Your friendly neighbourhood startups correspondent. I cover startups and VC for
@businessinsider
in London. Tips: cburroughs
@insider
.com, DMs open. He/him. BLM.
The vast majority of young people have been incredibly diligent during the pandemic. They’ve sacrificed a year of what should be the time of their lives so that the elderly and vulnerable have a chance to live an extra year or more of their lives. We should thank them.
Today marks my three year anniversary since joining
@BusinessInsider
! I started covering financial markets and now write about amazing tech startups. I’ve met so many amazing people over the years and can safely say I work with some of the best in the business.
#blessed
When lockdown started in March the government had time to get Test and Trace in place, improve testing capacity and work out how best to shield those most at risk. Now, six months later, we have six more months of misery due to incompetence and cronyism.
#UKlockdown
Saw Joker last night and while it was an interesting watch, the controversy it has courted is justified. My US colleague
@callieahlgrim
wrote this great piece about some of the film's myriad flaws.
Exactly 5 years ago
@monzo
was incorporated in the UK. Now it has 1,500 employees and 3.8 million customers. I spoke with CEO
@t_blom
about the journey so far and what's next.
@businessinsider
(£/$)
GDPR fail. Got invited to Uber's Christmas party and they've included the email of everyone else they've invited in there...including MPs🤦♂️Giving a whole new meaning to Uber Pool!
#fail
I'm headed to Slush in Helsinki tomorrow🥶for a couple of days of cold weather and hot takes on the global startup and VC ecosystem. If you're a founder or investor (esp. in Fintech) and want to grab coffee send me a message! ☕️
#tech
UK stock trading app
@freetrade
has frozen customers’ ability to buy US stocks after its FX provider told the company it was limiting its trading capacity.
#wallstreetbets
He's here and he's perfect. This year's European fintechs to watch list from
@BusinessInsider
is live! For 2022, we asked top VC investors which startups, large and small, would make a splash. Here are the 20 picks:
#cryptocurrency
#insurance
#tech
Scoop: Full story here fintech challenger bank
@monzo
is in talks to raise fresh funding at a more than $4bn valuation. More details on
@BusinessInsider
.
Hey fintech folks,
I'm headed to New York City 🍎 for the first time between the 20th-23rd June to do meetings, connect with the tech and VC ecosystem, plus meet my fabulous colleagues 🇺🇸
Any recommends on who to catch up with would be appreciated!
#vc
#VentureCapital
#fintech
Maybe TMI but I used to run away from jabs as a child and pass out during drugs talks in school. Safe to say I wasn’t loving the idea of getting vaccinated but I’ve just had my first shot. Glad to be doing my bit to end this awful pandemic on a lovely sunny weekend!
#pfizer
The good ship Insider is at Slush once again. Happy to be back in Helsinki 🥶come say hi to me and
@tasjourno
at the venue if you’re doing something fun
#Slush2022
#startups
Had an amazing week at Web Summit. Thanks to the team for a great event. Always lovely to see faces old and new in beautiful Lisbon. Speaking of, I am here until Sunday so recommendations please!
#WebSummit
#tech
#lisboa
The usually secretive Saudi Aramco has launched its debut bond prospectus to international investors with figures showing it's more profitable than Apple, Google, and Amazon combined
#OOTT
#Aramco
Morning folks - I'm in Lisbon for Web Summit this week 🇵🇹
I seem to have let the Gods of chaos dictate my schedule during the event but always happy to have a catch up caffeine break where possible!
#tech
#startups
#WebSummit
New: Thirdweb, a Web3 startup that provides a toolkit for users to build NFTs, DAOs, and gaming apps, has raised $24m in a deal led by Haun Ventures. My chat with cofounder
@SteveBartlettSC
available on
@BusinessInsider
:
#vc
#web3
Crypto is booming and so are the fintech startups that support BTC and ETH. Revolut has seen more than 100k crypto wallets set up since the start of the year as bitcoin prices surge. Will other startups join the party? More on
@businessinsider
(£/$)
Fun story from me: New challenger bank
@TreeCardApp
is launching with a wooden debit card that will plant trees when users spend a certain amount. The company is funded by Google rival and eco-search engine
@Ecosia
. Find out more on
@businessinsider
(£/$)
UK fintech GoCardless confirms the close of its Series G with a $312 million round that values the payments processor at $2.1 billion. The deal confirms my scoop from December with the startup adding BlackRock PE Partners in the funding.
#fintech
#vc
#tech
New: I went to Paris to uncover what’s been driving the growth of the French tech ecosystem in recent years. Here’s some of the details I found intéressant about Europe’s new unicorn factory for
@BusinessInsider
: 🇫🇷
#startup
#tech
#macron
My dream Euros line up would be a mashup of BBC and ITV with Lineker hosting a panel of Alex Scott, Micah Richards, and Roy Keane with the absolute legends Clive Tyldesley and Ally McCoist on comms. Ideal mix of knowledge, insight, experience, and of course banter.
