Fintech
Surge Holdings Reports 21% Increase in Revenue to $4.9 Million for the Third Quarter of 2019 and Provides Business Update
Reports continued progress with rollout of SurgePays™ Network through AATAC
Asset purchase of ECS prepaid wireless business and software platform adds 9,800 retail locations to SurgePays™ Network
Launches SurgeRewards app enabling wireless customers to earn free unlimited service
Launches SurgePays™ Reloadable Debit Card
Completes investment into SurgeRewards App and Surge Logics InTake CRM Software
Memphis, TN, Nov. 15, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Surge Holdings, Inc. (“Surge”) (OTCQB: SURG), developer of the SurgePays™ Network for convenience stores, bodegas and community markets that provide products to the underbanked, today provided a business update and announced financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2019.
Brian Cox, CEO and Chairman of Surge Holdings, commented, “I am pleased to report we achieved 21% growth in revenue to $4.9 million for the third quarter of 2019. That said, the R&D portion of the Surge lifecycle is complete, and each of the subsidiaries are rolling out products to market. We believe we have built a solid foundation for accelerated revenue growth in 2020. Surge has raised over $3 million in 2019 to support the development of multiple proprietary software programs and applications. I am happy with our team’s performance in executing our strategic plan for scalable growth.”
“First, we continue to gain traction and are moving ahead aggressively with the rollout of the SurgePays™ Network through AATAC, one of the largest private trade associations, representing over 110,000 retail locations. The SurgePays™ Network offers the merchant a wholesale marketplace to order products from regional manufacturers. At the same time, manufacturers are now able to distribute their products nationwide in a more efficient and effective manner. The AATAC model called for Surge to be coupled with Pastime Foods and Weekend Warrior Wellness’ products to be sold, setup and installed in the c-stores and at the same time to share the cost. During phase one, there was a delay in the packaging for one of the third-party companies. During the delay, Surge negotiated an exclusive master distribution agreement with both Pastime Foods and Weekend Warrior Wellness. Through the SurgePays™ Marketplace Portal, these companies’ products and payments will all be centralized and aggregated, while additionally allowing Surge to realize more than twice the expected revenue per store from the AATAC rollout. Another benefit is AATAC utilizing SurgePays™ as a solution by requiring its DRIP member stores, 40,000 locations, to be set up on SurgePays™ so that AATAC membership fees can be paid through the SurgePays™ portal. By bringing these member stores online, Surge will be able to assist future AATAC product rollouts and become the FinTech solution for AATAC distribution and payments. This bolsters our mid-term goal of 100,000 retail locations.”
“We also announced that we successfully completed the asset purchase of the ECS Prepaid business, which marks a major inflection point for Surge, by immediately adding over 9,800 new retail locations, $48.7 million in additional projected annualized revenue, and 160 ISO salespeople. Our goal is to immediately integrate the SurgePays Network within these new retail locations so that we can upsell both Surge owned and other wholesale products.”
“In August, we announced the successful launch of the SurgePays™ Reloadable Debit Card. According to the FDIC, over 25% of Americans are underbanked, and our card is designed to provide these individuals with a convenient way to manage their money. This integration and onboarding took well over a year, but we feel this was well worth it. Our market rollout will propel forward by requiring SurgeRewards App customers to be a SurgePays™ Reloadable Debit Card holder in order to get their monthly cash reward payments disbursed to their personalized card.”
“Another significant investment into software assets was the development and launch of our proprietary SurgeRewards software app. Customers can earn rewards points from the ad impressions that appear when they unlock their phone and by opening the SurgeRewards app to watch videos and ads, as well as by participating in short surveys. The SurgeRewards App allows Surge to more aggressively rollout the SurgePhone Wireless free service offering, since we own and control the app, which should result in more revenue and better results. In addition to our free SurgePhone Wireless service, the app will be preloaded on the Android handsets of True Wireless customers as well as other third-party Lifeline companies’ handsets. This should provide an additional stream of profit through ad network revenue sharing. All these monthly cash disbursements will require these customers to obtain a SurgePays Debit card for monthly cash reward disbursements. We expect this will drive between 15,000 to 20,000 SurgePays™ Reloadable Debit card activations per month, further enhancing brand loyalty and enabling us to maximize our relationship with underbanked customers.”
