Has Klarna’s buy now, pay later bubble burst? June 6, 2025 Buy now, pay later services have exploded in the last decade and industry titan Klarna has spearheaded growth. The global BNPL market is expected to top $560.1bn (£412.8bn) in 2025 with 13.7 per cent annual growth. Swedish fintech Klarna has historically dominated the space, notching a net operating income of $1.087bn in 2020. The firm [...]
Monzo boss: Our tech will help us beat the big banks June 4, 2025 The boss of Monzo said the fintech darling is ready to take the fight to traditional lenders and “bets every day of the week” on its chances. Speaking at the Money 20/20 conference in Amsterdam, TS Anil said the next decade of banking would present “a race between two sides of the industry.” Anil said [...]
Canva’s AI gambit rekindles the human cost debate June 4, 2025 When Canva announced in April that it was cutting the headcount of its technical writing team, the decision surprised many in the industry. The move came just months after the Australian tech giant had strongly encouraged employees to integrate generative AI tools into their daily workflows – a push that, for some, felt like a [...]
UK fintech: Can Britain’s booming sector conquer Europe and the US? June 1, 2025 UK fintechs have transformed the British banking landscape – and firms are fixing their eyes on international endeavours. Top names ballooned profits and customers bases over the last year whilst picking up a fleet of accolades. London-based Allica Bank was dubbed the UK’s fastest growing private company by The Times Hundred and Europe’s fastest growing start-up by Sifted. [...]
AI watchdog slams government over facial recognition rollout May 29, 2025 An artificial intelligence (AI) search body has criticised the UK government for accelerating the deployment of facial recognition technology without first establishing a comprehensive legal framework. The Ada Lovelace Institute has warned the increasing use of live facial recognition (LFR) by police and retailers across the UK is happening in a “legislative void”, raising urgent [...]
Google faces £25bn UK lawsuit over ad monopoly claims May 28, 2025 Google is facing a £25bn legal claim in the UK, as a new lawsuit accuses the tech giant of abusing its dominant position in the online search advertising market, driving up prices for UK advertisers over more than a decade. The claim, filed with the Competition Appeal Tribunal (CAT) and led by Roger Kaye KC, [...]
London slips from top smart centre spot May 28, 2025 London has lost its place as the world’s top hub for science and tech innovation after a sobering report warned of the City’s slipping global status. The UK’s capital fell behind San Francisco and Zurich which stormed ahead with a gain of 16 and 6 points respectively. Meanwhile, London’s rating shed three points as it [...]
The death of deep thinking: What generative AI is doing to your future team May 27, 2025 AI is reshaping education at a structural level, but the implications are beginning to show beyond lecture halls. Tools like ChatGPT become embedded in academic routines, students are increasingly outsourcing the work of ideation, synthesis and long-form writing to machines. What used to be learned slowly, through the hard graft of writing and revising, is [...]
London needs the Conservatives to restore its tech crown May 27, 2025 The Tories left London with more tech unicorns than France and Germany combined. Now Labour is quickly unravelling our legacy, writes Alan Mak MP.
Panel sessions and punk music: SXSW comes to London May 24, 2025 In the first week of June, the world’s largest tech, business and arts festival, SXSW, will make its European debut in Shoreditch. Ali Lyon asks its its chief executive, Max Alexander, why London, and why now? Of the many aspirations Max Alexander has for next month’s inaugural South by Southwest London, there is one which [...]