Category Archives: Evolution

Investors are urging trusts to change their practices in order to remain popular with clients

Analysts continue to call for larger and more liquid funds across the investment company sector as scrutiny of managers and boards is expected to increase through 2021.

Brokers have long called for a shake-up of the investment company sector, with Numis analyst Ewan Lovett-Turner lamenting in July there were too many sub-scale companies trading on wide discounts and called on them to wind up or merge with existing companies.

"The consolidation of wealth managers, the Woodford scandal and MiFID II have increased the focus on liquidity and costs, meaning that a large portion of the investment company universe is not investible to many of the core buyers," Lovett-Turner explained.

The analyst predicted M&A would "remain disappointingly difficult to achieve", but thought the tide may turn as "key stakeholders become more engaged".

Indeed, Lovett-Turner noted a "clear-up" of sub-scale funds had begun post-Covid, with a number of boards recommending shareholders vote against continuation, alongside the UK equity income mega-merger between Murray Income (MUT) and Perpetual Income Growth (PLI), which created a near-1bn sector behemoth.

"We believe there is scope for the sector to undergo a period of consolidation, emerging with fewer investment companies, but offering a more relevant proposition to investors," Lovett-Turner reasoned.

As wealth managers' assets under management grow, the minimum size of fund in which they can invest that cash does, too.

Today, many will not look at funds below 400m in size, according to David Harris, partner at Frostrow Capital.

This presents a problem for the sector, as almost two-thirds (206 out of 345) of investment companies, ex VCTs, have net assets of less than 400m, according to Association of Investment Companies (AIC) data.

More than a third (128) have net assets of less than 200m. Just 11, or 3%, have in excess of 1bn.

If the largest buyers of investment companies will not touch these smaller funds, it impedes their ability to grow and could leave many languishing on wide discounts with no clear catalyst for a re-rating, Harris said.

As well as pressure from the wealth manager community, head of investment trusts at Fidelity International Alex Denny questioned the economic viability of such small trusts.

"If you are an investment management house and you are running things at less than 150m, I cannot believe that you actually make any money," he questioned.

"In which case, how do you display your commitment to running that business?"

Some smaller merger activity has taken place over the past few years, most recently the rollover of Invesco Perpetual Growth into the Invesco Perpetual Select Trust's UK Equity portfolio. However, the combined trust will still have a market capitalisation of less than 200m.

Harris said more mergers need to happen between unconnected trusts, though caveated that aggressive takeovers tend to be less successful and can "waste a lot of time, effort and money".

MUT's tie-up with PLI is a good example of a successful merger between unconnected trusts, with the transaction giving shareholders a vehicle with greater scale, better liquidity and lower fees.

Denny suspects we would have seen more M&A activity had the Covid-19 market downturn lasted longer: "The fast market recovery might give people a period of respite where they decided they do not need to do anything. I actually think it would be better for the sector overall if the consolidation continued."

Peter Walls, manager of the Unicorn Mastertrust fund, said the MUT deal was "groundbreaking" and "welcome", but noted the circumstances were "peculiar" and doubted a similar move would occur elsewhere in the sector.

Ben Mackie, fund manager at Hawksmoor Investment Management, acknowledged there was an issue with sub-scale investment trusts and said that against a changing industry backdrop, "there is certainly a need for trusts to stay relevant".

See the article here:

From evolution to revolution: Investment trust sector urged to grow in order to 'stay relevant' - Investment Week

Between new Texas Longhorns head coach Steve Sarkisians first stint with the USC Trojans, his second stint with the Trojans that ended with his termination in 2015, and his time as the Alabama Crimson Tide offensive coordinator that landed him the job in Austin, he hasnt just matured as a person. His offensive approach has also changed significantly.

Now an attack based first and foremost on the run game and the run-pass option and then building from there, Sarkisian started out as the quarterbacks coach running pro-style offenses under head coach Pete Carroll at USC for quarterback Matt Leinart and running backs Reggie Bush and LenDale White. The emphasis was on running the football and then using play-action passes to create favorable matchups in the throw game.

When Sarkisian became a head coach at a young age even though it was years after being offered the Oakland Raiders job that Lane Kiffin eventually accepted he was still running a pro-style offense, but adjusted to Washingtons previous zone-read based attack that featured running quarterback Jake Locker because he didnt want to change everything the Huskies were running.

After two years with Locker, Keith Price took over the starting quarterback job and didnt provide the same running ability, prompting Sarkisian to start adopting RPOs for the first when those plays were still relatively nascent in the college football world.

Since then, Sarkisian has made adjustments based on his available talent, from pro-style passer Cody Kessler at USC to a bigger running threat like Jalen Hurts at Alabama to a pocket passer in Matt Ryan with the Atlanta Falcons to Tua Tugavoiloa with the Crimson Tide, a passer that Sarkisian described as highly instinctual.

He can make our signals work hes the best signaler Ive ever been associated with, Sarkisian said during a 2020 coaching clinic. I mean this guy will signal things that we didnt even practice, but hell signal it, and it works.

In 2020, Sarkisian handed the keys to his offense to Mac Jones, a much more linear, detail-oriented quarterback was comfortable with the pure progression reads in Sarkisians concepts.

It is an attacking style of offensive play, but a physical brand of football. We believe in running the football and that in turn creates things in the passing game. Ive been fortunate enough that Ive had a 1,000-yard rusher every year Ive called plays in college football, so theres definite belief in running the football. But the balanced attack I think is what makes us go, Sarkisian said of his offense during his introductory press conference at Texas.

