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  • African Billionaire Mohammed Dewji Kidnapped in Dar Es Salaam

    African Billionaire Mohammed Dewji Kidnapped in Dar Es Salaam

    Mohammed Dewji, believed to be the youngest billionaire in Africa, was kidnapped during his regular gym visit in the early hours of Thursday, October 11, 2018. According to BBC Africa correspondent Athuman Mtulya, kidnappings in Tanzania are very rare, reporting:

    “Although Tanzania has seen a wave [of] attacks and abductions of opposition politicians and perceived government critics, this is the first time a businessman of Mr Dewji’s standing has been kidnapped in the country.”

    Arrests have been made and foreign nationals are understood to be involved in the kidnapping. But the whereabouts of “Mo” Dewji, are as yet unknown. Mohammed Dewji had driven himself to the gym at a luxury hotel in Dar Es Salaam when he was abducted around 6.30 am.

    Philanthropist Mohammed Dewji

    Like many mega-wealthy individuals, Dewji announced in 2016 that he would be giving away up to half of his assets to philanthropic causes. He set up the Mo Dewji foundation to help educate the children of Tanzania and provide affordable health care.

    “At the Mo Dewji Foundation we believe that education is the greatest gift you can give a person… The youth of Tanzania are our future and by improving and providing education we can build a better, brighter Tanzania for tomorrow.”

    Dewji served for 10 years as a politician before stepping down in 2015 and is something of a celebrity in Tanzania. In 2018, his wealth was estimated at $1.5 billion and he owns the MeTL group of companies.

    MeTL (Mohammed Enterprises Tanzania Limited) was founded by Dewji’s father and he joined the business after graduating from Georgetown University in the USA. He majored in international business and finance, graduating in 1998.

    MeTL is the largest privately owned business in Tanzania with interests in manufacturing, import, export, financial services, farming, agriculture, telecoms, and real estate.

    Personal Safety

    MoneyMakers recently reported how US billionaires were fitting out their swanky pads in the Hamptons with luxury safe rooms, fearing they might be the target of gang violence.  Thus far, Dewji has been very open about his future engagements having recently taken to Twitter to promote the publication of his sister’s book.

    Politicians and celebrities are normally quite guarded about their future itineraries for fear of attack and now it seems entrepreneurs will also need to be more careful. No doubt his wife and children are praying for his swift and safe return.

    Featured image by Gonzalezbarbara.

  • From Zero to Hero – The Story Behind Les Brown

    From Zero to Hero – The Story Behind Les Brown

    “You got to become a risk taker! If you’re not willing to risk, you can’t grow. If you can’t grow, you can’t become your best, and if you can’t become your best, you can’t be happy, and if you can’t be happy, then what else is there?”

    These are the words of a famous politician, a radio talk show host, a best-selling author and a motivational speaker Leslie Calvin Brown, more commonly known as Les Brown.

    Les Brown moved through the adoption system, suffered the opinions of naysayers and even survived cancer several times.

    He used to sleep on the cold ground of his office in Detroit. But he kept his hope. He knew it was only a moment in time, and that moment would pass. And guess what? He was right! He kept trying and he found success. Or rather, success found him.

    For over 41 years Les Brown has been one of the top speakers in the world. He has helped change the lives of millions of people all across the world through his motivational speeches and his coaching.

    He continues to be a student of success. But the reality is that he went through a lot of trial and error to find his passion and to discover what his talent and gifts were.

    In School He Was Deemed “Mentally Retarded”

    Les Brown credits his success and reaching his full potential to his mother and his high school teacher, who supported him along the way. Having that support made him commit to rising from various positions in life – from radio host to radio station manager and from club MC to one of the most respected keynote speakers, among others.

    He has been active in many fields of life, from a motivational speaker to a bestselling author, business owner, and former politician. In all his positions, he has spread his positive energy and enthusiasm about life.

    He loved being a disc jockey, but what he was even more passionate about was social change. He wanted to make the world a better place. So he spoke about it on the air. At that point, he was told that maybe being a DJ wasn’t enough for him; maybe he should run for public office.

