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☆ PayPal's CEO search amid an uncertain economy will be no easy task
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

In case you missed it, PayPal CEO and President Dan Schulman announced his plan to retire at the end of 2023 earlier this month. Coming off an extremely difficult 2022, and with competition seemingly coming at them from every which way, PayPal has to find a new CEO. I hesitate to compare this to the seemingly never-ending CEO search at Carlyle, but it's easy to see how a difficult quarter or two could complicate this entire search. The rich stay rich thanks to another loophole that helps them save on taxes. Elliott Management's Paul Singer and Two Sigma's David Siegel both played second fiddle to Haidar Capital's Said Haidar in 2022 when it came to comp.

☆ Biden to roll out new asylum restrictions at U.S.-Mexico border -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Ted Hesson | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] Migrants queue near the border fence, after crossing the Rio Bravo river, to request asylum in El Paso, Texas, U.S., as seen from Ciudad Juarez, Mexico January 5, 2023. REUTERS/Jose Luis GonzalezWASHINGTON, Feb 21 (Reuters) - The Biden administration could bar tens of thousands of migrants arriving at the U.S.-Mexico border from claiming asylum if they passed through another country en route to the United States without seeking protection, according to a proposed regulation rolling out on Tuesday, five sources told Reuters. The proposed restrictions, which seek to deter people from crossing the border without authorization, will be subject to a 30-day public comment period and then reviewed before final publication, two of the sources said. While Biden initially pledged to restore asylum access that was curtailed under Republican former President Donald Trump, he has increasingly embraced Trump-style restrictions. Biden's plan to ban certain asylum seekers mirrors similar efforts under Trump that were blocked by federal courts.

☆ Thoma Bravo and Clearlake have posted negative returns for a major endowment, according to exclusive performance data. Middle-market firms have been much stronger.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Rebecca Ungarino | Ben Bergman | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The returns show losses from Thoma Bravo and Clearlake, though the funds are new and PE is a long game. Thoma Bravo and Clearlake Capital Group, two private-equity firms that have emerged as notably active investors in recent years, have posted early losses across some of their funds, according to investment returns from a major US endowment. UTIMCO invested $51.7 million in Clearlake's seventh flagship private equity fund, known as Clearlake Capital Partners VII, which closed with some $14 billion of commitments last May. Thoma Bravo declined to comment. Meanwhile, the data show high returns from CapRock Partners, Renovus Capital Partners, Serve Capital Partners, and LFM Capital, PE firms that target middle-market companies.

☆ Buyout barons reach deep into their bags of tricks
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Jonathan Guilford | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

NEW YORK, Feb 15 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Debt necessity is proving to be the mother of private equity invention. With the cheap borrowing that fueled record-breaking years of leveraged buyouts gone, firms are digging deeper into their bags of tricks. Private equity firm Silver Lake, which bought a stake alongside the IPO, said it might take control. Besides putting private equity firms into weaker negotiating positions, the competing incentives also threaten conflicts of interest with limited partners. ...THERE’S A WAYIf the U.S. Federal Reserve avoids engineering a recession, private equity should be able to revert to its tried-and-true formula soon enough.

[1/3] Representations of cryptocurrencies are seen in front of displayed FTX logo in this illustration taken November 10, 2022. Sequoia, Thoma Bravo and Paradigm did not immediately respond on Wednesday to requests for comment. The 30-year-old son of Stanford Law School professors has pleaded not guilty to fraud and other charges for allegedly looting billions of dollars from FTX customers. A Manhattan federal court hearing on whether to tighten bail is scheduled for Thursday, after Bankman-Fried allegedly tried to communicate improperly with potential government witnesses. The case is Rabbitte v Sequoia Capital Operations LLC et al, U.S. District Court, Northern District of California, No.

☆ Kyle Cooke, star of Bravo's 'Summer House,' shares the playbook his hard tea brand used to compete with legacy brands and generate $38 million in sales
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Dorothy Cucci | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

'Summer House' star Kyle Cooke founded Loverboy, a sparkling hard tea brand, in 2018. He found the right niche and built a strong direct-to-consumer relationship though 'Summer House.' This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Kyle Cooke, 39-year-old Loverboy founder and star of Bravo's 'Summer House.' When we filmed the first season of 'Summer House' in 2017, I was working on a nutrition coaching app. We were able to sell to our fans directly because we'd built a strong relationship with our consumer base through 'Summer House.'

