Latest news with #Stretch
Yahoo
26 minutes ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Michael Saylor Amps Up Bitcoin War Chest With $2.8 Billion Sale
(Bloomberg) -- Michael Saylor's one-of-a-kind capital markets machine just got bigger. Trump Awards $1.26 Billion Contract to Build Biggest Immigrant Detention Center in US The High Costs of Trump's 'Big Beautiful' New Car Loan Deduction Can This Bridge Ease the Troubled US-Canadian Relationship? Salt Lake City Turns Winter Olympic Bid Into Statewide Bond Boom As crypto prices continue to boom, Saylor's Bitcoin holding company, Strategy launched a new kind of preferred stock, and then promptly upsized the deal from $500 million to $2.8 billion, according to a person familiar with the transaction who asked not to be identified. The security that priced on Thursday, which the company is calling Stretch, promises buyers a hefty 9% annual payout, with no end date attached — unusual in the arcane world of preferred stock offerings. The deal offered the latest demonstration of Saylor's Wall Street wizardry as he continues his years-long effort to transform a middling software firm, which used to be known as MicroStrategy, into a financial juggernaut obsessed with one goal: raising as much money as possible to acquire as many Bitcoin as possible. Some 600,000 coins, or around $70 billion worth at last count. Since Strategy's first purchase in 2020, Saylor has sold equity, issued various types of debt and layered stacks of preferred shares on top. In the process, he has encouraged a fleet of imitators and spurred a new industry of public companies following a so-called treasury strategy dedicated to buying and holding cryptocurrencies. Many of the previous financial instruments that have fueled Strategy's rise have ended up being more popular than expected, but even against that backdrop the demand for Stretch was notable. The company's common shares rose 0.5% on Wednesday, and are up 43% for the year. In Strategy's complicated and unusual capital structure, the new shares sit above the company's common stock and its other preferred shares — which carry names like 'Strike' and 'Stride' — but remain subordinate to its convertible bonds and a preferred stock known as 'Strife.' Unlike those earlier offerings, Stretch allows Strategy to tweak the dividend. Each month, the firm will set a new payout rate aimed at keeping the share price near $100, raising or lowering the level as needed. It's part pricing model, part trust exercise, and a clear reminder that Strategy creates its own rules. That flexibility may appeal to Saylor's large fan base of retail investors, but it also adds a fresh layer of uncertainty to an already complex capital structure. And there are signs that Saylor's tactics may be hitting up against somewhat diminishing returns. The value of the company, relative to the Bitcoin it owns, has gone down. In its latest offering, Strategy offered the Stretch shares at a discount to win over investors. The shares, which are set to carry an initial dividend of 9%, are being sold for $90 each, the bottom of a marketed range and a discount to their face value of $100, according to the person familiar with the deal. But the outsized demand for the deal provides the latest sign of both Saylor's avid following and the continued speculative fervor running through the markets. Morgan Stanley, Barclays Plc, Moelis & Co. and TD Securities worked on the deal, Bloomberg previously reported. --With assistance from Dave Liedtka and Yiqin Shen. Burning Man Is Burning Through Cash Elon Musk's Empire Is Creaking Under the Strain of Elon Musk It's Not Just Tokyo and Kyoto: Tourists Descend on Rural Japan A Rebel Army Is Building a Rare-Earth Empire on China's Border Confessions of a Laptop Farmer: How an American Helped North Korea's Wild Remote Worker Scheme ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Business
- Yahoo
MicroStrategy 'Stretch'-ed it too far with new product launch
MicroStrategy 'Stretch'-ed it too far with new product launch originally appeared on TheStreet. MicroStrategy, now renamed Strategy, made a fresh IPO of 5 million shares of its newest perpetual preferred stock: $STRC, aka 'Stretch," on July 21. The offering, led by chief executive Phong Le and executive chairman Michael Saylor, is being sold as a strategic complement to their growing suite of Bitcoin-linked investment products. But the news is already stirring debate online. Crypto commentator RunnerXBT said, "stretch investors bout to have their a**es, stretched," which reflects the more general cynicism on social media that Strategy may be overexposing itself to a bullish Bitcoin by offering more complex is Stretch different from Strategy's other products? In a live investor presentation, Strategy makes it known that Stretch is intended to set a target price of $100 per share. Phong Le outlined