Check out these tech stories before escaping for the weekend:

1. Atlassian founder Scott Farquhar says Australia’s reputation has irreversibly been damaged. He spoke out on the government’s changes to the skilled immigration rules this year, which has made the country less welcoming to foreigners that are needed by the local tech industry. Read more here.

2. Australian fintech is doing pretty well. This year’s EY FinTech Australia Census results were unveiled at Intersekt in Melbourne this morning, which showed a median 208% revenue jump for local fintechs for the last financial year. But FinTech Australia president and boss of Reinventure, Simon Cant, has warned there could be a rush of startup mergers as the industry matures.

3. An Australian online marketplace reckons it has the formula to keep Amazon at bay. MyDeal.com.au has now recruited 1000 retailers to sell through his platform, including 50 fashion outlets that it signed up just in the past month. The latest deal sees overseas holidays discounted up to 50% through Flight Centre-owned Ignite Travel Group. MyDeal founder Sean Senvirtne says that strategy is deliberately distinct from what rivals like Kogan are doing – diversifying their catalogue by adding their own products. Read more on the other reason why Senvirtne thinks his business is Amazon-proof.

4. Business Insider followed the lead-up to an ICO for a week. Morning editor Peter Farquhar was startled by the speed at which token raises can happen, as he learnt after following Tasmanian business GameTester’s experience. Read more on what he learnt.

5. The Apple iPhone X (ten) has arrived. Here are some tips from our sister publication Lifehacker – but spolier alert, you need to avoid Apple Stores where there are crazy people who’ve been queuing up for days. Read more here.

Have a great day! Please email me your story tips or find me on Twitter.

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