Former BP exec’s ex-husband gets prison for insider trading after eavesdropping on her calls

Published

11 months ago

May 22, 2024

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The ex-husband of a former BP mergers and acquisitions manager was sentenced to two years in federal prison for insider trading that netted him $1.76 million after he eavesdropped on her work calls about the oil giant buying another company.

The ex, Tyler Loudon, also was sentenced to one year of supervised release after his prison term and fined $10,000 by U.S. District Court Judge Sim Lake in Houston on Monday.

Loudon’s lawyer, Peter Zeidenberg, asked Lake to sentence him to one year of home confinement followed by two years of supervised release, citing, among other reasons, the need to care for Loudon’s ailing mother.

The prison sentence was at the bottom end of the 24-months-to-30-month range requested by federal prosecutors.

Loudon, as part of his guilty plea to a charge of securities fraud in February, already had agreed to forfeit the illicit profit he made in February 2023 from selling off the nearly 46,500 shares of TravelCenters of America after that company’s stock price soared more than 70% on news it was being acquired by BP for about $1.3 billion.

The 42-year-old Houston resident, who was an engineer for an oil and gas company, bought TravelCenters shares for about $2 million over several months beginning in December 2022.

His purchases started after he secretly listened to his wife’s work calls about BP buying TravelCenters, and then later discussing the deal with her in “normal’ married-couple kinds of conversations, according to court records.

Loudon’s eavesdropping occurred when he and his wife were working remotely “in close quarters” to one another due to the Covid-19 pandemic at the time, records show.

“Racked with guilt and fear,” Loudon “confessed to his wife” what he had done in March 2023 after learning that the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority had asked BP for a list of people “in the know” about the TravelCenters deal before it was finalized, according to court filings.

Loudon’s wife, who was not accused of wrongdoing, reported his actions to her BP supervisor, but she ended up getting fired later, court records show. She also divorced Loudon.

A sentencing memo filed last week by Loudon’s attorney says that at the time he bought the TravelCenters, Loudon was a a “frequent day-trader of stocks” whose “marriage was under a great deal of stress as a result of multiple relocations and job changes” for both him and his wife.

“Mr. Loudon began to fear that his marriage was in jeopardy, an event that was particularly freighted in his mind due to the divorce he experienced as a child,” the memo said.

“In a wholly misguided belief that money could somehow help address the marital stresses the couple was experiencing, Mr. Loudon made the fateful decision to betray his wife’s trust, as well as his own better judgment,” the memo said.

“Tyler deeply regrets his conduct, has taken responsibility for it, and looks forward to putting this behind him and moving on with his life,” Zeidenberg told CNBC on Wednesday.

Tesla Model 3 and Model Y prices rose higher in March as sales fell

Published

2 hours ago

April 9, 2025

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Tesla Model 3 and Model Y prices rose higher in March as sales fell

Tesla average transaction prices (ATPs) in March are estimated at $54,582, higher year-over-year by 3.5% and higher than in February, according to the latest monthly new-vehicle ATP report from Cox Automotive’s Kelley Blue Book.

Average transaction prices for the Tesla Model 3 and Model Y were higher month-over-month and year-over-year in March. Tesla’s sales in Q1 continued their long-term decline after peaking in Q1 2023. Estimates from Kelley Blue Book suggest Tesla’s sales in Q1 2025 were lower year-over-year by more than 8%. Its deliveries were also worse than expected.

New EV prices in March overall are initially estimated by Kelley Blue Book to be $59,205, higher year-over-year by 7.0%. New EV prices increased from the revised higher February ATP of $57,015.

The ATP for an EV last month was nearly 25% higher than the industry average of $47,462, widening the price gap between new EVs and gas-powered cars even more.

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But EVs are still seeing heftier incentives than the industry average. In March, the average EV incentive came in at 13.3% of the transaction price – down 1% from February’s revised 14.3% but still well above what gas cars are getting.

So, where are we heading? Higher prices, thanks to Trump’s tariffs. But what that will look like remains to be seen. Erin Keating, executive analyst at Cox Automotive, said, “All signs point to higher prices this summer, as existing ‘pre-tariff’ inventory is sold down to be eventually replaced with ‘tariffed’ inventory. How high prices rise for consumers is still very much to be determined, as each automaker will handle the price puzzle differently.”

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BYD launches its first EVs with ultra-fast charging starting at just $30,000

Published

3 hours ago

April 9, 2025

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BYD launches its first EVs with ultra-fast charging starting at just ,000

BYD just launched the first EVs based on its new Super e-platform with ultra-fast charging. The new Han L sedan and Tang L SUV can gain nearly 250 miles range in 5 minutes, and prices start at just $30,000.