in detail three important modes to aid in this: A variable dividend rate, An at-the-market (ATM) issuance, and A unique call option feature. Since August 2020, when the firm adopted a Bitcoin standard, it has generated some eye-popping returns — claiming a 104% annualized return, compared to just 59% for Bitcoin itself, and 172% over the past 12 months. Strategy has generated $21 billion in digital asset value to date in the second quarter of 2025, with Saylor stating that the company's success makes its balance sheet as strong as that of Meta and Apple. According to Strategy execs, they're 'pretty excited" about the new $STRC product and point to the monthly dividend structure — a differentiator versus instruments such as Strike or Strife. "It's not a quarterly dividend, it's a monthly dividend," said Michael Saylor, adding that potential buyers, when taking on risk, favored "regular free cash flow." The dividend will be paid monthly, with a record date on the 15th of each month and a payout on the last day of the month. At $95, Stretch could be funded at a 9.5% annual rate, and at $90, Strategy's early guidance indicated a 10% rate. Still, critics are wondering whether the introduction of yet another favorite instrument — after Strike, Strife, and Stride — constitutes brilliance or brand fatigue. With investors in fierce agreement and drawing seemingly opposed conclusions, all eyes now are on whether Stretch will snap or hold. MicroStrategy 'Stretch'-ed it too far with new product launch first appeared on TheStreet on Jul 21, 2025 This story was originally reported by TheStreet on Jul 21, 2025, where it first appeared.
Time of India
08-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
IndiGo's global flight plan takes off as airline hits ‘half way' mark of a big dream
When IndiGo co-founder Rahul Bhatia met then-KLM president Pieter Elbers three years ago, he told him: 'I know the opportunity is huge. The only thing I don't know is how huge.' That meeting marked the early days of IndiGo's plan to expand beyond its domestic dominance and enter international long-haul operations in a serious way. Now, that vision is unfolding. Last week, IndiGo began operating flights to the UK and Europe using wet-leased wide-body aircraft, marking a significant shift in its growth trajectory. Until now, Air India was the only Indian airline operating twin-aisle aircraft for nonstop international routes following the collapse of Jet Airways in April 2019. With its first long-haul flights now underway, IndiGo plans to grow this business aggressively. After the inaugural Mumbai-Amsterdam flight landed in the Netherlands, Pieter Elbers — who joined IndiGo as CEO in September 2022 — told ToI, 'You find Indian travellers all over the world. But for very long, (a vast majority of them) have been deprived the opportunity to fly an Indian operator.' Over the past two-and-a-half years, Bhatia and Elbers have been putting into motion a clear strategy to change that. When asked where the airline stood on its plan to become a global airline by 2030, Elbers told ToI - 'We're half way through.' by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like The Most Beautiful Women In The World Undo The post-Covid travel boom pushed Indian carriers to chase a larger share of the growing international travel market. The move was aided by the Tata Group's acquisition of Air India and Air India Express in January 2022, IndiGo's robust financial position, and ongoing upgrades to India's airport infrastructure. 'The fact that we are touching down now in Europe is a big thing because of a number of firsts for us — flying long haul, serving hot meals and having Stretch on international flights. So it is much more than just two new destinations in Europe. It is the start of a very new chapter in the book of IndiGo. When IndiGo started in Aug 2006, Rahul Bhatia had a certain vision and he created that (making IndiGo India's biggest domestic airline),' Elbers told ToI. Live Events Bhatia had started laying the groundwork for IndiGo's global play even before Elbers joined. Both men shared a common view — that IndiGo's international ambition had the potential to become something very large. Since 2022, the airline has pursued a series of deliberate steps that Elbers described as 'building blocks to making IndiGo a global airline. These steps are not just individual or random. They are all part of a holistic plan.' These building blocks include introducing Stretch — IndiGo's business-class style offering — on select domestic routes last November, to give the airline some exposure to premium services before launching long-haul flights to Europe. The company also rolled out a loyalty programme aimed at courting corporates and small businesses. The broader push comes from a belief in the growing power of India's aspirational middle class. As Elbers put it: 