Is your smartphone your worst nemesis?
We now spend one day every week online. We love so much the intimacy of our smartphone that the limits between our private and our public life are blurred. The feeling of security is magnified by reputable organizations like banks and public organisations implementing Google-like 2-Step Verification applications.
The message is clear, “operate through your Smartphone, it is safe”.
I thought that it was cool to have all those Apps to pay online, manage my bank accounts, defray VAT, authenticate myself on the social networks, call and pay a cab and so on. It was cool until the Phone House cancelled my line by mistake. A technical error they said.
I was traveling in Ireland at that time and all the sudden, no more phone, no more online boarding pass, no more money, no more [cyber] life….
It took me two months fighting with their mind-boggling call centre powered by Artificial non-Intelligent bots to get a new number, and then another two to go through all the admin work necessary to re-establish the broken relationships with my suppliers.
In January, the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos’ phone was hacked. I shiver at the thought of all the harm that could be done by unscrupulous hoaxers. Use your Smartphone, but with moderation, and always keep a backup up to date at hand.
I was traveling in Ireland at that time and all the sudden, no more phone, no more online boarding pass, no more money, no more [cyber] life….
It took me two months fighting with their mind-boggling call centre powered by Artificial non-Intelligent bots to get a new number, and then another two to go through all the admin work necessary to re-establish the broken relationships with my suppliers.
In January, the founder of Amazon, Jeff Bezos’ phone was hacked. I shiver at the thought of all the harm that could be done by unscrupulous hoaxers. Use your Smartphone, but with moderation, and always keep a backup up to date at hand.
VC-A and TGC launch an investment platform in Spain
Value Creation - Alternative Ltd. and The Greig Companies Inc. (TGC) have teamed up to launch EMBLITAM XXI SL. in Barcelona, Spain.
Our ambition is to use EMBLITAM as one of TGC's investment vehicle in Europe and convert it into a Direct Lending Fund "de facto".
Our ambition is to use EMBLITAM as one of TGC's investment vehicle in Europe and convert it into a Direct Lending Fund "de facto".
EMBLITAM is initally capitalised with a €20 million line of surety bonds to secure photovoltaic projects in Spain
EMBLITAM's Board of Directors comprises Dr J. Greig as Chairman, Mr Christophe Schwoertzig as CEO (VC-A Managing Director) and Mr José Miguel Máiz (VC-A Agent and SME) as Board Director.
The team is completed by Mr José Vicente (VC-A Associate Director) as company Secretary.
The team is completed by Mr José Vicente (VC-A Associate Director) as company Secretary.
Mr. José Vicente is promoted to Associate Director
Mr. José Vicente Cuevas has been promoted to VC-A Associate Director for his contribution to the development of EMBLITAM XXI.
Mr. Vicente is an expert in renewable energies and energy efficiencies. He used to work for Gestamp Solar and is a serial entrepreneur having co-founded Alisios Energy, Home Hotel Energy, Gest-Oil, Energio Sparado and Cefene Servicios Energéticos.
Mr. Vicente owns a Master in Commercial and Marketing Management by CESMA Business school in Madrid, an Executive Master in Project Management by the University of Valencia and graduated as a Marine Engineer from ETSI Navales, which is part of the Universidad Politécnica of Madrid.
Mr. Vicente is an expert in renewable energies and energy efficiencies. He used to work for Gestamp Solar and is a serial entrepreneur having co-founded Alisios Energy, Home Hotel Energy, Gest-Oil, Energio Sparado and Cefene Servicios Energéticos.
Mr. Vicente owns a Master in Commercial and Marketing Management by CESMA Business school in Madrid, an Executive Master in Project Management by the University of Valencia and graduated as a Marine Engineer from ETSI Navales, which is part of the Universidad Politécnica of Madrid.
Ms. Marina Kwok joins as Associate Director
Ms. Marina Kwok has joined Value Creation - Alternative as Associate Director responsible for the company's development in East Asia.
