Joseph N DiStefano
@phillyjoed.bsky.social
JoeD@Inquirer.com
I write about money and people
mostly for the Philadelphia Inquirer
https://www.inquirer.com/author/distefano_joseph_n/
+OFS
I write about money and people
mostly for the Philadelphia Inquirer
https://www.inquirer.com/author/distefano_joseph_n/
+OFS
'Blood is red, not blue:' 'Bold' Swedish drugstore supplier Essity, w/US HQ in Philly + Tork plant in South Jersey, buys 450-worker Playtex works and its O.B., Stayfree, Carefree lines in Delaware (they don't make girdles or NASA suits anymore). My story: www.inquirer.com/business/ess...
Essity buys Playtex brands and tampon manufacturing plant in Dover for $340 million
The deal puts a Delaware plant, several brands, and 450 workers under Swedish-owned Essity and its West Philly-based U.S. management.
www.inquirer.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:39 PM
'Blood is red, not blue:' 'Bold' Swedish drugstore supplier Essity, w/US HQ in Philly + Tork plant in South Jersey, buys 450-worker Playtex works and its O.B., Stayfree, Carefree lines in Delaware (they don't make girdles or NASA suits anymore). My story: www.inquirer.com/business/ess...
Penn, 2 years after leadership crisis, shrinks its bloated Trustee board a little, once-powerful alumni society is cut out, key emeritus still has big influence, Governance bloc gains power. @SSnyderInq breaks it down w assist from me: www.inquirer.com/education/up...
Penn is changing the structure of its board following the 2023 resignation of president and board chair
The changes are the first in more than a decade and limit the size of the body, create conduct standards, and institute a process for removing a trustee.
www.inquirer.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:33 PM
Penn, 2 years after leadership crisis, shrinks its bloated Trustee board a little, once-powerful alumni society is cut out, key emeritus still has big influence, Governance bloc gains power. @SSnyderInq breaks it down w assist from me: www.inquirer.com/education/up...
My Philly Inquirer story on the "Last Penny" struck at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia (last working legacy of the city's years as the first U.S. capital) got a pile of readers www.inquirer.com/business/min...
U.S. officially ends production of the penny after 232-year run
Treasurer Brandon Beach said pennies cost more to make than they're worth, and Americans still have plenty in reserve.
www.inquirer.com
November 14, 2025 at 2:28 PM
My Philly Inquirer story on the "Last Penny" struck at the U.S. Mint in Philadelphia (last working legacy of the city's years as the first U.S. capital) got a pile of readers www.inquirer.com/business/min...
U.S. Mint makes its last penny in Philly after 232 years of copper cents. 100 jobs cut since last year. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/min...
U.S. officially ends production of the penny after 232-year run
Treasurer Brandon Beach said pennies cost more to make than they're worth, and Americans still have plenty in reserve.
www.inquirer.com
November 12, 2025 at 10:45 PM
U.S. Mint makes its last penny in Philly after 232 years of copper cents. 100 jobs cut since last year. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/min...
Reposted by Joseph N DiStefano
🚌 Inquirer transportation reporter Tom Fitzgerald answers some FAQs about what the f— happened with Philly’s Greyhound station.
🚏 As he puts it, “It’s an equity issue.”
Watch the full video ⤵️
🚏 As he puts it, “It’s an equity issue.”
Watch the full video ⤵️
November 12, 2025 at 3:54 PM
🚌 Inquirer transportation reporter Tom Fitzgerald answers some FAQs about what the f— happened with Philly’s Greyhound station.
🚏 As he puts it, “It’s an equity issue.”
Watch the full video ⤵️
🚏 As he puts it, “It’s an equity issue.”
Watch the full video ⤵️
Innovative Aerosystems $ISSC: This newly renamed Pa. company is leading the rush to pilotless jets, 'reshoring' all its hardware and software production in-house, adding space, and hiring aggressively. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/inn...
Innovative Aerosystems expands its Exton flight controls plant to replace jet pilots with made-in-Pa. software and hardware
The company has increased employment as it has reshored foreign production. CEO Shahram Askarpour wants to keep growing the company.
www.inquirer.com
November 10, 2025 at 1:08 PM
Innovative Aerosystems $ISSC: This newly renamed Pa. company is leading the rush to pilotless jets, 'reshoring' all its hardware and software production in-house, adding space, and hiring aggressively. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/inn...
Pro-ICE sheriff ousted by PA voters in competitive Bucks County north of Philly www.inquirer.com/politics/pen...
Democrats sweep Bucks County law enforcement races, ousting a sheriff who sought controversial ICE partnership
The hotly contested Bucks County races centered around some of the most contentious issues in national politics – Trump, crime and immigration.
www.inquirer.com
November 6, 2025 at 12:28 PM
Pro-ICE sheriff ousted by PA voters in competitive Bucks County north of Philly www.inquirer.com/politics/pen...
