Pornhub parent Mindgeek sued for allegedly posting nonconsensual videos
34 women filed a civil lawsuit in California against the company that owns the Canadian adult video site Pornhub, alleging Luxembourg City-based Mindgeek is a “criminal enterprise”. The women claimed “that Pornhub and Mindgeek knowingly profited from videos depicting rape, child sexual exploitation, revenge porn, trafficking, and other nonconsensual sexual content.” Mindgeek told the press the accusations are “utterly absurd, completely reckless and categorically false” and that “Pornhub has zero tolerance for illegal content and investigates any complaint or allegation made about content on our platforms.” None of the claims have been heard or proven in court. Sources: BBC, Canadian Press, CBS (video), CNN and Daily Mail.
Luxembourg banks flag rising regulatory costs
The consultancy EY and Luxembourg Bankers Association said the cost of regulatory compliance for Luxembourg banks rose by 17% between 2017 to 2020, to €548m last year. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
HSBC to announce France sale shortly
HSBC is expected to officially announce the sale of its retail banking business in France to the US private equity outfit Cerberus Capital Management later today. HSBC is pivoting to Asia and to wealth management clients. Sources: Alliance News, Bloomberg, Reuters and Zacks.
Fintech plans massive London listing
The payments firm Wise said it would go public in London via a direct listing that values the firm at £5bn-£9bn (€5.8bn-€10.5bn). Sources: Bloomberg, CNBC, FT and The Guardian.
UK fintech snapped up by US banking giant
JPMorgan is buying the British roboadvisory outfit Nutmeg--which has roughly £3.5bn (€4.1bn) in assets under management and 140,000 customers--in a deal that reportedly values the fintech startup at £700m (€818m). Sources: CityAM, CNBC, FT and Seeking Alpha.
British food and drink exports to EU drop by nearly half in first quarter
A trade body said UK food and drink product sales to the EU fell by 47% in the first quarter of 2021, compared to the first quarter of 2020. Sources: BBC and The Guardian.
Guetta sells music catalogue for $100m
The French DJ and music producer David Guetta sold his back catalogue to Warner Music for a reported $100m. Sources: BBC, FT, Reuters and Variety.
EU top court says copyright trolls can make reasonable demands of ISPs
The European Court of Justice said so-called ‘copyright trolls’ can ask internet service providers to help it pursue copyright violation claims (in this case, for allegedly downloading pirated music) as long as their demands are “non-abusive, justified and proportionate.” Sources: Courthouse News Service and Reuters.
EU top court overrules European patent authority in Cyrus case
The European Court of Justice said that Miley Cyrus could patent “Smiley Miley” in the EU, rejecting the EU Intellectual Property Office’s claim that the phrase was meaningless. Sources: Reuters and ECJ judgement.
Luxembourg economy more competitive
The grand duchy rose three places, to 12th, in the annual IMD World Competitiveness Ranking. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
Ebay sells Korean business
The online marketplace Ebay reportedly sold its South Korea unit to a syndicate of local firms for $3.1bn. Sources: FT and Reuters.
Obamacare upheld by US top court
The US Supreme Court rejected the third lawsuit seeking to reverse Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act, which established a government-sponsored health insurance system that currently covers about 31m Americans. Sources: BBC, CNN, FT and New York Times.
Juneteenth declared new US holiday
US president Joe Biden signed a bill making Juneteenth--which marks the day, 19 June 1865, that the last African-Americans were freed from slavery--a federal holiday. Sources: FT, NPR, Reuters and Washington Post.
Questions over Curevac deliveries
Curevac said its covid-19 vaccine candidate was only 47% effective in trials, casting doubt on the delivery of some 320,000 doses destined for Luxembourg. Sources: Delano and Paperjam.
No deaths since 1 June
No one in Luxembourg has died due to covid-19 for more than two weeks. Sources: Delano and 100,7.
Swedish PM to face confidence vote
Stefan Lofven, faces a no confidence vote on Monday, which many commentators expect him to lose, in the wake of a controversial rent control bill. Sources: AFP, FT, Politico and Reuters.
California biology teacher accused of insider trading
A Silicon Valley high school teacher and five others have been charged with allegedly making “more than $1m from insider trading” on tech stocks. His lawyer did not reply to media requests for comment. Source: The Register and San Francisco Chronicle.
BMW trialling hydrogen fuel cell cars
BMW started road tests of a hydrogen fuel cell-powered SUV, which could potentially go on the market in late 2022. Sources: Autoweek, CNBC and Cnet.
Osaka to skip Wimbledon
Tennis player Naomi Osaka withdrew from Wimbledon, but plans to compete in the Olympic games. Osaka withdrew from the French Open last month, citing her mental health. Sources: BBC, CNN and ESPN.
Man unknowingly buys Florida town’s water tower
A small town in Florida accidently sold its municipal water tower for $55,000. “We’re human,” said Mark Kutney, Brooksville city manager. “Sometimes we make a mistake.” Sources: AP, NPR and Tampa Bay Times.
Today’s breakfast briefing was written by Aaron Grunwald