The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Mark Zuckerberg

  • Facebook’s Zuckerberg to give away 99% of shares

    Facebook’s Zuckerberg to give away 99% of shares

    Facebook founder, Mark Zuckerberg and his wife Priscilla Chan said they will give away 99 per cent of their shares in the company to good causes as they announce the birth of their daughter Max.

    Mr. Zuckerberg made the announcement in a letter to Max on his Facebook page, the BBC reports.

    He said they are donating their fortune to the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative because they want to make the world a better place for Max to grow up in.

    The donation amounts to $45billion (£30billion) at Facebook’s current value.

    However, the shares will not be donated to charity immediately, but over the course of the couple’s lives.

    Max was born last week, although her birth was only made public on Tuesday.

    In his letter Mr. Zuckerberg said the aim of the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative is “to advance human potential and promote equality for all children in the next generation.”

    Its initial areas of focus will be personalised learning, curing disease, connecting people and building strong communities.

    “Your mother and I don’t yet have the words to describe the hope you give us for the future,” the BBC quoted Mr. Zuckerberg as saying at the start of his letter to Max.

    “You’ve already given us a reason to reflect on the world we hope you live in.”

     

  • Facebook introduces ‘dislike button’

    Facebook introduces ‘dislike button’

    Facebook has on Friday responded to solve its users’ call for a “dislike” button, in the form of six new emoji.

    Speaking about the latest development from the social media giant, Mark Zuckerberg, Chief Executive Officer, Facebook, noted that for a long time that the feature wouldn’t be integrated in the “dislike” button that many people had asked for.

    Zuckerberg hinted last month that social media site was planning to expand the ‘Like button’, thereby creating more ways for people to express their feelings.

    He disclosed that the new development is going be in form of emojis that represent ‘Haha, Yay, Love, Wow, Sad and Angry.’

    According to the CEO, similar to the Like button, the reactions will appear on any post in the news feed on mobile or desktop. The number of reactions that any post has received will sit underneath the post and users will be able to see who reacted and how.

    Thus, to test run the latest development, the site will start rolling out the feature in Spain and Ireland and 
    once the buttons are rolled out to a users’ feed, there’ll be no way of turning them off.

  • Dangote is world’s 23rd richest

    Dangote is world’s 23rd richest

    The ranks of the world’s billionaires continue to scale new heights–and stretch to new corners of the world. Forbes global wealth team found 1,645 billionaires with an aggregate net worth of $6.4 trillion, up from $5.4 trillion a year ago. The magazine unearthed a record 268 new ten-figure fortunes, including 42 new women billionaires, another record. In total, there are 172 women on the list, more than ever before and up from 138 last year.

    Microsoft founder Bill Gates is back on top after a four-year hiatus, reclaiming the title of world’s richest person from telecom mogul Carlos Slim Helu of Mexico, who ranked No. 1 for the past four years.

    Also for the first time, an African, Aliko Dangote of Nigeria, breaks into the top 25. Worth $25 billion, he moves up 20 spots.

    Gates, whose fortune rose by $9 billion in the past year, has held the top spot for 15 of the past 20 years. Spanish clothing retailer Amancio Ortega (best known for the Zara fashion chain) retains the No. 3 spot for the second year in a row, extending his lead over Warren Buffett, who is again No. 4. American gambling tycoon Sheldon Adelson, who added $11.5 billion to his pile, makes it back into the top ten for the first time since 2007. Another first: A record net worth of $31 billion was needed to make the top 20, up from $23 billion last year.

    The year’s biggest dollar gainer was Facebook’s Mark Zuckerberg, whose fortune jumped $15.2 billion, to $28.5 billion, as shares of his social network soared. Tech, and more specifically Facebook, helped propel numerous fortunes lately. The company’s COO, Sheryl Sandberg, joins the ranks for the first time, as does Facebook’s longtime vice president Jeff Rothschild. Also, thanks to a $19 billion deal (including restricted stock) with Facebook, WhatsApp founders Jan Koum and Brian Acton join the ranks of Silicon Valley’s wealthiest for the first time. They are 4 of 26 newcomers whose fortunes come from technology, 10 of whom are American, including Dropbox CEO Drew Houston and Workday cofounder Aneel Bhusri.

    Thanks to the tech boom, and strong stock market, the U.S. once again leads the world with 492 billionaires, followed by China with 152 and Russia with 111. By region, Europe boasted the most billionaires outside the US, with 468 in total, closely followed by Asia, which had 444 billionaires.

    The list suggested that wealth was spreading, with four new countries featuring for the first time – Algeria, Lithuania, Tanzania and Uganda.

