Warren Buffett’s fortune reached $100 billion on Wednesday, as investors drove the stock price for his company Berkshire Hathaway Inc to a record level.

Buffett’s net worth, as measured by Forbes magazine, comes almost entirely from owning about one-sixth of Berkshire, a roughly $600 billion company.

Berkshire’s stock price has surged higher in March, with its Class A shares surpassing $400,000 on Wednesday.

That came after the Omaha, Nebraska-based company on Feb. 27 said fourth-quarter operating results improved despite the coronavirus pandemic, while gains in Apple Inc and other stocks fueled a $35.8 billion overall profit.

The 90-year-old Buffett’s net worth would be higher had he not in 2006 begun donating his Berkshire shares to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and four family charities.

Buffett had previously owned nearly one-third of Berkshire, and his donations have totaled more than $37 billion when they were made.

Berkshire was a failing textile company when Buffett took control in 1965. It now owns more than 90 businesses such as the Geico car insurer and BNSF railroad, and ended last year with $281.2 billion of stocks.

One of the world’s most celebrated investors, Buffett was once the world’s richest person but has been bypassed by several executives whose companies’ stock prices have risen faster.

Before this year, Berkshire’s stock had trailed the Standard & Poor’s 500 including dividends over the prior decade.

The stock has outperformed in 2021, and some analysts raised their price targets this month.

Forbes said Buffett ranks fifth on its list of the world’s richest people, after Amazon.com’s Jeff Bezos, Tesla’s Elon Musk, LVMH Moet Hennessy’s Bernard Arnault and his family, and the philanthropist and Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates.

Source: Reuters

March is Women's History Month, and while many companies aim to celebrate women 365 days a year, this month always feels extra special.

A wide variety of fashion and beauty brands have worked on everything from extraordinary campaigns to lending charitable donations toward worthy causes that honor and celebrate women of the past, present and future.

Nike debuted its "We Play Real" film campaign putting a spotlight on incredible Black women while beauty brands such as Billie that challenged societal ideals of how woman are perceived in its inclusive campaign, "Think of a Woman."

Below, a number of fashion and beauty labels that are celebrating women this month and beyond:

Nike

Nike's latest "We Play Real" film continues to recognize Black women and their contributions to society.

"Black women are rarely recognized for the hard work they put in," the brand wrote in a caption. "It's not just magic, they are the real thing."

Narrated by actress and playwright Dominique Fishback, top tier athletes such as Serena Williams, Naomi Osaka, Caster Semenya and several others are featured.

Billie

The body care brand continues to empower women with it's "Think of a Woman" campaign. "The video celebrates and showcases the underrepresented who may not immediately come to mind, helping the viewer uncover the biases we all have unconsciously developed from years of societal programming," the brand said in a statement.

Shea Moisture
The hair and skin care company recently creating an Emerging Visionary Grant which is a program to support Black women creatives who are using art to make change within their communities. In partnership with cultural education platform Good Mirrors, ten individuals will receive grants of $5,000 each totaling a donation of $50,000.

Puma

Puma released a purple-inspired footwear and apparel collection as the color signifies justice and dignity and is one of the hues used to symbolize Internation Women's Day.

The IWD collection comes shortly after the brand launched "She Moves Us" which is an initiative that brought together Puma's top ambassadors such as Dua Lipa, Cara Delevingne and Lauren London to celebrate woman who have moved culture and sports forward.

Target

This month, Target has rolled out a new "Woman Owned" icon to make it easier for shoppers to support women-owned brands.

Castefity

Casetify has created an inspiring "Her Impact Matters" collection of phone cases with sayings such as "misogyny bores me" and "women's rights are human rights."

Each design is by a female aritst and $5 will be donated for every case sold to Equality Now.

Adidas

Adidas kicked off Women's History Month by launching its "Watch Us Move" global campaign created to accelerate the brand's commitment to creating an inclusive space for women. The initiative features a series of products and workouts that focus on inclusivity in sports.

This series features body positive yoga expert Jessamyn Stanley, Paralympic medalist and motivational speaker Denise Schindler and several other powerful women.

