Daily Business Report: Friday, Jan. 14, 2022
San Diego company identifies $1 billion in car
loan application fraud tied to fake employers
Point Predictive Inc., the San Diego-based company that provides machine learning solutions to the lending industry, announced that its industry-leading fraud team has reached the milestone of identifying $1 billion in fraud loan value tied to more than 5,000 fake employers on auto loan applications. The findings took place from February 2019 through December 2021. Point Predictive is the first company to proactively investigate the fake employer problem in the lending industry and identify the size and scope of the problem.
Point Predictive found that in the cases of fake employer fraud, a borrower creates a fake employer to generate forged paystubs, falsified income and synthetic identities to car dealers and auto lenders during financing. The fake employers were identified by Point Predictive’s Fraud Analysts during investigations of loan applications flagged by Auto Fraud Manager — the companies consortium risk scoring solution used by auto lenders nationwide.
During the investigations, the identified fake employers were associated with fake websites, falsified incomes, high rates of confirmed synthetic identity and high rates of defaulted loans.
“The rise in the use of fake employers on credit applications is astounding, and the $1 billion threshold only proves the growing threat of this problem,” said Justin Hochmuth, senior fraud analyst at Point Predictive, “We’re uncovering about 100 new fake employers that are being created each week.”
TOP PHOTO: Forged paystubs were used in the cases of fake employer fraud, according to Point Predictive Inc.
Board of Supervisors approves
two-year Home Kitchen Ordinance
The Board of Supervisors Tuesday unanimously approved a two-year temporary authorization of an ordinance that will ultimately allow people to legally operate “mini-restaurants” out of their homes. They could serve as many as 30 in-person, take-out, or delivery meals a day, with a maximum of 60 meals a week. Operators will be required to get a health permit, and home kitchens must pass food safety inspections.
Vice Chair Nora Vargas and Supervisor Joel Anderson, who brought a request to draft an ordinance for microenterprise home kitchen operations, or MEHKOs, to the board in September, said that the home kitchens wouldn’t compete with established restaurants but would help local communities, the economy and people with cooking skills trying to make ends meet.
“Legally implemented MEHKOS can serve as incubators for aspiring restaurateurs to test out and vet a menu while learning the basics of what it takes to run a small-scale retail operation,” Vargas said. “I want to make sure that families and businesses in our region are thriving, not just surviving, and this opens the door for home cooks to do just that.”
Anderson said MEHKOS also provide a great service to communities “because people are getting quality food from their neighbors.”
“On every level I just believe this is a terrific program,” Anderson said.
California doubles down efforts to keep
film and TV productions in the state
| “Veep.” “You.” “Miracle Workers.” “American Horror Story.” “Lucifer.” “Good Girls.” |
| These TV shows have one thing in common: They originally filmed outside of California — in New York, Louisiana, Vancouver, even the Czech Republic — but were coaxed back here at least in part because of tax credits from the state. |
| Twenty-nine TV shows have relocated to California after being promised state funds, part of a yearslong effort to fight an exodus of productions from Hollywood. |
| And now, flush with cash amid a budget surplus, California is fighting even harder. |
| In July, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill that adds $330 million to the available tax credits for film and TV productions in 2022 and 2023, on top of the $330 million that was already budgeted each year through 2025. |
| The next round of deadlines for applying for film tax credits is approaching at the end of the month. |
State residents face big cost increases
CalMatters
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s proposal to give Californians a $523 million gas tax holidaylikely became even more appealing to many residents on Wednesday, when the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that inflation skyrocketed 7 percenr in 2021 to its highest level in 40 years. The price of gas shot up nearly 50 percent, used cars and trucks 37 percent, energy 29 percent, food 6 percent and shelter 4 pecent — increases that experts say erased many of workers’ wage gains amid the pandemic. “Households are seeing their purchasing power disappear, and that is not good news for the economy,” said Joel Naroff, president of Pennsylvania-based Naroff Economic Advisors.
Meanwhile, California’s unemployment department is seeking to claw back benefits it may have fraudulently paid out during the pandemic — and some residents unable to prove they were unemployed or looking for work could soon be on the hook for tens of thousands of dollars, Jessie Bedayn reports for CalMatters’ California Divide project.
Report predicts 100,000 new cannabis jobs in 2022
A new report from CannabizTeam predicts 100,000 new cannabis jobs in 2022.
The detailed report covers hiring trends in the legal U.S. cannabis industry, the top 10 states for cannabis jobs, and national salary ranges for over 60 of the most prevalent cannabis positions in the U.S. It is one of the best resources to have for employers and cannabis job seekers.
“The cannabis industry continued to flourish and show its strength despite some growing pains in 2021,” said Liesl Bernard, CEO of CannabizTeam. “We expect the industry to continue growing in 2022 with expanding MSOs, increase in available capital, more established brands and high population newly-legal adult-use cannabis states including Pennsylvania and New Jersey.”
To view all the content in the 2022 Cannabis Industry Salary Guide, visit:
CannabizTeam.com/cannabis-salary-guide.
Cannabis delivery marketplace launches
first dispensaries in San Diego, Santa Ana
Eaze, a cannabis delivery marketplace, announced the launch of its first Eaze Dispensary store, located in San Diego and the acquisition of a second dispensary in Santa Ana.
The announcement reflects Eaze’s strategic expansion over the past 20 months to multi-channel sales, expanding access for its 2 million registered customers to a huge menu of licensed products via delivery, in-store, and pick up shopping. In August 2021, Eaze announced the acquisition of multi-state retail leader Green Dragon, inaugurating the company’s expansion into dispensary retail in Colorado and Florida.
