What the Flux

To cool the housing market, APRA will force banks to be more conservative when assessing how much new customers can borrow.   A2 Milk has been hit with a class action lawsuit by investors who have been disappointed by the poor performance of the company’s share price.   Pepsi has been raising its drink prices, and the company says more price hikes could be on the way to offset incr...

Qantas and Emirates are applying for a five-year extension to the agreement that allows them to coordinate pricing and schedules.   Facebook and its Instagram and WhatsApp platforms have suffered a worldwide outage that lasted more than six hours.   As major car makers struggle to produce cars due to supply shortages, Tesla has delivered a record number of cars.   ---   Flux Da...

World leaders, celebrities and billionaires have been caught up in the largest leak of offshore accounts in history - and around 400 Aussies are involved too.   Aussies who are fully vaccinated have the chance to win a $1 million prize - it’s all part of a new lottery created by a group philanthropists.   Aussie furniture retailer Nick Scali will almost double its size after it ann...

Kikki. K could be saved from being wound up (for a second time) after receiving potential acquisition offers.   TikTok has partnered with Aussie fintech Immutable to let fans trade online videos as NFTs (non-fungible tokens).   As Netflix buys its first video game studio, Sony’s PlayStation is on a spending spree - acquiring almost every studio in can.   ---   Flux Daily...

Junkee Media, the Aussie youth publisher, is up for sale and could be acquired by the owner of Rolling Stone and Variety magazines.   The US government will run out of money by October 18, according to the US Treasury.   The “world price of coffee” has increased 21.6% this year, meaning coffee drinkers could soon be paying even more for a cup.   ---   Flux Daily Qui...

The Iconic will let customers opt in to reselling their purchases... the second they’ve actually purchased them.   Google’s advertising business creates conflicts of interest that harm businesses and consumers - according to a new ACCC report.   Lego doubled its earnings in the first six months of the year as customers flocked to its reopened stores to buy Star Wars building...

Woolworths is launching an online marketplace that will rival Amazon and eBay for sales of everything from lego to cat food.   Instagram has paused its plans to develop a version of its platform for children under 13 after receiving backlash from critics.   China has now made it illegal to buy, sell and mine crypto as the country strives to maintain control of its currency.   --- &n...

Hungry Jack’s is going all in on Australia’s fried chicken wars, and is adding new burgers to its menu to fight KFC.   Nike profits are up 23% but major supply chain issues are forcing the company to slash forecasted revenue for this year.   Amazon is reportedly planning to open department stores with high-tech dressing rooms and its own apparel brands.   ---   Flux...

Gambling giant Sportsbet is one of the top 5 advertisers in Australia, spending $139 million on ads and sponsorships last year.   Luxury watch maker Rolex says the scarcity of its products isn’t a marketing strategy (even though it’s never been more expensive to buy their products).   The EU has revealed plans to standardise phone and laptop charging cords, which could see a...

Delivery workers from Australia Post subsidiary StarTrack walked off the job yesterday, threatening disruptions to parcel deliveries nationwide.   Netflix has bought the Roald Dahl Story Company - giving it exclusive rights to stories like Matilda and Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.   Share trading app Robinhood will begin testing a crypto wallet as it ventures into Coinbase’s l...

The financial pain is set to continue at Kathmandu as lockdowns hurt sales and supply chain issues cause stock shortages.   To attract more users to its Money app, Afterpay is going to let customers retrospectively turn purchases into buy now, pay later transactions.   The collapse of major Chinese property developer Evergrande could send shockwaves through the Aussie and global economie...

The company that owns Culture Kings and Princess Polly could be headed for a billion-dollar payday as it plans an IPO.   2021 is shaping up to be a cracker year for Aussie tech companies as payments company Airwallex hits a US$4 billion valuation.   Microsoft is going on a major shopping spree - on itself - and will spend US$60 billion to buy back its own shares.   ---   Flux D...

The valuation of Aussie tech unicorn Atlassian has surpassed the US$100 billion mark.   Department store Myer has turned around a $172 million loss from last year into a $46 million profit this year.   WhatsApp is going back to the future by launching an in-app Yellow Pages-style business directory.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz - Win prizes: https://quiz.flux.finance/ Save money and...

