The last 12 months have been good for alternative financial services. And this is quantifiable from a variety of vantage points. A decade ago, alternative financial services was mostly a euphemism for seeing a quasi-reputable, or in some cases totally irreputable lender. In the last year alone,...
Bitcoins will be be allowed in Russia after all. At least for now. In January, Russian telecommunications regulator Roskomnadzor banned access to seven bitcoin websites such as Bitcoin.org or Coinspot.ru based on a court ruling. According to Roskomnadzor, bitcoins were contributing to the growth of...
While it can be an overly used slogan – small businesses really are the backbone of the United States economy. Over half of the American workforce is employed at one of the nation’s nearly 30 million small businesses. And, this statement has been true for quite some time – small businesses have...
Retail banks are increasingly falling behind by tech-savvy competitors – such as the FinTech alternatives entering the market — which could cause serious threats to the future of traditional banks, suggests a new report by Oracle’s financial services unit. The report, titled “Banking is changing … with...
“You’re off to Great Places! Today is your day! Your mountain is waiting, So… get on your way!” – Dr. Seuss There are literally thousands of predictions and pieces of advice currently circulating on the Web for The Class of 2015 that will occupy the...
A San Francisco startup, Vouch, has raised $6 million in Series A funding in its bid to transform consumer lending. This round’s funding included backing by IDG Ventures USA, First Round Capital, Greylock, AngelList, Core Innovation Capital, Data Collective, Stanford StartX Fund and Cooley LLP. The...
It is a good time to be Lending Club. Shares in the P2P lending platform ticked up 4 percent this week, according to the Associated Press, following a stronger than expected Q1 result and a revised outlook for the rest of the year that has improved,...
While Uber continues to face regulatory pressures in the U.S. (and abroad), in London it has formed a unique partnership with the peer-to-peer lending service Zopa to help drivers gain financing for new cars. Because Uber’s philosophy is to bring people an alternative way to...
PayPal co-founder Max Levchin announced yesterday (May 6) that his lending startup, Affirm, had raised $275 million in debt and equity financing as part of a funding round led by Spark Capital Growth. The investment also included backers from Jefferies and Andreessen Horowitz and existing investors Khosla Ventures...