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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Venture Capital: Online Education Provider Udacity Raises $75M Debt
Udacity, the online education provider famous for its ‘Nanodegrees,’ has arranged a debt facility worth $ 75 million with Hercules Capital (NYSE: HTGC) to continue its growth momentum after turning profitable.
FinTech: Facebook’s WhatsApp Cleared To Roll Out UPI Payments In India
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook (NASDAQ: FB) said today in a video message that WhatsApp is now cleared to offer a payment service in 10 Indian regional languages using the United Payments Interface (UPI).
Artificial Intelligence: NotCo Launches An AI-Formulated, Plant-Based Milk
NotCo is a Latin American foodtech startup that uses artificial intelligence in the formulation of its plant-based milk NotMilk. Backed by VCs such as Bezos Expeditions, Maya Capital, Indie Bio, Humboldt, and L Catterton, the company has launched NotMilk at Whole Foods Markets across the U.S.
Digital Assets: Russian Aluminum And Hydro Giant En+ Enters Crypto Mining
As bitcoin soars to within a kissing distance of $15K, the En+ Group joins hands with BitRiver. The En+ Group (LON: ENPL), the Russian aluminum and energy giant, has partnered with BitRiver, which owns the largest crypto mining venue in Russia, for cryptocurrency mining.
FinTech: Clarity AI Raises $15M For ESG Platform
Clarity AI is a fintech whose proprietary technology platform enables investors to understand the social and environmental impact of their portfolios. It is, therefore, a useful tool in the current times when ESG is front-of-mind for both retail and institutional investors.
Alternative Investments/ESG: London Based Sparrows Capital Adds ESG to Model Portfolios
Sparrow Capital’s platform-based model portfolio service, SCore MPS, is being augmented by the inclusion of the SCore Responsible MPS range of ESG portfolios.
Venture Capital: 10D, An Israeli Venture Fund, Raises $110M
10D, the Israeli venture capital firm previously known as Ofek Ventures, led by Itay Rand, Rotem Eldar, and Yahal Zilka (pictured above L-R), announced Wednesday its raise of over $ 110 million. The fund intends to invest the money in start-ups that are a disruptive force through the use of deep technologies, new business models, or exceptional entrepreneurial capabilities.
Artificial Intelligence: The AI-Powered Nudemeter For Dark-Skinned Women
Atima Lui, who is of Sudanese and African-American descent, created the Nudemeter because of the difficulty she faced finding makeup colors that suited her dark and rich skin tone. The Nudemeter is a computer-vision tool that helps shoppers choose the best product for their complexion.
FinTech: Of Jack Ma’s Foot-in-Mouth, Irate Chinese Regulators, And A Non-Starter $37B IPO
Chinese authorities pulled rank on Jack Ma following his abrasive comments at the Bund Summit in Shanghai last month, and Ant Group pulled its IPO.
Alternative Investments/ESG: Two New Sustainable Funds From Close Brothers
Close Brothers Asset Management (CBAM), which manages assets worth over £12.6 billion (US$ 16.4 billion), is part of the Close Brothers Group plc (LON: CBG), a FTSE 250 leading UK merchant banking group. Established in 1878, Close is one of the UK’s largest and longest established providers of financial advice and investment management. CBAM is launching two new sustainable funds following demand from clients and intermediaries for funds that invest in ways that show concern and respect for the natural environment, for human dignity, and responsible corporate behavior.
Venture Capital: REEF Technology’s “Proximity-As-A-Service” Model Attracts $700M
REEF Technology, which operates North America’s largest parking network, said in a Facebook post on March 28 that it was working to transform its network of 5,000 parking locations into testing sites, delivery hubs for essential goods & services, and much more in the fight against COVID-19. Fast forward to November, and REEF’s business pivot to these “neighborhood hubs” has landed it $700 million in funds.
Digital Assets: Bitcoin Sceptic Jeffrey Gundlach Now Says It Is a Dollar Hedge
Back in 2017, Jeffrey Gundlach, the founder of investment management firm DoubleLine Capital, termed the growing interest in bitcoin as “mania,” and said he was quite willing to let it carry on without him on board.
