Amazon to Cut 16,000 Jobs, Deutsche Bank Offices Raided in Money Laundering Probe
Amazon confirmed it would cut 16,000 jobs globally, hours after an accidental email revealed the new round of redundancies, according to the BBC. The announcement came as Deutsche Bank's offices in Frankfurt and Berlin were raided as part of a money laundering probe. Separately, Starbucks scrapped a $250,000 cap on its chief executive's use of the company jet, citing security concerns, and EasyJet was warned about misleading advertising regarding baggage fees.
Amazon's job cuts were revealed after an email, intended to be internal, was mistakenly sent to staff on Tuesday, the BBC reported. The email referred to layoffs in the US, Canada, and Costa Rica as part of an effort to "strengthen the company." Beth Galetti, senior vice president of people experience and technology at Amazon, announced the job reductions on Wednesday as part of a plan to "remove bureaucracy" at the firm, according to the BBC.
Meanwhile, Deutsche Bank's offices were raided by officials as part of an inquiry into money laundering, the BBC reported. The Office of the Federal Prosecutor said the investigation involved the Federal Criminal Police Office and focused on "unknown individuals and employees" at Germany's largest bank. The bank allegedly "maintained business relationships in the past with foreign companies" suspected of "having been used for money laundering purposes as part of further investigations," according to the prosecutor's statement reported by the BBC. A Deutsche Bank spokesperson confirmed the searches to the BBC.
In other business news, Starbucks scrapped a $250,000 cap on CEO Brian Niccol's use of the company jet for personal travel due to security concerns, the BBC reported. Niccol uses the jet to commute between his family home in Newport Beach, California, and the company's headquarters in Seattle. The cap was lifted after a security review recommended he use the jet for all air travel due to increased media attention and "credible threat actors," according to Starbucks, as reported by the BBC.
EasyJet was also warned by the Advertising Standards Authority (ASA) for claiming that carry-on baggage fees were available "from 5.99," the BBC reported. The ASA said customers would assume they could purchase a carry-on bag for that price, but EasyJet failed to provide evidence to support the claim. The claim was flagged by consumer group Which?, which noted that airlines often advertise low fares but have additional fees. EasyJet stated, "We always aim to provide clear information to our customers on pricing and the purpose," according to the BBC.
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