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Good morning and Happy Lunar New Year to all readers celebrating the upcoming Year of the Ox. Let’s all make a pledge to be a little more ox-like this year: honest, reliable, and hard-working without seeking praise.

MARKETS NASDAQ 14,025.77 + 0.38% S&P 3,916.38 + 0.17% DOW 31,430.70 - 0.02% GOLD 1,825.60 - 0.93% 10-YR 1.167% + 1.50 bps OIL 57.91 - 1.31% *As of market close. Here's what these numbers mean. Economy: Jobless claims, which we've been tracking since last March, dropped slightly last week. And while more than 20 million people still collected unemployment in late January, economists are hopeful that the recent downward trend in Covid cases will allow the labor market to mend further. Budget: The federal budget deficit will hit $2.3 trillion during the 2021 fiscal year, per the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office. This deficit, which does not include Biden's proposed $1.9 trillion stimulus plan, would come in below fiscal 2020's deficit of $3.1 trillion. Government: House Democrats concluded their arguments for convicting former President Trump of inciting the Jan. 6 attack on the Capitol. The defense is up today.

IPO Who's Ready to Bumble?

Bumble That kid has no idea what he just witnessed. Yesterday, America's No. 2 dating app went public, gaining 63% on the day to close at a $8+ billion valuation. In case you've had a ring on it since 2014, Bumble is a dating app famous for letting women swipe first and initiate conversation. Founder and CEO Whitney Wolfe Herd created it to combat rampant sexual harassment on dating platforms.  Wolfe Herd previously cofounded Tinder, but left after suing the company for...sexual harassment and discrimination.  How it makes that honey  Bumble used to be part of MagicLab, a company that operated various social and dating apps. In 2019, private equity giant Blackstone took a majority stake in MagicLab and put Wolfe Herd in charge, then rebranded the larger company as Bumble last year.  The app offers a free tier to its 12+ million monthly active users, but earns most of its revenue from premium subscriptions and in-app purchases. In the first nine months of 2020, it posted a net loss of $84 million on nearly $377 million in sales.  In addition to expanding internationally, Bumble has grown its business with:  BFF, a matchmaking app for friends Bizz, a professional networking platform Bumble Fund, which offers early-stage investments for women entrepreneurs of color  But Bumble has plenty of catching up to do to $46 billion rival Match Group, which owns Tinder, Hinge, and OkCupid. This IPO broke lots of glass Of the roughly 560 IPOs from the last 12 months, Bumble is the third with a female founder; only eight IPOs from last year had a female CEO. Over 70% of Bumble's board is women, a rarity in corporate America.  At 31, Wolfe Herd is the youngest woman to take a company public and her $900+ million stake pushes her fortune above $1 billion.  Of the 500 wealthiest people in the world, self-made women account for <5%, per Bloomberg.  Zoom out: Because so few female founders or CEOs make it to the IPO stage, the tremendous wealth generated through startup exits disproportionately goes to male investors and beneficiaries.

CRYPTO Mainstream Biz Embraces Crypto

Francis Scialabba After Tesla's cannonball into bitcoin on Monday, more established parts of the biz world are wading into the crypto waters.  Yesterday, the US' oldest bank, BNY Mellon, said it will hold, transfer, and issue cryptos for its asset management clients. Wall Street used to be cagey about crypto because of its volatility and legal-ish status, but bankers are getting lots of "sooo…btc ?" texts from institutional clients now as bitcoin and other digital token prices soar (bitcoin hit another high Thursday).  Mastercard also said yesterday it will support some cryptos, including bitcoin, on its network later this year, following Square and PayPal.  Not to be outmaneuvered by the finance sector, Twitter, GM, and Uber also all signaled openness to receiving cryptocurrencies. All three said in earnings calls this week that, while they wouldn't follow Elon down the investment path, they were open to accepting cryptos as payment from vendors and customers.  Zoom out: Momentum was building even before Tesla's move. Michael Sonnenshein, CEO of digital asset manager Grayscale Investments, said interest in crypto helped push assets under management to over $20 billion from just $2 billion over the course of last year.

