Can Tokenisation Save the Rainforest and Cure “Climate Cancer”? December 17, 2020 J.P. Thieriot in conversation with James Bowater. J.P. is the co-founder of the Universal Protocol Alliance (UPA) an alliance of companies out of which the first carbon neutral Bitcoin has been born. First, can we understand the mission of the UPA? The mission started off a couple of years ago, addressing the consumer side of [...]
COVID and remote-work – is decentralisation the future? December 17, 2020 Vaccines for COVID-19 are here, but for many, remote working may be here to stay. The global pandemic has had an enormous impact on how most businesses operate. Organizations have shifted from office-based work and centralised operations to a remote and more agile way of working. One oft-quoted figure I saw early in the pandemic [...]
Pixar’s Soul is another existential gem from Pixar December 17, 2020 The release of Pixar’s Soul is a bittersweet experience for many movie fans. Anything that comes from the production line of the animation powerhouse feels like an event, and event movies should arrive in a cinema, not just another block of content alongside murder documentaries and Bake Off boxsets. Nonetheless, Pixar’s 23rd feature arrives on [...]
Bank of England holds rates and says vaccines ‘reduce risks’ to economy December 17, 2020 The Bank of England has left interest rates on hold at 0.1 per cent and its bond-buying programme at £895bn, saying the arrival of vaccines is likely to boost the economy next year but warning new restrictions will weigh on growth in the winter. It comes after the Bank expanded its quantitative easing programme by [...]
Gocardless nears $1bn valuation after latest funding round December 17, 2020 London fintech Gocardless is nearing unicorn status after its latest funding round amid a digital payments boom. The Alphabet-backed company announced it had raised $95m in its latest funding round led by the venture capital arm of Bain Capital, valuing the firm at over $970m. “This funding round demonstrates the strength of the business and [...]
Asda ramps up partnerships strategy with Accessorize and Decathlon trials December 17, 2020 High street chains Accessorize and Decathlon have launched trials with Asda to sell products in supermarket stores, as retailers seek to adapt to new consumer shopping trends that have formed during the pandemic. Fashion and jewellery brand Accessorize will sell its products in an Asda West Midlands store as part of a “test and learn” [...]
Ads giant WPP turns to tech to restore growth after accounting error December 17, 2020 WPP, the world's biggest advertising company, set out its plans to restore revenue growth to pre-pandemic levels by 2022.
Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmark: “My ideal Christmas present is an EU deal” December 17, 2020 We speak with Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmark about a challenging 2020, the future of luxury and the move to electric and self-driving cars.
PwC partners take 10 per cent cut as profits suffer December 17, 2020 Partners at PwC have suffered a 10 per cent cut to their earnings as the impact of the coronavirus hit the Big Four firm’s profits. Profits at the audit giant fell by 8 per cent to £938m in the firm’s latest financial year, as Covid-19 impacted on the business from March, with distributable profit per [...]
Cairn Energy to pay out special $250m dividend after Senegal sale December 17, 2020 Oil firm Cairn Energy today said it would pay shareholders a special dividend worth a combined $250m (£188m) on completion of the sale of its Senegalese assets. The one-off payment will see the exploratory firm pay out 32p per share to investors, it said in a statement. The payout, which is expected on 25 January, [...]
