Pioneer fintech firm Klarna sees revenue boost as it eyes US stock market listing

Swedish company’s valuation jumped 24% in 2024 as ‘buy now, pay later’ market is projected to top $160bn by 2032

The Swedish fintech firm Klarna disclosed on Friday that its revenue jumped 24% in 2024 as the “buy now, pay later” (BNPL) pioneer made public its filing for a much-anticipated US stock market listing.

The company, which reshaped online shopping through its short-term financing model, drew investor attention as its valuation soared from $5.5bn to $46.5bn in just two years, fueled by three funding rounds between mid-2020 and 2021.

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Oz vows to make Americans healthier but dodges questions on Trump cuts

TV doctor and former heart surgeon vows to fight healthcare fraud at Senate hearing for health role

Dr Mehmet Oz promised senators on Friday to fight healthcare fraud and push to make Americans healthier if he becomes the next leader of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

But the former heart surgeon and TV personality dodged several opportunities to say broadly whether he would oppose cuts to Medicaid, the government-funded program for people with low incomes.

Oz, Donald Trump’s pick to be the next CMS administrator, also said technology such as artificial intelligence and telemedicine can be used to make care more efficient and expand its reach.

“We have a generational opportunity to fix our healthcare system and help people stay healthy for longer,” he said in his opening remarks.

He faced over two and a half hours of questioning before the Republican-controlled Senate finance committee, which will vote later on whether to forward his nomination to the full Senate for consideration.

Leading the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services presents a “monumental opportunity” to make the country healthier, Oz told senators on Friday morning.

“We don’t have to order people to eat healthy, we have to make it easier for people to be healthy,” adding that he considered maintaining good health a “patriotic duty”.

Republicans, who have coalesced around Trump’s nominees for the health agencies, asked Oz about his plans for eliminating fraud from the $1tn programs.

Democrats, meanwhile, tried to pin him down on potential cuts to the state and federally funded Medicaid program that Republicans are considering.

The 64-year-old was a respected heart surgeon who turned into a popular TV pitchman. Now he has his sights on overseeing health insurance for about 150 million Americans enrolled in Medicare, Medicaid or Affordable Care Act coverage.

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North Sea collision: Russian container ship captain charged with manslaughter

Vladimir Motin was in charge of the Solong when it hit a tanker off East Yorkshire coast, leaving one man dead

The master of the container ship the Solong, which crashed into another vessel in the North Sea, has been charged with gross negligence manslaughter.

Vladimir Motin, 59, a Russian national, was in charge of the ship when it collided with a tanker carrying jet fuel on Monday about 12 miles (19km) off the East Yorkshire coast, leaving one man dead.

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UK police charge Russian captain involved in U.S. tanker ship crash – Reuters UK

  1. UK police charge Russian captain involved in U.S. tanker ship crash  Reuters UK
  2. Ship captain charged over North Sea collision  BBC.com
  3. Russian captain in North Sea ship collision charged with manslaughter  Al Jazeera English
  4. Russian captain of ship that collided with U.S. tanker charged with manslaughter  CBS News
  5. Cargo ship captain arrested in North Sea collision with US-flagged tanker is Russian national, owner says  CNN International
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Greek PM seeks ‘reset’ with former far-right activist as migration minister

Shaken by rail protests, Kyriakos Mitsotakis brings in new transport minister while tacking right on migration

The Greek prime minister has appointed a former far-right student activist to the helm of the migration ministry as part of a broad reshuffle aimed at “resetting” his government amid public outrage over its handling of a deadly 2023 train crash.

In an attempt to stem declining approval ratings, Kyriakos Mitsotakis placed the self-described nationalist, Makis Voridis, in the sensitive post while selecting a number of younger officials to key portfolios including the transport ministry.

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Blockers, checkers, bats and chainsaws: don’t talk like Musk, Starmer is warned

PM has been urged to ‘get a grip’ on messaging after railing against the ‘flabby’ state and the civil service’s ‘tepid bath’

Keir Starmer has been warned against adopting the language of Elon Musk after railing against “blockers and checkers” and the “flabby” civil service this week.

Gus O’Donnell, the former cabinet secretary, was one of those urging the prime minister to “get a grip” on his messaging, telling the Institute for Government podcast: “My God, he has mishandled the communications on this terribly.”

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Pope Francis’ condition remains stable as recovery progresses – Vatican News

  1. Pope Francis’ condition remains stable as recovery progresses  Vatican News
  2. Catholics Around the Globe Heed Francis’ Call to ‘Pray for Me’  The New York Times
  3. In the hospital, pope celebrates anniversary of election with cake  USCCB
  4. Timeline of Pope Francis’ hospitalization for pneumonia at the 1-month mark  The Associated Press
  5. One month in the hospital: No news on Pope Francis is good news  National Catholic Reporter
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Canada ‘will never be part of the US’, says new PM Mark Carney amid trade war

Former Bank of Canada and Bank of England governor sworn in and expected to call election soon

Mark Carney has said Canada will never be part of the US, after being sworn in as the country’s 24th prime minister in a sudden rise to power.

“We will never, in any shape or form, be part of the US,” the former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England told a crowd outside Rideau Hall in Ottawa, rejecting Donald Trump’s annexation threats. “We are very fundamentally a different country.”

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Apple’s UK encryption legal challenge heard behind closed doors

Media organisations including the Guardian and the BBC fail to gain entry to proceedings

A hearing in Apple’s legal battle with the UK government over access to customer data was held behind closed doors on Friday after the press failed to gain entry to proceedings.

The US tech firm has launched an appeal with the investigatory powers tribunal after the Home Office demanded access to encrypted data stored remotely in Apple’s cloud servers.

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Hamas says it will release American hostage Edan Alexander – ABC News

  1. Hamas says it will release American hostage Edan Alexander  ABC News
  2. Hamas says it's willing to release the five American hostages in Gaza  NPR
  3. Hamas says it will only release Edan Alexander if ceasefire deal implemented  The Times of Israel
  4. US rebuts Hamas’s ‘entirely impractical’ ceasefire demands  The Guardian
  5. Hamas Says It’s Willing to Release U.S.-Israeli Hostage Edan Alexander  The New York Times
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