Calls for sharing economy to be counted in official ONS figures January 25, 2016 Official measures of UK productivity and economic growth are failing to take into account the contribution of the sharing economy, according to a new report calling for a radical overhaul of statistics. The report, authored by economist Diane Coyle in conjunction with Sharing Economy UK (SEUK) and Airbnb, says a lack of measurement of the growing sector, epitomised by [...]
After banning Uber in Guangzhou, the Chinese government is starting its own online taxi service in the city May 25, 2015 The Chinese city of Guangzhou may have banned Uber, but that hasn’t stopped its municipal government setting up its own, strikingly similar, online taxi company. The new company will be named Ruyue, which means “by appointment”. Uber was shut down in the city a matter of weeks ago, after authorities raided its offices, murmuring about [...]
Uber’s chief executive is among 30 charged with operating illegal taxi ring in South Korea March 18, 2015 Uber has come under fire for operating an “illegal taxi ring” in South Korea. According to Yonhap News Agency, Seoul District Police have charged 30 people associated with the company, including chief executive Travis Kalanick. Others range from Uber Korea's brand manager to the heads of car rental companies and a number of drivers. [...]
Davos 2016: Who’s who at the World Economic Forum (and who’s notably absent) – from Leonardo DiCaprio to Travis Kalanick and George Osborne January 17, 2016 If it seems like Davos reads like a who’s who of the world elite, you wouldn’t be wrong. On the Swiss slopes, the annual gathering of the World Economic Forum which kicks off this Wednesday, brings together the world’s biggest politicians, business leaders and a sprinkling of celebrities to liven things up too Leonardo DiCaprio is the [...]
Gotham Air is Uber for helicopters March 13, 2015 Pills, pets, hot stone massages – there's an Uber for all of them. But now the "hail something from your smartphone" model has gone considerably more upmarket, after the launch of Gotham Air – an Uber for helicopters. Admittedly hailing a helicopter comes with more conditions than hailing a cab. Firstly, at the moment it's [...]
Uber expansion: Lessons on how to rapidly scale March 29, 2015 How does a business scale in five years, from operations in one city to a presence in over 280? Uber, the Silicon Valley tech firm, has done just that – in the meantime disrupting the entire private car hire industry. What lessons does it offer other ambitious firms? Uber is a local service operating on [...]
Uber banned for the second time in Germany March 18, 2015 In what seems to be a never-ending back and forth Uber has officially been banned in Germany – again. A regional court in Frankfurt ruled that Uber's low-cost ride-sharing service UberPop is now banned throughout the country. The case was brought by taxi union Taxi Deutschland that been battling Uber for over a year. Dieter [...]
Beware fintech’s pivot to China April 12, 2016 Ever since former Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins declared an ”Uber moment” for banks, the powers that be from the Square Mile to Canary Wharf have rushed to defend themselves against a herd of ambitious fintech unicorns. But if recent collaborations between financial titans and spritely startups are anything to go by, it appears the [...]
Don’t fear falling tech firm valuations: This isn’t a repeat of the dot-com bust April 19, 2016 Is tech overvalued? Are we heading for another painful bust? If you only read the headlines and looked at the numbers, you might believe that. After reaching record levels, some tech startup valuations are falling. And with global economic conditions looking gloomy again, those valuations might drop further. Together with my partner Steve Schlenker, I [...]
Uber fundraising: Here’s one chart showing how fast its valuation has grown May 11, 2015 Another day, another Uber funding round – this time the cab app is looking to raise between $1.5bn and $2bn, a report has suggested. If it does raise that much (and let's be honest – it almost certainly will), Uber will be valued at $50bn, setting it on a course to become the most valuable [...]