Daily Business Report: Tuesday, March 14, 2023
The collapse of Silicon Valley Bank: a one-off
calamity, or sign of more trouble for California?
By Ben Christopher | CalMatters
On Friday morning, California saw something the country hasn’t witnessed since the bad old days of the 2008 financial crisis: the collapse of a major bank.
California regulators seized Silicon Valley Bank — a storied cornerstone of the start-up economy, and, as of last year, the country’s 16th largest bank — declaring it to be “conducting its business in an unsafe manner” and insolvent.
The bank plans to reopen Monday under the stewardship of bank regulators with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which announced late Sunday that it planned to guarantee all deposits. It took that step in response to panic across the Bay Area that businesses and nonprofits with millions of dollars in the failed bank’s vaults might be unable to access their cash and be forced to shutter.
Now, Silicon Valley investors, start-up employers, California budget analysts and lawmakers are watching closely to see whether this is the end of a minor crisis — or just the beginning of a major one precipitated by higher interest rates.
Gov. Gavin Newsom welcomed the Sunday afternoon federal intervention, saying in a statement that it will have “profoundly positive impacts on California … ensuring our innovation economy can continue to grow and move forward.”
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Newsom administration’s Department of Finance said it was still far too early to say what the bank failure and its attendant economic impact might have on the state’s already dragging budget picture.
Silicon Valley Bank’s sudden demise will be studied and debated for weeks and months to come. But for all the bank’s association with innovation and newfangled tech, the factors behind its collapse seemed to be, in the words of Bloomberg columnist Matt Levine, “sort of boring and normal” as far as bank failures go.
Silicon Valley Bank in Santa Clara on March 10, 2023. (Photo by Jeff Chiu, AP Photo, via CalMatters)
The U.S. has lost 58 ‘million-dollar’
cities since the market’s peak in July
The U.S. has lost 58 “million-dollar” cities — cities where the typical home is worth $1 million or more — since the housing market peaked last July, a new Zillow analysis shows.
In the six months after the peak, the typical home in million-dollar cities lost an average of $114,500 in value.
The housing market is singing a much different tune than in recent years as it continues to
rebalance toward normal. Last year set a record for the most new million-dollar cities amid supercharged housing demand. Both demand and supply hit the brakes in the second half of 2022 after mortgage rates spiked. Buyers, stretched thin in what they could afford, flocked to lower-priced homes, a reversal from earlier in the pandemic. With fewer buyers able to use the support of historically low interest rates to help afford homes with a high price tag, expensive markets felt the biggest impact of the slowdown.
SDSU researchers to genetically engineer
bacteria that efficiently extract rare earth elements
By Susanne Clara Bard
Rare earth elements (REEs) like lanthanum and neodymium are essential components of modern electronics, from cell phones and solar panels to satellites and electric vehicles. These heavy metals occur all around us, albeit in tiny quantities. But demand continues to rise and because they occur in such low concentrations, traditional methods of extracting REEs can be inefficient, environmentally polluting, and detrimental to the health of workers.
Now, with funding from the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) Environmental Microbes as a BioEngineering Resource (EMBER) program, San Diego State University researchers are developing advanced extraction methods to boost the domestic supply of REEs.
“We are trying to develop a new procedure for recovery which is environmentally friendly and more sustainable,” said biologist and principal investigator Marina Kalyuzhnaya.
To do this, the researchers will tap into the natural propensity of methane-consuming bacteria living in extreme conditions to capture REEs from the environment.
Complex learned social behavior
discovered in bee’s ‘waggle dance’
By Mario Aguilera
Passing down shared knowledge from one generation to the next is a hallmark of culture and allows animals to rapidly adapt to a changing environment.
While widely evident in species ranging from human infants to naked mole rats or fledgling songbirds, early social learning has now been documented in insects.
Publishing on the cover of the journal Science, a University of California San Diego researcher and his colleagues uncovered evidence that social learning is fundamental for honey bees. Professor James Nieh of the School of Biological Sciences and his collaborators discovered that the “waggle dance,” which signals the location of critical resources to nestmates through an intricate series of motions, is improved by learning and can be culturally transmitted. The study demonstrates the importance of early social signal learning in one of the most complex known examples of non-human spatial referential communication.
Local professor Allesandro Sette elected
to the American Academy of Microbiology
La Jolla Institute for Immunology (LJI) Professor Alessandro Sette is working to understand microbes past, present, and future. His laboratory investigates how the body’s T cells remember previous invaders and vaccines, react to current threats—and protect us from emerging diseases. This research has shed light on how immune cells defend us from threats such as SARS-CoV-2, HIV, tuberculosis, influenza, dengue, and malaria. In fact, since 2020, Sette’s laboratory has been at the forefront of SARS-CoV-2 research and his team has provided critical information about the life-saving power of COVID-19 vaccines.
In recognition of this groundbreaking work, the American Academy of Microbiology recently elected Sette as a fellow of the Academy. AAM is the honorific leadership group within the American Society for Microbiology (ASM), one of the largest life science societies in the world. “I was very happy, pleased, and enthusiastic to get the news,” says Sette.
Sony Electronics launches a new
retinal projection camera kit
SAN DIEGO — Sony Electronics announces the DSC-HX99RNV kit, a new retinal projection camera kit that helps people with visual impairments see to capture the world around them.
This kit consists of Sony’s DSC-HX99 compact camera and QD Laser’s RETISSA NEOVIEWER, a viewfinder that uses laser retinal projection technology.
Together, Sony and QD Laser are offering a new experience with focus-free retinal projection, allowing people with low vision a new, sharper way to view and photograph the world.
