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BANKING
• Altabank, American Fork, has announced several personnel changes. Gina Covert has joined the bank as a commercial relationship manager and loan officer in North Logan. She previously spent 16 years as a treasury management officer for Zions Bank. Matt Martin is a new loan officer in the Logan branch, specializing in business loans of all types. Prior to joining Altabank, he ran a construction company in the Cache Valley. Mike Spinelli is the Saratoga Springs branch manager. He has 23 years of experience in capital markets and banking. Matthew Whetton is a commercial and construction lending officer at the Saratoga Springs branch. He has nearly 30 years banking and lending experience. Adam Crapo has joined Altabank as a loan officer. Based in the Alpine branch, Crapo comes to Altabank from JP Morgan Chase Bank, with 14 years of experience as a business loan officer.
• FinWise Bancorp, the Murray-based parent company of FinWise Bank, has appointed Simon Darchis as vice president/director of specialty lending. Darchis has been with FinWise for over four years and has been instrumental in the buildout and management of the company’s Strategic Lending Program. Darchis succeeds David Tilis, who has decided to leave the company but has agreed to stay on as a consultant for one year to facilitate the transition.
• TAB Bank, Ogden, has funded a $5 million asset-based credit facility to an Oklahoma-based provider of oilfield chemical formulations and field services. This company delivers critical chemical formulations and fluids designed to meet the requirements of each site and improve the performance, longevity and profitability of its client’s oil and gas assets. The TAB Bank facility was used to refinance their existing lender and provide growth capital to capitalize on the opportunities they see in the market.
CONSTRUCTION
• Big-D Construction, Salt Lake City, recently was featured on “Military Makeover: Operation Career” on Lifetime TV. A spin-off from “Military Makeover with Montel Williams,” the show is traveling the nation seeking out companies with a commitment to veterans who transitioned out of the military and back into civilian life through a trades career path. The episode showcasing Big-D Construction highlighted three hardworking veterans based in Salt Lake City. They include a former officer in the Army, a former senior airman for the U.S. Air Force and a former Navy SEAL.
DIRECT SALES
• Vasayo LLC, a Pleasant Grove-based, privately held direct sales company offering nutritional and personal care products, has appointed Dan Gubler as chief scientific officer and head of the Vasayo Scientific Advisory Board.
ECONOMIC INDICATORS
• Salt Lake City is ranked third-from-last (No. 57) on a list of “Best Cities for Women in Tech,” compiled by SmartAsset. It analyzed 59 of the largest U.S. cities, using metrics including the gender pay gap in the tech industry, income for women in tech after deducting housing costs, women as a percentage of tech workers and three-year growth in tech employment. Census Bureau data shows that from 2017 to 2020, the tech industry in Salt Lake City grew by 62 percent, the most of any city in the study. However, women make up less than 20 percent of the workforce and make only 74 cents on the dollar relative to men. The top-ranked city is Arlington, Virginia. The No. 59 city is Tulsa, Oklahoma. Details are at https://smartasset.com/data-studies/best-cities-for-women-in-tech-2022.
• Utah will have the lowest unemployment rate in the U.S. in the year 2027, according to a study by Lensa. It predicted Utah’s unemployment rate at that time will be 1.4 percent. Lensa calculated the average change in unemployment rates in each state and applied this to the 2021 figures (Utah’s was 2.7 percent) to estimate the unemployment rate if the trends continued on their current trajectory. The highest unemployment rate prediction is for Hawaii, at 7.7 percent. Details are at https://lensa.com/insights/unemployment-capitals/.
ENERGY
• Aligned Data Centers, a Texas-based technology infrastructure company offering innovative, sustainable, and adaptive scale data centers and build-to-scale solutions for global hyperscale and enterprise customers, had announced its further expansion in the Salt Lake City market with the planned development of SLC-03, a new data center on its campus in West Jordan. The build-to-scale project will add more than 100 megawatts of capacity to the campus.
• The Kroger Co., a grocery retailer, has increased customer access to electric vehicle charging stations. The grocer tested and phased in charger installations by collaborating with Blink, Electrify America, EVgo, Tesla and Volta to bring hundreds of charging stations to stores in select markets across the U.S. More than 350 chargers have been implemented in areas of Utah and nine other states. Several more chargers expected to be installed by the end of the year.
HOSPITALITY
• The typical Airbnb host in rural Utah earned about $15,000 in 2021, according to the company. Hosts in rural Utah counties that year earned over $134 million. Fifteen cities and towns in Utah received their first-ever Airbnb guests since the pandemic. Hosts in rural U.S. counties earned over $3.5 billion in 2021. Hosts in Summit County earned over $57.1 million. The number was as low as $210,592 in Piute County.