Were not just a quarterback-driven system, but we definitely need a quarterback that can play at a high level, which weve been fortunate enough to have I think its five or six top-10 NFL draft picks that have played quarterback in the system with me.

Sarkisian has several key philosophies that influence how he marries the emphasis on running the football with RPOs and then how he builds the passing game off of those concepts and how defense typically try to defend them.

One point of emphasis is that Sarkisian wants to get his wide receivers the ball on the run, especially since defenses that prefer to play zone coverages are typically forced out of them quickly by RPOs. After punishing defenses that want to play zone and getting them into man coverage, Sarkisian wants to run crossing routes to create picks and get his wide receivers the ball on the move and in space to take advantage of their athleticism.

In 2019, he said he didnt think he called a single curl route.

Why would I? he asked.

Curl routes, he explained, are a Cover Three beater and most modern defenses dont play that coverage because RPOs force the read defender to trigger on the run and allow easy passing lanes.

You have to be prepared to beat man to man and you do it that way with people on the move, Sarkisian said. And in my opinion, with your people on the move you can create by putting your best players as the ones that are on the move to catch that ball to go create explosive plays.

A handful of Texas players should benefit from this approach, including Joshua Moore, Jake Smith, Jordan Whittington, and Kelvontay Dixon.

From week to week, one thing that doesnt change is how Sarkisian runs a particular play. He mentioned that sometimes players point out to him how another route used in a certain concept could create a big play, but Sarkisian doesnt believe in that approach.

Our reads remain the same, over, and over, and over, and the kids would be like, Coach, if we adjust.. I dont want to hear it. Its not what we do, Sarkisian said.

On RPOs, Sarkisian illustrated the glance concept that Texas began to run more frequently under offensive coordinator Mike Yurcich. In fact, Yurcich called a variation of it on the first play from scrimmage, resulting in a 78-yard touchdown for Joshua Moore.

Sarkisian emphasized that he doesnt like to tag backside routes to make it a progression passing play if the defense takes the glance route away. Instead, Sarkisian wants to maintain an emphasis on the running game and use the backside wide receivers as blockers. Its a true two-read play hand it off or throw the glance route.

What I believe in running the ball is if you give the quarterback too many options. all you do is throw the ball, Sarkisian said. Well, at some point, in my opinion, you lose the identity of your program and you lose the identity of physicality and toughness that this game is built upon this a physical sport.

As part of what Sarkisian calls a progression passing game quarterbacks are reading progressions instead of coverages the built-in answers for stopping the glance route are hard play-action fakes and then the drop-back passing game.

To make things more difficult for defenses, the quarterback can use what Sarkisian terms a purple tag. The purple tag means that the offensive line blocks for a gap or man play like inside zone or power, although not typically outside zone because of the free backside defensive end. Its not an RPO, however its one of Sarkisians passing concepts, except with the front blocking just like a running play.

Targeting the running back out of the backfield is also an important part of the passing game, including a concept similar to what Texas ran to put away the West Virginia game, when Bijan Robinson caught a 35-yard pass out of the backfield.

Its a point of emphasis Sarkisian Alabamas Najee Harris has 63 catches for 650 yards and 10 touchdowns in the last two seasons.

The least defended player on the field in the pass game is the running back, Sarkisian said.

Sarkisian doesnt want to just use flat routes to the running back he wants to run wheel routes to get his running backs up the field and into space to let them make plays, too. Its an approach that should suit Robinson extremely well after the Arizona product had 15 catches for 196 yards and two touchdowns as a freshman.

What Sarkisian doesnt believe in at this point is the quarterback run game, although he has used it in the past and the personnel currently on campus redshirt junior Casey Thompson and redshirt freshman Hudson Card are both dual-threat quarterbacks who would lose a key part of what makes them special if there arent any designed runs or read options.

We are not a running quarterback team, will not ever be that way, Sarkisian said. We believe in throwing the football and protecting the quarterback.

So thats an area to watch moving forward, but during the clinic, Sarkisian seemed emphatic about that belief.

Even though Sarkisians attack is RPO-based, it all starts with success on the ground, something that the new Texas head coach wont move away from until defenses can stop the run.

Were an RPO team that runs the football. If youre gonna let us run the ball, then we will continue to run the ball. The moment you say were gonna take away the run, our system is built to throw RPOs, Sarkisian said.

Okay, how do you take the RPO? You take them away with leverage, in my opinion. You play man, you play with really hard inside leverage, you take away those throws. All right, so now what do we do? Okay, we have to make you defend throws down the field, so were gonna hard, play pass you and take our shots down the field. Okay. Well, now youve got to block them a little longer. Do you have options for the quarterback to let the ball get out of his hands and play a little quicker? Now were going to run crossers at you. Everybody is catching the ball on the move over and over and over.

At Alabama, the approach produced the No. 2 offense last season and the No. 1 offense this season. Wide receiver Devonta Smith won the Heisman trophy, the first wide receiver to earn that honor since 1991, while Jones and Harris both also finished in the top five. The offensive line was recognized with the Joe Moore award as the top group nationally.

So the formula works. And since Sarkisian believes that Texas already has championship-level talent, the expectation is that the Alabama offensive coordinator and his offense will make have a smooth transition with the Longhorns.

