City travel startup Duffel bags $21.5m round from Benchmark June 19, 2019 Travel booking software startup Duffel today closed a $21.5m (£17.1m) in a series A funding round led by Snap and Uber-backer Benchmark. Blossom Capital also participated, as well as existing investor Index Ventures. The startup has raised $26.2m to date. “The travel industry is underpinned by archaic software and processes that are fundamentally prohibitive for [...]
Facebook launches cryptocurrency with backing of Uber, Visa and Spotify June 18, 2019 Facebook has today published the white paper for its widely anticipated cryptocurrency initiative, with the founding support of several major businesses across multiple sectors. Named libra after the Roman unit of measure once used to mint coins, the cryptocurrency will be managed by an independent eponymous association consisting of 28 initial founding companies. Alongside Facebook [...]
London named top city for EU ‘tech for good’ June 17, 2019 London’s burgeoning socially-responsible tech sector has made it the top city in Europe for so-called ‘tech for good’, thanks to stellar support for entrepreneurs and small businesses. The European Digital Social Innovation Index by Nesta, published for the first time this year, found London came out on top in a ranking of 60 EU cities [...]
Vodafone taps up Onecom for partner deal June 16, 2019 Onecom has today announced a deal with Vodafone UK – the telecoms giant’s largest ever signed partnership – which will allow the two to reach combined business of £600m over the next five years. Following a £30m funding deal with HSBC last month, Onecom said its deal with Vodafone aims to deliver more than £100m [...]
Tech jobs in London rise by almost two thirds June 16, 2019 Jobs in London’s blossoming tech sector have risen by 60 per cent since 2010, as the number of roles in the capital reach 533,000. Figures from the Office for National Statistics revealed there have been 1,000 more tech sector jobs created on average every week in the last five years. Read more: Surge in demand [...]
Monzo bounds ahead of rivals with US launch June 13, 2019 Digital bank Monzo has today launched in the US, making it the first of its rivals to finally land in the coveted territory. The bank will launch with its full banking app and debit card, complete with a routing number and FDIC insurance up to $250,000, courtesy of a licensing partnership with Sutton Bank in [...]
Revolut goes Down Under as it launches accounts in Australia June 13, 2019 Digital bank Revolut will today launch its first accounts in Australia, as it embarks on a public testing period in the region. The startup said it will be opening its waiting list in the country today, which has so far amassed around 20,000 sign-ups. Revolut has opened a regional headquarters in Melbourne to manage the [...]
Augmentum Fintech to double in size as it seeks £150m fundraise June 11, 2019 London-listed fund Augmentum Fintech is courting a £150m capital raise, which would more than double the size of the company. The fintech-focused firm said in a filing it intends to create up to 150m new shares, valued at a total of £150m, subject to shareholder approval. The capital would allow the firm “sufficient flexibility to [...]
Taxify relaunches in London under Bolt branding in challenge to Uber June 11, 2019 The European ride-hailing firm formerly known as Taxify is today relaunching its services in London, two years on from being forced to halt rides in the capital. The firm, which first entered the UK market in 2017 via the purchase of an existing private hire business, had its third-party licence suspended by Transport for London [...]
London named world’s top tech hub as leaders descend on the capital June 10, 2019 London has been named the top city in the world for foreign direct investment from overseas tech companies. The capital attracted significantly more projects in 2018 than any other country, according to data from London & Partners. It racked up 91 tech investment projects to the tune of £864m in the last 12 months, compared [...]
