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☆ As FTX collapses, Temasek becomes latest backer to write down $275 mln funding
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SINGAPORE, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Singapore state investor Temasek Holdings said it would write down the value of its entire investment of $275 million in collapsed crypto currency exchange FTX, in the latest move by FTX's investors. "In view of FTX's financial position, we have decided to write down our full investment in FTX, irrespective of the outcome of FTX's bankruptcy protection filing," Temasek said in a detailed statement on Thursday. "The cost of our investment in FTX was 0.09% of our net portfolio value of S$403 billion ($294.3 billion) as of 31 March 2022," it said. Temasek said its early stage investments made up about 6% of its total portfolio. ($1 = 1.3693 Singapore dollars)Reporting by Anshuman Daga in Singapore; Additional reporting by Sameer Manekar in Bengaluru; Editing by Christopher CushingOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Japan unicorn Opn buys MerchantE to enter U.S. online payment sector
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

TOKYO, Nov 15 (Reuters) - Digital payments processor Opn, a rare Japanese unicorn, or startup worth more than $1 billion, said on Tuesday it had acquired MerchantE from U.S. investment firm Integrum Holdings, making inroads into the U.S. online payment sector. The deal comes as Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida's government strives to accelerate investments in startups and digital transformation to spur economic growth. "Startups have been getting a tailwind since the start of Prime Minister Kishida's administration," Opn Chief Executive Jun Hasegawa told Reuters. "Besides financial institutions that participated in the financing (for the deal), Japan Bank for International Cooperation and governmental funds such as Japan Investment Corp gave us strong support this time around," he said. Opn, pronounced "open", has been offering services mainly in Southeast Asian countries such as Singapore and Thailand.

Nov 14 (Reuters) - Squire Patton Boggs on Monday said it will open an office in Dublin next year, becoming the latest international law firm to expand into Ireland. Agnew was a founding partner of Pinsent Masons' Dublin office. A Squire Patton Boggs spokesperson said the firm is currently looking at space in Dublin's central business district. Agnew said in an email that the exact timing of his departure from Pinsent Masons "has still to be agreed." Squire Patton Boggs was created in 2014 by the merger of Washington, D.C.-founded Patton Boggs and Cleveland-founded Squire Sanders.

☆ FedEx's freight unit to furlough workers
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 14 (Reuters) - FedEx Corp's (FDX.N) freight division is furloughing employees in some U.S. markets as current business conditions are hurting its volumes, the package-delivery company said on Monday. The move comes barely a week after the Memphis, Tennessee-based company warned of lower-than-expected delivery volumes in the United States as the pandemic-driven e-commerce bubble deflates. read moreThe company "will continue to evaluate the environment and bring back furloughed employees as business circumstances allow," FedEx said in an emailed statement. Some eligible employees will be offered permanent transfer opportunities to other markets that have hiring needs, it added. FedEx Freight will maintain health benefits and provide other financial incentives for furloughed employees, the company said.

☆ Factbox: What are FTX's investors saying?
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Here's what investors in FTX are saying now:SOFTBANKThe total investment of SoftBank Group Corp's (9984.T) Vision Fund in the U.S. and international operations of FTX is less than $100 million, a source close to SoftBank said on Friday. The complications at FTX mark the latest difficulty for the Vision Fund, which has been hit in recent quarters by a global tech rout. SEQUOIA CAPITALSequoia Capital said on Wednesday that it would mark down its total investments in FTX to $0. ONTARIO TEACHERS PENSION PLANThe Ontario Teachers Pension Plan (OTPP) said on Thursday it had invested a total of $95 million in FTX. CIRCLEFintech company Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said in a tweet on Wednesday that "Circle is a tiny equity holder of FTX, and FTX is a tiny equity holder of Circle."

☆ Japan's Toshiba slashes profit outlook after second-quarter slump
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-11 | by ( Makiko Yamazaki | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

TOKYO, Nov 11 (Reuters) - Toshiba Corp (6502.T) on Friday cut its full-year operating profit outlook after a 75% slump in second-quarter profit - dismal results that heighten the uncertainty surrounding its prospects for a buyout deal. It cut its profit forecast for the year ending in March by roughly a quarter to 125 billion yen ($885 million). Kioxia Holdings Corp, a memory chip maker some 40% owned by Toshiba, has also said it would cut production by about 30% from in October. For the July-September quarter, Toshiba posted an operating profit of 7.5 billion yen ($53.2 million). That was far short of a Refinitiv consensus estimate of 36.9 billion yen from four analysts.

