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Category: 3. Business
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Qatar hopeful EU will resolve corporate concerns over sustainability laws by year-end – Reuters
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Pakistan set to launch its first stablecoin
Pakistan has announced its intention to launch its first stablecoin to be used within the country. Announcing the development, Pakistan Virtual Assets Regulatory Authority (PVARA) Chairman Bilal Bin Saqib states that the move is part of its effort to integrate digital assets into Pakistan’s economy.
Stablecoins are digital tokens whose values are always tied to fiat currencies, such as the dollar, making them more stable than the average digital assets like Bitcoin. Bin Saqib made this known as the Binance Blockchain Week in Dubai, highlighting that the country has also been working on the creation of its Central Bank Digital Currencies (CBDCs).
Pakistan announces plans to launch its first stablecoin
In his address, Bin Saqib mentioned that Pakistan sees stablecoins as one of the best ways to collateralize government debt. “We want to be at the forefront of this financial digital innovation that is happening. Why should we be at the tail-end of it when we have the muscle and the adoption?” he said. PVARA is an autonomous federal body governed by a multi-stakeholder board, including the governor of the State Bank of Pakistan.
Other stakeholders in the agency include the chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan and the Federal Board of Revenue. The agency was set up to curb illicit financial activities, protect users, and unlock several opportunities lying in fintech, remittances, and tokenized assets, while enforcing shariah-compliant innovation through regulatory sandboxes.
According to a post on X, the Pakistan Crypto Council also noted that Bin Saqib participated in a panel discussion on the future of digital assets and emerging market regulation. “He emphazised that for countries like Pakistan, clear and innovation-friendly crypto regulation is a key driver of economic growth,” the post read. “Pakistan’s work on stablecoins, data frameworks, and banking the unbanked can become valuable case studies for the world.”
Earlier this year, Bin Saqib revealed that Pakistan was working on its first government-led Strategic Bitcoin Reserve. He announced the initiative after delivering a keynote address at the Bitcoin Vegas 2025 event in Las Vegas, which had in attendance several high-profile personalities who have shown support for the crypto industry. They included United States Vice President JD Vance, Eric Trump, and Donald Trump Jr.
Government ramps up usage of AI
In May, the Pakistani government also announced the allocation of 2,000 megawatts of electricity in the first phase of a national initiative to power Bitcoin mining and artificial intelligence data. Meanwhile, in another report, Pakistan is set to deploy artificial intelligence to intensify its crackdown on illegal migration using fake documents. The government has also vowed to go after companies in the business of creating fake visas.
In a meeting held between the Interior Minister Mohsin Naqvi and Federal Minister for Overseas Pakistanis Chaudhry Salik Hussain, it was decided to make the protector issuance system better, with “reforms to be introduced in the immigration system to facilitate passengers.” The ministers asked those in charge to submit their final recommendations concerning the technology and its improvement in the next seven days.
Naqvi added that an AI-based pilot application would be launched in Islamabad from January to curb illegal migration. He noted that the technology will enable authorities to determine in advance those who are eligible to travel and those who are not. Naqvi highlighted that those who attempt to travel using incomplete or fake documents would be barred. He added that there would be zero tolerance for fake visas and agents, noting that those who are deported would not be reissued new ones.
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Reassessing Valuation After a Sharp Pullback and Conflicting Fair Value Narratives
NuScale Power (SMR) has been on a choppy ride lately, with the share price down about 44% over the past month but still up roughly 21% year to date, leaving investors reassessing its long term nuclear story.
See our latest analysis for NuScale Power.
That sharp 30 day share price return of around negative 44% comes after a strong year to date gain and a near doubling three year total shareholder return. This suggests momentum has cooled as investors reassess execution risks around NuScale’s long term nuclear rollout.
If NuScale’s swings have you rethinking concentration in a single name, it could be worth scanning fast growing stocks with high insider ownership for other high conviction growth stories backed by committed insiders.
