Author

Paul Petersen

Browsing
In Finance

Now Could Be The Time to Invest in eSports

No Comments
Investing in esports betting: the insider's opinion - Esports Insider

If you’re looking for the next disruptive technology to invest in, then eSports could make for a solid investment opportunity.

Investing in this industry is growing exponentially with the growing audience for watching eSports and the rising number of successful games in the genre.

In March 2021 alone, about $4.06 billion of disclosed investment relating to eSports was reported, according to Esports Insider.

The vast majority of that money — about $4 billion — was used by Nuverse to acquire Moonton, the game developer behind Mobile Legends: Bang Bang — one of the most popular new eSports titles in the world.

Other significant investments include: Bitkraft Ventures, a worldwide esports venture capital firm, raised $165 million in August 2020 for investing in eSports, gaming, and interactive entertainment; the Mobile Premier League (MPL), Asia’s largest mobile gaming and esports platform, raised $90 million in September 2020; and VSPN, which uses content creation and organizes eSports tournaments, and has partnered with more than 70 percent of Chinese eSports tournaments, drew $100 million in funding in October 2020.

It’s clear that eSports will continue to grow as an industry. But should you invest in it? That’s always an impossible question to answer definitively, but many industry experts have grown more bullish on investing in this sector of the economy.

Over at The Motley Fool, one of the top investing sites, the prognosis is measured. The site’s investing experts noted that while the video game industry is “typically riskier than the market at large,” many companies have the potential for substantial long-term growth.

“Still, the gaming industry has a promising outlook, and a multitude of favorable trends benefit the industry’s leading participants,” The Motley Fool wrote. “Most top companies in the space have recorded heightened player engagement amid social distancing initiatives spurred by the coronavirus pandemic, and global demand for gaming and esports content will likely continue to rise long after the pandemic subsides.”

A Canadian investor in disruptive industries, Sheldon Inwentash, was recently interviewed on the subject of why his company, ThreeD Capital, has remained bullish on investing in the eSports industry.

“This isn’t something that’s a trade or is a short-term phenomenon,” Inwentash said to Agoracom. “We are in a secular, major transformation in technology. There’s been a shakeout and it shook a lot of people’s confidence.”

Inwentash said his company has a “rock solid” view of the future of disruptive technology, especially eSports.

“What’s interesting is that things are snowballing because of the visibility of some of our companies,” Inwentash said. “Our deal flow in the eSports arena has just catapulted. We’re seeing a lot of great projects.”

There are even signs that the industry is overtaking conventional sports.

The lockdowns caused by the pandemic dealt a devastating blow to traditional sports like football and basketball, while eSports continued to enjoy skyrocketing growth.

That was evidenced by the decision from Spain’s top football division to hire an eSports star with little experience in “real” sports as a commentator for its first actual football match to be shown live on Twitch – which usually only broadcasts eSports competitions.

That decision “was the latest sign that sports leagues are increasingly worried about losing the next generation of fans; they know that many kids today are more interested in professional gaming than football,” the UK’s Investor Chronicle wrote. “Although watching other people play computer games may not seem entertaining to most, there is a rapidly expanding market for esports.”

The eSports sector’s growth gained even more momentum during quarantine. Although even eSports tournaments have in the past taken place in stadiums filled with thousands of fans, there has been a seamless transition to streaming services like Twitch and YouTube.

The market share will likely shift back to real sports once the pandemic ends, Investor Chronicle reported.

“But as the younger generation comes of age, the sports establishment is likely to continue investing and fuelling growth in esports for years to come,” the article said.

by
Read More
In Finance

The 101 OnPrivate Money Lenders

No Comments
Private Property Financing Options: Lender's Guide – Feeta Blog

Banks and insurance agencies are usually the sources for investors for financing. However, this can at times be a tedious process that requires a lot of waiting time and documentation.

Private money lending is a good substitute for this, especially in the fast-paced real estate industry. Both an individual and a corporation can look into private money lenders instead of larger financial institutions to hasten the process of locking a deal.

A private money loan, essentially, is capital that is offered to an individual, investor, or to a business by a: 

  • a private organisation, which is similar to typical financial institutions, but is not attached to banks, and therefore requires fewer qualifications from the borrower;
  • Private individual, who may be someone the borrower knows or someone who is part of the real estate financing industry. Just like many investments, private individuals release the money with the hope to profit from the returns.

Borrowers either work in real estate or are ordinary individuals seeking to invest in it. Borrowers may opt for loans to sell, rent, build or renovate a property.

