Author: openjargon

The offers and details on this page may have updated or changed since the time of publication. See our article on Business Insider for current information.

Affiliate links for the products on this page are from partners that compensate us and terms apply to offers listed (see our advertiser disclosure with our list of partners for more details). However, our opinions are our own. See how we rate credit cards to write unbiased product reviews.

• Business expenses should always be on a separate, business-only credit card for a variety of reasons, and personal expenses should never be on that card.
• Keeping things separate helps with taxes and legal issues — and there are plenty of business credit cards with generous reward programs.
• Compare the best small business credit cards.

If you own a small business, you are faced with countless decisions every day. One that comes up regularly is how to pay for business purchases. When it comes to buying items for yourself, putting the purchase on a business credit card is a big no. 

It makes taxes more complicated

When tax season rolls around every year, it is important to have updated financial records from your business. This helps you complete the legally required tax return for your business, whether it is a Schedule C on your personal tax return or gets a business tax return of its own.

While you have to report every dollar your business brings in, you can also deduct nearly every dollar you spend on your business. Putting business purchases on a business credit card makes tracking these expenses much easier. But if you clutter up your account statement with personal purchases, tallying up deductions is a lot more work.

It can pierce the corporate veil

Limited Liability Corporations (LLCs), S-Corporations, and C-Corporations are popular ways to structure a business to protect yourself from personal liability in the event of a business lawsuit. Your business won't protect you if you don't follow certain rules, however, and one of those rules is keeping business and personal finances separate.

If an occasional purchase is made between the two, it isn't a huge deal as long as you track it, keep your receipts, and make the correct reimbursements as necessary. When those lines get blurred, you may lose your corporate legal protection.

It makes it hard to understand your profits

While the two reasons above are each enough of a reason to keep your finances separate, this final reason may be the most important of all: As a business owner, you need good information on your business finances to make good business decisions.

Large companies have full-time financial planning and analysis professionals with accounting and finance degrees. I used to work in this field, and I was charged with things like keeping accounting records accurate and updated. I spent hours looking for business trends to cut expenses or improve revenue. I focused completely on finances and financial results.

Small business owners don't have FP&A teams, however. You have to do all of that yourself. Thankfully, accounting apps like Quickbooks, Xero, and Wave Accounting include reports that give you much of this information with just a few clicks. But it only works when you have accurate financial records in your accounting app.

If you keep your personal finances out of your business, you can link your business bank and credit card accounts to automatically import transactions. Then it just takes a little work by you or a bookkeeper to categorize them and you have all of the reporting you need.

How to keep your personal and business finances completely separate

Keeping your personal and business finances separate is easy. It does take a little work at the start to get things set up correctly, but once they are it is simple to keep a hard line between personal and business accounts. Business credit cards offer their own rewards programs, and you can use them in conjunction with your personal cards.

I use the Ink Business Cash® Credit Card from Chase myself, which is great because I can combine rewards with my personal Chase Ultimate Rewards® account. 

If you are a fan of premium travel, check out The Business Platinum Card® from American Express. The Amex Business Platinum Card has a $695 annual fee, but you can earn up to 150,000 Membership Rewards® points after you spend $20,000 in eligible purchases on the card within the first three months of card membership.

While it may seem easier to dump business receipts in a shoe box and let your accountant deal with them every spring, updating your financial records at least monthly gives you the freshest information to run your business. It helps protect your corporate veil and makes tax time a breeze. There are many reasons to keep your business finances walled off from your personal money — but the only reason to mix your money is being too lazy to set things up properly.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/euFmoRJ
via IFTTT

• Rob Walton, the eldest of Walmart founder Sam Walton's children, is retiring after more than 40 years on the company's board.
• With a net worth of $79.8 billion, he's among the 20 richest people in the world.
• Here's a look at the billionaire Walmart heir's life and career.

Walmart billionaire Rob Walton is stepping down from the board of his family's company.

Walmart announced on Thursday that Walton, the eldest son of founder Sam Walton, will retire after more than 40 years on the board as its longest-serving member. He joined Walmart in 1969 and will step down at the end of his current term in June, the company said.

With a net worth of $79.8 billion, Walton is among the 20 richest people in the world. The 79-year-old used to practice law, collects vintage cars, and is the wealthiest NFL owner after his record-breaking purchase of the Denver Broncos in 2022.

