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☆ The Warren Buffett of China, whose company just posted a 95% dip in annual profits, is selling billions of dollars of assets — but he says it's 'only pathetic if no one wants what we offer'
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-25 | by ( Nidhi Pandurangi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The company posted a 95% year-on-year dip in annual 2022 profits. "It's not pathetic that we are selling assets," he said at an entrepreneur forum in March, per Bloomberg. Hong Kong stock exchange-listed Fosun International's shares have rebounded to 5.4 Hong Kong dollars, or $0.7, apiece on Tuesday, from a low of 4.6 Hong Kong dollars in September. They're still down from about 7.8 Hong Kong dollars in late January. Fosun International's market capitalization is around 44 billion Hong Kong dollars now.

☆ Guo Wengui Denied Bail While Awaiting Trial in New York
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( James Fanelli | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

A courtroom sketch shows Guo Wengui at a courthouse in New York. Photo: JANE ROSENBERG/REUTERSA New York federal judge on Thursday ordered wealthy Chinese businessman Guo Wengui jailed while he awaits trial on fraud and money-laundering charges, calling him a flight risk and saying the Justice Department’s evidence against him was strong. Mr. Guo, who garnered attention by accusing Beijing of corruption from his Manhattan penthouse, was arrested and charged last month with a $1 billion fraud scheme. Federal prosecutors in the Manhattan U.S. attorney’s office alleged he took advantage of the hundreds of thousands of followers he amassed online by soliciting investments in a cryptocurrency he developed, a media company and other ventures. He spent some of the proceeds on lavish purchases, including a $26 million home in New Jersey, a yacht and a Ferrari, prosecutors allege.

NEW YORK, April 20 (Reuters) - An exiled Chinese businessman charged by U.S. prosecutors with leading a more than $1 billion fraud will remain in jail after a federal judge in Manhattan on Thursday rejected a proposed $25 million bail package. Guo had also proposed 24-hour guard, and being subjected to detention with GPS monitoring at his wife's Connecticut home. He had also been a business associate of former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon, who was arrested in a 2020 fraud case while aboard Guo's yacht. In seeking bail, Guo's lawyer Stephen Cook said Guo would remain in the United States if released on bond "because the risk to his life is simply too great for him to leave." The defendant has pleaded not guilty to 11 charges including securities fraud, wire fraud and concealing money laundering.

☆ Fugees star says money from Malaysian financier was for Obama photo, not campaign donation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | Thomson Reuters | Sarah N. Lynch Is The Lead Reporter For Reuters Covering The U.S. Justice Department Out Of Washington | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Michel faces criminal conspiracy, foreign lobbying and campaign finance charges for allegedly plotting with Low to attempt to influence the administrations of Obama and former President Donald Trump. Michel said he used some of the funds for three friends to attend $40,000-a-plate fundraisers for Obama. "When you received the money from Jho Low, you used it to make political contributions," federal prosecutor John Keller said in a Washington court. "Once he gave me the money, it was my discretion how I spent the money because it's my money." Michel is accused of involvement with Low in three schemes, for which prosecutors say he was paid millions of dollars.

☆ Exclusive: Buzzy legal generative AI startup Harvey taps Sequoia to lead funding round at a $150 million valuation
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Legal generative AI startup Harvey has raised a funding round from Sequoia, Insider has learned. This funding round landed the startup a $150 million post-money valuation. Industry-specific generative AI startups have emerged in nearly every industry, from healthcare to gaming, to offer specialized services beyond the capabilities of general models like OpenAI's GPT-4. Legal generative AI startup Harvey has raised a Series A round of funding at a $150 million post-money valuation from Sequoia Capital, according to three people with knowledge of the financing who were not authorized to speak publicly. The relatively few customers makes Harvey's valuation seem rich in comparison, the source said, pointing to a broader trend of elevated valuations and round sizes in the hyped-up generative AI space.

☆ Steve Bannon, who has ties to an indicted Chinese billionaire, says Elon Musk's 'paymasters' are Beijing and the Chinese Communist Party
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Steve Bannon accused Elon Musk of having "paymasters" in Beijing. This isn't the first time Bannon has accused Musk of having links to the Chinese Communist Party. This isn't the first time Bannon has — without substantiation or evidence — accused Musk of serving the Chinese government. Elon Musk's ties with ChinaMusk has spared no effort to create business ties with China. Steve Bannon has been linked to China, tooMeanwhile, Bannon has long been associated with the indicted Chinese billionaire, Miles Guo Wengui.

