Bank of Ireland sells UK credit card portfolio to London startup Jaja for £530m June 28, 2019 Bank of Ireland has agreed to sell its UK credit card portfolio to digital finance company Jaja Finance for a face-value fee of £530m. The company announced on Friday its decision to sell the portfolio of cards comprising the existing Bank of Ireland UK, the AA and Post Office-branded credit cards. Read more: London Capital [...]
London tech wages lag behind US despite fintech boom June 20, 2019 Salaries for London tech workers are lagging far behind their US rivals, despite the capital’s status as a leading hub for fintech firms. The average salary for London tech workers is £62,000, up six per cent on last year, according to figures from employment firm Hired. Read more: Five fintech firms scoop combined £25m from [...]
Data breach could be ‘fatal’ for Open Banking sector, treasury committee chair Nicky Morgan warns June 18, 2019 A single data breach at an Open Banking startup could “fatally” damage the developing sector, Nicky Morgan, the chair of the treasury committee, warned today. Open Banking, which allows users to view all their financial information in one place, relies on customers providing their data to a third party. Read more: Are Britain’s banks closed-minded [...]
Surge in demand for UK tech visas as digital sector draws in top talent June 13, 2019 The number of applications for UK tech visas has soared 45 per cent in the last year as the booming tech sector continues to attract global talent. The surge marks the fifth consecutive year of growth in application numbers, according to industry body Tech Nation. Read more: Facebook to create 500 tech jobs in London [...]
Tech firms urge Tory leadership candidates to back UK’s digital sector June 6, 2019 Tech firms have issued a desperate plea to candidates in the Tory leadership race, urging them to avoid a no-deal Brexit and back the UK’s booming digital sector. Tech UK, which represents more than 900 businesses, has written to the candidates warning of “long-lasting and damaging consequences” of a no-deal Brexit for tech investment and [...]
As a global trading hub, the City is ready to face the challenges of a new digital era June 3, 2019 With changes afoot both domestically and when it comes to our relationship with Europe, it is a challenging and frustrating time for many parts of the City. What we must not lose sight of is that London – and specifically the City – has been at the centre of global trade for centuries, and has [...]
Rise in customers with multiple current accounts as fintech boom hits high street banks June 3, 2019 An increasing number of Britons now have products from a range of different financial providers, as the rise in fintech has shifted the focus away from traditional high street banks. Research by peer-to-peer lending firm Zopa revealed one in three Brits holds two or more current accounts, an increase of 36 per cent on the [...]
City fintech Yapily scores $5.4m from Transferwise founders and Localglobe May 30, 2019 London fintech startup Yapily has closed $5.4m (£4.3m) in seed funding from King’s Cross-based venture capital firm Localglobe and HZ Holtzbrinck Ventures. Other investors included Transferwise co-founders Taavet Hinrikus and Ott Kaukver, and C-suite executives from Twilio and Unicredit. Read more: Transferwise is Europe's most valuable fintech at $3.5bn Yapily will use the funding to [...]
Challenger banks struggling to compete with big five banks on cash deposits, study finds May 30, 2019 Challenger banks are struggling to break the stranglehold of the big five banks on the UK's £1.3 trillion cash deposit market, despite often paying better interest rates. The UK's big five banks – Barclays, Lloyds, HSBC, Santander and the Royal Bank of Scotland – hold £827bn of the UK's household deposits, a market share of [...]
Fintech expert: London needs its own digital currency May 29, 2019 | City Talk By Ian Hall (City AM, for CFA Institute) Powerhouse cities such as London should have their own digital currencies, according to a global fintech expert. David Birch, principal at 15Mb as well as being a well-known consultant and commentator on digital financial services, told an audience at the 72nd CFA Institute Annual Conference that “it really is time [...]