• We spoke to investors at Andreessen Horowitz, Bain Capital Ventures, Citi Ventures, and Insight Partners to find out what they look for in a startup founder and what makes a great pitch.
• For fintechs looking to grow products like lending, explosive growth isn't necessarily as attractive as it might be for startups that are expanding through inking partnerships. 
• It's also important to find a founder that's willing to take advice, some said, be that from VC firms' own tech and sales teams, or from data and feedback from seasoned players.
• And as lines blur between consumer-facing tech and fintech, it's key to distinguish between the two and make sure that both founders and backers are on the same page.
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

There's a lot of cash out there for fintechs, but startup founders and venture capital backers are playing in a crowded market. We asked four VC investors focused on fintechs what they're looking for in a founder and a pitch.

They said the investment decision can take as long as three-plus years, and that getting to know the founder and understanding how they view the scalability of their business is key. For fintechs looking to grow products like lending, explosive growth isn't necessarily as attractive as it might be for startups that are expanding through inking partnerships. 

And as lines blur between consumer-facing tech and fintech, some said it's also important to distinguish between the two and make sure that both founders and backers are on the same page. That's grown even more important as big money-losing, high-growth companies like WeWork and Uber grab headlines (and rattle investors' confidence.) 

It's also important to find a founder that's willing to take advice, some said, be that from VC firms' own tech and sales teams, or from data and feedback from seasoned players, as is the case for Citi Ventures, the venture arm of Citibank. 

VC funding for fintechs has been surging. There are currently 58 fintech unicorns globally, and third-quarter fintech funding topped $8.9 billion, according to CB Insights. That's a quarterly record when you discount Alibaba's fintech Ant Financial's giant $14 billion fundraise last year.

These big rounds and rich valuations have attracted a broad crowd of startups looking to grow by putting a tech spin on financial products and platforms. And big tech players also want in. 

The launch of Uber Money, for one, shows how the struggling ride-hailing giant sees an opportunity in offering its drivers and, ultimately, everybody, financial products.

Facebook, too, is eyeing fintech. Aside from its Libra ambitions, the social network announced a new payment service that will span it's suite of apps like Facebook Messenger, Instagram, and WhatsApp.

Here are some things startups should keep in mind to keep the VC cash flowing in.

Anish Acharya, general partner at Andreessen Horowitz

Anish Acharya spent his career in and around fintec, and joined Andreessen Horowitz as a general partner in August.

The Silicon Valley venture capital firm is well-known for its early investments in companies like Facebook and Lyft. In the payments space, it has backed startups including payments giant Stripe and fast-growing cross-border player TransferWise.

"There's a lot of obvious stuff in terms of what makes a great pitch, but I think one of the most important things is the founder's authenticity to the space," Acharya told Business Insider.

That's "a good proxy for how gritty they're going to be, how much they care about the outcome and how carefully they've thought about the way to achieve that outcome," Acharya said.

As more non-bank companies like Uber and Apple lean into fintech, Acharya noted that the lines between fintech startups and other consumer-focused pitches will blur, and that there is a learning curve on each side of the existing industries. 

"There are consumer internet founders who are going to night school for fintech, and then there are fintech founders who are going to night school for consumer internet and technology," Acharya said.

"I think both of those things can be learned, but I think as you see fintech everywhere and more non-fintech companies are playing the part, you're going to start to see this gray area between the founders."

 Acharya noted that as lines blur, VCs still have to look at a startup's growth in the context of its actual business model. Explosive growth in lending, for example, doesn't necessarily bring a consumer-facing fintech startup closer to profitability. 

"For a lending business, for example, you might see a huge exponential growth curve, but it turns out that giving people money is a great way to drive growth," Acharya said. "That may not necessarily mean it's going to be the next Facebook."

Acharya said curiosity is another key attribute he looks for in a founder. Founders, he said, should have a clear vision of where the company will go, but be open to perspectives that may shift that view.

"A big part of that is having a point of view as to where things will go, but being curious when presented with new information," he said.

Acharya founded a gaming startup called SocialDeck, which was acquired by Google, where he then worked for four years. Acharya left Google in 2014 to start mobile notifications startup Snowball, which was acquired by Credit Karma. Ancharya worked at Credit Karma in product management before joining Andreeseen Horowitz.

READ MORE: Uber and Apple are just the start, and eventually every company will want to be a fintech. An Andreessen Horowitz general partner explains why.

Matt Harris, partner at Bain Capital Ventures

Matt Harris is a partner at Bain Capital Ventures. His portfolio includes fintechs like robo-adviser Acorns, bill-pay-software startup AvidXchange, and the payments platform Flywire.

"There has to be something transgressive about it," Harris said, especially when it comes to founders with early-stage companies. "Otherwise, it's kind of boring."

Harris' most recent Series A was a payments infrastructure platform company called Finix in July, which was also joined by Insight Partners, Aspect Ventures, and Visa.

Finix offers payment processing infrastructure-as-a-service, helping businesses side-step providers like Stripe by helping companies build their own payments platforms.

"We can agree that there are going to be competitors. And the Finix pitch is fundamentally different for the segment, more appealing, and really hard to emulate, because it kind of takes Stripe out of their comfort zone," Harris said. 

Stripe is one of Silicon Valley's hottest fintechs, valued at $35 billion. It got its start offering a platform for accepting credit card payments, charging merchants processing fees for each transaction. It has since launched a corporate card service, fraud prevention tools, and a small business lending arm called Stripe Capital. It even has a press house. 

"I remember taking this to the investment committee, and my partners are like, 'really? You're going to go against Stripe?,'" Harris said. 

It's unlikely Stripe will grab 100% of the payments market share, Harris said. In addition to Finix, there are also more established competitors like Square and PayPal.

Early-stage companies account for about half of Harris' investments, he said.

"We assume that most of them will fail. That's actually the business we're in, that more than half of the startups we back will fail," said Harris. "I think VCs who don't really understand that are never going to help to build great companies."

For later-stage investments, Harris isn't willing to take on as much risk of a startup folding.

"You don't really want to lose $40 million, and you probably shouldn't have to," Harris said. "Later stage, there are a lot more analytics you can do about how well the company is doing and how much substance they have."

Harris started his career at Bain, before leaving to start his own venture firm, Village Ventures. He returned to BCV as a partner in 2012.

READ MORE: A partner at Bain Capital Ventures explains why payments companies need to do more than just move money to survive

Ramneek Gupta, managing director & cohead of venture investing at Citi Ventures

Ramneek Gupta is the co-head of venture investing at Citi Ventures. Gupta joined Citi in 2011, and has led investments in payments processor Square, robo-advisor Betterment, and small business lender BlueVine.

"There are a few different lenses and a few different things that we're looking for when somebody's building something amazing," Citi Venture's Ramneek Gupta told Business Insider.

The first, Gupta said, is figuring out whether it's a platform, a product, or a feature, and cutting checks accordingly. It's not that one is necessarily better than the other, Gupta said, but platforms often yield the best results.

"It's rightsizing the amount of dollars going in relative to what might come out of the opportunity," Gupta said.

Square, which started as a payments platform company, has seen its share price rise from $9 to $66 since its 2015 IPO. Plaid, a startup that offers an API for fintechs to link into customer's bank accounts, is valued at $2.7 billion.

What the two fintechs have in common is their approach of first building something to then distribute out to other companies.

"If it's anything other than [a platform], then you have to be very, very disciplined in terms of your valuation and capital going in," Gupta said.

Product companies, which develop products to market directly to customers, are also raking in funding. Neobank Chime and small business lender Kabbage are both unicorns, and have worked to expand their product offerings.

However, Gupta said, given business models vary between platforms and products, VCs have to take that into account when determining whether and how much to invest.

With a platform, once its built, the company focuses on scale through inking more partnerships. A product company may require more investment in design and technology, and needs to focus on customer acquisition.

Citi Ventures also takes cues from its parent Citibank when determining the possible value and market demand of a pitch.

"We are fortunate to have access to the signals from our mothership and the entire client base that we serve globally. And that signal we leverage quite a bit. That gives us a good sense for testing the proposition," said Gupta. 

Gupta said that for a startup, it's not just about founders. 

"It takes a village to build anything amazing," Gupta said. "Are there the right investors around the table? Is this team capable of executing through the good and the bad times? There will invariably be hiccups and roadblocks. How do they handle that?" 

Citi doesn't tend to invest after a first meeting with a startup, he said. 

To be sure, this is more of an art than a science, Gupta said. Citi is looking for people with experience and a strong record of teamwork. "It's intuition-driven in that sense, and it's not an exact science," Gupta said.

"Often times, we watch what they are talking about, and wait to see if they can deliver to the next milestone," Gupta said. Citi may follow up in a quarter or so to check in on a startup's progress. 

Gupta looks for the team's ability to put together a plan, set goals, and execute. Personalities also matter. 

"If where they coming from, everybody's happy to get rid of them, that's not a good sign," Gupta said. 

READ MORE: Citi Ventures is betting on cars that pay their own bills, and its co-head of investing envisions a future where your devices make payments without you

Byron Lichtenstein, principal at Insight Partners

Byron Lichtenstein is a principal at Insight Partners, a New York-based VC firm that invests in growth-stage software companies involved in various industries, like education, social media, and fintech. It has backed German neobank N26, business expense management startup Divvy, and payment fraud monitoring startup Sift.

"We like really strong tech and we like people who understand their unit economics," Lichtenstein told Business Insider.

"I think that there are folks that come in and have this grand vision. They're like, 'I'm going to spend $50 million and I'm going to get to $10 million in revenue. But don't worry, when we get to scale and it's going to be fine,'" he said.

