My Brain Food This Week...
Kim Kardashian's SKYY Partners makes its first investment, and I wrote a note about Building a New South Africa
Story of the week:
Building a New South Africa
(Mansa Sithole)
Key takeaways:
As of 2022, South Africa ranks 53rd out of 65 countries in terms of technological advancement
Key weaknesses in South Africa's technology sector include regulatory hurdles for startups, limited venture capital, and cybersecurity concerns, among others
With a 10 to 20-year investment cycle, venture capital has the potential to catalyse the development of South Africa’s global technology standing
Other picks for this week:
Netflix loses market leader status to Showmax.
The Federal Reserve and Critical Moments in U.S. Monetary Policy.
World's Largest Nuclear Power Station Prepares for Restart.
Kim Kardashian is investing in the maker of truffle-infused condiments.
Elon Musk's Neuralink has thousands of people lined up for a brain chip implant.
Israel approves hostage deal and pause in war with Hamas.
1. Netflix loses market leader status to Showmax
Netflix, the world’s largest paid video streaming service, is losing market share in Africa as competition from Amazon Prime and Showmax intensifies
Netflix now accounts for 35%, Showmax accounts for 40% of the continent’s streaming market
26% year-on-year growth in paid subscribers for Showmax in the last four years
Showmax dedicated $1 billion to content production and acquisition on the continent in the financial year ending in 2023
2. The Federal Reserve and Critical Moments in U.S. Monetary Policy
After recurring financial panics, notably in 1907, the U.S. established the Federal Reserve in 1913 to stabilise the banking system.
The Fed's early missteps worsened the Great Depression, leading to key reforms like the Banking Act which established the FDIC, and the Gold Reserve Act which relaxed the U.S. Dollar-Gold peg.
Post-WWII, the U.S. dollar was central in global finance, but rising debts and the Vietnam War expenditures led to gold outflows and the end of gold convertibility in 1971.
The late 20th century saw deregulation and the tech bubble, with the Fed adopting a reactive stance.
The 2008 Financial Crisis and COVID-19 saw the Fed introduce zero-interest-rate policy and quantitative easing.
Zero rates and pent up demand resulted in soaring inflation in 2022. The Fed responded with one one of the most aggressive interest rate hiking cycles in U.S. history.
3. World's Largest Nuclear Power Station Prepares for Restart
Tokyo Electric Power Holdings is accelerating preparations for the restart of the Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power station in Niigata Prefecture
Restarting nuclear power stations is crucial for stable power supply
Kashiwazaki-Kariwa boasts the world's highest energy output
4. Kim Kardashian is investing in the maker of truffle-infused condiments
SKKY Partners’s first investment is a consumer company that makes truffle infused sauces
Truff sells its products DTC, as well as at Walmart, Whole Foods, and Publix
Deal terms were not disclosed
5. Elon Musk's Neuralink has thousands of people lined up for a brain chip implant
Thousands of potential patients are reportedly lining up to receive one of Neuralink's first brain chips.
The company is looking for people with quadriplegia or amyotrophic lateral sclerosis to participate in the trial.
6. Israel approves hostage deal and pause in war with Hamas
In the first stage of the deal mediated by Qatar, Hamas is expected to free Israeli women and children held in Gaza
In a second stage of the deal, Hamas would release more women and children in return for Israel prolonging the pause by several days
In its statement, Israel’s government said the war to free more hostages and eliminate Hamas would continue