Business

Law & Crime reports: Thomas Bowers, identified as a former Deutsche Bank executive who signed off on controversial loans to President Donald Trump, died last week after apparently taking his own life at 55. According to Forensic News‘ Scott Stedman, “One source who has direct knowledge of the FBI’s investigation into Deutsche Bank said that federal investigators have asked about …

Bloomberg reports: Dollar Tree Inc. shares fell the most intraday since 2012 after the budget retailer trimmed its outlook on 2019 profit, saying tariffs on Chinese imports are driving up costs. Dollar Tree’s decline has erased much of its year-to-date gain. Dollar Tree’s downward revision shows the risk that the ongoing U.S.-China trade war poses for retailers — especially value-based …

Business Insider reports: Papa John’s former CEO slammed the pizza chain he founded in an interview with local news. “I’ve had over 40 pizzas in the last 30 days,” John Schnatter told WDRB News. “And it’s not the same pizza. It’s not the same product. It just doesn’t tastes as good.” Schnatter resigned as Papa John’s chairman in 2018, after …

Reuters reports: Tesla Inc’s chief executive, Elon Musk, will testify in his own defense against a defamation lawsuit brought by a British cave explorer, Musk’s lawyer said on Monday in U.S. District Court in Los Angeles. Vernon Unsworth is suing Musk for calling him a “pedo guy.” Musk posted the tweet after Unsworth accused Musk in a CNN interview of …

The Guardian reports: Uber has lost its licence to operate private hire vehicles in London after authorities found that more than 14,000 trips were taken with more than 40 drivers who had faked their identity on the Uber app. Transport for London announced the decision not to renew the ride-hailing firm’s licence at the end of a two-month probationary extension …

The Washington Post reports: Tesla has received 146,000 preorders for its all-electric Cybertruck, chief executive Elon Musk said Saturday, two days after the futuristic vehicle’s grand reveal went viral when its supposedly unbreakable windows shattered onstage. With an angular design, a stainless steel “exoskeleton” and an overall look that some fans have called “post apocalyptic,” the Cybertruck stands out from …

CNBC reports: Tesla unveiled its futuristic pickup truck at a promotional event in Los Angeles, but when it came to showing off the vehicle’s durability, things didn’t quite go as planned. CEO Elon Musk claimed the car was “bulletproof” against a 9mm handgun. But when he got Tesla’s chief designer to throw a metal ball at one of its armored …

“Has Chick-fil-A caved? Some are saying they’ve rolled over, that they’ve conceded to the LGBTQ protests because they released a statement about their charitable giving. They announced that in 2020 they’re giving to fight hunger and homelessness and support education. What’s wrong with that? “I picked up the phone and called Dan Cathy. Dan was very clear that they have …

NBC News reports: President Donald Trump hosted a previously undisclosed dinner with Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg and Facebook board member Peter Thiel at the White House in October, the company told NBC News on Wednesday. The meeting took place during Zuckerberg’s most recent visit to Washington, where he testified before Congress about Facebook’s new cryptocurrency Libra. Zuckerberg also gave a …

CNBC reports: Tesla CEO Elon Musk is headed to court to answer a defamation lawsuit filed by a British rescue diver he called a “pedo guy.” U.S. District Judge Stephen Wilson in Los Angeles denied Musk’s request to throw out the case, according to court documents made public Tuesday. Wilson ordered the jury trial to begin Dec. 3. Musk lawyers …

Fox News reports: The Salvation Army has responded to Chick-fil-A’s announcement Monday that the fast-food chain’s charitable arm will not be donating to the faith-based organization in 2020, despite providing donations to the organization for several years. “We’re saddened to learn that a corporate partner has felt it necessary to divert funding to other hunger, education and homelessness organizations — …

Just in via press release: If Chick-Fil-A is serious about their pledge to stop holding hands with divisive anti-LGBTQ activists, then further transparency is needed regarding their deep ties to organizations like Focus on the Family, which exist purely to harm LGBTQ people and families. Chick-Fil-A investors, employees, and customers can greet today’s announcement with cautious optimism, but should remember …

As you surely recall, they’ve said this before: As Chick-fil-A expands globally and into more liberal parts of the U.S., the chicken chain plans to change which charities it donates to after years of bad press and protests from the LGBT community. Beginning next year, Chick-fil-A will move away from its current philanthropic structure, Bisnow has learned. After donating to …

Yahoo Finance reports: Ford took its time. But for its first electric vehicle, the 116-year old automaker did something a little controversial. The Mustang Mach-E is an all-new, fully-electric crossover that Ford says is part of the “Mustang family.” That means it has some styling cues from the famous pony car, but that’s about it. It’s not a coupe, convertible, …

Axios reports: Amid growing health concerns over e-cigarettes, Apple will remove all 181 vaping-related apps from its mobile App Store this morning, Axios has learned. Why it matters: The move comes after at least 42 people have died from vaping-related lung illness, per the CDC. Most of those people had been using cartridges containing THC, though some exclusively used nicotine …

The Montgomery News reports: A Mobile printing company has refused to print an University of South Alabama magazine on religious grounds. Interstate Printing told the Editor-in-Chief of Due South Magazine Wednesday that the content of the magazine, which is about diversity and inclusion, did not align with the company’s religious values. “They emailed me back and said they would be …

Politico reports: Amazon is going to court to overturn the Pentagon’s decision to award Microsoft a cloud computing contract worth up to $10 billion, claiming the selection process for the so-called JEDI program was injected with “unmistakable bias” and “political influence.” The Pentagon last month named Microsoft the winner in the Joint Enterprise Defense Infrastructure program after President Donald Trump …

Reuters reports: Alphabet Inc’s Google said on Wednesday it will offer personal checking accounts next year through its Google Pay app in partnership with Citigroup Inc and a small credit union at Stanford University. The project, named Cache, comes as rivals Facebook and Apple are expanding their own efforts in consumer finance, a broad area that ranges from digital payment …

The Associated Press reports: Federal regulators have threatened to ground dozens of Southwest Airlines jets if the airline can’t confirm that the planes, which it bought used from foreign operators, meet all safety standards. The Federal Aviation Administration said Monday it has validated some major repairs to the planes, and it is asking Southwest for more frequent updates until the …

The Hill reports: Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) on Monday accused Apple of “throwing pennies at a housing crisis” that it “helped create” after the tech giant announced it will spend $2.5 billion on affordable housing in California. The presidential candidate released a statement ripping Apple’s “hypocrisy” and saying he would require large companies to pay “their fair share” in order …