Fintech stocks came under broad pressure in the first quarter of 2026, as investors pulled back from growth names in a more uncertain macro environment.

The valuations across the sector fell sharply, with fintechs significantly underperforming the broader market. One notable exception was Freedom Holding Corp., whose shares rose nearly 17% over the period. The move was supported by its more diversified ecosystem business model, which extends beyond financial services into telecom, travel, and other lifestyle segments.

A decline in fintech valuations was highlighted in a report titled “Fintech’s rapidly melting market cap,” published in mid-April by PitchBook, a leading provider of financial data and analytics. “The public fintech sector entered 2026 with momentum, but the first quarter turned sharply as the Iran war drove energy inflation, reversed rate-cut expectations, and pushed investors into a risk-off posture. With 18% of the sector’s market cap being wiped out and median cohort returns ranging from -13% to -35.3%, fintech significantly underperformed the broader market in Q1,” according to the report. Not that fintech companies suddenly got worse, rather investors became less willing to pay high valuations for growth stocks in a more uncertain, inflation-sensitive environment.

Fintech Under Pressure

Declines were widespread across nearly all segments of fintech, spanning credit-focused Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) providers, brokers, and payment platforms.

BNPL stocks came under pressure as investors pulled back from high-growth, credit-sensitive business models amid rising inflation concerns and fading expectations for interest-rate cuts. Klarna Group (KLAR), a provider of flexible payments that earns revenue from consumer installment lending and merchant fees, fell 54% in Q1 2026. Affirm Holdings (AFRM), which offers transparent installment plans and consumer lending products with no hidden fees, lost 38% over the first three months of the year.

Even the traditional lending segment, typically seen as less risky than consumer credit, was not immune. Upstart Network (UPST), an AI-driven lending platform that uses proprietary machine-learning models to underwrite personal, auto, and home equity loans, fell 44% over the period. Retail brokerage and investing platforms also came under pressure. Robinhood Markets (HOOD), the operator of the pioneering commission-free trading app Robinhood, fell 40% over the quarter.

Digital payments and money transfer fintechs held up better but still saw a decline in market cap. Shares of PayPal Holdings (PYPL), one of the most established global payments fintechs operating across roughly 200 markets, declined 22%. The stock of Block Inc. (XYZ), which runs Square, Cash App, and Afterpay and spans payments, merchant services, peer-to-peer transfers, and BNPL, fell 8%.

The downturn also extended to the neobank and consumer financial platform segment. SoFi Technologies (SOFI), which is building an all-in-one ecosystem spanning savings, banking products, lending, investing, and wealth protection within a single app, saw its market capitalization fall 42%. Even Nu Holdings (NU), one of the largest digital financial services platforms and a global neobank pioneer, serving approximately 131 million customers across Brazil, Mexico, and Colombia through its branchless model, declined 16% in Q1.

Freedom Holding: A Different Story

Shares of Freedom Holding Corp. moved in the opposite direction in Q1, gaining nearly 17% from $124.23 at the start of January to $144.88 on March 31. The stock continued higher into April, breaking above $160 mid-month. Freedom’s market capitalization has surpassed $9.5 billion. The growth has been supported by a series of positive corporate developments, including continued expansion into international markets, ongoing integration of Freedom Holding’s ecosystem, and strong financial results.

Revenue for the quarter ending December 31, 2025, rose to $628.6 million from $526.1 million in the previous quarter, while net income nearly doubled from $38.7 million to $76.2 million. Over the first nine months of the fiscal year, the group generated $1.69 billion in revenue and $144.5 million in net income. These numbers reflect the growing investments in further development of Freedom’s ecosystem, which integrates financial, telecom, and lifestyle businesses and is available to clients through the holding’s SuperApp, which now serves 11 million users.

In its core market of Kazakhstan, the group operates a leading brokerage, a top-ten bank by assets, and maintains strong positions in insurance. It is also strengthening its domestic banking presence through additional acquisitions

In neighboring Tajikistan, the group based on Freedom Bank Tajikistan is replicating the model, which has been previously tested and refined in Kazakhstan. As Freedom Holding sees the banking business as a locomotive for the entire multi-industrial ecosystem, it is acquiring new banks in Georgia and Turkey. Recently, the management also announced plans to buy banks in Armenia and France.

Besides that, in Europe, the group is actively developing its travel segment services, such as ticketing, bookings, and events. Freedom Holding Corp’s travel-focused subsidiary plans to cover all traveler needs, from a global hotel aggregator set to launch in May 2026, to transfers, excursions, curated tours, visa support, and more. With this, the holding seeks to compete with those of the largest international platforms, such as Booking.com and Airbnb.

In technology, the group is investing in proprietary AI tools and assistants and plans to develop a national AI hub in partnership with Nvidia to support the broader adoption of artificial intelligence across up to 70% of the Kazakhstan population.

To finance all these movements, Freedom Holding is considering a potential secondary share offering outside the United States, in Kazakhstan, and possibly in Hong Kong.

The Ecosystem Advantage

Analysts point to the company’s more diversified business model, which extends beyond financial services. Unlike many fintechs that rely mainly on lending, payments, or brokerage activity, Freedom has multiple revenue streams, which have helped support its share price growth during the sector-wide decline.

“The era of stand-alone financial services is coming to an end. The future lies in super-apps that integrate financial services into everyday life – from grocery shopping to travel planning. Banking will increasingly become an invisible layer embedded within these ecosystems,” says Saurabh Tripathi, Senior Partner and Global Leader of the Financial Institutions practice at Boston Consulting Group.

According to Fortune Business Insights, the global fintech market was valued at $394.9 billion in 2025 and is projected to reach $1.76 trillion by 2034, implying a CAGR of 18.2%. Much of that growth, however, is increasingly expected to come from embedded financial services integrated into broader digital ecosystems rather than delivered as standalone products.