☆ Ex-DOJ lawyer tells jury he met with Chinese to further illegal lobbying campaign
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | Thomson Reuters | Sarah N. Lynch Is The Lead Reporter For Reuters Covering The U.S. Justice Department Out Of Washington | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

George Higginbotham testified that he made money on the side while working at the Justice Department by offering legal advice to Michel, a long-time friend. But he did so anyway, telling the jury he let his friendship with Michel cloud his judgment. "This could get me in a lot of trouble," he told the jury he recalled thinking, adding that his actions were "definitely outside of official lines." Higginbotham, who pleaded guilty in 2018 for his role in the foreign influence campaign, testified that Justice Department investigators later found out about his meeting and questioned him. Reporting by Sarah N. Lynch; Editing by Andy Sullivan and Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Leonardo DiCaprio testifies in Fugees rapper's lobbying trial
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Sarah N. Lynch | Thomson Reuters | Sarah N. Lynch Is The Lead Reporter For Reuters Covering The U.S. Justice Department Out Of Washington | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

DiCaprio is one of several prominent figures linked to Low, who is suspected of embezzling $4.5 billion from Malaysia's 1MDB sovereign wealth fund. Michel faces 11 criminal counts for trying to influence the administrations of Obama and former President Donald Trump. Prosecutors said Michel agreed to funnel money into Obama's 2012 re-election campaign and hide the source of the funds. Prosecutors said Michel later waged an illegal influence campaign to persuade the Trump administration to stop investigating Low. Michel and other co-conspirators are also accused of lobbying the Trump administration at China's behest to return Guo to China.

☆ Former Greylock VC Sarah Guo is betting her career on the AI boom with new fund Conviction. Here's why.
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Ex-Greylock GP Sarah Guo surprised the tech world when she launched her AI fund Conviction last year. In addition to her fund, Guo has gained prominence in SF's AI scene through her podcast and events. Kovalsky knew of only one person who could be behind this — Sarah Guo, then a general partner at VC firm Greylock. Within the tech community, Guo has differentiated herself from other VCs through her honesty, business savvy, and grit, they added. Although Guo launched Conviction, a $100 million fund investing up to Series A, in late 2022, her interest in artificial intelligence has been long in the making.

☆ A fugitive Chinese billionaire and Steve Bannon ally wants to auction sperm and eggs from unvaccinated donors on Gettr, say reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-01 | by ( Alia Shoaib | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Fugitive Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui wants to auction sperm and eggs from unvaccinated donors. Guo, an ally of Steve Bannon and other pro-Trump Republicans, was arrested in New York for fraud in March. "Sperm and eggs from our fellow fighters will be auctioned on our Gettr platform between June 1 and June 6," Guo said, per AFP. The billionaire claimed to have gathered nearly 6,000 eggs and "millions" of sperm from unvaccinated donors – and said the sale would include his sperm too. Gettr, where conspiracy theories and misinformation run rampantThe mysterious Chinese billionaire wanted in China over fraud charges.

[1/2] Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon speaks during the Goldman Sachs Investor Day at Goldman Sachs Headquarters in New York City, U.S., February 28, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidHONG KONG/SHANGHAI, March 31 (Reuters) - A flurry of top financial executives have visited China for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic as global financial giants seek to cement their relations with Beijing at the start of President Xi Jinping's new term. International financial institutions and investors are welcome to expand in China, the chairman of the country's securities regulator said. Goldman Sachs' Solomon and Blackstone (BX.N) CEO Stephen Schwarzman met Peng Chun, chairman of China Investment Corporation (CIC), this week, according to official social media posts from the $1.35 trillion sovereign wealth fund. Meanwhile, Chip Kaye, Warburg Pincus's CEO, met Beijing's major Yin Yong during his visit to the city last week, according to a municipal statement from Beijing.

☆ Fugees rapper Pras Michel was 'willing to break any laws necessary to get paid' in alleged international fraud scheme, prosecutor said
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The conspiracy and fraud trial of American rapper Pras Michel kicked off on Thursday. Prosecutors alleged that Michel was involved in an international scheme to influence the US government. Michel is accused of working with Malaysian businessman and fugitive Jho Low. "Low had money to burn and the defendant was willing to cash in at any turn," Lockhart said. McMaster, casino mogul Steve Wynn, and actor Leonardo DiCaprio, who starred in the 2013 film "The Wolf Of Wall Street" that Low helped fund.

