Friday, August 16, 2024

The Delco Blogger

The Delco Blogger.com focuses on various aspects of life and the every day people & happenings in Delaware County, Pennsylvania, often referred to as Delco. The blog covers a wide range of topics including local news, events, food, culture, and community stories. It aims to highlight the unique characteristics and vibrant community spirit of the area. 


The Delco Blogger features posts about upcoming events, restaurant reviews, spotlights on local businesses, and stories about notable residents. It also includes opinion pieces on local issues, providing a platform for community discussion and engagement. The blog serves as a valuable resource for both residents and visitors, offering insights and recommendations about what to do and see in Delaware County. 


In summary, The Delco Blogger is a comprehensive guide to the local life and culture of Delaware County, PA, celebrating its community through diverse and engaging content.

Thursday, October 21, 2021

Song for You

 

Saturday, August 29, 2020

Startup Camp

 

Recent FinTech Acquisitions Draw Big Buyers

Acquisition is one of the fastest methods toward growth. 

Take the FinTech Startup I just invested in for example.

Their application’s proprietary percentage-based micro saving technology allows users to save money as they spend… 

By taking a percentage of each transaction they make and saving it towards a short-term goal (car down payment, vacation, new car, etc.).

As if that alone wasn’t enough to attract the eyes of potential buyers… 

This startup also collects some extremely valuable data; arguably one of their most attractive assets.

They know what product each user is saving for, how much money they are saving, when they want to buy it, and where they spend their money.

Buyout potential for something like this is pretty much endless.

Right now, you can invest alongside the $100,000 investment I personally made in this FinTech startup, through this special offer.

And to show you that acquisitions in the FinTech world are a pretty big deal…

I’ve put together a report with some of the latest buyouts in the space and how much they went for.

 

Big Things Happening in FinTech

 

Regular people are more comfortable than ever with FinTech. The tools that bring finance online and on-demand are taking over the industry.

We just made our biggest investment yet, into a FinTech startup with a percentage-based cashback savings app. Click here to learn how you can invest right now.

People are banking and sending money from the palms of their hands. The younger generations especially are moving away from the slow-moving and bureaucratic world of legacy finance. FinTech has swept in and offered them better alternatives.

Consumers aren’t the only ones to have embraced FinTech, big businesses use it too. Tools that improve accounting, payment processing, and financial security are in high demand. 

And perhaps the biggest news in FinTech today is the crazy number of high-valuation acquisitions that persist through the recession. 

 

Why Acquisitions Aren’t Slowing Down

 

With all that’s happening economically during this global pandemic, you might think that startup exits have come to a halt.

In terms of IPOs, you would be mostly right (even though insurance app Lemonade just went public for $319 million in July). 

However, you may be surprised to hear that M&A activity hasn’t really slowed down. Big businesses are still buying up great ideas at a healthy rate — especially in FinTech

The interesting thing is, this has happened before. Historically speaking, acquisition activity does persist through a recession. 

Let’s look at the Great Recession. 

According to the National Bureau of Economic Research

In 2007, there were 12,121 mergers and acquisitions in the United States. Next year in 2008, that number had dropped to 10,156. In 2009, it dipped down to 8,281 before climbing back up in 2010. That isn’t the catastrophic decline you’d expect. 

Compare this to the fact that in Q2 of 2008 there were zero IPOs for the first time in U.S. history. And yet, there were 10,156 M&As…

How can that be?

The reason acquisitions persisted then (and are doing the same now) is that acquiring business is often the best way for a large company to grow and adapt. Acquisitions give large companies a chance to pivot, stabilize, and rebrand.

The truth is, more of these big players are substituting R&D for M&A. Sometimes, it’s simpler to buy innovation than to develop it yourself.

 

Why Acquisitions are Attractive to Angel Investors

 

Early exits are important to angel investors, and acquisitions are usually the quickest kind around. When big companies see an opportunity, they pounce. This means juicy startups, like the one we just invested in, are likely to be bought up quickly. 

Unlike venture capitalists who operate on fixed fund cycles and must distribute returns to their partners, angels are loose, liquid, and mobile. 

As soon as returns come in, they can be reinvested into their startup portfolio, no waiting period, no distribution of funds. Returns can be quickly flipped into new startups — growing your portfolio and reducing risk. A 5X return can be spread across five more startups. This way, a risky portfolio can quickly grow into a diverse and stable one with an excellent risk to reward profile. 

Acquisitions help to expedite the cycle of exits and reinvestments.

Right now, you can invest in the same FinTech startup we just dropped $200,000 into with this Boardroom Spotlight offer. They’re doing what Big Banks have yet to do –– allowing users to “save while they spend” with proprietary percentage-based micro saving technology.

