Financial services sector must prepare as tech giants set to shake up the industry, FSB warns February 14, 2019 The financial services sector must prepare for both the benefits and risks of tech giants shaking up the industry, the global finance regulator has warned. The Financial Stability Board said that tech giants, such as Google, Amazon, Facebook and Apple, were muscling into the financial services sector and predicted that expansion to continue. Read more: [...]
Clash of Clans maker Supercell reports second consecutive year of falling profits February 12, 2019 Mobile gaming firm Supercell has posted falling sales and profits for a second year running, reporting a 26 per cent drop in income as its bestselling titles fail to age gracefully. The Finnish firm, which was the brains behind viral iPhone games Clash of Clans and Clash Royale, was last valued at $10bn (£7.8bn) in 2016 [...]
Reddit users launch Winnie the Pooh protest against Tencent amid censorship fears February 11, 2019 Defiant images of Winnie the Pooh have sprung up across community news site Reddit as users hit back at a major investment by Chinese tech giant Tencent. Reddit confirmed today that the Chinese conglomerate has contributed a $150m (£116m) investment in the website, which describes itself as the ‘front page of the internet’, as part of a wider [...]
International Investing – the whys and wherefores February 11, 2019 In 1926, engineer, inventor and philosopher Nicolas Tesla, said “”When wireless is perfectly applied the whole earth will be converted into a huge brain. We shall be able to communicate with one another instantly, irrespective of distance… and the instruments through which we shall be able to do his will be amazingly simple compared with [...]
Chinese tech firm Tencent is considering a bid for Nexon’s holding company January 19, 2019 Chinese tech firm Tencent is weighing up a bid for the holding company that controls South Korean gaming company Nexon. Tencent is looking to enlist co-investors as it considers making a move to acquire the company, according to Reuters. Private equity firms are looking at options for a potential deal, including taking the company private. [...]
Revolut rival digital bank N26 lands $300m funding round, becoming Europe’s most valuable fintech startup January 10, 2019 Digital banking startup N26 has closed the biggest funding round in European fintech in recent years, valuing the Monzo and Revolut challenger at $2.7bn (£2.1bn). The Berlin-based fintech, which offers a current account and debit card through its mobile banking app, has raised $300m in a series D round led by US venture capital firm Insight Venture Partners. [...]
Britain needs to step up to win the global AI healthcare race January 7, 2019 At this time of year, the news is invariably gearing up for a season full of stories about a crisis in hospital care. But away from the headlines, Britain is on the brink of a real global health success story – one we must capitalise on in 2019. It’s no stretch to say that the UK [...]
Stock predictions 2019: Which stocks and shares will do well this year? January 2, 2019 After a tumultuous year in the markets with Brexit uncertainty, the threat of trade war and rapidly changing consumer habits, the FTSE 100 suffered its worst year since the financial crisis in 2018, ending it 12.5 per cent down. While there is no sign that 2019 will be any less eventful, with the date Britain [...]
Chinese ride-hailing app Didi Chuxing expands into fintech as driver regulation rears its head January 2, 2019 Chinese ride-hailing app Didi Chuxing has expanded into financial services, as fresh domestic regulation threatened to put a dampener on its driver numbers. The firm has today launched a suite of financial products, including crowdfunded health insurance, wealth management and lending, all aimed at short-term workers on temporary contracts. The move comes after Didi announced a [...]
Chinese streaming giant Tencent Music raises $1.1bn in IPO December 12, 2018 Chinese tech giant Tencent will raise roughly $1.1bn (£877m) in the US initial public offering (IPO) of its music streaming division. Tencent Music priced its shares at $13 each, at the low end of its $13-$15 range, and will begin trading on the New York Stock Exchange today. The share price puts Tencent Music’s value [...]