Apple and Google have agreed to make changes to their UK app stores following intervention by the country’s competition watchdog, after it concluded the two firms hold an “effective duopoly” over the sector.

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the tech giants have committed to a series of measures designed to improve transparency and competition. These include pledges not to give preferential treatment to their own apps and to be clearer about how third-party apps are reviewed and approved for sale.

The commitments come seven months after the CMA warned that Apple and Google’s dominance of mobile app distribution in the UK was stifling competition. In October 2025, the regulator formally designated both companies’ app stores as having “strategic market status”, giving it enhanced powers to demand changes under the UK’s new digital competition regime.

Sarah Cardell, the CMA’s chief executive, said the agreements marked an important milestone. “These proposed commitments will boost the UK’s app economy and are the first of many measures,” she said. “The ability to secure immediate commitments from Apple and Google reflects the unique flexibility of the UK’s digital markets competition regime and offers a practical route to swiftly address the concerns we’ve identified.”

As part of the deal, both companies have also agreed not to use data collected from third-party app developers in ways the regulator considers unfair. Cardell described the changes as “important first steps”, adding that the CMA would continue working with the companies on further remedies.

The watchdog said it would “closely monitor” implementation and would not hesitate to impose legally binding requirements if the commitments were not honoured.

Both companies welcomed the outcome. Apple said it faced “fierce competition in every market where we operate” and that it was committed to delivering the best possible products and user experience. Google said it believed its existing practices on the Play Store were already fair and transparent, but added that it “welcomes the opportunity to resolve the CMA’s concerns collaboratively”.

Analysts cautioned that the agreement may not be the final word. Paolo Pescatore, a technology analyst, described the move as a “pragmatic first step” but said some critics would view it as tackling “low-hanging fruit”. “There will inevitably be calls for a tougher clampdown from some quarters,” he said.

The CMA said the UK app economy is the largest in Europe by revenue and number of developers, generating an estimated 1.5 per cent of UK GDP and supporting around 400,000 jobs.

Both Apple and Google have previously warned against the UK adopting rules similar to those in the European Union, where large online platforms designated as “gatekeepers” face sweeping obligations. Apple has already been forced in the EU to introduce changes such as offering users a choice of default browser, and has argued that some requirements undermine privacy and security.

Apple said the UK commitments reflected its “constructive engagement” with the CMA and a more pragmatic approach to regulation — but the regulator has made clear that further intervention remains on the table if competition concerns persist.

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Q1: 2026-02-09 Earnings Summary

EPS of $1.29 beats by $0.13

 | Revenue of $3.83B (-4.57% Y/Y) beats by $303.77M

This article was written by

The net inflow in silver ETFs soared 139% in January to Rs 9,463 crore compared to an inflow of Rs 3,962 crore in December 2025. The precious metal ETFs had an AUM of Rs 1.16 lakh crore in January 2026 compared to Rs 72,652 crore in December 2025 seeing a growth of 61% on monthly basis.

These ETFs witnessed a surge in inflows despite volatility in prices seen in January. Despite volatile market, silver ETFs delivered returns upto 52.28% in the first month of the current calendar year.

Also Read | Parag Parikh Flexi Cap Fund increases stake in ITC, TCS and 14 others, trims exposure to Coal India and MCX

Tata Silver ETF offered the highest return of 52.28% in January, followed by Axis Silver ETF which gained 46.09% in the same time frame. Zerodha Silver ETF gave 45.52% in January.

Nippon India Silver ETF, the largest fund in the category based on the assets managed, posted a return of 44.45%.

Umesh Sharma, CIO-Debt, The Wealth Company Mutual Fund said the growth in gold ETFs and multi asset allocation funds gained investors’ interest with gold ETFs posting record inflows driven by superior one year performance of gold and silver relative to major asset classes.
Akhil Chaturvedi, Executive Director and Chief Business Officer, Motilal Oswal Asset Management Company said Highlight with no surprise have been flows in Gold and Silver ETFs and Index Funds with record flows of Rs 24,000 crore.

What happened in January

In January 2026, precious metals rose sharply due to global uncertainty, changing currency trends, and growing demand for safe assets which led to investors buying precious metals as protection against market risks, pushing prices to very high levels.

Despite a hefty correction in the last two trading sessions of the month, silver surged nearly 19%. Silver reached very high levels, close to record prices in January. On January 29, silver futures scaled fresh lifetime highs on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX), silver surged past the Rs 4 lakh mark for the first time.

Silver emerged better than gold in the starting month of the current calendar year because it benefits both as a precious metal and from industrial demand, which added to the buying pressure.

Also Read | Confused which fund to buy? Radhika Gupta lists five key checkpoints every investor should know before investing

However, towards the end of the month, things changed quickly. Once prices became very high, many investors started selling to book profits. This caused a sudden fall in prices. On January 30, silver delivered a stunning reversal on the MCX, plunging up to 27% — or Rs 1,07,968 — in a single day, marking its worst-ever crash and dragging prices back below the Rs 3 lakh mark, just a day after the metal had surged to a record high of Rs 4 lakh.

