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☆ The Spies of ‘Citadel’ Have Big Plans: Global Domination
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( Chris Vognar | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

“But those were Hollywood-centric narratives that traveled. “It really is like riding a bucking bronco,” Joe Russo said. (The Indian and Italian productions have different showrunners.) According to The Hollywood Reporter, reshoots pushed the cost of “Citadel” to more than $200 million, which would make it one of the most expensive series ever made. (Amazon did not respond to multiple queries about the show’s budget.)

☆ Bed Bath & Beyond stiffed thousands of workers on severance pay
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Nathaniel Meyersohn | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +9 min

Bed Bath & Beyond has been on bankruptcy watch and has been closing hundreds of stores since late 2022. Toys "R" Us and other chains that filed for bankruptcy have been criticized for failing to pay workers severance. There is no federal requirement for severance pay, although some collective bargaining agreements with unions cover severance agreements. At Bed Bath & Beyond, CEO Sue Gove is eligible for $7.1 million in severance pay and former Bed Bath & Beyond CEO Mark Tritton is suing the company for $6.8 million in unpaid severance. ‘This was our reward’Some Bed Bath & Beyond employees recently laid off in other states did not receive severance pay either, as first reported by Bloomberg.

☆ Declines in Loan Values Are Widespread Among Banks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-07 | by ( Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

This copy is for your personal, non-commercial use only. Distribution and use of this material are governed by our Subscriber Agreement and by copyright law. For non-personal use or to order multiple copies, please contact Dow Jones Reprints at 1-800-843-0008 or visit www.djreprints.com. https://www.wsj.com/articles/declines-in-loan-values-are-widespread-among-banks-c3ee622f

☆ ‘We’re Scrambling.’ L.A.’s New Mansion Tax Put Sellers on a Deal-Making Deadline
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( Katherine Clarke | Libertina Brandt | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

When Sharon Weil decided in January to sell the Los Angeles home she inherited from her parents, she knew she’d be racing against the clock to get the deal done. A new Los Angeles mansion tax, to be enacted April 1, will require sellers to pay 4% on sales of homes priced between $5 million and $10 million, and 5.5% on sales of properties at $10 million or above.

☆ Stubborn inflation keeps ECB on course for more rate hikes
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Francesco Canepa | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"The pressure on the ECB to continue raising interest rates remains high," Commerzbank economist Christoph Weil said. Consumer prices in the euro zone rose by 6.9% in March after an 8.5% increase in February, implying the biggest drop since Eurostat started collecting data in 1991. Analysts polled by Reuters had expected headline inflation in the 20 countries that share the euro to come in at 7.1% and core inflation at 7.5%. Strengthening the case for more tightening, euro zone unemployment remained stubbornly low at 6.6%. This is a concern for policymakers who fear it could give workers greater bargaining power in salary negotiations and lead to higher wage increases that could perpetuate high inflation.

☆ Inside a shake-up at the world's 'most feared law firm'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Casey Sullivan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +30 min

It's been a tumultuous period for Quinn and the storied law firm he built over the past 37 years — now the world's largest litigation firm with hourly rates that can be north of $2,000. But behind the scenes, a shift at QE has been the talk of elite law firm circles. Indeed, the firm – known as a singular, even freewheeling, institution that brands itself as the "#1 Most Feared Law Firm in the World" — may appear to be less in the image of its founder as a generational shift brings changes. "We all thought it was important that the world understands this is not a one generation law firm." One former firm partner in California says he believes Quinn's inner circle generally got better deals.

☆ Signs of pain as easy cash era ends are growing
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

LONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - The easy-cash era is over and markets are feeling the pinch from the sharpest jump in interest rate in decades. Since late 2021, big developed economies including the United States, euro area and Australia have raised rates by almost 3,300 basis points collectively. Japanese, European and U.S. banks stocks, while off recent lows, are still well below levels seen just before SVB's collapse. Reuters Graphics2/ DARLINGS NO MOREAs the SVB collapse showed, stress in the tech sector can quickly ripple out across the economy. Reuters Graphics4/ CRYPTO WINTERHaving benefited from an influx of cash during the easy-money era, cryptocurrencies have felt pain as rates rose last year, then gained on recent signs that tightening could end soon.

