Sue Britton, Advisor, Corporate Innovation & Partnerships
September 26th, 2018
Sue Britton is CEO & Founder of FGS (FinTech Growth Syndicate) – Canada’s leading FinTech innova[...]
Swiss watchdog to propose looser anti-money laundering rules for fintechs
Reuters | Brenna Hughes Neghaiwi | Aug 28, 2018
ZURICH (Reuters) - Swiss financial regulator FINMA is planning to loosen anti-money laundering rules for smaller financial technology firms, part of a drive to boost innovation and shore up the country’s position as a leading money management hub.The revisions, prompted by a new ‘fintech’ licensing category carved out by the Swiss parliament in June, will clarify how non-banks applying for the new license must ensure due diligence.
“As a rule, all financial institutions are subject to similar due-diligence requirements relating to combating money laundering. However, as most fintech license applicants are likely to be smaller institutions, FINMA proposes to introduce some organizational relaxations for such institutions,” the financial supervisor said in a statement on Tuesday.
Its proposal defines small institutions as those with gross revenues under 1.5 million Swiss francs ($1.5 million).
Under its terms small institutions, unlike banks, will not for instance have to establish an independent anti-money laundering unit with monitoring duties, it said.
The move comes after Switzerland’s parliament voted in June to amend the Swiss Banking Act, creating a new fintech license category to ease rules imposed on financial endeavors that take in funds and provide certain bank-like functions, but do not make money by investing or receiving interest on the funds.
See: Comprehensive Overview of Fintech in Switzerland H1 2018
Switzerland, the world’s largest center for offshore wealth, has gained prominence in recent years as a hub for financial technology providers, such as banking software groups Temenos (TEMN.S) and Avaloq AVLN.S, as well as cryptocurrency projects.
But advocates have warned that as banks face increasing margin pressure and tougher competition from technological rivals, more must be done to promote innovation if Switzerland is to remain a leading financial hub.
The new license, intended to promote financial innovation, will apply to groups which accept public deposits of up to 100 million francs but don’t invest the funds or pay interest.
It will likely have the biggest immediate impact on activities such as crowdfunding, which under current rules could often require a banking license.
Cryptocurrency projects — which often fall under anti-money laundering or securities regulations under FINMA’s current guidelines but generally don’t require a banking license — are unlikely to be affected by the changes.
Continue to the full article --> here
The National Crowdfunding & Fintech Association of Canada (NCFA Canada) is a cross-Canada non-profit actively engaged with fintech, alternative finance, blockchain, cryptocurrency, crowdfunding and online investing stakeholders globally. NCFA Canada provides education, research, industry stewardship, services, and networking opportunities to thousands of members and subscribers and works closely with industry, government, academia, community and eco-system partners and affiliates to create a strong and vibrant crowdfunding and fintech industry. Join Canada's Fintech & Funding Community today FREE! Or become a contributing member and get perks. For more information, please visit: ncfacanada.org
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AiAuthority | Kristina Podnar | Jul 8 2019 It’s hard to overestimate the role of small businesses plays in the American economy: Businesses with fewer than 5 employees account for 62% of all businesses in the U.S. More than half of all Americans own or work for a small business. Small businesses are responsible for two-thirds of all new jobs created each year. When you look at the magnitude of their economic impact, it would be easy to assume that small businesses know exactly what they’re doing and would be the obvious place to look for advice and best practices. The truth, however, is that small businesses power the economy despite lacking the resources of larger organizations: 77% of small businesses rely on the owner’s personal savings for their original funding. Only 40% of small businesses are profitable. The vast majority of businesses that fail, do so because of cash flow problems. Employees of small businesses wear many hats, starting at the top. The owners or leaders of small businesses are typically responsible for three or more of the following functions: operations, finance, sales, marketing, HR, customer service, product development, or IT. When you look at it that way, it’s ...
