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☆ NATO navies can exploit a Russian fear and keep Putin from invading more neighbors
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-03 | by ( Michael Peck | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Today, NATO's naval power is far superior to Russia's. NATO may dominate the oceans, but that may not be much help if Russian tanks invade the Baltic States or Poland. Or more specifically, use naval power to scare Moscow into allocating its scarce resources to defending its huge coastlines rather than invading neighbors. "Rather than naval combat per se, the purpose of Russian sea power is to ensure that the Russian state can compete and engage in conflict safely and effectively," the essay said. In 2024, the fear is that NATO ships could launch long-range guided missiles at the Russian heartland.

Persons: Napoleon, Hitler fumed, Russia —, Kaushal, Rene Balletta, Alfred Thayer Mahan, Michael Peck Organizations: Service, Channel, Royal Navy, NATO, Alliance, Britain's Royal United Services Institute, Russian Navy, Black, Century, Russia, Russian Army and Aerospace Forces, West, Baltic, Defense, Foreign Policy, Rutgers Univ, Twitter, LinkedIn Locations: British, Russia, Baltic States, Poland, Moscow, Britain, Europe, Asia, Russian, Crimean, Sevastopol, Ukraine, Russia's, Finland, Norway, Forbes

☆ Elon Musk settled the bill after Tesla ditched a Black History Month pie order, costing the bakers thousands
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-27 | by ( Mia Jankowicz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Tesla paid a bakery $2,000 after it canceled a massive Black History Month order at short notice. "To fulfill the order, I had turned down other Black History Month catering inquiries, purchased supplies, and prepared for a demanding production schedule," she wrote. — Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 23, 2024Rasetarinera confirmed to The Guardian Monday that she had received $2,000 from Tesla. Rasetarinera said in a February 2 post celebrating Black History Month that she's of Madagascan heritage. Advertisement"As I reflect on this ordeal, I am reminded of the resilience and determination that have propelled me forward as a black woman entrepreneur," Rasetarinera wrote in her original Instagram post.

Persons: Tesla, Elon Musk, —, Voahangy Rasetarinera, Instagram, — Elon, Rasetarinera, Matt Mahan Organizations: Service, Guardian, NBC Bay Area, NBC Bay, ABC7, Jose Locations: San Jose , California

WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. government has seized a Boeing 747 cargo plane that officials say was previously sold by a sanctioned Iranian airline to a state-owned Venezuelan firm in violation of American export control laws. The Justice Department said Monday that the American-built plane had arrived in Florida and would be disposed of. The plane was detained in June 2022 by Argentine law enforcement, and U.S. officials moved several weeks later to take possession of it. The Justice Department has identified the registered captain of the plane as an ex-commander for the Revolutionary Guard. Mahan Air has denied any ties to the aircraft, and Venezuela has demanded that Argentine authorities release the plane.

Persons: Mahan, Matthew Olsen, ”, Nicolas Maduro, Regina Garcia Cano Organizations: WASHINGTON, Boeing, Justice Department, Air, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, Quds Force, Officials, Revolutionary Guard, Justice, Argentine, The, Mahan Air, Associated Press Locations: U.S, Iranian, Venezuelan, Florida, United States, Argentine, Argentina, Emtrasur, Moscow, Caracas, Tehran, Venezuela

☆ LeBron James signs trading card deal with Fanatics Collectibles, leaving Upper Deck
▼ + stars: | 2024-01-10 | by ( Jessica Golden | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

LeBron James is moving his trading card sponsorship to Fanatics Collectibles after more than 20 years with rival Upper Deck. Fanatics will kick off the deal by selling a unique Bowman brand card featuring a dual autograph of the National Basketball Association legend and his son Bronny. The multiyear deal will mean new inventory of signed James trading cards. It also shakes up the balance of power in the recently revived sports memorabilia and trading card industry. Fanatics Collectibles, under Michael Rubin's $31 billion sports platform company Fanatics, purchased Topps in 2022 for $500 million.

