On June 19, 2018, Yaron Golgher, CEO of I Know First, presented to a senior delegation visiting Israel from Taiwan. I Know First forayed into the Taiwanese market on December 14, 2017 when the company introduced a new forecast package covering most of the around 800 stocks on the Taiwanese Stock Exchange. The delegation was focused on the idea of bringing Fintech solutions to respective sectors of over 40 of Taiwan’s financial leaders who attended. During the visit, the delegation got to meet high profile members of the Israeli financial industry such as the Governor of the Bank of Israel and Israel’s Inspector of Banks. Then, local startups including I Know First each presented on their company and had a Q&A session. Finally, there was time for networking which allowed relationships to build between the Taiwanese bankers and Israeli startups.
In cooperation with the high-tech department of the Export Institute, the delegation was led former Taiwan Minister of Treasury Jye-Chung Lyu and by Ran Yehezkel, economic attaché of Taiwan’s Foreign Trade Administration. Mr. Lyu is now the Chairman of the Bankers Association of the Republic of China as well as Chairman of Taiwan Financial Holdings and Bank of Taiwan and has extensive experience in the financial industry.
Many of the visitors were members of the Taiwan Association of Banks which was established in 1983 and is made up of 62 financial institutions including 36 commercial banks, 16 financial holding companies, 2 industrial banks, and other financing companies. Combined, the members of the Taiwan Association of Banks are worth over $5 trillion and the volume of loans granted by the association is $855 billion.
The Taiwanese banking sector is a highly protected industry with intense competition. In 2014, regulations were reduced in Taiwan to promote innovation within the domestic financial sector. Hopefully, some of the institutions represented at the delegation are interested in implementing I Know First’s predictive algorithm for their clients. I Know First has been providing forecasts for the majority of the stocks on the Taiwan Stock Exchange. This stock exchange was established in 1981 and now lists over 800 companies with a combined market capitalization above $800 billion. I Know First looks forward to strengthening the new relationships formed with members of the delegations and further expanding its presence in the Asian market.