It Cosmetics

The mega-beauty brand revealed its "Go For IT" campaign which was created to inspire and encourage its community to spread messages and actions of confidence and support.

Additionally, in partnership with global nonprofit Kiva, IT Cosmetics has invited shoppers to loan as little as $25 to women business owners on International Women's Day. For each donation made, the cosmetics companied matched (up to $100,000 U.S. dollars) with a pledge to provide $2 million by 2030 to support women-led businesses.

Old Navy

Old Navy partnered with artist Jade Purple Brown to create shirts that celebrate "sisters, besties, girl groups, lady communes" as captioned in a photo of the empowering tops.

"Together, we're imagining a more inclusive future through art," the caption continued.

BH Cosmetics

BH Cosmetics partnered up with Step Up Women's Network to create an empowering Give Back Step Up eyeshadow palette. The brand has also pledged to donate 100% of net proceeds to helping teenage girls in underserved communities to fullfill their potential.

​Source: By JACQUELINE LAUREAN YATES, ABC News

ABC News 
​

​








​Regional fintech company WiPay Caribbean has recruited, with immediate effect, former Bank of Jamaica (BOJ) Deputy Governor Livingstone Morrison as chairman of its board of directors.

The announcement of Morrison’s appointment was made last weekend by the start-up company, which has operations in Jamaica, St Lucia, Trinidad and its home base in Barbados. Morrison’s appointment is seen as crucial as he will be offering regulatory guidance and insight, as WiPay work towards reshaping the Caribbean’s financial landscape.

In his capacity as BOJ deputy governor, Morrison had responsibility for administration and technical services, finance and technology and payment system and risk management. In addition, he has served as chairman of the Regulatory and Market Oversight Committee of the Jamaica Stock Exchange (JSE) and is a director of the Jamaica Central Securities Depository Limited (JCSD) as well as the JCSD Trustee Services Limited.

WIPAY STRIVING FOR FINANCIAL INCLUSION AND CONNECTED CARIBBEAN

Both entities are subsidiaries of the JSE, which regulates Jamaica’s equities market. In welcoming Morrison to WiPay, chief executive officer and founder of WiPay Caribbean, Aldwyn Wayne, remarked that, “Morrison’s understanding of the regulatory framework will assist WiPay in achieving its long-term vision of financial inclusion and a connected Caribbean.”

WiPay Jamaica Country Manager Kitwe McCann, who also commented on Morrison’s appointment, said, “WiPay is resolved in its commitment to addressing the financial inclusion and needs of the unbanked and underserved, which will be well served and guided experience that Morrison brings with him. As a former deputy governor of the Bank of Jamaica, Morrison’s direction will be key in navigating the regulatory space and building upon our financial awareness.”

READY FOR THE CHALLENGE

In his response Morrison stated, “I welcome the opportunity to serve as chairman of the board of directors of WiPay Jamaica. WiPay, in a relatively short period of time, has grown to become the leading fintech company in the Caribbean.”

He noted that as the novel coronavirus pandemic dislocate families and organisations and disrupt economic activity, it should be clear to all that wider access and utilisation of digital financial services must be embraced as an integral part of Jamaica’s economic recovery. Morrison is looking forward to leading the WiPay board in guiding the company through the next phase of its development.

The new WiPay chairman is committed to supporting stakeholders, including Government, regulators and financial institutions, in providing the vast majority of Jamaicans with financial services that satisfy their need for access, safety, efficiency and competitive prices. Morrison holds a master’s degree in accounting from the University of Oxford and is a graduate of The University of the West Indies.

In three years, WiPay’s platform has emerged as the Caribbean’s leading online payment solution. In its first year, WiPay partnered with Republic Bank, the Caribbean’s largest bank, and the following year partnered with MasterCard and was the first registered PayFac (payment facilitator) in the region registered by both MasterCard and Visa Networks.

Most recently WiPay announced its partnership with EMTECH to create and develop a regional settlement network based around Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) with participating central banks.


Source: Caribbean Business Report