Latest news with #268
The Star
05-08-2025
- Automotive
- The Star
Tesla awards Elon Musk US$29bil in stock amid compensation battle. What to know
Tesla is awarding Elon Musk around US$29bil (RM 122.60bil) in shares as a legal battle looms over a prior multibillion dollar compensation plan for the chief executive. A special committee of the company's board of directors said the interim pay package would motivate Musk to "stay focused" on Tesla as the electric vehicle maker pivots to robotics and artificial intelligence. Under the pay plan, Musk would receive 96 million shares valued at around US$300 (RM1,268) each as long as he remains in an executive position at Tesla for the next two years. On Musk's social media platform X, the special committee said the executive has not received "meaningful compensation" for his work for eight years. One of the world's richest people, Musk owns about 13% of Tesla shares, making him the largest individual shareholder. The company is worth more than US$969bil (RM4 trillion) based on current share prices. Tesla shares on Monday closed at US$309.26 (RM1,307), up 2%. Why did the board approve this plan? Tesla board members Robyn Denholm and Kathleen Wilson-Thompson said on X that the US$29 billion award is a first step, "good faith" effort to compensate Musk in lieu of a longer term plan. As Musk splits his time and energy among several ventures, including AI startup xAI and space exploration firm SpaceX, Tesla board members said they are eager to keep his attention focused on the electric vehicle maker. Musk has garnered criticism from investors for getting distracted by his temporary role in the Trump administration. Tesla shares have fallen more than 18% this year following significant brand damage and plunging vehicle sales. The company is at a critical turning point where it must pivot to robotics and autonomous driving technology to remain competitive, analysts said. Musk has overseen Tesla's robotaxi launch in Austin, Texas, and frequently touts the potential of the humanoid robot Optimus. "While these impending changes are exciting, the outcomes are not guaranteed," wrote Denholm and Wilson-Thompson. "It is imperative to retain and motivate our extraordinary talent, beginning with Elon." "We are confident that this award will incentivise Elon to remain at Tesla," they wrote. What happened to Musk's previous pay package? A Delaware judge has twice struck down a 2018 executive pay package that would have awarded Musk more than US$55bil (RM 232.51bil) in stock, arguing that Musk exerted unfair control over the negotiation process. In 2018, Tesla shareholder Richard Tornetta sued the company to block the compensation plan, claiming the board misled investors and was not transparent about the approval process. Tornetta and his attorneys also argued that the board was too susceptible to Musk's influence. Chancellor Kathaleen McCormick, the judge in the case, sided with Tornetta and rescinded the entire pay package, calling it an "unfathomable sum." McCormick denied the pay plan again in 2024, after the board held another vote to approve it. Tesla has since appealed McCormick's second decision, citing his contributions to Tesla's growth. "This compensation issue has been a constant concern of shareholders once the Delaware soap opera began," Tesla analyst Dan Ives wrote in a note. If the 2018 plan is ultimately approved after legal battles, the recent US$29bil package will be thrown out to prevent double dipping, the board said. How does Musk's pay compare to other chief executives? The pay package brought to court in 2018 was the largest potential compensation plan for an executive of a publicly traded company, McCormick said, worth 250 times as much as the median peer pay. The new plan is still the highest executive compensation package by far. Blackstone chief executive Stephen Schwarzman earned US$1.39bil in in 2008, compared to the US$29bil interim package for Musk. Another top earner, Palantir CEO Alexander Karp, earned US$1.10bil in 2020. In 2018, Musk agreed to forgo a cash salary for his work at Tesla and instead receive stock options based on his ability to meet company milestones. Board members argue that the value Musk brings to the company is worth hefty compensation. "We can all agree that Elon has delivered the transformative and unprecedented growth that was required to earn all milestones of the 2018 CEO Performance Award," the board's special committee wrote. "Retaining Elon is more important than ever before." – Los Angeles Times/Tribune News Service
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Bitcoin Treasury Corporation Acquires 292 BTC, Prepares for Toronto Trading Debut
Bitcoin Treasury Corp. (BTCT), a provider of institutional lending and liquidity services, said it bought 292.80 bitcoin BTC for C$43 million ($31.6 million), launching an accumulation strategy aimed at building a robust digital asset treasury. The Toronto-based company said it viewed bitcoin as both a long-term reserve asset and a crucial part of its revenue model, planning to use the holdings to support its institutional loans business. With the $125 million raised from a recently completed brokered share offering and any income resulting from the BTC purchase, Bitcoin Treasury aims to deliver institutional-grade services tied to the digital asset economy. It said it will focus on disciplined risk management and creating shareholder value as it positions itself as a leader in bitcoin-backed financial solutions. The company's shares are set to begin trading on the TSX Venture Exchange on June 30, following its reverse takeover of 2680083 Alberta Ltd. Shares of the merged entity were first listed at C$10 on Thursday with an immediate halt applied by the exchange. Although neither BTCT nor 268 shares were listed previously, the merger is a corporate shortcut that lets BTCT become a public company without a traditional IPO, using 268 as a private shell vehicle set up specifically for this purpose. The offering involved multiple financial institutions including Canaccord Genuity, Stifel, National Bank Financial Markets, BMO Capital Markets, and CIBC Capital Markets.
