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Insurance chief risk officers (CROs) are prioritising cyber security, advanced technology, and third-party dependencies as their most immediate concerns, while preparing for longer-term risks including climate transition, data ethics, and a potential global debt crisis, according to an EY/IIF survey of 106 insurers. Cyber risk remains the top near-term threat, cited by 80% of CROs, with growing focus on data protection, phishing, and vendor-related vulnerabilities, while insurers increasingly emphasize resilience, recovery, and real-time risk monitoring over simple compliance. At the same time, firms are accelerating the adoption of artificial intelligence across risk management and operations, although progress is constrained by skills shortages, data quality issues, and integration challenges, prompting wider implementation of AI governance frameworks. Rising reliance on third-party providers has elevated operational resilience and outsourcing risks to board-level priorities, with insurers strengthening oversight, testing, and continuity planning across increasingly complex ecosystems. Looking further ahead, CROs identify data privacy and ethics, climate transition, and systemic financial risks as key long-term threats, reflecting a shift toward more strategic, data-driven risk management as the function becomes more central to business decision-making.

 

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LinkedIn has named Daniel Shapero as ​its new chief executive. Shapero, who joined LinkedIn in 2008 ⁠as a general manager ​for the LinkedIn Research Network, ​will replace Ryan Roslansky. “Dan has led sales, marketing, and product across the most important parts of this business,” Roslansky wrote in a LinkedIn post on Wednesday. “He knows our members, our customers, and carries the mission in a way that’s genuinely rare.” Roslansky will retain his position as executive vice president at LinkedIn parent Microsoft.

 

CNBC

Lululemon has appointed former Nike executive Heidi O’Neill as its next chief executive, joining in September, as the athleisure group looks to reinvigorate growth following declining North American sales and intensifying competition. Ms O’Neill, who spent more than 25 years at Nike and most recently led its consumer, product and brand operations, is expected to accelerate product innovation, strengthen brand relevance and drive international expansion. 

 

CNBC	New York Times

Best Buy has appointed Jason Bonfig as chief executive, succeeding long-time leader Corie Barry, as the retailer looks to revive growth amid weakening demand for consumer electronics and ongoing supply chain pressures. Mr Bonfig, who has led key initiatives including the launch of the company’s online marketplace and expansion of its retail media business, will take over as Best Buy continues to shift towards services, advertising and digital channels, while Ms Barry will remain as a strategic adviser for six months following her departure.

 

Reuters

Wall Street Journal

President Donald Trump has said he will remember companies that do not seek refunds on duties after the Supreme Court ruled against his tariffs. “It's brilliant if they don't do that,” Trump said on CNBC in response to a question about whether companies such as Amazon and Apple should request refunds on duties that have now been deemed unlawful. “If they don't do that, I'll remember them.” The Supreme Court's decision could lead to the largest-ever repayment by the U.S. government, with refunds potentially exceeding $160bn. Companies including Costco and FedEx have filed lawsuits to secure their refund rights.

 

CNBC	Los Angeles Times

A U.S. appeals court has upheld a ruling against Liberty Global’s “Project Soy” tax structure, marking a significant win for the IRS and reinforcing its ability to challenge transactions that are primarily designed to reduce tax liabilities without meaningful economic purpose. In a 2-1 decision, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals found that the company’s 2018 series of internal transactions, structured to exploit a loophole in the 2017 tax law governing foreign earnings, lacked sufficient economic substance, rejecting Liberty Global’s claim for a $110m tax refund. The judgment strengthens the IRS’s use of the economic substance doctrine, which allows authorities to disregard tax benefits arising from arrangements that do not have a genuine business rationale beyond tax minimisation. The ruling is expected to embolden the IRS to pursue similar cases more aggressively, particularly as it faces resource constraints and looks to challenge complex corporate tax strategies through litigation.

 

Bloomberg Tax

Wall Street Journal

Goldman Sachs is to settle a class-action lawsuit which accuses ​the bank of defrauding shareholders about its work ‌for 1MDB, the Malaysian sovereign wealth fund at the center of a corruption scandal. In a letter filed in Manhattan federal court, the Wall Street lender and the ​shareholders said they had reached an agreement-in-principle to settle, and plan ​to submit a settlement for preliminary approval by May ⁠20.

 

U.S. News

The Department of Labor has announced a proposed rule that would narrow the circumstances in which a business can be considered the "joint employer" of another company's workers under the federal law requiring a minimum wage and ​overtime pay, in a move that Reuters says will make it more difficult to hold companies liable when their contractors or franchisees ‌violate federal wage laws. Acting Labor ⁠Secretary Keith Sonderling said the proposal would make it easier for employers ​to comply with the law, and would ultimately be to the benefit of workers. "A clear standard on joint employment would give businesses more ​confidence to invest in partnerships, help employees understand their rights, and make the department’s investigations more efficient," Sonderling said.

 

Reuters

⁠The ⁠Gates Foundation ⁠is cutting up to ​500 jobs, or ‌roughly 20% of ‌its staff, ⁠over ⁠the next several years, and it ​has opened an external review of ​engagement with the ⁠convicted pedophile Jeffrey ​Epstein. The foundation's co-founder, Bill Gates, earlier this year said he regretted his association with Epstein and that he didn’t participate in the late sex offender’s crimes. Gates has been called to testify about his Epstein ties before Congress in June. “This is a challenging time for our organization in many ways, but it also highlights the critical importance of taking the tough actions now,” Gates Foundation CEO Mark Suzman wrote in a memo seen by the Wall Street Journal.

 

Wall Street Journal

U.S. business inventories increased by 0.4% in February, according to the Commerce Department, slightly ahead of the 0.3% expected among economists polled by Reuters, driven by a rebound in wholesale stock levels and indicating a potential boost to first-quarter economic growth. Wholesale inventories rose 0.8%, while retail inventories increased 0.2% and manufacturing stocks edged up 0.1%, contributing to a 1.3% year-on-year gain. Business sales also strengthened, rising 1.7% during the month, reducing the inventory-to-sales ratio to 1.33 months. The data suggests inventory investment may support GDP growth in the first quarter, with the Federal Reserve currently forecasting a 1.3% annualized expansion. 

 

Reuters

LVMH-backed private equity firm L Catterton is launching a $500m fund with athletes including basketball star Kevin Durant, targeting investments in consumer companies.

 

Financial Times

Americans’ confidence in having enough savings for retirement has dropped to its lowest level in nearly a decade, driven largely by rising living costs and concerns about the future of government benefits. A survey by the Employee Benefit Research Institute found that 61% of workers feel confident about their retirement finances, down from 67% in 2025 and 72% in 2021, while confidence among retirees also declined to 73% from 78% a year earlier. Inflation has been a key factor, with many retirees reporting higher-than-expected expenses, particularly for essentials such as groceries, healthcare, and fuel. The findings also highlight growing fears about the long-term stability of Social Security and Medicare, with some individuals opting to claim benefits earlier amid uncertainty. Overall, both workers and retirees reported declines in financial well-being and health, alongside rising concerns about debt, underscoring broader economic pressures affecting retirement planning.

 

Wall Street Journal

PwC has been fined HK$1.3bn ($166m) by Hong Kong regulators and banned from taking on new clients for six months after authorities found serious breaches in its audits of collapsed property developer Evergrande in 2019 and 2020. Regulators described the failures as “egregious,” with additional fines imposed on former partners and PwC setting aside HK$1bn to compensate minority shareholders, as the firm acknowledged its work fell well below expected standards amid wider scrutiny over its role in the accounting issues preceding Evergrande’s 2021 collapse.

 

Bloomberg

Financial Times

South China Morning Post