Money, Wealth & Power—A Daily Look at the Financial World
E. & J. Gallo Winery is shutting down a major Napa Valley production facility and cutting dozens of jobs across five California locations, a move that strips away positions tied to some of the state’s most recognized wine labels. The closure of the 70-acre Ranch Winery in St. Helena, which Gallo purchased in 2015, eliminates…
The U.S. Department of Education has flagged more than 1,800 colleges and universities over poor student loan repayment outcomes, warning that institutions failing to address high default and delinquency rates could face restrictions on federal funding. The action, rooted in guidance first issued in May 2025 under the Trump administration, ties schools directly to the…
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman accused fellow tech leaders of using artificial intelligence as a convenient excuse to justify workforce cuts that have nothing to do with the technology. Speaking at the India AI Impact Summit in February 2026, Altman told CNBC-TV18 that companies are engaged in “some AI washing” by blaming AI for layoffs they…
International arrivals to the United States fell nearly 5% in January compared with a year earlier, extending a downturn that made the country the only major destination to lose foreign visitors in 2025 even as global tourism grew. The decline, tracked through federal I-94 admission records covering overseas, Canadian, and Mexican travelers, signals that political…
Roughly one in four federal student loan borrowers is behind on payments, and a growing share are sliding toward outright default, according to federal data and a new report from two left-leaning advocacy organizations. The Century Foundation and Protect Borrowers argue the Trump administration’s policy decisions contributed to the deepening crisis, while an Education Department…
Frito-Lay, the snack division of PepsiCo, is closing a California warehouse and cutting 247 jobs, according to a Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification filed with the state in February 2026. The filing lands just weeks after California expanded its WARN Act requirements, raising questions about how the new rules will shape employer behavior during a…
Elon Musk has scrapped traditional resumes and cover letters for engineers applying to work on Tesla’s next-generation AI chip, replacing them with a single demand: three bullet points describing the hardest technical problems a candidate has ever solved. The directive, aimed at staffing the Dojo3 supercomputer project, reflects Musk’s growing impatience with conventional hiring filters…
Red Lobster has shrunk its footprint through its Chapter 11 bankruptcy process and has warned that a smaller store base will be part of its path forward even after its court-supervised restructuring. The chain emerged under new ownership and new leadership, and the restructuring centered on closing underperforming restaurants. For longtime customers and the communities…
Crypto lender BlockFills suspended client withdrawals on February 11, 2026, as bitcoin prices slid sharply, according to Reuters. The company, backed by Susquehanna, serves institutional clients. The sudden freeze leaves some customers unable to access funds at a time of heightened volatility across digital asset markets. BlockFills Freezes Withdrawals as Bitcoin Falters BlockFills, a crypto…
Nestle, the world’s largest food company, is preparing to shed its ice cream business as part of a sweeping corporate restructuring tied to leadership changes and persistent performance pressures. The move would separate the Swiss conglomerate from well-known frozen treat brands at a time when the underlying ice cream market is attracting significant investor capital….