Persons: LeBron James, Bronny, James, James hasn't, Mike Mahan, Michael Rubin's Organizations: Bowman, National Basketball Association, Topps

☆ Fanatics' Topps is putting Tom Brady on a Montreal Expos trading card
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-12 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

One of the most anticipated yearly releases for baseball card collectors is the Topps Bowman Draft set, the first time MLB draftees are featured on a card. While the odds of a prospect making the majors are historically low, the chance for collectors to get the first card of a potential Hall of Famer makes it one of the most popular trading card sets under the Topps umbrella. But there was one MLB draftee who was a lock for the Hall of Fame, albeit in another sport: Tom Brady. Brady, well-known for his NFL career, was drafted in the 18th round of the 1995 MLB Draft by the Montreal Expos. When Mike Mahan, CEO of Fanatics Collectibles — the arm within Fanatics that oversees Topps and its cards and collectibles business — heard that Brady never had a baseball card, it fit perfectly into what the company is trying to do with trading cards.

Persons: Tom Brady, Brady, Mike Mahan, —, Mahan, Dick Clark Organizations: Topps, Major League Baseball, of Famer, MLB, Hall of Fame, NFL, Montreal Expos, Dick Clark Productions

Google confirmed on Thursday that the company ended its agreement with the development partner that was working on four key campus sites. Alphabet-owned Google is embarking on its most expansive cost cuts in its almost two decades on the public market. CNBC reported that, as part of Google's downsizing that went into effect early this year, the company gutted its development team for the San Jose campus. As recently as September, Google executives, including CFO Ruth Porat, appeared at a San Jose event that aimed to reaffirm the company's commitment to building in the city. San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said in a statement to CNBC that the latest news "doesn't change Google's commitment to San Jose or their timeline."

Persons: Lendlease, we've, Ruth Porat, Matt Mahan, Mahan Organizations: Google, Lendlease, Downtown, San, Alexa, CNBC, San Jose Locations: Jose, Sunnyvale, Bayshore, Mountain View, San Francisco Bay, Bay, San Jose, San

☆ A Silicon Valley billionaire is leasing a 2-acre plot of private land for $1 a year to help address the Bay Area's housing crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Erin Snodgrass | Natalie Musumeci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The San Jose City Council voted to approve a new quick-build housing development for the unhoused. Silicon Valley billionaire John Sobrato will lease 2 acres of private land to the city at $1 a year. AdvertisementAdvertisementA Bay Area billionaire is offering his private land to the city of San Jose, California, for a $1 annual lease in an effort to tackle the area's homelessness. A 2023 Point-in-Time homeless census released earlier this year found at least 6,340 people were homeless in San Jose, local media reported. San Jose City Council representatives did not return Insider's request for comment.

Persons: John Sobrato, —, Sobrato, Matt Mahan, @MattMahanSJ, Mahan Organizations: San Jose City, Service, Area, San Jose City Council, Via, San Jose, NBC, VTA, Via Del, Council for Community, Economic Research, Sobrato Organization, Forbes Locations: San, Silicon Valley, San Jose , California, Via Del Oro, NBC Bay, South San Jose, Via, Edenvale, San Jose, California, Valley, Del Oro, Unhoused

☆ Fanatics hires former Opendoor executive to run $5 billion sports merchandise business
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-12 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Fanatics has seen that area of its business grow to more than $5 billion in annual sales, a key driver of its increasing overall revenue and valuation. The slew of recent executive appointments moves Fanatics closer to Rubin's goal of an eventual IPO as its business continues to expand beyond sports merchandise. Low Ah Kee is replacing Doug Mack, who has served as Fanatics Commerce CEO since 2014 and announced last month that he would be retiring at the end of 2023. Fanatics said Mack will work with Low Ah Kee for the remainder of the year and then will shift into a special advisory role for Rubin and the company. Opendoor announced last December that Low Ah Kee was leaving the company.

Persons: Justin Berl, Andrew Low Ah Kee, Michael Rubin, Low Ah Kee, Matt King, Dick Clark, Mike Mahan, " Rubin, Rubin, Deborah Crawford, Ah Kee, Doug Mack, Mack, Opendoor, Kee Organizations: Pittsburgh Pirates, Milwaukee Brewers, PNC Park, Commerce, Mitchell Locations: Pittsburgh , Pennsylvania, U.S, Meta

☆ Tiny tech bank defies US massacre of the minnows
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-08 | by ( John Foley | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

One example is $1 billion Live Oak Bancshares (LOB.N), which flouts many preconceptions about what it means to be a tiny U.S. bank. But if those failures demonstrated that rapid growth brings escalating risk, Live Oak is a counterexample. Because of the way that programme is structured, around 40% of Live Oak’s lending carries a government guarantee. The company spun out its cloud-based banking software division nCino (NCNO.O) in 2014; that firm is now worth $2.8 billion, more than twice Live Oak’s value. That more earthly valuation might reflect Live Oak’s biggest risk: that it starts to look more like the rest of the pack.