 

Recent Major FinTech Acquisitions

 

Things are moving quickly in FinTech right now. Startups are being acquired at an incredible rate. Even with the economic wind-down caused by COVID-19, the FinTech space still shows outstanding signs of activity. 

Here are a few recently acquired FinTech startups worth checking out.

Worldpay

In June of last year, payment processing company Worldpay was acquired by Fidelity National Information Services for a ridiculous $34 billion

Before that, Worldpay had already acquired 5 startups of its own.

This was a FinTech goldmine — before the acquisition, it was the largest U.S. merchant acquirer in terms of transaction volume. 

Plaid

Plaid develops financial services APIs. Basically, it helps developers share banking information more easily. This was a perfect fit for Visa, which announced that it will be acquiring Plaid for $5.3 billion

Before the acquisition, Plaid had raised $309.3 million in funding and acquired Quovo, a FinTech startup working in account aggregation and data analytics for the financial industry. 

Honey

Honey is a free browser extension that automatically finds and applies coupons at checkout. On top of that, it saves users money on Amazon by showing them price history, offering “best price detection”, and giving them a customizable watchlist of products. 

After raising $31.8 million, Honey was acquired by PayPal for $4 billion.

Verse 

P2P money-sharing app Verse just landed a deal with FinTech giant Square. A competitor to apps like PayPal and Venmo — Verse raised $37.6 million in funding and was then acquired for between $34 and $56 million.

iZettle

iZettle is a competitor to Square. While Square has seen success in the U.S., it has been slow to expand internationally. iZettle is taking over the European market where Square has no foothold. 

iZettle raised around $325 million in funding and was then acquired by PayPal for $2.2 billion.

 

Why Our Latest Startup Deal is Likely to be Acquired

 

A few clear signs point to our latest startup getting acquired sometime down the line. 

  1.  The team has some of the best talent in the FinTech industry.

The very same masterminds that turned Acorns into an $860 million monster have joined the management team of this new app. 

This banking, savings, lifestyle app is the next logical step after Acorns. The outstanding team is filling in the gaps left behind by Acorns and learning from its mistakes. 

  1.  The platform is acquiring new users at industry-low costs.

The faster the company can scale the faster it will become a shining opportunity for big businesses. With industry-low Customer Acquisition Costs of $14 and outstanding marketing channels, this startup won’t have any problem conquering the market. 

A larger user base not only means more customers but more data. Which leads me to my next point…

  1.  The user data is a goldmine to an acquirer.

Probably the number one thing that will attract acquirers is the data. On top of loads of standard user data, this startup collects some very interesting data. They know what product each user is saving for, how much money they are saving, and when they want to buy it. 

It’s easy to see how many brands could utilize this information. In FinTech acquisitions, sometimes it all comes down to the data. And this FinTech is well aware of the value their data has.


Get an inside look at the latest startup trends and opportunities.

Source:  © 2020 StartupCamp

Friday, June 5, 2020

War Is Not The Answer


On Sunday, Philadelphia police officers and firefighters responded to 378 fires, 14 fires that were declared arson, 246 commercial burglaries, four acts of graffiti, and 154 acts of vandalism, along with 21 shooting victims, Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said at an afternoon news conference.

At least five were injured in West Philadelphia, where Outlaw reported police cars were set on fire and people threw bricks, rocks, and Molotov cocktails around the area of 52nd and Market Streets during Sunday’s unrest.Of the 418 people so far arrested for failure to disperse or obey curfew, 314 were city residents, Outlaw said. With more protest activity in Center City on Monday, police would continue to restrict areas downtown and enforce the 6 p.m. curfew, she said, with assistance from the National Guard and other local law enforcement agencies. “What you’re seeing across the country right now is unlike any of us have seen. We have been sitting on a powder keg for quite some time and it has burst,” Outlaw said. “You layer that with the level of the anger that’s been pent up, and then you add technology.”




The police department has to adapt to technology's role in the protests and the “countertactics” it allows demonstrators to use, which have changed the way police need to manage crowds, she said. She said people have used coordinated efforts to disperse activity across the city and make police split up, and that police need more resources to manage such situations. “What happened yesterday is that we were there, we addressed it, and then we could only stay for so long and we had to leave and then it rekindled all over again,” Outlaw said. “We don’t know what we’re going to be dealing with and it continues to unfold each and every day,” she added.


— Justine McDaniel  18 police officers were injured, two of whom remain hospitalized. Injuries included chemical burns, broken bones, and head injuries.

Monday, June 1, 2020

War is Not good ERASEE


The Right to Protest Does Not Give Us Liberty to Kill, Steal & Destroy 
On Sunday, Philadelphia police officers and firefighters responded to 378 fires, 14 fires that were declared arson, 246 commercial burglaries, four acts of graffiti, and 154 acts of vandalism, along with 21 shooting victims, Police Commissioner Danielle Outlaw said at an afternoon news conference.
18 police officers were injured, two of whom remain hospitalized. Injuries included chemical burns, broken bones, and head injuries.


