*By Carlo Versano*
Shares of Tesla jumped more than 15 percent in the pre-market Monday on news that CEO Elon Musk settled a lawsuit with the SEC over Musk's social media use.
Under the terms of the settlement, Musk will step down as chairman of Tesla ($TSLA) for at least three years but can remain in the chief executive role. He and the company must each pay $20 million in fines. Two independent board members will also be appointed.
Federal regulators sued Musk last week, arguing that his infamous Aug. 7 "funding secured" tweet amounted to securities fraud. The lawsuit was filed after Musk reportedly scuttled a last-minute deal with the agency under which he would resign as chairman and pay a fine but not admit to any wrongdoing. Talks restarted soon after, and by Saturday a new settlement was in place.
The settlement takes care of one major headache for investors, who will now look to the car maker's third-quarter production and delivery numbers, which may be reported as early as Monday. Musk [reportedly] (https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/30/elon-musk-tells-tesla-to-ignore-distractions-hints-at-profitability.html) emailed employees over the weekend, telling them to "ignore all distractions" and that the company was approaching profitability.
Volvo's headlights are fixed firmly on the future ー so firmly that it decided to bring a concept, not a car to the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show. Volvo's Chief Digital Officer Atif Rafiq told Cheddar's Tamara Warren that it took the "extreme step of not having a car at a car show" to make a statement about Volvo's future in mobility ー even as the automaker regains its balance after abruptly canceling its public debut.
Crypto exchanges have improved their anti-money laundering compliance (AML), but the the Treasury Department's next priority is to remind them about the looming threat of terrorist financing.
At this year's Los Angeles Auto Show, I came face to face with a future promised by sci-fi novels and films. The BMW Vision iNEXT concept car drew me in and refused to let me go. The electric SUV, which promises to have level 3 autonomy when production begins in 2021, looks like nothing else on the road ー yet somehow seems familiar.
Facebook recently set up a small booth at the University of British Columbia in Canada with free t-shirts, dogs to pet, and the opportunity to win a $1,000 cash prize. All students had to do was download a new app called Bonfire.
Even as Mercedes-Benz unveils its latest models to the public at the L.A. Auto Show on Friday, designers at the company will be thinking much further ahead ー to the future of the auto industry.
At this year's Los Angeles Auto Show, one of the first booths visitors will see when they enter belongs to Tesla, which is set up right near the entrance to the South Hall of the L.A. Convention Center. But as Cheddar took in the show during Wednesday's media preview, Tesla's presence was felt far beyond its booth.
Mashahiro Moro, president and CEO of Mazda North American Ops, spoke with Cheddar at the L.A. Auto Show about the redesigned Mazda 3 sedan, and the company's continued commitment to small, fuel-efficient passenger cars.
Derrick Hatami, the executive vice president of sales and marketing at Volkswagen, told Cheddar's Tamara Warren at the L.A. Auto Show about the retiring of the iconic VW Beetle, and the automaker's new focus on electric cars and a concept van that calls back to another VW icon -- the bus.
The future of the sedan is parked on shaky ground in the U.S.
But according to the president of the Lincoln Motor Company, the car model is still major in China. “But we’re in a little bit of different situation because in China — sedans are still 50 percent of the market.” Joy Falotico told Cheddar Wednesday morning at the Los Angeles Auto show.
Logitech may eye a Turtle Beach acquisition as it turns away from a Plantronics deal. "Logitech has a great history as far as making very smart M&A transactions," said Tom Forte, a senior research analyst at D.A. Davidson. "I do see a potential longer term for Turtle Beach to be acquired. Logitech is one potential suitor ー Microsoft's ($MSFT) another," he added.
