Each week we take a look at some of the latest stories in UK fintech. This week, 1 in 4 people in the UK have been victim to online fraud, 41% of Brits’ key motivation for investing in crypto is long-term investment and stable return and Chelsea Football Club enables a cashless, contact-free payments experience.
UK reports £5.7m in cybercrime financial loss so far this year
British people and businesses have suffered financial losses of £5.7million from a reported 14,883 cybercrime incidents since the start of the year.
The new study from click fraud prevention experts PPC Shield indicates that malicious hacking, fraudulent use of social media accounts and email scams are the most common form of cybercrime so far this year – accounting for 43% of all reported incidents since 1st January. Also in the high-ranking categories are reports of malware/viruses, personal hacking and extortion.
A spokesperson for PPC Shield comments: “With the internet such an essential part of our daily lives, taking care online and using robust security measures are of utmost importance. Always be aware of what you are clicking on, and be especially wary of phishing sites and emails sent from companies or individuals that you are not familiar with.”
41% of Brits’ key motivation for investing in crypto is long-term investment and stable return
New research commissioned by Coinbase, the global cryptocurrency exchange platform, has found that many Brits are increasingly identifying cryptocurrency as a viable and reliable alternative to traditional financial systems.
41% of Brits saying that their key motivation for investing in crypto was to invest long-term and earn a stable return. Over half of respondents (51%) would be very interested in taking out a loan by using crypto holdings as a guarantee, in place of traditional methods. 39% of respondents were very likely to use crypto to send money abroad or receive money from outside the UK from friends and family.
Marcus Hughes, Managing Director for Europe at Coinbase said: “The future of cryptocurrencies is directly linked to their utility and we are therefore hugely encouraged by these findings. We can see that the attitudes of British consumers towards cryptocurrency have transformed significantly in the last few years, with many now considering adopting cryptocurrency as an alternative method to execute traditional banking functions including transactions and loans.”
Four in ten Brits found it difficult to separate their finances after a divorce
Lowell have looked into the UK’s experiences and attitudes towards joint finances. Currently, half of all Brits in a relationship have a joint bank account. However, a huge 47% of them feel like they were not given the right guidance or advice on what would happen to their account if they were to separate.
For those with bank accounts who have gone through a separation, four in ten (39%) found it very difficult to separate their finances, and 58% believe that their previous experiences will put them off ever having a joint account again in future.
Separating when a couple share joint finances can lead to debt as some may find themselves having to pay off amounts that their partner has accrued. This is something that nearly half of Brits (45%) found as one of the most stressful experiences from their financial split.
Chelsea Football Club enables a cashless, contact-free payments experience
As Chelsea Football Club fans return to Stamford Bridge today they will enjoy a completely cashless payments experience thanks to the deployment of the Clover platform from Fiserv, Inc. More than 200 Clover point-of-sale (POS) devices and handheld Clover Flex devices have been deployed to enable quick and contact-free purchases at stadium food and beverage outlets, and for match day programmes, museum entrance and stadium tours.
“The implementation of Clover devices at Stamford Bridge is the next step in our progression toward a completely cashless experience,” said Guy Laurence, chief executive at Chelsea Football Club. “The speed and convenience with which Clover can enable payments will help transform both the fan experience and our retail operations, while also enhancing the efficiency of our treasury processes as it eliminates tedious tasks such as coin counting.”
1 in 4 people in the UK have been victim to online fraud
Data from Uswitch has revealed that over 4 in 10 people in the UK have had their personal information stolen online, and 2 in 5 said their mental health suffered as a result of scams like this.
Nick Baker, broadband expert at Uswitch.com comments: “Fraudsters are becoming ever more sophisticated in their methods, creating scams for all types of products and services, such as loans, dating, holidays, and business opportunities.
“Sadly, people of all ages can fall victim to fraud. Not only do online scams target vulnerable individuals, but they also go after major corporations, smaller businesses, and the public sector.”
62% of people would stay in an auto-enrolment workplace savings scheme
Research undertaken by workplace pension and savings provider Cushon found over half (55%) of employees say the pandemic has made them more aware of the importance of saving for the future and only one in ten (11%) feel like they can’t afford to put money aside at present.
Cushon’s research shows that half (52%) would be more likely to save if their employer set it up for them, or if it came out of their salary directly – like national insurance contributions. More than six in ten (62%) people would stay in a workplace savings scheme if their employer automatically put them in. This increases to nearly seven in ten (69%) if the employer contributes too. Whilst 22% are not sure what they would do, only around one in ten would definitely come out of the scheme – a very similar opt-out rate to pensions.
Ben Pollard, CEO and Founder at Cushon said: “It’s great to see that attitudes towards saving are slowly changing for the good, particularly among young people who are now twice as likely to think about the future than the here and now. But there is still much more that could be done to support those who aren’t in this mindset.”
2017 saw the largest number of billion-pound companies created in the UK.
Cloud accounting company Ember studied data from Companies House which reveals that in 2017, 51 of the 622,713 companies that were incorporated have gone on to report an income in excess of £1 billion in their most recent accounts. The second most successful year was 2016, when 41 of 646,703 such companies were created.
Since 1st January 2011, a total of 282 companies have been incorporated which turned over more than £1 billion pounds in their most recent accounts, which equates to an average of 28 companies each year.
Commenting on the study, Ember co-founder Daniel Hogan said: “It’s a phenomenal achievement for any company to reach a turnover figure as high as one billion pounds. And it’s even more remarkable to see that 51 companies have been able to do so since just 2017 alone. We have already seen that 2020 was a record year for the number of companies created in the UK, so hopefully, plenty of those founded in the past year will go on to join the billion pound club as well.”