“For Benny there was no line where his activism ended, and his art began. To him, using his brush and his pen to capture the essence and spirit of his time was as much an act of protest as sitting-in or sitting-down was for me. I can see him now: thinking, speaking, articulating what needs to be done and in the next few moments trying to make real what he had been contemplating. He was honest to a fault, and I think it was his determination to speak the plain truth that shaped his demand for justice and social integrity. He never aligned with any political group, but would offer the full weight of his support to anyone he thought was standing for truth.”
— Congressman John Lewis










Where are the riots and protests happening in the US following ...









At least five were injured in West Philadelphia, where Outlaw reported police cars were set on fire and people threw bricks, rocks, and Molotov cocktails around the area of 52nd and Market Streets during Sunday’s unrest.
Of the 418 people so far arrested for failure to disperse or obey curfew, 314 were city residents, Outlaw said.
With more protest activity in Center City on Monday, police would continue to restrict areas downtown and enforce the 6 p.m. curfew, she said, with assistance from the National Guard and other local law enforcement agencies.
“What you’re seeing across the country right now is unlike any of us have seen. We have been sitting on a powder keg for quite some time and it has burst,” Outlaw said. “You layer that with the level of the anger that’s been pent up, and then you add technology.”
The police department has to adapt to technology's role in the protests and the “countertactics” it allows demonstrators to use, which have changed the way police need to manage crowds, she said. She said people have used coordinated efforts to disperse activity across the city and make police split up, and that police need more resources to manage such situations.

“What happened yesterday is that we were there, we addressed it, and then we could only stay for so long and we had to leave and then it rekindled all over again,” Outlaw said.
“We don’t know what we’re going to be dealing with and it continues to unfold each and every day,” she added.
— Justine McDaniel  


In response to the above post and so many traumatic images along with other posts  seen on Instagram and all over the place from the Philadelphia Inquirer I would like to say that I born in Philadelphia I refuse to buy the fake news and black lives matter rhetoric where the majority of black community keep claiming the race card while it may have played a part in the individual officer that brutalized and murdered George Floyd I wouldn't give it that much power because if you know anything about the elite and powers that want to rule, dominate & destroy society like George Soros you would begin to understand we are dealing with a bigger fish than one another.   I am completely against any & all forms of police brutality, abuse of power along with all forms of abuse for that matter no matter who believes they are justified to act out on another human being for their prior injuries  to perpetrate them on an innocent new victim in the present.  When will justice be paid?  In many instances probably never in this lifetime.   Violence never solves anything but to create more of what we all don't want.  I do believe the men & cop that murderd George Floyd deserves to be severely punished  [even the death penalty] to the full extent of the law but to punish other innocent people doesn't add up to me.  It is a lose/lose type of behavior and cannot possibly bring any positive end.  What do we tell the kids of all races, beliefs and nationalities that this is the way to create any kind of future or resolve our differnces?  Without open dialogue nothing changes. 


In Philadelphia as a kid during the 60's &  racial riots  I didn't understand what was happening I had a couple of my own  personal incidents of being racially profiled myself as a young white girl; I was not able to sort it all out or to defend myself but over the years life has a way of teaching you to hang onto anger & hate or look for the balance and seek out compassion.    My parents never supported hate, racism or bigotry;   I'm grateful for that because it showed me to keep an open mind and not to shut down my heart forever.  


Over the last week it saddens me to see people acting out  so violently towards one another and towards the Philadelphia police who were not the guilty parties of the murder of George Floyd.  And so where do we draw the line?  People who are using extreme violence to express their anger will continue to feed their anger and allow it to grow hurting themselves  over and over again along with  the next generation. There is an old saying "while your out chasing monsters make sure you don't become one"   


Many people claim their rights have been violated mismanaged, dismissed and not heard ; that they it was another incident of all whites are bad and from the  evil empire with the people of privelege which is far from the truth  at least in my part of the world.  We all need one another; we are part of the human experience and it isn't always an easy trip. We never know what someone else has been through in life  .  I have had many injustices throughout my life like every other human being  but to go and try and demand others pay for past injustices wouldn't do me or my ancestors any homage.    If you are a believer in justice I know that God is our judge, jury and vindicator. 

Only God knows a mans heart; what's in yours? 

 As Gandhi said: "an eye for an eye will make the whole world blind"   Putting out fire with gasoline isn't working so far.  Lets try and get along so we can move humanity forward.  May healing happen for us all.  
God Bless you

- Meg O' Hanlon

— Rob Tornoe