Read more:
Freedom Holding Corp. Rises as Global Fintech Stocks Fell in GL 2026

Choosing the right business law firm is one of the more important decisions you will make as an SME owner. It shapes how you handle risk, manage transactions, and deal with issues as they come up.

If you want a clear way to assess your options, focus on five things:

• Breadth of legal services under one roof
• Commercial understanding, not just legal knowledge
• Transparent and predictable fees
• Relevant transaction and sector experience
• Easy access to consistent, experienced advisers

Get these right, and everything else tends to follow.

Does the Firm Cover All the Legal Areas Your Business Needs?

Most SMEs do not deal with legal issues in isolation. Employment, contracts, property, and corporate work often overlap, sometimes within the same transaction. If your firm only covers part of that, you end up managing multiple advisers. That usually means higher costs, slower progress, and more chances for gaps.

Rubric Law provides legal services across corporate, employment, commercial, and dispute resolution, giving SMEs a single, consistent point of contact as different issues arise. This matters most when legal areas connect.

An acquisition with TUPE implications, or a business sale linked to a property transaction, needs joined-up advice. If teams are not aligned, issues tend to surface later, when they are harder and more expensive to fix.

When comparing firms, ask which areas they handle in-house. If work is referred out, it adds time, cost, and another layer to manage.

Does the Firm Offer Commercial Insight?

Legal accuracy should be a given. What actually makes a difference is whether the firm can explain what that legal position means for your business.

Think about it this way. You are not just asking, “Is this clause enforceable?” You are really asking, “What does this mean for me, and what should I do next?”

A good adviser will talk in terms of risk, options, and likely outcomes. They will connect the legal detail to your commercial reality.

You can usually spot this early. In initial conversations, pay attention to the questions they ask. A strong firm will want to understand:

• Your business model
• Your objectives
• Your appetite for risk

If they skip that and go straight into technical explanation, that is often how they will approach the rest of the work.

Fixed Fee vs Hourly Billing Structure

Fees are where a lot of SME frustration comes from, usually because of uncertainty rather than the cost itself.

The billing model makes a big difference to how well you can plan:

Fixed fees work well when the scope is clear, things like shareholder agreements, employment contracts, or standard conveyancing.

Hourly billing tends to fit situations where the scope is less predictable, such as disputes or more complex transactions.

Some firms default to hourly billing for everything. That can make routine work more expensive than it needs to be, and it makes budgeting harder than it should be.

It is worth asking a few direct questions upfront:

• Which services are offered on a fixed fee basis?
• Which are billed hourly?
• Can you provide typical cost ranges for the work I am likely to need?

Clarity here saves a lot of friction later.

Does Their Transaction Experience Match Your Sector?

Not all corporate experience is equal. There is a difference between general corporate advice and hands-on transaction experience.

For example, a management buy-out involves specific deal structures and negotiation points. A share sale requires careful handling of disclosures, warranties, and completion processes. These are not things you want a firm learning as they go.

Sector experience matters just as much. If your business operates in a regulated space like healthcare, financial services, or food production, there are compliance requirements that directly affect how deals are structured.

A firm without that background may still get there, but it often takes longer and carries more risk.

Ask for specific examples of completed transactions in your sector and deal size. General statements about experience are less useful than real, recent examples.

Accessibility and Relationship Continuity

Good legal advice is only helpful if you can get it when you need it. There will be moments where something urgent comes up, a contract issue, an employee problem, or a decision that cannot wait. In those situations, slow responses are more than frustrating; they can affect outcomes.

Different firms handle this in different ways. Larger firms may introduce you to a senior partner, then pass the day-to-day work to junior team members. Smaller firms may offer a more personal service but struggle with capacity on more complex matters.

What most SMEs need is consistency. You want to know who you are dealing with, and you want that person to stay involved.

Before you instruct a firm, ask:

• Who will handle my work day to day?
• Will that person stay involved throughout?
• What are your typical response times?

It sounds basic, but it makes a real difference once work starts.

Checklist, Questions to Ask Before Instructing a Business Law Firm

If you are comparing a few firms, these questions help you cut through the surface-level differences:

• Which practice areas do you handle in-house, and which do you refer out?
• Can you provide examples of work completed in my sector?
• How do you structure fees for the type of work I need most?
• Who will manage my matter day to day?
• What are your standard response times?
• How do you explain legal risk in commercial terms?
• Have you advised businesses at my stage of growth or transaction size?

Get the Legal Support Your Business Needs

Choosing a business law firm is worth doing properly. When you take the time to assess service breadth, commercial understanding, fee clarity, experience, and accessibility, you reduce the risk of problems later.

If you are about to instruct a firm, use the checklist above and have those conversations early. It will give you a much clearer sense of whether they are the right fit for your business.

Read more:
What Should SMEs Look for in a Full-Service Business Law Firm?

Leadership does not always start in a boardroom. Sometimes it starts in a classroom. Sometimes it starts on a construction site in rural West Virginia.

For Schuyler Tansey, it started early in New York City.

Born and raised in midtown Manhattan, Schuyler grew up surrounded by energy, culture, and opportunity. Today, she is a sophomore at Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, majoring in elementary education. Her focus is clear: serve, teach, and build strong communities through education.

Her path has not been linear. It has been intentional.

Early Life in New York City

Schuyler attended Loyola School in New York City. While there, she was part of the Mock Trial Cheering Squad — a small but spirited group that supported classmates during competitions.

Growing up in Manhattan exposed her to a wide range of people and perspectives. That diversity shaped her interest in service.

Her early experiences built confidence and curiosity. They also planted the seeds for her career choice.

Why Did Schuyler Tansey Choose Elementary Education?