Sojo at Stateside-Surfside: How these private equity-backed robot systems are taking over soft drink packaging. My latest: www.inquirer.com/business/soj...
November 4, 2025 at 5:57 PM
Sojo at Stateside-Surfside: How these private equity-backed robot systems are taking over soft drink packaging. My latest: www.inquirer.com/business/soj...
The AWK American Water Works - WTRG Essential / Aqua merger and its critics, from short-sellers to utility socialists. I ask: Is it really a 'monopoly' if 5 million of 180 million USA homes are customers? www.inquirer.com/business/ame...
What American Water-Essentials deal critics have to say about the merger
When American Water offered to buy Essential, both stocks fell. Here's why.
www.inquirer.com
November 4, 2025 at 5:55 PM
The AWK American Water Works - WTRG Essential / Aqua merger and its critics, from short-sellers to utility socialists. I ask: Is it really a 'monopoly' if 5 million of 180 million USA homes are customers? www.inquirer.com/business/ame...
Son 5 was at his South Philly polling place early.
November 4, 2025 at 1:33 PM
Son 5 was at his South Philly polling place early.
Why is PA.gov down? And not too long after the Shapiro administration terminated its CTO and CIO www.inquirer.com/business/tec...
PA.gov
October 29, 2025 at 5:58 PM
Why is PA.gov down? And not too long after the Shapiro administration terminated its CTO and CIO www.inquirer.com/business/tec...
Why are 10,000 engineers and other STEM scholars in Center City Philly this week? And why are so many speaking Spanish? Their @SHPE has come in. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/shp...
10,000 Hispanic engineers are in Philly for a massive hiring fair
It's a smaller Society of Hispanic Professional Engineers show this year. Members say their mission is needed across America.
www.inquirer.com
October 29, 2025 at 5:15 PM
Why are 10,000 engineers and other STEM scholars in Center City Philly this week? And why are so many speaking Spanish? Their @SHPE has come in. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/shp...
Reposted by Joseph N DiStefano
Zhao is the latest prominent crypto businessman to receive a pardon in Trump’s second term. Here's what to know
How Zhao’s Binance Aided Trump Family Crypto Venture Before Pardon
In late October, President Donald Trump pardoned crypto billionaire Changpeng Zhao, one of the industry’s most powerful men, after he mounted a months-long bid for clemency.
bloom.bg
October 27, 2025 at 11:30 PM
Zhao is the latest prominent crypto businessman to receive a pardon in Trump’s second term. Here's what to know
USA’s top private water and sewage operators, Philly-based $AWK and $WTRG, are merging, just in time to supply big data centers. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/ame...
As data center water demand surges, rivals American Water and Aqua are merging
The all-stock deal combines the two largest U.S. companies seeking to take over municipal water and sewer systems.
www.inquirer.com
October 27, 2025 at 5:29 PM
USA’s top private water and sewage operators, Philly-based $AWK and $WTRG, are merging, just in time to supply big data centers. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/ame...
2 big Philly projects: @Sixers, @NHLFlyers hire contractors to build new South Philly arena, clear 2 blocks of Market Street in Center City. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/six...
Sixers, Flyers hire contractors to build new South Philly arena and to demolish two blocks of Market Street
Two big construction projects will boost NBA, NHL, and WNBA teams, and possibly accommodate events for the nation's 250th anniversary.
www.inquirer.com
October 24, 2025 at 12:04 PM
2 big Philly projects: @Sixers, @NHLFlyers hire contractors to build new South Philly arena, clear 2 blocks of Market Street in Center City. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/six...
Reposted by Joseph N DiStefano
In Bucks County, plans for a massive data center has spurred a call to protect consumers from getting hit with power grid costs.
Massive Bucks data center spurs call to protect consumers from getting hit with power grid costs
A 2-million-square-foot “digital infrastructure campus” is planned at the Keystone Trade Center, once owned by U.S. Steel in Falls Township.
www.inquirer.com
October 23, 2025 at 12:07 PM
In Bucks County, plans for a massive data center has spurred a call to protect consumers from getting hit with power grid costs.
Reposted by Joseph N DiStefano
Dozens of Philadelphia-area Catholics rallied outside the Center City ICE office on Wednesday, joining a pro-immigrant push undertaken by fellow church groups around the country.
Protesters rally outside Philly ICE office as Catholics launch ‘One Church, One Family’ campaign for immigrants
A second day of prayer is set for Nov. 13, to coincide with the feast of St. Frances Xavier Cabrini, an Italian immigrant who became the first U.S. citizen to be declared a saint.
www.inquirer.com
October 22, 2025 at 8:22 PM
Dozens of Philadelphia-area Catholics rallied outside the Center City ICE office on Wednesday, joining a pro-immigrant push undertaken by fellow church groups around the country.
