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Coronavirus boosts digital banking as Argentines lose fondness for cash

SoftBank-funded fintech challenger Ualá expands rapidly amid the pandemic




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Vale launches New York front in bitter battle with Beny Steinmetz

Brazilian group alleges tycoon’s family-controlled mining arm fraudulently funnelled $500m into Manhattan real estate




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City watchdog looks to shake up savings market

New rules require banks to stick with a single rate after introductory deals




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What do children spend their pocket money on?

In our increasingly cashless society, parents are turning to apps and payment cards designed for youngsters




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Why I won’t be taking up a savings challenge

Putting aside £100 a week is just a pipe dream — and what would it achieve anyway?




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Retired customers find it harder to break up with their bank  

Finding a good credit card deal when you’re older is more difficult




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What I wished I’d known about money when I was young

Young people may face many challenges, but they also have many wealth creation opportunities




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Finance on Instagram: what’s not to like? 

Money matters are a surprise hit on the photo-sharing app




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Pandemic policies: Rishi Sunak’s first  Budget and a cut in the base rate

Surprise measures on pensions and investing for children lay in the chancellor’s red box




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How to teach your children about the stock market 

Lockdown presents a golden educational opportunity, particularly if you work in investment




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Coronavirus: Congress passes $484bn interim stimulus package — as it happened

US job gains since financial crisis wiped out. Switzerland faces sharpest economic contraction since 1974. UK and eurozone business activity hit by historic collapse this month as lockdowns choked Europe’s biggest economies.

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Coronavirus: Small business loan scheme capped for US banks — as it happened

In today’s news: UK warns it would be ‘irresponsible’ to discuss easing lockdown. Spain sets out plan to lift its own tough measures. Donald Trump signals a halt to his daily media briefings as US death toll accelerates.

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Coronavirus: Trump makes new push to expand US testing — as it happened

New daily cases of Covid-19 around the globe rose by the lowest amount in 12 days as 73,858 diagnoses were confirmed on Sunday, bringing the total to 2.93m

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Coronavirus: Record daily increase takes US death toll above 55,000 — as it happened

The worldwide Covid-19 death toll rose by 6,365 on Tuesday, pushing the total through 200,000

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Coronavirus: US deaths spike as fatalities spread outside NY — as it happened

Russia's coronavirus outbreak worsens and Federal Reserve research finds a correlation between deaths from the influenza pandemic in 1918-1920 and extremist voting in Germany in 1932 and 1933

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Coronavirus: US death toll tops 70,000 as New York fatalities top 20,000 — as it happened

BT halts dividend for first time since dot com bubble two decades ago, BA parent IAG warns of further cuts as recovery set to take three years and shoemaker Puma warns worse to come as profits halve in first quarter

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Coronavirus latest: Spain’s Sánchez urges caution as lockdown is eased

Thousands attend military parade in Belarus even as virus spreads rapidly in neighbouring Russia, UK airline industry warns of huge blow if travel quarantine is launched and Seoul closes down bars and clubs in wake of new cluster

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Erik Fyrwald: Changing the image of the agrochemicals industry

Concerns over climate change led the chemicals veteran to dramatically transform Syngenta




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Bayer risks mount as US pesticide lawsuits double

German chemicals group faces surge in plaintiffs alleging cancer link to Roundup




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Surge in plastics production defies environmental backlash

Cheap shale gas has fed an investment boom in products that often end up as waste. Has the petrochemicals industry miscalculated?




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Bayer faces more claims over weedkiller cancer allegations

Rise in plaintiffs comes as German chemicals group reports 19% jump in sales




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Banks’ call for Iofina coup slated as ‘self-serving’

Iodine producer rejects Brexiter’s coronavirus play as ‘probably not very educated’




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Stocks of hand sanitiser ingredient run low in Europe

Products vital to combat coronavirus could become more expensive and scarce




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Zeitgold raises $29.2M to automate bookkeeping

Zeitgold has raised a Series B round of $29.2 million (€27 million). Overall, the company has raised more than $54 million (€50 million). The company is building a software platform for small companies to automate bookkeeping as much as possible. Vintage Investment Partners is leading today’s round with existing investors Battery Ventures, HV Holtzbrinck Ventures, […]




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As Europe slowly unlocks, e-scooter startups, like Helbiz, are wooing with offers

At the start of the year, it looked like Europe would be in for a “Summer E-Scooters / E-Bike War,” as both regional startups and U.S.-backed unicorns vied for the pockets of city commuters. Consolidation came when German startup Circ was taken over by U.S. competitor Bird at the start of the year. Still on […]




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TechCrunch’s top 16 picks from Techstars April virtual demo days

Like other accelerators, Techstars, a network of more than 40 corporate and geographically targeted startup bootcamps, has had to bring its marquee demo day events online. Over the last two weeks of April, industry-focused accelerators working with startups building businesses around mobility technologies (broadly) and the future of the home joined programs in Abu Dhabi, […]




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Estonian fintech askRobin scores $1.7M to bring ‘fair credit’ to emerging markets

AskRobin, an Estonia-founded fintech that operates a financial services marketplace for “underbanked” customers in Latin America, has picked up $1.7 million in funding. The seed round is backed by VC funds Change Ventures, Vereeni Early Stage Fund, BENE Asia Capital, and Lemonade Stand. In addition, a number of tech entrepreneurs from Estonia participated, such as […]




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Banked picks up £2.35M seed to use open banking for account-to-account payments

