Top tech startup news stories you need to know this Thursday, March 22

Good afternoon! Sorry, folks. We’ve been experiencing server issues. The issues have now been resolved. Here are some of the top tech startup news stories today Thursday, March 22.

Mobile bank N26 scores $160m after attracting 850k users. German app-only bank N26 has raised $160m in a Series C funding round co-led by Allianz X, the digital investment unit of Allianz Group, and China’s Tencent. The funding represents the largest equity financing round (non IPO) in the fintech industry in Germany to date and one of the largest in Europe. N26 has attracted more than 850,000 customers since its launch in January 2015 and is now one of the fastest-growing European banks with a goal of reaching over 5 million customers by the end of 2020.

Twitter security chief is stepping down to co-found a security startup. Twitter’s chief security officer Michael Coates is leaving his role, announcing on the social media platform that he will leave the company to co-found a security startup.  He joined Twitter in 2015. Coates is not the only one on the move, in a separate announcement, Google’s director of information security engineering, Michal Zalewski, said on Twitter that he would be leaving after almost 11 years to join Snapchat’s parent company, Snap Inc.

Facebook revamps its App Review policy after suspending Cambridge Analytica over data harvesting. Facebook has revamped its App Review process in the wake of the Cambridge Analytica scandal, and suspended both it and parent company SCL Group from Facebook.

Social media startup SpokeHub to unveil its augmented reality-enhanced app. Social media startup SpokeHub has added augmented reality as a feature as a technology upgrade, to the app it launched back in December. The startup plans to unveil the new AR as it formally opens its new office at The Frontier in RTP. “SpokeHub is the only social application today that provides AR experiences then gives the user a place to engage immediately afterwards,” says Richard Berryman, cofounder and vice president of business development for SpokeHub. “We’ve cracked the code as to how a brand can now create a revenue stream while using Augmented Reality.”

Bike-sharing startup Zagster laid off staff after raising $15 million in funding. Cambridge, MA-based bike sharing startup has laid off staff after raising $15 in funding, according to report from TechCrunch. Zagster confirmed the layoffs but did not comment on the number of employees affected.

Fintech startup Tide’s founder plans to step down as CEO. George Bevis, the founder of U.K. fintech startup that offers banking services for small businesses,  is planning to step down as CEO. Tide is currently in in search for his replacement.

Cryptocurrency startup carVertical claims BMW partnership, but BMW disagrees. Everyone was talking about the cryptocurrency startup carVertical after announcing that it had struck a partnership with German car maker, BMW, to build the “first ever connected reports for cars.” Today, BMW took to Twitter to clarify the partnership. BMW clarified that it currently has no formal partnership with carVertical. It further claimed the cryptocurrency startup – which aims to build a decentralized car history registry on the blockchain – is merely “using” the BMW CarData interface “available to any third party.”

BMW has not entered into a cooperation/partnership with CarVertical. The company is using our BMW CarData interface available to any third party.

— BMW USA (@BMWUSA) March 20, 2018