Doubtful of China’s economic numbers? Alternative data can help
Quartz
The Chinese government is notorious for doctoring its official statistics. As a result, China’s data releases are often greeted with skepticism by economists. Quartz unveils several datasets — including Quandl’s own iron ore data feed — that provide a clearer picture. Read More
Amazon wins patent for data feed marketplace that could include bitcoin transactions
CNBC
Amazon’s filing for a patent that can correlate different data streams and sell the combined feed as a subscription was approved this week. The filing referenced bitcoin transactions twice as possible applications. Read More
How are the tectonic plates of active management shifting in 2018?
Hedgeweek
The alternative funds industry continues to move in response to market trends, technology innovation, continuing regulation and the ever-shifting whims and desires of institutional investors. Read More
Race is on to grab most alpha from machine learning
Pensions & Investments
But only a handful of money managers are using machine learning meaningfully in portfolio construction. This article provides insight and use cases on how to leverage the power of AI. Read More
BlackRock is hiring — and paying better too
eFinancialCareers
Employee compensation at BlackRock increased by roughly $100 million during the first quarter of 2018. The fund manager paid out more than $1.12 billion to employees during Q1, buoyed by a 16% uptick in year-over-year revenue. Read More
Two Sigma hires Google scientist for AI expansion
Bloomberg Markets
In the talent war between financial firms and Silicon Valley, Two Sigma has hired a hard-to-find AI expert with years of experience. The $52 billion quantitative hedge fund hired Mike Schuster, who worked on the Google Brain team, to expand their AI capabilities. Read More
Point72 Ventures backs new trading site that combats high-speed traders
CNBC
The private equity arm of Steven Cohen’s firm invested an undisclosed amount of money in Imperative Execution, which is building a so-called dark pool where orders to buy and sell stocks are protected from traders hunting down bids and offers. Read More
Broad adoption of AI and alternative data will mean better beta for all investors
Pensions & Investments
AI and alternative data will soon no longer provide an edge for the investment community — with widespread adoption, they will quickly become table stakes. Read More