New Photo - Pop Mart's 'Monsters', famed Labubu join Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade lineup

USA TODAY and Yahoo may earn commission from links in this article. Pricing and availability subject to change.

- - USA TODAY and Yahoo may earn commission from links in this article. Pricing and availability subject to change.Pop Mart's 'Monsters', famed Labubu join Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade lineup

Amaris Encinas, USA TODAY October 29, 2025 at 11:32 PM

0

Inflatable "Monsters" will take over New York on Thanksgiving Day,

Joining an assortment of giant character balloons, floats, and performers parading through the streets of New York City for the 99th annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday, Nov. 27, are Pop Mart's "Monsters," including the famed Labubu, the monster plushy so popular it spawned a knockoff.

The Beijing-based toy maker is cementing its global footprint with a themed float featuring an assortment of "beloved" characters.

"Friendsgiving in POP CITY" will "delight millions of Parade spectators and viewers nationwide as The MONSTERS and their friends visit North America for the first time and travel the streets of Manhattan this Thanksgiving for the Parade," a news release from Pop Mart stated.

Here's what to know about "Friendsgiving in POP CITY," including how to watch the parade at home this year.

Is your Labubu real? We spot differences between Pop Mart dolls and 'Lafufus'

Pop Mart's 'Monsters' join Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade lineup

Making their debut aboard a Pop Mart-themed float on Thanksgiving Day are Skullpanda, Peach, Riot, Dimoo, Molly, Duckoo, and the "mischievous, yet kind-hearted duo" Labubu and Mokoko.

According to Pop Mart's news release, Labubu and Mokoko are "the first of their kind ever created for a Macy's Parade float — offering a spectacular display sure to capture the hearts of fans old and new." In addition to witnessing "Friendsgiving in POP CITY" in real time, fans of the brand will also have the chance to visit a special holiday pop-up located directly across the famed Macy's in New York City's Herald Square through the rest of the month.

Pop Mart's Skullpanda pop-up at 1 Penn Plaza, which opened on Oct. 20, "brings the bold Skullpanda 'You Found Me' series to life," the news release added.

"Bringing our characters to life at such a storied event represents a significant milestone for us as we kick off our 15th anniversary," Larry Lu, President of Pop Mart The Americas, said in a statement. "It is an honor to represent our team, artist partners, and the global POP MART community during one of the great traditions of the holiday season."

When is Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade 2025?

This year's Thanksgiving Day Parade is scheduled to take place on Thursday, Nov. 27. Floats, balloons, marching bands, and a slew of other performers will parade through the streets of New York City from 8:30 a.m. to noon ET.

According to Macy's, the procession will air live on NBC and its corresponding streaming service, Peacock.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Labubu joins the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade with giant inflatables

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Entertainment"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

Pop Mart's 'Monsters', famed Labubu join Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade lineup

USA TODAY and Yahoo may earn commission from links in this article. Pricing and availability subject to change. ...
Read More

Tobias Jelinek Recalls How "Hocus Pocus" Costar Larry Bagby Became His Guardian When He Turned 18 (Exclusive) Victoria EdelOctober 29, 2025 at 11:00 PM 0 Buena Vista Tobias Jelinek (left) and Larry Bagby in 'Hocus Pocus' Tobias Jelinek opens up to PEOPLE about his bond with Hocus Pocus costar Larry ...

- - Tobias Jelinek Recalls How "Hocus Pocus" Costar Larry Bagby Became His Guardian When He Turned 18 (Exclusive)

Victoria EdelOctober 29, 2025 at 11:00 PM

0

Buena Vista

Tobias Jelinek (left) and Larry Bagby in 'Hocus Pocus' -

Tobias Jelinek opens up to PEOPLE about his bond with Hocus Pocus costar Larry Bagby

In the movie, they played best friends (and bullies) Jay and Ice

Jelinek remembers some of the hijinks he and Bagby got into while filming, and how Bagby became his guardian

Hocus Pocus made major memories for fans — and made Tobias Jelinek a lifelong friend.

Jelinek, who stars in the new Netflix series Monster, opened up to PEOPLE about filming his first movie, Hocus Pocus. In it, he played Jay, a teenage bully who's best friends with Ice, played by Larry Bagby.

When Jelinek, now 48, was cast in the movie, he was 15, living in Santa Barbara, Calif., and "flirting with being a surfer." "At first, I went in to audition for Max," he said, the role played by Omri Katz, "and I think they took one look at me and they're like, 'So we've got this other role we'd like you to audition for.' I was in there with a Red Lobster tee shirt and my skater shorts and long hair."

Buena Vista

Tobias Jelinek (left) and Larry Bagby in 'Hocus Pocus'

He looked over the lines for 20 minutes then went back in and read again. Then he waited to hear back. "I remember the breakdown mentioned that Jay listened to Guns N' Roses," he remembered. ". . . I had my cassette tape and I would listen to 'November Rain; and think how cool it would be to be in a film."

Then he finally he got a callback. "It was just me and Larry Bagby," he said, noting he still as a polaroid of him and Bagby, 51, from that day. "With Larry Bagby, we hit it off immediately. I loved his sense of humor and we had great chemistry."

Just after he began his sophomore year of high school, Jelinek learned he'd landed the part.

Jelinek and Bagby got into plenty of hijinks during filming. Bagby turned 18 during filming, and he and Jelinek convinced his mom to make Bagby his guardian on set. "It was the two of us at Universal Sheraton with per diem, and you can imagine the rest," Jelinek says. "A 15 and 18-year-old in 1992 while we were filming."