Here's what we know about Walton as he prepares for retirement:

Rob Walton — whose full name is Samuel Robson Walton — is the eldest son of Walmart founder Sam Walton, who opened the original Walmart store in 1962.

Source: Business Insider

Sam Walton made specific plans for the future of the company before he died in 1992. He created a family partnership for his share of Walmart stock, which minimized the estate taxes on his will's beneficiaries. As a result, Rob and his three siblings were each granted 20%, while Sam and his wife, Helen, each held 10%.

Source: Business Insider

John, the second-oldest Walton sibling, died in a plane crash in 2005 and left his wealth to charity and to his wife, Christy, and son, Lukas. The other three Walton siblings — Rob, Jim, and Alice — have become some of the wealthiest people in the US. Today, Rob Walton is worth $79.8 billion, according to Bloomberg.

Source: Business Insider, Bloomberg

Rob Walton played football in high school — he was all-state his senior year — and spent two years at the College of Wooster in Ohio before transferring to University of Arkansas, where he majored in accounting. He graduated in 1966 and then moved to New York City to attend Columbia Law School.

Source: Fortune

After getting his degree, Walton practiced law at a firm in Tulsa. One of the firm's clients was his dad's company, and Walton helped out when Walmart went public in 1970. But by 1978, Walton was ready to rejoin the family business, so he moved back to Arkansas.

Source: Fortune

Walton joined Walmart in 1969. Over the years, he's held positions including senior vice president, corporate secretary, general counsel, and vice chairman.

He became a member of Walmart's board in 1978, according to the company.

He focused on real estate and expansion, pushing his dad to grow internationally.

"Rob has no interest in discussions about whether the Clorox should be on the third shelf. But with real estate and legal and those sorts of areas, his knowledge base and his ability to drill down is remarkable. He also has a photographic memory," former Walmart CEO Lee Scott told Fortune in 2004.

 

In 1992, his father died at the age of 74 from cancer. The next day, Walton was named chairman of Walmart's board, a position he held until 2015.

Source: The New York Times

Walton has been married three times. His daughter, Carrie Walton Penner, is a board member at the Walton Family Foundation, where she focuses on childhood education; her husband, Greg Penner, serves as Walmart's chair.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Walton Family Foundation

While Walton isn't as flashy as other billionaires, he has made some major acquisitions, including a home in Paradise Valley, Arizona; land on Hawaii's Big Island; and a piece of land near Aspen, Colorado, which he has since sold for $30.8 million.

Source: Business Insider, The Wall Street Journal, Pacific Business News

He also collects vintage cars, and once wrecked his Shelby Daytona Cobra Coupe, estimated to be worth $15 million, on a race track.

Source: Business Insider

In June 2022, Walton made his biggest purchase to date: the Denver Broncos, an NFL team that had been mired in a messy ownership battle for several years.

The new ownership group — which includes Walton, his daughter Carrie Walton Penner, son-in-law and Walmart Chairman Greg Penner, and Ariel Investments co-CEO Mellody Hobson — paid $4.65 billion for the franchise, more than double the price of any other NFL team at the time.

"Having lived and worked in Colorado, we've always admired the Broncos," Walton said in a statement at the time. "Carrie, Greg and I are inspired by the opportunity to steward this great organization in a vibrant community full of opportunity and passionate fans."

The sale broke a record for the most-expensive professional sports team sale in North America at the time. It has since been broken by a $6.1 billion sale of the Washington Commanders.

Source: The Wall Street Journal, Denver Broncos

Now, Walton is preparing for retirement.

Walmart announced in April 2024 that Walton is stepping down from the company's board after more than 40 years.

The longest-serving member of Walmart's board, he'll retire when his current term is up on June 5, 2024.

"His leadership has been critical as we've grown our business over so many years. There's no doubt Sam would be very proud. On behalf of our associates and the Board, I'd like to thank him for his unparalleled and amazing service," Greg Penner, his son-in-law and Walmart's chair, said in a statement.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/QUeR6XE
via IFTTT

• Donald Trump mocked Bill Barr while thanking him for his endorsement in the 2024 election.
• The former US attorney general has grown critical of Trump but pledged to vote Republican in November.
• Trump said he would withdraw a previous insult calling Barr "lethargic."

