From Uber's flying car to iZettle's IPO: new target markets | Calamatta Cuschieri

Markets roundup, Uber unveils their fly taxi at the second annual Uber Elevate Summit & iZettle plans its IPO for this year

Wall Street awaits Trump’s next Iran decision

U.S. stocks came off their lows on Tuesday to end a choppy session little changed, after President Donald Trump, as expected, announced the U.S. would pull out of a multilateral nuclear deal with Iran.

Trump suggested that the U.S. may still be open to negotiations with Iran but the abandonment of the nuclear deal puts the Washington at odds with many European allies, including France and Germany.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average gained less than 0.1%. The blue-chip gauge had been down by as many as 160 points during the session. Declines in shares of Verizon Communications and Nike had pressured the benchmark.

The S&P 500 index lost 0.71 points to end at 2,671.92 with 7 of its 11 main sectors finishing with losses. Utilities led the declines, down 2.5%, while energy, industrials and financials were up by at least 0.6%. The Nasdaq Index ended the session with +0.2% at 7,266.90.

Uber unveiled its fly taxi prototype

Uber has unveiled its "flying car" concept aircraft at its second annual Uber Elevate Summit, which showcases prototypes for its fleet of airborne taxis. The flying cars, which the company hopes to introduce to riders in two to five years, will conduct vertical takeoffs and landings from skyports, air stations on rooftops or the ground. Ultimately, company officials say these skyports will be equipped to handle 200 takeoffs and landings an hour, or one every 24 seconds. At first, the flying cars will be piloted, but the company aims for the aircraft to fly autonomously.

The prototypes look more like drones than helicopters, with four rotors on wings. They'll fly 1,000 to 2,000 feet above ground and will be quieter than a helicopter.

Although piloted at first, the goal is for the flying taxis to become autonomous. But questions remain about how they will guarantee safety. Uber also said for the program to become profitable it will need to move beyond a niche market.

Uber plans to have Uber Air flight demonstrations as early as 2020. The company has also partnered with NASA to develop technology to control air traffic and prevent crashes. The first two Uber Air cities will be Dallas and Los Angeles.

iZettle, the financial tech firm, plans its IPO for this year

Swedish payment start-up iZettle announced it will go public this year.

The financial technology firm said Tuesday that it plans to raise 2 billion Swedish krona ($226 million) through an initial public offering on the Nasdaq in Stockholm.

Zettle’s share listing, which is expected to consist of the issuance of new and secondary shares, would come as regulators across Europe develop policies to drive technological innovation and digital development in financial services to spur competition with incumbent banks.

"We believe that the listing will support our continued growth, our strategy and provide us with improved access to capital markets," said the CEO De Geer.

Founded in 2010 by De Geer and Magnus Nilsson, Stockholm-based iZettle began helping small businesses accept credit card payments using a gadget that attached to a smartphone, similar to that offered by Square, and has since expanded into software and financing services to support small business.

Armed with 40 million euros ($47.7 million) in recent funding, iZettle now offers tools to manage inventory, product data and analytics for users to improve their businesses as well as lending to help them grow in physical stores and online. It recently launched an e-commerce platform for merchants in Sweden and the U.K. The company operates in 12 markets in Europe and Latin America and it was reportedly valued at about $500 million in January 2017.

"We made a strategic choice together with the board to prioritize growth over profitability, to build iZettle's brand and secure a leading position in our target markets," De Geer said.

"It's all going according to plan and we can clearly tell that our strategy is paying off."

Disclaimer:

This article was issued by Linda De Luca, Trader at Calamatta Cuschieri. For more information visit, www.cc.com.mt. The information, view and opinions provided in this article is being provided solely for educational and informational purposes and should not be construed as investment advice, advice concerning particular investments or investment decisions, or tax or legal advice. Calamatta Cuschieri Investment Services Ltd has not verified and consequently neither warrants the accuracy nor the veracity of any information, views or opinions appearing on this website.