With shares still up strongly over three years yet trading almost 80 percent below analyst targets, investors face a pivotal question: is NuScale undervalued after the pullback, or already pricing in the next wave of nuclear growth?
With NuScale’s fair value pegged at about $38.35 versus a last close of $21.39, the most followed narrative paints a sizable upside gap.
With an NRC approved SMR technology and the commitment of over $2 billion towards its development and licensing, NuScale is uniquely positioned for immediate commercial deployment compared to competitors focused solely on demonstration plans. This potentially accelerates revenue growth once commercial operations commence.
Read the complete narrative.
Want to see what kind of revenue surge and margin shift could justify that gap, and why the future earnings multiple looks so aggressive? The full narrative unpacks a high speed revenue ramp, a sharp swing from deep losses toward industry style profitability, and a premium valuation normally reserved for market darlings. Curious how those moving parts add up to the projected fair value? Dive in to see the exact growth blueprint behind this call.
Result: Fair Value of $38.35 (UNDERVALUED)
Have a read of the narrative in full and understand what’s behind the forecasts.
However, persistent delays in securing firm utility orders and potential dilutive funding needs around ENTRA1 could quickly challenge that bullish fair value case.
Find out about the key risks to this NuScale Power narrative.
While the popular narrative sees NuScale as 44.2% undervalued, our DCF model points the other way, with fair value near $3.17 versus a $21.39 share price. That implies NuScale could be significantly overvalued if lofty growth and margin assumptions fall short. Which future do you believe?
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Zipcar user says closure of car sharing scheme may come at a cost
Getty ImagesZipcar said it would close its UK operations by the end of the year As a major car‑sharing scheme announces plans to close its London operations by the year’s end, some are concerned about the impact this will have on its users – and London’s emissions goals.
“If people like me didn’t have access to Zipcar, we would have to consider buying a car,” says John Sinha, who has been using the car-sharing service fortnightly for his business for about five years.
Mr Sinha, from Haringey, said he used the service to transport fragile objects, such as 3D printers, for his business.
“I normally use a bike to move around London, but sometimes, when carrying bulky or delicate objects, I need to have a car,” he said.
Mr Sinha points out: “If more people buy cars, it would mean more demand for parking spaces and more congestion, because people who have cars use them a lot more than people who are members of car clubs.”
Mr Sinha said he used the car sharing service or cycled across London Mr Sinha said the closure of the car club would be “very bad” for sustainability and has launched a petition calling on London Mayor Sir Sadiq Khan to bring the car sharing service into public ownership.
“The thing about Zipcar, is it’s everywhere. You can find a car, you can book it on the app, there are even flex trips so you can take a car from one area and leave it in another area,” he said.
“It offers huge flexibility, and it’s almost as good as owning a car. Removing that is going to work against the stated policies of the mayor.”
Zipcar, a US-based company which is owned by car rental giant Avis Budget, said it had informed its UK members of the closure and had begun a formal consultation.
“As part of this proposal, new bookings in the UK will be suspended beyond 31 December 2025, subject to the outcome of the consultation,” Zipcar said.
“Zipcar UK will continue to operate as usual during this period,” a spokesperson said, adding it recognised the impact the proposal would have on its members, employees and partners.
‘Completely surprised’
Zipcar closed its operations in Oxford, Cambridge and Bristol last year to focus on its core London market, where it has more than 550,000 members.
Steve Gooding, director of the RAC Foundation, said he was aware the company had been struggling to make a profit in London.
Its decision was “perhaps sadly inevitable” and “not a complete shock”, he added.
“Car sharing is always going to be something of a difficult sell to a population that’s either very used to having all of the wonderful public transport that London benefits from, or they’ve got very used to having their own car,” he said.
However, Caroline Russell, leader of the City Hall Greens group, said she was “completely surprised by the suddenness of the announcement”.
She said car clubs were “part of the landscape of London” and called on the mayor and Transport for London (TfL) to have a “proper strategic think” about their value in meeting the mayor’s targets on congestion and air pollution.
