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Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup, xAI, aims to secure $1 billion in equity financing to compete with industry leaders such as OpenAI, Microsoft, and Google. The company, co-founded by Musk, has already garnered $135 million from investors, as revealed in a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission.
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HarbourVest Closes Fifth Fund at $3 Billion
HarbourVest Partners announced it has closed its latest fund at $3 billion. The private equity shop announced the HarbourVest Partners Co-Investment Fund V at oversubscribed. its original target was $2.5 billion.
Commissioner Lee Focuses the SEC on a revamp of ESG
SEC Commissioner Allison Herren Lee wants the SEC to clarify its role and update disclosure requirements on ESG.
In prepared remarks addressed to the Investment Advisory Committee (IAC), SEC Commissioner Lee drew attention to investors’ growing interest in ESG. The IAC was meeting to consider the topic “Whether Investors Use Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Data in Investment/Capital Allocation Decisions.”
Your ‘Feel-good’ ESG Fund is on a Tear: But Do You Know Why?
Investors should examine the underlying holdings of their ESG-focused funds to determine hidden portfolio risk.
CNBC’s Mitch Goldberg warns that a lot of the outperformance in many ESG funds has nothing to do with ESG factors. Instead, the credit for the ESG outperformance should go to the sizable component of technology stocks in these funds’ portfolios.
Technology stocks have significantly outperformed the broad market and maybe the hidden booster to your ESG fund’s performance.
Walmart Canada To Roll Out World’s Largest Blockchain For An Industrial Application
Walmart Canada and blockchain company DLT Labs collaborated to develop the retail giant’s automated freight tracking and payments system.
The new blockchain-based logistics system will use distributed ledger technology. It will track deliveries, verify transactions, and automate payments and reconciliation for the vast logistics of Walmart Canada.
Weekend Conversation: Neocova Co-Founder and CEO Sultan Meghji
Five years ago, Neocova Co-Founder and CEO Sultan Meghji worked on an aid mission in Africa to improve financial services in Africa and other emerging markets.
The primary goal was to provide services in parts of Africa, where branch banking was not a valid option.
Here’s What Warren Buffett Bought and Sold in the Third Quarter
The Warren Buffett 13-F for the third quarter hit the news cycle on Thursday. His firm Berkshire Hathaway purchased 1.2 million shares of Restoration Hardware (RH(. The news pushed RH stock up another 7% after the bell.
Is Saudi Arabia Running Out of Money?
The Saudi Aramco IPO could be a ploy to raise money for a nation under financial duress. That’s the statement from former CIA chief David Petraeus in an interview with CNBC. Petraeus says that the nation needs to list its state oil company on the public markets in order to raise money.
Bank-branded Checking Accounts Soon from Google
Google is partnering with Citigroup and the Stanford Federal Credit Union to offer checking accounts by next year.
Checking accounts. That all-important banking bastion may fall as cashed-up, data-heavy, and user-rich techs muscle into finance. Google’s Cache project will launch the search giant’s thrust deeper into banking with an offer of checking accounts, according to a report in the Wall Street Journal.
These Funds Were the Biggest Laggards in 2019
In a raging bull stock market, the biggest losers in 2019 were obviously funds that were short, or bet on volatility.
A Morningstar compilation of the 20 top loser funds or ETNs over 2019 through to November 2019 showed that, on average, they lost over 8% during the period.
European Money Market Funds and the ESG Juggernaut
Goldman Sachs Asset Management tweaks a money management fund for ESG, especially diversity.
Goldman Sachs is heeding the ESG clarion call from investors. The asset manager has introduced environmental, social, and governance criteria in a Euro money market fund.
The Low Volatility NAV money market fund has been “enhanced” for ESG considerations via a two-fold strategy.
Saudi Arabia ETF Pops Into an Uptrend After MSCI Review of Kingdom Stocks
The KSA Saudi Arabia focused ETF, took out a key technical level after an MSCI review.
The iShares MSCI Saudi Arabia Capped ETF (KSA) surged 1.8% Monday, entering a bullish trend. MSCI recently reviewed the inclusion and weight of stocks of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia.
