Instagram valued at $35bn – but how does that compare to Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest, LinkedIn and WhatsApp? December 19, 2014 Instagram exceeded Twitter in terms of daily users last month; now it looks like that has trickled through to its valuation. The photo-sharing app has been valued at $35bn by Citi analyst Mark May, nearly double the amount he previously estimated. Based on Twitter's current share price, it's worth just over $23bn. [...]
FBI confirms Sony hack was definitely North Korea – but maybe also China December 19, 2014 The FBI confirmed today that a massive data breach at Sony's movie production arm was, indeed, rooted in North Korea. North Korea seemed the obvious perpetrator, given the group behind the hack, Guardians of Peace, purported to take offence at upcoming movie Seth Rogen movie The Interview, which centres around a plot to kill North Korean [...]
2015: Bring on the year of empowerment December 19, 2014 It's dangerous territory, some smart-arse proffering a crystal ball projection of the future. From weathermen to economists, the curse of the prediction has floored many a better man and woman than I; but as the headline states, we are wallowing in the age of empowerment. I’m not talking about John Lennon’s “power to [...]
Tesco’s share price is on the rise December 19, 2014 Tesco's share price is on the rise. The beleagued supermarket was up four per cent at pixel time, making it the best performing stock on the FTSE 100 so far today. That's a trend that stretches back the whole week (more or less), with the share price starting at 165.9p on Monday morning [...]
Ecigarettes in review 2014: Health, regulation and advertising wars December 19, 2014 The ecigarette revolution has taken the world of public health by storm. Depending on your point of view these devices are either a critical part of getting people to quit smoking or a new gateway drug that could lure young people back to cigarettes. Either way, it's difficult not to notice the growth of these [...]
Nightmare on high street: How discounters stole Tesco’s market share December 19, 2014 Although at first glance any shift in the share of the grocery market seems slim, the changes that have taken place over the last two years tell an interesting story. It shows the gradual increase of smaller companies such as Aldi, Lidl and Waitrose at the expense of larger chains such as Tesco, Sainsbury’s [...]
Man once known as “Putin’s banker” loses £1.3bn battle in UK high court December 19, 2014 Vladimir Putin's former "banker" has lost a $2bn (£1.3bn) legal battle in the UK courts. The man in question is Sergei Pugachev, a former Russian senator. Pugachev had sought to overturn a UK court order issued in July this year that froze his global assets due to a $2bn claim made against a collapsed bank he [...]
Santa rally continues as European markets rise December 19, 2014 Is this a Christmas miracle, or merely a sign of a touch of festive merriment among investors? In looks like yesterday's "Santa Rally" will continue into today, as European equities markets rose in morning trading. The FTSE 100 was up 0.7 per cent in mid-morning trading, while the Dax rose 0.3 per cent and France's Cac 40 [...]
Nigel Farage claims Vince Cable is a “Marxist” after Royal Mail sale December 19, 2014 During his regular phone in with LBC radio Nigel Farage gave it business secretary Vince Cable with both barrels. The Ukip leader slammed the Lid Dem cabinet minister saying we've got a "Marxist in charge of the business department". Farage was answering a question referring to the privatisation of Royal Mail. He added that Cable [...]
Five charts that sum up the latest government borrowing data December 19, 2014 If this is austerity, it’s austerity light. The latest public sector finance figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) reveal a not-so-huge drop in borrowing for the April to November period: the iron scissors of George Osborne have trimmed half a billion from the bill compared to last year. That doesn’t look like huge [...]