DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Loud budgeting is in, quiet luxury is out. Meet the TikToker who started the financial trend
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Vanessa Yurkevich | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

“Loud budgeting is a new concept I am announcing for 2024, it’s the opposite of quiet luxury,” he said in the TikTok post, posted on December 29. In this screen grab taken from a viral video by Lukas Battle, the comedian talks about the 'loud budgeting,' trend, versus 'quiet luxury.' In an online world where luxury and opulence are constantly on display — and unattainable for most people — “loud budgeting” makes being on a budget cool and acceptable. It’s the inverse of “quiet luxury,” which flourished on social media last year and promoted not flaunting your wealth or being understated about it. But loud budgeting could be a reckoning for brands who have found success in social media marketing.

Persons: Lukas Battle, Lukas, It’s, ”, they’re, Vivian Tu, Rich, ” Tu, Giovanna Gonzalez, “, Gonzalez, “ I’m, Michael Hershfield, Tu, it’s Organizations: New, New York CNN, CNN, TIAA Institute, Wall, P Global Market Intelligence, “ Locations: New York, Cabo, “

☆ A bullish options bet on a rallying fintech into earnings
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-05 | by ( Michael Khouw | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Nevertheless, we're going to take advantage of lower- than-average longer-dated options premiums in an e-commerce payment services company to frame a modestly bullish bet going into earnings. Companies might beat earnings expectations but still see their stock price fall due to other factors like future earnings guidance, revenue quality, or broader market conditions. Guidance: Companies often provide forward-looking statements or guidance about future earnings and performance during their earnings calls, which can have an immediate and unpredictable impact on their stock price. Analyst expectations: The market's reaction can be more about how the actual earnings compare to analyst expectations rather than the earnings themselves. In some cases though, the options market is not anticipating particularly sharp moves, and this may present an opportunity.

Persons: we're, Fiserv Locations: United States

☆ India's moment has arrived — but many hurdles remain
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Spriha Srivastava | Polly Thompson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

India's economy is expected to expand by 6.5% this year, according to IMF forecasts. The world's most populous nation was keen to talk up its prospects at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Advertisement"India has seized the moment," proclaimed housing minister Hardeep Singh Puri with confidence during a panel at the World Economic Forum in Davos last month. The 10-strong group of emerging market nations now accounts for 45% of the world's population and 28% of global GDP. AdvertisementSome economists have criticized the government's narrative as a "false growth story," highlighting discrepancies in the data and criticizing the methods used to calculate economic growth.

Persons: —, Hardeep Singh, Smriti Irani, BI's Spriha Srivastava, that's, Narendra Modi's, Cash, Modi, SAJJAD HUSSAIN, I've, Andy Baldwin, EY, Narendra Modi, Brazil's Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Dan Kitwood, Getty, ISRO Goldman Sachs, Ashoka Mody, Rajesh Kumar Singh, Vladimir Putin, Singh Organizations: Economic, Service, BI, IMF, Business, Apple, ISRO, Princeton University, World Bank, US, of, Hindustan Times, Harvard Business Locations: Davos, India, China, Japan, Brazil, China India, India's, Ukraine

☆ While Chinese stocks search for a bottom, analysts say these shares are poised to bounce
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-04 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Chinese stocks have given up much of their recent gains as investors debate whether the bottom is really in. They screened for names with more than $1 billion in capitalization and expectations for earnings growth in the next two years. Such signals come at a time when Chinese stocks have sold off sharply. Chinese stocks – whether measured by those that trade in the mainland, Hong Kong or U.S. – have fallen for more than two years. "In the past Chinese companies grew rapidly, many companies' results grew exponentially," he said in Mandarin, translated by CNBC.

Persons: Evercore, Rachel Wang, Clocktower, Ye Yuhua, — CNBC's Michael Bloom Organizations: People's Bank of China, Seng Index, Shanghai, Morningstar, CNBC, Baidu, Li Auto Locations: U.S, Beijing, Hong Kong, China, Shanghai, Guangzhou

☆ Buy these top tech stocks before it's too late, Morgan Stanley says
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-03 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Palo Alto Networks Analyst Hamza Fodderwala said the firm's recent security checks show cyber threats remain a top priority for IT. That bodes well for Palo Alto in 2024 and beyond, according to Fodderwala. Further, Palo Alto is better positioned for AI than investors believe, Fodderwala added. Palo Alto is scheduled to report earnings in late February. But investor skepticism remains leaving Hettenbach to pound the table for RCM shares.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, James Faucette, Faucette, Hamza Fodderwala, Fodderwala, Craig Hettenbach, Hettenbach, Docebo Organizations: CNBC, Palo Alto Locations: Palo Alto, Docebo, Tenable, Palo, Hettenbach