Private money lenders are usually found within the local area of the borrower and are more likely to invest not just money, but their interest in the property and ensuring its success. Being hyper-local, they are more aware of the trends happening as well as the competition that might surround the property.

Unlike typical financial institutions, private money lenders can offer as little as a promissory note, or an agreement can be made through a deed of trust. Written in this document would be the loan amount, payment terms, interest rate, and whatnot. The property is mortgaged to the lender as a collateral until the borrower completes their payment. 

To ensure transparency before finalising a deal with their borrowers, private money lenders look into three aspects:

  • Credit score. The credit score will let private money lenders know if the borrower is timely in paying their debts.
  • Pricing. The lender makes sure that the loan amount is within a competitive range.
  • Exit Strategy. The lender looks into when and how the borrower must pay back the loan.

On the other hand, before choosing a private money lender, a borrower can look into: 

  • Making sure the lender has money that is available and was secured legally. The last thing a borrower would want is a loan not coming through right when they are in the middle of finishing the renovation of a rental space or in the final stages of building a house.
  • Looking into the lender’s experience in the field. How much they know about real estate, financing, and even the locality of the property will be very helpful before locking figures.

But for as long as both the lender and the borrower are secure in their agreement, private money lending is an appealing option for both parties. Negotiations for easy payment schemes can be made between the private money lenders and the borrowers, and deals can be made in just one day.

by
Read More
In Finance

What Accounting Services are Provided for Business?

No Comments

Accounting services are essential to both small and enormous businesses. The services help to stay businesses on target regarding various payments, financial development, bookkeeping, and business expenses. Professionals provide advice to small starting businesses on the proper investment and best structure for his or her business to make sure financial stability. It’s thus crucial for a business owner to understand the simplest outsourcing accounting services for his or her business. The accounting service for businesses services differs counting on experience, business environment, and management status. It’s thus essential to understand the acceptable sort of accounting service that your business requires. You will also seek professional help from specialized accountants. Accounting services need to suit the laws and regulations of the corporate also as those of the state.

Here are different accounting services which include:

  1. Bookkeeping
  2. Tax accounting
  3. Chartered accounting
  4. Forensic accounting
  5. Financial controller services

1. Bookkeeping

This sort of accounting service involves keeping records of the financial accounts of the business. The bookkeeper updates financial systems by recording a tough copy of the financial data or use financial accounting software on the network. The bookkeeper monitors the payment of the accounts and the way they’re received.

2. Tax accounting

This deals with tax and other taxes that are placed on the business. The tax accountant ensures that they provide the simplest advice when it involves claims and protects the corporate from paying unnecessary taxes. The tax accountants also help in fixing issues associated with the filing of returns.

3. Chartered accounting

Chartered accountants concentrate on several areas from auditing to management. They’re usually a neighborhood of the professional financial body.

4. Forensic accounting

These accountants offer services within the tracking of missing funds which will appear within the course of the financial report. The accountants usually work hand in hand with enforcement agents. For effective delivery of this accounting service then it’s essential for the business owners to be transparent with their forensic assistants concerning any evasion or fraud or any financial problem.

5. Financial controller services

The financial controllers are the top of the commercial department. Their task includes; assigning work to employees, overseeing staff, and handling new clients. they’ll also carry both external and internal auditing tasks. They ensure efficient and accurate accounting work.

Accounting refers to the method of keeping financial records concerning the business. It involves the method of recording, summarizing, analyzing, and reporting all the transactions. Accounting is one among the key functions of all businesses. This key function is handled by an accountant during a small firm, or by a finance department with dozens of employees at larger companies. Once you outsource your accounting services to a reliable accounting service provider, you’ll surely find the difference you’ve been trying to find. Because it may be a well-known incontrovertible fact that your Accounting services are often an enormous task, your stress gets eased out here. The expert accountants will check out equally of your company’s accounts to offer you the simplest results. Outsourced accounting services have tons of advantages and can also help within the growth of your business. They lookout of small business accounting services also and supply top-notch services like bookkeeping services, professional accounting, tax accounting, payroll services, cash transaction services, and statutory compliances.

by
Read More
In Business

The Services a Call Center Provides

No Comments

Call centers are offices from where trained professionals help out businesses remotely. The professionals carry out tasks like answering incoming calls, messages and emails; make outgoing calls as preferred by the businesses and transfer calls to the concerned people. Though a virtual receptionist does not remain physically present at the site of businesses, they carefully work for them. As a business grows and so does the query and expectations of people, it becomes tough to answer all the calls and mails in the real time. A remote receptionist does this job efficiently to maintain communication between a business and its customers and clients.