☆ From 'babaloo' to 'slop chest,' these are 35 secret terms only cruise workers know — and the ones you don't want to hear as a passenger
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-09 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Cruise workers have their own secret language they use to communicate with one another. That's because crew members have dozens of secret code words and sayings they use to communicate while keeping passengers in the dark. Insider compiled a dictionary of cruise ship language based on interviews with cruise workers, previous reporting, and industry blogs. GUSTAVO GRANADO/AFP via Getty ImagesBabaloo: Alternatively spelled "Babalu," this is widespread cruise worker slang that means "fool" or "idiot." Slop chest: A tiny convenience store in the crew-only section of a cruise ship that sells essential items.

☆ A prominent UK cybersecurity stock is under attack from short sellers. Here's what you need to know
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Ryan Browne | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Omar Marques | SOPA Images | LightRocket via Getty ImagesCybersecurity company Darktrace , one of the U.K.'s most prominent tech names, has found itself under attack from short sellers. Short selling is a strategy in which investors bet on the price of a stock going down in value. Darktrace, one of the U.K.'s largest cybersecurity companies, was founded in 2013 by a group of former intelligence experts and mathematicians. "This has been, and remains, a very small part of Darktrace's marketing and the costs of them over the last five years has consistently been substantially below 0.5% of Darktrace's revenue," Darktrace added. The Lynch connectionIt's worth noting that, even before the QCM report, there were clouds hanging over Darktrace's business.

☆ A Mexico soccer icon entered politics. Prosecutors say narcos followed
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-03 | by ( Cuernavaca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +27 min

Regional politicians, officials and military officers gathered in the Morelos state capital of Cuernavaca for breakfast in February 2022 to mark Mexico’s annual Army day. Mexican drug lords have a long tradition of buying off politicians in exchange for government protection of their illicit trade. Attempts to reach two of the alleged drug traffickers in the photo – Figueroa and Irving Solano Vera – were unsuccessful. Prosecutors in April asked the Morelos state congress to impeach Blanco so that he could be stripped of that shield. “He likes me very much because I’m not a politician,” Blanco told Reuters, in reference to the president.

Feb 1 (Reuters) - QAD, a business software maker was taken private by buyout firm Thoma Bravo in 2021 for $2 billion, told Reuters on Wednesday it has agreed to acquire employee productivity platform Redzone for about $1 billion. Redzone, which was founded in 2013, offers enterprise software solutions primarily for the manufacturing industry. Founded in 1979, QAD provides cloud-based planning and resources solutions software to manufacturing companies. The deal will help QAD expand its footprint across different sectors within the manufacturing industry. Reporting Milana Vinn in San Francisco and Krystal Hu in New York Editing by Greg RoumeliotisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Private equity giants are still racing to fill 2024 associate seats. See 8 firms — from Carlyle to Bain Capital — that have been recruiting first-year investment bankers for jobs that won't start for
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Last year's on-cycle recruiting kicked off earlier than ever, and many junior bankers weren't ready. In an effort to win the war for talent that was raging last year, private equity firms pushed their recruiting efforts earlier than in ever— to late summer. To be sure, not all private equity firms kicked off on-cycle recruiting in August. It usually involves an intense week-long period (although sometimes shorter or longer) where private equity firms rush in to snag the top talent. The bottom line shows the month and year analysts started their roles, and the yellow line indicated when on-cycle recruiting began that season.

☆ Haitians in the U.S. feel pressure to sponsor friends, family back home
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Brian Ellsworth | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

"Many people unfortunately are not in a position to sponsor family members or friends back home, but they are receiving calls nonstop." She said her clients have described being expected to sponsor entire extended families and in some cases face threats. "I would say it's also a program that will place undue stress on families and cause family divisions." "People will say 'I have more than one cousin I would like to sponsor, I'm only able to sponsor one of them,'" Jozef said. She is also opposed to the expulsions of Haitians and other migrants arriving at the southwest border, many who are seeking U.S. asylum.