    That idea seemed crazy. He had no experience, but he decided that it was time for him to run as a member of the Ohio House of Representatives.

    He was also terrified to run for office. However, after some campaigning, guess what? He won! He became a legislator, and he was able to start making the changes that he always dreamed of making.

    Les Brown Laws of Success

    motivational speaker
    https://lesbrown.com/

    This is only one story of dozens in which he was scared to death. But he didn’t let that fear ruin his chances of changing the world. From that point on Les Brown became a best-selling author and the world’s leading motivational speaker. Les Brown has 12 laws of success, which you can read about in his book of the same title.

    However, of particular note, is the importance of listening to your heart, leveraging your talent and gifts, and letting go of your fear.

    Today, Les Brown is a multi-millionaire and successful speaker and author who inspired millions of people through his talks. A feat that took him 13 years to accomplish.

    To shape your reality in a powerful way, Brown says you have to maintain an unshakable belief in your abilities. Never let the naysayers or setbacks control your narrative; it’s all about the story you choose to believe about yourself.

    Featured image by Dominick Brady.

  • Meet the Top 10 Richest People in India

    Meet the Top 10 Richest People in India

    They say that money makes the world go around. While India’s sure got its fair share of people (over 1.3 billion on the last count), the South Asian tiger also has a pretty high concentration of billionaires–121 to be precise. In fact, India is home to the third largest number of billionaires in the world, after China and USA respectively. So, who are the richest people in India? Let’s take a look.

    1. Mukesh Ambani

    Mukesh AmbaniWith a net worth of $47.3 billion, Ambani tops the list of the richest people in India. He also takes the 19th spot in the global billionaires’ list compiled by Forbes for 2018. An Indian business tycoon, Ambani is the chairman, MD, and of course the largest shareholder of oil and gas giant Reliance Industries Limited, one of India’s most valuable companies and a Fortune 500 company to boot.

    He’s also partial to a little cricket, being the owner of Indian Premier League cricket club Mumbai Indians. Ambani’s initial wealth was handed down to him by his father, who was a self-made success starting out in textiles and spices. India’s richest man had no formal education, instead, receiving life skills from a personal tutor hired for him and his siblings. He learned about the world by taking field trips, riding on public transport, and working with his father.

    Curious fact? This energy and petrochemicals magnate amassed a further $16.9 billion over the last 12 months. How? Well, it’s easier when half of your country’s decisionmakers are on your payroll. No finger pointing here, though.

    2. Azim Premji

    Azim PremjiPremji’s net worth is estimated at $21 billion and he’s widely known as being India’s top tech magnate whose company Wipro is the third-largest outsourcer. Beyond being a tech tycoon and savvy investor, Premji is a socially responsible billionaire, setting up the Azim Premji Foundation in 2000 to provide elementary education to rural areas in the country.

    Premizi is number 58 on the global billionaire’s list and has a Wipro center in Silicon Valley. He also just won a key 10-year contract worth $1.6 billion with Alight Solutions of Illinois. Any skeletons in his closet? Not really.

    It seems that Premzi is actually on the front lines fighting against corruption in his country, frequently speaking out on the topic and even calling out the Indian government on it. Writing an open letter to the Indian government with fellow tech entrepreneurs from Mahindra and HDFC, he said:

    “Possibly, the biggest issue corroding the fabric of our nation is corruption.”

    3. Lakshmi Mittal

    Lakshmi MittalLakshmi Mittal made his $18.3 billion net worth from the commodities industry, serving as CEO and chairman of the world’s biggest steelmaker, ArcelorMittal. Benefiting from the overall recovery in the steel industry, this heavy metal magnate is buying up flailing steel manufacturers around the globe, including Italy’s loss-making steel group Ilva for $2.1 billion in June last year.

    While Mittal makes the Forbes list for richest Indians, he’s actually based in the UK and frequently appears among Britain’s richest men. Mittal owns almost 40% of ArcelorMittal and also holds 11% of Queens Park Rangers football club.

    Known for his luxurious tastes, Mittal imported marble from the same quarry used to build the Taj Mahal to decorate his UK home. He’s had his fair share of corruption charges as most self-respecting billionaires have, and his relationship with politicians and decisionmakers was thrust into the spotlight some years back.

