What the Flux

A “neobank” named Xinja has had to stop accepting new customers who want to set up savings accounts due to financial constraints.  Grindr, the super popular gay dating app, has been sold by a Chinese gaming company for over $600m. ANZ Bank is cutting over 200 jobs from its private banking and financial planning division, following continuing issues after the royal commission over a year ago. --- T...

Myer has had a 36% drop in profit, following a significant reduction in sales in its key womenswear product range. Flight Centre has settled a legal challenge from the liquidator of the notorious Fyre Festival. Waymo, Google’s self-driving car division, has just announced a huge $2.25 billion fundraise this week. --- The content in this podcast reflects the views and opinions of the hosts, and is...

Spotlight, the company known for selling everything from quilts to string, is likely to buy failed Aussie department store Harris Scarfe. Lindt, the Swiss chocolate maker, has increased profits by over 5% despite its competitors experiencing sluggish growth lately. Following the failed IPO of WeWork last year, the world’s largest investor in tech startups, SoftBank, has held a special event to hel...

The Reserve Bank of Australia has cut interest rates to a new low of 0.5% to deal with the impact of the coronavirus on the Australian economy. Apple will pay up to $500 million to settle a lawsuit because it slowed down iPhones to entice customers to buy new, better performing iPhones. An investment company has bought 5% of Twitter and wants use its new ownership to replace its founder and CEO Ja...

Bega Cheese’s profit has fallen 21% following expensive legal costs from back-to-back court cases against other dairy companies. Shares in Beyond Meat, known for its meat substitutes, dropped 6% last week even though the company keeps signing up fast-food restaurants like Grill'd and Domino's. Clearview AI, a controversial facial recognition startup, has been blocked by Apple and its app has been...

Shares in the owner of Corona beer, Constellation Brands, fell 8% last week, as the beer brand struggles to escape the association with the coronavirus. DoorDash, which launched in Australia recently, has filed for a 'confidential' IPO as competition heats up in the food delivery industry. The NRL is speaking to TV networks and streaming platforms about its next broadcasting deal as it considers f...

Vodafone Australia lost 275,000 mobile customers last year and almost $280m, which is more than double last year’s financial loss. Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, has shocked the entertainment world by suddenly resigning almost two years earlier than planned. Retail Food Group, the owner of Gloria Jean’s, Donut King and Crust Gourmet Pizza has made a profit for the first time in 3 years. --- The cont...

Nine Entertainment, the owner of Channel 9, is planning to cut costs by $100m over the next 3 years as the TV industry battles to attract audiences and advertisers. After five years in the making, Amazon is bringing its checkout-less store technology to its first large supermarkets with Amazon Go. InvoCare, the biggest funeral company in Australia, has announced a 54% increase in profit. The reaso...

Blackmores, the Australian vitamin company, thinks it has found the 'paw-fect' way to lift profits. Jeanswest, the fashion retailer that collapsed last month, has been sold to a Hong Kong company, saving 680 jobs. Juul, the company known for its sleek USB-looking e-cigarettes, is stopping sales in Indonesia because it can’t stop retailers from selling its e-cigarettes to minors. --- The content in...

Although most rideshare users in Australia use Uber, a new report has found that its competitors such as Ola and Didi are catching up. Despite a drop in passenger growth, Australia's 4 major airports earned more money in 2018-19. The price of gold metal is currently at its highest level since November 2012. --- The content in this podcast reflects the views and opinions of the hosts, and is intend...

The same Chinese company that bought baby milk company Bellamy's last year is set to buy the owner of Farmers Union Iced Coffee and Big M. Google parent company Alphabet is closing down its energy kite startup as the company's risk-seeking division, Other Bets, lost $4.8b. David Jones is closing stores because profits have halved following weak sales and lower foot traffic. --- The content in this...

Real estate website Domain has achieved a profit of $22m and has claimed the property market is on the way back up. Medibank is blaming increases in hospital costs as the reason it had a 14% drop in profit, and as a result, is asking the government for financial assistance for the health insurance industry. Three of Australia’s biggest gambling companies, Crown, Star and Tabcorp, have reported dis...