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Steve Sarkisian describes his offensive evolution and RPO-based attack - Burnt Orange Nation

By Elizabeth PennisiJan. 5, 2021 , 12:30 PM

European starlings look nothing like penguins. But these chunky black birds are natural-born swimmers, a new study reveals. The finding may hold key clues to how their bigger black-and-white cousinsand scores of other water-loving birdsgained their ability to swim.

The work is exciting and gives scientists a new direction for studying the evolution of swimming in birds, says Frank Fish, an integrative biologist at West Chester University who was not involved with the research.

The transition from air to water was a gradual one for most aquatic birds, scientists believe. Land-based flyers began by splashingand eventually swimmingon the surfaces of lakes, ponds, and other bodies of water. (For example, when necessary, eagles, ospreys, and songbirds can swim along the surface.) Many adaptations later, some birds began to not only stick their heads under water, but also plunge the rest of their body downward.

This shift from swimming to diving evolved at least 10 times in birds over the past 100 million years, giving the world puffins and penguins. But none of these transitions was thought to be easy: Water is 800 times denser than air and 60 times as viscous.

To explore how birds may have first taken to water, University of Montana, Missoula, graduate student Anthony Lapsansky and colleagues collected nine starlings (Sturnus vulgaris), choosing them to study because they are common invasive birds in the United States. There was no evidence that this species could swim.

First, the researchers placed the starlings on the water of a 3.7-meter-long, 3500-liter tank. I thought they would flap along the surface of the water to get out, he recalls. But they kept flying right out.

So the researchers decided to dunk the birds in the water, simulating a fall from the sky. To their surprise, the starlings swam just as well as diving birds (see video above), Lapsansky reports this week at the virtual annual meeting of the Society for Integrative and Comparative Biology. They gracefully moved their wings up and down as they sped to the surface.

The starlings stroke is remarkably similar to that of puffins, murres, and other avian divers. Until now, most researchers have assumed the puffins slow stroke rate and flexed wings (which generate lift like helicopter blades to propel the bird through the water) were unique adaptations to life underwater. But these unadapted starlings did likewise, suggesting the behaviors are either innate or result from how the density of water limits how they can move, Lapsansky says.

Fish agrees. That starlings immediately flex their wings suggests the birds need to do this to overcome waters increased density and to avoid overstressing their shoulder joint, he explains. They already know how to flex their wings to get around obstacles. Also, like puffins, the starlings used their feet to change direction, so they share another trait with diving birds.

Lapsansky and his colleagues have also found another nonswimming species, the house sparrow (Passer domesticus), swims just as well as starlings. The bottom line, he says, is that it may not have taken nearly as long as scientists thought for the transition from air to water; its likely that many birds winged it.

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Watch this 'nonswimming' bird swim like a champ, giving clues to evolution of penguins - Science Magazine

5G is the fastest-growing mobile technology in history and is being adopted four times as quickly as LTE was when it was introduced, as 5G Americas observed in a new report. For impatient customers, 5G and the new applications it will power cannot come to their neighborhood fast enough. In reality, 5G networks and devices are proliferating at a far faster rate than 4G LTE did at the same relative time in its development.

Consider this brief history: 5G networks began to launch around the world in 2019. 2020 has seen the deployment of nationwide 5G networks by U.S. operators (200m covered pops), the proliferation of 5G-capable flagship devices and the emergence of early 5G use cases. Comparatively, LTE networks first launched in the 2009-2010 timeframe in the U.S., ultimately fueling the rapid growth that peaked about 5 years ago in social media use via mobile devices and the development of new, society-shifting applications such as ride-sharing services like Uber, which launched in 2009 and hit their first billion trips in 2015.

Samsung expects that 2021 will see strong movement toward Standalone 5G networks and further development of the 5G ecosystem, including applications that will more fully utilize 5Gs transformational possibilities. In the coming year, one of the most crucial factors in 5G application development will be the type of spectrum available in each country. In order to have a network that achieves the full potential of 5G, you need to have the right balance of sub-1 GHz, low-band spectrum for mass coverage; mid-band spectrum between 1-6 GHz for a mix of capacity and coverage; and high-band or millimeter wave spectrum for low latency and blazing-fast speeds. To address the wide range of 5G use cases and applications across consumer and business segments, a combination of all three spectrum types, and network architecture enhancements like edge computing resources, are crucial. Here in the U.S., the conclusion of the ongoing C-band auction will provide that critical path to providing more mid-band spectrum for U.S. operators.

5G is the fastest-growing mobile technology in history and is being adopted four times as quickly as LTE was when it was introduced, as 5G Americas observed in a new report. For impatient customers, 5G and the new applications it will power cannot come to their neighborhood fast enough. In reality, 5G networks and devices are proliferating at a far faster rate than 4G LTE did at the same relative time in its development.

Consider this brief history: 5G networks began to launch around the world in 2019. 2020 has seen the deployment of nationwide 5G networks by U.S. operators (200m covered pops), the proliferation of 5G-capable flagship devices and the emergence of early 5G use cases. Comparatively, LTE networks first launched in the 2009-2010 timeframe in the U.S., ultimately fueling the rapid growth that peaked about 5 years ago in social media use via mobile devices and the development of new, society-shifting applications such as ride-sharing services like Uber, which launched in 2009 and hit their first billion trips in 2015.