Getty ImagesMr Sinha said car sharing was a flexible alternative to ownership for Londoners A spokesperson for the mayor of London said car clubs played an important role in reducing the need for private car ownership in London.
“TfL and the mayor are engaging with stakeholders to understand these changes and will be working with boroughs who manage the provision of car clubs to help ensure that [they] can remain an option for Londoners,” they said.
TfL said its “powers over car clubs” were limited, but it provided funding to boroughs that could be used to support car club bays across the capital.
Additional reporting by Chris Slegg
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An Intrinsic Calculation For Bytes Technology Group plc (LON:BYIT) Suggests It’s 27% Undervalued
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Bytes Technology Group’s estimated fair value is UK£4.80 based on 2 Stage Free Cash Flow to Equity
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Bytes Technology Group is estimated to be 27% undervalued based on current share price of UK£3.49
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The UK£4.86 analyst price target for BYIT is 1.2% more than our estimate of fair value
In this article we are going to estimate the intrinsic value of Bytes Technology Group plc (LON:BYIT) by taking the expected future cash flows and discounting them to today’s value. We will use the Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) model on this occasion. Models like these may appear beyond the comprehension of a lay person, but they’re fairly easy to follow.
Remember though, that there are many ways to estimate a company’s value, and a DCF is just one method. For those who are keen learners of equity analysis, the Simply Wall St analysis model here may be something of interest to you.
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We are going to use a two-stage DCF model, which, as the name states, takes into account two stages of growth. The first stage is generally a higher growth period which levels off heading towards the terminal value, captured in the second ‘steady growth’ period. To start off with, we need to estimate the next ten years of cash flows. Where possible we use analyst estimates, but when these aren’t available we extrapolate the previous free cash flow (FCF) from the last estimate or reported value. We assume companies with shrinking free cash flow will slow their rate of shrinkage, and that companies with growing free cash flow will see their growth rate slow, over this period. We do this to reflect that growth tends to slow more in the early years than it does in later years.
Generally we assume that a dollar today is more valuable than a dollar in the future, and so the sum of these future cash flows is then discounted to today’s value:
2026
2027
2028
2029
2030
2031
2032
2033
2034
2035
Levered FCF (£, Millions)
UK£53.2m
UK£61.7m
UK£66.9m
UK£70.1m
UK£73.2m
UK£76.1m
UK£78.8m
UK£81.5m
UK£84.2m
UK£87.0m
Growth Rate Estimate Source
Analyst x6
Analyst x6
Analyst x5
Est @ 4.90%
Est @ 4.33%
Est @ 3.93%
Est @ 3.65%
Est @ 3.45%
Est @ 3.31%
Est @ 3.22%
Present Value (£, Millions) Discounted @ 8.7%
UK£49.0
UK£52.2
UK£52.0
UK£50.2
UK£48.1
UK£46.0
UK£43.9
UK£41.7
UK£39.7
UK£37.6
(“Est” = FCF growth rate estimated by Simply Wall St)
Present Value of 10-year Cash Flow (PVCF) = UK£460mContinue Reading
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Europe forges ahead with Big Tech crackdown with X fine, defying Trump – Reuters
- Europe forges ahead with Big Tech crackdown with X fine, defying Trump Reuters
- Elon Musk’s X fined €120m over ‘deceptive’ blue ticks BBC
- EU hits Musk’s X with 120m euro fine Dawn
- X gets $140 million EU fine for breaching content rules but TikTok settles Reuters
- Statement from CCDH CEO Imran Ahmed, in response to EU’s $140M fine on X for transparency issues Center for Countering Digital Hate
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West Midlands people urged to ‘shop local’ and back small firms
HandoutBecky Forster said the Small Business Saturday event was about backing “the little guy” People have been urged to shop local this weekend as Small Business Saturday shines a spotlight on small firms from artisan makers to family-run shops.
