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Musk’s Tesla Sell-Off: Pickleball Hits High Seas, Caesars Micro-Betting Wager

MacKenzie Scott has launched a website detailing the process by which she donates her billions. The stock market fell again on Thursday after data revealed that retail sales are declining faster than expected. In addition, BlogsGurru examines how MasterControl, a life sciences software firm, became a unicorn after receiving its first outside investment in its three-decade history.

In The News Today

Analysts predict that stock market volatility will rise in the coming weeks as economic uncertainty spills over into the holidays and the start of earnings season in January. Markets may be prone to “wider swings” in the final two weeks of the year due to the lack of important economic data releases, according to one expert. TikTok is causing “genuine bipartisan concern” among lawmakers, with both Democrats and Republicans co-sponsoring a bill introduced this week that seeks to ban the social media platform in the United States. Rep. Raja Krishnamoorthi (D-Ill.), one of the bill’s co-sponsors, expressed his concerns about the app to BlogsGurru.

Top Take-Aways

Elon Musk sold nearly $3.6 billion in Tesla stock this week, according to Securities and Exchange Commission filings, pushing the Twitter CEO further away from the title of the world’s richest person. Musk has sold more than $22.9 billion in Tesla shares in four separate selloff rounds since agreeing to buy Twitter, lowering Tesla’s market cap by more than $700 billion in the process. The stock market fell for the second day in a row on Thursday, with the Dow dropping 2.3% and the S& P 500 and Nasdaq dropping 2.5% and 3.2%, respectively. The losses pile up as retail and food sales fall faster than expected, fueling recession fears in the aftermath of the Federal Reserve’s renewed commitment this week.

Billionaire MacKenzie Scott, one of the world’s wealthiest women, has launched a website that provides long-desired insight into the process behind her massive charitable giving, which has long been shrouded in mystery in terms of how groups can apply for aid and how she chooses recipients. According to the website, Scott has donated $14 billion to over 1,600 nonprofit organizations so far, which corresponds to BlogsGurru estimate of $14.4 billion last month.

The State and Treasury Departments of the United States jointly announced sanctions against Russian oligarch Vladimir Potanin, the nickel mogul who is the country’s second-wealthiest man, freezing all of his US assets and barring him from entering the country. Potanin had largely avoided Western repercussions during the Ukraine conflict, even as other Russian billionaires faced a barrage of sanctions. A new multi-year agreement between Caesars Entertainment and Simple bet, a leader in micro-betting products, has brought real-money micro-betting to the Caesars Sportsbook platform.

Micro-betting allows players to bet on the outcome of every play in a game, including every pass, possession, and pitch. Simple but CEO Chris Bevilacqua anticipates a $10 billion total addressable market for sports-betting micros in 2023, with $1 billion currently in operation. As pickleball popularity grows across the country, Holland America Line plans to retrofit every ship in its fleet with dedicated pickleball courts with top-deck views by February 2023. It’s the latest example of the travel industry capitalizing on the sport’s rapid growth, with everything from Airbnb and resorts to parks and gyms launching their own pickleball courts.

Today’s Must-Read

Here’s how Whisker, the maker of the Litter-Robot, which made $180 million in sales this year, plans to get stinking rich off of kitties doing their business.

In Case You Missed It

The first outside investment in MasterControl’s 30-year history has helped the under-the-radar company achieve unicorn status, with a $1.3 billion valuation courtesy of a $150 million injection from Sixth Street Growth. MasterControl, based in Salt Lake City, has been bootstrapping for years and will now use the cash infusion to build out its software with artificial intelligence and machine learning to predict and prevent quality problems.

Tips You Can Trust

The Federal Reserve’s 2% inflation target may be made more difficult by this year’s 5% wage increases. Indeed, after raising interest rates by 50 basis points this week, the Fed raised its year-end 2023 interest rate target by half a percentage point to 5.1%, matching the 5.1% average hourly wage increase in November. Here’s how the two indicators are linked, and what it means for the economy in the coming months. Many parents are accustomed to receiving holiday wish lists from their children at this time of year, but this season can also provide opportunities for valuable teaching moments in addition to material gifts. Here’s how to teach financial wellness lessons during the holidays this year for a gift that keeps on giving.

 

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