Posts tagged Stash
The Fintech tipping point is here -- Visa's $2B Tink acquisition, Dave neobank $4B SPAC, and Revolut's 15MM users in context
The Fintech tipping point is here -- Visa's $2B Tink acquisition, Dave neobank $4B SPAC, and Revolut's 15MM users in context

The fintech industry is coming up on the tipping point of funding, revenue generation, and user acquisition to rival traditional finance with $20 billion in YTD fintech financing, the several SPACs, and Visa’s $2B Tink purchased. Defensive barriers have eroded.

Let’s take a moment to compare capital. While it is not the money that wins markets, it is the transformation function of that money into novel business assets that does. And while the large banks have a massive incumbent advantage with (1) installed customers and assets, and (2) financial regulatory integration (or capture, depending on your vantage point), there is a real question on whether a $1 generates more value inside of an existing bank, or outside of an existing bank — even when it is aimed at the same financial problem.

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digital transformation, venture capital, embedded finance, open banking / PSD2, IPO / SPAC, neobankLex SokolinDave, Revolut, Starling, Tink, Visa, MasterCard, Envestnet, Acorns, Stash, Square
How M1 Finance's $3B AUM super-app is outcompeting Wealthfront, Robinhood, and Schwab, with CEO Brian Barnes
How M1 Finance's $3B AUM super-app is outcompeting Wealthfront, Robinhood, and Schwab, with CEO Brian Barnes

In this conversation, we talk with Brian Barnes of M1 Finance, about finance “super apps”, the cost-efficiencies of robo-advisors, fractionalized share trading, and tackling the titans of the Wealth Management industry. We also discuss the nuts and bolts of the financial infrastructure making this possible.

M1 Finance bundles together roboadvisory, neobanking and lending into a single “super app”, allowing for combined pricing power (i.e., charging nothing on asset allocation). The firm currently has $3 billion in AUM, a growth of 50% in the past four months and tripling their total in just over a year. Notably, the company has its own broker/dealer and offers fractional shares, and partners with Lincoln Savings bank on the deposit accounts. That makes for a compelling business model from securities lending, interchange, and order flow.

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asset management, digital investing, neobank, roboadvisorLex SokolinM1 Finance, Robinhood, Covestor, Wealthfront, Stash, SoFi, Betterment, Square, Lincoln Savings Bank
Who are the customers of Embedded Finance, and what do they reveal about Stripe, Affirm, DriveWealth, and Green Dot?
Who are the customers of Embedded Finance, and what do they reveal about Stripe, Affirm, DriveWealth, and Green Dot?

This week, we look at:

  • Embedded finance as a growing theme with the $10B Affirm IPO and Stripe's launch of Treasury

  • The customer types that each of these firms is attempting to convert into their product, and what this tells us about economic growth

  • A framework for understanding the emerging value chain of digital finance, and the role of platforms and marketplaces

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embedded finance, digital lending, paytech, big techLex SokolinAffirm, Stripe, Shopify, Green Dot, Finicity, Galileo, DriveWealth, Zwift, BBVA, Santander, Uber, Apple, Stash, Wealthfront, Intuit, WooCommerce