Virtual Currency

Virtual Skinny FinTech Ed: Trending …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in FinTech Edition, Newsletter 0 Comment

5.4.2016

Good to Know:  Dr. Craig Wright was trending on social media earlier this week. The Australian entrepreneur claims that his alias is Satoshi Nakamoto, creator of virtual currency bitcoin. Some people are giving him major side eye, but he allegedly has “extraordinary proof.”  Apparently, he’s got receipts.  

receipts

THE SKINNY

When You’ve Moved Onto Something Else …

Dr. Craig Wright had the Interwebs abuzz. But at this week’s Consensus 2016 conference in New York City, execs said yawn. Newsflash: They don’t care about bitcoin.

When You’re TRENDING…

Bitcoin is out. But, the blockchain (bitcoin’s underlying technology aka a huge public ledger that records all bitcoin transactions) is in.

When You’re Not Sure What To Do …

For now, bitcoin as a virtual currency is the only application that works across the globe via the blockchain.  But, we could see other applications popping up as fintech startups and major tech companies like IBM and Microsoft are working on different apps for the blockchain.  How fast these experiments turn into something real comes down to one question: Small scale projects or moonshots? In other words, do companies want to take on a major project all at once or take their time with small-scale stuff?

When You’re Curious …

What’s the better approach? Working on small, achievable applications or taking the risk and shooting for the stars? Tell us in the comments!

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

Keeping It on the D.L…

While many financial peeps gathered this week in NYC, a select group including NASDAQ, Citigroup Inc., Visa Inc., Fidelity, Fiserv Inc., Pfizer Inc., had a pow-wow on the down low back in April.  Yes, there was talk of the blockchain. But, we heard that digital U.S. dollars as an alternative to virtual coins like bitcoin came up too.  Fiserv Inc. even created a digital dollar for show and tell.

SPOTLIGHT

CBS 60 Minutes Lesley Stahl talked fintech on this past Sunday’s episode.  She sat down with John and Patrick Collison, Irish brothers and co-founders of payments company Stripe. The whole point of the company is to allow small businesses to get their online payments from anywhere in the world hassle-free. Check it out here.

LESLEY

QUICK POLL – RUN THOSE NUMBERS …

Young people are into their Venmo app, and the numbers prove it. It’s grown 154 percent from last year.

venmo-quarterly-payment-volume-processed-01

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Young people may heart Venmo, but the U.S. Federal Trade Commission won’t be saying “Venmo, me.”  The agency, which is responsible for making sure businesses are on the up and up with their practices, is looking into the PayPal-owned, peer-to-peer payment service for “unfair and deceptive” practices.  BTW, Venmo would appreciate if U.S. users stayed clear of using words like “Syria” and “Cuba” on Venmo on account of it’s still illegal to send money to those countries.

San Francisco startup Varo Inc. is building mobile banking app complete with deposit accounts, budgeting tools, and other services.  For now, it’s looking to partner with banks but eventually wants to be a bank of its own.  New U.S. bank these days? Don’t see that every day.

Android Pay is now an official payment options for your Uber rides.

Virtual Skinny FinTech Edition: The Block Is Hot …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in FinTech Edition, Newsletter

4.6.2016

Good to Know:  “ We are actively exploring these issues and their implications.” – U.S. Securities and Exchange Chairwoman Mary Jo White putting everyone on notice that she gets that blockchain tech is en fuego and her agency’s got its regulatory eye out. 

watching

THE SKINNY

When You’re Not About Empty Threats …

Payments company PayPal had plans to set up shop (costing US $3.6 million) in North Carolina (NC). But, not anymore. It’s put the kibosh on that.

When You Need To Get Caught Up …

NC is pretty committed to what could be called its new LGBT discrimination law. Back in March, NC passed a law preventing cities from protecting the LGBT community and banning transgender people from using restrooms or locker rooms for the gender not listed on their birth certificates.

When You Don’t Listen …

The company’s CEO Dan Schulman joined a letter with over 80 other tech execs. The letter listed all the reasons why the then-bill was not a good look. The execs even warned that quality professionals would peace out of the state.