☆ Analysis: Rate rises pile pain on SME firms in U.S. and Europe
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Chiara Elisei | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Summary SME vulnerability to rate hikes gone under radarUS, European credit conditions tighteningUK SMEs especially vulnerable -analystsLONDON, March 30 (Reuters) - U.S. and European small and medium-sized (SME) firms may be next to feel the pain of rapid interest rate rises, with analysts and investors warily watching for the impact of tighter credit conditions exacerbated by recent banking turmoil. In the U.S. the average rate that small businesses pay on bank loans rose from around 5% to 7.6% in 2022, and is likely to hit about 9.5% by mid-year, Jefferies analysts estimate. British SMEs, hurt by weak growth, double digit inflation and rising Bank of England rates, are seen as particularly vulnerable. "The Government needs to demonstrate that it is on the side of small businesses who are feeling stressed and under huge margin pressure," McTague added. HARD TIMESMeanwhile the rate of small business loan approval at big U.S. banks meanwhile fell in February for nine straight months and business loan approvals at small banks has also fallen, said online financing platform for small businesses Biz2Credit.

☆ As Interest Rates Rose, Banks Did a Balance-Sheet Switcheroo
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

As the Federal Reserve’s interest-rate hikes sent bond prices plunging last year, some of the country’s largest banks used a simple accounting maneuver to help keep billions of dollars of losses from piling up on their books. They declared that they intended to hold on to large portions of their money-losing bonds until they matured rather than selling them, and they then changed the bonds’ accounting labels accordingly. From then on, the bonds would be frozen in time, no matter how far their values fell in the market.

☆ A 27-year-old professional athlete landed a gig at Benchmark. Here's how she's balancing a Nike sponsorship, elite running, and working at the VC powerhouse.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Samantha Stokes | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Vanessa Fraser is a professional runner sponsored by Nike. As a professional runner for Nike, she's stared down American records, competed at national championships, and raced to make Olympic teams. These days, she's bringing that intensity off the track and into the world of venture capital. So when the call came from a recruiter working with Benchmark, Fraser was open to listening. In some ways, stepping back from full-time professional running and adding variety to her days have made Fraser an even better athlete, she said.

☆ KPMG Faces Scrutiny for Audits of SVB and Signature Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Jonathan Weil | Jean Eaglesham | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Silicon Valley Bank failed just 14 days after KPMG LLP gave the lender a clean bill of health. Signature Bank went down 11 days after the accounting firm signed off on its audit. What KPMG knew about the two banks’ financial situation and what it missed will likely be the subject of regulatory scrutiny and lawsuits.

☆ KPMG Gave SVB, Signature Bank Clean Bill of Health Weeks Before Collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Jonathan Weil | Jean Eaglesham | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

☆ First Republic Hit by Silicon Valley Bank Failure
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Investors have expressed concerns about unrealized losses on assets at the First Republic Bank. First Republic Bank came under renewed pressure amid Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse on Friday as investors tried to sort out which other banks might face similar risks. First Republic shares fell 52% in early trading before storming back to near where they closed the previous day, only to then finish the day down 15%. Investors expressed concerns about unrealized losses on assets at the bank as well as its heavy reliance on deposits that could turn out to be flighty.

☆ SVB collapse a sign of pain coming from end of easy-cash era
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

LONDON, March 10 (Reuters) - The easy-cash era is over and its impact is only just starting to felt by world markets yet to see the end of the sharpest interest rate hiking cycle in decades. European banks slid on Friday after JPMorgan (JPM.N) and BofA (BAC.N) shares fell over 5% on Thursday. BofA noted European banks' bond holdings have not grown since 2015. And with defaults rising, the focus is on the less visible private debt markets, which have ballooned to $1.4 trillion from $250 billion in 2010. Reuters Graphics5/FOR SALEReal estate markets started cracking last year and house prices will fall further this year.

