Evercore Said to Plan Dubai Office, Hiring Amid Aramco IPO Talks
Evercore Said to Plan Dubai Office, Hiring Amid Aramco IPO Talks.
Evercore Partners Inc., the investment bank founded by Roger Altman, is planning to open an office in Dubai as it seeks new business in the region, including a role on Saudi Arabian Oil Co.’s initial public offering, according to people familiar with the matter.
Evercore is in discussions to become a financial adviser to the state-owned oil giant, known as Aramco, after rival Moelis & Co. was hired for the listing, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private.
Altman’s firm is in talks with bankers from competitors to staff the new Dubai office, which it plans to open this year, the people said.
Evercore will start with a small team based in the Dubai International Financial Centre where many of its competitors are based, the people said.
A representative for Evercore declined to comment on the office plans or the bank’s potential role on the Aramco IPO.
The investment bank is expanding globally and this month hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc. veteran John Weinberg, who has said one of his top priorities is to recruit new talent.
Evercore ranks 11th among merger and acquisition advisers for deals announced in the last 12 months, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Aramco is seeking advisers to help it select underwriters, make decisions on potential listing venues and ensure the IPO goes smoothly, and had shortlisted Aramco and Evercore previously, people familiar with the talks had said.
Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who is leading the IPO as part of a plan to reduce the economy’s reliance on hydrocarbons, has said the offering could value the business at more than $2 trillion.
5 Lessons from a Startup Veteran
Estimated reading time: 3 minute(s) Working with startup companies and entrepreneurs is a unique specialty and creates interesting and challenging work for a consultant.
Here are five lessons startups and entrepreneurs can glean from a veteran startup consultant: 1/ Make sound and timely bookkeeping a high priority.
The day-to-day focus is consumed by operational tasks but there should be allotted time for managing the financial reporting process.
Unfortunately, too many startup companies do not have accurate financial data to file income tax returns or prepare financial statements.
Formal valuations are incredibly expensive, comparable companies to use in the valuation study are difficult to find, and many startups don’t have any earnings history.
3/ Be flexible, watch the cash flow and redirect expensive efforts when appropriate.
In the 2016 Brown Smith Wallace St. Louis Startup Survey Report, St. Louis startups, and the diverse community that supports them, indicated that cash flow was their greatest challenge.
Preparing cash flow statements, spending carefully and utilizing budgets are just a few of the management tools that should be employed.
Cash basis is the preferred method on which startups base their tax reporting because it is simpler to administer and taxes are only due on money received and spent, which can be easily managed with careful planning.
To learn more from startup veterans in St. Louis, visit bswllc.com to request an invitation to an upcoming panel discussion surrounding the second annual St. Louis Startup Community Survey findings.
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8 Inspiring Leadership Tips From Supervillains
Leadership is a tough gig, but fortunately there is one group of people who have demonstrated the requisite skills time and again: Supervillains!
Make sure everyone understands your HR policies.
Whatever new fields your company attempts to enter, there should always be a drive to make it feel cohesive — to feel that, despite diversifying, it all makes sense as one whole for your company.
Live your brand.
No one demonstrates this ability better than Doctor Doom.
By never straying from that persona, his staff can always feel confident that he’s not just the brand’s leader — he’s also, in many ways, its inspiration.
Employ technology effectively.
That’s why understanding every advance in technology is more vital than ever before, and just as important, ensuring your staff are confident in your tech savvy to lead them in the right direction.
Show that you have a life outside of work.
It can be incredibly intimidating to work for a company where the boss is a relentless workaholic.
This Hair Dye Changes Color Depending on Your Environment
This Hair Dye Changes Color Depending on Your Environment.
Ever wish your hair would change based on your surroundings?
Lauren Bowker, founder of The Unseen, recently developed a hair dye that changes color depending on a person’s temperature and environment.
So if you’re outside in the sun, your hair might turn a fiery red.
If you’re indoors, the color will turn a muted brown.
Related: Google and H&M Will Make You a Custom Dress Based on Your Smartphone Data The new product, named “FIRE,” uses thermoregulation technology, where the dye is prompted by temperature in the skin to change colors.
