Industry Updates, May 7 2020

13 May

Written By

We hope that everyone is staying safe at this time. We are continuing to strongly advocate for you all in respect of recent Covid-19 measures, including the expansion of JobKeeper, its application to SME lenders, and AOFM funding to non-bank lenders. We are also currently drafting submissions to the Inquiry into the Future Directions for the Consumer Data Right, and the ASIC ePayments Review (details below). We have also launched a talent marketplace on Linkedin in partnership with Tier One People.

The Finnies and IntersektWe wanted to share a quick update with you with regard to the Intersekt Fintech Festival and The Finnie Awards. In such uncertain times, we are working hard to ensure Intersekt Fintech Festival 2020 will proceed as planned from the 26 to 27 October 2020 and The Finnie awards which have been rescheduled for November 27, 2020. With networking an integral part of coming together for these events, our first preference is to run live events as normal.New partnership with VocusWe have also partnered with Vocus, a leading Tier 1 telco and network solutions provider, connecting people, businesses, and governments across Australia and the world. They offer customised solutions to some of Australia’s largest and most promising financial services organizations, and are looking forward to enabling the fintech industry to innovate and grow further.Thank you for your supportAs always, the team at FinTech Australia wants to extend our support to those of you that are affected due to Covid-19 and remind anyone to reach out to us and the community at large if you need anything at all. The Fintech ecosystem is one that is known for its resilience and community spirit, and compassion and collaboration are key if we want to get through this. If you need to chat or want to discuss anything, please feel free to send me an email.Rebecca Schot-Guppy,General ManagerFinTech Australia

Consultation now open - Issues Paper for the Inquiry into Future Directions for the Consumer Data Right

The Inquiry into Future Directions for the Consumer Data Right is looking at how the Consumer Data Right could be enhanced and leveraged to boost innovation and competition, and support the development of a safe and efficient digital economy, benefiting Australians and Australia. This includes examining how the Consumer Data Right could be expanded to include ‘write’ access.The Inquiry has released an Issues Paper for consultation.

ASIC ePayments Review

On 24 March 2020, ASIC published further progress on their ePayments Review, which laid out ASIC's initial positions regarding small business protections, addressing scams, the unauthorised transactions and passcode security requirements framework and compliance monitoring and data collection.ASIC is seeking submissions on these positions, with an intention (subject to COVID-19) to release the second consultation paper in the second half of 2020. ASIC have not provided a date that responses are due, and seem to have some flexibility with regards to this due to COVID-19.

Congratulations to Afterpay, who have issued a $300m shareholding to Tencent Holdings.
MoneyWorks and Link4 have entered a partnership, which allows MoneyWorks users in Australia, New Zealand, Singapore and the UK to access e-Invoicing services through Link4.
Lumi has been chosen to take part in the Government’s SME Guarantee Scheme.

Westpac has reported a 70% reduction in first half cash profit and has cut dividends.
NAB has announced a $3.5b capital raising and has cut dividends.
ANZ has deferred its dividend and allocated $1b to cover the impact of the coronavirus.

FinTech Australia Job Board

During these challenging times, we understand that there is a larger demand for jobs. Our recently launched Careers section will help people in need of career advice, seeking fintech specific courses and those on the lookout for jobs. As of today, there are a total of 865 job listings posted by our members globally, of which 88 are in Australia.

AWS Webinar

We are partnering with AWS to bring you a webinar to how to manage credit in a downturn, featuring Mike Hendricks, Chief Risk Officer at Revolut Australia, Tim Brinkler, General Manager - Credit Risk at Latitude Financial Services, and Jacqui Colwell, Chief Risk Officer at Judo Bank.

IT'S FREE:Date: Thursday, 7 May 2020Time: 12pm AEST.REGISTER HERE

Airtree Ventures Virtual Founder Meetup

Airtree are hosting a weekly virtual meetup that features prominent founders who candidly share with other founds what they are doing to manage through Covid-19 to assist others with their recovery. This week's theme is fintech and features Dom Pym, Co-founder of Up and Katherine McConnell, Founder of Brighte.

IT'S FREE:Date: Wednesday, 6 May 2020.Time: 1-2pm AEST.REGISTER HERE

Venture Summit | Virtual Connect

This exclusive summit will feature over 100 VC speakers and judges, presentations by 100 top innovators, one-on-one zoom investor meetings, 2 days of content including timely panel discussions, workshops and an inspiring keynote by Ur Levine, co-founder of Waze.FinTech Australia Members can use the promo code FINTECHAUVIP to save 35%.Date: 5 - 7 May 2020REGISTER HERE

2020 Korea Fintech Week

The Korean Regulator, the Financial Services Commission, will be virtually hosting the 2020 Korea Fintech Week. This virtual expo will feature online seminars for information sharing on the latest trends in the fintech industry, as well as the five virtual exhibition halls for about 150 fintech and other related services.International fintechs are invited to attend.Date: From Thursday, 28 May 2020.

Money 20/20

Europe’s biggest FinTech event, Money 20/20, is back. The relationships that are built here will shape the future of money. See what will drive the industry before it hits the industry. Enjoy three days of networking - rich opportunities that bring together the most brilliant minds to deliver the next frontier of Financial Services. From the next generation of FinTech super starts, established powerhouses and trailblazing start-ups from across the payments, FinTech and financial services ecosystem, everyone is here, every time.Date: 22 - 24 September 2020REGISTER HERE

American Chamber of Commerce Australia

The American Chamber of Commerce Australia, in partnership with Emerging Payments Association Asia, present part one of a three-part webinar series where Senator Bragg, Chair of the Australian Senate Select Committee on Financial Technology and Regulatory Technology and Ben Heap, Chairman of H2 Ventures discuss the Covid-19 pandemic, how it has impacted the fintech industry and will address audience questions.Date: Wednesday 6 May 2020Time: 11am - 12pm AESTREGISTER HERE

The Finnie Awards

We understand everyone in the industry is experiencing great uncertainty at this time. The Finnies have always represented the resilience of fintechs, promoted the achievements of the industry, driven awareness and encouraged further innovation. We understand that these are uncertain and challenging times; as such we have made the hard but necessary decision to postpone the awards to a date later in the year to Friday, 27 November.

Applications close on Sunday, 16 August 2020.