Apple funding: Apple has announced a $2.5 billion plan to help address the housing crisis in California, according to The New York Times. Apple is one of many — notably, the last — tech giant in the area to contribute to Silicon Valley’s affordable housing. The plan includes $1 billion for an affordable housing investment fund and another $1 billion to help first-time homebuyers find mortgages. However, before we go praising Apple for their significant contribution to a stretched market, lest not forget it is tech giants of its kind that created the issue.

“Affordable housing means stability and dignity, opportunity and pride. When these things fall out of reach for too many, we know the course we are on is unsustainable, and Apple is committed to being part of the solution,” said Apple’s chief executive, Tim Cook. 

Google’s open web: Think of how often, and how vast, your Google searches range — World Series Game 7, books on fintech, calculator. According to an article in Bloomberg, for every 100 Google searches an individual performs, 29 of them will render a Google-owned result as number one. Microsoft-owned products, like LinkedIn, GitHub and others, come in second but pale in comparison at just six out of every 100 searches.

Saudi Arabia’s landmark IPO: On Sunday, Saudi Arabia announced its intention to go ahead with a landmark IPO offering of state-owned oil firm Saudi Aramco. The prospectus is scheduled to release on Nov. 9 and the shares will start trading on Saudi’s domestic Tadawul stock exchange in Dec.

Although no financial details were given, it is widely reported to be looking to sell 1 to 2 percent of its shares on the local bourse, according to Marketwatch.

Facebook rebrands: Facebook is now going by FACEBOOK as a way to differentiate between the website and the holding company, which owns Instagram, WhatsApp, and the cryptocurrency Libra, according to Fast Company.

“It’s inspired by this realization that when one hears ‘Facebook,’ they almost automatically think about the Facebook app. [That’s] just a subset of the products and services that are part of the Facebook company,” says Luke Woods, VP of Design at Facebook. “Our hope is with a distinction between the company and app, it will help provide people with a little bit more clarity, clarity that a number of different products they might use that are part of this larger Facebook company.”

ESG and its aspects: Last week, our UK Account Director Paul Andrieu had the privilege to join 400 investment management professionals at the CFA ESG Investing Conference in London. His biggest takeaway? ESG investing isn’t about passive versus active; instead, engagement and ownership take center stage and provide the groundwork for a successful strategy. Check out his blog here.