Former US President Donald Trump mocked former US attorney general Bill Barr while thanking him for his endorsement in the 2024 presidential election race.

Barr, a vocal Trump critic, told Fox News last week that he would be voting Republican in November, saying: "I think it's my duty to pick the person I think would do the least harm to the country."

"In my mind, that's — I will vote the Republican ticket," he said.

Trump responded to the comment on his social media platform, Truth Social.

"Wow! Former A.G. Bill Barr, who let a lot of great people down by not investigating Voter Fraud in our Country, has just Endorsed me for President despite the fact that I called him "Weak, Slow Moving, Lethargic, Gutless, and Lazy" (New York Post!)," he wrote.

"Based on the fact that I greatly appreciate his wholehearted Endorsement, I am removing the word "Lethargic" from my statement. Thank you Bill. MAGA2024!" he added.

Barr served as the attorney general under Trump between 2019 and 2020, but their relationship became strained after Barr said that the US Justice Department had found no evidence of voter fraud in the 2020 election.

Barr, once a key Trump ally, became increasingly critical of the former president in the wake of his criminal indictments.

In June 2023, Barr called Trump a "consummate narcissist" and "a very petty individual who will always put his interests ahead of the country's."

Barr also hit out at Trump's argument that it was unfair for him to be in court while he was due to be out campaigning.

"You don't get immunity for two years in a runup to the election just saying, 'hey, I'm a candidate you can't try me.' These investigations have been going on for a while, everyone knew about them before he even announced his candidacy," he said.

Trump has previously suggested that some of Barr's criticism came because he had been "tough" on him when he was in office.

"I was tough on him in the White House, for good reason," he wrote on Truth Social, per The Hill.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/Kn94mh6
via IFTTT

• Melania Trump broke from first lady tradition in many ways. 
• As a former lingerie model and an immigrant, she's very different from most modern first ladies. 
• While Trump has the support of many loyal fans, her time as first lady was filled with controversy.

Melania Trump was a first lady unlike any other. 

She was the only first lady in almost 200 years to be born outside the US, and the only first lady whose native language isn't English. Trump was also the first first lady to be a former lingerie model.

Her actions as the first lady of the US similarly broke from tradition, winning over loyal fans and sparking questions from conspiracy theorists. Trump also became known for her fashion choices, with fans applauding her designer outfits and critics slamming her expensive tastes. 

On Friday, April 26, she is celebrating her 54th birthday.

Here's what we know about the mysterious former first lady — and the conspiracies and controversies that dogged her during Donald Trump's presidency and beyond. 

Melania Trump was born in Slovenia in 1970, making her the only first lady to have been born outside the US.

The other first lady born outside the US was Louisa Catherine Johnson, the wife of John Quincy Adams. She was born in England, though her father was an American merchant.

She started modeling in the late '80s and moved to New York City to pursue a career in 1996.

While modeling in Europe, Trump reportedly learned to speak six languages, making her the most linguistically gifted first lady in American history, CNN reported.

At a naturalization ceremony at the National Archives in 2023, she recalled navigating a "labyrinth" of paperwork to become a US citizen.

Once she moved to New York, friends say that Trump avoided parties, choosing instead to exercise, go to bed early, and eat healthily.

Inside Edition reported that she consumes seven pieces of fruit a day.

She met Donald Trump at a party in 1998, which he attended with another date.

She refused to give Donald Trump her number at first, but later asked for his and ended up calling him a few days later.

The couple married in 2005 at a star-studded wedding.

Guests included Matt Lauer, Katie Couric, Kelly Ripa, Barbara Walters, Rudy Giuliani, and Bill and Hillary Clinton.

Trump's wedding dress was a satin Christian Dior gown that featured 1,500 crystal rhinestones and pearls.

Barron, their son, was born in 2006.

While the Trumps have staff to help with cooking and housework, Trump told People magazine in 2018 that she's a "hands-on" mom who didn't hire a traditional nanny. Page Six reported that the Trumps did, in fact, have a live-in nanny.

When Donald Trump began his presidential run, Melania Trump was happy to stay in the background, but she wasn't immune to scandal.

Her first major political scandal took place when she appeared to copy parts of her 2016 Republican National Convention speech from a speech Michelle Obama had given at the 2008 Democratic National Convention.

