading app. The Toronto-based FinTech startup has launched Wealthsimple Crypto in private beta and will roll out the product to users by invitation over the coming weeks. “It’s important that [Wealthsimple] started thinking about the role that crypto is playing in the financial services ecosystem.” Wealthsimple Crypto will be offered by Wealthsimple Digital Assets Inc., a newly-formed, wholly-owned subsidiaries of Wealthsimple Financial Corp. Wealthsimple registered the business earlier this year; one of three, in preparation for the launch of a variety of new services. See: Consilium Crypto Saves 10% on Transactions for Institutional Digital Asset Traders According to Wealthsimple, Digital Assets is a virtual currency dealer money services business authorized by Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). It is also reportedly working with the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) on a regulatory sandbox framework for offering Wealthsimple Crypto to Canadians. “Crypto is already super popular and growing in its popularity, and growing in its credibility. And the reality in ...
Read More
Inc | Don Reisinger | Jul 11, 2020 Why the Amazon founder's simple rule might inspire innovation--not recreation--in your company. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has plenty of rules for his company to follow, but arguably none of them may be as impactful on small business success as his "country club" rule. In his 2013 book The Everything Store, author Brad Stone recounted how Jeff Bezos would often say he didn't want Amazon to become "a country club" where people who want "to retire" land after they work hard in their careers. He'd reference Microsoft when talking about the "country club" mentality, Stone wrote, and believed Amazon should keep its fast-moving and constantly innovating culture. In an interview with CNBC earlier this year, former Amazon executive John Rossman referenced the time he heard Bezos make the same country club analogy and explained it as follows: "The point being that even if you're doing well in the marketplace, you always have to work hard and not hold back to ensure that you and your staff are creating a future that's every bit as bright as the one you may have inherited." Like it or not, your business needs to stay hungry and stay away from country clubs. Just ...
Read More
PYMTS | July 10, 2020 Open banking comes in several flavors, yet its rise requires robust Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures, Zac Cohen, chief operating officer at identity verification firm Trulioo told Karen Webster in a recent interview. As financial institutions (FIs) work with FinTechs, they need to know that these tech-nimble startups are not only enabling access to customers’ account data but also in a manner that embraces KYC and AML. The end goal: to speed innovation toward new products and services while keeping fraudsters out. Regulation Vs. Market Forces The need for both innovation and security comes at a time when open banking is gaining a foothold in the United States due in part to the pandemic. It’s also growing across the pond in the European Union, albeit with some important distinctions. “In recent years, we’ve seen the heavily regulated version of open banking in the E.U.,” Cohen said. “It’s been a coordinated effort — regulatory-driven, highly standardized and thrust upon the banking community. In the U.S., it’s been an organic-but-inevitable exercise, driven primarily by innovation and consumer demand.” That’s due in part to the fact that America has a more fragmented banking and ...
Read More
NCFA Canada | By Samuel He | July 11, 2020 Dealing with finances is time-consuming and difficult, especially when it involves contradictory goals, like paying off debt while investing for the future. Unfortunately, financial literacy is not emphasized in today’s educational curriculum. Reports show that only 16% of Millennials qualified as “financially literate,” and over 75% of Canadians stated that they were not confident that they will ever achieve their financial goals. Several companies have taken initiatives to offer assistance in this field. One company is Finally, a free online financial planning stimulator will provide guidance to users about their financial goals. Another is NuMoola, a family-focused consumer banking app that helps children develop good money habits using real money and gamified education. Finally offers a DIY Financial Planning Simulator that helps users customize a tailor-made plan to best fit their needs. The simulator uses multiple financial algorithms and machine learning to make the process straightforward and efficient, creating a plan for the user in as little as 20 minutes. A basic financial plan can be created for free, with the user having the option to subscribe for additional value-added services. Some of these services include automated money movement, access ...
Read More
Montreal in Technology | Steve La Barbera | Jul 6, 2020 Perhaps Montreal’s best known fintech, Flinks has today announced another $16 million flowing into its coffers. That includes just over $5 million in debt, and and $11 million series A round led by National Bank’s corporate venture capital arm, NAventures, which was also the source of the loan. The round also included participation from Intact Ventures, Luge Capital and Panache Ventures. “The digitization of financial services is more than just a trend. It’s a profound reshaping of the industry, driven by rapidly changing consumer needs in a global context. Flinks is uniquely positioned to help businesses accelerate their digital transformation,” said Flinks co-founder and CEO, Yves-Gabriel Leboeuf. “This investment from our strategic partners allows us to jumpstart the next phase of our mission: consolidating our position in our home market and building new innovative data products that will allow us to tackle global demand.” The funding will be used to help Flinks bring its services to new verticals, such as wealth management, and continue its geographic expansion to establish itself as a market leader in those new geos. By developing and leveraging a powerful, secure data exchange network, Flinks ...
