Fintech is all the rage, but is the bubble about to burst? September 5, 2019 Fintechs are all the rage. Scarcely a day goes by without a new challenger bank or money app making headlines about how it seeks to disrupt traditional banking and solve personal finance problems. As a result, capital is pouring into the sector – last year, global investment into financial technology ventures more than doubled to [...]
Meet Par Hedberg – the godfather of Sweden’s tech startups August 27, 2019 If you were asked where the most tech innovation comes from, you’d probably answer Silicon Valley – the home of Google, Amazon and Facebook. And you’d be right. But what you might not know is that Stockholm is a close second. The Swedish capital produces more billion-dollar companies per capita than any other region in [...]
Dutch fintech Adyen sees core profit jump 79 per cent August 22, 2019 Adyen, the Dutch fintech company that processes payments for companies including Facebook and Netflix, has reported a jump in first-half core profit, helped by an increased volume of transactions. The figures Adyen said its core earnings (EBITDA) for the first half of the year were up 79 per cent to €125.8m (£115m), up from €70.3m [...]
Travelex-owner Finablr profit rise bolsters shares above float levels August 20, 2019 Travelex-owner Finablr enjoyed a nearly 10 per cent rise in half-year profits, in its second financial report since floating on the London stock exchange earlier this year. Shares in the United Arab Emirates-based payment solutions firm jumped as much as nine per cent this morning, above its original initial public offering price of 175p in [...]
Octopus buys wealth management fintech Seccl for £10m August 15, 2019 Financial services and energy firm Octopus has agreed to purchase Seccl, a wealth management technology startup, as it seeks to move into the investment platform technology market. Octopus will pay £10m for Seccl, a Bath-based firm that helps businesses build investment platforms using flexible software designed to reduce the administrative and cost burden of the [...]
DEBATE: Could fintechs solve London’s dirty money problem? July 25, 2019 Could fintechs be the answer to solving London’s dirty money problem? Michael Harris, director of financial crime compliance and reputational risk at Lexis Nexis Risk Solutions, says YES. By their very nature, fintech firms are disruptive and have a reputation for driving change in their field. Why shouldn’t the fight against money laundering be led [...]
Peer-to-peer lender Funding Circle recovers slightly after share price crash July 3, 2019 Shares in peer-to-peer lender Funding Circle made steps towards recovery today after plummeting as much as 29 per cent yesterday after it slashed its revenue projections in half. The fintech’s stock recovered by more than eight per cent today to 125p following yesterday’s trading update that said full year revenue growth is now expected to [...]
Fintech firm Revolut leads list of UK’s top 100 startups of 2019 July 1, 2019 Challenger bank Revolut has claimed first place in a list of the UK’s top 100 startups of 2019, it was revealed today. British fintech startup Revolut topped Startups.co.uk’s Startups 100 list for 2019, as it counts 5m customers around Europe and the UK. Energy startup Igloo placed second, while retail startup Trouva took third place. [...]
Mobile banking to overtake branch use by 2021 July 1, 2019 Mobile banking is set to overtake branch use in the next two years, as a boom in the fintech sector drives an increasing number of customers to digital formats. Research by data consultancy CACI revealed 25m customers, or almost half the UK’s adult population, are currently banking on mobile formats. Read more: Transferwise expands to [...]
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 [...]