Paramount CEO David Ellison is reportedly being pressured to move his business out of California as the state tries to interfere with a planned takeover of Warner Bros. Discovery. 

Ellison’s Paramount is seeking to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery in a $111 billion deal expected to close during the third quarter of this year. But the mega-merger has irked critics who fear combining two major Hollywood studios would hurt the industry while giving too much power to Ellison.

California Attorney General Rob Bonta on Monday led a group of 12 attorneys general in filing a lawsuit challenging the merger, claiming it would “lead to higher prices, lower quality, and less content for film and television, harming movie theaters, basic cable distributors, and ultimately, audiences on every sofa and movie theater seat in the U.S.” 

CHRISTIANE AMANPOUR POINTS TO ‘HEMORRHAGING’ AT CBS TO WARN OF DAVID ELLISON’S POTENTIAL TAKEOVER AT CNN

Paramount CEO David Ellison. (Charly Triballeau/AFP via Getty Images / Getty Images)

As a result, “Ellison’s friends and advisers have been pushing the media executive to consider shifting his business out of the state,” according to Semafor. 

“Ellison’s confidantes have pushed him to consider moving its corporate headquarters and reallocating much of its $30 billion in planned spending outside the state if California Attorney General Rob Bonta were to sue to stop the merger,” Semafor reported, citing “people familiar with the discussions.”

“No decisions have been made, these people said, and the considerations may just be a show of brinkmanship, given so much of the industry’s production takes place outside of Hollywood already,” Semafor continued. “Under the current deal, Paramount has committed to keeping both companies’ lots operational if it remains in California.”

Paramount did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 

PARAMOUNT, SKYDANCE COMPLETE $8 BILLION MERGER AS FCC CONTINUES CBS PROBE

Paramount could leave California if executives are bothered by attempts to block a planned merger.  (Eric Thayer/Bloomberg via Getty Images / Getty Images)

The report added that Ellison “remains wary of the idea of leaving California” despite companies such as Oracle and Tesla previously fleeing amid issues with state regulators. 

Paramount told the Times it was prepared to address “legitimate antitrust issues,” but that the Warner Bros. Discovery deal “raises no such concerns.” 

Ellison, the son of billionaire Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, took control of Paramount last year when Skydance Media and Paramount Global completed an $8 billion merger. Adding WBD to his portfolio would make the younger Ellison one of Hollywood’s most powerful people.

The Justice Department (DOJ) on Friday announced it has closed its antitrust investigation into Paramount Skydance’s proposed acquisition of WBD, concluding the transaction is not likely to harm competition or American consumers.

WARNER BROS DISCOVERY SHAREHOLDERS APPROVE PARAMOUNT SKYDANCE DEAL

Paramount CEO David Ellison, the son of billionaire Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison.  (Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images for CinemaCon / Getty Images)

The Antitrust Division said its eight-month review examined more than two million documents and found the deal could strengthen competition across the media and entertainment industry, including in streaming video, traditional television and theatrical film distribution.

However, state attorneys general retain independent authority under antitrust laws, and the DOJ’s decision does not itself prevent additional legal challenges to the proposed transaction.

The lawsuit, filed in the U.S. District for the Northern District of California, claims that the merger violates Section 7 of the Clayton Act, which holds that mergers that may substantially lessen competition or tend to create a monopoly are illegal. 

Bonta’s group has asked Warner Bros. and Paramount not to close the merger until after the judicial process concludes, and if they do not agree, the attorneys general plan to file a temporary restraining order. 

“California’s film and entertainment industry touches the lives of Americans daily — it comes into the living rooms of families, has a starring role in many young people’s first dates, and is a point of immense pride and employment for Californians up and down our state. Consolidation here not only leads to higher prices — it also leads to fewer opportunities for important stories to come to life, and fewer ways for audiences to encounter stories, ideas, and perspectives beyond their own experiences. In this country, no one is above the law. With this lawsuit, California and our sister states are fighting for free and fair markets, not rigged markets. America has no kings in government or our economy,” Bonta said in a statement. 

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Fox Business’ Jasmine Baehr contributed to this report. 

The UK has signed a new trade deal with Switzerland that will allow British travellers faster passage through airports by using e-gates for the first time.

Described by Trade Secretary Peter Kyle as “the most significant services trade deal the UK has ever negotiated”, the agreement will also scrap mobile roaming charges for tourists and professionals visiting both countries.

The government says the deal is estimated to increase UK exports to Switzerland by £5.2bn annually “in the long run”.