The Star
08-06-2025
- Politics
- The Star
Smaller families still in favour
Good boy: A grandfather talking to his grandchild inside a kindergarten in Hanoi. — AFP After the country removed its two-child limit, pharmacy worker Nguyen Thi Nguyet Nga says she still has no plans to have more kids, since she barely has time to see her daughters or the money to provide them a good life. The country's communist government on Wednesday lifted a long-standing ban on families having more than two children, as it battles to reverse a declining birth rate and ease the burden of an ageing population. But rising living costs and changing societal values mean the adjusted law may not bring the baby boom the government hopes for. First introduced in 1988, the law has been loosely enforced in recent years, and despite its abolishment, 31-year-old Nga said she worries about the costs of having a third child. It would mean seeing her two girls – aged seven and 12 – even less than she does or skimping on their education, she said. 'My parents-in-law really want us to have a boy... However, I will definitely not have more kids,' Nga said. She earns around US$300 (RM1,268) a month working in a pharmacy in the main town of northern Tuyen Quang province, while her children live with their grandparents 40km away. 'I don't earn enough for the two girls to have a good life. I don't have a chance to live with them every day,' she said. 'Mostly we talk on video chat and only see them once or twice a month, so why would I have another child?' Vietnam has experienced historically low birth rates in the last three years, with the total fertility rate dropping to 1.91 children per woman in 2024, below replacement level. No preschool blues: A mother taking her child to kindergarten in Hanoi. — AFP Although the trend is most pronounced in major cities, such as the capital Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City, Nga says she and her friends in the countryside feel no more inclined to have larger families. 'It's better to have two grow up well than having three or four kids who don't have a good education or good life,' she said. 'Time for myself' University student Nguyen Thi Kim Chi, 18, shared Nga's scepticism about having a big family, explaining that in an increasingly developed Vietnam, young people believed there are more options than devoting themselves entirely to raising children. 'My plan is to get married and have children once I have a stable career and financial security,' said Chi, who studies dance performance in Hanoi. 'I intend to have one or two kids because I want to balance work, childcare, and also have time to take care of myself.' Like in many countries, the soaring cost of living has become a drag on birth rates in Vietnam. Housing, utilities, healthcare and education costs are rising across the country, and those living in cities in particular say salaries no longer meet their needs. Baby's day out: A grandmother taking her grandchild for a stroll on a street in Hanoi. — AFP The United Nations Population Fund said it welcomed the country's policy shift but warned that it needed to invest in policies that help people balance family and professional life, including expanding access to quality childcare and promoting gender equality in the workplace. Tran Thi Thu Trang, who had a third child unexpectedly and now has two boys and a girl under seven, admitted life got much more difficult after the birth of her youngest. As an office worker in the port city of Haiphong, the 30-year-old is lucky to be able to afford a nanny. 'But salaries need to rise,' she said. 'We need help with kids' tuition fees and more support on healthcare.' Following the removal of the two-child limit, 'I think it will take 5-10 years (for people to change their views)', she added. 'But only if the government makes this a priority.' — AFP
Business Recorder
27-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Gold price per tola falls Rs3,600 in Pakistan
Gold prices in Pakistan decreased on Tuesday in line with their decline in the international market. In the local market, gold price per tola reached Rs347,900 after it lost Rs3,600 during the day. Similarly, 10-gram gold was sold at Rs298,268 after it shed Rs3,086, according to the rates shared by the All-Pakistan Gems and Jewellers Sarafa Association (APGJSA). On Monday, gold price per tola reached Rs351,500 after it lost Rs2,600 during the day. The international rate of gold also declined on Tuesday. The rate was at $3,295 per ounce (with a premium of $20), a decrease of $36, as per APGJSA. Meanwhile, silver price per tola decreased by Rs60 to settle at Rs3,448.
