An attorney representing Meta shareholders told Judge Kathaleen McCormick in Delaware’s Chancery Court a settlement was reached with Zuckerberg and other members of the company’s leadership, multiple outlets reported, though details of the settlement were not immediately available.

Sam Closic, the shareholders’ attorney, said an agreement was reached quickly, according to Reuters.

Facebook shareholders sued Zuckerberg, former COO Sheryl Sandberg and other billionaires tied to the company in 2018, alleging they violated a Federal Trade Commission agreement by sharing user data with third-party apps without their consent.

Shareholders requested $8 billion in damages, and the trial was expected to feature testimony from Zuckerberg, Sandberg and billionaires Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen and Netflix CEO Reed Hastings, all of whom served on Facebook’s board.

Neither Meta nor attorneys representing the company immediately responded to requests for comment.

Who Were The Defendants In Meta’s Privacy Trial?

Zuckerberg, Sandberg and Konstantinos Papamiltiadis, Facebook’s former vice president of partnerships, were among those named as defendants. Shareholders also named Andreessen, Thiel, Hastings and other Facebook board members, including former Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation CEO Susan Desmond-Hellman, eBay CFO Peggy Alford and former American Express CEO Kenneth Chenault. Jeff Zients, President Joe Biden’s former chief of staff who testified Wednesday, was named alongside Erskine Bowles, President Bill Clinton’s former chief of staff, for their roles on Facebook’s board.

Key Background

A lawsuit between shareholders of Facebook, which rebranded to Meta in 2021, arose in 2018 over alleged violations of an agreement the company reached with the FTC. That agreement included a consent order in which Facebook agreed to create a “comprehensive privacy program” to address privacy concerns. Their claims were highlighted by the company’s Cambridge Analytica scandal, during which Facebook user data was harvested through a third-party app and then allegedly used to influence Brexit and the 2016 election. Zuckerberg and other defendants disputed claims of wrongdoing, arguing the shareholders failed to back up their claims of company officials acting unlawfully.

Surprising Fact

Sandberg was sanctioned by Delaware’s Chancery Court in January, after she allegedly deleted personal emails that were material to the trial. Sandberg claimed she rarely used her personal email and information from those deleted emails was preserved as other users were copied in on those messages.

Forbes Valuation

Zuckerberg is the world’s third-wealthiest person with a fortune valued at $241.1 billion, according to Forbes’ latest estimates. Sandberg has a net worth valued at $2.4 billion as of Thursday, while Andreessen ($2 billion), Hastings ($6.8) and Thiel ($23.2 billion) also rank among the world’s richest.

Zuckerberg Reaches Settlement With Meta Shareholders In $8 Billion Privacy Case Beijing Informer.

Up to $11 billion of the aid package will be allotted for an assistance program for farmers producing row crops, such as corn, wheat and soybeans, through a Farmer Bridge Assistance program.

Those funds will move by Feb. 28, 2026, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins said at a roundtable with the president and Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, but farmers will be informed how much they will receive earlier.

The other $1 billion will be reserved for farmers of other specialty crops, Rollins said, with Politico reporting this could include producers of crops like fruit and vegetable.

Rollins said the bridge funding was necessary because the “farm economy is facing a crisis that we inherited,” blaming the hardships faced by farmers on the Biden administration’s policies, including not signing new trade deals.

Trump also said the administration was planning to reduce environmental regulations on farming equipment, such as that produced by John Deere—insisting tractors and other machinery are getting too expensive and “it doesn’t do anything but make the machines break all the time.”

The funds will be authorized by the Commodity Credit Corporation Charter Act, Bloomberg reported, and will not require the administration to seek congressional approval to use tariff revenue to fund the bailout.

Trump repeatedly connected the payments to tariff income, insisting “this money would not be possible without tariffs.”

Trump will announce the aid package at a round table with Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent, Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins and members of Congress, according to the reports.

