SPACs lose their spark with deals hard to find
Around Indiana and the nation in recent weeks, special purpose acquisition companies, or SPACs, are shutting down and returning money to investors. In other cases, investors are taking a bath.
Investors
New (Ind)Venture collaboration features three local VC events
The Venture Club of Indiana, TechPoint, 50 South Capital and Elevate Ventures are hosting three back-to-back events next week for investors and Indiana founders. By working together, the organizations hope to gain more traction than they could separately.
Federal judge dismisses investors’ complaint against Elanco alleging ‘channel stuffing’
U.S. District Court Judge Sarah Evans Barker ruled the plaintiffs failed to clearly show that public statements made by Elanco’s top officials were false and misleading during a two-year period in question.
Elevate Ventures is opening its annual pitch event to the public
Elevate Ventures’ annual pitch competition takes place Aug. 5 in Fishers, and this year for the first time the event is free and open to the public.
Treasurys slump ignites global selloff as rate hikes gain focus
Long-term U.S. Treasury yields jumped to a three-year high on Monday, fueling a global rise in borrowing costs as traders intensified bets on aggressive rate hikes from major central banks.
High Alpha leads $10M investment in Chicago-based software startup Logik.io
Logik.io, which was launched in February, offers software that helps sales reps and customers secure price quotes in complex sales situations.
High Alpha startup Filo lands $3M in seed funding
Filo, which was launched by Indianapolis-based venture studio High Alpha last year, offers an interactive platform for online meetings, gatherings and events.
As Bitcoin goes mainstream, Wall Street looks to cash in
Cryptocurrencies have surged so much that their total value has reached nearly $2.5 trillion, rivaling the world’s most valuable company, Apple, and have amassed more than 200 million users. At that size, it’s simply too big for the financial establishment to ignore.
Indianapolis-based myCOI lands $5M in debt financing to fuel growth
Established in 2009, myCOI uses proprietary software and human expertise to help clients assure that they and their business partners have the proper insurance coverage.
Wall Street snaps back following worst week since February
Investors are still figuring all the ramifications of the Fed’s latest meeting on interest-rate policy, where it indicated it may start raising short-term rates by late 2023.
Fed boosts inflation forecasts, moves up expectations for interest rate hike
The Federal Reserve expects inflation will climb to 3.4% this year, higher than the central bank’s previous forecasts, and projected for the first time that there could be two interest rate hikes in 2023.
Global podcast database Podchaser gets boost from Indiana investors
Podchaser, which was co-founded by Indiana University alum Cole Raven, recently closed a $4 million funding round with participation from Bloomington-based IU Angel Network and Indianapolis-based High Alpha.
Indianapolis businessman pleads guilty in $11M Ponzi-style investment scheme
Federal investigators say George S. Blankenbaker Jr. and three of his companies raised more than $11 million from at least 109 investors in a fraudulent scheme he operated from 2016 to 2019.
SPACs sound arcane, but make buckets of money for Indy investors
A nontraditional way to take companies public is booming on Wall Street, leading to an unprecedented explosion of deals.
High-tech indoor farmer AppHarvest starts shipping tomatoes
AppHarvest—an indoor farming company backed by Indianapolis-based Novus Capital Corp. and celebrity Martha Stewart—thinks the agriculture sector is ripe for disruption. And now, its tomatoes are ripe for eating.
Service firms receiving multiple buyout offers from private equity investors
Private equity firms are simply head over heels for service firms such as plumbing and heating and air-conditioning companies.
High Alpha startup secures $5M seed funding for livestreaming music platform
Mandolin’s digital platform—designed to help artists, venues and fans connect through live music—has attracted some big-name investors including Marc Benioff, the founder and CEO of Salesforce.
Fed leaves low rates alone, foresees no moves in 2020
In a sign of the Fed’s confidence about the economy, its latest policy statement dropped a phrase it had previously used that referred to “uncertainties” surrounding the economic outlook.
Major stock indexes climb to record highs
The Dow Jones industrial average returned to a record on Monday, joining other market gauges at all-time highs, as the stock market’s rally carried into a fifth week.
Former Indianapolis broker barred from working in industry
The former Charles Schwab broker allegedly used a client’s tax refund for personal use, which led to his termination.