Exodus reduces Libra members to 21 companies October 14, 2019 The final membership roster of Facebook’s controversial cryptocurrency project Libra has been revealed, having taken a significant hit after several major players abandoned ship. The Libra Association said 21 companies had signed the charter, committing to pay a $10m (£7.9m) founders’ fee and introduce a Libra incentive scheme, following a council meeting in Geneva. Uber, [...]
Wework’s European operational losses skyrocket 900 per cent October 11, 2019 Huge rises in staff costs and management fees related to Wework’s stratospheric expansion plans have sunk its internal division to an £80m loss. 2018 filings for Wework International reported an 898 per cent increase in overall losses to £75.9m, up from £7.6m a year earlier. Read more: Goldman Sachs keeps a Wework space to fall [...]
Snap reduces overseas losses as revenue doubles October 10, 2019 Snapchat parent firm Snap has narrowed its international losses, as sales from advertising and its Spectacles gadget doubled. Its UK-based entity, which manages all territories outside the US, reported a loss of $312.8m in 2018, down from $447m a year earlier. Meanwhile revenue, which Snap said is “substantially” created by sales of its advertising products, [...]
Tech startups resilient on hiring potential despite political turmoil October 7, 2019 Around four-fifths of the UK’s tech leaders remain bullish on hiring top talent, as ongoing Brexit uncertainty fails to dampen employment and investment intentions. Seventy-nine per cent of young tech companies intend to increase staff numbers in the next three months, City A.M. can today reveal, rising six per cent from last quarter. According to [...]
Notion Capital opens £125m fourth fund October 3, 2019 London-headquartered venture capital investor Notion Capital today announced its fourth and largest fund to date, which will target a final closing value of £125m. Notion, which focuses on European business-targeted software-as-a-service startups, has previously backed the likes of fintech starlet Gocardless, Paddle and self-driving tech firm FiveAI. Notion IV will be aimed at startups around [...]
Authorities continue to question Airbnb as UK tax bill shrinks September 30, 2019 Enquiries into Airbnb’s UK tax structure have continued to plague the short-term holiday rental giant, even as its payouts to HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) have decreased. Airbnb said it remains subject to “tax enquiries and proceedings concerning its operations and intracompany transactions”, filings seen by City A.M. reveal. It has also been contacted regarding [...]
Big banks plug $18m into Soho fintech Fidel September 25, 2019 The venture capital arms of Royal Bank of Canada and Citi have supported an $18m (£16.3m) funding round for Soho-headquartered fintech firm Fidel. The series A round was led by Nyca Partners and QED Investors, which have previously backed the likes of Zopa, Clearscore and Acorns. Transferwise founder Taavet Hinrikus and Commerce VC also supported [...]
Why Vestager’s legacy is about to catch up with her September 14, 2019 It was a week full of surprises in the world of tech antitrust regulation. On Monday, Google found itself at the centre of a 50-state investigation by the US attorneys general into a range of anti-competitive practices. By the end of the week, publishers had hit out en masse at Google and Facebook for “unscrupulous [...]
Facebook to increase workforce diversity in London offices September 12, 2019 Facebook has partnered with a London non-profit organisation in a bid to increase the diversity of its workforce. The tech giant will today announce a partnership with Colorintech, in which Facebook will commit to increasing the number of applicants and hires in Europe from under-represented groups. It comes after Facebook said in a diversity report [...]
Vestager’s re-hire leaves the UK on the back foot September 11, 2019 Apple last night launched its latest shiny thing to come out of Cupertino, the iPhone 11 Pro, at its now-to-be-expected “high achiever” price tag. The company has forged a reputation of late for putting its hardware products further out of reach of the masses, while placing its services at the more affordable end of the [...]
