Category: Technology

Business

Volvo receives Europe’s largest order for electric buses

Author ByCFI.co Blogger

Volvo Buses has received the largest single order for electric buses in Europe. Volvo Buses will deliver 157 electric articulated buses to Transdev starting in 2020. The buses will operate on a number of routes in Gothenburg. With their introduction, emissions and noise will be significantly reduced, and the electric buses will be able to operate in sensitive areas or zones with special restrictions. 

“It is immensely gratifying that we have secured Europe’s largest ever single order for electric buses – no less than 157 buses. Volvo is a pioneer in electromobility and sustainable public transport. We have a holistic system perspective for cities that encompasses vehicles, services and charging infrastructure. We focus on solutions that offer high reliability and high service levels for route operators and passengers. This large order confirms that electric buses are already recognised as a sustainable and financially viable solution for demanding high-capacity public transport needs,” says Håkan Agnevall, President of Volvo Buses. 

“Transdev is today Europe’s leading operator of electric buses and we know what challenges there are with the transition to electric propulsion. We’ve therefore been extremely thorough in choosing a partner with a holistic approach, a partner that will be able to deliver both buses and charging infrastructure on time and with excellent uptime. Being able to announce that we have chosen Volvo as our partner for city bus operations in Volvo’s home city of Gothenburg is of course particularly satisfying,” says Gunnar Schön, CEO of Transdev Sweden. 

All of the buses will be of the recently launched 7900 Volvo Electric Articulated model. The Volvo Electric Articulated can carry 150 passengers with an energy consumption that is 80 per cent lower than that of a corresponding diesel bus. The Volvo Electric Articulated combines high passenger capacity with low operating costs. The buses will be charged at quick-charge stations along the route, using the industry common charging interface OppChargeTM, in order to ensure the most efficient operation possible. In addition to the electric buses, the order includes 27 Euro VI buses for regional operations, running on biodiesel. 

“For us as a mobility supplier, it is vital to always be able to offer passengers good service and functional vehicles, but it is also important that our drivers have a good working climate. New buses, in particular quiet electric buses, not only result in cleaner cities – they also improve the everyday working environment,” explains Gunnar Schön.

“Electromobility creates new exiting opportunities for urban planning since we now get emission-free and quiet public transport that can operate closer to the city’s residents. Volvo aims to be a leader in increased electrification and to be a partner for cities that wish to implement long-term sustainable public transport solutions for their inhabitants,” concludes Håkan Agnevall.


Gothenburg, November 5, 2019
For further information, please contact: 
Joakim Kenndal, Manager Media Relations, Volvo Bus Corporation,                       
Phone +46 739-02 51 50 or e-mail joakim.kenndal@volvo.com

Lifestyle

Unikrn Offers the Best Job in Gaming: A $50,000 Salary for New Streaming Talent

Author ByCFI.co Blogger

One gamer will kickstart a lifelong gaming career with one of esports’ oldest teams.

Unikrn Offers the Best Job in Gaming A USD50,000 Salary for New Streaming Talent
Unikrn Offers the Best Job in Gaming A USD50,000 Salary for New Streaming Talent

 November 5, 2019 — Unikrn, the world’s longest-operating esports-first betting operator, is seeking an ambitious gamer to help build an audience in 2020. The winning streamer will be given a 6-month partnership with Unikrn and $50,000 to stream full-time and build an audience. Anybody can apply for the unprecedented opportunity at unikrn.com/best-job.

 Streaming is one of Earth’s fastest-growing entertainment sectors, but more than 99% of Twitch streamers are unpartnered and have no way to monetize their passion. Nearly 4,000,000 broadcasters have streamed every month in 2019, with only about 35,000 partnered broadcasters. With over 50,000 average live channels in any given moment, breaking into the industry is harder than ever before.

 “Becoming a professional streamer requires a lot of luck,” said Mike Dalton, VP Marketing for Unikrn, “We believe that for every streamer who builds an audience, there’s three gamers with amazing potential to offer the community something fresh who just never get an opportunity to be noticed.”

 The awarded contract will include a 6-month period to represent Unikrn as an official streamer for Unicorns of Love, one of gaming’s most beloved fan-focused esports franchises, and a $50,000 stipend.

 Unikrn was awarded as the best Esports Bookmaker of the Year for 2019, its first full year of operation with its own wagering licenses, and has options for fans to enjoy gaming both with and without gambling. Its wagering options include Unikrn UMode, the world’s only way to bet on your own success in online matchmaking games.

 This could be the best opportunity in esports for 2019, and it’s open for any esports fan to enter.

 “The Unicorns of Love family is changing today,” said Jos Mallant, UOL’s Owner, “We can’t wait to welcome a fan into our clan to stream or compete in 2020.”

 Streamers may enter the search until Nov 30, 2019.

