Karen Rands is joined by Eric Hazard of Vested Ventures to discuss what “financial literacy” really means and why “fintech” is uniquely qualified to help provide it — and how Compassionate Capitalists, angel investors, can make money while investing in companies that are solving social and economic inequality.  The lack of financial literacy has created a market ripe for predatory consumer lending abuse with payday lending schemes and the structure of private student loans.  You can trace the greed of certain financial institutions whom preyed on the financial naivete of people of color and first time home buyers with those crazy no money down balloon mortgages, leading to the real estate bubble and great recession 20 years ago. 

In this podcast / video cast you will learn: 
– The basic definition of FinTech and how it has evolved
– Why financial literacy begins with financial access
– How FinTech can strengthen relationships between businesses and their employees & customers, and be a force for good
– Why Vested Ventures is investing and accelerating in FinTech companies and how you can invest and succeed as well

Eric Hazard is a financial technology and communications veteran, and the CEO Vested Ventures. Eric holds a certificate in Fintech from MIT and is the host of the online video series Focus on Fintech. Vested Ventures invests in ultra lean FinTech entrepreneurs through a unique combination of money, network and communication exposure.
Learn More:  https://vested.ventures/

Karen Rands advises entrepreneurs and investors on how to create wealth through funded innovation.  Learn more about Kugarand Capital Holdings’ services and pick up Karen’s best selling book on angel investing at http://kugarand.com 

This is a video recording of the same episode found on the podcast The Compassionate Capitalist Show, which is available on the major platforms.
Please go to your podcast app and search on ‘Karen Rands, Compassionate Capitalist’, there should be over 300 episodes on the correct account.
You can also visit http://TheCompassionateCapitalistShow.com and click the link of your preferred platform icon.

Please help us spread the word about the power to change lives and create wealth as a Compassionate Capitalist.

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In this 85th episode of Fintech Impact, Jason Pereira, award-winning financial planner, university lecturer, writer, and host interviews Ramin Wright, Investment Analyst at Luge Capital. Luge Capital is a Canadian venture capital fund that focuses on early-stage fintech companies and artificial intelligence solutions applied to financial services. Ramin talks about how Luge Capital began, their investment partners, how they go about vetting potential companies for investment, and what the relationship can evolve into after the investment has been made.

Episode Highlights:

● 00:26: – Ramin Wright defines Luge Capital.

● 00:51: – Ramin shares the history of how Luge Capital got started.

● 01:49: – How did Ramin get involved with Luge Capital?

● 02:38: – What does early-stage investment look like for Luge?

● 02:53: – What verticals does Luge Capital invest in and what do they look for?

● 04:35: – How do they go about vetting candidates for investment in the due-diligence stage?

● 05:26: – What does the relationship look like with their backers once the investment has been made?

● 06:00: – Who was their first client?

● 07:53: – What value does open banking have?

● 11:00: – Ramin discusses Luge Capital’s investment in Finaeo.

● 12:08: – What does it take for a start-up to make Luge Capital interested in investing?

● 14:29: – The world of payments needs innovation.

● 15:46: – Ramin talks about banking for kids.

● 17:25: – What does Luge Capital have to say about global identity?

● 20:38: – What are the challenges of having a portable credit score that travels with us?

● 22:23: – Why is frictionless real estate an area that is ripe for needing innovation?

● 24:07: – Ramin and Jason discuss blockchain technology.

● 26:16: – What would Ramin change in his business or in his industry?

● 27:47: – What has been the biggest challenge in his business?

● 30:21: – What is the most exciting thing Ramin Wright is working on?

3 Key Points

1. Luge Capital looks for a strong vision for a company with a strong team that includes entrepreneurs with a global focus, a big appetite for growth, and the ability to execute on large opportunities.
2. Luge Capital is interested in companies that are targeting remaining frictions within the financial services industry.
3. There are typically at least 10 people involved in a real estate transaction that need their own information to get the job done.

Tweetable Quotes:
● “Luge Capital is an early-stage fintech venture fund. We invest solely in the fintech vertical and across companies headquartered in Canada and the United States.” – Ramin Wright
● “For us, early-stage, we hang out typically around the seed and A rounds of a company. So our first check into a company will range around the order of a quarter-million to $2 million.” – Ramin Wright
● “Something that we work with that is unique about us is our backers are all large financial institutions and they all have a strong interest in working together with the companies that we invest in.” – Ramin Wright

Resources Mentioned:
● Facebook – Jason Pereira’s
● LinkedIn – Jason Pereira’s
● FintechImpact.co – Website
● Linkedin – Ramin Wright
● luge.vc – Website
● luge.vc/ideas/ – Luge Capital’s 6 Ideas for Innovation

From nutrition to education, investment and technology have reshaped society in ways unimaginable. Join us at #FII6 as we discuss the ways technological advancements could propel humanity into the #NewGlobalOrder. Join us on Day 1 on the Plenary livestream