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☆ Britain to shake up private pensions with value for money test
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Britain said on Monday it will launch a public consultation on new rules requiring higher disclosure standards from private pensions schemes to give savers better value for money and prevent providers from "gaming the system". Pensions minister Laura Trott said the shake-up of private pensions will also include reform of the charge cap on a company's "default" defined contribution (DC) pension schemes that employees are offered or auto-enrolled in. DC pension schemes' performance is tied to swings in stock and bond markets. "Being in an underperforming pension scheme can lead to someone missing out on thousands of pounds." They would have to provide comparisons with at least three other schemes to prevent providers from choosing underperforming schemes for comparison purposes.

☆ Rio Tinto apologises after radioactive capsule lost in Australia
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MELBOURNE, Jan 30 (Reuters) - Rio Tinto Ltd's (RIO.AX) iron ore division chief Simon Trott apologised on Monday after a contractor hired by the mining giant lost a radioactive capsule in transit in Western Australia which sparked a radiation alert across parts of the state. We recognise this is clearly very concerning and are sorry for the alarm it has caused in the Western Australian community," Trott said in a statement. Early reports suggested the loss was not discovered for almost two weeks after the capsule left Rio's Gudai-Darri mine site. Rio said it was informed by the contractor the capsule was missing on Jan. 25. "We have completed radiological surveys of all areas on site where the device had been, and surveyed roads within the mine site as well as the access road leading away from the Gudai-Darri mine site," Trott said.

☆ An Australian mining company lost a radioactive device that emits high levels of radiation equal to receiving 10 X-rays in an hour and can cause skin burns and cancer: report
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Kenneth Niemeyer | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A mining company lost a piece of radioactive material along the country's Great Northern Highway, the AP reported. Authorities are reportedly scanning radiation levels across a stretch of 870 miles of road to find the device. The device contains caesium-137, which is commonly used in radiation gauges and emits enough dangerous radiation to equal receiving 10 X-rays in one hour, according to the AP. The radiation can also cause skin burns and cancer after prolonged exposure, the outlet reported. "As well as fully supporting the relevant authorities, we have launched our own investigation to understand how the capsule was lost in transit."

☆ Pope Francis to visit two fragile African nations
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-29 | by ( Philip Pullella | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/6] Pope Francis attends the Vespers prayer service to celebrate the conversion of St. Paul at St. Paul's Basilica in Rome, Italy. REUTERS/Guglielmo MangiapaneVATICAN CITY, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Pope Francis starts a trip on Tuesday to two fragile African nations often forgotten by the world, where protracted conflicts have left millions of refugees and displaced people grappling with hunger. Both countries are rich in natural resources - DRC in minerals and South Sudan in oil - but beset with poverty and strife. DRC is getting its first visit by a pope since John Paul II travelled there in 1985, when it still was known as Zaire. Trott, a former ambassador in South Sudan, said he hoped the three Churchmen can convince political leaders to "fulfil the promise of the independence movement".

Jan 19 (Reuters) - David Crosby, one of the most influential rock singers of the 1960s and '70s with the Byrds and Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young (CSNY) has died at the age of 81, Variety reported on Thursday, citing a statement from Crosby's wife. "I don’t know what to say other than I’m heartbroken to hear about David Crosby. He fell "as low as a human being can go," Crosby told the Times. In the 2019 documentary "David Crosby: Remember My Name," he made clear he hoped they could work together again but conceded the others "really dislike me, strongly." After his release, Crosby told People magazine he had beaten his addictions.

☆ A job application written by ChatGPT fooled recruiters who shortlisted it for an interview, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Sawdah Bhaimiya | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The recruitment team at a consultancy shortlisted an application written by ChatGPT, per Sky News. He told Sky News the ChatGPT-written application was "more competent" than a lot of candidates. Neil Taylor, the founder of a communications consultancy firm called Schwa, tested his recruitment team and hiring software to see if they could spot an application written by ChatGPT. "It was more competent than a lot of the bad people who apply to us," he told Sky News. "When I told the assessor that she had shortlisted ChatGPT, she was slightly crestfallen," he told Sky News.

