Baltimore Checkbook

​Marriott, Starwood shareholders approve...

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It’s been a bumpy road getting here, but shareholders of Marriott International Inc. and Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. have cleared the way for a $13.3 billion merger between the two hospitality companies. Shareholders of both companies met Friday to vote on the merger, which will create the world’s largest hospitality company with more than 5,700 hotels and 1.1 million rooms. Several international regulatory approvals are still needed before the deal closes. Investors representing…

Marriott, Starwood put fate in stockholders' hands...

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Company executives will put their grand deal to a vote Friday, capping a month of bidding, conflicting board recommendations and an outcome that has Marriott International Inc. paying more than $1 billion more for Starwood Hotels & Resorts Worldwide Inc. than it originally offered. That increase was not lost on Marriott CEO Arne Sorenson, who acknowledged last week after a consortium led by Anbang Insurance Group Co. pulled out of the bidding that the Bethesda-based company’s $13.3 billion deal…

Home Maid, a brunch-only restaurant, is coming to...

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A funky full-time, brunch-only restaurant is getting ready to open in a former vape shop in Federal Hill. Brothers Derrick and Justin Faulcon’s Home Maid is set to open on April 29 at 1400 Key Highway. Menu offerings include the Fat Albert (sausage gravy on a homemade biscuit), the Tony Montana (a crab cake on French toast) and the Down and Dirty (fried catfish and grits) complimented by homemade jams and spreads like Granny Panties (Granny Smith apples with raisins and cinnamon) and VeryBerry…

Kevin Plank's Cupid's Cup picks College Park...

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A University of Maryland College Park startup that makes high-nutrient coffee captured the top prize on Thursday night in Kevin Plank’s annual Cupid’s Cup entrepreneurship contest. Javazen, a company that makes coffee grounds infused with green tea and designed to provide a healthier caffeine boost, was one of six companies — and the only local company — to move on to the final round of the startup competition at the University of Maryland on Thursday. The company’s surroundings were familiar.…

FCC plans $51 million fine over Lifeline program...

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The Federal Communications Commission has announced plans to fine a mobile provider $51 million for defrauding its Lifeline program, which subsidizes wireless service for low-income Americans.



from http://www.wbaltv.com/money/fcc-plans-51-million-fine-over-lifeline-program-abuse/38926744

8 things you need to know — and TGIF

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It’s going to be a cold day on the Little League baseball field on Saturday with temperatures expected in the 30s. We may even get a little snow. Here’s what else you need to know as you end your week. Martin O'Malley had his first television interview since he dropped out of the presidential race. The former Maryland governor told MSNBC’s Rachel Maddow that he’s not going to endorse either Hillary Clinton or Bernie Sanders — and has no regrets about the race. [WBAL] It’s not too early to think…

The five most-challenging golf courses in Greater...

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This week’s List looks at the 25 most-challenging golf courses in Greater Baltimore. The rankings were compiled using course ratings from the Maryland State Golf Association. Ties were broken by the slope of the course. The three most difficult courses from last year’s List remain the most-challenging. Caves Valley Golf Club, the exclusive Owings Mills club, saw its course rating drop from 75.3 to 74.2, and its slope decreased from 142 to 139, pushing the course out of this year’s top five. This…

Bay Bank balances shift south with new Baltimore...

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Bay Bank has hired a a Baltimore market president, filling a newly created role in a bid to grow its core market after shifting its headquarters south last year. Columbia-based Bay Bank, a subsidiary of holding company Bay Bancorp Inc. (NASDAQ: BYBK) hired Todd Warren to be Baltimore market president and senior vice president. The move brings in an industry veteran who most recently spent six years as senior vice president at Olney-based Sandy Spring Bank and has a background lending in the medical…

Panama Papers: 7 things to know

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The publication of the Panama Papers sent shock waves around the world. The reports by the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists, which CNNMoney hasn’t been able to independently verify, allege that top officials around the world hid …



from http://www.wbaltv.com/money/panama-papers-7-things-to-know/38876724

Sanders campaign to GE CEO: 'Look in the mirror'

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The spat between Bernie Sanders and the chief executive of General Electric is getting personal. “If the CEO of General Electric wants to know how his company is destroying the fabric of America, he should take a good look in the mirror,” Warren Gunn…



from http://www.wbaltv.com/money/sanders-campaign-says-ge-ceo-should-take-a-good-look-in-the-mirror/38925142