Canada's Shopify Sees Second-Quarter Revenue Above Market Estimates
Shopify forecast second-quarter revenue above Wall Street estimates on Thursday, signalling the e-commerce company was steadily pulling in sellers even as global trade uncertainty threatens to hit retail businesses.
The Ontario, Canada-based company said it expects revenue to grow in the mid-twenties percentage range in the current quarter, while analysts on average estimate growth of 22.4 percent, according to data compiled by LSEG.
By Deborah Sophia; Edited by Shinjini Ganguli
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Shopify Must Face Data Privacy Lawsuit in US
A US appeals court revived a data privacy class action suit against Shopify Monday, stating the Canadian e-commerce company can be sued in California for collecting personal identifying data from its consumers.
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Yahoo
29 minutes ago
- Yahoo
How a multibillion dollar defence bank could help Canada increase its military spending
A new multilateral defence bank aims to help Canada and its allies build their militaries to meet looming threats in an increasingly hostile world while also giving Canadian industry a leg up when it comes to producing weaponry and military kit to tackle those threats head on. And its Canadian president is hoping it will have a major presence in Toronto. Announced this past spring, the new Defence, Security and Resilience Bank could solve financial problems for countries, including Canada, that are under pressure to increase military spending beyond two per cent of their gross domestic product (GDP). Some estimates peg the more likely target as five per cent of GDP as Russia and China grow increasingly belligerent on the world stage. 'We have to use our capital markets of allied nations for overwhelming force against our foes,' Kevin D. Reed, the new bank's president and chief operating officer, said in a recent interview. The theory is the bank would allow Canada and other countries to re-arm, said Reed, who has helped start nine companies including Equity Transfer & Trust. 'Hopefully that acts as a form of deterrent against big conflicts.' The United Kingdom 'has emerged as the lead candidate to take this on,' according to Reed. 'That being said, we've … advocated to our Canadian government that there's a window here for Canada to take a co-leadership role with the U.K.' Reed would like to see a branch of the bank located in Toronto. If Canada chose to be the bank's host nation, or to co-host with London, 'you're probably looking at 2,500-3,500' banking jobs in Toronto, he said. The bank would be owned by member nations, including NATO and Indo-Pacific countries. 'They would capitalize the bank, we would get a triple-A rating, and we would take it to the bond market to raise money,' Reed said. 'If we have all 40 nations in, we would expect about $60 billion of equity into the bank over time, and then subject to the bond markets we would seek to raise $100 billion at first, taking that up to about $400-500 billion over time.' For countries that don't have a triple-A credit rating, it would mean a lower cost to capital, he said. It would also allow nations in immediate need of more defence dollars to tap the bank for money, rather than waiting for annual budget cycles. 'The real driver in this is that it would provide credit guarantees to commercial banks to lend into the defence sector,' Reed said. 'Most commercial banks … unless you're a big prime (like Boeing), if you're a number two or three or four in the supply chain, you're almost unbankable, historically, because of ESG (an investing principle that prioritizes environmental and social issues, as well as corporate governance) and just a view of defence.' The Defence, Security and Resilience Bank would be similar to Export Development Canada, a Crown corporation that provides financial and risk management services to Canadian exporters and investors, 'but way bigger,' Reed said. It would offer large banks such as RBC and BMO credit guarantees 'that would loosen up capital so they could offer lines of credit, trade finance, you name it, but we can grow the industrial base a lot faster,' Reed said. That would, in turn, speed up military procurement, he said. 'It takes nine years to get a jet or seven years to get a shoulder-fired rocket launcher,' Reed said. 'It's because the industrial base just isn't big enough. It's been constrained. So, this would push liquidity into the commercial banks.' Sovereign countries could also 'enhance procurement' by borrowing from the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank on the promise that they 'have to execute within two years,' Reed said. 'We want to foster that rapid-fire procurement that we know has been a problem for all member nations.' Right now, it takes 16 years for startups to go from selling the Department of National Defence on their products to procurement, he said. 'Companies just can't live in that — they call that the Valley of Death,' Reed said. 'That is a problem. If you want to invent a new bullet … in your garage, you're going to wait a long time.' Rob Murray, NATO's inaugural head of innovation and a former U.K. army officer, started writing the blueprint for the bank about five years ago. But, at the time, interest rates were flat, Russia hadn't launched its full-scale war in Ukraine, and U.S. President Donald Trump was not in power. You do not attract first rate people with third rate infrastructure. And right now, you go to any garrison, any base, any wing across Canada and the infrastructure is crumbling When the Ukraine war began, interest rates started climbing and people started recognizing 'threat levels are changing around the world,' Reed said. Then Trump came to power in his second term and started 'forcing the hand of many NATO nations' to increase their defence spending, Reed said. Murray published his blueprint last December. 