US tech: Chinese market boosts Apple results; Twitter falls 11 percent

Miranda Wadham
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US tech: Chinese market boosts Apple results; Twitter falls 11 percent
US tech giant Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) have reported strong third quarter earnings, with revenue up 22% on the same period last year and record sales for their Mac computers. The company reported a net income of $11.1 billion for Q3, labelling 2015 its most successful year ever with “record fourth quarter sales”. Apple managed success in China’s tough smartphone market, where there is extensive competition from cheaper Asia brnads. Sales doubled to $12.5 billion and saw the Chinese market take 25 percent of overall smartphone sales. Looking ahead to the first quarter of 2016, the company estimates a revenue between $75.5 billion and $77.5 billion. Elsewhere in US tech stocks, shares in Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) fell 11 percent this morning on slow active user growth in the third quarter. However, the site reported revenues of $569 million, up 58% from $361 million during the same period last year. This was the first quarterly report under the new CEO Jack Dorsey. After last quarters poor results, Twitter has cut 300 jobs and made attempts to streamline finances; however, the company has again lowered its forecast for fourth quarter revenue to between $695 and $710.  

Volkswagen posts first loss in 15 years

Miranda Wadham
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Volkswagen posts first loss in 15 years
Volkswagen (OTCMKTS:VLKAY) have announced an operating loss of 3.48 billion euros for the third quarter, its first in over 15 years. The company’s results have been severely affected by last month’s emissions scandal, where VW were found to have used illegal software to cheat carbon emissions tests. Its CEO has stepped down and 6.7 billion euros have been set aside to cover costs; an amount that the company admits is unlikely to be anywhere near the full figure. The crisis has knocked nearly a quarter off VW’s stock market value and despite an expected growth in sales, the company have admitted that they expect operating profit for the year to drop “significantly below” last years. Volkwagen are currently trading down 2.6 percent on the news (1148MGT).

Nirvana Beer: crowdfunding to revolutionise the non-alcoholic beer market

Miranda Wadham
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Nirvana Beer: crowdfunding to revolutionise the non-alcoholic beer market

The number of new breweries is on the rise, and Britain’s taste for craft beer shows no sign of abating. However, non-alcoholic beers are still something of an enigma and breweries that create good, craft non-alcoholic beer are few and far between; something that entrepreneur Steve Dass hopes to change with his non-alcoholic craft beer company, Nirvana Beer.

The idea behind the business was to develop delicious, non-alcoholic beer alternatives for a growing number of people choosing to go alcohol-free or lower their intake. Though a few recognisable alcohol-free beers exist, they have long been regarded as poorer, tasteless versions of their intoxicating cousins – lacking in variety and failing to hit the spot when a refreshing beer is called for. But the potential for this to change is huge; according to the Office for National Statistics, the proportion of the population that are teetotal is growing; those between 16 – 24 that chose not to drink as grown by 40 percent over the last decade. Correspondingly, research shows that the non-alcoholic market is the largest growth sector in the beer industry. In order to capitalise on this, Nirvana Beer Co is looking for investment on CrowdForAngels.

Dass, the company’s founder, has worked in the industry for over seven years. He says:

“We’re aiming to create something that will be completely unique in this sector of the industry: non-alcoholic beers with all the artisan credentials of a great craft beer. Our hops and barley will all be locally sourced, and the final product will be rich in flavour despite being free from alcohol. What’s more, we’re aiming to create our beers to be also gluten free, so they’ll be suitable for people with coeliac disease or gluten intolerances.” says Steve Dass founder of Nirvana and who has worked within the industry for over 7 years.

Nirvana’s USP is their use of locally- sourced ingredients, traditional recipes, and the adoption of new modified brewing processes that are different from those currently used in traditional brewing in the UK and abroad to create something totally new for the market.

“From the offset we really want to develop a strong brand identity, an identity that looks as good as the beer tastes. Our craft beers won’t be watered-down, alcohol-free versions of an existing alcoholic product, they’ll have an identity that we’re sure will be a hit with retailers and consumers alike.”

“However, we need an injection of cash to purchase our specialist equipment and facilities we need to get started on our dream and make Nirvana Brewery the successful brand we want it to be. Once we’re up and running, the rewards will speak for themselves and we look forward to raising a glass with our sponsors!”

Nirvana Beer chose a CrowdForAngels as their crowdfunding platform, who were the first directly regulated crowdfunding platform for debt and equity funding. When asked what it was that drew them to CrowdForAngels, Dass said one reason was the minimum and maximum funding structure, which not many other platforms offer.