     

  • Facebook to buy WhatsApp for $19bn

    Facebook to buy WhatsApp for $19bn

    Facebook has bought messaging app WhatsApp in a deal worth a total of $19bn (£11.4bn) in cash and shares, the BBC reports.

    It is the social networking giant’s biggest acquisition to date.

    WhatsApp has more than 450 million monthly users and is popular with people looking to avoid text messaging charges.

    In a statement announcing the deal, Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg described WhatsApp’s services as “incredibly valuable.”

    WhatsApp allows users to send messages over internet connections, avoiding text messaging fees. The company claims it is currently registering one million new users a day.

    It makes money by charging users a subscription fee of $1 per year, although it offers a free model as well.

    The deal to buy it includes $4bn in cash and approximately $12bn-worth of Facebook shares, plus an additional $3bn in stock to WhatsApp’s founders and employees at a later date.

    On a conference call to discuss the deal, WhatsApp co-founder Jan Koum said he planned to operate the firm “independently and autonomously.”

    He will also become a member of Facebook’s board of directors.

    “We’re excited and honoured to partner with Mark and Facebook as we continue to bring our product to more people around the world,” Mr. Koum said in a statement.

     

  • We need a new amnesty

    Law and grace are essential aspects of society. Law prescribes sanctions to ensure social order. But grace advocates pardon, compassion and unmerited favour. Through grace, we exhibit the divine nature replicated in man. So, amnesty is the law of grace. But what is the essence of a pardon without penitence?

    Now, wisdom demands we put cause and effect in perspective. You don’t take mounds of sedatives to cure an HIV infection. More so, the salvation of a part does not translate into the redemption of a whole. So, amnesty is like throwing flesh to a group of starving lions and expecting the rest to look on while one of them devours the whole food. What about other disgruntled elements who could be potential terrorists? What programme has been put in place to engage the jobless youth languishing in the brooks of Ughelli or the miserable lad wasting away in the turbulent regions of Borno? So, we need amnesty for various classes of Nigerians.

    We need amnesty for victims of terrorist attacks. I am yet to see any touching narrative about the family in Kogi State who lost their breadwinner in a church bombing or the young man in Bauchi who has be turned into a wretched orphan by Boko Haram. What about the innocent girl who lost members of her family in one fell swoop in Mandala bombing? You could see despair from the rivulets of tears dripping from her eyes. There must be re-integration plans to assimilate this sort of persons into the larger society. They should not be left to gnash their teeth alone. Society should assure their survival and security.

    We need amnesty for bright kids whose educational pursuit is hampered by the claws of poverty. We need to revisit our scholarship schemes and put our brilliant kids back to school. Nigeria is endowed with smart kids who can give the likes of Larry Page or Mark Zuckerberg a run for the money. Check out the Young Inventors programme on NTA network and you will appreciate the ingenuity of Nigerian youth in providing real-time solutions to problems. But many of them are victims of a society that has no regard for the poor. Rather, they are left to blush unseen and waste away their sweetness in the desert air, as poet Thomas Gray noted.

    We need amnesty to save our helpless undergraduates. Many of them still live in the 70s since lecturers still pride in an outdated curriculum. They lack employability skills and attitudes to thrive in what Peter Drucker called the Knowledge Society. We need massive reforms in our tertiary education. We need a 21st Century education that is relevant, enduring and problem-solving. That is why John F. Kennedy asserted that ‘’our progress as a nation can be no swifter than our progress in education.’’ Let’s save them.

    We need amnesty for morally vulnerable Nigerians. We can create social security nets especially for the elderly and the handicapped. Many of these folks served the nation in their prime. Some of them fought wars and defended Nigeria’s territorial integrity. Others were the denizens of the once-efficient Nigerian Civil Service. We have to cultivate a genuine culture of reward for excellence, service and sacrifice. That’s how to restore patriotism in a people.

    We need amnesty to revive the reading culture in the country. A society can only lead as it reads. Today, the average Nigerian lacks the patience to read a scanty page in a newspaper. We are what a writer called a generation in a hurry. We have no appreciation for history. We have no understanding of our civilization. We need organisations that would include literary initiatives in their corporate social responsibility to stir our creative energies. We are tired of spending 90 days watching nudity and sexual provocations in the name of reality shows. These sort shows do not build society. Rather, it destroys civilisation.

    We need amnesty to revive various sectors of our economy. This could come in form of a stimulus package that is clear and well-thought out. Power generation, for instance, is still very poor. If South Africa with a population of about 49 million people can boast of 45, 000 megawatts, then it is appalling that a nation of over 160 million people cannot generate 5,000 megawatts. So, what is the hope for small businesses? How does a next-door barber or welder cope? We need amnesty to save these segments from collapse.