Reposted by Joseph N DiStefano
CHOP called new evidence presented by President Donald Trump’s administration weak and untrustworthy in a blistering legal response to federal efforts to investigate its doctors providing gender-affirming care.
CHOP lawyers defend transgender care in blistering response to Trump administration seeking patient information
The Department of Justice claimed it was investigating "fraudulent billing practices" in an effort to procure patient information related to gender-affirming care.
www.inquirer.com
October 21, 2025 at 7:21 PM
CHOP called new evidence presented by President Donald Trump’s administration weak and untrustworthy in a blistering legal response to federal efforts to investigate its doctors providing gender-affirming care.
Reposted by Joseph N DiStefano
Gun-injury care cost U.S. hospitals $7.7 billion from 2016 to 2021, with Medicaid covering 52 percent of costs:
Medicaid Billed for More than Half of U.S. Hospital Costs From Gun Injuries - News Center
The initial hospital treatment of firearm injuries costed an estimated $7.7 billion between 2016 and 2021, with the largest share falling on urban trauma center hospitals that serve the highest…
news.feinberg.northwestern.edu
October 22, 2025 at 1:23 PM
Gun-injury care cost U.S. hospitals $7.7 billion from 2016 to 2021, with Medicaid covering 52 percent of costs:
Trump limits on lifetime federal college loans pushes students to private lenders, who turn most of them down. So private equity is backing this new "second-look" lender, who charges extra for risky college loans: www.inquirer.com/business/gra...
As Trump limits federal college loans, a new private lender specializes in lending to families desperate for a student to graduate
New rules limit government student loans. Start-up GradBridge hopes to profit from those who don't qualify for mainstream private finance.
www.inquirer.com
October 22, 2025 at 11:28 AM
Trump limits on lifetime federal college loans pushes students to private lenders, who turn most of them down. So private equity is backing this new "second-look" lender, who charges extra for risky college loans: www.inquirer.com/business/gra...
Penn in Philly is the latest U.S. research university to reject Trump conditions for U.S. aid, Inquirer's Susan Snyder writes www.inquirer.com/education/pe... via @phillyinquirer
Penn rejects Trump compact offered to colleges
Brown and MIT have also rejected the proposal, which would have given the White House influence over the universities' operations in exchange for preferential consideration in federal funding.
www.inquirer.com
October 16, 2025 at 5:41 PM
Penn in Philly is the latest U.S. research university to reject Trump conditions for U.S. aid, Inquirer's Susan Snyder writes www.inquirer.com/education/pe... via @phillyinquirer
Why JPMorgan Chase is still opening bank branches while Wells Fargo and everyone else is shutting them down: my report from Philly www.inquirer.com/business/jpm...
Why JPMorgan Chase has opened nearly 50 branches in the Philly region as other banks shut their doors
JPMorgan Chase & Co., the nation's largest bank, is playing catch-up by adding branches in the Philadelphia region while others cut.
www.inquirer.com
October 16, 2025 at 12:40 PM
Why JPMorgan Chase is still opening bank branches while Wells Fargo and everyone else is shutting them down: my report from Philly www.inquirer.com/business/jpm...
China cuts off Philly Shipyard supplies to punish Korea's Hanwha for siding with U.S. in trade war. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/han...
China cuts off Philly Shipyard supplies to punish Hanwha for partnership with U.S. amid trade fight
The Korean shipbuilder is getting squeezed between Chinese suppliers and U.S. customers as President Donald Trump prepares to meet with China's leader Xi Jinping,
www.inquirer.com
October 14, 2025 at 2:19 PM
China cuts off Philly Shipyard supplies to punish Korea's Hanwha for siding with U.S. in trade war. My story: www.inquirer.com/business/han...
Navy 250: This admiral from New Jersey wants to bring back Philadelphia, where the U.S. Navy was born, as a naval shipbuilding center. My interview with Tom Armstrong, USN (retired) now at Hanwha Shipbuilding: www.inquirer.com/business/nav...
This admiral, a New Jersey native, aims to bring Navy shipbuilding back to Philadelphia
As a rear admiral, Tom Anderson worked to fix the Navy's troubled ships. Now his job is bringing Navy shipbuilding back to Philadelphia
www.inquirer.com
October 14, 2025 at 11:19 AM
Navy 250: This admiral from New Jersey wants to bring back Philadelphia, where the U.S. Navy was born, as a naval shipbuilding center. My interview with Tom Armstrong, USN (retired) now at Hanwha Shipbuilding: www.inquirer.com/business/nav...
Two top PA tech officials are out. My latest:https://www.inquirer.com/business/tech-executives-pennsylvania-shapiro-administration-20251010.html
October 10, 2025 at 5:24 PM
Two top PA tech officials are out. My latest:https://www.inquirer.com/business/tech-executives-pennsylvania-shapiro-administration-20251010.html