Money

The Voice coach Shakira is so serious about unloading her fancy Miami Beach mansion that she discounted the prize by $2 MILLION! The superstar pop singer has made it known she now would be satisfied with $13 million. She put the Zen-decorated crib on the market in the summer for $15 million, but I’m told by a real estate snitch …

Last year when we did the list of the top 10 biotech IPOs of 2012, we were lucky to have 10. Actually, there were 11, and that looked pretty good compared to the lean and hungry years of 2008 to 2011. Only one of the companies had to be excluded. This year, the top 10 list is far more … …

In its ongoing bid to get back on its feet, embattled retailer JC Penney Company, Inc. (JCP) announced after Wednesday’s closing bell that it is shuttering 33 underperforming stores across the U.S., including five stores in Wisconsin, a state where rival Kohl’s (KSS) has a strong presence. With that comes the dismissal of approximately 2,000 employees. Penney’s has shed more …

Glassdoor just released its sixth annual 50 Best Places to Work for 2014. The list forecasts which companies will be the best to work for in 2014 based on anonymous surveys of current and former employees at companies with a minimum of 1,000 workers. More than half a million reviews were submitted to build the list.

Chuck E. Cheese restaurant chain is being acquired by an Apollo Global Management affiliate for approximately $950 million. The company, which has four locations in Orlando and 577 locations in total throughout 47 states and 10 foreign countries, agreed to the buyout Wednesday, reports the Associated Press.

The Rock may have started his career as a wrestler but he has decided to pursue other endeavors and needless to say, it’s been a very lucrative decision. Forbes recently named Dwayne ‘The Rock’ Johnson as the top-grossing actor of 2013. This year, Johnson starred in films like Fast & Furious 6, G.I. Joe and Pain & Gain. The former …

Ford Motor Co. will unveil a first-of-its-kind solar-powered C-MAX concept car at this week’s Las Vegas Consumer Electronics Show. The C-MAX Solar Energi Concept will be unveiled just a few days ahead of the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, which opens to the media Jan. 13 and to the public Jan. 18. The vehicle uses a solar panel …

Everything is smart at CES – watches, glasses, shoes, gloves – so it’s not surprising to find intelligent cars. BMW unveiled the i3, a concept electric vehicle, that communicates with a smartwatch, specifically, the Samsung Galaxy Gear. In addition to displaying the car’s vitals, including battery status and driving range, the smartwatch can be used to navigate.

Average fixed mortgage rates started the year slightly higher than they ended 2013, according to the latest mortgage survey from Freddie Mac. News Facts 30-year fixed-rate mortgage (FRM) averaged 4.53 percent with an average 0.8 point for the week ending January 2, 2014, up from last week when it averaged 4.48 percent. A year ago at this time, the 30-year …

What are the attributes that make a city female-friendly? Ample outdoor spaces, well-paying jobs, healthy food, single guys, a great cupcake shop or three, a non-creepy sex toy store (to name a few). We poured over lists and statistics and crunched the data—then compiled this quick list of U.S. cities with enough key features to appeal to the XX chromosome …

Men’s Wearhouse (MW) got tougher in its pursuit of Jos. A. Bank Clothiers (JOSB), and the prospect of a hostile merger drove up shares of both companies Monday. Men’s Wearhouse raised its bid to $57.50 a share from $55 and said it would push to place two directors on Jos. A. Bank’s board. On Dec. 23, Jos. A Bank’s board …