Alumni News– August 27, 2014

• Monitise announces digital commerce and resourcing alliance with IBM.

• ThinkAdvisor takes a look at the deal between the San Francisco 49ers football team and Wealthfront.

• The Globe and Mail profiles David Lloyd and IntelliResponse as part of its Innovators at Work contest.

• Fortune magazine column discusses Ripple and the “Internet of value exchange.”

• ValueWalk: FutureAdvisor can be used as a free tool to rate your own investment decisions or a low-cost asset management service.

• Chicago Tribune’s Blue Sky Innovation visits Bolstr for video interview.

• Bill.com CEO and co-founder Rene Lacerte writes about the “new sharing economy” for Inc.com.

• CashStar announces spot in Inc 500|5000 for a second year in a row.

• EyeVerify opens new offices to accommodate recent growth.

• Locaid partners with Danal to leverage location services in fight against financial fraud.

• Wallaby Financial named finalist in Samsung Gear App Challenge 2014.

• ZDNet: Xero continues march into U.S., launches partner marketplace.

• The Independent looks at how BehavioSec uses behavioral biometrics.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Alumni News, 22 August 2014

• EyeVerify raises $6 million in Series A round, joins Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator.

• Find out more about the innovators of FinovateFall 2014 with Part 2 of our Sneak Peek Preview series.

• Continuity Control announces $10 million investment.

• Zumigo earns a spot in, and an investment from, Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator.

• BlueVine brings in $1.5 million in funding. Check out BlueVine’s live demo at FinovateFall.

• Four notable website upgrades on Bankbazaar.com.

• Houston Chronicle features Lending Club success story.

• Check Point Software Technology positioned as a Leader in the 2014 Gartner Magic Quadrant for Unified Threat Management.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

EyeVerify Raises $6 Million in Series A Round, Joins Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator

With participation from Wells Fargo, Qihoo 360 and Sprint, as well as existing investors, EyeVerify just announced that it closed a $6 million Series A funding round. 

The investment takes EyeVerify’s total capital to more than $10 million.

In a statement, EyeVerify CEO Toby Rush pointed to the fact that the investors included “the largest security software firm in the world, the leading bank in the U.S., and a wireless network operator serving more than 50 million U.S. customers” to underscore what he called the strong “marketplace validation” of the investment.

And the good news comes in twos for EyeVerify, with the company announcing that it is part of the inaugural class of the Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator. EyeVerify will participate in the new, semiannual fintech bootcamp along with two other companies, including fellow Finovate alum, Zumigo. Participation in the program includes a “direct equity investment” ranging from $50,000 to as much as $500,000. The specific investment in EyeVerify was not immediately available.

EyeVerify’s innovation is the way it approaches eye-based, biometric authentication. The company’s technology uses the veins within the whites of the eyes to take an “eye print” that is as unique to the individual as a fingerprint. Eyeprints can be used in a range of authentication situations, from helping secure employee mobile devices to providing greater security for mobile banking customers. Kevin McGinnis, vice president of Sprint’s Pinsight Media+ division said, “With mobile security evolving beyond passwords, we are pleased to invest in EyeVerify and its easy-to-use, innovative biometric solution.”

Founded in 2012 and based in Kansas City, Kansas, EyeVerify last demoed its Eyeprint Validation technology at FinovateSpring 2014. See the company’s Best of Show winning demo here.

Zumigo Earns Spot in and Investment from Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator

Of the three companies participating in the inaugural Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator, two are Finovate alums. One is EyeVerify, which also reported a $6 million dollar investment on Wednesday. The other is Zumigo.

What was it about Zumigo in particular that caught Wells Fargo’s eye? According to Zumigo, the big bank is especially interested in the company’s mobile location intelligence technology, which provides authentication services for mobile transactions. Zumigo’s solution allows financial institutions to be more proactive than is “current industry practice,” according to Chirag Bakshi, founder and CEO of Zumigo.