Earlier this year, soybean farmers bore the brunt of Trump’s tariff policy when China abruptly slashed their U.S. soybean purchases to zero as the two countries struggled to resolve a trade dispute over rare earth minerals. China was previously the largest single purchaser of American soybeans, and purchased about half of the U.S.’ $24.5 billion soybean crop in 2024. The Trump administration has been weighing options to address the crisis since the trade dispute began, including a reported plan to use tariff revenue for a slightly smaller bailout. China began importing American soybeans again in October ahead of a meeting between Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping. After Trump struck a deal with Xi Jinping later the same month, the president claimed China would resume purchasing “massive amounts” of soybeans and other crops. Although the Trump administration said China would buy 12 million tons of soybeans before the end of the year, the country has not come close to meeting that mark as of late November, Reuters reported.

Big Number

About 60%. That’s how much farm bankruptcies rose in the first half of 2025 compared to the previous year, the Washington Post reported citing data from court records. A total of 181 farms across the country filed for bankruptcy in the first two quarters of the year, compared to 115 during the same two quarters in 2024.

Contra

In a statement to Forbes, the White House blamed the Biden administration for the recent increased hardship for farmers. “Farmers suffered for years under Joe Biden, who increased the United States’ trade deficit to over $1.2 trillion, raised input costs, pushed woke DEI agricultural policies, and more,” White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said in a statement. “Today’s announcement reflects the President’s commitment to helping our farmers, who will have the support they need to bridge the gap between Biden’s failures and the President’s successful policies taking effect,” Kelly said.

Trump Announces $12 Billion Aid Package For Farmers—Here’s What We Know Beijing Informer.

The Bengaluru, India-based company will buy the stakes held by Serum Institute Life Sciences, Tata Capital and Activ Pine by swapping 70.28 Biocon shares for every 100 Biocon Biologics shares, at a price of 405.78 rupees ($4.51) per Biocon share, according to a statement released over the weekend. The deal, slated to be completed in March subject to regulatory approvals, values Biocon Biologics at $5.5 billion, it said.

Separately, India-listed Biocon also said it will also buy the shares held by Pittsburgh-based Viatris in Biocon Biologics for $815 million, paying $400 million in cash and $415 million in Biocon shares. The company also plans to raise up to 45 billion rupees ($500 million) by selling shares to institutional investors, with the proceeds going toward the cash payment to Viatris.

“The integration of Biocon Biologics into Biocon represents the next chapter in our evolution,” Mazumdar-Shaw, executive chairwoman of Biocon said in the statement. “Strategically, Biocon will be one of the few companies offering both biosimilars and generics at a global scale”.

The company said that integrating Biocon Biologics will simplify its corporate structure and strengthen Biocon’s position in diabetes, oncology and immunology medications, which together make up nearly 40% of global pharmaceutical industry’s revenues.

With an estimated net worth of $3.6 billion based on Forbes’ real-time data, Mazumdar-Shaw, is among the wealthiest in India. She founded Biocon in 1978 and turned it into a biopharmaceutical giant. The company acquired U.S. drugmaker Viatris’ biosimilars business for $3.3 billion in 2022. Biocon-backed cancer therapy drug maker Bicara Therapeutics raised $362 million in its IPO on Nasdaq last year.

Indian Tycoon Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw’s Biocon Buyout Deal Values Biologics Unit At $5.5 Billion Beijing Informer.

As digital ecosystems expand at an unprecedented speed, the global IT industry faces an acute shortage of talent capable of working with large-scale, industrial software systems. Against this backdrop, the International Software Engineering Olympiad PROD has carved out a distinct niche. Launched in January 2024, the program quickly became one of the few platforms where high-school students from multiple countries solve real business challenges, explore the architecture of complex software systems, and gain a mindset shaped by the workflow of enterprise-level engineering teams. Registration for the new season closes on December 2, and the initiative is increasingly viewed as a gateway for young people to explore the full spectrum of modern technological development.

