fortune--2020-06-16--eBay’s former CEO is getting off too easily in its ugly cyberstalking scandal

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The headlines about pig’s blood and cockroaches might have grabbed your attention yesterday over the scandal emerging from the usually staid e-commerce giant eBay. Federal prosecutors in Boston charged six former employees, including the former head of corporate security, with criminal cyberstalking and witness tampering after an almost year-long investigation into their effort to destroy the lives of a journalist and her husband. But one person who skated shouldn’t escape this ugly spotlight: eBay’s former CEO Devin Wenig.
It was Wenig’s obsession with the couple’s small news site covering eBay that led to the entire mess. In repeated communications with his staff, Wenig complained about the coverage on the site and began to get more specific, though never too specific, about his desires for what should happen to it: “Take her down,” and “if you are ever going to take her down now is the time,” are among the hot takes he texted to one of his direct reports. That person, who was not identified by prosecutors, reached out to the head of security and passed on Wenig’s angry missives, setting in motion a crazy, harebrained and (now allegedly) illegal harassment campaign.
The conspirators bought burner phones and prepaid debit cards with cash, set up anonymous email and Twitter accounts, and used a VPN to try and hide their tracks. They mailed the couple all manner of disturbing things, including a mask of a bloody pig face and boxes of live cockroaches and spiders, while sending them threatening messages over Twitter. Then they traveled to Boston, spied on the couple, and started posting dangerously false meet-ups on Craigslist using the couple’s address. When the couple complained to police and reported the license plate number of one of the eBay harassers’ rental cars, the group concocted false paper trails, tried to delete their texts, and lied to detectives.
Wenig now says he knew nothing about all that. “As confirmed by the company, following a thorough, independent investigation, I did not direct or know anything about the acts that have been charged in Boston,” Wenig said in a statement to the Financial Times. “I have spent my career defending press freedoms. What these charges allege is unconscionable.”
The company on Monday apologized to the couple and said that while Wenig’s “communications were inappropriate, there was no evidence that he knew in advance about or authorized the actions” described in the complaint. Still, the matter was among “a number of considerations” leading to Wenig’s departure in September of last year, the company said. The former CEO was allowed to resign while keeping his annual compensation of $17 million, plus another $40 million negotiated as part of a severance package.
Prosecutors said the investigation remains ongoing and a civil lawsuit from the couple could be forthcoming. But as of today, it remains an unconscionable breach of leadership and moral standards that the $57 million man is getting off so easily.
Aaron Pressman
@ampressman
aaron.pressman@fortune.com
NEWSWORTHY
Be careful what you wish for. Tim Cook's booming services story has helped push Apple's stock price to new heights, but it's also drawing less desirable attention from European competition regulators. Apple said on Monday that its app store handled $519 billion of sales and billings last year. At the same time, regulators said they have opened an investigation into the company's app store and mobile payments businesses, searching for signs of misused market power.
Nothing up my sleeve, nothing in my hat. How can the economy safely reopen amid the COVID-19 pandemic? Not with much help from high-tech contact tracing apps, it seems. Norway, one of the early pioneers in creating a mobile tracing app for phones, suspended the program on Monday. Only about 14% of the adult population were active users and the country's privacy agency objected last week, saying the app should not be collecting GPS location data.
There's something happening here. While social networks increasingly try to police misuse, some of the systems they've put in place may have unintended consequences. Instagram on Monday said it would review its efforts to filter content, verify accounts, and block harassment in case it was inadvertently suppressing posts from black users. “Some technologies risk repeating the patterns developed by our biased societies,” head of Instagram Adam Mosseri wrote in a post about the review. Pinterest is also in the spotlight after two black women staffers who left last month alleged that they suffered racial abuse and discrimination while at the company. The company said an investigation found no wrongdoing. "We’re confident both employees were treated fairly,” Pinterest told Bloomberg.
You've got a friend in me. Replaying the old the-enemy-of-my-enemy play, Walmart is teaming up with Shopify. The 1,200 or so companies that sell goods online using Shopify's platform will get access to Walmart's customer base via the retail giant's online marketplace. Walmart also acquired apps and technology from CareZone, a developer of medication management software, for a reported $200 million.
Can you hear me now? Bulked up wireless carrier T-Mobile is working hard to integrate its network with the one it just acquired from Sprint. But something went very wrong on Monday, as the carrier experienced a glitch that knocked out voice and texting for customers around the country. Service was eventually restored overnight.
FOOD FOR THOUGHT
The smartphone is a more personal device than a PC, and that has implications for how people act when using one. Writer Heidi Mitchell examines psychological studies of phone usage in a Wall Street Journal article. She talked with Shiri Melumad, a professor at the University of Pennsylvania's Wharton School.
The small screen of a smartphone forces people to focus more on what they’re writing than they do on a PC, a phenomenon known as attentional narrowing. Attentional narrowing is found “across online contexts: when we use our phone to tweet, write a review, answer survey questions, even when we’re asked to reveal an incriminating activity,” Dr. Melumad says. The experiments also further established that smartphones do, indeed, act as an adult pacifier, psychologically comforting users and thus driving them toward greater self-disclosure.
The upshot, Dr. Melumad says, is that people are more honest on their phones. “Typically, we edit our thoughts less, which makes smartphone-generated content more sincere.”
ON THE MOVE
After Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian stepped down from the company's board and asked to be replaced by a black person, Reddit followed suit. The newest board member is Y Combinator CEO Michael Seibel...Kevin Burns, the former CEO of vape supplier Juul, is the new president and COO of online pharmacy Alto...video game publisher Activision Blizzard added Dawn Ostroff to its board. Ostroff is chief content and advertising business officer of Spotify.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
Why famed VC Bill Gurley thinks IPOs are such a rip-off By Shawn Tully
Why economists, hedge funds, and health officials are using this startup’s data to understand the pandemic By Robert Hackett
DocuSign’s CEO on managing through the pandemic, Zoom burnout, and George Floyd’s death By Jonathan Vanian
Here’s what Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos will be grilled about by Congress By David Z. Morris
A new coating could protect ATMs from spreading diseases like COVID-19. But will it work? By Aaron Pressman
Zoom’s stock is now up nearly 250% this year. It has Goldman Sachs in its sights next By Rey Mashayekhi
U.S. and China ease coronavirus flight restrictions again after an earlier standoff By Naomi Xu Elegant
(Some of these stories require a subscription to access. There is a 50% discount for our loyal readers if you use this link to sign up. Thank you for supporting our journalism.)
BEFORE YOU GO
While Instagram sorts out its issues, it still can offer diversions to take your mind off of our current troubles. This morning, I am swiping through the wildlife photos of Paul Nicklen. Which are cuter, the penguins of Antartica or the sled dogs of Greenland? It's a toss up.


fortune--2020-06-16--A coronavirus vaccine maker is seeking an IPO. It’s bogged down in geopolitical tensions

