Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) plans to introduce his own bill to prevent members of Congress from trading stocks, while Sen. Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.) teams up with fellow Democrat Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Axios has learned.
Why it matters: This means there will be now be two similar bills to ban stock trades individually championed by two vastly different lawmakers—further complicating the effort to pass a stock trading ban this session.
Private equity firm GTCR is nearing a deal to acquire Experity, the country's largest electronic health records company for the urgent care market, from Warburg Pincus, four sources tell Axios.
What's happening: The transaction is expected to value the company at between $1.2 billion and $1.3 billion, translating to an EBITDA multiple in the high teens, although no deal has yet been signed.
Citigroup (NYSE: C) said it plans to exit its Mexican retail banking business, called Banamex, via either a sale or an IPO.
Why it matters: The earth is no longer flat when it comes to retail banking, with only Santander still trying to make a global go of it. Banamex, which was Citi's savior during the financial crisis and later the source of scandal, was the U.S.-based bank's last foreign consumer operation, having last spring announced plans to exit 13 overseas markets.
A group of D.C.-based journalists on Wednesday launched a new media company called "Grid" that focuses on hard news analysis and investigative reporting.
Why it matters: Grid debuts amid a flurry of new media companies looking to reach a similar audience of wealthy, elite professionals.
Federal Reserve chairman Jerome Powell is offering Democrats fresh pledges to make climate change a priority, but there's little sign he believes the central bank should act to thwart Wall Street finance for polluting industries.
Driving the news: Powell told the Senate Banking Committee Tuesday that the Fed would proceed with analyzing banks' readiness to grapple with global warming and the ways climate change can threaten financial stability.
Consumer prices rose faster in 2021 than they had in any 12-month period since 1982, according to December numbers released Wednesday that showed the inflationary surge continued at the end of the year.
The Consumer Price Index rose 0.5% in December and 7% for the full year. Even excluding volatile energy and food, those numbers were 0.6% and 5.5%.
Unvaccinated workers, particularly low-wage earners, were much more likely to miss a full week of work because they had COVID symptoms or were caring for someone with symptoms — even before Omicron, according to a new analysis of December Census data.
Why it matters: Worker absences are causing widespread societal dysfunction — school and day care closures, stores with unstocked shelves, etc.
Goldman Sachs is helping to relaunch a youth leadership program run by the King Center, Axios is first to report.
The new partnership, announced today, is part of the investment firm’s $10 billion, 10-year effort to close the economic gap that Black women continue to face.
Why it matters: Goldman Sachs launched its One Million Black Women initiative last March in response to a national outcry for companies and individuals to do more to reverse racial injustices.
Civil rights leader Coretta Scott King founded the King Center in Atlanta following the assassination of her husband Reverend Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to promote nonviolent social change.
Details: The King Center’s Beloved Community Leadership Academy is designed to help 13- to 18-year-olds develop leadership skills and character, while learning about nonviolent strategies that can lead to societal change.
Through the partnership, the program will also create a cohort of Black girls from across the country who can participate in programs related to One Million Black Women and access mentorship.
What they’re saying: “By lifting up Black women and girls everywhere, we can not only honor the legacy of Martin Luther King, Jr., but also create a more dynamic and inclusive economy,” said David Solomon, chairman and CEO of Goldman Sachs.
The big picture: The inequities affecting a demographic group which makes up more than 6% of the U.S. population has held the country back from meeting its economic potential, S&P Global U.S. chief economist Beth Ann Bovino told Axios executive editor Aja Whitaker-Moore.
The pandemic has also exacerbated the gap.
The latest example: While the unemployment rate for U.S. workers fell in December, the percentage of Black women who were unemployed grew to 6.2% from 4.9% in November — the only gender and racial group to experience an increase.
Some of the most innovative electric vehicles we've test-driven in the past year were snubbed as 2022 North American Car, Truck and Utility of the Year, announced on Tuesday.
Driving the news: The Lucid Air sedan, Rivian R1T pickup and Hyundai Ioniq 5 crossover utility were all finalists for best vehicles in their category, but they lost out to traditional models from well-known brands.
The winners: Honda Civic (car), Ford Maverick (truck) and Ford Bronco (utility).
The jury: 50 leading automotive journalists from the U.S. and Canada (including yours truly).
My thought bubble: The winners stood out for their value for the money and, in the case of the Bronco, technology that enabled even me to excel at off-roading.
Starting at $19,995, the small and efficient Maverick hybrid finally makes pickup trucks affordable for entry-level buyers, and the 11th-generation Civic is rock solid as always.
Yes, but: I was impressed by all three EV finalists, especially since Lucid and Rivian are newcomers to the industry.
The $169,000 Lucid Air Dream is a game-changer that could unlock more affordable electric vehicles for the masses.
Rivian's fresh and surprisingly capable R1T opens up a new market for electric pickup trucks.
And Hyundai's spacious Ioniq 5, which can charge to 80% in just 18 minutes, shows how EVs can easily fit into our lives.
The bottom line: These futuristic EVs hold promise, but it's too early to declare them winners.
The term "phygital" — a portmanteau of "physical" and "digital" — refers to a marketing strategy in which brands use bricks and clicks to entice customers.
Why it matters: While the term is far from new — an Australian ad agency called Momentum copyrighted it in 2013 — the word is cropping up more and more as digital marketers expand and enhance the concept.
While "phygital" used to be a cool way to describe selling stuff through a blend of brick-and-mortar stores and e-commerce sites, the word gains new relevance in an era of NFTs and the metaverse.
The big picture: Marketers say we're fully immersed in the phygital era, given that consumers expect the same levels of personalization and customer service wherever they shop.
Cashierless stores like Amazon Go and the growing popularity of BOPIS (buy online, pick up in-store) are symbolic of this trend.
"The line — however slim — that existed between in-store and online retail experiences was eliminated during the COVID-19 pandemic," writes Inge De Bleecker in CMSWire.
"We have entered the age of 'phygital' shopping, in which digital enhances the in-store shopping experience."
What's next: Expect to see more blending of the virtual and physical space in the shopping realm, like phygital displays in retail stores that point you to virtual fitting rooms, online product reviews, etc.
Some carmakers and tech companies say they're preparing to deliver self-driving cars to consumers within just a few years, a fresh promise that makes it seem like 2016 again. But beware the hype.
Why it matters: Your car might be capable of driving itself in the not-too-distant future, but only under certain conditions, like favorable weather or within certain geographic limits. And the timetable is squishy at best.
The White House is bracing for another bad report Wednesday on inflation — but now expects it to slow down by the end of the year, administration officials tell Axios.
Why it matters: The Biden administration had been labeling price hikes as "transitory." By publicly warning the Consumer Price Index December reading shows inflation will linger through 2022, officials are trying to temper public expectations and minimize the bad-news blow.
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