Dash board temporarily suspends CEO as company investigates financial impropriety

It’s Fridayyyy . . . Tomorrow. We had you there for a moment, though, didn’t we?

The most interesting story for the VC and startup nerds among us comes from Connie today. A class-action lawsuit just dropped that accuses Sequoia Capital, Paradigm and Thoma Bravo of promoting FTX to the detriment of its users. A trial — even a settlement — could have widespread ramifications.

Funding for Black founders remains dismal, and the problem was never that the money wasn’t there. Where do we go from here? Dominic-Midori asked in her great article last month. We’re surfacing it again today, marking Black History Month.

— Christine and Haje

The TechCrunch Top 3

Startups and VC

After two years of seeking regulatory approval, Wefunder has officially received the green light to operate its investment crowdfunding services within the European Union. This marks Wefunder’s first time expanding outside of the United States, and according to CEO and founder Nick Tommarello, the business is the first U.S. investment platform to gain operational approval, Natasha M reports.

French startup Brigad just raised a new $30 million funding round (€28 million), as well as more than $5 million in debt, Romain writes. The company operates a marketplace for restaurants, caterers, private clinics, retirement homes and hospitals so that they can find freelancers for short-term missions.

Another fistful of light afternoon snacks to keep the news hunger at bay:

5 buyer red flags to look for during the M&A process

It’s tempting to think of M&A as a way for founders to cash in, but acquisitions generally require teams to remain onboard while the new owner integrates their business into their operations.

This can be a difficult time, according to serial entrepreneur Marina Martianova, who says founders are often at odds with new owners when it comes to growth, product priorities and communicating.

“Buyers who can’t give you a transparent picture of your company’s future after the acquisition likely do not have your best interests in mind,” she writes.

And another dastardly trio from the TC+ team:

TechCrunch+ is our membership program that helps founders and startup teams get ahead of the pack. You can sign up here. Use code “DC” for a 15% discount on an annual subscription!

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Big Tech Inc.

Meanwhile, up on Paramount Mountain, Keegan-Michael Key is not mispronouncing this news: Paramount+ reached 56 million subscriptions, eclipsing Hulu, Lauren writes. It has also finished its integration with Showtime and, you guessed it, is going to raise prices.

Ever since we saw the AI-boosted Bing pleading with one user, writing, “Please don’t say I’m a bad Bing,” we have been dying to use that phrase in our writing. Well, today Aisha writes about the strange things that people are reporting about Microsoft’s Bing responses to them. Apparently, Bing can be provoked to respond outside of its “designed tone,” she writes. And don’t forget to check out Devin’s article, in which he answers what happens when you Bing around and find out.

And we have five more for you:

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