As well as pop-up events, seasonal entertainment is offer on many of the region’s high streets in a bid to encourage shoppers to venture offline.
One council said the aim was to have a “a lasting impact on small businesses” not just a short-term boost.
Events this weekend follow a recent visit by Business Minister Blair McDougall, who acknowledged that small firms often faced different challenges to larger companies, but that the government was trying to help, with measures in the Budget targeting sectors such as hospitality.
However recent increases in the national minimum wage and employers’ National Insurance contributions, as well as energy and food price rises have affected businesses big and small.
Among the events this Saturday is one by Black Country Artisan Fairs, which will feature 36 artists and makers selling handmade goods at Wolverhampton’s Mander Centre.
Organiser Becky Forster said the whole point was to “support the little guy”.
HandoutPop-up events allow local makers to sell their products without having the expense of a shop “Feedback from the shops and shoppers is always so positive. We bring people back to the high street,” she said, adding that pop-up events offered a platform for sellers who could not afford to run a shop because of business rates.
Ms Forster has a stall named That’s Sew Becky, selling clothing and accessories, using leftover fabrics to cut down waste.
Other traders include knitting and crochet makers, artists, a florist and a baker, and jewellery designers including fellow organiser Dave Hubble, who runs Wyrdwood with his wife Sandra.
Success stories in the West Midlands include Elite Hampers in Telford, which was one of the 100 businesses promoted by the Small Business Saturday campaign this year.
The campaign also highlighted Impressums Jewellery and occasionwear clothing company Diffuse Retail, both in Warwickshire, and Noah’s Art in Birmingham, which makes keepsakes and wedding decor.
Jeevan Punj, who founded Elite Hampers gifting service, was at the House of Lords and Number 11 Downing Street to meet the Chancellor on Tuesday, as part of a Small Business Saturday event.
She described how she started her career in healthcare as an optician, but, after a change of heart during the Covid pandemic, set up Elite Hampers in 2021.
HandoutJeevan Punj is sending hampers to 10 small businesses on Saturday as gifts “I like to give, to make something and give it to somebody,” she said.
One night she registered her business with Companies House and said she then had to work out what to do.
‘Imposter syndrome’
Ms Punj said she got an alcohol licence and 5* food hygiene rating, and went on to create hampers that mostly contain food and drink, but, as bespoke gifts, can also include anything from pens to diaries.
She said it was easy to get nervous and many small businesses had “imposter syndrome”, but she said: “You’re capable of so much more than you know.”
On Saturday, she is sending hampers as gifts to 10 other small businesses.
Her key message for Small Business Saturday was “try to support your local small business as much as possible, whether online or on the high street, because we want to help the economy and support local people”.
HandoutSmall businesses include a variety of sectors, from artists and designers to restaurants and bars Staffordshire County Council said small firms made up nearly 90% of companies in the area and were “vital” to the local and UK economy.
Council deputy leader Martin Murray urged residents to go out and support local businesses, but added: “We’re also reminding small business owners of our extensive range of business support available right now.”
Meanwhile, Visit Worcestershire said 78% of local enterprises employed fewer than five people and the county was “shaped by its micro-business community”.
The tourism body has showcased a family-run pottery studio, Honeybourne Pottery, owned by Annabel and Alan Cusack in Honeybourne High Street, on the border of Worcestershire and Gloucestershire.
Mr Cusack said Small Business Saturday “really helps put local makers on the map”.
“It brings new faces into the studio and encourages people to try something hands-on, which is what we’re all about,” he said. “That support means the world to small businesses like ours.”
Independent studios and small businesses gave character and life to communities, he added, and helped to keep villages and towns vibrant.
“Every purchase, booking and visit makes a real difference to the people behind the business,” he said. “For us it’s about sharing our craft.”
Getty ImagesChristmas markets can be a good way of small firms reaching shoppers Business Minister Blair McDougall visited Stoke-on-Trent on Thursday, describing its “enormous economic potential”.