Samsung expects that 2021 will see strong movement toward Standalone 5G networks and further development of the 5G ecosystem, including applications that will more fully utilize 5Gs transformational possibilities. In the coming year, one of the most crucial factors in 5G application development will be the type of spectrum available in each country. In order to have a network that achieves the full potential of 5G, you need to have the right balance of sub-1 GHz, low-band spectrum for mass coverage; mid-band spectrum between 1-6 GHz for a mix of capacity and coverage; and high-band or millimeter wave spectrum for low latency and blazing-fast speeds. To address the wide range of 5G use cases and applications across consumer and business segments, a combination of all three spectrum types, and network architecture enhancements like edge computing resources, are crucial. Here in the U.S., the conclusion of the ongoing C-band auction will provide that critical path to providing more mid-band spectrum for U.S. operators.

Related Posts

See more here:

5G in 2021: Expectations and Evolution - RCR Wireless News

One sequence encoding two structures

Most proteins have stable, folded structures, but there are rare examples of metamorphic proteins that can switch between two different folds that may each have a different function. Dishman et al. investigated the evolution of XCL1, which is a member of the chemokine family that interconverts between the chemokine fold and a second, noncanonical fold that forms dimers. The authors used nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy to investigate the structures of inferred evolutionary ancestral sequences. Their results suggest that XCL1 evolved from an ancestor with the chemokine fold and then transitioned to prefer the noncanonical fold before reaching the modern-day metamorphic protein.

Science, this issue p. 86

Metamorphic proteins switch between different folds, defying the protein folding paradigm. It is unclear how fold switching arises during evolution. With ancestral reconstruction and nuclear magnetic resonance, we studied the evolution of the metamorphic human protein XCL1, which has two distinct folds with different functions, making it an unusual member of the chemokine family, whose members generally adopt one conserved fold. XCL1 evolved from an ancestor with the chemokine fold. Evolution of a dimer interface, changes in structural constraints and molecular strain, and alteration of intramolecular protein contacts drove the evolution of metamorphosis. Then, XCL1 likely evolved to preferentially populate the noncanonical fold before reaching its modern-day near-equal population of folds. These discoveries illuminate how one sequence has evolved to encode multiple structures, revealing principles for protein design and engineering.

The rest is here:

Evolution of fold switching in a metamorphic protein - Science Magazine

DUBLIN--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The "Big Data Analytics, AI, and Collaborative Combat Driving the Evolution of Land-based EO/IR CONOPS, 2019-2029" report has been added to ResearchAndMarkets.com's offering.

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Key Issues Addressed

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4. General Market Trends

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ResearchAndMarkets.com is the world's leading source for international market research reports and market data. We provide you with the latest data on international and regional markets, key industries, the top companies, new products and the latest trends.

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Big Data Analytics, AI, and Collaborative Combat Driving the Evolution of Land-based EO/IR CONOPS, 2019-2029 - ResearchAndMarkets.com - Business Wire

Like a bridge over troubled water, I will lay me down.

Paul Simon

Troubled water would be a generous way of describing market conditions in 2020.

As the clock struck midnight on New Years Eve 2019, we all raised a glass to what looked like a great year ahead. The bull market stampeded on, and nobody could quite pinpoint the red flag that would eventually make it veer off course, or as we soon learned impale us.

But, by late March, the coronavirus had brought the commercial real estate industry to a screeching halt, and the bridge lending sector went from a crowded party that would never fly under social distancing rules to a scene fit for blowing tumbleweeds. After all, lending on stabilized, cash-flowing assets was scary enough, let alone properties that were in transition and had a distinct element of hairiness to them.

The shutdown arrived swiftly. I thought it was too quick at the time, but I was wrong, Seth Grossman, a senior managing director at Meridian Capital Group, said. I wasnt a believer that the whole world would shut down drastically, but a lot of lenders rightfully hit the brakes.

For some who retrenched, their sources of secondary financing (or leverage) had become volatile overnight, or dried up completely. The collateralized loan obligation (CLO) market which several bridge lenders funneled loans into had dissipated, and warehouse lines were abruptly cut off. Margin calls rang out, some more publicly than others.

Beyond the fact that some [lenders] were too levered and with the wrong leverage was the fact that they had huge hotel exposure, Josh Zegen, a co-founder of Madison Realty Capital, said. The average debt fund or mortgage REIT probably had 15 to 30 percent of exposure to hotel lending. I think thats one of the things that really hurt a number of the marquee names that were very active a year ago.

Now that were 10 months into the pandemic, a combination of factors is affecting lenders activity on any given day, Grossman said: You can have a ripple of good or bad news in the secondary markets, and that can cause lenders to tighten or widen based on where they think theyre going to get their leverage from, or the CLO execution. You can also have a scenario where nothing changes in the secondary markets, but a lender has a handful of loans with more tenant defaults for the underlying assets, so they tighten the credit screws.

The current ebbing and flowing of willing financiers in the bridge lending space marks a period of choppy waters to be navigated before a return to smoother sailing, poetically mirroring the participants lending niche.

In the meantime, COVID-19 has altered the very nature of bridge lending as we know it.

Its going to be a lot more complex going forward, Jonathan Roth, co-founder of 3650 REIT, said. Over the past 10 years, you could buy a building as an operator, sandblast the wood beams and, all of a sudden, youve created creative office space and can increase the rents. Thats over for a while. Now, youre going to have to take that shuttered JCPenney box and turn it into something completely different.

Roth noted that the essence of bridge lending has always been taking a, say, 60 percent leased asset, doing a short-term loan, and getting its occupancy up to 85 or 90 percent. Post-COVID,that property is empty and a borrower has to figure out the higher and better use for it, he said. The lender to that situation is somebody who understands every moving part. Its a firm that understands construction and really technical lease negotiations. Its not for everybody, and I think the pool of lenders will get smaller and smaller.