'When IndiGo was created 18 years ago, there was a vision and there was a relentless execution of that vision. What we see now (international growth) is, I believe, a bit similar to what we had seen then.' Currently, IndiGo is operating one wet-leased Boeing 787 from Norse Atlantic, which flies the Mumbai-Amsterdam and Mumbai-Manchester routes. It will add three more 787s this calendar year, followed by two more in early 2026. Routes announced so far include London and Copenhagen. IndiGo is also expecting delivery of its single-aisle Airbus A321XLR aircraft starting this year. These planes will serve longer routes such as Athens, Delhi-Bali, and other Southeast Asian destinations. Due to the closure of Pakistani airspace, IndiGo's first flights to Europe are originating from Mumbai, as Delhi-west routes have become longer. Once Pakistani airspace reopens, Delhi will also begin operations to Europe. Elbers said: 'You have seen our network over the past few years. How we expanded at both Delhi and Mumbai. And even Bangalore and Hyderabad. We're not a single hub operator. We have multiple origins — Delhi, Mumbai, Hyderabad, Bangalore. They all have their own kind of focus areas, and and even even natural flows.' To support its long-haul ambitions over the long term, IndiGo has ordered 30 Airbus A350s, which will begin arriving in 2027. However, given persistent global supply chain delays, the airline may lease additional wide-body aircraft. Elbers said: 'We are not ruling out any opportunity or any chance. We keep looking and keep evaluating options.' IndiGo has faced challenges with aircraft availability, especially due to the grounding of many of its Airbus A320s caused by Pratt & Whitney engine issues. At its peak, 79 aircraft were grounded; the number has now come down to the 30s. Ongoing supply chain issues post-Covid have also slowed deliveries of planes, engines, and parts. 'Overall, we still have supply chain challenges. But our big order book (IndiGo was yet to receive 916 of the ordered Airbus planes as of last month) helps us average out deliveries. I don't want any delays, but the reality is what it is. I still hope and am cautiously optimistic that we'll have our first A321XLR before the end of this calendar year,' Elbers said. While long-term ambitions include North America, Elbers said his current focus is ensuring strong positioning in Europe first. There are also large Asian markets still untapped. 'There still are parts of Asia where we don't have any operations like Japan, Korea. And there's Australia too. With our partners Delta and, we will connect passengers to 20 North American cities (from Amsterdam),' he said. (with ToI inputs)
Indian Express
06-07-2025
- Business
- Indian Express
With Manchester and Amsterdam services, IndiGo boards the long-haul flight to chase its ‘global airline' ambitions
After establishing dominance in Indian skies and building a dense short-haul international network over 18-plus years, the country's largest airline IndiGo has finally forayed into the long-haul segment, marking the beginning of a new chapter in the carrier's evolution. Early July, the airline started flying non-stop to Manchester and Amsterdam from Mumbai, a milestone in its ambition to become a global airline by 2030 with its 'internationalisation strategy' as a key cornerstone. The plan involves product development to serve specific markets, building a global network by growing mid- and long-haul operations and deepening codeshare partnerships with global airlines, and inducting long-range narrow-body and wide-body aircraft, and all that while maintaining cost leadership. IndiGo—for long seen as a classic low-cost carrier (LCC)—is shaping into what its chief executive Pieter Elbers likes to call a 'fit-for-purpose' airline—one with varied product offerings in line with the demands of specific market segments, instead of the typical budget airline. Over the past year, IndiGo launched a tailor-made business class product—IndiGo Stretch—on select domestic routes, and a loyalty programme. The airline felt that there were sizable market segments within India where these offerings would work well. And beyond that, these were also part of the groundwork for the carrier's log-haul operations. On its just-launched long-haul flights—currently using damp-leased Boeing 787-9 aircraft from Norse Atlantic—IndiGo has hot meals and in-flight entertainment included for all flyers. It is also offering the international version of its Stretch product complete with complimentary alcoholic drinks service, choice of three-course hot meals, some free amenities, and even lounge access. And this could very well be the broad template for IndiGo's long-haul operations. 