The data breach that rocked ‘South Korea’s Amazon’
Record hack of SoftBank-backed online retailer Coupang prompts calls for more investment in cyber security
Thailand to hold early elections after PM dissolves parliament
Anutin Charnvirakul has faced border conflict with Cambodia, slowing economy and higher US tariffs
Donald Trump orders increased scrutiny of proxy advisers ISS and Glass Lewis
The groups face greater oversight from federal securities, competition and labour agencies
Australia lets foreign investor raise stake in key defence group
Approval for Korea’s Hanwha to own more of shipbuilder Austal comes with restrictions over influence
Microsoft and Amazon’s multibillion-dollar bets on India
Also in this newsletter: broader investments for pension funds
Trump threatens federal funding cuts for states with ‘onerous’ AI laws
Win for Silicon Valley lobbyists comes over opposition from some of the president’s Maga allies
Covid fraud costs of £1.9bn ‘beyond recovery’
‘I got caught in the act of operating a major man flu scam’
Letter: Trump has painted himself into a corner on Venezuela
From Ambassador (r) Jorge Heine, Non-Resident Fellow, The Quincy Institute (Washington, DC), Santiago, Chile
Letter: London risks trailing its rivals on EV car clubs
From Zak Bond, Campaign Manager (London), Clean Cities, London N6, UK
Letter: Sudan’s envoy differs on diagnosis of the crisis
From Ambassador Babikir Elamin, Head of Mission, Embassy of the Republic of Sudan, London SW1, UK
Letter: Special pleading by the Ford CEO makes no sense
From Julia Poliscanova, Brussels, Belgium
Letter: On the front line of freedom: Taiwan vs PRC
From Dennis Kwok, Former Hong Kong Lawmaker, New York, NY, US
Letter: Euro-based stablecoins can be the bloc’s payment rails
From Howard Davies, Chairman, Qivalis, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
Letter: Why lower paid NEDs are less likely to toe party line
From Peter Gorty, Weybridge, Surrey, UK
Correction: Uber drivers’ pay
Ride-hailing app Uber factors the time drivers spend travelling to a pick-up location into the algorithm that determines their pay. An article on December 9 incorrectly stated that Uber did not pay its drivers while they travelled to pick-up points
Matthew Bourne’s gorgeously staged The Red Shoes returns
The choreographer’s popular reworking of the 1948 film is revived at London’s Sadler’s Wells
FT Crossword: Number 18,237
Lululemon shares jump after chief Calvin McDonald announces departure
Activewear company has struggled this year with impact of tariffs and tough consumer environment
Crypto founder Do Kwon sentenced to 15 years in prison
Tycoon given even more jail time than prosecutors had requested
Sanctions and seizures: Trump turns up the heat on Venezuela
Washington shifts its campaign against Nicolás Maduro as its attacks on alleged drug smugglers come under legal scrutiny
Fed reappoints regional chiefs in move that allays Trump challenge fears
Decision eases concerns that central bankers aligned with the US president would block them remaining in their roles
Free school projects in England to be scrapped to fund special needs education
Government changes lay groundwork for contentious reforms expected next year
FirstFT: China pledges to reverse falling investment
Also in today’s newsletter: Oracle shares sink over data centre spending concerns, and Taiwan probes leaks of vital chip tech
Trump pushes for ‘free economic zone’ in Donbas, says Zelenskyy
US proposes ‘compromise’ option of demilitarised buffer that excludes both Ukrainian and Russian forces, says Kyiv