After high school, Schuyler enrolled at Tulane University. Over time, she realized she wanted to pursue elementary education — a program Tulane did not offer. She made a difficult decision to transfer.

“I had to be honest with myself,” she says. “If I wanted to teach, I needed to be in the right program.”

She transferred to Xavier University in Cincinnati, Ohio, where she is now a sophomore majoring in elementary education.

That shift reflects a leadership trait often overlooked: course correction.

Her academic focus centers on building strong foundational skills for children. Research consistently shows that early childhood education impacts long-term academic performance, income potential, and community stability.

Schuyler understands that.

“Elementary school is where everything begins.”

Global Perspective Through Study Abroad

Schuyler also attended Richmond University in London for a semester abroad. Studying overseas expanded her understanding of global education systems.

“It reminded me that education is both local and global.”

Community Service as a Core Commitment

Outside of academics, Schuyler’s resume reflects deep involvement in service.

She volunteered in Mingo County, West Virginia, helping build for people in need. She worked at the Romero Center in Camden, New Jersey. She has served at St. James Church in New York and participated in the Ines tutoring program at her time at the Loyola School.

These are not short-term activities. They are ongoing commitments.

Housing insecurity remains a challenge in many parts of the United States. Service projects like these expose volunteers to economic realities beyond their own communities.

“Service takes you out of your bubble,” she says. “It teaches humility.”

At the Romero Center and other organizations, she worked directly with cleaning up and beautifying the community.

How Service Shapes Her Leadership Style

Schuyler views teaching as more than lesson plans and grading.

“Kids notice when you’re present,” she says. “They notice when you care.”

Her volunteer work has strengthened her patience and listening skills. Those are practical leadership tools in a classroom.

Research shows that strong teacher-student relationships improve attendance and academic outcomes. Schuyler sees that as common sense.

“If a child must feel cared for and is treated properly, to learn better,” she says.

She believes service prepares future educators for real-world classrooms.

A Career Still in Progress

Schuyler is still a full-time student. Her career is in development. But her direction is clear.

Education remains one of the most important sectors in society. Teachers influence workforce readiness, civic engagement, and community health. According to national education data, teacher shortages persist in many regions, especially in early childhood education.

Her leadership does not come from title or tenure. It comes from action. From transferring schools to pursue the right major. From building homes in West Virginia. From tutoring younger students.

Success, for her, is about making the world better, even if it is one community at a time.

“I want to be the kind of teacher students remember,” she says.

Schuyler Tansey represents a new generation of educators who blend academic focus with community service. Her career is just beginning. But her foundation is strong.

And in education, foundation is everything.

Read more:
Schuyler Tansey: A Future Leader in Education and Service

Monique Appeaning has spent more than two decades working inside government systems that most people never see. Her work has not been about headlines. It has been about structure, process, and results.

Based in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, Appeaning built her career step by step across both the executive and legislative branches. Along the way, she developed a reputation for discipline, clear thinking, and a steady approach to complex challenges.

“The best advice I’ve ever received is that applying logic to something illogical only breeds frustration,” Appeaning said. “That has stayed with me throughout my career.”

That mindset has shaped how she works. It also explains why her career has centered on accountability, budgeting, and system-level thinking.

Early Career in Government Operations and Budgeting

Appeaning’s career began in government operations, where she focused on budgeting and planning. Early roles required her to review agency budgets, analyze financial requests, and help prepare executive budget materials.

These were technical roles, but they came with real impact. State budgets guide how resources are used across major systems. That includes infrastructure, public safety, and administrative functions.

She worked closely with agency leaders, program managers, and officials at multiple levels of government. The work required both detail and communication.

“Budgeting is what I’m most proud of as a skill,” she said. “It connects decisions to outcomes.”

Her early experience helped her understand how large systems operate from the inside. It also set the foundation for more senior roles.

Growing Into Leadership Roles in State Government

As her career progressed, Appeaning moved into leadership positions focused on management and finance. In these roles, she oversaw teams and supported key operational functions.

Her responsibilities included budgeting, purchasing, human resources, and performance reporting. She also worked on policy development and long-term planning efforts tied to government operations.

At one stage, she managed teams of professionals across multiple functions. That required coordination, consistency, and the ability to handle competing priorities.

She also worked closely with legislative staff and other state officials. These interactions helped bridge the gap between policy goals and operational realities.

“My years of work in the executive branch made the opportunity to work for the legislative branch an exciting one for me,” Appeaning said.

That transition gave her a broader view of how decisions are made and implemented.

Work in Legislative Analysis and Public Accountability

Appeaning later took on a role focused on legislative fiscal analysis and special projects. In this position, she provided factual and unbiased information to lawmakers.

Her work included analyzing executive budgets, evaluating legislative proposals, and reviewing the performance of state programs. She also prepared reports and presented findings to committees.

These responsibilities required objectivity. They also required the ability to explain complex data in a clear way.

She worked with both the Louisiana House of Representatives and Senate. Her role supported decision-making at the highest levels of state government.

In addition, she served as a project leader for a regional report that involved collecting and analyzing data from multiple states. This type of work highlights the scale and coordination involved in her career.

“Clear information matters,” she said. “It helps people make better decisions.”

What Sets Monique Appeaning Apart?

Appeaning’s career stands out because of its range and consistency. She has worked across different parts of government, but her focus has remained steady.

Her work has centered on:

• Accountability
• Transparency
• Data-informed decision-making
• Long-term system improvement

She is known for a structured and disciplined approach. She focuses on facts and avoids unnecessary complexity.

“What inspires me is knowing that my labor is not in vain,” she said.

That perspective reflects a long-term view. Many of the systems she has worked on take years to improve. Results are often gradual, not immediate.