New Straits Times
08-05-2025
- Politics
- New Straits Times
Malaysians illegally in the US urged to take amnesty, return with US$1,000
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysians and others residing in the United States illegally should take advantage of that country's amnesty programme and return home — with US$1,000 (RM4,268) in their pockets. The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) recently launched a programme for voluntary self-deportation using the Customs and Border Protection agency's CBP Home app. The programme offers financial and travel document assistance to anyone who is residing illegally in the US to facilitate travel back to their home countries. In a briefing with journalists from the Indo-Pacific region today, DHS assistant secretary for public affairs Tricia McLaughlin said the offer was for citizens of any country illegally residing the US. She said, under the programme, illegal immigrants will get a US$1,000 stipend upon confirmation of travel arrangements out of the US. According to the DHS website, the US government would also assist in booking tickets and/or with obtaining necessary travel documentation should a request be made. "(Those who register for self-deportation) will be (temporarily) deprioritised for detention by ICE (Immigration and Customs Enforcement agency)," said McLaughlin. "(By opting for self-deportation) they can come back legally (at a later date) and live the 'American dream'." She said those who did not take advantage of the programme, should they be detained by ICE and forcibly deported, would lose the right to return to the US. McLaughlin could not provide a breakdown of statistics of estimated illegal immigrants from countries in the Indo-Pacific currently in the US, nor the number currently under final deportation orders. However, in February this year, then Malaysian ambassador to the US Datuk Seri Nazri Aziz had said there were, at the time, 435 Malaysians had been issued final deportation orders. US State Department senior bureau official for East Asian and Pacific Affairs Sean O'Neill, in the same briefing, said the US was working with countries whose citizens were scheduled for deportation, as well as third countries willing to accept others' citizens. "The citizens of all countries want their governments to protect their borders (and this goes for the US). "Why is this important? One is the ability to control who comes in (to any given country)," he said. The second reason is that many of those who enter countries illegally do so with the aid of criminal organisations involved in human, drug and wildlife trafficking. O'Neill said US President Donald Trump and his administration would not tolerate this. Asked about people with valid visas and green cards being deported, McLaughlin stressed that the US and the Trump administration were not anti-immigration. "If you are abiding by US laws, you have nothing to worry about, but if you are here on a visa or a green card, you are a guest in this country and you can act as such. "And further, that's a privilege, it's not a right, and if you are glorifying terrorists or committing crimes on a visa or green card, we reserve the right... to revoke that privilege and will do so to further US national security," she said. O'Neill echoed McLaughlin, saying that while the Trump administration was not anti-immigration, it was anti-illegal immigrtion. "I think that's a policy that pretty much every government on earth shares... no government supports illegal activity within their borders," he said. On people with valid visas being detained and deported, he said that getting a valid visa was the first condition of being in another country legally. "(However), the second basic condition is abiding by the terms of that visa, so if you have a valid visa (but) you start doing stuff that is inconsistent with the terms of that visa... obviously that visa doesn't mean you get to stay," he said. To a question that, with the new reciprocal tariffs being implemented, US policy seemed to be "all stick and no carrot", O'Neill said there were "an entire host of things" that the US continues to do with its allies in the Indo-Pacific. He said there was still economic engagement, with the tariffs being just one part of that, adding that there were also cultural exchanges, combatting transnational crime, ensuring the security of the Indo-Pacific and law enforcement training.
