Can Virgin Orbit take to the skies again after filing for bankruptcy?

In today’s top stories, satellite company Virgin Orbit has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, although its CEO is confident it will find a buyer. Elsewhere, Samsung is investing in production of advanced organic light-emitting diode displays; UK authorities have dropped two of the three allegations against Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman; and Retail giant Walmart is cutting more than 2,000 roles across five fulfilment centres, although some employees may be shifted to other areas. Lastly, Tesla has been ordered to pay over $3m in a racial discrimination lawsuit.

Virgin Orbit’s crash landing

Richard Branson’s satellite company Virgin Orbit [VORB] has imploded, filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy after failing to find the liquidity needed to keep it afloat. CEO Dan Hart is confident about the company’s future, however. “We believe that the cutting-edge launch technology that this team has created will have wide appeal to buyers,” he said in a statement. The Virgin Orbit share price crashed 29% pre-market Tuesday.

Samsung to spend on OLED production

Samsung Display, a division of Samsung Electronics [005930.KS], is investing 4.1trn won (₩) in advanced organic light-emitting diode (OLED) displays, South Korea’s trade ministry announced yesterday. The OLED production will take place in the city of Asan; the investment is part of the company’s wider plan to spend ₩60.1trn over the next 10 years in areas outside of Seoul.

UK probes Russian billionaire

The UK crime agency has dropped two of the three allegations against Russian tycoon Mikhail Fridman. Last December, the UK government demanded that the Fridman-backed investment company LetterOne sell regional broadband provider Upp on the grounds that its ownership posed a risk to national security. Fridman and Petr Aven, another LetterOne investor, offloaded their $2.3bn stake in Alpha Bank [ALPHA.AT] in March.

Walmart to cut 2,000 roles

Retail giant Walmart [WMT] is cutting more than 2,000 roles across five fulfilment centres, according to a regulatory filing. However, some employees may be shifted to other areas of the business as it adjusts its stores and warehouses to deal with an increasing number of online orders, a spokesperson told Bloomberg. Elsewhere, Alibaba’s [BABA] separation won’t affect the China ecommerce giant’s credit rating, Fitch has announced.

Musk responds to Tesla racial harassment suit

A court has ordered EV maker Tesla [TSLA] to pay over $3m in a racial discrimination lawsuit, a fraction of the $137m the plaintiff had originally been awarded in 2021. CEO Elon Musk responded by tweeting that “[i]f we had been allowed to introduce new evidence, the verdict would’ve been zero”. Musk also caused the Dogecoin price to jump late Monday after replacing Twitter’s blue bird icon with a Shiba Inu.