Tech News
A CEO says his solar-panel company bought a new Tesla every year since 2021, but canceled his order for 15 new cars because the United States is a ‘country closing in on itself’

Ivan Hansen, a retired Danish police officer, loaded up his basket at the supermarket, carefully checking each product to avoid buying anything made in the United States. No more Coca-Cola, no more California Zinfandel wine or almonds.
The 67-year-old said it’s the only way he knows to protest U.S. President Donald Trump’s policies. He’s furious about Trump’s threat to seize the Danish territory of Greenland, but it’s not just that. There are also the threats to take control of the Panama Canal and Gaza. And Trump’s relationship with Elon Musk, who has far-right ties and made what many interpreted as a straight-armed Nazi salute.
On his recent shopping trip, Hansen returned home with dates from Iran. It shocked him to realize that he now perceives the United States as a greater threat than Iran.
“Trump really looks like a bully who tries in every way to intimidate, threaten others to get his way,” he told The Associated Press. “I will fight against that kind of thing.”
A growing boycott movement across Europe
Hansen is just one supporter of a growing movement across Europe and Canada to boycott U.S. products. People are joining Facebook groups where they exchange ideas about how to avoid U.S. products and find alternatives. Feelings are especially strong across the Nordic region — and very possibly strongest in Denmark given Trump’s threats to seize Greenland.
Google trends showed a spike in searches for the term “Boycott USA,” and “Boycott America,” as Trump announced new tariffs, with the top regions including Denmark, Canada and France. At the same time, a global backslash is also building against Tesla as the brand becomes tied to Trump, with plunging sales in Europe and Canada. In Germany, police were investigating after four Teslas were set on fire Friday.
Elsebeth Pedersen, who lives in Faaborg on the Danish island of Funen, just bought a car and made a point of not even looking at U.S.-made options.
“Before Elon Musk started to act like a maniac a Tesla could have been an option. And maybe a Ford,” she said.
French entrepreneur Romain Roy said his solar panel firm has bought a new Tesla fleet each year since 2021 but canceled its order for another 15 to take a stand against Musk’s and Trump’s policies.
Describing the United States as “a country closing in on itself,” he cited Trump’s withdrawal from the Paris climate accord and Musk’s arm gestures. He said he was instead buying European models, even though it would cost an additional 150,000 euros ($164,000).
“Individual consumers, society, our countries, Europe must react,” he told broadcaster Sud Radio.
Responding to consumer demand, Denmark’s largest supermarket chain, the Salling Group, created a star-shaped label this month to mark European-made goods sold in its stores. CEO Anders Hagh said it’s not a boycott, but a response to consumers demanding a way to easily avoid American products.
“Our stores will continue to have brands on the shelves from all over the world, and it will always be up to customers to choose. The new label is only an additional service for customers who want to buy goods with European labels,” he said in a LinkedIn post.
‘I have never seen Danes so upset’
For Bo Albertus, “when Trump went on television and said he would by political force or military force take a piece of the Danish kingdom, it was just too much for me.”
The 57-year-old said he felt powerless and had to do something. He has given up Pepsi, Colgate toothpaste, Heinz ketchup and California wine, and replaced them with European products.
He is now an administrator of the Danish Facebook page “Boykot varer fra USA” (Boycott goods from the U.S.), which has swelled to over 80,000 members.
“Drink more champagne,” one user posted after Trump threatened 200% tariffs on EU wine and Champagne.
Albertus, a school principal, told the AP he really misses the strong taste of Colgate. But he’s been pleasantly surprised at finding a cola replacement that is half the price of Pepsi.
Trump’s policies have “brought the Danish Viking blood boiling,” said Jens Olsen, an electrician and carpenter. He is now considering replacing $10,000 worth of U.S.-made DeWalt power tools even though it will cost him a lot.
He has already found European replacements for an American popcorn brand and California-made Lagunitas IPA beer, which he calls “the best in the world.”
“I’ve visited the brewery several times, but now I don’t buy it anymore,” he said. He has mixed feelings because he is a dual Danish-U.S. citizen, and has spent a lot of time in the United States. But he can’t contain his anger.
“I’m 66 years old and I have never seen the Danes so upset before,” he said.
Michael Ramgil Stæhr has canceled a fall trip to the U.S. and is among many choosing to buy Danish instead of American-made, though he cannot pinpoint the exact moment he made the decision.
