Coronavirus Update

South Korean health officials reported the country’s first death due to the coronavirus outbreak (now referred to as COVID-19), along with 22 additional cases. In Japan, two former passengers from the Diamond Princess cruise ship who were diagnosed with the virus passed away - you can find Johns Hopkins’ real-time online virus tracker here.

Global Watchdog Sanctions Iran

Per the WSJ (no $ needed), a G7 terror-finance watchdog will blacklist Iran starting today, setting restrictions on the country’s financial institutions. The move comes after European governments decided to join the U.S. in an effort to compel Iran to end its support of terrorist groups and eliminate its nuclear weapons program.

Grenell Tapped for Intelligence Director

President Trump announced his intention to nominate Richard Grenell, the current U.S. ambassador to Germany, as acting Director of National Intelligence in addition to his current duties. The decision has drawn criticism from other U.S. officials, who questioned the decision for Grenell to hold two jobs simultaneously.

Stanley Nickels

Morgan Stanley announced the purchase of online money manager E*Trade in an all-stock deal worth $13 billion. The acquisition - expected to close by the end of the year - is the largest by an American bank since the 2008 financial crisis.

Victoria’s Private

Private equity firm Sycamore Partners has agreed to purchase a 55% stake in Victoria’s Secret from parent company L Brands for $525 million. Upon completion of the deal, L Brands founder and CEO Les Wexner plans to step down from his position.

More: Wexner is currently the longest-serving CEO of a Fortune 500 company, having worked at L Brands for the past 57 years.

Merge Diverged

The parent companies involved in the Sprint and T-Mobile merger have agreed to new ownership terms of the newly-formed company. SoftBank (Sprint)’s ownership stake dropped from 27% to 24%, while Deutsche Telekom (T-Mobile)’s percentage increased from 42% to 43%, with the remaining 33% of the company to be owned by the public.

The Eye of the Beholder

When Rachel Krall first started posting Instagram pictures of her adorable rescue cat, Belarus, she feared people would dislike him for his unique cross-eyed appearance, which was caused by a condition called strabismus.

What Rachel didn’t predict was that Belarus’ popularity would explode - after amassing hundreds of thousands of followers, Rachel was able to cash in on a feline merchandising deal and donated 100% of the profits to local animal shelters.

Two-Wheel Drive

Some rural Indian villages can be a significant distance away from the nearest hospital, meaning locals often lack proper access to medical care.

Over the last 19 years, Karimul Haque and his family have driven more than 5,000 people to the hospital in his motorcycle-turned-ambulance, which features a custom passenger sidecar.

Teach by Example

A Colorado seventh-grader, suffering from an autoimmune disease that causes severe kidney damage, was recently taken off the transplant list due to his unstable home environment in foster care.

When his kind-hearted science teacher, Finn Landing, learned of the situation, he immediately petitioned to adopt the pre-teen, paving the way for a successful transplant surgery and a happily-ever-after ending.