News
Each day, DailyAlts tracks major developments across the alternative investment world. Our content is procured from primary contacts in the industry and secondary sources across the web. Our goal is to give readers the most up-to-date news and engaging experience to open new doors and areas of knowledge. Our stories cover nine separate verticals of the alternative investment industry.
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Chipmaker AMD (NASDAQ: AMD) has unveiled a range of innovative AI solutions spanning from data centers to personal computers. The AMD Instinct MI300 Series features data center AI accelerators, while the ROCm 6 open software stack introduces new features supporting Large Language Models (LLMs). Additionally, the Ryzen 8040 Series processors come equipped with Ryzen AI capabilities.
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FinTech: Robinhood Rides Gamestop Tumult To $3.4B Debt Financing
In a sprint to gain scale after the Gamestop (NYSE: GME) episode showed the massive adoption of trading by retail investors, Robinhood raised $3.4 billion from top-notch investors. The firm, which charges no commissions, said it intended to “fuel record customer growth.”
Liquid Alternatives: Hercules Investments Launches A Liquid Alternatives Mutual Fund
Hercules Investments, a Registered Investment Adviser and asset manager, is harnessing the potential of a liquid alternative strategy to shield investors from the vagaries of a highly volatile stock market triggered by the pandemic. Furthermore, down the line, massive stimulus measures and deficit financing bring up the specter of rising inflation.
Artificial Intelligence: IdentiFlight’s AI-Powered Bird Detection Systems Save Eagles From Wind Turbines
It’s a “green-versus-green” conundrum. Windfarms generate emission-free energy on the one hand, but cause the deaths of wildlife such as protected eagle species, on the other. IdentiFlight’s smart cameras, however, provide an automated curtailment system that slows or stops wind turbines when it senses the risk of collision due to inbound wildlife.
Venture Capital: Robert Downey Jr. Launches FootPrint Coalition Ventures At WEF Digital Davos Agenda
Robert Downey Jr., producer, investor, and Iron Man star, launched FootPrint Coalition Ventures (FCV) at the World Economic Forum’s Digital Agenda on Wednesday. FCV comprises two ESG sector funds that will accelerate groundbreaking technologies to tackle the world’s largest environmental challenges.
Alternative Investments/Digital Assets: WisdomTree’s CyberSecurity ETF Addresses Vulnerabilities From WFH
The new WisdomTree Cybersecurity Fund (WCBR) ETF seeks to exploit the megatrend towards cybersecurity following the pandemic in 2020. The seemingly overnight pivot to work-from-home, distance learning, and digital communications have laid bare the security vulnerabilities at enterprises across the globe.
Digital Assets: DOJ Busts NetWalker Ransomware Actors
The Department of Justice announced Wednesday its successful strike against the notorious NetWalker ransomware and its perpetrators. The coordinated international action, led by the FBI’s Tampa Field office indicted a Canadian Canadian national, Sebastien Vachon-Desjardins, who allegedly obtained $27.6 million as a “Netwalker affiliate.” Additionally, the law enforcement agents seized $454,530.19 in cryptocurrency from ransom payments. They also disabled a dark web hidden tool that the bad actors used to communicate with NetWalker ransomware victims.
Artificial Intelligence: World Economic Forum Launches Global AI Action Alliance
The World Economic Forum (WEF) on Thursday launched the Global AI Action Alliance (GAIA). It is an effort to accelerate the adoption of inclusive, transparent, and trusted artificial intelligence. Alliance members comprise delegates from more than 100 leading companies, governments, international organizations, non-profits, and academics.
Digital Assets: The Gamestop Fiasco Proves BTC Is Going To Work (Scaramucci)
In an interview on Bloomberg this week, Anthony Scaramucci, the founder of Skybridge Capital, spoke about the Gamestop (NYSE: GME) fracas and its implications for bitcoin (BTC), the leading cryptocurrency.
Alternative Investments: BMO Launches 11 New ‘Megatrend’ ETFs
BMO announced Tuesday the launch of 11 new Exchange Trade Funds (ETFs). Five of these ETFs form part of an Innovation suite, while the other six focus on clean energy, covered calls, fixed income, and ESG.
Venture Capital: VCs GGV And TCV Announce Multi-Billion Dollar Fund Hauls
A lot of money from pandemic related stimulus measures appears to be sloshing around in the system. According to one opinion, some of that is headed for VC funds. TCV, the eminent Silicon Valley VC firm, raised $4 billion for its 11th fund, its biggest yet. GGV announced Thursday that its latest funds attracted investment worth $2.52 billion in its largest-ever raising.
FinTech: Stilt, The Loan Provider To Immigrants, Raises $100M Debt
Stilt provides loans and financial services to immigrants and people underserved by the banking system. The five-year old startup announced Wednesday its raise of $100 million as a warehouse lending facility from Silicon Valley Bank (NASDAQ: SIVB). With this loan, Stilt has raised in aggregate $225 million of loans for onward lending to its customers.