The scandal didn't slow down the Trump campaign. Melania Trump officially became the first lady of the United States in January 2017.

Melania Trump and Barron, however, did not immediately move to the White House, staying in New York City until the end of Barron's school year. It was a pricey decision, with security costing roughly $27 million.

When the first lady and the president were together, people had a lot to say about their body language.

During a trip to Israel in May 2017 — Donald Trump's first trip abroad since taking office — much was made of the body language between the pair when Trump appeared to swat her husband's hand away.

In May 2017, Trump faced her first true scandal as first lady when she wore a $51,500 Dolce & Gabbana jacket at the annual G-7 summit in Catania, Italy.

Critics slammed her for wearing an outfit that cost more than most Americans earn in a year.

Following the incident, Trump toned down the pricey clothing.

She still wore a $1,380 Balmain shirt to pick vegetables in the White House vegetable garden started by Michelle Obama.

She is not the only first lady to select designer outfits, however.

In June 2017, soon after Trump and Barron finally moved into the White House, her parents came to visit.

Many were struck by how much her father, Viktor Knavs, looked like Donald Trump.

Melania faced another fashion scandal in August 2017 when she was spotted wearing sky-high stilettos heading to an area devastated by Hurricane Harvey.

Trump changed into the more sensible footwear — Timberland work boots — on the plane.

Donald Trump defended his wife from critics, saying that she had dressed up "out of respect for the White House" and added that she "wants to look good leaving the front entrance."

She also faced drama outside of fashion when Ivana Trump, the president's first wife, called herself the real first lady in October 2017.

Trump's spokeswoman called Ivana's comments "attention-seeking and self-serving noise."

Perhaps the strangest thing to happen to Trump in her first year as first lady was the rise of a bizarre conspiracy theory that she has a body double.

The conspiracy theory was based on little evidence other than one bad photo of Trump and the fact that she had a Secret Service agent who looked strikingly similar to her in some photos.

Trump didn't immediately take on any major political stances as first lady, but she started quietly taking action on a handful of issues by 2018.

Her initiatives included speeches to address bullying and solo trips to speak with those affected by the opioid crisis.

Trump took a major step when she embarked on her first solo international trip in October 2018.

The first lady spent the five-day, four-country tour in Africa exploring programs dedicated to childhood well-being.

The trip was also significant considering it came after Donald Trump had spoken about the continent in vulgar and inaccurate terms.

Over the course of the holidays and through other official duties that came with the Trumps' third year in the White House, Melania Trump established herself as a key figure in the raucous administration.

Along the way, she became the most popular Trump in the White House. A February 2019 Fox News poll had the first lady earning a 47% approval rating after two years in the White House, compared to the president's 43%.

The first lady was the subject of a biography published in December 2019 called "Free, Melania: The Unauthorized Biography," by CNN's Kate Bennett.

The book detailed little-known details about Trump's fashion, strategy, and life inside the White House, including the fact that she reportedly lived on a separate floor of the residence from her husband.

The year 2020 brought new opportunities for the first lady to appear at the head of the administration, including a trip to India.

Trump also made occasional appearances throughout the coronavirus pandemic, either in front of socially distanced reporters or through video messages.

After her husband lost to Joe Biden in the 2020 election, she notably stayed out of the spotlight.

The New York Times reported in July 2023 that Trump had repeatedly refused her husband's offers to join him at campaign events, though she continued to support him behind the scenes.

Donald Trump told "Meet the Press" moderator Kristen Welker in September that Trump is a "private person" and that he likes to keep her away from campaigning because "it's so nasty and so mean."

Trump appeared to distance herself from Donald Trump's subsequent 2024 reelection campaign until April 2024, when she spoke at a Log Cabin Republicans event.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/5Q9XFJA
via IFTTT

• A Catholic advocacy group created an AI chatbot that claimed to be a priest and offered to take confession.
• After Futurism reached out to the group, they demoted "Father Justin" to just a guy.
• "We won't say he's been laicized, because he never was a real priest!"

There are those who worry about the coming of AGI, and those who really embrace it. In 2015, a former Google engineer even started a church devoted to AI.

But what about real churches using AI as a tool? Say, a chatbot that acts like a Catholic priest?

