ING Belgium joins entrepreneurs on the fast track to crowdfunding

In partnership with Seedrs and KissKissBankBank, ING Belgium is launching a fast-track procedure for its business clients on these two crowdfunding platforms. This will enable entrepreneurs to diversify their funding sources and also to test their projects with a broad audience.

For entrepreneurs who are driven by innovative ideas, a classic bank loan is not always the best or only solution. Both entrepreneurs and banks can benefit from a diversified funding combination. ING Belgium will now be able to offer projects that it believes will get added value from (partial) financing through crowdfunding, a fast-track procedure at both Seedrs and KissKissBankBank.

Using the ING fast track procedure, it only takes the entrepreneur a couple of clicks to get access to the selected platform. Seedrs and KissKissBankBank will then swiftly get in touch with the entrepreneur and give him a first indication on the suitability of the project for their platform and on the chances to succeed. The fast track procedure can save the entrepreneur a lot of time and effort and improves the entrepreneur’s chances on successfully completing his crowdfunding campaign.

Says Erik Van Den Eynden, Head of Midcorporates & Institutionals ING Belgium: “In our efforts to help our customers keep a step ahead in their business, we are going further than traditional bankers. Our partnership with KissKissBankBank and Seedrs is an example. Our aim is to strengthen our customer’s project and to support them in the growth of their business. Our role is therefore much larger than that of your classic lender: we are a collaborative partner and advisor.”

Entrepreneurs who have access to several funding sources automatically find themselves in a more comfortable financial position. When assessing a loan application, banks naturally also look at the makeup of the company’s resources. Through crowdfunding, entrepreneurs can therefore reinforce their business as well as their position when applying for a loan.

At the same time a crowdfunding campaign is also a test for the entrepreneur’s project. Whoever wants to invest in the project must believe in the product or service that it will offer. It thus gives the entrepreneur a chance to estimate whether the market is ready for such products or services. The exposure to a broader audience of course also creates a good marketing opportunity for an enterprise.

Thanks to the partners with which ING Belgium works, projects and entrepreneurs enjoy international visibility as well.

Seedrs and KissKissBankBank each have their own distinct business model that aims to offer the chance to entrepreneurs to have their project funded by a broad audience of investors through using their respective online platforms.

When one of the platforms receives a project via the ING fast track procedure, it is assessed within two days at most whether or not the project is suitable for the respective platform and what the chances of success are. If the project receives a positive appraisal from the platform, the entrepreneur can immediately kick off his crowdfunding campaign, supported by the platform.

Seedrs targets entrepreneurs who are offering part of the shareholding in their company in exchange for funding for their project. In other words, interested investors buy a share in the company in which they are investing.

Jeff Lynn, co-founder and CEO of Seedrs: "We are very excited to be working together with ING in making equity crowdfunding more easily available to the Belgian business community. To our knowledge this is the first time that a well-respected, global financial institution like ING has partnered with a leading international equity crowdfunding platform like Seedrs, and we think this relationship is very encouraging for the future of business finance. We're proud to have been chosen as ING's partner for this venture, and we see our selection as further validation of our "equity crowdfunding done properly" approach." 

KissKissBankBank targets independent creative individuals looking for funding. Those who put money into a project via KissKissBankBank will get remuneration in kind. The nature of the reward is often defined by the type of project and can for instance be a discount or an exclusively customised product.

Vincent Ricordeau, ‎Co-Founder and CEO of KissKissBankBank: “We are thrilled to announce our first large-scale partnership in Belgium and Luxembourg. The ING-KissKissBankBank partnership is an important step in the development of crowdfunding that demonstrates how it can complement traditional financing methods.”

Both Seedrs and KissKissBankBank already have extensive experience. Over 250 projects have been funded through Seedrs and KissKissBankBank has already collected more than 38 million euro for creative entrepreneurs.

In addition to her role as lender and as collaborative partner and expert, ING Belgium can present its customers with an additional funding offer : Equity-based crowdfunding, as well as reward-based crowdfunding.

