Business

For a while now, the steady increase in the price of coffee has been subject to worldwide discussions—and yet the tail end of November brought an unprecedented price surge with it. It was during this period that the price of green arabica reached €6.5 per kilogram, despite dropping to €4.47 earlier this year. Experts now say that the volatility of coffee prices is starting to resemble the state of cryptocurrency. “While the coffee and the...

Innovate UK has temporarily halted its Smart Grants programme—worth £25 million a year—to overhaul how it supports small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). The pause aims to address oversubscription issues, with success rates reportedly falling below 10 per cent for applicants, and possibly as low as 2 per cent according to some. Under the existing scheme, SMEs could claim up to 70 per cent of costs for commercially viable research projects. The latest round of successful...

Premium mixer maker Fevertree has secured a deal with US beverage giant Molson Coors that will see the latter take an 8.5 per cent stake in the British-based company for £71 million, or 654.2p per share. The move, underpinned by an exclusive licensing agreement, aims to boost Fevertree’s sales, distribution and production footprint across the United States. Shares in Fevertree, which floated at just 134p in 2014, leapt by 20.2 per cent on Thursday to...

OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, is in discussions to raise close to $40 billion in fresh funding—almost doubling its valuation to as high as $340 billion, according to reports. The San Francisco-based company was last valued at $157 billion in October, when it secured $6.6 billion of investment. Microsoft led a previous round of financing totalling $10 billion, integrating OpenAI’s technology into its suite of Office products and significantly boosting the AI startup’s profile. Under...

Homebase collapsed into administration in November, revealing it owed more than £650 million to unsecured creditors including AO World, Halfords, and The Hut, according to documents newly filed at Companies House. Teneo, the appointed administrator, disclosed that unsecured non-preferential creditor claims totalled £657 million—a sum that includes around £100 million owed to trade creditors. Unsecured creditors rank behind secured creditors in any repayment process, making it unlikely they will recoup outstanding funds. The breakdown of...

Donald Trump’s social media venture, Trump Media & Technology Group (TMTG), has unveiled plans to expand into cryptocurrency and fintech services through a new brand dubbed Truth.Fi. The announcement sent shares in TMTG—owner of the Truth Social platform—up 15% in pre-market trading on Wednesday. Under the Truth.Fi banner, TMTG says it will invest up to $250m in investment accounts and “Bitcoin and similar cryptocurrencies or crypto-related securities”. The funds will be managed by the brokerage...

Security is a top priority in the world of online trading! A platform can boast a vast selection of markets, cutting-edge tools, and customized features, but without robust security measures, traders’ trust will remain elusive. MuxCap.com has garnered attention as one of the standout players in the online trading landscape, praised for its wide-ranging features and dedication to user safety. But how secure is MuxCap.com? Unlike other MuxCap.com reviews, this comprehensive security review explores whether...

Dr. Ammar Idlibi is not your typical pediatric dentist. Based in Bristol, Connecticut, he’s known not just for fixing cavities but for changing the way families think about oral health. His journey from an aspiring dentist to a leader in his field is both inspiring and deeply human. It’s a story of passion, innovation, and a drive to help others. A Lifetime of Learning Dr. Idlibi’s path to dentistry wasn’t just about following a career;...

Chancellor Rachel Reeves has given her official backing to plans for a third runway at Heathrow, arguing that the expansion could create more than 100,000 jobs and significantly boost the nation’s economic output. “A third runway is badly needed,” she said, pointing to projections suggesting a 0.43% rise in potential GDP by 2050 if the airport is expanded. Reeves emphasised Heathrow’s central role in the UK’s global connectivity, noting that the airport facilitates three-quarters of...

Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has reported a 17% drop in quarterly profit, down to £523m in the final three months of last year, even as the automotive group achieved its best third-quarter revenue on record. The company’s sales for the period rose 2% year-on-year to £7.5bn. However, over the first nine months of its financial year, total revenue remained flat at £21.2bn. Despite the quarterly decline, JLR said year-to-date profits have increased 7% to £1.6bn,...