ABOUT UNIKRN

Established in 2014, Unikrn is one of the world’s leading esports companies, building extensive crossroads through betting, content and gaming. Unikrn began operations with its fully-owned IOM licenses in November, 2018 and was awarded EGM Esports Bookmaker of the Year 2019. Unikrn has been a leading endemic bookmaker in esports and video games for years and has patent-pending technologies and completely unique gaming experiences.

Those unique experiences include Virtual CS:GO & SFV, skill-based betting on online matchmaking, streamer better, esports and sports bookmaking, daily gaming giveaways and an online casino, each available as regulator approved.

Technology

Internet of People, the New Internet Paradigm

Author ByCFI.co Blogger

In the typical Internet infrastructure, people and their devices were somehow mere end-users of applications; however, users, along with the expansion of the Internet, started establishing tighter interactions with their devices and – through them – with other individuals. The concept of the Internet of People reflects the active roles that humans are playing and is also the answer created to solve the new types of interactions.

Internet of People, the New Internet Paradigm.

So what is the Internet of People?

Internet of People, also known as IoP, is the connection between people through the Internet and other technologies. It resembles a digital cooperative, which offers open- source and decentralized infrastructure. It uses blockchain and advanced peer-to-peer technologies to enable people to communicate and do business without compromising their privacy and free from third-party censorship.

The advantage of the Internet of People’s decentralization

The goal of IoP is to eliminate the middlemen during our online activity, enabling us to perform perform any transaction or sharing information with our consent freely. The decentralization that IoP offers saves us from data breaches or misuse of our data. It is well known that companies gather and the excessive amount of data from the users and, frequently, they sell it, re-direct it, or use it for means users don´t even know.

Besides the systematized rupture of our privacy, another issue is that as companies don´t always store users´ data with the required level of security, our information and identity are at risk of being publicly exposed. The same way IoP enables authorized information sharing, it also enables device-to-device connection without a central server routing the connection, which ensures privacy.

The origins of IoP

Internet of People project was founded by Luis Fernando Molina with the financial support of Lan Tschirkly, who abandoned it in June 2017. When Molina discovered the Bitcoin, he decided that he would take advantage of the underlying technology to solve the problem humans face of “unlimited concentration of power.” Molina, with Tschirkly’s support, first created a group of tech-savvy adventurers created the “Fermat Community,” which later split into IoP and Fermat Community.

The technology behind IoP

IoP uses a combination of Proof of Work and Proof of Stake systems, combined the so-called SHA256 algorithm, an algorithm that transforms data into text and uses unique digital signatures that need to be proved by one of the above mentioned proof systems. The good news is that the most common devices, from a PC to a smartphone can mine IoP tokes, without the need for sophisticated hardware or software.

The future of IoP

Although the numbers for IoP don´t seem appealing enough to invest on it yet, it’s underlying concepts of freedom and decentralization, along with the solution it presents to data privacy and security as growing needs, may indicate that there are great chances of development and global growth for IoP.  

The time for big companies and institutions to decide whether to bet on it or not is soon to arrive. Would you bet your two cents into it?

See also about Modern Monetary Theory, Blockchain and more.

Banking

Understanding Blockchain Technology

Author ByCFI.co Blogger

Blockchain technology finds its origin in the digital coin named Bitcoin. It was invented primarily to sustain it. Although blockchain is tightly associated with Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies, these are just the top of the iceberg.

Blockchain technology finds its origin in the digital coin named Bitcoin. It was invented primarily to sustain it

Currently, blockchain technology is being used in other commercial applications, and annual growth of 51% is expected for 2022 in several markets, including financial institutions and Internet of Things (IoT).

What is blockchain technology, and what makes it secure?

A blockchain is a list of digital records or blocks of data that are stored in a linear chain that is constantly growing. It´s a kind of digital general ledger than can be shared with many users and that keeps record of every transaction. Each block contains encrypted data, for instance of a Bitcoin transaction, and is linked to the specific user that made it. There´s no way to alter the data in them since they are time-stamped and connected to the previous block.

The security of blockchain relies on the fact that it can be updated only with the agreement of all the participants and the system itself. 

The information of the whole chain is kept in each node, so each participant has an exact copy of the entire chain. If someone wanted to attack the service, he should overturn or nullify every node in the net given that just one operative node is enough for all the information to be available. 

As new records are created, these are verified and validated by the nodes and added to a new block that is linked to the chain. Once added, this block becomes unalterable. For a transaction to be accepted and added, some specific digital signatures or requirements must be met. For example, people that use the crypto-currency Ethereum, must meet several conditions to demonstrate that they have that crypto-currency and can operate with it. 

Why is blockchain useful for?

As it is a peer-to-peer network, where transactions are time-stamped, and that enables managing all the information exchange among the users in an autonomous way, without the need for an administrator, it is an excellent tool for all types of businesses. Any information that needs to be kept intact and available can be safely stored in a blockchain. 

Many industries, such as transport, fintech, and sanitary services, to mention just a few, are taking advantage of this technology that streamlines processes, improving productivity. 

