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THE HEADLINES
SNEAK ATTACK
Uber, Lyft, Pinterest, and … CrowdStrike?!
In the words of overachieving super-enthusiast GaryVee, CrowdStrike, a cloud-based cybersecurity software vendor whose customers include Amazon Web Services and Credit Suisse “crushed” its IPO. The online guardian opened at $63.50, almost double its IPO price of $34.
The year of the IPO has seen some big-name tech companies flop upon coming to market and with a price target of $28 to $30, it’s safe to say that nobody saw this coming. CrowdStrike’s success goes to show that markets reward companies for not posting $1B quarterly losses.
The company did report a net loss of $140M for the year ended Jan 31, but revenue doubled YOY to $249.8M. Between increasing revs, being a cloud play and its focus on endpoint detection and response, CrowdStrike has investors all tingly in the nether regions.
Bankrolls
Still unsure about CrowdStrike’s staying power? Let’s take a peek at some of its investors, shall we? PE Firm Warburg Pincus may not ring a bell but Alphabet’s CapitalG should. The value of Google’s investment fund’s stake reached over $1B thanks to the IPO.
PER MY LAST EMAIL
Pixabay
An FTC investigation into Facebook may have uncovered some less than scrupulous content on Mark Zuckerberg’s computer. No, not his browser history or that weird smoking meats video. According to reports, a cache of emails suggests that Zuck and his C-suite cronies were not only in violation of a 2012 consent decree with the FTC but weren’t even making enforcement a priority.
Why help the feds?
The FTC investigation related to Facebook’s dealings with Cambridge Analytica (remember them?) has been ongoing for more than a year. FB has already set aside up to $5B to pay its fine, so the social network decided to begin turning over emails in an effort to speed things up. Bad choice.
It gets worse …
It’s not just Zuck’s unreleased emails that contain incriminating verbiage. Emails previously turned over to the FTC show that executives at Facebook were looking for a loophole in the decree, in hopes that they could meet the agency’s requirements, while still using data in some not-quite-compliant ways.
In fact, one specific email chain showed The Zuck asking developers about a third-party app that created a database full of user data. The app’s developers were then able to display that data to others on its own site, regardless of users’ Facebook privacy settings.
As the exchange continued no one from Facebook’s executive team ever requested the app be shut down, rather, they wondered if it was possible for other apps to do the same. Narrator: “It was.” There was no investigation into exactly how many other apps could display user data. I guess that’s what happens when all you care about is building your user base of politically active uncles.
IN OTHER NEWS
iStockphoto
- The (new) sixth largest retail bank in the US came up with a truly sh*tty name. SunTrust and BB&T announced a $28B merger in February, making it the largest tie-up of financial institutions since the financial crisis. And now we know the new entities name: Truist. As in, Q: “How true? A: “The tru-ist.” Trolls were quick to take to social media … especially those concerned about the future of the Atlanta Braves home, SunTrust Park. BB&T confirmed the name will stand … for now.
- Walmart is eliminating Jet.com’s president role. This means saying bye-bye to Simon Belsham, who will stay on to help with the transition until August. The e-commerce platform was bought in 2016 for $3.3B. Its supply chain network has been leveraged to help grow Walmart’s online sales and build out the free, next day delivery that you know and love today.
- Firing your lobbyists when you’re facing government scrutiny is like telling your doctor to take a hike when you get diagnosed with cancer. But alas, here we are. Google has fired six of its lobbying firms and consultants representing about half of the company’s $20M “influence” budget. The reason? A new head of policy and government relations and a brewing antitrust sh*tstorm of epic proportions.
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