Good morning! GDP is on track for negative Q1 growth, while crypto bounced back over the weekend after Trump signed an executive order establishing a U.S. crypto reserve.

Prada is closing in on a deal to acquire Versace, Microsoft is pulling the plug on Skype after 20 years, and Google co-founder Sergey Brin told employees that “60 hours a week is the sweet spot” for productivity, and recommended being in the office at least "every weekday."

Blackstone’s Schwarzman raked in over $1 billion again, mostly from dividends on his 20% stake. Meanwhile, Britain’s youngest self-made billionaire and Gymshark founder is eyeing NYC for expansion, and Grubhub announced 500 layoffs.

The newest Apple update makes this innovative, pre-IPO data company even more valuable.

_{SQUEEZ OF THE DAY}

Citi's $81 Trillion Fat Finger Mistake

Citi’s made its fair share of fat finger mistakes in recent times… with the bank’s most recent one being larger than Citi’s market cap, the U.S. economy, and even the combined GDP of the entire planet. 

Last April, Citi accidentally credited a client’s account with $81 trillion instead of the intended $280 due to a manual input error and outdated internal systems. The mistake wasn’t publicly reported until now.

Apparently, the simple $280 transfer was flagged, so a Citi employee manually inputted it. But the system’s amount field auto-filled with 15 zeros, and the employee failed to delete them, entering $81 trillion instead of $280.

And a second Citi employee reviewed and approved the erroneous transfer. It took a third employee 90 minutes to catch the mistake when they noticed wildly off-account balances. The error was finally reversed, hours later.

Citi is the Michael Jordan of fat fingers. In 2020: The bank mistakenly wired $900 million to lenders involved in Revlon’s debt dispute, a mistake that led to regulatory orders, fines, and even the ousting of then-CEO Michael Corbat. And in 2022 a Citi trader accidentally added a zero to a stock trade, erasing $322 billion from European markets in a flash crash.

And these aren’t one-offs. Citi logged 10 “near misses” of at least $1 billion in 2023, down slightly from 13 in 2022. These errors don’t even have to be reported to regulators, raising the question, how many more slip-ups are we not hearing about?

Takeaway: Citi claims its “detective controls” prevented any real money from moving, but that doesn’t change the fact that the mistake was approved twice before being caught. Some critics of Citi think it’s a symptom of deeper operational flaws. 

The $81 trillion error didn’t cause real damage this time. But it goes to show that Citi has a long way to go before reversing its fat-finger reputation. On the bright side, at least they’re topping the league tables in something.

_{PRESENTED BY MODE MOBILE}

Apple’s Starlink Update Sparks Huge Earning Opportunity

Apple just secretly added Starlink satellite support to iPhones through iOS 18.3.

One of the biggest potential winners? Mode Mobile.

Mode’s EarnPhone already reaches +45M users that have earned over $325M, and that’s before global satellite coverage. With SpaceX eliminating "dead zones" worldwide, Mode's earning technology can now reach billions more in unbanked and rural populations worldwide.

Their global expansion is perfectly timed, and you still have a chance to invest in their pre-IPO offering at just $0.26/share.

Mode’s recent 32,481% revenue growth and their newly reserved Nasdaq ticker $MODE puts them one step closer to a potential IPO.

Invest in Mode’s pre-IPO offering at $0.26/share and earn up to 100% bonus shares.

_HEADLINES

Top Reads

• The first quarter is on track for negative GDP growth (CNBC) 

• Trump announces strategic crypto reserve (CNBC)

• Prada said to move closer to Versace deal for up to €1.5 billion (BB)

• Skype is shutting down after two decades (CNN)

• Google’s Sergey Brin urges workers to the office ‘at least’ every weekday (NYT)

• Blackstone’s Schwarzman takes home more than $1 billion again (YF)

• Golden visa math doesn't add up to trillions (Axios)

• Meet the best friends who are private equity’s newest young stars (WSJ)

• Food delivery company Grubhub announces 500 layoffs (YF)

• Meta is firing about 20 employees for leaking information (Verge)

• Musk welcomes 14th child, his fourth baby with Neuralink director (Fox)

• Britain’s youngest self-made billionaire has big plans for New York City (NYP)

• Americans cut spending at most drastic level in 4 years (YF)

• Tesla just wrapped up its second-worst month ever (YF)

• Portnoy gives details of being asked to join Trump’s cabinet (Fox)

• State Street, Apollo’s private credit ETF raises SEC concern (YF)

• Key measure shows cooler inflation in January (Axios)

_{CAPITAL PULSE}

Markets Rundown

Stocks Rally to Close Week Amid Inflation Data and Shifting Leadership

Despite a rally this week, weekly performance was mixed, with the Nasdaq posting its worst week since September due to mega-cap tech weakness, while the Dow eked out a modest gain.

Overseas, Asian markets slumped after President Trump confirmed a 10% tariff hike on Chinese imports starting next week, adding trade-policy pressure.

Bond yields dipped, with the 10-year Treasury at 4.21% and the 2-year at 4%, as economic momentum showed signs of normalizing—highlighted by softening PMI data and rising jobless claims—reviving expectations for two quarter-point Fed rate cuts in 2025.