“Above a certain temperature change, one of the molecules in the carbon bond is more stable than the other, and so a reaction produces a molecule with a slightly different absorption of light, thus creating a different colour,” Wired UK explains.
The product is not on the market yet, but Bowker ensured Wired that it is safe.
“Because of how we’ve formulated the dye, we’re confident there will be no damage to the scalp, and no significant effect on the hair fibres themselves (no more than typical semi permanent dyes that is).”
11 Sports Businesses Using Entrepreneurial Skills to Disrupt the Marketplace
The window for engagement with fans, athletes, teams and brands in the global sports landscape has never been bigger.
Other companies are also building sports-related Alexa skills; Turner Sports debuted Catch Sports last month to help fans find ways to watch their teams.
The company is called ASIYA, and its mission is to create Modest Active Wear, especially the hajib, for women who want to play in athletics.
ASIYA has found its way to a niche for an active female, and seems to be serving it well.
On-demand ordering, customized seat deliveries and even tailored camera angles will all be in the mix as Atlanta welcomes what will be the first of two new stadia this year, with the Braves pulling out all the stops to be first and fast.
HBP is all American made, with great ingredients and is becoming a staple for those in and around baseball as well as for those groups looking to raise money by selling minikits for charity.
By constantly finding new audiences and delivering the best and most innovative data for anyone who cares about football; from coaches and agents to teams, media companies and consumers.
The Cincinnati company, owned by Former NFL star Cris Collinsworth, has quickly become the “must have” for NFL teams and a growing number of college teams, and is now pushing into the consumer space to be for football fans what the Bill James Baseball Abstract was for baseball fantasy players.
StubHub This ticket reseller is continually disrupting the ticketing industry.
The New Jersey-based company has caught the eye of a growing number of football teams, from the NFL to high schools, with a new design using shock absorbing, lightweight material that is waterproof and adaptable to every type of heavy molded plastic that has been the standard for years.
How Much Should Small Businesses Spend on Digital Marketing in 2017?
Now, this marketing budget, regardless of size, should be focused on social, search, email and mobile.
The statistics are proof of this shift in marketing budget: for nearly half a decade, investments in traditional advertising have consistently dropped by single digit percentages each year.
Digital is now at $75,000 a year, or 35% percent of all marketing spend on average for companies.
“Marketers are investing accordingly, given the substantial return on investment delivered through web-based campaigns.” According to GetResponse, 70 percent of small to medium sized businesses said they will increase their digital/web-based marketing budgets this year.
Furthermore, SMB marketing statistics available from 2016 indicate that 62 percent of small businesses are investing 4 percent or more of their revenue in marketing.
SMBs spend on average 46 percent of their marketing budget on digital marketing.
78 percent of SMBs think that mobile marketing is an important channel for their business.
Budget allocation for digital marketing channels According to GetResponse, social, mobile and email are at the forefront of digital marketing spending this year.
The next channel projected to drive digital marketing spend in 2017 is mobile marketing (50 percent) — either app or web-based — followed by email marketing (42 percent).
When making decisions for your business, consider these takeaways: Marketing budgets are increasing overall Marketing spend is shifting from traditional advertising channels to digital channels Social, mobile, email and search marketing represent the lion’s share of the digital marketing budget Smaller companies spend more on marketing as a percentage of their total revenue B2Cs and online companies spend more on marketing compared to B2Bs More from Bizness Apps
Famous Undecided Voter Ken Bone Is Back — as the ‘Chief People Officer’ for a Software Company
Famous Undecided Voter Ken Bone Is Back — as the ‘Chief People Officer’ for a Software Company.
It wasn’t his question about energy policy that infatuated America though — it was him.
And today, with more than 200,000 Twitter followers, Bone’s fame lives on.
Even after discovering Bone’s not-so-innocent internet past, he’s still managed to milk his fame.
So much so that he’s landed an executive role as the CPO (“chief people officer”) for a political software company called Victory Holdings.
— Ken Bone (@kenbone18) February 21, 2017 While Bone’s spent his time talking about politics — he’s never actually publicly taken a side.
In the politically impartial ad “Enough is Enough,” Bone talks about the drama of the election and turns to “everyday Americans” for their input.
It’s official!
