China has confirmed that it has detained two Canadian men in what appears to be retaliation for the arrest of Huawei’s chief financial officer.

The US Senate has passed a resolution stating Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is responsible for the killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.

Theresa May’s hopes of getting EU leaders to help her push her Brexit deal through parliament have been dealt a severe blow as she prepares to return home and face her party.

The UK’s big four auditors will next week face an unprecedented move to limit their market share and allow smaller rivals to gatecrash their self-confessed oligopoly as regulators shake up a sector rattled by a string of corporate collapses.

Mike Ashley has been rebuffed by Debenhams after he offered a £40m loan to bail out the struggling department store amid speculation it had “zero chance of survival”.

 

Brexit uncertainty has pushed a key measure of the housing market to a six-year low, according to surveyors.

Shares in Superdry have plunged by more than a third after it issued its second profit warning in less than two months – blaming mild weather for a potential £22m hit to its bottom line.

TECHNOLOGY • TOP STORIES

Oriente raises $105 million in initial funding round

Oriente raises US$105m in initial funding round

The Hong Kong- based financial services and technology company announced that it had completed a $105mn initial funding round, making it one of the biggest ones for any Asian startup

Investments came from the founders, and a group of family offices including members of the Berjaya Group, JG Summit Holdings and Sinar Mas.

It is said to be one of the largest initial funding rounds by any start-up in Asia, and also for a fintech company worldwide.

Oriente was founded in 2017 by former Skype co-founder and chief strategy officer Geoffrey Prentice; former founding chief technology offer and chief operations offer at LU.com, Hubert Tai (CEO of Oriente); and founder of BlackPine Private Equity, Lawrence Chu. The company now employs over 1,200 staff across offices in Hong Kong, Shanghai, Singapore, Taipei, Manila, Jakarta and Ho Chi Minh City.

Oriente stated that the financing is being used to accelerate technology and product development, scale multi-market operations, and power the growth of its digital solutions into new markets, expanding its reach in South-east Asia’s fastest-growing economies.The start-up uses AI, machine learning and data science, to build solutions that provide real-time credit scoring, digital and online to offline lending and other tailored financial services.

In the past few months, the company has rolled out two app-based ventures, Cashalo in the Philippines, and Finmas in Indonesia– aimed at delivering fast and convenient access to affordable credit for millions of underserved in the emerging middle class, and micro, small and medium enterprises, according to it.

Oriente stated that smartphone users in these markets can download these apps, apply for a loan, and receive a decision and financing within minutes.

Prentice stated that the start-up was founded on the principles of inclusion and innovation to open financial access, freedom and opportunity for underserved people and micro-entrepreneurs, and helping them build financial identities and participate in the global economy.

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