Techflier

Marco Bello/Getty Images MicroStrategy plans to raise $42 billion to buy more bitcoin. The company's market value is about $45 billion, highlighting the massive scale of the investment. Microstrategy's bitcoin bullishness has eclipsed its core software business. Microstrategy has been piling into bitcoin for years, but its latest investment is huge even by its standards. The company, led by chairman, founder, and bitcoin evangelist Michael Saylor, said it plans to raise $42 billion to buy more bitcoin. That amount is just shy of MicroStrategy's entire market value of about $45 billion. "Our focus remains to increase value generated to our shareholders by leveraging the digital transformation of capital," MicroStrategy CEO Phong Le said in a press release. The software company said it plans to raise the $42 billion via an equal-split of stock and debt sales over the next three years. The company filed a $21 billion at-the-market offering with the S...

My mom and I love attending food festivals during our travels. Anna Staropoli Every year, my mom and I plan a trip anchored by a different food festival . Food festivals reduce the pressure of planning and allow us to immerse ourselves in new places. We make our best memories through meals, whether we're sampling craft beers or trying ant ice cream. Every year, my mom and I take a trip together. We've traveled across the country and to various continents, but there's one activity that serves as the glue to our trips — food festivals. Although it may seem odd at first, as a frequent traveler, my favorite trend is culinary tourism — the idea that people often like to explore new places through food-based experiences. By attending food festivals around the world, we're able to experience the local culture in a unique way. As an added bonus, festivals also make our trips easier to plan and always turn into an unforgettable experience. Here's why these fest...

blackred/Getty, PM Images/Getty, Tyler Le/Insider Investors face diminishing returns from cash alternatives as interest rates decline. Money market funds offered low-risk yields, but missed gains in the S&P 500. Treasuries, gold, and bitcoin emerge as alternatives amid dollar concerns and inflation pressures. Just a year ago, if the stock market got bumpy or felt risky, investors could shave a bit off their positions and park in cash-like money market funds yielding slightly over 5%. Today, cash alternatives are yielding slightly less. Still, they remain near or above 4.5%, which is a tempting return in exchange for no risk. But as we head deeper into an interest-rate-cutting cycle , the benefits of sitting on the sidelines will diminish, and investors will need to rethink their strategy. While the perk of a low-risk asset with a decent yield seems like a sweet deal, it actually did some investors a disservice, says Mark Malek, the CIO at Siebert. Specifically, those w...

Musk has poured nearly $119 million of his own money into America PAC, a super PAC that supports Trump and GOP House candidates. Jabin Botsford/The Washington Post via Getty Images Elon Musk's super PAC, "America PAC," has spent over $120 million to try to elect Donald Trump. The world's richest man, Musk has poured nearly $119 million of his own money into the group. The super PAC's also supporting GOP candidates in more than a dozen House races. Elon Musk's super PAC has already spent more than $120 million on electing Donald Trump, and he's spoken at two of the former president's rallies in the last month. But Musk isn't just boosting Trump: the tech billionaire's "America PAC" has been wading into the fight for control of the House of Representatives for months. As of October 28, America PAC has spent more than $16.1 million across 18 competitive House races, according to recent filings with the Federal Election Commi...

iStock; Rebecca Zisser/BI At 30, I reluctantly bought a smartphone once life with my flip phone became too difficult. Now that I text so much and use social-media apps, I have less to talk to friends about in person. Despite the benefits of having a smartphone, I feel more isolated and like I rely on it too much. I held off on getting a smartphone for as long as I could. Having grown up in the age of cellphones , my flip phone felt more than good enough since I could call and text anytime, anywhere. When I used it in public, people would ask if I was "detoxing" or making some sort of political statement by not having a smartphone. My answer was simple: I just did not trust myself with unfettered access to the World Wide Web in my pocket. As smartphones became ubiquitous for things like boarding passes and concert tickets, life became increasingly hard to navigate. Even dining out became an obstacle because my phone couldn't scan the QR code to reveal the men...

