Latest news with #Crown
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Dwindling IPOs Reward Investors With Return Bonanza
Entering 2025, it was the year of IPOs … until it wasn't. Firms grew timid about dipping their toes into public waters as markets sputtered amid tariff threats. But less has turned out to be more. In fact, 2025 could end up being the year of IPOs doing well, even if some firms were hesitant to come out of their private shells. New data compiled by Bloomberg found that shares in companies to debut on US exchanges this year have climbed by a weighted average of 53% — the S&P 500 is up 4.4%, so, in the words of Larry David, pretty, pretty good. Now, to see if it inspires the wave of listings investors were hoping for. READ ALSO: After Reclaiming 'World's Most Valuable Company' Crown, Nvidia Gilds the Tiara and Kraken Launches Crypto's Attempt at a Venmo-Killer Before the champagne-popping, the hard truth: IPOs are still down. Bloomberg counted 33 of them so far, down from 41 in the first half of 2024 (excluding SPACs and small listings that raked in under $50 million). But the performances of stablecoin fintech Circle, up more than 585% since listing earlier this month, and cloud computing company CoreWeave, up more than 300% since listing in March, have offered assurances that, despite this year's Olympic hurdle run of risks, investor appetite for new opportunities is resilient. There are signs in some sectors that a trickle-down effect could be on the way, although that may take time: On the fintech front, investment management company Wealthfront filed for an IPO earlier this week, following rival Chime's $864 million debut in its initial public offering earlier this month. This activity suggests a warming trend in the fintech public offering market. Potential billion-dollar fintechs Klarna and Plaid have both signaled they are readying IPOs, having previously been spooked by market uncertainty. On the digital health front, two notable care providers have gone in opposite directions: Hinge Health is up 13.8% since its debut in May, while Omada Health has tumbled 22% since its listing earlier this month. The IPO calendar for the rest of 2025 remains relatively light, and analysts don't expect digital health listings to pick up, but fintech and crypto firms could be inclined to file — in fact, crypto exchange Gemini filed earlier this month, with many expecting Circle's success to embolden others in the sector to follow. We're Number One: The 53% average returns on newly listed US companies bested the 45% in Asia, 38% in Europe and 7% in the Middle East, according to Bloomberg's calculations. This post first appeared on The Daily Upside. To receive delivering razor sharp analysis and perspective on all things finance, economics, and markets, subscribe to our free The Daily Upside newsletter. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
DW
9 hours ago
- DW
Son of Norway princess charged with rape and sexual assault – DW – 06/28/2025
The charges against the Norwegian royal come after months of investigation involving a "double digit" number of alleged victims. The eldest son of Norway's crown princess was charged with multiple counts of rape, sexual assault and bodily harm, on Friday, after ten months of investigation. Marius Borg Hoiby is the 28-year-old son of Crown Princess Mette-Marit and stepson of the heir to the throne — Crown Prince Haakon. He was arrested several times in 2024 amid allegations of rape and preliminary charges of bodily harm. Hoiby has faced scrutiny since and has been at the center of an investigation involving a "double-digit" number of victims. "I cannot go into further detail about the number of victims in the case beyond confirming that it is a double-digit number," Oslo Police Attorney Andreas Kruszewski said at a news conference. He added that the charges include one case of rape involving intercourse, two cases of rape without intercourse, four cases of sexual assault and two cases of bodily harm. The attorney said the evidence had been gathered from sources including text-messages, police searches and witness testimonies. In an email to The Associated Press, Defense attorney Petar Sekulic said Hoiby was "taking the accusations very seriously, but doesn't acknowledge any wrongdoing in most of the cases — especially the cases regarding sexual abuse and violence." The Crown princess' eldest son is her child from a different relationship before she was married to Crown Prince Haakon. Hoiby grew up with the privelege of the other royals but does not hold a formal title or have a public role. After the initial allegations of bodily harm last year, Hoiby admitted to acts of violence directed towards his partner under the influence of alcohol and cocaine. In a statement to the public, he spoke of psychological problems and long-term drug abuse.
