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Feb 28 2021

Here’s how the Purpose Bitcoin ETF differs from Grayscale’s GBTC Trust

Since 2017, investors have been anxiously awaiting a Bitcoin ETF approval as the existence of such a fund was an important symbol of mass adoption and acceptance from the realm of traditional finance. 

On Feb. 18, the Toronto Stock Exchange hosted the official launch of the Purpose Bitcoin ETF and the fund quickly absorbed more than $333 million in market capitalization in just two days.

Now that the long-awaited Bitcoin ETF is here, investors are curious about how it will compete with Grayscale Investments GBTC fund. On Feb. 17, Ark Investment Management founder and CEO Cathie Wood said the likelihood that U.S. regulators will approve a Bitcoin exchange-traded fund has gone up.

Although exchange-traded funds (ETF) and exchange-traded notes (ETN) sound quite similar, there are fundamental differences in trading, risks, and taxation.

What is an exchange-traded fund?

An ETF is a security type that holds underlying investments such as commodities, stocks, or bonds. It often resembles a mutual fund, as it is pooled and managed by its issuer.

ETFs have become a $7.7 trillion industry, growing by 65% in the last two years alone.

The most recognizable example is the SPY, a fund that tracks the S&P 500 index, currently managed by State Street. Invesco’s QQQ is another EFT that tracks U.S.-based large-capitalization technology companies.

More exotic structures are available, such as the ProShares UltraShort Bloomberg Crude Oil ($SCO). Using derivatives products, this fund aims to offer two times the daily short leverage on oil prices.

What is an exchange-traded note?

Exchange-traded notes (ETN) are similar to an ETF in that trading occurs using traditional brokers. Still, the difference is an ETN is a debt instrument issued by a financial institution. Even if the fund has a redemption program, the credit risk relies entirely on its issuer.

For example, after Lehman Brothers imploded in 2008, it took ETN investors more than a decade to recoup the investment.

On the other hand, buying an ETF gives one direct ownership of its contents, creating different taxation events when holding futures contracts and leveraging positions. Meanwhile, ETNs are taxed exclusively upon sale.

GBTC does not offer conversion or redemption

Grayscale’s Bitcoin Trust Fund (GBTC) is the absolute leader in the cryptocurrency market, with $35 billion in assets under management.

Investment trusts are structured as companies — at least in regulatory form — and are ‘closed-end funds.’ Thus, the number of shares available is limited and the supply and demand for them largely determines their price.

Investment trust funds are regulated by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), therefore outside the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) authority.

GBTC shares cannot easily be created, neither is there an active redemption program in place. This tends to generate significant price discrepancies from its Net Asset Value, which is the underlying BTC fraction represented.

An ETF, on the other hand, allows the market maker to create and redeem shares at will. Therefore, a premium or discount is usually unlikely if enough liquidity is in place.

An ETF instrument is far more acceptable to mutual fund managers and pension funds as it carries much less risk than a closed-ended trust like GBTC. Retail investors may not have been aware of the possibility that GBTC trades below net assets value. Thus the recent event might further pressure investors to move their position to the Canadian ETF.

To sum up, an ETF product carries a significantly less risk due to greater transparency and the possibility to redeem shares in the case of shares trading at a discount.

Nevertheless, the impressive GBTC market capitalization clearly states that institutional investors are already on board.

The views and opinions expressed here are solely those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of Cointelegraph. Every investment and trading move involves risk. You should conduct your own research when making a decision.