The coronavirus death toll in the U.S. has officially surpassed that of WWI

CureVac, a German drugmaker developing a vaccine against the coronavirus pandemic, is planning an IPO in New York to help fund its efforts.
The company is set to begin clinical trials for its mRNA-based Covid-19 vaccine this month, a method that is also being tested by Moderna in the U.S. In theory, it’s a promising sign for the world that efforts for a cure are being ramped up.
But CureVac’s planned July IPO is shadowed by a heavy shroud of geopolitical tension—as reflected in its financing. On the same day news broke that CureVac plans to raise funding from the public on the Nasdaq, the German government announced that it would invest 300 million euros ($338.5 million) for a 23% stake in the private drugmaker, a move aimed at preventing a foreign player from taking control of the company.
“It is feared that in case of takeover and migration abroad, a vaccine against Covid-19 developed by CureVac in the future will not be made available to Germany and Europe,” a letter from the German finance ministry explaining the nation’s investment in CureVac, as seen by the Financial Times, read.
President Donald Trump reportedly sought to bring CureVac to the U.S. per German newspaper Die Welt am Sonntag—sparking fears that the search for a cure won’t be a collaborative international effort, but a more brutal battle pitting country against country.
Bill Gurley’s next act: The Benchmark investor behind winning bets on Uber and Grubhub will not be investing via its next fund. But don’t be surprised if you see Gurley continuing his work on direct listings. Frustrated by the first day pop on stocks undergoing initial public offerings, the investor has championed a new model of going public that does not raise new capital and lowers the overall payments to banks. It’s a conversation especially urgent now to Gurley given the enormous runup in the first round of companies that have gone public recently: ZoomInfo jumped 61%, Warner Music 31%, Shift4 Payments 46%, and Vroom 118%. “All told, the big four raised $2.94 billion, and yet the shares they sold were worth $4.63 billion at the end of close of their first day,” he said, per my colleague Shawn Tully’s recent conversation with the venture capitalist.
A twist to the story: Gurley noted IPOs tied to the most prestigious of investment banks popped the most egregiously on the first day of trading. But it’s also these same firms—Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley—that have led the most recent direct listings. Indeed, while direct listings pay out a lower fee to bankers on net, the fewer number of bankers in the direct listing process also means the banks involved individually have stood to gain more than a windfall via an IPO of a comparable size.
Lucinda Shen
Twitter: @shenlucinda
Email: lucinda.shen@fortune.com
VENTURE DEALS
- BYD Semiconductor, the chipmaking arm of Shenzhen-based electric vehicle maker BYD Co., raised 800 million yuan ($113 million) in extended Series A funding. Read more.
- Epic Games, the Cary, N.C.-based gaming company behind Fortnite, is close to raising $750 million in funding valuing it at $17 billion, per Bloomberg. Investors include T. Rowe Price, Baillie Gifford, and KKR. Read more.
- Shattuck Labs, a Durham, N.C. and Austin-based biotech focused on cancer and autoimmune disease, raised $118 million in Series B funding. Redmile Group led, and was joined by investors including Janus Henderson Investors, Fidelity Management & Research Company, EcoR1 Capital, Hatteras Venture Partners, Avidity Partners, Partner Fund Management, Emerson Collective, and Piper Sandler & Co.
- Miaoshou Doctor, a Chinese online healthcare services provider, raised RMB600 million (US$84.6 million) in Series D funding. Investors include Qiming Venture Partners, Sequoia Capital China, INCE Capital, CITIC Securities, and Index Capital]. Read more.
- Homeday, a Berlin-based digital real estate brokerage, raised €40 million ($45 million). The investors were Axel Springer and Purplebricks. Read more.
- Swappie, a Helsinki-based online marketplace refurbished smartphones, raised a $40.6 million (€35.8 million) in Series B funding. Investors included TESI, Lifeline Ventures, Reaktor Ventures, and Inventure.
- Brightside, a San Francisco-based financial care platform for employers, raised $35.1 million in Series A funding. Andreessen Horowitz led the round and was joined by investors including existing investors Comcast Ventures and Trinity Ventures, the a16z Cultural Leadership Fund, and others.
- Abacus Insights, a Boston-based data integration and interoperability platform for health plans, raised a $35 million in Series B funding. Blue Venture Fund led the round and was joined by investors including CRV, .406 Ventures, Horizon Healthcare Services Inc., and Echo Health Ventures.
- Wandelbots, a Dresden-based industrial robot training platform, raised $30 million in Series B funding. 83North led the round and was joined by investors including M12 and Next47.
- Streamlit, a San Francisco-based maker of app framework for machine learning and data science, raised $21 million in Series A funding. GGV Capital and Gradient Ventures co-led the round, and was joined by investors including Bloomberg Beta, Elad Gil, and Daniel Gross.
- Tonik Financial, a Singapore-based digital banking startup, raised $21 million in Series A funding. Sequoia Capital India and Point72 Ventures co-led the round, and were joined by investors including Insignia and Credence. Read more.
- Salt Security, a Palo Alto, Calif.-based API security company, raised $20 million in Series A funding. Tenaya Capital led the round.
- Kalderos, a Chicago-based drug discount management solution, raised $28 million in Series B funding from Bain Capital Ventures and Mercato Partners.
- Zycada, a San Jose, Calif.-based company seeking to speed up the ecommerce shopping experience, raised $19 million through several rounds. Khosla Ventures led and was joined by investors including Cervin Venturers and Nordic Eye Venture Capital.
- Clockwise, a San Francisco-based smart calendar assistant, raised $18 million in Series B funding. Bain Capital Ventures led the round and was joined by investors including Steve Loughlin at Accel and John Lilly at Greylock Partners.
- Steady, an Atlanta-based job search platform for workers seeking stable income, today raised $15 million in Series B funding. Recruit Strategic Partners led the round and was joined by investors including Flourish Ventures, Loeb Enterprises, Propel Venture Partners and CMFG Ventures.
- Augmedics, a Chicago-based augmented reality surgical image guidance maker, says it raised $15 million in Series B funding led by its U.S. staff.
- Ultromics, a U.K-based maker of software that helps identify cardiovascular disease, raised $10 million in funding from existing shareholders Oxford Sciences Innovation and Nina Capital with participation from Mayo Clinic.
- Apprentice.io, a Jersey City-based maker of software for life science manufacturing, raised $7.5 million from Insight Partners.
- Buymie, an Irish online grocery delivery provider, raised €5.8 million ($6.6 million) in funding. Wheatsheaf Group led the round, and was joined by investors including Act Venture Capital, Sure Valley Ventures, Haatch Ventures, and HBAN.
Tracklib, a Stockholm-based platform for legally clearing original music for sampling, raised $4.5 million. Investors include Eelko van Kooten and Sony Innovation Fund.
- La Haus, a Mexico and Colombia-based real estate tech company, raised $10 million in Series A funding. Kaszek Ventures led the round.
- CrossTower, a New York-based crypto trading platform, raised $6 million in seed funding. Gerard Lopez led.
- SLAMcore, a U.K.-based developer of spatial AI algorithms for robots and drones, raised $5 million in funding. Octopus Ventures and MMC Ventures led the round.
- BIOMILQ, a Durham-based infant nutrition company, raised $3.5 million in funding. Breakthrough Energy Ventures led the round.
- Wingly, a Paris-based flight-sharing platform, raised €3 million ($3.4 million) in funding. Innovacom Fund led the round.
- Dovly, an Arizona-based fintech seeking to improve credit scores, raised $2 million in seed funding from NFX.
- Cake, a Los Angeles-based sexual wellness company, raised $1.4 million in seed funding. Investors included Brian Spaly (cofounder of Bonobos), Roth Martin (cofounder of Rothy’s), Brand Foundry Ventures, Finn Capital, and others.
PRIVATE EQUITY
- KKR and Capitol Peak Partners acquired substantially all the assets of Borden Dairy Co., a milk producer. Financial terms weren't disclosed. Read more.
- Apollo Global Management cofounder Joshua Harris and Blackstone executive David Blitzer acquired a $140 million minority stake in the Pittsburgh Steelers, per Bloomberg. Read more.
- Lee Equity combined New York-based Integrated Medical Professionals and Cincinnati-based The Urology Group to create a provider of urological and other specialty services. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Trinity Consultants, a portfolio company of Levine Leichtman Capital Partners, acquired Vision Environment Australia, a Queensland, Australia-based provider of water quality monitoring services. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
OTHERS
- GreyLion Capital, focused on middle market investments, completed its spin out from Perella Weinberg Partners Capital. Greylion manages $1.4 billion across two funds.
- Kinaxis (TSX: KXS) agreed to acquire Rubikloud, a Canadian company automating supply chains. Rubikloud backers included Horizon Ventures and Intel Capital.
- SoftBank, confirmed that it is nearly a plan to sell part of its 25% stake in T-Mobile U.S. Read more.
BREAKUPS, HANGUPS, AND BANKRUPTCIES
- Chesapeake Energy (NYSE:CHK), an Oklahoma City-based oil and gas firm, is preparing to file for bankruptcy protection as soon as this week, per Reuters. Read more.
IPOS
- Royalty Pharma, a New York-based company that buys royalty interests in biopharmaceuticals, plans to raise $2 billion in an offering of 70 million shares (14% insider sold) priced between $25 to $28 apiece. The company posted revenue of $1.8 billion in 2019 and income of $1.2 billion. Firms including Adage Capital Management and Nogra Group back the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “RPRX.” Read more.
- Forma Therapeutics, a Watertown, Mass.-based biotech focused on hematologic plans to raise $200 million in an offering 11.8 million shares priced between $16 to $18. Novartis Bioventures (12% pre-offering), RA CApital Management (20%), and Baker Brothers Advisors (10%) back the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “FMTX.” Read more.
- Genetron Holdings, a Beijing-based provider of diagnostic services for cancer patients, plans to raise $163 million (33% insider purchased) in an offering of 13 million ADSs priced between $11.50 to $13.50. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “GTH.” Read more.
- Repare Therapeutics, a Cambridge, Mass.-based biotech developing gene therapies for tumors, plans to raise $125 million in an offering of 7.4 million shares priced between $16 to $18. Versant (30% pre-offering), MPM Bioventures (11.8%) and Orbimed (11.2%) back the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “RPTX.” Read more.
- Progenity, a San Diego, Calif.-based maker of tests for prenatal and disease screening, plans to raise $100 million (50% insider bought) in an offering of 6.7 million shares priced between $14 to $16. Athyrium Capital Management (47.6% pre-offering) backs the firm. It plans to list on the Nasdaq as “PROG.”
EXITS
- Credit Sesame acquired STACK, a Canadian challenger bank. Companies including Plug and Play Tech Center backed STACK. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
- Genstar Capital sold its remaining stake in Palomar Holdings (NASDAQ:PLMR), a specialty property insurer. Genstar invested $75 million in the firm in 2014. Financial terms weren't disclosed.
PEOPLE
- Dundee Venture Capital named Ron Watson as a partner. Watson was previously a principal at Lewis & Clark Ventures.


fortune--2020-06-16--Casinos push for cashless gambling payments

The American casino industry wants gambling regulators to make it easier to adopt cashless payment transactions on the casino floor, citing a desire to help customers avoid handling money during the coronavirus outbreak.
In a report released Tuesday, the American Gaming Association, the gambling industry’s national trade group, called on regulators in states where gambling is allowed to update their rules or laws to integrate cashless options for gamblers.
The push follows an 18-month study of the issue by both commercial and tribal casinos, and equipment suppliers to try to pave the way for cashless transactions on a wider basis.
Presently, a small number of casinos use such payments, which include debit or credit cards, as well as apps like Apple Pay, Google Pay, and PayPal. Wider acceptance of these options has long been a goal of the gambling industry.
“Advancing opportunities for digital payments has been one of our top priorities since my first day at the AGA,” said Bill Miller, the gambling group’s president and CEO. “It aligns with gaming’s role as a modern, 21st century industry and bolsters our already rigorous regulatory and responsible gaming measures. The COVID-19 pandemic made it all the more important to advance our efforts to provide customers with the payment choice they are more comfortable with and have increasingly come to expect in their daily lives.”
So far, there has not been widespread adoption of digital payment options at casinos or other gambling facilities in the U.S. Industry executives say this is due to several factors including limits imposed by state legislators or gambling regulators.
A handful of casinos in Nevada and some tribal casinos across the U.S. have digital options, but the technology is a new concept in many places.
The Nevada Gaming Commission has a hearing scheduled for June 25 where it is expected to accept the state Gaming Control Board’s recommendation for amendments to state regulations that would streamline the approval and testing process for modern payment methods.
David Rebuck, director of the New Jersey Division of Gaming Enforcement, said cashless transactions are already legal, adding, “We await products to be submitted by the casinos for approval to use on site.”
Nevada gambling regulators are “open to looking at new ways of how technology, including cashless wagering, can help attract new customers and be beneficial for not only the industry but even for responsible gaming measures as well,” said Sandra Douglass Morgan, chairwoman of the Nevada Gaming Control Board.
Among the benefits of cashless transactions cited by the AGA are the ability for gamblers to more easily follow and set limits on their gambling activity, and cutting down on the number of currency transaction reports that casinos have to file with the government regarding some customer transactions at the casino.
The continued spread of the coronavirus in parts of the country as many casinos reopen after months of being idled due is another reason the industry wants to ramp up cashless payments quickly.


