The main blog headlines are …
How to be a Unicorn (Part One)
Marko Wenthin, co-founder of solarisBank, recently contributed to my blog and, as a mate, has sent some great insights about starting up a FinTech firm which I thought I would share of FinTech banks last week. How to be a Unicorn (Part One) After announcing a whopping …
How to be a Unicorn (Part Two)
As mentioned yesterday, Marko Wenthin is contributing this week on how to become a FinTech unicorn. In Part One, he talked about fund raising. In part two, he focuses upon the challenges that then follow. How to be a Unicorn (Part Two) If you manage …
How to be a Unicorn (Part Three)
Marko Wenthin is contributing this week. He began with funding and then moved on to the issues you face once you secure that funding. In this final part, he focuses upon why it may be better to focus upon B2B2C, rather than just B2C. The …
Revolut: the growing pains of a FinTech unicorn
One of the things I say fairly often is that the FinTech start-up community is fairly naïve. Not all, but many, do not understand the nuances of finance and why it is regulated the way it is. Equally, some but not all behave in a …
Infrastructure and Incentive: Making Cashless a Reality
I often reflect on how quickly China is moving towards being cashless, as are parts of Africa and much of India. I then realised that it is a strong mix of simple infrastructure and strong incentive. In the case of M-PESA in Kenya, there was …
And the top news headlines this week are …
Exclusive: HSBC probe helped lead to U.S. charges against Huawei CFO - Reuters
An internal investigation by HSBC Holdings PLC into Huawei Technologies' connections to a suspected front company in Iran found that the Chinese telecommunications equipment maker maintained close financial ties to the firm years after purportedly selling the unit, documents reviewed by Reuters show.
Payday lenders preying on borrowers escape crackdown as rules rolled back - Guardian
Interest rates reach nearly 700% in some states as debate over how to regulate payday loans continues Asha Clark doesn’t have any savings. She works full-time. She earns a minimum wage, making phone calls as a customer service representative. In Las Vegas, Nevada, where she lives, that’s $8.25 an hour.
No bonus for Metro Bank boss after loans blunder - The Guardian
Craig Donaldson apologises for failures, which are to be investigated by City regulators Metro Bank’s chief executive will give up an annual bonus that was previously worth £800,000 following a major accounting mistake that is now under investigation by City regulators. Craig Donaldson told the Guardian that he offered to
SEC seeks contempt charge against Tesla's Musk, says tweet violates deal - Reuters
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is pursuing a contempt order against Tesla Inc CEO Elon Musk, saying he violated a fraud settlement by tweeting material information without preapproval, sending the firm's shares down 5 percent.
How has Brexit vote affected the UK economy? February verdict - Guardian
Each month we look at key indicators to see what effect the Brexit process has on growth, prosperity and trade Brexit uncertainty slows economy and raises risk of job losses Experts debate the Brexit outlook: ‘Stand by for gale-force winds’ Continue reading...
EU agrees tough post-Brexit financial services rules - Financial Times
UK groups will have to stick closely to standards in exchange for market access
JPMorgan warns of ‘high teens’ fall in trading revenue - Financial Times
Bank president’s cautious tone echoes overall mood of investor day
HSBC banking head to quit months after scathing memo - Financial News
Robin Phillips, HSBC's co-head of global banking, is to step down less than five months after a group claiming to be made up of senior members of the company's investment bank launched a blistering attack on the City veteran.
Shareholders received record dividends of almost £100bn in 2018 - Guardian
But Brexit could take a bite out of future returns from UK-listed companies, says report UK-listed firms paid record dividends last year, thanks to rising profits, but a report warns that shareholder payouts could take a big hit if Brexit goes badly. Companies listed on the UK’s main market shelled
RBS critic pays £20,000 for billboard criticising bank - Guardian
Former chief of company ‘pushed to failure’ says it is worth it to raise awareness A critic of Royal Bank of Scotland’s disgraced restructuring unit has spent £20,000 on a billboard berating the high street bank as part of efforts to reinstate an investigation into wrongdoing at the lender. Neil
Chris M Skinner
Chris Skinner is best known as an independent commentator on the financial markets through his blog, TheFinanser.com, as author of the bestselling book Digital Bank, and Chair of the European networking forum the Financial Services Club. He has been voted one of the most influential people in banking by The Financial Brand (as well as one of the best blogs), a FinTech Titan (Next Bank), one of the Fintech Leaders you need to follow (City AM, Deluxe and Jax Finance), as well as one of the Top 40 most influential people in financial technology by the Wall Street Journal's Financial News. To learn more click here...
