Bose-Funded Noise Revenue Declines 24% to Rs 1,048 Cr in FY25
Noise, the Bose‑backed Indian wearables brand, reported FY25 revenue of Rs 1,048 crore, a 24% drop from the prior year. Operating expenses fell 25% to Rs 1,067 crore, aligning with the revenue contraction. A deferred tax benefit of Rs 47 crore pushed the company into a modest profit of Rs 3.2 crore, while EBITDA remained positive at Rs 18 crore. Bose’s recent $20 million infusion values Noise at $470 million amid a broader slowdown in the Indian wearables market.
HDFC Bank Parivartan and AIC ISB Launch ArthX to Back Punjab’s Sustainability Startups. Apply Now
HDFC Bank, in partnership with AIC at ISB, has launched ArthX, a sustainability‑focused grant initiative under the Parivartan Startup Grants program. The scheme allocates a Rs 1 crore corpus to support Punjab‑based revenue‑stage startups, offering up to Rs 10 lakh per company along with...
Plane Talking Products Appoints Manoj Pridhanani as Creative Director
Plane Talking Products announced Manoj Pridhanani as its new Creative Director, tasked with steering global creative strategy, product direction, and brand development. Pridhanani brings more than 15 years of aviation‑focused design experience across luxury and travel sectors. He is known...
FA at 30: How Dim Sum Bonds Unlocked Liquidity without Opening China’s Capital Account
Nearly two decades after China Development Bank issued its first RMB‑denominated bond in Hong Kong, dim sum bonds have become a cornerstone of offshore liquidity. The initial issuance was modest, but it demonstrated that Chinese sovereign and policy banks could...
How Mark Essien’s 4-Month Old Product Made $2.3 Million with Less than 30 Customers
Mark Essien’s newest venture, Tripdesk, an AI‑driven travel‑management platform, generated $2.3 million in revenue within four months, serving fewer than 30 enterprise customers and delivering a 30% profit margin. The product grew out of Hotels.ng’s VIP client needs, automating travel requests,...
Beyond Paychecks: Why Employees Value Benefits that Support Their Lifestyle Choices
A recent India‑focused survey shows 74% of employees would trade a higher salary for stronger long‑term benefits, signaling a shift from paycheck‑centric expectations to holistic well‑being. Employers are responding by moving toward modular, choice‑driven benefit models, with 78% prioritising personalised...
SEC Upholds Fines vs NOW over Disclosure Violation
The Philippine Securities and Exchange Commission affirmed PHP1 million fines for NOW Corp. and its chair Mel Velarde after finding their November 2021 market disclosure misleading. The regulator rejected NOW’s appeal, labeling the statement a "half‑truth" that misled investors about a alleged...
GCash Parent Mynt Keeps IPO Option Open
Mynt, the parent of GCash, is keeping an IPO on the table while accelerating its payments, lending and wealth‑management services. The fintech arm delivered P6.1 billion in attributable equity earnings in 2025, a 64% jump year‑on‑year, and its lending subsidiary Fuse...
Start-Up Funding, the Perils of Compounding, and Neuropsych Insights — a BioCentury Podcast
BioCentury reports that 2025 ended a four‑year decline in biotech series A financing, with 144 companies raising $8 billion. The “BioCentury This Week” podcast highlights which venture‑capital‑backed firms attracted capital and what the trends indicate for emerging technologies. Washington editor Steve Usdin...
UAE Horizon 2026 to Take Place in Singapore, Spotlighting New Investment Opportunities
The Chinese General Chamber of Commerce and TXTK Tax Tech will co‑host the UAE Horizon 2026 roadshow in Singapore on March 8. The invite‑only event targets CEOs, family offices and high‑net‑worth individuals seeking to tap the UAE’s low‑tax environment and free‑zone ecosystem....
Ladies, Bring an LLM: Most AI Assistants Are Feminine, Which Is Fuelling Sexism
AI voice assistants have surpassed eight billion units in 2024, and the vast majority default to female voices and gendered names. Research shows up to 50 % of interactions involve verbal abuse, with female‑embodied agents attracting significantly more sexual harassment than...