Outgoing calls

Many businesses require to make outgoing calls to present and prospective customer and clients. The main purpose usually is to let them know about new services and products. Often clients and customers are approached through mails. The receptionists are trained to present everything to the concerned people in an impressive way and convince them.

They are present even when you are not

Running a business does not mean you cannot enjoy your life. You can definitely decide to stay away from those phone calls and e-mails for a weekend or on a vacation. There is nothing to worry about as the receptionists got you covered. You might be on a holiday while they remain at the desk to promptly answer a call or mail. Though you might stay away from these things for a few days, you will never miss anything. The professionals will notify you of everything important to help you get back to the job without any problem.

Working with call centers has become much popular due to its low cost and efficient results. Even small businesses can easily afford the services as it is cheaper than setting up an in-house team.

by
Read More
In Finance

Why and Where to Invest in Fintech

No Comments

Heard of fintech? If you read the news with any consistency, then you’ve surely come across the term by now. 

Fintech, or financial technology, is quickly transforming the banking industry, and bringing significant changes to many other areas of the global economy as well, especially eCommerce. 

As of February 2020, there were 8,775 fintech startups in the USA, more than any other region, though the US is by no means the only country embracing this nascent industry. There were about 7,385 such startups across Europe, the Middle East regions, and Africa.

The industry has only grown since then, aided in part by a pandemic that created a sudden and global premium for remote services, especially remote financial services. 


Or as Forbes put it: “Frenzied at-home trading and sky-high asset valuations became hallmarks of the stock market’s pandemic year, fueling a period of explosive growth for a crop of investing-focused fintech companies at the center of it all.”

Though dismissed as a fad just a few years ago, now the biggest financial firms and publications have daily stories about how and where to invest in fintech. 

Why? 

Because fintech drastically lowers the service costs of many financial transactions while simultaneously providing streamlined outcomes with automated financial operations, said Bardya Ziaian, the CEO of Sittu Group and an innovator in the Canadian fintech industry. 

So for starters, fintech is cheaper for many customers than conventional banking. It’s also part of the larger trend of cashless transactions. 


Most people, especially in the younger generations, now eschew the use of cash in most transactions, Bardya Ziaian said. Whether it’s a morning smoothie or online banking, the use of cash declines every year. Fintechs will benefit from this change as they flourish when more transactions take place on their platforms. 

Digital payments actually comprise 25 percent of the fintech ecosystem. And it’s not like smart phones are going anywhere. According to TechCrunch, about 90 percent of smartphone users make payments on their phone.

The other salient point is about data. The fintech industry has been an early adopter of data-gathering, using it primarily to draw conclusions about customer spending patterns. While many media outlets continue to question the ethics of data-mining, the reality embraced by every major eCommerce retailer is that customers now expect online businesses to offer personalization — and that requires data. 

“Fintechs have proven themselves extremely adept at leveraging the huge amounts of data out there to provide solutions that modern consumers want,” Ziaian said. “This trend isn’t going anywhere. It’s the future.”

So we’ve established that fintech is here to stay and will continue to grow in future years. 

Where should you, the investor, start putting their money? 

You could start with one of the fintech companies you’re already using in your daily life. The main services in fintech are: payment processing, financial software, online and mobile banking, online and peer-to-peer (P2P) lending, and financial services, and person-to-person payments. 

Unless you’ve been living under a rock the last 10 years, you’ve likely already embraced at least one or more of those services. 

That’s why when Motley Fool announced their Top 5 fintech companies for investing, the candidates weren’t newcomers, but fintech companies that have shown reliable growth for a number of years. 

The picks include Square, which you’ve likely used at a coffee shop or farmers market to pay for small items. Square processes card payments at a rate of over $100 billion, according to Motley Fool, it has a thriving small-business lending platform, as well as increased use among larger vendors. 

There’s also PayPal, founded by now-richest-person-in-the-world Elon Musk. Now the leader of online payments, it also owns person-to-person payment platform Venmo, and is venturing into the eCommerce space as well. 

The third pick from Motley Fool is the most interesting: Goldman Sachs. It’s an odd choice for fintech, given that Goldman Sachs is one of the oldest companies in conventional banking. But the company is now embracing fintech, 

“And unlike most other fintechs, Goldman’s massive investment banking business tends to be better in turbulent markets, making this a less cyclical fintech stock,” Motley Fool wrote. 

There’s plenty to explore about fintechs and investing, but this should help you get started. 

by
Read More