Silicon Valley

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Earlier this year, three of the largest banks failed in a sequence of events that was dubbed the Banking Crisis of 2023. With the passage of time, fears that the three failures could foreshadow further failures and deeper woes seemingly subsided, though a wave of banking institution downgrades in August 2023 briefly rekindled concerns. More recently, things have been quiet. Does that mean it is time to sound the all-clear signal? Perhaps, but there are signs out there suggesting continued vigilance may be in order.Continue Reading Checking in on the 2023 Banking Crisis

TheranosEarlier this year, the SEC announced a “Silicon Valley Initiative,” reflecting the agency’s concerns about private and pre-IPO companies that were scoring sky-high valuations in private offerings. The agency said that it is particularly focused on so-called “unicorns” – that is, private companies with valuations greater than $1 billion. Although the agency did not name any of the specific companies in which it was interested, it soon became clear that one of the companies the agency was investigating was Theranos, the start-up company whose blood-testing technology and practices have recently gained media and regulatory scrutiny. The SEC’s scrutiny of a private company’s fund-raising practices was itself noteworthy; now, in yet another notable development, the privately-held company has drawn an investor lawsuit alleging securities fraud.
Continue Reading Hedge Fund Investor Launches Fraud Lawsuit Against Theranos