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[...]
When the Tide Goes Out: Big Questions for Crypto in 2019
Coindesk | Gary Gensler | Dec 17, 2018
Gary Gensler is a former chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission under President Barack Obama, a Senior advisor to the MIT Media Lab Digital Currency Initiative and Senior Lecturer at the MIT Sloan School of Management, where he currently teaches several classes on blockchain technology and crypto finance.
After this year’s wild market ride and so many failed projects, what might Satoshi Nakamoto’s innovative “Bitcoin: A Peer-to-Peer Electronic Cash System” mean for money and finance in 2019 and beyond?
Satoshi’s innovation – the use of append-only timestamped logs, secured by cryptography, amongst multiple parties, forming consensus on a shared ledger – needs to be taken seriously. The resulting blockchains of data can form widely verifiable peer-to-peer databases.
For any chance of a lasting role in the long evolution of money, though, blockchain applications and crypto assets have to deliver real economic results for users. And while bringing the crypto finance markets within public policy norms is critical, the greatest challenge remains the seriousness of commercial use cases.
A bunch of hype masquerading as fact won’t do it.
What We’ve Learned
Blockchain technology and crypto tokens provide an alternative means to move value on the Internet without relying upon a central intermediary. They promise the potential to lower verification and networking costs, ranging from censorship, privacy, reconciliation and settlement costs to the costs of jump starting and maintaining a network.
These features tie blockchain technology and cryptocurrencies directly to the essential plumbing of the financial sector, which at its core has the role of efficiently moving, allocating and pricing money and risk within an economy. It could lower costs, risks and economic rents in the financial system, which represents 7.5 percent of U.S. GDP.
See: Experts predict the five big fintech trends of 2019
To do so, though, blockchain technology must address its many technical and commercial challenges – scalability, efficiency, privacy, security, interoperability and governance. Industry reforms and regulations also must bring order to the markets surrounding this technology, especially for crypto exchanges and initial coin offerings.
In the meantime, the financial sector is mainly exploring private blockchain applications – without native tokens – built on software such as Hyperledger Fabric, R3 Corda or Quorum.
Any use case’s value proposition needs to be rigorously compared with simply using a traditional data base. In particular, any token offering must address how it will sustainably lower verification or networking costs – how such crypto asset benefits users more than simply using broadly accepted fiat currencies. While money is but a social construct, its history tells us that there are overwhelming network benefits when a currency is widely used and accepted for all three roles of money – as a unit of account, medium of exchange and store of value.
In essence, how might any blockchain technology project or any initial coin offering’s (‘ICO’) proposed token be more than simply a means to raise cheap money from the public? In 2019 and beyond, venture capitalists, large incumbents and crypto investors will likely be more discerning and rigorous in their investments and projects.
Public Policy Frameworks
The crypto finance markets can only gain public confidence and reach their potential by coming within long-established public policy frameworks. As with any other technology, we must guard against illicit activities, such as tax evasion, money laundering, terrorist financing and avoiding sanctions.
We must promote fair and open competition while ensuring for financial stability. We must protect investors and consumers.
While criminals have often exploited the existing financial system for money laundering, cryptocurrencies have given bad actors new ways to conduct old crimes. Dark markets conduct sales of illegal drugs and other contraband using cryptocurrencies. State actors, such as Venezuela, Russia, and Iran have used crypto finance to undermine U.S. policies. Additionally, cryptocurrencies add new challenges to global tax compliance.
What investor protection does exist in crypto markets seems little more than an effort to stay ahead of law enforcement’s and regulators’ attention.
Crypto Exchanges
Most crypto exchanges are unregistered. Manipulative behavior goes unchecked and billions of dollars in customers’ tokens have been stolen. Compared to traditional financial exchanges, they lack intermediation through regulated broker-dealers. Further, according to CryptoCompare’s October Exchange Review, only 47 percent of exchanges impose strict know-your-customer (‘KYC’) requirements.
See: Crypto Bear Market Gives UK Regulators Breathing Space to Finalize Crypto Regulation
Safeguards to date – treating crypto exchanges and digital wallet providers through money transmission laws in the same manner as Western Union or MoneyGram – are unsatisfactory.
Crypto exchanges are trading venues and need be treated as such, with mandated investor protections in place. Front running and other manipulative behavior needs to be banned. Exchanges need to fully comply with anti-money laundering laws and seriously fix or consider spinning off their custodial functions.
