2025-12-01 21:08

Nestlé seeks to divest premium coffee chain Blue Bottle Coffee Investment bank Morgan Stanley is working on the process Nestlé acquired the chain in 2017 Dec 1 (Reuters) - Swiss food giant Nestlé (NESN.S) , opens new tab is working with investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS.N) , opens new tab to review options, including a potential sale, of its Blue Bottle Coffee chain, according to three sources familiar with the matter. The move is part of a broader strategic review under new Chief Executive Philipp Navratil to streamline the company's portfolio and exit the business of operating physical retail locations, reflecting a wider industry trend. Sign up here. Nestlé acquired a majority stake in Blue Bottle Coffee in 2017, valuing the premium roaster known for its drip coffee at roughly $700 million. A sale is expected to value the chain at a discount to that, the sources said, requesting anonymity as the matter is private. Coca-Cola (KO.N) , opens new tab is also exploring a sale of its coffee chain Costa Coffee. Nestlé and Morgan Stanley (MS.N) , opens new tab declined to comment. In July, Nestlé launched a strategic review of certain vitamin brands, including Nature's Bounty, Osteo Bi-Flex, Puritan's Pride and its U.S. private label business. It also plans to divest its water business, which includes the Perrier and S.Pellegrino brands. Nestlé operates around 100 Blue Bottle locations across the U.S. and Asia. It also sells Blue Bottle-branded products like coffee grounds and mugs. One source said Nestlé could decide to sell the cafes but retain the brand's intellectual property to continue selling the products. Founder James Freeman launched Blue Bottle in 2002 in Oakland, California, with the first storefront opening in 2005 in San Francisco. Nestlé's bigger coffee businesses include Nescafé and Nespresso. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/nestl-explores-sale-blue-bottle-coffee-sources-say-2025-12-01/

2025-12-01 21:01

FRANKFURT, Dec 1 (Reuters) - A group of Swiss and German law enforcement agencies said on Monday they shut down cryptomixer.io, one of the largest platforms to cover up the tracks of bitcoin transfers from illegal activities. Germany's federal investigation agency BKA said in a statement it worked with regional prosecutors in Frankfurt as well as authorities in Zurich to shut down the cryptomixer.io site on Wednesday last week. Sign up here. It added that Cryptomixer.io, started in 2016, had been one of the largest bitcoin mixers with billions of euros in revenues, most of which were gained from criminal activities. Cryptomixing is a service to anonymise crypto transactions by breaking them up and mixing them with other funds. Under the operation, which was led by Zurich law enforcement agencies, authorities seized servers in Switzerland, along with the cryptomixer.io internet domain, and confiscated over 12 terabytes of data and Bitcoins worth more than 25 million euros ($29 million). "The findings will also contribute to the investigation of further cybercrimes," said BKA, adding that Europol, as well as agencies of the European Union and the U.S., were involved in the investigation. Europol said in a separate statement that Cryptomixer.io, suspected of facilitating cybercrime, including ransomware schemes and money laundering, was accessible both on the regular web and the dark web. ($1 = 0.8598 euros) https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/swiss-german-authorities-shut-down-cryptomixerio-money-laundering-crackdown-2025-12-01/

2025-12-01 21:00

LONDON, Dec 1 (Reuters) - The cost of shipping commodities through the Black Sea climbed on Monday after Ukrainian naval drones hit two tankers heading to a Russian port, with fears of further attacks driving up war risk insurance costs, industry sources said. The Black Sea is crucial for the shipment of grain, oil and oil products. Its waters are shared by Bulgaria, Georgia, Romania and Turkey, as well as Russia and Ukraine. Sign up here. War risk rates for a typical seven-day voyage period, which are set by individual underwriters and are based on the value of the ship, rose to 0.5% for calls to Ukrainian ports from 0.4% over a week ago, shipping and insurance sources said. War risk insurance for Russian Black Sea ports, which is typically higher, was quoted at between 0.65-0.8% versus around 0.6% last week, the sources added. TANKERS ATTACKED WHILE SAILING TO NOVOROSSIYSK The two tankers, which were under Western sanctions, were attacked by navy drones while they were empty and sailing to Novorossiysk, a major Russian Black Sea oil terminal, an official at the Security Service of Ukraine told Reuters. The Black Sea incidents point to a campaign by Ukraine to restrict Russian oil revenue which was "shaping underwriters’ assessment of intent and capability", said Munro Anderson, head of operations at marine war risk and insurance specialist Vessel Protect, part of Pen Underwriting. "Rates have firmed in line with that view. For Russian port calls, underwriters are pricing in a broader range of possible strike locations and a higher likelihood of repetition," he said. "As Ukrainian activity increases, the probability of reciprocal Russian action grows. That creates a more even risk gradient across both trades than we have seen in some time." Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan said on Monday that attacks on commercial ships in the Black Sea were unacceptable, issuing a warning to "all related sides". The latest Black Sea incidents were the first attacks on non-military, non-Russian flagged vessels in international waters, said Andrii Ryzhenko, a naval analyst and former deputy chief of staff of the Ukrainian navy. Ryzhenko said it was unlikely that Russia would retaliate against commercial shipping heading to Ukraine when it was in the territorial waters of Turkey, Bulgaria and Romania, as that would amount to an attack on NATO territory. "They're (Russia) attacking (vessels) all of the time, at least in Ukrainian territorial waters and using different types of weapons." MYSTERIOUS BLASTS There have been at least seven blasts on separate tankers that called at Russian ports since December 2024 at locations including the Mediterranean, with Ukraine suspected of carrying them out, maritime security sources said. A Turkish-owned oil tanker that was damaged near Senegal's coast last week was hit by four external explosions, but there were no injuries or pollution, its manager said on Monday. The Mersin tanker had previously called at a Russian port, and maritime security sources said their initial assessment was the vessel had been targeted by limpet mines, similar to other incidents this year which have not been confirmed by Ukraine. The vessel was currently secured and under close control, a spokesperson with Dakar Port Authority said, confirming "a serious incident in the engine room caused a major water ingress". The spokesperson added that the exact nature of the incident would be made public in due course. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/black-sea-shipping-insurance-rates-rise-after-ukraine-attacks-tankers-sources-2025-12-01/

