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Category: Cybersecurity
Facebook imagines a future in which consumers will pay for online and offline services with its cryptocurrency - Libra. Our view is that Libra will eventually enjoy broad adoption. The cryptocurrency floodgates are open, it’s primarily a question as to how Libra and others will be regulated. Regulation boils down to the size of the … Continue reading Facebook Calibra and Libra.
Companies mentioned: Accenture (ACN), Alibaba (BABA), AWS (AMZN), Azure (MSFT), Bottomline Technologies (EPAY), Broadridge (BR), DataRobot (Pvt.), GCP (GOOG), IHS Markit (INFO), Oracle (ORCL), Palantir (Pvt.), Qlik (Pvt.), Solera (Pvt.), SS&C (SSNC), Tibco (Pvt.), Verisk (VRSK). Accenture’s CEO of North America, Julie Sweet, will become CEO of Accenture effective September 1st 2019. Ms. Sweet is … Continue reading Accenture Is Preparing to Double-Down on M&A. We Share Our Ideas for Likely Target Areas.
FTC slaps Facebook on the wrist and levies $5B fine. Combining legacy Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp. A grand product strategy or slick tactical move to avert regulators? Facebook only found religion as it relates to user privacy after the FTC threatened to break up the company into three separate entities - 1) legacy Facebook, 2) … Continue reading Checkmate. Facebook Wins.
It has leaked that semiconductor giant Broadcom (tkr: AVGO) is working to acquire CyberSecurity software company Symantec (tkr: SYMC). Semiconductor investors are not fans of the deal as AVGO shares have traded off 6% since the news leaked. Conversely, we like the prospective acquisition for a couple of reasons: First, Symantec’s recurring revenues will help … Continue reading We Applaud Creative M&A Strategies
Two-factor authentication or 2FA is virtually painless and greatly mitigates the risk of compromised personal and enterprise data. People don’t like to be told “take your medicine” much less read about it. However, an ounce of prevention goes a long way. Whether you wish to add a layer of security beyond the common password to … Continue reading Use Two-Factor Authentication (“2FA”) to Reduce the Risk of Compromised Data
Identifying acquisition targets is an arduous process. Machine learning can help. It is somewhat easier to identify acquisition targets today than it was 10 years ago given the advent of private company databases such as Bob's Guide, Crunchbase, CB Insights, PitchBook and others. However, we have yet to find a data service that combines a … Continue reading M&A Deal Sourcing – A Significant Opportunity for Machine Learning
Fortune 500 real estate title insurer First American Financial Corp. (ticker: FAF) leaked hundreds of millions of documents related to mortgage transactions dating back to 2003. CEOs and Boards Need to Make CyberSecurity A Top Priority We have previously taken the position on our podcast and in this newsletter that CyberSecurity is a C-level/ Board-level … Continue reading CyberSecurity Should Be A CEO and Board-level Priority
We've tested a number of the P2P apps over the past several weeks and believe Venmo has the best-in-class user experience. A software executive warned me many years ago: "Don't underestimate the power of the GUI" ("GUI": Graphical User Interface). Venmo's near frictionless user experience combined with Facebook's social features give the application a "leg … Continue reading Social Payments or P2P on Steroids
Amazon is making smart home bundles easy. In the process, Amazon is becoming a CyberSecurity and Data Privacy leader. It was Cable and Software bundles in the 1980s, 1990s and 2000s. Today, it’s Smart Home bundles and Amazon is making it easy. For technology vendors it pays to own the “bundle” (a word antitrust regulators … Continue reading Amazon is Making Smart Home Bundles Easy
Some companies execute smart, strategic acquisitions better than others. Here’s a short list of publicly-traded FinTech & Info Services companies that do M&A well: CoStar Group (tkr: CSGP), Intercontinental Exchange (tkr: ICE), IHS Markit (tkr: INFO) SS&C Technologies (tkr: SSNC) and Verisk (tkr: VRSK). Click Here for Revenue, EBITDA and related metrics. We love FinTech … Continue reading Build. Acquire. Repeat.