He also said, “I feel that they are eager to establish themselves and prove to the other big platforms that they have competition. As my company is at a relatively early stage, it was great to be able to sit face to face with them, and get the understanding of the platform and assurances a business of my size needs.”

Nirvana Beer Co are looking for an investment of £85,000 in return for 25% equity. With a minimum investment limit of just £25, why not head over to their campaign page for more information on how to get involved.

Oil price drop continues into third week

Miranda Wadham
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Oil price drop continues into third week
A global fall in oil prices has extended into its third week, on worries of oversupply and unseasonably warm weather. Brent LCOc1 for December delivery fell 20 cents to $47.34 a barrel by 1000 GMT, with U.S. crude CLc1 also falling 37 cents to $43.61 a barrel. Last night, Brent closed down nearly 1 percent at $47.54 a barrel, and U.S. crude closed down 62 cents at $43.98. Both crude benchmarks have lost about 10 percent over the past two weeks; this time last year, oil prices were above $100 a barrel, with the disparity causing visible financial difficulties for major oil companies. According to Reuters, US commercial crude stockpiles are expected to have risen for a fifth straight week by an average of 3 million barrels to 479.6 million, fuelling fears of oversupply.  

BP results exceed analysts expectations

Miranda Wadham
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BP results exceed analysts expectations

Oil giant BP (LON:BP) has beaten analysts’ expectations in their latest set of results, despite an overall fall in profits.

The company cited lower oil and gas prices as a reason for the fall, with their replacement cost profit over the third quarter dropping to $1.23 billion, down from $2.38 billion the year before. Total revenue fell by nearly 50 percent; down to $55.9 billion from $94.8 billion last year.

Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley took the opportunity to lay out a plan for deeper cost cuts in order to withstand the low prices; prices for crude have dropped to $50 a barrel, from over $100 last year. He said:

“Last year, we acted decisively to reset BP for a sustained period of lower oil prices and the results are coming through well. We are now in action to rebalance our financial framework in this new price environment.”

BP was one of the first of the oil companies to start cutting costs and selling assets following its Gulf of Mexico spill in 2010, and the size of the company was reduced by a third in order to pay the $55 billion fine. Investors reacted well to the results, with BP’s share price rose 1.8% in early trading. It is currently trading up 1.01 percent at 288.27 pence per share (1044GMT).    

Indian budget airline IndiGo announces public share offering

Miranda Wadham
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Indian budget airline IndiGo announces public share offering

Indian budget airline IndiGo has announced plans to conduct an initial share offering this week – India’s largest share offering since 2012.

IndiGo, India’s largest domestic airline, is aiming to raise around 32.68 billion rupees (£325.6m) by listing on the Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange of India. The public offer is set to open on Tuesday, closing on 29 October and is already subscribed nearly 80 per cent.

In a statement, the company’s president Aditya Ghosh told NDTV: “An IPO or listing gives you one more stamp of approval because with IndiGo one thing I have got used to is people doubting what we are doing. An IPO is a milestone. Being a listed company also makes sure we don’t get complacent.” IndiGo has a net debt of Rs 3,912 crore, all of which stems from a recemt order for 430 aircraft from Airbus. IndiGo plans to use the proceeds to retire Rs 1,166 crore of debt, while the remaining amount will be used to fuel expansion, the company said. IndiGo has 430 aircraft on order from Airbus. IndiGo, founded in 2006, has been the only consistently profitable airline in the country for the last seven years, with international destinations including Singapore, Dubai and Bangkok.  

The Money Shop owner to refund £15.4m to customers following FCA review

Safiya Bashir
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The Money Shop owner to refund £15.4m to customers following FCA review
After an investigation by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA); Dollar Financial UK who owns high street lenders including The Money Shop, Payday Express and Ladder Loans, has agreed to refund £15.4m to 147,000 customers. Chief Executive of Dollar Financial, has said: “As the new CEO, I accept the findings of the review and apologise to anyone who may have suffered difficulties as a result. It is proper that we put things right where they have gone wrong and I have gone further than the review in reforming the way our business operates to reflect the company aim of being the most responsible lender in its marketplace.” The FCA has stated that the Dollar Financial customers may have suffered due to the firm’s affordability checks, debt collection practices and system errors. This was found through a review last year that found that many customers were lent more money than they could afford to repay. The Dollar Financial has since agreed to change its lending requirements to meet FCA standards. Jonathan Davidson, the director of supervision for retail and authorisations at the FCA, has made clear that the FCA “expects all credit providers to carry out proper checks to ensure that borrowers don’t take on more than they can afford to pay back.” This is not the first or largest refund by a high street lender. In October last year, Financial Dollar’s rival Wonga wrote off £220m worth of debt for 330,000 customers after admitting providing loans to those who could not afford them. Author of ‘Loan Sharks – The Rise and Rise of Payday Lending’, Carl Packman, has said: “The news confirms what many critics have known about the payday loans business for some time: that in order for payday lending to grow in the way it did over the recession years it needed to rip off people struggling with their finances.” Approximately 67,000 customers will have their current loan balance reduced, whilst 65,000 will be given a cash refund and a further 15,000 will be given a combination of the two.   
Safiya Bashir on 26/10/2015
           