MUSIC Look What You Made Her Re-Do

ACMA2020/Getty Images Yesterday on Good Morning America, Taylor Swift announced that she has finished re-recording her second and most successful album, Fearless.  A re-recording of the song "Love Story," originally released in 2008, dropped at midnight ET last night. The new version of Fearless, titled Fearless (Taylor's Version), will be released on April 9.  The backstory is now music biz legend on par with the Tupac hologram. Swift started her career with label Big Machine, which recorded and retained the rights to her first six albums (2006's Taylor Swift–2017's Reputation). But in 2018, Swift struck a deal with Universal that gave her ownership of her music.  The next year, Big Machine sold the master recordings to music manager Scooter Braun, whom Swift has accused of bullying.  Then in November, Braun sold the masters to investment firm Shamrock Holdings for a reported $300 million.  Swift has maintained that throughout the selling and re-selling, she was stonewalled from any opportunity to buy her music back.  The nowstory: Taylor's revenge. Re-recording her early albums means the value of the masters will shrink.

SPONSORED BY THE MOTLEY FOOL Do You Wanna Invest in Marijuana? Part II of our cannabis investing series is here. And this time, we’re talking legalization.  Since it’s the biggest obstacle to adding pot to your portfolio, we unpacked what’s ahead in legislative reform for the cannabis industry.  Decriminalization, the Democratic Party, and CBD all may make or break your investing plans.  So, make your parents proud and study up on what’s next for the marijuana industry and its potential for your portfolio.  Read Part II of our series on marijuana investing.

TECH Microsoft Says Google and FB Should Pay

Francis Scialabba Yesterday, Microsoft President Brad Smith said the US should follow Australia's recent efforts and make tech platforms pay for news content they carry. Easy stance to take when your search engine is Bing. Australia's proposed law would require tech companies to negotiate fees with publishers, head to arbitration if they can't, and be more transparent about how their algorithms surface content. Google and Facebook hate it Google threatened to shut down its search engine in Australia, and Facebook said it would block users from sharing links.  Their argument: Australia's law sets a dangerous precedent for the free flow of information and could put platforms on the hook for billions. Plus, both companies are already paying some publishers for content (Google has promised $1 billion over three years). The counterargument: Google and Facebook earn $$$ running ads next to articles like "10 Secrets to Get Hemsworth Abs," but publishers don't see any of it. And as two of the world's biggest platforms, they don't have much incentive to negotiate.  Looking ahead...the parliamentary committee reviewing Australia's proposal is expected to release their anticipated report today.

QUIZ Quizhouse The feeling of getting a 5/5 on the Brew's Weekly News Quiz has been compared to getting an unexpected heart drawn in your latte foam. It’s that satisfying. Ace the quiz. + Want to know how you stack up against other Morning Brew readers? Check out the hardest/easiest questions from January’s news quizzes.

PODCAST You Miss 100% of the Shots You Don’t Take —Wayne Gretzky —Michael Scott —Guests on Business Casual this week If you're looking for podcast episodes that will get you amped about taking risks and thinking big, we've got the perfect two interviews:  Josh Wolfe, cofounder and managing partner at moonshot investing firm Lux Capital Kathy Hannun, cofounder and president of Dandelion, a home geothermal company that spun out of Alphabet's X moonshot factory in 2017 Here's a little peek inside Wolfe's thought process: "The important thing is to accept and embrace failure...and that is one of the great things about the US. We have a culture of celebrating people who have done big, bold, ambitious things and failed." To listen: Click here for Josh Wolfe // here for Kathy Hannun

WHAT ELSE IS BREWING Disney said it now has 95 million Disney+ subscribers, meaning it gained 8 million in just one month. It also returned to profitability in Q4.  Next week's congressional hearing on GameStop is shaping up to be a blockbuster, with execs from Citadel Securities, Robinhood, and Reddit expected to weigh in.  Kraft Heinz is selling its nuts business, which includes Planters, to Hormel (the owner of Spam and Skippy) for $3.4 billion. Weed stocks tumbled following their recent rally.  China banned the airing of BBC World News in the country.  First Grape-Nuts...now Frosted Flakes? Kellogg said it's having trouble meeting demand for the cereal.