    4. The Hinduja Family

    Hinduja FamilyTaking the fourth spot on India’s richest people list is a family of four siblings, Srichand, Gopichand, Prakash, and Ashok. With a combined net worth of $18 billion, they control the multinational conglomerate the Hinduja Group.

    These siblings have a range of businesses in their command, from trucks and lubricants to cable television and even banking. They also own some of the most expensive real estate in London and live in the UK, Geneva, and Mumbai overseeing their interests.

    The Hinduja brothers Srichand and Gopichand are credited with saving London’s Millennium Dome’s faith zone but were implicated in corruption charges at the same time in 2000 for their supposed long-running involvement in the Bofors arms scandal which would eventually lead to the Indian Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi’s downfall. The charges were later dropped in 2002.

    5. Pallonji Mistry

    Pallonji MistryPallonji Mistry has an estimated net worth of $15.7 billion, controlling the Shapoorji Pallonji Group, a construction and engineering behemoth located in Mumbai. Known for his reclusive tendencies, Mistry’s younger son Cyrus is the one hogging the headlines, entering into a distasteful scrape with the Tata Group after being ousted from his chair at Tata Sons in October 2016.

    The Tata Group is one of the most respected and successful companies in India with a squeaky clean reputation and a staunch denier of corruption. So Cyrus’ claims that the company was involved in a corruption case with AirAsia is displeasing to all involved. Not least, Pallonji, whose family’s biggest asset happens to be an 18.4% stake in Tata Sons.

    6. Shiv Nadar

    Shiv NadarAs the chairman of HCL Technologies, Navar is a tech entrepreneur with a net worth of $14.6 billion, presiding over a company that makes $7.5 billion in revenue and is also India’s fourth-largest software services provider. Founding HCL from his garage in 1976, with a focus on microprocessors, Nadar is self-made all the way.

    He’s also an example of an astute businessman who knows when it’s time to diversify his assets. HCL invested some $780 million into a partnership with IBM over intellectual property. Nadar, like Premji appears to be a pretty decent guy and recognized as a leading philanthropist in India, setting up the Shiv Nadar Foundation dedicated to education.

    The only thing that Nadar and plenty of India’s other self-made iT millionaires have been accused of is crony capitalism on more than one occasion. Silicon Valley investors would have no idea what that looks like.

    7. The Godrej Family

    Godrej FamilyAnother family to make the richest people in India list is the Godrej family with a combined net worth of $14 billion. They run the family business the Godrej Group, a century-old consumer goods giant that racks up $4.6 billion in revenue.

    The mega-rich family also owns a vast parcel of land in suburban Mumbai, which is thought to be their biggest asset. When it comes to corruption or scandal, this family’s managed to keep its noses clean.

    They were also part of the group writing the open letter to the Indian government raising their concern over corruption. But, they’ve also been accused of crony capitalism and keeping the wealth in the same tight circles.

    8. Dilip Shanghvi

    Dilip ShanghviWith an estimated net worth of $12.6 billion, Dilip Shanghvi is one of the richest people in India. Coming from humble beginnings, Shanghvi borrowed $200 from his father, a pharma distributor, to set up Sun Pharmaceutical Industries in 1983 with a focus on psychiatric drugs.

    Today, Shanghvi’s company is the world’s fourth largest producer of specialty generics. It’s also India’s most valuable pharma operation with revenues this year surpassing $3.5 billion. This astute billionaire grew his empire through a series of acquisitions including rival Ranbaxy Laboratories for $4 billion in 2014.

    While he’s still India’s 8th richest, not so long ago he held the top spot, losing $14 billion in just two years after shares in Sun Pharma plummeted by more than 50%. On a personal level, Shanghvi seems a pretty decent guy, often called humble by the Indian press. He also invests in renewable energy and, presumably to hedge his bets, oil, and gas as well.

    9. Kumar Birla

    Kumar BirlaWith a net worth of $12.5 billion, Birla is a is the true king of commodities and is the fourth generation to run the Aditya Birla Group, with eyewatering revenues of $44.3 billion. Aditya Birla Group’s interests are far-reaching and cover commodities like aluminum and cement, as well as telecom and financial services.