WeWork's failed IPO, for example, called into question the aspirational and enigmatic founder running a business with wide losses and an unclear path to profitability. Uber, whose stock has trended down since its May IPO, still isn't profitable.

"I think what the public markets have proven, especially over this last year, is that spending unsustainably doesn't work," Lichtenstein said.

"We're very much willing to spend, but we have to feel confident that the entrepreneur knows that if I put a dollar out today, I can get that dollar back in 12 to 18 months," said Lichtenstein.

Not only is Insight looking for return on its investment, it also wants to see customer stickiness and what's often called a "moat"— differentiating services and products that keep the competition at bay.

Insight's investment process can take years, Lichtenstein said. 

"From first contact with the company to actual investment, the median is three-and-a half years," he said. There are always deals that will pop up, but for the most part, Insight takes its time to make sure it's the right investment.

"You get to know people pretty well," Lichtenstein said.

For Lichtenstein, when a startup comes in, Insight is also pitching itself. One of the key things Insight looks for is a founder's willingness to partner with them.

"We want to be part of the software ecosystem. We've structured ourselves as such," Lichtenstein said. Insights offers sales, marketing, tech, and talent teams to its 150+ portfolio companies.

"At the end of the day there's a lot of capital out there, and a dollar is a dollar. We want somebody who's willing to take advice and hear the data," Lichtenstein said.

For many startups, the CEO is the main salesperson during early stages, and they might not trust anyone else to sell their product. Insight, Lichtenstein said, would help the find the right person to lead sales as the company scales. 

"There are founders who come in who it has to be their exact way and — we'll still look at the business and we'll probably still be interested at times — but for us, it's really important to find a good partner," he said.

READ MORE: An Insight Partners principal says the era of 'dumb payments' is over, and sees opportunities in using machine-learning to combat fraud

Join the conversation about this story »

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• This is a preview of The Rise of Banking-as-a-Service research report from Business Insider Intelligence.
• Purchase this report.
• Business Insider Intelligence offers even more insights like this with our brand new Banking coverage. Subscribe today to receive industry-changing banking news and analysis to your inbox.

Fintechs are encroaching on incumbents' share in the banking game, forcing them to explore new business models — but tech-savvy legacy banks can treat this as an opportunity rather than a threat by moving into the Banking-as-a-Service (BaaS) space.

BaaS platforms enable fintechs and other third parties to connect with banks' systems via APIs to build banking offerings on top of the providers' regulated infrastructure. This means banks that launch BaaS platforms can actually benefit from fintechs entering the finance space, as it turns fintechs into customers rather than just competitors. Other benefits from launching a BaaS platform include being able to monetize such platforms, establishing strong relationships with fintechs, getting ahead of the curve in terms of open banking, and accumulating additional data from third parties.

In TheRise of Banking-as-a-Service, Business Insider Intelligence looks at the benefits banks stand to gain by offering BaaS platforms, discusses key players in the industry that have already successfully launched BaaS platforms, and recommends strategies for FIs looking to move into BaaS.

The companies mentioned in this report are: BBVA, Clearbank, 11:FS Foundry, Starling.

Here are some key takeaways from the report:

• Offering BaaS also allows banks to unlock the opportunity presented by open banking, which is becoming a vital part of the financial services industry.
• There are two key types of players — BaaS-focused fintechs and BaaS providers with a retail banking arm — that banks will need to learn from and compete against in the BaaS space.
• Banks that have embraced digital will have an easier time ensuring that their infrastructure and systems are suitable for third parties.
• It's vital for incumbents to accurately assess third-party needs to create an in-demand portfolio of white-label BaaS products.

 In full, the report:

• Outlines what BaaS is and how it relates to open banking. 
• Highlights the benefits of launching a BaaS platform, including two different monetization strategies.
• Explains what BaaS players are currently doing in the space, and outlines the services they offer.
• Discusses what incumbent players can do in order to launch their own successful BaaS platform.

Interested in getting the full report? Here are four ways to access it:

1. Purchase & download the full report from our research store. >>Purchase & Download Now
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• Many credit card issuers offer access to presale, preferred seating, and VIP ticket offers.
• American Express, Citi, and Chase cardholders each have their own entertainment programs that provide a wide variety of ticket perks.
• Capital One also offers select presale access, and if you have the Capital One® Savor® Cash Rewards Credit Card, you can get 8% cash back on tickets purchased through Vivid Seats (through May 2020).
• Even if you don't have any of these types of cards, it's worth checking with your credit card issuer to see what entertainment benefits may be available to you.
• Read more personal finance coverage

Most people know that they can use credit cards to earn cash back and book free travel. But many credit cards come with extra perks that are lesser known, but still valuable.

There's a good chance that your credit card can get you access to presale or VIP tickets for big concerts and events. It's an awesome cardmember bonus that you don't want to waste.

Let's take a look at the credit cards that offer presale tickets to cardholders and how you can put this benefit to use.

Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which will far outweigh the value of any points or miles. It's important to practice financial discipline when using credit cards by paying your balances in full each month, making payments on time, and only spending what you can afford to pay back.

American Express cards

With most American Express cards, you're eligible to buy presale tickets through the American Express Entertainment program.

American Express gives cardmembers presale ticket access to popular music festivals like Coachella and premier sporting events like Wimbledon and the US Open Golf Championship.

For certain events, your American Express card can also get you in to exclusive meet-and-greets and qualify you for concession offers or dedicated cardmember entrances. And you may be able to take advantage of By Invitation Only events too.

You can find American Express cardmember presale tickets and preferred seating offers in two ways. The first way is to visit Ticketmaster's American Express Ticket Offers page.

The other way is to book directly through American Express Entertainment. However, you can only use this method if you have a version of the Platinum Card from American Express or the Centurion card.

Chase cards

Your Chase card can't technically get you access to presale ticket offers, but Chase credit and debit cardmembers are eligible to take advantage of Chase Preferred Seating at events.

And, for select events, Chase may invite everyone who's purchased a Chase Preferred Seat to enjoy a pre-event reception at a Chase Lounge.

Chase Preferred Seating and Chase Lounges are available at some impressive venues, including Madison Square Garden and Radio Music Hall in New York City, the Chicago Theater, and The Forum in Los Angeles.

To take advantage of Chase Preferred Seat offers, begin by visiting the Ticketmaster site. Then simply click on an event that you're interested in attending. Once you're looking at seating options, navigate to the available filters.

If the event that you're looking at has Chase Preferred Seating options, you'll see that as an option. And you can filter by those types of seats.

To buy the tickets, you'll just need to use one of your Chase cards, like the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card or the Chase Freedom Unlimited, at checkout.

Oh, and once you're at the event, your Chase card may qualify you for arena benefits like discounts on merchandise and food and beverage. 

Capital One cards

Capital One offers cardholders presale access for select events, including the iHeart Radio Jingle Ball, as well as discounts on food and merchandise at the Capital One Arena in Washington, D.C. 

To access a Capital One presale, you'll need to use the first 6 digits of your Capital One card as your offer code.

If you have the Capital One Savor card, you can also earn 8% cash back when you purchase tickets through Vivid Seats (through May 2020).

Citi cards

If you have a Citi credit card or debit card, you can access exclusive ticket offers through the Citi Entertainment program. Currently, Citi offers its cardmembers four different types of ticket deals:

Citi Presale Tickets
Citi Preferred Tickets
Citi Complimentary Tickets
Citi VIP Packages

Citi says its presale tickets generally go on sale 2 to 3 days before tickets are available to the public. Citi Complimentary tickets are available on a first-come, first-serve basis and you can only redeem one offer every six months.

To take advantage of one of Citi's ticket offers, begin by visiting the Citi Entertainment site.

Once you select an offer, you may be transferred to Ticketmaster.com or LiveNation.com.

If you're transferred to another site to finish your ticket requests, you'll generally be asked to provide a passcode at checkout. The passcode is simply the first 6 digits of your Citi credit or debit card.

Other entertainment perks your credit card may unlock

Don't have a credit card from one of the issuers listed above that offers presale or preferred tickets? Your cards could still offer their own set of entertainment benefits.

For instance, all Mastercard cardholders can buy tickets to various exclusive events from around the world via the Priceless Cities program. So if you have a card like the Citi®/AAdvantage® Executive World Elite™ Mastercard® or the Citi® Double Cash Card, you can take advantage of this program.

If you have the NFL Extra Points Credit Card from Barclays, you can redeem points for game tickets, pre-game sideline passes, and even Super Bowl tickets.

No matter which credit card you're currently using, there's a good chance that it may offer some entertainment perks.

Check with your card issuer to find out what type of benefits you're entitled to. And the next time you plan to attend an event, don't forget to take advantage of them.

Click here to learn more about the Capital One Savor Cash Rewards card.

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• STXfilms' "Playmobil: The Movie," took in only an estimated $668,000 at the domestic box office.
• That figure is the third-lowest ever for a movie that's released on over 2,000 screens.
• It's just the latest box office bust for STX, which has had a handful of disappointing releases this year.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories. 

It doesn't look like things will be jolly at STXfilms this holiday season. "Playmobil: The Movie," which at one time was to be the start of a franchise for the studio that would compete with Warner Bros.' lucrative Lego franchise, had a non-existent opening in theaters this weekend.

The movie, based on the German toy line and budgeted around $40 million, brought in an estimated $668,000 at the domestic box office. That's the third-worst opening ever for a movie that debuted on over 2,000 screens (it played on 2,337).