Artificial Intelligence: Now AI Can Predict Schizophrenia From Brain Scans
Researchers at the University of Alberta developed an AI tool for predicting schizophrenia from brain scans of healthy close relatives (such as children or siblings) of persons suffering from the mental disease. Out of 57 persons, the AI system could identify the 14 individuals that scored the highest in a schizophrenia self-test.
Alternative Investments/Digital: The Wave BTC Income & Growth Fund Clocks 146% Return
The numbers are out for the Wave BTC Income & Growth Digital Fund’s first full year of trading, and they’re impressive. The fund scored a 145.8% annual gain for its investors which include institutions, family offices, and high-net-worth individuals.
FinTech: Infinity Maritime Names Four Shipbrokers For Its Alternative Ship Finance Platform
Infinity Maritime aims to provide a sustainable solution for maritime finance by digitizing ship portfolios on its platform. This enables fractional ownership, secondary trading in ships, and the financing of environmentally sustainable fleets. The London-based platform announced Wednesday a collaboration with four major shipbrokers to source ships for the creation of a sustainable fleet.
Digital Assets: Central Bank Of Bahrain Licenses Shariah Compliant Crypto Exchange CoinMENA
Investors in select Gulf countries, looking to invest in the burgeoning world of cryptocurrencies, may soon get that opportunity. CoinMENA, a digital assets exchange certified as Shariah-compliant by the Shariyah Review Board, announced Sunday that it had received the all-important license to operate from Bahrain’s central bank.
Venture Capital: Travel and Experiences Operator Klook Notches $200M
Hong Kong-based, SoftBank-backed Klook, an online travel agency focused on experiences and attractions, has raised $200 million in a Series E round. Led by Aspex Management, the round also featured investment by existing investors, such as Sequoia Capital China, Softbank Vision Fund 1, Matrix Partners China, and Boyu Capital. The company did not disclose its valuation.
Artificial Intelligence: The World’s First NVIDIA-Certified AI Systems Now Available
Nvidia (NASDAQ: NVDA) announced in a blog on Tuesday that its biggest OEMs were now offering NVIDIA-Certified Systems. These are a new class of accelerated servers designed and tested for modern workloads such as AI and data analytics, and suitable for processes running at data center locations, and on the edge of the corporate network. The systems feature NVIDIA’s latest GPUs that ride NVIDIA Mellanox networks and speed up processing for AI.
Digital Assets: WhatsApp Alternative Signal Said To Be Developing Crypto Payments
An investigation report by Platformer’s Casey Newton says messaging app Signal, which promotes privacy through end-to-end encryption, without any commercial motive, is in turmoil. Downloads of the app after Facebook’s proposed privacy changes have gone through the roof. An employee told Newton that the app boasts of 40 million users globally. But proposed new features in the app have raised concerns amongst employees and some have left.
Liquid Alternatives/Private Equity: A Mackenzie Mutual Fund Offers Private Equity Exposure To Retail Investors
The Mackenzie Private Equity Replication Fund is a new mutual fund from Mackenzie Investments launched earlier this month. Mackenzie is active in liquid alternatives, and this is its sixth fund in that space. The fund manager expects liquid alternatives to grow to $100 billion in assets under management in Canada within the next few years.
Venture Capital: Matrix Partners China Raises $1.2B For Sixth Fund
Matrix Partners China, an affiliate of Matrix Partners, the U.S. venture capital firm, has raised $1.2 billion for its sixth China fund according to an SEC filing. It is an early-stage investor in Chinese startups in tech, TMT, Internet, mobile and healthcare sectors.
FinTech: Kamath’s Rainmatter VC Incubator Mulling Alternative Investment Fund
Indian entrepreneur Nikhil Kamath, who achieved fame and fortune by bootstrapping Zerodha, India’s first discount broker, to unicorn status, is setting up a fund for investing in fintechs. Rainmatter, Kamath’s VC arm, is considering the launch of an Alternate Investment Fund that would be open to Gulf investors, and as well invest in startups in that region.
Artificial Intelligence: Aerobotics Raises $17M In Naspers-Led Round
Cape Town-based Aerobotics, a startup that uses AI for the management of orchards, yield, pest and disease, and problem tree identification, raised $17 million. The oversubscribed Series B round was led by VC giant Naspers with participation from Platform Investment Partners, FMO: Entrepreneurial Development Bank, and Cathay AfricInvest Innovation.
Digital Assets: Corporates Dip-Buy Bitcoin; Marathon Invests $150M
In one stroke, Marathon Patent Group (NASDAQ: MARA), a crypto mining company, has pivoted to become a listed, pure-play option for investors seeking a proxy investment for bitcoin. The company announced today that it had bought 4,812.66 BTC at an aggregate purchase price of $150 million through NYDIG, the bitcoin-dedicated, financial and technology services company.
Venture Capital: Finnish Retail Delivery Startup Wolt Bulks Up On Cash With $530M Raise
Finnish food-to-grocery delivery startup Wolt is going all-out to achieve a huge cash pile, double and down on growth in all its verticals. It also has an IPO, perhaps in 2022, in its sights.