Elsewhere, Bank of America raised its price target on Nvidia, calling for more than 25% upside. 7:07 a.m.: Deutsche Bank deals latest blow to regional bank after earnings disappoint Deutsche Bank joined the post-earnings dogpile on New York Community Bank . Analyst Bernard von-Gizycki downgraded the regional bank to hold from buy and slashed to price target to $7 from $15. Analyst Alicia Yap upgraded the consumer internet stock to buy from neutral and raised her price target by $6 to $50. — Alex Harring 5:45 a.m.: Bank of America hikes Nvidia price target Don't expect Nvidia to lose momentum anytime soon, according to Bank of America.

Persons: Goldman Sachs, Bernard von, Gizycki, — Alex Harring, There's, Alicia Yap, Sea's, Shopee, Alex Harring, what's, Tim Cook, Brandon Nispel, AAPL's, AAPL, Morgan Stanley, Erik Woodring, we're, Tim Long, Piper Sandler, Harsh Kumar, Meta, Ross Sandler, Benjamin Black, Mark Kelley, Bernstein, Mark Shmulik, LSEG, Rufus, Eric Sheridan, Brian Nowak, outsized, Brad Erickson, Vivek Arya, Fred Imbert Organizations: CNBC, Apple, Bank of America, Nvidia, Deutsche Bank, New York Community Bank, von, Investors, Traders, Citi, Nasdaq, Conference, Barclays, Vision, Meta, Wall Street, Amazon, RBC Capital, Enterprise, SAP, VMWare, Dell Locations: Wall, New, Thursday's, Friday's premarket, China, genAI, CY25

☆ Here are Friday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Apple, Meta, Amazon, Disney, Chipotle, Nike, Roblox, Costco & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-02 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Goldman Sachs reiterates Amazon as buy Goldman said it's sticking with its buy rating after the company's robust earnings report on Thursday. " Bank of America reiterates Apple as buy Bank of America said investors should keep buying shares of Apple after its earnings report on Thursday. "We are downgrading the shares to HOLD and lowering our price target to $7." Bank of America reiterates Roblox as buy Bank of America said it's bullish on the stock heading into earnings next week. " Citi reiterates Disney as buy Citi said it's standing by the stock heading into earnings next week. "

Persons: Morgan Stanley, Meta, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Evercore, Oppenheimer, Baird, Wells, Roblox, it's bullish, Chipotle, it's Organizations: North America, Bank of America, Apple, Nvidia, Global Payments, Costco, Citi, Sea, Deutsche Bank downgrades New York Community Bancorp, Deutsche, New, Community Bancorp, Comerica, CMA, TFC, Barclays, Nike, Disney, UBS, ~$ $ Locations: North, China, Singapore, KeyCorp, F1Q23

The pay data includes salaries ranging from a data scientist position that offers $170,000 per year at Discord to a staff engineer role that earns $250,000 or more at Patreon. AdvertisementHere are the annual salaries for a job at FaZe Clan:Legal Counsel: $142,273 median starting range; from $133,308 to $194,437FaZe Clan did not respond to BI's request for comment. At LTK, a senior software engineer would make $130,000Courtesy of LTKLTK, formerly known as RewardStyle, is an affiliate-marketing and social-commerce platform used by influencers across Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok. At Teachable, a level II senior software engineer would make $190,000Teachable is a platform where creators can build and sell online courses and coaching programs. Here are annual salary ranges for several jobs at Teachable:Data Analyst : $69,826 to $85,000: $69,826 to $85,000 Senior Software Engineer : $160,000 to $180,000: $160,000 to $180,000 Senior Software Engineer - Core : $150,000 to $170,000: $150,000 to $170,000 Senior Software Engineer II : $190,000: $190,000 Software Engineer: $125,000 to $135,000Teachable did not respond to BI's request for comment.

