Overstock Looking Into Brokerdealers Only Bitcoin-Style Exchange

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Utah Software Engineer Mints Physical Bitcoins

Brokerdealer.com blog update profiles the continued intergration of the popular cyrpto currency, Bitcoin, as Overstock has revealed plans that it may issue up to $500 million in stock through blockchain-style technology, such as bitcoin.

Bitcoin is a form of currency that is tied directly to the Internet and is the world’s first free market, decentralized global currency. It is operated through an open-source software so there is no central control unlike the US dollar or Euro. Similarly to gold, only 21,000,000 Bitcoins will ever be created so the value of the Bitcoin continues to rise as time goes on. Bitcoins can be exchanged for goods and services as well as currencies such as the US dollar and the Euro. As long as people trust that Bitcoin has value, people will continue to invest in it.

Brokerdealer.com’s database has many qualified brokerdealers who are prepared to help you navigate the world of Bitcoin and how you can use it to your advantage when it comes to investing. 

Overstock is an American online retailer headquartered in Cottonwood Heights, Utah. It initially sold surplus and returned merchandise on an online e-commerce marketplace but in recent years has expanded to sell new merchandise as well. 

This brokerdealer.com blog update is courtesy of Finextra News’ article, “Overstock looks to issue Bitcoin-style stocks” with an excerpt below.

Last year Overstock CEO Patrick Byrne hired developers and lawyers in an effort to create a platform – dubbed ‘Medici’ – that could use the core blockchain technology to create a cryptosecurity trading system, in which computer algorithms are used to trade virtual stocks issued by public companies.

The firm has now filed a prospectus related to the sale of securities with the Securities and Exchange Commission, adding: “We may decide to offer any of the securities described in this prospectus as digital securities, meaning the securities will be uncertificated securities, the ownership and transfer of which are recorded on a cryptographically-secured distributed ledger system using technology similar to (or the same as) the distributed ledger technology used for trading digital currencies.”

The prospectus says that these digital securities would not be traded on any existing exchange but on a specific system registered with the SEC as an ATS open only to subscribers that agree to trade exclusively through vetted broker dealers.

To continue reading about the brokerdealer-only Bitcoin exchange plan for Overstock, click here. Additional coverage on this story can also be found at MarketsMuse.com .

Human Advisors War On Robo-Advisors

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human-vs-robot-09

Brokerdealer.com blog update profiles human advisors trying to combat the recent rise in the use of robo-advisors orver human advisors. Robo advisors are a class of financial adviser that provides portfolio management online by using algorithms and use minimal human intervention.  Robo-advisors are typically low-cost, have low account minimums, and attract younger investors who are more comfortable doing things online. With all these things working in robo-advisors’ favor, human advisors have been struggling to compete with the robo-advisors. CNBC’s Sarah O’Brien highlights recent tactics human advisors are using in her article, “Robo wars: How advisors are taking on cybercompetitors“, with an excerpt of the article below.

The growth of low-cost robo-advisors has made one thing clear to financial industry analysts: Human advisors who provide little more than investment advice have their work cut out for them.

“Advisors need to be more strategic about what they can offer clients,” said Will Trout, a senior analyst for research and consulting firm Celent. “Stock picking is a waste of time, and allocating has become a commodity because it can be executed by algorithms. So advisors have to operate at a much higher level and [address] a client’s unique situation,” he said, adding, “Otherwise, what are clients paying for?”

So-called robo-advisors are automated online investment advisory services. Along with providing automated, algorithm-based portfolio management advice, some of them offer automatic portfolio rebalancing and tax-loss harvesting.

Robo-advisors also charge less than the industry standard of 1 percent of assets managed for financial advisory services. And that, say analysts, is going to put pressure both on industry fees and on advisors themselves to justify fees that are higher than a robo’s.

To continue reading CNBC’s article on human advisors combatting robo-advisors, click here.

Restructuring Advisement Firm, Houlihan Lokey, Sets Sites On $200m IPO

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Houlihan Lokey

Brokerdealer.com blog update profiles the restructuing firm, Houlihan Lokey Inc., who is usually helping other companies have succuessful mergers and acquistions, is planning its own step to more success by preparing to launch an intial public offering that could raise at least $200 million.  This Brokerdealer.com blog update is courtesy of the Wall Street Journal article, “Houlihan Lokey Lays Groundwork for IPO“, an excerpt from the article is below.

