Seedrs says amount invested on its platform jumped 49 per cent in 2019 January 6, 2020 Crowd-funding platform Seedrs said today that the amount invested in pitches on its platform grew 49 per cent to £238m in 2019. It said it completed 250 deals during the year, up from 186 in 2018, and delivered 7,858 investor exits on its secondary market. Highlights included Scottish fintech Paysend raising £10.7m and football club [...]
What is an asset class? January 2, 2020 | City Talk Today, diversification and alternative returns are our top portfolio concerns. Why? Because low interest rates may have driven valuations of stocks, bonds, and other asset classes to unsustainable heights, so we’re forever on the lookout for uncorrelated assets to incorporate into our portfolios. And of course, product providers are all too happy to accommodate us, [...]
Why investors may need to dig a little deeper in 2020 December 23, 2019 | City Talk Summing up the outlook for 2020, Schroders’ CIO thinks that superficially, overall market valuations look uninteresting. But dig a little deeper and there may be reasons for active investors to be enthusiastic about 2020. As we move into a new decade, we don’t think it’s time to party like it’s 1999, but it’s not a [...]
HSBC and First Direct IT glitches leave customers unable to access online and mobile banking December 20, 2019 HSBC and First Direct have resolved issues causing intermittent problems for customers accessing online and mobile banking over the past 24 hours. Customers were unable to access their online or app banking from around 7:40pm last night and then again throughout today despite claims the issues had been resolved in the early hours of the [...]
What does the Conservatives’ victory mean for the UK economy and markets? December 20, 2019 | City Talk The large majority for Boris Johnson’s Conservative party sees the pound and UK shares react positively, as investors welcome greater clarity on the policy backdrop. The pound climbs against other major currencies and stock markets gain as the scale of the Conservative win removes policy uncertainty. Within UK equities, companies whose operations focus on the [...]
Beware the annual workplace Christmas click-off December 20, 2019 The closer we get to the holidays each year, the more festive — and less productive — we feel at work. It’s a feeling that gets to even the most dedicated of employees. With tinsel adorning hallways and mince pies appearing on every desk, excitement begins to bubble and motivation begins to wane. Staff leave [...]
Aberdeen Standard Investments to take control of Woodford Income Focus fund December 20, 2019 Aberdeen Standard Investments (ASI) will take over Neil Woodford’s sole remaining fund it has been revealed today. Fund administrator Link Fund Solutions confirmed to investors this morning that the management of the £267m fund would be handed to ASI. Read more: Windup date for flagship Neil Woodford fund confirmed by administrators The management of the [...]
What does the next decade have in store for UK fintech? December 20, 2019 A decade ago, the term “fintech” had barely been coined, and the financial services world referred to more staid terms like “financial technology”. High-growth startups focusing on the space were few and far between, and very few VCs had fintech on their investment radar. In parallel, the ecosystem was slowly being introduced to innovative startups [...]
Farmland-focused investment trust eyes $300m UK float December 19, 2019 An investment trust focused on farmland has set out plans to float in London, aiming to be the UK’s first listed trust offering investors direct access to the asset. The Global Sustainable Farmland Income Trust is seeking to raise $300m from investors to purchase “a diverse portfolio” of farmland around the world. Read more: RBS [...]
How the Tories pulled off the best campaign of a generation December 19, 2019 One week on, post-election commentary continues to be dominated by analysis of Labour’s woes. In plummeting to its worst defeat since the Second World War, the party now faces an identity crisis, and the fear is that things can only get worse. This focus on Labour’s existential spiral, however, ignores one side of how the [...]
