Good morning!
This edition features:
A Miami tech company withdrew its IPO plans
Apple filed an appeal in the Epic Games case
QR codes can be a privacy problem
Python just took a big leap forward
And the White House mulls crypto regulation
It’s Monday, October 11, 2021.
1. #MiamiTech
Software provider Allvue Systems officially withdraws $275 million IPO (Renaissance Capital)
Allvue Systems Holdings, which provides cloud-based software solutions for investment managers, withdrew its plans for an initial public offering on Thursday. It had filed to raise $275 million by offering 15.3 million shares at a price range of $17 to $19 but postponed ahead of pricing in September.
The Coral Gables, FL-based company was founded in 2007 and booked $120 million in revenue for the 12 months ended June 30, 2021. It had planned to list on the NYSE under the symbol ALVU. Goldman Sachs, Barclays, Credit Suisse, Deutsche Bank, RBC Capital Markets, and Truist Securities were set to be the joint bookrunners on the deal.
2. Epic v Apple
Apple files appeal in Epic Games case, potentially delaying App Store changes for years (CNBC)
Apple filed a notice of appeal in the Epic Games case and is asking for a stay on the injunction that lets developers add in-app links to payment websites. If Apple wins the stay, which will be decided in November, a rule change allowing developers to circumvent App Store fees of 15% to 30% may not take effect until appeals in the case have finished, which could take years.
In September, federal judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled in favor of Apple for nine of 10 counts in an antitrust trial brought by Epic. But Apple was ordered to make a major change to its store and allow mobile apps to steer consumers to outside payment methods. That injunction is currently scheduled to go into effect on Dec. 9.
If app makers are ultimately able to bill their own customers directly, without using Apple’s in-app purchase system, it would threaten a profit engine for the company. The App Store is part of the company’s services business, which reported $53.8 billion in sales during fiscal 2020 at a 66% gross margin, accounting for about 20% of Apple’s revenue.
3. Contactless Tech
QR codes are a privacy problem - but not for the reasons you’ve heard (The Washington Post)
According to Forrester, half of adults with smartphones that have scanned QR codes in stores took steps to limit what data the linked app or site collected. And just 8% of adults with smartphones have scanned QR codes in stores at all. Contrary to some write-ups, QR codes themselves are not tracking you. And no, they’re not a trapdoor into some underground world of surveillance.
However, even if a restaurant or retailer doesn’t share your information with trackers, that doesn’t mean that data doesn’t get leveraged at all. For instance, a QR-enabled mobile ordering tool may use customer data from one restaurant to target more marketing, Rescorla said. Maybe you order a Manhattan, then later see a coupon in your inbox for the cocktail bar down the street.
The real privacy issue with QR codes is the broader tracking apparatus the codes are part of. And, without new rules and regulations, that’s not going away. Right now, the best way to avoid tracking when you visit a website through a QR code — or any other way — is to turn on private browsing mode. To cut down on tracking by third parties, use a browser with anti-tracking features, like Firefox or Safari.
4. Programming
Programming languages: Python just took a big jump forward (ZDNet)
Python, the programming language that found a home in machine learning, is now the most popular language, according to one popularity ranking. Tiobe, a Dutch software quality assurance company, has been tracking the popularity of programming languages for the past 20 years. Its rankings are based on search terms related to programming.
For Tiobe, its enterprise focus has seen Java and C dominate in recent years, but Python has now overtaken it. "Python, which started as a simple scripting language, as an alternative to Perl, has become mature. Its ease of learning, its huge amount of libraries, and its widespread use in all kinds of domains has made it the most popular programming language of today," wrote Paul Jansen chief of Tiobe Software.
Python's move to top spot on the Tiobe index was a result of other languages falling in searches rather than Python rising. With an 11.27% share of searches, it was flat, while second place language C fell 5.79% percentage points compared to October last year down to 11.16%. Java made way for Python with a 2.11 percentage point drop to 10.46%.
Other languages that made the top 10 in Tiobe's October 2021 index: C++, C#, Visual Basic, JavaScript,. SQL, PHP, and Assemblyy Language. Also rising on a year-on-year basis and in the top 20 were Google-designed Go, number-crunching favorite MATLAB, and Fortran.
5. Crypto
White House weighs wide-ranging push for crypto oversight (Bloomberg)
The Biden administration is weighing an executive order on cryptocurrencies as part of an effort to set up a government-wide approach to the white-hot asset class. The proposed directive would charge federal agencies to study and offer recommendations on relevant areas of crypto.
The initiative will also aim to coordinate agencies’ work on digital currencies throughout the executive branch. The plan would push departments that have given scant attention to crypto to focus on it. Officials have also considered appointing a White House crypto czar to act as a point person on the issue.
The draft directive is part of an effort by the White House to craft a sweeping strategy for digital tokens, which have become a growing concern for regulators as they’ve become wildly popular with average Americans.
As of now, no decision has been made on whether to release the executive order. Even if President Joe Biden doesn’t move forward on it, the administration will still make public its overall strategy for cryptocurrencies, an administration official said.
6. Funding, IPOs, M&As
📦 Hellman & Friedman Matches $3.9 Billion Offer For Zooplus: The Sweedish PE firm will acquire the online pet-food retailer.
⚽️ Saudi Wealth Fund Buys Newcastle United: The deal for the Premier League club is valued at about $415 million.
☁️ Chronosphere Raises $200 Million Series C: The cloud-native monitoring platform is now valued at over $1 billion.
🔪 Rebel Foods Closes $175 Million Series F: Indian cloud kitchen startup Rebel Foods is valued at $1.4 billion.
☁️ mParticle Raises $150 Million Series E: NYC-based mParticle has a customer data infrastructure platform.
🖥 Solo.io Gets $135 Million Series C: Solo.io is a Cambridge, Mass service mesh startup. It’s now valued at $1 billion.
☁️ Microsoft Acquires Ally.io: The tech giant is acquiring the Seattle-based collaboration software startup.
👩💻 Entity Academy Nabs $100 Million: The edtech startup trains, mentors, and places women in tech roles.
👩💻 The Mom Project Gets $80 Million: The Mom Project is a recruitment firm with a job board for mothers.
☁️ Getsafe Adds $63 Million To Series B: German insurtech giant has added more funding to its B round from last year.
☁️ Gretel.ai Lands $50 Million Series B: Gretel.ai has a platform for generating synthetic and privacy-preserving data.
👩💻 BrightHire Scores $20.5 Million Series B: BrightHire wants to transform the way people are hired inside organizations.
🚘 Otto Raises $4.5 Million Seed: The Mark Cuban-backed startup is working to turn car equity into credit.
📱 MindLabs Raises $3.5 Million Seed: MindLabs offers on-demand video classes and community features focused on wellness.
As always, please feel free to share questions, feedback, or requests for future newsletters.
Cheers!
Eric
#BeAmbitious