☆ Pioneering U.S. television journalist Barbara Walters dead at 93
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( Bill Trott | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

[1/2] Television personality Barbara Walters arrives for the premiere of the film "Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps" in New York September 20, 2010. "I asked Yeltsin if he drank too much, and I asked Putin if he killed anybody," Walters told the New York Times in 2013. "These two men were really quite brutal to me and it was not pleasant," Walters told the San Francisco Examiner. The New York Times called her "arguably America's best-known television personality" but also observed that "what we remember most about a Barbara Walters interview is Barbara Walters." Walters' three marriages - to businessman Robert Katz, theatrical producer Lee Guber and television executive Merv Adelson - ended in divorce.

☆ Factbox: Key facts about pioneering broadcast journalist Barbara Walters
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 30 (Reuters) - The following are key facts about the life and career of pioneering broadcast journalist Barbara Walters, the first woman to anchor an American network evening newscast, who died on Friday:* Walters was born in Boston on Sept. 25, but she did not like to reveal the year, which reportedly was 1929, 1930 or 1931. * Walters started at NBC's "Today" show as a writer in 1961 and in 1976 became the first woman to co-anchor a network evening news broadcast on U.S. television. * Walters singled out her "Today" co-host Frank McGee and Reasoner on ABC News for making her life miserable. * Walters felt she was unfairly mocked for her asking actress Katharine Hepburn what kind of tree she would like to be. * Walters' marriages to businessman Robert Katz, theatrical producer Lee Guber and television executive Merv Adelson all ended in divorce.

☆ How Gerry Cardinale became the go-to dealmaker for the likes of the Yankees, AC Milan, and Ben Affleck
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-29 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | Dakin Campbell | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +20 min

He bought the soccer club AC Milan in August, earning the attention of the Italian press. This past spring, AC Milan won its first national title in 11 years. Claudio Villa/AC Milan via Getty Images Show less Cardinale at a training session for AC Milan. For instance, the teams sell each other's merchandise in their stadiums, and the YES Network airs AC Milan games. "Now we have a new phase of expansion and internationalization of AC Milan with Gerry."

☆ Intrepid bankers will find Boutique Blvd jam-packed
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-19 | by ( Jeffrey Goldfarb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

The situation complicates things for rainmakers considering their next steps in a weaker environment for mergers and acquisitions. Making the well-trod move from Wall Street to Boutique Boulevard will be much harder in 2023. The entrepreneurial spirit often hits investment bankers when times get tough, and their mega-bank employers start cutting staff or restricting access to the balance sheet. It's easy to see how the likes of Blair Effron’s Centerview, Robey Warshaw and Ken Moelis’ eponymous firm established themselves. Absent those kinds of industry-specific or geographic relationships, idle investment bankers may find themselves just spending more time with their families.

☆ EU greenlights only half of global tax deal
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

BRUSSELS, Dec 16 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The European Union has at last found unanimity on the global minimum tax, half of an almost 140-nation pact to clamp down on global tax avoidance. Hungary finally dropped its veto this week, only for Poland to provide last-minute drama before finally allowing the EU to proceed. Whack-a-mole objections have become EU routine on tax matters, which require the unanimity of the 27 member states. The other half of the global deal, struck under the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development auspices in 2021, concerned big digital services companies. In the meantime, trade wars over a hodgepodge of national digital services taxes are likely to continue.

☆ Danske slap confirms pay-what-you-can principle
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-14 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

That’s one takeaway from the $2 billion slap it delivered late on Tuesday to Denmark’s Danske Bank (DANSKE.CO), which pleaded guilty to conspiracy to commit bank fraud. Danske’s Estonian unit processed $160 billion of potentially illicit payments through U.S. banks on behalf of foreign customers, including Russians, the DOJ said. BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) in 2014, by contrast, agreed to pay roughly $9 billion for moving $8.8 billion for sanctioned clients. In Danske’s case, the bill is roughly 1% of suspicious flows, whereas BNP’s was around 100% of illicit payments. Danske will be able to keep using U.S. correspondent banks for dollar payments, according to a person familiar with the matter.

