Latest news with #Vickers
Euronews
19 hours ago
- Business
- Euronews
Sweden's Klarna receives licence from UK's Financial Conduct Authority
Klarna's UK division has secured an electronic money institution licence from the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the firm said in a statement on Wednesday. The Swedish fintech, which until now has focused on buy now, pay later services, will now be able to provide UK-based customers with debit cards and Klarna accounts. Customers will be able to save and manage money in their accounts, top up their debit cards, shop and receive funds, and earn up to 10% cashback when they make purchases. 'This authorisation marks Klarna's next big step in the UK — moving beyond flexible payments into everyday financial management,' said Abby Vickers, head of Klarna Financial Services UK. 'While traditional banks are still playing catch-up, Klarna is giving consumers a smarter way to spend — and now, to manage their finances too.' Vickers added that the licence 'lays the foundation for future product expansion, strengthening Klarna's ambition to disrupt traditional retail banking as it becomes a true everyday spending and saving partner for consumers'. The move sets Klarna up to compete with the likes of popular digital banks such as Revolut and Monzo. Following Brexit, Klarna Bank AB, a fully licensed Swedish bank, continued to provide regulated services in the UK under the FCA's Temporary Permissions Regime (TPR). In 2023, the fintech then established a new, UK-based entity to provide all consumer-facing services in the UK. Klarna is currently preparing a New York IPO, its second attempt to list after its first launch was delayed by market turmoil linked to President Trump's trade war. The shift away from its buy now, pay later focus has intensified since the postponement. Klarna is seeking to boost investor sentiment after recording a loss of $99mn (€85.7mn) in the first quarter of 2025, significantly more than the $47mn (€40.7mn) loss reported a year earlier. Customer credit losses also rose by 17% year-on-year. This means that more customers failed to repay Klarna what they owed, raising doubts about the sustainability of the firm's business model. The Swedish fintech hit a peak valuation of around $46bn (€39.8bn) in 2021 after a funding round led by Japan's SoftBank. The company then lost around 85% of its valuation in 2022 as it struggled with a period of high interest rates, prompting major job cuts. The fintech has held a banking licence in Sweden since 2017, and CEO Sebastian Siemiatkowski has previously said the company is considering a US banking licence.
Otago Daily Times
12-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Otago Daily Times
Oamaru artist wows judges for second time
North Otago-based artist and furniture designer Tracey Vickers has wowed the judges again and placed as a finalist in the World of Wearable Arts Awards (Wow) for the second time. Described as "the Oscars for wearable art", Wow recently announced its 2025 competition finalists, with a total of 86 entries selected from 17 countries set to star in one of New Zealand's most spectacular arena shows hosted in Wellington from September 18 to October 5. The finalist's garments will be showcased to about 60,000 attendees. Herbert-based Vickers was also a finalist in 2023 with her entry Maiden of the Ferns. "It's quite surreal. I know what to expect this time round, whereas last time it was the unknown. "I'm very excited," she said. Vickers is the first North Otago artist to be a Wow finalist since 2003. Her entry for the 2025 Wow Show, RISE, was inspired by the beauty of the ocean's reefs and the plague of plastic pollution in the seas. Wow's head of competition Sarah Nathan said the judging process to select the finalists' garments, some of which are years in the making, was as difficult as ever. "This year the level of artistry, artisanal skills and the range of materials used by our finalists is simply phenomenal," Mrs Nathan said. The three recurring sections, Aotearoa, Avant-garde and Open, remained. The special section themes this year were Myths and Legends, Air and Neon — and the result was a riot of colour, quirk and curiosity, Mrs Nathan said. Although Vickers could not reveal details about her entry or the category it was in, she told the Oamaru Mail she used "purely soft plastics" that she collected, including over 100 milk bottles, that were transformed beyond their everyday appearance to design the piece. Vickers had her first idea for the creation at the end of 2023 and built on the success of her last Wow entry. "I learned so much from the last one ... I definitely feel like I improved on the construction this time, and by using a different design, I've learned more techniques and redeveloped the materials from my last work, and improved on them. Vickers said it was an "anxious" seven-week wait to find out if she had made it to the finals this year. Vickers, who has run her furniture restoration and upholstery business for six years, has a bachelor of design degree majoring in three-dimensional design, from Unitech, in Auckland. She took a "gap year" from Wow in 2024 as she said it was "all consuming". "I'm still consumed in it — it's still on my mind now to create another one," she said. The Herbert-based designer said she "chipped away" at her idea, and, like her last entry, had "multiple ideas" that evolved as she worked on the piece. She was happy that what she envisioned for her design "all came together at the end". The mother of Owen, 12, and Olivia, 9, juggled work and home life, working "late nights right up till the deadline" to finish her creation. Her 2023 entry took Vickers 500 hours. This year's piece "took even longer", although this time she had a little help. "It's been amazing working with my daughter Olivia. She was up in my studio helping me process some of the materials, so the kids see it the whole way through, which is quite cool. "I love to instil that work ethic in my kids, that if they really want to do something, they should go for it," she said. Vickers will be among other finalist designers who will attend the awards night in Wellington on September 19 when $200,000 worth of prizes will be announced.