Persons: it’s, Chip Mahan, SVB, It’s, Huntley Garriott, Goldman Sachs, reckons, ’, Keefe, Mahan, Liam Proud, Streisand Neto Organizations: YORK, Reuters, Wachovia, Valley Bank, U.S, Regional, Silvergate, Reuters Graphics Reuters, government’s, Business Administration, SBA, Federal, Truist, PNC Financial Services, redwoods, Twitter, Thomson Locations: United States, North Carolina, U.S

☆ San Jose just authorized plans to build a network of autonomous cars hailed via an app to ferry people from its airport to its railway station
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

San Jose began soliciting proposals for a link between its airport and its railway station in 2019. On Tuesday, it authorized a plan from a tech firm call Glydways' which makes autonomous cars hailed via app. Autonomous cars will traverse Silicon Valley from as soon as 2028 after San Jose authorized a plan on Tuesday to connect the city's airport with its central railway station, Bloomberg reported. "In a sprawling city like San Jose, local light rail is a tough proposition." "San Jose has recognized that modernizing our ability to move will provide a multitude of opportunities for everyone- access to better jobs, affordable housing, education, healthcare and more," he added.

☆ Russia's biggest airline reportedly sends first plane to Iran for repairs as sanctions cut off access to new replacement parts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Russia's biggest airline reportedly sent a plane to Iran for the first time for maintenance. Boeing and Airbus both stopped supplying Russian airlines with spare parts as part of the sanctions last spring. Aircraft lessors in the European Union were required to end contracts with Russian airlines last March. Analysts predicted Russia could start "cannibalizing" its fleet of planes for parts as Western sanctions blocked suppliers from sending parts and providing repairs for Russian airplanes. Russia reportedly signed an agreement with Iran last July to supply Russian airlines with Iranian airplane parts, and for Iran to provide maintenance and repairs for Russian aircraft.

☆ How Fanatics and MLB are planning to keep the trading card boom going
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

MLB trading card partner Fanatics has plans for new rookie card features this season as part of a bigger plan to increase the value of Topps baseball cards for collectors. "Fanatics is focused on the best experience for the fan, and collectibles is focused on the best collector experience," said Fanatics Collectibles CEO Mike Mahan. After the game, the patch will be authenticated and placed directly onto their rookie card in a future Topps set. While the sports trading card industry had seen growth in recent years, the pandemic put the hobby into overdrive. Cards across sports have been selling for record prices, including a $12.6 million sale for a 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle rookie card, the highest price ever paid for a trading card.

☆ Fanatics Hires Google Executive to Lead Push Into Live-Streamed Shopping
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Patrick Coffee | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +3 min

Fanatics sees the potential for success thanks in large part to its internal database of some 90 million sports fans, said Mr. Bell. It will host video events led by digital content creators and influencers who focus on trading cards. Much of the initial content will focus on “breaking,” in which creators will open new boxes of trading cards live on camera and sell them to followers. Viewers will be able to buy cards directly from Fanatics’ app or website, with the company taking a portion of that sale, said Mr. Bell. Fanatics’ valuation reached $31 billion in December after a $700 million fundraising round led by private-equity firm Clearlake Capital Group LP.

☆ Fanatics to start livestreamed shopping of trading cards, collectibles
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-02 | by ( Ian Thomas | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

The Washington Post | Getty ImagesFanatics is moving into livestreamed shopping around collectibles and trading cards, hiring a former Snap and Alphabet executive to launch its new business later this year. Fanatics Live, which will have a standalone app and a coinciding website, plans to launch in the second half of 2023. Only 31% of U.S. adults have even heard of live shopping, with just 22% saying they've participated in a live shopping event, according to a December poll by Morning Consult. Ebay, which said it saw trading card sales increase 142% in 2020, acquired trading card marketplace TCGPlayer for $295 million in August. While Fanatics Live could move into other forms of entertainment and collectibles over time, it will solely focus on trading cards initially.