Artificial Intelligence: Pope Francis Asks For Divine Help On AI And Robotics
Pope Francis appealed to Catholics around the world to pray that robotics and AI would forever remain in the service of human beings.
Alternative Investments/ESG: The Wealthsimple Shariah World Equity ETF To Debut in Early 2021
Wealthsimple will unveil an ETF that will offer investors, particularly Muslims, exposure to a diversified index of Shariah-compliant stocks. Dubbed the Wealthsimple Shariah World Equity ETF, it will be managed by Toronto-based Mackenzie Investments, and is expected to list in early 2021.
Digital Assets: HSBC Bangladesh Transacts 20K Tonnes Of Fuel Oil On The Contour Platform
Bangladesh executed its first cross-border (Letter of Credit) LC transaction for the import of 20,000 tonnes of fuel oil from Singapore on the blockchain through HSBC. The transaction opens up the possibility of slashing standard LC processing times from 5-10 days to within a day.
FinTech: BSM Company Coupa Acquires AI-Powered Supply Chain Company Llamasoft For $1.5B
Coupa Software (NASDAQ: COUP) announced Monday its acquisition of Llamasoft, a supply chain software company for $1.5 billion. Llamasoft’s AI-powered, cloud platform helps companies make better informed and faster crucial supply chain decisions.
Venture Capital: Conductor, The Brazilian Payments Processor, Lands $150M
Conductor, the Brazilian startup that has become the leading payments & banking as a service (BaaS) platform in Latin America, announced Monday its raise of $150 million. The funding was led by Viking Global Investors , with additional participation from investors such as Sunley House Capital Management, an affiliate of Advent International.
Artificial Intelligence: Ambarella’s New Computer Vision Chip For AI-On-Edge
Ambarella, Inc. (NASDAQ: AMBA) has unveiled its new CV28M SoC (System on Camera) chip for intelligent applications required to run “on edge.” These include smart home security, retail monitoring, consumer robotics, occupancy monitoring and in smart cars.
Alternative Investments/Hedge Funds: ETFs’ AUM Continues To Trounce Hedge Funds (ETFGI)
As at end of Q3 2020, ETFs AUM exceeded that of hedge funds by $3.58 trillion. Hedge funds gathered net inflows of $13 billion during Q3 while ETFs/ETPs gathered net inflows of $194.4 billion, according to data from ETFGI.
FinTech: NerdWallet Buys Fundera To Reach Small And Medium Businesses
Financial guidance app Nerdwallet announced Friday its acquisition of Fundera, which provides financial advice and comparisons to nearly 28 million small and medium-sized businesses in the U.S. Terms were not disclosed, except that Fundera will become a Nerdwallet subsidiary. All of Fundera’s employees will join Nerdwallet.
Digital Assets: Gazprombank (Switzerland) FINMA-Cleared For Crypto Bank Accounts
Gazprombank (Switzerland), the wholly-owned Swiss arm of Russia’s Gazprombank (JSC), announced October 29 that it had received regulatory clearance from the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority to offer crypto custody and trading services to its institutional and corporate clients.
Venture Capital: Nestle USA Acquires Meal Delivery Startup Freshly For Potentially $1.5B
Nestle USA, which is ultimately owned by Nestle SA (SWX: NESN), on Friday, signed and closed its acquisition of Freshly, a startup that provides healthy, freshly prepared, and chef-cooked meals that are heat-and-eat in three minutes or less. Freshly’s pioneering direct-to-consumer service is subscription-based in the range of $45.96 to $101.88 per week. Nestle will pay $ 950 million for the purchase, and potentially another $550 million depending upon Freshly’s growth in the future.
Artificial Intelligence: Air Street Capital’s New Fund; Intel’s Snaps Up AI Startup SigOpt
London-based Air Street Capital announced Friday its close of a $17 million fund to back early-stage “AI-native” startups. The venture firm positions itself too as an AI-native investor – because “generalism is dead” and its team of Operating Partners combines AI expertise with deep sector-specific knowledge.
Alternative Investments: Accelerate’s Alt ETFs Now On RBC Dominion Securities A+ Platform
Accelerate Financial Technologies Inc announced this week that its alternative ETFs have been added to the RBC Dominion Securities A+ platform. RBC Dominion Securities describes the A+ as the next level of wealth management.