European Commission sets aside €1bn in aid for Afghanistan and neighbour states October 12, 2021 The European Commission has pledged a further €700m to Afghanistan, taking its total funding to €1bn. Commission president Ursula von der Leyen announced the support package earlier today, as the socio-economic situation in Afghanistan has deteriorated since the fall of Kabul to the Taliban in August. “We must do all we can to avert a major [...]
Thank you for the music: Blackstone bets on lucrative music rights with $1bn Hipgnosis deal October 12, 2021 Blackstone has moved into the lucrative music copyrights market by backing Merck Mercuriadis’s music investment firm Hipgnosis with $1bn firepower to snap up music rights and manage catalogues. As part of the deal, Blackstone will take an ownership stake in Mercuriadis’ Hipgnosis Song Management (HSM), an adviser to the eponymous investment arm, Hipgnosis Songs Fund [...]
Binance launches $1bn fund to encourage mass crypto adoption – CityAM : CityAM October 12, 2021 Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, has launched a $1bn (£736m) Crypto Mass Adoption Fund to accelerate the use of digital assets and blockchain technology. The billion dollar investment will support the Binance Smart Chain, a blockchain which developers can use to build decentralised applications (dapps) and projects. Half of the fund will be reserved [...]
Energy bills for small businesses set to double this winter October 12, 2021 British businesses could see their energy costs rise by 125 percent this winter, as they are not included in Ofgem’s price cap which limits household bills. The average household in the UK benefits from an energy price cap that is currently set at £1,277 per year., although the price cap is expected to increase substantially [...]
UK shorter-term bookings surge compared with pre-Covid levels October 12, 2021 Despite uncertainty on travel restrictions, during the summer the British airline industry registered a 25 per cent jump in shorter-term international bookings compared with pre-pandemic levels. Data from the Airlines Reporting Corporation (ARC) showed that this year 52 per cent of international flight bookings from the UK were made over a four-week window, compared to [...]
Gymshark ‘aggressively’ pitched by banks as London IPO is on the cards October 12, 2021 Athleisure business Gymshark has started to put together plans for a stock market listing. The brand has been holding preliminary talks with institutional investors and investment banks about a flotation, Sky News has reported. The company hit a £1bn valuation just over a year ago and boasts customers in more than 130 countries. Gymshark was [...]
Macron pledges €30bn to re-industrialise and decarbonise France October 12, 2021 French president Emmanuel Macron has unveiled a €30bn plan to re-industrialise France, pledging funds to a string of sectors from across green energy to robotics. The plan, dubbed ‘France 2030’, has placed a renewed focus on decarbonising French industry, as the country looks to become a leader in green hydrogen. Speaking at the Elysee Palace, Macron [...]
Time is on Bitcoin’s side, and we’re talking about an NFT evolution October 12, 2021 In a wave of NFT evolution, Dr Kacher asks: Could Bitcoin, in time, be the world's next reserve currency?
UK Fintech Mode rolls out Bitcoin cashback reward scheme October 12, 2021 Mode, an open banking platform which lets users make cardless payments through its flagship mobile app, is rolling out Bitcoin rewards. UK customers will be given the opportunity to build up a holding in Bitcoin via Mode’s FCA registered app as part of a loyalty scheme organised in partnership with THG, a digital consumer brands [...]
Evergrande leaves more creditors empty handed October 12, 2021 Creditors to heavily indebted Chinese property giant Evergrande have not received around $150m in debt repayments that were due on Monday. The latest round of repayment miss was the third in as many weeks, increasing the likelihood that Evergrande will collapse soon. Evergrande has an October 18-19 debt payment deadline that will push into official [...]