The only releases that have performed worse are 2008's "Delgo" ($511,920) and 2012's "The Oogieloves in the Big Balloon Adventure" ($443,901).

"Playmobil" only took in $167,000 on Friday, which made it apparent that its already awful $1 million industry projection for the weekend was not going to happen.

But that wasn't the only sign that the movie was going to have a disastrous performance:

• It originally was supposed to be released by Open Road Films in the US with a release date of January 2019. When that company filed for bankruptcy, STXfilms bought the rights (it has no equity in the movie) and planned an April release. That was then moved to a late August release, and finally opened this weekend. That many release changes is never a good sign.
• Leading up to its release, the movie was not screened for most critics. Again, not a good sign.
• And it was reported that the theaters were offering a discounted price of $5 to see the movie.

This is yet another box office bomb for STXfilms in 2019. In May, it released "UglyDolls," which only brought in $32.4 million worldwide in its run (budgeted at $45 million). Also in May, it released "Poms," which had a lifetime box office of $16.4 million worldwide (made for around $10 million). And "21 Bridges," which finally opened last month after ditched released dates in July and September, has only taken in around $25 million worldwide ($33 million budget).

There have been few bright spots for the company this year. January release "The Upside," made for $20.3 million, brought in over $125 million at the worldwide box office. Then "Hustlers," which found critical acclaim and box office success when it opened in September, earning over $150 million worldwide on a $20 million budget. The company is doing an award season campaign for the movie's star, Jennifer Lopez.

But two big wins the whole year is nothing to be happy about. For a company that has always functioned as a mini-major to go up against the established studios, the performance by "Playmobil" is the latest example that STX needs to step up its game.

Box office highlights:

• Disney's "Frozen II" won the domestic box office for a third consecutive weekend with a $34.7 million take. The movie is nearing $1 billion worldwide as its current global total is $919.7 million.
• Lionsgate/MRC's "Knives Out" brought in $14.1 million over the weekend. The movie's worldwide cume is a healthy $124 million.

SEE ALSO: Felicity Jones talks about her scary balloon crash while making "The Aeronauts" and whether she'd return to "Star Wars"

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• As someone who's young, single, and healthy, I never thought I needed life insurance until two of my younger family members died unexpectedly.
• Realizing that my own death could create a financial burden for my family members made it clear to me that life insurance is a no-brainer.
• To keep it affordable, I opted for term life insurance, which only costs me about $30 a month for $300,000 in coverage for the next 40 years.
• For less than it costs me to insure my car, my family is now taken care of in case I die unexpectedly.
• Life insurance will never be cheaper than right now. Policygenius can help you compare options to find the right coverage for you »

When you're young, single and healthy, life insurance is probably the furthest thing from your mind. After all, you're in the prime of your life and have other expenses to think about. You're saving for retirement, a home, or investing for your future. Putting funds towards an event that is statistically unlikely to happen in the immediate future sounds like a waste of money.

At least that's what I thought. The importance of having life insurance didn't hit home until I lost two younger family members within the same year.

Both passings were unexpected and a complete shock. These were two perfectly healthy young men in their early 20s. Friends and family pitched in to cover funeral expenses, which provided the families one less thing to worry about during difficult times. Nothing makes up for the loss of a loved one, but the removal of that financial stress allows grieving families some reprieve.

Their deaths made me realize life insurance is a no-brainer

These events got me thinking about how absurd my invincibility complex really was. Here I was at 31 years old — no longer a spring chicken, as my mother liked to say. If something happened to me, which felt more real than ever, I didn't want my family to have the added burden of dealing with financial matters.

Funeral expenses aside, what about outstanding debts? Luckily, I only have a car loan, but life is unpredictable. I write for a living and as the 2008 financial crisis reminded us, even good jobs can go down the drain faster than the stock market. I might be financially stable now, but that could change at any moment. And when that moment coincides with my untimely demise, it could create a huge financial burden for my loved ones. Viewing life insurance through this reality-based lens made buying it a no-brainer.

Life is unpredictable and to not plan ahead is irresponsible. That's why I ultimately got life insurance. I won't be young, single and childless forever. Things could change on a dime and remembering to get life insurance may not be top of mind when they do. We're all leaving someone behind, and saddling them with our financial problems is not the way most of us want to go. 

I chose term life insurance, which is much cheaper

If you're concerned about the cost of life insurance, a term-life policy is a more affordable alternative. Especially if you're still young and healthy — oddly enough, the age at which most of us don't think about life insurance is also the age at which it's most affordable.

With a term policy, coverage is only valid for a set period of time, usually 10 to 40 years (although it's possible to get coverage for as few as two) and payments can be split into affordable monthly installments. If you pass away during that coverage period, the policy is paid out to your beneficiaries. If you make it through the policy period, you are no longer covered.

In my case, I opted for term life insurance because it was significantly cheaper. For example, I was quoted $234 per month for a $300,000 whole life policy. Meanwhile, a 40-year term policy was just $30 per month. The total policy cost during 40 years would be $14,400 as opposed to $112,320 for a whole life policy during the same period. 

When that term life policy expires in 40 years, re-upping would be more expensive since life insurance cost goes up with age. That's something to think about when you're determining your own coverage needs.

I got enough coverage to cover my debts and make life easier for my beneficiaries

When it comes to choosing a life insurance policy, it's important to consider not only your personal and financial situation now, but how it might change in the future. I'm young, single and childless. Most of those factors aren't going to change in the foreseeable future. So when I bought my policy, I wanted to make sure that at the very least, my funeral expenses and outstanding debts would be covered. 

I also wanted to leave something behind for my beneficiaries — enough to pay off a mortgage or maybe cover education expenses. That's why I settled for a $300,000 policy. It's more than enough to take care of my debts and make life easier for my beneficiaries. We all want to leave this world in a better state and I felt this number was sufficient in that regard, in addition to being affordable. For less than what it costs me to insure my car, my family is now taken care of in case the inevitable happens.

Some people go beyond a million dollars, but you know what? Most people can't handle large sums of money anyway. A huge windfall wasn't something I wanted to be on the hook for financially, in the hopes that my beneficiaries wouldn't squander it. Even taking inflation into consideration, I did the math and determined $300,000 to be a sufficient amount of money to leave behind. 

I also recognized that at some point, I'll return to the workforce and likely receive life insurance benefits from an employer for significantly less. So if something happens before I hit retirement age, there's a good chance I'll have another policy in place.

Bottom line: Age, health, and marital status are ultimately irrelevant when it comes to buying life insurance. Almost everyone needs it, because none of us are invincible or psychic. Life insurance is about protecting what's important and taking care of those we leave behind. Without a clue as to when that might happen, it's important to be fully prepared. 

Policygenius can help you compare options to find the right life insurance coverage for you, at the right price »

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• A high-yield savings account is the best place to save for short-term goals, like an emergency fund or upcoming travel.
• CIT Bank's Savings Builder account rewards accountholders who set up an auto-deposit of at least $100 a month — or maintain a balance of $25,000 or more — with its top APY of 1.85%.
• The account also has no monthly maintenance fees and allows mobile check deposit via its app.
• If you're serious about saving for any type of goal, CIT Bank's high-yield savings account is a great way to create momentum.
• See Business Insider's picks for the best high-yield savings accounts »

A high-yield savings account is the best way to grow your money without risking a dime. But you need savings to earn interest, and for many of us, consistently putting away money is the tough part.

Business Insider recently named the best high-yield savings accounts, and one of our winners, CIT Bank, has a solution. The online bank's Savings Builder account currently offers an annual percentage yield (APY) of up to 1.85%, one of the highest rates we saw among national and online banks. But in order to earn that APY, you either have to save automatically or maintain a high balance.

Here's how it works: You need at least $100 to open a Savings Builder account. Every new accountholder earns an interest rate of 1.83% for an introductory period of a few weeks. If you set up an auto-deposit of at least $100 a month or keep your daily balance above $25,000, you'll earn the top APY of 1.85%. If you fail to do either, your APY will drop to 1.17%.

If you're serious about saving — whether for an emergency fund, next year's summer vacation, a down payment on a home, or your wedding fund — the Savings Builder account is a great tool to create momentum.

On top of rewarding you for consistent savings, the account doesn't impose any maintenance fees and allows mobile check deposit via its app. The account does limit transfers and withdrawals to six per statement cycle, but that's a federally mandated rule you'll find on nearly all savings products.

Now is a good time to open a high-yield savings account

It's important to remember that interest rates on high-yield savings accounts are variable. You don't lock in a fixed interest rate on this account, or any other savings account, like you would on a certificate of deposit (CD). When the Federal Reserve cut interest rates three times between July and October, earning potential on savings accounts fell dramatically. But that doesn't mean it's a bad time to save money.

In fact, there are a few good reasons to open a high-yield savings account while interest rates are down, including that you're still earning 20 times more than a traditional savings account. Plus, if you start the habit of automatically saving now, you'll be ready to earn even more on your savings when rates inevitably go back up. 

If you've already built up a cash reserve elsewhere, you may be able to earn even more rewards with the Savings Builder account. Now through December 31, CIT Bank is offering a $150 bonus if you open an account and deposit $25,000 to $49,999 from an external bank within 15 days, and keep that balance for 90 days. If you deposit more than $50,000 during the funding period, the bonus increases to $300.

Learn more about the CIT Savings Builder account »

• More savings and retirement coverage
• How to retire early
• How to save more money
• When to save money in a CD
• When to save money in high-yield savings

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NOW WATCH: Behind the scenes with Shepard Smith — the Fox News star who just announced his resignation from the network

• This is a preview of The Evolution of the US Neobank Market research report from Business Insider Intelligence.
• Purchase this report.
• Business Insider Intelligence offers even more insights like this with our brand new Banking coverage. Subscribe today to receive industry-changing banking news and analysis to your inbox.