fortune--2020-06-16--United vows to ban passengers who refuse to wear face masks

United Airlines Holdings Inc. will ban passengers who refuse to wear face masks on its flights, punctuating U.S. carriers’ stricter approach to safety amid mounting concerns about new Covid-19 infections.
Starting June 18, passengers flouting the rules will be placed on an internal travel-restriction list for a “time to be determined pending a comprehensive incident review,” United said in a statement Monday. The rules exempt small children and people with medical conditions or disabilities that prevent them from wearing face coverings.
United’s hard line underscores the airline industry’s push to ensure the use of masks as passengers start venturing back onto planes after a collapse in travel demand caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Airlines for America, a trade group, said United and six other major U.S. carriers have agreed to strengthen communications about mask requirements and beef up the penalties for violating them — which can include passenger bans.
“We have been requiring our customers to wear masks on board United aircraft since May 4 and we have been pleased that the overwhelming majority of passengers readily comply,” United Chief Customer Officer Toby Enqvist said in the statement. “Today’s announcement is an unmistakable signal that we’re prepared to take serious steps, if necessary, to protect our customers and crew.”
More Crowded
United expects that its policy requiring all flyers to use face coverings will remain in place for at least the next 60 days.
Increasingly crowded flights have prompted complaints from disgruntled passengers and allegations that the airlines aren’t insisting on their own policies for wearing face masks.
United, American Airlines Group Inc., Delta Air Lines Inc., Southwest Airlines Co., Alaska Airlines, JetBlue Airways Corp. and Hawaiian Airlines will be “vigorously enforcing” their mask rules, Airlines for America said.
“U.S. airlines are very serious about requiring face coverings on their flights,” the trade group’s president, Nicholas Calio, said in a statement. He warned of “substantial consequences for those who do not comply with the rules.”
Each company will determine its own response to passengers who fail to obey the rules, the trade group said — and not all appear to be adopting United’s get-tough approach.
American said it enforces the mask policy at the gate, will deny boarding to customers who refuse to wear one and “may also deny” future travel for those who don’t obey the policy during a flight. The policy takes effect June 16, American said in a statement.
The carrier has advised flight attendants to discreetly address passengers not wearing a face mask on board and not covered by exceptions, according to a message to members sent by the Association of Professional Flight Attendants. Cabin personnel should encourage compliance and seek to de-escalate any issues with other passengers frustrated over the situation, the union said.
Airlines also have stepped up cleaning and disinfecting airport gate areas and aircraft interiors to help reassure passengers that it’s safe to fly, and some are limiting the number of tickets sold to allow for distancing among travelers.


fortune--2020-06-16--Uber debuts program to help drivers apply for PPP loans through lender Kabbage

Uber drivers will be able to more easily apply for federal loans that are intended to help workers weather the coronavirus pandemic and the economic pain it has caused.
The ride-hailing company on Tuesday said it has partnered with fintech lender Kabbage to provide drivers with a streamlined application for Paycheck Protection Program loans managed by the Small Business Administration.
Uber’s drivers are independent contractors, who are recruited with the pitch that they’ll be their own boss. But in the past few months, drivers have seen the downside of that model, with the coronavirus reducing the number of rides they provide as much as 80%.
The new partnership is intended to make it easier for drivers to get the help they need. “They basically will go through a totally separate path that’s purpose-built for Uber drivers,” according to Kabbage CEO Rob Frohwein.
Uber drivers who use the new applications will have some of the Uber-specific information automatically filled out for them, including, with their permission, payroll information.
“It helps streamline the process, which can be confusing or challenging if you don’t have a lot of familiarity with tax documentation,” says Frohwein. Kabbage says that its tools have enabled 90% of independent contractors across all fields who are approved for PPP loans through its platform to have “a fully automated experience”—that is, get approval without additional assistance from staff, making the process faster.
Applications for PPP loans are open until June 30. While the first round of funding ran out in less than two weeks, the second round still had more than $130 billion available as of June 9.
For Kabbage, the PPP program has become a showcase for its automated loan processing. So far, Frohwein says, Kabbage has originated more than 143,000 such loans totaling more than $4.15 billion, with an average loan size of $29,000.
That compares to 257,000 loans originated by the program’s top lender, JPMorgan Chase, averaging $111,000, as of June 6, the most recent available data. Meanwhile, Bank of America has originated 326,000 loans averaging $77,000.
Kabbage, which is hundreds of times smaller than those banking giants, is able to issue loans at such volumes, Frohwein said, because so many applications are processed automatically.
For Uber, encouraging its drivers to take out PPP loans has complex implications. Legislators and activists have long targeted the ride-hailing company for allegedly misclassifying its drivers as independent contractors, who don’t receive most benefits and don’t pay into traditional unemployment insurance. The pushback includes a new law in California making it much harder for Uber and other companies to classify workers as independent contractors. Uber is fighting the law in court and by advocating for a ballot measure that would exempt the company from it.
Meanwhile, the recent CARES Act temporarily expanded unemployment benefits to many independent contractors. Uber has published a guide to help drivers apply for those benefits. In a statement sent to drivers about the Kabbage application, Uber warned that receiving a PPP loan may disqualify drivers from receiving expanded unemployment.
Alex Rosenblat, author of the book Uberland and a senior researcher at the think tank Data & Society, says drivers should seek any financial resources available to them, including emergency grants from Uber itself. But she also said that promoting PPP loans to drivers could benefit Uber by reinforcing the idea that drivers are entrepreneurs rather than misclassified employees.
“Uber’s constantly trying to make the case that drivers prefer to be independent contractors,” said Rosenblat, adding that a large number of drivers receiving PPP loans may bolster that argument. “It might not have much bearing in a labor law dispute, but it could be persuasive in the court of public opinion.”


fortune--2020-06-16--The woman who brought transgender workers’ issues before the Supreme Court will have a lasting legac

The woman who brought transgender workers’ issues before the Supreme Court will have a lasting legacy

Good morning, Broadsheet readers! Journalist Maria Ressa faces a conviction in the Philippines, the WNBA is set for tip off, and—thanks to Aimee Stephens—we take an essential step toward basic fairness in the workplace. Have an inspired Tuesday.
– This ruling rules. We’ve been overdue for some good news, right? Well, yesterday delivered: the U.S. Supreme Court voted 6 to 3 to protect the rights of LGBTQ workers. As Justice Neil Gorsuch wrote for the majority, “An employer who fires an individual merely for being gay or transgender defies the law.” (Chief Justice John Roberts and Justices Ruth Bader Ginsburg, Stephen Breyer, Sonia Sotomayor and Elena Kagan all joined the majority.)
The case asked the justices to decide whether the reference to “sex” in Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964—which bars employment discrimination based on race, religion, national origin and sex—applies to gay and transgender workers. For the conservatives who voted with the majority, particularly Gorsuch, the question seems to have come down to “textural” concerns. In other words, does the law as written—regardless of the writers’ intent—protect gay and transgender employees. For Gorsuch, the answer is a clear “yes.”
As someone who is very much not an attorney, such legal rationales seem less important than the fundamental ethical questions at play: Do we live in a society where it should be legal to fire someone for being gay or transgender? Do we want to?
Monday’s ruling, as the justices have allowed, is narrow: it doesn’t answer questions like who can use gender-specific restrooms or locker rooms or participate in gender-divided groups like sports teams—and, most importantly, it does not address the question of whether religious employers can choose to discriminate against gay or trans people. I suspect those questions will resurface soon enough, but for now it’s just nice to enjoy this essential step toward basic fairness in the workplace.
Finally, I’d encourage you to take a moment to read this story about Aimee Stephens, the transgender woman who brought the suit that widened the case to include trans people. Stephens died last month, so missed the opportunity to see what her bravery has achieved—but her influence will live on and be felt by many.
Kristen Bellstrom
kristen.bellstrom@fortune.com
@kayelbee
Today’s Broadsheet was curated by Claire Zillman.
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Pressing on. A Manila court on Monday convicted Maria Ressa, founder and CEO of online news organization Rappler, of cyber libel in a case filed by a local businessman. Ressa, a Time 'Person of the Year' in 2018, and her ex-colleague Reynaldo Santos were sentenced to up to six years in jail and plan to appeal. The ruling is expected to have a chilling effect on press freedom in the Philippines, and Ressa urged her journalist peers to defend their "rights guaranteed under the constitution." Time
- Discrimination claims. Two of the three employees on Pinterest's public policy and social impact team left the company in late May, alleging racial discrimination. The two women, both black, say they were underpaid and had complaints to HR dismissed. One of them, Ifeoma Ozoma, led a widely praised initiative to remove vaccine misinformation, but claims that behind the scenes a male colleague leaked her contact information, soliciting doxxing attacks. Pinterest, which has publicly voiced its "solidarity" with black employees, told Bloomberg it investigated the women's accusations and found no wrongdoing. Bloomberg
- Tip off. The WNBA said on Monday it reached an agreement with its players' union for an abbreviated 22-game regular season starting in late July. Playoffs will feature single-elimination in the first two rounds and five-game series for the semifinals and championship. Key to the deal is players' right to 100% of their salaries despite playing 14 fewer regular season games amid the pandemic. ESPN
- RIP. A Black Lives Matter activist was found dead in Tallahassee on Saturday, another tragedy during a week in which 'All Black Lives Matter' has become a protest mantra. Oluwatoyin Salau, 19, was one of two women whose bodies were discovered in a southeast area of the city. Police say the deaths are being investigated, but didn't say if they were related. A suspect is in custody. Salau had been missing since June 6 after tweeting a description of what seemed to be a sexual assault. New York Times
MOVERS AND SHAKERS: Julie Callahan, formerly a portfolio manager at PIMCO, has joined Morgan Stanley Investment Management as a managing director and head of Municipal Bonds in Global Fixed Income. Two veteran journalists in charge of Voice of America, Amanda Bennett and Sandra Sugawara, resigned on Monday after filmmaker Michael Pack, a close associate of Stephen Bannon, was confirmed to lead the U.S. Agency for Global Media, which oversees the broadcast organization.
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
- Seeking stability. There remain plenty of unknowns about Beijing's new national security law aimed at Hong Kong, but already members of the city's business community are voicing support for it. That includes Laura Cha, chairman of the Hong Kong stock exchange. She said the new measure was a surprise when Beijing proposed it last month, but that it will create "the clarity and stability for us to move forward." Bloomberg
- Independent Meg. A new WSJ story explores the relationship between Quibi CEO Meg Whitman and company founder Jeffrey Katzenberg as the streaming video platform hunts for relevance amid fierce competition and a pandemic that undercuts its top selling point: content for on-the-go consumption. Whitman reportedly threatened to quit early in her tenure, feeling as though Katzenberg demeaned, interrupted, and micromanaged her. (A Quibi spokesperson says the two “have formed a strong partnership built on trust and authenticity.") The two later struck a deal that gave Whitman more independence. Wall Street Journal
- Cleaning up. Serial entrepreneur Sarah Paiji Yoo launched her eco-cleaning startup Blueland a year ago with the goal of cutting household waste and single-use plastic consumption. Her timing was fortuitous given how the pandemic has renewed consumers' focus on household cleanliness and personal hygiene, a behavioral trend Yoo says is "here to stay." Fortune
ON MY RADAR
Afghan maternity ward to close after deadly attack BBC
Planned Parenthood backs Biden, seeing a 'life and death election' ahead NPR
Japan’s army of insurance saleswomen feel threat of digital revolution FT
Hong Kong to more than double maternity pay cap and extend leave SCMP
PARTING WORDS
"When we had these conversations with Sephora, it was nine women on a Zoom call."
-Aurora James, creator of the "15 Percent Pledge," on how female executives are leading efforts to promote black-owned brands


fortune--2020-06-16--EU launches Apple antitrust probe focusing on whether App Store and Apple Pay ‘distort competition’

