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July 13, 2023

Personality-driven business capsules you can only get here. Our weekly dispatch gets you ready for what people are thinking before they talk about it— the hitters you know and want to know across Wall Street, Washington, and Silicon Valley.

'DeSantis discount': Florida gov slashes seat price for Hamptons fundraiser

When it comes to campaign fundraisers, Ron DeSantis has been relegated to the "discount section" as his chances of winning the White House continue to fade, sources told On The Money.

The cost to attend the Florida governor's July 20 fundraiser in the Hamptons has dropped to $3,300 per person — less than three weeks after the Republican hopeful on June 29 charged $6,600 a plate at the Yale Club in Manhattan, according to invitations reviewed by On The Money.

"Desantis is now in the discount section," one source close to the campaign told On The Money.

"He seems to have lowered the entry fee to meet him, which is often a sign that he has already milked most of the 'big money' from New York."

DeSantis' odds have been falling since the conservative jumped into the 2024 race in May, according to the website PredictIt, which allows users to bet on candidates' prospects.

GOP cries foul as FTC's budget under Biden soars 30%

The Federal Trade Commission has seen its budget balloon 30% during the Biden Administration — and some congressional Republicans are demanding that the pay raises end, insiders told On The Money.

In the latest year, the FTC's budget swelled by $54 million to $430 million versus $376 million in 2022.

Likewise, the DOJ Antitrust Division's budget also rose to $225 million from $192 million last year.

House Republicans who grilled FTC chair Lina Khan on Thursday are calling to shrink the budget – and cite failures including this week's rejection by a federal judge of the FTC's bid to block the $75 billion merger of Microsoft and Activision.

"She's not competent enough to accomplish anything," one insider said. "What's the point of giving her more money?"

Sports steal spotlight at Sun Valley over demand for streaming deals

As this year's Sun Valley attendees grapple with strikes, advertising declines and regulatory static, one industry is seen as a potential savior: sports.

MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred, NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver have been in high demand as media companies look to sports deals as a possible solution for declining ratings.

"Sports commissioners have moved to the head of the table — they're at every meeting and included in every conversation this year," one Sun Valley attendee told On The Money.

New England Patriots owner Robert Kraft and Buffalo Bills owner Terry Pegula are also in attendance this year.

Sports streaming subscription packages are expected to yield media companies $22.6 billion by 2027 — a 73% increase from the $13.1 billion they generated in 2022.

'American Psycho'-inspired sparks indigestion

A restaurant-booking app that allows both the well-heeled and the wannabe-seen to score a table at some of the most coveted restaurants comes with a high price – and plenty of derision, On The Money has learned.

The membership-only Dorsia – named for the fictional restaurant in "American Psycho" that Patrick Bateman and his Wall Street bros salivate over – secures hard-to-get-reservations at exclusive Big Apple eateries like Carbone, Bad Roman and Via Carota as long the diners agree to shell out as much as $500 per person.

But one in-the-know gourmand told On The Money that "besides Carbone none of the restaurants on it are even hard to get a reservation at."

"I can message the restaurants on Instagram myself," the source said.

Some restaurant industry insiders fear that opening the gates to anyone willing to max out their credit card could chase away A-listers.

Know why they're on our radar? The names of the week to know.

Marco Caggiano... David Perpich... Ed Hammond... Jim Golden... Scott Bisang... Jude Gorman... J. Michael Chu... Scott Dahnke... Oliver Reichert... Charles Drucker... Stacey Bendet...

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