Meanwhile, a rotation from tech-driven growth to value sectors like financials and health care lifted the Russell 1000 Value Index 3.6% year-to-date, outpacing the Russell 1000 Growth Index’s 3.4% decline, underscoring the value of diversification amid evolving market dynamics.

Movers & Shakers

• (+) SoundHound AI ($SOUN) +18% after the vocal recognition company beat earnings.

• (+) AES ($AES) +12% after the energy utility company beat analysts’ expectations.

• (–) Duolingo ($DUOL) -17% because the online language learning platform missed its guidance.

Private Dealmaking

• MPLX bought the remaining 55% stake in BANGL for $715 million

• Metronome, a billing platform for software companies, raised $50 million

• Mimic, an enterprise ransomware provider, raised $50 million

• Lumotive, an optical semiconductor company, raised $45 million

• Endovascular Engineering, a clot removal company, raised $42 million

• Frontera Health, an autism therapy developer, raised $32 million

For more PE, VC & M&A deals, subscribe to our Buysiders newsletter.

_{NEIGHBORHOOD WATCH}

Real Estate Digest

Mortgage rates decreased to their lowest levels in over two months this week. As rates continue to inch downward and with stability returning to the rate market, the modestly improving home inventory environment and increase in buyer activity is an encouraging sign for consumers as we approach the spring selling season.

Latest News

• Why holding off on buying a home is a bad idea

• Ken Griffin pays $45 million for Julia Kock’s Park Ave co-op

• Trump’s SALT tax promise hinges on an obscure loophole

• US home prices increase strongly in December

• The Wall Street of the South has a hot luxury real estate market

New Listings

• 75 1st Ave. Apt: PHA New York, NY : 3 Bed /  3 Bath - $5,150,000

• 4527 Simpson Ave Los Angeles, CA: 4 Bed / 5 Bath - $3,725,000

• 116 Ocean Ave Monmouth Beach, NJ: 5 Bed / 4.5 Bath - $3,575,000

• 22766 Villa de Juárez, Baja California, Mexico: 6 Bed / 6 Bath - $3,300,000

• Somerset Rd, Wimbledon, London, United Kingdom:  8 Bed / 5 Bath - $9,219,710

Fill out this form to get personalized support for buying, selling, renting, or investing in real estate.

_{BOOK OF THE DAY}

Vulture Capitalism

It’s easy to look at the state of the world around us and feel hopeless. We live in an era marked by war, climate crisis, political polarization, and acute inequality—and yet many of us feel powerless to do anything about these profound issues.

We’ve been assured that unfettered capitalism is necessary to ensure our freedom and prosperity but why, in our age of unchecked corporate power, are most of us living paycheck to paycheck? When the economy falters, why do governments bail out corporations and shareholders but leave everyday people in the dust?

Now, acclaimed journalist and progressive star on the rise Grace Blakeley exposes the corrupt system that is failing all around us, pulling back the curtain on the free-market mythology we have been sold. She also clearly illustrates how, as corporate interests have taken hold, governments have historically been shifting away from competition and democracy towards monopoly and oligarchy.

Tracing over a century of neoliberal planning and backdoor bailouts, Blakeley takes us on a deeply reported tour of the corporate crimes, political maneuvering, and economic manipulation that elites have used to enshrine a global system of “vulture capitalism”—planned capitalist economies that benefit corporations and the uber-wealthy at the expense of the rest of us.

“Passionate … meticulous … engaging.”

_{DAILY VISUAL}

Skype Shutting Down After 22 Years

_{PRESENTED BY TRAINING THE STREET}

Finance Interviews Are a Test. Start Practicing.

Finance interviews aren’t just tough—they’re designed to weed out the unprepared.

That’s where Interview SmartPrep AI from Training the Street comes in. Powered by advanced AI and machine learning, it simulates real interview scenarios, coaches you in real-time, and provides instant feedback—so when the actual interview comes, you’re ready.

With Interview SmartPrep AI, you get:

• Interactive AI Coaching: Get real-time feedback on your answers

• Practice tailored to Finance Roles: From IB and PE to VC and HF, practice the toughest questions

• Confidence Without Guesswork: Master technicals, behavioral Qs, and case studies

Don’t wing your next interview. Train like a pro.

_{DAILY ACUMEN}

Restless

In a world that’s always rushing, where every day feels like a sprint from one task to the next, there’s a quiet power in learning to just be.

Imagine someone whose life looks fine—family’s good, job’s steady—but beneath it all, they’re restless, starting each morning with a phone in hand, scrolling through noise before their feet even hit the floor.

It’s a cycle that leaves no room for stillness, where even downtime is just a numbing distraction.

The truth is, we’re wired to chase more, convinced that happiness lies in the next achievement, but what if it’s already here?

Pausing to breathe, to notice the world around us, can unlock a calm that’s been there all along—a skill we can hone to shift from constant doing to simply being, finding peace in the middle of the chaos.

_{ENLIGHTENMENT}

Short Squeez Picks

• Steve Jobs on the skill that sets highly successful people apart

• 10 ways minimalism rewires your brain

• Are you a high-performer or workaholic?

• How protecting your peace can harm relationships

• How to stop taking work advice

_{MEME-A-PALOOZA}

Memes of the Day