Crowdfunder: rewards based crowdfunding

Safiya Bashir
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Crowdfunder: rewards based crowdfunding
Crowdfunding, a form of alternative finance, has traditionally been used to invest money into businesses with potential and promise, ensuring businesses get access to fund at competitive rates whilst investors get generous returns on their investments. Crowdfunder.co.uk offers a crowdfunding platform that works throughout the UK in rewards-based crowdfunding, community shares crowdfunding and equity crowdfunding. What makes Crowdfunder different from other crowdfunding platforms such as Crowd2Fund and Crowdcube is crowdfunder’s emphasis and importance placed on crowdfunding for non-profit organizations such as community groups and charities. One such example of crowdfunding on Crowdfunder was the ‘I am an Immigrant’ poster campaign, which raised over £50,000 in 21 days for the posters that can be seen on the London Underground. A current campaign on the website is ‘Save Brixton Cycles’; London’s oldest worker-owned bike shop who have to leave the current premises, which are going to be converted into luxury flats. Through their campaign on Crowdfunder, Brixton cycles have so far been able to raise 85% of their £40,000 target. So what are the benefits for investors in this form of crowdfunding? Rewards-based crowdfunding may not offer high returns on investments, but do offer gifts depending on the pledge, with Brixton Cycles offering rewards ranging from cycling caps to an invitation to the launch party to free services and discounts in-store.    

Shares in TalkTalk fall following cyber attack

Safiya Bashir
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Shares in TalkTalk fall following cyber attack
Following the cyber attack to TalkTalk, shares in the mobile phone and broadband company have reportedly fallen by another 7%, currently standing at 238.3 pence. The cyber attack, which took place last Wednesday could have led to breaches of customers’ financial and personal details including names, email addresses and telephone numbers. TalkTalk have since admitted that “not all of the data was encrypted”. Over the weekend the company stated the cyber-attack was “smaller” that originally thought, however a spokeswoman for TalkTalk has said that “BAE Systems are supporting us as we investigate this week’s cyber attack,”, with Scotland Yard’s cyber crime unit also launching an investigation. Keith Bowman, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, has said that the hit to the company’s reputation has appeared to take its toll. TalkTalk have advised for customers to “keep an eye on your accounts over the next few months”. This has been TalkTalk’s third data breach this year.

Early success for Crowd2Fund’s investment exchange platform

Miranda Wadham
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Early success for Crowd2Fund’s investment exchange platform
Two weeks ago, crowdfunding platform Crowd2Fund launched The Exchange, an online marketplace allowing investors to trade Crowd2Fund investments. Since then the platform has seen a flurry of activity and the successful completion of its first trades, which have earned investors an otherwise unobtainable premium on investments and given sellers early access to their cash. Put simply, the platform allows those who hold debt or equity crowdfunding investments from Crowd2Fund to re-sell them to another investor. One of the first trades on the platform was for a Hummus Bros Mini Bond investment, which sold at a 10% APR coupon; a 2% premium on the initial offer of 8% APR. Chris Hancock, CEO of Crowd2Fund, says: “In our opinion the current system is overly restrictive. Individuals who need access to their capital needn’t be tied into their investments and if a central exchange was developed it would radically increase the liquidity into ‘the real economy’ providing a much needed boost. “It is arguable that more widespread and transparent trading of individual debt investments, could have avoided the financial crisis – by allowing individuals to trade debt investments openly we would have avoided the sub prime debt and credit default swaps being conducted by the banks, which ultimately resulted in the crash.“ Currently Crowd2Fund only perform match trading on the Exchange, which is far less complex than operating a full exchange and bidding system. However, it is something that The Exchange are looking to introduce in the near future; sellers will be able to set a reserve and potential investors will be able to bid on an item, with the highest price winning the bid. The market’s initial positive response to the platform suggests that The Exchange will become an important part of the future of crowdfunding, eliminating a liquidity problem that puts many off investing in the sector. Ultimately, this will lead to providing more capital for businesses who create jobs and are significantly important to support overall economic growth. For further information and to take a look at the investments available on The Exchange, visit their website here. Screen Shot 2015-10-26 at 09.35.39 
Miranda Wadham on 26/10/2015
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