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AI startup Anthropic on Monday announced it raised $3.5 billion at a $61.5 billion post-money valuation, led by Lightspeed Venture Partners. The Series E, which also had participation from Bessemer Venture Partners, Cisco Investments, D1 Capital Partners, Fidelity Management & Research Company, General Catalyst, Jane Street, Menlo Ventures, and Salesforce Ventures, brings the company’s total raised to $18.2 billion, according to Crunchbase. “With this investment, Anthropic will advance its development of next-generation AI systems, expand its compute capacity, deepen its research in mechanistic interpretability and alignment, and accelerate its international expansion,” the company wrote in a blog post. “Anthropic is…

Ramp, a leading financial operations platform known for its all-in-one solution for corporate finance management, has secured $150m through a secondary share sale.The $150m secondary transaction was backed by prominent investors including Stripes, GIC, Avenir Growth, Thrive Capital, Khosla Ventures, General Catalyst, Lux Capital, 137 Ventures, and Definition Capital. The deal values Ramp at approximately $13bn.Ramp, founded in 2019, provides a comprehensive platform designed to streamline financial operations for businesses. Its offering spans corporate cards, expense management, bill payments, procurement, travel booking, and treasury solutions — all aimed at eliminating inefficiency and financial waste. The platform has gained significant traction…

Madison County Federal Credit Union, a financial institution dedicated to serving central Indiana, has partnered with InvestiFi, a digital investment platform designed to deliver seamless investing capabilities within online banking environments.The partnership has been formed to empower Madison County FCU’s members by offering them access to digital investing tools. Alongside investment options, members will benefit from financial education resources designed to help them make better financial decisions and build long-term wealth.InvestiFi enables credit unions and community banks to seamlessly integrate digital investing solutions into their digital banking services. Its technology allows users to invest directly from their deposit accounts, providing…

British WealthTech platform Belong, which focuses on making investing more accessible and engaging for young investors, has successfully closed its first crowdfunding campaign on Crowdcube.The campaign exceeded expectations, surpassing its initial £300,000 target in under five hours and ultimately securing over £489,000 in total funding.The round saw backing from notable investors, including OpenAI, DeepMind, and Monzo.Belong aims to revolutionise wealth-building for millennials and young adults, providing investment solutions designed to be engaging, and rewarding. The platform offers GIA and Stocks & Shares ISA accounts, alongside its unique Boost loan—a feature that allows users to double their initial investment with a…

Topline President Donald Trump’s announcement Sunday he will oversee the creation of a “crypto strategic reserve” drew notable skepticism from some big names in crypto and tech— key parts of Trump’s base last year—as an immediate surge in crypto trading came back to earth Monday. Trump gives a keynote speech at the Bitcoin 2024 conference last summer.Getty Images Key Facts Trump said he will direct a reserve including bitcoin, ethereum, XRP, Solana and Cardano to “make sure the U.S. is the Crypto Capital of the World,” echoing his campaign trail promises of becoming the most pro-crypto president ever. The announcement…

India’s cricket board defended its World Cup-winning captain Rohit Sharma on Monday after comments about his lack of fitness from a spokesperson for the Congress, the country’s main opposition party. Sharma, who turns 38 next month, is leading the Indian cricket team in the Champions Trophy but was criticised for his weight by Shama Mohamed, a spokesperson for the Congress, who said he was “fat for a sportsperson”. “Need to lose weight, and of course the most unimpressive captain India has ever had!” Mohamed said in a now-deleted post on X late on Sunday. The Congress said her post did…

Fusion Specialty, a global underwriting agency (managing general agent), has partnered with Insly, an insurance software provider, to modernise its operations and enhance efficiency.The partnership aims to accelerate Fusion Specialty’s growth in the mergers and acquisitions (M&A) insurance sector by improving operational efficiency. With an increasing volume of business, the company required a scalable solution that could standardise underwriting processes.Fusion Specialty, founded in 2018, specialises in M&A insurance, offering coverage for warranty and indemnity (W&I), tax liability, and contingent risks. The company has established itself as a leader in the APAC region and continues to expand its presence in the…

Coalition, a cybersecurity-focused InsurTech firm specialising in Active Insurance, has secured a $30m equity investment from Mitsui Sumitomo Insurance, a key subsidiary of MS&AD Insurance Group, Japan’s largest non-life insurer and a major player across the Asia-Pacific region.The partnership aims to enhance access to cyber insurance solutions worldwide by integrating Coalition’s proactive risk management approach with MS&AD’s extensive global insurance capabilities. The investment also allows MSI to expand into new markets while taking an equity stake in Coalition.Coalition provides cyber insurance and cybersecurity solutions through its Active Insurance model, which combines insurance coverage with proactive risk prevention tools. Its proprietary…

BEVERLY HILLS, Calif. (AP) — At the Oscars ceremony, they were there. At the after-parties, they were barely there.Celebrities bared a lot more than their emotions on Oscar night. The naked fashion trend was on full display at places like the Vanity Fair party carpet, where guests clearly bought into the idea that less is more.Among them: actor-director Olivia Wilde, who wore a sheer, embroidered lace negligee by Chloé, “with metal ends and embroidered lace lingerie panties,” according to the designer. While Wilde’s outfit had a demure bohemian charm, actor Julia Fox leaned much further toward naked, arriving in a…

Upholding export controls on semiconductor chips made in the U.S. may be harder than Washington, D.C. thinks. Chinese buyers are getting their hands on computing systems with Nvidia’s Blackwell chips through third-party traders located in other regions, The Wall Street Journal reported. Buyers in Malaysia, Taiwan, and Vietnam are buying these resources for their own use and reselling a portion to companies in China, the Journal added. Just a week before leaving office, former President Joe Biden introduced sweeping new chip export restrictions that further limited several countries, one of which is China, from being able to import chips made…