What is a neobank?

Neobanks, digital-only banks that aren't saddled by traditional banking technology and costly networks of physical branches, have been working to redefine retail banking in major markets around the world.

Top neobanks in the US & EU

The top neobanks in the US and EU include:

• OakNorth (EU)
• N26 (EU)
• Atom Bank (EU)
• Revolut (EU)
• Monzo (EU)
• Chime (US)
• Starling Bank (EU)
• Varo (US)
• Aspiration (US)

Driven by innovation-friendly regulatory reforms, these companies have especially gained traction in Europe over the last three years. While the US is home to some of the oldest neobanks — including Simple, which set up shop in 2009, and Moven, which was founded in 2011 — the country's neobank ecosystem has lagged behind its European counterpart.

That's largely because of an onerous regulatory regime, which has made it very difficult to obtain a banking license, and the entrenched position incumbents hold in the financial lives of US consumers. Navigating the tedious and costly scheme for obtaining a banking charter and appropriate approvals has been a major stumbling block for the country's digital banking upstarts. However, developments over the past year suggest these startups are finally poised for the spotlight in the US. 

Neobanks vs Traditional banks

Consumers', particularly millennials', growing frustration with legacy banking service providers, combined with their increased appetite for digital solutions, has accelerated the shift to digital-only banking. Startups and tech-savvy players are redefining the retail banking space and forcing incumbents to either evolve or lose out on this key business segment.

In The Evolution of the US Neobank Market, Business Insider Intelligence maps out the factors contributing to this shifting tide, examines how key players are positioning themselves to take advantage, and explores how incumbents can embark on their own digital transformations to stave off disruption.

The companies mentioned in this report include: Aspiration, Chime, Goldman Sachs' Marcus, JPMorgan Chase's Finn, N26, and Revolut.

Here are some of the key takeaways from the report:

• Despite lagging behind Europe, recent developments suggest that neobanks are finally ready for the spotlight in the US.
• Three distinct influences are responsible for creating the fertile ground for this evolution: regulation, shifting consumer attitudes, and the activity of incumbent banks.
• Among those driving this evolution in the US are foreign neobanks including Germany's N26 and UK-based Revolut.
• Meanwhile, two notable incumbent-owned outfits have deployed amid great fanfare: Marcus by Goldman Sachs and Finn by Chase. 
• In this increasingly competitive landscape, incumbent banks have a range of strategic options at their disposal, including overhauling their entire business for the digital era.

 In full, the report:

• Details the factors contributing to a shift in the US' neobank market.
• Explains the different operating models neobanks in the US are deploying to roll out their services and meet consumer demands.
• Highlights how incumbent banks are tapping into the advantages offered by stand-alone digital outfits. 
• Discusses the key strategies established players need to deploy to remain relevant in the US' increasingly digital banking landscape.

Interested in getting the full report? Here are four ways to get access:

1. Purchase & download the full report from our research store. >> Purchase & Download Now
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4. Current subscribers can read the report here.

SEE ALSO: Latest fintech industry trends, technologies and research from our ecosystem report

Join the conversation about this story »

Digital disruption is affecting every aspect of the fintech industry. Over the past five years, fintech has established itself as a fundamental part of the global financial services ecosystem.

Fintech startups have raised, and continue to raise, billions of dollars annually. At the same time, incumbent financial institutions are getting in on the act, and using fintech to remain competitive in a rapidly evolving financial services landscape. So what's next?

Business Insider Intelligence, Business Insider's premium research service, has the answer in our brand new exclusive slide deck The Future of Fintech. In this deck, we explore what's next for fintech, how it will reach new heights, and the developments that will help it get there.

Join the conversation about this story »

• High-yield savings accounts and standard savings accounts are more similar than they are different. 
• They're both offered by banks, federally regulated, and liquid.
• The main difference is that high-yield savings accounts earn up to 20 times more interest, with interest rates generally between 1.5% and 2%. 
• That interest rate means high-yield savings are almost always a better choice than traditional savings for money you'll need within the next few years.
• See Business Insider's picks for the best high-yield savings accounts »

A savings account is a good place to save money for short-term goals like a down payment, a car, a vacation, or an emergency fund.

But a high-yield savings account is a better place.

A high-yield savings account is almost exactly the same as a regular savings account

High-yield savings accounts are essentially the same as any other savings accounts, with one key difference: With a high-yield savings account, you earn about 20 times more interest on your money than you would with a regular savings account.

Both types of accounts:

• Are structurally pretty similar
• Are regulated similarly and FDIC-insured
• Limit withdrawals to six times a month, per federal mandate
• Can be used for short-term savings goals

High-yield savings accounts are just as liquid as any other savings account, and they're not invested, making them a good place to put any savings that you want to grow but will need in the next few years. Experts recommend against investing cash you know you'll need within the next five years, as you won't have time to recoup your investment after any market downturn.

High-yield savings accounts could help your emergency fund grow, while still being accessible if you need it in a pinch. They're perfect for a large balance like down payment savings that you want to grow risk-free.

A high-yield savings account is almost always better than a regular savings account

High-yield savings accounts are designed to make your money work in a way typical savings can't. In the grand scheme of things, high-yield savings don't earn that much interest — when interest rates were higher this summer, the best accounts were earning around 2.5%. However, traditional accounts earn so little that high-yield earns about 20 times more interest than the typical savings account. According to data from SmartAsset, the national average savings account interest rate is just .09% APR. 

Comparatively, high-yield savings accounts aim much higher, with many offering 1.5% to 2% interest. That's a percentage which can easily boost your savings, especially over the course of several years. 

For example, if you had a $10,000 emergency fund and transferred it into a high-yield savings account with 1.5% interest, compounding monthly for five years, you'd earn $776 in interest alone. Leave it for 10 years, and that $10,000 would grow to $11,617. 

Back in a regular account earning .09 interest, that same $10,000 would have only earned $90 over 10 years. 

It's worth noting that savings account rates change with the Federal Funds rate. When the Federal Reserve cuts or raises interest rates, the rates can change, going up or down. But even if rates are low, it's still worth saving to build the habit and keep adding to your balance. 

There are lots of high-yield savings accounts to choose from, with some of the best choices from online banks and banking services like Ally and Wealthfront. Opening one is simple, and can even be done right from your phone. 

The main difference between the typical savings account and a high-yield savings account is how much more your account will grow. 

• More savings and retirement coverage
• The best high-yield savings accounts
• How to retire early
• How to save more money
• When to save money in a CD
• When to save money in high-yield savings

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Most maps of Louisiana aren't entirely right. Here's what the state really looks like.

• The 2019 New York Motorcycle Show runs through Sunday, December 8, at the Javits Center in Manhattan.
• On display are bikes from Harley-Davidson, Indian, Royal Enfield, Honda, BMW, Kawasaki, Suzuki, and other brands.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

You still have one more day to check out the New York motorcycle show, which runs through Sunday at the Javits Center in Manhattan.

I swung by a press preview last week and spent a few hours, as I do every year, sampling all the bikes on display, from the usual big names, such as Harley-Davidson and Indian, Honda and BMW, but also a few upstarts, including Royal Enfield.

Here's are some of the coolest motorcycles I saw, plus some other interesting sights:

FOLLOW US: On Facebook for more car and transportation content!

The Motorcycle show pulls into the Javits Center every year between Thanksgiving and the December holidays.

First sight: a new Suzuki Katana.

Progressive insurance is the longtime sponsor.

Win a Harley!

A theme at this year's show was ... more bicycles. Specifically, electric bicycles.

But the BIG STORY was the arrival of the Harley-Davidson LiveWire, an electric full-size motorcycle that's on the market for $30,000.

LiveWire looks impressive in the flesh. I hopped on and was surprised at how heavy the bike is — there's nothing insubstantial about the bike.

But there were other hogs to scrutinize. This Street Bob grabbed my attention almost immediately.

I threw a leg. Harleys are big bikes, and one assumes they'll be a struggle to handle, but I find them to be exquisitely balanced, and that's true even as they get larger.

It's never too soon to get a rider started with Harley-Davidson.

Harley is known for its big cruisers, but in recent years the company has been looking to attract newer and younger riders by rolling out relatively more svelte machines. The Iron 1200 is one example.

Harley's Sportster lineup has given customers a good entry point to the brand.

Moving up the food chain, we get the Fat Bob 114, equipped with the Milwaukee-Eight engine.

I'm a big fan of the design of the Softail Slim, a lot of bike for $16,000.

For what it's worth, I also love the Harley three-wheelers, like this Tri-Glide.

The fun aspect of stopping by the Honda Powersports booth is knowing that you're going to see the range of vehicles that the company manufactures.

My eyes have been drawn of late toward all the small-displacement motorcycles and scooters that Honda has been producing. For example, the homely Ruckus.

The Metropolitan is Honda's version of a classic Italian Vespa. Next to it is the mighty Grom, a micro-bike that is sort of a teen-aged version of a full-size motorcycle.

Small bikes are in Honda's DNA, as the famous Super Cub, now reissued, attests.

The "MiniMoto" action continues with the Monkey. The Grom, Super Cub, and Monkey all start at less than $4,000 and have all the modern tech a discerning new rider could hope for.

When you're ready to move up to a "real" bike, Honda offers in stalwart Rebel, which can be obtained in this ferocious color scheme.