    Inheriting the family empire at the tender age of 28, Birla has been used to owning wealth. He’s also had plenty of years running a business hands-on, acquiring US aluminum producer Aleris this July for $2.6 billion and merging his Idea Cellular with Vodafone India to become Vodafone Idea, in August, now India’s largest telecom firm.

    This Indian business tycoon has been implicated in his fair share of scandals and corruption charges. The latest of which involved an alleged payment to Indian Prime Minister Modi in 2016. He unsurprisingly claimed to be unaware of this.

    10. Gautam Adani

    Guatam AdaniCurrently coming in 10th in the richest people in India list is Gautam Adani with a net worth of $11.9 billion. Adani isn’t into technology or pharma. Instead, he controls the Mundra Port, which is India’s largest in his home state Gujarat.

    Besides having dominion over the ports, the Adani Group’s interests stretch to real estate, commodities, and power generation. Some of this billionaire’s most notable assets include Australia’s Abbott Point port and the Carmichael coal mine, the biggest in the world.

    A little digging into the operations of the Adani group and you’ll find corruption charges abound, as well as plenty of accusations of paying off government officials, including Indian Prime Minister Modi. He’s also been accused of using tax havens to shelter his money and the Carmichael acquisition was shrouded in controversy.

    The Richest People in India

    So, there you have it, the top 10 of the richest people in India. From buying up politicians to payrolling key decisionmakers, it’s pretty clear that getting other people in your pocket is helpful when growing an empire.

    That said, the findings are not all bad, with plenty of India’s richest people also giving back to the community. And as for crony capitalism? Well, the gentleman’s club is a pretty global phenomenon. It would be disappointing if India wasn’t a paid-up member as well.

  • $75,000 per Night for a Luxury Hotel Suite? Only in America!

    $75,000 per Night for a Luxury Hotel Suite? Only in America!

    Most people will think that $5,000 per night for a luxury hotel suite is beyond reproach. But when you’re filthy rich and don’t give a damn what people think, even $75,000 per night is within budget. That is exactly what you can expect to spend for a single night in The Mark Hotel Penthouse Suite in New York.

    Being a multi-millionaire or billionaire gives you the opportunity to sample aspects of life that others can’t even contemplate. Whether it’s dining on endangered species, owning Egyptian artifacts that go back to the times of the Pharaohs or purchasing your own island, a billionaire’s life is a life of untold choice.

    The Mark Hotel Penthouse Suite Is the Most Expensive in America

    America is home to the big, bold, and brave. And also one of the most expensive luxury hotel suite experiences on the planet. A night in The Mark Hotel penthouse suite in New York will set you back $75,000.

    Situated in the prime Upper East Side of the city, known for its grandeur, glitterati and glamor, the building where the Mark Hotel penthouse suite resides was first constructed in 1927.

    The hotel enjoyed major renovations in 2006 and 2009 and although the historical exterior of the building was untouched, the interior design was completely overhauled.

    The new interiors were created by the lauded French designer Jacques Grange, conjuring a timeless and stylish atmosphere that is lavishly luxurious and favorably flash.

    10,000 Square-Foot of Total Decadence

    The penthouse is nestled across the 16th and 17th floors and encompasses 10,000 square-feet that includes a majestic 2,500 square-foot rooftop terrace with immense views of Central Park.

    The luxury Mark Hotel penthouse suite comes equipped with five bedrooms, six bathrooms, a conservatory, library lounge, stately dining room, two wet bars and four awe-inspiring fireplaces that give the suite real decadence.

    Bloomberg’s Chris Rovzar talked about the suite on the “Bloomberg Daybreak: Americas” segment and said that the owners of the hotel set the $75,000 per night price tag because they saw another luxury hotel suite in America for $37,000 per night and thought their penthouse was worth twice as much.

    If you’re a self-respecting millionaire or billionaire looking for somewhere to lay your head in the heart of Upper East New York, why not stay in the most expensive luxury hotel suite in America? You’re one of a very select few who can afford it.

    Featured image from The Mark Hotel.