“Surge Logics completed the development and launch of InTake Logistics, a proprietary CRM software solution that delivers signed retainer services to clients. It is proving to be a direct benefit to clients that do not have the staff and infrastructure to handle the volume of leads Surge Logics generates. A strategic partnership with our affiliate, CenterCom Global, was formed to support these advancements. Forty-two (42) full-time staff members handle intake, reporting and technical support to streamline operations for an efficient and productive workflow. Surge Logics’ exponential growth can be attributed directly to proprietary software development and synergy with CenterCom Global. Surge Logic’s revenue has grown to over $4.4 million year to date as compared to $1.5 million in gross revenue in 2018. We expect the upward revenue trajectory to continue.”
Third Quarter 2019 Financial Results
For the three months ended September 30, 2019, revenues were approximately $4.9 million compared to approximately $4.1 million for the same period last year. Operating loss for three months ended September 30, 2019 was approximately $(1.1 million) versus operating loss of approximately $(399,815) for the quarter ended September 30, 2018. Net loss for the three months ended September 30, 2019 was approximately $(1.2 million), or $(0.01) per share, versus a net loss of approximately $(425,724), or $(0.00) per share, in the same period last year.
A copy of the Company’s quarterly report on Form 10-Q has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (www.sec.gov) and posted on the Company’s website at https://surgeholdings.com/.
About Surge Holdings, Inc:
Surge Holdings, Inc. is a retail supply chain company leveraging blockchain technology to provide a virtual distribution hub for retailers, as well as offer telecom services for low income customers and financial payment services for the unbanked and under-banked. Surge products are delivered through a nationwide network of convenience stores and corner markets connected to the SurgePays™ retail blockchain network. This retail platform is designed to transform the traditional supply chain by providing local retailers seamless access to global products, and empowers the corner store to select, order and fulfill delivery of wholesale goods from around the country. This platform also provides manufacturers a cost-effective and efficient platform to access local retailers. For more information on Surge Holdings and its subsidiaries, please visit: https://surgeholdings.com.
Forward Looking Statements
This press release contains information that constitutes forward-looking statements made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any such forward-looking statements involve risk and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from any future results described by the forward-looking statements. Risk factors that could contribute to such differences include those matters more fully disclosed in the Company’s reports filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking information provided herein represents the Company’s estimates as of the date of the press release, and subsequent events and developments may cause the Company’s estimates to change. The Company specifically disclaims any obligation to update the forward-looking information in the future. Therefore, this forward-looking information should not be relied upon as representing the Company’s estimates of its future financial performance as of any date subsequent to the date of this press release.
Investor Contact:
Crescendo Communications, LLC
Tel: 212-671-1020
Email: [email protected]
Fintech
How to identify authenticity in crypto influencer channels
Modern brands stake on influencer marketing, with 76% of users making a purchase after seeing a product on social media.The cryptocurrency industry is no exception to this trend. However, promoting crypto products through influencer marketing can be particularly challenging. Crypto influencers pose a significant risk to a brand’s reputation and ROI due to rampant scams. Approximately 80% of channels provide fake statistics, including followers counts and engagement metrics. Additionally, this niche is characterized by high CPMs, which can increase the risk of financial loss for brands.
In this article Nadia Bubennnikova, Head of agency Famesters, will explore the most important things to look for in crypto channels to find the perfect match for influencer marketing collaborations.
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Comments
There are several levels related to this point.
LEVEL 1
Analyze approximately 10 of the channel’s latest videos, looking through the comments to ensure they are not purchased from dubious sources. For example, such comments as “Yes sir, great video!”; “Thanks!”; “Love you man!”; “Quality content”, and others most certainly are bot-generated and should be avoided.
