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☆ Leonardo DiCaprio was interviewed by the FBI over his relationship with a Malaysian businessman involved with the 1MDB scandal, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-03 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Leonardo DiCaprio and Kim Kardashian were interviewed by the FBI in 2018 and 2019, Bloomberg reported. The stars had received gifts from Jho Low, who is accused of masterminding the 1MDB scandal. Earlier, DiCaprio had to return a number of gifts given to him by Low, including an Oscar won by Marlon Brando. On Thursday, Bloomberg revealed previously undisclosed documents which show the FBI interviewing DiCaprio in 2018 about his relationship with Low. Representatives for Kardashian and DiCaprio did not immediately respond to Insider's request for comment, sent outside normal working hours.

☆ After splitting with Kanye West, British audio startup Kano asks for funding
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The two would go on to discuss the beginnings of what eventually became the Stem Player. It was originally named the "Donda Stem Player," a reference to West's 10th studio album, Donda. Faced with "worse" terms and news of Ye's antisemitic comments, Kano didn't accept, Klein said. Despite recent outcry over Ye's antisemitic remarks, he has frequently raised eyebrows. The Stem Player, along with West's dedicated fanbase, drove great commercial success for the small London startup.

☆ Yeezys are still in high demand on the secondary market despite Ye's fallout with Adidas
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Danni Santana | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Demand for Yeezy sneakers remains high on the secondary market. Impossible Kicks has seen a 30% increase in demand since October, according to CNN Business. But demand for his Yeezy sneakers remains high. Unconfirmed rumors are also swirling around social media that Adidas and Ye may again be joining forces to sell the leftover stock. An Adidas spokesperson declined to comment, adding the company's update on February 9 is the latest it has to share.

☆ Yeezy sneakers in hot demand on resale platforms even after Kanye West's anti-semitic remarks
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Parija Kavilanz | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Yeezy sneakers currently are among the top three sellers on Impossible Kicks, a large online reseller of high-end sneakers and clothing that has 17 store locations in the United States. He said Yeezy sneakers are among the top three most-popular brands on the platform after Jordans and other Nike footwear, including Dunk and Air Max shoes. Impossible Kicks, seller of high-end sneakers, said demand for Yeezy sneakers is up 30% since last fall. So now prices for Yeezy sneakers are climbing due to tighter supply, according to StockX, a leading sneaker resale platform. “Since the start of the year, the average price of Yeezy sneakers has increased but sales overall have decreased on StockX,” Drew Haines, director of sneakers and collectibles at StockX, told CNNBusiness.

☆ 6 sneakers Michael Jordan wore during game-clinching NBA Finals games are about to go on sale — and the price could set a record
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-27 | by ( Matthew Kish | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Sotheby's this week will put up for sale a collection of six Air Jordan sneakers. Each of the six sneakers was worn by Michael Jordan during an NBA Finals game. Auction house Sotheby's on Tuesday will unveil a collection of six Air Jordan sneakers in Dubai. For perspective, a jersey Jordan wore during the 1998 NBA Finals sold last year for $10.1 million. "This set represents the most valuable and significant collection of Air Jordan sneakers ever brought to market," Sotheby's said, in a listing.

☆ The Russia-Ukraine war will continue into 2024 and any definitive outcome has risks, a veteran investment chief and former Moscow-based journalist says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-25 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Rhys Williams, chief investment officer of Spouting Rock Asset Management. Spouting RockRhys Williams is the chief investment officer at Spouting Rock Asset Management. Phil Rosen: What are the implications for financial markets of Russia's war on Ukraine? What do you think of Williams' insights on markets and the Russia-Ukraine war? The Reddit-loving day traders are back in a big way, piling record amounts of cash into stocks to start the year.

