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The TechCrunch Top 3
- Where there was once sunshine has now faded to darkness: Thousands of Solana users found their wallets were drained of collectively around $8 million, Rita and Carly write. The hack is only affecting “hot” wallets, the pair report. Industry experts say this may have been a privacy key compromise. We’re sure there will be more on this later.
- Ping finds itself in familiar territory: Ping Identity, a public enterprise identity management firm, has agreed to be acquired by the private equity firm Thoma Bravo, Ingrid reports. This is not Ping’s first exposure to PE involvement. It was majority-owned by Vista Equity, which retains a minority stake in the company. Thoma Bravo has been on a buying streak lately, also picking up both SailPoint and Anaplan this year.
- Trading places: We go back to Rita, who writes about Salesforce taking a look at its presence in China. Among the changes are the closing of its Hong Kong office and the acceleration of Salesforce’s relationship with Alibaba, which includes helping companies establish a social commerce presence.
Startups and VC
L’Attitude Ventures announced today that it has closed on its first institutional fund, raising more than $100 million from several financial services heavyweights, including a “strategic anchor investment” from JPMorgan Chase, Mary Ann reports.
Playstudios, a publicly traded mobile gaming platform and developer, is venturing into the web3 world with a new blockchain division and investment fund. The gaming entity announced a $10 million investment vehicle, Future Fund, to back companies building rewarded play options, Jacquelyn reports.
Keepin’ the startup train rollin’:
Dear Sophie: How long am I required to stay at my current job after I get my green card?
Image Credits: Bryce Durbin/TechCrunch
Dear Sophie,
I’m a software engineer currently on an H-1B. My employer sponsored me for an EB-2 green card, and my application has been approved, but I’m still waiting for a decision on my application to register for permanent residence.
I want to leave my employer and do something completely different. Can I transfer my green card to another employer in a different field and position, or should I stick it out in my current position until I receive my green card?
If I should stick it out, how long should I stay with my current employer after I receive my green card?
— Craving Change
(TechCrunch+ is our membership program, which helps founders and startup teams get ahead. You can sign up here.)
Big Tech Inc.
Uber and Omio join forces in the UK so that users can book trains, coaches and bus travel, Natasha L reports. The ride-hailing giant sees this as a way to not only get into longer distance travel, but also to capture, or recapture, travelers moving between different forms of transportation. In other Uber news, it appears the company has now concluded its partnership with Indian food delivery firm Zomato, Manish writes.
Staying over in India for a moment, Manish also reports that the government is withdrawing its personal data protection bill. This was some legislation that privacy advocates and tech giants were not fans of, mainly because they felt it restricted how they managed sensitive information while also enabling the government to more easily access the same information.
Speaking of partnerships, Ticketmaster and TikTok now have one to provide users with a new way to discover and purchase event tickets, Aisha writes. This feature is initially for certain creators who can search for Ticketmaster events and add destination links to their videos. Ivan also reports that ByteDance might be gearing up for a global launch of TikTok Music.
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