Just to compare:
LEVEL 2
Don’t rush to conclude that you’ve discovered the perfect crypto channel just because you’ve come across some logical comments that align with the video’s topic. This may seem controversial, but it’s important to dive deeper. When you encounter a channel with logical comments, ensure that they are unique and not duplicated under the description box. Some creators are smarter than just buying comments from the first link that Google shows you when you search “buy YouTube comments”. They generate topics, provide multiple examples, or upload lists of examples, all produced by AI. You can either manually review the comments or use a script to parse all the YouTube comments into an Excel file. Then, add a formula to highlight any duplicates.
LEVEL 3
It is also a must to check the names of the profiles that leave the comments: most of the bot-generated comments are easy to track: they will all have the usernames made of random symbols and numbers, random first and last name combinations, “Habibi”, etc. No profile pictures on all comments is also a red flag.
LEVEL 4
Another important factor to consider when assessing comment authenticity is the posting date. If all the comments were posted on the same day, it’s likely that the traffic was purchased.
2. Average views number per video
This is indeed one of the key metrics to consider when selecting an influencer for collaboration, regardless of the product type. What specific factors should we focus on?
First & foremost: the views dynamics on the channel. The most desirable type of YouTube channel in terms of views is one that maintains stable viewership across all of its videos. This stability serves as proof of an active and loyal audience genuinely interested in the creator’s content, unlike channels where views vary significantly from one video to another.
Many unauthentic crypto channels not only buy YouTube comments but also invest in increasing video views to create the impression of stability. So, what exactly should we look at in terms of views? Firstly, calculate the average number of views based on the ten latest videos. Then, compare this figure to the views of the most recent videos posted within the past week. If you notice that these new videos have nearly the same number of views as those posted a month or two ago, it’s a clear red flag. Typically, a YouTube channel experiences lower views on new videos, with the number increasing organically each day as the audience engages with the content. If you see a video posted just three days ago already garnering 30k views, matching the total views of older videos, it’s a sign of fraudulent traffic purchased to create the illusion of view stability.
3. Influencer’s channel statistics
The primary statistics of interest are region and demographic split, and sometimes the device types of the viewers.
LEVEL 1
When reviewing the shared statistics, the first step is to request a video screencast instead of a simple screenshot. This is because it takes more time to organically edit a video than a screenshot, making it harder to manipulate the statistics. If the creator refuses, step two (if only screenshots are provided) is to download them and check the file’s properties on your computer. Look for details such as whether it was created with Adobe Photoshop or the color profile, typically Adobe RGB, to determine if the screenshot has been edited.
LEVEL 2
After confirming the authenticity of the stats screenshot, it’s crucial to analyze the data. For instance, if you’re examining a channel conducted in Spanish with all videos filmed in the same language, it would raise concerns to find a significant audience from countries like India or Turkey. This discrepancy, where the audience doesn’t align with regions known for speaking the language, is a red flag.
If we’re considering an English-language crypto channel, it typically suggests an international audience, as English’s global use for quality educational content on niche topics like crypto. However, certain considerations apply. For instance, if an English-speaking channel shows a significant percentage of Polish viewers (15% to 30%) without any mention of the Polish language, it could indicate fake followers and views. However, if the channel’s creator is Polish, occasionally posts videos in Polish alongside English, and receives Polish comments, it’s important not to rush to conclusions.
Example of statistics
Wrapping up
These are the main factors to consider when selecting an influencer to promote your crypto product. Once you’ve launched the campaign, there are also some markers to show which creators did bring the authentic traffic and which used some tools to create the illusion of an active and engaged audience. While this may seem obvious, it’s still worth mentioning. After the video is posted, allow 5-7 days for it to accumulate a basic number of views, then check performance metrics such as views, clicks, click-through rate (CTR), signups, and conversion rate (CR) from clicks to signups.