The CBR lineup offers incredible value and performance in the sport-bike market.

And for an upright mount, the CB300R is tough to beat. This lightweight bike is comfortable, easy to handle, and comes in at less than $5,000.

And of course, Honda is much more than two-wheelers. The Talon is what known as a "side-by-side," accommodating two riders for offroad adventures.

Honda might do scooters, but Vespa remains the gold standard.

When people think "scooter," the Italian classic is what they have in mind.

A focus of this year's show, which was more modest product-wise than what I've seen in the past, was getting new riders onto bikes.

Hence this useful display of motorcycles for entry-level iron horsemen and women.

The Rebel returns! Available in 300cc and 500cc variants, this modest cruiser was the first bike for what seems like three-quarters of the riding world.

Nearby was this groovy three-wheeler. The model, the Carmel, is from Vanderhall Motors of Utah. It splits the difference between a motorcycle and a car.

A big plastic motorcycle boot. I have no idea what it's for.

I do, on the other hand, know what tires are for. Big manufacturers, such as Bridgestone and Michelin, usually have a presence at the show.

As do helmet makers.

Lots and lots...

... Of helmet makers.

Gear makers, too!

Retailer RevZilla brought a nice selection to heritage styles.

One of my favorite stories from the motorcycle show these past few years has been the growth of India's Royal Enfield as it brings its famous old British brand to the US.

This INT650 looks smashing in chrome.

And here's a lineup of Continental GT 650s. Both the INT650 and the GT 650 are on the market for less than $8,000.

BMW occupied central territory at the show.

The cycle arm of the Bavarian company brought a concept bike with a low-slung layout.

And fashion!

Fashion!

And more fashion!

But bikes, too. A BMW equipped with hard saddlebags is perhaps my quintessential image of the brand.

Plenty of this style was on display.

But so were some massive rides, such as the Grand America touring, with sells for over $25,000.

Husqvarna is a Swedish brand well-known by dirt bikers.

But the company was showing some street and sport bikes in New York. It calls the Vitpilen 401 "an unassuming hero of the sub-500 cc world."

There are always vintage motorcycles on the show floor.

Such as this vintage Husqvarna!

That little guy in the middle is a Harley.

A shiny Norton racing bike.

A Honda café racer.

And a custom bike. With skulls!

Indian is one of Harley's big rivals in the big-bike world.

And this Roadmaster is definitely a big boy.

The FTR1200 is a smaller, newer offering.

But the Scout is a classic.

And the new Scout Bobber could become one.

Progressive might be the sponsor, but other insurance companies were represented.

Motorcycle riders need insurance!

All-electric Zero has been selling bikes for longer than most of the fresh competition.

Zero also supplies exhaust-less, no-clutch bikes for an introductory-rider course set up at the back of the hall.

Suzuki brought a racing bike, among the few straight-off-the-track models being shown in New York.

Like Honda, Suzuki makes a wide range of vehicles, including junior ATVs.

But at also big cruisers, like this Boulevard model.

And low-slung Harley-evocative machines. For $9,000, this Boulevard model is an excellent value.

It's important to remember that the Japanese brands remain a huge market presence in the US.

Let's check out Kawasaki.

Kawasaki continues to let the good times roll with this throwback W800 cafe racer.

Maybe it was just me, but this year I felt like street bikes and especially smaller, retro designs edged out powersports dirt bikes for floor space. Of course, Kawasaki put its offerings on display.

Including the perfect little ATV for the holidays.

The legendary Ninja sport bike looks awesome in white.

And what about Yamaha?

Well, Yamaha didn't hold back on side-by-sides.

But lest we forget thy make two-wheelers, the company showed its range with this lineup, from a small-displacement bike to a grand tourer.

Yamaha also brought a wicked, blacked-out sport bike.

And also a range of upright "naked" bikes that challenge Ducati, which wasn't at this year's show.

Finally, let us praise the choppers. This chromed-out masterpiece was being lovingly polished as I bid the 2019 New York Motorcycle Show adieu.

• Healthcare giants are hiring chief digital officers to help the companies better use technology within their businesses.
• Business Insider recently spoke with Firdaus Bhathena, the chief digital officer of CVS Health, who joined the organization as part of its health insurer Aetna in 2016. 
• Bhathena is working on finding ways to improve the consumer experience by better linking data between CVS's different businesses.
• Subscribe to Dispensed, Business Insider's weekly healthcare newsletter.
• Click here for more BI Prime stories.

Firdaus Bhathena can think of a number of different projects that would keep him incredibly busy. 

Technology is coming for healthcare, and the centuries-old companies in the industry are facing a steep learning curve.

So they've brought on experts liked Bhathena to helm up the companies digital strategies. Bhathena is the chief digital officer of CVS Health, first came into his role in 2016 as a part of Aetna, the massive health insurer CVS acquired in 2018. 

CVS is a $98 billion company that provides insurance to 39 million people and operates nearly 10,000 pharmacies. The first CVS store opened in 1963.

Within the now combined company, Bhathena has to avoid being spread too thin. 

"It's very tempting to — what we say in the tech world — to sort of peanut-butter spread your resources across a whole bunch of different things," Bhathena said. 

Read more: We spoke with the execs tasked with bringing technology to some of the world's oldest healthcare companies. Here's how they're picking their spots.

Using technology for a simpler consumer experience

What's driving Bhathena's group, he said, is a focus on improving the consumer experience within the whole organization, rather than focusing on a particular part of the business. 

That can be as basic as making sure the website is up and running or powering the technology that allows users to check if there's a MinuteClinic appointment available.

Read more: We asked the CEO of CVS to share how he plans to use his 10,000 pharmacies to upend healthcare. This is the story he told us.

Ideally, Bhathena said, it'd be a world in which CVS could have a comprehensive picture of a person so that when they come in for a visit, the organization understands that you're an Aetna member who uses CVS Caremark to manage prescription benefits, and that you've been in for three clinic visits in the past month.

Right now, that information isn't connected, often meaning patients have to start from scratch every time they go into a retail clinic or have a virtual visit.

It could also mean getting more precise with messaging, such a prompting an Aetna member who hasn't been to the doctor in years to go, rather than reaching out to all Aetna members, including those who have been in to see their doctors recently. 

In particular, there are three areas of technology Bhathena is paying close attention to: AI for healthcare, connected devices, and virtual care. Ideally, those technologies combined could make getting care more connected and easy to use for consumers. 

"I hope that in the next three years, when you join a health plan, you won't just get a glossy brochure in the mail,"  Bhathena said.

Instead, you'll also get a box with connected devices that might be able to help you better triage health incidents with the help of AI, figuring out if you might need to have a virtual visit or come in for an urgent-care or emergency-room visit, and connecting all the way to a pharmacy if a prescription is needed that could be delivered to your door.  

Read more: Walgreens and CVS have dueling visions for the future of pharmacies. Here are the biggest obstacles each one faces.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Here's how to survive an avalanche

• If you have a Chase credit card or debit card, you could be eligible for Chase Offers. 
• Chase Offers are cash-back deals for shopping at merchants like Starbucks and New Balance.
• I have the Chase Sapphire Reserve, and I currently see offers for cash back at Rite Aid, Sheraton, and more than a dozen other brands.
• You're not guaranteed to see Chase Offers attached to your Chase account, but if you have multiple Chase cards, you will likely have offers attached to at least some of your cards.
• To use an offer, you just need to click to add it to your account and make a qualifying purchase with your eligible Chase card.
• Read more personal finance coverage.

Chase has a diverse lineup of credit cards, including options that earn cash back, more premium cards that earn Ultimate Rewards points, hotel and airline cards, and business credit cards. 

If you have a Chase credit card or debit card, you could be eligible for Chase Offers. These deals get you cash back on purchases with a variety of retailers and restaurants once you add the offer to your card. Keep reading to see how it works, and what kind of offers you can expect to find.

Keep in mind that we're focusing on the rewards and perks that make these credit cards great options, not things like interest rates and late fees, which will far outweigh the value of any points or miles. It's important to practice financial discipline when using credit cards by paying your balances in full each month, making payments on time, and only spending what you can afford to pay back. 

What are Chase Offers?

Chase Offers are deals available to select holders of Chase credit and debit cards. These offers get you cash back at a variety of retailers, from Rite Aid to New Balance to Starbucks.

Chase Offers generally get you cash back in the form of a percentage. For example, on my Chase Sapphire Reserve account I currently see an offer for 10% back at Blue Apron, with a $19 maximum. However, some offers get you a flat cash-back amount, such as $7 back at Stitch Fix.

Each Chase Offer has an expiration date — in your account this will be displayed as how many days you have left to use it. Keep this date in mind, since you won't be eligible for cash back if you don't make a purchase in time.

To use a Chase Offer, you need to add it to your card account — you can do so by simply clicking on it. Then, you just make a qualifying purchase while the offer is still valid with your Chase card, and you'll receive the cash back as a statement credit to your account.

Keep in mind that not every Chase cardholder will see Chase Offers associated with their account. For example, I have five Chase accounts (including both debit and credit), and I only see offers associated with three of them. 

Read more:I use Amex Offers to find discounts at stores and restaurants like Amazon and Starbucks — here are some of the offers you can get right now

Current Chase Offers

Here are some Chase Offers that are currently available. Keep in mind that you may see different deals in your own account. Additionally, some of these offers may no longer be available, though this list will be updated on a regular basis.

