Big Boss Interview

In Australia's biggest ever buyout, Jack Dorsey's Square has offered to buy Afterpay. Jonathan Shapiro writes about banking and finance at The Australian Financial Review, and tells us what is so attractive about the $29bn 'buy now, pay later' giant. As day 12 of the Olympics begins in Tokyo, we hear whether Japan's hosting of the games is still unpopular given the mounting costs and increasing covid-19 cases in the country. America's Sunset Studios, behind hits such as La La Land, plans to invest almost a billion dollars creating a major new film, television and digital production complex in Hertfordshire, England. We find out more about the project from Georg Szalai, international business editor of The Hollywood Reporter. And the BBC's Ivana Davidovic reports on whether new scientific developments might help genetically modified foods to shed the suspicion with which they've been viewed by many consumers and health authorities around the world. All this and more discussed with our two guests on opposite sides of the world: Alison Van Diggelen, host of the Fresh Dialogues interview series, in California and Peter Landers, from the Wall St Journal, in Tokyo.(Picture: An Afterpay logo in a shop window. Picture credit: Reuters.)

In a blow to the UK's tourist and aviation industries, the CDC has advised US citizens against travel to the country. We hear more from travel expert, Simon Calder. In Germany, catastrophic flooding has left at least 160 people dead and more than 170 others missing; later this week, Angela Merkel is expected to roll out an emergency aid package for those affected. We hear from the BBC's Damien McGuinness in the village of Nuerburg. And we examine the causes of last month's collapse of Champlain Towers South in Florida with Ana Bozovic, a real estate broker and founder of Analytics Miami and Benjamin Schafer, a structural engineer and professor at Johns Hopkins University. Plus, a news agency has been launched in Africa called Bird, which aims to find inspirational human interest and feature stories from across the continent. We find out more from Moky Makura, executive director of Africa No Filter, which has given its backing to the project. And we're joined throughout the programme by two guests on opposite sides of the Pacific, Les Williams, associate professor at The School of Engineering at The University of Virginia and a co-founder of Risk Cooperative, and Lulu Chen, Asia Investing team leader for Bloomberg News in Hong Kong. (Picture of a Virgin Atlantic Boeing 787. Picture credit: Robert Smith via Getty Images).

Face masks will no longer be legally required and distancing rules will be scrapped at the final stage of England's Covid lockdown roadmap, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has confirmed. The rule of six inside private homes will be removed and work-from-home guidance abolished as 16 months of on-off restrictions on daily life end. But is it too soon? Chinese authorities have frozen several prominent apps that recently listed in New York. What is behind the dispute, which includes preventing ride-hailing app Didi from adding new users? Also in the programme, Europe's three biggest truckmakers have agreed to invest almost $600m in a network of electric charging points. However, significant hurdles to electrifying road haulage remain, and we find out more from Claes Eliasson, senior vice-president at Swedish truckmaker Volvo. Despite the high profile of college sports, most of its athletes are amateurs. But a recent ruling by the US Supreme Court opens the door to the professionalisation of the sector. Picture credit: Getty Images

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has begun the inquiry into last December's cyber attack on the IT provider, media reports say. It will ask whether some companies failed to disclose they had been affected. Our technology correspondent Rory Cellan-Jones explains the story. As India offers its free vaccinations to all adults, human rights activist Manjula Pradeep of the Wayve Foundation in Ahmedabad offers an assessment of the country's vaccine rollout so far. And what is it that makes a tweet go viral? Researchers at the University of Cambridge say they've discovered the secret: being rude. We hear more from postgraduate researcher Steve Rathje. Jamie Robertson is joined throughout the programme by Dimuthu Attanayake, journalist and researcher for the LIRNE Asia digital policy think tank, who's in Colombo in Sri Lanka, and by Andy Uhler, reporter for Marketplace in Austin, Texas.(Picture: The SolarWinds Corp. logo. Picture credit: Getty Images.)

Search giant Google is to pay a $267m fine in France because of its advertising dominance. Katrin Schallenberg is an antitrust expert with Clifford Chance, and explains the background to the case. As some companies turn to anthropology to balance the insights of algorithms and AI, should all businesses now have an anthropologist on their books? We hear from Gillian Tett the author of Anthro-Vision: A New Way to See in Business and Life. Production of the luxury jet plane Learjet is set to end later this year, and the BBC's Russell Padmore takes an in-depth look at the global market for private jets. Plus, as people around the world return to the office, our regular workplace commentator Peter Morgan discusses the experience of those who have to try and fit into traditional office attire again, after spending time at home wearing baggy loungewear. Plus, we're joined throughout the programme by Alison Van Diggelen, in Silicon Valley; she's host of Fresh Dialogues. And Sushma Ramachandran, an independent business journalist and columnist for The Tribune newspaper, joins us in Delhi.(Picture: A Google office building. Picture credit: Getty Images.)