Ms. Kwok is a strategist based in Hong Kong. She used to work for LexisNexis, American Express, HSBC and was trained at Accenture in the US and the UK.
Ms. Kwok owns an MBA from HKUST Business School, did her exchange at the London Business School and has got a bachelor degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the US.
Ms. Kwok is a strategist based in Hong Kong. She used to work for LexisNexis, American Express, HSBC and was trained at Accenture in the US and the UK.
Ms. Kwok owns an MBA from HKUST Business School, did her exchange at the London Business School and has got a bachelor degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison in the US.
VC-A M&A SUITE
On the 20th day of February 2020, we are 1 167 VC-A Members of which, 947 are Agents and 256 Investors. We have introduced into the system, 172 leads and 20 mandates.
In compliance with the GDPR law and the "right to be forgotten", 160 contacts shall be removed from our database.
VC-A Agents who wish to access the VC-A M&A Suite can submit a request by email.
Review VC-A's value proposition here.
To join VC-A as an Agent register online here.
Aeolian-Battery Storage
Thermo-Photovoltaic
Energy storage. Is it the panacea?
It seems to be trendy to go hybrid. Hybrid cars, hybrid boats, hybrid electric plants, hybrid anything looks good as long as production can be increased using chemical, potential and kinetical energies.
On the other hand, traditional energy storage systems are inefficient. Until recently, the only way to store energy was to pump water during the nadir of electricity demand into vats placed in heights to store potential energy and then, let the water fall on turbines to recover it during peak consumption times.
However, new hybrid cars and boats offer nowadays a double benefit. Not only thermal engines’ losses due to revving and braking are reduced, but also, part of the energy necessary to voluntarily reduce speed is stored and reused to optimize fuel consumption at cruise speed.
Therefore, using these kinds of new hybrid technologies to store energy that otherwise would have been wasted, makes undoubtedly sense.
Unfortunately, not everything can be improved with hybrid systems.
But is going hybrid the right thing to do?Traditional power generation systems offer two major deficiencies. On one hand, most don’t deal with overcapacity productions. Wind energy generated overnight, solar energy produced over the weekends or during holiday periods and even nuclear energy produced in excess of the demand is just squandered.
On the other hand, traditional energy storage systems are inefficient. Until recently, the only way to store energy was to pump water during the nadir of electricity demand into vats placed in heights to store potential energy and then, let the water fall on turbines to recover it during peak consumption times.
However, new hybrid cars and boats offer nowadays a double benefit. Not only thermal engines’ losses due to revving and braking are reduced, but also, part of the energy necessary to voluntarily reduce speed is stored and reused to optimize fuel consumption at cruise speed.
Therefore, using these kinds of new hybrid technologies to store energy that otherwise would have been wasted, makes undoubtedly sense.
Unfortunately, not everything can be improved with hybrid systems.
The Value Creation - Alternative Network
If you run a business, use this group to share ideas around new business development strategies, alternative sources of money, alternative growth strategies and new business models.
VC-A Members, Investors, Company Owners, CxOs, Directors and Managers are invited to join.
VC-A Members, Investors, Company Owners, CxOs, Directors and Managers are invited to join.
Photo by Marvin Meyer on Unsplash
Is Hong Kong on its knees?
Hong Kong – a place that one cannot even spot on a map, even with a perfect vision, has been on the news since June 2019. The Hong Kong protests in 2019 started because of a bill that would have allowed extraditions to mainland China. The movement then morphed into a wider anti-government protest and 2 million Hongkongers flooded the streets to fight for the democratic rights they acquired from the British Government back in 1841.
As I write those words, rapidly expanding coronavirus is the 2020 breakthrough news from Asia. Entire cities are quarantined, people flow is controlled, international transports are cancelled.
As I write those words, rapidly expanding coronavirus is the 2020 breakthrough news from Asia. Entire cities are quarantined, people flow is controlled, international transports are cancelled.