He said there were a lot of issues facing small firms such as dealing with late payments from larger companies which he described as “crippling for a small business”.
He also highlighted the importance of finance to help them grow.
“For our part as government, we are trying to reform business rates and give more relief to people, you saw that in the budget with particularly additional help for hospitality businesses,” he said.
However hospitality firms have also been disproportionately affected by consecutive rises in the national minimum wage.
Other small businesses have said they wanted to see a cut in red tape as well as less tax.
Blair McDougal visited businesses in Stoke-on-Trent on Thursday Warwickshire County Council described small businesses as “the backbone of our communities”.
Councillor Rob Howard said Small Business Saturday was a “fantastic opportunity to shine a spotlight” on them.
On Saturday, a series of pop-up shops will open their doors in Rugby, while Warwick will have free parking, horse and carriage rides and a Christmas Fun Day showcasing 22 independent businesses.
The Smith Street Christmas Market is also taking place in the city with local traders offering gifts, seasonal food and mulled wine.
Tamworth Borough Council is offering free parking in council-run car parks on the three Saturdays before Christmas – on 6, 13 and 20 December.
Councillor Nova Arkney said: “We hope to boost trade, attract more visitors and give people the opportunity to enjoy Tamworth’s fantastic festive atmosphere.”
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Fanuc (TSE:6954) Valuation After Nvidia Physical AI Robotics Deal and Recent Share Price Surge
Fanuc (TSE:6954) just jumped nearly 13% after unveiling a collaboration with Nvidia to build industrial robots powered by physical AI, a move that immediately sharpened investor focus on its long term growth story.
See our latest analysis for Fanuc.
That surge has come on top of already strong momentum, with a 7 day share price return of 18.0% and a 90 day share price return of 44.3%. The 1 year total shareholder return of 52.4% signals investors are steadily warming to Fanuc as physical AI moves from concept to commercial reality.
If this kind of AI driven robotics story has your attention, it could be a good moment to explore other high growth tech and AI names through high growth tech and AI stocks.
But after such a sharp rerating and a share price now sitting above the average analyst target, is Fanuc still trading below its long term potential, or is the market already baking in years of physical AI growth?
Fanuc last closed at ¥5,931, and its current valuation implies a rich price-to-earnings multiple of 35.2x, well above most Machinery peers.
The price-to-earnings ratio compares what investors pay today with the company’s current earnings. It is a key yardstick for mature, profitable industrial names like Fanuc. A higher multiple usually signals that the market expects stronger or more resilient earnings than the average company in the same sector.
In Fanuc’s case, earnings have grown faster than the broader Machinery industry over the past year and have compounded at roughly mid single digits over five years, with margins improving and earnings quality described as high. However, that earnings profile sits against forecasts for only mid single digit annual profit growth and a return on equity that is expected to remain in single digits, which is modest relative to what such an elevated multiple would normally imply. At the same time, our SWS DCF model flags that the current ¥5,931 share price is trading well above an estimated fair value of ¥3,707.35, indicating a substantial premium to the cash flows implied by those growth expectations.
Compared to the Japanese Machinery industry average P/E of 12.6x and a peer average of 24x, Fanuc’s 35.2x stands out as significantly higher, suggesting investors are paying a steep premium for its role in physical AI and industrial automation. Versus an estimated fair price-to-earnings ratio of 25.2x, the current market multiple also sits notably above the level our fair ratio work indicates the stock could gravitate toward over time if sentiment or growth expectations cool.
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Reassessing Valuation After a 14% Year-to-Date Share Price Decline
Marsh & McLennan Companies (MMC) has been drifting lower this year, with the stock down roughly 14% year to date despite steady revenue and earnings growth, which sets up an interesting valuation check.
See our latest analysis for Marsh & McLennan Companies.
With the latest share price around $181.82 and a 90 day share price return of about negative 11 percent, momentum has clearly cooled, even though the five year total shareholder return near 70 percent still points to a solid long term compounding story.