Building a Bigger Bridge

A full cycle of evolution has occurred within the bridge space since the global financial crisis (GFC), and its once again figuring out its next iteration.

For Mark Fogel, co-founder of ACRES Capital, this period is reminiscent of when he started bridge lending 20 years ago. People are trying to figure out their way, he said. In 2000, we were also feeling our way around how bridge programs were going to work on a go-forward basis. It felt the same way in 2010. So, it seems like every 10 years we go through this to figure out how the space works, and reinvent it in a way that makes better sense.

While bridge loans existed prior to the GFC, their evolution proved especially important in the years following it, as regulators tightened the reins on banks lending activities and a new breed of lenders alternative lenders or debt funds found their footing in filling the void.

Other lenders with a taste for risk, and yield, soon caught on and the draw to the bridge space continued to build to a crescendo point. Just prior to the coronavirus hitting the reset button, new entrants piled into the space seemingly every week, and the reward for the risk associated with transitional lending was diminished.

Since [the pandemic hit], youve seen many groups that were in the market take a step back and groups that had taken steps back coming forward, and now, new groups entering, Grossman said. Were in a very interesting time that I think is going to be the next phase of the alternative lending market.

ACORE Capital is one firm thats continued to lend on bridge opportunities consistently throughout the pandemic.

The exodus of other bridge lenders leaves a hole for the likes of us who really dont have any material problems in our portfolio of roughly 200 loans totaling approximately $16 billion, Boyd Fellows, a founder and managing partner of ACORE, said. It leaves us in a pretty unique spot right now, because we have plenty of dry powder to selectively deploy with materially reduced competiion. Were not overwhelmed with problems, and we have a large asset management team in place already.

Indeed, ACORE has roughly 30 people focused on asset management today. Before the pandemic, we used to think, Wow, weve really built out one hell of a big asset management team, Fellows said. Now were saying, It was really smart we built out this very large asset management team.

And until the bridge lending sector figures out how the leading indicators relate to changes in human behavior and the impact on commercial real estate, tempered liquidity is to be expected, Warren de Haan, also a managing partner and co-founder of ACORE Capital, said.

If youve got an office building thats in West Hollywood and its fully leased to Netflix, its going to get bid extremely strongly by a handful of bridge lenders at very tight pricing, and its going to feel like pre-COVID, de Haan said. But, as you drift further out into deeper renovations and so on, theres a much thinner bidding list.

The OGs

While even some of the most well-established lenders pulled back on credit metrics and dipped out for periods during the pandemic, many have been a steady hand throughout it, Meridian Capitals Grossman said. Its been more difficult for some of the public vehicles because theyre at the whim of the stock market. But, generally speaking, several of the stronger, established lenders have been the most consistent.

Prior to the pandemic hitting, you just had so many different names out there, Zegen said. And unfortunately, brokers or borrowers were willing to take a chance on the new kid in town. But the question is, can that new kid provide what the people that have been in the business a long time provide? And do they have the experience, the track record through up- and down-cycles and the ability to fund construction loans without using leverage? One trend Im seeing in this cycle is a lot of lenders not meeting their commitments.

Emerald Creek Capital not a new kid has been bridge lending since its formation in 2009. Banks were pulling back massively in 2008 through 2010, Mark Bahiri, Emerald Creek co-founder and managing partner, said of his initial draw to the bridge space. My partner and I thought it was a great idea to start a business at the bottom [of the market], as theres only up from there. We were looking to capitalize on the pullback and fill that void.

As the cycle progressed, Bahiri watched the influx of competition and capital into the bridge space. But since COVID hit, much of that competition has dispersed.

Mainly, the less-established lenders; the pass-the-hat, participant-type lenders, whose investors decided to stay on the sidelines while the pandemic played out, Bahiri said. The more-established institutional lenders have continued their presence in the space. Having committed discretionary capital through a global crisis is certainly a benefit.

The weeding out of weaker firms is a healthy thing for the market, Bahiri said. After all, the cutthroat bridge lending environment pre-pandemic was the reason some established lenders chose to step back.

In the pre-COVID times, we were only lending on situations with existing customers that had familiarity with us, Jason Baker, an executive vice president at Pacific Western Bank, said. If there was a situation where it was just a broadly-marketed deal via brokers, and they were going to get 15 quotes from various lenders, we were never going to be the most-attractive quote in that matrix, from a pure cost-of-capital perspective.

Baker made his first bridge loan in 2005, while at Fremont Investment & Loan.

The real difference is there were fewer participants in the space and higher leverage then, so you could do a bridge loan at, say, 80 percent of cost, whereas today, a bridge loan that we might consider doing is going to be 60, 65 or maybe 70 percent in some situations. Theres a more appropriate level of leverage today.

While Pacific Western remains an active bridge lender today, its turned its attention to construction lending, an area in which it has significant expertise and where the competition has truly thinned post-COVID.

Because of mortgage REITs obligations to fund and capitalize forward commitments, theyre staying away from construction, ACOREs de Haan said. We are running towards it. And because were a true one-stop-shop, weve been very successful at doing a lot of what we view as great risk-adjusted-return construction transactions, because the field is very thin.

Roth said 3650 is experiencing a similar trend. Our life got a little easier, by virtue of the fact that, a number of our competitors, most of whom use leverage, are having a much more difficult time getting inexpensive leverage today, he said.