The Story Behind PROD

PROD is one of the fastest-growing education projects in recent years, bringing together high-school students around tasks drawn directly from real-world industry. The initiative is run by several Russian organizations: Central University – a new-generation STEM-oriented institution ranked among Russia’s leading universities and one of the top 10 most competitive for admission; T-Technologies, a major fintech company; and the Faculty of Computer Science at HSE University.

The idea was born as an attempt to give teenagers an early, informed pathway into a profession shaping the future technological landscape. Importantly, the organizers emphasize that no prior programming experience is required – basic knowledge of mathematics and computer science is sufficient.

PROD allows students from grades 8 to 12 to test themselves in industrial development, one of the most complex branches of IT. Its debut season in 2024 was a milestone as PROD became the world’s first international Olympiad of this kind. More than 6,000 applications were submitted. During the second season, which opened in December 2024, over 10,000 students applied, and 4,000 Russian-speaking participants from more than 20 countries – including the UK, Germany, France, Canada, China and Peru – took part. In just two cycles, the Olympiad has evolved from a standalone international contest into a genuine bridge linking schools, universities, and the technology sector.

The new season opens in December 2025, with results announced in March 2026. For the first time, the competition is fully bilingual – in English and Russian – making it accessible to students worldwide.

Structure of the Olympiad and Opportunities for Participants

The design of PROD ensures that students from any country can complete the full journey: from introductory tasks to a final project defense. Most stages are held online, lowering access barriers and establishing PROD as a truly global academic platform. Only the final round takes place offline in Moscow, with accommodation for international participants fully covered by the organizers.

The competition begins with a remote test in mathematics and basic programming – identical for all participants regardless of national curricula. The second round focuses on case challenges in frontend and backend development, mobile engineering, and MLOps, each reflecting the realities of modern tech industries around the world. This structure helps students grasp principles applicable not only in Russian or European fintech, but also across global digital ecosystems.

The final stage consists of two rounds. In the individual round, finalists develop a project within their chosen track; in the team round, they collaborate to create full-scale solutions based on cases provided by the organizers.

PROD’s growing international status is reinforced by its real impact on participants’ futures. Over two years, the program has built its own development ecosystem: 39 finalists and award-winners have secured internships at T-Technologies – a company developing a major financial and lifestyle services ecosystem – with 19 currently interning and 9 already employed full-time. More than 120 participants from the previous season enrolled at Central University, including 50 finalists and 20 winners and prize-winners.

In a world where software has become a universal language, initiatives like PROD shape a new generation of engineers – young professionals capable of building world-class digital products even before entering university. The Olympiad has already proven that high-school students are ready for this challenge, and its international expansion ensures that young people anywhere in the world can access this experience.

International Software Engineering Olympiad PROD Launches 2025–2026 Season Beijing Informer.

The expansion will also enable the company’s existing factory in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu to produce electric buses, e-scooters and charging infrastructure, New York-listed VinFast said in a statement. The facility, which started producing electric cars in August, is Vinfast’s first overseas plant.

“The proposed expansion of the Tamil Nadu plant will enable us to broaden our product lineup in India, allowing us to meet a wider range of customer needs,” Pham Sanh Chau, CEO of VinFast Asia, said in the statement. “VinFast believes that Tamil Nadu will continue to serve as a strategic hub in our global expansion journey and will play an important role in supporting India’s green mobility goals.”

The expansion project—which would increase annual production capacity in India to 150,000 from 50,000 currently—is the second phase of an existing $2 billion commitment to scale up its operations in India. The government of Tamil Nadu is allocating an additional 200 hectares right next to VinFast’s existing factory, which sites on a 160-hectare property.

Based in the port city of Hao Phong in northeastern Vietnam, VinFast has been scaling up shipments globally even as the company remains in the red. It delivered 110,362 EVs in the first nine months of the year, surpassing 97,399 deliveries in the whole of 2024. In India, it plans to increase its dealer network to 35 outlets by the end of the year from 24 currently.