Apple faces a twin-pronged attack from European Union antitrust chief Margrethe Vestager amid concerns the U.S. tech giant’s App Store and Apple Pay services squeeze developers and potential rivals.
Just four years after hitting Apple with a record-breaking tax bill, Vestager has switched her attention to the iPhone maker’s market power.
The EU will review whether Apple’s app store violates competition law by requiring developers to accept a 30% commission for every sale on Apple’s platform. Watchdogs will also examine how Apple limits “tap-and-go” functionality to its own Apple Pay product.
“It appears that Apple obtained a ‘gatekeeper’ role when it comes to the distribution of apps and content to users of Apple’s popular devices,” Vestager said in a statement on Tuesday. “We need to ensure that Apple’s rules do not distort competition in markets where Apple is competing with other app developers, for example with its music streaming service Apple Music or with Apple Books.”
Targeting Silicon Valley
The investigation is the latest in a growing list of EU probes into Silicon Valley, which have led to criticism from U.S. President Donald Trump. The EU last year wrapped up nearly a decade of probes into Google that racked up some $9 billion in fines. An investigation into Amazon.com is set to escalate in the coming weeks.
Apple said that the EU is responding to complaints from rivals that “simply want a free ride, and don’t want to play by the same rules as everyone else.”
“It’s disappointing the European Commission is advancing baseless complaints from a handful of companies,” Apple said in a statement. “At the end of the day, our goal is simple: for our customers to have access to the best app or service of their choice, in a safe and secure environment.”
Apple is already fighting Vestager’s 2016 order to repay Ireland 13 billion euros ($14.7 billion) in unpaid taxes. Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook called Vestager’s decision “political crap” in a longer battle over how digital giants should be taxed in Europe.
The latest EU probe targets a strategic area for company, which has gradually shifted focus from hardware to subscription-based services like Apple TV and Apple Music in search for other revenue streams. For the 2019 fiscal year ending September 28, 2019, revenues for Apple’s services grew 16% to $46.3 billion but they but they were still a fraction of its overall sales of $260.2 billion.
Apple says it welcomes competition on its app store and says other apps it competes with, including on television and podcasts, are also available on its platform. The iPhone giant says developers have earned more than $120 billion around the world from selling digital goods and services in apps distributed by Apple’s store.
Regulators are separately wrestling with how to act against online giants that critics say run a rigged game when they set the rules for platforms that also host their rivals. New laws on how online platforms should treat the companies they host will enter into force on July 1.
Spotify Technology SA last year complained that Apple unfairly squeezes its music streaming service with ever-changing rules and a large cut of sales on the app store. Such behavior gives an unfair advantage to Apple’s own service Apple Music, it alleged.
Spotify said the EU announcement made it “a good day for consumers” and called on the EU “to act with urgency to ensure fair competition on the iOS platform for all participants in the digital economy,” according to an emailed statement from Spotify’s top lawyer, Horacio Gutierrez, referring to Apple’s operating system for mobile devices.
The EU said it was also acting on a complaint filed in March from an e-book and audio book provider it didn’t name. The Financial Times reported earlier Tuesday that Rakuten Inc.’s Kobo unit complained to the EU.
The app store probe will also examine Apple’s curbs on developers telling users of other payment methods which may be cheaper, the EU said. Apple and Google also face a growing backlash against the toll they charge outside developers for using their app stores.
The Apple Pay investigation will scrutinize Apple’s terms and conditions for how Apple Pay is integrated into merchant apps and websites that run on Apple phones and tablets, saying these might distort competition and reduce choice and innovation. Apple Pay is the only mobile payment solution that can use so-called NFC technology for contactless payments in stores, it says.


fortune--2020-06-16--5 pieces of economic data investors are watching this week

Stocks are rebounding off a volatile week, which saw markets sell off roughly 5%, notching their worst week of performance since March. But now, analysts are eyeing a few key announcements in a week jam-packed with economic data that could provide some insights for investors looking for signs the economy is beginning to recover.
Fed testimony
Fed Chairman Jerome Powell is due to testify before Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday. Last week, Chairman Powell detailed a perhaps more dreary outlook than some investors had hoped for, with the Fed announcing it expects to keep interest rates at near zero through 2022. CFRA’s Sam Stovall suggests the catalysts that triggered so-called announcement anxiety in the markets were the Fed’s “pessimistic across-the-board projections for 2020” and interest rate projections that are “causing investors to infer that the economic recovery will be weaker than anticipated.”
Edward Jones’ Nela Richardson points out that while the markets knew the depth of the downturn would be significant, “the length is something altogether different, so there’s a reaction there,” she says.
While those like Mark Hamrick, senior economic analyst at Bankrate.com, don’t think the chairman will say anything this week to dramatically change or add to his previous statement, the testimony may provide nuggets to “enlighten” investors, he suggests.
Retail sales
One big area of focus for analysts? Data showing strength in the consumer.
Retail sales data comes in on Tuesday, and those like Richardson suggest that “while we’ve seen factories reopening and manufacturing start to climb back online, that does not mean that the other side of that transaction is ready to go back: If they build it, will people buy it?” she says. The answer may likely be yes, Richardson says, as consumer sentiment data has recently been pretty good. “That’s a good sign that that demand will eventually come back, but we’re going to be watching for that,” she notes. Hamrick also says retail sales are expected to bounce back, coming off a record 16.4% drop in April.
While retail sales are expected to rebound in May, those like Credit Suisse’s James Sweeney note “the recovery will only be gradual as reopening happens in phases and consumer behavior shifts. With confidence still depressed and the labor market impaired, consumption is likely to take years to recover despite recent fiscal relief helping to support household income,” Sweeney writes.
Housing starts
Housing starts and building permits will be announced Wednesday, and are also expected to advance in May. Edward Jones’ Richardson believes housing starts should be “an important indicator of future demand and the desire of builders to actually continue with building plans: That can be a favorable signal that’s been boosted by very, very low interest rates.”
Manufacturing data
Additionally, somewhat positive data came in from the Empire State Manufacturing Index on Monday, far surpassing expectations by jumping 48 points to around –0.2 (indicating fairly steady business conditions) in what some strategists noted looked like a “V-shaped recovery” in the data.
So far, it’s been V-shaped recovery for Empire Manufacturing, which ticked up to -0.2 vs. -29.6 est. & -48.5 in prior month; 48.3-point increase was largest on record (2nd chart)…employment down, new orders unchanged, shipments up & future expectations surged @bloomberg pic.twitter.com/YgXbf59hTA — Liz Ann Sonders (@LizAnnSonders) June 15, 2020
Also on the docket this week is the release of Philly Fed manufacturing index data on Thursday, which “should extend May gains,” CFRA’s Stovall writes.
Jobless claims
And, of course, strategists will be keenly watching the initial and continuing jobless claims reports on Thursday to gauge how quickly employment is rebounding (weekly jobless claims have steadily ticked down for the past couple of months but are still over 1 million).
In light of the selloff last week and market rebound on Monday, analysts say to expect volatility moving forward.
And for investors planning their way around that new volatility, Edward Jones’ Richardson has a word of advice: “We’re going to see sectors rebound in patches, we’re going to see occasional backboard steps in the reopening process. This should be part of our strategy in terms of investing: Expect to see a setback here and there and an occasional pullback in the market,” she says.


fortune--2020-06-17--HSBC revives its coronavirus-stalled plan to cut thousands of jobs

This influential crypto CEO warns that hyperinflation will be the ‘ next big problem ’

HSBC Holdings Plc has restarted cutting as many as 35,000 jobs, three months after the coronavirus outbreak forced it to pause a long-awaited overhaul to boost profitability.
“Since February we have pressed forward with some aspects of our transformation program, but we now need to look to the long term and move ahead with others, including reducing our costs,” Chief Executive Officer Noel Quinn said in a memo published Wednesday.
The bank joins rivals such as Deutsche Bank AG and UniCredit SpA in forging ahead with job cuts that were put on hold at the outset of the pandemic. HSBC is also grappling with heightened global tensions, as its support for China’s planned Hong Kong security law opened up fault lines in its key market.
Unite, a workers’ union representing some of the bank’s U.K. staff, said the news would cause “great apprehension” among employees. “The question that must be asked today is ‘Why now, HSBC?’” said Dominic Hook, national officer at the union.
HSBC’s recent support for China drew criticism from U.S. and U.K. politicians, who say the proposed security law could erode freedoms promised in the “one country, two systems” approach that governed the former British colony’s return to Chinese rule in 1997. One of the bank’s top shareholders, Aviva Investors, has said the decision made it “uneasy.”
Asia Pivot
In February, Quinn unveiled a restructuring that involved lowering the sprawling global lender’s 235,000-strong workforce by about 35,000 over the next three years. The lender is targeting cost reductions of $4.5 billion at underperforming units.
Europe and the U.S. are expected to face the brunt of the cuts as HSBC attempts to turn around its businesses in regions where it has struggled to make money. The lender’s global banking and markets business, which houses its corporate advisory unit, is expected to face significant reductions in areas such as equities sales and trading.
As part of the revamp HSBC has said it will reduce gross risk-weighted assets by more than $100 billion, or about 12%, by the end of 2022, with much of this expected to come from winding down parts of its investment bank.
HSBC is also eyeing the sale of some of its businesses and is already looking for a buyer for its French retail operations, the disposal of which would take several thousand staff off its payroll.
The restart of the plan was earlier reported by Reuters.
Many European banks are retrenching as ultra-low interest rates and the cost of changing regulations and technology batter their old business models. Standard Chartered Plc, HSBC’s main U.K.-based rival in Asia, has so far kept its pledge to protect jobs throughout the coronavirus pandemic. The lender froze hiring as it focused on preserving the jobs of existing staff.
“Despite banks’ commitments to retain staff through the pandemic crisis, we believe it is only a matter of time before substantial further cost-trimming plans are announced, with efficiencies identified as we work through the Covid crisis important in this context too,” John Cronin, an analyst at Goodbody, wrote in a note.


