Connect with us

Published

on

Bitcoin has had a strong start to the year with the cryptocurrency seeing a huge rally.

Jakub Porzycki | Nurphoto | Getty Images

Bitcoin rose to a new high for 2023 on Thursday as optimism around a potential bitcoin ETF approval continued to build.

The price of the flagship cryptocurrency rose more than 6% to top $37,000 for the first time since May 2022. It was last trading at $37,913.34. Ether was little changed but held recent gains and was trading just below its key $2,000 level.

The rise in the bitcoin price triggered a wave of short liquidation overnight, which propelled crypto prices higher, said Clara Medalie, head of research at crypto data provider Kaiko.

“Over the past year, crypto markets have been desperately searching for a cataylst amid a sea of bad news, and the ETF news have been a welcome respite,” she said. “Should [an ETF approval] come, we may see another big surge, or we could be witnessing the extent of it right now. Ultimately, it is too early to tell if the rally has legs, but things look promising.”

Other crypto assets as well as crypto equities rode the bitcoin price wave Thursday. Solana, one of the biggest outperformers in crypto this year, gained 11%. The tokens tied to Cardano and Polygon rose 4% and 3%, respectively.

“And, as we’ve seen, when bitcoin surges, ether and other altcoins tend to follow not long after,” said Darius Tabatabai, co-founder at decentralized exchange Vertex Protocol. “Already, with bitcoin up over 120%year-to-date, we are seeing many other coins turning bullish, and trading volumes are picking back up.”

Shares of crypto services provider Coinbase rose 10%, while bitcoin proxy Microstrategy gained 11%.

Meanwhile, shares of bitcoin miners enjoyed bigger boosts. Marathon Digital and Riot, the largest of the mining stocks, rose 20% and 15%, respectively. CleanSpark advanced 11%.

Don’t miss these stories from CNBC PRO:

Correction: The price of bitcoin topped $37,000 for the first time since May 2022. An earlier version of this story misstated the time interval.

Continue Reading

Technology

Tech, semiconductor stocks bounce on tariff optimism, Nvidia jumps 7%

Published

on

By

Tech, semiconductor stocks bounce on tariff optimism, Nvidia jumps 7%

Technology stocks bounced Tuesday after three rocky trading sessions, spurred by rising optimism that President Donald Trump could potentially negotiate tariff deals with world leaders.

Nvidia led the Magnificent Seven group’s gains, rallying about 7%. Meta Platforms, Amazon, Tesla, Apple and Microsoft jumped at least 4% each. Alphabet rose about 3%.

The sector is coming off a wild trading session after speculation that the White House could potentially delay tariffs fueled volatile swings. Alphabet, Meta Platforms, Amazon and Nvidia finished higher, while Apple, Microsoft and Tesla posted losses.

Trump’s wide-sweeping tariff plans have sparked violent turbulence over the last three trading sessions. Trading volume on Monday hit its highest in nearly two decades. Technology stocks gyrated after the Nasdaq Composite posted its worst week in five years and the Magnificent Seven group lost $1.8 trillion in market value over two trading sessions.

Semiconductor stocks also rebounded Tuesday, with the VanEck Semiconductor ETF jumping more than 5% to build on a more than 2% gain from the previous session. Advanced Micro Devices, Lam Research and Micron Technology jumped about 6%.

Chipmakers were excluded from the recent tariffs, but have come under pressure on worries that higher duties could diminish demand for products they are used in and slow the economy. The sector is also expected to see tariffs further down the road.

Elsewhere, Broadcom surged 9% after announcing a $10 billion share buyback plan through the end of the year. Marvell Technology also bounced more than 9% after agreeing to sell its auto ethernet business for $2.5 billion in cash to Infineon Technologies.

WATCH: Tariff volatility erases majority of AI stock gains

Continue Reading

Technology

Digital health startup Transcarent takes Accolade private in $621 million deal

Published

on

By

Digital health startup Transcarent takes Accolade private in 1 million deal

Glen Tullman, chairman and chief executive officer at Livongo Health Inc., speaks during the 2015 Bloomberg Technology Conference in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Tuesday, June 16, 2015.

David Paul Morris | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Digital health startup Transcarent on Tuesday announced it completed its acquisition of Accolade in a deal valued at roughly $621 million. 

Transcarent first announced the acquisition in January, and the company said it has received all necessary shareholder and regulatory approvals to carry out the transaction. Accolade shareholders received $7.03 per share in cash, and its common stock will no longer trade on the Nasdaq, according to a release.