'I don't think our product here is what one can label or classify as an LCC or a ULCC (ultra-low-cost carrier) product. We have hot meals and baggage included. So, it's a fit-for-purpose product and operation. For a nine-hour or 10-hour flight, we choose to have a product where food is included, instead of going through all the complexities of selling it on board. Does it mean that we have to do it all across the network, and for our five and six-hour flights? No, not at all. The fit-for-purpose for 10 hours looks different than that for four or five or six hours,' Elbers told The Indian Express after IndiGo's inaugural Mumbai-Manchester flight. 'I believe very much that IndiGo should be a fit-for-purpose airline. That means that the hundreds of routes we operate in the nation itself should have a very cost compelling basis, and with that, a very attractive price. But some of the other routes in the nation, like its busiest, might need something more, and that's why we started with IndiGo Stretch. And the same goes for these European flights. It's fit for purpose and a value-for-money proposition. It's going to be very competitive with some of the fares offered by our competitors. And importantly, it's a direct connection,' the IndiGo CEO added. IndiGo sees significant potential in the international segment, given that Indian airlines account for 45 per cent of India's international air passenger traffic, while overseas carriers account for around 55 per cent. When it comes to India-Europe passenger traffic, overseas carriers have an even higher share of around 70 per cent, some of which is up for the taking, believes IndiGo. As part of its 'internationalisation strategy', IndiGo plans to induct extra-long-range narrow-body Airbus A321 XLR aircraft starting this year and wide-body Airbus A350 planes from 2027 to operate medium- and long-range international flights. With the A350s, IndiGo should be in a position to launch non-stop services between India and North America. But Elbers—a former KLM CEO whose nearly three years at IndiGo have been focused on internationalisation—does not want to wait for its own long-range aircraft to fuel its international expansion. He and the airline are in a hurry to emerge as trailblazers on a number of long-haul routes. Therefore, IndiGo decided to enter the long-haul market using damp-leased planes. IndiGo's agreements with Norse Atlantic are for six Boeing 787-9 wide-body aircraft, one of which has been inducted and is operating the thrice weekly Mumbai-Manchester and Mumbai-Amsterdam services. The remaining five jets will be inducted over the course of this year and early next year. Over the past two to three years, IndiGo has expanded its international network by adding destinations in regions including Central Asia and the Caucasus, Southeast Asia, and Africa using its narrow-body fleet. Europe, where Air India is the only Indian carrier that operates direct flights, was expected to be the next frontier for IndiGo. According to Elbers, the fact that 65 per cent of the world's population lives within the range of IndiGo's existing narrow-body fleet underscores the potential of international expansion within this radius and beyond. In addition to Manchester and Amsterdam, IndiGo will be adding another eight international destinations in the current financial year (2025-26), growing its international network to 51 destinations. It intends to launch services to London, Copenhagen, Athens, Siem Reap, and four undisclosed Central Asian destinations. Barring Athens, the destinations in Europe and the UK are expected to be operated using the Norse Atlantic aircraft that IndiGo is taking on damp lease. Flights to Athens will be operated using the Airbus A321 XLR aircraft that IndiGo expects to start inducting in the current financial year. Siem Reap and the new destinations in Central Asia are likely to be operated using IndiGo's mainline fleet of Airbus A320 family jets. 'When it comes to building the international network the opportunity is enormous and we have indeed demonstrated that with Central Asia, and even some places in Southeast Asia. But the way I would like to see the network developed is we start to expand the range step by step. You will continue to see a lot of new routes in, let me call it the region, Southeast Asia, Gulf…So, we are expanding the density of the regional international network, and at the same time continuously expand the borders of that network and stretch the scope of where we fly,' Elbers said. IndiGo also sees its codeshare partnerships with other international carriers as a tool for network development as it would help the airline study the traffic flows and demand and plan its own long-haul network densification over the coming years. Specific to IndiGo's foray into Europe and the UK is the carrier's recently announced partnership with Delta Air Lines, Virgin Atlantic, and Air France-KLM, which will help it offer connections to other points in Europe and the US from points that IndiGo would be flying to in Europe. 