Join @kenbone18 and the rest of the team @CPAC.
pic.twitter.com/GFvYmPhFuM — Victory Holdings (@VictoryHoldings) February 21, 2017
10 Steps to Hiring Your Startup’s World-Beating A-Team
10 Steps to Hiring Your Startup’s World-Beating A-Team.
That can mean anything from hiring an under-motivated team to individuals with the wrong skills.
Good recruiters typically charge 25 percent of first year salary for the candidate hired, but their experience is especially helpful for start-ups not used to hiring key personnel.
Hire a diverse team.
Hiring people like yourself can be more comfortable but a diverse team will be more productive.
Ask candidates about their secondary expertise.
Startups lack the deep bench of talent that larger firms have, so secondary skills matter.
It’s vital for startups to hire people with integrity and character and not just a strong resume.
Would they really rather work at another company or in another field?
There’s nothing more important at a startup than hiring the right talent.
DHS funding new round of IoT cyber startups with $1M award
DHS funding new round of IoT cyber startups with $1M award.
This article first appeared on CyberScoop.
The Department of Homeland Security is dishing out nearly $1 million in competitive awards to five startups developing cybersecurity technologies for the Internet of Things.
The five companies are getting the money as they advance to phase two of the Silicon Valley Innovation Program, or SVIP, run by the Cybersecurity Division of the Science and Technology Directorate.
“We’re committed to real investments in startups and connecting them to new operational customers and applications of their technologies that they never imagined.” The five companies have completed the first phase of the program by creating a proof-of-concept demonstration.
Each of the four phases lasts three to six months and can be worth up to $200,000 to each awardee.
Ionic Security, Inc., Atlanta — $199,800 to apply a distributed data protection model to solve the authentication, detection and confidentiality problems that face IoT systems.
Machine-to-Machine Intelligence Corporation, Moffett Field, California — $200,000 to create a deployable open-source version of the SPECK cryptographic protocol to address IoT security by making a lightweight crypto package small enough be run on IoT devices.
Pulzze Systems, Inc., Santa Clara, California — $200,000 to secure IoT infrastructures by improving visibility and providing dynamic detection as components connect or disconnect from a networked system.
Whitescope LLC, Half Moon Bay, California — $200,000 to build a secure wireless communications gateway made specifically for IoT devices and compliant with the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers 802.11 standard.
Why TEDCO’s bid to be more relevant starts with diversity
Like the entrepreneurs it helps, TEDCO spent time collecting feedback over the last year.
Maryland’s quasi-public organization, which helps early-stage companies grow and create jobs in the state, brought in an outside group to look at how TEDCO operated.
Now startups seeking early-stage funding can apply for something new: the Seed Investment Fund.
With this change, TEDCO is no longer offering an additional $100,000 in follow-on funding for startups that receive funding, said Executive Vice President Stephen Auvil.
It also meant a new team, with Brian Corbett as Seed Investment Fund Director, Conwell joining as deal-team coordinator.
Angela Singleton, who spent four years as TEDCO’s rural business innovation initiative, was promoted as a portfolio manager with the deal team.
In an interview, Conwell and Singleton talked about how the changes to the application and structure are designed to help the team have more face time with the companies, along with making it easier.
They’re also looking to help connect startups to other organizations that can provide help.
“We want to make sure that all applicants and all Maryland companies get the most supportive experience from TEDCO that we can possibly provide.
“ Stephen Babcock is the lead reporter for Technical.ly Baltimore.
Vantage Energy Acquisition Corp. Files Initial Registration Statement for Initial Public Offering
IRVING, Texas–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Vantage Energy Acquisition Corp. (the “Company”), a special purpose acquisition company formed for the purpose of effecting a merger, capital stock exchange, asset acquisition, stock purchase, reorganization or similar business combination with one or more businesses, announced today that it has filed an initial registration statement with the Securities and Exchange Commission for a proposed initial public offering of its units.
Each unit has an offering price of $10.00 and consists of one share of the Company’s Class A common stock and one-third of one warrant.
Each whole warrant entitles the holder thereof to purchase one share of the Company’s Class A common stock at a price of $11.50 per share.
The Company will apply to list the units on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbol “VEACU.” Once the securities comprising the units begin separate trading, the Class A common stock and warrants are expected to be listed on the NASDAQ Capital Market under the symbols “VEAC” and “VEACW,” respectively.
