Meta has agreed to pay up to $18 billion to settle a major legal dispute with multiple U.S. states concerning allegations that the company failed to protect children and address issues related to social media addiction. The settlement represents one of the largest financial resolutions ever reached by a U.S. corporation in this context.

The lawsuit targeted Meta, the parent company of Facebook and Instagram, accusing it of insufficiently safeguarding minors from harmful content and behaviors linked to excessive platform use. The settlement aims to address these concerns by enforcing new measures to enhance child protection on Meta’s social media services.

In separate developments, UEFA, the governing body of European football, is preparing to file a criminal complaint against FIFA president Gianni Infantino. UEFA’s action relates to Infantino’s unsuccessful attempt to privatize a stake in the World Cup through private investors, a plan that has raised significant regulatory and ethical questions.

On the corporate front, the Danish toy manufacturer Lego reported a 21% increase in first-half revenue to reach a record 42 billion Danish kroner (approximately $6.6 billion). The company plans to increase investment in product innovation, including software-enabled bricks, to further strengthen its market position.

OnlyFans, a British streaming platform widely used by sex workers, disclosed that it paid out over $700 million in dividends to its owner, Ukrainian-American entrepreneur Leonid Radvinsky, who passed away from cancer earlier this year.

In the technology sector, Nvidia raised its sales forecast for AI-related chips for the coming year. The company posted quarterly revenue of $96.2 billion, surpassing Wall Street expectations, and projected about $108 billion in revenue for the current quarter, underscoring its key role in the expanding artificial intelligence market.

Jes Staley, former executive at JPMorgan and later Barclays CEO, testified before U.S. lawmakers that he did not link Jeffrey Epstein’s large cash withdrawals at JPMorgan Chase to the financier's sexual offenses. Staley described it as “incredible” that Epstein continued abusing minors after his prison release.

Deloitte agreed to pay $21.5 million to settle claims by the U.S. government that the firm’s diversity initiatives discriminated against certain groups, amid ongoing federal scrutiny of corporate hiring and employment practices instituted during the previous administration.

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates proposed that certain jobs be classified as “human reserved” to prevent their replacement by artificial intelligence, warning governments remain unprepared for the disruptive impact AI technology could have on labor markets.

In Hong Kong, a judge ruled that liquidators of the troubled Chinese property giant Evergrande can pursue PricewaterhouseCoopers globally over its audit work, presenting a test case for the Big Four accounting firm's international partnership structure.

The U.S. bankruptcy court ordered the liquidation of First Brands Group, a car-parts supplier that filed for bankruptcy last year, rejecting its complex restructuring proposal.

Separately, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued subpoenas to major Wall Street banks, including Goldman Sachs, JPMorgan, and Citigroup. These inquiries relate to the banks’ involvement in financing trading positions linked to the hedge fund Situational Awareness, which nearly collapsed during a recent technology sector sell-off.

In Germany, a former Deutsche Bank private banker has been charged with embezzling more than €600,000 from affluent clients, much of which was reportedly lost through speculative derivatives trading.

Finally, shares of Dick’s Sporting Goods, owner of Foot Locker, plunged 31% following a downgrade in its profit outlook, as American consumers reduced spending on higher-priced footwear amid economic uncertainty.