600+ FortiGate Devices Hacked by AI-Armed Amateur
A financially motivated, Russian‑speaking threat actor used generative AI services to compromise more than 600 Fortinet FortiGate firewalls worldwide between January and February. The campaign avoided exploiting software vulnerabilities, instead leveraging exposed management ports and reused credentials with single‑factor authentication, which AI‑assisted scripts automated at scale. Researchers at AWS reported the actor also harvested Active Directory data and accessed Veeam backup servers, highlighting the high‑value targets pursued. The incident underscores how generative AI lowers the technical bar for low‑skill attackers and forces organizations to harden basic security controls.
David Ellison's Paramount Has some Breathing Room in Its Quest to Buy WBD Despite a Pressing Deadline
Paramount Skydance, led by David Ellison, is still courting Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) even though a shareholder vote is set for March 20. Netflix, the rival bidder, gave WBD a one‑week waiver on exclusivity, allowing direct talks with Paramount but...
BEWI Invest - Results for the Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025
BEWI Invest has published its fourth‑quarter and full‑year 2025 financial results, delivering a consolidated view of the company’s performance for the period. The filing, filed on the Oslo Børs and Euronext Oslo platforms, includes detailed income statements, balance sheet data,...
A Big Week For A Tex-Mex Fast Casual Giant
Chipotle topped spot‑cable advertising for the week of Feb 16‑22, 2026, ranking only behind NCAA basketball promos on iHeartMedia’s Media Monitors. The fast‑casual chain out‑performed traditional advertisers such as Liberty Mutual, Progressive, and Chase, which also posted strong activity. Spot‑television rankings...
Kazakhstan to Supply Fresh Uranium to India Under New Deal to Fuel Nuclear Power Plants
Kazakhstan’s state‑controlled miner Kazatomprom announced a new contract to supply fresh uranium to India, reinforcing the latter’s nuclear fuel pipeline. The deal follows earlier agreements that delivered 2,100 tonnes in 2009 and 5,000 tonnes between 2015‑19. While exact volumes were...
First Indian Diesel Cargo Arrives in Europe After New Russian Sanctions Take Effect
A tanker chartered by Reliance delivered about 100,000 tons of diesel to Rotterdam, marking the first Indian petroleum fuel cargo to reach the Amsterdam‑Rotterdam‑Antwerp hub since the EU imposed sanctions on Russian‑crude derived products. The vessel, Proteus Bohemia, loaded in India’s...
AKTG Expands Leadership Roles to Support Brand Growth
Abercrombie & Kent Travel Group (AKTG) has reorganized its trade sales leadership across the Americas, appointing Debra Fox as Chief Sales Officer – Trade. Fox now oversees global trade sales for all AKTG brands, reporting directly to CEO Cristina Levis....
USDA Reports a Big Week for U.S. Corn Export Inspections
The USDA reported a record week of U.S. corn export inspections, with more than 2 million tons shipped out of ports during the week ending Feb 19. Japan, South Korea and Mexico accounted for the bulk of the shipments, underscoring strong Asian...
The Future Is Fractional: How a Growing Model Is Reshaping the Accounting Profession
The accounting profession is witnessing a shift toward fractional financial leadership, where seasoned accountants provide part‑time, embedded CFO or controller services to multiple clients. Small‑ and mid‑size businesses, facing complex strategic decisions, can now access senior expertise for 5‑15 hours...
US Pulling Non-Essential Staff From Embassy in Beirut Amid Iran Tensions
The U.S. State Department is withdrawing non‑essential personnel and their families from the embassy in Beirut as tensions with Iran rise. Roughly 50 staff members have been evacuated, though a core diplomatic team remains on site to maintain operations. The...
World Bank Plans to Pump $10bn Into Mozambique
The World Bank announced a $10 bn financing package for Mozambique, including $6 bn of mostly concessional public‑investment funding and an additional $4 bn earmarked for private‑sector projects. A $921 m grant from the International Development Association’s 21st replenishment is also part of the...
McLarens Names Former Crisis24 Exec to Lead Crisis Management
McLarens has appointed former Crisis24 executive Kevin Moran as executive general adjuster and U.S. team lead for malicious assailant, war, terrorism and political violence within its crisis management practice. The newly created role will oversee incident investigation and insurance reporting...