• Dynamic City Capital, a Provo-based real estate investment firm focused on hotel investments in prime markets, has acquired the Anaheim Portofino Inn & Suites in California. Financial terms were not disclosed. Near Disneyland and California Adventure Park, the hotel has 190 guest rooms. The Anaheim property is DCC’s second hotel acquisition in Anaheim during the last 12 months and its eighth acquisition or hotel opening during that same time frame.
INVESTMENTS
• Rivet, a Salt Lake City-based software company offering a platform to promote transparency throughout the healthcare billing process, has raised $20.5 million in a Series B funding round, led by growth equity firm Catalyst Investors, with participation from co-investor Ankona Capital and existing investors Menlo Ventures, Pelion Venture Partners and Lux Capital. Tyler Newton, partner with Catalyst Investors, will join Rivet’s board of directors.
• Peterson Search Partners, a Peterson Partners strategy dedicated to search funds and micro-cap buyouts, has announced a final close on its $100 million for Fund II. The fund is mandated to invest behind “search fund” operators into cash-flowing businesses. Peterson Partners is a Salt Lake City-based investment firm that has invested in more than 300 companies. Also, Kate Pettinato has been hired as a vice president at Peterson Partners. Her background She will work to provide support for searchers and portfolio companies within Peterson Search Partners. Pettinato has a background in healthcare investment banking, most recently serving as financial sponsor coverage officer at Ziegler. She also served as a senior associate at Lumere and began her career at Raymond James in the Health Care Investment Banking division.
LAW
• Dentons Durham Jones Pinegar has hired Manal Hall as a partner in the franchising and distribution practice in Lehi. Hall advises clients on a wide variety of issues, including all phases of the franchise registration process in the U.S. registration states and has assisted clients in assessing the feasibility of entering various international markets. She enjoys helping franchisors create strategies, systems and a corporate infrastructure designed to help them scale rapidly and efficiently.
LOGISTICS
• Abby Osborne recently was sworn-in as a member of the Utah Inland Port Authority board. UIPA is a multimodal logistics agency with a regional approach to increase utilization and expand access for commerce throughout Utah. Osborne is the board’s fifth voting member. Gov. Spencer J. Cox named Osborne to the board. One of the governor’s appointees, Theresa Foxley, president and CEO of the Economic Development Corporation of Utah, withdrew due to a conflict. Osborne serves as the chief of staff for the Utah House of Representatives. She previously worked as the executive vice president of government affairs and public policy for the Salt Lake Chamber. Before her involvement in public administration, she worked for Granite Construction for 13 years. In 2014, Osborne started the Utah Transportation Coalition which brings public and private sector groups together to solve pressing transportation problems facing the state.
PARTNERSHIPS
• Utah Luxury Tours has announced a partnership with Rocky Mountaineer to provide combined luxury land and train tours throughout Utah and Colorado. The train ride included in the combination tour will run between Denver and Moab, with a stop in Glenwood Springs for an overnight stay. Guests can begin their tour in Las Vegas, Salt Lake City or Moab and end with the rail journey to Colorado, or vice versa, with numerous options for customization for dates, group sizes and touring locations throughout Utah.
• Scorpion, a Salt Lake City-based provider of technology and services for local businesses, has announced a three-year partnership with the DUI Defense Lawyers Association, whose members consist of solo attorneys and law firms that practice DUI law. As part of the partnership, Scorpion will provide the association resources, including webinars about relevant marketing trends and best practices, articles outlining digital marketing recommendations, and content offering perspectives about industry trends, among others.
• Bandwidth Inc., based in North Carolina, and Pleasant Grove-based Alianza Inc. have announced a partnership to accelerate cloud migration for communications service providers. Bandwidth is a global enterprise cloud communications company. Alianza is a cloud-native communications platform built for service providers. Together, Bandwidth’s network platform and APIs, along with Alianza’s full-stack CSP platform, will enable CSPs to transform their legacy infrastructure and remain competitive by offering high-growth, cloud-based voice, messaging and videoconferencing services. The partnership already serves more than 50 CSP customers in the U.S. and Canada.
PETS
• Sage Veterinary Imaging, Sandy, has hired Olivia Shoup as a veterinary neurologist. Shoup will lead the center’s neurology and neurosurgery practice, including advanced neurological procedures involving stabilization and neuro-oncology. She will also serve as a resource for area veterinarians. SVI also has imaging centers in Midvale and in Round Rock, Texas.