When You’re Back On the Market …

NC ignored the letter, passed the bill anyway, and now PayPal (and other projects) are back on the market and are looking for alternative locations.  NC, say goodbye to what would have been 400 new jobs and US $3.6 million, at the very least…

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

Still DEL(ly) From The Block …

The U.S. state of Delaware is a fan of the blockchain.  State governor Jack Markell just let the cat out the bag on what the state is calling “the Delaware Blockchain Initiative.”  It’s the state’s way of saying to businesses incorporated there that they need to get up-close and personal with distributed ledgers and smart contract technologies. Kind of a big deal. BTW, if you want to hear more details on this from Markell, catch him giving the keynote at this year’s Consensus 2016 conference, which will be held from May 2- May 4, 2016 in the concrete jungle where dreams are made of…

QUICK POLL – RUN THOSE NUMBERS …

Check out all the fintech startups for all your banking needs …

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THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

When money goes social … PayPal-owned Venmo is now a thing with young people.  And, it’s not all about the money. They just want to know what their friends are getting into on the app.

Owe your co-workers some coins? With the help of startup Current, workplace messaging app Slack will soon offer money transfer services to help you settle your office debt.

The British government just gave the go ahead to Boston-based startup Circle. In other words, for the first time, the government has given an electronic money license to a virtual currency company.  London … Building its Innovation Hub one fintech startup at a time.

Speaking of building empires … Amazon is looking to make some fintech-related purchases.

Virtual Skinny FinTech Ed: Back At It Again With The …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in FinTech Edition, Newsletter

3.30.2016
deadline

Good to Know: Calling all FinTech social entrepreneurs! If you’re working on solving the financial inclusion problem, Village Capital’s: US FinTech 2016 business-training program is for you.  Learn more here and apply here. Hurry! You’ve got until April 3, 2016. 

THE SKINNY

When It’s Time To Regulate On ‘Em …

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), a top U.S. banking regulator, thinks it’s time for some rules around the growing financial technology (fintech) industry. Traditional banks and fintech startups are here for it.

When You’re For It, Just For Different Reasons …

Traditional banks have long been regulated and want competing startups to join the regulatory party. Startups don’t mind because they actually want to play by new rules so they create and innovate without having to watch their backs like no one’s biz. Could be a win-win?

When It’s Hard to Lead From Behind …

Other countries like the UK have already made moves to put in place a more fintech-friendly regulatory framework (e.g., the UK now allows what it calls the “sandbox model” aka a fancy way to say it lets startups experiment under the government’s watch).  U.S. regulators now want to get on their level…

When You’re Finna Do Something …

Other U.S. regulators have published papers and conferenced on fintech, but the OCC is taking it one step further. On Thursday (Mar. 31), it’ll publish its very own white paper on “responsible innovation” intended to get people running their mouths on the best way to put together new rules and processes. Top issue for discussion? A more systematic way for consumers to complain about new products and services.

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON?

What’s HIGER Than Being #1?

Japan thinks Asia needs to be the top dog when it comes to blockchain technology.  So, the country is doing its part to get there.  Japan’s got some strict banking laws, but it’s willing to dial things back to encourage more investment in its fintech sector.  The country’s banking regulator, the Financial Services Authority, are putting new laws re virtual currency exchanges on the table. Authorities think that changing the laws will be a good look for its fintech industry.  More collabos between banks and fintech ventures are on deck with these changes (e.g., giving banks the go-ahead to buy stakes in non-finance related companies).

When You’ve Been Traded In For A Younger (FinTech) Model …

Bitcoin could be so yesterday.  The virtual currency and its network are about to be replaced by Ethereum aka Bitcoin 2.0.  Ethereum is taking advantage of the ongoing fight over software within the Bitcoin community.  Things are looking up for the new virtual currency on the block.  Its price is up 1000% just in the past three months, companies like IBM, Microsoft, and JP Morgan Chase are drinking the Ethereum Kool-Aid, and people think it’s better than Bitcoin.  Apparently, it’s not just about its virtual currency network. It can do things like execute smart contracts or programmable transactions. Oh, and not to mention, people have already created applications for it (e.g., managing and paying for electricity, betting on sports, and not so legit things like Ponzi schemes).  It’s not all sunshine and rainbows. There’s some concern about Ethereum’s potential security problems.