Construction bridge lending is part of the sectors evolution. ACRES Capitals Fogel started making bridge loans when he was with Arbor Realty Trust: short-term, value-add loans that would go into Fannie Mae permanent financing within a year. It wasnt stretching into what we do here at ACRES, where its ground-up construction, or renovation or adaptive reuse. It was a much simpler bridge lending program, Fogel recalled.

Theres another paradigm shift underway currently, and bridge lending will likely come out of the pandemic looking quite different again, Grossman said: My guess is, its all for the better. The smart lenders are going to survive, and grow, and figure out ways to make more money. The groups that probably shouldnt be playing in the sandbox may realize this when things dont go as planned.

Crossing the Bridge

With vaccines in circulation, and a light at the end of the tunnel that doesnt appear to be a high-speed train, lenders are returning to the market, slowly but not consistently.

As a result, it no longer makes sense to only go to three of four prospective lenders when seeking financing, Grossman said: You now have to go pretty wide, not collecting 50 bids, but going wide enough to make sure you know whos lending and on what. A lender that may have been interested in a deal literally two months ago may have hit pause again. And conversely, lenders that were out of the market for two, six or nine months on any given date can be back in the market.

Consequently, the time to get a loan signed up and to receive quotes is significantly longer than its ever been in Grossmans 15-plus years in the business.

And, a few new faces are stepping in.

Theres an opportunity to enter now that probably didnt exist pre-pandemic, Grossman said. And theres been a greater influx of 7 to 12 percent lenders, than 4 to 6 percent lenders.

Youre seeing more new entrants proportionally in the quote-unquote hard money space, because theres more yield there, theres more opportunity there, and theres more investors scrambling to get tougher deals done, Grossman said. Lenders want to get paid for it.

But, new players shouldnt take an overly simplistic view of transitional lending, Pacific Westerns Baker said: They may think, Ground-up construction is very complicated, and I, as a new lender, dont have the expertise to figure that out. But, I can wrap my mind around taking an existing office building and repurposing it for multifamily, because Im using the existing structure, and so, theres a lot less risk. But, the reality is there are a lot of risks and pitfalls that lenders can quickly find themselves in.

Plus, new firms tackling complex loans during a global pandemic may not exactly be a match made in heaven. As such, Grossman is avoiding groups he doesnt think are able to see deals through to the finish line.

You never want to deal with somebody whos loan-to-own, and you never want to deal with somebody whos not equipped to deal with potential changes in a transaction or structural issues that come up down the road, he said. There are definitely some groups out there that see this [market dislocation] simply as a yield arbitrage and want to take advantage of high rates. Those are probably the groups that are going to shake out and have some trouble.

Bridge Ahead

For now, lenders are approaching new opportunities with caution. ACRES is taking on top sponsors with the best of business plans in the best of locations. Whereas, pre-COVID, we were probably stretching a little bit into markets and with sponsors that we didnt necessarily feel great about, Fogel said.

ACORE has made tweaks, too.

The deals that were doing now are probably 5 to 10 percentage points lower LTV than what they were pre-COVID, and pricing is probably, from a spread perspective, out 100 to 150 basis points, de Haan said.

For 3650 REIT, every asset stands on its own, Roth said. Whether were in an up cycle or down cycle, our first level of inquiry is on the sponsor; are they credible, do they know what theyre doing, do they have the capital? If we check that box, then we look at the real estate. As a lender, our job is to identify, quantify, and mitigate risk. We go through the same level of inquiry and due diligence that we always have.

Madison Realty Capital continues to invest in all real estate asset classes, but is more skewed towards multifamily and industrial. The firm is also taking on some higher value-add construction completion financing.

A lot of lenders are purely originators of loans, Zegen said. Weve been able to make loans, buy loans and re-work loans [during COVID]. You need as many tools as possible, because in times like these, nothing is as straightforward as when things are rosy. Our experience in going through a financial crisis like 2008 has given us an advantage.

One silver lining of the crisis, Fogel said, is that bridge deals that traditionally would go to bank lenders are funneling through to the active debt funds. Declining to name the property, he spoke of a financing opportunity on an iconic Manhattan building, where the sponsor is looking to do a gut renovation.

Its the kind of deal that never, ever would have come our way, or the way of any other lenders like us. It would have gone right to a bank, Fogel said. But the banks, especially when it comes to Manhattan, are sitting on the sidelines, not doing anything especially when it comes to office.

Fogel expects a leveling of the playing field when normalcy returns. I think its going to come back faster than it did in 2010, he said. There was a lot more at issue back then, and the real estate fundamentals werent great. The fundamentals in real estate were very good pre-COVID and I think will bounce back to what they were very quickly.

Until then, Roth will continue on.

Ive always done well as an investor and as a lender in going into areas where people are running the other way, he said. But, Im a big believer in fundamentals. If something fundamentally works, you can find that value proposition, regardless of whats going on in the rest of the world. Somebody much smarter than me once said, There are no bad assets, just bad pricing. And its really true.

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Bridge Over Troubled Water: The Evolution of Transitional Lending - Commercial Observer

Morphisec Labs has been tracking FIN7 (Carbanak Group) activity for the past several years. Morphisecs ability to collect rich forensic data from memory has provided unique visibility into multiple FIN7 campaigns that our researchers were proud to share with MITRE and the InfoSec community at large. Fin7 is a well-funded financially motivated cybercrime group. Their advanced techniques and tactics were even emulated in the third round of the MITRE ATT&CK evaluations.