26North’s Josh Harris: Retail Capital Presents ‘Recipe for Problems’
Josh Harris of 26North warned that blending unaccredited investor capital with wealth‑managed funds in mixed‑regulation vehicles creates systemic risk. At PEI Group's NEXUS 2026 conference, he argued that such structures could trigger regulatory backlash and erode confidence in private markets....
Govt Plans Study to Assess Impact of Formalisation on Workers
The Indian government has commissioned a study to evaluate how rapid formalisation and digital transformation are affecting workers, especially those in the informal sector. The finance ministry tasked the labour ministry and EPFO to conduct the research through the Pandit...
RLI Now Has ‘A++’ Rating From AM Best
AM Best upgraded RLI Group’s financial strength ratings to A++ and its long‑term issuer credit ratings to aa+, reflecting superior balance‑sheet fundamentals and capital management. The insurer reported $1.9 billion policyholder surplus and $264.2 million underwriting income for 2025, marking the 30th consecutive...
Why Real Estate Is Entering a Year of Cleanup, Clarity, and Course Correction in ERP
2026 is shaping up as a reset year for ERP in real‑estate firms after a period of hesitation and postponed projects. Accumulated technical debt and over‑customized legacy systems have created a gap between capability and business needs. Companies are now...
Dallas Apartment Tower Sells To Kushner Cos.: The DFW Deal Sheet
Kushner Cos., the family firm of Jared Kushner, purchased the 28‑story, 330‑unit Eastline Residences luxury apartment tower in Dallas from Convexity Properties. The high‑rise has sustained roughly 95% occupancy since its 2021 delivery and posted about 4% rent growth over...
Securities and Exchange Commission Schedules Roundtable to Discuss “Retailization” Of Private Securities
The SEC will host a Private Markets Roundtable on March 4, 2026 to discuss the retailization of private securities. Currently, non‑accredited investors are limited to Reg A and Reg CF, while most private offerings remain inaccessible. Pending legislation could relax accredited‑investor thresholds, adding a...
Connecting Revenue and Profitability: Flow Through and Flex Explained
The article introduces Flow Through and Flex as complementary metrics that translate hotel revenue changes into profitability outcomes. Flow Through measures the percentage of incremental revenue that becomes gross operating profit, while Flex gauges how well a property shields profit...
The Anatomy of Perfect Content: How Marketers Can Reach Consumers in the AI Era
The Expedia Group Advertising "Science of Wanderlust" study surveyed over 7,000 consumers and used eye‑tracking to pinpoint the creative elements that cut through today’s AI‑saturated content stream. It found video drives purchase intent three times more than static images, while...
Evercore Sees Microsoft Growing FCF 5% as Hyperscaler Capex Jumps 58%
Evercore ISI projects Microsoft’s free cash flow to grow 5% in 2026 while hyperscaler capital spending jumps 58% to over $700 billion. In contrast, Amazon, Google, Meta and Oracle are expected to see FCF declines, whereas Nvidia and Apple are forecast...
AmaWaterways Rolls Out 2027 Solo and Group Booking Incentives
AmaWaterways has launched limited‑time 2027 booking incentives aimed at solo travelers and groups, with a 10% reduced single supplement on over 500 sailings and a doubled group discount of $500 per person. The promotions are available for reservations made through...
It’s Personal Stories Launches New Website
It’s Personal Stories, a hospitality leadership podcast founded in 2022, has launched a redesigned website that consolidates nearly 300 interviews with global hospitality leaders. The new platform offers a searchable archive by guest name, title, company, and thematic categories, with...
Fintech Focused Banking as a Service Is Reshaping Bank Stability and Consumer Expectations : Analysis
Cornell Law professor Dan Awrey released a working paper titled "Banking, Technology, and Instability" analyzing fintech‑driven Banking‑as‑a‑Service (BaaS). The paper argues BaaS flips traditional outsourcing, with fintechs delegating core banking functions to partner banks, creating regulatory arbitrage. This shift destabilizes...
Societe Generale: Capital Decrease and Report on Share Buy-Back
Societe Generale announced a €1 billion capital decrease on 23 February 2026 by cancelling 15,170,791 treasury shares. The move reduces the bank’s share capital to €939.65 million, representing 751.7 million ordinary shares. In parallel, the bank reported that 34.3% of its €1.462 billion 2025‑2026 share‑buy‑back programme...