In 2019 and beyond, we will see multiple exchanges register in the U.S. – those trading ICO tokens will register as broker-dealers under Regulation ATS and Intercontinental Exchange’s new Bakkt exchangewill register and operate under the Commodities Exchange Act.
We’re also likely to see declining operating margins and consolidation in the more than 200 crypto exchanges.
Initial Coin Offerings
Of the thousands of ICOs to date, many have failed, and investors have lost billions. A recent EY studyreported that through the third quarter of 2018, 86 percent of the top ICOs of 2017 were trading below their listing price and only 13 percent actually have a working product.
Filecoin, for instance, raised over $250 million in October 2017 but is not due to go live until mid-2019. Academic and market studies also have found the ICO market rife with scams and frauds.
Debates have raged around the globe about how cryptocurrencies, and particularly ICOs, fit within existing securities, commodities and derivatives laws. Many contend that so-called ‘utility tokens’ sold for future consumption are not investment contracts – but this is a false distinction.
See: New eToro Survey Reveals Strong Interest in Cryptoasset Education, Despite Market Downturn
By their very design, ICOs mix economic attributes of both consumption and investment. ICO tokens’ realities – their risks, expectation of profits, reliance on the efforts of others, manner of marketing, exchange trading, limited supply, and capital formation — are attributes of investment offerings.
In the U.S., nearly all ICOs would meet the Supreme Court’s ‘Howey Test’ defining an investment contract under securities laws. As poet James Whitcomb Riley wrote over 100 years ago: “When I see a bird that walks like a duck and swims like a duck and quacks like a duck, I call that bird a duck.”
In 2019, we’re likely to continue seeing high ICO failure rates while funding totals decline. Regulators and the courts will bring added clarity to the market through increased numbers of enforcement cases and related private litigation.
Central Banks
Central banks are studying blockchain technology and crypto markets with one eye on financial stability and another eye on what it means for the fiat currencies they issue and oversee.
Canada’s project Jasper and Singapore’s project Ubin are exploring use of permissioned blockchain applications to update payment systems.
See: IMF: Nations Need to Consider a Central Bank Backed Cryptocurrency
While the policy challenges are significant, some Central Banks also are considering giving the public access to central bank payment systems and digital reserves through so-called ‘central bank digital currency’ (CBDC). Two countries’ review – one strong and one in distress – are noteworthy. In Sweden, use of paper-based Krona has declined and the Riksbank, the world’s oldest central bank, is pursuing an e-Krona project to provide electronic central bank money directly to the public.
Venezuela, facing hyperinflation, economic instability, and sanctions is promoting public use of a purportedly oil-backed token, Petro, though there are reports that seriously question the token’s legitimacy.
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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Finance Magnates | Rachel McIntosh | March 25, 2020 The paradigm shift that the coronavirus has caused will leave permanent marks on the fintech industry. Many countries around the world are hitting the 2- or 3- or even 12-week-mark of quarantine, and many are looking at just as many (or more) weeks of quarantine ahead. The virus has brought about a powerful shift in reality; in addition to the effects that the virus has had on our personal lives, companies in every industry are being forced to find new ways of operating on every level. In a way, the fintech industry has been presented with a kind of advantage–being a fairly new sector, fintech companies are already fairly well-positioned to adapt to a world that suddenly exists primarily online; most fintech platforms already exist in online formats anyhow. See: Coronavirus Is Widening the Corporate Digital Divide Still, the paradigm shift brought about by coronavirus is forcing the fintech sector to come up with creative solutions to new and unprecedented problems when it comes to supporting customers, building relationships, boosting company morale, and planning for the future. Banks are suddenly relying on fintech companies more than ever Indeed, Paul Geiger, President ...