  • Billionaires in China Are Struggling

    Billionaires in China Are Struggling

    Even before the Asian stock markets reacted to the US stock market plunge yesterday, the number of billionaires in China had become fewer in 2018. The richest individuals in China have also lost billions from their top line wealth this year.

    Data compiled by Hurun Report says the number of “super-rich” in China has dropped below 2,000 for the first time since 2015. This list counts individuals with holdings worth the equivalent of around $209 million or more. The fall in number constitutes an 11% decline in 2017 figures.

    According to the report, the number of China’s wealthiest, worth at least 2 billion yuan, fell from 2,130 in 2017 to 1,877. The new figures also include 219 new names.

    Rupert Hoogewerf, chairman and chief researcher of Hurun Report, said:

    “A 20% drop in the mainland stock exchanges, on the back of a slowing economy and the US-China trade war, resulted in 456 drop-offs this year, the highest since records began 20 years ago.”

    In US dollars, China has 620 billionaires.

    Who Are the Top Billionaires in China?

    Jack Ma – Alibaba – Net Worth $39 Billion

    Jack MaAlibaba chairman Jack Ma is of course top of the list. At 54, he has a net worth of around $39 billion driven higher recently by the increased worth of Ant Financial.

    Ma and his second-in-charge Joe Tsai, who also runs the Alibaba owned South China Morning Post, believe the US will also suffer from current trade disputes. Tsai said recently:

    “We are so integrated that the pain is going to be felt all over the world. Everybody is going to feel the pain.”

    Hui Ka-yan – Evergrande Group – Net Worth $36 Billion

    Hui Ka YanKa-yan has lost the equivalent of $6 billion since last year and is second on the Hurun Report list. His company, the Evergrande Group is the second-largest property developer by sales in China. In 2018, Evergrande became the world’s most valuable real estate company.

    Evergrande committed $2 billion worth of investment to electric car startup Faraday Future and has already spent $800 million on the new company. Now, the deal is in a dispute over shareholder rights.

    Pony Ma Huateng – Tencent – Net Worth $35 Billion

    Pony Ma TengThird on the list is Huateng, CEO of web technology and Chinese social media giant Tencent. He’s currently worth $35 billion and Tencent is diversifying into entertainment, artificial intelligence, and other technologies.

    Tencent is officially the world’s largest gaming and social media company, owning messenger platform Tencent QQ and WeChat. Tencent Music Entertainment has 700 million users and 120 million paying subscribers.

    Tencent was worth at least $500 billion USD in 2017.

    When the US Sneezes…

    Stock sell-offs in the US this week also impacted Asian markets with China’s main indexes falling 5%. According to Reuters, analysts at ANZ said:

    “Equity markets are locked in a sharp sell-off, with concern around how far yields will rise, warnings from the IMF about financial stability risks and continued trade tension all driving uncertainty.”

    Shanghai’s SSEC drop was its most severe since early 2016 and overall was at its lowest level since 2014.

    Like many, one Chinese analyst is pointing to technology stocks having oversold, UBP strategist Koon Chow said:

    “I think what happened was that we were a maximum elevation of risk appetite and maximum valuation of (U.S.) large caps and tech, so when you have that situation you are always vulnerable.”

    To quote CNN yesterday and many before, if the U.S sneezes, the rest of the world catches a cold. Although, Asian markets rallied this morning showing signs of a speedy recovery.

    Featured image by World Economic Forum.

  • Asian Stock Markets Show Signs of Recovery

    Asian Stock Markets Show Signs of Recovery

    It’s been a pretty grim week for global stock markets, although investors can take some solace as Asian markets show signs of recovery this Friday. Large selloffs in US stocks spurred by fears over rising interest rates this week spread to Europe and Asia.

    Wall Street saw another sharp fall on Thursday, leading to a losing streak of five sessions for which President Trump blamed the “crazy” and “out of control” Federal Reserve.

    Yesterday, the S&P 500 index fell by a further 2.1%, meaning the US benchmark was down by 5% over the week.

    When America sneezes the rest of the world catches a cold, and the global FTSE All-World index also retreated for its sixth successive day, erasing all gains made in 2018 and making it one of the worst weeks of the year for global stock markets.