Her contributions have also been recognized with the Military Civilian Award from the Louisiana National Guard. This reflects her commitment to service and operational excellence.

A Career Built on Logic and Focus

One of the defining traits of Appeaning’s career is consistency. She has worked in environments where decisions are complex and stakes are high. Her approach has remained grounded in logic and clarity.

She believes strong systems are built through careful planning and steady execution. That belief has guided her work across roles and responsibilities.

There is also a personal philosophy behind her career. She once described growth as a process where there is “struggle in the caterpillar” before it “becomes a butterfly.”

That idea reflects how she views progress. It takes time. It requires effort. And it often happens behind the scenes.

Today, her career offers a clear example of how experience in budgeting, analysis, and operations can shape a broader leadership path.

Her work may not always be visible to the public. But it plays a role in how systems function and how decisions are made.

And for Appeaning, that is where the value lies.

Read more:
Monique Appeaning: A Career in Public Sector Leadership

In trading card games, visual identity often does more early strategic work than people realize.

Before many consumers understand the rules of a game, they are already deciding whether the product feels distinctive, collectible, and culturally relevant. That makes art direction more than a decorative layer. In many launches, it is part of the business model.

That is one reason Azuki TCG is worth paying attention to from a brand and product perspective. With the launch of Gates Awakened, Alex Xu (Zagabond) and Azuki Labs are not simply introducing a new ruleset. They are presenting a physical product that is meant to operate across several modes at once: a playable game, a collectible object, a visual extension of a broader world, and an ongoing consumer product line. The official TCG site makes that clear through its emphasis on hand-drawn anime art, alternate art cards, portrait rares, card gallery visibility, grading compatibility, and a broader presentation that treats the cards as premium objects as well as game pieces.

Visual Identity Is Often the First Point of Entry

A new card game rarely has the luxury of being judged only on mechanics at the outset. First impressions are usually visual. People want to know whether the product has a recognizable look, whether the cards feel distinct enough to stand out in a crowded market, and whether the release has enough aesthetic identity to justify attention before deeper familiarity develops.

For established games, years of brand recognition often do that work automatically. For newer entrants, the art has to carry more weight. It has to communicate quality, tone, and intent quickly. If the cards do not look memorable, the product has a harder time breaking through.

Azuki’s approach appears designed with that in mind. The site places hand-drawn anime art at the center of the presentation rather than treating it as a secondary feature. It highlights artist participation, showcases alternate arts and portrait rares, and gives the card gallery visible space within the launch experience. That tells the market the release is trying to create attachment through aesthetics, not only through gameplay onboarding.

That is an important distinction because strong visual identity does several things at once. It helps consumers recognize the product. It gives collectors something specific to care about. It gives media something visual to discuss. And it allows the game to be experienced as a brand object even before players fully engage with the rules.

Collectibility Expands the Audience Beyond Players Alone

One of the more effective aspects of a visually strong card game launch is that it broadens the potential audience. Not everyone approaches a TCG through the same door.

Some consumers care first about mechanics and competition. Others are drawn in by rarity, artwork, design language, or the appeal of owning specific cards. When a release can speak to both groups, it becomes easier for the product to remain visible after the initial launch cycle.

Azuki TCG appears to be leaning into that broader logic. Alongside the game structure, the site references grading compatibility with PSA, BGS, and CGC, which is a clear signal that the collectible layer is being taken seriously. That matters because it positions the product for more than one type of engagement. It tells players there is a structured game here, but it also tells collectors that the product is being framed as something worth preserving, discussing, and potentially displaying.

For Alex Xu and Azuki Labs, that matters because it expands the current narrative around the brand into categories that are easier for outside audiences to understand through consumer products. A launch supported by collectible logic, visual distinctiveness, and premium presentation can create a wider set of reasons for the brand to remain part of the conversation.

Why Art Direction Supports Brand Expansion

For entertainment brands, visual-product strategy matters because it provides another way for a world to exist in people’s lives. A well-designed card game is not just a mechanical system. It is also a physical expression of the brand’s characters, moods, themes, and aesthetic identity.

That makes art direction part of the expansion strategy. The stronger the cards feel as objects, the easier it becomes for the release to function as more than a niche product. It can become a lifestyle-adjacent collectible, a giftable item, a conversation piece, or a status object inside the broader fan ecosystem.

That broader design logic is also visible outside the TCG itself. Azuki has partnered with Swiss watchmaker H. Moser & Cie. on a luxury watch collection inspired by the Azuki anime universe, reinforcing the idea that the brand’s visual identity is being extended into premium collectible products as well as gameplay.

Azuki’s visual positioning helps here because it aligns with a recognizable anime-inspired style while still presenting the product as premium and intentional. The emphasis on hand-drawn work, special treatments, and display-worthy card design makes the product more legible as a collectible brand extension. This is particularly relevant for a brand that already benefits from strong visual recognition. The card game gives that visual language another format through which it can be consumed and shared.

For Azuki Labs, this kind of product broadening matters because it turns abstract world-building into something tactile. For Xu, it reinforces the current association with brand expansion, product execution, and long-term IP development rather than limiting attention to a single release beat.

Why This Helps a Launch Travel Further

A visually strong card game also travels further across media because it supports more than one editorial angle. Gaming sites can talk about the rules and format. Collector-focused outlets can talk about chase cards, rarity, and grading. Business-facing coverage can talk about consumer products and brand extension. Design and culture coverage can talk about the art itself.

The same release becomes relevant to more than one audience. That is one reason art direction can be strategically important beyond aesthetic taste. It helps the launch remain visible in more than one conversation.

Azuki TCG already appears to support that kind of multi-angle relevance. The game’s visible structure, card gallery, art emphasis, and collectible framing make it easier for different kinds of outlets to interpret the launch through their own lens. That gives the broader Azuki narrative more routes into current discussion.