The Compliance Trap: How Silence in Your Organisation May Be Masking Disengagement
Vice‑President Gayatheri Silvakumer warned that most change initiatives fail not because of flawed strategy but because leaders ignore the emotional side of change. She argues that silence in meetings often disguises disengagement, mistaking compliance for genuine ownership. By inviting employees...
Indonesia’s Opaque Stock Market Risks USD 60 Billion Outflow
Indonesia’s equity market faces a potential $60 bn outflow if MSCI downgrades it from emerging to frontier status. MSCI halted new Indonesian inclusions on Jan 27, citing weak transparency and low free‑float ratios, prompting a 7.3% drop in the Jakarta Composite. Regulators...
Tesla Exec Raj Jegannathan Leaves Automaker After 13 Years
Tesla Vice President Raj Jegannathan announced his departure after a 13‑year tenure, most recently overseeing IT, AI infrastructure, business applications, and information security. He previously led North American sales following the dismissal of Troy Jones, a period marked by declining...
Pension Credit: Should the Mixed-Age Couples Rule Be Scrapped?
The mixed‑age couples rule, introduced in May 2019, bars pension‑age partners from claiming Pension Credit if their spouse is under 66. The policy affects hundreds of thousands of low‑income couples, stripping them of up to £7,000 a year in benefits....
IRS Rolls Out New Enhancements to Tax Pro Account
The IRS announced new enhancements to its Tax Pro Account, extending digital capabilities to tax‑professional businesses. The upgrade lets designated representatives manage business CAF access, link CAF numbers to EINs, and view or withdraw active authorizations. These tools aim to...
Former US Officials Warn of Impending 'Widespread Collapse of American Agriculture': 'Our Farmers and Ranchers … Can't Compete with the...
The agricultural sector faces a perfect storm of policy and market pressures, according to a bipartisan letter signed by former heads of the National Corn, Barley, and Soybean Growers associations. The signatories contend that recent tariffs on farm inputs and...
Anaplan Names Laurent Martini Managing Director for EMEA
Anaplan announced Laurent Martini as its new Managing Director for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, effective February 16. Martini, who previously led EMEA sales at Splunk and held senior roles at Pure Storage and Symantec, will report to President...
Volatility Laundering in Private Credit
Private credit has trailed public credit since 2022, offering lower liquidity, weaker credit quality, higher industry concentration and higher borrower costs. By avoiding daily mark‑to‑market, private credit managers can "volatility launder" returns, presenting artificially low volatility and inflated Sharpe ratios....
‘The New Normal’: Nursing Home M&A Is Being Shaped by Regional Operators, REITs, and Private Capital
The skilled‑nursing sector entered 2026 with strong occupancy and higher state reimbursements, restoring profitability for many facilities. Financing remains robust, but activity has shifted toward acquiring and refurbishing existing homes rather than new construction. Regional operators are snapping up underperforming...
Skilled Nursing Dealbook: Arizona Nonprofit Sells for $30M-Plus, Viventium Acquires Apploi
Evans Senior Investments brokered the sale of the nonprofit Glencroft Center for Modern Aging in Glendale, Arizona, fetching $30.15 million—about $134,000 per bed—despite a 47% occupancy rate and a 1‑star CMS rating. The deal doubled the seller’s expected proceeds by creating...
The Next Wave of Biotech Growth — a Perspective
Biotech investors have long chased scientific hype that rarely translated into commercial wins, often leaving value to large pharma. The article argues the next growth wave will stem from biotechs launching independent therapeutics that achieve meaningful sales, mirroring the early‑2010s...
Operata Raises $11 Million Series A as AI Reshapes Contact Centres
Melbourne‑born SaaS firm Operata secured an $11 million Series A round, lifting its valuation to $100 million. The funding, led by Tidal Ventures with participation from Glitch Capital and existing backers, will accelerate integration with major contact‑centre platforms and global expansion. Operata positions...
Blue Owl’s Lipschultz Seeks to Quell Fears of ‘Red Flags’ in Software Portfolio
Blue Owl’s chief investment officer, Lipschultz, addressed investor concerns on the firm’s earnings call, emphasizing that software‑focused lending represents only 8% of the firm’s assets under management. He highlighted that the loans carry robust loan‑to‑value (LTV) ratios, underscoring a conservative...
