MarketPulse

CRYPTO MINING CAPER

A cryptocurrency mining scheme cost a New York county at least $6,000 in electricity bills and could cost a county employee up to 15 years in prison. Christopher Naples, who worked in the Suffolk County clerk’s office as a supervisor of information technology operations, allegedly secretly installed dozens of machines at his workplace. Naples, of Mattituck, New York, is accused of using the devices to mine Bitcoin and other types of cryptocurrency. Cryptocurrency units are created by computers solving complex math equations, and the process can result in heavy electricity usage and high cooling costs. Charges against Naples include public corruption, grand larceny, and computer trespass.

LUCKY FIRST DAY

The owners of an auto repair shop in Florida revved up their first day in business with a little lottery luck. Brian Woodle, 46, won $1 million in a lottery game the same day he and his wife opened the shop. “I love working on vehicles and it has always been my dream to own my own repair shop,” Woodle said in a news release sent by the Florida Lottery. He bought the $5 Gold Rush Supreme scratch-off ticket from a Circle K. He chose a one-time, lump-sum payment of $880,000, the lottery said. The Circle K store will receive a $2,000 bonus commission for selling the winning ticket.

TURBULENT RECOVERY

British airline easyJet has rejected a takeover offer and plans to raise money from its shareholders as it recovers from the coronavirus pandemic. EasyJet rejected the unsolicited buyout offer from an unnamed potential buyer. It wants to raise money via a rights issue, under which existing shareholders are offered additional shares in order to strengthen its balance sheet as passenger numbers remain low. The airline mainly flies to popular city and holiday destinations in Europe. It expects capacity in the first quarter of 2022 to still be only 60% of the level seen in the equivalent period of 2019.