The fall on January 31, silver delivered a stunning reversal on MCX, plunging up to 25% — or Rs 92,000 — in a single day, marking its worst crash in 15 years and dragging prices back below the Rs 3 lakh mark, just a day after the metal had soared to a record high of Rs 4 lakh.

AMFI tally

At present there are 17 schemes in the category and there are nearly 47.84 lakh folios in this category. No new scheme in the category was launched in January.

London-based energy technology company Tem has raised $75 million in fresh funding as it looks to expand internationally and accelerate the rollout of its AI-driven platform designed to cut business electricity bills by up to 30 per cent.

The funding round was led by Lightspeed Venture Partners and is understood to value the four-year-old company at around $300 million. Tem plans to use the capital to further develop its technology and scale its operations in the US.

Founded in 2021, Tem has built a platform it calls “Red”, described by the company as a neo-utility that uses artificial intelligence to match electricity supply and demand directly, bypassing the wholesale market and its multiple intermediaries.

Joe McDonald, Tem’s co-founder and chief executive, said the aim was to remove what he described as unnecessary “middle men” from the energy system. “We calculate that about $1 trillion is taken out every year in transaction fees by ‘Big Energy’,” he said. “Our mission is to take that cost of transaction down to zero.”

Tem’s software is already being used by around 2,600 businesses, including Boohoo and Fever-Tree, to reduce electricity costs. Since launching Red in November 2024, the company says it has saved customers $35 million in energy bills. Two schools have also signed up, with one saving £55,000 a year, according to Tem.

McDonald said the inefficiencies of the current system made disruption inevitable. “I don’t see why every single electricity transaction won’t be run by infrastructure like ours over the next ten years,” he said. “There is too much inefficiency in the outdated process that 99 per cent of transactions currently rely on.”

Tem was founded by a team of energy specialists including Jason Stocks, Bartlomiej Szostek, Ross Mackay and McDonald. The latest raise takes total funding to $94 million, with existing investors including Hitachi Ventures and Atomico.

McDonald said Red had been launched partly to demonstrate what Tem’s technology could achieve. Over the longer term, the company plans to license its platform to utilities globally to reduce their cost per transaction. Two utilities are already using the software, although Tem has declined to name them.

“At the heart of the problem is the energy transaction itself,” McDonald said. “If I’m a business buying electricity, I’m typically paying 25 to 30 per cent more than the cost at which it’s generated. That’s because the transaction passes through up to seven intermediaries, each taking a cut.”

Tem says it has facilitated around two terawatt hours of electricity transactions so far, roughly equivalent to powering Liverpool for a year. Its Red service is run by two AI agents supported by a team of just four people.

“A traditional utility would need around 170 staff to serve the same number of customers,” McDonald said. “That shows how technology infrastructure can transform efficiency, while also improving the customer experience.”

With energy costs still a major concern for UK and international businesses, Tem is betting that AI-driven infrastructure, rather than incremental reform, will reshape how electricity is bought and sold.

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Finance chief Diego De Giorgi had been seen as a contender for CEO role

Standard Chartered’s finance chief has left the bank to take up a senior role at asset manager Apollo.

Diego De Giorgi, who joined the bank in September 2023 and became chief financial officer in January 2024, has stepped down to head Apollo’s Europe, Middle East and Africa region.

FTSE-100 listed Standard Chartered shares plummeted nearly five per cent in early trading to 1,807.50p.

De Giorgi had previously spent 18 years at Goldman Sachs, including eight as a partner, before taking on the role of chief operating officer for the global investment banking division.

The outgoing finance boss is recognised as the driving force behind Standard Chartered’s ‘Fit for Growth’ programme, as reported by City AM.

Introduced in 2024, this initiative launched a three-year transformation aimed at simplifying, standardising and digitising the bank’s operations and cutting costs by approximately $1.5bn over three years.

“Whilst banks are ultimately run by many more people than the key C-suite members, this departure is a particular blow for Standard Chartered in our view,” analysts at Jefferies commented.

They added that De Giorgi was seen by investors as a leading candidate to succeed chief executive Bill Winters – currently the longest-serving banking boss among the major British banks.

Analysts commented: “[De Giorgi] had a transformational effect on investor communications over the past several years, contributing not just to financial performance but also better communications which have helped the share price multiple,”.

Standard Chartered, which has a focus on Asia and is well-known in the UK as Liverpool FC’s shirt sponsor, announced that it has appointed Peter Burrill as interim chief financial officer, with a permanent appointment to be made in due course.

“As deputy CFO, Pete has extensive sectoral experience,” Winters stated.

“He likewise provides valuable continuity to the leadership of our finance function and takes on the position as a well-regarded member of our global leadership team. Under his interim stewardship we remain well-positioned to capitalise on the strategic focus and momentum of our business.”