Japan Logs Record Current Account Surplus for 2nd Straight Year in 2025
Japan recorded a historic 31.88 trillion yen current‑account surplus in 2025, the second year of record balances and an 11.1 percent rise from the prior year. The surplus was driven by a 4.7 percent jump in primary income from overseas investments and a...
AICPA Urges Treasury, IRS to Simplify Sec. 951 Documentation Rules
The AICPA sent a letter to the Treasury and IRS urging simplification of the “determine and document” requirement in Notice 2025‑75 related to Section 951 dividend inclusions. The notice obliges U.S. shareholders of controlled foreign corporations to attach a statement to...
MrBeast’s Company Buys Gen Z-Focused Fintech App Step
YouTube star MrBeast’s holding company, Beast Industries, announced the acquisition of Step, a teen‑focused banking app with more than 7 million Gen Z users. Step, which has raised roughly $500 million and counts celebrity investors such as Charli D’Amelio and Will Smith, offers...
Neara Powers up to Unicorn Status with $90 Million Capital Raise
Neara, a Sydney‑based digital‑twin startup, secured $90 million in a Series D round, pushing its valuation above $1 billion. The round, led by TCV and joined by existing backers, brings total external capital to roughly $180 million. Neara’s AI‑driven platform now models 15 million assets...
Elevra, Mangrove Lithium Ink Offtake MoU for NAL Project in Quebec
Elevra Lithium has signed a non‑binding MOU with Canada’s Mangrove Lithium to off‑take up to 144,000 tonnes of spodumene concentrate per year from the North American Lithium (NAL) project in Quebec. The supply would begin in 2028, scaling to full...
Riot Games Is Laying Off Around 80 2XKO Employees Three Weeks After The Game's Launch
Riot Games announced it is laying off roughly 80 employees from its 2XKO fighting‑game team, representing about half of the development staff. The cuts come just weeks after the game’s 1.0 launch on PC and consoles, with the company citing...
Databricks Closes $7B+ Financing Round at $134B Valuation
Databricks announced a financing round exceeding $7 billion, lifting its valuation to $134 billion. The round includes more than $5 billion in equity and $2 billion in debt, led by JPMorgan Chase, Microsoft and other major banks. The capital will accelerate development of the...
How 2025’s US Tariff Shocks Can Give Way to Constructive Reforms in 2026
The Trump administration’s 2025 trade strategy oscillated between aggressive, unpredictable tariff threats and a quieter push for long‑standing trade objectives. While high tariffs and threats destabilized markets, the administration began issuing exemptions and rolled back many threats, stabilizing tariff levels...
2026 Market Outlook & Trends | Featured Speaker
Ariel C. Shaeps, a real‑estate and construction partner at Allen Matkins, was the featured speaker for the Los Angeles Business Journal’s 2026 Market Outlook & Trends event. He has advised on more than $18 billion in construction contracts, including high‑profile projects like the...
Joseph Lazzarotti Discusses Use of AI Notetakers in the Workplace
Joseph Lazzarotti warns that AI‑driven notetakers, while promising efficiency gains, are spawning a wave of HR challenges. In his Fortune commentary, he highlights privacy concerns, consent gaps, and potential discrimination liabilities when recordings are mishandled. He argues that without clear...
Takaichi’s Landslide Victory
Japan’s first female prime minister, Sanae Takaichi, called a snap election that delivered a historic super‑majority for the Liberal Democratic Party, winning 316 of 465 lower‑house seats. The result gives the LDP unprecedented legislative power to push Takaichi’s agenda without...
ARRA Elects Bernal As Board Chair
The Airport Restaurant & Retail Association (ARRA) has appointed Areas USA CEO Carlos Bernal as chair of its Board of Directors for 2026‑27, succeeding Bryan Loden. Bernal brings more than two decades of airport‑concession experience and recently oversaw Areas USA’s...
Kyndryl CFO Steps Down Ahead of Accounting Review
Kyndryl announced the immediate resignations of CFO David Wyshner and General Counsel Edward Sebold, appointing Harsh Chugh, Bhavna Doega, and Mark Ringe as interim finance chief, corporate controller, and general counsel respectively. The company delayed its Q3 fiscal 2026 10‑Q...