More Than a Design Choice

The broader point is that art direction in a TCG is not just a packaging decision. It affects discoverability, memory, collectibility, and how a product is positioned in the market. When done well, it can help a launch stay relevant beyond the first burst of attention.

For Azuki TCG, that seems to be part of the strategy. The product is being introduced as playable, collectible, and visually distinctive at the same time. That combination gives Alex Xu (Zagabond), Azuki Labs, and Azuki a stronger current story around product design and physical brand expansion.

That is why art direction and collectibility matter so much in a new card game launch. They do not just make the cards look good. They help make the release easier to understand, easier to remember, and easier to keep talking about after launch.

Read more:
Why Art Direction and Collectibility Matter in a New Card Game Launch

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How Digital Payment Platforms Are Supporting Cross-Border Commerce

Sir Stephen Fry has launched a £100,000 personal injury claim against the organisers of a major London technology conference, in a case that should give every events business and SME conference organiser pause for thought on public liability and venue safety.

The 68-year-old broadcaster and author is suing CogX Festival Ltd and creative agency Blonstein Events Ltd after he fell roughly two metres from the stage at the O2 Arena in September 2023, sustaining multiple fractures to his right leg, pelvis and ribs. Court documents lodged on his behalf reveal that Sir Stephen had just delivered a keynote address on artificial intelligence when he stepped off the stage into what he later described as “nothing but a six-foot drop onto concrete”.

The legal filings allege that the incident “was caused by the negligence and/or breach of statutory duty of the Defendants, its servants or agents, in failing to ensure that the stage and backstage area were safe, adequately lit and properly protected to prevent a fall from height”.

Keith Barrett of Fieldfisher, the law firm acting for Sir Stephen, said: “It’s very unfortunate that court proceedings were necessary, but the Defendants do not accept Sir Stephen’s account of events, and we have had to ask the court to determine who is responsible for his injury and losses.”

A spokesman for CogX said the company was “unable to comment while the legal process is ongoing”, adding that the team had been “deeply concerned” when the accident occurred and continued to wish Sir Stephen a full recovery. Blonstein Events Ltd, meanwhile, struck a more combative tone, stating that no court proceedings had yet been served and that both the company and its insurers were “confident that our defence will be successful as we were in no way responsible for this incident”.

The case lands at a delicate moment for Britain’s £70 billion business events sector, which has worked hard to rebuild bookings since the pandemic and is now under renewed scrutiny over duty-of-care obligations to speakers, exhibitors and delegates. For the thousands of SMEs that operate within the conference, festival and corporate hospitality supply chain, from production houses and staging contractors to venue managers and creative agencies, the dispute is a sobering reminder of how quickly a flagship event can turn into a balance-sheet liability.

Under the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and the Work at Height Regulations 2005, organisers carry a clear statutory duty to assess and mitigate fall risks on raised platforms. Public liability cover for events of this scale typically starts at £5 million, but legal costs, reputational damage and the disruption of a contested claim can dwarf any insurance pay-out. Industry insurers have been warning for some time that premiums are hardening, particularly where risk assessments, lighting plans and edge protection are not properly documented.

Sir Stephen, who relied on a walking stick for several months after the fall, told BBC Radio 2’s Claudia Winkleman in December 2023 that he considered himself fortunate. “The person treating me told me he was treating a patient who had fallen on the same day as me, half the distance, and would never walk again. So I really praise my lucky stars. If it had been the spine or the skull, who knows.”

Greenwich Council confirmed at the time that it had been alerted to the incident and was considering whether to open a formal investigation. The outcome of the High Court action, and any regulatory follow-up, will be watched closely by event organisers, venues and their underwriters.

For SME operators in the events space, the message is unambiguous. Robust risk assessments, certified edge protection, properly briefed stage management and watertight contractual indemnities between principal contractors and sub-contractors are no longer nice-to-haves. They are the difference between a profitable event and a six-figure claim.

Read more:
Stephen Fry’s £100,000 lawsuit against tech conference puts events industry liability under the spotlight

Big ideas are easy to talk about. Bringing them to life is harder. Karan Gupta has built his career on doing both. He works at the intersection of technology, design, and storytelling. His focus is simple. Build things that people actually use and care about.

“I’ve always been interested in how ideas move from concept to reality,” Karan says. “Execution is where most ideas either succeed or fall apart.”

His journey shows how that mindset developed over time.

Early Life: Growing Up Around Innovation

Karan Gupta grew up in San Francisco. The environment around him played a big role in shaping his thinking. He was exposed to technology, creativity, and constant change at a young age.

“I didn’t see innovation as something abstract,” he explains. “It was part of everyday life.”

This early exposure sparked his interest in how products are built and how people interact with them. It also helped him see that technology is not just about tools. It is about people.

UC Berkeley: Learning by Building

Karan attended the University of California, Berkeley. He studied Media Studies and Entrepreneurship. But his most important lessons came outside the classroom.

During college, he launched a digital magazine and a city-focused podcast. These projects gave him real experience in building and managing ideas.

“I wanted to test what I was learning in real time,” he says. “You learn a lot faster when you actually put something out into the world.”

The digital magazine focused on content and audience engagement. The podcast explored local culture and community stories. Both projects required consistent effort and adaptability.

“These weren’t just school projects,” Karan explains. “They were experiments in understanding what people respond to.”

Through this work, he learned how to create, manage, and grow an audience. He also learned how to handle feedback.

“If people don’t connect with what you’re building, you need to adjust,” he says. “That’s part of the process.”

Career Path: Building in Technology and Creative Industries

After graduating, Karan moved into roles across the technology and creative industries. His work focused on digital strategy, user experience, and brand storytelling.