Huawei, the Chinese telco company, is going on an Australia-wide tour to win over Australians as it pushes for its 5G network ban to be overturned. The AFL achieved a profit of almost $50m in 2019 as femal­e participation in the sport grew almos­t 11%. Elon Musk's SpaceX is planning to send private citizens into space as early as 2021. --- The content in this podcast reflects the views and opinion...

After 160 years of love from Australians, the Holden brand is being retired by its owner, General Motors. Coles underpaid employees $15 million in wages over a six year period. Ansell has announced half-year profit is up 67% following increased demand for its protective equipment during the coronavirus outbreak. --- The content in this podcast reflects the views and opinions of the hosts, and is i...

Commbank and ANZ are pushing for new laws that would allow retailers to add a surcharge to customers who use buy now, pay later services like Afterpay. The share price of Tesla is up 84% this year and the company is cashing in by raising $2 billion from investors. English soccer club Manchester City has been fined and banned for breaking financial rules including overstating sponsorship revenue fo...

Qantas and its pilots are in a stand-off over a new pay deal, preventing Qantas from progressing its long-haul flights from Australia's east coast to New York and London. Michael Bloomberg is working with Instagram meme influencers to promote his US presidential campaign. Pinterest shares fell after Facebook released a new app that replicates Pinterest's features. --- The content in this podcast r...

TPG and Vodafone are getting married. The Federal Court has approved a $15b merger because the combined company will be strong competition to Telstra and Optus. The share price of Hasbro, the toy maker, has jumped thanks to strong sales of Frozen 2 and Star Wars toys over the holiday period. Headspace, the meditation app, has raised US$93m to pursue a clinical validation for mindfulness - and figh...

It has been revealed that private company Airbnb had a loss of over US$322 million for the nine months to September 2019. Turns out it's expensive to invest in our safety. Australian blood company CSL has announced a profit of $1.9b from July to December 2019, meaning profit is up 11%. Oh, and it's Australia's third biggest company. Brandless, a SoftBank-backed online supermarket that once sold ev...

Celebrity chef George Calombaris has put his company into voluntary administration with around 22 restaurants and 400 jobs set to go. But Yo-Chi is still alive! Slack, the US tech company that does workplace collaboration, has downplayed a report that sent its share price soaring by 15%. NBN Co, the government-owned corporation that has built and is operating Australia's National Broadband Network...

Toll Group, a giant Australian logistics company, has had its computer systems hacked and the hackers have demanded a hefty ransom. Twitter has added millions of new users and increased ad revenue - and people are optimistic about the company’s future again. Shares in JB Hi-Fi, the tiger-coloured electronics and appliance retailer, are up 10%. But why? --- The content in this podcast reflects the...

Coles expects 2019 profits to exceed expectations following strong food sales over the festive season. Tinder made $1.2 billion in revenue last year as subscriptions for unlimited swiping takes off. Uber shares have jumped as the company continues to grow globally and gain access to airports around the world. --- The content in this podcast reflects the views and opinions of the hosts, and is inte...

At the Tokyo 2020 Olympics, elite athletes will sleep on beds made of cardboard and Nike is dressing 2020 Olympic athletes in uniforms made of recycled shoe parts. Disney+, the new streaming service that competes with Netflix and Stan, has announced its subscriber numbers for the very first time - over 26.5 million subscribers worldwide despite only launching in November 2019. Things are really he...

Google’s parent company, Alphabet, has lifted the lid on YouTube’s financial numbers for the first time. The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority (APRA) has said that medium and small size health insurance companies in Australia could be gone in the next two years because their businesses aren’t up to scratch. Australian company Blundstone is celebrating its 150th birthday this year. --- The...

In its attempt to fend off tech companies, Commonwealth Bank is the latest big Australian company to launch a new incubator for startups. The Australian business community is preparing for another wave of hits from the coronavirus as countries around the world continue close the door to Chinese tourists and the Chinese economy slows down big time. The owner and CEO of L Brands, owner of Victoria’s...

The former head of real estate website Domain (Anthony Catalano) and his business partner (Anthony Waislitz) have become shareholders in Australia’s 3rd largest real estate classifieds website, realestateview.com.au. The Super Bowl was in the US yesterday and the cost of Super Bowl ads are at an all time high. The top 10 highest-earning meditation apps of 2019 grew to $195 million, up 52%. --- The...