The offering will be made only by means of a prospectus.
A copy of the prospectus relating to this offering, when available, may be obtained from Citigroup, c/o Broadridge Financial Solutions, 1155 Long Island Avenue, Edgewood, NY 11717 (Tel: 800-831-9146).
An initial registration statement relating to these securities has been filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission but has not yet become effective.
The Company intends to focus its search for a target business in the energy industry, primarily in the upstream oil and gas industry in North America.
Forward-Looking Statements This press release contains statements that constitute “forward-looking statements,” including with respect to the proposed initial public offering.
Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous conditions, many of which are beyond the control of the Company, including those set forth in the Risk Factors section of the Company’s initial registration statement for the Company’s offering filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”).
3 banks just landed key roles on what could be the biggest IPO of all time
REUTERS/Hamad I Mohammed (Reuters) – Oil company Saudi Aramco [IPO-ARMO.SE] has selected JPMorgan Chase & Co, Morgan Stanley, and HSBC Holdings Plc as lead underwriters for its planned initial public share offering, the Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The listing of Aramco is expected to be the world’s biggest initial public offering and could raise up to $100 billion.
Saudi authorities are aiming to list up to 5 percent of the world’s largest oil producer on both the Saudi stock exchange in Riyadh, the Tadawul, and on one or more international markets.
Saudi Arabian Oil Co, known as Saudi Aramco, was not immediately available for comment.
Aramco received proposals from at least six banks for an advisory role on the IPO, sources familiar with the process told Reuters earlier on Tuesday.
Aramco also recently chose boutique investment bank Moelis & Co as an adviser.
The IPO plan has been championed by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, who oversees the country’s energy and economic policies.
Saudi Arabia is considering two options for the shape of Aramco when it sells shares in the national oil giant next year: either a global industrial conglomerate or a specialized international oil company, industry and banking sources have told Reuters.
(Editing by Diane Craft and Edwina Gibbs) Read the original article on Reuters.
Copyright 2017.
Baidu’s iQiyi video service raises $1.53 billion
Baidu’s iQiyi video service raises $1.53 billion.
Baidu is charging up its video content push after iQiyi, its YouTube-style service in China, raised $1.53 billion from the sale of convertible notes to investors.
The deal appears to end speculation that the firm was mulling an IPO.
iQiyi, which had on offer to go independent fall through last year, raised the capital from a number of top-name investors including Hillhouse Capital, Boyu Capital, Run Liang Tai Fund, IDG Capital, Everbright-IDG Industrial Fund and Sequoia Capital.
Baidu itself invested $300 million into the service, too.
Baidu CEO Robin Li and iQiyi CEO Yu Gong led a deal to spin iQiyi out into its own business last year, however it failed to progress and collapsed in July.
Nonetheless, speculation over its future and funding options persisted throughout 2016.
A spokesperson at Baidu told TechCrunch that the capital raised would likely be spent on acquiring content.
That fierce competition is one reason Netflix gave up its long-time ambition to launch in China.
Regulation is another factor — it is thought to be behind Netflix rival Mubi’s decision to abandon a China launch and the abrupt removal of Apple’s iBooks and iTunes Movies services in the country just six months after launch.
Fintech is not just fintech anymore
Fintech is not just fintech anymore.
There’s been a lot of talk about fintech lately.
It is no longer this big bucket of finance and technology.
In fact, saying ‘fintech’ is like saying ‘retailer.’ But what exactly are they retailing and, in the fintech sense, what areas of finance are these companies automating?
The first stream creates a whole new financial structure, with crowdfunding as a great example.
Crowdfunding allows start-up firms to get funding on day one from their potential customers.
It used to be that a start-up had to go to a bank to get money to get going.
The third stream of fintech firms are focused upon reducing costs and overcoming inefficiencies within banks.
A great example here is what the banks call KYC, Know Your Customer.
This costs the bank a lot of money and the customer a lot of time, so automating this with a digital process would save billions, and there are a range of blockchain start-ups trying to do just that.
Saudi Aramco Said to Weigh Offering Citizens Discounted Shares
Saudi Aramco Said to Weigh Offering Citizens Discounted Shares.
