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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Artificial Intelligence: A New Breed of Burglars – Small AI-Powered Robots
According to scientists, in the not-so-far future, burglars could be much smaller and smarter than your average neighborhood intruder. Besides, they would be nonhuman. Criminals are developing autonomous, robotic invaders that make a joke out of traditional safeguards such as bolted doors and shuttered windows. The preferred mode of entry: a letterbox or cat flap.
Private Equity Powers Global Sustainability Initiative
A “New Normal” and Driving Force From Private Equity. The global private equity community is buzzing over news that several private equity powerhouses have come together in a bold move to reduce carbon emissions and increase sustainability in a game-changing manner. The firms aim to advocate for green investments and carbon-free portfolios in order to…
Private Equity: Vitruvian Partners Pulls In $4.7 Billion
Capital Raise Brings Firm Assets to Nearly $12 Billion. Vitruvian Partners, a UK-based private equity fund, has closed its fourth buyout fund after raking in $4.7 billion. Vitruvian Partners launched its fund three months ago. Its cap raise was approximately 40 percent greater than that for its previous fund, which closed at $2.8 billion. The…
Venture Capital: Employee Management Platform Rippling Snags $145M And Unicorn Status
Employment management software company Rippling gained the coveted unicorn status after it raised $145 million at a valuation of $1.35 billion in a Series B round. Participants in the Founders Fund-led round included Greenoaks Capital, Coatue Management, and Bedrock Capital. Existing investors Kleiner Perkins, Initialized Capital, and Y Combinator also participated in the funding.
Digital Assets: Indian Government Mulling New Lockdown on Cryptocurrencies
Crypto aficionados in India were delighted with the Supreme Court of India’s March decision to overturn the Reserve Bank of India’s 2018 ban on providing services to any individual or business dealing in digital currencies. But their jubilation may be short-lived. According to Moneycontrol, the Indian government is seriously considering a law to outright ban trading in cryptocurrencies.
FinTech: UK-Based Wiserfunding Launches Credit Appraisal Tools For Indian SMEs
India’s SME sector has been rocked on its heels by the COVID-19 pandemic. It contributes to 45% of the country’s manufacturing output and over 28% of GDP while employing 111 million people. The pandemic can have catastrophic consequences for these businesses, which were already suffering from an economic slowdown before the virus. This may be a challenging environment for the introduction of high tech credit appraisal tools. But this is exactly what the UK fintech Wiserfunding is proposing to do.
Artificial Intelligence: A Robotic Scientist That Works 21.5/7
Work from home has a new meaning for researchers at the University of Liverpool, U.K. – they still can conduct experiments at the university laboratory. There’s a not-so-small difference, however. And it’s an intelligent, 1.75-meter tall robot-scientist that conducts experiments in the lab at their bidding.
FinTech: Intuit-Credit Karma Deal Under DOJ Lens (ProPublica)
According to ProPublica, a non-profit newsroom that investigates abuse of power, the US Justice Department will investigate Intuit Inc (NASDAQ: INTU)’s $7.1 billion acquisition of Credit Karma announced in February. Intuit is an American business and financial software company that develops and sells financial, accounting, and tax preparation software. It has a market capitalization of $81 billion. Credit Karma is a fintech that launched a free tax return service that became a formidable rival to Intuit.
Alternative Investments/ESG: DWS Launches Xtrackers II ESG EUR Corporate Bond Short Duration UCITS ETF
DWS addressed the rising demand for corporate debt laced with sustainable and socially conscious strategies with a new ESG-focused short-duration corporate bonds ETF.
The Euro-denominated Xtrackers II ESG EUR Corporate Bond Short Duration Ucits ETF tracks the Bloomberg Barclays MSCI Euro Corporate Sustainable & SRI 0-5 Year index.
Venture Capital: First Women’s Bank To Raise $50M
First Women’s Bank received a conditional approval earlier this month from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Marianne Markowitz, who is expected to become the bank’s CEO, said the approval was a “significant milestone.” The new bank, which will focus primarily on female entrepreneurs, is likely to open its doors for business in 2021. It will be Chicago’s first all-new bank after the GFC of 2008, and will perhaps locate in the Goose Island neighborhood.
Digital Assets: Electric Capital Raises $110M For Its Second Crypto Fund
Venture capital firm Electric Capital invests in cryptocurrencies, blockchain-based businesses, fintech companies, and marketplaces. It announced Monday the close of its second fund, a $110M Seed and Series A fund, focused on crypto networks and blockchain-enabled businesses.
Artificial Intelligence: Truera Will Tell You What’s Going On Inside The ML Black Box
Data scientists have long suffered from the impervious ‘black box’ that surrounds a machine learning model. That’s because data is crunched by the algorithm and decisions spit out but what went on in between the input and the output remains opaque. But help is at hand – Truera’s platform allows data scientists to analyze machine learning to improve model quality, address unfair bias, and build trust.