With a real-time net worth of $14 billion, Pham has interests in real estate, retail, healthcare, education, and technology through his flagship Vingroup. He built his fortune from an instant noodles business he started in Ukraine in 1993. He sold that business to Nestle in 2010 and built one of Vietnam’s most diversified conglomerates.

Billionaire Pham Nhat Vuong’s VinFast Spending $500 Million To Expand EV Factory In India Beijing Informer.

Zhang Jianzhong, founder of Moore Threads Technology, has joined the billionaire ranks as shares of his Chinese AI chipmaker soared over 420% on its Shanghai market debut amid optimism it could one day become the Nvidia of China. The 59-year-old chairman and CEO of the Beijing-based firm has amassed a fortune of $4.3 billion based on his stake in the company, according to Forbes estimates. Moore Threads raised 8 billion yuan ($1.1 billion) in late November by selling 70 million shares at 114.28 yuan apiece, according to its prospectus. Fellow cofounders Wang Dong and Zhang Yubo also joined the world’s three-comma club, amassing a fortune of $1.4 billion and $1.7 billion based on their respective company stakes.

The company did not respond to a request for comment. The initial public offering is one of the most anticipated in China this year – with the retail portion of the share sale being oversubscribed by 2,750 times despite a clawback mechanism that eventually allotted more shares to individual investors. Moore Threads now sports a market capitalization of 276 billion yuan and plans to use the proceeds for hiring as well as research and development.

Before its blockbuster IPO, Moore Threads raised funding from a star-studded list of investors including HSG (HongShan Capital Group, formerly known as Sequoia China) as well as the investment arms of Chinese tech giants ByteDance and Tencent. In 2023, it was added to the U.S. government’s entity list, a trade blacklist that prevents it from accessing advanced American chipmaking technologies.

The company is benefiting from China’s push for technology self-reliance amid U.S. restrictions on selling advanced semiconductors to its top geopolitical rival, Kenny Ng, a Hong Kong-based securities strategist at Everbright Securities International, says via WeChat messages. Growing optimism over locally made chips has also vaulted the shares of companies including Cambricon Technologies. Chen Tianshi, Cambricon’s 40-year-old chairman and CEO, is now China’s 11th richest person with a net worth of $23.4 billion, according to Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires List.

As for Moore Threads, its products range from graphics processing units to supporting software to train AI models. The domestic market for such GPUs will grow to 1.3 trillion yuan in 2029 from 142.5 billion yuan in 2024, according to a November research note from Shanghai-based brokerage Sinolink Securities.

Moore Threads is likely to become an “important force” in replacing overseas suppliers such as Nvidia, the brokerage wrote in the note. During the first nine months of this year, sales at the company soared 182% year-on-year to 784.6 million yuan. Its loss narrowed to 723.5 million yuan, down 18.7% from the same period a year ago.

Founder Zhang has worked in the semiconductor business for almost 20 years. He led Nvidia’s China unit for 14 years until 2020, the same year he founded Moore Threads, according to the prospectus. The mogul previously worked as a senior executive at Dell and HP in China, its prospectus shows. His wife, Liu Shanshan, was a company director during its early years before stepping down in 2023.

Chinese Challenger To Nvidia Mints A New Billionaire As Its Stock Soars Over 420% In Trading Debut Beijing Informer.

One of the recent cases was a deal with the fund, in which the company provided microfinance to secure a stake in a company whose shares were traded in a closed market segment. The transaction was accompanied by a thorough asset assessment, liquidity assessment, legal audit and a pre-developed exit strategy.

Within three months, the asset was sold in accordance with the planned model. The financial result of the project was distributed among the partners, which emphasizes the transparency of the processes and compliance with the internal regulations of the company.