Read More
Roll Call | Chris Brummer | April 7, 2020 Fintech Beat sits down with Linda Jeng and Dan Gorfine to talk about how online lending, open banking and a digital dollar — with the right policies — could immediately improve the plight of those affected by the coronavirus. 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
Forbes | Ron Shevlin | April 6, 2020 Microsoft and data aggregator Plaid announced a partnership to offer a service they’re calling Money in Excel. According to Plaid: “Money in Excel essentially turns the spreadsheet into a fintech app. It allows users to securely connect their financial accounts, import the data within them, sync balances and transactions over time, and, ultimately, gain greater insights into their financial health.” See: With Plaid Acquisition, Visa Makes a Big Play for the ‘Plumbing’ That Connects the Fintech World Here’s how it’ll work: Plaid will provide a permissioned connection to financial accounts from within Excel. After linking their account(s), users will have access to their balance and transaction history. The tool will provide charts and graphs analyzing users’ spending in a “Monthly Snapshot” tab. According to Microsoft, the tool will also feature proactive alerts about price changes for recurring payments, bank fees, and overdraft warnings. Although there was no mention of fees by either Microsoft or Plaid, American Banker reported that Money in Excel will will cost $7 a month for individuals and $10 a month for families. The Good News: Competition in the PFM Space is Weak (For Now) The Bad News: Few ...
Read More
Ledger Insights | April 6, 2020 A bulletin from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the body owned by 62 central banks, highlights cash concerns because of the COVID-19 virus. It states that perceived risks, valid or not, brings the potential for digital payments to the fore. And the BIS specifically makes a case for Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC). In recent weeks, internet searches have shot up relating to COVID-19 and cash, especially in jurisdictions that use small denomination banknotes. Additionally, research has shown that viruses can persist on banknotes. That’s based on past research relating to influenza and other viruses as well as more recent COVID-19 research, which show non-porous surfaces are better at transferring the illness. See: Dirty money: The case against using cash during the coronavirus outbreak However, there are no proven cases of transmission through cash, and scientists found the risks are thought to be low compared to other frequently touched objects. The main risk for COVID-19 is thought to be airborne droplets. Plus, using cards at point of sale terminals also carries some risks, particularly PIN pads. In both cases, washing hands is important. Examples given of central bank actions include the Bank of England statement: ...
Read More
Daily Fintech | Ilias Louis Hatzis | April 6, 2020 Decentralized Finance (DeFi) is building a new financial system. The DeFi movement is picking up steam. DeFi has been successful in remittances, loans, stable coins, and other core elements of the fiat world. With a little over a year under its belt, DeFi hit a major milestone a couple of months ago, with more than $1 billion in value locked in the DeFi markets. Bitcoin (BTC) dominates the cryptocurrency market, its 8x bigger than the Ethereum, the second cryptocurrency by market cap, but Bitcoin doesn’t have Ethereum’s sophisticated on-chain lending, derivatives, trading capabilities . While there are already several centralized BTC lending platforms like BlockFi/Nexo/Celsius. Bitcoin DeFi has been a dream for Bitcoiners. Maybe the dream is over and new tBTC project will bring Bitcoin to the DeFi world. Maybe it will do a lot more than that! Bitcoin could greatly transform DeFi and that is exactly what the team behind the Keep protocol understands. They recently raised $7.7 million, led by Paradigm Capital and other companies including Fenbushi Capital and Collaborative Funds, to launch a trustless platform for creating Bitcoin-backed tBTC tokens, on Ethereum. The tBTC platform extends on ...
Read More
Pitchbook | Alexander Davis | March 24, 2020 After driving much of the venture capital market's hyper-growth in recent years, corporations are poised for a decisive stress test of their zeal for funding startups. Heading into 2020, it wasn't unreasonable to forecast another record year for VC financing involving corporate venture capital arms, such as those of titans Intel, Salesforce and Google. But that was before the coronavirus brought the world economy to a standstill. Turmoil spurred by the global health emergency has given rise to a new mantra for business decision-makers: Hit pause. Inside boardrooms of every stripe, countless investment decisions are either being postponed or subjected to fresh scrutiny. Companies are suddenly on guard as they struggle to take the measure of an unfolding economic disaster, in a challenge of their commitment to venture funding. "In that hunker-down scenario, all spending goes through a rigorous review, obviously," said Pradeep Tagare, head of the $250 million corporate venture fund at UK-based energy company National Grid. "One of the first things that gets hit is the venture capital part of it because that's an easy thing to step back on." Corporate VC departments make strategic bets on markets, innovations, partnerships ...
