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AI security and pre-license banking cash in as HHS cracks down on hacks, Trump rekindles Greenland chatter, markets stay hot, climate funds ramp up, and the NBA courts Gulf wealth for Europe
Aikido Security bags $60 million to scale its AI security pitch
Aikido Security raised a $60 million Series B led by DST Global to expand globally and beef up its AI-driven security platform. The company claims 5x revenue growth, a $1 billion valuation, and says its autonomous penetration testing and code remediation can cut costs, improve resilience, and even outperform human testers, which is a sentence guaranteed to make every security engineer sit up straighter.
HHS tells healthcare orgs (and their vendors) to stop being so hackable
HHS is advising HIPAA-regulated healthcare organizations and third-party vendors to strengthen security risk management by hardening systems, software, and medical devices. The goal is to better protect protected health information, support privacy and security, and reduce patient safety risks, because ransomware in a hospital is not an exciting new way to do triage.
Trump revives Greenland takeover talk at Davos, Europe weighs response
US President Donald Trump plans to host talks on Greenland at Davos while repeating that taking the Danish territory is “imperative,” raising tensions with European allies. European leaders are set to meet in Brussels to coordinate a response, with some pushing escalation and others urging restraint to avoid a bigger rupture with Washington. The dispute is also stoking trade-war fears, with retaliatory tariffs a real possibility given Europe’s status as the United States’ largest trading partner.
Standard Chartered says US stocks and gold can keep running, but please do not YOLO it
Standard Chartered regional chief investment officer Manpreet Singh Gill says US equities and gold, both already on a historic run, still have room to rise into 2026. He cites strong tech earnings, lower interest rates, and a weaker dollar supporting stocks despite AI-bubble worries, and says gold’s surge was driven by central banks shifting reserves away from the dollar, a trend he expects to continue. He also stresses the bank is not recommending an all-in bet and points to diversification opportunities including India, which he says trades at a discount to other emerging markets.
Abu Dhabi digital Islamic bank Mal raises $230 million before it has a license
Mal, an Abu Dhabi-based Islamic digital bank, raised $230 million in what it calls the Gulf’s largest seed funding round, led by BlueFive Capital. Led by Abdallah Abu-Sheikh, founder of the Botim calling app, Mal plans to use AI to build mobile-first products launching later this year. It does not yet hold banking licenses and may begin with unregulated fintech offerings while pursuing approvals in the UAE, Bangladesh, Indonesia, and Pakistan, a costly and compliance-heavy process.
ALTÉRRA and BBVA set up $250 million climate co-investment vehicle
Abu Dhabi climate finance fund ALTÉRRA secured $250 million from Spain’s BBVA to establish a UAE-registered climate co-investment vehicle targeting climate-aligned infrastructure, private credit, and private equity. BBVA joins as a strategic limited partner as ALTÉRRA pursues a COP28-backed plan to invest $30 billion and mobilize $250 billion by 2030, a goal it says is about 20% met so far.
NBA courts Gulf sovereign wealth funds for a European league
The NBA is seeking investment from Gulf sovereign wealth funds to help launch a new European basketball league, leaning on investors already active across global sports. Ownership limits in the US cap Gulf funds at no more than 20% of an NBA franchise, while Europe has fewer restrictions, making a new league more appealing. Gulf investors already have NBA-adjacent stakes and partnerships, including Qatar Investment Authority’s minority stake in the ownership group tied to the Washington Wizards and Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala backing LA Lakers owner TWG Global, alongside NBA events and sponsorships in the UAE. Commissioner Adam Silver said European moves could eventually influence practices in the US.
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