The Top Market for European Real Estate Investment Is…
The top European real estate market for investors is Paris, France. That rank comes from a new report on emerging trends in the European markets from PwC and ULI. Paris is followed by Berlin and Frankfurt, Germany in the second and third slots. London, England sits fourth on the list.
Carl Icahn: Gee… Occidental Petroleum is a lot like WeWork
Occidental Petroleum took a shot from activist investor Carl Icahn in more ways from one. Icahn slashed his stake in the company and threatened to launch a proxy fight.
Schwarzman Adds To Skepticism Around The Walgreens Boots LBO
Stephen Schwarzman, who runs Blackstone Group, thinks the Walgreens Boots privatization might be just too big.
“It’s a huge stretch doing things over $50 billion,” Schwarzman remarked at a New York event.
The size of the Walgreens Boots LBO can be estimated from the company’s market cap of $53 billion and a debt of $16.8 billion.
Elliott Management Supports Split of Nielsen Holdings
Nielsen Holdings has announced plans to split itself into two separate public companies. The plan – backed by Elliott Management – will unlock shareholder value.
BofAML: Assets at European ESG Equity Funds Could Rise by €1 Trillion
Regulatory compulsions and structural trends will boost assets under management at ESG equity funds in Europe, say BofAML analysts.
In their study titled “ESG Matters – Europe: Great for the world, good for returns,” the analysts foresee a surge of €1 trillion in assets at these funds by 2030.
Further, one in three European equity funds could be ESG-focused by then.
eToro Bulks Up on Crypto Services; Acquires Delta’s Portfolio Tracker
eToro, the multi-asset social and copy trading brokerage, acquired Delta for a reported $5 million. The portfolio tracker gives a bird’s eye view of the crypto market across 6,000 assets at more than 180 exchanges.
Will Walgreens Shatter the Private Equity LBO Record?
KKR and other PE Firms are Eyeing the Pharmacy Benefits Giant Walgreen Boots Alliance is talking to private equity firms about going private. CNBC reports that KKR is one of several shops thinking about buying the $55 billion company. Such a deal would be a massive purchase for one private equity shop. It could also…
AstraZeneca Launches $1 Billion Fund with CICC (with an AI Twist)
AstraZeneca, the British pharma giant, will launch a $1 billion fund with China International Capital Corporation (CICC).
CEM Benchmarking: How REITs Match Up Against Other Investments
In October, CEM Benchmarketing compiled a study for the National Association of Real Estate Investment Trusts (NAREIT).
The study is called “Asset Allocation and Fund Performance of Defined Benefit Pension Funds in the United States, 1998-2017.”
CPPIB to Buy Pattern Energy Group for $2.63 Billion
The Canada Pension Plan Investment Board (CPPIB) announced plans to buy Pattern Energy Group for $2.63 billion. CPPIB announced details of the deal for the renewable energy giant on Monday. Shareholders will receive $26.75 for the stock. That figure is actually lower than the price the stock traded for earlier in the day. In the final hour of trading on Monday, PEGI stock was off 2.5% at $27.03 per share.
Leon Cooperman Writes Scathing Letter to Senator Elizabeth Warren
Leon Cooperman rips Elizabeth Warren in new letter for ‘soak-the-rich positions,’ and treating him like ‘an ungrateful child’
Preqin: Hospitality REITs Looked Strong in 2018
A new Preqin report is out.
Preqin joined asset manager Pro-invest Group to track the performance of the hospitality REIT industry. The result is a new study showing the sharp growth across the sector this decade.
Illinois Teachers’ Retirement System Bets Big on Alternatives
Illinois Teachers’ Retirement System is preparing to allocate about $1.4 billion toward alternative investment strategies.
A report from Pension and Investments outlines the commitments from the teachers’ pension program. According to the report, ITRS will allocate big sums to private credit strategies. Hayfin Capital Management will receive $500 million, while Intermediate Capital Group will manage another $500 million.