Here’s how the Purpose Bitcoin ETF differs from Grayscale’s GBTC Trust

Source

Written by bizbuildermike · Categorized: cryptocurrency · Tagged: 2017, Adoption, ARK, Billion in Assets, bitcoin, bitcoin etf, Bitcoin Price, Bonds, btc, ceo, Commodities, cryptocurrencies, cryptocurrency, Currency, debt, Derivatives, ETF, ETNs, Event, events, exchange, finance, founder, fund, Futures, Grayscale, html, index, institutional investors, investment, Investment Management, Investments, market, market capitalization, markets, more, note, occ, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC), Oil, opinions, other, pension funds, product, Products, research, retail, retail investors, risk, S&P, S&P 500 INDEX, said, SEC, securities, Securities and Exchange Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), security, shares, stock, Stocks, Technology, Toronto, trading, Trading101, Trust Fund, u.s., Yahoo

Dec 19 2020

MassChallenge Fintech to Support 30 High-Potential Financial Technology Startups for its 2021 Accelerator Program

MassChallenge, an 11-year-old non-profit, no-equity accelerator program, has added 30 new Fintech and 30 Healthtech startups to its 2021 program. Both groups will be introduced at a virtual MassChallenge Verticals Opening Nights event on January 13, 2021.

Five of this year’s MassChallenge Fintechs are based in Massachusetts. Five of the program’s Healthtech companies are also operating out of Massachusetts. Launched in Boston, the MassChallenge now offers programs in Mexico, Israel, and various other cities across the United States.

The managing directors of both the Fintech and Healthtech programs stated that the applicants this year were very competitive and diverse. For the Healthtech group, the 30 initiatives were selected from over 380 applicants across more than 35 different countries — which means there was less than an 8% acceptance rate. (Note: for the list of Healthtech firms accepted, check here.)

MassChallenger MD Fintech, Devon Sherman, stated:

”We’re excited by the range of solutions and perspectives this year’s cohort brings. In our experience, this diversity of backgrounds and ideas is what drives true innovation.”

Jason Guenther, Head of Investment & Operations Technologies at Putnam Investments, remarked:

“This year‘s MassChallenge program was instrumental in helping us find companies with whom to partner in solving important business issues. Our partnership with MassChallenge has accelerated our digital journey and enabled us to think differently about how to leverage technology to improve business outcomes.”

Here are the Fintechs that are part of the MassChallenge accelerator:

MassChallenge Fintech 2021 cohort:

Accern (New York) – Accern accelerates AI workflows for enterprises with a no-code development platform.

And Financial (New Hampshire) – And Financial helps individuals transform student debt into retirement assets.

Beekin (New York) – Beekin is an asset management platform for commercial real estate investors, powered by big data and machine learning.

Bellwethr (Kansas) – Bellwethr helps businesses maximize each of their customer’s lifetime values with predictive and prescriptive analytics.

Bodeswell (Massachusetts) – BodesWell partners with the largest financial services companies to move people toward their financial goals.

Compliance.ai (California) – Compliance.ai is a modernized regulatory change management solution.

eCredable (Georgia) – eCredable helps consumers and small business owners build stronger credit profiles to access better financial products and services.

EmpowerYu (California) – EmPowerYu is tackling the eldercare crisis by giving medically vulnerable people and their caregivers continuous risk assessment from home.

Farther Finance (California) -A family office used to be for billionaires. Farther Finances replaces legacy tech and archaic processes to pull that experience forward.

Finaeo (Ontario) – Finaeo is streamlining insurance distribution by connecting insurance carriers, advisors, and clients through an integrated experience.

Flourish Savings (California) – Flourish provides financial institutions with a tailored engagement platform to drive deposits and deeper relationships.

Gig Wage (Texas) – Financial infrastructure for the future of work. Gig Wage helps companies and platforms pay independent workers, aka gig workers & freelancers.

Goalsetter (New York) – Goalsetter is the smartest money app for the whole family – from cradle to graduation, including parents, too.

gravityAI (New York) – gravityAI is a platform for Enterprise business teams to explore, test, and intergrade AI algorithms without needing to know how to code.

Habu (Massachusetts) – Habu is the leading Data Clean Room application, enabling safe data sharing between companies with privacy and security at its core.

HomeZada (California) – HomeZada is a personal finance/fintech platform for consumers to manage their largest financial asset and largest expense, their home.