“Zumigo’s innovative technology for financial services institutions such as Wells Fargo can detect fraudulent transactions before (they) impact their customers,” Chirag added.

In the words of Steve Ellis, executive vice president and head of Wholesale Services at Wells Fargo, the goal of the Accelerator is to increase the bank’s “visibility into technologies and ideas that will stoke innovation across the enterprise.” And considering that two out of the three companies participating are security/authentication-related, Wells Fargo may be telling us a lot more about the kind of innovation major banks are looking for than it may seem. The third company, Kasisto, is a New York startup that specializes in conversational artificial intelligence technology.

Participating in the Accelerator includes an equity investment of between $50,000 and $500,000. Zumigo did not immediately disclose the level of investment it received. The program lasts for six months, and will provide business planning expertise geared toward developing “innovative ideas and stoke innovation across the Wells Fargo enterprise.”

Zumigo was founded in 2009, and demoed its Assure solution at FinovateSpring 2014. The company is headquartered in San Jose, California.

Alumni News– August 21, 2014

• American Banker takes a look at the new Wells Fargo Startup Accelerator, with alums EyeVerify and Zumigo in the inaugural class.

• Check out our first FinDEVr Preview, featuring Yodlee Interactive. Join Yodlee at FinDEVr in San Francisco this fall.

• The Paypers spotlights BioCatch and the company’s cognitive science-based biometric technology. See BioCatch at FinovateFall in New York next month.

• MasterCard partnership with Zimbabwe’s EcoCash designed to boost mobile money services in Africa. MasterCard is a presenter and sponsor of FinDEVr, the first fintech event for developers.

• Taulia sees more than 350% growth in second quarter of 2014.

• Mergermarket.com features AnchorID in latest report. See AnchorID’s live demo at FinovateFall in NYC.

• GECU providing members with online and mobile digital banking services from Digital Insight.

• PayNearMe partners with Systems & Methods to offer a way to pay child support in cash. Check out PayNearMe at FinDEVr.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Alumni News– August 20, 2014

• CUneXus improves loan acceptance by 68% over 2013 for Educational Employees CU.

• With Simple’s 2.0 mobile app update, users can send paper check payments via mobile.

• ID Analytics names Daniel Rawlings as Chief Revenue Officer.

• Essent Guaranty offering lenders access to rate quotes through an interface with D+H’s MortgagebotLOS.

• ThreatMetrix selected as one of CIOReview100s Most Promising Technology Companies.

• EyeVerify and Zumigo selected for Wells Fargo’s accelerator.

• Expensify integrates with Uber’s API to launch SmartRides feature.

• PayNearMe and SIMI partner to offer cash collection services to US government agencies.

• Kony launches MobileFabric to Accelerate Speed of Delivering Great Enterprise Mobile Apps.

• PayPal announces access to its One Touch mobile payment solution. Join PayPal in San Francisco for FinDEVr this fall.

• Cartera Commerce unveils new website.

• Wallaby Financial launches CardBase and The Card Guide, opening its credit card database to the public.

• National Real Estate Investor features Realty Mogul CEO and co-founder, Jilliene Helman.

• Forex Brokerz talks about the beta release of Darwinex’s social trading platform.

• peerTransfer tops $1 billion in international education payments, announces 500th client.

• Bloomberg.com features Venmo, Fiserv’s Popmoney, and Dwolla in column on Millennials and mobile payments.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

Alumni News– June 13, 2014

• AstroPay launches Ripple LatAm, a licensed money service business to use Ripple Labs’ payment network.

• Ron Shevlin looks at Credit Agricole’s bank-run mobile app store.

• FirstView selects Cachet Financial Solutions to develop a prepaid mobile app to offer to FirstView cardholders.

• Financial Review: James Packer, Lachlan Murdoch eye stake in peer-to-peer lender SocietyOne.

• Jumio brings NetSwipe to the mobile web for companies without a native app.

• PayPal rolls out PassPort to give merchants a resource for stats, tips and general information on selling internationally.