[1/5] Grammy award-winning Fugees rapper Prakazrel (Pras) Michel, who is facing criminal charges in an alleged illegal lobbying campaign, arrives for opening arguments in his trial at U.S. District Court in Washington, U.S., March 30, 2023. "This is a case about foreign money, influence and concealment," Lockhart said during her opening statement in Washington on Thursday. "Through this scheme, the defendant duped the Obama campaign," Lockhart told the jury. For his work on these two lobbying campaigns on behalf of Low and China, prosecutors said Michel was paid $70 million. Low remains a fugitive in the Michel case.

☆ Fact Check-Viral clip shows tree catkins, not ‘rain of worms’ in China - scientists
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Reuters Fact Check | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

A viral clip online likely shows the catkins, or flower spikes, of poplar trees covering cars in northern China, not a “rain of worms” as social media posts and some news reports have claimed, experts told Reuters. One tweet saying: “China citizens told to find shelter after it looked like it started to rain worms” has been viewed more than 18 million times at the time of writing (here). There can be thousands of poplar catkins per tree, Claire Thomas Federici, a botanist and plant geneticist at the University of California, Riverside (here), said by email. China has a “distinctively rich” variety of trees in the poplar family, particularly in northern China, according to the U.N. Food and Agriculture Organization (here), (here). Experts say the video from China likely shows catkins from poplar trees instead of a “rain” of worms or caterpillars.

☆ Hunter Biden sues laptop repair shop owner for exposing his personal life in an 'egregious violation' of his privacy
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Oma Seddiq | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Hunter Biden sued a Delaware laptop repair shop owner over distributing his data to the public. Biden claims that the owner violated his privacy rights by exposing his personal life. The New York Post first reported on Biden's laptop weeks before the 2020 election. "The object of invading Mr. Biden's privacy and disseminating his data was not for any legitimate purpose but to cause harm and embarrassment to Mr. Biden," the claim continues. Biden's lawyers are also seeking depositions from Giuliani, Bannon, and others alleged to possess copies of his laptop data.

☆ The outlandish life of Guo Wengui, once one of China’s richest men and Steve Bannon confidant whom the DOJ accuses of a billion-dollar fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Tom Porter | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

Chinese businessman Guo Wengui has been arrested on fraud charges. The controversial billionaire, once one of China's richest men, has positioned himself as an activist trying "to expose the leviathan Chinese mafia state." An ally of Steve Bannon and other pro-Trump Republicans, Guo has also variously portrayed himself as a rapper, online influencer, crypto guru and real estate mogul. The enigma around the billionaire deepened this week after US authorities charged the property tycoon with orchestrating a billion-dollar fraud. Much of his background is still shrouded in mystery and Guo's exact purpose and loyalties are the subject of speculation and conspiracy theories.

☆ Exiled Chinese businessman Guo charged with fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Reuters Editorial | ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

PoliticsExiled Chinese businessman Guo charged with fraudPostedThe U.S. government on Wednesday charged Guo Wengui, an exiled Chinese businessman with ties to former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon, with leading a complex conspiracy to defraud Guo's online followers out of more than $1 billion. Ryan Brooks reports.

☆ Miles Guo, the Chinese tycoon charged with defrauding his fans of more than $1 billion, once starred in a music video where he shadowboxed on a luxury yacht to lyrics like 'take down the CCP'
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Guo Wengui, also known as Miles Guo, was arrested on 11 counts of fraud and money laundering. Guo, also known as Miles Guo, is credited on Apple Music and Spotify as the artist behind at least 14 hip-hop, pop, and lo-fi songs. One of the political activist's most well-known works is a music video on YouTube, titled "Fight For Hong Kong." Taking down the CCP, the evil CCP, is the only way for us to live without fear," Guo raps in Mandarin. Another video sees Guo hyping up Himalaya Coin, or Hcoin, a cryptocurrency that Guo and Bannon promoted.

☆ Guo Wengui Charged in Alleged $1 Billion Fraud Conspiracy
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( James Fanelli | Corinne Ramey | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Guo Wengui , a former real-estate developer, has said he fled China in 2014 after hearing that a state security official to whom he was close would soon be arrested. Federal prosecutors in Manhattan have charged exiled Chinese businessman Guo Wengui with duping investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars to bankroll the purchase of a sprawling mansion, a 145-foot luxury yacht and other lavish items. Mr. Guo, also known as Kwok Ho Wan, was arrested Wednesday morning in New York and is charged with 11 counts of fraud and money laundering, according to an indictment unsealed Wednesday in New York federal court. Prosecutors said he orchestrated a $1 billion scheme that preyed on hundreds of thousands of his online followers to purchase stock in his media company, fund a farm loan program and join a luxury-services club.

