According to Speedtest.net, 30 countries including Moldova and Uruguay have faster Internet than the United States. Google Inc. has began building its fiber network in Kansas. A nationwide Google Fiber rollout, however, may cost USD1 billion.
Deals
Canadian mining firms Goldsource and Eagle Mountain Gold to merge
Rival Canadian mining companies Goldsource Mines Inc and Eagle Mountain Gold Corp agreed to merge in a deal that would see each firm hold half of the newly combined company.
Ireland is Europe's haven for tech startups -survey
According to a research study by Dow Jones & Company, Ireland attracted the most venture capital funding per capita in the European region. The data showed that most Irish tech startups have fared well even during the economic recession.
Taiwan's TCC International receives USD721 million buyout bid from parent company
TCC International Holdings Ltd said it received a buyout offer amounting to HKD5.59 billion (USD721 million) from its parent company, Taiwan Cement Corp, which owns 56.5% of TCC.
Hedge fund boom seen in Asia courtesy of big banks and asset managers
The increasing number of new hedge funds by global banks and asset managers in Asia threatened the business of smaller firms who had opened their independent firms just after the 2008 financial crisis.
Latest News
Troubled electronics giant Panasonic will sell three of its chip factories in Japan to Israel's TowerJazz by March 2014, according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation.
The government of South Korea has increased the offering size for a part of its stake in Industrial Bank of Korea (IBK) to USD250 million. Its finance ministry will be selling 23.24 million shares instead of the initial 13.16 million shares.
A study done by CB Insights revealed that only 14% of venture capital firms supported unicorns since 2004. Unicorns refer to young startup firms that have made USD 1 billion exits.
Oregon-based medical billing advocate CoPatient raised over USD1 million in funding for its expansion and product development, and also moved into new offices located in Southeast Portland.
Teck Resources, Newmont Mining, Magris Resources and private equity firm Blackstone Group are reportedly bidding for Glencore Xtrata's Las Bambas copper mine in Peru. Las Bambas' estimated end-2014 valuation is at USD6.9 billion.
Malaysian packaging solutions firm Kian Joo Can Factory Bhd got a MYR1.46 billion cash takeover bid from privately owned company Aspire Insight Sdn Bhd at MYR3.30 per share.
UK's Amec Plc is looking to acquire NASDAQ-listed Foster Wheeler AG. If the deal eventually pushes through, it could generate GBP5 billion (USD8 billion) for the Geneva-based engineering and power conglomerate.
Cloud storage firm Box has acquired startup dLoop for an undisclosed amount, to increase security using fine-grained data analytics technology, helping Box compete better for large enterprise clients.
Indian e-commerce company Yebhi.com is looking to raise USD30 million to USD50 million from venture capital firms. If successful, Yebhi.com will follow leading online retailer Flipkart, which raised USD360 million.
