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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Liquid Alternatives: Buffett Dumps Airlines; What That Means For the JETS ETF
Investors who were bottom-fishing the airlines’ sector via the U.S. Global Jets ETF (NYSEARCA: JETS) are likely to view today’s (Monday) trading with some trepidation. Buffett, one of the world’s most respected and emulated investors, said over the weekend that he’d had it with airlines. Berkshire Hathaway (NYSE: BRK.A) now has zero exposure to the pandemic-hit U.S. airline sector.
Digital Assets: Gold-backed Tokens Provider Cache Ties With Onchain Custodian
Cache Private Limited is licensed under Singapore’s Ministry of Law under the Precious Stones and Precious Metals Dealers (Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorism Financing) Act (PSPM Act) of 2019. The provider of fully-redeemable digital assets backed by gold has tied up for a custody solution with digital assets custody service provider Onchain Custodian Private Limited.
FinTech: Chinese Social Media Giant Tencent Builds 5% Stake in Afterpay
Chinese tech, gaming and social media giant Tencent (HKG: 0700) has bought a 5% stake in “buy-now-pay-later” company Afterpay (ASX: APT). Users on Tencent’s instant messaging platform WeChat can make payments, and book hotels and flights. In a media release, fintech Afterpay said it was pleased to welcome Tencent as a “substantial shareholder.”
Venture Capital: Meat Substitutes Make Their Mark Amidst the COVID Crisis
Welcome to foodtech, another sector whose fortunes have turned amidst the unprecedented COVID-19 crisis. Within foodtech, plant-based proteins are stepping in as meat substitutes to meet the shortfall in meat supply due to the closure of large meat processing plants across the U.S.
DailyAlts Playbook: Buffett Ditches Airlines, Wall Street Movies, Black Swans, and Stimulus Estimates.
This morning CNBC is covering the Berkshire Hathaway meeting the same way that ESPN covers the day after “The Last Dance” on ESPN. The big focus is on Buffett’s message “Nothing can basically stop America.” But my two key takeaways – as I assess Buffett’s career and philosophy – center on Berkshire’s decisions during March. My generation is one that looks at Buffett as a nice grandfather who likes to spend time with the family – not the ruthless businessman who was able to get General Electric to pay him 10% in 2008 on top of $3 billion in stock. It’s one of the reasons why people say “You mean the guy getting ice cream with his grandkids in HBO’s Too Big to Fail.”
Artificial Intelligence: Canada’s Scale AI Invests $3.4M in Eight Projects to Fight COVID-19
Scale AI invited projects that can utilize technology and AI to combat COVID-19 in Canada. There was a bumper response, and Scale received as many as 120 applications within three weeks.
Scale AI is a startup accelerator with a mission to develop a world-class Canadian AI ecosystem. It has received $230 million from the Government of Canada and $53.4 million from the Government of Quebec.
Private Equity: ICANN Rejects Deal to Sell .Org Registry to Ethos Capital
The board of directors at ICANN rejected the sale of the .org registry to private equity firm Ethos Capital. The possible $1.135 billion deal effectively died today after months of debate over the decision to transfer the registry from the non-profit Internet Society (ISOC) to Ethos. Many advocates pressing against the deal argued that it would saddle the company with debt and force it to raise prices on users of these internet addresses.
Hedge Fund: Teleios Presses for Changes to Maisons du Monde Board
Activist fund Teleios Capital Partners is pressing for changes on the board of Maisons du Monde.
The fund said it plans to push to appoint two independent board directors to the French furniture company. The hedge fund currently holds a 19.9% stake in the company, according to a statement released on Thursday.
Artificial Intelligence: Barclays Bank Deploys AI With Tech Partners
Barclays Bank, UK, (LON: BARC) which is ranked 20th on the S&P Global’s list of the top 100 banks, has taken many initiatives for the use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in its operations. Its model is to outsource the deployment to technological partners, rather than develop the software in-house.
Digital Assets: Andreessen Horowitz Raises $515M for its Crypto Fund II
Andreessen Horowitz, the hallowed venture capital firm from Silicon Valley, has pulled off a coup by raising $515 million for its second crypto-facing fund. The fund will invest in late-stage networks, payment blockchains as well as decentralized finance (deFi) initiatives.
Venture Capital: Pivot Bio, Potential Disruptor of Synthetic Fertilizers, Collects $100M
Pivot Bio is an agriculture tech startup that uses microbial technology to supply plants with clean nitrogen. The company’s products will displace the synthetic nitrogen from commercial fertilizers, reduce emissions, and increase crop yields. It raised $100 million in a Series C round.
The DailyAlts Playbook: Two Years of COVID? ,The Meb Faber Interview, Amazon’s Coronavirus Shift, and Tesla Tussles…
The coronavirus has now officially affected more than 3.27 million people, with nearly 234,000 deaths, according to Johns Hopkins University. Last night, China announced that the Hubei province – where officials first detected COVID-19 – will start to relax its lockdown rules starting tomorrow. The province’s health commission announced Friday that it will decrease its emergency response level to its second-highest grade tomorrow. Elsewhere around the globe, Iran, Russia, and Singapore reported an increase in cases. Meanwhile, in the U.S., major airlines have announced plans to require passengers to start wearing face masks or facial coverings from check-in to departing the plane.