If you overlooked some red flags when selecting crypto channels for your launch, you might find the following outcomes: channels with high views numbers and high CTRs, demonstrating the real interest of the audience, yet with remarkably low conversion rates. In the worst-case scenario, you might witness thousands of clicks resulting in zero to just a few signups. While this might suggest technical issues in other industries, in crypto campaigns it indicates that the creator engaged in the campaign not only bought fake views and comments but also link clicks. And this happens more often than you may realize.
Summing up, choosing the right crypto creator to promote your product is indeed a tricky job that requires a lot of resources to be put into the search process.
Author
Nadia Bubennikova, Head of agency at Famesters
Fintech
Central banks and the FinTech sector unite to change global payments space
The BIS, along with seven leading central banks and a cohort of private financial firms, has embarked on an ambitious venture known as Project Agorá.
Named after the Greek word for “marketplace,” this initiative stands at the forefront of exploring the potential of tokenisation to significantly enhance the operational efficiency of the monetary system worldwide.
Central to this pioneering project are the Bank of France (on behalf of the Eurosystem), the Bank of Japan, the Bank of Korea, the Bank of Mexico, the Swiss National Bank, the Bank of England, and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. These institutions have joined forces under the banner of Project Agorá, in partnership with an extensive assembly of private financial entities convened by the Institute of International Finance (IIF).
At the heart of Project Agorá is the pursuit of integrating tokenised commercial bank deposits with tokenised wholesale central bank money within a unified, public-private programmable financial platform. By harnessing the advanced capabilities of smart contracts and programmability, the project aspires to unlock new transactional possibilities that were previously infeasible or impractical, thereby fostering novel opportunities that could benefit businesses and consumers alike.
The collaborative effort seeks to address and surmount a variety of structural inefficiencies that currently plague cross-border payments. These challenges include disparate legal, regulatory, and technical standards; varying operating hours and time zones; and the heightened complexity associated with conducting financial integrity checks (such as anti-money laundering and customer verification procedures), which are often redundantly executed across multiple stages of a single transaction due to the involvement of several intermediaries.
As a beacon of experimental and exploratory projects, the BIS Innovation Hub is committed to delivering public goods to the global central banking community through initiatives like Project Agorá. In line with this mission, the BIS will soon issue a call for expressions of interest from private financial institutions eager to contribute to this ground-breaking project. The IIF will facilitate the involvement of private sector participants, extending an invitation to regulated financial institutions representing each of the seven aforementioned currencies to partake in this transformative endeavour.
Source: fintech.globa
The post Central banks and the FinTech sector unite to change global payments space appeared first on HIPTHER Alerts.
Fintech
TD Bank inks multi-year strategic partnership with Google Cloud
TD Bank has inked a multi-year deal with Google Cloud as it looks to streamline the development and deployment of new products and services.
The deal will see the Canadian banking group integrate the vendor’s cloud services into a wider portion of its technology solutions portfolio, a move which TD expects will enable it “to respond quickly to changing customer expectations by rolling out new features, updates, or entirely new financial products at an accelerated pace”.
This marks an expansion of the already established relationship between TD Bank and Google Cloud after the group previously adopted the vendor’s Google Kubernetes Engine (GKE) for TD Securities Automated Trading (TDSAT), the Chicago-based subsidiary of its investment banking unit, TD Securities.
TDSAT uses GKE for process automation and quantitative modelling across fixed income markets, resulting in the development of a “data-driven research platform” capable of processing large research workloads in trading.
Dan Bosman, SVP and CIO of TD Securities, claims the infrastructure has so far supported TDSAT with “compute-intensive quantitative analysis” while expanding the subsidiary’s “trading volumes and portfolio size”.
TD’s new partnership with Google Cloud will see the group attempt to replicate the same level of success across its entire portfolio.
Source: fintechfutures.com
The post TD Bank inks multi-year strategic partnership with Google Cloud appeared first on HIPTHER Alerts.
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