fortune--2020-06-17--This influential crypto CEO warns that hyperinflation will be the ‘next big problem’

Sweden ’ s top epidemiologist at a loss to explain why herd immunity is going ‘ surprisingly slow ’

Changpeng Zhao is one of the most influential people in cryptocurrency. He leads Binance, which launched in 2017 and quickly became the biggest cryptocurrency firm in the world, and he has a knack for spotting trends well before others. That’s why it’s worth hearing what he has to say about inflation.
In a recent interview with Fortune, the Chinese-Canadian Zhao, known to most people as CZ, shared his thoughts on current macroeconomic trends. His biggest concern is the recent bout of quantitative easing (QE)—a fancy way to describe printing money—by the Federal Reserve and other central banks.
“Given the amount of QE, we will see hyperinflation,” says Zhao. “We’ve seen a record recovery in stock markets, which are at an all-time high. It doesn’t make a lot of sense. It only makes sense when you print a lot of money and give it to Wall Street.”
Hyperinflation is defined as prices rising by 50% or more in a month—a phenomenon that seems inconceivable in the U.S., where inflation has been barely above zero in recent years. But hyperinflation has occurred elsewhere in modern times, notably in Zimbabwe, Hungary, and the former Yugoslavia—and the cause has typically been the excessive printing of money.
In the case of the Fed, its recent QE efforts came as an emergency response to the economic crisis triggered by the pandemic, and many believe the central bank had no choice. But the scale of the intervention is staggering—one projection has the Fed conjuring $3.5 trillion in new money by the end of this year.
So far, there is little evidence of widespread inflation, but Zhao believes it’s a matter of time. He points out that food prices are rising already and says the effects of QE are only beginning to be seen.
Zhao also argues that stock prices are a poor metric by which to judge the effects of QE.
“The question is not what stocks are worth against the U.S. dollar but what stocks are worth versus house prices and food,” he says.
Zhao describes hyperinflation as “the next big problem” for countries around the world. He points out that if central banks in large economies like the U.S. are printing money at scale, it would be “foolish” for smaller countries not to do the same. The upshot, he suggests, will be a broad-based devaluing of fiat currencies.
In light of all this—and not mention his role as CEO of a cryptocurrency company—it’s no surprise Zhao is an advocate for buying Bitcoin.
“Anything with a limited supply will go up,” he says, referring to the fact that Bitcoin has a finite supply of 21 million, most of which are already in circulation.
While this notion of Bitcoin as a store of value akin to gold is popular among cryptocurrency fans—who have helped popularize the recent “Fed go brrr” meme—there is little evidence that the thesis is correct.
During the market meltdown in March, Bitcoin lost more than half its value—tanking even further than most stocks—which did little to boost the idea that it’s a safe haven in times of market trouble. While Bitcoin prices have since recovered and outperformed the broader equity market, it’s hardly a slam dunk to make the case that cryptocurrencies are a hedge against inflation.
Zhao, though, believes the case for cryptocurrencies will become stronger once the inflationary effects of QE become clearer.
The Binance CEO also cites other broader economic trends he believes will foster market instability, including the choppy trade relationship between China and the U.S.
“There are strong-minded leaders in both countries. China wants to be the dominant nation in the world and for the renminbi to be the dominant currency,” he says. “But we can’t uncouple countries from one another without detrimental effects to the global economy.”
More must-read finance coverage from Fortune:


fortune--2020-06-17--Sweden’s top epidemiologist at a loss to explain why herd immunity is going ‘surprisingly slow’

Sweden has made less progress than expected in achieving immunity to the coronavirus, according to its state epidemiologist.
After leaving schools, shops and restaurants open throughout the pandemic, contagion rates in Sweden are much higher than anywhere else in the Nordic region. Its Covid-19 mortality is among the worst in the world. Scientists have been eager to learn whether the flipside of widespread contagion is a higher level of immunity.
But according to Anders Tegnell, Sweden’s state epidemiologist, “the trends in immunity have been surprisingly slow.” He also says “it’s difficult to explain why this is so.”
Speaking in an interview with Swedish Radio on Wednesday, Tegnell said it’s important to remember “that there is a time lag in all such measurements.”
An analysis of 50,000 tests by Werlabs AB, a private company, shows that about 14% of people tested over the past six weeks in the Stockholm region have developed Covid-19 antibodies. That compares with a study published this month of Bergamo — once the Covid-19 epicenter in Italy — which showed that 57% had developed antibodies.
In Sweden, “the number of immune cases today is much closer to our forecasts than it has been before,” Tegnell told Swedish Radio. “The 14% of those surveyed is from two or three weeks ago, meaning that immunity levels are higher today.”
Sweden’s approach to tackling Covid-19 has been among the most controversial in the world. Unlike the rest of Scandinavia, where governments quickly imposed strict lockdowns, Sweden advised its citizens to observe social distancing rules, but left most of society open.
Some analysts have predicted that the softer lockdown means Sweden’s economy will fare betterthan others. But the country’s high death rate has triggered considerable backlash, and a recent poll suggested most Swedes have lost faith in their country’s strategy to fight the virus.
Tegnell and Prime Minister Stefan Lofven have insisted that Sweden’s strategy is the right one. That’s based on an assumption that Covid-19 will be around for a long time, meaning short-term lockdowns ultimately won’t help, and governments need to come up with more sustainable models for living with the virus.


fortune--2020-06-17--Decades of Jeff Bezos’s thoughts are collated in a new book

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Good morning.
Jeff Bezos is the most important business leader of our times, and if you want to know how he got that way, you can find it in the very first letter he wrote to shareholders in 1997. His message: focus on the long term, obsess over customers, make bold not timid choices, set a high bar in hiring, and you will create “an enduring franchise.”
Ever since, Bezos–modeling Warren Buffett–has laid out his business thoughts each year in a crisp annual letter to shareholders. Today, PublicAffairs and Harvard Business Review Press are announcing plans to publish Invent and Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos, which brings together 23 years of these annual letters, plus notable interviews, writings and speeches, and a 10,000 word introduction penned by Walter Isaacson–biographer of Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Ben Franklin, and Leonardo DaVinci. Isaacson puts Bezos “in the same league as my other subjects.”
CEO Daily got an early look at the book. A few excerpts:
“You can work long, hard, or smart, but at Amazon.com you can’t choose two out of three.”
–1997
“Our shares are down more than 80% from when I wrote you last year. Nevertheless, by almost any measure, Amazon.com the company is in a stronger position now than at any time in the past.”
–2000
“We don’t do PowerPoint (or any other slide-oriented) presentations at Amazon. Instead, we write narratively structured six-page memos. We silently read one at the beginning of each meeting in a kind of ‘study hall.’…Some have the clarity of angels singing…Sometimes they come in at the other end of the spectrum.”
–2017
You can read more about the book, scheduled for publication in November, here.
* * *
Separately, I spoke with Dow CEO Jim Fitterling earlier this week, in advance of Dow’s release this morning of aggressive new sustainability targets. They include a goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and a goal of having 100% of its products sold into packaging be reusable or recyclable by 2035. More broadly, the report says Dow aims to be “the most sustainable materials science company.”
I asked Fitterling the question I hear some environmental advocates ask: If the goal is to be the most sustainable materials science company, why not abandon petrochemicals altogether? His response:
“I don’t think they have a very good perspective on what petrochemicals do for their life. Could you buy a Tesla, insulate their homes, have safe foods packaging? If you get out of petrochemicals, you get out of pharmaceuticals, so you don’t treat COVID-19, you don’t have gowns, masks, gloves. It is a false test.”
I also asked about the collapse of plastic recycling, driven in part by the fact that falling oil prices have made virgin plastic less expensive.
“We have to create the circular economy. Everything we make that gets used should be reusable or fully recyclable….I don’t think that can be done by the private sector alone.”
And here’s the most remarkable thing he told me, in response to my question about how much of his time he spends on these difficult social issues:
“Right now, I am spending half of my time on ESG–circular economy, global warming, COVID-19, racial justice, flood recovery in Michigan. For where we are right now, it’s where I need to be spending it.”
That’s the definition of stakeholder capitalism. Like it or not, it is happening. More news below.
Alan Murray
@alansmurray
alan.murray@fortune.com
TOP NEWS
Editor's note: Thank you to the many, many readers who wrote in yesterday to point out that the FDA quote about hydroxychloroquine said the opposite of what I said it said. I had accidentally truncated the quote, thus reversing its meaning—I omitted the first part, which said it is "no longer reasonable to believe that" the drug's potential benefits outweigh the risks. Apologies for the error!
COVID-19 treatment
A cheap, widely available drug called dexamethasone has been shown to reduce deaths among those who are seriously ill with COVID-19. British researchers found the steroid cut deaths of patients on ventilators by a third, and deaths of those on oxygen by a fifth. The World Health Organization has welcomed the findings, with director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus congratulating "the government of the U.K., the University of Oxford, and the many hospitals and patients in the U.K. who have contributed to this lifesaving scientific breakthrough." New York Times
Apple probes
The European Commission has opened two antitrust investigations into Apple: one about the 30% commission Apple makes developers pay for each sale on its platform, and one about how Apple Pay is the only mobile payment service that gets to access the company's tap-and-go functionality. Apple counters the complainants in these cases "simply want a free ride, and don’t want to play by the same rules as everyone else." Fortune
Diversity suit
Marilyn Booker, Morgan Stanley's former diversity chief, has sued the bank and CEO James Gorman over "race and gender discrimination, retaliation and unequal pay." She says she was fired at the end of last year after promoting a plan for improving the experience of minority employees (Morgan Stanley apparently has only 100 black financial advisors out of a total of 16,000, and only 41 black managing directors out of thousands). The bank says she was simply sacked as part of a wider round of layoffs. Financial Times
Geopolitical tension
Analysts have weighed in on the worrisome incidents at the Chinese-Indian border and on the Korean Peninsula. They say war between China and India is unlikely, despite violent clashes between the countries' troops. But tensions between North Korea and South Korea are likely to escalate after North Korea literally blew up the liaison office where it conducted meetings with representatives of South Korea. CNBC
AROUND THE WATER COOLER
Working while black
Fortune asked black employees what they wanted their non-black coworkers, supervisors and executives to know about inclusivity in the workplace. Here's Bryan, 51: "For many years, I've worked in corporate America. As I slowly moved up the corporate ladder, I began to notice there were fewer black employees until I was the only one…Eventually, I myself resigned because I learned I was being paid less than half of what my white colleagues earned. When I confronted HR and my manager about it, they blatantly lied to me." P.S.: We're still looking for more submissions. Fortune
PepsiCo actions
PepsiCo chair and CEO Ramon L. Laguarta has written for Fortune about what the beverage giant is doing to dismantle systemic racial barriers: "Today, I am announcing the next step in PepsiCo’s journey for racial equality: a more than $400 million set of initiatives over five years to lift up Black communities and increase Black representation at PepsiCo. These initiatives make up a holistic effort for PepsiCo to walk the talk of a leading corporation and help address the need for systemic change." Fortune
New Zealand
New Zealand's quarantine program is now in the hands of its military, following a massive blunder that saw two British arrivals leave isolation without being tested for COVID-19—which, it subsequently turned out, they had. "It should never have happened and it cannot be repeated," said Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern, who has recently been feted for her government's success in wiping out the coronavirus. Guardian
Car sales
European car registrations only fell 57% year-on-year in May, compared with a 78% drop in April. That's good news for the sector—or at least what counts as good news these days. Another positive sign is that car sales in China (a key market for European automakers) rose last month for the first time in a year. Of course, that may not be enough to clear the massive inventories that are piling up. Bloomberg
This edition of CEO Daily was edited by David Meyer.