QUICK POLL – RUN THOSE NUMBERS …

FinTech brought in the doll-ah doll-ah bills in Feb. 2016. We’re talkin’ $1.5 billion in financing…

fintech chart

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

How do you reach millennials during tax season? Get Instagram star Pierce Thiot, responsible for the “Will It Beard” trend, to stick money in his beard. Just the latest attempt for small companies (Fishback Tax) and larger ones to reach millennials and their cash. #TaxSwag

Speaking of millennials, roboadvisor company Betterment just raked in US $100 Mill to bulk up on new products and services (retirement guides and account aggregation), which it thinks will attract young peeps.

Will Facebook soon let us make in-app purchases? Potentially. Code has been discovered within Facebook Messenger that’s got people talkin’.

Swiss banks want a mobile payments platform for the country. They’re chatting with retailers on how to make it happen.

Startup Purse wants to be the Bitcoin marketplace version of Etsy. Introducing Purse Markets. Sell anything on the platform in exchange for some virtual coins.

MIT’s Digital Currency Initiative is offering up $100k in scholarship to boost under-repped minorities and women at Consensus 2016, NY-based conference on virtual currency and blockchain technology.

The Virtual Skinny FinTech Ed: Reverse, Reverse …

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in FinTech Edition, Newsletter

1.15.2016

Good to Know: The Virtual Skinny is out with a weekly newsletter on what’s going on in financial technology aka FinTech. Sign up here! And, please don’t forget to tell you friends about us. Happy Friday!

THE SKINNY

Can’t We All Just Get Along?

Bitcoin, the virtual currency network, is going mainstream. And you know what they say: Mo’ money, mo problems.

What’s the Problem?

It really comes down to how many financial transactions the network can handle. Bitcoin’s creator Satoshi Nakamoto initially put a temporary limit on the number of transactions to protect computers on the system.  But, to compete in the big leagues along side companies like PayPal and Visa, the Bitcoin network would need to process more transactions. So, to increase the number of transactions on the network or not? That is the question.

Is It Really That Serious?

When the question came up last year, two camps quickly formed: One in favor of the increase and the other against it. Points of contention over technical capabilities and financial interests have added to the mounting tension between both groups. Some Bitcoin developers have even received death threats, ultimately leading them to bow out of the whole Bitcoin system all together.

GIVING THE PEOPLE WHAT WE THINK THEY WANT?

To settle the score, the group favoring the increase peeled off and created software allowing for more transactions called Bitcoin XT (XT). But shortly after XT’s release and endorsements of the software from the likes of CoinBase and others, a hacker released Bitkiller, a malicious software, to take down computers running XT. The hacker claims he was paid off to get rid of Bitkiller.

Where Do We Go From Here?

Since then, the Bitcoin community has gotten together twice to try to reach a better compromise but no answers yet. It’s pretty unclear where things are headed. Oh, the drams!

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Party’s Over … 

China’s not the place if you’re trying to get your Fintech company off the ground.  The government’s taking “corrective actions” that’ll force Fintech startups to either consolidate or simply fold. This is a 180 from the Chinese governments initial outlook.  At one time, It was all about Fintech startups so they could compete with Chinese e-commerce companies like Baidu, Alibaba and Tencent. But, now China has changed its mind. Thanks to things like new regulations, unsustainable business models, and low return on investments (ROIs), these startups will struggle this year.  E-commerce companies aren’t safe either. But, you know who will be? The banks, of course. If things go as planned, banks in China should reclaim their power in no time.

