Starling banks £75m funding round from Merian Global Investors February 13, 2019 Starling Bank, one of fintech's Big Three digital banking stalwarts, has closed a £75m funding round led by Merian Global Investors. The challenger bank said £60m was provided by Merian, formerly known as Old Mutual, which included a £19m injection from Merian's equity investment firm Chrysalis. The round was closed out with £15m from Starling's sole existing investor [...]
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 [...]
Blockchain startup Chainalysis targets London with $30m raise from Accel February 12, 2019 Crypto compliance startup Chainalysis has raised $30m (£23.3m) from venture capital giant Accel to open an office in London's Soho. The US firm's series B round was supported by existing investor Benchmark, which upped its stake in the company after funding Chainalysis' $16m series A last year. Chainalysis said it will use the proceeds from the round to open [...]
The UK’s fintech sector hits record level of investment as startups turn into scale-ups February 12, 2019 Investment into the UK's blossoming fintech sector broke records last year, as the country's startups reached a new stage in their growth journey. Venture capital and private equity investment in British fintech rose to an all-time high of $3.3bn (£2.6bn), up 18 per cent compared to 2017's levels, according to data published today by Innovate Finance. [...]
Ebay’s acquisition of Motors.co.uk gets the green light from UK competition watchdog February 12, 2019 Ebay's acquisition of car search business Motors.co.uk has been given the all-clear by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA). The deal, first announced in October, last year, will see Ebay merge Motors.co.uk with its other consumer-facing car sales business Gumtree Motors. The CMA said at the time of launching its probe in December that it [...]
DEBATE: Should GCSEs be scrapped and replaced with a broader, more holistic curriculum? February 12, 2019 Should GCSEs be scrapped and replaced with a broader, more holistic curriculum? Robert Halfon, MP for Harlow and chair of the House of Commons Education Select Committee, says YES. Skills shortages cost our economy £6.3bn annually, while hundreds of thousands of young people are faced with the despair of unemployment and unfulfilled job-seeking. Brexit and the rise [...]
How data will power the cities of tomorrow February 12, 2019 By 2050, it is estimated that 68 per cent of the global population will live in cities – an influx of over 2.5bn. With that many people living in urban areas, it is clear that making cities work better is key to creating a safer, more sustainable world. Local issues are now global issues, and cities [...]
The stakes are high in the global 5G race February 12, 2019 High up in the Swiss Alps in Davos last month, it was clear that most of the town was pessimistic because of the outlook on trade and the global economy. But what should concern investors more is the breaking up of the global web through the arrival of what’s known as the “splinternet”. It’s increasingly likely [...]
Dwindling cash points spark joint campaign to protect access to physical money February 12, 2019 Small businesses and consumers have teamed up to rail against dwindling access to physical cash, in the wake of a glut of ATM closures last year. Figures from consumer magazine Which show more than 2,500 cash points were lost in the second half of 2018, while 3,000 bank branches have shut since 2015. Read more: [...]
The Great Russian Firewall: Putin’s unplugging his country from the internet February 11, 2019 Russia is preparing to detach itself from the rest of the world by briefly disconnecting from the internet, as it readies for future cyber warfare. The test, due to be held before 1 April, will keep all data circulating between Russian citizens and organisations within the country's borders rather than passing through international routes. The move [...]