Transaction in Own Shares
Shell plc announced on 23 February 2026 that it repurchased 1,028,319 of its own shares for cancellation, executing trades on six European venues. The GBP‑denominated purchases (LSE, Chi‑X, BATS) were made at volume‑weighted average prices around £29.54 per share, while...
Ubicquia Secures $106 Million To Scale AI Infrastructure Solutions
Ubicquia announced a $106 million Series D round led by 67 Capital and Marunouchi Innovation Partners, aimed at scaling its AI‑driven infrastructure portfolio worldwide. The company already serves more than 1,000 utilities, municipalities and commercial clients across the U.S., Latin America, Europe...
3 Major Buybacks Just Dropped—Here’s the Signal Investors See
Retail giant Walmart announced a $30 billion share buyback, its largest ever, representing about 3.1% of its $980 billion market value, while reporting 24% YoY e‑commerce growth and a 5% dividend increase. Ride‑hailing firm Lyft unveiled a $1 billion repurchase plan, equal to...
MANDARIN ORIENTAL APPOINTS SIMONE BILES AS THE BRANDS FIRST GLOBAL WELLNESS AMBASSADOR
Mandarin Oriental announced Simone Biles as its first global wellness ambassador, marking a strategic move to embed holistic wellbeing into its luxury hospitality portfolio. Biles will work with the brand’s Wellness Board to shape programs that blend physical, mental and recovery...
Most US Ferts Cleared Under New Import Policy
The Trump administration announced a 10% import tariff effective Feb 24, but most fertilizers remain exempt, including urea, ammonium nitrate, UAN, DAP, MAP and other key products. The exemption does not cover sulfur, sulfuric acid and ammonia unless they enter through...
Merck Reorganizes Human Health Work Into Two New Units
Merck is reorganizing its Human Health division into two distinct units—Oncology and Specialty, Pharma & Infectious Diseases—to sharpen focus as its flagship immuno‑oncology drug Keytruda approaches patent expiry. Jannie Oosthuizen, formerly head of U.S. Human Health, will lead the Oncology...
Sanctions, Seizures, and the Limits of Maritime Visibility
In late 2025 and early 2026 the U.S. Coast Guard and allied forces seized three oil tankers—M/T Skipper, M/T Centuries and Bella 1—after months of multi‑source intelligence proved they were moving sanctioned cargo. The operation underscores a new enforcement paradigm: governments...
Waterloo Sparkling Water Names Dentsu Creative Social AOR as Brand Expands
Waterloo Sparkling Water has appointed Dentsu Creative as its social agency of record, coinciding with the rollout of new flavors Banana Berry Bliss, Melon Medley and a year‑round Lemon Italian Ice. The partnership is timed to the opening of the...
Researchers Baked 3x Inference Speedups Directly Into LLM Weights — without Speculative Decoding
Researchers from Maryland, Livermore Lab, Columbia and TogetherAI introduced a multi‑token prediction (MTP) technique that embeds a special token into existing LLM weights, eliminating the need for separate drafting models. The method uses a self‑distillation student‑teacher training loop to...
A New Index Wants to Prepare African Startups for London IPOs
In January, African investors and executives launched the Africa Tech 50 Index (AT50) at the London Stock Exchange to benchmark how prepared African startups are for public listings. The index uses a six‑pillar framework covering valuation momentum, revenue strength, liquidity,...
Mortgage Investors Expect Early Challenges With New Credit Score Models
Mortgage investors are bracing for short‑term disruption as major credit bureaus roll out next‑generation scoring models that incorporate alternative data and machine‑learning algorithms. The new frameworks promise finer risk granularity but also introduce uncertainty around model validation, regulatory approval, and...
Risks Seen in Potential Shift From Tri-Merge Process
Industry analysts warn that moving away from the established tri‑merge securitization framework could introduce significant operational and liquidity risks for mortgage lenders. The tri‑merge process, which bundles GSE‑eligible loans from multiple originators, has underpinned stable funding flows for years. A...
Short Takes: Expanded-Credit MBS From Redwood / MSRs on Offer / Rate Launches Crypto Option / Sales of New Homes...
