Good morning. Today we're talking about the CBI’s vital vote, America’s crypto crackdown and golfing mergers.

Big Stories

CBI wins survival vote

The scandal-hit business lobbying group has won a critical confidence vote among its members as it battles for survival. The UK’s largest employer’s organisation secured 93% support and plans to reform following allegations of sexual assault which has seen it lose several big name members including John Lewis, BT and Unilever. A number of staff have already been sacked as it moves to restore trust in its operations and it recently said it would have to make job cuts in order to cut its wage bill by a third.

Crypto crackdown

This week the US authorities have announced a lawsuit against two of the biggest names in crypto amid a crackdown on the sector. The SEC is accusing Binance, the world’s largest crypto exchange, of misusing customer money and illegally operated a trading platform in the US. While rival Coinbase accused of operating without regulatory approval. The news prompted a selloff in cryptocurrencies with Bitcoin dropping to its lowest level since March. Regulators have pledged to police the industry more aggressively after the dramatic collapse of another crypto platform, FTX, last year.

Golf’s surprise merger

The PGA Tour and controversial rival LIV Golf are combining in a shock merger, ending a seismic dispute. Launched last year, LIV was created to revolutionise professional golf with financing from Saudi Arabia’s sovereign-wealth fund. LIV announced $2bn in investments to woo the world’s top players away from the more established PGA Tour with record-breaking prize money. Both tours have been embroiled in bitter lawsuits to decide who controls top-level golf. The combination of the two entities would see the competitors squash pending litigation and move forward as a larger golf enterprise.

Elsewhere...

Pay day: Sainsbury's boss was paid nearly £5m in cash and shares last year despite a drop in profits at the supermarket.

Takeover talk: The retail group Frasers has increased its stake in Asos to 9%, ahead of a potential battle for control of the ailing online fashion business.

Energy exit: Shell has confirmed it has decided to exit its home retail energy businesses in the UK, Germany and the Netherlands due to their poor returns.

Sky high fares: Flight prices are likely to keep rising over the next 10-15 years, with the cost of sustainable fuels expected to drive up ticket prices, according to the global airlines body Iata.

Cutting back: Social media firm Reddit is laying off about 5% of its workforce joining a list of tech companies that have been cutting jobs across corporate America.

Bad news: The future ownership of the Daily Telegraph is in doubt after it emerged that the newspaper group’s parent company faces the threat of being put into administration by lenders.

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