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☆ Microsoft, Salesforce woo skeptical CFOs on new generative AI tool spending
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-29 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Many other business software providers have looked to quickly introduce tools that utilize generative AI, or update their existing ones with it. The utilization of AI more broadly is nothing new for CFOs, with tools like predictive AI being used by most companies to help with core tasks. But this new wave of generative AI presents a different opportunity, and Weaver said the focus on generative AI across industries has frantically increased in the last year. However, he added that there is a challenge when it comes to generative AI tools: creating auditable processes or being able to visually inspect the processes to ensure the data or conclusions are correct. Hrncirik said that the message within Microsoft is that generative AI is a "new skill that we have to develop."

Persons: Jensen Huang, CNBC's Jim Cramer, Cory Hrncirik, Amy Weaver, Weaver, Mark McDonald, Gina Gutzeit, McDonald, we've, isn't, Hrncirik, it's, CFOs, Gutzeit Organizations: Microsoft, Nvidia, Johnson, GE Healthcare, CNBC, Microsoft's, Gartner, FTI Consulting, Solutions Locations: Krakow, Poland

☆ UK is in danger of becoming the Nigeria of wind
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-20 | by ( George Hay | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

LONDON, July 20 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Britain is supposed to be the Saudi Arabia of wind power. Vattenfall’s decision on Thursday to halt the 1.4 gigawatt (GW) Norfolk Boreas project is just the latest sign that Britain’s most appropriate fossil-fuel comparator may not be the biggest and most efficient producer. Vattenfall, a state-held Swedish power company, has gone cool for reasons that are well-discussed in the wind sector. The obvious move for UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak would be to allow developers to charge more for power, to make up for higher costs. Follow @gfhay on TwitterCONTEXT NEWSVattenfall is stopping the development of its 1.4 gigawatt (GW) Norfolk Boreas offshore wind project off the coast of Britain, the state-owned Swedish utility said on July 20.

Persons: Boris Johnson’s, Vattenfall, Rishi Sunak, Liam Proud, Oliver Taslic Organizations: Reuters, Siemens, UK, FTI, Norfolk, Thomson Locations: Britain, Saudi Arabia, United Kingdom, Riyadh, Norfolk Boreas, Swedish, Norfolk, Orsted, Nigeria

☆ Once valued at nearly $6 billion, Vice files for bankruptcy
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( Claire Atkinson | Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Vice filed for bankruptcy, wiping out equity holders who poured in hundreds of millions, including TPG and James Murdoch. The company filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Monday in New York's Southern District Court. The company's filing listed assets and liabilities in the range of $500 million to $1 billion. Vice had run multiple sales processes with a range of different banks but never received an offer palatable to its owners. The bankruptcy filing reveals just how many companies and investors pinned their hopes on Smith's hype about the potential growth trajectory of the TV and online venture.

☆ Corporate CFOs are going through their own 'Great Resignation'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

That figure is even higher for EMEA- and APAC-based finance execs, with 73% and 61%, respectively, saying that the average CFO tenure was under five years. An analysis of 679 Fortune 500 and S&P 500 companies in 2022 by Crist Kolder Associates also found that average CFO tenure is on the decline, at five years. The pre-2022 IPO and funding boom has likely increased CFO turnover as new opportunities arose more frequently. Gutzeit says the current economic environment, with increasing layoffs and corporate restructuring, should influence more CFOs to stay put. She expects a slight decline in CFO turnover as "people are going to be more cautious about where they're going and what is changing."

☆ Vice owes FTI Consulting nearly $1 million, a new court filing alleges, one of multiple vendors chasing missed payments
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( Claire Atkinson | Jack Newsham | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Vice Media owes FTI Consulting nearly $1 million in fees, some dating back to 2019, a court filing alleges. FTI is one of several vendors who say they've gone unpaid by the youth media company. The filing alleges that Vice Holding, the parent of Vice Media, hired Washington, DC-based FTI Consulting to help it with accounting projects and management and then failed to pay its bills. Ironically, Vice hired FTI to help it with "profitability analysis" and to design "cash management" tools, according to the filing. Fortress lent Vice $30 million, according to the Wall Street Journal, which confirmed Vice is in a process to sell itself.

☆ U.S. mattress maker Serta Simmons files for bankruptcy protection
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-24 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The Doraville, Georgia-based company, whose roots date to 1870, filed for Chapter 11 protection from creditors on Monday night with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in the Southern District of Texas. Serta Simmons also lined up $125 million in financing to keep operating, including to pay its 3,600 employees. The company's brands include Serta, Simmons, Beautyrest and Tuft & Needle. Serta Simmons' advisers include the law firm Weil, Gotshal & Manges, Evercore Group LLC and FTI Consulting Inc. The case is In re Serta Simmons Bedding LLC et al, U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Southern District of Texas, No.

☆ Australia-to-Asia power project will go up for sale in January
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MELBOURNE, Jan 20 (Reuters) - A huge solar power project in Australia that collapsed last week will be put up for sale before the end of January and the sale process is expected to take about three months, administrators at FTI Consulting said on Friday. "Indicative timing for the sale process is approximately three months," the administrators said in a statement released after the first meeting of creditors. Sun Cable designed its key project, Australia-Asia PowerLink, to send power from a 20 gigawatt (GW) solar farm with the world's biggest battery in northern Australia across what would be the world's longest undersea cable, to Singapore. Tech billionaire Cannon-Brookes, who is chairman of Sun Cable, backs that plan. However, iron ore magnate Forrest's private firm Squadron Energy called for an overhaul of the project, aiming to scrap the undersea cable plan.

