Though raising projections for overall economic growth over the next 2 years, the IMF warned this week that “an uneven rollout of vaccines” threatens to add to concerns about a “K-shaped” economic recovery on a global scale. ...more
4/7/2021
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Antitrust Provisions ,
Competition ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Credit Suisse ,
Data Breach ,
Data Protection ,
Economic Growth ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Facebook ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
General Motors ,
HBO ,
IMF ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Ireland ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
Misappropriation ,
Movies ,
Netflix ,
Patent Infringement ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Recovery Plans ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trade Secrets
Thursday delivered some welcome good news in the slow push for a labor market recovery. The Labor Department reported that new jobless benefits claims “fell to their lowest weekly level in the last year, a sign that the...more
3/26/2021
/ Car Accident ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Facebook ,
Ford Motor ,
Google ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Insurrection ,
Maritime Transport ,
NLRB ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shipping Cargo ,
SoftBank ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) ,
Supply Chain ,
Tesla ,
Twitter ,
Unemployment ,
Union Organizers ,
Wrongful Termination
More on how the clogged Suez Canal is combining with “a burst of demand for consumer goods” thanks to a resurgent U.S. economy is “heaping pressure on already strained supply chains” and potentially push prices higher in...more
3/25/2021
/ American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 ,
Big Tech ,
Coinbase ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Critical Infrastructure Sectors ,
Crypto Exchanges ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Facebook ,
Financial Markets ,
Goods or Services ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Mobile Apps ,
Oil & Gas ,
PCAOB ,
Section 230 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Slack ,
Social Media ,
Supply Chain
The NFL has scored a new media deal spread across outlets from CBS, NBC, and Fox to ESPN and Amazon worth nearly $110 billion over 11 years, “nearly doubling the value of its previous contracts” and “cement[ing]” the league’s...more
3/19/2021
/ Acquisition Agreements ,
Anti-Bribery ,
Biden Administration ,
China ,
Facebook ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Policy ,
Foreign Relations ,
Hartford Insurance Company ,
LinkedIn ,
Media Relations ,
NFL ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities Fraud ,
Social Media ,
Toyota
With Wednesday’s passage in the House, the $1.9 trillion Covid relief bill is heading to President Biden’s desk for an anticipated Friday signature, “cementing one of the largest injections of federal aid since the Great...more
3/11/2021
/ Administrative Appointments ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Biden Administration ,
BuzzFeed ,
Capital Markets ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dow Jones ,
Facebook ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
General Electric ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Interest Rates ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Relief Measures ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Stock Prices
Walmart’s recent move to hire away a “pair of senior Goldman Sachs bankers” to head up the retailer’s new fintech startup (a collaboration with Ribbit Capital) has tongues wagging about the company’s ambitions to shove its...more
3/1/2021
/ Berkshire Hathaway ,
Biometric Information ,
Biometric Information Privacy Act ,
Credit Suisse ,
Data Collection ,
Facebook ,
Facial Recognition Technology ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
GameStop ,
Mail ,
Market Manipulation ,
McDonalds ,
Private Investment Funds ,
Reddit ,
Settlement Agreements ,
SoftBank ,
Stock Trades ,
United Airlines ,
Wal-Mart
Ousted eccentric WeWork co-founder and CEO Adam Neumann is reportedly closing in on a deal with SoftBank that would shave about $500 million (roughly half) off the total Masa Son would pay to buy Neumann’s shares. ...more
2/23/2021
/ Aerospace ,
Aircraft ,
Aircraft Equipment ,
Australia ,
Economic Downturn ,
Equipment Failure ,
Facebook ,
Goodyear ,
Google ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Internet ,
Jay Z ,
Manufacturers ,
NASA ,
News Stories ,
Outer Space ,
Retail Market ,
SoftBank ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) ,
Supply Chain ,
Twitter ,
Unemployment ,
Websites
Britain’s Supreme Court dealt Uber a blow this morning when it ruled that “drivers must be classified as workers entitled to a minimum wage and vacation time.” The decision—a disaster for Uber in a dispute that reaches back...more
2/19/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
Bitcoin ,
Data Collection ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
ETFs ,
Facebook ,
GameStop ,
Gig Economy ,
Independent Contractors ,
International Labor Laws ,
Microchip Technology ,
Misclassification ,
Reddit ,
Robinhood Financial ,
Section 230 ,
Stock Trades ,
Supply Chain ,
Uber ,
UK ,
Unemployment ,
Volkswagen ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wal-Mart
After more than half a year without a leader, the WTO is poised to welcome its “first woman and first African” to the role in the form of Nigerian economist and former finance minister Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. ...more
2/16/2021
/ American Express ,
Apple ,
Biden Administration ,
Big Tech ,
Bristol-Myers Squibb ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Credit Cards ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Downturn ,