    Signs of Recovery in Asia

    On Friday, the selloffs continued, but at a slower pace. In Tokyo, shares were down by 0.5% by midday compared to 3.5% on Thursday. Hong Kong shares began the day trading up by 0.4% and shares in Taiwan also rallied by 0.7%.

    Futures trading markets also show signs of bouncing back and indicate a stronger opening today for London and New York equities. It seems that after the sharp downturn, global stock markets are beginning to correct themselves with shock charts turning green again in Aisa.

    The large selloffs appear to have been triggered by a turbulent US Treasury market and the Federal Reserve’s decision to hike interest rates again. President Trump has been highly critical of the Fed, strongly disagreeing with their decision, and calling the rising interest rates “out of control.”

    Global Stock Markets Look to Rally

    Global stock markets have been left bruised and battered with the pinch particularly felt in Asia in the wake of the trade war between China and the US. Moreover, account deficit countries such as India and Indonesia have suffered even more as large importers of oil.

    We’ll have to wait and see if Asian trading today leads to a firmer start for Europe and Wall Street. But the signs are showing that the global rout in stock is beginning to abate.

    Featured image from Shutterstock.

  • Gang Violence Behind Hamptons’ Billionaire Safe Room Spending Spree

    Gang Violence Behind Hamptons’ Billionaire Safe Room Spending Spree

    It looks like the haves (as opposed to the have-nots) found a new accessory for their multi-million dollar vacation homes. The Hamptons has been a destination for the well-to-do for generations. Today, the harsh reality of international gangs, such as the MS-13, is prompting Hamptons homeowners to add luxury safe rooms to their enormous mansions.

    MS-13 is a terribly violent gang that has its roots in the Central American nation of El Salvador. In case you have joined most of the world in tuning out President Trump whenever possible, he believes that MS-13 is one of the biggest criminal threats that the US faces at the moment. The gang also seems to be active in many major US cities.

    Last year, MS-13 was tied in with a quadruple homicide in Central Islip, which is just an hour away from the Hamptons by car. Hamptons residents probably figure that if MS-13 members can make it from El Salvador to Central Islip, driving for one more hour isn’t going to stop them from causing mayhem in one of the most expensive destinations in the USA.

    The Hamptons Needs Cheap Labor Too!

    Most people who own a $15 million USD+ mansion in the Hamptons don’t maintain their own polo fields. It’s no secret that the vast majority of landscaping work in the USA is done by people who come from south of the border.

    Some people in the Hamptons may fear that their garden staff is actually an MS-13 recon unit, who keep their machetes sharp for a nighttime assault on a billionaire and their family.

    Fears of a Tarantinoesque (think Kill Bill meets Reservoir Dogs in the Hamptons) horror show ‘En Vivo’ are probably behind the trend in super-lux Hamptons panic rooms.

    According to The New York Post (NYP), John Catsimatidis, who owns Gristedes Foods and Red Apple Group is sleeping with a Walther PPK/S underneath his pillow. He owns a house in East Quogue, and apparently, his wife Margo, “…prefers a shotgun.”

    Small arms are probably only going to enrage a crack MS-13 hit squad, so many others in the Hamptons are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on panic rooms that are stocked with high-end booze, and military-grade munitions. What could possibly go wrong?

    Sort of a Status Symbol

    There’s nothing like having your billionaire friends over and sharing a glass of wildly expensive scotch in a brand new panic room. Decades of wildly unfair (‘free trade’) trade policy may have created a vacuum for impoverished Central Americans in the USA. And now people like Chris Cosban, a Long Island-based construction consultant that has installed numerous safe rooms in the Hamptons, are making sure that billionaires are able to sleep soundly (as they enjoy the fruits of globalism).

    Mr. Cosban told the NYP that:

    “The big thing [with rich homeowners] in the Hamptons is that if somebody has it, they [all] want it,” and added that, “They like to brag about it.”

    The head of Sage Intelligence Group was also willing to expand on how his clients use their luxury safe rooms. Herman Weisberg told the NYP that many have safe rooms are designed to accommodate a home theater or act as a weapons vault. Some even use them as wine cellars, which would certainly make riding out an MS-13 raid a lot easier.

