ATB Financial (Government of Alberta) | May 23, 2019

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Gary Gensler Confirmed As SEC Chair—Former Goldman Banker And Crypto Professor

April 16, 2021

Forbes | Jonathan Ponciano | Apr 14, 2021 The Senate on Wednesday confirmed President Joe Biden's nomination of Gary Gensler, a former Goldman Sachs banker and a forceful commodities regulator under former President Barack Obama, to head up the Securities and Exchange Commission, setting the stage for widespread reform as the agency takes on unprecedented stock-market volatility and booming institutional adoption in the nascent cryptocurrency space. Key Facts The Senate confirmed Gensler's appointment Wednesday afternoon in a vote of 53 to 45, placing the 63-year-old academic and former investment banker atop the agency charged with maintaining fair, orderly and efficient markets. Gensler, who's promised to increase transparency and reduce risk in the market, succeeds former SEC Chair Jay Clayton, an attorney tapped by former President Donald Trump to undo financial regulations that "stifled investment in American companies." The confirmation comes more than a month after the Senate Banking Committee voted 14 to 10 to advance Gensler's nomination for two terms ending on June 5, 2026. See:  Will Gary Gensler at SEC be Good for Crypto? The Senate only voted to confirm Gensler for the remainder of the term expiring June 5, so it will need to hold another vote for ...
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Nova Credit Launches Dating App to Help Newcomers and Locals Find Love

April 15, 2021

Nova Credit blog | Apr 1, 2021 SAN FRANCISCO, Calif., Apr. 1, 2020 - Nova Credit, a global credit bureau enabling immigrants access to credit, has launched a new direct-to-consumer dating service. The app, named “Score!”, matches any U.S. immigrant with a local American, based on analysis of their credit scores and other behavioral insights. It is available on both iOS and Android, and has an early user rating of 4.1 stars. See Score! in action. Recent data released from the Advanced Population Research Institute of Louisville’s Foreign-born Overseas Observations: Longitudinal Study shows that non-U.S. born residents are not only remaining longer in the U.S. (from an average of 6 years in 2000 to 11 years in 2020), but also more likely to marry a local (from 4% in the 1980s to a peak of 12% last year). Nova Credit Head of Product Melanie Aliperti offered, “as we’ve run deeper user research, we’ve found that the quest for love is becoming a more significant theme and requested feature - particularly as newcomers seek deeper cultural integration and mingling.” The feedback from early beta users has been promising. Priyanka from India described her experience, “Bumble, Raya, Tinder -- I’ve been on ...
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Lobbying: it’s high time startups up their game

April 14, 2021

Sifted | Nicolas Colin | Apr 14, 2021 The Greensill debacle shows that startups have a lot to learn when it comes to winning friends and influencing people. Startups are getting stuck into some highly-regulated industries — and they need to start taking those regulations seriously. Long gone are the days when founders could “move fast and break things”, to echo Mark Zuckerberg’s famous words. Now startups are handling people’s money; they’re responsible for children’s education; and some of them are even taking our lives in their (healthtech) hands. But staying on the right side of regulation is not easy. Most rules were designed a long time ago, well before the internet came about and made it possible to solve old problems with new solutions. Many things that are now possible don’t exactly fit in the old regulatory boxes that we inherit from the past — whether it’s rules that relate to taxi medallions or the 1835 Highways Act that effectively prohibits anyone in the UK from riding an electric scooter on the road. For some startups to take off while strictly complying with existing regulations in sectors such as transportation, financial services or healthcare, the sequence would have to ...
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Coinbase is the talk of Wall Street on Wednesday: ‘Watershed moment’ in crypto