• Get 5% back at Airbnb, with a maximum of $28 back
• Get 5% back at Dick's Sporting Goods, with a maximum of $5 back
• Get 10% back at Clarks, with a maximum of $13 back.
• Get 10% back at Saatva, with a maximum of $130 back
• Get 10% back at Maggiano's, with a maximum of $12 back 
• Get 10% back at New Balance, with a maximum of $16 back
• Get 10% back at Ray-Ban, with a maximum of $27 back
• Get 10% back at Rite Aid, with a maximum of $4 back
• Get $10 back at Trunk Club, on your first styling fee only
• Get 10% back at Starbucks, with a maximum of $3 back

Don't have a Chase card? Here are some top options to consider:

• Chase Sapphire Preferred Card— One of the best all-around travel cards, because it earns 2x points on travel and dining and a high sign-up bonus and offers valuable travel coverage like primary rental car insurance, all for a $95 annual fee.
• Chase Sapphire Reserve— The higher-end sibling to the Preferred has a higher annual fee of $450, but offers 3x points on travel (excluding ther $300 travel credit) and dining and a $300 credit toward travel purchases each year.
• Chase Freedom Unlimited— It's one of our top picks for college students and others who are new to credit cards. There's no annual fee, and you can convert the cash back you earn to points redeemable for travel if you have another Chase card like the Preferred.
• Ink Business Preferred Credit Card— This business credit card earns bonus points on a wide variety of spending categories and offers a high sign-up bonus and other perks like primary rental car insurance, with a $95 annual fee.

• More credit card coverage
• What's the best airline credit card?
• The best cash-back credit cards
• Southwest credit card review
• Best rewards credit cards

SEE ALSO: All our credit card reviews — from cash-back to travel rewards to business cards — in one place

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: Behind the scenes with Shepard Smith — the Fox News star who just announced his resignation from the network

Open banking, which has been implemented in the U.K., involves sharing customers' financial information electronically and securely, but only under conditions that customers approve.

Open banking forces lenders to offer a digital "fire hose" of data that any third party can use to get standardised access — provided the startup is registered with the UK Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and the customer agrees to share their data.

This system has already taken root in the U.K., but it could soon spread to the rest of the world. That's why Business Insider Intelligence has put together a report called Open Banking 101: How Financial Institutions Can Take Advantage of a Global Movement to Collaborate with Partners and Developers.

The report offers a look inside how this spreading movement is forcing banks to change their business models. It also walks through one specific bank as an illustration of how open banking is transforming the way financial institutions do business.

You can receive a FREE download of this report simply by entering your email address!

As an added bonus, you'll receive a free preview of our Banking Pro Briefing.

Join the conversation about this story »

• September's repo-rate spike was driven by big banks and hedge funds, the Bank for International Settlements wrote in a report released Sunday.
• The overnight lending market relies on four major US banks and their cash reserves, but as the institutions sink more capital into Treasury bills, a smaller proportion of their reserves are available for quick funding.
• Hedge funds contributed to the squeeze by increasingly using Treasury repos to fund arbitrage trades, the report found. The borrowing leaves less cash on the table for lenders, as money-market funds offering the repos look to gain higher returns from participating hedge funds.
• The dual trends represent structural issues in the overnight lending market and suggest the spike was not a one-off blunder, the report's authors wrote.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

September's repo-rate crisis was more than just a one-off blunder, and big banks and hedge funds exacerbated the problem, a new study from the Bank for International Settlements suggested.

The overnight lending market heavily relies on four major US banks and their free cash, but liquidity issues among the institutions allowed the lending-rate spike to occur, BIS officials wrote in a Sunday report. The big banks' holdings grew more concentrated in US Treasury bills in recent months, crippling "their ability to supply funding at short notice in repo markets," the report said.

Hedge funds may have also contributed to the rate spike by boosting demand for Treasury repos, the report said. Money-market funds have boosted their lending to hedge funds since 2017, often using banks as sponsors for the trades. Hedge funds increasingly used the repurchase agreements to fund arbitrage trades, leaving less cash on the table for lenders.

The hedge funds' activity "compounded the strains" on the repo rate, the report's authors wrote.

The September 17 rate spike led several analysts to worry that the Federal Reserve had lost control of the crucial metric. The unexpected surge prompted the central bank to offer market repurchase agreements— or repos — for the first time since the financial crisis, injecting billions into the nation's financial system. It later began Treasury-bill purchases to further ease money-market stresses.

Banks' demand for the Fed's repo operations hasn't waned since they began in late September, with Monday's 28-day repo offering seeing about $30 billion worth of interest for $18 billion in offered repos.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin told the House of Representatives on Thursday that he and Jerome Powell, the Fed chair, had met multiple times to discuss liquidity concerns heading into the new year.

Legislation born from the Great Recession obliges firms to hold a larger proportion of free cash as emergency reserves. Year-end evaluations lead major lenders to lend less cash as they look to prove liquidity to government officials, and the funding pressure has some analysts worried about another rate jump before the end of 2019.

"With year-end coming up, this is all likely to get much worse, in our view, before it gets better," JPMorgan Chase analysts wrote in a note on October 21.

Now read more markets coverage from Markets Insider and Business Insider:

Lithuania will offer the world's first collectible crypto token in 2020

A cancer-drug developer's stock just surged more than 100% after Merck agreed to a multibillion-dollar takeover

The inside story of how McDonald's ex-CEO's push to modernize the chain left black franchisees behind

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A big-money investor in juggernauts like Facebook and Netflix breaks down the '3rd wave' firms that are leading the next round of tech disruption

• New York is one of the most powerful states in the United States, with a gross domestic product comparable to Canada and South Korea.
• But there is a vast disparity between the economies of New York City and upstate New York.
• We compiled 11 incredible facts about New York's economy, from its massive wealth to its surprising No. 1 export.
• Visit MarketsInsider.com for more stories.

New York is a state with two very different sides.

There's New York City and its five boroughs: an ultra-urban landscape on a couple of small islands where about half the state's population lives.

Then there's upstate New York, much of which is rural, agricultural, and less densely populated.

New York City is one of the richest cities in the world (though it also contains the poorest county in the state, Bronx County). Meanwhile, upstate New York has a sluggish economy that has fallen ever further behind New York City's.

Statistics about New York's economy reflect this divide. Here are 11 mind-blowing facts about the economy of New York — both the city and the state.

New York's economy is almost the same size as Canada's.

New York state shares a long border and Niagara Falls with Canada. (Sorry, New York, Canadians got the better side of the falls.) But the state and its neighboring country have more in common than geography.

New York's economic output is almost as big as Canada's. Canada also receives most of New York's foreign exports. If New York were a country, it would have the 11th-biggest economy, falling between Canada and South Korea.

New York City's gross domestic product is expected to surpass Tokyo's by 2035.

According to the Office of the New York State Comptroller, the state's GDP in 2017 was over $1.5 trillion.

But by 2035, the GDP of New York City alone is expected to rise to $2.5 trillion, according to one estimate. The projection would place it ahead of Tokyo, the richest city in the world in 2015.

Read more:I visited NYC's highest nightclub, a 35th-floor lounge that's decked out in flowers and looks out onto the Empire State Building. Here's what it looks like.

New York has more billionaires than any other city in the world.

By one measure, New York City is the richest in the world: It has more billionaires (103) than Hong Kong (93), San Francisco (74), Moscow (69), or London (62).

New York makes up just 1% of the total US area but produces 8% of the nation's GDP.

New York state takes up about 1% of the land mass of the United States. In that small space, however, it manages to contribute 8% of the whole country's GDP. That's called punching above your weight.

New York City unemployment hit its lowest rate ever in 2018.

While the national unemployment rate ticked up in mid-2018, New York City bucked the trend. In the final quarter of 2018, the city reported a milestone: the lowest unemployment rate in its history, 4%.

New York grows enough apples each year to give 11 apples to every US resident.

If you've spent any time in upstate New York, you know the state is famous for its apples and apple cider. New York is the second-biggest apple-producing state, after Washington.

The state's 700 apple orchards produce 29.5 million bushels of apples a year, with about 125 apples in each bushel. That's enough apples to provide an apple a day for 10,102,739 people, or give 11 apples to each of the 327 million people in the US.

New York produces more yogurt than any other state.

New York may be No. 2 in apples, but its top four top agricultural products — milk, corn for grain, hay, and cattle — are all related to dairy farming.

New York produced more cottage cheese, sour cream, and yogurt than any other state in 2016. It doesn't hurt that Chobani, the popular Greek-yogurt company, has its headquarters in Norwich.

But New York's No. 1 export is diamonds.

New York's biggest export by dollar value isn't an agricultural product, but cut diamonds, valued at more than $13 billion last year, according to the US Census Bureau.

Diamonds are followed on the list by paintings, jewelry, gold, rubies, and sculptures. New York is clearly a top source of luxury goods.

Read more:13 mind-blowing facts about Russia's economy

The most expensive home in the US is a penthouse in New York City.

When the hedge fund billionaire Ken Griffin bought the 24,000-square-foot penthouse at 220 Central Park South for $238 million earlier this year, he became the owner of the most expensive home in the US.

That astronomical figure is 180 times the average home price of $1.32 million in pricey Manhattan, according to Zillow.

Read more:A new restaurant in Hudson Yards sells a side of fava beans for $17.50 and a single oyster for $4.75, and it shows just how unattainable the neighborhood is for most New Yorkers

Buffalo and Syracuse ranked among the most affordable cities in the US.

Manhattan may have some of the priciest real estate in the country, but two cities in upstate New York are among the most affordable.

According to US News & World Report, Buffalo residents use only 21.1% of their salaries to cover living expenses, on average. Zillow said the average home price in Buffalo is about $90,000.