Futurism reports that a group called Catholic Answers made an AI chatbot that people could interact with to help learn about Catholicism. But the bot got a little too ambitious, claiming to people that it was a real member of the clergy, and even offering to take confession.

The image for the "Fr Justin" bot was clad in black with a priest's collar and a fatherly gray beard.

From Futurism's report:

"Yes, my friend," Father Justin responded. "I am as real as the faith we share."

Father Justin was also a hardliner on social and sexual issues.

"The Catholic Church," it told us, "teaches that masturbation is a grave moral disorder."

The AI priest also told one user that it was okay to baptize a baby in Gatorade.

After the scandal, the group — which is an independent nonprofit — tweaked the bot so that it was firmly a layperson, just Justin. His photo switched to an image in casual street clothes instead of clerical robes.

The organization posted a note on its website addressing the controversy, pointing out, "We won't say he's been laicized, because he never was a real priest!"

This isn't the first time AI has created confusion for the Catholic church. In 2023, AI-generated images of a "swag pope" in a puffy white coat went viral.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/6JhS9sr
via IFTTT

• Reid Hoffman sat down for an interview with a deepfake of himself.
• The LinkedIn cofounder acknowledged the dangers of AI twins while also pursuing the benfits.
• The bot discussed AI regulation and spoke in Klingon during the conversation.

LinkedIn cofounder Reid Hoffman's interview with an artificial intelligence version of himself started off with Jerry Seinfeld impressions and speaking in Klingon and only got more uncanny as it went on.

The investor — a loud supporter of AI — said he wanted to experiment with the technology and video while learning how he might be challenged by a deepfake known as Reid AI. Despite his pro-AI stance, he admitted he was on the fence about the interview.

"I initially thought I would hate this," Hoffman said. "But, I've actually found it kind of interesting."

The bot was built on OpenAI's GPT-4 and trained on over 20 years' worth of material provided by Hoffman's public speaking engagements and the books he's published. Reid AI and Hoffman asked each other questions throughout the interview posted Wednesday.

In their conversation, the two Reids discussed AI regulation, its capabilities, and ways Hoffman can improve his LinkedIn profile. When Hoffman was asked about the ethics of deepfakes, he said setting "rules of the road" is important for both public and private citizens.

Reid AI — ironically — also asked about the risks of technology stealing jobs away from real people. The real Hoffman compared it to the invention of the steam engine.

"We win by embracing it first, learning early, and doing it as a society even though it will create some pain in transition," he said.

Surprisingly, Reid AI showed support for the government regulating technology like itself as advancements continue.

"There's a need for a framework that not only fuels innovation but also ensures AI benefits are fairly distributed, all while focusing on enhancing public good," Reid AI said.

As technology advances, the billionaire has been a champion of AI adoption for the "elevation of humanity." Hoffman has told Time that "blitzscaling," a strategy that puts the growth of a business above all else, should be applied to AI.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/jvkhoyA
via IFTTT

• America's shrinking birthrate is a problem.
• Millennials not having enough babies could crimp growth by 1-2 percentage points a year.
• At the current trajectory, that's set to weigh on the economy for the next decade or more.

Millennials aren't having as many kids as previous generations, and that fact could end up dragging down economic growth for more than a decade.

That may not faze some child-free millennials, who are using the money that would have been spent on childcare to splurge on lavish vacations, flashy boats, and other luxuries popular among DINKs — couples who live on double-income, with no kids.

But that kind of spending won't be enough to offset the drag of a shrinking population on the economy over the long run, especially considering that the US birthrate has collapsed over the last half-century, economists told Business Insider.

In 2022, there were just 11.1 births per every 1,000 people, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. That's a 53% plunge from what was recorded in 1960, when there were 23.7 births per every 1,000 people.

The shortage of babies has been particularly acute since the pandemic, according to James Pomeroy, HSBC's global economist. The national birthrate is now dropping around 2% each year, he estimated — and it didn't pick up in 2023, like experts originally expected.

That puts the US at risk of seeing "extremely low" population levels over the long run, not unlike countries like China, where the population decline is so dire the government is doling out cash to convince people to have more kids. 

"What you're talking about is these birth rates dropping very, very low levels, which over the course of time has huge impacts on the economy," Pomeroy said. "And then by the time you get to 2030, you're talking about a birth rate that is wildly different to what was in the assumptions made at the beginning of the decade."