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Read More
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Read More
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NCFA Guest Post | July 16, 2019 Every day, new startups are launched and another entrepreneur decides to begin building a business. One of the challenges that startups often face is managing their money effectively. Managing business finances can differ from personal finances as one mistake could trigger several issues in your business. Being as meticulous and accurate as possible is one of many ways to grow finances in a healthy way. It’s also imperative that you keep your expenses low which can be done in numerous ways. On that note, here is how you can manage your finances if you happen to have a new startup. Create a Budget Every business that wants to effectively manage its finances needs a budget. This will give you an accurate idea of what your income and expenses look like so that you’re able to spend wisely and plan effectively. Below, you’ll find a couple of tips for creating a budget. Income: Firstly, you’ll need to write down every source of income that your business has. In the case that you don’t have any income yet, create a financial forecast and estimate how much you think you’ll make. Your goal will be to ...
Read More
Read More
Impression Ventures | Christian Lassonde | July 16, 2019 Intro: NCFA Fintech Confidential spoke with some of Canada’s experienced fintech investors, on their background, how Canada has evolved, what we should be doing, advice to fintech founders and what keeps them awake at night. This is part 3 of a 4 part series. What is your background, and how did you come to found Impression Ventures? I'm graduated from Western in the mid-90s with two degrees. Comp-Eng and Comp-Sci. I immediately started my own business, excited by the endless possibilities the internet could bring to gaming. I had no idea what I was doing - needless to say, that company didn't work out. But the lessons I learned being a first-time entrepreneur have stayed with me to this day. From there I moved to the Valley, worked for some all-star companies; Electronic Arts, LucasArts, Linden Lab, got an MBA and founded two more businesses, Millions of Us & Virtual Greats. After a decade in the San Francisco area, I moved back to Toronto. After a fourth startup (didn't work out) - I got very interested in the intersection of finance and technology, two businesses sectors Canadian's excel at, but there was ...
Read More
Read More
Coindesk |Michael J Casey | Jul 15, 2019 Let’s be clear: It was not the substance of Donald Trump’s tweet that made his critique of bitcoin and Libra so important last week. It should be of no surprise that this US President would declare himself “not a fan” of “highly volatile” cryptocurrencies “based on thin air” that “facilitate unlawful behavior” or that he much prefers a “dependable and reliable” currency “called the United States Dollar!” (Anyone who assumed Trump would be a “drain-the-swamp” libertarian advocate for censorship-resistant money had an ill-informed view of a man whose government is stacked with former Wall Street execs, who opposes free trade and immigration, and takes a draconian approach to a variety of civil rights and social liberties.) What matters is the very fact that a sitting president mentioned cryptocurrencies at all. Indeed, from a price perspective, Trump’s disparaging remarks are, on balance, positive for bitcoin. By Friday evening, the post-tweet price action reflected that. See: Fintech Fridays Episode 32: Rallying behind Bitcoin with Frederick T. Pye More importantly, the tweet marks a symbolic milestone in the gradual but ever-expanding presence that cryptocurrency occupies in the public conversation around money and policy. It also marks ...
Read More
Read More
Cointelegraph | Helen Partz | July 10, 2019 Global payment giant Visa has recorded its second investment in a crypto project by leading a $40 million funding round of Anchorage startup, according to a Fortune report on July 10. Visa has reportedly led the round along with major cryptocurrency venture capital (VC) firm Blockchain Capital to support institutional-grade crypto custody service Anchorage, which previously raised $17 million in an investment led by Andreessen Horowitz. In the new round, both the amount of Visa’s contribution and Anchorage’s private valuation were not disclosed, the report notes. Both Visa and Anchorage are founding members of Facebook’s cryptocurrency project Libra, which was officially revealed on June 18. See: Ethereum will match Visa in scale in a ‘couple of years’ says founder As Fortune noted, the recent funding round is the second known investment of Visa in a crypto-related firm, with the payment giant having participated in a $30 million funding round in blockchain startup Chain back in 2015 alongside with Nasdaq and Citi. In late 2018, Chain was acquired by Stellar-focused firm Lightyear. The new funding will be used in Anchorage’s mission to provide an alternative to cold storage-based institutional custodies to ensure the ...
