& meet dozens of singles today!
User blogs
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has issued an official statement on the tumult of the past week in the public stock market. It’s a relatively brief statement, and doesn’t mention any of the key players by name (aka GameStop, Reddit, Robinhood and others), but it does say acknowledge that “extreme stock price volatility has the potential to expose investors to rapid and severe losses” which could “undermine market confidence,” and basically says the Commission is watching closely to ensure that it doesn’t.
The SEC statement does specify that it believes the “core market infrastructure” remains intact despite the heavy trading volumes of the past week, which were prompted primarily by activity organized by retail investors acting in concert through organization on r/WallStreetBets, a subreddit dedicated to day trading. These retail investors resolved to collectively purchase and hold GME stocks (and subsequently, shares in other companies like movie theater chain AMC) in a bid to sweat out hedge funds with significant short positions in the same.
The ensuing high volume of trading activity from individual retail investors led to various actions from platforms that provide free trading to these individuals, including Robinhood, Webull, Public and M1. Robinhood initially cited “protecting” its users as the reason for limits imposed, but later revealed that a lack of funding to cover trade clearances likely caused the temporary measures, since it tapped $500 million to $600 million in credit facility and raised $1 billion in funding overnight.
The SEC’s statement includes a callout that seems specifically directed at entities like Robinhood, and it’s fair to interpret it as a warning:
In addition, we will act to protect retail investors when the facts demonstrate abusive or manipulative trading activity that is prohibited by the federal securities laws. Market participants should be careful to avoid such activity. Likewise, issuers must ensure compliance with the federal securities laws for any contemplated offers or sales of their own securities.
Robinhood has already had run-ins with the financial regulator for unrelated business practices. Meanwhile, lawmakers from both the House and the Senate, as well as NY AG Letitia James have all expressed their intent to review the event and all surrounding activities, which likely involves the role trading platforms like Robinhood played in the week’s events.
After a turbulent week for the stock market and halts to the trading of certain speculative securities including GameStop (GME) and AMC, consumer investing app Robinhood has raised new capital. The new funds total more than $1 billion, with the company telling TechCrunch that they were raised from its existing investor base.
The New York Times reports that the company raised the new equity capital after tapping its credit lines for $500 to $600 million; the company did not answer a question from TechCrunch regarding its credit lines.
The reported drawdown matches reporting from yesterday indicating that Robinhood had accessed nine-figures of capital to ensure it had enough funds on hand to meet regulatory minimums and other requirements related to its users’ trading activity.
Individual retail investors, along with institutional capital, have attacked short positions in some stocks in recent weeks, leading to a tug-of-war between bullish investors and bearish wagers; the resulting tumult led to surging volume for volatile stocks, leading to Robinhood needing more capital to keep its gears turning.
In a post discussing its decision yesterday to restrict trading on select securities, Robinhood wrote that it has “many financial requirements, including SEC net capital obligations and clearinghouse deposits,” adding that “some of these requirements fluctuate based on volatility in the markets and can be substantial in the current environment.”
The unicorn consumer fintech company halted trading in stocks like GameStop that had become the center of the trading storm yesterday, leading to frenetic accusations from incensed users that something nefarious was afoot. Later in the day the clearing house entity powering trading for other consumer trading services also halted service for a similar set of stocks.
Robinhood told users that it would allow trading to begin in some fashion today in shares it had previously restricted.
It does not appear that the current trading scrap will abate soon. Shares of GameStop, the most famous so-called “meme stock” in the current trading war, is up just under 94% this morning in pre-market trading, implying that many investors are willing to continue pushing its value higher in hopes of breaking short bets laid by other investors.
One result of the current climate is a boom in demand for trading apps. Today on the US iOS App Store, Robinhood is ranked first; Webull, a rival service is second; Reddit, a hub for trading gossip mostly via r/WallStreetBets is third; Coinbase a popular crypto trading service is fourth in line. Square’s Cash App, which allows for share purchases is ranked seventh, Fidelity’s iOS app comes in tenth place, and TD Ameritrade is 16th. Finally, E*Trade’s own app is ranked 18th. That’s a good showing for fintech, both startup and incumbent alike.
No one knows what comes next, how the trades play out, and if the present-day surge in retail interesting in stock trading will persist. What does seem clear, however, is that today is going to be very silly.
Another COVID-19 vaccine is almost ready to begin being distributed – a single-shot inoculation made by Johnson & Johnson’s Janssen pharmaceutical subsidiary. The company just released an efficacy report based on data from its Phase 3 trial, which found that the new vaccine is 66% effective overall in preventing moderate to severe incarnations of COVID-19 in those who received the jab, and 85% effective in preventing sever disease.
Those numbers aren’t as impressive as the reported figures for the Moderna and Pfizer/BioNTech vaccines that are already being distributed via emergency FDA approval, both of which reported 90+% efficacy. But Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine is a single shot rather than a two-course treatment, which should make it much easier to distribute much more quickly. The vaccine also showed 100% efficacy in preventing hospitalization or death among participants in the trial, 28 days after vaccination, which is a key measure when considering the broader impact of COVID-19 on healthcare resources, and efficacy varied by region, with the jab proving 72% effective in the U.S. across moderate and severe cases vs. 66% globally.