BREW'S BETS Tough love: Your pomeranian, Precious, isn’t an effective guard dog. Instead, try SimpliSafe, the award-winning home security system delivered right to you. For better protection for you (and Precious), get SimpliSafe today.* You had us at free meats. ButcherBox not only delivers high-quality meats straight to your door, they’re also fans of a meaty freebie. Sign up before 2/28 and score free bacon and two NY strip steaks in your first box.* Update from yesterday's Clubhouse poll: 64% of you are bullish on the audio-based social media platform, 36% are bearish. Here's one comment: "Audio as a medium is really intimate and creates a vulnerability and relatability that can be a nice change of pace from the anonymity and anxiety of other social networks. I think audio-type media...is going to be hugely valuable to big brands, influencers, and individual brands alike." Follow Friday: A different look at architecture from WTF Buildings, Crappy Cheapo Architecture, The Best of Zillow, and Liminal Spaces. For a palate cleanser, check out this perfect mini modern house. *This is sponsored advertising content

GAMES Friday Puzzle Ok, pay attention because this week's Friday Puzzle is our most epic yet and will last over the course of the week.  The game: Take an eight-by-eight grid and fill it in with names of companies. Your goal is to create a grid with the highest total market value. We made an example below...but you can do better.

Let's add up the total: Facebook ($770B) + Apple ($2.26T) + Amazon ($1.64T) + Exxon ($211B) = $4.88 trillion 

We'll show the winning grid in next week's newsletter and give the creator a shoutout. How can you enter? Complete your grid, post it to social media, and tag us on either Twitter or Instagram. Entries close Thursday at noon. 

A few final notes: To find a company's market value, just Google it or search for "most valuable companies in the S&P." Each company must intersect with at least one other company in the grid. And no stock tickers allowed (abbreviations like GM or GE are allowed, within reason). 

Good luck!

Schumer gives next steps to punish Trump if impeachment fails ~ Lincoln Project dives deeper into turmoil.

SHOCKING COVERUP: Cuomo Aide Admits They Hid Nursing Home Data To Avoid Feds

The Recently Uncovered New Hampshire Fraud Confirms Our Reporting in November and Unearths a FOURTH METHOD DEMOCRATS USED TO STEAL THE 2020 ELECTION

Loudmouth Daughter of Infamous War-Monger Compares Capitol Riots to 9-11 Terror Attacks that Killed 3,000 Americans

Ted Cruz: Texan Gina Carano ‘Kicked Ass & Girls Look Up to’ Her So ‘Of Course Disney Canceled Her’

Pelosi Shuns CBO Report, Will Include $15-per-hour Minimum Wage Hike in New COVID Bill

February 12

FEATURED BIOGRAPHY Abraham Lincoln READ MORE   FEATURED EVENT 1818 Chile's independence from Spain declared READ MORE

MORE EVENTS ON THIS DAY

2019: As per the terms of the Prespa Agreement (2018), the Republic of Macedonia formally changed its name to the Republic of North Macedonia. [Sort fact from fiction in our European history quiz.]

2002: Slobodan Milošević , president of Yugoslavia in 1997–2000, went on trial for war crimes in The Hague, at the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia; he died four years later, before the trial had ended. [Watch a video about the International Criminal Court.]

1994: Thieves broke into the National Gallery in Oslo and stole The Scream (later recovered), one of several versions Norwegian artist Edvard Munch made of his most famous painting. [Read more about this and other notable art thefts.]

1934: American basketball player Bill Russell, one of the greatest defensive centres in NBA history and the first Black coach of a major professional American sports team (the Boston Celtics), was born. [ See if Bill Russell made our list of the 10 greatest basketball players of all time.]

1909: The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) was founded.

1809: British naturalist Charles Darwin, who developed the theory of evolution by natural selection, was born. [ What Darwin got right (and wrong) about evolution.]

SEE ALL EVENTS ON THIS DAY

After Democrats' visceral presentation, Trump team on stage »		Democrats pushing President Biden's COVID-19 bill through House panels »