☆ Rent prices conceal better U.S. inflation picture
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

WASHINGTON, Dec 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - The U.S. battle against inflation is faring even better than its own data suggest. The country’s Consumer Price Index rose just 0.1% in November, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported on Tuesday. Yet a lag between market trends and CPI data means that true inflation is lower than the government’s reading. According to the government’s measure, shelter prices rose 0.7% last month, but Zillow’s (ZG.O)gauge of nationwide rent prices fell for a second consecutive month in November, by 0.4%. Once CPI catches up, the inflation picture is going to look much more encouraging.

☆ Ukraine’s Nestlé boost is as important as EU aid
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Consumer group Nestlé (NESN.S) on Monday announced a small war-time investment in Ukraine which may be as important for the country’s future as an 18 billion euro European Union aid package agreed on the same day. Nestlé will invest 40 million Swiss francs (41 million euros) in a new facility that will help to produce cold sauces, seasonings, soups and instant food. The Swiss consumer group, which already has 5,800 employees in the country, will add 1,500 new jobs in the process. Meanwhile the EU struck a deal with holdout Hungary that will allow it to disburse aid to Ukraine next year. While still at war with Russia, Ukraine needs Western aid to help the government pay its teachers, doctors and soldiers, and start rebuilding railroads and power plants.

☆ Nuclear fusion triggers an overreaction
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Dec 13 (Reuters Breakingviews) - A fusion breakthrough unveiled on Tuesday by the U.S. Department of Energy is a scientific tour de force, and a commercial irrelevancy. It’s a notable feat that researchers produced more energy from fusing atoms together than they used to start the process. Unless there are more breakthroughs, fusion probably would take place in massive facilities like today’s fission plants. The cost of power from a new nuclear plant runs about five times more expensive than a solar equivalent, Lazard analysts estimate. Making fusion cheaper and practical could be as big a challenge as fusion itself.

☆ Deal whiz Byron Trott suffers minor grill burns
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Dec 12 (Reuters Breakingviews) - Weber (WEBR.N) is a rare miscue for dealmaker Byron Trott, who typically serves up deals just right. It’s a reputational blemish for Trott just as he embarks on a major expansion. BDT, which focuses on family-owned businesses, did not sell down its roughly 60% stake at the time of the IPO, or subsequently. Outside investors may nevertheless recall Trott buying low – 43% below the IPO price, valuing Weber at $3.7 billion – the next time the firm brings a portfolio company to market, and wonder if they’ll get burned. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.

☆ Rock 'n' roll pioneer Jerry Lee Lewis, known as 'The Killer,' dies
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Bill Trott | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

Like Chuck Berry's guitar, Lewis' piano was essential in shaping rock 'n' roll in the mid-1950s. "Jerry Lee thinks that Jerry Lee is too wicked to be saved." His young son Steve Allen Lewis drowned in 1962 and another son, Jerry Lee Jr., died in a 1973 car accident at 19. In his later years he settled down but biographer Rick Bragg recalled interviewing Lewis for his 2014 book "Jerry Lee Lewis: His Own Words." "I don't think Jerry Lee Lewis had to exaggerate his life one bit to make it interesting," Bragg told the Atlanta Constitution Journal.

☆ Inside ex-Goldman Sachs banker Gregg Lemkau's big bet on himself
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-28 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Gregg Lemkau (center) led MSD Partners, the investment firm financed by Michael Dell (right) to a merger with merchant bank BDT & Company, founded by Byron Trott (left). Gregg Lemkau seemingly had it all, which is why many were surprised at his decision to end his 28-year tenure at Goldman Sachs to run MSD Partners, Michael Dell's investment firm, in late 2020. Nearly two years later, Lemkau has silenced any doubters by orchestrating a merger between MSD and merchant bank BDT & Company. Lemkau will serve as co-CEO with BDT founder and CEO Byron Trott of the new firm, which will target rich families and founders. Click here to read more about Gregg Lemkau's ascension at Goldman Sachs and his decision to leave.

