Why the Female Founders Fund is Focusing on Fintech
*By Conor White*
With $27 million in new seed money, the Female Founders Fund announced it plans to invest with women who are developing financial technology that will keep pace with new trends in online banking.
"The way millennials are considering their relationship with traditional banks is fundamentally changing," said Anu Duggal, a founding partner of the Female Founders Fund. "I think they want a different experience, they want transparency, they expect the same kind of technological experience that they're getting from all of the other consumer-facing apps or businesses that they interact with."
The fund's new initiative is backed by some of the most influential women in the world, including Melinda Gates, the Rent The Runway co-founder Jenny Fleiss, and the founder and CEO of Stitch Fix, Katrina Lake.
Female Founders Fund invests exclusively in companies founded by women, something Duggal said is more important than ever.
"When you look at the current landscape, whether it's the Amazons, Googles, Facebooks, Yahoos of the world, you have this group of women who've helped these companies scale and understand the skill set that is required to build a business from the ground up," said Duggal. "And so I think that we're at a really pivotal time in terms of, these women are ready, there's an opportunity from a consumer standpoint, and they're really taking advantage of it."
For the full interview, [click here](https://cheddar.com/videos/female-founders-fund-celebrates-27-million-seed-fund).
Low-value imports are losing their duty-free status in the U.S. this week as part of President Donald Trump's agenda for making the nation less dependent on foreign goods. A widely used customs exemption for international shipments worth $800 or less is set to end starting on Friday. Trump already ended the “de minimis” rule for inexpensive items sent from China and Hong Kong, but having to pay import taxes on small parcels from everywhere else likely will be a big change for some small businesses and online shoppers. Purchases that previously entered the U.S. without needing to clear customs will be subject to the origin country’s tariff rate, which can range from 10% to 50%.
Southwest Airlines will soon require plus-size travelers to pay for an extra seat in advance if they can't fit within the armrests of one seat. This change is part of several updates the airline is making. The new rule starts on Jan. 27, the same day Southwest begins assigning seats. Currently, plus-size passengers can pay for an extra seat in advance and later get a refund, or request a free extra seat at the airport. Under the new policy, refunds are still possible but not guaranteed. Southwest said in a statement it is updating policies to prepare for assigned seating next year.
Cracker Barrel is sticking with its new logo. For now. But the chain is also apologizing to fans who were angered when the change was announced last week.
Elon Musk on Monday targeted Apple and OpenAI in an antitrust lawsuit alleging that the iPhone maker and the ChatGPT maker are teaming up to thwart competition in artificial intelligence.
Hear from Gabino & Stephen Roche on Saphyre’s institutional AI platform that centralizes pre‑ and post‑trade data, redefining settlement speed and accuracy.
Elon Musk’s X has reached a tentative settlement with former employees of the company then known as Twitter who’d sued for $500 million in severance pay.