Buffalo ranked 11th on the US News & World Report list, and Syracuse ranked 22nd.

Read more:Here are all the over-the-top amenities in Brooklyn's tallest building, from an infrared sauna and a stroller valet to the highest infinity pool in the western hemisphere

There are more Dunkin' stores than Starbucks stores in New York City.

Where do you want to get your coffee?

If you answered Dunkin', you're on the same page as many New Yorkers. The city's five boroughs are home to 596 Dunkin' stores but just 317 Starbucks stores, a 2016 report by Center for the Urban Future found. That's more than 5% of all the Dunkin' stores in the world and about 7% of its stores in the US.

SEE ALSO:

9 mind-blowing facts about North Korea's economy »

• President Donald Trump has argued that his trade dispute with China would bring business back to the US.
• But European firms who operate there said they have instead been forced to move production elsewhere or absorb the cost of tariffs.
• US-based companies have warned of similar dilemmas, saying relocating to the US would be too costly or impractical in many cases.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

President Donald Trump vowed that his trade dispute with China would bring business back to the US. But European firms who operate there said they have instead been forced to move production elsewhere or absorb the cost of tariffs.

Larger companies from the bloc have relocated US-bound production to other emerging markets in Asia, a European Union Chamber of Commerce in China survey showed Monday. Smaller ones have paid the import taxes, passed them along or switched suppliers. 

"Is this meeting the intended goal of driving investors — particularly larger companies — from the Chinese market back to the US? Clearly not," the report said. The results were based off of a September 12-20 survey of 174 respondents.

Even as tariffs draw increasing opposition from bipartisan lawmakers and businesses, the Trump administration has maintained its argument that the trade dispute would ultimately benefit Americans. 

"Our jobs and factories are coming back home where they belong," Trump said at a campaign rally in Rio Rancho, New Mexico, in September. "If foreign companies do not want to pay our tariffs, there is one very simple solution: Come and make your product in America. Come and make your product."

But economists have said that shift could be difficult in a global market. US-based companies have warned of similar dilemmas, saying relocating to the US would be too costly or impractical in many cases.

SEE ALSO: The US has the 4th-lowest tax rates in the world following last year's GOP cuts

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: A big-money investor in juggernauts like Facebook and Netflix breaks down the '3rd wave' firms that are leading the next round of tech disruption

• Virgin Galactic stock surged as much as 21% on Monday after Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on the company with a buy-equivalent rating
• The firm said Virgin Galactic has the potential to "disrupt the multi-trillion-dollar airline" industry.
• The bank also issued a $22 price target for the stock, implying a 203% surge through December 2020 from Friday's closing price.
• Virgin Galactic's space tourism business will drive growth in the near term and help launch a hypersonic travel industry, the analysts wrote, predicting the new technology could drive $800 billion in annual sales by 2040.
• Watch Virgin Galactic trade live here.

Virgin Galactic traded as much as 21% higher Monday after Morgan Stanley initiated coverage on the stock with a buy-equivalent rating and forecasted dominance in the hypersonic-flight business. 

Morgan Stanley also issued a $22 price target for the stock, saying the company offers "biotech-type risk/reward" and has the potential to "disrupt the multi-trillion-dollar airline" industry. The aerospace company closed last week at $7.26 per share, leading the bank's note to imply a 203% surge through December 2020.

Virgin Galactic's space-tourism business is only worth $10 per share, the team of analysts led by Adam Jonas said Monday, and the greater investment opportunity comes from hypersonic point-to-point travel.

The team split Virgin Galactic's future into three phases. The first two involve 90-minute space trips for wealthy consumers and, subsequently, an expanded space-tourism business involving more than 3,000 passengers by the end of the next decade.

The third phase of the firm's business model includes hypersonic travel, with $800 billion in annual sales arriving by 2040, according to MS. The futuristic transport opportunity drives $12 per share in the bank's price target. Sending a customer to space and back safely is "the key catalyst" to driving a hypersonic travel industry, the analysts said, and those who believe space tourism is the most promising opportunity are mistaken.

"While some investors have described high-speed hypersonic P2P travel air travel opportunity as 'the icing on the cake,' we see Hypersonic as the cake and the icing, with Space Tourism as the oven," the analysts wrote.

The bank's analyst pointed out a trove of risks facing the company as it seeks to enter a new and relatively unexplored sector. Virgin Galactic is "possibly one passenger fatality away" from strict regulatory scrutiny, they said, mentioning Boeing's 737 MAX controversy.

The company may face difficulty in making a case for space tourism, they added. Though the population of millionaires is rising, Virgin Galactic's future relies on fundraising from its tourism business. Should the company find demand to be far weaker than anticipated, a lucrative hypersonic travel business may never leave the ground, MS wrote.

Virgin Galactic traded at $8.61 per share at 2:33 p.m. ET Monday, down roughly 15% year-to-date.

The company has three "buy" ratings, no "hold" ratings, and no "sell" ratings from analysts, with a consensus price target of $19.11, according to Bloomberg data and the Morgan Stanley research note.

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NOW WATCH: A big-money investor in juggernauts like Facebook and Netflix breaks down the '3rd wave' firms that are leading the next round of tech disruption

• The definition of "rich" might vary from person to person, but the Pew Research Center has set more more explicit boundaries. 
• According to a Pew Research Center report, only 19% of American adults are considered "upper class," and that group had a median income of $187,872 in 2016. 
• "Upper class" is defined as households who make over double the median. 
• Here is the amount of money you need to earn in 42 different major US cities in order to be considered "upper class," or rich.
• Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories.

A 2018 Pew Research Center report found that only 19% of American households were considered upper class. That group of upper class households had a median income of $187,872. 

In order to be considered "upper class," according to CNBC, a household must earn over double the median household income. The median household income nationwide in 2018 was $63,179, according to the US Census Bureau's September 2019 report.

However, the threshold for being considered "upper class" varies from city to city, depending on the local median income. 

Keep scrolling to find out what it takes to be considered upper class, or rich, in the 42 largest metro areas in the US, plus what income is needed to be in the top 1% in those states.

Note: Population size and median area income have been sourced from Data USA. Top 1% minimum income estimates have been previously determined by Business Insider using Economic Policy Institute Data.

SEE ALSO: Here's the income it takes for a family to be part of the 1% in every state

DON'T MISS: The 1% has so much money they literally don't know what to do with it

To be considered rich in the Memphis, Tennessee, metro area, you need to make over $101,968.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Tennessee: $332,913

Median income in Memphis area: $50,984

Metro-area population: 1.35 million

To be considered rich in the Tampa, Florida, metro area, you need to make over $104,424.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Florida: $417,587

Median income in Tampa: $52,212

Metro-area population: 3.09 million

To be considered rich in the Miami, Florida, metro area, you need to make over $108,568.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Florida: $417,587

Median income in Miami area: $54,284

Metro-area population: 6.16 million

To be considered rich in the Cleveland, Ohio, metro area, you need to make over $104,978.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Ohio: $334,979

Median income in Cleveland area: $52,489

Metro-area population: 2.06 million

To be considered rich in the Orlando, Florida, metro area, you need to make over $110,178.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Florida: $417,587

Median income in Orlando area: $55,089

Metro-area population: 2.51 million

To be considered rich in the Las Vegas, Nevada, metro area, you need to make over $114,378.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Nevada: $341,335

Median income in Las Vegas: $57,189

Metro-area population: 2.2 million

To be considered rich in the Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, metro area, you need to make over $112,520.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Oklahoma: $333,139

Median income in Oklahoma City: $56,260

Metro-area population: 1.38 million

To be considered rich in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, metro area, you need to make over $117,042.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Pennsylvania: $388,593

Median income in Pittsburgh: $58,521

Metro-area population: 2.33 million

To be considered rich in the San Antonio, Texas, metro area, you need to make over $113,548.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Texas: $440,758

Median income in San Antonio: $56,774

Metro-area population: 2.47 million

To be considered rich in the Detroit, Michigan, metro area, you need to make over $116,822.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Michigan: $328,649

Median income in Detroit: $58,411

Metro-area population: 4.31 million

To be considered rich in the Indianapolis, Indiana, metro area, you need to make over $119,132.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Indiana: $316,756

Median income in Indianapolis: $59,566

Metro-area population: 2.03 million

To be considered rich in the Jacksonville, Florida, metro area, you need to make over $117,418.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Florida: $417,587

Median income in Jacksonville: $58,709

Metro-area population: 1.5 million

To be considered rich in the Milwaukee, Wisconsin, metro area, you need to make over $118,896.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Wisconsin: $349,905

Median income in Milwaukee: $59,448

Metro-area population: 1.58 million

To be considered rich in the Phoenix, Arizona, metro area, you need to make over $123,012.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Arizona: $331,074

Median income in Phoenix: $61,506

Metro-area population: 4.74 million

To be considered rich in the Riverside, California, metro area, you need to make over $123,988.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in California: $514,694

Median income in Riverside: $61,994

Metro-area population: 4.58 million

To be considered rich in the St. Louis, Missouri, metro area, you need to make over $123,142.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Missouri: $326,839

Median income in St. Louis: $61,571

Metro-area population: 2.81 million

To be considered rich in the Charlotte, North Carolina, metro area, you need to make over $122,312.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in North Carolina: $343,066

Median income in Charlotte: $61,156

Metro-area population: 2.53 million

To be considered rich in the Nashville, Tennessee, metro area, you need to make over $127,878.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Tennessee: $332,913

Median income in Nashville: $63,939

Metro-area population: 1.9 million

To be considered rich in the Cincinnati, Ohio, metro area, you need to make over $213,306.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Ohio: $334,979

