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The Information Finance

By Ken Brown

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Recent Editions

Art by Mike Sullivan
The Information Finance

How Chinese Fintech Giant Ant Uses AI to Help Banks Hedge Currency Risks

By Jing Yang · Feb 11, 2026 8:00am PST
Will AI make investment bankers and traders irrelevant? That's one of the most talked-about questions in finance these days.In reality, banks are already feeling the impact of AI on their behind-the-scenes plumbing, where payments, cash management, treasury and foreign exchange operations are embracing AI models to cut costs in these notoriously... Will AI make investment bankers and traders irrelevant? That's one of the most talked-about...
Art by Mike Sullivan
The Information Finance

Why Big Tech Companies Are Racing to Fund OpenAI

By Ken Brown · Feb 4, 2026 8:01am PST · 3 comments
Nvidia could invest around $30 billion, Amazon is down for at least $20 billion and Microsoft is looking at $10 billion as part of a $100 billion fundraising for OpenAI. SoftBank will bring the AI company closer to its goal with an investment worth around $30 billion. My colleague Sri Muppidi reported all of this last week. OpenAI has built... Nvidia could invest around $30 billion, Amazon is down for at least $20 billion and Microsoft is...
Art by Clark Miller.
The Information Finance

New SPAC Boom(let) Is the Same as the Last SPAC Boom

By Ken Brown · Jan 28, 2026 8:00am PST
Why wait for the mega AI initial public offerings expected later this year when you can invest in a nuclear fusion company or a MAGA crypto bank? These companies and other not-ready-for-IPO names are coming to the markets via special purpose acquisition companies.After SPACs vaporized billions of dollars during the boom-and-bust cycle early this... Why wait for the mega AI initial public offerings expected later this year when you can invest in...
GE Vernova turbines at the Stargate AI data center construction site in Abilene, Tex. Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
Data Center Inflation Is Here
By Ken Brown · Jan 21, 2026 8:00am PST · 5 comments
GE Vernova turbines at the Stargate AI data center construction site in Abilene, Tex. Kyle Grillot/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
The Information Finance

Data Center Inflation Is Here

By Ken Brown · Jan 21, 2026 8:00am PST · 5 comments
In the first weeks of the year, it has become clear that building data centers is getting more expensive. On a relative basis, the shift could benefit the cash-rich tech giants, particularly Google, while potentially hurting cash-burning startups. This doesn’t mean giant data centers won’t get built. Investors are still enthusiastic about... In the first weeks of the year, it has become clear that building data centers is getting more...
Palmer Luckey, co-founder of Erebor Bank. Getty Images
The Information Finance

The Upstart Tech Bank Trying to Shake Up Finance

By Ken Brown · Jan 14, 2026 8:30am PST · 1 comment
The most interesting news in banking is happening in Ohio, but it’s really a Silicon Valley story. Erebor Bank, backed by Silicon Valley powerbrokers such as Palmer Luckey and Palantir co-founder Joe Lonsdale, is gearing up to start operating after getting conditional approval from regulators in Washington last year. In the largely... The most interesting news in banking is happening in Ohio, but it’s really a Silicon Valley...
The Information Finance Newsletter
Context and explanation for the biggest investments in the industry, with a particular focus on the funding of artificial intelligence.
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Image via Gemini.
The Information Finance

AI Could Be a Money Pit for Individual Investors

By Ken Brown · Jan 7, 2026 8:00am PST
What’s the best way for an individual to invest in AI? That’s what some relatives asked me over the holidays. The question is particularly relevant right now. Anthropic could go public this year, and OpenAI could follow, meaning individual investors could have access to two of the rare pure-play AI stocks. That would be a big change... What’s the best way for an individual to invest in AI? That’s what some relatives asked me over...
Liao Pan/CNS/VCG via Getty Images.
The Information Finance