April 14, 2021

MarketWatch | Mark DeCambre | Apr 14, 2021 Coinbase is the talk of Wall Street on Wednesday, as the largest crypto platform in the U.S. gears up for its public debut on a traditional exchange, arriving via a direct listing rather than a more traditional initial public offering. The arrival on the public markets of Coinbase COIN, 34.38% is a big moment in the world of cryptocurrencies. The company was created just over a decade ago with the genesis of bitcoin BTCUSD, -2.43% and today stands at what many in the industry have described as a tipping point. There are few ways to secure direct ownership of crypto currencies, outside of buying them directly, a service that Coinbase provides for a fee, and which investors appear willing to pay for. Coinbase, whose users primarily deal in bitcoin and ethereum, reported last week that its revenue soared 847% in the first quarter to $1.8 billion, and that it now has 56 million verified users. See:  ETF investors say Coinbase listing will cause explosion in crypto investing Leeor Shimron, an analyst at FundStrat Global Advisors, described the Coinbase listing as seminal. “Coinbase’s direct listing is a watershed moment for the crypto industry.” ...
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CoinPayments Set to Remain Leading Crypto Payment Processor Finds D-Core Survey

April 14, 2021

Yahoo Finance | Release | April 13, 2021 LONDON, April 13, 2021 /CNW/ - Emerging technology research company D-Core released its latest analysis reviewing the future of the cryptocurrency landscape, calling for CoinPayments to remain the leading crypto payments processor in 2026. D-Core's report surveyed 161 experts, asking them: "Which crypto payment processor will definitely be operating in five years time?" Of those surveyed, 37% picked CoinPayments, giving it the top spot. The other crypto payment processors included in the report were Bitpay (29%), BTCpay (19%), SpicePay (13%), CoinGate (1%), among others. "It is great to be recognized as a top crypto payment processor among experts in the industry," noted Jason Butcher, CEO of CoinPayments. "Since 2013, our aim has always been to fuel crypto adoption and the most effective way to give digital assets their rightful place as mediums of exchange is by enabling businesses and consumers to use them for everyday purchases." See:  Jason Butcher, CEO Coinpayments speak at the 7th Fintech & Financing conference: FFCON21 Breaking Barriers May 11-13 The report's timely release comes as notable companies like Paypal and Tesla announce that they will be facilitating crypto payments for customers. Crypto adoption is steadily on the ...
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Debating Element AI’s legacy

April 14, 2021

Montreal in Tech | Joseph Czikk  | Apr 2, 2021 Sam Presti made a risky bet in the summer of 2018. The general manager of the NBA’s Oklahoma City Thunder traded for star player Paul George. There was just one problem. George had one year left on his contract before he was free to sign with whomever he wanted, and he made it clear he wanted to return home to Los Angeles to play for the Lakers. Presti made a bet on an asset that would probably skip town in a year’s time. In doing so, he risked his job in Oklahoma City, a small market team that doesn’t often lure high-end free agent players. See:  4 Ways the Startup Landscape Will Shift in 2021 “Scared money don’t make none,” Presti famously remarked at the press conference, referencing a lyric from Midnight, by A Tribe Called Quest. Presti’s big bet paid off. George liked it so much in the midwest that he spurned the Lakers and signed on for another year with the Thunder, shocking many. Montreal’s next tech unicorn? Like Presti’s gamble, risk-taking is sometimes necessary in life. And for so long it felt like Canadian tech markets like ...
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Banks Are Offering Five-Figure Raises and Time Off To Make Young Bankers Happier

April 14, 2021

Forbes | Jack Kelly | Apr 9, 2021 A little bad publicity goes a long way. In late March, the legendary investment bank, Goldman Sachs, was accused by a group of young bankers of making them work 100 hours a week. The Wall Street analysts claimed that they were forced to endure a punishing schedule that left them exhausted and unable to have a social life. To ameliorate the situation, Goldman decided to offer them Saturdays off and said they’d find additional help to alleviate the workload. One day off doesn’t seem like much, but in the hustle culture on Wall Street, it's a start. Investment banking is a highly competitive field. Now that Goldman set the precedent, other banks are one-upping each other by giving lavish salary increases, bonuses, days off and Peloton bikes to Gen-Z bankers. Bank of America Corp., one of the nation’s largest banks, said it will enhance the salaries of its junior investment bankers starting May 1, according to Reuters. The salary increases are being awarded to show its recognition. While many sectors have been hit hard by the effects of Covid-19, financial firms have done well. Trading throughout 2020 and the first quarter of ...
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Jack Ma’s Double-Whammy Marks the End of China Tech’s Golden Age