“We are not looking for easy solutions — only calculated steps based on numbers, risk modeling and an institutional approach. Sustainability, trust and long—term impact for our partners are our focus,” the company noted.

Today, the company is developing a full-fledged ecosystem that combines experience in traditional and digital financial instruments, including microfinance mechanisms, asset management, projects in the field of blockchain economics and compliance standards.

Details about investment projects, transaction structures, and documentation are available on the company’s official website in the Documents section.

Granthera strengthens its position in the field of digital finance and MFIs: an institutional approach and real-world cases    Beijing Informer.

The holding is engaged in the implementation of colloidal technologies in the field of medicine in the BRICS countries. The drugs are based on nanoparticles of magnesium, zinc, copper and silver, which can effectively counteract infections.

Analysts and investors are showing increased interest in the Pre-IPO of the Swiss holding Si14 AG. The investment attractiveness of Si14 AG shares is growing after the holding introduced patented colloidal nanotechnologies in the pharmaceuticalindustry, according to Infoway Marketing, the official representative of Si14 AGInfoway Marketing.

The founder of the Swiss holding company Si14 AG is Viktor Kopylov. According to Viktor Kopylov, preparations based on colloidal technologies receive rave reviews. This applies not only to private users, but also to large partners at the state level.

Infoway Marketing: Investors ‘ interest холдингу in Si14 holding continues to grow Beijing Informer.

Gansu’s Heihe Wetland National Nature Reserve welcomes a large flock of gray geese. /CFP

Black-headed gulls are spotted feeding directly from a visitor’s hand in Yunnan. /CFP

An egret is spotted along the Hunhe River in Shenyang. /CFP

Swans, geese, and ducks frolic in a lake in Zhangjiakou, Hebei Province. /CFP

Gansu’s Heihe Wetland National Nature Reserve welcomes a large flock of gray geese. /CFP

Black-headed gulls are spotted feeding directly from a visitor’s hand in Yunnan. /CFPNext

As autumn sets in and temperatures drop, migratory birds begin their journey southward across China. Local governments have stepped up their conservation efforts, in a bid to foster pristine environments to ensure safe passage for these winter visitors.

Black-headed gulls were seen playfully interacting with visitors at Dianchi Lake in Kunming, Yunnan. Egrets made a brief stop at the Hunhe River in Shenyang to refuel before continuing their journey south. In Zhangjiakou, Hebei, the golden hues of sunset conjured up a fairytale scene, with migratory waterbirds frolicking in a lake and soaring in the sky. And the stunning sight of a wave of grey geese arriving at the Heihe Wetland National Nature Reserve in Gansu reflected the spectacle of nature in motion.

Migratory birds spotted along China’s lush shores and clear waters Beijing Informer.

China’s Wang Xiyu celebrates after hitting a shot against Kamilla Rakhimova in the first round of the Ningbo Open in Ningbo, east China’s Zhejiang Province, October 14, 2024. /CFP

China’s Wang Xiyu delivered an impressive performance to clear her first hurdle at the Ningbo Open, securing a 6-2, 6-0 victory against Russia’s Kamilla Rakhimova to advance to the second round.

After early exits at both the China Open and Wuhan Open, Wang entered the WTA 500 event in east China’s Zhejiang Province as a wild card, eager to make her mark.

In their first professional meeting, Wang faced a formidable Russian opponent who sits more than 30 places higher in the world rankings. However, she demonstrated remarkable composure and dominance throughout the match.

The turning point came in the fourth game, when Wang converted her third break point, establishing a crucial advantage. Although Rakhimova managed to break Wang’s serve shortly afterward, it was a fleeting moment of resistance.

From that point, Wang took control, winning nine consecutive games. The crowd favorite wrapped up the match in straight sets, leaving no doubt about her capabilities on the court.

China’s Wang Xiyu storms into second round at Ningbo Open with dominant win over Rakhimova Beijing Informer.