Houlihan Lokey Inc., known for advising companies on midsize mergers and acquisitions and big bankruptcies, is gearing up for a deal of its own.

The firm is planning for an initial public offering of stock this year, according to people familiar with the matter, which would make it the latest independent investment bank to cash in on increasing client and investor demand. A Houlihan IPO could raise more than $200 million, the people said. Based on valuations of similar firms, Houlihan could be worth more than $1.5 billion.

The firm, founded in 1972, has been investigating a possible IPO since last year, and recently decided to move forward with one, the people said. Houlihan is discussing the plan with banks interested in arranging the deal, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Bank of America Corp., though any share sale isn’t expected until the second half of the year, the people added.

To read the entire article on the Wall Street Journal’s website, click here.

Banned BrokerDealer, Cacchione, Backs Into Industry via RIA —Gets Busted Again

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barred brokerdealer

Brokerdealer.com blog update profiles David Scott Cacchione’s , a former managing director of Investment Brokerage Firm  who was sentenced to 5 years in prison in 2009 for his role in defrauding lenders into more than $100 million in loans, new failed attempt to get back into the brokerdealer game. This update is courtesy of a 20 March InvesmentNews article “SEC shuts down ex-broker’s attempt to start RIA from jail” with an extract from the article below.

Convicted felon David Scott Cacchione, who was barred from the brokerage industry in 2009 for helping orchestrate a $100 million fraud scheme, has been barred again by the Securities and Exchange Commission after he tried, while still incarcerated, to re-enter the securities industry through a registered investment adviser.

Mr. Cacchione, 50, attempted, as others barred from the brokerage industry have, to play on the dual licensing of brokers and investment advisers to resurrect a career in the securities industry.

Mr. Cacchione pleaded guilty in 2009 to securities fraud for pledging the securities of unknowing clients to secure more than $45 million in personal loans for a friend. The scheme eventually resulted in almost $47 million in losses, according to the FBI. He also engaged in unauthorized trading in the accounts of clients, including a local children’s charity and an elderly widow, according to the SEC.

Mr. Cacchione was sentenced to 60 months in jail followed by three years of supervised release and ordered to pay nearly $50 million in restitution. According to the SEC, he had paid only $502 of that as of last August.

For the entire article from InvestmentNews, click here.

BrokerDealers Banking on GoDaddy IPO

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GoDaddy

Brokerdealer.com blog update profiles Internet domain registrar and web hosting company, GoDaddy filing for an IPO. GoDaddy is largest web hosting company with said to have had more than 59 million domain names under management. Brokerdealers excitedly await the launch of GoDaddy’s IPO because it is anticipating to be valued billions of dollars. This Brokerdealer.com blog update Leslie Picker’s article “GoDaddy Seeks Up to $2.87 Billion Valuation in U.S. IPO” from BloombergBusiness.

GoDaddy Inc., the provider of domain names and website hosting, is seeking a valuation of as much as $2.87 billion in an initial public offering.

The company is seeking to raise as much as $418 million, offering 22 million shares at $17 to $19 apiece, according to a regulatory filing Thursday. Those terms imply a market value of $2.57 billion to $2.87 billion.

GoDaddy’s IPO comes more than three years after a group led by KKR & Co. and Silver Lake Management acquired the Scottsdale, Arizona-based company for $2.25 billion. Now that the price range is set, GoDaddy can officially begin marketing the sale to investors. The IPO is scheduled to price March 31, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

GoDaddy is seeking a valuation at a discount to other Web-services providers. At the high end of the range, GoDaddy would fetch a multiple of about 2.1 times last year’s sales, while Endurance International Group Holdings Inc., which provides Internet hosting, trades at 3.7 times and Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp., a consulting firm, trades at 3.1 times, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

In 2014, GoDaddy posted $1.39 billion in revenue, a 23 percent jump from the prior year. Its net loss narrowed to $143.3 million over the same period, from $200 million in 2013, the filing showed.

To read the full article from BloombergBusiness, click here.