US companies are worried that President Trump's WeChat ban could hurt their bottom line. For those who missed it in all the TikTok hype, President Trump's executive order effectively banning TikTok in the US also banned WeChat.

WeWhat? WeChat is the most popular app in China. Technology commentators refer to it as a 'super app'. Chinese users use the app to do everything from pay for their cup of tea, message friends and order food...

Over the past 5 years, WeChat has grown exponentially and become an essential tool for anyone looking to do business in the PRC.

Why are they banned? For the same reason as TikTok. The White House is concerned that the close ties between WeChat's parent company, Tencent, and the Chinese Communist Party could put Americans and their data at risk.

But while WeChat claims to have 19 million users in the US, it pales in comparison to TikTok's 80 million.

So why dos it matter if we ban it? The Administration has not been clear about whether the ban applies only to WeChat's international operations. However, some US firms are worried that the executive order would prevent them from using the app to run their businesses in China.

This is a big deal. US firms, like Starbucks, Coca-Cola, and Nike, rely on WeChat not just for marketing but payments, e-commerce, and even internal employee communication. Restricting their ability to use the app would be like banning companies from using Visa, Slack and Shopify – it's a huge deal!

What now? US companies are actively lobbying the Trump Administration for clarification on the order, but we'll have to see if they get any results.

If the US Government does prohibit US companies from working with WeChat anywhere, expect to see a hit to the bottom line of American firms operating in China.

All that hype for nothing. After weeks of speculation whether former Bank of Canada Governor Mark Carney would join Justin Trudeau's Liberal Government, we now know where he's actually heading...

Carney has been tapped by Brookfield Asset Management, the global investment firm, to support them on their ESG (environmental, social, and governance) and impact fund investing.

Why ESG? Carney's been a long time proponent of a new era of 'responsible investing'. He believes that private capital allocated with a social conscience is key to fighting climate change and driving social change.

In Carney's new role, he'll work with Brookfield's deep pocket clients to advise them on how to invest in companies that will get us closer to "net zero" greenhouse gas emissions. And there's demand for this, nearly 73% of all fund managers say they take ESG issues into account when making investment decisions.

But what about his much rumoured political ambitions? Carney said that he will continue to serve as an informal advisor to Prime Ministers Justin Trudeau and Boris Johnson, but he has no plans to run himself in the near future.

We'll see if that sticks! In the meantime, we wish Mark Carney nothing but the best at Brookfield.

Palantir, the shadowy Silicon Valley surveillance tech company, is (slightly) lifting its veil before their upcoming IPO.

Yesterday, Palantir released their S-1, a standard document that discloses the company's finances ahead of a public offering.

What did we learn?

Palantir is widely considered to be one of the most secretive tech companies in the US, mostly due to their expansive work with US government agencies. But we did get some interesting new details about the company in the filing:

Zoom out: Palantir is important because of how its tech is being used. Last year, there were protests at the CEO's house over the use of Palantir's technology to detain illegal immigrants by the controversial US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division.

In the S-1, Palantir notes that these protests due pose a threat to their business. It'll be interesting to see if the controversial firm can maintain their contracts under a possible Biden Administration. On the other hand, a successful IPO may only expand their reach, sparking a new long needed conversation over the use of surveillance technology by governments.

Allegations continue to come out against former McDonald's CEO Steve Easterbrook.

What happened: The McDonald's head honcho was was fired in November after the company found that he had engaged in a consensual relationship with a colleague. He left receiving a "fired without cause" compensation package worth nearly $40m.

Yesterday, the Wall Street Journal reported that McDonald's has taken legal action against Easterbrook who it claims lied about relationships with multiple staff members.

In response to this new development, McDonald's wants to get that $40million back so they're suing Easterbrook arguing that they never would have agreed to the package had they known about the additional relationships.

Even weirder, the WSJ found out that the head of HR left the company one day after Easterbrook was terminated.

What's the big deal? What began as a normal 'divorce' over an undisclosed consensual relationship is looking more and more like a coverup – and shareholders are concerned.

Investors are worried that Easterbrook's quick dismissal is representative of bigger issues in the company and one shareholder is going so far as to call for an outside investigation.

No matter how you look at this, it's a huge HR disaster and McDonald's share price might take a hit as a result.