	FOX Daily update ⋅ February 12, 2021
	NEWS
	Fox News Should Pay for the Lies and Slander It Helped Promote The Nation In response to all of this, Fox's lawyers claim they were just sharing “both sides.” Clement and crew argue that Trump's allegations of election fraud were ... Flag as irrelevant
	Fox makes remarkable recovery at the Wildlife Rescue Center fox2now.com The center said the fox likes his space and that their animal care staff is met with a lot of “chuffs and growls when it is time to clean his area.” They said ... Flag as irrelevant
	Cal Basketball: Coach Mark Fox Bristles at Utah's Parade to Free Throw Line in Bears' Loss CalBearsMaven Utah kept shooting free throws even though Cal coach Mark Fox wasn't convinced the Utes were being fouled. The visitors left Haas Pavilion with a ... Flag as irrelevant
	Fox And Tubi Show Off 'New Normal' Of Connected TV Advertising Forbes The centrality of Tubi to Fox's future makes sense when you look at the growth in the CTV market. Broadcast networks (ABC, Fox, NBC and CBS) and to ... Flag as irrelevant
	'Clue' Animated Series in the Works at Fox Variety We couldn't be more excited to develop it as an animated series along with eOne and Bento Box,” said Michael Thorn, president of entertainment for Fox ... 'Clue' Animated Series Based On Board Game In Works At Fox From eOne - Deadline Full Coverage Flag as irrelevant
	Facebook bans Robert Kennedy Jr.'s Instagram in anti-vax crackdown Fox Business Facebook confirmed to FOX Business that Kennedy's Facebook profile was not removed despite the company's decision to ban his Instagram page. Flag as irrelevant
	Unmuted lawmaker calls colleague vulgar name during hearing Fox News Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. CONCORD, N.H. (AP) — A New Hampshire state senator unaware ... Flag as irrelevant
	Anti-Trump Republicans discuss organizing a new third party Fox News Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. A veteran GOP strategist who was on a major call last week with ... Flag as irrelevant
	Pro-GOP group targets House Democrats with billboards near shuttered schools Fox News Fox News Flash top headlines are here. Check out what's clicking on Foxnews.com. EXCLUSIVE - An outside group that backs Republican causes is ... Flag as irrelevant
	Tucker Carlson: Why the left wants to shut down Fox News for good Fox News Tucker Carlson: Why the left wants to shut down Fox News for good. Every other media organization takes its orders from the billionaire class. Tucker ... Flag as irrelevant
	WEB
	Fox News - Marco Rubio Responds to Biden Admin Floating Idea to Limit Travel to Florida ... Facebook Fox News · 7 mins ·. On "Tucker Carlson Tonight" Thursday, Sen. Marco Rubio slammed the Biden administration's consideration of a travel ban due to ... Flag as irrelevant
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Today's Top Headline Twitter To Expand Labels On Government Accounts Sponsored Don't Wait! Get Your "Trump Is Still My President" Collectible JFK Coin! Trending What The CDC Found About Wearing 2 Masks Biden Is Adamant On Reopening Schools Five Days A Week Covid-19 Vaccines Could Be Available To The General Public In April In The United States

Columnists Democrats' Political Bloodlust for Donald Trump Larry O'Connor The Kids Aren't All Right Salena Zito The Warm Ties Between the Press and DC Have Already Returned Under Biden Brad Slager Rep. Byron Donalds: 'We Need More Disruptors' in Politics Gabriella Hoffman Attacks on Second Amendment Trigger Tyranny Allen West Reporters Glorify Themselves Into GI Joe Tim Graham Overwrought Nazi Analogies for Me, but Not for Thee? Josh Hammer Dark Winter of a Grand Old Party Pat Buchanan The Republican Party Won't Fall Apart This Time Either Michael Barone ADVERTISEMENT The Democratic Party Is Radicalizing Against the Constitution David Harsanyi State Has Opportunity to Stop Banking Discrimination Cold Lawrence Keane GameStop Short Squeeze Is No Excuse For Bad Legislation Andrew Wilford Red States Can be Blue, Too Andrew McNeill Executive Overreach Frank Wright Pretexts: The Timber of Crooked Democrats Will Alexander Will We Answer the Wake-Up Call Before our Country Is Completely Destroyed? Neil Patel Dear Members of Congress, the Nation’s Ethics Laws Are Not Optional Kendra Arnold The Hypocritical Canceling of Gina Carano Michael Brown Rising Republican Rotters To Look Out For Ilana Mercer Shame and Sham Erick Erickson Video Gov. Evers: Saying Abortionists 'Execute Babies' Is 'Blasphemy' Trump blasts Schiff as 'political hack' Pelosi's condescension offers some laughs Pelosi open to border infrastructure INVESTING A Fatal Problem In Modern Economic Thinking Widespread, Dramatic Declines In COVID-19 Cases Across U.S. America’s Founding Philosophers On When To Abolish Governments Why Bitcoin is the New Digital Gold — and Headed Much Higher - Mark Skousen Here's Who Owns The U.S. National Debt Four Favorite Stocks of Nancy Pelosi and Her Husband to Buy - Paul Dykewicz