Facebook ,
Federal Reserve ,
Fraudulent Marketing ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Google ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Infrastructure ,
Interest Rates ,
Investment Portfolios ,
Nissan ,
OCC ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Recovery Plans ,
Robinhood Financial ,
Sanofi ,
Severe Weather ,
Small Business ,
Tesla ,
White Collar Crimes ,
WTO
New CBO projections suggest that even without additional Congressional aid, the “American economy will return to its pre-pandemic size by the middle of this year.” While encouraging, the report offers cold comfort for the...more
2/2/2021
/ Apple ,
Biden Administration ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Downturn ,
Economic Growth ,
Facebook ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Ford Motor ,
GameStop ,
GME ,
Google ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mobile Apps ,
Recovery Plans ,
Reddit ,
Relief Measures ,
Robinhood Financial
Moved by Covid’s bite out of the energy industry, oil behemoths ExxonMobil and Chevron Corp. have held talks about joining forces, “testing the water for what could be one of the largest corporate mergers ever.” ...more
2/1/2021
/ Apple ,
Chevron ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Facebook ,
Financial Markets ,
GameStop ,
General Motors ,
IMF ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Mobile Apps ,
Oil & Gas ,
Pay Gap ,
Reddit ,
Robinhood Financial ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sex Discrimination ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs) ,
Stock Trades ,
Zero-Emission Vehicles
Google has threatened to pull its search engine from the entirety of the Australian continent “if the government approved legislation that would force tech companies to pay for journalism shared on their platforms.” Facebook...more
1/22/2021
/ Alphabet Company ,
Australia ,
Automotive Industry ,
Big Tech ,
Bitcoin ,
Churches ,
Embezzlement ,
Facebook ,
Google ,
Housing Market ,
Internet ,
Janet Yellen ,
Journalism ,
Layoffs ,
London Stock Exchange ,
Money Laundering ,
Nasdaq ,
Search Engines ,
Stock Prices ,
UK ,
Unemployment ,
Wall Street ,
Websites ,
White Collar Crimes
Intel has ousted CEO Robert Swan “as the company faces pressure from an activist investor and grapples with the loss of leadership in producing ultrafast chips.” Swan had been at the helm since January 2019...more
1/14/2021
/ Airplane Accidents ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Auto Parts ,
Automotive Industry ,
BlackRock ,
Cargill ,
China ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Collection ,
Data-Sharing ,
Economic Growth ,
Facebook ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Google ,
Intel ,
Microchip Technology ,
Misappropriation ,
Mobile Apps ,
National Bank Charters ,
OCC ,
White Collar Crimes
Aaaand we’re back. Hope all have stayed safe and healthy. Let’s get to business. Friday’s Jobs Report saw the U.S. recovery thrown in reverse, with employers cutting 140,000 jobs in December amidst “rising coronavirus cases...more
1/11/2021
/ ATMs ,
Bitcoin ,
Boeing ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Credit Suisse ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Facebook ,
Foreign Policy ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Theranos ,
Twitter ,
UK Brexit ,
Unemployment
The Fed’s Open Markets Committee meeting wrapped on Wednesday, and in remarks following the meeting, Fed Chair Powell called the case for fiscal policy right now “very, very strong,”—a not-so-subtle nudge to Congress to act...more
12/17/2020
/ Accounting Fraud ,
Apple ,
AT&T ,
Bitcoin ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Facebook ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Google ,
HBO ,
Infectious Diseases ,
iPhone Tracking ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Monopolization ,
Online Advertisements ,
Relief Measures ,
Roku ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
EU and British authorities unveiled new proposals this week to “crimp the power of ‘gatekeeper’ platforms like Amazon, Apple, Facebook, Google and Microsoft, which policymakers argue deserve more oversight given their outsize...more
12/16/2020
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Apple ,
Bonds ,
Climate Change ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Counterfeit Goods Regulation ,
Cyber Espionage ,
EU ,
Facebook ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
FOMC ,
Google ,
Hate Speech ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Internet Retailers ,
Investment Management ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Microsoft ,
Online Advertisements ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Relief Measures ,
Stock Markets ,
UK ,
Vanguard
The latest lame-duck Covid relief package proposal would trim about 150 billion dollars (and a number of key sticking points, including funds “to bolster state and local governments, and a temporary coronavirus liability...more
12/15/2020
/ Adidas ,
Algorithms ,
Amazon Marketplace ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Big Tech ,
Boeing ,
China ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Collection ,
Data Protection ,
DoorDash ,
Facebook ,
Fannie Mae ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Freddie Mac ,
Gender Discrimination ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Google ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Ireland ,
Manufacturing Defects ,
Pinterest ,
Public Utilities Commission ,
Reddit ,
Reebok ,
Relief Measures ,
Search Engines ,
Sexual Assault ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Snapchat ,
Social Media ,
Trade Wars ,
Twitter ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Uber ,
WhatsApp ,
YouTube