Knoema Corporation (New York) – Knoema is a data technology platform that helps make global, alternative, subscription and internal data discoverable and useful.

Manetu (New Jersey) – Manetu’s Consumer Privacy Management platform offers seamless, dynamic and intelligent end to end management of consumer consent and data access.

Monit (Massachusetts) – Monit is a predictive cashflow and financial optimization platform designed for business owners as an intelligent, always-on advisor.

myGini (California) – Magic in your cards. Rewards and shopping offers to make spending and saving money easier. White labeled for your brand.

Optalitix (London) – Optalitix offers an innovative AI and technology software platform offering products to rapidly enable financial services companies to use AI.

Owlin (Amsterdam) – Owlin is a news analytics tool that helps finance professionals monitor their portfolio proactively, continuously, and in real-time.

Qoins Technologies (Georgia) – Qoins is a financial wellness app that helps consumers pay off their debt faster by combining financial education and automation.

Retail MarketPoint (Rhode Island) – Every retail real estate transaction in the U.S. – every property sale, lease, loan, or investment – can be measured by a Retail MarketPoint BrandScore™.

Retirable (New York)– Retirable helps pre-retirees plan for a better future with free access to professional retirement guidance and planning services.

Rialto Markets (New York) – Rialto democratizes and expands private markets for both issuers and investors.

TCARE (Missouri) – TCARE reduces the risk of Medicaid & LTC insurance claims via an evidence-based family caregiver support program.

WEVO (Massachusetts) – WEVO is the only tool that pinpoints why visitors aren’t converting and generates recommendations to improve conversion, before going live.

Workscope (London)  – Workscope uses data analytics & business intelligence to understand, govern and manage risk for spreadsheet driven operations.

Worthright (Massachusetts) – Worthright is a FinTech company that takes the ambiguity out of planning and paying for long-term care.

Source

Written by bizbuildermike · Categorized: Crowdfunding · Tagged: accelerator, AI, algorithms, automation, Big data, Billionaires, Boston, business, Businesses, California, Cities, commercial, company, consent, data, debt, devon sherman, digital, diversity, Education, Enterprise, Event, Family, finance, financial services, financial technology, fintech, Future, Georgia, Global, going, ideas, Infrastructure, innovation, insurance, intelligence, investment, Investments, Israel, jason guenther, London, LTC, machine learning, markets, masschallenge, mexico, money, more, New York, news, note, ontario, other, parents, partnership, platforms, portfolio, Privacy, Products, Real Estate, retail, Retirement, risk, risk assessment, security, Shopping, small-business, Software, startups, student, Teams, tech, Technology, Texas, transaction, u.s., United States, us, wellness, work

Dec 11 2020

AI-Powered Debt Trading Platform Metechi Raises $5 Million Through Latest Investment Round

Metechi, a U.S.-based AI-powered debt trading platform, announced on Friday it secured $5 million through its latest investment round.

Founded in 2017, Metechi claims it empowers banks and Institutional Investors to better serve their clients, compete with larger institutions for business, and observe regulatory balance sheet constraints. The company also noted that its network of more than 1,000 U.S. banks, institutional investors, and brokers is expanding faster than ever and its funding facilitates our growing success as it leverages the challenges of today’s market.

“The pandemic has catalyzed a wave of distressed debt opportunities, particularly for distressed commercial real estate. While the largest institutions enjoy the benefits of economies of scale, we level the playing field by using technology to streamline deal flows for banks, brokers, and financial institutions. This round of funding is a game-changer for us. This is why we can reduce our buyers’ fees from an industry-rate of 5% to only 2% while remaining free for brokers and sellers. With increasing loan delinquencies, we’re meeting the rapidly growing demand for a technology-driven commercial lenders marketplace.”

Metechi Co-Founder and COO, Keren Goshen, spoke about the investment round by stating:

“With our proprietary technology, we empower brokers to sell more NPLs with much less effort. This is why we can reduce our buyers’ fees from an industry-rate of 5% to only 2% while remaining free for brokers and sellers.”

