Rishi Taparia - Issue #23
Happy New Year everyone! This week China shows how a cashless society can function, pot entrepreneurs lacking infrastructure, India’s national ID database gets hacked, Uber investors cash out, and a whole lot of Fire and Fury. Enjoy!
FinTech
The Cashless Society Has Arrived — Only It’s in China
“China can no longer be viewed as an emerging economy…it has emerged, and in a major way!” is the thought running through my mind after a quick trip there 3 weeks ago. Mobile payments have surged to some $9 trillion a year, lending through alternative lenders is through the roof and trying to pay with a credit card was impossible (I literally could not buy anything). Heck, even panhandling has changed! This WSJ piece does a nice job illustrating some of the major trends, the latest data and major players (none of which should be new to readers of this newsletter!)
Where Pot Entrepreneurs Go When the Banks Just Say No
January 1 brought the further legalization of marijuana in some major states in the US including California. The big question for this industry as it transitions to legally accepted (in theory…) is how to solve basic infrastructure issues like banking. Banks are federally regulated and marijuana is not accepted at the federal level. An interesting piece that illustrates the challenges and had me thinking more about how government
India's National ID Database With Private Information Of Nearly 1.2 Billion People Was Reportedly Breached
If this ends up being true, it’s not good news. For a mere $8, a local Indian newspaper was supposedly able to access the private data of nearly 1.2 billion Indians. Ouch.
China Launches New Capital Controls: Puts $15,000 Annual Cap On Overseas ATM Withdrawals
The Chinese government has seemingly been doing everything in its power to halt capital flight, or at least give the impression there isn’t any. China is once again cracking down on capital controls by imposing overseas caps on ATM withdrawals. It will be interesting to see what impact this has on international spend during the upcoming Chinese New Year holiday.
U.S. Bars Merger of MoneyGram, China’s Ant Financial
The US government is more actively stepping into foreign investments into US companies. CFIUS (the Committee on Foreign Investment in the U.S) has not offered approval to Ant Financial and MoneyGram to complete the $1.2bn merger. There are wide ranging implications here, particularly given proposed bipartisan legislation that would increase scrutiny of foreign investment.
Technology
Menlo, Benchmark, First Round sold Uber stakes worth hundreds of millions
Uber finally got its secondary transaction done with SoftBank buying about $8 billion worth of shares last month. Early investors got quite a bit of liquidity, with Benchmark, Menlo Ventures and First Round Capital selling sizable chunks. Travis also sold 29% of his share, netting him a supposed $1.4bn. An oversubscribed round, looks like everyone was eager to get out. Selling to Softbank = the new IPO?
Amazon turns over record amount of customer data to US law enforcement
The company’s fifth transparency report reveals more customer data was handed to US law enforcement in the first-half of last year than ever before. The company received:
- 1,618 subpoenas, of which the company fully complied with 42 percent;
- 229 search warrants, of which the company fully complied with 44 percent;
- 89 other court orders, of which the company fully complied with 52 percent
Random Tidbits
Leonardo da Vinci by Walter Isaacson
I recently read Walter Isaacson’s bio on Leonardo da Vinci. In true Isaacson form, it’s a detailed and artfully written look at one of the world’s great polymaths. Famous for his art, the number of subjects da Vinci developed mastery in, including engineering, biology and physiology, is staggering by any standard. What struck me the most was the intense curiosity that drove him to develop his understandings, as opposed to any natural gifts. Einstein, another subject of Isaacson, famously said, “I have no special talent. I am only passionately curious.” This certainly seems true for da Vinci. A solid read, I highly recommend the physical text as the imagery and graphics in the book are amazing.
Bonus: On the subject of curiosity, this podcast with Shane Parrish and Warren Berger, author of A Most Beautiful Question explores the subject of curiosity, asking questions and why we seem to be conditioned to not ask good questions.
Michael Wolff’s ‘Fire and Fury’: Inside Trump’s White House
Left here for you to read. Because you should. You won’t be disappointed.