Irish Independent
26-06-2025
- Business
- Irish Independent
Majority of Irish companies are not minimising risk of cyber attacks, according to new survey
The poll, taken among 100 'decision-makers' in Irish companies by the insurance and risk management firm Gallagher, also found that just four in 10 run system vulnerability scans or regular updates of software and that more than half (51pc) do not run regular automated data back-ups. Cumulatively, this opens the door to cyber criminals, Gallagher claims. Meanwhile, only four in 10 Irish firms have given their staff cybersecurity training and less than half use multi-factor authentication for applications utilising remote access. Despite the gaps, 92pc of Irish businesses believe they are 'adequately' protected against cyber attacks, a claim that exposes a 'disconnect between perception and reality', according to the insurance firm. 'Research published by Gallagher earlier this summer found that four in 10 Irish businesses suffered at least one cyber attack in the last five years, and of those businesses, 88pc suffered a financial loss and commercial disruption,' said Laura Vickers, managing director of commercial lines at Gallagher in Ireland. 'It is important that Irish businesses are not complacent about the threats out there and that they don't overestimate their cyber resilience or underestimate the potential impact of a cyber attack. Our research suggests that there is a mismatch between how well protected businesses in Ireland believe they are against cyber attacks and the steps they have taken to manage such threats.' The survey also found a big gap between British and Irish firms, with UK businesses (71pc) more inclined than their Irish counterparts (43pc) to run regular software updates and to train all staff on cybersecurity (57pc versus 39pc). However, 94pc of Irish businesses have a dedicated cyber insurance policy compared to 79pc of UK businesses, the poll found. The businesses that feel least protected against cyber attacks are those in the professional services (75pc) compared to healthcare (83pc), IT (83pc) and financial services (89pc). The businesses that feel most protected against cyber attacks are those in agriculture, business services, construction, hospitality and leisure, legal services, marketing/PR, manufacturing, retail and utilities, with 100pc of business decision-makers in these sectors saying they feel sheltered against such threats. Munster-based businesses were the most likely to feel protected against cyber attacks with every one of the organisations located in the province surveyed indicating this to be the case. Ulster-based businesses were the second most likely to feel protected (94pc) followed by Dublin-based firms (92pc), followed by those in Leinster (90pc) and Connacht (89pc) 'Regularly updating software is a very basic step but it is crucial for cybersecurity, as updates often include security patches that address vulnerabilities and this in turn could potentially prevent cyber attacks and data breaches. Yet our survey shows that only 43pc of Irish businesses do this,' said Ms Vickers. 'Automatic data back-up is another crucial cybersecurity measure, as it helps protect against data loss from various incidents such as ransomware attacks, hardware failures, and accidental deletions. Automated back-ups are considered more reliable and less error-prone than manual back-ups. Yet only half of Irish businesses run regular automated data back-ups.'