Challenges organizations or companies could face with blockchain

Thanks to blockchain, the operative models and business-making models of the companies and organizations could undergo a total transformation with the adoption of blockchain technology. Many organizations are using blockchain technology for their transactions. Still, if it were massively adopted, one of the challenges that governments of extremely controlled sectors will have to solve is the lack of regulation.

Blockchain is complex, and it takes a longer time to process any transaction. It can take hours to complete a transaction. And the more it grows, the slower it gets. This could be an obstacle for specific industries.

Despite the above, the biggest challenge that blockchain technology faces is the reluctance of private and public sectors, along with the skepticism of the potential users who, as with each new technology, need time to learn, get used, and trust.  

See also about Modern Monetary Theory and Internet of People – IoP

Banking

Global Lending Automation Platform Trade Ledger Announces £1.5m Funding Round Led by Hambro Perks

Author ByCFI.co Blogger

The world’s first open banking business Lending-as-a-Service platform has completed a £1.5m funding round led by Hambro Perks, the leading UK early-stage venture firm.

Martin-McCann-CEO-Trade-Ledger
Martin McCann CEO Trade Ledger

London, 30 October 2019 – Trade Ledger, the ground-breaking business lending platform, which automates commercial lending processes for global banks and alternative finance providers, today announces strategic investment in a £1.5M round led by Hambro Perks, to further accelerate revenue growth.

Established in 2016 and now operating on three continents, Trade Ledger’s unique lend-tech platform automates all types of digital business finance, helping bank and non-bank business lending organisations alike to fast-track economic growth through process automation and scaling of business credit operations. Trade Ledger uses financial data APIs (often referred to as Open Banking), Machine Learning, Artificial Intelligence and Robotic Process Automation technologies to enhance or replace old and costly legacy bank systems for origination, credit decisioning, take on and loan management, enabling new cutting-edge working capital solutions for business customers. The resulting new lending solutions can reduce the time-to-cash from 90 days which is the industry average to 4 minutes and are better tailored to the working capital needs of modern high-growth businesses. 

Trade Ledger’s co-founder, Martin McCann, and his team believe that transforming business lending operations through the Trade Ledger Lending Platform is the single biggest area of opportunity for commercial banks and financial services organisations to benefit from Open Banking in the near future. “There is a £1.2 trillion gap in credit that businesses need to optimise growth which is why we created this lend-tech”, explained McCann. “We believe that only by reimagining new types of credit services only possible with this lend-tech, can banks solve this massive business problem profitably and at scale globally. By leveraging open trade data via APIs alongside other enterprise-grade enabling technologies, financial institutions can drive significant operational efficiencies and product innovation within their internal operations and dramatically increase market share.”

“My co-founder Matt and I launched Trade Ledger in 2016 to improve the business customer’s experience in their financial supply chain, by helping banks re-imagine the entire process”, continued Martin McCann. “With the increasing threat of big technology firms like Google, Amazon and Alibaba bridging the gap between traditional financial services and the supply-chain eco-system, incumbent banks and lenders must start thinking about how they remain relevant. Trade Ledger is currently the only true platform in the world that can help them do this at a global scale in the business lending sector.”

George Davies, Partner at Hambro Perks added: “We are delighted to be backing Trade Ledger as Martin, Matt and the Trade Ledger team continue to develop market-leading tech that benefits businesses around the world. Hambro Perks is committed to supporting brilliant founders and teams that are building global businesses, and we believe that Trade Ledger has enormous global potential. We are very excited about Trade Ledger’s rapid growth and to support Martin and Matt as they tackle the barriers that have created such a vast undersupply of working capital for businesses across the globe.”

The Trade Ledger Platform provides a complete innovation layer that masks the clunky traditional corporate business banking environment and delivers an excellent consumer-like experience. Trade Ledger supports compliance with new regulatory requirements through aggregation and normalisation of better credit risk data whilst underpinning the wider commercialisation of open data and adoption of new banking business models to generate new revenue streams. The platform orchestrates value in the lending ecosystem by moving organisations from process-led engagement to an automated data-driven lending model.

About Trade Ledger

Trade Ledger (www.tradeledger.io) is the world’s first open banking lending platform that gives banks the ability to assess business lending risk in real-time. This will enable banks to address the £1.2 trillion of undersupply in trade finance lending globally while providing high-growth companies with the working capital needed to sustain growth.

About Hambro Perks

Hambro Perks (www.hambroperks.com)  is a London based venture firm that backs and builds leading technology companies. Founded by Dominic Perks and Rupert Hambro CBE, Hambro Perks invests at an early stage and helps companies to scale with capital and strategic support. The firm invests from both its permanent capital and Co-Investment EIS Fund that is open to high net worth investors and is soon to launch other funds. Hambro Perks has backed more than 40 businesses such as the digital pharmacy Echo, the geocoding system What3Words, and the Muslim matchmaking app Muzmatch.