Your Monday morning coffee briefing from TFG. The UK hits its first vaccine target, though new quarantine hotels expected to bring disruption. Italy swears in former ECB president Mario Draghi as its new prime minister. Sussexes expecting a second child.
Coface credit insurance predicts uneven Covid recovery
A European leader in credit insurance has predicted an uneven recovery across countries from the pandemic in its quarterly risk barometer, with strong sectoral inequalities and low income groups expected to be the worst hit. Read mcore →
SWIFT to streamline low value global payments
The financial services messaging platform has developed a new service for low value cross-border transaction, to provide predictable and frictionless international payments to SMEs. It is expected to be ready by the end of March 2021. Read more →
UK-India trade poised to double to £50bn
Trade between the UK and India could double to £50 billion before the end of the decade, according to a joint report by Santander and the Indian High Commission in London. Indian firms have also committed to creating 1,500 new jobs in the UK. Read more →
Why we need to stop talking about Bitcoin
Elon Musk’s frenzied announcements around this one cryptocurrency detract from the wider-reaching benefits of disruptive ledger technology, argues Deepesh Patel, in our Monday morning read. Readbi more→
Three million SME jobs at risk, industry analysis reveals
Up to 620,000 SMEs are in financial distress across the UK, placing nearly three million jobs at risk, insolvency firm Real Business Rescue have claimed. Startups are among those most at risk. Read more →
Digital growth could increase output by $4.3tn a year, say ADB
A 20 per cent increase in the size of the digital sector could increase global output by an average of $4.3 trillion and create 65 million jobs a year, a report by Asian Development Bank (ADB) has suggested. Read more →
Barclays launch green bonds guarantees and indemnities
Barclays is launching new sustainable Bonds Guarantees & Indemnities (BGIs) aimed at businesses trying to reduce their environmental impact.These Green BGIs will focus on the environmental concerns firms are confronted with in trade related contracts. Read more →
Solving Covid is easy compared to climate crisis, says Gates
Avoiding a climate disaster would be “the most amazing thing humanity has ever done”, Bill Gates has said, calling ending the pandemic “very, very easy” by comparison. Read more →
Indian finance panel calls for credit ratings for MSME factoring
India’s financial parliamentary panel has called for the ratings agencies to regulate MSMEs seeking receivables loans and factoring credit, as the government seeks to amend a factoring regulatory act. Read more →