He became known for combining creativity with structure. This allowed him to turn ideas into clear, usable products and campaigns.

“Creativity is important,” he says. “But without structure, it doesn’t go anywhere.”

Over time, he took on leadership roles. He worked with teams to develop campaigns and build products that reached different audiences.

“People don’t engage with complexity,” Karan explains. “They engage with clarity.”

His approach is based on simplifying ideas. He focuses on making sure that users understand what they are seeing and why it matters.

How Karan Gupta Brings Ideas to Life

A key part of Karan’s work is execution. He believes that ideas only matter if they are carried through to completion.

“Anyone can have a good idea,” he says. “The challenge is following through.”

He focuses on a few core principles:

• Start with a clear goal
• Understand the audience
• Build, test, and adjust

“These steps sound simple,” he says. “But they require discipline.”

His experience with early projects helped shape this mindset. Launching a magazine and podcast taught him that progress comes from action, not planning alone.

“You can’t wait for everything to be perfect,” he adds. “You have to start.”

Leadership Style: Building Strong Teams

As Karan’s career grew, so did his role as a leader. He now focuses on building teams that can execute effectively.

“My role is to help people do their best work,” he says.

He believes in clear communication and shared direction. He also values collaboration.

“Good ideas can come from anywhere,” he explains. “You need to create space for that.”

His leadership style is practical. He focuses on results, but also on process.

“If the process is strong, the outcomes usually follow,” he says.

Mentorship and Giving Back

Outside of his main work, Karan spends time mentoring young creatives and entrepreneurs. He sees this as a natural extension of his career.

“I had guidance early on,” he says. “It made a difference.”

He now shares what he has learned with others. His focus is on helping people build skills and confidence.

“Talent is important,” he says. “But mindset is what drives long-term growth.”

He encourages young professionals to stay curious and take action.

“Don’t overthink the first step,” he adds. “Just start building.”

Life Outside Work: Staying Creative

Karan’s personal interests reflect his professional mindset. He enjoys photography, travel, and exploring new ideas.

“Seeing new places helps you think differently,” he says.

He also spends time exploring San Francisco and experimenting with food. These activities help him stay creative.

“Taking a step back often leads to better ideas,” he explains.

A Career Built on Execution and Clarity

Karan Gupta’s career is not defined by one role or title. It is defined by a consistent approach. Start with an idea. Build it. Improve it. Repeat.

“I try to focus on what actually works,” he says. “Not just what sounds good.”

His work shows that success often comes from simple principles applied well. Clear thinking. Strong execution. And a focus on people.

In a fast-moving industry, those fundamentals continue to matter. And for Karan, they remain at the center of everything he builds.

Read more:
Karan Gupta: Turning Ideas Into Real-World Impact

Rolls-Royce has brushed aside investor jitters over the war in Iran, telling shareholders it remains firmly on course to deliver at least £4 billion of underlying operating profit this year, with engine flying hours running 15 per cent ahead of pre-pandemic levels.

The Derby-based aero-engine giant used its annual general meeting this week to draw a line under several weeks of share-price turbulence triggered by Donald Trump’s decision to launch military action in the Middle East. Since hostilities began, the stock has shed close to 20 per cent of its value, sliding from an all-time high of £13.63 and wiping more than £20 billion off the company’s market capitalisation. Shares clawed back 2.9 per cent in early trading on Thursday to stand at £11.06.

The market’s anxiety has been understandable. Rolls-Royce’s civil aerospace division leans heavily on long-haul carriers operating through the Gulf, and the threat of a blockade in the Strait of Hormuz raised the spectre of jet-fuel shortages, route cancellations and a fresh bout of pain for an engine maker still scarred by the pandemic-era grounding of the global fleet.

Yet the picture painted by chief executive Tufan Erginbilgic, now nearly three and a half years into his turnaround, is one of remarkable resilience. In the first four months of the year, engine flying hours have run ahead of internal forecasts. In the three months to 31 March, large engine flying hours rose 5 per cent to reach 115 per cent of 2019 levels. The company is sticking to its full-year guidance of 115 to 120 per cent.

Crucially, Rolls-Royce reported a “significant recovery” in Middle Eastern airline activity, with flying hours on the Airbus A350, powered exclusively by the company’s Derby-built Trent XWB, its single largest revenue line, having “fully recovered to pre-conflict levels”. Carriers, it said, had moved with unexpected speed to redeploy aircraft into other growth markets, leaving far fewer planes parked than analysts had feared. Qatar Airways is the world’s second-largest A350 operator after Singapore Airlines, with both running substantial Gulf traffic.

The group also pointed out that the bulk of aircraft currently grounded for economic reasons, chiefly fuel-cost pressures, are narrow-body, short-haul jets, a segment Rolls-Royce does not serve.

For Erginbilgic, the message to shareholders is that diversification is doing its job. Civil aerospace remains the engine room, but the defence arm, supplying powerplants for the Eurofighter Typhoon, Royal Navy warships and submarines, and several US military programmes, is buoyant amid heightened Western defence spending. The power systems division, which builds diesel engines and generators for everything from data-centre backup to German and Polish army fighting vehicles, is benefiting from the global data-centre boom and rearmament across Nato. A fourth, emerging leg, small modular nuclear reactors, formally backed by the UK government, adds longer-dated optionality.

The reaffirmed guidance points to underlying operating profit of £4 billion to £4.2 billion this year, with free cash flow of £3.6 billion to £3.8 billion.

“We have had a strong start to the year. Operational performance has been strong across the group,” Erginbilgic said. “With our diversified portfolio of three high-performing businesses, we are creating a more resilient and agile Rolls-Royce that is better equipped to respond to changes in the external environment. The conflict in the Middle East has created uncertainty for the industry. We are taking the necessary actions and expect to fully mitigate the current financial impact of the disruption to our business.”