When You’re All About It …

Wall Street is embracing Fintech companies with open arms. Fintech can mean a lot of things but basically covers services and apps that help make financial transactions happen. Banking vet and Silicon Valley Bank’s Head of EMEA & President of the UK branch Phil Cox thinks that Fintech “winners” will be companies that can offer solutions to major problems like improved customer service from banks. Seems like a no-brainer …

If Only We Knew What You Were Talking About …

Nasdaq, the New York Stock Exchange, and the entire capital markets crew wants to know how they can make blockchain technology work for them.  So, what’s stopping them?  According to one study, the talent just isn’t there.  In other words, there just aren’t people that understand both blockchain technology and the ins and outs of capital markets. Also, there’s the other issue that blockchain technology may not pair nicely with existing IT infrastructure of capital market firms.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Messaging app Snapchat wants to do more than just make sure that your sketchy pics don’t last.  It wants to help manage your funds by getting into the robo-adivsor biz.

Moneybox, a U.K. startup coming to us soon, wants to make sure that you save and invest some of your coins. It just pulled in US $3 Mill to help make its dreams a reality.

CoinDesk, an online publication about all things Bitcoin, just got bought out by the Digital Currency Group, an industry leader.

Is PayPal drinking the Bitcoin kool-aid? Likely story. The company just brought on bitcoin entrepreneur Wences Casares to join its Board of Directors.

It’s a good time to be in the payments biz.  The 10-year-old payment startup Adyen is worth about US $2 billion, but no one’s heard of it. The startup wants to change that and is looking to cause a media frenzy by taking its financial situation public (even though it’s still a private company). Interesting…

The Virtual Skinny: Run That Back!

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

12.11.2015

Good to Know:  friendswholiketrump.com will tell you if your friends support or are at least interested in Donald J. Trump and what he has to say. 

THE SKINNY

Let’s Go Halfsies? 

After its board meeting last week, Yahoo has decided to keep its stake in Chinese Internet company Alibaba. There’s also a chance it’ll put a “for sale” sign on its main Internet business (things like Yahoo Mail and its other websites).

But, Why? 

Well, Yahoo initially wanted to keep its core Internet business and sell of its Alibaba stake. But, turns out that idea comes with some major U.S. tax headaches. So, the company is switching things up. It has two options: (1) Make the sale or (2) Split off its Internet biz into a separate publicly traded company aka a “reverse spinoff.”  CEO Marissa Mayer and Chairman of her board Maynard Webb choose #2.  They say making a sale on something of low-value is generally not a good move. But, they’re still not completely ruling out that option.

Moving Forward … 

It’s business as usual for Yahoo. It just released an app to help you sift through online streaming content called the Yahoo Video Guide.  And in the midst of all her company drams, Mayer welcomed twin daughters just yesterday. Congrats!

WHAT ELSE HAPPENED? 

We’re Here For You …

That’s what Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg is telling the Muslim community. Zuckerberg is committed to protecting their rights.  In the wake of terrorist attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, CA, things got downright nasty. Earlier this week, U.S. presidential hopeful Donald Trump thought it’d be a great idea to suggest banning Muslims from entering the U.S. Pretty much everyone disagreed. Zuckerberg says even though people are turning against them, Muslims are always welcome on his social platform. 

Will The Real Slim Shady Please stand up? 

We all want to know who is responsible for bringing us the virtual currency bitcoin. To date, people credit Satoshi Nakamoto, but no one really knows whether Nakamoto is a person or a group of people hiding behind the name. Recently, publications Wired and Gizmodo think they’ve figured it all out. Based on a ton of evidence, these publications are pretty convinced that Craig Steven Wright either invented bitcoin or we’ve all been royally punked. Coincidentally, Australian federal police officers busted into Wright’s home and office. Authorities say reasons for the raid are tax-related and have nothing to do with bitcoin. Now, people are wondering if id-ing bitcoin’s creator even matters. Some say “who gives” because no single person owns the bitcoin network. But, others disagree. They want someone to step up and help sort out some of the network’s bugs.