It’s also important to note that Johnson & Johnson’s Phase 3 trial is happening amid the emergence of new strains of the virus, including much more contagious versions like the UK and South African variants. At the time that both Moderna and BioNTech released their trial data, these variants hadn’t yet emerged or been confirmed by pandemic researchers.
Johnson & Johnson’s vaccine uses a modified version of a common cold virus to deliver DNA that provides a person’s body with instructions on building a replica of the spike protein that SARS-CoV-2 uses to attach to cells. The modified adenovirus can’t replicate in human cells, however, meaning it won’t lead to illness – only an immune response that can later be employed to combat contracting the virus that leads to COVID-19. This adenovirus method is much more proven in terms of use in human patients vs. the mRNA method that the other vaccines currently in use employ.
All of which is to say, despite headline numbers that appear to fall short relative to the data we’ve seen from Moderna and Pfizer, this Johnson & Johnson report is actually very encouraging. The company says it expects to file a request for an Emergency Use Approval (EUA) from the FDA in February, which could see it begin to be distributed next month, adding yet another weapon in the arsenal to combat the global pandemic.
Uber’s plan to acquire Autocab, a maker of SaaS for booking and dispatch software for the taxi and private hire vehicle industry which also operates a global trip marketplace for taxis and PHVs (iGo), is being looked at by the UK’s competition watchdog — which announced the launch of an inquiry today.
The deadline for a decision by the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) on whether to refer the merger for an in-depth investigation is March 26.
Uber announced its intention to acquire UK-based Autocab last August.
Competition considerations could arise if Uber, a provider of ride-hailing services that competes with traditional taxis and private hire vehicle firms for customers, were to shutter Autocab’s alternative trip booking marketplace or close it in selective markets where its own ride-hailing service operates, for example.
Although, at the time it announced the acquisition, Uber said it planned to support Autocab’s expansion of SaaS and iGo internationally. The move also looks intended to create more opportunities for Uber drivers to pick up jobs from outside its own platform, including delivery work, as ride-hailing has faced a demand squeeze during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Nonetheless, the overlap between Autocab’s iGo marketplace and Uber’s core rides service certainly merits questions being asked about risks to competition.
The CMA has opened an invitation for comment on the merger — with a February 12 deadline for submissions.
“The CMA is considering whether it is or may be the case that this transaction, if carried into effect, will result in the creation of a relevant merger situation under the merger provisions of the Enterprise Act 2002 and, if so, whether the creation of that situation may be expected to result in a substantial lessening of competition within any market or markets in the United Kingdom for goods or services,” it writes, adding: “To assist it with this assessment, the CMA invites comments on the transaction from any interested party.”
Commenting on the inquiry in a statement, an Uber spokeswoman said: “We are cooperating fully with the UK Competition and Market Authority’s inquiry to ensure it can conclude its review as quickly as possible. We are confident that this acquisition is positive for consumers, will help local operators grow and provide drivers with genuine earning opportunities.”
This report was updated with Uber’s statement
Source: https://techcrunch.com/2021/01/29/ubers-autocab-acquisition-gets-eyed-by-uk-competition-watchdog/
Sirenum, a platform for remotely managing a shift-based workforce across industries such as railway, aviation, construction, and the gig economy, has raised a $2.7 million Series A funding round from new investors including former Tesco CEO Sir Terry Leahy, Intrinsic Capital founding partner Mark Horrocks and investment manager Bill Currie.
Sirenum says its subscription model platform simplifies the process of managing shift workers, including rostering and managing schedules, monitoring and engaging staff, and processing key financial processes including payroll. Its clients include Randstad, Impellam, Manpower and GI Group as well as specialist agencies like TES.
The issue with shift workers is that they need to be in the right place at the right time and paid the right amount. Obviously. Sirenum says it allows staff to manage their own time by accepting or rejecting shifts and check their payroll at any time through a mobile app. The platform handles shift management, payroll, compliance, and scheduling. The app also tracks the fatigue of workers based on the UK’s Health and Safety guidelines, meaning employers can track the wellness of employees and adhere to compliance.
The product came about when Sirenum founder Benjamin Rubin ran a staffing agency in London. He was on honeymoon with his wife when he received a call that one of his employees had been hit by a train.
Thankfully, the employee was fine, but Rubin realized that to avoid being in that same situation again, he needed a tool to be able to manage his staff safely at multiple locations. He developed the Sirenum product as a solution for his agency and in 2012 won the contract to staff the Olympic Stadium. In 2014 Sirenum became a standalone product. It now claims to have nearly 400,000 workers on the platform.
Its competitors include TempBuddy (owned by Bullhorn), Shiftboard, and WorkN. Shiftboard has raised $16.9 million to date.
