Good morning. The sanctions squeeze on Russia tightens. The U.S. took action Thursday against Russian private military group Wagner Group, designating it as a significant transnational criminal organization over its actions in combat operations in Ukraine, reports Risk & Compliance Journal’s Mengqi Sun.

The Treasury Department’s Office of Foreign Assets Control targeted a total of eight individuals, 16 entities and four aircraft that aimed to cut into the Kremlin’s capacity to wage war against Ukraine. The Wagner Group’s global military support network is also being sanctioned, including a technology company.

U.S. officials are also pressuring Turkey to stop Russian airlines from flying American-made airplanes to and from the country. Senior American officials warned last month that Turkish individuals are at risk of jail time, fines, loss of export privileges and other measures if they provide services like refueling and spare parts to U.S.-made planes flying to and from Russia and Belarus, officials connected with the talks said.

Earlier this week, U.S. officials warned banks to be on alert for Russian oligarchs attempting to circumvent U.S. sanctions by investing in commercial real estate.

Meanwhile, one prominent oligarch who hasn’t faced U.S. sanctions, Roman Abramovich, appears to be running out of road. Some have called for the U.S. to join other Western countries in taking action against Mr. Abramovich, who has avoided a U.S. sanctions designation while he has worked as a diplomatic go-between to try to stop the war in Ukraine. U.S. officials said they are increasingly ambivalent about him, and question his motivation.

Russia, for its part, on Thursday launched a barrage of missiles at targets across Ukraine, after Russian officials had railed against a nonfinancial aspect to the Western response to the conflict: plans by the U.S. and other countries to send dozens of modern tanks to Ukraine.

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Pricey texts. Wall Street bankers and executives are getting their pay docked for using text messaging apps that circumvented record-keeping rules and led to hefty fines for the banks.

Morgan Stanley has imposed individual fines of more than $1 million on some of its bankers for their role in the matter, a person familiar with the bank said. In late 2021, JPMorgan Chase & Co. had reduced the pay of several members of its top leadership team over the issue, a person familiar with JPMorgan said.

The big banks and a group of their peers agreed to pay a total of $2 billion in fines to U.S. regulators over their employees’ use of social-messaging applications such as WhatsApp. Banks are supposed to track correspondence between staff and clients.

• The latest U.S. lawsuit against Google compounds the legal issues the company faces worldwide while broadening the scope of the government’s allegations around the tech giant’s online advertising business.
   
• Family members of victims who died in two Boeing Co. 737 MAX jet crashes are seeking an independent monitor to oversee the plane maker’s compliance with parts of a criminal settlement related to the tragedies.
   
• The Food and Drug Administration said cannabis-derived products need closer oversight than the agency can currently provide due to safety risks, and it will seek new powers from Congress.

Marines move closer to China, Hong Kong residents get refuge stateside. The U.S. Marine Corps marked the opening of a new base on America’s westernmost Pacific island, as the Pentagon redirects its forces to counter China, which Washington has identified as a growing threat to U.S. security.

The first new Marine base since 1952, it is still under construction. It will eventually house 5,000 Marines charged in the short term with deterring and detecting threats in the region.

As U.S. concerns grow about China’s military power, and the threat to Taiwan, the base would prepare more Marines for potential conflict in the Western Pacific islands. Marines would be closer to the front lines of a potential conflict, available to quickly travel from island to island in small teams armed with antiship missiles.

Meanwhile, the White House has said Hong Kong residents can stay in the U.S. for at least two years even if their visas expire, after Hong Kong activists urged the administration to extend the deferral status amid a Chinese crackdown on political dissent in the city.

D&O insurance buyers fight back. Some of the biggest increases in insurance rates have been for policies that protect a company’s directors and top executives. 

Some large businesses have struck back.

Insurers have raised premiums by 100% or more in recent years as demand for so-called directors and officers policies surged due to a wave of newly public companies and mounting lawsuits with large payouts.

• Jobless claims declined last week, suggesting the overall labor market remains tight as several large employers announce job cuts.
   
• Thousands of American and Israeli military personnel joined forces this week for an unprecedented exercise intended to send a message to adversaries like Iran that the U.S. isn’t turning its back on the Middle East, even as it focuses on the war in Ukraine.

Hive ransomware group no longer buzzing. U.S. authorities seized the servers of the notorious Hive ransomware group after entering its networks and capturing keys to decrypt its software, the Justice Department said Thursday, calling its effort a “21st-century cyber stakeout.”

The group linked to Hive ransomware is widely seen by authorities and cybersecurity experts as one of the most prolific and dangerous cybercriminal actors in recent years. It has been linked to attacks on more than 1,500 victims including hospitals and schools—and has extorted more than $100 million in ransom payments, the Justice Department said.

No raise for Wells Fargo boss after regulatory issues. Wells Fargo kept its chief executive’s pay flat last year while he dealt with the bank’s extensive regulatory problems.

Charles Scharf, now in his fourth year running the bank, earned $24.5 million in 2022, level with what he made in 2021. That included base pay of $2.5 million, as well as a cash bonus of $5.4 million, according to a filing made public on Thursday.

• Toyota Motor Corp. Chief Executive Akio Toyoda, who has expressed skepticism about an all-electric vehicle future, said he would hand the keys to a younger executive who he said might have new ideas.
   
• Activist investor Elliott Management Corp. is preparing to nominate a slate of directors at Salesforce Inc., according to people familiar with the matter, in a sign that a battle may be looming for board seats at the business-software maker.

More job losses. Dow Inc., International Business Machines Corp. and SAP SE joined the string of companies outlining plans to cut thousands of jobs to prepare for a darkening economic outlook even as the nation’s labor market remains tight.

The headline-grabbing expansion of layoffs beyond high-growth technology companies stands in contrast to historically low levels of jobless claims and news that companies such as Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. and Airbus SE are adding jobs. 

• The Companies Conducting Layoffs in 2023: Here’s the List

• Airbus SE is recruiting over 13,000 new staffers this year—after hiring the same number in 2022—to help it accelerate production of its commercial jets, recover from escalating delivery delays and meet surging demand for new aircraft from its customers.
   
• Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc.. meanwhile, says it plans to hire 15,000 people in the U.S. as it opens more restaurants and tries to keep up with an expected increase in orders in coming months, a period it has dubbed "burrito season."
   
• Conflicts between Uber Technologies Inc. drivers and drivers for local taxi unions in some popular Mexican tourist destinations have prompted the U.S. government to issue a warning to travelers.