It’s All About the Benjamins, Baby… 

Twitter needs to make more money. It’s targeting people who read tweets without actually logging onto its platform. Coming to a desktop near you, Twitter will be playing around with a feature that shows ads to these non-active users. This means about a half a billion more people each month. Since we’re talking numbers, that averages out to an additional US $2.50/user. With Jack Dorsey leading the company, lots of changes are underway. Add changing up the timeline to show tweets based on relevance rather than timestamps to the list. Twitter’s just trying to make sure you get the content you want to see.

Is The Glass Half Empty or Half Full?

The Chinese government says “half full” when talking about it web censorship.  China’s government says bringing more “order” leads to increased online freedom.  And, by order, it means doing things like shutting out Western Internet platforms like Facebook and Gmail. Oh, did we mention detaining bloggers for “spreading rumors online” and “picking quarrels?” China wants people to back off. It says if things were so bad, then its online economy wouldn’t be growing so quickly. Also, it doesn’t appreciate people bashing its ways then trying to make money off of its people.

When Things Aren’t Looking Good … 

In the U.S., drivers for ride-hailing app Uber want employee benefits and are fighting to upgrade from just contractors for the company to legit company employees.  Ohio and Florida state legislators have denied their wishes.  Both states just passed laws classifying Uber drivers as contractors.  It’s unclear what these laws say exactly, but these moves could potentially ease Uber’s pain if it loses a class action lawsuit drivers brought against it in California.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’ 

Walmart wants in on the mobile payment game along side Apple and Google. The mega-retailer introduced Walmart Pay, its new mobile payment system. The word is Walmart still plans to work with other retailers like Target and BestBuy on CurrentC, the collective’s answer to Apple Pay.

Speaking of Apple, all you iPhone 6 and 6s users will love this … The smartphone manufacturer’s developed a battery case called the Smart Battery Case.  It’ll let you run your mouth for 25 hours.

Streaming service Netflix raked in more Golden Globe nominations than old-school TV broadcasters (8 nominations to be exact).

Turkey’s government is telling Twitter to pay up TL 50,000 (US $51,000) for not taking down alleged “terrorist propaganda.” At least it’s a fine this time, Turkey’s been known to shut down Twitter within its borders all together.

When you think you’re doing a good thing but not really… Tech company IBM quickly ended its #HackAHairDryer campaign initially intended to encourage female coders and engineers. The “hair dryer” angle didn’t go well … Women engineers fired off tweets letting IBM know that they are capable of much more.

Crowdfunding site GoFundMe just landed its new Vice President of Policy & Communications, Dan Pfeiffer. He was formerly the White House’s Communications Director.

Who hasn’t this guy gone after?  U.S. Presidential hopeful Donald Trump piped up about e-commerce company Amazon’s alleged “tax shelter.” Amazon’s CEO Jeff Bezos now wants to #sendDonaldtospace.

Yahoo can’t keep its people. It wasn’t so hard for Ad Product Chief Prashant Fuloria to say goodbye to the com-pah-nee. He’s getting back into startups.

The Virtual Skinny: Hi There…

Posted by The Virtual Skinny on in Internet & Tech, Newsletter

11.19.2015

Good to Know:  Global investment bank Goldman Sachs is telling people to buy Apple’s stock. Why though? Goldman says Apple is no longer a hardware company but evolving into a services company. This means more growth = more $$$$. Enough said. 

THE SKINNY

When You Give a Helping Hand … 

Many people around the world are trying to do right by Syrian refugees.  Instead of funneling funds through traditional nonprofits like the Red Cross, people are choosing crowdfunding sites like Indiegogo and GoFundMe to make online donations.

WHEN YOU HAVE All The Feels … 

Norwegian web developer and activist Gissur Simonarson saw a pic on Twitter of a Syrian refugee dad holding his daughter while trying to sell pens on the streets of Beirut, Lebanon.  The image touched Simonarson so much that he wanted to do something help. So this past August, he tracked them down and launched a pretty successful Indiegogo campaign.