The Colonial fuel pipeline, shut down by a cyber attack since Friday, serves 45% of America's east coast. A regional state of emergency has been declared, allowing tanker drivers to work extra hours to get some fuel where it's needed – but will they be able to keep up with demand? We ask Ellen R Ward, president of Transversal Consulting. Is it a surprise that criminals were able to hack into the system running the most important fuel pipeline in the United States? A question for Algirde Pipikaite, cyber security expert at the World Economic Forum. Also in the programme, Mike Johnson takes a close look at Nigeria's electricity challenge, which means around 40% of the country having no access to official supplies. Plus, researchers have created a cricket bat made out of bamboo, rather than the traditional willow, which they say is cheaper and more sustainable. We hear more from Ben Tinkler-Davies of the University of Cambridge, who was on the research team. All this and more discussed with our two guests on opposite sides of the globe: Erin Delmore, political reporter in New York City and Patrick Barta, Asia Enterprise Editor for the Wall Street Journal, in Bangkok.

Apple has released its latest software update with a new tool that has forced a confrontation with Facebook over privacy; the BBC's Technology Correspondent Rory Cellan Jones explains the controversy. As an international effort is underway to help India as it faces an overwhelming surge in coronavirus cases, we hear how the US, the UK, China, Russia, the European Union Saudi Arabia are among those offering help. Also in the programme, the collapse of Greensill Capital in the UK has drawn attention to the practice of supply chain financing, which Greensill was known for; the BBC's Joshua Thorpe brings us an extended report. Plus, a company called Mirriad has developed a technique that enables product placement in archive films and TV shows; the company's CEO, Stephan Beringer, tells us how it works. And we're joined by two guests on opposite sides of the Pacific; Andy Uhler, reporter on the Marketplace programme who's in Austin, Texas and Mehmal Sarfraz, co-founder of The Current PK, who's in Lahore, Pakistan. (Photo of Facebook logo with Apple in the background by Pavlo Gonchar via Getty Images).

Pubs, restaurants, beauty salons and non-essential shops have reopened with the easing of lockdown restrictions across England. We hear from the heart of London’s shopping district and from a pub garden near Reading. The e-commerce giant Alibaba has been accused of anti-competitive practices and fined more than $2.5 billion by Chinese regulators. We discuss what this will mean for the future of the company. Also in the programme, the BBC’s Ivana Davidovic gives us the lowdown on Telegram, the messaging app - and one of the most downloaded non-gaming apps this year. And the BBC's arts correspondent Vincent Dowd tells us what the organisers of this year's Baftas are doing to improve diversity across the awards. Rahul Tandon is joined throughout the programme by Nisha Gopalan, editor for Bloomberg News in Asia, in Hong Kong, and Les Williams from the University of Virginia, in Arlington, Virginia. (Picture: A man drinking a pint of beer / Credit: Getty Images)

Switzerland's Credit Suisse and Japan's Nomura have seen their shares take a sharp fall after warning they could face losses of billions of dollars. The two large banks lent money to crisis-hit US investment fund, Archegos Capital, which was forced to liquidate billions of dollars’ worth of shares last Friday. We hear from Financial Times Correspondent Ortenca Aliaj and financial lawyer Mark Berman. The US says it could impose 25% tariffs on British exports to the US after the UK levied a digital services tax on major technology companies; we get the details from Steven Overly, Global Trade and Economics Reporter at the Politico website. Also in the programme, the European Union’s recent ban of palm oil in biofuel for vehicles has angered top producing nations Indonesia and Malaysia. The BBC's Manuela Saragosa explains the politics of the vegetable oil. Plus, as the pandemic has led to a re-think of the working day, the BBC’s Peter Morgan looks at the practice of an afternoon nap and if it’s time to refresh our attitudes towards sleeping on the job. And we're joined throughout the programme by two guests on opposite sides of the world; Alexis Goldstein, financial reform advocate in Washington DC, and Jasper Kim, Professor at Ewha University and director at Center for Conflict Management in Seoul, South Korea. (Picture of a Credit Suisse branch in Geneva / Credit: Fabrice Coffrini via Getty Images).

Texas's Brazos Electric Power Co-operative has filed for bankruptcy after winter storms. The firm says it's facing a $1.8bn bill as a result of last month's disruption, and Bloomberg's Jeremy Hill explains the implications. Also in the programme, starting a week of special programming about mental health and the pandemic, the BBC's Manuela Saragosa reports on what more businesses and governments could be doing to support their employees' mental wellbeing. Plus, how would you react if your employer insisted you are vaccinated before you re-enter the workplace? A UK based plumbing company has advertised for new staff on a ‘no jab no job’ policy and employees will face very difference workplaces upon returning to workplaces, as Pilita Clarke explains. And we're joined by political reporter Erin Delmore who's in New York and Yoko Ishikura, Professor Emeritus, Hitotsubashi University and a member of the World Economic Forum’s Expert Network, is in Tokyo. (Picture: An electrical substation in Houston. Picture credit: Getty Images.)