April 14, 2021

BNN Bloomberg | April 13, 2021 (Bloomberg) -- The full implications of Beijing’s rapid-fire moves against Jack Ma’s internet empire in recent days won’t be apparent for weeks, but one lesson is already clear: The glory days for China’s technology giants are over. The country’s government imprinted its authority indelibly on the country’s technology industry in the span of a few days. In landmark announcements, it slapped a record $2.8 billion fine on Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. for abusing its market dominance, then ordered an overhaul of Ant Group Co. On Tuesday, regulators summoned 34 of the country’s largest companies from Tencent Holdings Ltd. to TikTok owner ByteDance Ltd., warning them “the red line of laws cannot be touched.” See:  China’s Draft Anti-Monopoly Guidelines on Platform Economy The unspoken message to Ma and his cohorts was the decade of unfettered expansion that created challengers to Facebook Inc. and Google was at an end. Gone are the days when giants like Alibaba, Ant or Tencent could steamroll incumbents in adjacent businesses with their superior financial might and data hoards. “Between the rules for Ant and the $2.8 billion fine for Alibaba, the golden days are over for China’s big tech firms,” ...
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Clean Energy Bitcoin Mining Joint Venture Agreement Signed by Link Global Technologies and Neptune Digital Assets

April 13, 2021

Neptune Digital Assets Corp. | Release | Apr 12, 2021 VANCOUVER, British Columbia, April 12, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- NEPTUNE DIGITAL ASSETS CORP. (“Neptune” or the “Company”) (TSX-V:NDA; OTC:NPPTF; FSE:1NW) is pleased to provide an update on its planned expansion into renewable energy Bitcoin (“BTC”) mining. The Company and LINK GLOBAL TECHNOLOGIES INC. (CSE: LNK; FRA: LGT; OTC: LGLOF) (“LINK”) have incorporated a joint venture company, Pure Digital Power Corp. (“Pure”), and in connection therewith, the Company, Link and Pure have entered into a shareholders’ agreement governing the management of Pure. Pure is a power and Bitcoin mining infrastructure company with an emphasis on clean sustainable energy. See:  Cryptocurrency and energy consumption debate Through Pure, Neptune and Link have agreed to develop an initial 5 megawatt (“MW”) renewable energy dominated BTC mining facility in Alberta, with potential for expansion and scaling. Establishing Pure and entering into the corresponding shareholders agreement follows shortly after the March 19, 2021 announcement of the proposed joint venture between LINK and Neptune to develop a green energy facility. All BTC mined under Pure’s operation are expected to be held in the treasury for reinvestment and decentralized finance (defi) based earnings, similar to Neptune’s current approach ...
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5 Things to Include in an Effective Real Estate Recruiting Email

April 12, 2021

Apr 12, 2021 One of the most difficult things about real estate recruiting is finding an effective technique. You’re competing with hundreds of other recruiting companies and brokerages, so you really need to step up your efforts. If you’re running out of recruiting real estate agents ideas, you can rely on a trusted method: email. It might seem a little too “old school” in the era of apps and social media, but email actually remains to be an effective communications tool and recruitment platform. The key is to find a formula that works. When crafted without specific intent, an email can easily become an impersonal message. With the right components, on the other hand, it can transform your recruitment efforts. That said, here are some things that you have to include in an effective real estate recruiting email: A Non-Spammy Subject Line If your recruitment email goes unread, then you’ve already lost the battle. As such, the first thing you need to make sure of is that the recipient opens your message. You can do this by crafting a subject line that sounds “legit.” Avoid fantastical, too-good-to-be-true statements. Some of the phrases you want to ditch are “once in a ...
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