From NIMBY to YIMBY: A Playbook for Data Center Community Acceptance
The data‑center industry is moving from a defensive NIMBY stance to a proactive YIMBY strategy, driven by tools like the Digital Infrastructure Framework that give local governments clear evaluation language and negotiation leverage. Communities such as Loudoun County now see...
Modveon Banks $10 Million Funding
Modveon, a Palo Alto‑based startup building a verified operating system for governments and citizens, announced a $10 million financing round. The round was backed by Coinbase Ventures, Firebolt Ventures, Humla Ventures, Strategic Cyber Ventures, and several angel investors. The capital will...
Waymo Raises $16B Investment Round
Waymo announced a $16 billion financing round that lifts its post‑money valuation to $126 billion. The round was led by Dragoneer Investment Group, DST Global and Sequoia Capital, with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Silver Lake, Tiger Global and other heavyweight firms. Alphabet...
End of an Era: Sec. 201 Tariffs on Imported Solar Panels Expire
Imported solar panels are no longer subject to Section 201 tariffs after they expired on February 6, 2026, ending an eight‑year protection regime that began under the Trump administration. The tariffs, which started at 30 % and gradually declined to 14 % by 2025, were...
Harvey Reportedly Raising at $11B Valuation Just Months After It Hit $8B
Harvey, the legal‑AI startup, is reportedly negotiating a $200 million raise that would push its valuation to $11 billion, led by Sequoia and Singapore’s GIC. This follows a rapid funding series: a $300 million Series D at $3 billion, a $300 million Series E at $5 billion, and...
Only 26 African Startups Raised $174 Million in January. Here’s What It Signals
African startups raised just $174 million in January 2026, $102 million less than the same month last year and far below the 12‑month average of $263 million. Only 26 companies secured more than $100,000, the lowest January count since 2020. Two deals –...
Takeaways From The Future Of Software Development Retreat: Just Because You Can Doesn’t Mean You’re Ready To
The episode recaps insights from a high‑level, invitation‑only retreat on the future of software development, where veteran engineers and AI pioneers debated the rise of autonomous code generation. Key takeaways include the existential anxiety sparked by AI‑driven app‑generation (“Welcome to...
ULI Appoints BlackRock’s Simon Durkin as Chief Executive Europe Executive Leadership
Simon Durkin, former BlackRock Global Head of Real Estate Research, has been appointed CEO Europe of the Urban Land Institute, starting in March 2026, succeeding Lisette van Doorn. Durkin brings over two decades of experience across real estate, capital markets and...
UAE’s Omnispay Closes $2m Round to Expand AI-Native SME Payments and Credit Platform
UAE fintech Omnispay closed a $2 million pre‑Series A round led by Infinity Value Capital to accelerate its AI‑native SME finance platform. The company, which cut settlement times to 24 hours, has doubled its customer base, quadrupled processing volume and lifted revenue 5.5‑fold...
Anthropic Closes in on $20B Round
Anthropic is nearing the close of a $20 billion financing round that values the AI startup at $350 billion, more than double its original target. The bulk of the capital is expected from strategic partners Nvidia and Microsoft, alongside a slate of...
What AI Builders Can Learn From Fraud Models that Run in 300 Milliseconds
Mastercard’s Decision Intelligence Pro (DI Pro) uses a sub‑300 ms recurrent neural network to assign risk scores to each payment transaction in real time. The platform treats fraud detection as an "inverse recommender" problem, comparing current merchant behavior to historical patterns. By...
Hapag-Lloyd Dodges Red Ink in Q4
Hapag‑Lloyd posted a Q4 2025 EBIT of $200 million, a 75% drop from the same quarter a year earlier, yet still managed a full‑year profit of $1.1 billion despite plunging spot rates. Container volumes rose modestly, adding 200,000 TEU in Q4 and...
Christine Lagarde: European Parliament Plenary Debate on the ECB Annual Report
In a February 9, 2026 speech to the European Parliament, ECB President Christine Lagarde reaffirmed the central bank’s independence while emphasizing its accountability to elected officials. She reported that headline inflation has fallen to 1.7% in January and is expected...