Robinhood rival Freetrade moves into US stocks as transatlantic retail investing battle hots up January 22, 2019 London fintech startup Freetrade has today launched US stock trading on its app, in the midst of growing rivalry in the commission-free trading space. The app, which offers users the ability to invest in stocks and exchange-traded funds (ETFs) directly without paying commission, said it will start with a curated list of 120 US stocks, including the likes [...]
Why collaboration, not competition, will digitalise banking January 21, 2019 Across every sector, businesses are looking to technology to reduce costs and improve their products and services. But most big financial services firms simply aren’t set up to create, drive, and wield new tech innovation – certainly not to the degree that a startup can. Big companies are hampered by legacy IT systems and complex [...]
London-listed Draper Esprit to double down on European tech with £100m share placing January 21, 2019 Venture capital firm Draper Esprit has today announced it will acquire a larger stake in funds managed by its European counterpart Earlybird, with the intention of raising £100m through a fresh share placing to finance the move. The London-listed tech investor first partnered with Earlybird in July last year, committing up to £76m into the German firm's [...]
Augmentum Fintech backs London will-writing startup Farewill in £7.5m round January 21, 2019 London-listed venture fund Augmentum Fintech has today announced a £4m injection into probate startup Farewill, leading the firm's £7.5m series A fundraise alongside the venture arms of the Daily Mail and M&C Saatchi. Other investors in the round included Transferwise chief executive Taavet Hinrikus, Innocent Smoothies parent firm Jamjar, Kindred Capital, Tiny VC and Venture Founders. Farewill claims [...]
London fintech Marketinvoice lands £56m in funding from Barclays and Santander January 21, 2019 London-based fintech business lender Marketinvoice has today closed a £56m round made up of equity and debt funding, led by Barclays and Santander's venture arm Innoventures. The series B-stage equity funding, which amounted to £26m, also received significant participation from European venture capital firm Northzone, which has previously backed the likes of Spotify, Trustpilot and fellow fintech lender Zopa. [...]
Hacking Wall Street: Are tech unicorns about to disrupt stock market flotations? January 21, 2019 Tech companies have changed the way we chat, bank, travel and date. Are they about to disrupt capital markets too? “In [Silicon] Valley there’s always been that mentality: how do we hack Wall Street?” says Rob Kniaz, a founder of tech-focused venture capital firm Hoxton Ventures. Two weeks ago reports broke that Slack, the workplace [...]
London fintech startup Jaja Finance picks up £5m with a boost from Celeres January 16, 2019 Credit card fintech startup Jaja Finance has today confirmed the final close of its £3.5m crowdfunding round, boosted by an additional £1.5m from Celeres Investments. The £5m intake adds to an earlier £4.4m raised in seed funding last year, backed by Blystad Group and Pollen Street Capital among others. More than 1,000 private investors took [...]
What3words wants to replace your address with three simple words, but how do you market such a revolutionary idea? January 14, 2019 Erase. Damp. Name. No, I’ve not gone mad due to the latest Brexit drama – these three words make up my exact location as I write this article. This information comes from What3words, a technology startup that’s trying to revolutionise – wait for it – addresses. It has divided up the entire world into a [...]
As London heads back to school, here’s how the City is kickstarting careers January 14, 2019 It’s back to school for students across the country. A new term is always an exciting prospect; pupils and teachers return with renewed energy and a readiness to learn and teach. Last month, the City of London Corporation, which sponsors 10 academies in London, was named by the Sutton Trust as the best UK academy [...]
London drives increase in number of new UK startups January 14, 2019 London entrepreneurs defied political and economic gloom last year with a jump in the number of registered startups. More than 216,000 new businesses were registered in the greater London area last year, a 6.45 per cent increase on 2017. Across the UK as a whole, the number of new companies registered last year rose by [...]