Pickleball is the fastest-growing sport in the United States. Rich Legg/Getty Images My friend and I decided to start an eCommerce company on a $10,000 budget. One of the first steps we took was selecting a product to sell. After consulting experts and using data from Helium 10, we chose pickleball paddles. When my friend and I committed to building our own eCommerce business , our first task was selecting a product to sell. We knew we wanted to create something of our own (rather than use an arbitrage model and buy and resell an existing product) — and that was about it. There were infinitely many directions we could pursue. We talked in circles for weeks, plagued by decision fatigue. Our working list included but was not limited to, kitchen sponges, elbow braces, zip ties, wind-up toys, cookie cutters, and even seasonal-specific items like holiday socks. And it felt like the blind leading the blind: My experience with eCommerce was secondhand, having reported on successfu...

A teenager checks her savings account on mobile phone. LeoPatrizi/Getty Images For Gen Z, retirement is 40 or 50 years away, but now is the perfect time to start saving. Investing early and building healthy financial habits is key to a successful retirement. Four financial experts shared their top strategies to kick-start retirement savings. For Gen Zers just entering the workforce, retirement may seem too far away to be a concern. Or, it may seem difficult and anxiety-inducing, especially as Gen Z juggles student loan debt, high costs of living, and a tough job market . And with a rising national debt, many younger workers are increasingly worried that they won't have access to the same resources that boomers have today, such as Social Security and Medicare. Only 15% of Gen Z put a set percentage of their paycheck into a savings account every month. And, only 20% contribute to a 401(k) or retirement account, according to Bank of America. However, when it comes to savi...

When you buy through our links, Business Insider may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more The best twin mattress deals include brands we love, like Casper and Leesa. Svetikd/Getty Images Looking for a twin-size mattress to furnish your dorm or kid's room? You have many great options to choose from, some of which are even on sale, making them even more attractive.  With Black Friday and Cyber Monday on the horizon, it's definitely worth waiting until the deal holidays before making a big purchase. But life doesn't always wait for the best deals to surface. In general, we're not seeing the best prices of the year yet, but if you need a bed now, the twin mattress discounts below are still much better than paying full price. Several options are down to their recurring deal prices, so we've gathered them here, too, because we don't recommend paying a dollar more. If a twin-size mattress doesn't cut it, be sure to check out our roundup of the best ma...

Rental car startup Kyte, which bills itself as the “best alternative to Hertz,” is pulling out of almost all of its major markets in the United States and has cut its workforce roughly in half in a bid to survive after exploring a sale earlier this year. The company is shrinking its operations to focus […] © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/Ytq6U7j via IFTTT

President Ronald Reagan waved from the back of his limousine in 1984. Ronald Reagan Library/Getty Images US presidents used to ride in unarmored convertibles with open roofs. After John F. Kennedy's assassination, presidential cars were customized with safety features. Today's presidential limousine is a 20,000-pound, $1.5 million Cadillac known as "The Beast." US presidents used to ride around in open convertibles. Today, President Joe Biden is driven in a 20,000-pound, $1.5 million armored Cadillac known as "The Beast." Take a look at how presidential limousines have changed through the years. Presidential cars replaced horses and carriages in the early 20th century. President William McKinley in an automobile. Photo12/Universal Images Group via Getty Images President William McKinley, who served from 1897 to 1901, was the first US president to ride in a car, according to the National Archives . The administration of President Theodore Roo...

Phillip Spears/Getty Images Existing home sales dropped 1% last month to the lowest level since October 2010. Homebuyers stayed on the sideline in anticipation of lower mortgage rates. But 30-year fixed mortgage rates have actually increased since the Fed's rate cut in September. US existing-home sales dropped to a nearly 14-year low in September as prospective homebuyers held back in anticipation of lower mortgage rates. Last month's sales dropped 1% to an annual rate of 3.84 million, the National Association of Realtors disclosed on Wednesday. That marked the lowest level since October 2010, and came in below projected estimates of 3.88 million, according to economists surveyed by Bloomberg . The decline to a multi-year low shows that buyers have opted to wait for home borrowing costs to descend, as typically happens when the Federal Reserve eases interest rates. It was widely assumed that US bond yields — and as well as mortgage rates, which are correlated with...