Saudi Arabian Oil Co., gearing up for what may be the world’s biggest initial public offering, is considering offering discounted shares to the kingdom’s locals, according to people familiar with the matter.
The oil company has discussed methods to structure the sale so that retail investors in Saudi Arabia can buy shares for less than those buying on international exchanges, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private.
Aramco, as the company is known, is considering listing venues in the U.S., U.K. and Asia, in addition to Riyadh, and is planning to choose local banks to advise on the Saudi listing, the people said.
No final decisions have been made on the share pricing or listing venue, they said.
An Aramco spokesman said the company doesn’t comment on rumors or speculation.
Saudi Arabia plans to sell shares in the company as part of plans by Deputy Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman to set up the world’s biggest sovereign wealth fund and reduce the economy’s reliance on hydrocarbons.
The sale could value Aramco at more than $2 trillion, Bin Salman said in an interview with Bloomberg.
Shares in companies owned by the Saudi government have traditionally been offered at a nominal value, about 10 riyals ($2.67) each, as a way for the state to redistribute wealth to the population.
The country’s stock market regulator last year approved rules to allow foreign investors to subscribe to IPOs in the kingdom starting in January, which allows book-building in listings for those who qualify.
Uber CEO Travis Kalanick Launches Investigation Into Sexual Harassment Claims
In response to a blog post by former Uber engineer Susan Fowler in which she detailed claims of sexual harassment, CEO Travis Kalanick sent an email to his employees regarding an investigation into what she described.
In the memo, obtained by The New York Times, Kalanick wrote that an independent review of Fowler’s claims will be overseen by Eric Holder, who served as U.S. Attorney General in the Obama administration, as well as Tammy Albarran.
Both are partners at the law firm Covington & Burling.
Arianna Huffington, who became Uber’s first woman board member in April 2016, Liane Hornsey, who has been the company’s chief human resources officer since November 2016, and Angela Padilla, Uber’s associate general counsel, will all have a role in conducting the investigation.
Kalanick wrote that they would be “doing smaller group and one-on-one listening sessions to get [employee] feedback directly.” Fowler, who worked at Uber for a year, wrote in her blog post, “When I joined Uber, the organization I was part of was over 25 percent women.
… On my last day at Uber, I calculated the percentage of women who were still in the org.
“What is driving me through all of this is a determination that we take what’s happened as an opportunity to heal wounds of the past and set a new standard for justice in the workplace,” he wrote.
Hey @travisk, if your 100+ engineering team goes from 25% women to 3%, you shouldn’t need Susan Fowler’s post to tell you there’s a problem.
pic.twitter.com/Tssr6VjkEI — Laurie Voss (@seldo) February 21, 2017 Let’s be super clear: the root of the problem at Uber is @travisk – not HR, not middle mgmt — Nadia Singer (@nadsinger) February 21, 2017 @travisk Yep, the CEO who referred to his app as “boob-er” is *totally* going to clamp down on sexual harassment!
Now it’s laughably trying to distance himself from the corporate culture he embodies because former employee, Susan J. Fowler, blew the whistle on her ‘very, very strange year at Uber.’”
How to Attract Sales Leads through Your Podcast Guest Appearance
How to Attract Sales Leads through Your Podcast Guest Appearance.
With their assistance, here are five strategies that can help you make the most of your podcast guest appearance.
That’s what people connect to.” Buelow agrees.
And for most interviews, you get to talk about your business without pitching — it’s more about who you are, why you do what you do and what’s important about it.
Once your podcast conversation is coming to a close, always remember to offer listeners a way to stay connected with you.
“Because when you deliver high value to an audience who you know wants and needs that value, there’s really no reason for them not to check out your business and what you have going on,” Dumas says.
So, after your interview is finished, how will potential prospects hear about it?
This also shows that you’re a good guest, interested in supporting the podcast host, and they’re more likely to ask you back for a future episode or recommend you to other podcasters.” Beforehand, you can ask podcast hosts how they will market your episode.
Overall, podcast guest appearances are becoming a terrific way to connect with niche audiences (and potential clients) that you never would have in the past.
So, if you’re serious about generating sales leads from those interviews, provide relevant value first.