Former real-estate developer Guo Wengui has said he fled China in 2014 after hearing that a state security official to whom he was close would be arrested. Chinese businessman Guo Wengui , who gained attention by lobbing corruption allegations at Beijing from a Manhattan penthouse and later launched a media company with Trump confidant Steve Bannon , was arrested Wednesday and accused of orchestrating a $1 billion fraud. Mr. Guo took advantage of the hundreds of thousands of followers he amassed online, prosecutors alleged, by soliciting investments in his cryptocurrency, media and other companies. Instead, he used the money to buy a $26 million home in New Jersey, a yacht, a Ferrari and a $36,000 mattress, among other items, said the indictment, which charged Mr. Guo with 11 counts of fraud and money laundering. Prosecutors said they seized $634 million in criminal proceeds and assets that included a Lamborghini.

☆ Feds arrest Chinese tycoon linked to Steve Bannon and charge him with defrauding online fans to fund his yacht, Ferrari, and $36,000 mattresses
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Britney Nguyen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +1 min

A Chinese tycoon was arrested and charged with defrauding his online followers out of over $1 billion. Feds say Guo Wengui used stolen money to buy a $3.5 million Ferrari and two $36,000 mattresses. Wengui is facing various fraud and money laundering charges, the US Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York announced on Wednesday. He allegedly asked his followers to invest in or give money to GTV, the Himalaya Farm Alliance, and the Himalaya Exchange. He also allegedly used the money to finance a $37 million luxury yacht, according to the charges.

[1/5] Guo Wengui (also known as Miles Kwok) holds a news conference with Steve Bannon in New York, New York, U.S., November 20, 2018. Guo, 52, was charged with 11 criminal counts including securities fraud, wire fraud and concealment of money laundering, after "lining his pockets with the money he stole," U.S. Attorney Damian Williams in Manhattan said in a statement. They will propose a "robust bail package," according to Tamara Giwa, a federal public defender who represented Guo at Wednesday's hearing. Bannon is not accused of wrongdoing in Guo's criminal case. It said it also seized assets purchased with proceeds from Guo's alleged fraud, including a Lamborghini Aventador, and wants Guo to forfeit the yacht.

☆ DOJ charges Chinese businessman Guo Wengui, associate of Steve Bannon, in $1 billion fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Former White House Chief Strategist Steve Bannon greets fugitive Chinese billionaire Guo Wengui before introducing him at a news conference on November 20, 2018 in New York. The controversial exiled Chinese billionaire businessman Guo Wengui — an associate of former Trump White House advisor Steve Bannon — was arrested in New York on Wednesday for orchestrating what federal prosecutors called a more than $1 billion fraud conspiracy that duped online followers with promises of outsized investment returns. Former President Donald Trump months later pardoned Bannon in that case, shortly before Trump left the White House. IThe defendants are charged with wire fraud, securities fraud, bank fraud, and money laundering in the criminal case. Both Guo and Je face ossible sentences of up to 20 years in prison if convicted.

☆ China central bank punts its succession problem
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

That may be because Zhu Hexin, his mooted successor, is known mostly for his stint heading state-owned financial conglomerate CITIC – not a household name outside China - has no detectable international experience. In contrast, Yi is a respected known quantity for domestic and international investors alike, comfortable parleying with global institutions like the World Bank and IMF. Beijing might be keeping Yi for the painful parts of the reorganisation – including massive pay cuts – before retiring him. The so-called sea turtles – Chinese people with overseas market experience and foreign language skills – have been migrating out of government for years. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ In the midst of the AI boom, investors are doubling down on diligence. Here are the five questions VCs are asking every generative AI startup during pitches.
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Stephanie Palazzolo | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Buzzy generative AI startups have so far avoided the troubles plaguing the rest of the tech world. Here are the five diligence questions investors are asking generative AI startups, according to VCs. But for generative AI startups, 2023 has been much of the same — and that hasn't been a bad thing. Insider spoke with eight of these VCs about the top five questions they're asking generative AI startups during diligence processes. One hallmark of generative AI startups are their eye-staggering round sizes.

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