General News

April 18, 2024 @ 8:43 am By Omar Faridi  |  

More than a third (36%) of senior leaders in the financial services sector use generative AI at least once a day at work, according to new research from KPMG UK. Of all senior professionals in the sector, CEOs are “the most frequent users (30%) of… Read More

April 18, 2024 @ 8:38 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Revolut, the global financial app with more than 40 million customers worldwide, has  announced the release of its first Financial Crime and Consumer Security Report, containing exclusive scam and fraud insights. The report, based on extensive internal research and data analysis, “aims to shed light… Read More

April 17, 2024 @ 10:53 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Deloitte announced the expansion of its global Generative AI (GenAI) incubator network to include regional hubs in the US, Canada, India, Egypt, Malaysia, Poland, Portugal and Romania—allowing clients to experiment and innovate with GenAI technology, and to develop, deploy, and scale solutions in their local… Read More

April 17, 2024 @ 10:18 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Brite Payments, an enabler of instant bank payments, announced that Luke Trayfoot has joined the company as Chief Commercial Officer (CCO), leading the Stockholm-headquartered fintech’s commercial efforts. The appointment of the former PayPal and Mangopay executive signifies “a new phase in Brite’s journey as it… Read More

April 17, 2024 @ 8:20 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Innovate UK and the British Business Bank have further strengthened their collaboration by signing a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU). As partners dedicated to fostering innovation and growth of UK businesses “across the country, this new collaboration will see the two organizations working even more closely… Read More

April 17, 2024 @ 7:46 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Latest NatWest Regional PMI survey data showed business activity rising almost universally across the UK in March, “supported by a general upturn in demand.” Trends in employment remained “more mixed, with just over half of areas seeing growth in job numbers amid still-strong cost pressures.”… Read More

April 16, 2024 @ 5:59 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

It’s becoming important for businesses to undergo digital transformation, with 54% of global consumers saying that brands lack a deep understanding of customers. The new generation of shoppers, especially Gen Z and millennial consumers, reportedly “want 70% of their interactions with brands to be digital.”… Read More

April 15, 2024 @ 7:57 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Xero, the global small business platform, today released a Xero Small Business Insights (XSBI) special report which shows Australian small business labor productivity is keeping pace with national productivity growth, but remains below pre-pandemic levels. The report, Small business productivity: Trends, implications and strategies, is… Read More

April 15, 2024 @ 7:52 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Following the launch of the Anti-Scam Consumer Protection Charter last year, the Hong Kong Monetary Authority (HKMA) announced (10 April), in collaboration with the Hong Kong Association of Banks (HKAB), the launch of the Anti-Scam Consumer Protection Charter 2.0. With the participation of more institutions… Read More

April 15, 2024 @ 5:49 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

More than half of all devices (55%) targeted by password-stealer attacks in 2023 were infected with the Redline malware, Kaspersky Digital Footprint Intelligence has found. As the malware development market continues to flourish with new stealers, such as Lumma, for the last three years Redline… Read More

April 15, 2024 @ 2:04 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The latest KPMG and REC, UK Report on Jobs survey, compiled by S&P Global, continued to signal falling levels of recruitment activity in March. Amid reports of hiring freezes and cost cutting at clients, recruitment consultants signaled another marked “decline in permanent placements as well… Read More

April 15, 2024 @ 1:56 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Abrigo, a provider of financial crime prevention and risk management solutions for U.S. financial institutions, announced new survey results revealing how Americans and small businesses are struggling with check fraud, along with misperceptions about the growing problem. More than one thousand adults in the U.S.,… Read More

April 15, 2024 @ 7:11 am By Omar Faridi  |  

European megafunds raised record amounts of capital in 2023, according to an update from PitchBook. Most notably, the top five funds contributed “to a record concentration of over half the year’s fundraising figure in Europe, with CVC Capital Partners raising a global record €26 billion… Read More

April 14, 2024 @ 11:41 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

With summer fast approaching, Lloyds Bank is warning hopeful holidaymakers they could fall victim to a scam when booking a trip. These scams have reportedly “risen 7% over the past year, with people losing £765 on average, with those aged 35 to 44 – often… Read More

April 14, 2024 @ 10:40 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Cyberattacks have more than doubled since the pandemic, according to a recent update shared by the International Monetary Fund (IMF). While companies have historically suffered relatively modest direct losses from cyberattacks, some have “experienced a much heavier toll,” the IMF report notes. US credit reporting… Read More

April 14, 2024 @ 2:12 pm By Michael Wong  |  

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) announced that Bulgarian economist Kristalina Georgieva has been selected to serve a second five-year term as its managing director, beginning October 1. The IMF’s executive board praised Georgieva for her “strong and agile leadership,” which has steered the institution through… Read More

April 14, 2024 @ 11:07 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Pactio, the digital infrastructure for private markets, has raised $14 million (£11 million) in a Series A round led by EQT Ventures. Private equity industry insiders and tech angels also participated in the oversubscribed round, “including former Stripe Europe CEO Matt Henderson and Volt founder… Read More

April 13, 2024 @ 8:14 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The CMA has outlined 3 key risks to effective competition on AI Foundation Models and has set out plans for further action in the market. The move from the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) follows its initial report on AI Foundation Models (FMs) last year…. Read More

April 12, 2024 @ 11:24 am By JD Alois  |  

The UK economy barely posted a positive figure in February, according to the Office for National Statistics.  Monthly GDP is said to have grown by 0.1% in February 2024, following growth of 0.3% in January 2024. The consecutive growth indicates that the UK has exited… Read More

April 12, 2024 @ 9:15 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Scotiabank announced an expanded partnership with Google Cloud, naming it the enterprise cloud platform of choice for the next phase of the Bank’s cloud acceleration journey. The bank will leverage Google Cloud technology “to enhance client and employee experience, strengthen Bank security, and adopt new… Read More