'I think partnerships, until a few years back, were very much foreign airlines flying to India and then putting their passengers on our domestic network, benefiting from IndiGo's enormous domestic network. I think we are now making it much more reciprocal. So, for example, KLM has 30 destinations in India connecting on their flights from some major Indian cities. Now, we're going to have connections on KLM from Amsterdam. With Virgin (Atlantic), same story. We'll have connections with Virgin here in Manchester itself. So, it's going to be more reciprocal now, and it's surely going to help the further development of our network,' Elbers said. The reporter was in Manchester at IndiGo's invitation for the launch of the airline's Mumbai-Manchester non-stop service. Sukalp Sharma is a Senior Assistant Editor with The Indian Express and writes on a host of subjects and sectors, notably energy and aviation. He has over 13 years of experience in journalism with a body of work spanning areas like politics, development, equity markets, corporates, trade, and economic policy. He considers himself an above-average photographer, which goes well with his love for travel. ... Read More
Mint
23-06-2025
- Business
- Mint
The Holy Grail of automation: Now a robot can unload a truck
The robots are coming for the last human warehouse jobs. Loading and unloading a truck is backbreaking, mind-numbing work that retailers and parcel carriers have tried to solve for years. Workers may not stay long in these jobs. Summers and winters are particularly grueling for anyone stuck in a metal trailer, slinging heavy boxes. Injuries are common. Automating this process has long been the holy grail of warehouse logistics. When loaded, packages must be fitted together to fill the available space and be sorted by weight—with the heaviest items on the bottom—so they don't topple or break. Unloading them is challenging, too, because the unloader must move in and out of a trailer, ferrying packages of different sizes and weights. On a typical warehouse floor today, every task might be heavily automated—except for workers loading and unloading the trucks. People who have worked these jobs say they have to stand for extended periods, hefting boxes as heavy as 70 pounds. New advances in robotics are changing that. Improved sensors and algorithms, advancements in AI and faster image-processing technology are making these robots proficient players in tasks that are like a game of 3-D Tetris. Engineers at Ambi Robotics designed a videogame to train its robotic stacking system, AmbiStack. It simulated challenging situations, including heavy parcels and boxes with strange dimensions, said Jeff Mahler, Ambi Robotics co-founder and chief technology officer. Another company, Boston Dynamics, has designed a robot called Stretch, named for its flexible arm that can reach the top corners of a trailer. With a vacuum gripper covered in suction cups, it can lift boxes weighing up to 50 pounds. DHL now has a total of seven Stretch robots in supply-chain facilities in three states and has trained nearly 100 associates to operate them. In Columbus, Ohio, one Stretch robot that DHL staff named 'Johnny 5" unloads around 580 cases an hour, almost twice the rate of a human unloader. DHL in May signed an agreement with Boston Dynamics for 1,000 more robots. United Parcel Service is also increasing automation at its facilities, including for loading and unloading trailers—a move that will help the company cut costs, UPS executives said in April. FedEx has been testing and refining the truck-loading process in one of its facilities with robotics company Dexterity since 2023. Walmart also has introduced robots that can unload a truck. DHL wanted a robot that had the flexibility to handle different products, that could move in and out of a trailer and that didn't require a large capital investment, said Sally Miller, global chief information officer of DHL Supply Chain. 'These are hard jobs to fill, especially unloading a trailer in the warmer months," she said. Stretch the Robot still has some difficulty picking up thin packages, and the robot can't unload bags yet. Boston Dynamics declined to say how much each robot costs but estimates that there is a two-year return on investment on the robots. Megan Diveley, a warehouse worker at a logistics company in Virginia who has been loading trucks for around three years, said she got nasty bruises on her legs when she first started. 'It got better after I got stronger, but I am always peppered with bruises," said the 44-year-old. Diveley said she fears losing her job and feels that worry even without the specter of robots. Lower volume, facility consolidation and cost-cutting at logistics companies are all factors that can result in layoffs. Her advice for the humans still doing the job: stay hydrated and wear steel-toed shoes.