This report presents an attack chain that was intercepted and prevented within a customers network in December 2020, then will focus on a component from a typical FIN7 attack chain JSSLoader. Though JSSLoader is well known as a minimized .NET RAT, not many details have been publicly available with respect to various capabilities such as exfiltration, persistence, auto-update, malware downloading, and more. Furthermore, in the many occasions where JSSLoader is mentioned, there are few details on the complete attack chain. The following provides a never before seen technical analysis of this infamous groups JSSLoader as part of an end to end attack.

Below is an example of a typical phishing campaign that may lead to a FIN7 JSSLoader compromise as well as to other malwares such as QBOT; the traffic is then redirected through BlackTDS traffic distribution system. In this example an email is being sent from Natural Health Sherpa with an invoice to pay from Quickbooks.

Figure 1:A typical phishing campaign

Clicking the invoice link leads to a private Sharepoint directory that stores an archive file containing a VBScript (later changed to WSF-Windows Script File).

Figure 2: The private Sharepoint directory.

Shortly after this phishing campaign Natural Health Sherpa posted this on social media.

Figure 3:Natural Health Sherpas message on social media.

This VBScript downloads and executes the next stages VBScript in memory. This second stage was recently introduced. The in-memory script downloads and writes a .NET module (JSSLoader) on disk, then executes the module through a scheduled task with a newly introduced timeout delay to bypass attack chain monitoring.

It is worth mentioning that the early versions of the VB scripts have a strong resemblance to the ongoing QBOT campaign that may lead to an Egregor compromise.

The JSSLoader is a RAT (Remote Access Trojan) with multiple capabilities that were introduced over time. These various capabilities are documented throughout this report. In the specific attack chain that was recently intercepted, the RAT typically executes a DiceLoader which is responsible for the reflective loading and execution of a Cobalt beacon.

Not surprisingly, the C2 hosting provider is a company named FranTech Solutions, which has been used before by the FIN7 group.

Download the complete report for details on the various capabilities of this ever-evolving RAT, as well as an analysis of the complete attack chain in which it is leveraged.

Note: Morphisec CTO Michael Gorelik contributed to this analysis.

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The Evolution of the FIN7 JSSLoader - Security Boulevard

It's difficult to overstate the significance of the media consumption shift over the past 40 years.

Once, TV was the star of the show for ads, with newspapers and magazines not too far behind, but in the last decade, digital media has quickly gained pace, as the development of mobile technology, and connective tools like social media platforms, has paved the way for a drastic realignment of marketing budgets and approaches.

That's also meant a major shift in marketing understanding. What was once key strategy, and worked in boosting your messaging, is no longer as effective in the modern age. The fundamentals of marketing apply across all mediums, with messaging still key to maximizing appeal. But those in the industry have had a steep learning curve in many respects, opening the door for new talent and tactics, and re-shaping advertising as we know it.

This chart puts the scope of that shift into some perspective. The team from Raconteur have put together this overview of the marketing and advertising shifts since 1980, highlighting just how much things have changed - and what that means for your approach.

It's amazing to take in - and with the COVID-19 pandemic further accelerating digital adoption, you can likely expect these trends to hold for the foreseeable future.

A version of this post was first published on the Digital Information World blog.

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The Evolution of Advertising Over the Past Four Decades [Infographic] - Social Media Today