☆ Bond Losses Push Silicon Valley Bank Parent to Raise Capital
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

SVB Financial Group ’s shares fell sharply after it said it had sold large portions of its securities portfolio and would raise fresh capital, highlighting a broader problem for U.S. lenders who have seen rising interest rates hammer the values of their bond holdings. SVB, the parent of Silicon Valley Bank, late Wednesday said it would book a $1.8 billion after-tax loss on sales of investments and seek to raise $2.25 billion by selling a mix of common and preferred stock. The bank’s assets and deposits almost doubled in 2021, large amounts of which SVB poured into U.S. Treasurys and other government-sponsored debt securities. Soon after, the Federal Reserve began its rate-hiking campaign.

☆ Banks Lose Billions in Value After Tech Lender SVB Stumbles
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-09 | by ( Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Investors dumped shares of SVB Financial Group and a swath of U.S. banks after the tech-focused lender said it lost nearly $2 billion selling assets following a larger-than-expected decline in deposits. The four biggest U.S. banks lost $52 billion in market value Thursday. The KBW Nasdaq Bank Index notched its biggest decline since the pandemic roiled the markets nearly three years ago. Shares of SVB, the parent of Silicon Valley Bank, fell more than 60% after it disclosed the loss and sought to raise $2.25 billion in fresh capital by selling new shares.

☆ George Santos's elaborate lies has seen the Congressman compared with a 19th-century huckster. History bears that out.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Allegra Rosenberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +15 min

My obsession is summed up pretty well by a tweet from @blagojevism: "George Santos is essentially a 19th-century character. Media depicting these characters found inspiration from real life: in a time before digital records and facial recognition, opportunity was everywhere. George Santos's brand of full-throated scammery is particularly American, something that belongs to this country as much as Abraham Lincoln and apple pie. The phrase "and if you believe that, I've got a bridge to sell you" comes from his legendary real-life method. But Santos, so far, has avoided jail time, giving him at least one leg up over the Yellow Kid.

☆ New SEC Rules Target Corporate Insider Trading
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The SEC’s new disclosure requirements will start on April 1 for most U.S.-listed companies. For the last two decades, officers and directors at U.S. public companies seeking to trade illicitly on inside information had an almost infallible get-out-of-jail-free card. All they had to do was use prearranged trading plans when they bought and sold their companies’ shares. The odds the government would target them for enforcement actions were slim. It was an unintended consequence of a 2002 regulation called Rule 10b5-1 that academic research shows was abused by some executives.

☆ Instead of paying adults more, some states might let companies hire kids as young as 14 to fill the labor shortage
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Jason Lalljee | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Republicans in some states are proposing exceptions to child labor regulations. Lawmakers in Iowa and Minnesota have introduced legislation in the last month proposing exceptions to child labor regulations in their respective states, due to the persisting labor shortage hitting them particularly hard. "A lot of the child labor jobs are menial jobs and those skills aren't transferrable," she said. The proposed laws skirt around the child labor requirements outlined by the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938. Research shows that these workers aren't averse to meatpacking work entirely — they're just not willing to do it for the current wage standard.

☆ Mormon Church’s Investment Arm Under Investigation by SEC
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-11 | by ( Dave Michaels | Jonathan Weil | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the Mormon Church’s past efforts to keep its giant investment portfolio a secret, a practice that ended after a former employee revealed in 2019 that the church had amassed $100 billion of holdings. The SEC’s investigation has focused on whether the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, also known as LDS, complied with disclosure requirements for large money managers. It is at an advanced stage and is likely to lead to a settlement in the coming months, people familiar with the matter said.

