Weinstein Company Files Bankruptcy; Bank Of America Expanding; Circle Buys Poloniex

The Water Coolest

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THE HEADLINES

Estimated Read Time: 4 minutes and 4 seconds

 

BLOCKBUSTED

Need proof that karma is a cold-hearted b*tch? Look no further than The Weinstein Company planning to file for bankruptcy.

This weekend The Weinstein Company’s board threw up a Hail Mary, accusing potential investors of stringing them along as the deal fell apart. Unsurprisingly they are still holding their breath for anyone to give a sh*t about their complaint. In the meantime, there appears to be only one option left for the disgraced studio: declaring bankruptcy.

A bid led by Maria Contreras-Sweet, former head of the U.S. Small Business Administration proposed the creation of a female-led studio cobbled together from the outstanding assets of The Weinstein Co. But those plans were derailed when the NY Attorney General filed suit against the company citing “egregious” violations.

The sale was complicated by the AG’s demands for any prospective buyer: victims would need to be compensated, employees would have to be protected and those who knew about the allegations should not be rewarded for any sale.

Water Cooler Talking Point: “Will the bankruptcy of The Weinstein Company change any of the disgusting things that Harvey Weinstein did? No. But does it hurt to see The Weinstein Company implode? Also no.”

 

ROUNDING THINGS OUT

Circle, a Goldman Sachs backed payment company allows people to send money via texts in any currency, including crypto. Soooo, like Paypal or Venmo? Well, not exactly. Circle uses open internet standards and protocols (read: blockchain) which allows it to offer its services for free.

With the $400M purchase of Poloniex, one of the OG crypto exchanges, Circle really is proof that you can have it all: Circle Trade is an over the counter desk for cryptocurrency investors and exchanges, Circle Pay allows for peer-to-peer payments, and Circle Invest is an app for trading cryptocurrency.

With other payment companies like Stripe ending their bitcoin support earlier this year, Circle seems to have found itself atop the proverbial Mt. Gox.

Water Cooler Talking Point: “I feel like Circle is the Night King and traditional banking institutions are the Seven Kingdoms of Westeros. Circle is just back there building an army of White Walkers and Undead Giants using mystical currencies and magic to re-arrange the financial world as we know it. And when that happens, we’ll need more wine than this.”

 

(BANK OF) AMERICA, F*CK YEAH!

Bank of America plans to open 500 new consumer banking centers across the US with a focus on The Buckeye State, planning expansions in Cincinnati, Cleveland, and Columbus.

But don’t expect the smell of rich mahogany and red velvet ropes guiding you to the next available teller. There will be no shortage of Ikea furniture in these new open concept banking centers whose focus will be on fostering discussions about mortgages, IRAs … and if the Browns will ever win a game again.

This move may come as a surprise as B of A has shuttered more than 600 locations in the past four years. But the changing footprint is all part of the firms master plan to stop servicing peasants and set up shop in more profitable markets. And the second largest bank in the US isn’t alone. JPMorgan will open 400 branches over the next 5 years in “strategic markets.” Sorry, Arkansas.

Water Cooler Talking Point: “It’s 2018, there should only be one reason to walk into a bank: to rob it. Maybe Bank of America could invest this money in technology that allows my credit card payments to clear in less than 25 business days.”

 


IN OTHER NEWS

 

  • Apple has confirmed that it does indeed use Google’s cloud service to host iCloud. The news is a signal that Google’s platform is being used more widely than ever. As the old saying goes, “if you can’t beat ’em, host your web-based file storage system on their servers.”
  • Diageo unveiled a “Jane Walker” scotch as it attempts to reach a wider audience. Johnny Walker grew by 18% last year as cocktail culture continues its resurgence. It’s great to see a drink for women and men to enjoy together … as long as they’re rich.
  • UPS is suing the EU over its decision to block their TNT Express merger. The lawsuit is worth $2.15B plus interest. We should be able to sue over the time spent figuring out what all these acronyms stand for.
  • Airstream is expanding production to meet demand as RV sales explode. The company is investing $40M and hiring 300 employees.
  • US indices were up yesterday:
    • DOW: +1.58%
    • S&P 500: +1.18%
    • NASDAQ: +1.15%

 


TALKING SHOP

Professional motivation, tips, tricks, hacks & resources carefully-curated by yours truly. Something you’d like to see featured? Shoot me an email at team@thewatercoolest.com

 

THE GREATEST GENERATION

Survey says … millennials are a self-serving, hopeless generation who are pretty much all just Lena Dunham and the cast of Girls. According to a study conducted by Comet (the financial services company, not the soap scum remover), 41% of millennials would end a relationship for a promotion.

Granted, this is better than what most baby boomers have to say about the generation.