Barclays plugs $6m into London financial tech startup Simudyne April 8, 2019 Financial simulation technology firm Simudyne will today announce the close of a $6m (£4.6m) series A funding round, led by Barclays. Early Snap and Lyft investor Graphene Ventures also joined the round, alongside Gauss Ventures which has previously backed digital banks Revolut and Tandem. The round raises Simudyne’s total amount of investment to date to [...]
Monzo set to overtake Revolut as fresh funding lifts valuation to £2bn April 7, 2019 Digital bank Monzo is set to double its valuation to almost £2bn after securing hefty backing in its latest fundraising round. The bank will reportedly close a £100m funding round, led by a new US investor, that will take its valuation to $2.5bn (£1.9bn) and make it the UK’s second-largest fintech startup. Read more: Oaknorth [...]
Drones, Gatwick, and the future: how this new aerial technology can benefit the UK economy and the public good April 7, 2019 New technologies always stir emotion, and as we’ve seen with the drone incidents at Heathrow and Gatwick, they can even result in new legislation. Following the announcement by the government and Civil Aviation Authority regarding an extended no-fly zone and stop-and-search powers for police, it is clear that the time is right to increase our [...]
Growing number of cyber attacks ‘damaging’ critical UK infrastructure April 5, 2019 An increasing number of key infrastructure sites have been hit by cyber attacks in recent years, sparking fears the UK is vulnerable to a “crippling” large-scale attack. Nine out of ten security professionals working in the critical infrastructure sector said their sites had been damaged by at least one cyber attack over the last two [...]
Morgan Stanley selected to steer Uber through $120bn IPO April 5, 2019 Morgan Stanley has reportedly been chosen to ensure Uber has a smooth ride through its initial public offering (IPO) after a string of volatile tech floats have set nerves jangling. The ride-hailing app has named the US investment bank as stabilisation agent for its eagerly-awaited IPO, Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. Read [...]
Samsung warns of 60 per cent drop in quarterly profits as smartphone sales slide April 5, 2019 Samsung Electronics has warned its first quarter profits are likely to plunge 60 per cent compared to the same period last year. The South Korean tech firm said its profit for the first three months of the year was likely to be between 6.1 trillion and 6.2 trillion won (£4.1bn), down from 13.6 trillion won [...]
US blocks Amazon’s attempts to ban shareholder vote on facial recognition software April 5, 2019 US authorities have blocked an effort by Amazon to prevent its investors from voting on two proposals about the sale of the company’s facial recognition service. Investors had put forward proposals for a potential audit of its facial recognition software, known as Rekognition, over concerns about breaches of privacy and civil rights. Read more: Millions [...]
Game over? Competition watchdog to probe console video gaming autorenewals April 5, 2019 The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) today launched a consumer law investigation into the console gaming sector. The watchdog said the investigation would focus on the auto-renewal practice of Nintendo Switch, Playstation and Xbox. Read more: Astro Bot Rescue Mission is the PlayStation VR's killer app It said it was “concerned about whether some of [...]
Google scraps AI ethics board after just a week amid controversy over board member April 5, 2019 Google has scrapped its AI ethics board only a week after forming it following a controversy over its choice of board members. The tech giant last week unveiled its newly-formed Advanced Technology External Advisory Council (ATEAC) to oversee the ethical development and use of its AI research and products. Read more: Here's how much Google [...]
Some things are better left unread – here’s why you need to ditch the office email April 5, 2019 Email can feel like a quick, modern form of communication, but in reality it could not be more outdated. In the world of business, we’ve been using this same format for decades. And now the wear marks are starting to show. Sure, email is easy enough to use. It has its advantages. But the conversations [...]