    The palliatives of amnesty should not be limited to militants and rebels alone. It should be extended to these vulnerable Nigerians. We can shine this light of hope and defeat the forces of darkness. A package like amnesty is enough to work the miracle. Nigeria needs an amnesty that provides answers to our collective existence as a people. It is the amnesty of healing tribal, political and religious wounds. It is the amnesty of reconciliation and social rehabilitation. We need a new amnesty.

     

    Gilbert, 400-Level Foreign Languages, UNIBEN

  • World’s youngest billionaires

    World’s youngest billionaires

    There are 1,426 billionaires in the world this year. They are the wealthiest of the wealthy. But only 29 members of this elite list are under 40 years old, with that exciting combination of money and youth.

    Those 29 have a total of $119 billion between them. 10 of them come from the technology sector, including four from social networking giant Facebook.

    11 come from the United States, the rest from other parts of the world. Five are newcomers to the billionaire ranks.

    Read the list of the first ten “under 40” billionaires:

     

    Dustin Moskovitz

    Age: 28

    Net Worth: $3.8 billion

    Country: United States

     

    Mark Zuckerberg’s former roommate and Facebook co-founder, Dustin Moskovitz may no longer be with the Menlo Park, Calif.-based social networking giant, but he still holds a significant financial stake in the company. That stake got a little smaller over the summer as he proceeded to sell 7.5 million Facebook shares. Still, as of February, he still owns more than five per cent of the company’s outstanding stock.

    Facebook’s third employee, he dropped out Harvard with Zuckerberg and moved to California to work for the social-networking firm full-time. He left in 2008 to start Asana, a software company that aims to improve how people work with project collaboration tools.

    Engaged to former journalist Cari Tuna, Moskovitz and his fiancee founded Good Ventures and plan to publish their grants and conversations with charities with the goal of rewarding results over crafty fundraising techniques.

    He is also a signee of Bill Gates’ and Warren Buffett’s Giving Pledge. Moskovitz bikes to work, flies commercial, and pitches his own tent at Burning Man.

     

     

    Mark Zuckerberg

    Age: 28

    Net Worth: $13.3 billion

    Country: United States

     

    Few Chief Executive Officers of any age are under more media scrutiny than 28-year-old Mark Zuckerberg. Since taking Facebook public in May 2012, the hoodie-wearing founder has seen his net worth rise and fall with every fluctuation of the stock price, which fell under $20 in August 2012. The stock has since rebounded more than 30 per cent as of February on confidence that Facebook may end up figuring out how to make money on mobile ads.

    Zuckerberg, a signatory of Bill Gates and Warren Buffett’s Giving Pledge, showed his generosity during the holiday season, gifting 18 million Facebook shares to the Silicon Valley Community Foundation in December for education initiatives.

    Based on share prices at the time, that gift was worth nearly $500 million and was one of the largest gifts to education in 2012.

    He has also expressed his willingness to become more involved in the political sphere, hosting a re-election fundraiser with his wife Priscilla Chan for New Jersey Governor Chris Christie in February. His big early 2013 exploit was the launch of Facebook’s Graph Search, which will allow users to comb their friend network based on shared interests and experiences.

     

    Albert von Thurn und Taxis

    Age: 29

    Net Worth: $1.5 billion

    Country: Germany

     

    Albert von Thurn und Taxis first appeared in Forbes’ billionaire rankings at age eight but officially inherited his fortune in 2001 on his 18th birthday. In June 2008, he received an M.A. in economics and theology from the University of Edinburgh in Scotland. His assets include real estate, art and 36,000 hectares of woodland in Germany, one of the largest forest holdings in Europe. His plan to build one of the world’s largest solar energy installations in Bavaria, southern Germany, was put on hold after government subsidies were cancelled.

    He lives in the family castle, Schloss Emmeram. The eligible bachelor is also a race car driver and tours with a German auto-racing league.

     

     

    Scott Duncan

    Age: 30

    Net Worth: $5.1 billion

    Country: United States

    Scott Duncan is the youngest of the four children who inherited the massive fortune of late energy-pipeline entrepreneur Dan Duncan, founder of Enterprise Products Partners. Thanks to Enterprise’s impressive rise on the New York Stock Exchange, Scott and his siblings each find themselves $900 million dollars richer than a year ago thanks to the rising value of Enterprise shares and the partnership’s large payout plan. Dan Duncan, formerly the richest man in Houston, died in 2010 at age 77. He grew up poor and formed Enterprise Products with two trucks in 1968, selling door to door. Today Enterprise owns more than 50,000 miles of natural gas, oil, and petrochemical pipelines.