[1/2] Handout image shows 4th Gen AMD EPYC processor, launched by AMD on November 10, 2022, in this undated handout image. AMD/Handout via REUTERSNov 10 (Reuters) - Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD.O) launched its latest data center chip on Thursday and said Microsoft Corp's (MSFT.O) Azure, Alphabet-owned (GOOGL.O) Google Cloud and Oracle Corp would be some of its customers. "What that means for enterprises and for cloud data centers is that it translates into lower capex, lower opex and lower total cost of ownership," she said. Genoa launches at a time when rival Intel Corp's (INTC.O) latest data center chip, code named Sapphire Rapids, has struggled with delays. "IDC expects AMD will stay on track, continue building up market share in public cloud deployments," said Ashish Nadkarni, datacenter and cloud analyst at IDC.

☆ As yen tumbles, gadget-loving Japan goes for secondhand iPhones
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-08 | by ( Miho Uranaka | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Salaryman Kaoru Nagase wanted a new phone but couldn't justify the price of a iPhone 14, which starts at 119,800 yen ($814). Instead, he bought a used iPhone SE 2 in Tokyo's Akihabara electronics district for less than a third of that. "At more than 100,000 yen the iPhone 14 is too expensive and I just can't afford it. But in an annual regulatory filing last month, it said Japan sales fell 9% in the year ended September 24 due to the yen's weakness. With Japan open again to foreign tourists, the secondhand iPhone market is getting another boost.

☆ Factbox: Corporate America leans on job cuts as recession fears mount
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Corporate America is cutting thousands of jobs to rein in costs amid tightening monetary policy and growing fears of a recession. Job cuts announced by U.S.-based employers jumped 13% to 33,843 in October, the highest since February 2021, a report said. Microsoft:Microsoft Corp (MSFT.O) laid off under 1,000 employees across several divisions this week, Axios reported, citing a source. However, Bloomberg on Sunday reported Twitter was reaching out to dozens of employees who lost their jobs, asking them to return. Chime:Online banking firm Chime has laid off 12% of its employees, or about 160 jobs, a spokesperson said.

☆ Walgreens-backed VillageMD to buy Summit Health in $9 billion deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 7 (Reuters) - Primary care provider VillageMD, which is backed by Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc (WBA.O), is buying urgent care provider Summit Health in a deal valued at nearly $9 billion, as the No. Private equity firm Warburg Pincus-backed Summit Health runs an independent physician-run medical groups, and also operates CityMD, which acts as alternatives to hospital emergency department visits. Walgreens also raised its fiscal year 2025 sales goal for U.S. healthcare business to $14.5 billion to $16.0 billion, from $11.0 billion to $12.0 billion previously to account for the deal. Together, VillageMD and Summit Health will have a presence in more than 680 locations. Summit Health and CityMD had merged in August 2019, with the company now having over 13,000 employees and operating in over 370 locations.

Differences over JIP's plan to retain Toshiba CEO Taro Shimada and his team were a source of friction between the two bidders, according to two sources familiar with the talks. Despite being selected as preferred bidder, JIP has struggled to secure enough equity commitments from potential partners, sources have said. It now looks set to miss a Monday deadline to deliver a firm proposal that includes letters of commitment from banks, sources have said. In late October, JIC expanded the size of its buyout fund to 900 billion yen ($6.11 billion) from 200 billion yen. Two of the sources said the expansion was not just for a Toshiba buyout but also aimed at other deals.

☆ Pentagon, U.S. arms makers to meet on labor and supply chain
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-04 | by ( Mike Stone | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Prior meetings between Pentagon officials and top arms makers including Lockheed Martin Corp (LMT.N), Raytheon Technologies Corp (RTX.N) and General Dynamics Corp (GD.N) were focused on Ukraine and hypersonic weapon development. Pandemic related supply-chain issues are still hurting defense contractors because components and materials fail to arrive on time, which delays production and ultimately payment. read moreTHE LONGEST POLEIn the meantime, the defense industry is taking steps on its own to shore up supplies and labor. "If I had to boil it down to the longest pole in the tent, it's the labor issues that are pervasive throughout the supply chain," Raytheon Chief Financial Officer Neil Mitchill told Reuters. read moreReporting by Mike Stone in Washington; Editing by Alexandra Alper and Stephen CoatesOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Xiaomi India did not share the agreement with the bank due to confidentiality reasons, Deutsche told investigators, according to the documents. A spokesperson for Deutsche Bank declined to comment. Qualcomm, in a statement, said under "the license with Qualcomm, Xiaomi India pays royalties on all devices sold in India". In that statement, it said Xiaomi India was an affiliate and one of the Xiaomi Group companies, which entered into a legal agreement with Qualcomm. Indian authorities do not agree with that and say Xiaomi India only acts as a reseller of smartphones that are made by contract manufacturers.

