Wyatt Roy

H2Ocean Ltd, a company which invests in a diversified global portfolio of early and growth stage financial technology (fintech) companies, says it is delighted to be extending the reach of its Initial Public Offering (IPO) and offering shares to retail investors through fintech firm OnMarket.

“We are delighted that investors can subscribe for H2Ocean shares through OnMarket, a fintech in its own right, and a platform that is designed to allow retail investors to access IPOs just like H2Ocean,” said Ben Heap, co-founder of H2Ocean.

H2Ocean is set to list on the Australian Securities Exchange (ASX) on October 16 and is looking to raise up to $55 million via its IPO. The minimum investment size is $2,200, and all Australian investors can participate. The offer closes on October 11.

For an interview with Ben Heap, visit the OnMarket website where he answers five questions about H2Ocean and its IPO.

The IPO will provide investors with the opportunity to access a diversified portfolio of typically privately held fintech ventures, with the objectives of delivering capital growth and providing an investment alternative to traditional listed equities.

Nick Motteram, a managing director of OnMarket BookBuilds, said H2Ocean chose to offer its IPO to the public using the OnMarket portal to get a broader reach to investors.

“There is growing awareness in Australia of the huge potential that fintech has to transform our financial system and disrupt the traditional financial institutions. Fintechs like OnMarket BookBuilds have strong growth potential and H2Ocean is backing the sector because of the significant opportunity that exists to provide more efficient and consumer focussed financial services using technology,” Motteram said.

Brothers Ben and Toby Heap are the co-founders and directors of H2Ocean, and will be joined on the board by non-executive directors, media personality David Koch, Wyatt Roy, the former federal innovation minister, and Beyond Bank chairman Anne O’Donnell.

“Through H2Ocean, we are allowing all investors access to fintech investments – the companies that are disrupting or reshaping financial services as we know it today – as a hedge against traditional bank and insurance investments that are at risk of digital disruption,” said H2Ocean’s Heap.

The Australian IPO market gained momentum in August, with the 10 companies which listed raising $1.2 billion and returning an average 34.1%, according to a new report, the OnMarket August IPO Report 2016.

The average monthly return from the August IPOs compared to a 2.3% drop for the S&P/ASX 200. Year-to-date returns have been strong at 24.8% compared with 13% for the same period in 2015.

These returns build on an impressive IPO performance in 2015, when the average return of the 93 companies that listed on the ASX that year was 23%. That return compares well with the S&P/ASX 200, which lost 3% in the same period, led by losses for large-cap stocks.

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These heavy-hitters will judge applications to present at the Melbourne Showcase on April 14th, choosing the 30 most impressive innovations to be demonstrated live at the Showcase.

The committee members are:

• Howard Treisman – CTO, Avoka
• Annick Donat – BT Financial Group
  
• Johanna Pitman – Deputy CEO, Committee for Sydney
  
• Ben Heap – Founding Partner, H2 Ventures
  
• Claire Wivell-Plater – Managing Director, The Fold Legal
  
• Warrick Lace – Director, NWR Communications

The selected presenters will be revealed on March 7th. Stay tuned!

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Johanna Pitman

Afiniation (The FinTech Network) is pleased to announce that it has partnered with the Financial Services Knowledge Hub, the NSW Government initiative coordinated by the Committee for Sydney, to drive collaboration across the financial services sector.

“The Financial Services Knowledge Hub and Afiniation share the goal of supporting the growth of Fintech through improving networks and bringing all voices from across the financial services sector together.” Said Johanna Pitman, Deputy CEO of the Committee for Sydney, “Our partnership is therefore a natural fit and we are delighted to be working together with the Hon. Warwick Smith AM, who chairs the board that oversees the collaborative projects of the Financial Services Knowledge Hub.”

In recognition of the new alliance, the coordinator of the Financial Services Knowledge Hub, Johanna Pitman, will join the selection committee of Afiniation, which will elect the 30 presenters at the next Showcase in Melbourne. The committee also includes Howard Treisman (Avoka), Claire Wivell Plater (The Fold Legal), Ben Heap (H2 Ventures), Warrick Lace (NWR Communications) and Annick Donat (BT).

