INDUSTRY
William ‘Mo’ Cowan hired by GE
William “Mo” Cowan, who was a top adviser to Governor Deval Patrick and an interim US senator, will join General Electric Co. as vice president of legal policy and litigation, the company said Tuesday. GE said Cowan will oversee litigation, investigations, and compliance for the multinational conglomerate while also working locally with city and state officials as it prepares to build a new South Boston headquarters campus. Patrick appointed Cowan to the Senate in early 2013 after John Kerry was named secretary of state by then-President Obama. He filled the role until Edward Markey won a special election later that year. Since leaving the Senate, Cowan has worked for ML Strategies, the powerful lobbying arm of the Boston law firm Mintz Levin. He was promoted to chief executive of ML Strategies just last year. ML Strategies represented GE in 2015 and 2016, according to state records, and the firm helped guide the company through its move from Connecticut to Boston, which was announced last January. — ADAM VACCARO
WAREHOUSE CLUBS
BJ’s exploring options, including a possible sale or an IPO, report says
The owners of Westborough-based BJ’s Wholesale Club are hiring investment bankers to advise the company about options, including the sale of the company or an initial public offering, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. If BJ’s owners pursue an IPO, it could come in the second half of 2017, the report said, citing someone familiar with the matter. BJ’s operates more than 210 membership-based warehouse clubs in 15 states in the Eastern United States. It is owned by the private equity firms Leonard Green & Partners LP and CVC Capital Partners Ltd. The private equity firms took the Massachusetts company, founded in 1984, private in 2011, in a nearly $3 billion deal. BJ’s spokesman Kirk Saville did not confirm or deny the report. “As a matter of policy, BJ’s Wholesale Club does not comment on rumors and speculation,” he said in an e-mailed statement. “As a company, we’re focused on providing outstanding value and service to our members.” — MEGAN WOOLHOUSE
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MEDIA
Playboy brings back nudity
Naked women are back in Playboy magazine, ending a year-old ban on the nudity that made the magazine famous. Playboy celebrated the reversal on Twitter and Facebook with the hashtag #NakedIsNormal. The about-face came Monday with the release of Playboy’s March-April issue. The 63-year-old magazine had banished naked women from its print edition because it felt the content had become passe in an era of online porn that is just a click away on personal computers and smartphones. The decision to show less skin was made under the regime of Playboy Enterprises CEO Scott Flanders, who left the Los Angeles company last May to run eHealth Inc., a health insurance exchange. Cooper Hefner, Playboy’s chief creative officer and the son of magazine founder Hugh Hefner, called the nudity ban a mistake Monday in a post on his Twitter account. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
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AUTOMOTIVE
Mazda recalling 174,000 cars over seat problem
Mazda is recalling about 174,000 small cars in the United States because the seats can change angles suddenly, making the vehicles hard to drive. The recall covers the Mazda 2 subcompact from the 2011 model year and the 2010 and 2011 Mazda 3 and Mazdaspeed 3 compacts. The company says the seat height adjustment links can break or detach from the seat frame, changing the seat angle and increasing the risk of a crash. Dealers will inspect the seat links and either install a reinforcement bracket or replace the whole seat adjustment unit. The recall is expected to start on March 31. — ASSOCIATED PRESS
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INVESTMENT
SoftBank to buy Fortress Investment group
Over its three-decade existence, the Japanese conglomerate SoftBank and its founder, Masayoshi Son, have been known for ambitious and sometimes head-scratching moves. Now, SoftBank is nearing its most unusual move yet: It is about to buy Fortress Investment Group, an American private equity giant that oversees around $70 billion in assets. That business is a radical departure from the technology and telecommunications holdings for which the Japanese company is known. But the acquisition is intended to bolster SoftBank’s other enormous new endeavor: a $100 billion technology investment fund that threatens to roil the private equity world. The move highlights the immense ambitions of Son, SoftBank’s brash founder. The mogul, who is one of Japan’s richest men, has sought to shake up the American telecommunications industry and recently sought to win over President Trump by announcing intentions to create jobs in the United States. Over the past three decades, SoftBank has become one of Japan’s most formidable technology companies. It is perhaps best known for its telecommunications empire, which stretches from Japan to Sprint in the United States. — NEW YORK TIMES
PHILANTHROPY
Bill and Melinda Gates thank Warren Buffett for his donations
Bill and Melinda Gates used their charity’s annual letter to thank Warren Buffett for his contributions, highlighting beneficiaries of his generosity to assure the billionaire that the donations have been well spent. “If Melinda and I could take you anywhere in the world so you could see your investment at work, we probably would take you to meet sex workers,” Bill Gates wrote in a letter released Tuesday. “I met with a group in Bangalore, and when they talked about their lives, they had me in tears.” The Microsoft Corp. cofounder spoke of one woman who felt like she had no other job prospects after being left by her husband. When members of the community found out, her daughter was forced out of school and contemplated suicide, Gates wrote. The Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation backs community groups in the region where women can learn about HIV prevention and support one another. — BLOOMBERG NEWS
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BANKING
Credit Suisse to cut 5,500 jobs
Credit Suisse said on Tuesday that it planned to eliminate more than 5,500 jobs by the end of this year as Tidjane Thiam, its chief executive, looks to further reduce costs and improve the lender’s prospects as it fell to its second consecutive annual loss. The job reductions, in addition to 7,000 positions eliminated last year, come as the Zurich-based bank, like much of the industry, struggles with low interest rates around the globe and a lack of confidence among investors for much of last year cut into its results. Turmoil in the financial markets sent Credit Suisse in 2015 to its first annual loss since 2008. Investor sentiment improved in the fourth quarter, and the bank said it had positive inflows in its wealth management business in January. — NEW YORK TIMES
BOYCOTTS
Wegmans latest chain to be hit by anti-Trump boycott
A number of big-name brands, from Uber to Under Armour, Nordstrom to Neiman Marcus, have been the subject of politically charged boycotts in recent weeks. Now another company is finding itself in the crosshairs of consumers hoping to avoid Trump products as they take issue with the president’s policies and divisive rhetoric: Wegmans. The regional supermarket chain with a cult following is facing calls to remove Trump Winery products from its 10 Virginia stores. Over the weekend, about 300 members of the Prince William County chapter of the National Organization for Women made plans to pressure Wegmans to stop carrying products from the Charlottesville winery. According to Jo Natale, vice president of media relations for Wegmans, the company has been selling wines from the Charlottesville winery since 2008, before it was owned by Donald Trump — and long before he campaigned for the White House. ‘‘Our role as a retailer is to offer choice to our customers,’’ she said, adding that the company ultimately decides whether to stock a product based solely on how well it sells. — WASHINGTON POST
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