The "Voting Choice" program announced last year by the $8 trillion asset manager could reshape corporate elections both by making shareholders more involved and by diminishing the political criticism BlackRock faces from U.S. liberals and conservatives alike. BlackRock said in a statement that at the end of September clients with around $1.8 trillion in equity index assets managed by the company were eligible for voting choices and that clients with $452 billion were doing so. Last month for instance Charles Schwab Corp's (SCHW.N) asset-management arm said it would start polling shareholders of certain funds about their voting preferences. "Our clients have diverse perspectives, and a growing number would like the option to weigh in on how their index funds vote," Vanguard said in a statement. In addition, BlackRock said it would offer voting choice to more investment strategies and work with investor communications platform Proxymity to extend choice to retail investors in some British mutual funds.

☆ Microsoft's president warns of talent shortage for tackling climate change
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-02 | by ( Jeffrey Dastin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 2 (Reuters) - Thousands of businesses will fail to meet pledges to combat climate change unless they start training employees on sustainability, Microsoft Corp's (MSFT.O) President Brad Smith told Reuters. Microsoft sells software for organizations to track their environmental impact. Still, companies need more than technology to address global warming, said Smith, announcing plans to develop green education materials including on LinkedIn, which Microsoft owns. The findings primarily stemmed from interviews and surveys with Microsoft and eight other large companies in sectors such as finance and consumer goods. "Employers really need to step back and take a broader look at their investment in employee learning and training."

As recently as August, Lachlan Murdoch described sports betting as "a huge opportunity" for Fox Sports, telling Wall Street it would fuel viewer engagement. The sports betting app Fox Bet is available in four states, with just 0.2% share of the U.S. market, according to researcher Vixio. A free version called Fox Bet Super 6 has attracted some 6 million users whom Fox hopes to eventually convert to gamblers. The growth of Fox Bet has stagnated since market-leading FanDuel's owner, Flutter Entertainment Plc (FLTRF.L), acquired Stars Group in 2020. The matter is the subject of an arbitration case and Lachlan Murdoch told investors a decision is expected imminently.

☆ EA lowers bookings expectation on strong dollar, gaming slowdown
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Nov 1 (Reuters) - Electronic Arts Inc (EA.O) lowered its annual bookings forecast on Tuesday as the publisher of "FIFA" and "Apex Legends" struggles with this year's surge in the U.S. dollar and a gaming industry slowdown from pandemic heights. The company now expects annual bookings - an indicator of future revenue - between $7.65 billion and $7.85 billion, compared with $7.90 billion to $8.10 billion earlier. A near 17% rise in the U.S. dollar this year has also stifled growth, with EA forecasting a roughly $200 million hit to annual bookings. EA booked second-quarter adjusted sales of $1.75 billion, missing the $1.80 billion expected by analysts, according to Refinitiv data. Net income rose to $299 million, or $1.07 per share, from $294 million, or $1.02 per share, a year earlier.

Adjusted earnings per share came in at 57 cents, 7 cents ahead of estimates. Thomson Reuters' peers include RELX Group’s (REL.L) LexisNexis, Bloomberg LP, News Corp's (NWSA.O) DowJones, and Wolters Kluwer (WLSNc.AS). Thomson Reuters holds a minority stake in the LSE, worth about $6.3 billion as of Friday. Thomson Reuters will be "quite a bit more aggressive in the next few quarters in looking at acquisitions," he said. Reporting by Ken Li and Nick Zieminski in New York Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Fox Corp beats revenue estimates on political ads demand
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Nov 1 (Reuters) - Fox Corp (FOXA.O) reported better-than-expected quarterly revenue on Tuesday, as the Fox News parent benefited from an uptick in advertising spend ahead of the U.S. midterm elections. Fox Corp's revenue was also buoyed by higher affiliate fees and an influx of advertisers to its Tubi streaming service. Fox Corp is also deciding on whether to combine with News Corp (NWSA.O) after the companies said earlier this month that Rupert Murdoch had started a process that could reunite his media empire. Fox Corp's total revenue rose to $3.19 billion in the first quarter ended Sept. 30, from $3.05 billion a year earlier. Advertising revenue increased 8% in the quarter, primarily due to higher political advertising revenue at its TV stations, the company said.

