Twitter and Facebook shut down network of Hong Kong misinformation accounts linked to Chinese state August 19, 2019 Facebook and Twitter have taken down a wide-ranging network of social media accounts and profiles linked to a Chinese state operation to create division among and about the Hong Kong protests. Twitter said more than 900 accounts were discovered as part of a “significant state-backed information operation” to plant misinformation about the protests. A total [...]
Tech giants hit back at France’s digital tax August 19, 2019 Silicon Valley leaders have said plans for a French digital tax were discriminatory against US firms, but urged President Donald Trump to avoid retaliating with tariffs. In evidence submitted to a hearing by the US Trade Representative’s Office (USTR) today, representatives for Google, Facebook and Amazon said the levy would hurt revenues, harm local businesses [...]
Uber poaches new UK boss from Twitter founder Dorsey’s Square August 19, 2019 Uber has nabbed one of Twitter chief Jack Dorsey’s right-hand staff as its new general manager for its operations in the UK and Ireland. Melinda Roylett, who was most recently head of Europe at Dorsey’s fintech firm Square, will start her role at Uber today, City A.M. can reveal. Before joining Wall Street-listed Square last [...]
Just Eat backer leads $11m raise for City fintech August 15, 2019 Prolific tech investor Index Ventures has led an $11m (£9.2m) series A round for London fintech firm Flatfair. Other participating investors included Onefinestay founder Greg Marsh, former Savills boss Jeremy Helsby, Transferwise co-founder Taavet Hinrikus, Revolt Ventures and Adevinta. Index has previously backed the likes of Facebook, Skype and Just Eat, among others. Flatfair allows [...]
Ailing economy puts strain on UK tech growth August 12, 2019 Following seven years of consecutive expansion in the fastest-growing sector of the UK economy, signs have emerged that growth in British tech has begun to slow. Business activity in the UK tech sector dropped from 54.4 in the first quarter to 53 in the second, according to a closely-watched industry bellwether index. Data from KPMG’s [...]
Klarna becomes Europe’s most valuable fintech in $460m raise August 6, 2019 Online payments giant Klarna has scooped up another $460m in an equity funding round led by Dragoneer, which values the fintech firm at $5.5bn. Other investors included Commonwealth Bank of Australia, HMI Capital, Starling Bank investor Merian Chrysalis, Forsta AP-Fonden, IPGL, Institutional Venture Partners and several funds managed by Blackrock. Swedish-born Klarna said it will [...]
Starling to break even as bank customers double August 4, 2019 Starling Bank is set to break even in the UK by the end of 2020, its founder and chief executive has said, after revealing that its user numbers have doubled in the last eight months. In her annual letter, Anne Boden said the fintech firm’s account total – spanning both business and retail users – [...]
Fintech star Revolut goes live with zero-fee Nasdaq stock trading service August 1, 2019 Digital bank Revolut has today launched its commission-free stock trading service, more than a year after it was first announced. The platform will present a fresh rival to London startup Freetrade, in addition to larger services such as those run by Etoro. Read more: Metro Bank finance director quits to take role with Revolut Enabled [...]
Apple shares turn green as services rise July 30, 2019 Apple’s booming revenue in its services division provided a boon to investors tonight, as shares bounced more than four per cent in after-hours trading. The Californian tech giant topped expectations for quarterly profit and revenue for the three months to the end of June, as performance improvement in China helped its results. Read more: Apple [...]
Scottish fintech Paysend closes £8.5m series B round July 26, 2019 Fintech firm Paysend has today announced the close of an £8.5m funding round, led by GVA Capital and a crowdfunding campaign on Seedrs. Silicon Valley-based GVA invested £3.95m in the round, while Revolut and Paypal-backers Plug and Play and Digital Space Ventures led the funding on Seedrs. More than 900 investors joined the crowdfunding effort, [...]
