Wall Street Journal: The May U.S. jobless rate fell to 13.3% and employers added 2.5 million jobs, early signs the labor market is mending after the coronavirus pandemic shut down parts of the economy nearly three months ago. “These improvements in the labor market reflected a limited resumption of economic activity that had been curtailed in March […]
Archives for June 2020
How pivoting added a whole new revenue stream for Stone Tyres
John Stone started Stone Tyres in 2016 as a bricks and mortar tyre garage. Based in St Helens, Merseyside, he built the business into one of the busiest and most recommended in the area. He had to shut-up shop for a month during lockdown, but this time to reflect sparked an opportunity to boost profits […]
API startup Postman in talks with Insight Partners to raise new funds at $2 billion
L-R: Postman founders Abhinav Asthana, Ankit Sobti and Abhijit Kane Software as a Service (SaaS) company Postman is in advanced talks with New York-based investment fund Insight Partners to raise around $150 million at a valuation of $2 billion, two people in the know of the deal details said. Postman is a collaboration platform for […]
FCA launches DB transfer probe into Lighthouse
The FCA has launched a probe into DB transfer advice given by advisers at Lighthouse Group – now part of Quilter. Following news of a DB transfer contingent charging ban by the FCA today, the regulator announced 30 enforcement investigations were also under way. Quilter, owner of Quilter Financial Planning, confirmed in a Stock Exchange […]
Ola earmarks Rs 500 crore to enhance safety, hygiene
Ride-hailing app Ola has committed Rs 500 crore over the next year for various initiatives to enhance safety and hygiene inside cabs in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic. The initiatives include driver training, prevention and sanitization protocols, a host of technology advancements like a newly designed Covid-19 ready app, hygiene and safety benchmark for […]
Editor’s Column: It’s a ban – or is it?
The FCA’s long awaited DB transfer review was published today with, seemingly, a ban on contingent charging which turns out to be not a complete ban after all. There are already ‘carve out’ exceptions for those on low incomes and life shortening medical conditions who may not be able to afford regular financial advice fees. […]
Industry split on contingent charging ban
The industry is split on its response to the FCA’s ban announced today on most contingent charging on DB pension transfer advice. A number of critics have rounded on the FCA for reducing access to DB transfer advice at a time when the Coronavirus crisis could mean more people were considering transfers. In its pension […]
TikTok owner ByteDance shuts down overseas news aggregator TopBuzz
ByteDance, owner of the global hit short-video app TikTok, has shut down its artificial-intelligence-based news aggregator TopBuzz, one of the company’s earliest products aimed at the global stage. “We’re proud of the work that we accomplished with TopBuzz, but (we) have determined that other areas of the business should be our priority going forward,” ByteDance […]
Slack revenue growth fails to impress
Picture: REUTERS/Brendan McDermid Slack on Thursday posted slowing quarterly sales growth, disappointing investors who had expected a surge in demand for its workplace messaging app as companies rapidly adopt remote working tools and technology. Slack also withdrew its 2021 billing outlook citing uncertainty driven by the Covid-19 pandemic, and said it had seen sales from […]
Swiggy, Zomato redraw exclusivity contracts with restaurants
Illustration: Rahul Awasthi Zomato and Swiggy have begun renegotiating exclusivity contracts with a slew of restaurants citing a downward impact on business due to the ongoing pandemic, said multiple people aware of the move. This could further exacerbate strained relations between the food delivery platforms and restaurants. Evoking the force majeure clause that frees both […]