TOP NEWS
Evergrande…?
Yesterday was supposedly crunch time for China Evergrande Group, which was scheduled to make an $83.5 million dollar bond interest payment. It doesn't seem to have done so, and it has another interest payment of $47.5 million due next week, but the stricken property giant hasn’t actually said anything, and its bondholders would quite like to know what's going on. Meanwhile, Evergrande's electric-vehicle unit has reportedly missed salary payments, and its share price fell 23% this morning. Reuters
Novavax and COVAX
Novavax and the Serum Institute of India (the world's largest vaccine manufacturer) have asked the World Health Organization to clear Novavax's COVID-19 vaccine for inclusion in the COVAX initiative, which seeks to inoculate the developing world. The filing comes a bit later than Novavax previously signaled. Applications for emergency use authorization in the U.S. and Europe should follow in Q4. Reuters
Novatek arrest
The U.S. Department of Justice has charged the deputy head of Russian natural gas producer Novatek with defrauding the U.S. by allegedly hiding $93 million in offshore accounts. Mark Gvetvay, a U.S. national with a Russian passport, could be behind bars for a long time if convicted over the tax charges. Financial Times
Booze baron
A Chinese court has sentenced Yuan Renguo, who was arrested a couple years ago for taking $17.5 million in bribes, to life in prison. Yuan was until 2018 the chairman of state-owned liquor giant Kweichow Moutai, which makes an elite version of the sorghum-based baijiu drink. Bloomberg
AROUND THE WATER COOLER
European gigafactories
Mercedes-maker Daimler is taking a one-third stake in a joint venture between Chrysler-maker Stellantis and energy firm TotalEnergies, which is developing and making electric-car batteries. The JV, Automotive Cells Company (ACC), is backed by the French and German governments. Reuters
U.K. fuel
The U.K.'s supply chain crisis now includes fuel, after some BP and Esso-owned Tesco Alliance gas stations had to close because there weren't enough truck drivers to deliver their essential wares from refineries. This is a cross-sectoral problem with several causes that include the pandemic and Brexit. BBC
German millionaires
With Germany's federal election coming up on Sunday, many of the country's millionaires are reportedly shifting their assets into Switzerland. They apparently fear the reintroduction of a wealth tax and tighter inheritance taxes, if the new government turns out to be more leftist than the current one. That is quite possible, but the polling is tight and remember: there will probably be months of coalition talks before the new administration materializes. Reuters
Salvadoran Bitcoin
Two weeks on, what has become of El Salvador's trailblazing move to make Bitcoin legal tender? Don't expect many other countries to follow that trail just yet, as things are not going well. As Fortune's Chris Morris explains, businesses and even some government offices are trying their best to avoid accepting the cryptocurrency, the Bitcoin ATMs often don't work, and the state Bitcoin wallet, Chivo, has a faulty ID verification system that has allowed some accounts to be taken over by hackers. Fortune
This edition of CEO Daily was edited by David Meyer.
