(Andrew Lipovsky/Getty Images) |
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It'll be tough to glaze over this one: Krispy Kreme's online-ordering system was deep fried after it said hackers found a hole in its cybersecurity. The chain's "hot lights" were thankfully unaffected. Trump rang the NYSE's opening bell yesterday, beginning a slow trading session that saw stocks cool after Wednesday's tech-fueled rally. Another round of inflation data came in slightly above expectations, but hopes for a rate cut next week remained high. 🎄 Mariah Quizzey: All I want for Quizmas is a perfect score on the Snacks Seven. Start with the first q: |
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First we fund… BuzzFeed yesterday said it was selling "Hot Ones" parent First We Feast for $83M to a group of investors led by the show's founder, Chris Schonberger, and host Sean Evans. First We Feast has 14M subscribers on YouTube, where its "Hot Ones" videos reliably attract tens of millions of viewers eager to see Evans interview celebs like Shaq and ScarJo as they eat increasingly spicy chicken wings. While First We Feast's popularity is heating up, BuzzFeed's been struggling: the company once known for its quizzes and listicles said it'll use the $83M from the sale to help pay down its $124M debt due this month. |
- First We Feast was the last piece left from BuzzFeed's $294M acquisition of media co Complex, which it sold off last year at a $185M loss (it only kept First We Feast).
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Which Disney princess are you?... The quirky-quiz era is over: BuzzFeed's value has plummeted from $1.5B when it went public in 2021 to $169M now. After shedding Complex and shuttering BuzzFeed News, the company's left with its main site, the Huffington Post, and food-vid-focused Tasty. Media rivals are also downsizing: Vox Media announced layoffs last week across Thrillist, PopSugar, and Eater, which will essentially shut down Thrillist. Last year, Vice Media filed for bankruptcy, and this year said it'd lay off hundreds of workers. |
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Media can't wing it… The industry's changed drastically since BuzzFeed's listicle heyday. The new guard of content makers like First We Feast are forging fresh ways to stay relevant with viral videos and branded products, and going independent shows it's working. Other media companies have put up paywalls to turn a profit or gotten creative with non-news content (think: New York Times games like Connections). |
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Index options may offer an unexpected advantage when it comes to your taxes! Traders may be eligible for 60/40 tax treatment on profits from index options trades. This means 60% of your profits may be taxed at the lower long-term capital gains rate, potentially saving you money as you enjoy the flexibility and other great benefits of index options. Learn more. |
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Index options may offer an unexpected advantage when it comes to your taxes! Traders may be eligible for 60/40 tax treatment on profits from index options trades. This means 60% of your profits may be taxed at the lower long-term capital gains rate, potentially saving you money as you enjoy the flexibility and other great benefits of index options. Learn more. |
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Fee'd up… Yesterday, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau finalized a rule that would cap the fees consumers pay when their bank accounts are overdrawn. Currently, banks aren't limited on how much they can charge for overdrafts (the average charge is $35). The new rule would cap fees at $5 or an amount that covers their costs and losses. Banks can also keep charging any overdraft fee amount, but only if terms are disclosed in the same way as a regular loan. Overdraft fees are a moneymaker for banks, generating $280B in revenue since 2000. The new cap could save consumers $5B/year. |
- Fine print: The rule's set to go into effect in October, but might face pushback in Congress — or if banks successfully sue to stop it.
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Overdraft under pressure… Banks have slashed overdraft fees in recent years to try to avoid more regulations. Last year, JPMorgan Chase, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America earned a combined $2.2B in overdraft charges — $700M less than in 2022. JPMorgan said that over 70% of its overdraft transactions don't have fees and that customers can choose accounts that don't carry those penalties. In 2022, Bank of America slashed its overdraft fees from $35 to $10. Capital One, Citi, and Ally ditched the fees altogether after pandemic stimulus $$ led to fewer overdrafts. |
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Checks and balances encourage change… Even without the overdraft cap, many banks had already changed their fee policies as regulatory scrutiny intensified. The Biden admin's crackdown on extra charges like junk fees has sparked industry-wide change. In March, Visa and Mastercard agreed to cut and cap their swipe fees for the next several years. |
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"This is our Louisiana Purchase moment that will help us reach the next financial frontier." Read more. |
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🪙 Coins… XRP creator Ripple said its long-planned stablecoin, RLUSD, had been approved by regulators and would launch soon. 🌶️ Spicy… Microsoft shareholders rejected a proposal that'd see the company explore buying up bitcoin, which corporates like MicroStrategy and MARA have scooped up in bulk. 🤹♀️ Quirky… Pudgy Penguins are flying high: the NFT collection's floor price passed $100K, though the broader NFT market has largely missed the crypto rally. |
- Costco sales rose 7.5% from last year to $61B in its most recent quarter. It made about 8% more from memberships YoY, likely boosted from its September fee hike.
- US household net worth rose 3% to a record $169T in the third quarter as stock prices and real-estate values climbed.
- Warner Bros. Discovery stock popped 15% yesterday after the company said it would segment its biz into a traditional TV unit (think: CNN) and a streaming unit (Max).
- Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg donated $1M to Trump's inaugural fund, moving to cozy up to the president-elect.
- GM's giving up on developing a Cruise robotaxi fleet and will instead absorb its self-driving subsidiary and pivot to autonomous personal cars.
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Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and shares of: Alphabet, Disney, GM, Microsoft, Visa, and Warner Bros. Discovery |
Advertiser's disclosures:
There are important risks associated with transacting in any of the Cboe® Company products discussed here. Before engaging in any transactions in those products, it is important for market participants to carefully review the disclosures and disclaimers contained at https://www.cboe.com/us_disclaimers. Under section 1256 of the Tax Code, profit and loss on transactions in certain exchange-traded options, including SPX Options, are entitled to be taxed at a rate equal to 60% long-term and 40% short-term capital gain or loss, provided that the investor involved and the strategy employed satisfy the criteria of the Tax Code. Investors should consult with their tax advisors to determine how the profit and loss on any particular option strategy will be taxed. Tax laws and regulations change from time to time and may be subject to varying interpretations. |
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Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and unique perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily reflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... See more |
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