'On the back of that he was invited down to brief the president elect down at Mar-a-Lago,' Reed said, 'and Rob's world just started to expand rapidly with proposed member nations seeking him out, asking how would this work? How can we get involved?' Murray asked Reed to step in as the bank's president in early February 'to help stitch together the coalition of governments' needed to bring the idea to fruition. 'Every European nation has been briefed,' Reed said. 'And we did the briefing for Canada right after the election' with senior people in Prime Minister Mark Carney's office, the Privy Council Office, and departments including National Defence, Finance, Global Affairs and Treasury Board. Reed also briefed officials in Singapore last week and plans to do the same in Japan, South Korea, Australia and New Zealand this week. 'We're trying to drive this around a consensus of a dozen anchor nations,' he said. NATO figures from last June suggest Canada spent just 1.37 per cent of its GDP on defence in 2024. The Liberals have said they expect it to reach two per cent by 2030 'at the latest.' But that's not fast enough for Trump, who has complained repeatedly about Canada piggybacking on the U.S. for military protection. 'While I don't like what he's saying, I see this as an opportunity to get ourselves going,' Reed said. 'We have not done our job in a long time. We've not fulfilled our commitments, and this a kick in the pants to say who are we, and what do we stand for?' Later this month, Reed expects NATO countries to accept a new spending minimum of 3.5 per cent of GDP for defence and 1.5 per cent for border security. 'To go from our base today … it's another $100-110 billion a year to ramp up to that,' he said of Canada. 'And that's not in future dollars. That's in last year's dollars. So, any available mechanism that can help grow the industrial base and get them towards those NATO soon-to-be targets is going to be well received.' Founding members of the bank will start meeting in the fall to hammer out details. Reed anticipates standing up the bank next year. 'I like the idea of another mechanism, and a very powerful and large one, and I think a very influential one, that can help us do more in the defence and security domain in Western democracies,' said retired general Rick Hillier, Canada's former top soldier, who has joined the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank's board of directors. He predicts Canada is going to need 'a revolution in defence and security procurement' to solve the Canadian Forces' equipment woes. More money could accelerate the acquisition of new aircraft, warships and submarines, he said. 'The component I'm most worried about is the army,' Hillier said. 'The army is broken. We're down people. Our bases and our infrastructure are in very sad condition. And we lack every kind of capability that a force needs in the kind of areas where we would find ourselves fighting right now. If things go south in Eastern Europe and (Vladimir) Putin and Russia get into some kind of thing they can't extract themselves from and start heading into Lithuania and Latvia, where there are several thousand Canadians, our sons and daughters, we are ill-prepared to insure that they're ready to look after themselves.' The army lacks self-propelled artillery pieces, air defence systems, technology that can detect, track, and neutralize drones, and equipment to remove minefields, Hillier said. 'We need to focus a huge amount of that defence spend on the army.' Canada has also been lagging in spending to defend our north, he said. 'We've got to know what's going on in the Arctic, to be able to see what's going on specifically, to be able to communicate what's going on and then to be able to respond to what's going, whether its air, land, or depending on the time of year, sea forces. Right now, we can only do a very small part of that.' The country needs satellites and ultra-long endurance drones to cover the north, Hillier said. Bases should be built in Inuvik, Rankin Inlet, and Iqaluit, he said. 'Then you have to connect … those spots by upgrading the airfields across the north.' The military also needs billions of dollars to repair and replace old buildings, Hillier said. Canada's military has a shortfall of about 15,000 people right now, Hillier said. 'You do not attract first rate people with third rate infrastructure. And right now, you go to any garrison, any base, any wing across Canada and the infrastructure is crumbling.' At CFB Trenton, the military's hub for air transport operations in Canada and abroad, people can't even drink the water on the base 'because it's contaminated,' Hillier said. At CFB Petawawa, 'the fire hall they've been trying to replace for years floods in any kind of a rainstorm,' he said. 'As soon as it shuts down, you shut down operations in that training area, in that garrison, for the brigade, for the helicopter squadron and for the special forces training centre.' Hillier believes the Defence, Security and Resilience Bank could help alleviate all of these problems. 'There's an enormous amount of momentum because the inherent good in it is evident to most people as soon as they sit and think about what it could achieve,' he Two ways to boost Canadian defence spending and minimize Trump's tariff threats Canada's boutique military: 'Should we not be able to defend ourselves?' Our website is the place for the latest breaking news, exclusive scoops, longreads and provocative commentary. Please bookmark and sign up for our daily newsletter, Posted, here.
New York Times
an hour ago
- New York Times
Will Hudson's Bay's 355-Year-Old Charter Go to the Highest Bidder?