fortune--2020-06-17--A collection of 23 years of Jeff Bezos’s writing to be published in November

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Jeff Bezos is the most important business leader of our time, and if you want to know how he got that way, you can find it in the very first letter he wrote to shareholders in 1997. Back then Amazon.com had annual revenue of $148 million—compared with $280 billion today. But his message was crisp and clear: Focus on the long term; obsess over customers; make bold not timid choices; set a high bar in hiring; and you will create “an enduring franchise.”
Ever since, Bezos—modeling Warren Buffett—has laid out his business thoughts each year in clear terms in his annual letter to shareholders. Until now, no one has thought to pull those letters together into a book. That may be partly because of Bezos’s fraught relationship with much of the book publishing industry.
But today, PublicAffairs and Harvard Business Review Press are announcing plans to publish Invent and Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos, which brings together 23 years of annual letters, notable interviews, writings, and speeches, and a 10,000-word introduction penned by Walter Isaacson—biographer of Steve Jobs, Albert Einstein, Ben Franklin, and Leonardo da Vinci. Isaacson puts Bezos “in the same league as my other subjects.” The book provides a compelling window into Bezos the man and Bezos the business phenom.
Credit for this unusual creation goes to Peter Osnos, founder of PublicAffairs, who considered Bezos’s 2018 letter oddly compelling. Working with Amazon’s top communications executive, Jay Carney, and his colleagues at Hachette, which owns PublicAffairs, Osnos was able to hammer out a contract acceptable to all parties. It is not an Amazon-sponsored book. The contract was signed by Bezos himself, and all proceeds will go to philanthropy.
There are lots of great bits of Bezos wisdom to be found in the pages of Invent and Wander. A few of them:
“You can work long, hard, or smart, but at Amazon.com you can’t choose two out of three.” —1997
“Our vision is to use this platform to build Earth’s most customer-centric company, a place where customers can come to find and discover anything and everything they might want to buy online.” —1999
“Our shares are down more than 80 percent from when I wrote you last year. Nevertheless, by almost any measure, Amazon.com the company is in a stronger position now than at any time in the past.” —2000
“We have a cash generative operating cycle because we turn our inventory quickly, collecting payments from our customers before payments are due to our suppliers…Forced to choose between optimizing GAAP accounting and maximizing the present value of future cash flows, we’ll take cash flows.” —2004
“Your team of missionaries here is fervent about driving free cash flow per share and returns on capital. We know we can do that by putting customers first. I guarantee you there is more innovation ahead of us than behind us.” —2007
“As regular readers of this letter will know, our energy at Amazon comes from the desire to impress customers, rather than the zeal to best competitors.” —2012
“We don’t do PowerPoint (or any other slide-oriented) presentations at Amazon. Instead, we write narratively structured six-page memos. We silently read one at the beginning of each meeting in a kind of ‘study hall’…Some have the clarity of angels singing…Sometimes they come in at the other end of the spectrum.” —2017
“It’s still Day 1.” —2009–2019
The book is scheduled for publication in November.


fortune--2020-06-17--JD.com’s $3.9 billion Hong Kong IPO sees another Chinese giant diversify away from U.S. markets

Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com will go public on Thursday in Hong Kong and is expected to raise at least $3.9 billion, boosting Asia into its biggest week for initial public offerings so far in 2020.
JD’s Hong Kong debut, likely one of the largest IPOs this year, is a secondary listing for the company. JD went public on the New York–based Nasdaq stock exchange in 2014, a few months before its online retailing rival Alibaba Group debuted on the same exchange.
Nationwide coronavirus lockdowns in China in the first months of the year caused online retail sales to surge. In the first quarter of 2020, JD’s revenue grew 20.7% year over year, and online sales during the May Day holiday in the first week of May increased 45% compared with the holiday period in 2019.
The June 18 debut coincides with JD’s massive “618” shopping festival, an annual promotion that last year brought in a record $29.2 billion in sales. The event coincides with the company’s founding on June 18, 1998.
In the 22 years since, JD has transformed from a small seller of electronics to the second-largest e-commerce company in China by market share.
History of JD.com
JD’s billionaire founder and chairman, Liu Qiangdong, also known as Richard Liu, started the business in 1998, selling computer parts at a market stall in Beijing. Liu had built up a chain of 12 electronics stores across the city by 2003, when the SARS outbreak struck China. He closed all his stores and shifted to selling his wares online instead.
An employee prepares a JD.com drone during a package-delivery demonstration at the company’s testing site in Xi’an in June 2018. JD.com is racing rivals across the globe to develop drones with the strength, range, and reliability to deliver goods on a large scale and solve the expensive last-mile problem for couriers. Qilai Shen—Bloomberg/Getty Images
When the outbreak subsided, he stayed online, launching a consumer retail website in 2004. Today JD.com has 387 million active customers. Chinese tech conglomerate Tencent Holdings owns an 18% stake in JD, and Walmart has a roughly 10% stake.
JD sells everything from baby formula to Prada handbags. It offers a luxury delivery service, JD Luxury Express, in which white-gloved men in suits deliver high-end products to customers’ doors. It’s also a grocer. The pandemic boosted its online supermarket sales; between January and March, vegetable sales increased 207%, and sales of chicken and eggs increased 301%.
JD controls most of its supply chain and delivers goods to customers from its 730 warehouses, promising same- and next-day delivery with the help of tens of thousands of drivers and an extensive network of delivery drones. By comparison, Alibaba functions largely as a platform and payment service for third-party sellers and earns much of its revenue from advertising.
JD, like Alibaba, is trying to expand beyond online retailing into business-to-business services like logistics and cloud computing. In the e-commerce sector, it’s the main rival of Alibaba, which still dominated with an estimated 56% market share in 2019, compared with JD’s 17%, according to data from eMarketer. Both companies are wary of competition from relative newcomer Pinduoduo.
CEO case
JD’s Hong Kong IPO splash will come as its founder and CEO shirks public view. Liu has stepped back from the company recently. He is still listed as JD’s CEO and chairman, and he still controls almost 80% of shareholder votes, but his name has been scrubbed from the records of several JD-linked companies in the past few months.
In 2018, Liu was arrested in Minnesota on suspicion of rape. Prosecutors later dropped the charges, citing insufficient evidence.
Richard Liu, CEO and founder of e-commerce company JD.com, attends a development forum in 2015. He has stepped back from public view since being accused of rape in 2018; he denies the claims. Visual China Group/Getty Images
Liu’s accuser, a University of Minnesota student named Liu Jingyao who hails from China, filed a civil lawsuit against the executive in April 2019 after prosecutors dropped the criminal charges against him. The suit is ongoing, and in April a Minnesota district court dismissed a motion filed by JD to dissociate the company’s name from the case against its founder.
A lawyer for Liu Qiangdong said in an April 2019 statement to the New York Times that based on the dismissal of criminal charges “and our belief in [Liu’s] innocence, we strongly feel that [the civil] suit is without merit and will vigorously defend against it.”
JD’s U.S.-listed shares dropped as much as 60% in the months after the allegation against Liu, who had been a prominent public face of the company he founded, and who has never identified a successor. Share prices have since rebounded.
Secondary listings
The JD listing comes one week after the $2.7 billion Hong Kong IPO of Chinese gaming company NetEase, which, like JD, is already Nasdaq-listed. NetEase CEO William Ding said NetEase’s secondary listing in Hong Kong shows the company is “returning to a market in which we share a closer mutual understanding.”
Chinese companies are pursuing markets closer to home—like in Hong Kong or on the mainland—amid rising tensions between the U.S. and China and as the U.S. becomes increasingly hostile toward Chinese companies.
China’s largest computer chipmaker, Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corp., is planning to go public in Shanghai after delisting from the New York Stock Exchange in June, and Robin Li, CEO of Baidu Inc., said in May that the Nasdaq-listed Chinese search engine firm is considering a secondary listing in Hong Kong because of concerns that the U.S. is “constantly tightening the control of Chinese stock companies.”
More than 200 Chinese companies trade on U.S. exchanges; 32 of them are eligible for secondary listings in Hong Kong. Alibaba initiated a secondary listing in Hong Kong last year.
Nasdaq on May 18 said it would enforce stricter rules on companies that want to list on the New York–based exchange. The new requirements call for levels of auditing and fundraising transparency that would make it more difficult for companies from China to list. The changes were announced as Nasdaq prepared to delist China’s Luckin Coffee Inc., in light of Luckin’s financial fraud scandal. Luckin is appealing the decision.
The U.S. Senate on May 20 unanimously passed a bill that will increase oversight and require audits of foreign companies that list on U.S. exchanges. Companies that the U.S. is not able to audit will be banned from U.S. exchanges, and the measure mandates that foreign companies certify they are not owned or controlled by a foreign government.
The bill is not specific to China, but its sponsor Sen. John Kennedy (R–La.) said last month, “The Chinese Communist Party cheats, and the Holding Foreign Companies Accountable Act would stop them from cheating on U.S. stock exchanges.”
Before the bill becomes law, it must pass through the U.S. House of Representatives and then be signed into law by President Donald Trump.
China’s securities regulator rebuked the U.S. legislation and said it would “weaken the confidence of global investors in U.S. capital markets.” JD referenced the U.S. bill in the risk factors section of its Hong Kong prospectus, saying the bill, if enacted, could adversely affect U.S. share prices, lead to a loss of investor confidence, and potentially lead to JD’s delisting from Nasdaq.