☆ White supremacists behind over 80% of extremism-related U.S. murders in 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-23 | by ( Kanishka Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The advocacy group labeled 25 murders in 2022 as "extremist-related," with 18 of those "committed in whole or part for ideological motives." White supremacists commit the highest number of domestic extremist-related murders in most years, but in 2022 the percentage was unusually high: 21 of the 25 murders were linked to white supremacists, according to the ADL report. "All the extremist-related murders in 2022 were committed by right-wing extremists of various kinds," the ADL report said. President Joe Biden has labeled white supremacy as poison and called on Americans to reject it. The issue of white supremacy came back into headlines late last year when former President Donald Trump hosted white supremacist Nick Fuentes at his private club in Florida.

☆ Ye finally got new lawyers after ghosting the ones who dropped him following his antisemitic rants
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Jacob Shamsian | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Ye, aka Kanye West, got new lawyers months after ghosting his old ones. He's now lawyered up in three lawsuits against him, court records show. Three lawyers at the Santa Fe, California-based firm Weeks Nelson are representing Ye in a lawsuit brought by Thomas St. John, a business management firm. Filings from Thomas St. John show the firm tried to serve Ye with the lawsuit since October without success. The lawyers will likely help Ye avoid default judgments in those cases, where he risked losing automatically without any representation in court.

☆ How Putin's Russian goon squad used Mexican gig workers to troll an American election
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Mattathias Schwartz | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +25 min

Posting to social media sounded like an easy work-from-home gig, so he applied. This post from the Prigozhin-backed Social CMS network in Mexico referred to America as "we." He verified his account by providing chat transcripts, screenshots, contracts, and internal company documents. But just because Social CMS didn't yield an immediate, large-scale impact doesn't mean it should be ignored. "I didn't know who are you," wrote the person who is listed in the corporate directory as Prigozhin's media liaison.

☆ Moody's cuts Adidas credit rating to A3 after profit warning
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Feb 17 (Reuters) - Moody's on Friday dowgraded Adidas' (ADSGn.DE) long-term issuer rating one notch to A3 from A2, citing the sportswear maker's recent profit warning, and left the door open to a further cut as it maintained a negative outlook on the company. Adidas warned on Feb. 9 that it could plunge to a loss this year for the first time in three decades, in the latest downgrade triggered by its split from Kanye West, as it raised the possibility of entirely writing off the inventory of the rapper and fashion designer's Yeezy brand. Moody's said that even though it had expected a weak operating performance from Adidas in the next 12 to 18 months, its actual guidance was "well below Moody's expectations." While it described the company's new outlook as conservative and noted its leading position in the global sportswear industry and strong brand, Moody's said its negative outlook reflected "the substantial uncertainty around the near-term improvements of adidas' credit metrics and liquidity profile following the release of a very weak earnings guidance for 2023." ($1 = 0.9373 euros)Reporting by Tristan Chabba in Gdansk Editing by Tomasz JanowskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Former CNN anchor Chris Cuomo: 'I was going to kill everybody and myself' after firing
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Lakshmi Varanasi | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Former CNN anchor Chris Cuomo spoke on Anthony Scaramucci's podcast "Open Book" on Wednesday. During the episode, Cuomo said he was "going to kill everybody and myself" after CNN fired him. On an episode of Anthony Scaramucci's podcast, Open Book, on Wednesday, Cuomo admitted that he was so upset after he was cut that he felt like he "was going to kill everybody including myself." Cuomo was fired from CNN in 2021 amid revelations that he helped his brother — former New York Gov. While he may not have the viewership he had at CNN, Cuomo told Scaramucci that he's "trying to have a broader aperture on what matters."

☆ Trump just tried to pick another fight with Rihanna, saying the pop icon had the 'single worst' Super Bowl halftime show in history
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Cheryl Teh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Donald Trump flung another insult at Rihanna after her performance at the Super Bowl on Sunday. Trump wrote that Rihanna gave "the single worst Halftime Show in Super Bowl history." This is the second time in a week that Trump has tried to pick a fight with Rihanna. "EPIC FAIL: Rihanna gave, without question, the single worst Halftime Show in Super Bowl history," Trump wrote on Truth Social on Sunday. Trump also criticized Rihanna's fashion choices at the Super Bowl, writing: "Also, so much for her 'Stylist!'"