The investment rounds funds will be used to continue the development of the Metechi platform.

Source

Written by bizbuildermike · Categorized: Crowdfunding · Tagged: $5 million, 2017, AI, artificial-intelligence, Banks, business, Co-founder, commercial, company, debt, debt trading, fintech, funding, html, institutional investors, investment, investment round, market, metechi, pandemic, Real Estate, Technology, trading, u.s., us, Yahoo

Dec 02 2020

Diversify Your Crypto Portfolio

Bitcoin cracked the $19,800 mark this week. It’s likely only a matter of time before bitcoin tops $20,000 and sets new all time highs. Who knows? As you read this, bitcoin could already be over $20,000.

It’s a terrific time to be a bitcoin investor. In December 2018, bitcoin was trading for less than $3,500. If you had bought bitcoin back then (like we suggested you do), you would be up around 465% today.

Not bad for two years!

But with all the attention bitcoin has been receiving, it’s been easy to miss just how well the rest of the crypto markets have been performing.

The list above is selective. But that’s not the point. It can be easy to get caught up in the bitcoin excitement. But crypto is about a lot more than just bitcoin.

Investors — big and small — rightly consider bitcoin a hedge against the traditional economy, runaway debt, money printing and inflation. It’s the most established and secure crypto out there. So it makes sense that bitcoin gets the most attention.

But creating a diversified crypto portfolio is as critical to success in the crypto markets as it is in the stock markets. If you had only invested in bitcoin over the last two years, you would have missed out on some major gains.

Yes, any responsible crypto portfolio needs to be heavily weighted towards bitcoin. But it doesn’t need to be the only crypto in a portfolio. From new crypto sectors to crypto’s “blue chip coins,” there’s a lot of promising crypto to invest in.

Regardless of what you’ve already invested in (or are thinking about investing in), it’s a good time to hop into the crypto markets. The crypto bull run is underway — you don’t want to miss out!

Source

Written by wpengine · Categorized: business, cryptocurrency · Tagged: alternative assets, bitcoin, crypto, crypto bull run, crypto portfolio, cryptocurrency, debt, diversify, Early Investing, economy, gains, inflation, Investing, investor, markets, money, portfolio, printing, stock, trading

Nov 25 2020

On Final Day of Securities Offering, Mintos Tops £7 Million on Crowdcube

Peer to peer lending marketplace Mintos has surpassed £7 million on Crowdcube on the final day of the securities offering. The Mintos security offering should be one of the largest offerings on Crowdcube for 2020.

Mintos is raising equity capital at a pre-money valuation of £68 million. Currently, 6816 individuals have participated in the securities offering that set an initial hurdle of just £1 million.

Mintos is an interesting platform as it aggregates p2p loans from regional platforms and then consolidates the debt offerings for investors to select specific loans.

Mintos reports an investor base of approximately 340,000, growing at over 125% per year for 5 years. It claims a 45% market share in continental Europe with €5.7 billion in loans funded. While Mintos growth has been strong during the past few years, it has been hit by the COVID health crisis as some of its partner lenders have struggled in the challenging economic.

It is important to note that Mintos, headquartered in Latvia, expects to secure Investment Firm and EMI licenses by early 2021. By receiving this regulatory approval, Mintos will be able to operate across the EU providing a larger portfolio of financial services and perhaps operate more like a digital bank.

Have a crowdfunding offering you’d like to share? Submit an offering for consideration using our Submit a Tip form and we may share it on our site!

Source

Written by bizbuildermike · Categorized: Crowdfunding · Tagged: crowdcube, Crowdfunding, debt, digital, digital bank, Europe, financial services, Global, health, investment, Investment Platforms and Marketplaces, investor, latvia, lending, market, mintos, note, Offerings, online lending, p2p, platforms, portfolio, securities, security, uk, united-kingdom, Valuation

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