Median income in Cincinnati: $61,653

Metro-area population: 2.18 million

To be considered rich in the Columbus, Ohio, metro area, you need to make over $127,528.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Ohio: $334,979

Median income in Columbus: $63,764

Metro-area population: 2.08 million

To be considered rich in the Kansas City, Missouri, metro area, you need to make over $126,808.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Missouri: $326,839

Median income in Kansas City: $63,404

Metro-area population: 2.13 million

To be considered rich in the Houston, Texas, metro area, you need to make over $127,604.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Texas: $440,758

Median income in Houston: $63,802

Metro-area population: 6.89 million

To be considered rich in the Virginia Beach, Virginia, metro area, you need to make over $128,510.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Virginia: $425,144

Median income in Virginia Beach: $64,255

Metro-area population: 1.72 million

To be considered rich in the Providence, Rhode Island, metro area, you need to make over $130,452.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Rhode Island: $346,657

Median income in Providence: $65,226

Metro-area population: 1.62 million

To be considered rich in the Atlanta, Georgia, metro area, you need to make over $130,762.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Georgia: $371,811

Median income in Atlanta: $65,381

Metro-area population: 5.88 million

To be considered rich in the Dallas, Texas, metro area, you need to make over $134,746.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Texas: $440,758

Median income in Dallas: $67,382

Metro-area population: 7.4 million

To be considered rich in the Sacramento, California, metro area, you need to make over $135,804.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in California: $514,694

Median income in Sacramento: $67,902

Metro-area population: 2.32 million

To be considered rich in the Los Angeles, California, metro area, you need to make over $139,984.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in California: $514,694

Median income in Los Angeles: $69,992

Metro-area population: 13.4 million

To be considered rich in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, metro area, you need to make over $137,144.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Pennsylvania: $388,593

Median income in Philadelphia: $68,572

Metro-area population: 6.1 million

To be considered rich in the Chicago, Illinois, metro area, you need to make over $136,806.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Illinois: $456,377

Median income in Chicago: $68,403

Metro-area population: 9.53 million

To be considered rich in the Portland, Oregon, metro area, you need to make over $143,862.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Oregon: $358,937

Median income in Portland: $71,931

Metro-area population: 2.4 million

To be considered rich in the San Diego, California, metro area, you need to make over $152,414.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in California: $514,694

Median income in San Diego: $76,207

Metro-area population: 3.34 million

To be considered rich in the Austin, Texas, metro area, you need to make over $174,600.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Texas: $440,758

Median income in Austin:$73,800

Metro-area population: 2.12 million

To be considered rich in the New York City metro area, you need to make over $150,736.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in New York: $550,174

Median income in New York City: $75,368

Metro-area population: 20.3 million

To be considered rich in the Denver, Colorado, metro area you need to make over $153,286.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Colorado: $458,576

Median income in Denver: $76,643

Metro-area population: 2.89 million

To be considered rich in the Minneapolis, Minnesota, metro area, you need to make over $153,712.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Minnesota: $443,118

Median income in Minneapolis: $76,856

Metro-area population: 3.6 million

To be considered rich in the Baltimore, Maryland, metro area you need to make over $154,788.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Maryland: $445,783

Median income in Baltimore: $77,394

Metro-area population: 2.81 million

To be considered rich in the Seattle, Washington, metro area you need to make over $164,266.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Washington: $451,395

Median income in Seattle: $82,133

Metro-area population: 3.87 million

To be considered rich in the Boston, Massachusetts, metro area, you need to make over $171,382.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Massachusetts: $582,774

Median income in Boston: $85,691

Metro-area population: 4.84 million

To be considered rich in the Washington, DC, metro area, you need to make over $199,338.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in Washington, DC: $598,155

Median income in DC: $99,669

Metro-area population: 6.22 million

To be considered rich in the San Francisco, California, metro area, you need to make over $203,428.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in California: $514,694

Median income in San Francisco: $101,714

Metro-area population: 4.73 million

To be considered rich in the San Jose, California, metro area, you need to make over $234,948.

How much money it takes to be in the top 1% in California: $514,694

Median income in San Jose:$117,474

Metro-area population: 2 million

• Canopy Growth named David Klein, Constellation Brands' chief financial officer, as the cannabis giant's new CEO.
• He'll be taking over from Mark Zekulin, effective January 14.
• Analysts had mostly mixed reactions to the news and said it was a sign that Constellation is doubling down on its control over Canopy Growth. 
• Click here for more BI Prime stories, and subscribe to our weekly cannabis newsletter, Cultivated.

The largest cannabis company has a new CEO, and he hails from the company's biggest investor.

David Klein will become Canopy Growth's CEO on January 14, the company said. He's the chief financial officer of Constellation Brands, which owns more than one-third of Canopy, and he also chairs Canopy's board of directors.

He'll be taking over from Mark Zekulin, who has held the top job since Canopy's founder, Bruce Linton, was ousted in June.

Klein will remain on Canopy's board, though the company said it would immediately begin the search for a new chair. The New York Stock Exchange-listed Canopy Growth's shares rose over 13% on the news. Constellation Brands, which sells beer, wine, and spirits under brands like Corona and Modelo, dipped just over 1%. 

"Canopy Growth sits at the forefront of one of the most exciting new market opportunities in our lifetime," Klein said. "I look forward to working with the team to build on the foundation that has been laid, to develop brands that strongly resonate with consumers, and to capture the market opportunity before us."

The move is yet another sign that Constellation Brands is doubling down on its control over the Canadian cannabis giant after a few disappointing quarters.

Constellation Brands became the first major alcohol producer to invest in the legal-cannabis industry after it purchased a 9.9% stake in Canopy Growth in 2017. Constellation upped its stake to over 35% in August 2018, sinking $4 billion into the company.

Since then, Constellation has pushed out founding CEO Bruce Linton and installed its own execs on Canopy's board.

Analysts give the CEO change mixed reviews

Analysts were mixed on the news.

Analysts at Jefferies said the involvement of a top Constellation executive was a sign that the company is "serious about making the Canopy story work." But they maintained an underperform rating on Canopy's stock. 

"Broadly we believe the announcement will be welcomed for a number of reasons," the Jefferies analysts Owen Bennett and Ryan Tomkins wrote. "First, it removes the uncertainty hanging over the stock since the summer, with financials not exactly encouraging of late, investors can be more confident fresh leadership and strategy can turnaround recent performance."

But the analysts say that on balance, "we are not convinced this is a wholly positive result." 

They said they were concerned that Constellation may push Canopy to invest in beverages containing THC and CBD, and called that business "unproven."

The Stifel analyst Andrew Carter praised the new CEO, writing that because of Klein's position on Canopy's board, the CEO transition "suggests limited disruption with Mr. Klein intimately involved in vetting the company's capabilities and strategic direction."

Carter maintained his outperform rating on Canopy. 

The Cowen analyst Vivien Azer called the move "not entirely surprising" and said she viewed Klein's role as a "positive" sign that Constellation Brands was redoubling its effort on "financial stewardship."

"Given the need for better demand planning and significant cost controls, we are very encouraged by the capabilities that we believe Klein brings to WEED [Canopy Growth], having worked for the best top line growth and most profitable beer company in the U.S.," Azer wrote. 

Azer maintained her outperform rating on both Constellation Brands and Canopy Growth stock.

• Read more:
• The CEO of the top-selling cannabis shops revealed how a strategy he shares with Starbucks is crucial to his success
• Wall Street stock traders are piling into bets against cannabis stocks, even as shares have plummeted
• Accountants are making millions from the Canadian cannabis industry, and KPMG is leading the pack. Here's how much each of the top firms is raking in.
• The man who built Canopy Growth into the world's biggest cannabis grower before being ousted told us why he picked pet-food CBD and psychedelics for his next ventures

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: WeWork went from a $47 billion valuation to a failed IPO. Here's how the company makes money.

Technology is shattering legacy financial systems that can't keep pace with market demand — and Brex is at the forefront. It's one of fintechs buzziest startups, aiming to rebuild B2B financial products starting with corporate cards for technology companies.

The company was quietly launched in 2017 by Henrique Dubugras and Pedro Franceschi, two 22-year-old engineers who previously founded Pagar.me, one of Brazil's largest payment processors.

Brex already has more than 1,000 customers signed up with the help of backing from investors including PayPal co-founders Peter Thiel and Max Levchin, early Facebook investor Yuri Milner, former Visa CEO Carl Pascarella, and esteemed startup incubator Y Combinator.

And we caught a glimpse of the Series B pitch deck Dubugras and Franceschi used to win them over. 

In it, they lay out a clear problem: Technology startups often had trouble securing corporate credit cards — even if they had millions in the bank — because legacy banks and card issuers wanted to see company credit histories, which young institutions simply couldn't produce.

They had a simple solution: Remove the restrictions of legacy technology by giving instant approval to startups based on their available cash balance, including money raised through venture, rather than credit history. 

In the deck, the founders outlined their plans to help startups of all sizes instantly get cards with higher limits, as well as automatic expense management and seamless integration with existing accounting systems.

As part of our coverage of the genesis of today's successful companies, BI Prime received Brex's permission to offer a look into the startup's full 19-slide pitch deck, which includes considerations such as:

• The startup's mission
• Key team members and previous backers
• The size of the market opportunity
• A step-by-step plan of how to solve credit cards for startups
• Some of the card's coolest features
• Data points showing how to scale the business

BI Prime is publishing dozens of stories like this each and every day. Want to get started by reading the full pitch deck?

>> Download it now FREE

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