☆ Adidas is facing a problem even bigger than Yeezy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Danni Santana | Mary Hanbury | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Adidas expects sales to drop by $1.28 billion in 2023 if it doesn't sell leftover Yeezy inventory. The company's guidance began on a bleak note with revenue for the year expected to drop after ending its Yeezy partnership. Against this background, Adidas said it is forecasting a decline in the high-single digits in sales in 2023. "The sales decline is about more than just Yeezy," Bernstein analyst Aneesha Sherman wrote in a note to clients early Friday. Cowen estimates the brand earned $1.2 billion in sales last year before Adidas terminated the partnership in October.

☆ A Jewish congressman says Twitter has become a 'hate-filled playground for Nazis and antisemites'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Grace Dean | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

A Jewish congressman spoke out against antisemitism on Twitter at a House Oversight hearing last week. "Twitter has become a hate-filled playground for Nazis and antisemites," Moskowitz told CNN. "What happened on Twitter directly after the hearing proves my exact point that antisemitism is real and Twitter has become a hate-filled playground for Nazis and antisemites," Moskowitz told CNN. This includes dozens of Twitter users posting pictures of Holocaust denier Nick Fuentes with the caption "You are Jewish." One Twitter user said in response to that video: "You are the reason anti-semites exists.

☆ Kanye West is no longer a billionaire after being dumped by Adidas, but is still worth $400 million. Here's how he spent his money.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-12 | by ( Stephanie Stacey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Major companies have severed ties with Ye in the wake of recent antisemitic comments. His net worth has been slashed, per Forbes, but he's still worth $400 million. Ye's assets include his music catalog, extensive real estate portfolio, and numerous vehicles. He's now lost the long-sought title, but is still worth a healthy $400 million, per Forbes, which ranks him the 2,543th richest person in the world. was dropped by Def Jam, per The New York Times, and he's no longer represented by Creative Artists Agency.

☆ Adidas Profit Warning Knocks Share Price, Highlights Challenge for New CEO
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Trefor Moss | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Bjørn Gulden took the top job at Adidas at the start of the year, after leading a turnaround of crosstown rival Puma. Adidas AG shares dropped 12% after the German sportswear giant warned it could swing to a loss this year following the termination of its Yeezy partnership with rapper Kanye West. Adidas said late Thursday that it expected a sharp fall in sales for 2023 because of the impact of not selling existing Yeezy stock, and could post a loss if it failed to sell existing inventory.

☆ Adidas forecast for 2023 sales slump spooks investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BERLIN, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Adidas flagged that it expects a high single-digit decline in sales this year, sending its shares more than 10% lower in premarket trade early on Friday. Analysts on average had expected a 4% rise in 2023 revenue on a currency-neutral basis and operating profit of 1.02 billion euros, according to a consensus published on Adidas' website. The news came as it missed its own forecasts with a rise of just 1% in 2022 revenue in currency-neutral terms. Jefferies cut its recommendation on Adidas stock to "hold" from "buy", citing "challenges in articulating the mid-term profit delivery". ($1 = 0.9307 euros)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee and Maria Sheahan; editing by Kirsten Donovan and Jason NeelyOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Adidas Warns of Losses Stemming From Yeezy Fallout
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Trefor Moss | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Adidas said unsold inventory from its Yeezy collaboration with rapper Kanye West, such as these shoes, could deliver a 1.2 billion euro hit to revenues. Adidas AG warned it could swing to a loss in 2023 should it fail to sell its inventory of Yeezy shoes, following the termination of its partnership with rapper Kanye West. The German sportswear giant on Thursday said it expected sales to fall at a high single-digit rate in currency-neutral terms because of the “significant adverse impact of not selling the existing stock” from the once-lucrative Yeezy collaboration. This would lower revenues by 1.2 billion euros (about $1.29 billion), and operating profit by 500 million euros, it said.