    Featured image from Shutterstock.

  • Uber Looks to Raise $1.5 Billion from Debt Investors

    Uber Looks to Raise $1.5 Billion from Debt Investors

    It seems that Uber isn’t content with making colossal losses. They’re looking to get further indebted as well to the tune of $1.5 billion. In what may be the company’s first foray into the junk bond market, Uber now seeks to raise their next astronomical sum of cash in high-yield bonds.

    Teaming up with Morgan Stanley, Uber is working on a private placement that could yield between 7.5-8% on $500 million in 5-year notes and a further $1 billion in 8-year notes.

    Uber Is in Good Company

    Uber isn’t the only unicorn posting losses left and right with WeWork tripling its losses in 2017. It’s also not the first to get into high-yield bonds. The office-space provider entered into a $702 million deal earlier this year, as did Tesla with $1.8 billion in 2017. Even the ride-hailing company itself has already raised billions from creditors.

    In fact, this new transaction comes just a few months after Uber sold $1.5 billion in leveraged loans that were marketed directly to investors. And Uber’s first leveraged loan deal took place in 2016 for the same amount.

    Fundraising Like It’s Going Out of Style

    The upstart startup has been raising funds like it’s going out of style, including from private equity investors. That includes some $9 billion from a consortium led by Japan’s SoftBank. Toyota also invested half a million dollars in Uber as part of a collaboration effort to look into autonomous vehicles. We all know how well that’s gone so far.

    But it seems that Uber’s appetite for stockpiling funds can’t be satiated and their return to the debt market looks to be opportunistic. Under normal circumstances, high-yield investors will try to gauge a company’s health based on cash flow and earnings compared to its debt burden, all of which are disastrous metrics for Uber.

    However, most investors recognize that these analyses aren’t appropriate for loss-making companies like Uber and that they may need to carry out their own research on how the company will be able to repay their debt.

    Since Uber appears to have a cash burn problem, it doesn’t seem like there will be much interest from investors in getting saddled with Uber’s bad debt. Although, a few ears will be listening since the interest rate on the bonds is so high.

    Uber IPO Ahead

    While Uber has its sights set on going public, its IPO isn’t targeted until next year. In the meantime, that’s a lot of time left to blow through extra cash. Uber seeks a further $1.5 billion to ramp up its business efforts to compete in new businesses such as bike and scooter sharing and food delivery.

    Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi believes that it will still be some time before the company becomes profitable. They need to invest in further avenues of growth first.

    “We suffer from having too much opportunity as a company,” he reportedly said. Sounds like a nice problem to have.

    Featured Image from Uber, Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi 

  • Elon Musk and Richard Branson, Smoking Blunts and Getting Some Sleep

    Elon Musk and Richard Branson, Smoking Blunts and Getting Some Sleep

    Elon Musk has been having a rough time recently. After the classic “Joe Rogan-smoking blunts debacle” and calling one of the heroic Thailand cave divers a “pedo guy” in a monumental PR gaff, Sir Richard Branson has now offered some words of clarity. The Virgin billionaire Branson has advised the visionary tech melodeon to “get some sleep.”

    Richard Branson Advises Musk to Delegate

    As any raging control freak will tell you, it’s sometimes difficult to let go. Especially as a business owner or entrepreneur. And especially if you are responsible for safeguarding share prices of a multi-billion-dollar company. This is something that Richard Branson knows only too well.

    When asked a loaded question by CNBC’s Nancy Hungerford in regards to offering advice to Elon Musk, Branson calmly said:

    “I think he maybe needs to learn the art of delegation. It’s important. He’s a wonderfully creative person but he shouldn’t be getting very little sleep.”

    Delegating tasks to others is great advice for all business owners, control freaks and military dictators. Maybe you should stop taking yourselves so seriously. It’s time to hand over some tasks to your trusted steeds.

    You can’t control every single nut and bolt in your business without losing your mind. Just in the same way you can’t keep track of your significant other’s movements with an RFID microchip.