Guidehouse Insights names Oracle a leader
in advanced distribution management systems
SAN DIEGO — As distributed energy resources surge, distribution utilities need new tools to modernize the grid and safely integrate and manage the influx of new energy sources and devices. Recognizing Oracle’s ability to deliver the holistic enterprise-wide platform and data intelligence utilities need to navigate this transition, Guidehouse Insights again named
Oracle Energy and Water a leader in its ADMS Vendors report. See the results here. The Guidehouse Insights Leaderboard for Advanced Distribution Management System Vendors scored eight companies on their strategy and execution based on 10 criteria.
NuVasive celebrates 20-year
milestone of the XLIF procedure
SAN DIEGO — NuVasive Inc., a leader in spine technology innovation, focused on transforming spine surgery with minimally disruptive, procedurally integrated solutions, announced the 20-year milestone achievement of its lateral lumbar procedure, extreme lateral interbody fusion (XLIF). Today, with 300,000 procedures performed, 200+ educational courses hosted, 500+ peer-reviewed publications and 60+ products launched, XLIF continues to demonstrate superior and more predictable outcomes than traditional spinal fusion procedures.
Comedian Darrell Hammond
appears April 1 at Jamul Casino
JAMUL —Jamul Casino will welcome Darrell Hammond to The Rooftop for a one-of-a-kind dinner and comedy show on April 1, at 5:30 p.m. and 8 p.m.
Widely recognized for his sharp humor and masterful impressions of politicians, celebrities and newsmakers on Saturday Night Live (SNL), Hammond has been keeping audiences laughing for nearly three decades.
He comes to Jamul Casino as part of its Supper Club at The Rooftop series, which pairs outstanding entertainment with exceptional cuisine.
Sycuan Casino Resort and Singing Hills
Golf Resort named 2022 Businesses of the Year
SAN DIEGO — Sycuan Casino Resort has received the prestigious Hospitality Award from the San Diego East County Chamber of Commerce’s 2022 Business of the Year Awards. Additionally, Sycuan’s Singing Hills Golf Resort was awarded the Entertainment & Recreation Award. Sycuan has been a member of the SDEC Chamber for more than a decade and has partnered on several initiatives and events over the years including the Annual Grip It & Rip It Golf Tournament, the Annual Installation and Awards Dinner and the Women in Leadership Luncheon.
Global nonprofit CureDuchenne
to host FUTURES National Conference
SAN DIEGO — CureDuchenne, a global nonprofit committed to finding and funding a cure for Duchenne muscular dystrophy, announced its FUTURES National Conference will be held from April 20-23, 2023 in San Diego. FUTURES is a three-day event focused on bringing education, connection and hope to the Duchenne community. The annual event will take place as a hybrid event, offering attendees a chance to participate both online and in-person, at the Marriott Marquis & Marina. This year’s event theme is Bright Futures, placing importance on the acceleration of critical research, improvement of care and quality of life for all.
Axos Bank provides FDIC deposit
insurance coverage up to $150 million
with insured cash sweep
SAN DIEGO — Axos Bankiprovides its Insured Cash Sweep (ICS) program, which offers multimillion-dollar FDIC insurance coverage – and peace of mind – to commercial, small business, and consumer banking clients. Through IntraFi Network Deposits, the ICS program provides expanded protection of liquid deposits up to $150 million with FDIC insurance, backed by the full faith of the federal government. Consumers can open accounts digitally or through a relationship manager and access a best-in-class consumer online platform & mobile application.
BlueNalu advances strategic
partnership wih Nutreco
SAN DIEGO — BlueNalu, a global leader in the development of cell-cultured seafood, announced the signing of a Letter of Intent (LOI) with Nutreco, a leader in animal nutrition and aquafeed. Building on the success of earlier collaborations, this agreement represents joint interest in the establishment and scale-up of a food-grade supply chain for cell-cultured seafood manufacturing. This LOI constitutes the third agreement between the two companies, that originated in December 2019, and coincided with the participation of Nutreco in the Series A round of financing of BlueNalu.
Cue Health launches new suite
of at-home diagnostic test kits
SAN DIEGO — Cue Health, a health care technology company, announced the nationwide launch of a new suite of consumer-friendly, at-home diagnostic test kits. These easy-to-use kits provide individuals with access to accurate, reliable testing from the comfort of their own homes, making it easier for people to take control of their health. The tests are integrated into Cue Care – the company’s innovative test-to-treat service. Cue provides personalized care and access to convenient treatment, including e-prescriptions and medication delivery, from the privacy of home.
Revelation Biosciences appoints Julia Bohannon
and Dr. Antonio Hernandez to advisory board
SAN DIEGO — Revelation Biosciences Inc., a life sciences company that is focused on the development of immunologic-based therapies for the prevention and treatment of disease, announced it has appointed Julia Bohannon and Antonio Hernandez, M.D., to its scientific advisory board. Hernandez and Bohannon are inventors of the phosphorylated hexaacyl disaccharide (PHAD) based technology licensed from Vanderbilt University, previously announced on Oct. 6, 2022. Revelation Biosciences Inc. is a life sciences company focused on the development of immunologic-based therapies for the prevention and treatment of disease.
Ambrx Biopharma raises $78 million
and completes its ATM program
SAN DIEGO — Ambrx Biopharma Inc. or Ambrx announced that it has completed net sales of approximately $78 million of American Depositary Shares pursuant to the company’s at-the-market (“ATM”) program established on Aug 5, 2022, through Cowen and Company LLC, acting as sales agent. The ATM program had an aggregate offering price of up to $80 million in gross proceeds. Through the utilization of the ATM, the company has raised $78 million in net proceeds, after deducting sales commissions, thereby exhausting the capacity of the ATM and completing it.