#EURO2020
Scoop: Monzo has closed its latest funding round from new and existing investors with a £60 million ($76 million) deal. More details on
@businessinsider
#startups
It's 2022's first working Monday so what better time to remind people what I do. I cover European startups at Insider with a focus on fintech and buzzy industries like rapid groceries and crypto. If you're a tech worker, founder, or investor with a story to tell, get in touch! 🚀
🚨Scoop w/
@MMCandyCheng
: Fintech giant Klarna is raising funds from SoftBank at an above $40 billion. Deal is expected to close soon. Read more on
@BusinessInsider
.
Friday content: I’ve been covering Hopin since the co’s first fundraise last year. It’s the fastest growing startup in Europe ever and is valued at $5.65 billion already. Here’s the inside story for
@BusinessInsider
.
#startups
Really just can’t say enough how much I love Graham Norton. His sassiness hosting
#Eurovision
is always one of the best things about watching this madcap spectacle.
It's that time of year, folks.
@BusinessInsider
puts together a list of startups which are set to boom next year and this year's selection is bigger than ever with companies from across the US, Europe, Asia, and LatAm. Check out 2022's stars here
#tech
I wrote about the booming activity of mental health startups during the Covid-19 pandemic and why investment into the sector is more important than ever. Check it out on
@businessinsider
(£/$)
#MentalHealthAwarenessWeek2020
Startups fail for any number of reasons but can those problems be avoided? I spoke to some great VCs and mentors to see what lessons they have for founders to avoid the pitfalls of rapidly growing a business.
I spoke to a bunch of VCs about the startups making big waves in financial services in Europe. Fintech is now major business and these companies are at the forefront. Check it out on
@businessinsider
(£/$)
Exclusive: London fintech GoCardless is set to raise $232 million in a new funding round which will make the 10-year-old business Europe's latest unicorn. You can read more about the company's deal on
@BusinessInsider
.
#tech
#startup
#Unicorn
God this has been a depressing week. Solidarity to women everywhere who have had to endure a barrage of racism, gaslighting, misogyny, and violence between IWD and Mother’s Day. Things need to change.
#SarahEverard
#metpolice
Dutch fintech startup Silverflow confirms my story from October that it's raised new funding from Coatue. The company, founded by ex-Adyen employees, raised money with this pitch deck:
#startups
#tech
Fintech is set for a shakeup post-coronavirus with some winners and losers from the pandemic. I wrote about the current situation and what could be next for
@businessinsider
. (£/$)
Amid the crazed atmosphere around Silicon Valley Bank, the market is calling for calm heads. Behind the scenes, VC funds are adopting a better safe than sorry approach for their portfolio with partners urging startups to pull capital from the lender.
#SVB
Revolut finally gets its funding round over the line and it’s a biggie. The company is now one of the most valuable fintechs in Europe - read more on
@businessinsider
.
#startups
ICYMI: A busy week of tweeting doesn't seem to have deterred investors in fintech Bolt which is still looking to raise a new funding round at a higher valuation,
@meliarobin
and I reported. You can read some exclusive detail on the company's metrics here:
New: Women have had a rough deal in the investment world despite regularly outperforming men. I spoke to two prominent female founders to discuss gendered marketing, VC investment in female fintech, and access to investing for
@BusinessInsider
.
#tech
Breaking: Lime, the Uber-backed e-scooter startup is one of the winners of the Paris scooter tender race. The full results will be announced tomorrow but the US company is the first with two more permits TBA. Read more on
@businessinsider
Great companies can still be born in a downturn so
@blossomcap
is launching a new angel network to fund early stage startups. More details on
@businessinsider
(£/$)
New from me: Buzzy events startup
@hopinofficial
has a $2.1 billion valuation in less than a year. Here's why the company is booming and why it's set to continue in 2021 despite a covid vaccine. (£/$) More on
@businessinsider
Thought on WFH number 37863: I am so productive but also so distracted? Like I will write a feature in an hour but also spend an hour reading about why we don't know where eels come from. Anyone else? Tips welcome.
New from me: I spoke with
@RevolutApp
's cofounder and CTO
@vyatsenko
about the $5.5 billion fintech's bumper year touching on Covid, culture, and compliance. One of Europe's most valuable startup's is aiming for profitability. More on
@businessinsider
New: Hopin has raised money *again*
This time the events company has brought in $450m at a $7.75bn valuation. I exclusively covered the startup's first round last February and it's raised over $1bn since then. More details here on
@BusinessInsider
Back from a lovely week away on holiday and now back to the grind. August is a great time to delve into new topics so investors, VCs, founders (that aren’t on vacation) hit me up with what we should be covering on Insider!