Tipsheet Only a San Francisco School Board Meeting Could Take an Objection Like This Seriously Matt Vespa Biden Is President...So Now Cuomo Aides Confess They Cooked the Books on NY’s COVID Deaths Matt Vespa VIP Gold Live Chat: Kurt Schlichter, Larry O'Connor & Chris Stigall - TONIGHT 8 PM ET Townhall.com Staff It's Funny How There's Only One Group of Folks Who Constantly Benefit from the Anti-Trump GOP Matt Vespa Trump Lawyer Left Impeachment Trial to Totally Trash the Democrats' Entire Narrative Matt Vespa Schumer Has Another Idea to Punish Trump if Senate Acquits Him Reagan McCarthy Biden Now Admits China Can 'Eat Our Lunch' Cortney O'Brien Here's What Caused Twitter to Ban Project Veritas Matt Vespa Ron DeSantis Defends Super Bowl Partiers By Highlighting Media Hypocrisy Julio Rosas 'Literary Takedown': Andrea Mitchell Whiffs on Fact Check of Ted Cruz's Shakespeare Cortney O'Brien ADVERTISEMENT Political Cartoons Bearing Arms Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene Introduces Federal 2A Sanctuary Bill | Cam Edwards New "Gun Trafficking" Bill Could Cripple Legal Firearms Market | Patrick Richardson NH Considers Pro-Gun Constitutional Amendment | Tom Knighton Biden Officials Discuss "Shared Goals" With Gun Control Groups | Cam Edwards New Study: Crime Spiked After COVID Lockdowns Enacted | Cam Edwards

 

This Senator admitted a truth about impeachment that had all hell breaking loose Day one of the impeachment trial is in the books. Democrats and the media were celebrating over how events played out. But this Senator admitted a truth about impeachment that had all hell breaking loose. Click here to read the full story >>

TRENDING NOW: Mexico made one giant change that will send the border crisis spiraling out of control Donald Trump was given one impeachment demand that no one could have expected Nancy Pelosi just made one major mistake she is going to live to regret This Republican Senator made an incredible admission about impeachment that left jaws on the floor Joe Biden got caught making this inappropriate comment toward one woman

 

Trump got some bad news about this Republican Senator changing their vote on impeachment

Show Your Support for President Trump in His 2024 Presidential Re-Election Bid...

Today's Headlines... Biden’s Press Sec ROASTED after Revealing There is No End in Sight for... Economist predicts a coming Revolution against The Central Banks ALERT! You Can Get this NASA Gold Coin for FREE Today! (sponsor) Seconds After Hunter’s Book Hit Amazon Everyone Noticed this Huge Mistake... Shocking op-ed about Trump supporting neighbors is NOT a joke  February 12th, 2021 Cuomo counting on Biden to cover up for his huge COVID nursing home scandal The news reported tonight by the New York Post is clear evidence that Governor Andrew Cuomo is guilty of obstructing justice and should be... Read More › Humiliate All Your Shooting Buddies At The Range! Even if your vision isn't what it used to be this high tech piece of gear can DOUBLE your accuracy almost IMMEDIATELY! Today 60% off! Read More › Democrats: There was an armed mob at Capitol riot, but where were all the guns? Maybe you were struck as I was when U.S. House impeachment manager Congressman David Cicilline constantly referred to the Capitol riot as an... Read More › Reminder: Biden admin is comfortably sitting on $1.1 trillion in COVID aid Janet YellenBy Thomas Catenacci Daily Caller News FoundationAbout $1.1 trillion in coronavirus aid, including more than $120 billion for... Read More › Grand Jury dismisses charges Buffalo officers who pushed Antifa protestor A grand jury on Thursday dismissed felony assault charges against two Buffalo police officers who in June pushed a 75-year-old man during a... Read More › DeSantis slams Lib media for double standards on maskless Super Bowl fans Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis of Florida called out reporters for their double standards on Thursday when answering questions about maskless... Read More › Green Beret Reveals: 3 Shooting Hacks To Instantly Improve Your Accuracy Did you know that you, me, and pretty much everyone else share ONE MAJOR HANDICAP that severely reduces our ability to fire a gun? I didn't… Read More › Cuomo Coverup? Aide Admits Nursing Home Data Was Purposefully Concealed How a Leading Anti-Trump Group Ignored a Crisis in Its Ranks National Guard troops in DC are a disaster waiting to happen The unnamed partner colluding with Big Tech