Scottish Sun
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Scottish Sun
Meghan's kids will be SO annoyed when they grow up & realise how they were used by her on Instagram, experts say
Click to share on X/Twitter (Opens in new window) Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) MEGHAN Markle's children will be so annoyed when they grow up and realise how they were used by her on Instagram, experts have said. The Duchess of Sussex, 43, will suffer a 'terrible revenge,' according to royal watchers who appeared on The Sun's Royal Exclusive show. Sign up for Scottish Sun newsletter Sign up 6 Archie and Lilibet featured in a social media post during a family day out to Disneyland Credit: Instagram 6 The Sun's royal editor Matt Wilkinson, right, talking to Hugo Vickers and Samara Gill on our royal exclusive show Credit: The Sun 6 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also posted images on social media of the couple attending a Beyonce concert Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk Discussing how Prince Harry and Meghan's children Lilibet and Archie had been featured in social media posts, with their faces obscured were author Hugo Vickers and Samara Gill, a presenter and journalist. Mr Vickers told the paper's royal editor Matt Wilkinson: 'I just think there's gonna be a terrible revenge when those children grow up. 'I mean, I don't know about you but I would be very annoyed if I found that I'd been used in all these posts in a strange way by my parents.' The prince and princess were recently featured in a social media post during a trip to Disneyland. Mr Vickers added: 'Equally they're also going to grow up at one point and discover that they never knew their grandparents, their grandfathers. 'I mean Mr Markle, of course he's a broken man, but he's a rather sweet man actually and he did a lot for that girl when she was growing up don't you think?' Ms Gill said: 'I spoke to him a couple days ago actually and he's just absolutely still distraught about the fact that he still doesn't have contact with Meghan.' Mr Vickers said: 'And then of course they will also wake up to realise that they could have been the cousin to Prince George, a future king and they could have been over here having a nice time and with the other children their cousins they aren't gonna know them.' Talking about the apparent change in social media strategy from the Sussexes, Ms Gill said: 'I mean it's pretty interesting this new Instagram PR strategy though I must say. 'I know we talk about the backs of the children's heads. How dare Meghan lecture the royal on 'truth'? Her whole brand is built on LIES 'The children's faces were front and centre of those videos, so it seems like this new PR team has just chucked everything that she previously had out the door and said no we want you twerking we want the kids faces and we want everything out there and we want the public to be able to dissect it. 'So that's a very interesting sort of shift for that brand Meghan and Harry and I really think that it's tragic that the King and Thomas Markle senior were not included at all and not in the children's lives. 'It's really a tragedy.' Elsewhere in our exclusive chat, Matt noted how he was stunned at Meghan's latest podcast interview where she asked people to "tell the truth about her". Samara added that perhaps the "revolving door of staff" the Sussexes have employed may shed more light on "truth". Countless staff members have joined a long list of people who over the years no longer wish to associate with the mum-of-two. Samara also referenced bullying allegations levelled at her from staff during her time at Kensington Palace. The royal expert added: "I don't want to listen to this woman about truth. "The fact of the matter is that she is a constant liar." The Duchess of Sussex recently appeared on her podcast alongside friend Emma Grede, CEO of Good American, where she seemed to take several digs at the Royal Family. On the podcast, Meghan revealed that she wanted people to "tell the truth" about her, when asked "if you you could rewrite your public narrative from scratch, is there anything you would do differently?" The Duchess went on to share advice that she had received from Serena Williams regarding how she was viewed in the public after falling love with Prince Harry. "My dear friend Serena, she told me years ago: 'A lie can't live forever,'" said Meghan. But Hugo, agreed with Samara on the issue and questioned how accurate Meghan's accusatory comments actually were. He said: "I think Samara and I, as well as others, do tell the truth about her and I don't think she likes it very much." The royal expert added: "No one would actually listen to Meghan Markle if it wasn't for the fact she married Prince Harry. "It's because she's married to Harry it gives the soap opera quality that seems to appeal to everyone. "Otherwise would not really care about her, a lot of other people are doing stuff similar to her on social media anyway." It comes after the Duchess broke her silence on her cringey twerking video after it sparked wild conspiracy theories. The Duchess of Sussex, 43, posted the footage earlier this month showing her and Prince Harry dancing in a hospital room as she tried to induce daughter Lilibet's birth in 2021. 6 Harry and Meghan's children featured in a number of photos posted to social media Credit: Instagram 6 Meghan has been pushing her podcast Credit: YouTube