If MMC’s recent wobble has you rethinking where you want steady compounding, it could be worth exploring fast growing stocks with high insider ownership for other ideas with strong alignment between management and shareholders.
So with Marsh & McLennan still growing earnings while trading roughly 30 percent below some intrinsic estimates, are investors getting a quality compounder at a discount, or is the market already pricing in its future growth?
Compared to the last close at $181.82, the most widely followed narrative sees Marsh & McLennan’s fair value materially higher, framing today’s pullback as an opportunity rather than a warning.
Strategic investments in digital transformation, advanced analytics, and AI (e.g., proprietary data tools for risk modeling, agentic interfaces) are expected to enhance operational efficiency and improve product/service offerings, enabling margin expansion and net earnings growth through improved client retention and lower cost to serve.
Read the complete narrative.
Want to see what happens when steady mid single digit growth meets rising margins and a richer earnings multiple usually reserved for faster growing sectors? The narrative leans on a bold earnings trajectory, firmer profitability and a premium valuation years from now, all reverse engineered into today’s fair value. Curious how those assumptions stack up against the current softer property and casualty backdrop and slower consulting demand?
Result: Fair Value of $212.35 (UNDERVALUED)
Have a read of the narrative in full and understand what’s behind the forecasts.
However, softer property and casualty pricing and weaker discretionary consulting demand could cap margins and derail the premium multiple implied in this narrative.
Find out about the key risks to this Marsh & McLennan Companies narrative.
On simple earnings maths, Marsh & McLennan looks much richer than its sector, trading on 21.6 times earnings versus 12.8 times for the US Insurance industry, and above a 14.8 times fair ratio the market could drift toward. Is that premium resilience, or valuation risk building?
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Headwater Exploration (TSX:HWX) Valuation After 2026 Growth Plan, Dividend Commitment and Capital Discipline Update
Headwater Exploration (TSX:HWX) just laid out its initial 2026 game plan, targeting 8% production per share growth while funding a CA$0.44 dividend and still keeping exit working capital in the black.
See our latest analysis for Headwater Exploration.
The guidance has landed against a strong backdrop, with the share price now at CA$9.49 after a 30 day share price return of 26.53% and a five year total shareholder return of 383.28%. This suggests that momentum and confidence are building rather than fading.
If this kind of disciplined growth story appeals to you, it could be a good moment to look beyond energy and discover fast growing stocks with high insider ownership.
Yet with the shares already up sharply and trading only slightly below analyst targets despite an implied discount to intrinsic value, the key question now is whether Headwater is still mispriced or if the market has already priced in its next leg of growth.
On a headline basis, Headwater Exploration trades at a 13.1x price to earnings ratio, which makes the stock look reasonably valued rather than obviously cheap.
The price to earnings multiple compares the current share price to the company’s earnings per share, so it effectively captures what investors are willing to pay for each dollar of profit. For an oil and gas producer like Headwater, this is a core yardstick because earnings can swing with commodity prices, capital spending, and operating efficiency.
Against that backdrop, the picture is mixed. Headwater screens as good value versus peers and the broader Canadian oil and gas industry, with its 13.1x multiple sitting below both the industry average 15.3x and the peer average 20.6x. However, that same 13.1x looks expensive when compared with the estimated fair price to earnings ratio of 10.1x, a level the market could migrate toward if sentiment or earnings expectations cool.
Explore the SWS fair ratio for Headwater Exploration
Result: Price-to-Earnings of 13.1x (ABOUT RIGHT)
However, investors should watch for weaker earnings trends and a cooldown in oil prices, which could compress multiples and challenge the current growth narrative.
Find out about the key risks to this Headwater Exploration narrative.
While the 13.1x earnings multiple suggests Headwater is roughly fairly priced, our DCF model indicates a very different picture. It suggests fair value near CA$19.93, which is around 52% above the current CA$9.49 price. Is the market underestimating the cash flow runway here?
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