Taxify relaunches in London under Bolt branding in challenge to Uber June 11, 2019 The European ride-hailing firm formerly known as Taxify is today relaunching its services in London, two years on from being forced to halt rides in the capital. The firm, which first entered the UK market in 2017 via the purchase of an existing private hire business, had its third-party licence suspended by Transport for London [...]
Fashion app Depop grabs $62m from Airbnb and Uber investor June 7, 2019 British fashion marketplace app Depop has today closed a series C funding round at $62m (£48.8m), led by US venture capital stalwart General Atlantic. Existing investors HZ Holtzbrinck Ventures, Balderton Capital, Creandum, Octopus Ventures and Tempocap also participated in the round, alongside Klarna founder Sebastian Siemiatkowski. Depop said it will use the funding to expand [...]
Go-Ahead shares thrive as it predicts higher sales June 6, 2019 Go-Ahead expects revenues to be higher than originally thought in its London and international bus division, it said today. Read more: Go-Ahead appoints new interim chief financial officer The transport company also said it has seen its growth in passenger volumes and revenues in all regional bus businesses. That sent Go-Ahead’s share price soaring 9.4 [...]
Softbank earns $11bn for selling some of its huge Alibaba stake June 4, 2019 Japan’s Softbank will book a pre-tax profit of $11.1bn (£8.75bn) for selling part of its stake in Chinese ecommerce giant Alibaba. The sale forms part of a three-year-old deal to sell assets in order to buy British chip designer ARM for $32bn in 2016. Read more: Uber IPO: Shares slide on second day of trading [...]
Uber under investigation by US and foreign tax authorities June 4, 2019 Uber has revealed it is under investigation by a string of tax authorities in the US and abroad. The ride-hailing firm said in a filing today that the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has launched a probe into its taxes for 2013 and 2014. Read more: Uber loses $1bn in first quarterly results since stock market [...]
Softbank struggles to raise cash for its second $100bn Vision Fund June 3, 2019 Japanese technology giant Softbank has received a chilly reception from some of the world’s biggest investors as it seeks to raise cash for a second $100bn (£79bn) mega fund. The firm’s chief executive, Masayoshi Son, announced Softbank's Vision Fund II in May, saying that many existing investors had expressed interest in the new fund. Read more: Softbank gears [...]
One in five digital transformation projects fails as tech knowledge falls short June 2, 2019 One in five businesses has launched an unsuccessful digital transformation project, new research has revealed, as companies fail to get to grips with new technology. Figures published by digital services firm Econocom showed a sharp increase in the number of businesses undergoing digital transformation, but revealed 20 per cent are doomed to fail. Read more: [...]
Uber loses $1bn in first quarterly results since stock market float May 30, 2019 Uber has reported a $1bn (£790m) loss in its first quarterly financial report as a public company, despite revenue rising by one-fifth. Read more: Uber partners with insurtech start-up to offer digital insurance The loss will not come as a surprise to investors in the ride-hailing giant, after it already predicted the figure in a [...]
Uber partners with insurtech startup to offer digital insurance May 30, 2019 Ride sharing giant Uber has struck a deal with a US insurtech startup to offer digital insurance for its drivers. Inshur uses information about average trips, locations and driver ratings in near real-time to calculate the price of the driver’s policy. Read more: Uber facing £1bn VAT tax bill after HMRC opens investigation The startup [...]
Freebike to launch electric bike-sharing scheme in the City May 28, 2019 Electric bike company Freebike is set to launch a dockless bike-sharing service in the Square Mile after securing a contract with the City of London Corporation. The pedal-assist electric bikes will allow workers to travel around the City using the Freebike app or by swiping a contactless card, with a pause facility enabling users to [...]