Liquid Alternatives: Prime Capital Launches Liquid Alts Credit Fund
Prime Capital’s Liquid Alternative Credit Fund, a new fund of funds, will invest in 15 to 20 underlying funds which are diversified globally and invest in alternative credit strategies such as trade finance and real estate bridge financing. Prime Capital AG manages €17.2bn of assets in various funds.
Alternative Investments Yielding Strong Diversification Outcomes
Democratizing of Alts Continues Globally. Alternative investments increasingly are in the spotlight for market observers who see their strong outcomes in today’s volatile market environment. These investments include, for example, managed futures, commodities, hedge funds, and private equity. The world of alternative investments is continuing its transition from a relatively exclusive investment asset cateogry for…
Artificial Intelligence: Chinese Company Sues Apple For Violating Its Voice Recognition Patent
This dispute is over ten years old. According to Reuters, Shanghai Zhizhen Intelligent Network Technology Co., Ltd., also known as Xiao-I, has slapped Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) with a $1.43 billion lawsuit. The Chinese company alleges that Apple violated a voice recognition patent owned by it.
Venture Capital: UK Fintech Curve Eyeing Fundraise Between £100m and £120m
Sifted revealed that London-based fintech Curve may raise an amount upwards of £100 million in a proposed Series C round. It reportedly started its efforts to raise money earlier this year and if the efforts pay off, it could be one of the biggest raises by a fintech in Europe this year amidst the pandemic.
Digital Assets: Ransom Amounts Escalate Into Tens of Millions As Hacks Get Bolder
The Twitter (NYSE: TWTR) attack gathered a lot of notoriety, mainly because it affected the accounts of so many prominent personalities. The scam garnered roughly $120,000 for its perpetrators and was not a ransomware attack. That amount is peanuts compared to the scale of ransom attacks now being witnessed, with US-based travel management firm CWT paying $4.6 million to get back the use of its computers.
FinTech: Apple Acquires Mobeewave To Extend Payments Functionality
Mobeewave, a Canadian tech startup that aims to convert smartphones into payment terminals, has been acquired by Apple Inc (NASDAQ: AAPL) for $100 million, according to Bloomberg.
The Mobeewave startup makes it easy for shoppers to use their credit cards and make payments using their smartphones. The firm will continue to function out of its Old Montreal location with all employees being retained by Apple.
Digital Assets: Zebpay Launches OTC Crypto Desk in India to Meet Huge Demand
“There is a huge demand among traders and arbitrageurs in India for OTC desk services, and the recent Supreme Court decision reversing the ban has caught the attention of large investors and institutions eager to explore this new asset class,” says Nirmal Ranga, Vice President of Trade at Zebpay. Unsurprisingly, to cash in on this burgeoning interest in big-ticket crypto trading, Zebpay is launching an OTC Bitcoin (BTC) trading desk.
FinTech: Monzo Reports A Whopper Of A Loss; Casts Doubt On Its Own Future
Monzo reported a loss of £113.8 million ($149.5 million) in its 2020 fiscal accounts, up from the £47.1 million loss in 2019. However, revenues more than tripled to £67.2 million from £19.7 million. The bank made sizable investments on hiring, marketing and a U.S. expansion during the year.
The bank warned that the disruption from the coronavirus pandemic had cast in doubt its ability to continue to operate.
Alternative Investments/ESG: KRBN, A New ETF, Could Move The Needle on Carbon Pricing
Krane Funds Advisors LLC, which is the investment manager for KFA Funds and KraneShares ETFs, announced the launch of KFA Global Carbon ETF (NYSE: KRBN). The new KRBN ETF tracks carbon credit futures contracts through the IHS Markit’s Global Carbon Index.
Venture Capital: AFTR Launches Cemetery Cameras for Virtual Gravesite Visits
AFTR has launched a line of cemetery cameras that enable grief-stricken relatives and friends to visit the gravesite of their dear, departed person virtually. During the pandemic, many of us were unable to pay our last respects to the deceased because of lockdowns and other restrictions. AFTR’s products enable a connection, even though virtual and via a phone screen, to the loved one.
Artificial Intelligence: Smart Farm Technology To Take The Drudge Out of Plant Breeding
A whole combination of technologies has been assembled by researchers at the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center to take human labor out of crop breeding and growing. Their FieldDock project combines remote sensors, AI and autonomous drones that run on renewable energy. Danforth Center researcher Nadia Shakoor (pictured above) is the founder of the FieldDock project.
Real Estate: Seller’s Market Sparked by Corona-Infused Dynamics
Sales Closing Above Asking Prices. As a result of the COVID-19 pandemic, real estate industry observers are seeing a seller’s market pervade the space. According to Zillow economist Jeff Tucker, “This spring we saw listings fall off the cliff. Everyone was hunkering down wondering what’s happening to the housing market…These buyers motivated by low…