Business and technology quick bites

Updated version at 7.45 am

The highlighted words in red are links to the news article.

April 15, 2021,

Business News

1. Wall Street indexes closed mixed on Wednesday, with the Nasdaq Composite and S&P 500 falling despite another record intraday high for the latter and big banks’ stellar results on the first day of earnings season.
2. Shares in Coinbase Global Inc had a choppy Nasdaq debut on Wednesday, with the cryptocurrency exchange’s valuation swinging from as high as US$112 billion to as low as US$83 billion.
3. Vietnam’s Bamboo Airways plans to raise up to US$200 million in an initial public offering in the United States, potentially securing a market capitalisation of up to US$4 billion, its chairman Trinh Van Quyet said on Wednesday.
4. Macau has moved a step closer to the potential introduction of a digital currency, as it seeks to better combat money laundering and tax evasion in the world’s biggest gambling hub.
5. Further liberalisation of the foreign exchange policy (FEP) by Bank Negara Malaysia (BNM) is a big positive move and timely as it can support Malaysia’s economic revival post-Covid-19 pandemic.
6. TikTok founder’s US$60 billion fortune puts him among the world’s richest people.

Technology News

1. Shares of Alkami Technology Inc surged 38% in their US stock market debut on Wednesday, giving the US banking software provider a market capitalisation of US$3.43 billion.
2. The UAE is using its space programme to develop its scientific and technological capabilities and reduce its reliance on oil, partnering Japan’s iSpace to send rover to the moon in 2022.
3. Dell Technologies Inc. is exploring options including a potential sale of cloud business Boomi, according to people familiar with the matter, in the latest effort by Chief Executive Officer Michael Dell to trim down the personal computer maker.
4. IMMUNOSCAPE, a biotech startup specialising in cancer treatment, has raised US$14 million to scale up its operations in Singapore and the US, as well as to improve its immune-profiling technology. This brings the startup’s total funding in the past year to S$25 million.
5. Internet companies Gojek and Tokopedia are reportedly finalising a US$18 billion merger, with plans for the combined business to be called Goto – pronounced as “go to”.