The Toronto-based company recorded $1.57 billion in sales during the quarter, up 3%, slightly below expectations of $1.59 billion. Adjusted earnings per share came in at 57 cents, 7 cents ahead of analyst estimates. But it noted that 2023 margins were trending towards the lower end of the 39%-40% range amid heightened inflation and investments. Thomson Reuters' peers include RELX Group’s (REL.L) LexisNexis, Bloomberg LP, News Corp's (NWSA.O) DowJones and Wolters Kluwer (WLSNc.AS). Reporting by Ken Li and Nick Zieminski in New York Editing by Mark PotterOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Sony Q2 gaming profit tumbles 50% on higher costs
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-01 | by ( Sam Nussey | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

FILE PHOTO: Sony Corp's logo is seen on its Crystal LED Integrated Structure (CLEDIS) display at its headquarters in Tokyo, Japan, February 2, 2017. REUTERS/Kim Kyung-HoonTOKYO (Reuters) -Sony Group Corp’s second-quarter profit at its key gaming unit fell by 50% from a year earlier as the entertainment conglomerate booked higher costs from game development and acquisitions, the company said on Tuesday. The Tokyo-headquartered company’s gaming unit recorded a profit of 42.1 billion yen ($284.63 million) after selling 3.3 million units of its PlayStation 5 (PS5) console in the second quarter, equal to the year ago sales. It trimmed its full-year forecast for the games business by 12% to 225 billion yen citing lower software sales from third-party developers and the impact of dollar-denominated costs. Sony reported overall group operating profit rose 8% to 344 billion yen ($2.32 billion) in the July-September quarter, beating analyst estimates, after units including the music business offset the weakness in gaming.

[1/2] Ukraine's First Lady, Olena Zelenska, attends the opening event of Europe's largest tech conference, the Web Summit, in Lisbon, Portugal, November 1, 2022. REUTERS/Pedro NunesLISBON, Nov 1 (Reuters) - In an emotional appeal, Ukrainian first lady Olena Zelenska urged tech workers from around the world on Tuesday to create innovations to stop Russia and help save people in her war-torn country. Describing technology as a "battlefield" in the Russian invasion of Ukraine, Zelenska said that technological equipment such as drones and missiles were being used to "kill people," not to save them. Mykhailo Fedorov, Ukraine's vice prime minister who also runs the ministry of digital transformation, will also speak. Reporting by Catarina Demony, Sergio Goncalves and Pedro Nunes in Lisbon Editing by Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Goldman on Monday elevated Avinash Mehrotra and Brian Haufrect as the new co-heads of Americas M&A, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters. Both Mehrotra, who currently is the head of global activism and takeover defense, and Haufrect, who is global head of natural resources M&A, will continue to hold their existing roles on top of their new responsibilities. Russ Hutchinson will rejoin Goldman's investment banking unit as chief operating officer of its global M&A business, according to the memo sent to employees by Goldman's global co-heads of Global Banking & Markets, Dan Dees and Jim Esposito. Haufrect, who heads Goldman's natural resources deals franchise, was made partner at Goldman in 2016, according to his LinkedIn profile. Goldman's top six dealmakers - global co-heads of M&A, Stephan Feldgoise and Mark Sorrell, and M&A chairmen, Tim Ingrassia, Dusty Philip, Gilberto Pozzi and Gene Sykes - will continue running the franchise, according to the memo.

☆ No Microsoft remedies in first EU antitrust review of Activision deal - source
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-31 | by ( Foo Yun Chee | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

BRUSSELS, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Microsoft Corp's (MSFT.O) has not offered any remedies to EU antitrust regulators reviewing its proposed $69 billion bid for "Call of Duty" maker Activision Blizzard (ATVI.O) ahead of an expected full-scale EU probe, a person familiar with the matter said on Monday. The European Commission, which is scheduled to finish its preliminary assessment of the deal by Nov. 8, said its website was up to date. Microsoft said it continues to work with the Commission on the next steps and to address any valid marketplace concerns, such as those voiced by Sony. Companies typically do not offer remedies during the EU preliminary review when they know regulators subsequently intend to open a four-month long investigation. Reporting by Foo Yun Chee; editing by David EvansOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ TuSimple probed by FBI, SEC over ties to Chinese startup, the Wall Street Journal reports
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-30 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Oct 30 (Reuters) - Self-driving truck startup TuSimple Holdings Inc (TSP.O) is being investigated by the FBI, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Committee on Foreign Investment about its relationship with China-backed Hydron Inc, the Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday. They are also trying to find out whether TuSimple shared intellectual property developed in the United States with Hydron and whether that action defrauded TuSimple investors by sending valuable technology to an overseas adversary, the newspaper said. A TuSimple spokesman told WSJ that the company isn't aware of any FBI or SEC investigations and that Hou has never been a Hydron employee or received payment from Hydron. TuSimple revealed in its IPO prospectus last year that its backer Chinese social media firm Sina Corp's investments in TuSimple had been put under review by the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS). TuSimple and the SEC did not respond to a Reuters request for comment on the report.

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