Banked, a London-based fintech using open banking to enable account-to-account payments at checkout (and beyond), has raised £2.35 million in further seed funding. The round was led by Force Over Mass, with participation from previous investors Backed and Acrew Capital, along with a number of high-net-worth individuals, such as Paul Forster (co-founder of Indeed.com). It […]




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UK investors band together to survey Angels on their strategy during COVID-19

A number of UK entrepreneurs have banded together to survey Angels about their investment strategy. The initiative comes in the wake of the UK government’s “Future Fund” for startups, which has been criticized as being inadequate for the needs of Angel and Seed-stage startups. The group hopes the survey will give the UK early-stage investment […]




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Vote for Europe’s hottest startups in The Europas Awards + workshops, pitches, networking

The Europas Awards — which have been recognising the hottest European tech startups in since 2009 — are now open for the public voting stage, prior to the formal judging process. The entries have been sorted and sifted by journalists to compile an editorially-driven ‘long list’ of some of Europe’s most exciting startups and investors. […]




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Kairn is a new task manager focused on speed

Meet Kairn, a new startup coming out of stealth today with a sneak peek of what the company has been working on. As Wunderlist shuts down, Kairn wants to prove that there’s still room for an innovative task-management service. “We’re building a task manager that is smart and focused on capturing tasks,” co-founder and CEO […]




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Countingup scores £4M bridge round for its small business banking and accounting app

Countingup, the business current account that “automates” your accounting, has raised £4 million in self-described bridge funding. Leading the round is ING Ventures, with co-investment from Triple Point, CVentures, and BiG Start Ventures. Founded by Tim Fouracre, who previously founded cloud accounting software Clear Books, and now boasting 20,000 business customers, Countingup’s long term vision […]




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Cuckoo Internet closes seed funding to disrupt UK broadband market

Cuckoo Internet is a new U.K. startup that aims to disrupt the U.K. broadband market. It has now raised £470,000 in seed funding, which includes funding from work.fund, a new Silicon Valley fund operator fund led by Bart Macdonald (Sapling founder). Other investors include Lorin van Nuland (early investor in Betterment), Edward Campbell-Harris (Bulb early […]




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Why wearing masks may be the way forward

While scientists disagree about their use, donning a mask can have an important social impact




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Investors should ask who will buy all the new US government debt

The last time America sold war bonds they were essentially a tax on savers




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World Bank’s pandemic bond failure; ESG shakes virtual AGM agendas; BlackRock’s green Fed fight

Your guide to the investment and business revolution you can’t afford to ignore




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From balcony concerts to cyber drinks — the power of ritual in the corona age

Under lockdown, communities are finding new ways to voice their defiance, anger and support




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Covid-19 to boost worker pay; Soros chips in; BRT sinners; Shell’s carbon pledge

Your guide to the investment and business revolution you can’t afford to ignore




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Covid-19 casts pall over Earth Day; Green bonds stand strong; Shake Shack does the ‘other’ right thing

Your guide to the investment and business revolution you can’t afford to ignore




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Disney’s pay furore; Robeco warns of green risk in tech; JPM, McDonald’s face ESG fight

Your guide to the investment and business revolution you can’t afford to ignore




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Lockdown fitness

No gym? No problem. This series from FT Globetrotter has tips, workout routines and reflections on staying active during the coronavirus crisis, including the best moves for small spaces, to indoor cycling and much more




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US stock market rally confuses liquidity with solvency

Many zombie companies will fail, no matter how much is sprayed around by the Fed




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Exclusive: Shake Shack CEO talks bailout failings; climate chaos ahead for mortgage market; EU green plans charge forward




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Public trust in CEOs ‘evaporates’; building back better with UK social housing; EM green bonds take off

Your guide to the investment and business revolution you can’t afford to ignore




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My pity package of Chinese face masks sends a bigger message

As US health workers suffer from inadequate protection, there are signs of a shifting world order




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Covid-19 shows why ESG matters; Barclays’ big climate vote; UK impact investors’ legal hurdle; your questions answered

Your guide to the investment and business revolution you can’t afford to ignore




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Facebook stock spikes despite ‘significant reduction’ in demand for ads

The coronavirus pandemic is significantly slowing the growth of Facebook’s ads business, but investors seem pleased with the company’s performance in Q1 after Facebook released its earnings report Wednesday. The company beat Wall Street expectations on revenues, sharing that they had made $17.74 billion while falling short on earnings per share at $1.71. The company […]




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TikTok tops 2 billion downloads

TikTok, the widely popular video sharing app developed by one of the world’s most valued startups (ByteDance), continues to grow rapidly despite suspicion from the U.S. as more people look for ways to keep themselves entertained amid the coronavirus pandemic. The global app and its Chinese version, called Douyin, have amassed over 2 billion downloads […]




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The lockdown is driving people to Facebook

The quarantine lockdown is driving a record number of users to Facebook’s products. On a conference call, CEO Mark Zuckerberg disclosed a number of new metrics highlighting a significant bump in Facebook usage during the broader quarantine lockdown. In the past month, more than 3 billion internet users logged onto a Facebook service, including its […]




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Instagram ‘pods’ game the algorithm by coordinating likes and comments on millions of posts

Researchers at NYU have identified hundreds of groups of Instagram users, some with thousands of members, that systematically exchange likes and comments in order to game the service’s algorithms and boost visibility. In the process, they also trained machine learning agents to identify whether a post has been juiced in this way. “Pods,” as they’ve […]