fortune--2020-06-17--The U.S. shopper puts investors in a good mood, sending global shares higher

This is the web version of the Bull Sheet, Fortune’s no-BS daily newsletter on the markets. Sign up to receive it in your inbox here.
Good morning. Following Tuesday’s retail-led rally, stocks and equities futures have been gaining ground all morning. That’s despite fresh concerns about the emerging coronavirus hotspot in Beijing, and mounting cases in America’s Sun Belt, notably Florida and Texas.
Let’s see what’s moving markets.
Markets update
Asia
Asia is mixed in afternoon trade. The Hang Seng clings to gains ( +0.6% ) while Japan’s Nikkei sinks ( -0.5% ).
clings to gains ( ) while Japan’s sinks ( ). China canceled more than 1,200 flights in and out of Beijing in an effort to contain the latest COVID-19 outbreak , which has now stricken more than 130 in the city.
canceled more than in and out of in an effort to contain the latest , which has now stricken more than in the city. Japan reported May exports fell by a worse-than-expected 28.3%, showing more damage from the coronavirus hit on global trade.
Europe
The European bourses were flat out of the gates, but perked up throughout the morning. London’s FTSE ( +1% ) led the way higher .
were out of the gates, but perked up throughout the morning. ( ) led the way higher There’s no retail relief for Europe’s carmakers. Auto sales fell 57% y-o-y in May, with the U.K. seeing an eye-watering 89% plunge .
fell y-o-y in May, with the seeing an eye-watering . A return to normal is not good news for HSBC staff. The London-based bank will cut 35,000 jobs, Reuters reports, after putting the plan on ice when the pandemic hit earlier this year.
U.S.
After the Dow ‘s 526-point rally yesterday, stock futures for the bluechip are gaining this morning, pointing to a solid open. Surging retail sales boosted shares broadly yesterday, but they’re far off pre-pandemic levels.
‘s yesterday, stock futures for the bluechip are gaining this morning, pointing to a solid open. boosted shares broadly yesterday, but they’re far off pre-pandemic levels. The U.S. indices closed in the green on Tuesday despite a stark warning from Fed chair Jerome Powell that it will be “ a long road back ” before the U.S. employment numbers fully recover.
that it will be “ ” before the numbers fully recover. Now for some good news: Dallas Fed president Robert Kaplan told Bloomberg TV the U.S. economy bottomed out in early May. He’s said this before, but it’s encouraging to see he’s sticking with that call.
Elsewhere
Gold and the dollar are down, though just a tick.
and the are down, though just a tick. Crude is mixed. WTI is down on a report U.S. stocks swelled during lockdown.
Shop ’til you drop
Retail sales is as good a metric as any in assessing consumer confidence. The consumer is the engine of the U.S. economy, accounting for roughly 70% of U.S. GDP. And so yesterday’s numbers were an encouraging sign of progress in the long road back to economic recovery.
The markets of course saw the numbers, and took a victory lap—at one point, sending Wall Street 4% higher. There was a lot to cheer. The 17.7% month-on-month jump in retail sales was better than anticipated, and notched a new monthly record. The multiplier effect could be significant. As Berenberg Capital Markets economist Mickey Levy pointed out in an investors note yesterday, “the strong rebound in retail sales in May bodes well for stronger gains in retail employment over the summer after a relatively small rebound in May (+368k increase in May retail employment after a cumulative decline of 2.4m in March and April).”
A closer look at yesterday’s numbers reveals there are still clear winners and losers in the retail sector. Let’s look at the chart, courtesy of Berenberg.
The biggest winner, of course, is the online retailers. They’re represented by the “non store retailers” row at the top, up an impressive 25.4% in the February-to-May period. Grocery stores (+12.8%) and DIY-home-builder stores (+9%) are also in the black over that three-month span. Everything else is down in that stretch.
Who were the big winners last month? Auto dealers and car parts retailers saw the biggest jump. So, it wasn’t just me buying a new set of tires last month. (A car battery, too).
Overall, the +17.7 handle was more than double consensus estimates, showing, to paraphrase my colleague Phil Wahba, the resilience of the American shopper is alive and well. That’s an encouraging sign for the economy as lockdown measures relax further. Wahba quoted Moody’s vice president Mickey Chadha who called the May figures “an astonishing feat.”
The markets certainly felt so.
***
Have a nice day, everyone. I’ll see you here tomorrow.
Bernhard Warner
@BernhardWarner
Bernhard.Warner@Fortune.com
A note from my Fortune colleagues on a timely new initiative:
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Today's reads
IPO gripes. Silicon Valley legend Bill Gurley thinks IPOs are one big rip-off. Gurley did a Zoom call with Fortune's Shawn Tully and dished on the wheeling and dealing that routinely goes on between the big Wall Street banks, the company founders and the company's biggest backers. Grab the popcorn.
Infrastructure Week. The I-word has been thrown around quite a bit by the Trump Administration over the past three-plus years, with little to show for it. But don't tell that to the army of investors who jumped into construction and heavy-equipment stocks yesterday after a report came out that the Trump Administration is mulling a $1 trillion spending plan to build roads, bridges and high-speed Internet networks. The Wall Street Journal runs down all the big I-stock winners yesterday, including Caterpillar, and Granite Construction.
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Market candy
250%
That's the YTD jump in the Zoom Video share price, as the work-from-home darling continues to outpace the Nasdaq field. As Fortune's Rey Mashayekhi notes, "Zoom’s stock is remarkably close to surpassing none other than Goldman Sachs in value." But, here's a word of caution, dear prospective investor. Before you consider buying shares, make sure you've got the correct Zoom.


fortune--2020-06-17--Crude weapons, sub-zero temps: How violence erupted at the China-India border

In near sub-zero temperatures in the thin air of 15,000 feet, Chinese and Indian soldiers attacked each other with stones, iron rods and bamboo poles wrapped in barbed wire laced with nails. It is not clear what started the clashes, but by the time they were finished 20 Indian soldiers were dead, along with an unknown number of Chinese casualties.
The violence broke out Monday afternoon and went on until midnight on the Tibetan plateau along the freezing Galwan river, Indian officials said, asking not to be identified citing rules on speaking to the media. It’s the first time in 45 years that a military skirmish along the contested Himalayan border had turned deadly, and it signaled a sharp deterioration in ties between the two regional giants.
In talks between senior military personnel to defuse a border standoff that’s been brewing for over a month, the two sides had agreed to create a buffer zone between the armies, Indian officials with knowledge of the matter said. Troops were to withdraw by a kilometer each to create an area that would separate the forces and ensure peace. Indian troops came under attack after they objected to Chinese troops’ construction of a fresh post in the buffer zone, the officials said.Play Video
The Indian Army spokesman was not immediately available for a comment, while Zhang Shuili, a military spokesperson in China’s western battle zone command, said in a statement late Tuesday there were casualties on both sides, without elaborating.
The uptick in tensions comes amid a rising din of nationalism stoked by both governments as the two powers jostle for regional influence. A further escalation could cast a shadow over a tripartite meeting planned with Russia this month.
It’s not in either country’s interests to be locked into a bloody border conflict, said Anit Mukherjee, assistant professor in the South Asia program at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore.
“This standoff — with a loss of lives — is a very serious development,” Mukherjee said. “In the days ahead, as the funerals of the fallen play out in public, it will lead to an emotional call for some sort of a response.”
India stocks swung between gains and losses as investors weighed the consequences of a border conflict with China’s military while coronavirus infections continue to rise as the South Asian nation reopens. The S&P BSE Sensex index was little changed at 33,578.22 as of 10 a.m. in Mumbai.
In Washington, a senior administration official said on Tuesday the U.S. was monitoring the conflict and pointed out that President Donald Trump and Prime Minister Narendra Modi of India had discussed the border issue in a call early this month.
Beijing’s Warnings
At a regular press briefing in Beijing Tuesday, China’s foreign ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian warned India against making any unilateral movement that could complicate the situation. A statement released by India said military leaders at the border were trying to negotiate a solution.
In a statement late Tuesday evening, India tried to defuse the situation and said it remained committed to peace on the border with China. The clash followed an attempt by the Chinese to alter the status quo in violation of de-escalation terms agreed to in recent talks, it added.
The escalation risks upending a scheduled meeting between Indian and Chinese foreign ministers at the Russia-India-China summit on June 22 and may set back diplomatic progress made during two informal summits between President Xi Jinping and Modi, the most recent taking place last October in India.
It comes as India’s longstanding differences with neighbor Pakistan continue to simmer and its relations with traditional ally Nepal significantly deteriorate, while Bangladesh is still smarting from New Delhi’s decision to adopt a religion-based citizenship law. Beijing is also under pressure as governments from the U.S. to Europe, Japan and Australia move to cut a dependence on China exposed by the pandemic, and it’s facing an international push to investigate the coronavirus, first identified in Wuhan.
Leadership Test
Modi’s leadership will be tested as he manages the twin crises of a surging coronavirus epidemic and an economy that’s set for its first annual contraction in more than four decades this year.
India and China — which together account for a population in excess of 2.7 billion, or one third of the world’s people — are no strangers to animosity, and fought a war in 1962 over their 3,488 kilometer (2,167 mile) unmarked boundary. But that was supposed to be behind them as economic and commercial realities took precedence.
The challenge now is to de-escalate what is “arguably the most serious India-China border spat in years,” said Michael Kugelman, deputy director and senior associate for South Asia at the Washington-based Wilson Center. “Contrary to what Delhi has suggested, this won’t be an easy ladder to climb down.”
While tensions are expected to eventually ease, they come at an especially tricky time for Modi, Kugelman said. “For an Indian government forced to confront its more powerful rival even while fighting a deadly pandemic and accompanying economic crisis, this is not what it wants to say the least.”


