A bright new day for Monitise as new backers Santander, Telefonica and MasterCard join November 27, 2014 Monitise co-chief executive and founder Alastair Lukies felt vindicated yesterday after announcing three business giants had backed his mobile money business with a £49.2m investment and would all look to expand their commercial relationships with the company. And although no firm contracts were announced between Monitise and its partners, City A.M. understands that there could [...]
£106m Quantum IPO puts Zeus Capital over £1bn raised November 27, 2014 Zeus Capital has advised on over £1bn worth of funds raised on Aim this year, after securing £106m for Quantum Pharma’s float next month. Quantum, the County Durham-based firm, is set to become the biggest pharmaceutical and biotech float on Aim this year with a valuation of £125m when its shares begin trading on 11 [...]
Boris Johnson leads London FinTech delegation to Singapore in push to expose City startups and entrepreneurs November 27, 2014 London’s financial technology (FinTech) sector has received more than half of all European FinTech venture capital (VC) investments made so far this year, a record $539m (£342.6m) and triple the amount raised in 2013. The new figures from London & Partners come as London Mayor Boris Johnson leads a FinTech trade delegation in Singapore today [...]
London startup Yoyo in mobile payments app deal with AirAsia November 27, 2014 Euston-based startup Yoyo is set to launch the first pan-Asian mobile payments and loyalty app as part of an expected agreement with Malaysian budget airline AirAsia, to be announced next week, City A.M. understands. Yoyo co-founders Alain Falys and Michael Rolph are in Singapore today with the Mayor of London Boris Johnson to showcase [...]
Split BT and Openreach: £10bn takeover talks with O2 and EE raise competition concerns for Vodafone and TalkTalk November 26, 2014 BT’s biggest rivals voiced competition concerns last night as the former state monopoly continued £10bn takeover talks with the owners of mobile networks O2 and EE. Vodafone and TalkTalk would both call on the regulator to ensure greater separation between BT and its infrastructure arm Openreach, even going so far as to push for the [...]
Uber valued at over $40bn as the ride hire app looks to raise $1bn November 26, 2014 UBER, the controversial ride hire smartphone app, is close to raising more than $1bn (£633m) in a funding round that could reportedly value the business at up to $40bn. While the financing round has yet to close and the terms and investors involved could still change, according to Bloomberg, US investors T. Rowe Price Group [...]
Is there a cure for Ebola? GlaxoSmithKline sees success in first human vaccine trials November 26, 2014 The first Ebola vaccine to be tested on humans has shown promising results in early trials, GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) said last night. GSK said the vaccine, co-developed with the US National Institutes of Health, was “well-tolerated and produced an immunological response in each of the 20 healthy adult volunteers in the US who received it”. The [...]
Cath Kidston to step down as creative director of her homeware group November 26, 2014 Cath Kidston is stepping down from her eponymous UK homeware company, 21 years after founding it. Kidston, currently creative director of the brand and chain of high street stores, will become a non-executive director of the group from 5 December as she leaves the day-to-day running of the business. “When I opened my first shop [...]
Finsbury Food Group share price rises after bumper £56m takeover of rival baker Fletchers November 26, 2014 Cake and bread-maker Finsbury Food Group said revenues grew to £57.3m during the four months to 27 September, showing organic growth of 3.9 per cent in the period. The trading statement came ahead of Finsbury’s annual shareholder meeting yesterday, where all the group’s resolutions were passed, and follows its £56m takeover of rival bakeries group [...]
2014 Black Friday to push UK Christmas spend to £91bn November 26, 2014 Half of Britain’s shoppers are set to storm online stores, shopping centres and supermarkets tomorrow in what is expected to be one of the biggest shopping occasions of the year. Some 47 per cent of shoppers are preparing to take part in Black Friday, which is expected to help push the UK’s Christmas spending up [...]