Meet BYD’s new EVs with ultra-fast charging

During a launch event on April 9, BYD introduced the new EV models, claiming its engineers have “achieved the master realm of Chinese technology.”

The Han L and Tang L are the first EVs based on BYD’s 1000V Super e-platform. After unveiling the ultra-fast EV charging platform last month, BYD’s CEO, Wang Chuanfu, said to ease charging anxiety, “The ultimate solution is to make charging as quick as refueling a gasoline car.”

That solution is now here. BYD’s new Han L is available in three trims, starting at just 219,800 yuan ($30,000), lower than the pre-sale price of 270,000 yuan ($36,800).

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BYD’s new electric sedan is 5,050 mm long, 1,960 mm wide, and 1,505 mm tall, or about the size of a Tesla Model S (5,021 mm long, 1,987 mm wide, and 1,431 mm tall).

All variants are powered by an 83.2 kWh BYD Blade battery, providing up to 435 miles (701 km) of CLTC driving range. Based on BYD’s 1,000V architecture, the Han L comes with two charge guns with an up to 10C charge rate.

Nearly 250 miles in just 5 minutes?

With ultra-fast charging, the electric sedan can gain 400 km (248 miles) in just five minutes. In six minutes, it can recharge from 10% to 70%, and in just 20 minutes, it can fully recharge (0% to 100%) the battery.

Like all its new EV models, the Han L is equipped with BYD’s God’s Eye smart driving assist system. It features the mid-tier “B” version and DiPilot 300.

BYD’s new electric SUV, the Tang L, is also offered in three trims. It starts at 239,800 yuan ($32,700), also below the pre-sale price of 280,000 yuan ($38,200).

The Tang L is also based on BYD’s 1,000V architecture and ultra-fast charging platform. Powered by a 100.5 kWh battery, it has a CLTC range of up to 435 miles (701 km) and can gain 230 miles (370 km) in 5 minutes. It will take about 30 minutes to go from 0% to 100%.

BYD’s electric SUV is 5,040 mm long, 1996 mm wide, and 1,760 mm tall, or slightly bigger than the new Tesla Model Y Juniper in China (4,797 mm long, 1,920 mm wide, and 1,624 mm tall).

Like the Han L EV, the electric SUV has BYD’s God’s Eye B ADAS system with DiPilot 300. Both the Han L and Tang are available as PHEVs, starting at 209,800 yuan ($28,500) and 229,800 yuan ($31,300).

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Affirm surges 20% as fintech rallies on tariff pause, but risk remains

Published

3 hours ago

April 9, 2025

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Affirm surges 20% as fintech rallies on tariff pause, but risk remains

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The fintech sector is rallying Wednesday following the Trump administration’s announcement of a 90-day pause on planned tariffs.

Affirm was up 20%, Toast and Block rose 13% and PayPal increased 10%.

The 90-day pause doesn’t eliminate the threat of tariffs — it just delays it. Investors are still pricing in risk, including inflation, discretionary pullbacks, hardware import costs and credit exposure.

Legacy payment networks such as Visa and Mastercard, both up 6%, continue to benefit from inflation and their structural ties to nominal GDP. These companies take a percentage of every transaction. That makes rising prices a tailwind.

“If prices are moving up for certain goods and you’re paying with a credit card, it’s actually good for the credit card companies,” said Dan Dolev, a fintech analyst at Mizuho.

Their pricing structure has historically made them resilient during inflationary periods, including recessions. The situation is less rosy for the new wave of consumer lending fintechs.

Affirm, which specializes in allowing consumers to buy now and pay later, could suffer if consumers pull back spending when the pause is lifted as a result of tariffs causing prices to rise. The San Francisco-based company could see its revenue less transaction costs margins — essentially what the company pockets after paying processing fees and customer incentives — drop more than 22% in that scenario, according to a Goldman Sachs estimate on Tuesday.

The adoption of buy now, pay later may rise as consumers hit credit limits, said SIG analyst James Friedman, but he added that the model remains untested in a downturn.

Toast, Block and Fiserv, which was up 6%, develop software used by restaurants and small businesses. Those companies could face rising hardware costs and softening demand from customers if the tariffs go through.

Meanwhile, cross-border payments — one of the most profitable segments for Visa, Mastercard and PayPal — remain under pressure as global travel slows and e-commerce flows adjust to the uncertainties of Trump’s tariffs.

Even remittance players such as Remitly and Western Union, both up 8%, could face longer-term pain if immigration pipelines slow or remittance corridors tighten under regulatory scrutiny. Similar to cross-border commerce, remittances depend on a steady flow of people and transactions, both of which remain fragile.