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Here’s what you need to know
The World Health Organization weighed in on AstraZeneca. After EU members discouraged the vaccine for adults over 65, a WHO panel vote is expected to speed up inoculation, especially in developing countries.
TikTok’s sale in limbo. After reports that the social media company’s sale to Oracle and Walmart was on hold for further review, the White House stressed the need for security while stating it hadn’t taken any “proactive steps” to intervene.
Twitter blocked Indian accounts. The site said it will reimplement restrictions on some accounts while refusing to silence journalists and politicians, even as the government pushes a homegrown rival.
China’s having a lopsided recovery… Producer prices rose for the first time in a year last month, but consumer prices fell for the first time in a decade.
… but used less banned gas. Emissions of CFC-11, which harms the ozone layer, fell sharply last year after rising for the three years prior.
China said disengagement has begun at the Indian border. India, for its part, has yet to comment after China decried its “frequent acts of trespass.”
Biden unveiled Myanmar sanctions. After imploring military leaders to relinquish power, he announced plans for a first round of targets for export sanctions this week.
What to watch for
🐝 Bumble, the female-friendly dating app, is abuzz with good news. As it will no doubt detail on its earnings call today, the Austin-based start-up has dramatically increased its user base during the pandemic. With an IPO looming, analysts say that it could be worth up to $8 billion.
How did the six-year old company become dating industry royalty so quickly?
2012: Whitney Wolfe Herd joins a group that develops Tinder and has an office romance that ended in a fiery sexual harassment lawsuit.
2014: Learning from that experience, Wolfe starts Bumble, where “Integrity, kindness, equality, confidence, and respect” are the platform’s core values.
2016: Bumble introduces a job-hunting feature called BumbleBizz. (It also has a BFF setting for kindling platonic friendships.)
2018: Bumble’s launch in India is a big hit.
2019: Blackstone takes a majority share of the company, which launches a print magazine called Bumble Mag.
2020: Three new profile badges navigate the awkwardness of dating during a raging pandemic. Sharon Stone complains that she’s been blocked on the platform.
2021: DC-based Bumble users help the FBI track some US Capitol insurrectionists.
Charting inflation in emerging markets
As the Covid-19 pandemic spread, a slew of central banks from India to Turkey to South Africa for the first time engaged in so-called “quantitative easing,” buying up government debt and corporate bonds to stabilize their currencies and boost their recoveries, while overlooking the risk of inflation.
But declining currency values can be damaging to emerging markets reliant on foreign imports of basic goods like food and fuel. Countries like Turkey, Brazil, and Nigeria are now smarting from the pain of food inflation.
Roya Wolverson explains the consequences for emerging economies that engage in US Federal Reserve-style money-printing measures.
Netflix’s focus on la famille
When it arrived in France, Netflix was seen as a potential disruptor to the very foundation of French television, which lagged behind its silver screen counterpart in critical acclaim. Now, nearly a decade later, with 70 million viewers watching at least two minutes of crime drama Lupin and 20 more French series and films to come, Netflix and French TV have formed a mutually beneficial partnership.
Now, with the acquisition of bestselling children’s series Redwall, Netflix is looking to put some action behind CEO Reed Hastings’ talk of eventually unseating Disney from its family animation throne. With Disney’s recent decision to shutter the studio behind the popular Ice Age franchise, Netflix be positioned to sway parents much like it did French TV lovers, endearing itself to families even as membership rates continue to climb by positioning itself as one-stop shopping for viewers of all ages.
✦ Your Quartz membership is safe from Lupin; he’s probably got his own. Try it for a week, free.
Surprising discoveries
A lawyer got stuck with a filter on a Zoom court hearing. “I’m here live, I’m not a cat,” the panicked Texas attorney told judges on the call.
Europe’s oldest person beat Covid-19. The now fully recovered French nun celebrates her 117th birthday today.
An Israeli company 3D printed a steak. The ribeye is made from lab-grown cow cells.
Buying bitcoin after an Elon Musk tweet is a perfectly rational move. John Maynard Keynes would approve.
The news doesn’t contain enough dinosaur stories. A kid convinced the US National Public Radio that incessant senator chat is just boring.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, cat lawyers, and non-senatorial news (please) to hi@qz.com. Get the most out of Quartz by downloading our iOS app and becoming a member. Today’s Daily Brief was brought to you by Roya Wolverson, Anne Quito, Jordan Lebeau, Liz Webber, and Susan Howson.