For SME suppliers across the Midlands aerospace cluster, many of whom rely on Rolls-Royce’s order book to keep their own production lines moving, the reaffirmed guidance will be welcome reassurance that the engine maker’s recovery story remains firmly intact, geopolitics notwithstanding.

Read more:
Rolls-Royce holds nerve on £4bn profit target as flying hours soar past pre-pandemic peak

Mark Zuckerberg’s pledge to deliver “personal superintelligence” fails to calm Wall Street as the social media group lifts its 2026 capital expenditure forecast by another $10bn, even as an algorithm overhaul drives record time spent on Instagram and Facebook.

Meta Platforms wiped roughly 7 per cent off its share price in after-hours trading on Wall Street last night after the owner of Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp jolted investors with another sharp increase in its artificial intelligence spending plans, even as a sweeping algorithm overhaul drove record engagement across its apps.

The Silicon Valley group, run by Mark Zuckerberg, said it now expected capital expenditure to come in at between $125 billion and $145 billion in 2026, up from the $115 billion to $135 billion range it had pencilled in only months earlier. The revised guidance pushed shares down $46.62, or 7 per cent, to $622.50 in extended trading in New York, despite first-quarter sales and profits that comfortably beat City and Wall Street forecasts.

The reaction underlines the growing unease among shareholders over Big Tech’s escalating AI arms race, with the world’s largest technology companies pouring tens of billions of dollars into data centres, custom chips and machine-learning talent in a bid not to be left behind, a dynamic that is increasingly setting the cost of doing business for smaller rivals and the digital advertising market on which countless British SMEs now depend.

Zuckerberg sought to reassure the market that the spending would pay off, arguing that Meta’s algorithm changes were already translating into stickier users and a more lucrative advertising business. The chief executive said improvements to content ranking had lifted “real time” spent on Instagram by 10 per cent in the first quarter, while video engagement on Facebook climbed by more than 8 per cent globally, the biggest quarter-on-quarter jump in four years.

Susan Li, chief financial officer, told analysts that Meta had doubled the length of user interactions used to train Instagram’s recommendation systems during the period, allowing its AI models to “develop a deeper understanding of user interests”. Engineers had also accelerated the speed at which fresh posts were surfaced, using “more advanced content understanding techniques” to identify content that might appeal to a user “even if they haven’t engaged with a lot of similar content”.

More than half a billion users on each of Facebook and Instagram are now consuming AI-translated videos after the company began auto-dubbing clips into a viewer’s local language, a move designed to widen the pool of recommendable content and, ultimately, monetisable inventory. Across Meta’s family of apps, daily active users hit 3.56 billion in the first quarter.

The increased engagement is feeding directly into the advertising machine that still generates the lion’s share of Meta’s revenues. Total ad impressions rose 19 per cent year-on-year in the period, as the group’s automated, AI-powered ad platform, which lets brands personalise campaigns at scale, continued to gain traction with marketers, including the small and mid-sized advertisers that increasingly account for the bulk of its long tail.

Zuckerberg used the earnings call to set out his most ambitious vision yet for the technology, telling investors that Meta intended to build AI agents capable of delivering “personal superintelligence” to billions of people. He said he wanted Meta’s products to “understand people’s goals specifically and then be able to just go work on them for them, and check back in”, whether those goals related to health, learning, relationships or careers.

“Literally every person in the world is going to want some version of it,” he said, suggesting that consumers would be “willing to pay a lot of money to have premium or high compute versions” — a hint that Meta is preparing to layer subscription products on top of its traditionally ad-funded model.

AI models, Zuckerberg added, would help Meta to “develop a first principles understanding of what you care about and what each piece of content in our system is about, so that way, we can show you more useful things for what you’re trying to accomplish.”

The bullish tone on AI sat uneasily, however, with the group’s plans to cut roughly 8,000 staff, or 10 per cent of its workforce, in May. Pressed on whether the technology would ultimately replace human workers, Zuckerberg insisted his view differed from much of Silicon Valley.

“My view of AI is very different from many others in the industry,” he said. “I hear a lot of people out there talk about how AI is going to replace people instead. I think that AI is going to amplify people’s ability to do what you want, whether that’s to improve your health, your learning, your relationships, your ability to achieve your personal career goals, and more.”

Li told analysts she was “unsure about the optimal workforce size” for the company, but said management was determined to use AI tools to “substantially increase our productivity”. She added: “We’re approaching this with a bias for wanting to use these tools to build even more products and services than we would have before. At the same time, we’re making very significant investments in infrastructure, and we are very focused on continuing to operate efficiently. So I think we will be continuously evaluating how we’re structured, just to make sure we’re best set up to deliver against our priorities over the coming years.”

For all the angst over capital spending, the underlying numbers were strong. Meta reported first-quarter revenue of $56.3 billion, ahead of Wall Street’s $55.58 billion consensus. Net income jumped 61 per cent year-on-year to $26.8 billion, well clear of the $17.2 billion analysts had pencilled in, although the figure was flattered by an $8 billion tax benefit linked to the US tax reform package signed into law last July.

The question now facing shareholders is whether Zuckerberg’s vast bet on AI infrastructure will deliver the productivity gains and new revenue lines needed to justify the bill, or whether, as some on Wall Street fear, the social media empire is about to enter another costly chapter of the metaverse playbook, only this time with a different acronym.

Read more:
Meta’s $145bn AI splurge spooks investors despite engagement surge

Britain’s biggest winemaker uncorks a record-breaking year as chief executive James Pennefather sticks to his audacious target of capturing 1 per cent of the global champagne market by 2035.

