All posts tagged: investments

Game M&A was up in Q2 while private game investments focus on early stage | Drake Star

Game M&A was up in Q2 while private game investments focus on early stage | Drake Star

Published by skeptic

GamesBeat is excited to partner with Lil Snack to have customized games just for our audience! We know as gamers ourselves, this is an exciting way to engage through play with the GamesBeat content you have already come to love. Start playing games here.  Gaming acquisitions and public market deals continued to gain momentum in second quarter of 2024 as the market gradually gets better, according to Drake Star Partners. With 52 announced M&A deals and $3.5 billion in disclosed deal value, Q2 was the third straight quarter of continued increase in deal activity that bottomed out in Q3’23 (with just 33 deals), said Michael Metzger, partner at investment bank Drake Star Partners, in an interview with GamesBeat. “It’s exciting that we saw further pickup in M&A activity for the third quarter in a row,” said Metzger. “We also saw a good amount of activity in public market financing, whether that’s equity or debt with Embracer or Take-Two. There’s more money flowing into the public markets. That’s great.” Private equity firms are driving the deals …

US proposes restrictions for investments in Chinese tech, AI | Trade War News

US proposes restrictions for investments in Chinese tech, AI | Trade War News

Published by Sam

Draft rule would prohibit US investors from funding AI systems in China that could be used for weapons targeting, other military uses. The United States Department of the Treasury has fleshed out a proposed rule that would restrict and monitor US investments in China for artificial intelligence, computer chips and quantum computing. The fleshed-out draft rule, issued on Friday, stems from President Joe Biden’s August executive order regarding the access that “countries of concern” have to American dollars to fund advanced technologies that could enhance those nations’ military, intelligence, surveillance and cyber-capabilities. The order identified China, Hong Kong and Macau as countries of concern. The Biden administration has sought to stymie the development of technologies by China, the world’s second largest economy, that could give it a military edge or enable it to dominate emerging sectors such as electric vehicles (EVs). In addition to the proposed rule, Biden, a Democrat, has also placed a stiff tariff on Chinese EVs, an issue with political implications as Biden and his Republican presidential opponent Donald Trump are both …

This subscription-less video doorbell is one of my best smart home investments

This subscription-less video doorbell is one of my best smart home investments

Published by skeptic

Maria Diaz/ZDNET ZDNET’s key takeaways The Eufy Security Video Doorbell E340 is available now for $180. This doorbell features two cameras to give you complete visibility of the person at your door and any packages left on your porch, all with no monthly fees. Although the doorbell comes with 8GB of built-in local storage (enough for up to 60 days of event recordings), you need to add a Eufy Security HomeBase to get the most out of it.  If you’re looking for a reliable video doorbell that can help protect your home and packages and comes with the bonus of local storage, let me introduce you to the Eufy Security Video Doorbell E340.   Also: Eufy’s new Floodlight Cam E340 is the hardest-working security camera I’ve tested This doorbell has two cameras: One camera gives you the traditional visibility of who’s at your front door, and another is pointed downwards to let you know when a package has been delivered.  View at Amazon The latest E340 video doorbell’s two cameras deliver real-time notifications to your …

In Hungary, Chinese president to discuss Ukraine, investments

In Hungary, Chinese president to discuss Ukraine, investments

Published by skeptic

Chinese President Xi Jinping is wrapping up his European tour with a final stop in Hungary, where he is expected to discuss Ukraine and investments in Hungarian infrastructure, energy and electric vehicle manufacturing. Hungarian soldiers on horseback were part of a warm welcome Xi received Thursday when he met with Hungarian President Tamas Sulyok at Budapest’s Buda Castle. In remarks during his meeting with Sulyok, Xi said Beijing is ready to raise ties with Budapest to a higher level, according to China’s state-run Xinhua News Agency. He also said the two countries’ friendship does not target any third party. Xi’s stop in Hungary is the third and final stop on his first European tour in five years. He also visited France and Serbia. During his first stop in Paris, French President Emmanuel Macron and EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen pressed Xi to ensure fair trade with Europe and use his influence on Russia to end the 2-year-old war in Ukraine. In Budapest, Xi is scheduled to meet with Hungary Prime Minister Viktor Orban, …

China’s Xi Arrives in Hungary for Talks on Expanding Chinese Investments

China’s Xi Arrives in Hungary for Talks on Expanding Chinese Investments

Published by skeptic

BUDAPEST, Hungary (AP) — Chinese President Xi Jinping arrived in Hungary late Wednesday, the final stop on his five-day European tour, where he’s expected to finalize a number of agreements with Prime Minister Viktor Orbán that will deepen China’s economic footprint in the region. Xi is set to spend two nights in the Hungarian capital Budapest where he will meet with Orbán and Hungarian President Tamás Sulyok. Talks will center on future Chinese investments in the Central European country, which has courted deep economic ties with Beijing even as mainstream European leaders have pursued more protectionist policies to limit its reach on the continent. Orbán, a nationalist populist whose illiberal policies have pushed him to the fringes of the European Union, made his country the first in the 27-member bloc to participate in Xi’s signature Belt and Road Initiative. Hungary has straddled a middle ground between its membership in the EU and NATO and a willingness to establish diplomatic and trade relationships with autocratic governments outside those groupings. Hungary’s foreign minister, Péter Szijjártó, told a …

