Bolt doubles valuation to €4bn as investors pour into on-demand grocery push August 2, 2021 Estonian ride-hailing startup Bolt announced on Monday it had closed a fresh €600m (£512m) funding round, increasing its valuation to more than €4bn (£3.4bn). The latest funds raised from investors will be funnelled into its new 15-minute grocery delivery service, Bolt Market, as the startup seeks to capitalise on the fast-growing market. Bolt said it [...]
Over two-fifths of Hong Kong migrants plan to start business in the UK July 19, 2021 The UK could be set for an entrepreneurial boost from an unlikely source – with almost half of wealthy Hongkongers coming to the UK set to start their own businesses. According to UKHK.org, a charity supporting Hongkongers in the UK, a new survey of Hongkongers found more than half (52.1 per cent) have or intend [...]
Exclusive: Two City lawyers on a mission to make their fintech the ‘Amazon of Islamic finance’ July 19, 2021 Islamic Finance Guru (IFG), a UK-based Islamic finance platform, has closed an investment round led by Outward venture capital, as the market for Islamic fintech grows. The UK-based startup has raised £3m from Outward VC and B&Y Venture Partners. The news come just a week after the Boubyan Bank Group announced that the world’s first [...]
Alibaba to launch £186m venture fund for startups in Southern China July 13, 2021 Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba announced said today it will launch a HK$2bn (£186m) venture fund to support startups in the Greater Bay Area of southern China. Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF) will be an anchor investor for the new fund, which will target startups in the region focusing on sustainability, deep tech, health tech, [...]
Tide banking valued at $650m, after securing $100m in funding July 12, 2021 Tide Banking, the UK fintech startup, has raised over $100m in Series C funding, bringing its valuation to over $650m (£468m), the company announced today. The four-year-old startup has raised a total of $200m to date including the latest funding. The injection of cash will allow the company to grow its market share, and expand [...]
Startup funding in Europe on track for record year July 9, 2021 Europe is set to see its biggest year for startup investment, with US investors especially keen to back companies. Startups received three times more funding in the first half of this year compared to that of 2020, according to data from Dealroom reported by Politico. While Europe’s start up scene has lagged behind that of [...]
Delivery boom: Ant Group-backed Zomato eyes IPO valuation of nearly $8bn July 8, 2021 Ant Group-backed food delivery company Zomato has a near $8bn valuation on the cards in its initial public offering (IPO), with shares priced at 0.96 cents to $1.02 per share. Zomato, one of India’s most biggest startups, has reaped the rewards of a pandemic-induced surge in online ordering. The lofty $7.98bn figure is at the [...]
Logistics solutions market takes off as startup byrd lands €16m investment July 6, 2021 Online logistics platform byrd has raised €16m in a Series B funding round, amid the pandemic that has slipped up supply chains and stoked an online shopping frenzy. The rally was led by Santander-backed Mouro Capital, which has invested in companies sold on to PayPal and American Express. This latest round follows byrd’s €5m Series [...]
Sportswear start-up Prevayl scores £7.5m investment as market picks up pace June 7, 2021 Manchester sportswear start-up Prevayl has scored £7.5m in pre-revenue to stitch together its ‘intelligent sportswear’ collections as the UK sportswear market continues its strong pace. The investment has been made by consumer brand investment firm Stonebridgesignals good faith in the UK sportswear market which is expected to grow 20.9 per cent by 2023, reaching £6.7bn [...]
Electric scooter startup Bird to go public in £1.6bn SPAC deal May 12, 2021 Bird Rides announced a merger with Switchback II Corp, a blank-cheque company, to go public in a deal that values the electric scooter company at £1.6bn. SPACs are listed companies that use the proceeds from an IPO to buy a private firm and take it public. The scooter rental company said the deal will be [...]