Persons: upstarts, we're, Justin Kenna, they've, ByteDance, Teachable, Konstantin Savusia, James Nord, Brandon Brown, Ryan Brown, Brian Mechem, Warby Parker, Grin, Amanda Perelli, Anthony, Alex Zaccaria, Nick Humphreys, Linktree's, Amber Venz, Baxter, Read, Sydney Bradley, economy's, Patreon, Chris Best, Jason Henry Substack Organizations: YouTube, Business, FaZe, Safety, Software, Security, Enterprise Security, FaZe Clan, Fohr, Inc, Grin Technologies, Facebook, Keli Network Inc, Business Affairs, Jellysmack, Linktree, Ops, RewardStyle Inc, Networks, Mighty Networks, Mighty Software, Engineering, Sydney, Sydney Bradley One, BI, Staff, Social, Data Engineering, Trust, Quality Assurance, Hotmart, & $ Locations: California, New York, Texas, FaZe, Fohr, Jellysmack, Karat, Linktree, LTK, Instagram, Dallas , Texas, Teachable

☆ PB Fintech CEO: We prioritize growth over profit as scale is the answer to profitability eventually
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

In this videoShare Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailPB Fintech CEO: We prioritize growth over profit as scale is the answer to profitability eventuallyYashish Dahiya, Chairman and CEO of PB Fintech discusses their business strategy.

Persons: Dahiya Organizations: Fintech

☆ Marcelo Claure and Paul Judge bought SoftBank's diversity fund. Now they're trying to raise $200 million for it.
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Vishal Persaud | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Read previewFormer SoftBank executive Marcelo Claure and serial entrepreneur and investor Paul Judge are in the throes of raising a new $200 million fund. The past year has been transitional for the fund since Claure and Judge bought the $100 million fund from SoftBank. Since then, there haven't been any new investments, but the two are poised to capitalize on the success of the first fund and are raising the second Open Opportunity Fund. He said that limited partners' interest has been positive overall since the Open Opportunity Fund's first fund has had so much success. AdvertisementJudge said that he expects the first Open Opportunity Fund to continue to deliver "top quartile" returns to its investors over the next five to seven years.

Persons: —, Marcelo Claure, Paul Judge, It's, Claure, haven't, SoftBank —, I've, Judge, George Floyd's, Masayoshi, Shu Nyatta, Stacy Brown, what's Organizations: Service, Business, Opportunity Fund, Opportunity, Fund, Mastercard, Vista Equity Partners, Ventures, Sprint, Bicycle Capital, TechCrunch Locations: SoftBank, Atlanta, America

☆ Salary data revealed: Here's how much 16 top US and European AI startups like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Hugging Face are paying staffers
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-01 | by ( Riddhi Kanetkar | Tasmin Lockwood | Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

AI talent is very much in demand, with some staffers from the likes of Stripe, Amazon, and Google making the switch to smaller upstarts. AI companies are using some of those funds to shell out on sizable salary packages to attract talent, according to data obtained by Business Insider. While salary transparency remains a problem in both Europe and the US, the latter has taken more steps to make salary data visible to employees and candidates. With considerable research prowess, Europe has become a hotbed for producing AI talent. Business Insider has pulled together salary data from some of the most in-demand AI companies that have published H1B salary data, including OpenAI, Anthropic, and Midjourney.

Persons: Sam Altman, queued, chunky, DeepMind's, Mustafa Suleyman Organizations: Google, Business, Mistral, Companies Locations: Europe, Atomico

Analyst Oliver Chen also maintained his buy rating for Ulta stock, simultaneously lifting his price target to $580 from $570. Deutsche Bank: Reiterate buy rating and $450 price target, implying 10% upside. Kallo's price target of $300 implies that Tesla stock could rally more than 56% from its Tuesday closing price. Citi analyst Christopher Danely also stood by his buy rating on the stock while lifting his price target to $192 from $136. Analyst Jeffrey Adelson downgraded the company to underweight from equal weight and cut his price target to $6.50 from $7.

Persons: Morgan Stanley, TD Cowen, Ulta, Oliver Chen, ULTA, Chen, — Lisa Kailai Han, Goldman Sachs, Kash Rangan, Baird, Tesla, Ben Kallo, Elon Musk's, Toshiya Hari, Hari, Christopher Danely, Vivek Arya, Danely, Arya, Harlan Sur, Kannan Venkateshwar, Venkateshwar, Eric Sheridan, Sheridan, Justin Post, Ross Sandler, Sandler, Ronald Josey, Josey, Morgan Stanley downgrades, Jeffrey Adelson, Adelson, SOFI, SoFi, Fred Imbert Organizations: CNBC, Google, Microsoft, SoFi Technologies, Deutsche Bank, Citi, Barclays, Tesla, Devices, Wall Street, AMD, Bank of America, Barclays downgrades Verizon Barclays, Verizon, Venkateshwar, Bulls, Morgan Stanley downgrades SoFi Locations: Ulta

☆ Google's layoffs already impacted its culture. Now they're affecting its bottom line.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-31 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

In today's big story, we're looking at highlights from two of the world's biggest tech companies' earnings reports, including how much layoffs cost for one of them. Tech: Tech CEOs will testify before Congress today for a hearing on child safety. Mateusz Wlodarczyk/Getty ImagesThere's been plenty of speculation about what Google's mass layoffs last year meant for its famous culture. Jerod Harris/Getty ImagesCongress is set to grill some of the biggest names in tech today. Leaders from Meta, X, TikTok, and other tech companies will face questions over their platforms' efforts to protect children from sexual exploitation online.