Despite all those unfortunate events, the city did not cripple – many workers are currently working via their ‘digital office’ wherease pupils and students are attending school online.
‘Being digital’ is a must in extraordinary times, but organization must be able to stay in contact with their colleagues and customers even during ordinary times.
Digital transformation must be on every organization’s agenda, regardless of their size.
How is your digital journey going on? Are you feeling confident that you have the right team in place?
Digital transformation must be on every organization’s agenda, regardless of their size.
How is your digital journey going on? Are you feeling confident that you have the right team in place?
Some of VC-A current opportunities
| Opportunity | Id | Ticket | Overview | Who could be interested? |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Axion Blue Suite | Axion Blue-XXX | €100k to €100M | Set up and invest in a series of funds in multiple verticals: startups, NPL, RE, securities, commodities... | Fund Managers, HNWI, FO, Asset Managers, Portfolio Managers, Corporations, Investors |
| Asset Backed Loans | Bond Monetisation | €3M+ or 3% of Bond FV | We are looking for asset-backed projects and equity investors to issue and monetise bonds for loans in excess of €20M. | New project developers, construction companies and asset managers with cash available in excess of €3M willing to finance large projects and/or monetise existing assets |
| Digital Bank | Diginacria | €7.5M -> €100M | A well-established and popular German fintech company is looking to raise up to EUR 7.5m in expansion capital to become the largest fintech bank based in Europe’s single currency area with a truly global reach. Additional assets can be included to build up a strong balance sheet and move into market-making | UHNWI, security traders, VC/PE specialised in fintechs, banks, and financial institutions |
| Non Performing Loans | NPL Fund | €5M -> €100M | Value Creation - Alternative is looking for investors to set up a regulated non-performing loans fund to acquire bad consumer debt in the kingdom of Spain | Distressed funds, hedge funds, HNWI, UHNWI, financial institutions, bad debt recovery entities |
| Foreign Exchange | FX and Trade Finance | €5M -> €100M | We structure finance solutions for international trades involving currency exchange and supplier credits | Import-export agencies, trading companies, lenders |
| Regulated Funds Management | Crypto-PIF | €5M -> €100M | Looking for a partner investor to set up a regulated professional investment fund (PIF) in Malta to raise money through tokenization | Established and would-be fund managers, non-EU banks and financial institutions, companies looking to raise funding from institutional investors |
| Cybersecurity | Alibaba | >€5M | We are looking for European companies serving data-dependent industries willing to swap shares with a US company listed on Nasdaq and offer our IP protected cybersecurity software | System integrators, IT services companies, consulting firms, VC and PE in IT companies looking for an exit |
| M&A and Fundraising | VC-A M&A Suite | €250k+ | We are looking for Strategic Partners and Investors to help us develop VC-A solutions through JV and alliances | HNWI, UHNWI, M&A boutiques, hedge funds, VC/PE, FOs, consulting firms, investment banks |
| Unicorn Startups | Pre-IPO | €100k+ | We trade unicorn shares on the secondary market. Currently on screen: Flexport, Rubrik (Shares owned directly), Kraken (Shares owned directly), BitPay (Shares in an SPV), Eat Just (Shares owned in an SPV), Udemy (Shares owned directly) etc. from $100k investment up | Mass-affluents, HNWI, UHNWI, hedge funds |
You can download a blind list of VC-A leads here.
About Value Creation - Alternative
Value Creation – Alternative is a Strategy and Investment Advisory firm. We help companies to develop their business through acquisition and organic growth. We accompany our clients throughout the entire life cycle of their corporate development programme: strategy definition, target search, due-diligence, negotiation, transformation map, change management and digitalisation.
We are a worldwide network of more than 1,000 seasoned professionals with more than 45,000 contacts and have collectively advised M&A projects worth in excess of US$100B.
We support complex strategic and operational business decisions with deep analysis and robust processes. Our methodology is a combination of desk research, interviews and application of our internal know how.