Bored Ape Yacht Club was not the biggest crypto phenomenon, but it was one of the top beneficiaries of celebrity hype. The Bored Apes — a computer-generated collection of 10,000 cartoons — were being presented as a status symbol, membership in an exclusive club. Yuga sued Ripps for trademark infringement, and argues that his maligning of the Yuga apes is nothing more than a profiteering tactic. Hickman, who is Black, thought the Bored Apes looked like stereotypical portrayals of Black people as stupid or lazy. He said he thought this would be obvious to most people the second they saw an image of a Bored Ape.

☆ Premarket stocks: Share buybacks could beat last year's record $1.2 trillion
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +8 min

Companies have announced about $175 billion worth of planned stock buybacks so far this year. This year will likely be the first with at least $1 trillion in completed S&P 500 company buybacks, said Howard Silverblatt at S&P Dow Jones Indices. ▸ GM (GM) just inked an exclusive deal for the hottest product in automaking: Semiconductors. The strong dollar is hurting multinationalsThe rip-roaring dollar cut deeply into the earnings of multinational companies selling their wares overseas last quarter. “We got hit with that.”McDonald’s (MCD) and 3M (MMM) also said in earnings reports that they were worried that the strong dollar would affect future sales.

☆ New Adidas CEO throws Yeezy in kitchen sink
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

But if Adidas decides to write off the Yeezy inventory altogether, it will lose another 500 million euros. In the worst scenario, with one-off costs in 2023 of up to 200 million euros, the $27 billion sportswear maker expects to report a 700 million euro operating loss this year. The company had already announced that ending its partnership with the musician would shrink its net income by 250 million euros in 2022. Shareholders however seem surprised that Adidas might not try to repurpose the trainers, instead of writing off the inventory. Yeezy is not the only problem for Adidas.

☆ Jason Miller returns as Trump advisor for campaign struggling to generate much excitement compared to 2016
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Joshua Zitser | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Jason Miller will advise Donald Trump on the strategy of his 2024 presidential bid. He previously left the Trump campaign to become CEO of the right-wing social media platform Gettr. Miller is joining a team that is struggling to generate the same excitement as past campaigns. "It was always a matter of when and not if I returned to help re-elect President Trump in 2024," Miller said in a statement, per Politico. Former Trump White House press aide Sarah Matthews described the campaign launch in a tweet as "low-energy" and "uninspiring."

☆ Adidas says dropping Kanye West could cost it more than $1 billion in sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Jordan Valinsky | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

New York CNN —Adidas’ breakup with Ye, formerly known as Kanye West, is a pricey one. The company warned Thursday that it’s expected to lose $1.3 billion (1.2 billion euro) in revenue this year because it’s unable to sell the designer’s Yeezy clothing and shoes. Adidas said selling the sneakers under its own branding would save the company about $300 million in royalty payments and marketing fees. Other options including destroying it or donating unsold Yeezy clothing. Adidas said it also expects “one-off costs” of $213 million (200 million euro) because of a “strategic review” the company is currently undergoing.

☆ Adidas shares tank after it issues warning over unsold Yeezy stock
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Hannah Ward-Glenton | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

"The numbers speak for themselves. We are currently not performing the way we should", Adidas CEO Bjørn Gulden said in a press release. Adidas could lose around 1.2 billion euros ($1.3 billion) in revenue in 2023 if it is unable to sell its existing Yeezy stock. "The numbers speak for themselves. Adidas' revenues increased 1% in 2022, based on unaudited numbers, while operating profit dropped from almost 2 billion euros in 2021, to 669 million euros in 2022.

☆ Adidas could lose over $750 million as it tries to figure out what do do with its stockpile of Yeezys
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Danni Santana | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Adidas may lose over $700 million in operating profits in 2023 if it doesn't sell off excess Yeezys. Adidas has said it plans to sell Yeezys without Ye after the business relationship ended in October. According to a company statement Thursday, Adidas stands to lose over $750 million in operating profits in 2023 if it does not sell off excess Yeezy inventory. But fans of Adidas Yeezys are split on whether they would buy the shoes without a Ye connection. Adidas immediately brought its Yeezy business to a halt and asked wholesale partners to do the same.

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