PHILANTHROPY
• Pluralsight, a Draper-based technology workforce development company, has announced that its social impact organization, Pluralsight One, is providing over $2 million in immediate cash grants to existing nonprofit partners and over $1 million in immediate cash grants to four new partners: Girls Who Code, LaunchCode, Npower and CodePath. The company also has provided product grants totaling approximately 5,000 free Pluralsight Skills licenses to new partners. Those receiving additional grants include the Norwegian Refugee Council, Year Up, Malala Fund, Code.org and the Computer Science Teachers Association.
REAL ESTATE
• Dunleer, a California-based private real estate investment and development firm, has acquired an 83,893-square-foot industrial business park at 2950 W. 500 S., Salt Lake City, for $9.85 million. It is Dunleer’s first industrial investment in Utah. The property is on a 4.8-acre site and includes 16 units. Eli Priest of Newmark represented both the buyer and seller in this transaction.
RECOGNITIONS
• Visit Salt Lake, a private, nonprofit corporation promoting Salt Lake as a convention and travel destination, recently bestowed its inaugural SALT Awards to honor Salt Lake County’s hospitality workers “who exemplify service, accomplishment, leadership and tenacity.” Each award recipient was recognized with an engraved SALT crystal award and a check for $1,000. The “Dining – Behind the Scenes” Award went to Javier Robles, Grand America banquet manager. The “Dining – Front & Center” Award was presented to Ramon Morales, Market Street Grill busser. The “Lodging – Behind the Scenes” Award went to Maria (Lulu) Amador, director of housekeeping at Courtyard/Residence Inn Salt Lake City Airport. The “Lodging Front & Center” Award was presented to Danielle Dahle, Residence Inn by Marriott guest services agent. The “Scenemaker” Award (for exceptional service for industries including attractions, venues, caterers and transportation providers) went to Mayuko Davidson, operations manager for Western Leisure. The Overall Spirit of Service Award recipient is Mirsada Fitozovic, housekeeping coordinator for Hilton Salt Lake City Center.
• Goal Zero, a Riverton-based portable energy company, has won the Outdoor Retailer Inspiration Award for its work as a pioneer of portable power products and through its commitment to giving back. Awards were presented at the OR Summer tradeshow in five categories to individuals and organizations encouraging more people to get outside and creating a better outdoor experience. The recipients were determined by a judging panel based on impact, leadership, community engagement, philanthropy, sustainability and other factors as presented with the nominations.
SERVICES
• Capstone IT, a Nebraska-based IT staffing services and solutions company, has expanded its workforce and operations in the Salt Lake City metropolitan area. For over 20 years, Capstone IT has provided businesses throughout the Midwest and beyond with talent and technical solutions for business growth. The company has hired Abraham Alonso as senior account manager. He has over two decades of experience enriching businesses throughout Salt Lake City with services and solutions.
• U-Haul has announced plans to offer more than 700 indoor climate-controlled self-storage rooms at 1153 W. Highway 40, Vernal. U-Haul Moving & Storage of Vernal will occupy the former Kmart building at that address. The building has been vacant for more than five years. Customers can access truck and trailer sharing, boxes and moving supplies and portable storage containers out of a temporary retail showroom. Towing equipment, professional hitch installation, hitch accessories and bike racks, propane and more will soon be available. U-Haul acquired the 7.29-acre property on June 13. It is the 13th store owned and operated by U-Haul in Utah and the first in Vernal. It expects to hire at least 15 people to staff the new store. U-Haul has more than 23,000 locations in the U.S. and 10 Canadian provinces.
TECHNOLOGY
• Weave, a Lehi-based company offering a customer communication platform for small businesses, has elected George Scanlon to its board of directors. He also will serve on the audit committee. Scanlon has over 12 years of experience on the boards of multiple companies, including Wageworks, Landstar and Cyndx. Prior to his board work, Scanlon served as chief financial officer at multiple technology and financial services companies, as well as serving as CEO of Fidelity National Financial.
• Entrata, a Lehi-based company offering an operation system for the multifamily industry, has announced a significant expansion to its core technology team by adding 11 leadership roles in the past several months. Among its new leadership hires are Mary Jane Isaacs and Natalie Birrell as senior vice presidents of engineering; Eric Zimmerman, a senior vice president of platform operations; Ted Tronson, a principal intelligence engineer; and Travis Ard as a principal data engineer. They join Entrata from previous roles at technology and financial brands, including Amazon, Domo, American Express, Fidelity Investments and Overstock. Entrata also has hired Kimberly Lang as executive vice president of product to bolster its platform’s fintech and resident-facing services. Lang will be focused on payment processing, product, and partnership opportunities. She has over two decades of experience in the property management software and SaaS space, most recently holding leadership positions at leading SaaS companies and also working at Inhabit IQ; CheckAlt; and more than 13 years at RealPage, including serving as senior vice president of consumer solutions and CEO of RealPage’s Payments Services.