☆ A home flipper who helps sellers get up to 30% more for their properties shared 5 easy upgrades that help boost resale value — and 5 design choices that turn buyers off
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Zoe Rosenberg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +7 min

Her company, Homegirl, advises clients on the interior design trends that boost resale value. She spoke with Insider about what trends buyers want right now that will help sellers get up to 30% more when listing their homes, and what styles are no longer in their favor. Minimalist art, right, is out of style. Unlacquered brass hardware, left, adds a sense of age to a room while black hardware, right, has fallen out of favor. Nadav Havakook/Homegirl, Wachirawut Priamphimai/EyeEm/Getty ImagesStatement-making, sculptural lights that double as art pieces are what buyers are looking for these days.

☆ NBCUniversal expects Peacock losses to peak this year as streamer slowly adds subscribers
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Lillian Rizzo | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The NBCUniversal Inc. Peacock streaming service is displayed on a laptop computer in an arranged photograph taken in the Brooklyn Borough of New York, U.S., on Monday, April 20, 2020. Streaming service Peacock has slowly been taking flight with consumers. Like its peers, Comcast has been investing in its streaming platform by putting more of its content on Peacock. Company executives said Thursday Peacock losses will peak in 2023 at around $3 billion, but expect it to steadily improve after that. And besides that, propping up Peacock with NBCUniversal content from its linear networks also only helps to accelerate its bleeding of Comcast's cable-TV customers.

☆ The private equity industry is racing to fill 2024 associate roles after last year's hyper competitive hiring tactics backfired
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-25 | by ( Emmalyse Brownstein | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

[1/3] Mexico City's Mayor Claudia Sheinbaum speaks near Mexico's President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador (not pictured) during a news conference at the Old City Hall (Antiguo Palacio del Ayuntamiento), in Mexico City, Mexico January 20, 2023. "If accidents continue, like a cable or the signal system breaks, the National Guard is not going to detect that or make a difference," Miranda said. A school collapse that killed 19 children in a 2017 earthquake happened on her watch as a district mayor of Mexico City. She filed a criminal complaint accusing two prior attorneys for the district of failing to enforce the law after discovering illegal construction, and became Mexico City Mayor in 2018. Now, Lopez Obrador has backed her decision to use the National Guard, in a clear sign of support for her.

Todd and Julie Chrisley, stars of the reality TV franchise "Chrisley Knows Best," reported to federal facilities Tuesday to begin their years-long prison sentences after their fraud convictions, officials said. Todd Chrisley surrendered to the Federal Prison Camp (FPC) Pensacola in Florida, while Julie Chrisley arrived at the Federal Medical Center (FMC) Lexington in Kentucky, according to the Bureau of Prisons. Todd Chrisley was sentenced to 12 years, wife Julie Chrisley got 7 years. The downfall of Todd and Julie Chrisley came at about the same time as "Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" star Jen Shah faced federal prosecution before she pleaded guilty to wire fraud. "Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" is on Bravo, which is also an NBCUniversal property.

"The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City" star Jen Shah has been ordered to participate in a mental health treatment program, as part of her probation, following her prison release. Jen Shah on "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City. Shah has said she suffered from depression and was on antidepressant medication during episodes of "The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City." It noted her work with a mental health organization that works within the Polynesian community. "Given her own background, Jen feels deeply empathetic toward anyone marginalized, fearing rejection, and struggling with mental health issues," the memorandum said.

☆ Salvadoran girls found on Rio Grande at U.S.-Mexico border
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Mexico National Immigration Institute (INM)/Handout via REUTERSMEXICO CITY, Jan 12 (Reuters) - Mexican immigration agents found three unaccompanied Salvadoran children stranded on an islet on the Rio Grande, which straddles the U.S.-Mexico border, Mexico's immigration institute said. Members of Mexico's National Guard first issued an alert for the children, according to the institute. Salvadoran consulate officials in Mexico were aware of the incident and in talks with local authorities, El Salvador's foreign ministry said. Rio Grande crossing dividing the United States and Mexico is one of the last hurdles migrants face before reaching the United States, often after arduous journeys. The three children were placed in the care of Mexico's System for the Integral Development of the Family (DIF), the immigration institute said.

