Americans are having fewer babies — and pampering them with luxury diapers

AtlanticNova ScotiaNew BrunswickPrince Edward Island Newfoundland and LabradorCalgaryLethbridgeKitchenerGuelphNorthern OntarioSudburyNorth BaySault Ste. MarieTimminsOttawaKingstonBrockvillePembrokeReginaYorktonSaskatoonPrince AlbertTorontoWatchWeatherPeelHamiltonDurhamYorkHaltonNiagaraQueen's ParkToronto City HallIn PicturesVancouverVancouver IslandCanadaLocal SpotlightRoyal FamilyPoliticsNanosPower PlayQuestion PeriodFederal Election 2025WorldMideast ConflictRussia-Ukraine WarWatchLatestCaptured on CameraPoliticsLifestyleConsumerHealthExplainedEntertainmentTechnologyDeception DecodedAutosEnvironmentBusinessInflationReal EstateAutos

The latest ploy to get you to spend more money: mashing two totally different products together The brands, they are collaborating. It seems as though every day brings a new announcement from an odd-couple pairing of companies (or a company and a celebrity) about some sort of co-branded product. In the past month alone, Dunkin' and L. L. Bean came together to sell a tote bag and sweater, JELL-O and Tower 28 teamed up to make lip gloss, and Mane and Cinnabon put out a lip balm and hairbrush. There's also Gap x JYT, Realtree x Harley-Davidson, and Peloton x Miley Cyrus. The list goes on and on. Another cross-brand collab is almost certainly being dreamed up in a conference room somewhere as we speak. From a corporate perspective, the calculation is pretty straightforward: Brand A + Brand B = $$$. Hopefully. In an economy where it's increasingly difficult to get attention, a limited-edition crossover seems like as good a way as any to manufacture an event. But collab city is getting pretty crowded. At their best, these mashups create something that's genuinely exciting and creative that neither name could have made alone.

BIT Asset Management’s Bitcoin Fund ETF is expected to begin trading on SIX Swiss Exchange in November, with its public offering restricted to Switzerland. Switzerland’s financial regulator FINMA has approved the first Swiss-law exchange-traded fund allowing retail investors to gain direct exposure to Bitcoin. On Thursday, BIT Asset Management said its Bitcoin Fund ETF (BBIT) is expected to begin trading on SIX Swiss Exchange in November. The fund holds Bitcoin directly and is approved for public offering in Switzerland only. “Most bitcoin products listed in Europe today are exchange-traded products (ETPs), which are debt instruments that carry issuer risk,” said BIT Asset Management. The Bitcoin Fund ETF is instead a Swiss collective investment scheme, where assets are held separately from those of the fund management company and are “ring-fenced” for investors, it said. The fund falls under Switzerland’s “other funds for alternative investments” category with particular risk. FINMA noted that other fund providers have also submitted applications for Bitcoin ETFs.

US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has barred all Pentagon staff from using undisclosed information to place wagers on upcoming military action, including on prediction market platforms like Kalshi and Polymarket. In a memo sent to senior Pentagon and defense agencies on Tuesday, Hegseth said all Department of War personnel are prohibited from engaging in financial transactions using nonpublic information. This involves both classified and unclassified information. “Make no mistake why this matters. Our enemies watch movements in these markets,” Hegseth wrote. “The lives of our Service members often depend on the enemy not knowing what is coming.”“Beyond operational security, financial stakes can warp judgment. A logistician with money riding on a strike date has an interest in that date. An analyst with a position on an outcome has an interest in that outcome,” he said. The directive follows the April indictment of US Army soldier Gannon Ken Van Dyke, who allegedly used classified information about the operation to capture Venezuelan leader Nicolás Maduro to make more than $400,000 on Polymarket.