     

    Eduardo Saverin

    Age: 30

    Net Worth: $2.2 billion

    Country: Brazil

     

    Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin renounced his United States citizenship in 2011, news of which broke days before the company’s IPO and drew accusations of tax evasion.

    His response: “My decision to expatriate was based solely on my interest in working and living in Singapore, where I have been since 2009.”

    Saverin, immortalized in The Social Network as Mark Zuckerberg’s onetime best friend, provided Facebook with early seed money, earning him a one-third stake. This fell to 30 per cent when Zuckerberg’s roommate, Dustin Moskovitz, joined. When the others dropped out of Harvard to relocate to California, Saverin stayed behind.

    Facebook later sued him for allegedly interfering with business and insisting on keeping a 30 per cent stake; Saverin countersued. The parties settled, with Saverin apparently receiving a five per cent stake and a co-founder bio on Facebook’s site. He has since sold more than half his stake in Facebook and has started to invest in startups including Qwiki and Jumio, which created the online payment Netswipe.

     

     

    Huiyan Yang

    Age: 31

    Net Worth: $5.7 billion

    Country: China

     

    Huiyan Yang, the daughter of the co-founder of real estate developer Country Garden Holdings, is once again China’s richest woman with shares of her company up by 46 per cent since September. Yang Huiyan’s father Yeung Kwok Keung transferred his stake to her before the company’s IPO in 2007. Revenue in the first nine months of 2012 was up by 22 per cent to $3.7 billion. Profit rose by 34 per cent to $617 million. The company in January sold $750 million of 10-year bonds to help fund its vibrant portfolio of some 110 projects underway as of mid-2012, many in its home base of Guangdong province. Country Garden is also adding 17 hotels to the 29 it already owns or operates, mostly under the Phoenix brand, and is buying up land in Malaysia. The previous holder of the title of China’s richest woman, Wu Yajun, had her fortune splintered in a divorce last year. Yang has a degree from Ohio State University.

     

     

    Fahd Hariri

    Age: 32

    Net Worth: $1.35 billion

    Country: Lebanon

     

    Fahd Hariri is the youngest son of slain Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. He graduated from the Ecole Spéciale d’Architecture de Paris in 2004. While still a student, he ran an interior design studio on the outskirts of the city and sold furniture to clients in Saudi Arabia. While he reportedly hasn’t set foot in Beirut since his father’s assassination in 2005, he develops residential buildings in there, and credits his father for his love of real estate development.

     

     

    Marie Besnier Beauvalot

    Age: 32

    Net Worth: $1.5 billion

    Country: France

     

    Marie, 32, along with siblings Emmanuel, 42, and Jean-Michel, 45, inherited French dairy giant Lactalis, producers of popular Président brie among hundreds of other cheese, milk and yogurt brands. Between them, they own 100 per cent of the company their grandfather founded in the 1930s. Lactalis’ once fairly opaque financials were brought to light when the Besnier family, through another holding company, acquired a majority stake in publicly traded Italian milk manufacturer Parmalat in 2011, rescuing it from bankruptcy after the infamous 2003 collapse that landed its founder in jail.

     

    Sean Parker

    Age: 33

    Net Worth: $2 billion

    Country: United States

     

    Sean Parker is turning his big vision and huge Rolodex to fighting cancer–in December he joined “Stand Up To Cancer” to help build an immunology dream team. Parker, 33, is also revamping his much hyped start-up, Airtime, with the hopes that the video chat site will have the impact of his other Web companies–Napster and Facebook. Facebook’s stock comeback helped add $700 million to his fortune since last August. At 19, Parker skipped college to disrupt the recording industry with music swapping site Napster and later advanced viral marketing with his Web address book Plaxo.

    He served as Facebook’s first president at age 24, helping streamline the product and organizing the company to ensure his pal Mark Zuckerberg, Facebook’s founder and CEO, maintained control. He’s fixing the same music industry he helped dismantle a decade ago as director and cheerleader for hot–and legal–music platform Spotify.

     

    Ayman Hariri

    Age: 34

    Net Worth: $1.35 billion

    Country: Lebanon

     

    Ayman Hariri is the son of slain Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri. He’s involved in running Saudi Oger, one of Saudi Arabia’s biggest construction companies and the source of the Hariri family fortune. Oger was part of a venture that won a $653 million contract in January 2013 to build a local branch of the Louvre museum in Abu Dhabi, due to open in 2015. His other interests include telecommunications; Oger has a major stake in Turk Telekom. It also owns shares in Middle Eastern banks, such as Jordan’s Arab Bank, which hasn’t fared so well. Saudi Oger had to take out a $1 billion loan in February 2013 to refinance debt related to its investment in Arab Bank.

     

    Culled from Forbes.com