What does China’s stock market meltdown mean for investors? August 2, 2021 Chinese markets have hit headlines again in recent weeks. Geopolitical tensions surrounding trade remain, but market behavior and performance – particularly in the tech sector – has also come to the fore. We asked Tom Wilson, Schroders’ Head of Emerging Market Equities, what’s causing the upset. The Chinese government seems to be cracking down on [...]
Olympics going high-tech: Artificial intelligence to prevent Tokyo heatstroke August 1, 2021 In addition to conventional measures like water spray and mist fans, Olympic organizers are going high-tech. This weekend, they have started deploying a cloud-based system from Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group to monitor workers’ real-time conditions and send warnings and advice at signs of heatstroke danger. Watch the full report. WATCH DOZENS OF OTHER VIDEO [...]
Analysis: Is AI really set to transform the banking industry? July 31, 2021 The future, or a fad? Shameek Kundu, Head of Financial Services at TruEra, looks at whether AI’s credibility gap could hold back the banking industry. Artificial Intelligence (AI) is widely seen as key to the banking industry’s transformation. Industry surveys, including one from the Bank of England, suggest that two in every three financial institutions have adopted AI in [...]
Bezos-backed plant food firm NotCo secures unicorn status July 26, 2021 A plant-based food firm backed by Jeff Bezos has nabbed unicorn status after raising $235m (£170m) in a star-studded funding round. NotCo, which makes plant-based milk, burger patties, meat and ice cream, was valued at $1.5bn following the round, which was led by Tiger Global. Venture capital firm DFJ Growth Fund also took part in [...]
City Moves: Who’s switching jobs in the Square Mile this week? July 21, 2021 City A.M.’s Millie Turner provides a roundup of the most important hires and job moves across the City, every Wednesday afternoon. Email citymoves@cityam.com to be featured. Ex-UBS and Canary Wharf Group chiefs join construction-tech firm British construction technology company Modulous has bolstered its London workforce with former Canary Wharf and UBS leads this week. Former director of the Canary Wharf Group Chris [...]
Burnley sign spread betting and trading platform Spreadex as main sponsor on one-year deal July 20, 2021 Burnley have signed up spread betting and financial trading platform Spreadex as their main shirt sponsor for next season. The one-year deal will see the company’s sports fixed odds and spread betting arm, Spreadex Sports, replace Chinese brand LoveBet as principal partner. Spreadex is understood to be paying slightly less than LoveBet, whose £7.5m deal [...]
Men are twice as likely to develop skin cancer: LifeJacket is here to help July 19, 2021 No doubt many of you were enjoying the sun this weekend, and many more will be out and about celebrating the taste of freedom granted today by the loosening of Covid restrictions. And while we all know in theory the dangers of sun damage, putting that knowledge into practice is often a step too far. It’s an [...]
Forward Partners loses pre-trading gains on London AIM debut July 19, 2021 Tech-focused venture capital firm Forward Partners’ pre-trading gains were eroded by almost 13 per cent upon its listing on London’s AIM market on Monday morning. Shares in the VC firm slid to 100p at some points on Monday following its AIM debut – in line with its float price, and 12.5 per cent down on [...]
How Fintech can harness the power of big data to redefine market forecasting July 13, 2021 Advances in predictive analytics using machine learning (ML) algorithms and blockchain technology demonstrate how innovations in financial services are challenging traditional systems to inform decisions, improve forecasting accuracy and bring better value to customers. As businesses seek to tap hidden intelligence within huge volumes of raw structured, semi-structured and unstructured data to support financial decision-making, [...]
Alibaba to launch £186m venture fund for startups in Southern China July 13, 2021 Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba announced said today it will launch a HK$2bn (£186m) venture fund to support startups in the Greater Bay Area of southern China. Alibaba Hong Kong Entrepreneurs Fund (AEF) will be an anchor investor for the new fund, which will target startups in the region focusing on sustainability, deep tech, health tech, [...]