fortune--2020-06-17--Apple diversity head Christie Smith exits as company commits to fighting racism

Apple Inc.’s head of diversity and inclusion Christie Smith is leaving the iPhone company.
Last week, Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said Apple is launching a $100 million Racial Equity and Justice Initiative, adding to the company’s response to the police killing of George Floyd last month. Earlier this month, Cook wrote in a letter to employees and customers that society needs to do more to push equality, particularly for Black people.
“To create change, we have to reexamine our own views and actions in light of a pain that is deeply felt but too often ignored. Issues of human dignity will not abide standing on the sidelines,” Cook wrote in the letter.
Smith joined Apple in 2017 after 16 years at consultancy Deloitte. Unlike her predecessor, who reported directly to CEO Tim Cook, Smith reported to Apple’s Senior Vice President of Retail and People Deirdre O’Brien.
“Inclusion and diversity are core Apple values and we deeply believe the most diverse teams are the most innovative teams,” Apple said in an emailed statement confirming the news. “Christie Smith will be leaving Apple to spend more time with her family and we wish her well. Our Inclusion and Diversity team continues to report directly to Deirdre O’Brien on the Executive Team.”
Apple said the move was planned two months ago, though a person familiar with the matter said Smith’s last day was Tuesday.


fortune--2020-06-17--Coronavirus hospitalizations are surging in Texas as reopening continues

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An increasing number of people in Texas and Florida are being admitted to the hospital because of COVID-19, adding to concern that some of the most populous U.S. states are facing a new wave of illness after lifting lockdown orders.
Coastal states hit by the pandemic early are emerging from months of quarantine having largely flattened the curve of infection, but others whose governors resisted stringent measures are confronting daunting numbers. New cases are ticking up in more than 20 states, according to Johns Hopkins University data.
On Tuesday, Texas posted an 8.3% rise in hospitalizations to a record 2,518, the biggest daily increase since June 4, according to the state health department. The rolling seven-day average climbed to a record 2,243.
In Florida, cumulative hospitalizations rose by 191 to 12,206. On the seven-day basis, they reached 1,021, the highest since May 25.
And Virginia Governor Ralph Northam announced that his state wouldn’t be moving into phase 3 of its reopening even though most numbers are declining. He said he wants more time to study virus case and hospitalization figures.
At a media briefing in the state capital of Austin, Governor Greg Abbott said Texas registered 2,622 new cases, the most since the pandemic emerged. However, he said the data was skewed by “batch returns” of testing done in several counties over more than one day.
Abbott reassured residents that hospitals in the second-most-populous state have ample capacity, but he said some bar patrons are putting themselves at risk by failing to observe social distancing. And he rebuffed local officials seeking permission to reimpose lockdowns or other restrictions amid the resurgent pandemic.
County leaders and mayors in the biggest metropolitan areas have warned that Abbott’s phased reopening of the Texas economy that began seven weeks ago has been too swift and sweeping, and bristled at his executive orders superseding local crackdowns.
“We do not need to choose between returning to jobs and protecting health care,” Abbott said.
Florida reported 80,109 Covid-19 cases Tuesday, up 3.6% from a day earlier, compared with an average increase of 2.5% in the previous seven days. Deaths among Florida residents reached 2,993, an increase of 1.9%.
Seen on a rolling seven-day basis, Florida’s new cases reached 14,109, the highest ever. For most of May, the state had been reporting about 5,000 cases a week, but the numbers have been elevated since early June. New cases have now exceeded 1,000 a day in 13 of the last 14 days.
Speaking Tuesday from Tallahassee, Governor Ron DeSantis said he had no plans to roll back the state’s reopening. Echoing comments from days past, he said higher Covid-19 numbers reflect expanded testing as well as isolated outbreaks among migrant farm workers in Florida’s agricultural communities.
With more testing, he said, the state was spending more time in “high-risk environments,” including farms and factories, which sometimes yield extremely high positivity rates because of the close quarters. He said a single sick worker sometimes leads to many others. Still, he said many of those cases were asymptomatic or required no hospitalization.
DeSantis said hospital capacity remains ample, noting that Covid-19 related hospitalizations in intensive-care units were down 43% from April 15 to 458, as of Monday. Still, Florida’s data shows new hospitalizations are rising on a trailing seven-day basis, albeit from a low base.
“We’re not shutting down,” DeSantis said, speaking in front of a dais bedecked with his administration’s reopening slogan: “Safe. Smart. Step-by-Step.”
“We’re going to go forward. We’re going to continue to protect the most vulnerable.”
In Miami-Dade, the state’s most populous county, local leaders including county Mayor Carlos Gimenez and City of Miami Mayor Francis Suarez said Monday that they have no plans to revert to lockdowns. But they said a rise in hospitalizations would be cause to revisit that decision.


fortune--2020-06-17--Cheaper 5G phones are on the way. Here’s how much they’ll cost

A big reason why so few people use superfast 5G wireless Internet is the sky-high cost of compatible phones. But those lofty prices are about to drop.
Qualcomm on Tuesday announced a new set of chips for low-end 5G phones that will cost $300 to $500, when available in the next six months. Phone makers planning to sell the devices include HMD Global, LG Electronics, Motorola, SHARP, TCL, and Wingtech, Qualcomm said.
“Driving the expansion of 5G into the Snapdragon 6-series has the potential to make 5G accessible to more than 2 billion smartphone users around the world,” Qualcomm president Cristiano Amon said in a statement.
The announcement comes a little over a year after Qualcomm debuted dozens of phones with its high-end 5G chips at the Mobile World Congress in Barcelona. But most of those phones cost $1,000 or more.
The cheaper phones could come just in time for the slowing mobile market, which has been hit by weakening consumer-demand for devices and manufacturing difficulties. Smartphone sales plunged 20% in the first quarter from a year earlier, the sharpest decline on record, according to market tracker Gartner, as the global pandemic forced wireless carriers to shutter stores worldwide.
Meanwhile, despite the pandemic, carriers continue to expand their 5G networks, which will eventually offer download speeds 10 to 100-times faster than average 4G LTE connections.
The new low-cost 5G chips from Qualcomm aren’t as high-performing as the company’s more expensive chips. Carriers are using many different frequencies for 5G, from typical cellular airwave bands like 700 MHz to much higher frequencies like 39 GHz. Phones with Qualcomm’s more expensive chips can handle the full range, but phones with the new chips, called the Snapdragon 690, will be unable to reach the higher frequency bands, sometimes referred to as millimeter wave bands.
Still, Qualcomm has pushed some features previously available only on its more expensive chip offerings into the 690. For example, the new 690 supports phone screen resolutions up to 4K with HDR for more accurate color displays.


fortune--2020-06-17--Lyft says all rides will be in electric cars by the end of 2030

Fortune survey : 62 % of CEOs plan policy changes in response to current calls for racial justice

Lyft is committing to make 100% of its trips in electric vehicles by the end of 2030. But to get there, it’ll need the support of policymakers and automakers, a robust charging network, and most of all, its drivers’ cooperation.
Ride-hailing companies have struggled as governments asked citizens to stay home to manage the spread of Covid-19. Uber Technologies Inc. cut 6,700 jobs, while Lyft laid off or furloughed more than 1,000 employees. Lyft co-founder John Zimmer, however, frames the pandemic-induced pain as an opportunity to “re-evaluate everything.” That includes the vehicles that carry its hot-pink logo. With the transition to electric, Zimmer says, “we will be better positioned coming out of this.”
California regulators determined in January that ride-hailing services emit 50% more greenhouse gas per passenger mile traveled than the average car. The state is expected to set out rules to reduce emissions from such services—a world first.
“Lyft are likely to get hit with regulations pushing them in this direction anyway,” says Colin McKerracher, head of transport analysis at BloombergNEF. “So they may just be trying to get out in front of that and announce it on their terms.”
Electric vehicles require much less energy to move the same distance compared to an internal combustion-engine, so even when the electrical grid carries a high proportion of power derived from fossil fuels, EVs still help lower carbon emissions. They also have no tailpipes, and thus cut air pollution. “There is a business advantage,” says Zimmer. “Our consumers demand cleaner vehicles, and our drivers want a lower cost of operation.”
This is not Lyft’s first big sustainability move. In 2018, the Silicon Valley startup announced that it would offset emissions from all its rides globally. With the new commitment, the company will discontinue the offsets program to focus on going fully electric.
Buying offsets is a pretty straightforward financial transaction, but Lyft will need a whole of host of things to go right to meet its new 2030 goal. The company outlined its approach in a white paper released with the announcement, including plans to leverage its position to negotiate discounts from automakers, push for policies that increase the wider adoption of EVs, and develop partnerships to expand charging networks in the U.S. and Canada, where Lyft operates.
“In a way, it will be kind of a self-fulfilling prophecy. It will send a signal to the market, and it will help bring partners on board,” says Sam Arons, Lyft’s director of sustainability.
Elizabeth Sturcken, managing director of the Environmental Defense Fund, concurs. “If other business leaders followed in Lyft’s footsteps, that would shift the needle on climate change,” she says. Sturcken is working with Lyft to help it meet its electrification goal.
Lyft can’t simply force its drivers—who aren’t considered employees in most of the jurisdictions in which it operates—to buy EVs. It will have to convince them to choose electric, instead. EVs are still much more expensive up-front than traditional cars, and they take much longer to refuel than the short pop in at the gas station most drivers are used to. So why would they switch? Lyft says EVs have lower operating costs due to cheaper fuel and simpler maintenance. The more you drive an EV, the cheaper its cost per mile.
“Before we existed, there was no peer to peer ride sharing. We had to create this category,” says Zimmer. “I’m confident that we can influence success on those things.”