“To build on the partnership, Afiniation is also working with the Financial Services Knowledge Hub to co-host a problem solving workshop for corporates and startups in June,” said Jillian Upton, co-founder of Afiniation.

As part of its Showcase series, Afiniation successfully held an event in Sydney in September, the first in a series that will include Melbourne in April and other capital cities before returning to Sydney.

The Showcase series aims to facilitate engagement between Fintech entrepreneurs and corporations, essentially finding a solution to the challenge of how large businesses discover new solutions and embrace technology that will hopefully change the face of the economy.

“Our Showcase events are about meeting entrepreneurs that not only have innovative ideas, but also tangible products and services that enable their innovations to literally change the way we do business,” said Upton.

Sydney, as the established ‘centre of gravity’ for Australian FinTech, set a new benchmark with the establishment of Stone & Chalk, a collaboration between entrepreneurs, VC’s, corporates and government and it’s a model that’s being adopted across the country. The inclusion of a member of the Financial Services Knowledge Hub on the Afiniation Select Committee enhances a partnership of like-minded organisations and will undoubtedly lead the way to many exciting new partnerships in the Fintech sector.

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“50 Best Fintech Innovators” report released

A global report launched yesterday calls out the world’s ‘50 Best’ financial technology innovators. The report, ‘50 Best Fintech Innovators’ is the result of a collaboration between AWI, KPMG Australia and the Financial Services Council (FSC) to identify those companies most likely to succeed due to innovative use of technology and driving of disruption within the financial services industry.

“The launch of the ‘50 Best’ list could not be more timely,” explained Ben Heap, CEO and Managing Director of AWI. “The financial services industry is poised at the brink of changes that will forever alter the way customers view us, what they expect from us and how they interact with us. And Fintech is the driver of that change.”

Mr Heap said that the genesis of the report was the desire of AWI, FSC and KPMG Australia to recognise and celebrate the vital role that up-and-coming Fintech companies are playing in reshaping the financial services industry. He cited massive increases in Fintech funding globally, which has more than trebled over the past five years and is now at an estimated US$3 billion annually along with unprecedented levels of innovation in the financial services industry over the past year as further evidence of big changes ahead.

“We have crossed the precipice with Fintech. Disruption is underway in the financial services market in Australia and globally,” Mr Heap said.

“And we’re not just looking at improved customer experience and the advent of new products, services and solutions within the industry itself. We’re also looking at a flow-on effect to some of the world’s major financial centres. London and New York are recognised as centres of Fintech innovation, and Sydney is a major contender for similar status as activity here ramps up.”

The inaugural ‘50 Best’ innovators were selected following extensive global research and analysis based on data relating to four factors:

• total capital raised
• rate of capital raising
• degree of sub industry disruption
• degree of product, service, customer experience and business model innovation (a subjective ranking from each member of the judging panel).

“These assessment criteria reflects the fact that venture capital invested is a relevant measure of innovation – which in turn fuels enduring competitive advantage. Venture capitalists seek this enduring competitive advantage over and above anything else,” explained Mr Heap.

John Brogden CEO of the FSC, highlighted the vital role of innovation in the financial services industry.

“Financial services industries globally must focus on innovation to drive productivity and economic growth. In Australia, we have had an intense period of regulation. Now this is over, the industry can focus on what it does best – providing new and better products and services that address the changing needs of consumers,” Mr Brogden said.

“As Australia’s largest industry, financial services has an enormous opportunity to lead on innovation. If the calibre of companies and business ideas in this list is anything to go by, we can expect that many financial services businesses will be disrupted – positively – in the future.”

KPMG Australia compiled the data behind the list and engaged its global network of member firms to source nominations.

Jacinta Munro, Partner in Investment Management at KPMG Australia said “The companies that made it onto the ‘50 Best’ list all stand on their merits. However there are many other exciting and creative Fintech companies around the world and the sheer pace of growth in the industry means the list is likely to change in the next 12 months. For this reason we are committed to updating it annually.”