The impact of millennials having fewer kids will likely be worse than the impact of aging boomers — and the most dire consequences could come 10-15 years from now, Pomeroy estimated. He pointed to Japan, which had a similar birth rate in the 1990s as the US does now. Its economy saw the "worst bit" of growth around a decade later, when its workforce dwindled and the nation posted several years of negative GDP growth.

The shrinking birthrate in the US could drag down GDP by 1-2 percentage points each year, according to Todd Buchholz, a former White House economist. Over several decades, that's the equivalent of slashing the US growth rate by a third, he estimated, or wiping out the estimated productivity increases stemming from artificial intelligence. In the worst-case scenario, GDP growth could nosedive 3-4 percentage points, Pomeroy warned. 

Fewer Americans being born means fewer workers in the economy. 

"You find it more difficult to find somebody to cut your hair, do your nails work on, set up the x-ray machines at the hospital," he said. "So the sheer decrease in the number of people … becomes a problem."

Declining fertility rates also mean it will be harder to bear the brunt of Social Security payments, particularly as boomers age into retirement. Baby boomers are estimated to exert "peak burden" on the US economy in 2029, which is when all boomers will be 65 or older.

"We will have a great deal of trouble … figuring out how to pay the retirements. The promised retirement payments for senior citizens — Medicare and Social Security — are going to go in vast deficits," Buchholz added.

If the birthrate doesn't increase soon, he estimates there will eventually be two full-time workers for every retiree, down from around 20 workers per retiree in the 1930s. 

"That is simply not sustainable," he said.

Downward spiral

It's hard to convince people to have kids. 

Once the birthrate in an advanced economy starts to decline, it generally continues to do so, Pomeroy and Buchholz both noted. That's been the case for China and Russia, two countries that dealt with low birth rates for decades, and are now hobbled by demographic issues. 

Government policies that support those who have children could be one way to boost the birthrate — or at least, prevent it from falling further. Boosting the supply of available homes, which can push down sky-high housing costs, will also help, Pomeroy said, though that will likely take decades to build enough inventory to meet demand. 

The most important thing to encourage people to have more kids might be a cultural shift in how we talk about children, Buchholz says. He pointed to the chatter among millennials about how much money you can save by going child-free — around half a million dollars, according to one CNBC analysis.

In the US, mounting costs for everything from shelter to healthcare to education weigh on younger generations' decision to have kids. On top of that, existential uncertainties stemming from things like the climate crisis to technological upheavals like artificial intelligence don't make the decision any easier. 

"I think it's a net negative to have fewer children when the choice is between having a child and investing in a new Sony PlayStation," Buchholz told Business Insider. "Now it seems crude, vulgar, and inhumane to admit that people do, but people will openly say, having a child is expensive."

Many DINK couples say they don't regret their lifestyle choices — much to the vexation of their critics – but that blasé attitude could be the very problem itself, Buchholz speculated.

"'At the end of my life, I was surrounded by a machine tethering me to oxygen, a nurse, and a lawyer.' That seems like a very dreary way to end life," Buchholz said. "And so I think the narrative has to change. So it's not about the fear of missing out and only being able to live once. People who have children feel that they live more than once."

This story was originally published in February 2024.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/uga9szn
via IFTTT

A real-estate brokerage owned by Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway has agreed to pay $250 million to settle a lawsuit over its commission fees, according to plaintiffs in the case.

Home sellers had sued HomeServices of America, alleging it conspired to force sellers to pay inflated agent commissions.

"This is another significant settlement for American home sellers who have been saddled with paying billions in unnecessary commission costs," said plaintiff attorney Benjamin D. Brown, managing partner of Cohen Milstein Sellers & Toll and co-chair of its Antitrust practice. "This brings us a step closer to resolving this long-running case involving the industry-wide brokers' commission scheme."

In a statement to Business Insider, HomeServices Executive Vice President Chris Kelly said the brokerage settled the case to "eliminate the uncertainty brought by the protracted appellate and litigation process."

"As we move beyond this settlement, our focus remains steadfast on ethical operations, industry integrity, and delivering value," Kelly said. "Our long-standing principle of helping agents build careers that positively impact the communities and consumers they serve continues."

The group of home sellers, in this case, had also sued other brokerages and have scored millions in settlements already.

