Meet the six tech startups working with Transport for London to make the capital a smart city in Nitrous accelerator’s first cohort May 15, 2017 Six star startups have been chosen to delve into Transport for London’s troves of data to help transform the capital into a so-called smart city. Entrepreneurs working to reduce congestion on the trains, buses and roads of London as well as pollution will join the first Nitrous accelerator, designed to connect up-and-coming tech companies with [...]
London must take a leaf from Hong Kong’s book to thrive amid Brexit uncertainty April 4, 2017 With Article 50 signed, sealed and delivered, we are heading into a new chapter of uncertainty. And this is the reason why, after 20 years building my career as an entrepreneur and investor in Hong Kong and Asia, I am uprooting and returning to London. I have seen first-hand how Hong Kong has evolved since [...]
How to identify the target audience for your mobile app April 19, 2017 Building your app and then getting your product ready for market is not a quick process. Time is the most valuable commodity, and any successful app will require a serious time investment. We at appScatter want your investment to work. We will explain how time spent on our platform will identify your target audience and [...]
Zopa’s raised £32m ahead of challenger bank launch, from Spotify and iZettle-backer Northzone and India’s Wadhawan Global Capital June 1, 2017 Online peer-to-peer lender Zopa has raised fresh cash in preparation for the launch of its own challenger bank. The £32m comes from Wadhawan Global Capital, an Indian financial services firm and Northzone, the venture capital firm which has previously backed Spotify, iZettle and MarketInvoice, among others. Read more: Zopa just got full approval as a [...]
Q&A: What does the new Brexit blueprint actually mean for the City’s future? September 26, 2017 City A.M. answers the need-to-know questions behind the City’s key Brexit report. Why is this necessary? In January Prime Minister Theresa May announced the UK will leave the EU’s Single Market after Brexit, in the biggest upheaval in trade between Britain and Europe since the UK joined. For the City’s financial services firms wishing to [...]
Philip Hammond enlists Mark Carney and Simon Kirby for first UK FinTech conference February 26, 2017 The government will host its first ever International FinTech conference as part of FinTech Week 2017, chancellor Philip Hammond announced today. City minister Simon Kirby and Bank of England governor Mark Carney will join the chancellor at the conference, which will feature panels and workshops as well as opportunities for UK FinTech firms to pitch [...]
WannaCry ransomware NHS cyber attack: A final warning for banks and fintech May 15, 2017 It was the most high profile cyber attack in some time, and one of the largest ever carried out. Governments, hospitals, companies and universities in over 150 countries were affected by the recent ‘WannaCry’ cyber attack, which affected more than 230,000 computers with ransomware and demanded bitcoin payments. Media coverage in the UK focused on [...]
When blockchain meets online lending: The business using one to improve the other April 13, 2017 Leveraging technology to create a new asset class has been done a fair amount in the financial world – most notably in recent years by the P2P industry, which makes credit more accessible, faster and cheaper for individuals and business while delivering a return to investors, via increasingly accurate risk profiling. Sydney-based platform Othera goes [...]
Banks and asset managers on the prowl for fintech firms with M&A (mergers and acquisitions) buying spree ahead April 7, 2017 Almost one in three banks and asset managers plan to buy a fintech firm in the next 18 months as firms prepare for an increasingly technology-focused future, a new survey showed. Some 31 per cent of financial services firms surveyed have plans to buy another firm, while almost half said they were collaborating or partnering [...]
What will innovation look like in 2018? Bird & Bird’s Digital Innovators tell us all about the year ahead November 24, 2017 In a year when quantum computing made major leaps forward and using your face as a password became a reality, you’d be forgiven for being hard pushed to imagine just how much further technology can take us. But 2018 will certainly be a year for driving even more innovation for the 50 up-and-coming companies chosen [...]