European Central Bank preps lenders for potential Russian cyberattack February 9, 2022 The European Central Bank is reportedly preparing lenders for a possible Russian cyberattack, as analysts warn the move could be used to de-stabilise Ukraine prior to invading. The Bank is on high alert amid rising tensions between Russia and Ukraine, Reuters first reported, having had its sights locked on the rise of scams in the [...]
Treasury’s £4.3bn fraud write-off likely to be eclipsed by £20bn Covid loan defaults as CBILs and BBLs are not repaid February 8, 2022 The £4.3bn of Covid loans that may have to be written-off by The Treasury due to fraud and highlighted by the recent resignation of Lord Agnew, could be eclipsed by businesses failing to repay their CBILs and BBLs Covid support loans, an industry expert warns. £73.8bn has been loaned under the above schemes to around [...]
City access to the Chancellor: 80 per cent of Rishi Sunak’s meetings are with banks and financial services firms February 8, 2022 As the government is looking to ease rules and regulations for the City of London, it has been revealed that Chancellor Rishi Sunak met with dozens of financial firms, banks, consultancy firms, hedge funds and lobby groups in recent months. According to new analysis, published by the Independent, around 80 per cent of all businesses [...]
Credit Suisse accused of helping cocaine traffickers launder millions of euros February 7, 2022 Credit Suisse faced charges in a Swiss court today of allowing a Bulgarian cocaine trafficking gang to clean millions of euros of dirty money, adding to the long list of scandals that have ensnared the Swiss lender. Swiss prosecutors are seeking to secure 42.4m Swiss francs (£33.8m) in damages from Credit Suisse. Prosecutors have accused [...]
KKR turns music catalogues from the likes of Stevie Nicks and The Weeknd into bonds February 7, 2022 Investment firm KKR is set to turn a catalogue of 65,000 songs – including hits from The Weeknd, Stevie Nicks, and Childish Gambino – into bonds as it looks to sell more than $732m (£542m) of asset-backed securities supported by publishing and sound recording royalties. Late last year, KKR – via its new Chord Music [...]
Regulators are playing catch up with digital finance, EU watchdogs warn February 7, 2022 European Union banking watchdogs have warned today that regulation is playing catch up with digital finance as social media platforms and ‘Big tech’ firms increasingly move into the space.
Exclusive: Railsbank CEO on finance’s ‘iTunes moment’, ripping up the rule book and the might of Amazon February 7, 2022 British fintech Railsbank is eyeing up ‘unicorn’ status as it looks to raise $100m funding which would value the firm at over $1bn. It follows a $70m funding injection last year from backers including Anthos Capital and Outrun Ventures, which bosses had suggested had left the firm with a valuation of close to $1bn. Time [...]
The White House’s Zoom: Neat video platform opens its London office following £472m valuation February 7, 2022 Neat, the immersive video conferencing software backed by Zoom and used by the US President, has opened a new office in London, as it hits a $640m (£473m) valuation and embraces hybrid working in the UK.
UK fintech investment hits £27.5bn, a sevenfold increase in just twelve months February 7, 2022 UK fintech investment topped $37.3bn (£27.5bn) in 2021, a sevenfold increase compared to 2020, as dealmaking activity soared.
National Insurance tax hike to hit UK apprenticeships, warns FSB February 7, 2022 The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) has called out government's national insurance tax hike amid falling numbers of apprenticeships.