#startups
#tech
Will personally take the Covid vaccine well past 8pm as I’m currently not sleeping due to lockdown anxiety. 3am in a car park would be lit tbh
#COVIDVaccination
New: UK insurance startup Marshmallow has raised new funding from existing investors including secretive London fund Hedosophia to become one of Europe's only black-founded tech unicorns with a $1.25bn valuation. More detail on
@BusinessInsider
.
I’m representing the good ship Insider today at the RDS for Dublin Tech Summit. Anyone who doesn’t have Covid and works in or invests in fintech hit me up!
#DTS
#startups
I spoke to the founder and CEO of Norway's latest tech unicorn Gelato about the company's new $240 million funding round from Insight and SoftBank Vision Fund. The business helps the creator economy manufacture and ship products more sustainably worldwide
🚨 Scoop w/
@_hasanc
: Grocery delivery startup Gorillas is set to raise $250m in funding from internal investors in a bid to extend the company's runway. The deal comes on the back of the business cutting half of its staff in May. More on
@BusinessInsider
:
Fun Monday news:
@avec_alan
has raised $54 million in fresh funding from top investors. The health insurance startup continues to make waves and I spoke to CEO
@jcsamuelian
about why that is for
@businessinsider
. (£/$)
It's a really uncertain time for startups in the time of coronavirus. Many are freezing hiring as investors get cold feet. However,
@Farewill
are bucking the trend as demand for will writing spikes. You can learn more on
@businessinsider
.
New from me,
@tasjourno
and
@r1ddhi
: We surveyed top investors across the continent to get the inside track on the hottest up-and-coming VC talent. This is Europe's inaugural Rising Stars of VC list and you can find out who made the cut on
@thisisinsider
:
Fun Friday scoop: A new TV show about entrepreneurship modelled on Dragons Den and Shark Tank is coming to Amazon Prime later this year. The series is aiming to bring Monzo founder
@t_blom
and
@richardreedinno
on as judges. More on
@BusinessInsider
.
Scoop: Investment platform eToro is launching a debit card in 2020. Leaked images and emails show that the company is looking to get into the issuing market and could look to take on challenger banks. More on
@businessinsider
Scoop: BeReal, a buzzy French social media app beloved by Gen Z, is set to raise a new funding round at more than 4x its valuation from last summer. You can read more about the deal on
@BusinessInsider
:
#tech
#startups
Back from a long weekend away at a festival. Before I left I wrote up a list of embedded finance and insurance startups which VC investors tipped to be big in Europe. You can read it here on
@BusinessInsider
.
#startups
#tech
#BaaS
Start the month right with
@BusinessInsider
's annual European fintechs to watch list. We asked 14 top VC investors to pick out the names to be excited about this year. It's out with consumer and in with B2B in 2023.
#startups
#VC
#tech
#fintech
Wrote about Tiger Global’s crazy deal making in Europe with my wonderful colleagues
@michaelcogley
and
@tasjourno
. We spoke to VCs and founders about their experience with 2021’s most prolific tech investor for
@BusinessInsider
.
#startups
New from me:
@Checkout
is now Europe’s most valuable private startup after a $450m round gave the London-based company a $15bn valuation. My chat with CEO on
@businessinsider
. (£/$)
#startups
#fintech
I spoke to education startup
@LingumiLabs
about its spike in demand from Chinese families under lockdown and how the same is happening elsewhere. Check it out on
@businessinsider
(£/$).
#coronavirus
New: Starling Bank is pushing for profitability in 2021 having added half a million new users and tripled deposits since November. Read more on
@businessinsider
.
#fintech
New: Neo-bank Revolut's financials are out. The unicorn startup saw a major boost to revenues from crypto and trading but also worsened losses. I spoke to the London-based co's CEO Nik Storonsky and CFO about what these results mean for
@BusinessInsider
.
Exc from me: London startup Hopin was the talk of the town's VC investors at the start of the year and now it's raised $6.5 million from
@Accel
and
@northzoneVC
. Read more about this buzzy company on
@businessinsider
. (£/$)
New from me in
@businessinsider
on the challenger bank funding extravaganza. Numerous sources have confirmed that Revolut, Monzo, and Starling Bank are fundraising and one even called it an "arms race" in the world of fintech. (£/$)
Klarna has just confirmed that it has closed a $639 million funding round led by SoftBank's Vision Fund at a $45.6 billion valuation. Massive story in the buy now, pay later space and follows up my scoop from a couple of weeks ago:
#fintech
New:
@YourJunoApp
, a startup which offers financial education for women and non-binary people, has raised seed funding. Founded by sisters
@BroglieMargot
and Alexia, the company has brought in $2.2m as it looks to change the face of investing.
#startup
New content to start the week: stock and crypto trading apps are on a mad one in Europe having been super charged by Covid. Wealthtech startups have raised record amounts so far this year and the party isn’t slowing down. More here on
@BusinessInsider