A services mobility deal, allowing businesses to provide services for up to 90 days without a work permit, was due to expire in 2029, but the new deal puts this on a permanent footing.

The government says UK passport holders will be allowed to use e-gates at Zurich airport from as soon as the end of this year – with Geneva and Basel airports set to announce a timetable for adoption shortly.

The scheme is separate to Switzerland’s implementation of the EU’s new border control system – the Entry/Exit System (EES), which will allow UK citizens to use EU eGates.

UK employees will also be permitted to transfer to work in Switzerland for up to five years without stringent economic needs tests.

Ministers say lawyers, accountants and architects are among professionals who will benefit.

Government figures show about 800,000 Britons visit Switzerland each year.

Switzerland is the UK’s sixth-largest services export market, with over £30bn in services trade between the two countries in 2025. Its citizens can already use eGates at UK airports.

The agreement comes after trade deals were struck with the US, India, the Gulf Co-operation Council, South Korea and the EU.

It also comes as Sir Keir Starmer enters his final weeks as prime minister before being replaced by Andy Burnham.

“Whether you’re growing a business or travelling for work, this agreement is about making life easier and creating more opportunity for people across the UK,” Sir Keir said.

“It means British firms will find it easier to sell their expertise in one of our most important markets in Europe, supporting jobs and investment here at home.”

Meanwhile, the transport secretary has spoken with the European commissioner for sustainable transport and tourism about Europe’s new EES border system.

Heidi Alexander and Apostolos Tzitzikostas agreed to “work together with aim for smoothest possible EES checks ahead of the busy summer period”, the UK government said.

There was a period — let’s call it the Shoebox Era — when my entire bookkeeping system consisted of a spreadsheet named IMPORTANT_FINAL_v3_ACTUALFINAL.xlsx, a rubber-banded stack of receipts fading in the sun on my dashboard, and a business bank account that had, on more than one occasion, quietly paid for my dog’s vet bill. I found out I owed real, actual money to the IRS roughly eleven minutes before I found out I was two months behind on categorizing anything at all. Character-building? Sure. Necessary? Absolutely not.

If any of that sounds familiar, you’re not bad at business — you just haven’t built a system yet. So what does a bookkeeping system that actually works look like, and how much of it can you realistically run yourself? Let’s find out.

Bookkeeping for small business is the ongoing process of recording, organizing, and categorizing every financial transaction a company makes — sales, expenses, payroll, and beyond — to produce accurate records for tax filing, cash flow tracking, and informed decision-making. Done consistently, it turns a shoebox of receipts into a real-time picture of how your business is actually doing.

Bookkeeping vs. Accounting: What’s the Difference?

People use these words interchangeably, which is a bit like confusing the person who logs your grocery receipts with the person who tells you whether you can afford to eat out this month. Related jobs. Very different altitudes.

Good bookkeeping is what makes good accounting possible. Skip the first and the second one is just guessing with better vocabulary.

Cash Basis vs. Accrual Accounting: Which Should You Choose?

Before you record a single transaction, you need to pick an accounting method — it determines when income and expenses actually count.

If you’re a one-person consultancy invoicing a handful of clients, cash basis will probably feel more intuitive and require less bookkeeping overhead. If you’re holding inventory, extending credit to customers, or want financial statements that actually reflect your business’s health at a glance rather than just your bank balance, accrual is worth the extra structure.

How Do You Set Up a Small Business Bookkeeping System?

Four foundational steps, done once, save you from redoing everything later.

Step 1: Open a Dedicated Business Bank Account

This is non-negotiable, and not just because it looks more professional. Mixing personal and business funds — commonly called “commingling” — makes every subsequent bookkeeping task harder, muddies your legal liability protection if you’re an LLC, and turns tax season into forensic archaeology.

Step 2: Choose Your Bookkeeping Tool (Spreadsheets vs. Software)

A spreadsheet can work for the first few months of a very simple business. But most modern bookkeeping software pays for itself by automatically syncing bank and card transactions, auto-categorizing recurring expenses, and exporting tax-ready reports — the kind of manual work that eats hours every month if you’re doing it by hand. QuickBooks and Xero remain the most widely used general-purpose options, with a growing field of leaner, cheaper alternatives built specifically for solo and micro businesses.