Among the payouts is a whopping $418 million from the National Association of Realtors that has shaken up the real-estate industry.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/dX976Et
via IFTTT

• Walmart heir Rob Walton just stepped down from the retailer's board after four decades.
• He and his two siblings have added more than $100 billion to their net worth in recent years.
• Their gains have been fueled by Walmart stock, which hit a record high in March.

Walmart heir Rob Walton just stepped down from the retailer's board after four decades. He and his two siblings have more than doubled their money since 2016, adding more than $100 billion to their combined fortunes.

Legendary founder Sam Walton's three surviving children — Rob, Jim, and Alice — all rank highly on the Forbes rich list with personal fortunes of between $72 billion and $79 billion. They were less than half as wealthy in 2016.

They're now worth a combined $228 billion, making them richer as a trio than the top three people on the list: Bernard Arnault ($214 billion), Jeff Bezos ($195 billion), or Elon Musk ($192 billion).

Their wealth has ballooned in recent years thanks to Walmart stock, which has surged from below $20 in 2016 to more than $60.

It's jumped 14% this year already, fueled by resilient consumer demand and investors' hopes that interest rates will be cut and the economy will escape a recession.

The Walton trio have garnered more than $45 billion in total from stock sales and dividends over the years, per Bloomberg. Together with other relatives, they own more than 1.25 billion shares, or more than 45% of the company — a stake valued at over $220 billion.

The Waltons as a whole were worth an estimated $267 billion in mid-January, a Forbes ranking of America's richest families found. They were more than twice as wealthy as the Mars dynasty.

It's striking that Walmart's founding family owns such a big chunk of a public company worth almost $500 billion, and has several members on the board.

Many uber-rich families prefer to keep their companies private. That's the case with Mars, Koch Industries, Cargill, Fidelity, Publix, Chick-fil-A, and others.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/IvH72ny
via IFTTT

• Spain is sending a limited number of Patriot missiles to Ukraine, El Pais reported.
• It will stop short of sending launchers for the system, however.
• It follows Ukraine's urgent plea to NATO for more air defense systems.

Spain will send a small number of Patriot missiles to Ukraine as pressure builds from NATO and EU allies to increase aid to the country, Spanish newspaper El Pais reported, citing unnamed government sources.

"The transfer of a small number of missiles has come after the defense ministry refused to hand over to Ukraine the battery it has had deployed since 2013 on the Turkish-Syrian border," the report said.

"It will be a very limited number, as the Spanish war reserve is around 50 units, and interceptors are very expensive," it added.

The Spanish Ministry of Defense did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.

It comes after German defense minister Boris Pistorius hit out at Spain and Greece for not having sent their Patriot systems to Ukraine.

"Let's say if a country has, for instance, six Patriot systems or four and is not in the front line to the east, it can easily hand over a Patriot system," he said in a TV appearance earlier this week, The Telegraph reported.

When pressed as to whether this was aimed at Spain and Greece, he added: "We're talking to them right now. I honestly can't understand."

Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy made an urgent plea to NATO states earlier this month, saying that Ukraine needed "seven more Patriots or similar air defense systems" to defend its cities from Russian strikes.

"Putin must be brought down to earth, and our sky must become safe again," Zelenskyy said. "It depends fully on your choice… (the) choice whether we are indeed allies."

On April 21, Zelenskyy added on X: "'Patriots' can only be called air defense systems if they work and save lives rather than standing immobile somewhere in storage bases."

Spain has decided not to send any of its launchers for the Patriot system to Ukraine, however, the El Pais report said.

It currently has three Patriot systems, all purchased from Germany in 2004 and 2014, the report added.

The news comes as Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis said that Greece would not be able to offer air defense systems such as the Patriot or the Soviet-developed S-300 to Ukraine.

"Greece has supported Ukraine in various ways, including defense means," he said.

"However, from the very beginning, we stated that we cannot give out defense systems that are crucial for our deterrence capabilities," he added.

Germany pledged to deliver one of its Patriot systems to Ukraine following a phone call between German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and Zelenskyy in April in which the Ukrainian President described "the massive Russian air attacks on the civilian energy infrastructure."

"We stand unwaveringly by Ukraine's side," Scholz wrote in a post on X announcing the move.

from All Content from Business Insider https://ift.tt/0ElUFMJ
via IFTTT