Wirecard’s auditor EY was too gullible, Singapore suspect claims
Asian trustee of German payments firm admits fabricating documents
Fintech
Glasgow university spinout raises $43mn to ‘digitise chemistry’
Chemify’s technology aims to remove bottleneck of producing molecules in the lab
Artificial intelligence
Daniel Křetínský in talks to buy unit of ailing French tech group Atos
Paris has been closely following restructuring efforts of group that provides information systems for military
Mergers & Acquisitions
Panasonic: TV finale clears way for happier sequel in electric car batteries
Long weighed down by the LCD arm, focus is finally shifting to its profitable unit
Batteries
Drone hits Moscow tower block housing Russian government offices
Strike is second in three days and signals Ukraine’s intent to step up attacks on targets inside Russia
Drones
Rich Turkish buyers help prop up gold price as bank buying slows
Demand for bars rises 7% in three months thanks to corporates and wealthy individuals
Central banks
SoFi is just a bank
And the BoJ fiddles
Fintech
Meta prepares chatbots with personas to try retain users
Facebook owner seeks to seize on hype for AI while challenging rivals such as OpenAI, Snap and TikTok
Social Media, Artificial intelligence
Spanish EV company to list in Amsterdam with Spac deal
QEV’s €200mn value will test investor appetite in market littered with failures and frauds
Electric vehicles
The Barefoot Billionaire embroiled in Altice’s fraud scandal
Plus, BDT & MSD Partners agree a deal worth dancing about and Blackstone goes from real estate buyer to seller
Mergers & Acquisitions