Calgary Herald
14 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
Jury begins deliberations in case of Calgary man accused of torturing and killing multiple rabbits
The fate of suspected Calgary serial rabbit killer Nicholas Weseen is now in the hands of jurors — at least for now. Article content The 12-member Calgary Court of King's Bench jury began their deliberations Friday afternoon after hearing final legal instructions from Justice Michel Bourque. Article content Article content But if they find Weseen guilty on any of the 13 animal abuse charges Crown prosecutor Rose Greenwood is seeking convictions on, his lawyer will likely ask for an assessment of his client. Article content Article content Defence counsel Eric Nelson-Addy told Bourque earlier this week he will seek psychiatric testing on his client to determine if he qualifies for a defence of not criminally responsible by reason of a mental disorder. Article content Article content 'There are reasonable grounds for such an assessment,' Nelson-Addy told the judge during proceedings in the absence of the jury. Article content Under the Criminal Code, portions of a court proceeding conducted in the absence of jurors are subject to a publication ban until they retire to deliberate the case. Article content Nelson-Addy said both his client's interview with Calgary police Det. Mark Weir and evidence from Weseen's former girlfriend Amy Miko, raised concerns about his client's mental health. Article content During his Jan. 22, 2023, police interview Weseen told Weir that when the rabbits were being harmed and killed it felt like someone else took over his body. Article content Article content 'It literally feels like there's a second person in control,' the city man said. Article content But in her closing arguments to jurors on Thursday, Greenwood asked jurors to ignore what she referred to as a 'charade' by Weseen to justify his unlawful behaviour by blaming the abuse on his alter ego. Article content Nelson-Addy had argued for an outright acquittal saying the Crown had failed to prove its case against Weseen beyond a reasonable doubt. Article content The assessment, if ordered by Bourque, would look into whether Weseen was suffering a mental disorder at the time which rendered him incapable of appreciating the nature and quality of his actions and that what he was doing was wrong. Article content
Calgary Herald
15 hours ago
- Calgary Herald
Kidnappers flew from Vancouver to Calgary to abduct city teen for ransom, court told
Kidnappers flew from Vancouver to Calgary to abduct a city teen who was bound with duct tape and held for ransom, court heard Friday. Article content Reading in a statement of agreed facts, Crown prosecutor Katherine Love told Justice Margaret Keelaghan of the female victim's harrowing experience. Article content Article content She said Raejean Hudson, 25, and Enyi-Egbe Idedevbo, 29, along with an unidentified third man, staked out the 19-year-old victim on April 29, 2023, before returning to her place of work three days later. Article content Article content When the girl, identified by the initials L.E., finished her shift on May 2, 2023, she wen out to the parking lot to her car, Love said. Article content Article content 'Upon reaching the driver's door of her vehicle, L.E. was grabbed by one of the males while the other two remained in the front seat of (their) vehicle. That male forced her to the floor of the back seat of the Santa Fe,' Love said. Article content 'She was forced into a position where she could not see where the vehicle was being driving.' Article content The trio took the victim to an Airbnb by the people that had been arranged by the people who hired them, Love said. Article content Victim had no idea why she was being kidnapped Article content 'There L.E. was taken to a room in the basement. She could see that there was something like black plastic covering the walls and floor. L.E.'s wrists, ankles and eyes were then bound with duct tape. One of the males recorded L.E. like this while another held an unlit butane torch in front of her face.' Article content Article content Less than a half hour after the abduction the victim's brother, who was overseas received the video from an unknown individual on a social media platform. Article content A still photo showing the teen bound by duct tape around her wrists, ankles and face, sitting on black plastic with a hand holding a butane tank was included in the agreed facts. Article content 'It shows the butane torch, Ms. L.E., and the black covering in the room,' Love said. Article content 'At the time she was kidnapped, she was unaware that she was related to anyone who was. She had no idea why she was being abducted,' the prosecutor said.
Otago Daily Times
18 hours ago
- Business
- Otago Daily Times
Change in leadership team: Another project boss back
Yet another former boss of the new Dunedin hospital has swung back into the revolving door of its leadership team, sources say. It is understood that former programme director Tony Lloyd was let go from the role last November but is back working on the long-delayed inpatient building again. He first joined the build in June 2022. Mr Lloyd, director of AGL Consulting, joins energy company Todd's boss Evan Davies, who resigned from chairing the build's governance board in June 2023 but returned as Crown manager of the project this month at the behest of Health Minister Simeon Brown. Both men have hospital construction experience, including in Christchurch. However, some sources in the construction industry expressed concern about the two men's comeback in Dunedin, due to the project's overall slow progress. One said: "This smells of positions for mates and corporate interests while the project and people suffer. What confidence can the government give to the South that the build is being managed competently?" Other sources blamed turgid and complex command lines at Te Whatu Ora Health NZ (HNZ) for the project's slow-go, rather than Mr Davies and Mr Lloyd's leadership. There had been "paper pushing and pontificating" up the chain. Minutes from the project's board when it was headed by Mr Davies complain about the problem. During the duo's previous reign, they worked with construction giant CPB which has been planning the build under an Early Contractor Engagement (ECE) agreement that began in August 2021. It was meant to progress to a building contract by early 2023, but it did not happen. Mr Davies, who originally joined the build in December 2020, jumped ship in June 2023 claiming a demanding day job at Todd. In response to a question about the return of Mr Lloyd, Mr Brown said Mr Davies had "full authority" for the inpatient build now, including "making personnel decisions necessary to get the job done". In a separate comment about Mr Davies' reappointment, Mr Brown said the Crown manager role would be easier than Mr Davies' previous hospital role because it was "substantially more limited". The new role was focused on getting the inpatient building constructed. In March last year, prior to Mr Lloyd's departure, an Infrastructure Commission general manager Blake Lepper shifted to be HNZ's head of infrastructure delivery and was consequently named senior responsible officer for the Dunedin hospital project. In March last year, prior to Mr Lloyd's departure, an Infrastructure Commission general manager Blake Lepper shifted to be HNZ's head of infrastructure delivery and was consequently named senior responsible officer for the Dunedin hospital project. When asked last November to comment on Mr Lloyd's exit from the role of programme director, Mr Lepper said HNZ had "looked closely" at the hospital build's management and thought "a different approach is needed". HNZ had signed a letter of intent with Crown Infrastructure Delivery (CID), a company mandated to help agencies struggling to deliver infrastructure, he said. Mr Lepper is understood to have then led the reconsideration of a fixed-price approach to the contract and a ward block refit rather than a new build. The former is thought by some other construction experts to be inadvisable, and the latter is definitely off the table and had been previously. An HNZ spokesperson failed to answer questions about the appointment of Mr Lloyd and whether Mr Lepper or CID were still working on the build. The HNZ spokesperson said the agency was "confident we have the team in place to deliver this modern healthcare facility for the people of the South".