☆ How Gregg Lemkau went from Goldman CEO contender to building a hybrid investment bank catering to billionaires
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-27 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +9 min

Gregg Lemkau was in the running for CEO before he left Goldman Sachs in 2020. Now he runs Michael Dell's investment firm, which is merging with billionaire advisory BDT. When Gregg Lemkau left Goldman Sachs in late 2020 to run Michael Dell's investment firm, many within and outside the bank were surprised. Cardinale, who had left Goldman a decade ago to start his own investment firm, knew it had to be a massive opportunity to pull away Lemkau. Oldest sibling Kristin runs JPMorgan's US wealth management business and Lemkau's younger brother Chip is a managing director at Goldman Sachs in private wealth management.

☆ Meet Byron Trott, the billionaire businessman behind Michael Dell's new investment and advisory firm
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Graham Rapier | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Michael Dell's family office is merging with merchant bank BDT to form a new investment and advisory firm. Back in 2008, when he was still working at Goldman Sachs, Trott was publicly praised by Warren Buffett, whose distaste for M&A bankers — and Goldman Sachs — is notorious on Wall Street. "Byron is the rare investment banker who puts himself in his client's shoes," Buffett said in a letter to investors. The combination, the companies said on Thursday, "will create the preeminent advisory and investment firm serving the distinct needs of family- and founder-led business owners and strategic, long-term investors." Here's how Trott, a Midwest native, went from a small-town football player to an investment banker advising billionaires:

☆ Blackstone is betting big on lending out money in the private markets, and the PE giant has $182 billion to do it
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-20 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Blackstone has some money to lendBlackstone, the world's largest private-equity firm and a big fan of warehouses, reported earnings on Thursday. By comparison, back in the good ole days (see: Q3 2021), Blackstone reported a profit of $1.4 billion. Blackstone reported its private credit unit was up 3% in the third quarter and 9.3% over the past 12 months. To read more about Blackstone's push into private credit, click here. A Fed president spoke somewhere that a Fed president shouldn't really be speaking, The New York Times reported.

☆ Family offices have become a $6 trillion powerhouse in investing—and deal-making
▼ + stars: | 2022-07-11 | by ( Robert Frank | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +11 min

Family offices now manage more than $6 trillion in wealth, according to some estimates, surpassing the estimated $4 trillion managed by hedge funds. Many billionaire hedge fund managers, seeking lighter regulation or freedom from benchmarks and outside investor demands, are also converting to family offices. Singapore recently created a Family Office Development Team to lead and coordinate initiatives that will attract more family offices. The Wealth Management Institute has launched the Global-Asia Family Office Circle in Singapore to attract more family offices. Even family offices that serve more than one family often receive an exemption from the SEC to keep their filings confidential.

Persons: Andrew Cohen, John Paulson, Leon Cooperman, That's, Exchange Sara Hamilton, Cohen, John D, Rockefeller, J.P, Morgan, Goldman Sachs, " Cohen, Morgan Stanley, Daniel DiBiasio, We've, Michael Dell's, Goldman, Gregg Lemkau, West, Byron Trott, Sara Hamilton, Nicky, Jonathan Oppenheimer, Sergey Brin, James Dyson, Bill Hwang, Alexandria Ocasio, Dennis Kelleher, Kelleher, Archegos, Hamilton Organizations: Street, Morgan Private Bank, Forbes, Federal Reserve, Campden, Family, Exchange, JPMorgan, Bank of America, Citigroup, Credit Suisse, UBS, Deutsche Bank, Morgan Stanley Family, MSD Partners, Container Technologies, BDT Capital Partners, Wealth Management Institute, Google, SEC, Archegos Capital Management, Rep, Better Locations: Asia, U.S, Wall, West Monroe, Singapore, Alexandria, Cortez, Archegos

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