Read More
Financial Post | Kevin Carmichael | July 10, 2020 Adam Felesky, chief executive of Portag3 Ventures LP, the venture-capital arm of Power Corp. of Canada, was primed to put his home country on the leading edge of finance at the end of last year. “We’re on a mission to build global champions from a Canadian base,” Felesky told the TechCrunch website in early December when Portag3 announced it had raised $427 million for a new fund aimed at digital finance startups. The “majority” of that money remains unallocated, Felesky told me this week, but that could soon change. The social distancing demanded by COVID-19 has sped up the shift to a digital economy, a boon for outfits such as Toronto-based Portag3, which specializes in identifying startups that have plans to disrupt finance. The pandemic caused a terrible recession, but anyone focused on digital technology barely noticed. “We’ve been playing offence,” Felesky said during a Zoom interview organized by the National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association. “We’re excited about the environment right now. There are lots of opportunities.” Without access to data, digital upstarts have little chance of stealing market share from legacy institutions, even if they offer a better service Unfortunately ...
Read More
TFI | Sara Anderson | July 10, 2020 Are you interested in providing students with work opportunities that can benefit them, and your business, during Canada’s economic recovery? If you’re in HR, talent management, or responsible for recruitment within your organization, this is a great initiative and opportunity to help you achieve your goals. Toronto Finance International has partnered with The Conference Board of Canada (CBoC) and Business + the Higher Education Roundtable (BHER) to improve and expand student work-integrated learning (WIL) in Canada. Our aim is to assess and support student recruitment, training, and future talent needs during our country’s economic recovery from COVID-19. Our partners are developing a user-friendly resource hub to support employers in adding or expanding student talent within their organizations, and we need your input. We’re facilitating a series of virtual consultations and invite you to join us for a candid discussion about work-integrated learning. You’ll connect with a pan-Canadian network of senior leaders focused on developing WIL opportunities and tools that will benefit businesses across the country. You’ll help shape a toolbox for Canadian businesses and gain advanced access to BHER’s online toolkit of tips, tricks and resources on using WIL to address your ...
Read More
NCFA and FFCON20 | Release | July 8, 2020 TORONTO — July 8, 2020 — The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA), Toronto Finance International (TFI), and partners are pleased to announce that together with their sponsor, KABN Systems North America Inc. (“KABN”), attendees of FFCON20 DIGITAL, taking place from July 9 through August 27 inclusive, will receive an exclusive Liquid Avatar FFCON 20 iconic digital pin to celebrate their attendance at the event. The FFCON20 digital pin is the first event pin offered by Liquid Avatar (www.liquidavatar.com) in support of its new app to power users to verify, manage and monetize their digital identity. Liquid Avatar, a KABN product offering, provides users with the ability to verify, manage and control their digital identity through an easy to use app or web page. Using high quality icons, users can create their digital identity and verify themselves using KABN’s bank grade validation process and biometrics, supported by Blockchain technologies. “We’re honored to be able to present our first Liquid Avatar event pin at FFCON 20 DIGITAL,” said Mr. Ben Kessler, CEO – KABN. “Liquid Avatar gives users control over the use of their digital identity and data providing them with the ...
Read More
Attend One or All 8 Weekly FFCON20 Sessions! Links: Program | Speakers | Experience | Vote in Fintech Draft Attend Week 1: Thursday, July 9 from 1:45PM - 4:45PM EDT Scaling Fintech Funding, Innovation and Competition Attend this Session for $25! (Expires July 7 midnight) 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 ...
Read More
Guest Post | July 14, 2020 Technology is never staying in one place and is regularly developing. You might think that the technologies that you use now cannot be improved and that there is nothing that can be better than this, but then in a couple of days, you read a new article about some exceptional discovery, and you realize that this is not it. Technology is an integral part of your whole life. Just think for a moment. You buy your morning mocha only with a wave of your watch, send money to a person that is hundreds of miles away from you, and complete many other money transactions thanks to the improvements in the financial technology field. See: Can Fintech Make the World More Inclusive? Over the last couple of years, fintech companies have been evolving extremely fast, and recently they have begun to manage student loan debt. They offer students everything that they possibly can – an opportunity to become fluent in financial literacy, loan refinancing, educate the students in the ways they can pay off their loans. However, such companies are not suitable for every student. But the good thing is that they provide some outstanding ...