When Something’s not what you expected …  

The campaign raised about US $190,000, and the family ended up using the money to buy a bakery. But, Simonarson says issues came up that he didn’t anticipate.  First, between Indiegogo and the payment service PayPal, the family lost about US $20,000 of their donations to fees charged by these platforms. Sidenote: Indiegogo’s new charity platform eliminates these fees.  Second, so you’ve raised the money, now where do you keep it? Yes, a bank account would be logical, but there was no way for Simonarson and the family to set one up. Add security and safety to the list of concerns.

WHEN YOU’RE DOWN FOR THE CAUSE …

People pouring money into online platforms to help others is a good thing, right?  Well, yes and no.  There’s concern that increased online giving to individuals may create issues of equitable distribution since crowdfunding platforms may reflect biases of societies that use them. Also, opting for online platforms takes money away from nonprofit institutions capable of addressing crises at a macro-level. In other words, crowdfunding platforms may potentially hurt the larger cause. Perhaps, online platforms will put pressure on traditional organizations to reform their practices, some of which have not been great (e.g., mismanaging funds).

WHAT ELSE IS GOING ON? 

Playing the Blame Game … 

In the wake of the Paris attacks, U.S. lawmakers and law enforcement launched a blame game targeted towards today’s technology.  First up? Encrypted devices. CIA director John Brennan said it’s hard to uncover info because of encryption.  Then, some lawmakers blamed the Internet.  One lawmaker thought it would be a great idea to shut down “ISIS websites and social networks.” Now, U.S. Federal Communications Commission Chairman Tom Wheeler is saying that it’s time for Congress to look into the Communications Assistance for Law Enforcement Act (CALEA).  Basically, CALEA would make companies build mandatory pathways or “backdoors” into their technology to decipher encrypted messages. May sound good in theory, but in reality, a backdoor in these technologies would be accessible by anyone and everyone savvy enough.  Privacy issues much?

On High Alert … 

The European Union (EU) is considering ways to cut off terrorist financing. Virtual currencies like Bitcoin and anonymous forms of payment are on the chopping block so to speak.  EU officials met last Friday and concluded that they’ll try to convince the European Commission to tighten up controls of “non-banking payment methods such as electronic/anonymous payments and virtual currencies and transfers of gold, precious metals, by pre-paid cards.”

When people aren’T Feelin’ yOU like they used to … 

Match Group, the parent company of dating apps like Tinder, is now officially ‘MTCH’ on NASDAQ.  The company’s IPO price came in at US $12/share, the low end of the US $12-$14 expected range.  Mobile payments company Square is officially public as of today. Its price came in at an underwhelming US $9/share, way below the expected $11-$13 range we originally thought. Ouch!  Attention companies worth at least a billion dollars or more (aka unicorns): These are probably more signs that investors are cooling off on tech IPOs.

It’s All About Mobile These Days … 

Google is changing up how mobile search works.  The company’s transitioning into the mobile age and will start indexing content from Android apps, even if these apps don’t have a corresponding website. Google is letting mobile users “stream” content from apps (Note:app downloads not necessary).  The company’s testing things out with a few partners including horoscope sites and the New York Subway.

THE STREETS ARE TALKIN’

Yesterday, we said that ride-hailing app and Uber rival, Lyft, is looking for $500 million. Now, we know why thanks to some leaked docs.  In the first half of the year, Lyft lost a ton of money and didn’t bring in much revenue.  To be more specific, we’re talking losing $127 million on $46.7 million in revenue.  We’re not financial experts, but …

Dutch file-sharing service WeTransfer is tapping into the online music streaming game alongside Spotify and Apple Music. For the company, it’s not about making money from music (ha!) but simply about getting on the map in the U.S.

Social network Facebook is improving its “Donate” button to help nonprofits raise funds. Organizations like Mercy Corp, National MS Society, and Worldwide Wildlife Fund are the first to get on board.  BTW, #IStillUseFacebook was trending on Twitter. #NoHate #NoShade, but we chuckled at some tweets, especially those poking fun at how FB is late to the party when it comes to breaking news.