Mar 18, 2017

Tech bubble watch

The Guardian's Olivia Solon in S.F. ... "Has the tech bubble peaked? Signs that the startup boom may be fizzling: Startups are beginning to run out of money":

"A stream of 'down rounds' – when a company raises funds by selling shares that are valued lower than the last time they raised funds, leading its overall valuation to fall – has led investors to be more discerning. CB Insights has tracked more than 100 of these down rounds and exits since 2015, including software company Zenefits, mobile app Foursquare and online music streaming service Rdio. 'It used to be that 95% of [investment] rounds were up, now 20% are down.'"
"Then there are the so-called 'decacorns' – unicorn startups valued at tens of billions of dollars – such as Airbnb, Uber and Palantir – which some believe are overvalued, but it's hard to tell until they go public and are forced to reveal details of their underlying finances."

"Evan Spiegel has lost $2 billion since Snapchat's post-I.P.O. peak: Snap stock falls, Spiegel's massive fortune is slowly evaporating." (Vanity Fair Hive's Maya Kosoff)

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Updates: George Floyd protests continue past curfews

Protesters on Tuesday evening by the metal fence recently erected outside the White House. Photo: Olivier Douliery/AFP via Getty Images

Largely peaceful protests over the death of George Floyd and other police-related killings of black people continued Tuesday night across the U.S. for the eighth consecutive day.

The latest: Protesters were out en masse after curfews were in force in areas including Washington, D.C., New York City, Los Angeles and Portland — one of the cities where there was a late-night flash-point between police and protesters.

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Updated 6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Primary elections test impact of protests, coronavirus on voting

Election official at a polling place at McKinley Technology High School in Washington, D.C. Photo: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

In the midst of a global pandemic and national protests over the death of George Floyd, eight states and the District of Columbia held primary elections on Tuesday.

Why it matters: Joe Biden, the presumptive Democratic nominee, needs to win 425 of the 479 delegates up for grabs in order to officially clinch the nomination. There are a number of key down-ballot races throughout the country as well, including a primary in Iowa that could determine the fate of Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa).

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6 hours ago - Politics & Policy

Iowa Rep. Steve King defeated in GOP primary

Rep. Steve King. Photo: Alex Wroblewski/Getty Images

State Sen. Randy Feenstra defeated incumbent Rep. Steve King in Tuesday's Republican primary for Iowa's 4th congressional district, according to the Cook Political Report.

Why it matters: King's history of racist remarks has made him one of the most controversial politicians in the country and a pariah within the Republican Party.

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