Read More
Read More
Betakit | Meagan Simpson | Jul 14, 2020 Wealthsimple is set to expand into the cryptocurrency trading space with the launch of Wealthsimple Crypto. The new product offering will provide commission-free trading of Bitcoin and Ethereum through a mobile trading app. The Toronto-based FinTech startup has launched Wealthsimple Crypto in private beta and will roll out the product to users by invitation over the coming weeks. “It’s important that [Wealthsimple] started thinking about the role that crypto is playing in the financial services ecosystem.” Wealthsimple Crypto will be offered by Wealthsimple Digital Assets Inc., a newly-formed, wholly-owned subsidiaries of Wealthsimple Financial Corp. Wealthsimple registered the business earlier this year; one of three, in preparation for the launch of a variety of new services. See: Consilium Crypto Saves 10% on Transactions for Institutional Digital Asset Traders According to Wealthsimple, Digital Assets is a virtual currency dealer money services business authorized by Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). It is also reportedly working with the Ontario Securities Commission (OSC) on a regulatory sandbox framework for offering Wealthsimple Crypto to Canadians. “Crypto is already super popular and growing in its popularity, and growing in its credibility. And the reality in ...
Read More
Read More
Inc | Don Reisinger | Jul 11, 2020 Why the Amazon founder's simple rule might inspire innovation--not recreation--in your company. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos has plenty of rules for his company to follow, but arguably none of them may be as impactful on small business success as his "country club" rule. In his 2013 book The Everything Store, author Brad Stone recounted how Jeff Bezos would often say he didn't want Amazon to become "a country club" where people who want "to retire" land after they work hard in their careers. He'd reference Microsoft when talking about the "country club" mentality, Stone wrote, and believed Amazon should keep its fast-moving and constantly innovating culture. In an interview with CNBC earlier this year, former Amazon executive John Rossman referenced the time he heard Bezos make the same country club analogy and explained it as follows: "The point being that even if you're doing well in the marketplace, you always have to work hard and not hold back to ensure that you and your staff are creating a future that's every bit as bright as the one you may have inherited." Like it or not, your business needs to stay hungry and stay away from country clubs. Just ...
Read More
Read More
PYMTS | July 10, 2020 Open banking comes in several flavors, yet its rise requires robust Know Your Customer (KYC) and Anti-Money Laundering (AML) procedures, Zac Cohen, chief operating officer at identity verification firm Trulioo told Karen Webster in a recent interview. As financial institutions (FIs) work with FinTechs, they need to know that these tech-nimble startups are not only enabling access to customers’ account data but also in a manner that embraces KYC and AML. The end goal: to speed innovation toward new products and services while keeping fraudsters out. Regulation Vs. Market Forces The need for both innovation and security comes at a time when open banking is gaining a foothold in the United States due in part to the pandemic. It’s also growing across the pond in the European Union, albeit with some important distinctions. “In recent years, we’ve seen the heavily regulated version of open banking in the E.U.,” Cohen said. “It’s been a coordinated effort — regulatory-driven, highly standardized and thrust upon the banking community. In the U.S., it’s been an organic-but-inevitable exercise, driven primarily by innovation and consumer demand.” That’s due in part to the fact that America has a more fragmented banking and ...
Read More
Read More
NCFA Canada | By Samuel He | July 11, 2020 Dealing with finances is time-consuming and difficult, especially when it involves contradictory goals, like paying off debt while investing for the future. Unfortunately, financial literacy is not emphasized in today’s educational curriculum. Reports show that only 16% of Millennials qualified as “financially literate,” and over 75% of Canadians stated that they were not confident that they will ever achieve their financial goals. Several companies have taken initiatives to offer assistance in this field. One company is Finally, a free online financial planning stimulator will provide guidance to users about their financial goals. Another is NuMoola, a family-focused consumer banking app that helps children develop good money habits using real money and gamified education. Finally offers a DIY Financial Planning Simulator that helps users customize a tailor-made plan to best fit their needs. The simulator uses multiple financial algorithms and machine learning to make the process straightforward and efficient, creating a plan for the user in as little as 20 minutes. A basic financial plan can be created for free, with the user having the option to subscribe for additional value-added services. Some of these services include automated money movement, access ...