The ‘50 Best’ list is comprised of Fintech start-ups internationally, ranging from the US, UK, Israel, Germany, Sweden, Scotland, Israel, Canada, India and New Zealand. There were also seven Australian companies on the list as outlined below.

Ian Pollari, Head of Banking at KPMG Australia said “It is important to acknowledge, raise awareness and publicly recognise the growing list of successes both globally and locally. The diversity of this list reinforces that Fintech is a global phenomenon and it is particularly pleasing to see Australia start to mobilise around this area.”

Click here for the full ‘50 Best Fintech Innovators’ list.

* Companies in the ‘Ones to Watch’ section of the report.

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He replaces Ben Heap, who recently resigned as managing director of UBS Global Asset Management (Australia) to become chief executive officer of Australasian Wealth Investments.

Mr Benari has many years’ experience in the financial services industry including executive roles with JP Morgan, Bankers Trust and Macquarie Bank, before joining Challenger in 2003.

He was founding chief executive of Challenger’s Mortgage Management division, which grew to become one of Australia’s largest non-bank mortgage lenders.

In 2008, Mr Benari became Challenger’s first joint Group CFO/ Group COO, with oversight of the company’s Treasury, Finance, Legal, Tax, Compliance, Information Technology, Investor and Government Relations functions. He was appointed managing director and chief executive officer in February 2012.

Greg Cooper, chairman of the Financial Services Council said: “Brian’s experience across a broad spectrum of institutional and retail financial services is welcomed by the FSC board.”

“This will be particularly important when the financial services industry undergoes its review under the new government,” Mr Cooper said.

The Financial Services Council board now includes:

• Chairman: Greg Cooper – CEO, Schroder Investment Management Australia Limited
• Deputy Chairmen: Craig Meller – MD, AMP Financial Services Limited and Brad Cooper – CEO, BT Financial Group;
• Directors: Brian Benari −MD and CEO, Challenger Limited; David Bryant: − CEO & CIO of Australian Unity Investments; Robin Burns – MD, Equity Trustees Limited; Andrew Hagger – group executive, AB ealth and CEO MLC Limited; ohn ames – MD and Chairman of anguard investments; Brett ollie – MD, Aberdeen Asset Management Australia Limited; Marc Lieberman CEO, Metlife Australia; Geoff Lloyd –CEO and MD, Perpetual Limited; Annabel Spring – Group Executive, Wealth Management, Commonwealth Bank of Australia; Geoff Summerhayes – CEO Suncorp Life; and, Maria Wilton – MD, Franklin Templeton Investments Australia Ltd.

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The new Directors replace Michael Bargholz, former CEO of AllianceBernstein Australia, and John Van Der Wielen, former Managing Director of Wealth at ANZ, who both recently resigned from the Board.

Financial Services Council Chairman Peter Maher, Group Head of Banking and Financial Services Group at Macquarie Bank, welcomed the new appointments.

“Gerard Doherty and Ben Heap bring with them a wealth of experience and knowledge of the financial services industry and will be valued contributors to the work of the Financial Services Council,” Mr Maher said.

“On behalf of the Board, I would like to thank John Van Der Wielen and Michael Bargholz for their service as Directors.”

Financial Services Council Board
Chairman – Peter Maher, Group Head of Banking and Financial Services Group, Macquarie Bank.

Deputy Chair – Brian Bissaker, CEO, Colonial First State Investments & Greg Cooper, CEO, Schroder Investment Management Australia.

Directors

• Pauline Blight-Johnston, Managing Director, RGA Reinsurance Company of Australia.
• Robin Burns, Managing Director, Equity Trustees.
• Brad Cooper, CEO, BT Financial Group.
• Gerard Doherty, Managing Director, Fidelity Australia.
• Ben Heap, Managing Director, UBS Global Asset Management in Australia & New Zealand.
• Craig Meller, Managing Director, AMP Financial Services.
• Geoff Summerhayes, CEO, Suncorp Life & Superannuation.
• Steve Tucker, CEO, MLC.
• Ian Ward-Ambler, Managing Director, Goldman Sachs Asset Management.
• Maria Wilton, Managing Director, Franklin Templeton Investments Australia.

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