Read More
Crypto Consilium | Austin Hubbell | April 3, 2020 Capital Markets in the Digital Asset Era", with speakers representing Asset Management, Exchange, Lending, Custody and Data & Technology. It's a 1-hour event that's focused around the current state of the industry and what needs to be done to move digital assets into the mainstream institutional capital markets world. Online Event Date and Time Wed, April 8, 2020 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM EDT Price: FREE Register on eventbrite: here Moderator Michael Rabkin, Head of Institutional Sales & Head of Global Partnerships at DV Chain & DVeX Speakers George Bordianu is the co-founder and CEO of Balance Austin Hubbell is the CEO and co-founder of Consilium Crypto Adam Reeds is the Co-Founder & CEO of Ledn John Willock is CEO and co-founder of Tritum Digital Assets Shaun Cumby is the Chief investment officer of 3iQ Register for this event --> Now 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 ...
Read More
UNCDF | Jia Wei Khor | April 2, 2020 APEC Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) launched the Gig Economy Challenge. The challenge is funded by MetLife Foundation through the i3 (Innovate, Implement and Impact) program. In light of COVID-19, gig workers are likely to face new and unforeseen challenges which will affect their financial health. Calling for applications to seek viable solutions for improving the financial health of gig workers in APEC's (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) 21 member economies. If you have a solution, apply now! See: Malaysia’s potential as the fintech hub for the ASEAN region Why participate? Technical assistance worth $100,000 to pilot your technology product or service Up to $30,000 grant per team as seed capital Opportunity to pilot the solution in Malaysia Access to enabling partnerships, including financial institutions, technology companies and other infrastructure providers Questions? Join the info sessions! Click below to register 7 April (Tue) 11 am ( GMT +8) 14 April (Tue) 10 am ( GMT +8) 23 April (Thurs) 11 am ( GMT +8) Where can I know more?: www.bit.ly/GigEconomyChallenge Application Deadline: 27 April 2020 Contact finlab@uncdf.org The National Crowdfunding & ...
Read More
Betakit | Meagan Simpson | April 2, 2020 The Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI) and its members are calling on the federal government to make adjustments to the 75 percent emergency wage subsidy, arguing that it does little to support Canada’s tech sector. The CCI is recommending that the government expand the eligibility criteria for the subsidy, which currently requires businesses to have seen a 30 percent year-over-year decline in gross revenue directly related to COVID-19. In a copy of the CCI’s latest submission to the federal government, obtained by BetaKit, the lobby group states, “this measurement is only appropriate for a small number of static, traditional businesses, and is not appropriate for high growth firms in Canada’s technology sector, or SMEs that experience monthly recurring revenue.” “The intention of the wage subsidy program is to save Canadian businesses from making drastic job cuts or going bankrupt so that we can reignite the Canadian economy,” CCI vice-chairman and OMERS founder John Ruffolo said in a statement to BetaKit. “The program as currently outlined seems aimed to make it difficult to apply for, to receive funds, and to attest to the criteria in a timely manner.” See: How Governments Should Use ...
Read More
Bank On It podcast | John Siracusa | March 11, 2020 This nugget was pulled from episode 160 from an interview with Brett Crosby, co-founder & COO of PeerStreet. This nugget is on turning a funding failure into a win. About Brett Crosby: Brett is the co-founder and COO of PeerStreet, a platform for investing in real estate-backed loans. Crosby was previously the director of product marketing at Google, where he co-founded Google Analytics, helped start Google’s mobile advertising business and recently ran the global marketing teams responsible for the growth of Chrome, Gmail, Docs and Drive. 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 ...
Read More
Finance Magnates | Rachel McIntosh | March 25, 2020 The paradigm shift that the coronavirus has caused will leave permanent marks on the fintech industry. Many countries around the world are hitting the 2- or 3- or even 12-week-mark of quarantine, and many are looking at just as many (or more) weeks of quarantine ahead. The virus has brought about a powerful shift in reality; in addition to the effects that the virus has had on our personal lives, companies in every industry are being forced to find new ways of operating on every level. In a way, the fintech industry has been presented with a kind of advantage–being a fairly new sector, fintech companies are already fairly well-positioned to adapt to a world that suddenly exists primarily online; most fintech platforms already exist in online formats anyhow. See: Coronavirus Is Widening the Corporate Digital Divide Still, the paradigm shift brought about by coronavirus is forcing the fintech sector to come up with creative solutions to new and unprecedented problems when it comes to supporting customers, building relationships, boosting company morale, and planning for the future. Banks are suddenly relying on fintech companies more than ever Indeed, Paul Geiger, President ...
