The UK extends its lead as Europe’s established tech unicorn capital October 23, 2018 London has cemented its standing as the capital of Europe’s billion-dollar technology startups, as surrounding cities help to push the UK forward while its companies expand internationally. New figures released today show the UK has now created 60 so-called unicorn startups – companies with a valuation of $1bn (£769.6m) or more – since 1990, according to [...]
Fintech startup Worldremit poaches former Paddy Power chief as its next boss October 22, 2018 London money transfer fintech startup Worldremit has today revealed former Paddy Power Betfair chief Breon Corcoran will be its newest chief executive. Corcoran joins the fintech as it hurtles towards so-called unicorn status – a company worth over $1bn (£764.6m) – after successfully managing the merger of betting firms Paddy Power and Betfair in 2016. Worldremit's current founder and chief [...]
Let’s get kraken: How the Octopus Group is making waves October 22, 2018 For a long time, it seemed like the bosses of finance, energy, and property corporations were laughing – the heartless belly laughs of those raking in stacks of money at the expense of their customers. Now there’s a growing trend for companies that care about the people they serve, a feeling that this should be their [...]
BBVA and Anthemis launch London venture builder for fintech startups October 18, 2018 Spanish banking group BBVA and fintech-focused venture capital firm Anthemis have teamed up to launch a joint venture builder for London fintech startups, beginning with the development of a startup studio. The partnership hopes to find top London startups that can create the next big technologically-innovative products in financial services, deploying capital and resources to [...]
Digital banking challenger Monese launches business accounts October 18, 2018 Digital banking app Monese will today announce its expansion into the world of business banking, as it launches accounts for young companies and entrepreneurs across the UK and Europe. The accounts will be released to UK-registered businesses first, available in 11 languages in a bid to tap the UK's growing multicultural industry base. The firm told City [...]
Ex-Barclays wealth management boss says all banks will use artificial intelligence in next five years October 18, 2018 All banks will use artificial intelligence (AI) in the next five years, according to former Barclays wealth management boss Akshaya Bhargava, as institutions prepare for the $30 trillion (£28 trillion) "great wealth transfer" from baby boomers to millennials. Bhargava, who set up AI fintech platform Bridgeweave after leaving the British bank two years ago, said financial [...]
24th October QEII Conference Centre in Westminster October 17, 2018 The Gibraltar International FinTech Forum in London is bringing together internationally recognised and respected speakers from around the world to investigate and discuss the very latest developments in the world of Blockchain, DLT and tokenomics. This year's event will be officially opened by the Gibraltar Chief Minister, the Hon. Fabian Picardo and will be presented [...]
How would you like to pay for that, madam? October 17, 2018 | City Talk The global payments industry is dramatically improving due to technology. Mobile has changed everything. Payments are getting faster and smarter. Competition is intense. And payments are revolutionsing markets in the developing world even faster than in the developed world. In just the next seven years, the McKinsey Global Institute estimates that widespread adoption and use [...]
Digital bank Oaknorth hires ex-Bank of England director October 16, 2018 Challenger bank Oaknorth has hired former Bank of England director Martin Stewart to join its advisory board. Working with the fintech as an independent adviser, Stewart was previously the director of banks, building societies and credit unions at the Bank of England. Oaknorth said it hopes that by bringing Stewart on board, it can better serve [...]
London’s status as a tech hub helping drive transatlantic deals October 11, 2018 London's status as a hub for technology and financial services is helping drive a strong flow of deals between the US and the UK according to audit firm Deloitte. Deloitte said deal volumes between the UK and US “remained buoyant” in the first half of 2018, with 238 completed deals in the period. There were 152 [...]