Persons: It's, Sundar Pichai, Mateusz Wlodarczyk, Sarah Jackson, Satya Nadella Stephen Brashear, Hisham Ibrahim, Jerome Powell's, Claudia Sahm, Powell, Linda Yaccarino, Jerod Harris, Linda Yaccarino's, Jack Dorsey's Block, Dorsey, Brooks Kraft, Dan DeFrancesco, Hallam Bullock, Jordan Parker Erb Organizations: Business, Tech, Google, Microsoft, Getty, Bloomberg, JPMorgan, Meta, Elon Musk's, Brooks Kraft LLC, Los Angeles Times, UPS, Bureau of Labor Statistics, Amazon, Boeing, Mastercard Locations: Chipotle, New York, London

☆ Moonfare cofounder brings new startup out of stealth with $10 million. The company wants to become the operating system for carbon credit projects.
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The voluntary carbon market, where credits are traded, is tipped to reach $250 billion by 2050 as companies ramp up efforts to reach net zero. It also helps project developers communicate credit quality with third parties and manage orders, the company claims. The idea is that by streamlining administrative, manual tasks and bringing information into one place, carbon projects can come online more quickly and improve the supply-side crunch. The product was developed in partnership with two large carbon project developers while the company was in stealth mode, Argyros said. Louis Coppey, partner at Point Nine who led December 2023's cash injection into BlueLayer, touted it as the operating system or ERP for carbon project developers.

Persons: fintech Moonfare, BlueLayer, Alexander Argyros, Argyros, –, Vivian Bertseka, Al Gore's, Gerardo Bonilla, Louis Coppey Organizations: Business, Nine, Point Locations: Berlin, London, Athens

☆ Fintech companies are starting layoffs
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailFintech companies are starting layoffsCNBC's Kate Rooney joins 'Power Lunch' to discuss the latest round of layoffs in FinTech.

Persons: Kate Rooney Locations: FinTech

☆ Motive Partners' Blythe Masters on the Fintech landscape in 2024
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-30 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailMotive Partners' Blythe Masters on the Fintech landscape in 2024Blythe Masters, Motive Partners, joins 'Fast Money' to talk the state of the Fintech sector, emerging technology, AI deployment and more.

Persons: Blythe Masters Organizations: Motive Partners

☆ Here are Monday's biggest analyst calls: Nvidia, Netflix, Apple, Micron, Hershey, Dollar Tree, Qualcomm & more
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

JPMorgan upgrades Dollar Tree to overweight from neutral JPMorgan said in its upgrade of the stock that it's a "self-help" story. Bernstein upgrades Hershey to outperform from market perform Bernstein said in its upgrade of the chocolate maker that market share trends are improving. " Goldman Sachs reiterates Nvidia & Micron as buys Goldman said it's standing by shares of Nvidia and Micron. Bank of America upgrades ZoomInfo to buy from neutral Bank of America said the software company is a "self-help" story. Bernstein reiterates Qualcomm as outperform Bernstein said it's bullish heading into Qualcomm earnings later this week.

Persons: Wells, Jefferies, it's, Evercore, Bernstein, Hershey, Goldman Sachs, Goldman, Raymond James, Sherwin, Williams, Morgan Stanley, William Blair, Morgan Stanley downgrades Brown, Forman Organizations: UBS, Amazon, Amazon Web Services, Citi, Air, Deutsche Bank, TFI, Deutsche, JPMorgan, Warner Brothers Discovery, Microsoft, Meta, YouTube, Nvidia, Micron, MU, Netflix, Barclays, Apple, Colgate, Palmolive, " Bank of America, of America, Beam Therapeutics, Bank of America, Builders, Devices, AMD, Qualcomm Locations: Norfolk Southern, Atlanta

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves premarket: Dollar Tree, American Airlines, ZoomInfo Technologies and more
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Lisa Kailai Han | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

American Airlines — The airline stock added 1.5% following an upgrade to buy from neutral at Citi. "North America's network carriers' diversified revenue streams and solid demand for premium cabin offerings appear to provide them with superior positioning in this post-pandemic environment," wrote analyst Stephen Trent. Builders FirstSource — The building materials manufacturer edged 2% higher following an upgrade to buy from neutral at Bank of America. ZoomInfo Technologies — The software stock popped 5.5% after Bank of America analyst Koji Ikeda upgraded it to buy from neutral. "We believe it is a classic self-help story that is set to outperform," the analyst wrote, underscoring the company's revenue growth reacceleration and new AI products as potential catalysts.