Companies Twitter Inc FollowAlphabet Inc Follow(Reuters) - Damien Kieran, who resigned as Twitter (TWTR.MX) Inc's chief privacy officer in November after Elon Musk took over the social media giant, has joined photo sharing app-maker BeReal as its top lawyer. Kieran started Monday as general counsel at Paris-based BeReal, he said in posts on LinkedIn and Twitter. Kieran and BeReal, whose popular social media app prompts users to share a daily photo, did not immediately respond to requests for comment. In addition to his role as chief privacy officer, Kieran was also vice president and deputy general counsel at Twitter before leaving in November, according to his LinkedIn account. Other top lawyers, including deputy general counsel James Baker, have also been fired or resigned.

☆ A tiny-home startup has attracted 160,000 customers, including Elon Musk. But disgruntled customers, an empty factory, and a tie to an alleged Iranian agent cloud its future.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Daniel Geiger | Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +17 min

A Boxabl Casita being delivered to a SpaceX facility in Texas. Tackling the US housing crisisStamped out on an assembly line, Boxabl homes could finally begin to help quench America's perpetual housing shortage. Homeowners, meanwhile, could rent out Boxabl units as secondary dwellings in their backyards or as Airbnbs. Firooznia, Tiramani said, sometimes provided a tiebreaking vote when the father and son disagreed on business decisions. During a tour of Boxabl's factory in December, a freelance reporter for Insider saw Tiramani's wife, Shauna, arrive with their four young children.

SummarySummary CompaniesCompanies Law firms Getty said Stability scraped millions of images without a licenseNew complaint adds to actions against Stability over images used in AI training(Reuters) - Stock photo provider Getty Images has sued artificial intelligence company Stability AI Inc, accusing it in a lawsuit made public on Monday of misusing more than 12 million Getty photos to train its Stable Diffusion AI image-generation system. Getty declined to comment on the Delaware lawsuit. London-based Stability AI released Stable Diffusion, an AI-based system for generating images from text inputs, and image generator DreamStudio last August. The lawsuit also accuses Stability of infringing Getty's trademarks, citing images generated by its AI system with Getty's watermark that Getty says could cause consumer confusion. The case is Getty Images (US) Inc v. Stability AI Inc, U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware, No.

☆ End of easy-cash era is going to hurt
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

LONDON, Feb 1 (Reuters) - The end of the easy-cash era is over and its impact yet to be felt on world markets, hopeful that the pain of aggressive rate hikes and high inflation has passed. Reuters Graphics3/ GOING PRIVATEPrivate debt markets have ballooned since the financial crisis to $1.4 trillion from $250 billion in 2010. Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics4/CRYPTO WINTERRising borrowing costs roiled crypto markets in 2022. Reuters Graphics5/FOR SALEReal estate markets, first responders to rate hikes, started cracking last year and 2023 will be tough with U.S. house prices expected to drop 12%. How the sector services its debt is in focus and officials warn European banks risk significant profit hits from sliding house prices.

☆ Euro zone economy unexpectedly grows in Q4 but weak 2023 looms
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( Balazs Koranyi | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Among the biggest euro zone countries, Germany and Italy recorded negative growth rates for the quarter but France and Spain expanded, Eurostat added, based on a flash estimate that is subject to revisions. Russia's nearly year-old war in Ukraine has proved costly for the euro zone, which now spans 350 million people in 20 countries, given some members' heavy reliance on cheap energy. The overall picture nevertheless remains weak, with meagre growth forecast for 2023 due to a large drop in real incomes and surging interest rates. Ireland's 3.5% Q4 growth figure distorted the overall picture as it was driven largely by activity among big foreign companies based there for tax reasons, economists said, adding that without Ireland, euro zone growth would have been zero. "We continue to expect the euro area economy to contract slightly in the first half of the year, and the recovery expected in the second half is likely to be weak."

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