The Co-op is exploring blockchain technology September 7, 2016 The Co-Operative Group is exploring how blockchain technology can be used to prove the authenticity of its food in a pilot of a "fairtrade for the digital age" project. The supermarket is working with early stage blockchain startup Provenance to investigate how its technology can be used to track that its produce comes from sustainable sources [...]
London is still number one for fintech – and now we’re going global September 6, 2016 Ten weeks on from Brexit, the City is back to business following the summer, and the fintech community is as busy as ever working through its plans for an ever-changing world. While the uncertainty of Brexit may loom for some time, London is still the number one fintech hub on the planet. We have created [...]
Three calls for cap on mobile spectrum sales September 6, 2016 Mobile carrier Three has called on the telecoms regulator Ofcom to limit how much of wireless spectrum companies can buy. Three – still reeling from its planned merger with O2 being blocked by the European competition watchdog earlier this year – slammed Ofcom for allowing industry heavyweights Vodafone and the recently combined BT and EE [...]
Crunch time for Apple ahead of iPhone 7 launch? September 6, 2016 Apple is preparing to put to rest critics' claims that it has peaked, with the launch of a new iPhone on Wednesday evening. Chief executive Tim Cook is expected to unveil the iPhone 7, tempting consumers with a improved features such as a dual camera for taking better photos, while other familiar ones could disappear – the headphone jack [...]
Hong Kong follows UK lead with fintech “sandbox” September 6, 2016 Hong Kong is the latest city to follow the example of the UK's financial watchdog and set up its own scheme to accelerate the development of financial technology. The Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) has launched a so-called sandbox to let banks experiment with as yet unregulated technology and ideas. Read more: A new corporate-backed fintech [...]
Insurtech investment in the UK has tripled September 6, 2016 Investment in the insurance technology sector – part of London's world leading fintech scene – is booming. More than $22m (£16.5m) has been ploughed into insurtech so far this year – nearly triple the amount invested in the whole of last year and faster growth than any other country in the world. The research from Accenture and CB Insights, [...]
Women are totally leaning in – they just don’t get a pay rise out of it September 6, 2016 The famous mantra of top Facebook executive Sheryl Sandberg is "lean in", but it turns out women are already doing that when it comes to negotiating that all important pay rise. While conventional thinking indicates that "don't ask, don't get" is to blame for holding women back from getting pay rises, and contributing to the well documented gender discrepancy in [...]
British Airways flights hit by technical glitch September 6, 2016 British Airways has suffered technical problems causing delays and cancellations. The airline said some flights had been cancelled due to the unspecified technical problems and passengers are being told to check-in online before they travel. It said in a statement: "We are checking in customers at Heathrow and Gatwick Airports this morning, although it is taking [...]
One huge hint that Snapchat’s working on a VR device September 5, 2016 Nobody asked for it, but Snapchat messages might soon be coming to you in a virtual world. The messaging startup, which has been flirting with an IPO for some time, has inadvertently dropped the biggest hint yet that it is delving into virtual reality technology – and specifically, into the hardware side of things. Read more: [...]
London fintech star Transferwise doubles revenue as losses grow September 5, 2016 Fintech unicorn Transferwise has revealed revenue tripled last year but losses grew as it continues to plough cash into global growth. Revenue came in at £28m in 2015, up from £10m the previous year, while pre-tax losses grew to £17m from £11m a year earlier. The payments firm transfered more than £800m a month for customers, which now number one million. The number of transactions has also [...]