CommBank is pleading guilty to criminal charges over its junk insurance products.   Bondi Sands has decided against selling the company, as the believe reckon it’s better off in their own hands - despite a $320M valuation.   Crocs is expecting more than US$5 billion in revenue by 2026, thanks to some major collabs with celebs.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz - Win prizes: https:/...

Who Gives A Crap, the eco-friendly toilet paper maker, has raised $41.5M from big name investors, including the founder of Atlassian.   Online tabloid TMZ has been sold to Fox Entertainment in a deal worth around US$50M.   Flo, an app that offers female fertility tracking, has raised US$50 million as women’s health tech booms.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz - Win prizes: https:/...

Aussie design startup Canva has doubled its valuation to US$40 billion, making it the fifth most valuable startup in the world.   Zip, the Aussie buy now, pay later giant, wants to add another element to its payments toolbox - crypto.   To attract content creators, LinkedIn has launched a US$25M fund to pay creators and boost their content.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz - Win prizes:...

McDonald’s Australia has been found to have broken advertising rules, after a local radio host posted an Insta pic.   China is breaking up the nation’s largest finance app, Alipay, and will force the company to turn over user data to a new joint venture partly owned by China.   Amazon is working on a new point-of-sale system to snatch merchants from Shopify, Square, and PayPa...

In quite a backflip, the rest of Disney’s 2021 film releases will get exclusive runs in cinemas before they appear on streaming.   CommBank is being sued by a Colombian-Australian crypto group over a scam warning that the bank sent to its customers.   A judge has ruled that Apple can’t stop app makers from adding links for alternative payments.   ---   Flux Daily Qu...

Beer giant Lion has bought Byron Bay craft brewer Stone & Wood in a deal reportedly worth upwards of $300 million.   The High Court has ruled that media companies can be held responsible for comments readers leave on their social media pages.   Facebook and Ray Ban have released their new ‘smart glasses’ which let you take photos and video hands-free.   ---   Fl...

Uber says Australia needs to move away from fuel taxes in order to increase the uptake of electric vehicles.   Just like its rivals Apple, Facebook and Google, Microsoft is launching a personalised news service.   Crypto platform Coinbase wants to get into lending, but the company says it could be sued by regulators if it does.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz: Win prizes!: https://quiz...

Global software giant Microsoft is buying Aussie video editing startup Clipchamp for an undisclosed amount.   El Salvador has officially become the first country in the world to accept Bitcoin as legal tender.   Facebook thinks it’s finally ready to launch its most ambitious product in years - a digital wallet.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz: Win prizes!: https://quiz.flux.finan...

Foxtel has launched a new set top box that it is calling the 'ultimate streaming machine'.   Mercedes Benz has revealed its new electric vehicles as it plans to electrify its entire car lineup by 2022.   Payments giant PayPal has signalled it may launch a share trading platform to rival Robinhood.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz: Win prizes!: https://quiz.flux.finance/ Save money and w...

Qantas Loyalty, which sells frequent flyer points to banks and retailers, has seen earnings drop 30% thanks to covid.   New York University (aka NYU) is accusing Aussie med-tech company ResMed of ripping off its sleep apnea product.   Allbirds, the Kiwi shoe and clothing company, is describing its upcoming IPO as the ‘first sustainable public equity offering’.   --- &nbs...

The Reserve Bank of Australia is dipping its toes into the crypto world by testing out digital currencies - specifically for international payments.   Apple wants to turn our wallets into a thing of the past - after announcing its new virtual driver’s licence capability.   Global payments giant Mastercard has announced it wants a slice of Australia’s brand new ‘open ban...

BHP and mining giant Andrew Forrest are locked in a battle royale to acquire a Canadian nickel miner.   Apple is ramping up its health-tech game with new Apple Watch features that help with blood pressure and fertility planning.   Telstra has joined the vax party and is dishing out rewards to fully vaccinated Telstra customers.   ---   Flux Daily Quiz: Win AirPods Pro: https://...