☆ Iran top court accepts protester's appeal against death sentence
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The Supreme Court has accepted the appeal of Sahand Noor Mohammadzadeh, one of the accused in the recent riots. It said 66 members of the security forces had also been killed. Iranian officials have said that up to 300 people, including members of the security forces, have lost their lives. Last week, the Supreme Court accepted the death sentence appeal of rapper Saman Seydi Yasin but confirmed the same sentence against protester Mohammad Qobadloo. Earlier this month it suspended the death sentence of protester Mahan Sadrat, who had been charged with various alleged offences including stabbing a security officer and setting fire to a motorcycle.

☆ Iran reroutes plane carrying soccer star's wife, blames UK over unrest
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A service that could help Iranians circumvent internet restrictions is Starlink, a satellite-based broadband service operated by Elon Musk's SpaceX. Musk said on Monday that the company was getting close to having 100 active Starlink satellite receivers inside Iran. After he voiced support for the protests on social media, authorities this month shut down a jewellery shop and a restaurant he owned. The British foreign ministry had said it was seeking further information from Iranian authorities on the reported arrests. Besides arrests, authorities have imposed travel bans on dozens of artists, lawyers, journalists and celebrities for endorsing the protests.

☆ Fanatics Hires CFO for Collectibles Business After Topps Deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-23 | by ( Nina Trentmann | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +5 min

Jacksonville, Fla.-based Fanatics said this week that Greg Abovsky started as chief financial officer for the collectibles business earlier this month. As CFO, Mr. Abovsky plans to build out the division’s finance team and its trading card business as it looks to expand. Fanatics plans to expand its portfolio into culture and entertainment cards, said Mike Mahan, chief executive officer of the collectibles business. Fanatics expects its collectibles business will fare well in the coming years, despite the threat of a potential downturn. Both Mr. Abovsky and Mr. Mahan declined to comment on if and when Fanatics could list on the public markets.

☆ Cindy Chavez faces off against Matt Mahan in San Jose, California's mayoral election
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Madison Hall | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Cindy Chavez is running against Matt Mahan in San Jose, California's mayoral race. 2022 General EmbedsAfter serving two consecutive four-year terms, Democratic Mayor Sam Liccardo is term-limited and is ineligible to run for a third time. While San Jose's mayoral election is nonpartisan, the city has a history of electing Democrats and Democratic-leaning politicians to fill the mayoral position. Mahan, a member of the San Jose City Council, is similarly running with a goal to lower housing prices in the city, housing the homeless, and "common sense solutions" for citywide safety. Liccardo endorsed Mahan for mayor in August, tweeting that "Matt is the common-sense Democrat we need to ensure that our government works as hard as our San Jose families."

☆ U.S. Commerce issues order targeting Russian carrier Ural Airlines
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-17 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Oct 17 (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department said on Monday it had issued an order denying export privileges to Russian carrier Ural Airlines, citing what it said were ongoing export violations. The order terminates the right of Ural to participate in transactions subject to U.S. export regulations. President Joe Biden's administration has stepped up the crackdown against Russian airlines that followed the invasion of Ukraine, seeking to deny them access to spare parts, refueling and other services. To date, Commerce has issued 10 orders against Russia and Belarus’s biggest airlines, said Assistant Secretary of Commerce for Export Enforcement Matthew S. Axelrod. With the additions, there were 183 Boeing and Airbus aircraft on the list mostly operated by Russian airlines for apparent violations of U.S. export controls, the department said.

☆ U.S. adds Iran cargo planes flying to Russia to export violation list
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-19 | by ( David Shepardson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, Sept 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Commerce Department on Monday said it will add three Iranian cargo planes serving Russia to a list of aircraft believed to violate U.S. export controls under the Biden administration's sanctions. Using commercially available data, the Commerce Department identified Boeing 747s operated by Mahan Air, Qeshm Fars Air and Iran Air transporting goods, including electronic items, to Russia in apparent violation of stringent U.S. export controls on Russia related to its invasion of Ukraine. The department has warned that any refueling, maintenance, repair, spare parts or services violate U.S. export controls and subject companies to U.S. enforcement actions. With the additions, there were 183 aircraft on the list for apparent violations of U.S. export controls, the department said. The three Iranian airlines identified Monday were already subject to a variety of restrictions by the U.S. government.

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