Fidelity: Pension Funds Exploring Bitcoin Investments On ETF Approval

Fidelity: Pension Funds Exploring Bitcoin Investments On ETF Approval

Published by skeptic

Authored by Vivek Sun via Bitcoin Magazine, Fidelity, a major financial services firm, says pension funds are starting to explore investing in Bitcoin, particularly after the approval of spot Bitcoin exchange-traded funds earlier this year… Fidelity has been bullish on Bitcoin for years, launching its Digital Assets branch in 2018 and bringing a successful Bitcoin ETF to market earlier this year. The firm’s ETF attracted significant capital compared to competitors. Now, Fidelity’s VP of Digital Assets Manuel Nordeste says the company is engaging with major pension funds and other institutional investors about allocating to Bitcoin. Speaking at a recent event, Nordeste stated: “Now, we’re starting to have conversations with the larger, real money institutional investor types, and we’re getting some of those clients, as well as corporates and so on.” His comments come after BlackRock also mentioned yesterday having educational conversations with pension funds regarding Bitcoin ETFs. Recent 13F filings show major pension consultants have already purchased spot Bitcoin ETFs. This mounting evidence indicates serious diligence is underway about allowing pension investments in Bitcoin vehicles like ETFs.  With over $4 trillion in capital, U.S. pension …

In deals to end protests, some colleges invite discussion of their investments

In deals to end protests, some colleges invite discussion of their investments

Published by skeptic

new york —  Anti-war demonstrations ceased this week at a small number of U.S. universities after school leaders struck deals with pro-Palestinian protesters, fending off possible disruptions of final exams and graduation ceremonies. The agreements at schools including Brown, Northwestern and Rutgers universities stand out amid the chaotic scenes and 2,400-plus arrests on 46 campuses nationwide since April 17. Tent encampments and building takeovers have disrupted classes at some schools, including Columbia University and the University of California-Los Angeles. Deals included commitments by universities to review their investments in Israel or hear calls to stop doing business with the longtime U.S. ally. Many protester demands have zeroed in on links to the Israeli military as the war grinds on in Gaza. The agreements to even discuss divestment mark a major shift on an issue that has been controversial for years, with opponents of a long-running campaign to boycott Israel saying it veers into antisemitism. But while the colleges have made concessions around amnesty for protesters and funding for Middle Eastern studies, they have made no …

Trump SEC would end climate disclosure rule, target ESG investments

Trump SEC would end climate disclosure rule, target ESG investments

Published by skeptic

Republican presidential candidate and former U.S. President Donald Trump shouts during a campaign event in Freeland, Michigan, U.S. May 1, 2024.  Brendan Mcdermid | Reuters The Securities and Exchange Commission under a second Donald Trump presidency would roll back the aggressive stance the government agency has taken against corporate giants with current chairman Gary Gensler at the helm, according to people familiar with the matter. If Trump were to defeat President Joe Biden in November, the SEC under his administration would likely start by curtailing many of the rules recently put in place tied to the environment, according to experts and people close to the former president. An initial target of the SEC under a second Trump administration would be to roll back the new climate disclosure rules, these people explained. Gensler and the SEC adopted a rule in March requiring large publicly traded companies to disclose their levels of greenhouse gas emissions. The largest companies are required to make climate disclosures as early as fiscal 2025, with specifics on greenhouse gas emissions as soon …

COP29 Climate Summit Host Azerbaijan Defends Oil and Gas Investments

COP29 Climate Summit Host Azerbaijan Defends Oil and Gas Investments

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BERLIN (Reuters) – Azerbaijan, host of this year’s U.N. climate summit, will defend the right of oil and gas producing nations to invest in the sector, the country’s president said on Friday, noting that despite climate targets, fossil fuel demand remains strong. As the host of the United Nations COP29 climate summit in November, Azerbaijan will oversee negotiations among nearly 200 countries on how to raise more finance to combat climate change and reduce the greenhouse gas emissions heating the planet. “As the head of the country which is rich with fossil fuels, of course, we will defend the right of these countries to continue investments and to continue production because the world needs it,” Azerbaijan’s President Ilham Aliyev told a climate conference in Berlin on Friday. “But at the same time, countries with fossil fuel … should be among those who demonstrate solidarity with respect to issues related to climate change,” he said. Last year’s U.N. climate summit in the United Arab Emirates ended with a global agreement calling for “transitioning away from fossil …

Microsoft Reports Rising Revenues as A.I. Investments Bear Fruit

Microsoft Reports Rising Revenues as A.I. Investments Bear Fruit

Published by skeptic

Microsoft gave more signs on Thursday that its hefty investments in artificial intelligence were beginning to bear fruit, as it reported a 17 percent jump in revenue and a 20 percent increase in profit for the first three months of the year. Revenue was $61.9 billion, up from $52.9 billion a year earlier. Profit hit $21.9 billion, up from $18.3 billion. The results beat Wall Street’s expectations. A year after Microsoft began its push to put A.I. into everything it does, the company said sales of its flagship cloud computing product, Azure, had grown 31 percent. More than a fifth of that growth came from its generative A.I. services, which include selling access to technology developed by its partner, OpenAI. In recent quarters, Microsoft’s A.I. push has helped it gain market share from Amazon, the leading cloud services provider. In January, the company said 53,000 customers were using its cloud A.I. services, with a third of them new to Azure. “Azure has become a port of call for pretty much anybody who is doing any …