“Maybe it was when (Trump) announced to the world press that he intended to ‘take’ Greenland and the Panama Canal, and if necessary by military force. That and the gangster-like behavior towards the Ukrainian president in the White House,” the 53-year-old Copenhagen resident said.
“The man is deadly dangerous and is already costing lives” in the developing world and Ukraine, added Stæhr, who works helping disabled war veterans, many of whom got injured serving alongside U.S. troops in the Balkans, Iraq and Afghanistan. He himself served in Bosnia.
Rising anger in France, too
Edouard Roussez, a farmer from northern France, launched an online group, “Boycott USA, Buy French and European!” that in just two weeks has attracted over 20,000 members on Facebook.
Roussez believes a boycott of U.S. companies is a good way to express opposition to Trump’s policies, especially “the commercial and ideological war” he believes Trump is waging against Europe.
“First of all, these are the companies that financed Donald Trump’s campaign,” he said on state-owned LCP television channel. “I’m thinking of Airbnb, I’m thinking of Uber, I’m thinking of Tesla of course.”
The irony of it all? The group is on Facebook. Roussez said only the American online social media platform gave him the reach he needed. But he’s working to migrate the group to other platforms with no U.S. funding or capital.
As for any impact on U.S. export profits or policymaking, that’s unlikely, said Olof Johansson Stenman, a professor of economics at the University of Gothenburg.
The boycott could have a psychological effect on Americans who see the scale of anger, but “some may also say, ‘We don’t like these Europeans anyway,’” Stenman said.
Some choices are harder than others
Simon Madsen, 54, who lives in the Danish city of Horsens with his wife and 13-year-old twins, says the family has given up Pringles, Oreos and Pepsi Max. Not so hard, really.
But now they’re discussing doing without Netflix, and that is a step too far for the kids.
He also wonders whether he should keep buying Danish-made Anthon Berg chocolate marzipan bars, which are made with American almonds.
It’s important, he said, for people to use the power of the purse to pressure companies to change.
“It’s the only weapon we’ve got,” he said.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Tech News
Turkey plans new big tech regulations that risk clash with U.S.

Turkey is planning new rules to rein in the dominance of major tech firms, imitating the European Union’s regulatory approach at the risk of provoking U.S. retaliation.
The bill, set to be submitted to parliament soon, would prevent technology companies such as Apple Inc., Alphabet Inc.’s Google, Meta Platforms Inc. and Amazon.com Inc. from favoring their own services in search engines, app stores, or marketplaces, senior Turkish officials told Bloomberg. The bill is backed by the ruling party and was prepared in collaboration with Turkey’s antitrust authority.
Failure to comply could result in fines of up to 10% of a company’s annual revenue, added the officials, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters.
The move comes amid heightened tensions between the U.S. and the European Union over digital regulations. The EU’s Digital Markets Act or DMA, enacted in May 2023, aims to curb anti-competitive practices by imposing obligations on “gatekeeper” platforms. Turkey’s proposal aligns with the EU’s approach and could risk straining the nation’s trade ties with Washington.
US President Donald Trump has strongly criticized the EU’s DMA, calling it “overseas extortion” targeting American tech firms. In response, he has threatened to impose tariffs.
Under the proposal, closed ecosystems like Apple’s would be required to let users install third-party apps from outside of their platforms, the officials said. In Apple’s case, this means allowing downloads to iPhones and iPads from outside of the App Store, similar to how Google allows sideloading on Android devices.
It would also restrict platforms from processing user data without explicit consent and limit how they use that data for commercial purposes.
Additionally, tech firms would be required to provide commercial users — such as app developers, advertisers and marketplace sellers — with clear information on service scope, performance, and pricing.
The proposal is still subject to revisions before being enacted, and its final provisions could change during the legislative process.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Tech News
In wake of tragedies, BofA tasks senior execs with overseeing junior banker workload

Bank of America, which has come under scrutiny for its treatment of junior bankers, is changing who is overseeing the workloads of its young executives. The bank is now having senior bankers—those who hold a title of director or above—monitor the nature and volume of assignments piled on lower level staff who, in an industry famous for grueling hours, often work well into the night to complete deals.