2025-12-01 20:31

Dec 1 (Reuters) - Shopify (SHOP.TO) , opens new tab, said it had fixed certain issues related to logging in to the online shopping platform that impacted thousands of customers and several small businesses on Cyber Monday. The outages peaked around 11 a.m. ET with around 4,000 outages reported. About 128 users reported problems at 2:40 p.m. ET, according to the outage-tracking website Downdetector. Sign up here. "We have found and fixed an issue with our login authentication flow, and are seeing signs of recovery for admin and POS (point of sale) login issues now," Shopify said on its website, adding that it continues to monitor the recovery. The platform had earlier launched an investigation into the issue, noting that some merchants may also have seen an issue with checkouts due to not being able to access point-of-sale systems. Shopify was also down in the UK, as per Downdetector, with about 2,500 outages reported at its peak at 9:45 a.m. ET. The outage coincides with Cyber Monday, the biggest online shopping day in the U.S., with strong Black Friday momentum and AI-powered shopping tools expected to drive sales. https://www.reuters.com/business/retail-consumer/shopify-down-thousands-users-cyber-monday-2025-12-01/

2025-12-01 19:19

Dec 1 (Reuters) - The U.S. Midwest grid operator will fast-track reviews of 15 more power projects to accelerate the addition of electricity supply, the Midcontinent Independent System Operator said on Monday, as part of a program facing legal challenges from consumer and environmental groups. Some of the country's biggest regional grids - MISO, Southwest Power Pool and PJM Interconnection - have approved dozens of power projects this year for speedy review as the operators sound the alarm over rising demand outpacing the addition of new electricity sources. Sign up here. Some of those fast-tracking processes have faced legal pushback on claims that the grid operators have favored natural gas-fired power projects over renewable energy, such as solar and wind. Groups including the Natural Resources Defense Council and Sierra Club have sued the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission over MISO and SPP's programs, which require FERC approval. MISO's second round of project selections includes seven natural gas-fired plants, three battery storage projects, three solar projects and two wind turbines, according to MISO. The fast-track program is aimed at shaving months or years off the time it takes to link the power supplies to the grid. “These projects are essential to meeting near-term reliability needs and ensuring new resource additions are online to meet load growth,” said MISO Vice President Aubrey Johnson. The total capacity of the 15 projects is more than six gigawatts, and their startup dates range from December 2027 to August 2028. One gigawatt can power about 750,000 homes. https://www.reuters.com/legal/litigation/us-midwest-grid-operator-speeds-review-15-projects-bolster-power-supply-2025-12-01/

2025-12-01 18:54

LIMA, Dec 1 (Reuters) - At least 12 people have died and 20 more were left injured after a landslide in Peru's Amazon region sunk two boats on the Ucayali river, local health authorities said on Monday. Two people remain missing, local health agency Diresa Ucayali said on social media, following the landslide that struck around 4:20 a.m. (0900 GMT) in a port area of Iparia, located some 415 km (258 miles)north-east of Peru's capital, hitting two boats that were on their way to other towns on the riverside. Sign up here. State news agency Andina said national police and navy units had been dispatched by helicopters to help the rescue efforts. One boat, Rapido Oriente, was completely submerged, while another, the Deo Rigo, suffered serious damages, Andina reported. The Deo Rigo was traveling from a nearby indigenous community and had stopped in Iparia so passengers could disembark when the landslide happened, it added. Teachers and doctors were among the passengers, Andina said. https://www.reuters.com/world/americas/peru-landslide-sinks-boats-amazon-region-river-killing-12-2025-12-01/