Get Ready for a New Year and Brace for a Very Different One

By Ken Brown · Dec 31, 2025 8:20am PST
For an eventful year, 2025 is ending the same way it started. A year ago, Nvidia, OpenAI and others made it clear they would do everything necessary to win the race for artificial intelligence.The year ended with the same companies doing the same thing. Nvidia capped off a year of dealmaking—mostly to cement its lead in AI chips by agreeing to... For an eventful year, 2025 is ending the same way it started. A year ago, Nvidia, OpenAI and...
Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
Predicting Prediction Markets Is a Tough Call
By Ken Brown · Dec 24, 2025 8:00am PST
Adam Gray/Bloomberg via Getty Images.
The Information Finance

Predicting Prediction Markets Is a Tough Call

By Ken Brown · Dec 24, 2025 8:00am PST
The best prediction for 2025 would have been predicting the soaring growth of prediction markets. My prediction for 2026 is it will be a tough year for prediction markets.My colleagues Sara Germano and Yueqi Yang chronicled the stunning rise of these markets last weekend. They focused on the dramatic growth in sports betting and the tumult this... The best prediction for 2025 would have been predicting the soaring growth of prediction markets....
Photo by Joe Burbank/Getty Images
The Information Finance

Private Tech Giants Could Lose Scarcity Premium in IPOs

By Ken Brown · Dec 17, 2025 8:00am PST · 4 comments
Scarcity creates value in everything from precious metals to giant private tech companies. That accounts for some portion of the stunning prices investors are paying to get into SpaceX, OpenAI and other companies while they are still private. An army of wealth managers, fund executives and other go-betweens have made a lucrative living... Scarcity creates value in everything from precious metals to giant private tech companies. That...
A SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket lifts off in September. Manuel Mazzanti/Getty Images.
The Information Finance

SpaceX's Retail Moment

By Cory Weinberg · Dec 10, 2025 8:00am PST · 1 comment
It’s Elon Musk. It’s space. It’s Elon Musk trying to put data centers in space and go to Mars. If Musk’s SpaceX does indeed list its shares in a blockbuster initial public offering next year, expect retail traders to hit the “buy” button furiously in their Robinhood app. Institutional investors, and later index funds, will face pressure to buy,... It’s Elon Musk. It’s space. It’s Elon Musk trying to put data centers in space and go to Mars. If...
The Information Finance Newsletter
Context and explanation for the biggest investments in the industry, with a particular focus on the funding of artificial intelligence.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
S&P Takes on AI Debt Deals and Crypto Giants
The Information Finance

S&P Takes on AI Debt Deals and Crypto Giants

By Ken Brown · Dec 3, 2025 8:00am PST
More than a few years ago, I met with ratings agency analysts covering giant telecom equipment companies like Lucent Technologies. The telecom bust had already begun, but the analysts remained optimistic about the companies’ future. They were wildly wrong.Roughly a decade later, the dominant ratings agencies, Moody’s and Standard & Poor’s,... More than a few years ago, I met with ratings agency analysts covering giant telecom equipment...
Art by Clark Miller
Crypto Winter Will Be Different This Time
By Ken Brown · Nov 26, 2025 8:00am PST · 5 comments
Art by Clark Miller
The Information Finance

Crypto Winter Will Be Different This Time

By Ken Brown · Nov 26, 2025 8:00am PST · 5 comments
Winter is coming, not just in the seasons but in the crypto market. If the current downturn turns into another crypto winter, it will have a bigger impact on the mainstream financial system than it has in the past. Bitcoin has fallen 30% in less than two months and is down for the year, while other cryptocurrencies have crashed by much... Winter is coming, not just in the seasons but in the crypto market. If the current downturn turns...
Art by Clark Miller
The Information Finance

It’s too Soon to Call an End to the AI Boom

By Ken Brown · Nov 19, 2025 8:00am PST · 3 comments
I’m the senior finance editor here at The Information. I’ll be writing this new column on money, dealmaking and bubbles of all sorts every Wednesday.  If you have any feedback or suggestions on topics I should explore, feel free to reply directly with your feedback.We’re launching this newsletter to cover the increasing role finance is... I’m the senior finance editor here at The Information. I’ll be writing this new column on money,...