Built in Chicago recently put out its feature on the 50 rising startups to watch in the Chicago area. The stand-out FinTech crowd to watch for this year include:
Aeropay, a payment platform that allows customers to pay local businesses via a secure networked transaction – bypassing standard credit card processing fees. Businesses on the platform pay less than 1% in fees, and consumers get discount at participating locations.
Best Money Moves, which helps businesses provide a more personalized solution to financial stress. The platform’s “Stressometer” measures financial stress in 15 different categories, which range from credit score concerns to student loan debt. Users are served custom content designed to provide actionable advice to lower their stress levels. Best Money Moves was founded by Ilyce Glink, a nationally syndicated financial journalist and radio show host. The company launched in 2016 and spent the past year building out its platform and signing new clients, including the publicly traded SAP SuccessFactors.
ErisX, which burst onto the Chicago tech scene in a big way last year, announcing a $27.5 million Series B in December. ErisX offers individuals and institutions a single, innovative platform to access digital asset spot and futures markets. By combining professional tools, advanced technology, sophisticated regulatory oversight, and a diverse product set, ErisX offers compliant, capital markets friendly workflows to digital market participants.
Medean is building an app that uses gamification to make managing money more enjoyable. Users are given a financial wellness score based on how their savings and spending on “needs” and “wants” compare with other users on the app with similar financial situations. Completing money-saving goals boosts a user’s score and makes them eligible to receive gift cards and other prizes. Medean raised an $850,000 seed round in 2017, and ended 2018 as a member of the fall 2018 Points of Light Civic Accelerator class.
Percent Pledge is simplifying charitable giving by offering employers a way to offer donations as a benefit. The startup lets users set up monthly charitable donations to “cause portfolios,” which are made up of three to five organizations with similar missions. Percent Pledge vets all organizations, organizes tax documents and provides biweekly impact reports to users. Percent Pledge launched in December 2017 and raised $250,000 in funding last year.
SeedCX is an institutional trading platform for cryptocurrency. The company was originally founded as a place where investors could purchase hemp and hemp seed futures — hence its name — but the company changed its focus in late 2017. The move paid off, as Seed CX raised $21 million over two funding rounds last year, including a $15 million Series B. Co-founders Edward Woodford and Brian Liston also found their way onto the 2018 Forbes 30 Under 30.