Episode 65: We Honor Black History Month
As we honor Black History Month, we want to give a "shout-out" to three companies committing to make a difference.
JPMorgan Chase pledged $30B over the next five years toward loans for Black, Latino, and underserved communities. Meanwhile, Citi dedicated $1B to support home and business loans for communities of color.
Ulta Beauty plans to amplify the presence of Black-owned brands in its stores this year.
The mass beauty retailer announced on Tuesday that two times as many Black-owned beauty brands will be available on shelves as a part of its 2021 diversity and inclusion commitments.
Chchch...Kia: Apple is reportedly close to sealing a deal with Hyundai-Kia to make an Apple-branded, fully self-driving electric car; tentative ETA: 2024. The "Apple Car" would be designed in Cupertino... and manufactured at a Kia assembly plant in Georgia.
Let the Games Begin: Tom Brady, who’s 43 years old, is the most successful quarterback in N.F.L. history. But if any player has a chance to match him someday, it’s Patrick Mahomes, Brady’s 25-year-old counterpart in this weekend’s Super Bowl. “The sport’s biggest legend is about to face his biggest legend in the making,” The Ringer’s Danny Heifetz wrote. DraftKings is up this week as betting begins.
To the Moon: Dogecoin, a cryptocurrency known equally for both its volatility and memes, has surged after a series of tweets from Tesla (TSLA)CEO Elon Musk and billionaire investor Mark Cuban.
Market Close
Dow 30 31,148.24 +92.38 (+0.30%)
S&P 500 3,886.83 +15.09 (+0.39%)
Nasdaq 13,856.30 +78.55 (+0.57%)
IPOs and SPAC
23andMe the Silicon Valley consumer genomics company, agreed to go public at a $3.5 billion valuation via SPAC by Virgin Group Acquisition Corp. (NYSE: VGAC). CEO Anne Wojcicki and Virgin's Richard Branson each will invest $25 million into the deal's $250 million pipeline. 23andMe had already raised nearly $900 million in VC funding from firms including Sequoia Capital and NEA. http://axios.link/PX9V
Next week we will cover Bumbles IPO. The relationship-finding service, where women initiate first contact, will go public on the heels of strong end of year public debuts by Airbnb, DoorDash, C3.ai, Qualtrics and Poshmark lighting the way in January.
LATAM
Nubank, the Brazilian fintech unicorn, raised $400M in a Series G funding round, bringing its total valuation to $25B. The round was led by GIC, Whale Rock, and Invesco, with contributions from Tencent, Dragoneer, Ribbit Capital, and Sequoia.