Cybersecurity is not just the IT team’s responsibility: ‘This mistaken belief will cost you dearly’, warns industry insider June 23, 2022 Globally, SMEs have proven themselves to be easy and profitable targets for cybercriminals. Alarming statistics seem to be commonplace these days, but a few released recently still hold enough power to pack a punch. City A.M. spoke to David Steele, founder of SecuriCentrix, about the risks he sees companies take in their approach to cybersecurity, [...]
Payments firm SumUp hits €8bn valuation after fresh funding round June 23, 2022 London payments firm SumUp revealed it had bagged a $590m funding injection today as it looks to fuel a growth push and rollout new products this year.
Fintech Cleo raises additional $80m following backing from Brussels investor Sofina June 16, 2022 UK financial app Cleo has raised an additional $80m following backing by Brussels tech investor Sofina. The funding round took place over months but was finalised following pressure on valuations of growth companies, Sky News first reported. Sources close to the deal told the outlet’s City editor Mark Kleinman that the backing raised Cleo’s valuation [...]
Tech week a chance to celebrate London and the City’s most powerful urge: competition June 13, 2022 It is more than a little tempting to think at the moment that nothing in Britain works very well. Anybody with tickets to the Rolling Stones or the cricket in Headingley next week will face a rail strike, families looking to get away for a well-deserved break will need to carry a week’s supplies just [...]
Open banking fintech Bud inks $80m funding round June 7, 2022 Open banking fintech firm Bud announced its $80m (£64m) Series B funding, led by Bellis Phantom Holdco, an indirect affiliate of investment funds managed by TDR Capital. The investment, which was also backed by existing investors including Outward VC, will be used to develop the firm’s models and allow for further international expansion. The open [...]
Exclusive: FCA not ‘selling out’ on premium listings, which could spur biotech sector, argues City lawyer May 31, 2022 The FCA’s proposed reforms to the UK’s listing regime, published last week, could help spur the biotech and technology sectors, a senior City lawyer has told City A.M. In the plans, the FCA has outlined how it plans to make the rules companies must follow in order to be allowed to list their shares in the [...]
Exclusive: London is the Silicon Valley of Europe, but ‘can not afford to sit on its tech laurels’ May 30, 2022 Forbes heralded London recently as the Silicon Valley of Europe as the capital proved to be “Brexit-proof” with around 18,500 new startups registering in 2021 alone. Although hybrid working has been adopted by many companies, London remains a place where giants such as Google, with its King’s Cross ‘landscraper’, nestle with newer companies such as fintech boomer Revolut, [...]
Ex-banker turned GoCardless president Paul Stoddart talks fintech, Brexit, pandemic recovery and Russia May 28, 2022 At the start of this month, Paul Stoddart jumped ship to become the president of the newly-minted fintech unicorn GoCardless. Stoddart, who describes himself as a “banker by trade,” spent years at Natwest, Barclays, and was most recently the chairman of Mastercard’s VocaLink. In an exclusive interview with City A.M., Stoddart said that joining GoCardless [...]
City exclusive: Cordiant Capital’s co-CEO on how to make money in the crowded world of digital infrastructure May 19, 2022 Amid an increased focus on digital infrastructure, data transfers and online storage in practically every market around the world, investment giant Cordiant Capital listed its Cordian Digital Infrastructure arm in London last year. Time for City A.M. to catch up with Benn Mikula, co-CEO and managing partner at Cordiant Capital, to see how things are [...]
Exclusive: Tech exits surge as unicorns are ‘out’ and recurring revenue is the new valuation for venture capital May 19, 2022 European technology exit values and counts have skyrocketed in the past year, reaching $133.4 billion in value, a 400 per cent year-over-year increase, across 1,247 exits. In 2021, there were approximately 186 public listings, including names such as UiPath, Wise, GitLab, OVH, and SUSE. In addition, M&As reached an all-time high with 687 European companies being acquired. The deep pool of [...]