Persons: Stephen Trent, Flywire, Morgan Stanley, Omar Nokta, Hershey, Wells, Steven Cahall, —, Cowen, Rafe Jadrosich, Julien Dumoulin, Smith, FactSet, Koji Ikeda, McGrath RentCorp — McGrath RentCorp, CNBC's Michelle Fox, Alexander Harring, Sarah Min, Jesse Pound Organizations: JPMorgan, American Airlines —, Citi, Zim Integrated Shipping Services —, Jefferies, Warner Bros, Bank of America, Bloom Energy, Koninklijke Philips —, Food and Drug Administration, Technologies, WillScot Mobile Locations: Albemarle, Netherlands

☆ From Goldman to Bridgewater, here's everything we know about how Wall Street is embracing AI
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Bianca Chan | Michelle Abrego | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Once ChatGPT hit the scene at the end of 2022, Wall Street ramped up its efforts in AI. Here is what we know about how Wall Street is embracing AI:AdvertisementBanks accelerated their AI research and use cases due to the rise of ChatGPTWe identified 17 of the top AI executives and technologists to know at the country's biggest banks. Large language models, the form of AI behind ChatGPT, could transform how Wall Street does business. As financial firms' AI strategies come into focus, they're hiring more technologists with specialized skills. For those who want to land an AI job on Wall Street, here's everything you need to know about how tech skills and roles are changing.

Persons: ChatGPT, —, Banks, Jamie Dimon, Dimon, Goldman Sachs, Marco Argenti, Dimitris Tsementzis, aren't, Bridgewater, Charlie Flanagan, Tim Mace, AllianceBernstein, Andrew Chin Organizations: JPMorgan, Man, Service, fintech, Deutsche Bank, fund's AIA, Management Locations: dealmaking, Swedish

☆ Stocks making the biggest moves midday: Dollar Tree, iRobot, Bloom Energy and more
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-29 | by ( Hakyung Kim | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Dollar Tree — Shares of the discount retail chain popped 1% following an upgrade to overweight from neutral at JPMorgan. SoFi Technologies — Shares of the financial services provider surged 21% after the company reported its fourth-quarter financial results. ZoomInfo Technologies — Shares jumped more than 6% after Bank of America upgraded shares to buy from neutral on revenue growth acceleration. The firm cited tailwinds including improving market share and volume trends, as well as an attractive valuation and strong top-line growth. Flywire — Shares of the fintech company gained 3.75% after being upgraded by Morgan Stanley to overweight from equal weight.

Persons: McGrath RentCorp, McGrath, SoFi, iRobot, Koji Ikeda, Wells, Flywire, Morgan Stanley, Beam, —, Samantha Subin, Yun Li, Michelle Fox, Alex Harring, Lisa Kailai Han, Sarah Min, Pia Singh, Tanaya Macheel Organizations: WillScot Mobile, JPMorgan, Wall, Amazon, Bain Capital, Western Digital, Kioxia Holdings, Bloom Energy, Bank of America, ZoomInfo, Hershey —, AllianceBernstein, Warner Bros, —, Beam Locations: Japan, AATD

☆ Workers are paying to get part of their paychecks early. It's 'payday lending on steroids,' one expert says
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-28 | by ( Greg Iacurci | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Fotostorm | E+ | Getty ImagesMillions of American workers are paying for early access to their paychecks. So-called "earned wage access" programs, which operate either directly to the consumer or through employers, let workers tap a portion of their wages before payday, often for a fee. Earned wage access has gotten more popularEarned wage access goes by various names: daily pay, instant pay, accrued wage access, same-day pay and on-demand pay, for example. "It's another version of payday loans," Monica Burks, policy counsel at the Center for Responsible Lending, a consumer advocacy group, said of earned wage access. However, a recent study by the U.S. Government Accountability Office found that earned wage access products "generally cost less than typical costs associated with payday loans."

