Recap of Fintech Nexus 2023: Bright outlook despite current rough times

by kim Comment Closed
This year’s Fintech Nexus did not disappoint! The gathering and active discussion and debate among participants showed the resilience and enthusiasm of the industry. There was plenty of 1:1 networking and the opportunity to reconnect with friends and relationships while also meeting new connections.  And of course, there were many, many parties where conversations continued through the night. There was a recognition that things are tough and we need to get through this cycle. The optimism for the future was contagious with an understanding that great solutions and companies are being created right now – the future is looking bright beyond today’s challenges.  Here are some takeaways from this year’s conference:  1.      The current environment is tough and one that we have not seen since the dot.com bust. Investor appetite has dramatically slowed since exits are unclear. This is a cycle, and growing companies need to manage their runway to survive and come out the other end. Focus should be on profitability and unit economics while adhering to...
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Small Business Lending Faces Enormous Change with Rule 1071

by kim Comment Closed
April 28, 2023 The Importance of Small Business Lending in the United States Small businesses across our nation play a crucial role in the health of our economy. As of 2019, small businesses employed 46.4% of total employees in the United States and paid 39.4% of the nation’s wages.[1] Women and racial minorities own 43.2% and 19.4% of small businesses, respectively.  Despite their significant contributions to the U.S. economy, many small business owners have difficulty accessing credit to launch and/or grow their businesses. Small businesses may not have sufficient revenue history or other information to qualify for credit, their financing needs may not fit within the credit box of banks, or other factors. Access to credit is particularly difficult for women and minority small business owners if their business and/or personal credit histories are not well-represented in traditional credit reporting datasets. When it comes to small business lending, community banks have an advantage over large national banks given their deep understanding of the communities...
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New frontiers in compliance automation that can strengthen FinTech – Partner Bank relationships under fire

by kim Comment Closed
November 5, 2022 Money 20/20 is one of the biggest events in financial services, blending all things digital across banking and FinTech. Despite economic and market uncertainty, this year’s event held last week in Las Vegas, brought energy and optimism that could only be described as infectious.   Over 11,500 registered attendees convened at the Venetian to explore new developments in the industry and challenge the status quo.  A major theme of the conference was the need for the industry to strengthen and prove the governance function between FinTechs and their Bank partners, coupled with the availability of automated tools and techniques to support these relationships and their overall risk management functions that benefit FinTechs and Bank partners alike. Here are some takeaways related to this theme from Money 20/20 this year:  FinTechs continue to need access to a Bank’s charter to move money and/or provide financial services under the watchful eyes of regulators who monitor compliance with KYC, AML, BSA, fraud monitoring, OFAC screening, UDAAP, fair...
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