Regular readers of our News site will be aware that a regular feature of our coverage of the alternative finance (and specifically the FinTech) sector is the attempts at inwards investment by mainstream finance. The transfer of capital as been easily effected – but making a success of the business has proved altogether more difficult. […]
We continue our regular News updates on the UK government’s stimulus schemes, launched to combat Covid-19. Legal site JD Supra takes a look at the success, or otherwise, of the initiatives. We run an excerpt, with the full story available here. Each Scheme targets businesses of different sizes and, as such, provides differing levels of […]
Equity investment in the UK’s tech businesses increased by 27% in 2019 to £4.0bn, the highest amount since the series began in 2011, reveals the British Business Bank’s annual Small Business Equity Tracker report. Our friends at UK Tech News report: The UK’s thriving tech sector remains highly attractive to equity investors, accounting for 47% […]
Cash usage is fastest declining in the UK compared with the rest of Europe during coronavirus, according to research from Accenture. We’ve posted a blog recently on payment systems and the fast-changing identity requirements 9biometrics, etc) and how this will ultimately change what we think of as money itself (see the piece here). Cash certainly is […]
There are pivots, and then there are abrupt smacks in the face. A pivot is a swift change of business model; such changes, frequently executed without shareholder consultation, can cause disquiet amongst investors. The pivot highlighted today has stirred up business counterparties – in this case, the borrowers on direct lending platform (or rather, former […]
The old saying goes that in the digital world if the product is free, the payment is you. Or your information, at least. The notion that personal data is valuable is becoming more widely understood. “Behavioural biometrics” – the way we interact with our devices – are set to replace passwords in online finance, according […]
Mini-bonds are on the way out. The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is set to make permanent its ban on the marketing of mini-bonds to retail investors amid concerns over “unexpected and significant consumer loses”. But how unexpected were those losses, really? And what’s a mini-bond anyway? The investors who lost money in the multi-million horror show […]
A group of some of Europe’s largest FinTechs has joined forces to create and launch a new non-profit organisation, the European Fintech Association (EFA), according to our friends at AltFi. We have a couple of observations on this development. First, it will be interesting to see how the new group fits in with the ground […]
The surveillance society has well and truly arrived. Discounting the UK government’s embarrassing attempts to find traction for its track-and-trace app, the evidence is that our future is to be watched and identified by what we do, whether we like it or not. Witness this piece in the trade press: “Behavioural biometrics” – the way […]
Charles Rendell, chair of the Financial Conduct Authority, recently made an online presentation to retail bankers and others on the “front line” of the financial services industry. Mondovisione carries the text of the speech. We offer bullet-point highlights and the introduction. The full text is available here: Highlights The coronavirus (Covid-19) crisis shows we need […]