Digital mortgage broker aims to bring market into “21st century” and save consumers £29bn after securing £1.55m in seed funding April 11, 2016 A digital mortgage broker aiming to save consumers up to £29bn a year launched today after securing £1.55m in seed funding. Habito said it was “taking aim at the £95bn mortgage broking market, one of the only pillars of the consumer finance sector yet to benefit from technological disruption”. The startup uses technology to analyse every [...]
Now you can split London black cab fares with friends (just like Uber) April 11, 2016 One of the features beloved by Uber users is being able to share a fare with a mate at the tap of a phone, but now, you'll be able to do the same with a black cab. Anyone getting one of the 15,000 London black cabs via on-demand app Gett, can now split the cost between [...]
What’s the future of finance? Here’s what those in the know say April 11, 2016 We asked those in the know – from challenger banks and traditional banks to fintech startup stars – what's future of financial services? As the Innovate Finance Global Summit kicks off, here's what the experts had to say. Taavet Hinrikus, chief executive and co-founder, TransferWise "In five years’ time, some parts of the sector will be almost universally controlled by [...]
UK cyber security company Darktrace embarks on funding round to secure $400m valuation April 10, 2016 UK cyber security company Darktrace has turned to Silicon Valley in a bid to secure funding which would see the company valued at $400m (£283.2m). The company, which is headquartered in both Cambridge, UK, and San Francisco, USA, was founded in 2013 by mathematics and computer specialists from the University of Cambridge and intelligence experts from MI5 and GCHQ. [...]
Now Nationwide is testing behavioural biometrics instead of pins and passwords for logging on to online banking April 10, 2016 Pins and passwords are so passe. Nationwide is the latest financial institution to explore new ways of verification and authentication, testing out a new method of accessing your bank account based on how you use your phone – from the way you hold it to the speed you type. And with 70 per cent of us [...]
Harry Potter and the curious tale of GCHQ April 10, 2016 How do you keep Harry Potter news under wraps? With the help of a spy agency – and not the fictional Ministry of Magic kind either With no real life invisibility cloaks or veritaserum potions available, the publishers of the enormously successful series had a little help from a surprising place – the UK's spy agency GCHQ. [...]
Best. Job. Ever: Lastminute.com founder Martha Lane Fox joins the board of Twitter April 8, 2016 When you think about it, it's an obvious choice: this afternoon it emerged Martha Lane Fox, one of the UK's best-known entrepreneurs, is joining the board of Twitter – and she's already pretty keen. Yep: as she announced it in a tweet, the Lastminute.com founder Lane Fox – also known as Baroness Lane Fox of Soho – added [...]
EU referendum: City of London Corporation chief in Brexit warning to the capital’s fintech sector April 8, 2016 London's multi-billion pound fintech sector is being urged by the City of London Corporation to speak up in favour of Britain staying in the European Union. In a speech to be delivered on Monday, the Corporation's policy chairman Mark Boleat will say: “It is far better to have ‘entrepreneurs for Europe’ than ‘bankers for Brussels’ [...]
Bank worries over fintech and an approaching “Uber moment” are subsiding, new research finds April 7, 2016 Bank worries over fintech and an approaching "Uber moment" are subsiding, a new study suggests. A survey of 127 finance industry professionals by Autonomous Research found that while fintech is seen to matter more, the perceived “Uber risk” is receding. Read more: Fintech is coming to take your banking job Nine per cent of those surveyed said [...]
Twitter share price down after Morgan Stanley cuts earnings forecast and price target for social media company April 7, 2016 Morgan Stanley has cut its price target and earnings forecast for Twitter. In a note on Thursday, analysts led by Brian Nowak cut the social media firm's price target from $18 to $16. And Morgan Stanley's projection for earnings before interest, taxation, depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) for 2017 is down 13 per cent to $769m. Read [...]