Crypto criminals: Consumers lose more than $2m in Musk impersonation scams May 17, 2021 Crypto scammers have swindled consumers out of £1.4m in the last six months by impersonating Tesla chief Elon Musk. Scammers claiming to be Musk on social media, who is known for moving crypto markets with his thoughts on Bitcoin, Dogecoin and others, have been identified by the US Federal Trade Commission. Investment scams take on [...]
Indian Covid-19 variant ‘well spread’ across London as cases surge May 17, 2021 The Indian variant is now “well-spread” in London as a rise in new cases is set to prompt further surge testing across the country. Health secretary Matt Hancock today said there were 2,323 cases of the more transmissible strain of the virus in England, with five or more cases found in 86 local authorities. Bolton [...]
Softbank ‘mulls $300bn Spac listing’ for Vision Fund May 17, 2021 Softbank is reportedly weighing up a $300bn (£212bn) blank-cheque deal to take its tech-focused Vision Fund public. The Japanese conglomerate is said to be discussing plans to raise capital through a special purpose acquisition company (Spac) deal on the Amsterdam stock exchange later this year. It is planning to seek around €250bn from the listing, [...]
Bill Gates left Microsoft board amid investigation into affair May 17, 2021 Microsoft founder Bill Gates had an affair with an employee and stepped down from the company’s board during an investigation into the matter, according to multiple reports. The tech giant today confirmed that it had launched a probe almost two years ago after receiving a complaint about Gates’ behaviour. A spokesperson said the company had [...]
Covid-19: Cost of UK’s pandemic response climbs to £372bn May 17, 2021 The UK’s response to the coronavirus pandemic has now racked up costs of £372bn, according to the latest official estimates. In a new update to its Covid-19 cost tracker, the National Audit Office (NAO) said £372bn was the estimated total cost of emergency financial support as of May 2021. This marks an increase of over [...]
BT results: Will the telecoms giant ring the changes after Covid? May 12, 2021 The City will turn its attention to BT tomorrow morning, when the blue-chip telecoms giant will announce its results for the full year. The former state monopoly has seen its share price recover in the last year, but it’s been a tough year as the pandemic took its toll on revenue and profit. Here’s what [...]
Queen’s speech: Anger over social media safety laws as online scams excluded May 11, 2021 Campaigners have hit out at the government’s decision not to include scams in new legislation aimed at stamping out online harms. Plans to hold tech firms liable for harmful material posted to their platforms moved forward today after the Online Safety Bill was confirmed in the Queen’s Speech. The draft laws will force companies such [...]
Michel Barnier calls for halting of immigration to EU May 11, 2021 Michel Barnier calls for halting of immigration to EU
Pret a Manger plots Tesco store launch in bid to shake off City image May 11, 2021 Pret a Manger is planning to open stores in Tesco supermarkets as it looks to shrug off its reputation as a hotspot for office workers. The trial partnership marks efforts by the coffee chain to broaden its appeal, with boss Pano Christou saying he wanted to “bring Pret to the people”. Its first concession will [...]
Rhyme or treason: Chinese tech giant Meituan’s boss in hot water over ancient poem May 11, 2021 Shares in Chinese tech giant Meituan have dropped sharply after its chief executive posted an ancient poem on social media that was interpreted as a veiled criticism of President Xi Jinping. Wang Xing, the billionaire boss of the food delivery app, posted The Book Burning Pit by Zhang Jie on a Chinese social media platform [...]
