Facebook and the FTC have agreed to terms on a settlement addressing the social network’s privacy violations in recent years. Along with the previously reported $5 billion fine, the deal will require Facebook to “add new positions and practices to increase the transparency and accountability of how it treats people’s information” – NYTimes and WSJ and Bloomberg and Law360
Investors, however, continue to stick with Zuck and, especially, the promise of its ad business – WSJ and Bloomberg
And, understandably below the radar given the size of the FTC fine, Facebook also agreed to pay $100 million to the SEC to resolve claims that “it was aware that a third-party developer had improperly mined and sold the private data of users yet made it seem that the risk of such a misuse was ‘merely hypothetical’” – Law360
Boeing made news Wednesday by suggesting for the first time that it could shut down production of its troubled 737 MAX for good—a move that “would have profound consequences for Boeing as well as its customers and suppliers around the world” – NYTimes and WSJ
Nissan announced that it will cut upwards of 12,500 jobs globally—about 9% of its total workforce—as the company struggles to find steady ground after the departure of former chair Carlos Ghosn – NYTimes and WSJ
The muni bond market has, in the past decade, become increasingly the domain of fewer and fewer firms, with investors increasingly turning to a few massive money managers (think Nuveen and Vanguard) to invest in this debt—a move that observers suggest “raises concerns about the traditionally safe muni market’s ability to withstand” a cooling of interest after a 10-year-long hot streak – WSJ
Tesla’s co-founder and technology chief, JB Straubel, is out, less than a day after the electric car maker posted a bigger-than-expected Q2 loss. Straubel, called the second most-important person at Tesla after Elon Musk, reportedly made the decision to step down on his own – WSJ and Bloomberg
It was an interesting day on the hill for SunTrust and BB&T execs on Wednesday, but they survived their 2 hours before the House Financial Services Committee relatively intact and left with their $66 billion planned merger in good shape – Law360
Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin came out this week, on the heels of the DOJ’s announcement that it was opening a Big Tech antitrust probe, with a broadside attack on Amazon, suggesting that it has “destroyed” the US retail industry – Bloomberg and MarketWatch
While it didn’t get that kind of public attention, Facebook also revealed in a disclosure yesterday that it has been contacted by the DOJ as part of that Big Tech investigation AND that the FTC is probing the company for possible antitrust violations – NYTimes
Masa Son’s SoftBank Group is closing in on announcing a $40 billion investment in the second version of its tech-focused Vision Fund – WSJ
Note to self. Follow the “Bison warning” signs at Yellowstone. Yikes – MarketWatch