☆ Billionaire urges overhaul of collapsed Australia-Asia solar mega project
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( Sonali Paul | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MELBOURNE, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Iron ore magnate Andrew Forrest called on Thursday for an overhaul of a $20 billion-plus project to send solar power from Australia to Singapore, which collapsed after he and tech billionaire Mike Cannon-Brookes split over funding plans. Singapore-based Sun Cable, largely owned by Forrest's private firm Squadron Energy and Cannon-Brookes' private firm Grok, appointed voluntary administrators this week less than a year after raising A$210 million for the Australia-Asia PowerLink project. In Squadron's first public comments since the collapse was announced on Wednesday, the firm said the project "requires vision and precise execution". "Squadron Energy believes in the vision but believes the manner in which the project is delivered needs urgent change," Squadron Chairman John Hartman said in an emailed statement. "Exceptional governance practices and world-class project delivery expertise, as well as pursuing bankable technologies, will be required to make the project a reality," Hartman said.

Companies Sun Cable FollowMELBOURNE, Jan 11 (Reuters) - The developer of a $21-billion project aiming to deliver solar power to Singapore from Australia has collapsed as its two main backers, Australian billionaires Mike Cannon-Brookes and Andrew Forrest, failed to agree on a new round of funding. Singapore-based Sun Cable said it had appointed voluntary administrators less than a year after raising A$210 million from the two billionaires for the Australia-Asia PowerLink project. Tech billionaire and climate activist Cannon-Brookes, who became chairman of Sun Cable in October, said he remained confident in the project. The statement offered no comment from iron ore magnate Andrew Forrest's privately owned Squadron Energy, Sun Cable's other big stakeholder. Future steps are likely to involve voluntary administrators FTI Consulting seeking fresh capital or selling the business entirely, Sun Cable said.

☆ FTX Creditors Committee Brings On Jefferies and FTI as Financial Advisers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-30 | by ( Soma Biswas | Jonathan Randles | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The committee of FTX customers chosen to represent the interests of all exchange users in its chapter 11 case hired Jefferies and FTI Consulting Inc. as financial advisers, according to people familiar with the matter. Last week, the official committee brought on the law firm Paul Hastings LLP. Made up of nine members, the official committee is the sole customer group that can currently bill its legal and advisory fees to FTX.

☆ Companies Strengthen Collections, Aim to Get Cash in the Door as Threat of Downturn Looms
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-21 | by ( Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +6 min

Companies are stepping up efforts to collect on their bills and get cash in the door, aiming to limit future write-offs ahead of a potential downturn. The company’s days of sales outstanding during the latest quarter declined to 67.3 days from 70.4 days during the prior period, according to S&P. Early in the pandemic, some companies extended payment terms to customers that needed funds to shore up liquidity to help navigate temporary lockdown measures. Everbridge said it aims to provide customers with payment terms that are mutually beneficial. ServiceNow’s days of sales outstanding during the third quarter fell to 44 days from 47.4 days a year earlier, according to S&P.

☆ How electric air taxis could shake up the airline industry in the next decade
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-03 | by ( Mikaela Cohen | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Companies across the U.S., including several startups, are developing electric air taxis that aim to take cars off the road and put people in the sky. In October, Delta Air Lines joined the list of airlines backing EV technology startups, with a $60 million investment in Joby Aviation, a company developing electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft (eVTOLs), intended to operate as an air taxi service. In 2021, when Joby announced its plan to launch its Uber-like air taxis by 2024, it generated criticism from industry analysts on the ability to launch by that date. One is for $15 million with Eve Air Mobility for 200 aircraft, and another for $10 million with Archer Aviation for 100 eVTOLs. Air taxis could hit markets in the 2030sWhile major airlines enter agreements with global startups, it's important to remember these are conditional.

☆ Businesses Rush to Sidestep Rate Shock by Paying Down Debt
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-09 | by ( Kristin Broughton | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

Executives are aggressively paying down debt as higher interest rates increase the cost associated with having debt and businesses face the prospect of a recession. As a result, some are taking steps to rein in expenses and cut interest costs, while others are looking to put cash reserves to work as their bank deposits continue to generate minimal yields. Beauty paid an annual interest rate of 4.9% on the loan, according to Mandy Fields, the company’s chief financial officer. About two-thirds of the loan carried a 5% interest rate that was fixed through a swap, which was set to expire in 2025. The two transactions reduced KAR’s annual interest costs by $70 million, to an estimated $15 million a year, Mr. Loughmiller said.

☆ Go ahead. Go crazy with avocados. There's a massive glut and prices are cooling off
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

New York CNNBusiness —There’s at least one item in the grocery store that is getting less expensive: avocados. A significant supply glut of the buttery fruit has triggered a drop in wholesale prices, sending store prices lower as well. A glut of global avocado supply has triggered a significant drop in prices. “In the first half of 2022, avocado shipments from Mexico were 25% lower compared to the record-high shipments we saw in 2021,” said Magana. Those regulations were quickly lifted, but not before causing a further run-up in store prices.

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