Courtesy of Conz Preti I moved to the US in 2010 for grad school in New York City. I planned to return to Argentina and continue my career there. I'm married to an American, and we are raising our three kids together. When I applied to a master's degree program in the US , I didn't plan to move permanently. I thought I'd attend Columbia Journalism's 10-month program and then move back to Argentina, where I had left a boyfriend, my cat, a fully furnished apartment, and every member of my family. When I got a job offer after graduating , my dad insisted I should at least give New York City a try for a year. One thing led to the next, and I've been in the US for 14 years. I'm married and have three kids, and I recently became an American citizen so I could vote. Becoming a mom made me care more about politics. I want to do my part as a parent to ensure my three kids have a future full of opportunities. For years, I had to explain why I couldn...

While fund sizes of many venture capital firms have ballooned into billions of dollars over the last decade, Benchmark Partners, one of Silicon Valley’s most successful investors, has stuck to raising approximately $425 million in capital every few years.  That’s what the storied firm told in a letter to its limited partners when it announced […] © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/Aps2rHF via IFTTT

As competition from newcomers like Bluesky and Threads increases, X on Monday launched a “Radar” trend analysis tool that aims to offer subscribers real-time insights into emerging trends and conversations on the platform. The tool, previously known as Insights, was initially targeted at Verified Organizations (businesses), allowing marketers to track topics and trends on the […] © 2024 TechCrunch. All rights reserved. For personal use only. from TechCrunch https://ift.tt/4iVUZbr via IFTTT

I'm non-mongamous and my partner is monogamous. Marjan Riazi Fernanda Fabian, 30, is non-monogamous and her partner of six years is monogamous. They've figured out how to make their relationship work. Fabian is open to closing their relationship for some time if they both feel it's needed. This as-told-to essay is based on a conversation with Fernanda Fabian, the host of Polycurious podcast. It has been edited for length and clarity. My partner of six years is monogamous, while I'm non-monogamous. I've learned that both people don't have to be monogamous or non-monogamous to make a relationship work. I met my partner Seth at Burning Man in 2018. We were in the same camp of about 120 people. One night, we were at our campground after dinner. There was music playing, and we both found ourselves walking to the middle of the dance floor to introduce ourselves. We talked for 15 minutes and then decided to hang out that night. We had a very instant co...

Former President Donald Trump used his McDonald's visit to cast doubt on a part of Vice President Kamala Harris' life story. Win McNamee/Getty Images Donald Trump visited a McDonald's in a key Pennsylvania county on Sunday. Kamala Harris said she once worked at a McDonald's, which is a key part of her biography. Trump has repeatedly claimed, without evidence, that Harris did not work at McDonald's. Former President Donald Trump has long been known for his love of the Golden Arches. After landing at the Philadelphia International Airport on Sunday, Trump and his team traveled to a McDonald's franchise in Feasterville-Trevose, Pennsylvania, where he donned an official employee apron and began handing out orders to customers waiting in the drive-thru line. He also helped cook the restaurant's signature fries. Trump's visit, however, had little to do with his fondness for the food. For weeks, Trump has attempted to sow doubt — without providing e...

The author moved from California to Germany with her family. Courtesy of the author I moved from California to Germany while pregnant with my second child. My kids are now 8, 5, and 3 years old, and traveling with them wasn't enjoyable. I had to adjust my expectations and plan trips that everyone could enjoy. When I relocated from California to Germany four months pregnant with my second baby, I fantasized about the places my husband and I were going to take our children — swimming on the Greek islands, exploring Slovenia's rugged mountains, and taking in plays in London's West End. My wanderlust was amplified by Instagram travel influencers espousing the virtues of traveling with little ones. The reality was different But when we traveled to Greece, to an Airbnb a mile from the Ionian Sea, I spent more time worrying my kids would break the glass coffee table or ornate glassware than enjoying my time. At the Eiffel Tower , I said, "Stop yelling,...