Head of FCC to leave on Inauguration Day

GOVERNMENT

Head of FCC to leave on Inauguration Day

Federal Communications Commission Chairman Ajit Pai announced Monday that he’ll step down from his post in January, concluding a four-year run atop the nation’s telecom regulatory agency. President Trump tapped Pai, then a commissioner, to serve as his first and only FCC chairman during his sole term in office — a period during which the Republican-led commission muscled through a series of significant deregulatory moves, including a repeal of the country’s Net neutrality rules, which had required Internet providers to treat all Web traffic equally. Pai said he intends to depart on Jan. 20, the same day that President-elect Joe Biden will be inaugurated, potentially setting the stage for Democrats to control the FCC next year. — WASHINGTON POST

REAL ESTATE

Trade group executive leaves for Florida job

The executive director of NAIOP Massachusetts, the Needham-based commercial real estate trade group, is leaving to take a job with headhunter Keller Augusta. NAIOP on Monday announced that Reesa Fischer has accepted a job with the executive search firm as its national managing director of business development and strategy and will be based in its Palm Beach, Fla., office. Fischer has been with NAIOP Massachusetts since 2010, when she joined as chief operating officer. When David Begelfer announced his retirement as CEO in 2018, the NAIOP board adopted a dual-leadership model, with Fischer becoming executive director and Tamara Small becoming CEO. Small said NAIOP will not hire another COO or executive director; the staff instead will divide up Fischer’s responsibilities. Small will take on some of the work, in her role as CEO. Two other NAIOP employees will be promoted: Taylor Pederson, to vice president of programs and education, and Anastasia Nicolaou to vice president of policy and public affairs. Small said she does plan to hire a finance manager, to round out her six-person staff. — JON CHESTO

TRAVEL

Almost 1.2 million screened at airports on Sunday, highest since March

Nearly 1.2 million people passed through US airports Sunday, the greatest number since the pandemic gripped the country in March, despite pleas from health experts for Americans to stay home over Thanksgiving. The Transportation Security Administration screened at least 1 million people on four of the last 10 days through Sunday. That’s still half the crowd recorded last year at airports, when more than 2 million people were counted per day. With new reported cases of coronavirus spiking across the country, the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention had issued a warning against Thanksgiving travel just a week before the holiday. — ASSOCIATED PRESS

SOCIAL MEDIA

Facebook buys software company

Facebook has acquired Kustomer Inc., a New York-based software company that helps businesses manage customer conversations from multiple services on one dashboard. The social media giant made the deal to bolster its nascent messaging business, which is expanding to include customer-service products that help companies interact with people via chat apps, like WhatsApp and Messenger. Kustomer also offers automated tools so companies can handle easier customer requests using bots. Facebook didn’t disclose terms of the acquisition, but the Wall Street Journal reported Monday that the deal could value privately held Kustomer at more than $1 billion. Facebook said the deal will close pending regulatory approval. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

FOOD DELIVERY

DoorDash looks to raise about $2.8 billion in IPO

DoorDash is looking for a valuation of nearly $30 billion when it takes itself public, reflecting how integral food delivery has become in millions of people’s lives during the pandemic. The company is planning to raise up to approximately $2.8 billion from an initial public offering of 33 million shares. The offering is expected to be priced between $75 and $85 per share, according to a regulatory filing Monday. DoorDash has experienced explosive growth this year. Last year, the company generated $885 million in revenue. During the first nine months of 2020 revenue more than doubled that to $1.9 billion. It was already growing before the pandemic. In 2018 it brought in $291 million in revenue. But DoorDash has lost money each year since its founding and the company has warned potential investors that losses could continue as the company anticipates increasing expenses. — ASSOCIATED PRESS

CRYPTOCURRENCY

Bitcoin bounces back

Bitcoin is clawing back most of its losses from its biggest rout since March, showing a resiliency in the cryptocurrency rally that has outperformed most major asset classes in 2020. The most-traded digital coin rose over the weekend and added another 2 percent on Monday, reaching as high as $18,692. That’s near the $18,945 peak closing level reached last week, before prices started tumbling. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

BANKING

HSBC looks to exit consumer banking in the US

After a decade of futile corporate makeovers, HSBC is on the verge of giving up on its ambition of being a full-service bank in the world’s biggest economy. HSBC, Europe’s largest bank by market value, is looking at offloading its US consumer franchise as Chairman Mark Tucker accelerates a move to sharpen the lender’s focus on its core Asian business. The US retreat would follow a sweeping restructuring earlier this year that called for 35,000 cuts — at least the fourth strategic reboot since the financial crisis spawned in 2008. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

THEME PARKS

Universal to open Nintendo-themed attraction in Japan

Universal Studios Japan plans to open its $580 million Nintendo attraction on Feb. 4, finally debuting a long-delayed effort to introduce Mario and other beloved characters to real-world theme park visitors. Super Nintendo World, built on the existing Universal Studios Japan site, is envisioned as a life-size replica of Nintendo Co.’s most popular games with rides, shops, and walk-through activities. One of the first attractions will be a Mario Kart ride inside a recreation of Bowser’s Castle. Borrowing an idea from the Super Mario franchise, visitors can collect virtual coins by wearing a dedicated wristband as they explore the area and interact with park features via a Switch console. — BLOOMBERG NEWS

INTERNATIONAL

Wireless carriers in the UK cannot use Huawei equipment in their networks

Wireless carriers in the UK won’t be allowed to install Huawei equipment in their high-speed 5G networks after September 2021, the British government said Monday, hardening its line against the Chinese technology company. The deadline is part of a roadmap the British government is laying down to remove “high risk” equipment suppliers with draft legislation that aims to tighten telecommunications security requirements. The government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson in July banned Huawei from having a role in building Britain’s next-generation mobile phone networks over security concerns triggered by US sanctions. Britain and other European countries have started to fall in line after the US lobbied allies to shun Huawei over fears its equipment could be used by China’s communist rulers to facilitate electronic espionage. — ASSOCIATED PRESS