Redwood introduced an expanded‑credit mortgage‑backed security, widening the pool of agency‑eligible assets as banks see their residential MBS holdings dip in Q4. Mortgage servicing rights (MSRs) are now being offered directly, reflecting heightened M&A activity that is reshaping the conventional...
Spotify Rolls Out AI-Powered Prompted Playlists to the UK and Other Markets
Spotify is extending its AI‑powered Prompted Playlists to Premium users in the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and Sweden after earlier tests in New Zealand, the U.S. and Canada. The feature lets listeners generate custom playlists by typing natural‑language prompts that describe...
Ubicquia Secures $106 Million in Series D Funding
Ubicquia, a provider of intelligent infrastructure solutions, closed a $106 million Series D round. The financing was led by 67 Capital and Marunouchi Innovation Partners, with participation from Hamilton Lane, ClearSky, GMS and strategic partner Sercomm. The capital will accelerate AI development for...
Why Geo-Blocking Is the Essential Next Step for Every Job Board
Job boards are increasingly adopting geo‑blocking to limit traffic to target markets. A recent case study of UK healthcare portal Nurses.co.uk shows that blocking foreign visitors eliminated 82% of global users, raising domestic traffic share to 98%. The move was...
IHOP Goes Analog to Celebrate National Pancake Day
IHOP announced its first National Pancake Day on March 3, offering a free short stack of buttermilk pancakes at participating locations from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. The event includes an in‑person appearance by social‑media influencer Mr. Fantasy at the Hollywood restaurant. IHOP...
Pure Storage Snaps up 1touch in Data Management Pivot
Pure Storage announced the acquisition of data‑intelligence firm 1Touch and a corporate rebrand to Everpure, signaling a strategic pivot from pure flash hardware to comprehensive data‑management solutions. The deal will embed 1Touch’s orchestration capabilities into Pure’s Enterprise Data Cloud (EDC)...
Ubisoft Appoints New Assassin’s Creed Brand Leadership Team
Ubisoft’s Vantage Studios has installed a new three‑person leadership team to steer the Assassin’s Creed franchise. Martin Schelling will oversee overall brand strategy, Jean Guesdo will direct creative content, and Francois de Billy will champion production excellence. All three bring...
Guidance: OFSI General Licence INT/2024/4761108
On 28 May 2024 the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) re‑issued General Licence INT/2024/4761108 under Regulation 64 of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019. The licence authorises individuals to use retail banking services of a designated credit or financial institution, provided any payments...
How to Stop Publishing Content Nobody Cares About and Create Content Your Audience Loves
The article advises founders to stop producing irrelevant content and instead focus on audience‑centric, authentic storytelling. It stresses that understanding who you write for, being genuine about successes and failures, and publishing consistently are essential for building trust, especially among...
Ex-Sequoia Capital India Arm Peax XV Raises $1.3bn Across New Fund Trio
Peax XV, the former Sequoia Capital India unit, announced a $1.3 billion raise across three newly launched funds. The capital is allocated to a seed‑stage vehicle, a growth‑stage fund, and a later‑stage continuation fund, enabling the firm to support startups throughout...
The Bond Buyer Survey Shows Respondents' Concern About Politics
The Bond Buyer’s 2026 Predictions Survey, conducted with 74 public‑finance professionals, identified political uncertainty as the top five‑year threat to municipal finance, with 82% of respondents flagging it. Nearly half see tariff‑related volatility as a moderate to significant risk for...
Google Spinout Aalyria Achieves $1.3 Billion Valuation in Series B Round
Aalyria, a Google spin‑out focused on space‑based networking, closed a $100 million Series B round that lifts its valuation to $1.3 billion. The funding, led by Battery Ventures and J2 Ventures, will fund a one‑third staff increase and accelerate rollout of its Spacetime...
Dentsu Entertainment, Iconic Arts Partner to Create Brand-Oriented IP
Dentsu Entertainment announced a strategic partnership with Iconic Arts to develop original, brand‑centric intellectual property, emphasizing anime and serialized formats. The collaboration will initially serve Dentsu’s Japan‑US synergy initiatives, helping Japanese and global brands launch cross‑market franchises. Leveraging Iconic Arts’...