“Adding Accolade’s people and capabilities will significantly enhance our existing offerings,” Transcarent CEO Glen Tullman said in a statement. “We’re creating an entirely new way to experience health and care. We are truly better together.” 

Transcarent offers at-risk pricing models to self-insured employers to help their workers quickly access care and navigate benefits. As of May, the company had raised around $450 million at a valuation of $2.2 billion. Transcarent also earned a spot on CNBC’s Disruptor 50 list last year.

More CNBC health coverage

Accolade offers care delivery, navigation and advocacy services. The company went public during the Covid pandemic in 2020 as investors began pouring billions of dollars into digital health, but the stock tumbled in the years following.

Accolade is the latest in a string of digital health companies to exit the public markets as the sector struggles to adjust to a more muted growth environment. 

Transcarent said the executive leadership team will report to Tullman and includes representatives from both organizations. Accolade’s Kristen Bruzek will serve as executive vice president of care delivery operations, for instance.  

Tullman is no stranger to overseeing major deals in digital health. He previously helmed Livongo, which was acquired by the virtual-care provider Teladoc in a 2020 agreement that valued the company at $18.5 billion.

General Catalyst and Tullman’s 62 Ventures led the acquisition’s financing, with additional participation from new and existing investors, the release said. The companies also leveraged cash from their combined balance sheet, and JP Morgan led the debt financing.

Continue Reading

Technology

Drone delivery startup Zipline expands to Texas with Walmart partnership

Published

on

By

Drone delivery startup Zipline expands to Texas with Walmart partnership

A drone operator loads a Walmart package into Zipline’s P1 fixed-wing drone for delivery to a customer home in Pea Ridge, Arkansas, on March 30, 2023.

Bunee Tomlinson

Zipline, a startup that delivers everything from vaccines to ice cream via electric autonomous drones, expanded its service to the Dallas area on Tuesday through a partnership with Walmart.

In Mesquite, Texas, about 15 miles east of Dallas, Walmart customers can sign up to receive orders within 30 minutes, delivered on Zipline’s newest unmanned aerial vehicles, known as P2 Zips.

The drones are capable of carrying up to eight pounds worth of cargo within a 10-mile radius, and can land a package on a space as small as a table or doorstep. The company, which ranked 21st on CNBC’s 2024 Disruptor 50 list, plans to expand soon in the Dallas metropolitan area.

Zipline CEO and co-founder Keller Rinaudo Cliffton said P2 Zips have “dinner plate-level” accuracy. They employ lift and cruise propellers and feature a fixed wing that helps them maneuver quietly, even through rain or gusts of wind up to 45 miles per hour.

In the delivery process, a P2 Zip will hover around 300 feet above ground level and dispatch a mini-aircraft with a container called the delivery zip, which descends on a long tether and moves into place using fan-like thrusters before setting down and allowing package retrieval.

Both the P2 Zip and the delivery zip use cameras, other sensors and Nvidia chips to determine what’s happening in the environment around them, and to avoid obstacles while making a delivery.

In March 2025, Zipline announced that its drones have logged more than 100 million autonomous miles of flight to-date, a number equivalent to flying more than 4,000 loops around the planet, or 200 lunar round trips, the company said in a video to mark the milestone.

Since it began operations in 2016, Rinaudo Cliffton said, Zipline has completed around 1.5 million deliveries, far more than competitors in the West. Wing, a Zipline rival focused on residential deliveries, has reported more than 450,000 deliveries since 2012.

Zipline initially focused on logistics in health care, making deliveries by drone to clinics and hospitals in nations where infrastructure sometimes impeded timely access to life-saving medicines, blood, vaccines and personal protective equipment. The company, valued at $4.2 billion in a 2023 financing round, is now making deliveries in Rwanda, Ghana, Nigeria, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Japan and the U.S., and expanded well beyond hospitals and clinics.

In addition to Walmart, customers include Sweetgreen, Chipotle and other quick-serve restaurants, as well as health clinics and hospital systems such as Cleveland Clinic and Mayo Clinic.

Zipline’s launch in Mesquite comes days after President Donald Trump’s announcement of widespread tariffs roiled markets on concern that companies would face rising costs and a slowdown in consumers spending. Rinaudo Cliffton said he doesn’t anticipate massive impediments to Zipline’s business, as its drones are built in the U.S., with manufacturing and testing in South San Francisco.

WATCH: Zipline releases drone for rapid home delivery

Zipline releases new drone designed for rapid home deliveries

Continue Reading

Trending