(Forbes) Regulators are homing in on the most important intangible assets: people. Intangible assets – skilled workers, brands, client relationships, organizational processes, and client relationships – generate most corporate growth and represent 90% of the market value of the S&P500. Since people are not capitalized on the balance sheet and are instead deemed as an…
(Financial Times) The sustainability boom has moved trillions of dollars into environmental, social and governance funds and brought a new stakeholder-led agenda to corporate boardrooms. Now the Big Four accounting firms are jumping on a bandwagon that offers two tempting opportunities: an expansion of what companies must account for, and a chance to rebrand a…
(SSIR) ESG has become increasingly mainstream for investors in recent years, as part of a broader wave to embrace purpose and stakeholder capitalism…However, venture capital has largely been left by the wayside: In a quick scan of the of the websites of the top 50 largest venture capital funds, we only found five which mentioned…
(AP) Nine activists from Bahrain had their iPhones hacked by advanced spyware made by the Israeli company NSO Group, the world’s most infamous hacker-for-hire firm, a cybersecurity watchdog reported on Tuesday. Read more here.
(MarketWatch) When a Blackstone-backed company in March sold $260 million in bonds under its Servpro Industries banner, a franchise specializing in fire- and water-damage cleanups, the financing went off without much notice. But three months later, a whistleblower complaint from two former workers at Fort Bliss, Texas, one of the nation’s largest emergency migrant youth…
(CNN) Since 1993, the National Association of Corporate Directors (NACD) has said that CEO pay should be more in line with what other employees receive. Boards, we have said, should not approve pay plan elements that result in unexpectedly high compensation, such as mega stock-option awards, and plans should be expressed simply, so that shareholders…
(Oregon Live)The future ownership of an Israeli spyware company whose product has been used to hack into the cellphones of journalists, human rights workers and possibly even heads of state is up in the air. Major investors in a private equity firm that has majority ownership of NSO Group, the maker of the Pegasus spyware,…
(TechCrunch) The future of technology is determined by a handful of venture capitalists. The world’s 10 leading venture capital firms have, together, invested over $150 billion in technology startups. The venture capitalists who run these firms decide which startups today will develop the new platforms and technologies that will shape our lives tomorrow. Read more…
(Startups & Society) 500 Startups was founded in 2010, and has invested in 2,500+ startups in 77+ countries. The global accelerator and early-stage investment fund has prided itself on being different from Sand Hill Road VCs. On the threshold of raising its 5th Global Flagship Fund, the organization’s leadership took decisive action to integrate environmental,…
(MarketWatch) Ride-hailing company says it will change practice after local news site’s reporting, which showed fees added to support Proposition 22 changes were withheld from San Francisco drivers’ view. Read more here.