Business

### Federal Judge Rejects $30 Billion Swipe Fees Settlement Between Mastercard, Visa, and Retailers A federal judge has formally rejected a preliminary $30 billion swipe fees settlement involving Mastercard, Visa, and U.S. merchants. The proposed settlement, reached in March, aimed to reduce interchange fees that retailers pay when customers use their cards. ### Details of the Ruling Judge Margo Brodie …

TikTok escalated its confrontation with the Biden administration on Thursday regarding a law that could potentially ban the app in the United States. In a court filing, TikTok argued that U.S. users might be isolated from global content if the app is forced to change ownership. The filing also revealed, for the first time, a draft agreement between TikTok and …

Truth Social’s owner, Trump Media & Technology Group, has experienced a significant decline in market value. Since May 30, when former President Donald Trump was convicted on 34 felony counts in a hush money trial, the conservative social media company has seen its market value drop by about half. Trump Media’s share price (DJT) fell another 5% on Friday, resulting …

Several financially struggling Chinese cities are aggressively seeking back taxes from businesses, dating as far back as the 1990s, in an attempt to mitigate fiscal deficits exacerbated by a prolonged real estate downturn. Recent disclosures by at least eight prominent publicly traded companies reveal demands for substantial payments of overdue taxes, sparking widespread concern online and undermining the already fragile …

On Thursday, the Bank of England decided to maintain its main interest rate at 5.25%, a 16-year peak, despite inflation hitting the bank’s target of 2%. The decision comes amid concerns from some members of the bank’s nine-member Monetary Policy Committee that certain inflation metrics, particularly in the services sector, remain high and could escalate if rates are lowered prematurely. …

Former President Donald Trump recently introduced a proposal to eliminate federal taxes on tips, garnering considerable attention from Republican legislators, even as the broader implications and operational details of the plan remain unclear. Trump announced this tax initiative during a rally in Nevada on June 9, emphasizing that it would benefit tipped workers significantly. Nevada, a crucial battleground state in …

Facing Western sanctions, Russia’s largest privately owned bank, Alfa Bank, is expanding its operations in China, the world’s second-largest economy. Alfa Bank, which is controlled by sanctioned Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman, announced earlier this week that it has launched a website and support service in Chinese for businesses operating in the country. The bank also revealed plans to open branches …

Toyota is recalling 145,000 Lexus TX and Toyota Grand Highlander SUVs due to a potential issue that could prevent the driver’s side curtain airbag from deploying properly in certain situations. According to a statement released by Toyota on Thursday, the curtain airbag on the driver’s side might not deploy correctly during specific crashes if the driver’s side window is rolled …