Bank of America’s efforts come after a series of tragedies involving young people that have shaken the investment banking sector. In January, Carter Anthony McIntosh, a 28-year-old investment banking associate at Jefferies, passed away from a suspected drug overdose. McIntoch was working as much as 100 hours a week, the New York Post reported. Leo Lukenas, a BofA junior banker, died in May from a blood clot. Lukenas had worked 100-plus hour weeks before his passing. BofA in 2014 instituted policies to limit young banker hours, the junior execs were often pressured into lying about their workloads, the WSJ has reported.
To carry out its oversight program, BofA has long relied on what it calls a chief resource officer model. Under this model, BofA used mid-level executives, on one-year rotations, to allocate work to junior investment bankers, according to the Wall Street Journal.
BofA has opted to shake up the model as it seeks to build the next generation of leaders, a person familiar with the situation said. The investment bank will now rely on senior bankers, working in permanent, full-time positions across sectors and regions, who will supervise young banker development as their CROs.
Bank of America is picking volunteers or assigning the role to the senior bankers, who are no longer dealmakers, the person said. BofA is seeking executives who have a very strong leadership quality, have managed teams and feel strongly about the evolution of junior bankers, they said.
“We want all of our junior bankers to have the best experience possible, learning from the teammates they work with and further benefiting from the career growth and development this role brings,” according to a BofA statement.
BofA Securities, the investment banking division of Bank of America, employs thousands of bankers. It’s unclear how many are junior bankers. Young executives typically spend several years as a junior banker, including two as an analyst and two to three years as an associate, before they move up to vice president. At that point they usually work on a sector team, like consumer or technology or industrials.
BofA also cut roughly 150 junior investment banking roles, the person. The majority of people that were reduced were “mapped to new roles” outside of investment banking like financial analysis or strategic planning, the person said. “They were given the opportunity to move somewhere else,” they said.
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
Tech News
Four teens charged for alleged pistol-whipping, attempted Bitcoin robbery of OnlyFans influencer

Four teenagers in Houston, Texas, were charged Thursday for assaulting and trying to steal Bitcoin and Ethereum from an OnlyFans influencer in early March. Kaitlyn Siragusa, known online as “Amouranth,” was sleeping in her home in northwest Houston when three men broke into her room and demanded cryptocurrency, reported FOX 26. Siragusa had previously posted on social media a screenshot of her more than $20 million in cryptocurrency balances, according to the New York Post.
The three men allegedly pistol-whipped the OnlyFans influencer three times before Siragusa’s husband fired shots at the suspects, who then fled Siragusa’s home, according to FOX. The Harris County District Clerk’s Office identified the three men on Friday as Demarcus Morris Jr., 17; Dylan Nesho Campbell, 18; and Bryan Anthony Salazar Guerrero, 19. Officials also identified a 16-year-old as a suspect.
“They brought duct tape and masks and were armed with handguns,” Siragusa posted on X.
The assault and attempted robbery is just one of a series of recent attacks on individuals with known crypto holdings.
In late January, French police leapt into action after a group of criminals kidnapped David Balland, cofounder of the crypto hardware developer Ledger, and his wife, demanding a ransom in Bitcoin. French authorities, however, tracked down the kidnappers and rescued the couple. Balland’s wife was found unharmed but the Ledger cofounder had his finger severed in the ordeal. The Paris prosecutor’s office said that police had arrested 10 individuals alleged to be part of the kidnapping.
And in February, six men were accused in a Federal Bureau of Investigation affidavit of kidnapping three family members and a nanny from a Chicago townhouse, according to the Chicago Tribune. The criminals released the victims after they forced the family to hand over more than $15 million in cryptocurrency.
Crypto executives and wealthy crypto owners are taking notice. Some are hiring bodyguards to protect themselves from would-be attackers, according to WIRED. And others are buying up “wrench-attack” insurance, or policies designed to insure individuals if they’re the victims of a physical-force crypto robbery.
“In general the best things Bitcoiners can do to stay safe is to remain private,” Jameson Lopp, a famous early Bitcoiner, told Fortune. “The goal should be to avoid becoming a target,” he said. “Don’t go around telling anyone about your Bitcoin holdings. Don’t flaunt your wealth online or in meatspace. Don’t engage in risk activities such as high-value face-to-face trades.”
This story was originally featured on Fortune.com
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