Read More
Read More
Montreal in Technology | Steve La Barbera | Jul 6, 2020 Perhaps Montreal’s best known fintech, Flinks has today announced another $16 million flowing into its coffers. That includes just over $5 million in debt, and and $11 million series A round led by National Bank’s corporate venture capital arm, NAventures, which was also the source of the loan. The round also included participation from Intact Ventures, Luge Capital and Panache Ventures. “The digitization of financial services is more than just a trend. It’s a profound reshaping of the industry, driven by rapidly changing consumer needs in a global context. Flinks is uniquely positioned to help businesses accelerate their digital transformation,” said Flinks co-founder and CEO, Yves-Gabriel Leboeuf. “This investment from our strategic partners allows us to jumpstart the next phase of our mission: consolidating our position in our home market and building new innovative data products that will allow us to tackle global demand.” The funding will be used to help Flinks bring its services to new verticals, such as wealth management, and continue its geographic expansion to establish itself as a market leader in those new geos. By developing and leveraging a powerful, secure data exchange network, Flinks ...
Read More
Read More
Financial Post | Kevin Carmichael | July 10, 2020 Adam Felesky, chief executive of Portag3 Ventures LP, the venture-capital arm of Power Corp. of Canada, was primed to put his home country on the leading edge of finance at the end of last year. “We’re on a mission to build global champions from a Canadian base,” Felesky told the TechCrunch website in early December when Portag3 announced it had raised $427 million for a new fund aimed at digital finance startups. The “majority” of that money remains unallocated, Felesky told me this week, but that could soon change. The social distancing demanded by COVID-19 has sped up the shift to a digital economy, a boon for outfits such as Toronto-based Portag3, which specializes in identifying startups that have plans to disrupt finance. The pandemic caused a terrible recession, but anyone focused on digital technology barely noticed. “We’ve been playing offence,” Felesky said during a Zoom interview organized by the National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association. “We’re excited about the environment right now. There are lots of opportunities.” Without access to data, digital upstarts have little chance of stealing market share from legacy institutions, even if they offer a better service Unfortunately ...
Read More
Read More
TFI | Sara Anderson | July 10, 2020 Are you interested in providing students with work opportunities that can benefit them, and your business, during Canada’s economic recovery? If you’re in HR, talent management, or responsible for recruitment within your organization, this is a great initiative and opportunity to help you achieve your goals. Toronto Finance International has partnered with The Conference Board of Canada (CBoC) and Business + the Higher Education Roundtable (BHER) to improve and expand student work-integrated learning (WIL) in Canada. Our aim is to assess and support student recruitment, training, and future talent needs during our country’s economic recovery from COVID-19. Our partners are developing a user-friendly resource hub to support employers in adding or expanding student talent within their organizations, and we need your input. We’re facilitating a series of virtual consultations and invite you to join us for a candid discussion about work-integrated learning. You’ll connect with a pan-Canadian network of senior leaders focused on developing WIL opportunities and tools that will benefit businesses across the country. You’ll help shape a toolbox for Canadian businesses and gain advanced access to BHER’s online toolkit of tips, tricks and resources on using WIL to address your ...
Read More
Read More
NCFA and FFCON20 | Release | July 8, 2020 TORONTO — July 8, 2020 — The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association (NCFA), Toronto Finance International (TFI), and partners are pleased to announce that together with their sponsor, KABN Systems North America Inc. (“KABN”), attendees of FFCON20 DIGITAL, taking place from July 9 through August 27 inclusive, will receive an exclusive Liquid Avatar FFCON 20 iconic digital pin to celebrate their attendance at the event. The FFCON20 digital pin is the first event pin offered by Liquid Avatar (www.liquidavatar.com) in support of its new app to power users to verify, manage and monetize their digital identity. Liquid Avatar, a KABN product offering, provides users with the ability to verify, manage and control their digital identity through an easy to use app or web page. Using high quality icons, users can create their digital identity and verify themselves using KABN’s bank grade validation process and biometrics, supported by Blockchain technologies. “We’re honored to be able to present our first Liquid Avatar event pin at FFCON 20 DIGITAL,” said Mr. Ben Kessler, CEO – KABN. “Liquid Avatar gives users control over the use of their digital identity and data providing them with the ...
Read More
Read More
Attend One or All 8 Weekly FFCON20 Sessions! Links: Program | Speakers | Experience | Vote in Fintech Draft Attend Week 1: Thursday, July 9 from 1:45PM - 4:45PM EDT Scaling Fintech Funding, Innovation and Competition Attend this Session for $25! (Expires July 7 midnight) 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 ...
Read More
Read More
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