Because too much of a good thing is always trouble (especially on Wall Street), market watchers are warning of a new tech bubble after Airbnb’s monster IPO on Thursday. The home-sharing app’s shares rose more than 112% to...more
12/11/2020
/ AirBnB ,
Amazon Marketplace ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Apple ,
Big Tech ,
Bitcoin ,
Bonds ,
Competition ,
Cookies ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Privacy ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
European Central Bank ,
Facebook ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Financial Stimulus ,
France ,
Google ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
MassMutual ,
MasterCard ,
Online Platforms ,
Pornography ,
Trade Agreements ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
Unemployment ,
Visa Inc
The long-awaited Facebook antitrust bomb dropped on Wednesday, with the FTC and attorneys general from more than 40 states accusing Zuck & Co. of “buying up its rivals to illegally squash competition” in D.C. federal district...more
12/10/2020
/ AirBnB ,
Anti-Competitive ,
Antitrust Violations ,
AT&T ,
Big Tech ,
Canada ,
Capital Raising ,
CARES Act ,
Dairy Farmers ,
Disney ,
DoorDash ,
Facebook ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Fraud ,
General Electric ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Internet Streaming ,
Monopolization ,
Movies ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Sony ,
Stock Prices ,
United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA) ,
White Collar Crimes
In yet another blow to the suffering movie theater industry, Warner Bros. announced on Thursday that all of its 2021 release calendar—including “big-budget extravaganzas like ‘Dune’ and ‘The Matrix 4’”—will arrive...more
12/4/2020
/ Amazon Marketplace ,
Automotive Industry ,
Biden Administration ,
Capital One ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Exploration and Production Assets ,
Facebook ,
Foreign Workers ,
H-1B ,
Huawei ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Internet Streaming ,
Job Market ,
Lame Duck Session ,
Movies ,
Oil & Gas ,
OPEC ,
Paris Agreement ,
Podcasts ,
Russia ,
Ryanair ,
Senate Confirmation Hearings ,
Unemployment ,
Warner Brothers Entertainment
Mere months after an announced major investment in start-up electric truck company Nikola (and the subsequent claims that the company had “exaggerated its capabilities), General Motors announced this week that it had...more
12/1/2020
/ Antitrust Violations ,
Biden Administration ,
Big Tech ,
Bitcoin ,
Business Valuations ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Diversity and Inclusion Standards (D&I) ,
DoorDash ,
Electric Vehicles ,
Facebook ,
FCC ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
GAO ,
General Motors ,
Hydrogen Power ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Nasdaq ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Retail Sales ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Startups ,
Unemployment
Wall Street had another come-to-Jesus day over the troubling recent Covid trends, as surging cases throughout the U.S. and across Europe drove markets to their worst performance since June....more
10/30/2020
/ Anti-Competitive ,
Apple ,
Boeing ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Economic Downturn ,
Facebook ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Markets ,
Google ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Infectious Diseases ,
iPhone ,
Layoffs ,
Oil Prices ,
PayPal ,
Qualcomm ,
Stock Prices ,
Tiffany and Company ,
Trump Administration ,
Twitter
A handful of tech’s biggest leaders—the CEOs of Facebook, Twitter, and Google, to be precise—descend upon the Hill today for a Senate Commerce Committee hearing on content monitoring and Section 230, the “slim and powerful...more
10/28/2020
/ Business Closures ,
Congressional Investigations & Hearings ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Economic Growth ,
Facebook ,
Financial Stimulus ,
GDP ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Google ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Instant Messaging Apps ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Mobile Apps ,
Netherlands ,
Tiffany and Company ,
Trump Administration ,
Twitter ,
U.S. Commerce Department ,
Uber ,
User-Generated Content ,
Visa Inc
A mix of surging Covid cases, the renewed restrictions and shutdowns they’ve prompted, and the unlikelihood of more virus stimulus any time soon sent stocks sharply down to start the week, with the S&P 500 charting its...more
10/27/2020
/ AIG ,
Cloud Computing ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Facebook ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Stimulus ,
Gaming ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Legislative Agendas ,
Libor ,
Life Insurance ,
Microchip Technology ,
Mobile Payments ,
Retailers ,
Retaliation ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Stock Prices ,
Valuation ,
Wells Fargo
A California appeals court has affirmed a lower court decision requiring Uber and Lyft to “treat their California drivers as employees, providing them with the benefits and wages they are entitled to under state labor law.”...more
10/23/2020
/ 1MDB ,
Amazon Marketplace ,
Anticompetitive Behavior ,
Antitrust Violations ,
Bayer ,
Bitcoin ,
Bonuses ,
CA Supreme Court ,
Clawbacks ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employee Definition ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Executive Compensation ,
Facebook ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Gig Economy ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Google ,
Independent Contractors ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Infrastructure ,
Lyft ,
Misclassification ,
Monopolization ,
Opioid ,
PayPal ,
Popular ,
Retail Market ,
Ridesharing ,
Right to Vote ,
Uber ,
Unemployment ,
Wage and Hour ,
Wal-Mart