The end came a little bit early for the sprawling Hudson's Bay Company store in downtown Ottawa on Sunday when the oldest company in North America stopped trading after 355 years. At about 5 o'clock, I watched as the doors were locked about an hour ahead of schedule. There was little point in holding out for the final hour. Aside from heavily discounted jewelry, which was brought in for the liquidation sale, there was almost no merchandise left on the store's five remaining sales floors. Earlier in the day, the leftovers had been priced at $1. [Read: A 355-Year-Old Company That Once Owned One-Third of Canada Is Shutting Down] The shoppers left inside after the doors had been locked consisted of a long line of jewelry buyers and a handful of people dithering about whether they really needed a mannequin or a store fixture. My grandmother had a career selling women's 'foundation garments' at a department store (not the Bay), and before university, I sold cameras at a Simpsons store that was later absorbed into Hudson's Bay. So I found it a melancholy scene. But there was still some final levity. To the amusement of two plainclothes security guards — people once called floorwalkers — among the people rapping on the doors to be let in for a final visit was a woman they described as a 'frequent flier,' a recidivist shoplifter. Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Business Insider
an hour ago
- Business Insider
I landed a remote job for a European company, and now I'd find it hard to go back to a US-based company — I feel spoiled by the perks
This as-told-to essay is based on a transcribed conversation with 34-year-old Meghan Gezo, from Michigan. The following has been edited for length and clarity. In 2022, I left my job working remotely in people operations for a US company. Juggling my job and raising my one-year-old wasn't working. I wanted to take a break while I looked for another opportunity that would allow me to have better work-life boundaries. After a few months of job hunting, I started as a people experience manager at Storyblok, a fully remote content management company based in Austria. I'd never worked for a company based in Europe before. Living in the US, most jobs that pop up are US-based. People have come to expect more work-life balance in Europe, as the employment laws differ from the US. For me, there have been perks related to my life as a parent, my working hours, and my professional growth. I was immediately drawn to the benefits of working for a European company I've been working in remote jobs for tech companies since 2016. I'd previously worked in an office, but thought a remote job meant I could focus on higher-impact work than the office administration that usually fell to HR, as well as branch out beyond the manufacturing and automotive industry jobs in my area. It was easier to find a remote job in 2022 than in 2016. I found the listing for Storyblok on a job board. The people I spoke with were genuine and direct. In the first interview, they talked about time off norms and said the standard workweek is 38.5 hours. They seemed to emphasize work-life balance and gave me concrete examples of how it worked at the company. I was optimistic I could be successful in the role while staying involved in my daughter's life. In the US, the norm on paper is a 40-hour workweek, but in practice, people often work until they finish their tasks, especially in tech. I used to work, feed my daughter, put her to bed, and then work some more. It felt normal. At my current company, you focus on work when you're at work and then log off until the next day. There have definitely been times when I've had to work extra hours, but overall, I'd say that my work-life balance is better. In the US, it can often feel that your work is your identity. My European colleagues take pride in their work and are extremely hard workers, but their job is one facet of their identity. Working for a European company has pushed me in new ways I've gained experience working with people from other cultures. Learning about Austrian law has also pushed me to expand my HR knowledge beyond US employment law. One thing I've noticed about the company culture is that when people are on vacation, they're on vacation. Meanwhile, it's more the norm in the US to answer messages on vacation. I've not completely broken this habit, but it has felt more attainable for me to delete work communication apps from my phone when I'm away. I've felt very supported in my role as a parent at my European company The Austrian norm of " care leave," which isn't a norm in the US, is a great part of working for a European company. Because I have kids under a certain age, I get to use two paid weeks off a year for days when my kids are sick and I need to take them to a doctor or take care of them. Having this bucket to pull from is a huge weight off my shoulders as a parent. My previous employers had generous parental leave policies. However, at Storyblok, I got slightly more time — 16 weeks. I went on maternity leave at a previous company with my firstborn and again at my current job in 2023. During my most recent maternity leave, people in the company treated it very seriously. I got a lot of support from my manager and team to help plan for my leave and assign my tasks to others. During my first maternity leave for a previous company, I didn't mind answering a few questions as needed to support my team, but at Storyblok, no one asked me work-related questions while I was away. There are some downsides While my working hours suit my season of life, there are days when I wish I could start later at 9 a.m. However, I don't think I'd be as effective without overlap with my European colleagues. Right now, I work 6:30 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. ET. Sometimes, if I have a question I want to ask colleagues in Europe during my afternoons, I'll know that I won't be getting an answer until the next day because of the time zone difference. I've learned to work these expectations into my regular workflow. It does make me sad that I don't live near my colleagues. I've built strong relationships with these people, but they're an ocean away. I'd find it hard to go back to a US-based company Working for a European company didn't occur to me as an option before I interviewed for this job. Having worked here for over two years, I feel spoiled by the benefits and perks of European working culture, and it would be hard for me to go back to working for a US-based company.
