TLDR 

MARKET RECAP → Stocks edged higher Friday, closing out a turbulent week and a losing month for major indexes.

SKYPE SIGNS OFF AFTER 21 YEARS → Microsoft pulled the plug on Skype, once a digital calling giant, as it lost ground to WhatsApp, FaceTime, and Zoom. Teams took over, and nostalgia won’t pay the bills. 📉

GOOGLE TRIMS HR, CLOUD STAFF TO CUT COSTS → Google cut HR and cloud jobs while shifting some roles overseas, tightening spending as it pours cash into AI. Efficiency or just corporate spring cleaning? ✂️

Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up for free here.

MARKETS

Today’s S&P 500 Heatmap

Notable Earnings Next Week

TODAY’S TOP NEWS

Skype Signs Off After 21 Years

📉 Microsoft announced it would shut down Skype on May 5, urging users to migrate to Teams. Once a pioneer in online calling, Skype struggled to keep up in the smartphone and cloud era.

📱 Despite its early dominance, Skype lost ground to competitors like WhatsApp, FaceTime, and Zoom. Microsoft’s focus shifted to Teams, which became the company’s preferred communication platform.

🔍 Skype’s downfall stemmed from clunky redesigns, shifting consumer habits, and a lack of major investment. While it once revolutionized digital communication, Microsoft ultimately decided it was time to move on.

TODAY’S TOP NEWS

Google Trims HR, Cloud Staff to Cut Costs

✂️ Google announced layoffs in its HR and cloud divisions as part of ongoing cost-cutting efforts. The company offered buyouts to mid- and senior-level HR employees while eliminating cloud roles, with some positions shifting overseas.

💰 The cuts followed CFO Anat Ashkenazi’s push for financial discipline as Google ramped up AI infrastructure spending. Despite strong AI demand, revenue missed expectations, prompting leadership to streamline operations.

☁️ Google’s cloud division, a key growth area, saw layoffs in sales operations and customer experience teams, though hiring continued for critical roles. The moves aimed to boost efficiency as Google battled AWS and Microsoft for market share.

BULL VS. BEAR

NOTABLE POSTS

MONEYLION MANAGED INVESTING

KEEP READING

The first quarter is on track for negative GDP growth, Atlanta Fed indicator says (CNBC)

Intel delays Ohio chip plant opening to next decade, was supposed to start production by 2026 (CNBC)

Block’s 30% plunge in February leads fintech sell-off, while Stripe shows benefit of staying private (CNBC)

Amazon’s most powerful new Alexa features being powered by Anthropic’s AI, sources say (CNBC)

Ready to Take 2025 by Storm? (ML)

How to Financially Prosper this Chinese New Year: Year of the Wood Snake (ML)

A MESSAGE FROM OUR PARTNER

WHAT WE’RE WATCHING

OUR FAVORITE TOOLS & RESOURCES

• RiskReversal Media — Expert-led content redefining financial media

• Unusual Whales — Companion for uncovering unusual market activity

• OpenBB — AI-powered research and analytics workspace

• Earnings Hub — Earnings calendar

• Quiver Quantitative — Quiver allows retail investors to tap into the power of big data with insights into things like congressional trades as they are disclosed

• Perplexity — Perplexity AI is an AI-chatbot-powered research and conversational search engine

• The Market Ear — Live news, analysis and commentary on what moves markets and trading

• Coinmarketcap.com — Crypto market data

• Finviz — Financial visualizations

• Trading Economics — Economic calendar

• CME FedWatch Tool — Market-implied probabilities of future levels of interest rates 

• Dataroma — Track stock picks and portfolios of legendary value investors such as Warren Buffett

• ChatGPT — Large language model-based chatbot powered by generative AI

• Vimcal — Lightning-fast calendar and AI scheduling assistant

WE WANT YOUR FEEDBACK

REFERRAL PROGRAM

^{_{Investment advisory services provided by ML Wealth LLC. Investment Accounts Are Not FDIC Insured • No Bank Guarantee • Investments May Lose Value. For important information and disclosures relating to the MoneyLion Investment Account, see Investment FAQs, Form ADV Brochure, and moneylion.com/investing. Funded managed investing accounts are subject to a monthly account fee of $1 (for accounts valued up to $5,000), $3 (for accounts valued over $5,000, and up to $25,000), or $5 (for accounts valued over $25,000).}}

<sup><sub>This advertising email was sent to you because you have a MoneyLion account. If you would like to unsubscribe, please do so using this link. We respect your right to privacy. Please do not reply to this email with sensitive information, such as an account number, Social Security number, date of birth, bank account information, PIN, password, or Online ID. The security and confidentiality of your personal information is important to us. If you have any questions or want to read more, please visit our Help Center.

MoneyLion and Pathward do not provide, nor do they guarantee, any third-party product, service, information, or recommendation. The third parties providing these products or services are solely responsible for them, as well as all other content on their websites. MoneyLion is not liable for any third party’s failure with regard to those advertised products, services, and benefits. These advertised products and services may not be FDIC insured or bank-guaranteed, and may be subject to a different privacy policy than MoneyLion’s. You should check individual offers, products, and services to become familiar with any applicable restrictions or conditions that may apply. MoneyLion may receive compensation from third parties for referring you to the third party, their products or to their website.

The influencer, creator and other content provided in the MoneyLion App (“Content”) is for informational and entertainment purposes only and should not be construed as legal, tax, investment, financial, or other advice. All Content is intended to be of a general nature, does not address the circumstances of any particular individual or entity, and may not constitute a comprehensive or complete statement of the matters discussed. MoneyLion is not a fiduciary by virtue of any person’s use of or reliance on the Content. You should consult an appropriate professional if you require any legal, tax, investment, financial or other advice. Terms and Conditions for our subscriber referral can be found here.</sub></sup>