Louis Brown's Street Smart Systems

Groupon opening 20-person Seattle office

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:19:49 +0000

Daily deal company Groupon Inc. will open a 20-person office in Seattle's International District, headed by a former Amazon.com Inc. executive. The Wall Street Journal's All Things D reports the Groupon Seattle office will be headed by former Amazon exec Vinayak Hegde. Other Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN) execs now working for Chicago-based Groupon include CFO Jason Child, SVP of Product Jeff Holden and SVP of Americas Kal Raman.

Enbridge plans massive pipeline expansion project

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:14:30 +0000

Enbridge Inc. said it would spend $3.2 billion on a series of projects across its pipeline system aimed at moving western Canadian crude to Eastern refineries and preventing bottlenecks in the U.S. Midwest, Reuters reports. The project is being carried out by Enbridge and Enbridge Energy Partners LP. Enbridge, already the largest transporter of Canadian oil exports, said $2.6 billion worth of the plan would support the reversal in flow direction of a pipeline between Sarnia, Ontario, and Montreal…

Pinterest raises $100M at $1.5B valuation

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:08:59 +0000

Japanese online marketplace operator Rakuten said on Thursday it led a $100 million funding round for the operators of photo bookmarking social site Pinterest. The funding reportedly placed a $1.5 billion valuation on Pinterest, which is operated by Palo Alto-based Cold Brew Labs Inc. Also participating in the round were existing investors Menlo Park firms Andreessen Horowitz and Bessemer Venture Partners, and New York-based FirstMark Capital, as well as a number of angel investors. Click here…

Hagerstown City Council receptive to stadium timeline

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 13:03:36 +0000

Hagerstown City Council members said they were receptive to a timeline outlining construction of a new sports and events stadium in the city's downtown. But city officials acknowledged that the first priority should be securing a longterm lease with the Hagerstown Suns minor league baseball team, the Herald-Mail reported.

Paulson says he likes CVR Energy as Icahn might resell it

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:58:04 +0000

John Paulson, the billionaire hedge fund manager seeking to reverse record losses in 2011, said he likes CVR Energy Inc. (NYSE: CVI) because the company may be successfully resold by Carl Icahn, who controls the majority of shares, Bloomberg reports. “CVR Energy is a gift from Carl Icahn,” Paulson said May 15 at the Ira Sohn investment conference in New York. “Carl is generally particularly friendly to shareholders.” Billionaire Icahn’s tender offer for the Sugar Land-based oil refiner…

U.S. Census: Minority babies are now majority

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:52:36 +0000

For the first time, most babies being born in the United States are members of minority groups, according to new U.S Census figures, The Washington Post reports. Population estimates show 50.4 percent of children younger than age 1 last year were Hispanic, black, Asian American or in other minority groups, the newspaper reports. The number is up from 49.5 percent when the decennial census was taken in April 2010, the paper said.

ABB completes acquisition of Thomas & Betts

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:46:40 +0000

Memphis' public company roster officially has been trimmed to 13 as ABB Ltd.’s acquisition of Thomas & Betts Corp. closed on Wednesday, Memphis Business Journal reports. The $3.9 billion cash deal received antitrust clearance from the European Commission last week, marking the last regulatory hurdle the purchase had to pass. The commission said adequate competition will exist in the areas the combined company will operate in. ABB (NYSE: ABB), based in Zurich, Switzerland, will pay $72 per share…

J.P. Morgan loss grows; Buffett takes GM stake

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:41:39 +0000

Business news from around the Web: • Skechers settles on 'Shape-Up' claims dispute (Portfolio) • J.P. Morgan's trading loss said to rise by 50 percent (NYT) • Facebook insiders are cashing out (WSJ) • Google tweaks search, hurting some firms (WSJ) • Berkshire Hathaway takes stake in GM, buys Media General (Bloomberg)

Sales tax vote approved for Baldwin schools

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:36:28 +0000

Legislative action late Wednesday set the stage for a November vote to renew a 1-percent sales tax set to expire in May, but Baldwin County commissioners and school board members predict that selling the public on the measure will be an uphill battle. According to al.com, Sen. Trip Pittman, R-Montrose, said the school system needed the tax extension due to declines in real estate values and subsequently property tax revenue. “The sales tax — a tax that gets paid widely by a lot of people…

Ramco-Gershenson buys Delafield shopping center for $15.1M

Louis Brown — Thu, 17 May 2012 12:31:10 +0000

Michigan-based Ramco-Gershenson Properties Trust, owner of the Shoppes at Fox River’s first phase in Waukesha, paid $15.1 million for the Kohl’s-anchored Nagawaukee Shopping Center in Delafield.