Read More
Read More
The Block Crypto | Frank Chaparro | July 10, 2019 Quick Take The Security and Exchange Commission approved Blockstack’s token offering under Reg A+, an accelerated path for smaller companies to raise money publicly This is the first approval the SEC gave for a token offering, after a series of crackdowns the regulator led against unregistered ICOs it deems as securities The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) gave blockchain startup Blockstack the go-ahead today to conduct a $28 million digital token offering under Regulation A+, the first token offering of its kind ever approved by the SEC, according to the firm. The SEC has launched a series of crackdowns on unregistered initial coin offerings (ICOs), with the latest including a dispute with messaging app Kik over its $100 million ICO. Still, Reg A+ offerings have had their own headaches. Reg A+ is a fast track for smaller companies to publicly raise money with less strenuous accounting and disclosure standards than a regular token offering requires. Even so, Blockstack founder Muneeb Ali told the Wall Street Journal that the process is still very long and costly since the SEC had to devise a brand new protocol for token offerings under Reg ...
Read More
Read More
NCFA Canada | July 6, 2019 JOIN US ON A STORYTELLING JOURNEY EVERY FRIDAY. Ep34-July 6: Accelerating Fintech Growth HOST: Manseeb Khan, Fintech Friday's show host GUEST: BRENDAN HOLT DUNN, Founder Holt Accelerator, (Linkedin) BIO: Brendan is an investment guru who has close to 15 years in managing multi-billion dollar asset portfolios. He is currently the CEO of Holdun, a 5th generation family business which offers family office services, wealth management services, trust services, corporate services, concierge services and financial services and was awarded best Multi-Family Office in the Caribbean 2017 for Holdun Family Office. A tech savvy investor, he has made many investments in startups including Stradigi AI, Addepar, Uber, LeAD Sports Accelerator, Sway Ventures, and Falcon 5. He has accumulated five finance and investment certificates to compliment his finance degree from King’s University College. He’s considered by entrepreneurs to be founder friendly. About this episode: On this week's episode of NCFA's Fintech Friday's Podcast, our host Manseeb Khan sits down with Brendan Dunn the Managing partner of the Holt Accelerator program. They talk about why are accelerators are important, how the can find the right companies and what their Fintech Show is. Enjoy! Subscribe and tune in each ...
Read More
Read More
CNN Business | Clare Duffy | July 4, 2019 New York (CNN Business)American lawmakers are concerned that Facebook's Libra cryptocurrency may try to challenge the dollar and are demanding the company stand down. They want Facebook to immediately halt development of Libra until regulators have time to examine the plans and "take action," according to a letter sent Tuesday to the company by a group of lawmakers from the House Financial Services Committee. Chairwoman Maxine Waters, a Democrat from California, first suggested a moratorium on development the day Libra was announced. The new letter represents an escalation of pressure on Facebook's digital currency plans, which have also been scrutinized by regulators around the world. Other interest groups have weighed in, too: More than 30 organizations sent a similar request to Facebook on Tuesday, saying US and foreign regulatory systems are not prepared to address questions about "national sovereignty, corporate power, consumer protection" and other issues raised by the project. The lawmakers said they want to hold public hearings on the "risks and benefits of cryptocurrency-based activities and explore legislative solutions." "Failure to cease implementation before we can do so risks a new Swiss-based financial system that is too big to ...
Read More
Read More
Bicameral Ventures Release | June 27, 2019 TORONTO, June 27, 2019 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Bicameral Ventures, the fund powering value creation through their "Interconnected Investing" model, announced today a highly strategic investment in Balance aimed at accelerating its growth. The investment brings Bicameral's portfolio to nine projects that are targeting challenges in various layers of the technology stack, with an aim of delivering superior end-user experiences by leveraging the blockchain and associated virtualized technologies. "Most M&A destroys value, especially as the problems centrally-planned corporations are trying to solve grow increasingly complex. Instead, Bicameral has brought together a group of independent yet 'interconnected' projects working at all layers of this novel technology stack, to attack multiple facets of the largest challenges. Balance, with its unique take on institutional grade custody for digital assets and hyper focus on UX and connectivity, provides an important building block in the delivery of unparalleled end user experiences that leverage decentralized technology," said Alex McDougall, Chief Investment Officer, Bicameral Ventures. See: Crypto Custody: Our Shared Journey Towards Mass Adoption Balance adds another critical component to Bicameral's unique portfolio of highly complementary projects focused on accelerating Web 3.0 adoption. As a key aspect of executing on Bicameral's "Interconnected Investing" ...
Read More
Read More
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