Eaze Dispensary San Diego is located at 3455 Camino Del Río South in San Diego. Formerly known as Apothokare, Eaze Dispensary San Diego offers in-store shopping, delivery, and pick-up. Store hours are Mon-Sat 8 a.m.- 9 p.m. and Sun 10 a.m. – 7 p.m.
GoFundMe to acquire San Diego’s Classy
Online fundraising company GoFundMe has signed a definitive agreement to acquire San Diego-based Classy, a leading modern nonprofit fundraising software company. The addition of Classy accelerates opportunities to service the nearly $500 billion U.S. philanthropic market as GoFundMe aims to be the most helpful place in the world.
Classy is a rapidly growing giving platform that enables nonprofits to connect donors with the causes they care about, empowering thousands of nonprofits to unlock the generosity of their supporters and helping them advance their respective missions. In 2021, $1.1 billion was raised by nonprofits on the Classy platform, bringing total all-time donations to nearly $4 billion.
“GoFundMe’s vision is to be the most helpful place in the world and partnering with Classy enables us to do that in a differentiated way,” said Tim Cadogan, CEO of GoFundMe. “$5 billion in donations was raised on the GoFundMe and Classy platforms in 2021 — together, we can create a uniquely powerful network that connects donors on GoFundMe to nonprofits who use Classy.”
Insightful Science acquires Omiq Inc.
San Diego software company Insightful Science has acquired Omiq Inc., a company specialized in data science SaaS solutions for high dimensional flow cytometry and quantitative multi-omics data. The company’s principal product, OMIQ, is a flexible cloud platform enabling researchers to identify drug or therapeutic interactions with a biological system through the tracking of biomarkers within lab samples.
The addition of OMIQ expands Insightful Science’s offerings in flow cytometry software solutions including Cytapex Bioinformatrics and FCS Express.
San Diegans 12 and older should get COVID-19 booster shots
Now that COVID-19 vaccine boosters are available for fully vaccinated people ages 12 and up, county health officials are urging eligible San Diegans to get all the recommended doses.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, a booster shot helps to provide protection against the highly contagious Omicron variant, both in preventing the disease, lessening symptoms and decreasing the likelihood of hospitalization.
To date, 906,615 San Diegans have received booster shots. The CDC recommends a Pfizer or Moderna booster shot five months after their second dose. A Johnson & Johnson booster is recommended two months after the second dose. Pfizer boosters have been approved for everyone 12 years and older. Moderna and Johnson & Johnson boosters are only available for adults 18 years and older.
Highmetric changes name, unifies
under NewRocket brand
Highmetric, a San Diego technology strategy, design, and operations provider and a ServiceNow Elite Partner, announced that it will unify all five companies in its portfolio under the innovative NewRocket name and brand.
Unifying under the NewRocket name brings together the best attributes of all five companies and exemplifies the company’s broadened capabilities and mission to Go Beyond, to deliver meaningful experiences and extraordinary results with ServiceNow. The company, which was acquired by Gryphon Investors in 2021, also announced that the corporate headquarters for NewRocket will be in San Diego.
“The brand embodies our vision and our core values,” said Matt Stoyka, CEO, NewRocket. “The NewRocket brand exemplifies our speed to scale and grow this business and our commitment to deliver a resilient, connected, and transformed enterprise, where employees flourish, companies thrive, and people matter.”
Geek+ and Körber digitalize Ariat
supply chain with smart robotics
Geek+, a leader in AMR technology, announced the successful deployment of autonomous mobile robots (AMRs) at Ariat International, a footwear and apparel brand for equestrian sports, outdoor activities, and work industries. The solution was implemented in collaboration with Geek+’s strategic partner Körber, a leader in supply chain software.
By integrating Geek+ picking and moving robots into Ariat’s supply chain, the solutions improve operational flexibility and order picking efficiency, while reducing labor intensity in its distribution center. Ariat can realize a rapid return on its investment and quickly establish an intelligent supply chain that meets increased consumer demand.
San Diego’s DERMALA awarded Grand
Prize in Colgate Connect Challenge
DERMALA, a San Diego consumer dermatology company that develops novel treatments for chronic skin conditions, has won the Grand Prize in the global pitch competition; Colgate Connect Challenge.
Created by Colgate-Palmolive, the inaugural Colgate Connect Challenge targeted startups from around the world, focused on “developing world-changing products to promote a healthy future.” DERMALA was chosen as one of six finalists to present in front of a panel of judges virtually, ultimately winning the Grand Prize.
The company develops novel treatments for chronic skin conditions. Its #FOBO (Fear of Breaking Out) Kit, is a personalized, microbiome-powered solution for acne.
Reali acquires TXR homes,
launches in San Diego
Reali, the real estate and fintech platform transforming home buying and selling, announced its expansion into the San Diego market with the acquisition of TXR Homes. The deal joins TXR Homes’ deep local expertise and inventory with Reali’s one-stop shop — an integrated technology platform with products designed to serve buyers, borrowers, and sellers in one place.
After raising $250 million in Series B funding in August, Reali has identified San Diego as a critical market for its Southern California growth strategy with ambitious California and national growth plans.
The acquisition rapidly increases Reali’s regional footprint and market share. The company plans to continue to expand strategically to make the homeownership journey simple, accessible and stress-free for every customer.