Step 3: Customize Your Chart of Accounts

Your chart of accounts is the categorized list of buckets — income, expenses, assets, liabilities, equity — that every transaction gets sorted into. Most software gives you a generic template to start from, but it’s worth tailoring it to your actual business. A construction company needs job-costing categories; a service business needs to separate subcontractor costs from software subscriptions. Set it up thoughtfully once, and every report you pull later will actually mean something.

Step 4: Automate Your Transaction Data Feeds

Connect your bank accounts, credit cards, and payment processors (Stripe, PayPal, Square) directly to your bookkeeping software so transactions import automatically instead of requiring manual entry. Manual entry isn’t just tedious — it’s the single fastest way to fall behind, because it’s the first task that gets skipped when you’re busy.

What Should Be on Your Small Business Bookkeeping Checklist?

Consistency beats intensity here. A little bit weekly prevents a lot of pain quarterly.

Weekly tasks

• Categorize new transactions
• Capture and file receipts (a phone photo the moment you get one beats a shoebox every time)
• Send any outstanding invoices

Monthly tasks

• Reconcile bank and credit card statements against your books
• Follow up on unpaid invoices
• Review your Profit & Loss statement for anything that looks off

Quarterly and annual tasks

• Make estimated tax payments, if applicable
• Review your books with a bookkeeper or accountant before filing
• Close out the year’s books and prepare year-end financial statements

If you’re self-employed or otherwise responsible for quarterly estimated taxes in the U.S., the 2026 federal due dates are April 15, June 15, and September 15, 2026, with the fourth-quarter payment due January 15, 2027 — generally owed if you expect to owe $1,000 or more in federal tax for the year. Penalties are avoidable by paying at least 90% of the current year’s tax, or 100% of the prior year’s tax (110% if you’re a higher earner).

Which 3 Financial Reports Should You Actually Monitor?

Bookkeeping produces data. These three reports are what turn that data into decisions.

The Profit and Loss Statement (P&L)

Also called an income statement, this shows revenue minus expenses over a given period — the report that answers “am I actually making money?” Review it monthly, not just at tax time, so you catch a problem while it’s still small.

The Balance Sheet

A snapshot of what your business owns (assets), owes (liabilities), and what’s left over (equity) at a specific point in time. The foundational equation — assets equal liabilities plus equity — is what keeps this report balanced, literally.

The Cash Flow Statement

Profitable on paper and broke in reality is a more common combination than most new business owners expect, especially under accrual accounting where revenue is recorded before cash actually arrives. The cash flow statement tracks the physical movement of money in and out, which is what actually determines whether you can make payroll next week.

What Bookkeeping Mistakes Are Costing You Money?

1. Mixing personal and business expenses. Beyond the bookkeeping headache, commingling can undermine the liability protection an LLC or corporation is supposed to give you.

2. Misclassifying contractors and employees. Getting 1099 vs. W-2 status wrong isn’t a paperwork technicality — it carries real financial and legal consequences with the IRS.

3. Letting your paper trail go cold. No receipt, no proof — and no proof means no deduction if you’re ever audited. Most U.S. tax professionals recommend keeping supporting records for at least three to seven years, depending on the situation, so build a digital filing habit rather than trusting a shoebox (or its digital equivalent, the “Downloads” folder).

4. Skipping reconciliation. This is the step where errors, duplicate charges, and outright fraud get caught. Skip it for a few months and you’re not just behind — you’re bookkeeping blind.

Frequently Asked Questions

How much do bookkeepers charge? Pricing varies widely by scope and service model. Basic software-supported plans can start in the low hundreds per month, while services that include a dedicated bookkeeper or controller oversight tend to run higher. Get quotes based on your actual transaction volume rather than relying on a single benchmark figure.

Can I do my own bookkeeping? Yes, especially in the early stages of a simple business — plenty of solo founders manage their own books using accounting software. The trade-off is time and risk: as transaction volume and complexity grow (payroll, inventory, multiple revenue streams), the hours it takes and the cost of a mistake both climb, which is usually the point where outsourcing starts to pay for itself.

What records do I need to keep for taxes? At minimum: bank and credit card statements, receipts and invoices for income and expenses, payroll records if you have employees, and documentation for any major purchases or contracts. Digital, organized, and backed up beats a shoebox every time — you’ve heard that from me twice now, and I mean it both times.

The Bottom Line

Good bookkeeping isn’t about becoming a numbers person overnight. It’s about building small, boring, repeatable habits — a weekly ten minutes here, a monthly reconciliation there — so that tax season stops being a crisis and starts being a formality. Consistency beats perfection every time.