WASHINGTON, Jan 10 (Reuters) - More than 100 arms-control, environmental and other activist groups have urged the Biden administration to formally apologize to the Marshall Islands for the impact of massive nuclear testing there in the 1940s and '50s and to provide fair compensation. The activists, led by the by the Arms Control Association and including Greenpeace, Physicians for Social Responsibility and the Marshallese Education Initiative, made the call in a Dec. 5 letter to President Joe Biden. It urged Washington to deliver on promises of nuclear justice in ongoing negotiations with the Marshall Islands on renewing a Compact of Free Association (COFA) that has been the basis of relations with the Pacific territory since the 1980s. COFA provisions will expire in 2023 for the Marshall Islands and another Pacific territory, the Federated States of Micronesia, and with Palau in 2024. They said that as well as issuing a formal apology and meeting compensation claims, Washington should support long-term environmental remediation, expand access to healthcare, especially for illnesses associated with radiation exposure, and declassify documents related on nuclear testing.

☆ FTX bankruptcy documents show list of investors set to be completely wiped out, including Tom Brady and Robert Kraft
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-10 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

FTX released a list of its equity holders on Monday as it continues to navigate the bankruptcy process. Some of the top holders of FTX equity included in the list are Tom Brady, Robert Kraft, and Gisele Bündchen. The FTX shares owned by Brady, Kraft, and Bündchen are expected to be worthless. Billionaire Robert Kraft, who owns the New England Patriots football team, was also listed in the FTX bankruptcy document. Other investors on FTX's equity-holder list include Wall Street's elite hedge funds and growth investors, according to the bankruptcy document.

☆ Netflix isn't interested in (just) becoming HBO anymore
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Travis Clark | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos says the company wants to be "equal parts HBO and FX and AMC" and more. In 2013, he said that Netflix's goal was "to become HBO faster than HBO can become us." Bela Bajaria, Netflix's head of global TV, put it more bluntly: The company wants to "replace all television." When it first broke into original programming, Netflix went after the sort of prestige TV that HBO is known for; one of the earliest examples is scooping up "House of Cards," which HBO was also interested in. In 2013, the same year the show premiered, Sarandos told GQ, "The goal is to become HBO faster than HBO can become us."

☆ 6 top M&A bankers lay out their dealmaking playbook for 2023 — from getting around a sagging bond market to dealing with skeptical shareholders
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Carter Johnson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

"We're certainly telling clients to plan for longer timelines between signing an announcement and when a transaction closes," RBC's Sperduto said. Bankers noted the figure was on pace with the average amount of deals done in the five years preceding the pandemic. "There is still significant desire from both corporates and financial sponsors to transact," Gary Posternack, co-head of global M&A at Barclays, told Insider. But in 2023, bankers see more transactions receiving greater scrutiny from stakeholders. Vito Sperduto, the co-head of global M&A at RBC Capital Markets.

☆ NBCUniversal layoffs hit TV ad sales teams as resources shift from linear to streaming
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-09 | by ( Claire Atkinson | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

NBCUniversal is laying off executives from its ad sales teams today. Linear TV ad sales is declining and NBCU is shifting priorities to streaming. NBCUniversal is letting go of ad sales executives at 30 Rock today, according to two people with direct knowledge of the changes. One of the people with direct knowledge told Insider the layoffs overall will be "big." The company has been looking to shave staff after a decline in linear TV viewing and an ad recession have hurt the traditional ad sales business.

☆ Jen Shah, ‘Real Housewives of Salt Lake City’ Star, Sentenced to 6 1/2 Years in Prison for Fraud
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-06 | by ( Joseph De Avila | ) www.wsj.com time to read: 1 min

Jennifer Shah , one of the stars of the Bravo reality TV show “The Real Housewives of Salt Lake City,” was sentenced to 6 1/2 years in prison after she pleaded guilty to a fraudulent national telemarketing scheme. Ms. Shah, who goes by Jen, pleaded guilty in July to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud. That charge carried a punishment of up to 30 years in prison. She also agreed to forfeit $6.5 million and to pay restitution of up to $9.5 million.

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