JWG Redefine MiFID II Implementation Training

Think-tank deploys RegDelta to help train MiFID II workforce

JWG, the financial services regulation think tank, are offering a ground-breaking new face-to-face training course on 3 November 2015 in London.  Ground-breaking, because it is supported by the complete library of MiFID II documentation now loaded in RegDelta.

The clock is ticking for the thousands of professionals struggling to interpret millions of paragraphs of text in every FS business across the globe.  The key MiFID II question for 2016 is: can you explain to your regulator what you are doing to meet the entirety of the change requirements?

To date, 750,000 paragraphs of MiFID II text have been loaded into RegDelta and enriched with practical insight from 400+ hours of collaborative effort from top firms facing the 2017 implementation deadline.  The course is designed to quickly synthesise the key issues, put them in context to understand the risks and show you how to manage them.

Armed with unrivalled insight and experience, JWG's MiFID II Implementation Training harnesses the power of crowdsourcing to spot deltas and navigate the evolving MiFID II landscape.  It is available for a broad spectrum of staff, from change functions to senior management.  Participants will have a chance to trial RegDelta, the world’s first regulatory change management solution that helps implement regulatory change better, faster and more efficiently.

PJ Di Giammarino, CEO, JWG, says: “We are excited to be scaling up our MiFID II Implementation Training programme at such a critical time for those trading in the EU.  We take pride in being able to provide our clients with the tools and knowledge they need to successfully manage and thrive during this period of transition.  Those that can adapt to the changes quickly and efficiently will be the ones to prosper.”

Blythe Barber, Managing Director, JWG, says: “Simply put, the MiFID II Implementation Training Programme gives our clients the edge. The first course earlier this year had resoundingly positive feedback from everyone that attended, with average scores of 4.6 out of 5 for the content, relevance and presentation.  This next generation training will put attendees in control of MiFID II and its 30 plus interdependent regulatory initiatives that also need to be considered.  It will enable organisations to cut costs and help them spot what is required to change their processes, while telling them optimal time at which to do so.”

*RegDelta is a smart, complete and up-to-date ‘golden source’ library allowing firms to store, monitor, analyse and prioritise all the regulatory information that matters to them.

Skyscape Cloud Services scoop first prize at Clearwater International’s Cloudex 20:20 awards

Skyscape, a supplier to the UK government’s G-cloud framework, have been announced the winner of the 2015 Cloudex 20:20 awards. The business had previously won the ‘one to watch’ award at the 2013 ceremony.

Clearwater International launched its Cloudex 20:20 awards in 2013 as the business was keen to profile innovative and emerging players in the UK cloud industry. The awards highlight the country’s top 20 independently-owned cloud technology businesses.

Following the success of those inaugural awards in London this year’s distinguished panel of judges drew up a shortlist of 20 companies before selecting their overall top three  plus a ‘one to watch’ winner. Despite extremely high standards of entries the judges universally agreed on their choices and commented that all four were ‘clear disruptors’ in their markets.

It was second time unlucky for Acturis, who create efficiencies for insurance brokers by building, hosting and distributing electronically priced insurance products, who were announced runners up; the same position they came in during the 2013 awards. Fairsail, providers of global cloud human resource management systems, came third with Kimble Applications, leaders in the professional services automation market, highlighted as the ‘one to watch’.

Simon Hansford, Chief Executive, Skyscape said:

“Winning the ‘one to watch’ award at the Cloudex awards two years ago, at a time when were still an early stage business, was really significant and gave us great credibility in the market as part of our growth story. To come back two years later and win the main prize at these distinguished awards is just fantastic and testament to our success since. In terms of our growing brand recognition winning this award is really important for us.”

Emma Rodgers, Director, Clearwater International commented:

“It is clear that the cloud industry continues to grow impressively in the UK, which is now home to a number of players who are really disrupting their respective markets. What was also striking, and particularly pleasing to see, was the growth trajectory of many of the companies which appeared in our very first awards, and how they were now building true scale in their respective industries as they continue to evolve and grow.”