Read More
Read More
Roll Call | Chris Brummer | April 7, 2020 Fintech Beat sits down with Linda Jeng and Dan Gorfine to talk about how online lending, open banking and a digital dollar — with the right policies — could immediately improve the plight of those affected by the coronavirus. 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
Forbes | Ron Shevlin | April 6, 2020 Microsoft and data aggregator Plaid announced a partnership to offer a service they’re calling Money in Excel. According to Plaid: “Money in Excel essentially turns the spreadsheet into a fintech app. It allows users to securely connect their financial accounts, import the data within them, sync balances and transactions over time, and, ultimately, gain greater insights into their financial health.” See: With Plaid Acquisition, Visa Makes a Big Play for the ‘Plumbing’ That Connects the Fintech World Here’s how it’ll work: Plaid will provide a permissioned connection to financial accounts from within Excel. After linking their account(s), users will have access to their balance and transaction history. The tool will provide charts and graphs analyzing users’ spending in a “Monthly Snapshot” tab. According to Microsoft, the tool will also feature proactive alerts about price changes for recurring payments, bank fees, and overdraft warnings. Although there was no mention of fees by either Microsoft or Plaid, American Banker reported that Money in Excel will will cost $7 a month for individuals and $10 a month for families. The Good News: Competition in the PFM Space is Weak (For Now) The Bad News: Few ...
Read More
Read More
Ledger Insights | April 6, 2020 A bulletin from the Bank for International Settlements (BIS), the body owned by 62 central banks, highlights cash concerns because of the COVID-19 virus. It states that perceived risks, valid or not, brings the potential for digital payments to the fore. And the BIS specifically makes a case for Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDC). In recent weeks, internet searches have shot up relating to COVID-19 and cash, especially in jurisdictions that use small denomination banknotes. Additionally, research has shown that viruses can persist on banknotes. That’s based on past research relating to influenza and other viruses as well as more recent COVID-19 research, which show non-porous surfaces are better at transferring the illness. See: Dirty money: The case against using cash during the coronavirus outbreak However, there are no proven cases of transmission through cash, and scientists found the risks are thought to be low compared to other frequently touched objects. The main risk for COVID-19 is thought to be airborne droplets. Plus, using cards at point of sale terminals also carries some risks, particularly PIN pads. In both cases, washing hands is important. Examples given of central bank actions include the Bank of England statement: ...
Read More
Read More
Daily Fintech | Ilias Louis Hatzis | April 6, 2020 Decentralized Finance (DeFi) is building a new financial system. The DeFi movement is picking up steam. DeFi has been successful in remittances, loans, stable coins, and other core elements of the fiat world. With a little over a year under its belt, DeFi hit a major milestone a couple of months ago, with more than $1 billion in value locked in the DeFi markets. Bitcoin (BTC) dominates the cryptocurrency market, its 8x bigger than the Ethereum, the second cryptocurrency by market cap, but Bitcoin doesn’t have Ethereum’s sophisticated on-chain lending, derivatives, trading capabilities . While there are already several centralized BTC lending platforms like BlockFi/Nexo/Celsius. Bitcoin DeFi has been a dream for Bitcoiners. Maybe the dream is over and new tBTC project will bring Bitcoin to the DeFi world. Maybe it will do a lot more than that! Bitcoin could greatly transform DeFi and that is exactly what the team behind the Keep protocol understands. They recently raised $7.7 million, led by Paradigm Capital and other companies including Fenbushi Capital and Collaborative Funds, to launch a trustless platform for creating Bitcoin-backed tBTC tokens, on Ethereum. The tBTC platform extends on ...
Read More
Read More
Pitchbook | Alexander Davis | March 24, 2020 After driving much of the venture capital market's hyper-growth in recent years, corporations are poised for a decisive stress test of their zeal for funding startups. Heading into 2020, it wasn't unreasonable to forecast another record year for VC financing involving corporate venture capital arms, such as those of titans Intel, Salesforce and Google. But that was before the coronavirus brought the world economy to a standstill. Turmoil spurred by the global health emergency has given rise to a new mantra for business decision-makers: Hit pause. Inside boardrooms of every stripe, countless investment decisions are either being postponed or subjected to fresh scrutiny. Companies are suddenly on guard as they struggle to take the measure of an unfolding economic disaster, in a challenge of their commitment to venture funding. "In that hunker-down scenario, all spending goes through a rigorous review, obviously," said Pradeep Tagare, head of the $250 million corporate venture fund at UK-based energy company National Grid. "One of the first things that gets hit is the venture capital part of it because that's an easy thing to step back on." Corporate VC departments make strategic bets on markets, innovations, partnerships ...
