Surprise, surprise: Oil majors face a “resoundingly negative” threat from the rise of electric cars October 18, 2016 A leap forward in battery technology could pose a "resoundingly credit negative" threat to the oil sector and disrupt global credit markets, according to a report from Fitch Ratings. Falling demand for fuel could scupper oil majors' prospects in particular as transport accounts for 55 per cent of total oil consumption. "Widespread adoption of battery-powered vehicles is [...]
Skyscanner believed to be considering sale or IPO October 18, 2016 UK unicorn Skyscanner is believed to be exploring a sale or flotation. The travel search company was valued at £1bn in January when it raised $192m (£158m) from five investors in a financing round. Read more: Investment lets 'unicorn' Skyscanner accelerate its global expansion plans Founded in 2003, Skyscanner employs 770 staff, with offices in Edinburgh, Glasgow, [...]
PA to use robots to write market reports and election coverage October 18, 2016 Hello Siri, can you write me a story please? This could be the future of digital journalism after the Press Association said they are looking at using robots to report some stories in the next few months, Press Gazette reported today. Speaking at the Society of Editor's conference this morning, the agency's editor-in-chief, Pete Clifton, [...]
The most powerful man in tech believes the world will become cashless October 18, 2016 The man in charge of the biggest company in the world and arguably the most powerful man in technology – Apple's Tim Cook – has weighed in with his two cents on the future of money. Apple may be rolling around in cash reserves of more than $100bn, but Cook won't be doing a Scrooge McDuck style [...]
Vodafone is heading to Iran with new connection October 18, 2016 Vodafone is entering the newly opened Iranian market in a new tie up after sanctions were eased in the country. The mobile carrier will partner with Iran's HiWEB to offer business customers service in the country while Vodafone will support various parts of HiWEB's business, including marketing, sales, distribution and Internet of Things services. "Vodafone’s corporate customers will get the benefit [...]
UK tech investors are incredibly happy about Softbank’s $100bn fund October 17, 2016 Venture capital investors in London have welcomed the arrival of the world’s biggest ever tech investment fund and the decision to locate it in the capital. Softbank unveiled plans last week to create a huge new fund for investing in technology companies along with the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund to the tune of as much as $100bn [...]
UK firms could face £122bn in cyber security fines in 2018 October 17, 2016 Businesses across the UK could face up to £122bn in regulatory penalties for cyber security breaches when new EU legislation comes into effect in 2018. Last year, 90 per cent of large organisations and 74 per cent of SMEs reported suffering a security breach, according to a government survey. That added up to an estimated total of [...]
All London Uber drivers will now have to prove their English skills October 17, 2016 All Uber drivers in London will now have to prove they have the required level of English to get a license to operate in the capital, in new rules set down by Transport for London. Anyone wanting to become a driver for the billion-dollar startup, or any other minicab firm in the capital, will have to [...]
UBS spending over £830m on IT system overhaul October 17, 2016 Swiss private bank UBS is spending around 1bn Swiss francs (£831m) on an overhaul of its IT system. The group wants to standardise the IT platform across its flagship wealth management business and said the investment will ultimately save money. "This is about integrating our historically fragmented infrastructure that we have globally into one platform," [...]
Seedrs is expanding further into Europe with a new Berlin office October 17, 2016 Seedrs, the UK equity crowdfunding platform, is expanding with a new office in Berlin after gaining a financial passport to operate across the continent over the summer. The latest location is its third outside the UK adding to an office in Amsterdam which opened in July and a software development office in Lisbon. It will also serve [...]