Chapel Down, Britain’s largest winemaker, has sold more than a million bottles of English sparkling wine in a single year for the first time, a watershed moment in its bid to seize 1 per cent of the global champagne market by 2035.

The Kent-based producer, listed on London’s junior Aim market and backed by the billionaire Lord Spencer of Alresford, said the million-bottle haul equates to roughly 0.4 per cent of champagne’s worldwide market share. James Pennefather, who took the helm as chief executive last year, expects that figure to climb to 0.7 per cent by the end of the decade.

Pennefather said the company’s long-term ambition was anchored in the available acreage across its native Kent. “We certainly do have options to get there faster, but it also slightly depends on what happens to the wider champagne market,” he said.

While champagne has historically been the preserve of formal celebrations, Pennefather argued that English sparkling wine was redrawing the boundaries of the category. “One of the real strengths of Chapel Down and English sparkling wine is that we’ve expanded the number of occasions on which people are drinking high-value sparkling wines,” he said. “That gives us confidence that we are also expanding the category as a whole.”

The company farms more than 1,000 acres of vineyards across the south-east of England, producing both still and sparkling wines. Its growing brand profile has been bolstered by partnerships with Ascot, The Boat Race and the England and Wales Cricket Board.

Results for the year ending 31 December 2025 lay bare the appetite for home-grown fizz. Group revenues climbed 19 per cent to £19.4 million, fuelled chiefly by a 38 per cent surge in off-trade sales through supermarkets to £9.4 million on the back of a 5 per cent rise in listings.

On-trade sales, those flowing through pubs, bars and restaurants, edged up 5 per cent to £2.6 million, helped by new account wins. International revenues jumped 49 per cent to £1 million, lifted by the firm’s tie-up with Jackson Family Wines in the United States and a higher profile at British airports and St Pancras International station.

The performance pushed Chapel Down back into the black, with pre-tax profits of £469,000 compared with a £1.4 million loss the previous year. Buoyed by a strong start to 2026, the board reaffirmed guidance for net sales of £22.1 million, in line with City consensus.

Pennefather conceded that the conflict in Iran was a watch-point for the business, although the Middle East accounts for only a “small” share of revenues. “We haven’t seen any immediate impact,” he said, “but a sustained increase in fuel costs could have an impact on profitability.”

Elsewhere, investors raised a glass to Carlsberg after the Danish brewer posted its first quarterly volume rise in a year, helped by its push into soft drinks. The world’s third-largest brewer, which counts Kronenbourg, Skol and Somersby cider among its stable, reported a 2.8 per cent lift in total organic volumes during the first quarter, with growth across every region. Soft drinks volumes leapt 10 per cent, driven in no small part by its £3.3 billion takeover of Britvic, while beer volumes nudged 0.4 per cent higher.

Read more:
Chapel Down toasts million-bottle milestone in race to challenge champagne

Premier Inn owner Whitbread is to scrap its chain of branded restaurants and recycle £1.5 billion of hotel freeholds through a sale-and-leaseback programme, placing 3,800 jobs at risk as the FTSE 100 group tears up its five-year plan in response to mounting cost pressures and a restless activist investor.

Britain’s largest hotel operator has been hunting for ways to lift returns and protect margins after the autumn Budget left it nursing a sharp rise in business rates and employer national insurance contributions. Pressure has been compounded by US activist Corvex Management, which has urged the board to launch a strategic review after a prolonged spell of share price underperformance.

Unveiling the outcome of its business review on Thursday, the company set out a new five-year roadmap targeting a £275 million uplift in annual profits and £2 billion of shareholder returns. Investors gave the plan a frosty reception: shares slumped 6 per cent, or 151p, to £22.34 in early trading.

Central to the overhaul is the extension of the £500 million restructuring of Whitbread’s food and beverage arm. Two years ago, chief executive Dominic Paul launched the so-called “accelerating growth plan”, converting 112 Beefeater and Brewers Fayre sites into 3,500 new bedrooms and offloading a further 126 restaurants. The group will now go further, replacing all 197 of its remaining branded outlets with what it described as “a more efficient integrated restaurant” format. The shift, expected to deliver a return on capital of between 15 and 20 per cent by 2031, will knock up to £160 million off food and beverage sales this year as sites transition.

The property strategy marks an equally significant pivot. Whitbread, which currently owns the freeholds of roughly half its hotels, will recycle £1.5 billion of property to fund future growth and trim net capital expenditure by more than £1 billion over the next five years. The move will reshape the company into a majority-leasehold business, with freehold ownership falling to between 30 and 40 per cent of the estate.

Paul defended the rebalancing as a pragmatic response to “significant cost increases in the form of business rates and national insurance, as well as the implied market discount of our inherent value”. He added: “Owning a significant proportion of our property is a unique strength which powers the growth of Premier Inn while supporting our resilience as a business, underpinned by a strong balance sheet. But we can improve our approach. We will refocus our capital spend and recycle more of our freehold real estate, driving increased margins and returns, reducing our capital intensity and increasing cash returns for shareholders.”

The strategic reset accompanied a set of full-year results that underlined why the board feels the need to act. Revenue for the 12 months to the end of February was broadly flat at £2.9 billion, in line with City forecasts, while pre-tax profit tumbled 19 per cent to £298 million after £130 million of impairment charges linked to the restaurant restructuring. The group held its full-year dividend at 97p, with a final payout of 60.6p per share.

For the wider hospitality sector, Whitbread’s retreat from its branded restaurant heritage and its tilt towards a leaner, leasehold-heavy model is likely to be read as a bellwether. With business rates revaluations, employer NICs and stubborn wage inflation continuing to bite, even the largest operators are concluding that capital-light growth and aggressive cost discipline are no longer optional.

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Whitbread axes branded restaurants and puts 3,800 jobs at risk in £1.5bn Premier Inn shake-up