• Behind the Scenes with Digital Insight, Loop, and Qapital.

• Zopa wins Most Trusted Loan Provider and Most Trusted Specialist at 2014 MoneyWise Customer Service Awards.

• Thinking Bigger features the team from EyeVerify.

• Green Dot announces new GM of GoBank, Joshua Goines.

This post will be updated throughout the day as news and developments emerge. You can also follow all the alumni news headlines on the Finovate Twitter account.

FinovateSpring 2014: Lights! Camera! Demo Videos!

The demo videos from FinovateSpring 2014 are now available in our Video Archive. Check them out here.

Here’s your chance to relive FinovateSpring 2014 in its new home in what was a very sunny San Jose. Every single video from the two-day event is here, arranged alphabetically from Artivest to Zumigo. 

You’ll see and hear every presenter, every screen capture, every device display (from mobile payment fobs to smart watches and Google Glass), and every innovation that our 67 presenting companies had to share.

And if you’ll be checking out our presenters for the first time, then sit back and enjoy our unique, demo-only format in action.

This is also a great opportunity to see (or see again) just what it took to win the hearts and minds of our audience of more than 1,200 fintech professionals who voted for Best of Show. As a reminder, our FinovateSpring 2014 Best of Show winners are below. Click on the company logo to see the award-winning demo.

Best of Show Winners from FinovateSpring 2014

Our record-breaking audience has spent a hot two days in San Jose watching 68 demos covering the best in fintech.

After watching the 68 demoing companies show off their newest innovations on stage in front of the sold out auditorium, the crowd voted for their 3 favorite demos at the end of each day. The eight companies with the highest number of votes were crowned winners.

Here they are in alphabetical order:

EyeVerify, for its Eyeprint Verification technology that enables mobile biometric authentication

Loop, for its smart mobile wallet system accepted at virtually every retail POS terminal without making changes to the existing POS system

Interactions, for its voice-activated self-service solution for mobile and phone interactions 

Motif Investing, for its Advisor Platform that streamlines the way advisors build, monitor, and rebalance investment portfolios

Ondot Systems, for its CardControl technology that allows users to remotely control their credit and debit cards via their smartphone

PrivatBank, for topless, contactless smartphone-enabled Android ATM technology

SaveUp, for its Gen Y/Millennial-oriented solution that combines gamification with personal finance

Stockpile, for their “give the gift of stock” solution that helps people invest in the brands they love  

As always, thanks for your continued support. See you next year at FinovateSpring 2015!

All of the demo videos will be available on Finovate.com in two weeks.

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Notes on methodology:  
1. Only audience members NOT associated with demoing companies were eligible to vote. Finovate employees did not vote.     
2. Attendees were encouraged to note their favorites during each day. At the end of the last demo, they chose their three favorites.    
3. The exact written instructions given to attendees: “Please rate (the companies) on the basis of demo quality and potential impact of the innovation demoed.”  
4. The eight companies appearing on the highest percentage of submitted ballots were named Best of Show.  
5. Go here for a list of previous Best of Show winners. 

EyeVerify Brings Eye Vein Biometrics to the Mobile Consumer Market

This post is part of our live coverage of FinvoateSpring 2014.

Our next presenter is biometric authentication specialist, EyeVerify.

“EyeVerify is the exclusive provider of Eyeprint Verification, a highly accurate and secure biometric for mobile devices. Eyeprint Verification delivers a password-free mobile experience and secure authentication at a glance. This patented solution uses existing cameras on smartphones to image and pattern match the blood vessels in the whites of the eye.”

Presenting: Toby Rush (CEO & Founder) and Chris Barnett (EVP Global Sales & Marketing)

Product Launch: June 2014

Product distribution strategy: Direct to Business (B2B), through financial institutions, through other fintech companies and platforms, licensed

HQ: Kansas City, Kansas

Founded: January 2012

Website: eyeverify.com

Twitter: @eyeverify