    If you are a military dictator contemplating whether or not to delegate, it’s time to leave the beheadings to someone else so you can streamline and monetize your torturous ways.

    Intergalactic Space Travel Wars Afoot?

    The comments by Sir. Branson seem rather synchronic as news recently broke that the Virgin creator’s space venture to catapult a rocket into space for the first time is just “weeks away.”

    Unless you’ve been living under a moss-covered stone in Azerbaijan for the past couple of years or have been ‘on holiday’ in the State Pen, everyone knows Elon Musk’s plans for galactic space travel and other-worldly colonization.

    Could these latest remarks from Branson be a ruse and a touch of kidology on his part to put a seed of doubt in Musk’s mind? The timing is perfect as Musk is currently coming under fire from all quarters. It remains to be seen if the possibility of intergalactic space travel wars between Branson and Musk will come to fruition.

    The only question left for Elon Musk to answer is did he inhale on the Joe Rogan Experience? Or did he pull a “Bill Clinton”?

    Featured image from Shutterstock.

  • Can Investors Benefit from Google Trends and Cryptocurrency Volatility?

    Can Investors Benefit from Google Trends and Cryptocurrency Volatility?

    With both traditional stocks and cryptocurrencies seeing steep price declines in the last 36 hours, an article recently written by Marc Howard caught my eye. In “How I Created a Bitcoin Trading Algorithm Using Sentiment Analysis With a 29% Return,” Howard provides a breakdown of how he built the bot.

    Using Google Trends, he obtained the data for the preceding 90 days for the terms “BTC USD” and “buy bitcoin.”

    Historically, cryptocurrencies have been much more volatile than traditional stocks, and Howard was hoping to use this to his advantage with readily available data from Google. He surmised that if people were searching for terms like “buy bitcoin” and “BTC USD” that market sentiment was good and the price of bitcoin was likely to rise, even from day to day.

    He combined this with an analysis of the price of bitcoin over the same 90-day period and set about building the bot with Excel. The results suggested that when the price had risen by more than $80 on the previous day and the ratio of the two terms “buy bitcoin” to “BTC USD” was more than 35%, it would be prudent to place a buy order and conversely sell when the opposite was true.

    Using Google Trends

    As Howard points out in the article, some of the parameters used, like the prior day price increase of $80, were fairly arbitrary so we thought we would verify the results and consider possible improvements for the bot.

    Howard had produced a paper gain of 29% over the 90 day period which compares favorably with a break even from either a daily buy and sell or HODL throughout the period.

    Can Investors Benefit From Google Trends and Cryptocurrency Volatility

    We built the Google Sheet above, which is available for download as a local Excel file, and it contains two worksheets, “Marc Howard” and “MoneyMakers”. The “MoneyMakers” worksheet was created before we contacted Howard with our findings, and rather than use the average daily closing price for bitcoin we used the Coinbase closing price.

    This was done on the basis that an average price is simply that, an average and an actual exchange price would be closer to reality. Coinbase is one of the biggest exchanges in the US, and we were able to pick up the closing prices with an API whereas Howard manually entered the average closing prices.

    In addition to the variances between Coinbase closing prices and average closing prices, we noticed that the Google Trends data in the original report produced by Howard was different from the data we had obtained.

    In some cases, the difference was relatively small, but on other days it was quite significant. A Google search confirmed that Google Trends data does vary and even modifying our IP address to various geographical locations didn’t help.

    Trading Bot Design

    As shown in the screenshot above, we were able to validate the results of a 29% return over the 90-day period by using identical data to Howard. Unfortunately, the bot is quite sensitive to small variances in the input data and using a similar methodology on the Coinbase exchange and accepting variances in Google Trends data would have given a break-even return.

    One major weakness in the original design of the bot, as highlighted by Vikram Urun, is that Google Trends doesn’t provide real-time data and is generally two days old, thus rendering the bot unusable.

    Howard is looking to enhance the bot in due course and acknowledged the time lag with Google Trends. As a workaround he suggested:

    “to change the timespan to Hourly then you can aggregate to a daily metric.“

    We commend the work carried out by Marc Howard and look forward to seeing his further iterations of the trading bot.

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