The Irish Sun
19-06-2025
- Entertainment
- The Irish Sun
Meghan's kids will be SO annoyed when they grow up & realise how they were used by her on Instagram, experts say
MEGHAN Markle's children will be so annoyed when they grow up and realise how they were used by her on Instagram, experts have said. The Duchess of Sussex , 43, will suffer a 'terrible revenge,' according to royal watchers who appeared on The Sun's Royal Exclusive show. 6 Archie and Lilibet featured in a social media post during a family day out to Disneyland Credit: Instagram 6 The Sun's royal editor Matt Wilkinson, right, talking to Hugo Vickers and Samara Gill on our royal exclusive show Credit: The Sun 6 The Duke and Duchess of Sussex also posted images on social media of the couple attending a Beyonce concert Credit: Not known, clear with picture desk Discussing how Prince Harry and Meghan's children Mr Vickers told the paper's royal editor Matt Wilkinson: 'I just think there's gonna be a terrible revenge when those children grow up. 'I mean, I don't know about you but I would be very annoyed if I found that I'd been used in all these posts in a strange way by my parents.' The prince and princess were recently featured in a social media post during a trip to Disneyland. Read More on Meghan Markle Mr Vickers added: 'Equally they're also going to grow up at one point and discover that they never knew their grandparents, their grandfathers. 'I mean Mr Markle, of course he's a broken man, but he's a rather sweet man actually and he did a lot for that girl when she was growing up don't you think?' Ms Gill said: 'I spoke to him a couple days ago actually and he's just absolutely still distraught about the fact that he still doesn't have contact with Meghan.' Mr Vickers said: 'And then of course they will also wake up to realise that they could have been the cousin to Prince George, a future king and they could have been over here having a nice time and with the other children their cousins they aren't gonna know them.' Most read in Royals Talking about the apparent change in social media strategy from the Sussexes, Ms Gill said: 'I mean it's pretty interesting this new Instagram PR strategy though I must say. 'I know we talk about the backs of the children's heads. How dare Meghan lecture the royal on 'truth'? Her whole brand is built on LIES 'The children's faces were front and centre of those videos, so it seems like this new PR team has just chucked everything that she previously had out the door and said no we want you twerking we want the kids faces and we want everything out there and we want the public to be able to dissect it. 'So that's a very interesting sort of shift for that brand Meghan and Harry and I really think that it's tragic that the King and 'It's really a tragedy.' Elsewhere in our exclusive chat, Matt noted how he was Samara added that perhaps the "revolving door of staff" the Sussexes have employed may shed more light on "truth". Samara also referenced bullying allegations levelled at her from staff during her time at Kensington Palace. The royal expert added: "I don't want to listen to this woman about truth. "The fact of the matter is that she is a constant liar." The Duchess of Sussex recently appeared on her podcast alongside friend Good American, where she seemed to take several digs at the Royal Family. On the podcast, Meghan revealed that she wanted people to "tell the truth" about her, when asked "if you you could rewrite your public narrative from scratch, is there anything you would do differently?" The Duchess went on to share advice that she had received from Serena Williams regarding how she was viewed in the public after falling love with Prince Harry. "My dear friend Serena, she told me years ago: 'A lie can't live forever,'" said Meghan. But Hugo, agreed with Samara on the issue and questioned how accurate Meghan's accusatory comments actually were. He said: "I think Samara and I, as well as others, do tell the truth about her and I don't think she likes it very much." The royal expert added: "No one would actually listen to Meghan Markle if it wasn't for the fact she married Prince Harry. "It's because she's married to Harry it gives the soap opera quality that seems to appeal to everyone. "Otherwise would not really care about her, a lot of other people are doing stuff similar to her on social media anyway." It comes after the Duchess broke her silence on her 6 Harry and Meghan's children featured in a number of photos posted to social media Credit: Instagram 6 Meghan has been pushing her podcast Credit: YouTube 6 The family put on Mickey Mouse ears for their fun day out at Disneyland Credit: Instagram