FinTech: The IRS is Swamped; MetaBank and Fiserv to Load Stimulus Cash on Visa Pre-paid Cards
Outdated technology, budget cuts and the sudden enormity of the task to pay out stimulus checks to millions of Americans may have swamped the IRS. However, the Treasury is lending a hand and has approved MetaBank (NASDAQ: CASH) and Fiserv (NASDAQ: FISV) for the issue of Visa (NYSE: V) prepaid cards pre-loaded with stimulus payments.
Community Banking: Tinker Federal Credit Will Buy Prime Bank (Oklahoma)
Tinker Federal Credit announced Thursday that it will purchase “substantially all of the assets and operations” of Prime Bank in Edmond, Oklahoma. The target has roughly $285 million in assets, according to a press release.
“We’re excited about the prospect of providing expanded services to TFCU members and to customers of Prime as well,” announced TFCU President and CEO Michael Kloiber.
Hedge Funds: The Einhorn-Musk Battle Takes a New Turn on Twitter
We might not have live sports right now. But we do have the constant jarring back and forth between Greenlight Capital and Tesla Inc. The former’s founder David Einhorn is one of the most prominent hedge fund managers shorting Elon Musk’s company. On Thursday – the day after Tesla’s earnings report – Einhorn questioned the financials of the electric vehicle manufacturer. Specifically, he wanted more information about the firm’s accounts receivable, costs, stalled factories, and the effects of international currency shifts.
Alternative Investments: A Conversation with Meb Faber of Cambria Investments
This week, we sat down with Meb Faber of Cambria Investments to discuss his investment approach and how it can help investors miss the massive sell-offs that occur in the stock market. We also discuss his tail risk strategy that uses Treasury Bonds and options to hedge equity portfolios in turbulent times. Meb Faber is the author of seven investment books and the host of The Meb Faber Show Podcast. Cambria Investments offers 11 different Exchange Traded Funds based on Meb’s investment philosophy.
Digital Assets: Nasdaq and R3 Collaborate to Offer Blockchain-based Digital Marketplaces
US exchange operator Nasdaq, which embraced the blockchain as early as 2010, has tied up with R3 for building full lifecycle solutions for digital assets market places. Nasdaq will utilize R3’s enterprise blockchain software Corda, and its professional services and support for the purpose.
FinTech: COVID or Not, Fintechs are Flourishing
Interviews at financial services firms are up 39% since January 1, according to data from HackerRank quoted by Crunchbase. Even in the depths of the coronavirus crisis, fintech Stripe managed to raise an additional $600 million, garnering a better valuation to boot. SoFi went shopping to bag Galileo for $1.2 billion earlier this month. The SBA allowed fintechs to make loans under its Paycheck Protection Program. What’s working for fintechs?
DailyAlts Playbook: Chinese Firms Hit the Exits, Musk’s Rant on “Fascism”, Hedge Fund Returns, and Unemployment Totals
This morning, all eyes are on the U.S. Department of Labor as it reports the latest figure on unemployment benefits across the United States. More than 30 million people are now seeking unemployment benefits across America. The news comes a day after Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell warned that we are facing the worst economy in history. Powell said after the two-day FOMC meeting that Americans can expect to see terrible economic data during the second quarter. He also said that the Fed is prepared to provide more liquidity to the market and suggested that small businesses may need additional funding to keep their lights on.
Artificial Intelligence: The Compelling Case for an AI Stimulus Package – Tony Samp
An opinion piece in the Business Insider by Tony Samp argues in favor of a significant stimulus injection into the American AI sector. The stimulus would help in the post-COVID recovery and also deliver strategic advantages in the future.
REITs: Green Street Warns COVID-19 Will Eliminate Half of Malls
The COVID-19 pandemic could mean the end of the line for many malls around the United States. Green Street Advisors, one of the best real estate and REIT research and investment firms in the country, says that more than half of all the department store anchored malls could be closed by the end of 2021. More than 60% of the anchor tenant space in these malls will likely empty by then as well.
Hedge Funds: Bill Ackman Calls on U.S. Government to “Be Like Buffett”
Pershing Square Capital founder Bill Ackman encouraged the U.S. government to approach bailouts the same way that Warren Buffett would. On a podcast, Ackman said that emulating the Oracle of Omaha would ensure that the government received favorable terms for taxpayer capital.
Digital Assets: Hong Kong’s SFC Greenlights Arrano’s Bitcoin-tracking Fund
Founded in 2019, Arrano Capital is the blockchain arm of Venture Smart Asia Limited. On April 20, Venture Smart Asia got the approval from the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission to launch the territory’s first regulated virtual-assets fund. The approval let Arrano Capital set up its bitcoin tracking fund, one that could invest 100% in virtual assets.
Venture Capital: COVID-19 and Startupland – “Fasten Seatbelts” or“Brace for Impact?”
Startup Ecosystem Faces Capital Crunch over Coming Months