TipRanks

A new year, a new addition to the stock portfolio what can make more sense than that? The right time to buy, of course, is when stocks are priced at the bottom. Buying low and selling high may be a bit hackneyed, but its true, and truth has staying power.But the markets are up. The NASDAQ rose 43% in 2020, and the S&P 500 showed a gain of 16%. With a market environment like that, finding stocks that are caught in the doldrums is harder than it looks. That's where the Wall Street pros can lend a hand.We used TipRanks' database to pinpoint three stocks that fit a profile: a share price that has dropped over 30% in the last 12 months, but with at least double-digit upside potential, according to analysts. Not to mention each has earned a Moderate or Strong Buy consensus rating.Esperion (ESPR)We will start with Esperion, a company that specializes in therapies for the treatment of elevated low-density lipoprotein cholesterol levels a major factor contributing to heart disease. The companys main product, bempedoic acid, is now available in tablet form under the brand names Nexletol and Nexlizet.In February 2020, both Nexletol and Nexlizet were approved as oral treatments to lower LDL-C. Bempedoic acid remains in clinical trials of its efficacy in risk reduction for cardiovascular disease. The trial, called CLEAR Outcomes, is a large-scale, long-term study, tracking more than 14,000 patients with top-line data expected in the second half of 2022. The study covers 1,400 locations in 32 countries around the world.Esperion shares peaked last February, after the FDA approvals, but since then, the stock has declined. Shares are down 65% since their peak. Along with the drop in share value, the company showed a fall in revenue from Q2 to Q3, with the top line collapsing from $212 million to $3.8 million. Since the Q3 report, Esperion announced pricing on a $250 million offer of senior subordinated notes, at 4%, due in 2025. The offering gives the company a boost in available capital for further work on its development pipeline and its marketing efforts for bempedoic acid.Chad Messer, covering ESPR for Needham, sees the note offering as a net positive for Esperion. We believe this cash position will be sufficient to support Esperion through 2021 and to profitability in 2022... We believe this financing should help put to rest concerns regarding Esperion's balance sheet. Despite a challenging launch for NEXLETOL and NEXLIZET, product growth has continued in 3Q against the backdrop of a contracting LDL-C market. This growth trajectory suggests potential for a rapid acceleration when conditions improve," Messer wrote.To this end, Messer rates ESPR shares a Strong Buy, and his price target, at $158, suggests the stock has room for huge growth this year up to 481% from current levels. (To watch Messers track record, click here)Overall, Esperion has 6 recent reviews on record, with a breakdown of 5 Buys and 1 Hold to give the stock a Strong Buy rating from the analyst consensus. The shares, trading at $27.16, have an average price target of $63.33, implying a one-year upside of 133%. (See ESPR stock analysis on TipRanks)Intercept Pharma (ICPT)Liver disease is a serious health threat, and Intercept Pharma is focused on developing treatments for some of the more dangerous chronic liver conditions, including nonalcoholic steatohepatitis (NASH) and primary biliary cholangitis (PBC). Intercept has a research pipeline based on FXR, a regulator of bile acid pathways in the hepatic system.FXRs action affects not just the bile acid metabolism, but also the glucose and lipid metabolisms, and inflammation and fibrosis around the liver. The lead compound, obeticholic acid (OCA), is an analog of the bile acid CDCA, and as such can take a role in the FXR pathways and receptors implicated in chronic liver disease. Treating liver disease through the FXR biology has direct applications for PBC, and is showing promise treating complications from NASH.ICPT shares dropped sharply last summer, when the FDA rejected the companys application to approve OCA for treatment of NASH-related liver fibrosis. This delays the drugs potential entry to a lucrative market; there is no current treatment for NASH, and the first drug to win approval will have the lead in reaching a market estimated at $2 billion to $5 billion in potential annual sales. The effect on the stock is still felt, and ICPT remains at its 52-week low point.In reaction, in December of 2020, Intercept announced major changes in top-level management, as CEO and President Mark Pruzanski announced he's stepping down effective January 1 of this year. He is succeeded by Jerome Durso, formerly the companys COO, who will also take a post on the Board of Directors. Pruzanski will remain as an advisor, and will hold a directors position on the companys Board.Piper Sandler analyst Yasmeen Rahimi takes a deep dive into Intercepts continuing efforts to expand applications of OCA and to resubmits its New Drug Application to the FDA. She sees the leadership transition as part of these efforts, and writes, [We] believe that Dr. Pruzanski's dedication to transform the liver space is still strong, and that he will continue to guide ICPT's progress as an advisor and Board member. Additionally, we have had the pleasure of working closely with Jerry Durso and believe that he will transform the company and lead ICPT's success in growing the PBC market and the path to potential approval and commercial launch of OCA in NASH.Rahimi takes a long-term bullish stance on ICPT, giving the stock an Overweight (i.e. Buy) rating and an $82 price target. This figure indicates an impressive 220% upside for the next 12 months. (To watch Rahimis track record, click here)Wall Street is somewhat more divided on the drug maker. ICPT's Moderate Buy consensus rating is based on 17 reviews, including 8 Buys and 9 Holds. Shares are priced at $25.82, and the average price target of $59.19 suggests an upside potential of 132% for the next 12 months. (See ICPT stock analysis on TipRanks)Gilead Sciences (GILD)Gilead has had a year like a firework fast up and fast down. The gains came in 1H20, when it appeared that the companys antiviral drug remdesivir would become a prime treatment for COVID-19. By November, however, even though remdesivir had been approved, the World Health Organization (WHO) was recommending against its use, and the COVID vaccines now on the market have made remdesivir irrelevant to the pandemic.This was only one of Gileads recent headwinds. The company has been working, in conjunction with Galapagos (GLPG), on development of filgotinib as a treatment for rheumatoid arthritis. While the drug received EU and Japanese approval in September 2020, the FDA has withheld approval and Gilead announced in December that it was suspending US development efforts on the drug.Even so, Gilead retains a diverse and active research pipeline, with over 70 research candidates at varying stages of the development and approval process for a wide range of diseases and conditions, including HIV/AIDS, inflammatory & respiratory diseases, cardiovascular disease, and hematology/oncology.On a positive note, Gilead posted Q3 earnings above estimates, with the top line revenue, of $6.58 billion, beating the forecast by 6% and growing 17% year-over-year. The company updated its full-year 2020 guidance on product sales from $23 billion to $23.5 billion.Among the bulls is Oppenheimer analyst Hartaj Singh, who gives GILD shares an Outperform (i.e. Buy) rating and $100 price target. Investors stand to pocket a 69% gain should the analysts thesis play out. (To watch Singhs track record, click here)Backing his stance, Singh writes, We continue to believe in our thesis of (1) a dependable remdesivir/other medicines business against SARS-CoV flares, (2) a base business (HIV/oncology/HCV) growing low-single digits over the next couple of years, (3) operating leverage providing greater earnings growth, and (4) a 3-4% dividend yield. What does the rest of the Street think? Looking at the consensus breakdown, opinions from other analysts are more spread out. 10 Buys, 12 Holds and 1 Sell add up to a Moderate Buy consensus. In addition, the $73.94 average price target indicates 25% upside potential from current levels. (See GILD stock analysis on TipRanks)To find good ideas for beaten-down stocks trading at attractive valuations, visit TipRanks Best Stocks to Buy, a newly launched tool that unites all of TipRanks equity insights.Disclaimer: The opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the featured analysts. The content is intended to be used for informational purposes only. It is very important to do your own analysis before making any investment.

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HMP Global Announces Evolution of Psychotherapy Conference Will Convene Live and In-Person in December 2021 - Yahoo Finance