Persons: it's, Marshall Lux, Lux, hasn't, Cherie Chung, EarnIn, MoneyLion, Monica Burks, —, Thad Peterson, There's, EWA, Peterson, Harvard's, we're, Stacy Greiner, Dave, Ben LaRocco, Miranda Margowsky, Margowsky, Atif Siddiqi, Siddiqi, Safwan Shah, Shah, doesn't, Harvard's Chung Organizations: Harvard University, Finance, Harvard Kennedy School, Lux, Harvard, Hilton, Uber, Walmart, Companies, Center for, California Department of Financial Protection, Center for Responsible, U.S, Government, Office, GAO, Datos, Commerce, Economic, Financial Technology Association Locations: Kroger, McDonald's, California, Vermont

☆ Klarna to debut $7.99 monthly plan as buy now, pay later firm seeks new revenue sources ahead of IPO
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Hugh Son | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Swedish fintech firm Klarna is launching a monthly subscription plan in the U.S. to lock in its heaviest users ahead of an expected initial public offering this year, the company told CNBC. Buy now, pay later services such as Klarna and Affirm have surged in popularity in recent years as more Americans rely on a new, fintech-enabled form of credit. When Klarna users shop outside the firm's network of 500,000 retailers — at places such as Walmart, Target, Amazon and Costco — they pay $1 to $2 in transaction fees. "The main proposition of Klarna Plus right now is that you don't pay any service fees," Sandstrom said. "So if you love Klarna and if you love shopping at Target and Walmart, it makes a ton of sense financially."

Persons: David Sandstrom, Sandstrom Organizations: Swedish, CNBC, Nike, Instacart, Walmart, Target, Costco Locations: U.S, Stockholm

☆ Splitting the check is no longer restaurant etiquette — in 2024 it's every diner for themself
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-24 | by ( Kieran Press-Reynolds | Charissa Cheong | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Recently, TikTok users have been gaining traction with the idea that people shouldn't feel guilty about paying for their own food and not splitting the check. Diners say splitting the bill can be unfairSome of the recent bill-splitting discourse posts are grouped under the hashtag "groupdinner," which has 9.6 million views. splitting the bill. AdvertisementIn sticking to etiquette norms when paying for one's own meal, it's crucial that guests repay their portion promptly. More than anything, communication between the hosts and guests is essential and can help thwart nightmare bill-splitting mishaps like the ones described in the viral TikTok videos.

Persons: —, @finegalnopimple, TikToker @remiandryan, Nick Leighton, fleeced, Leighton, OnePoll, It's, it'll, it's Organizations: Service, Business, Louisiana Federal Credit Union, New York Times, Forbes Locations: Dutch, Louisiana

☆ Founders of Wise and Skype raise $436 million to build tech giants in Europe
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The founders of Wise, Skype and Songkick have raised 400 million euros ($436.4 million) for a new fund to back technology startups in Europe. Plural Fund II, the firm's second to date, arrives just 18 months after the firm raised its last fund, a 250 million-euro vehicle. Only 8% of VCs in Europe are former founders, he says, much lower than the 60% in the United States. So, if we look at the track record, and our ability to get the deals done, I think that all seems to say that this is really missing in Europe," Hinrikus added. Plural raised the funds from a mix of limited partners, including British and American university endowments, U.S. foundations and insurers, strategic family offices in Europe and the United States.

Persons: Wise, Taavet Hinrikus, fintech, Ian Hogarth, Sten Tamkivi, Khaled Helioui, Hinrikus, they're, we've, Carina Namih Organizations: Skype, Balderton, Bigpoint, CNBC Locations: Europe, VCs, United States, American

☆ Ansel, a health insurance startup that wants to upend the claims industry, just raised $20 million using this 12-slide pitch deck
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-23 | by ( Callum Burroughs | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Read previewHealth insurance startup Ansel has raised $20 million in new funding. Founded in 2019, Ansel is a platform that provides supplemental health insurance via carriers across 48 US states. This story is available exclusively to Business Insider subscribers. Advertisement"We're focused on making health hardships not become financial burdens," Veer Gidwaney, founder and CEO of Ansel, told Business Insider. The new capital will go towards expanding the company's partnerships with leading insurance providers, developing its tech platform, and scaling its marketing and distribution.

Persons: —, Ansel, Veer Gidwaney, Gidwaney Organizations: Service, Business, Gallup, Nationwide, Portage, Sigma Ventures, Brewer Lane Ventures, SixThirty Ventures Locations: New York City

Search resuls for: "fintech"

25 mentions found