Read More
Read More
Crypto Consilium | Austin Hubbell | April 3, 2020 Capital Markets in the Digital Asset Era", with speakers representing Asset Management, Exchange, Lending, Custody and Data & Technology. It's a 1-hour event that's focused around the current state of the industry and what needs to be done to move digital assets into the mainstream institutional capital markets world. Online Event Date and Time Wed, April 8, 2020 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM EDT Price: FREE Register on eventbrite: here Moderator Michael Rabkin, Head of Institutional Sales & Head of Global Partnerships at DV Chain & DVeX Speakers George Bordianu is the co-founder and CEO of Balance Austin Hubbell is the CEO and co-founder of Consilium Crypto Adam Reeds is the Co-Founder & CEO of Ledn John Willock is CEO and co-founder of Tritum Digital Assets Shaun Cumby is the Chief investment officer of 3iQ Register for this event --> Now 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 ...
Read More
Read More
UNCDF | Jia Wei Khor | April 2, 2020 APEC Malaysia, Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM), Malaysia Digital Economy Corporation (MDEC) and United Nations Capital Development Fund (UNCDF) launched the Gig Economy Challenge. The challenge is funded by MetLife Foundation through the i3 (Innovate, Implement and Impact) program. In light of COVID-19, gig workers are likely to face new and unforeseen challenges which will affect their financial health. Calling for applications to seek viable solutions for improving the financial health of gig workers in APEC's (Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation) 21 member economies. If you have a solution, apply now! See: Malaysia’s potential as the fintech hub for the ASEAN region Why participate? Technical assistance worth $100,000 to pilot your technology product or service Up to $30,000 grant per team as seed capital Opportunity to pilot the solution in Malaysia Access to enabling partnerships, including financial institutions, technology companies and other infrastructure providers Questions? Join the info sessions! Click below to register 7 April (Tue) 11 am ( GMT +8) 14 April (Tue) 10 am ( GMT +8) 23 April (Thurs) 11 am ( GMT +8) Where can I know more?: www.bit.ly/GigEconomyChallenge Application Deadline: 27 April 2020 Contact finlab@uncdf.org The National Crowdfunding & ...
Read More
Read More
Betakit | Meagan Simpson | April 2, 2020 The Council of Canadian Innovators (CCI) and its members are calling on the federal government to make adjustments to the 75 percent emergency wage subsidy, arguing that it does little to support Canada’s tech sector. The CCI is recommending that the government expand the eligibility criteria for the subsidy, which currently requires businesses to have seen a 30 percent year-over-year decline in gross revenue directly related to COVID-19. In a copy of the CCI’s latest submission to the federal government, obtained by BetaKit, the lobby group states, “this measurement is only appropriate for a small number of static, traditional businesses, and is not appropriate for high growth firms in Canada’s technology sector, or SMEs that experience monthly recurring revenue.” “The intention of the wage subsidy program is to save Canadian businesses from making drastic job cuts or going bankrupt so that we can reignite the Canadian economy,” CCI vice-chairman and OMERS founder John Ruffolo said in a statement to BetaKit. “The program as currently outlined seems aimed to make it difficult to apply for, to receive funds, and to attest to the criteria in a timely manner.” See: How Governments Should Use ...
Read More
Read More
Bank On It podcast | John Siracusa | March 11, 2020 This nugget was pulled from episode 160 from an interview with Brett Crosby, co-founder & COO of PeerStreet. This nugget is on turning a funding failure into a win. About Brett Crosby: Brett is the co-founder and COO of PeerStreet, a platform for investing in real estate-backed loans. Crosby was previously the director of product marketing at Google, where he co-founded Google Analytics, helped start Google’s mobile advertising business and recently ran the global marketing teams responsible for the growth of Chrome, Gmail, Docs and Drive. 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 ...
Read More
Read More
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