Microsoft considering £8bn investment in Chat GPT owner, says Semafor January 10, 2023 Microsoft is in talks to invest $10bn (£8.2bn) into ChatGPT-owner Open AI, according to reports by Semafor earlier today, citing people familiar with the matter. According to the report, Microsoft’s investment would take OpenAI’s valuation up to $29bn. The deal would initially be based on a revenue share, which will see Microsoft take 75 per [...]
Aggressive institutional investors pushing into digital assets set to replace retail players January 10, 2023 Institutional investors are set to replace retail investors as the major holders of digital assets in 2023, according to new research shared with Morning Wire today. More than 7 out of 10 of professional investors believe institutions will hold 60 per cent of digital assets within seven years, reversing the current status where institutions hold [...]
London IPOs: 2023 outlook uncertain as value of cash raised in the capital slumps below global rivals January 10, 2023 The amount of cash raised through initial public offerings in London plunged 90 per cent last year as the market was buffeted by soaring inflation and the shocks of war in Ukraine, new figures show.
Plus500: Fintech group tops analysts’ estimates after boost in ‘high-value’ traders January 10, 2023 Fintech trading group Plus500 topped market expectations today as it said revenues for its full year swelled to around $832m on the back of a boost in "high value, long term" customers.
Sunak’s move to sweet talk Arm into London listing cheered by tech chief January 9, 2023 Rishi Sunak’s move to restart efforts to woo Arm into a London listing have been cheered by a top tech chief today, who said winning the chipmaker’s listing would be “significant vote of confidence in the UK market”. Sunak reportedly met with Arm’s chief Rene Haas last month in a bid to secure London a [...]
Lender owned by feared investor Elliott appoints ex Close Brothers chief as chair January 9, 2023 A specialist property lender owned by feared investment firm Elliott has snagged former Close Brothers chief executive Preben Prebensen as its chair, the firm announced today.
Comparethemarket owner backs London ‘insurtech’ Superscript in £45m funding round January 9, 2023 London-based insurance fintech Superscript announced it had bagged a £45m funding round led by the owner of Comparethemarket.com today, in a boost to the UK’s burgeoning ‘insurtech’ sector after a flurry of investment in the past two years.
Zopa Bank: Surviving recessions, battling digital banks and whether it will float in London this year January 9, 2023 Zopa is a firm that has weathered economic crises before. When the global financial crisis swept through the economy in 2008, the London-headquartered fintech was a little-known but early-moving peer-to-peer (p2p) lending shop connecting borrowers with willing investors. Banks had unsurprisingly reined in loans and hauled up the barricades, leaving consumers scrambling for cash through other [...]
BDO in the spotlight over Home REIT audit January 9, 2023 BDO is facing questions over its audit of troubled property investor Home REIT, after it was asked to look again at the social housing firm’s books amid accusations executives had been ‘round-tripping’ revenues and inflated the value of its property portfolio. Home REIT, which invests in housing for vulnerable groups, was forced to delay the [...]
UK fintech funding tumbles amid global slowdown, but London remains well ahead of global rivals January 9, 2023 Investment into the UK’s fintech sector slumped eight per cent last year as soaring inflation and the shocks of war in Ukraine brought an end to a decade-long global venture capital frenzy, figures shared exclusively with Morning Wire reveal.