Andrew Cooper/Disney

From left: Kathy Najimy, Bette Midler and Sarah Jessica Parker in 'Hocus Pocus'

After the movie wrapped, Jelinek eventually returned to a more typical teenage experience. "Nobody really saw Hocus Pocus in my circle. I remember nobody knew that I'd been in this film and there was no premiere," he said. He ended up taking one friend to the theater to see it when it was released in July 1993.

He eventually made his way back to acting, moving to Los Angeles around 2005. But he "never talked about" Hocus Pocus. "I didn't even know how many fans there were," he said.

Then in 2015, while he was filming Stranger Things in Atlanta, he got a call from Bagby. "He said, 'Did you know we're trending right now on Twitter?' " the actor remembered. "Like, what do you mean? He's like, 'Yeah, we're being called '90s fashion icons.' " Jelinek went "down the rabbit hole" and discovered the myriad fans of the movie.

When the film turned 25 in 2018, Jelinek says, "that's what busted it wide open."

When Bagby called with the news of their online fans, Jelinek admitted, "We hadn't talked in some years, but every time we check in, it takes us right back to being 15 and 18."

Earlier this month, Bagby married Veronique Bagby in a Hocus Pocus-inspired ceremony in Salem, Mass. Costars Jason Marsden (cat version of Thackery Binx), Vinessa Shaw (Allison) and Katz were on-hand. Jelinek said he was meant to be there and serve as best man, but was on set filming a new project.

"I love Larry. He's very dear to me, and I'm so grateful for the friendship," Jelinek says. They spent even more time together at fan conventions, and the actor says, "I can't imagine ever doing it without him."

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Entertainment"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

Tobias Jelinek Recalls How “Hocus Pocus” Costar Larry Bagby Became His Guardian When He Turned 18 (Exclusive)

Tobias Jelinek Recalls How "Hocus Pocus" Costar Larry Bagby Became His Guardian When He Turned 18 (Exclusive...
Read More
New Photo - Which Taylor Swift Song Did Luigi Mangione Listen to While 'Walking Laps' Around His Brooklyn Jail Unit?

Which Taylor Swift Song Did Luigi Mangione Listen to While 'Walking Laps' Around His Brooklyn Jail Unit? Chris Spargo, Elizabeth RosnerOctober 29, 2025 at 7:55 PM 4 Curtis Means/Pool/Getty; Jeff Kravitz/TAS23/Getty Luigi Mangione, Taylor Swift Luigi Mangione, 27, is listening to Taylor Swift and Cha...

- - Which Taylor Swift Song Did Luigi Mangione Listen to While 'Walking Laps' Around His Brooklyn Jail Unit?

Chris Spargo, Elizabeth RosnerOctober 29, 2025 at 7:55 PM

4

Curtis Means/Pool/Getty; Jeff Kravitz/TAS23/Getty

Luigi Mangione, Taylor Swift -

Luigi Mangione, 27, is listening to Taylor Swift and Charli XCX songs in jail, he wrote in a letter to a supporter

He is also listening to the rapper Lil Durk on the insistence of a fellow inmate, he wrote in the same letter

The recipient of Mangione's letter provided PEOPLE with an image of the typed and handwritten note as well as the stamped envelope it arrived in to confirm its authenticity

Is Luigi Mangione a Swiftie?

In June, Mangione sent a letter to supporters, friends and pen pals which listed 27 things he was thankful for on the occasion of his 27th birthday.

The letters were all typed out, but a few had additional written sections where Mangione shared opinions, updates or well-wishes.

On Tuesday, the individual who runs the Twitter account The Mangione Trial said they received one of these letters in June, and then posted that letter on social media.

The Mangione Trial also provided proof of the letter's authenticity by providing PEOPLE with photos of the letter and a stamped envelope it arrived in, and said the letter was a response to one they sent Mangione on May 22.

Mangione's website, which keeps a running list of all mail he receives in jail, also shows that he got a letter from someone referred to as MT on May 22.

Courtesy of Luigi Nicholas Mangione

Luigi Mangione Letter

The letter starts off with a typed list of the things Mangione is grateful for, then includes a personalized message at the end of the letter.

Mangione wrote at the bottom of this letter that he "downloaded a bunch of Taylor Swift and Charli XCX onto my tablet" the previous week because he had "never really listened to either of them."

He said that his decision to listen to the artists came after "some phony list of my favorite music circulated on social media," which is likely a reference to the multiple doctored Spotify playlists shared on social media after his arrest in December 2024 which some people edited by adding art to suggest songs from artists like Swift or Charli XCX were on the original list.

"Rather than be a buzzkill and set the record straight, I figured I'd see what all the hype was about," Mangione wrote.

He then said that while walking laps "on the top tier of my unit," he listened to "Cardigan" by Swift, a song off her 2020 Album Folklore.

That listening session ended prematurely, however, Mangione wrote, when an inmate he refers to as "King" asked about the song he was listening to during his walk.

"He scolds me for a while, then replaces all my music. Now I listen to Lil Durk," Mangione wrote at the end of the letter.

Inmates are able to purchase MP3 players from the commissary at the Metropolitan Detention Center in Brooklyn and then download songs onto the players by hooking their devices up to the Trust Fund Limited Inmate Computer System (TRULINCS) modules in their housing unit and then purchasing songs that are available in the prison catalog.

In that same letter, Mangione had initially listed "Cardigan" as one of the things he was thankful for, but that was crossed off and just below he wrote a song by Lil Durk: "Dis Ain't What You Want."

Want to keep up with the latest crime coverage? Sign up for PEOPLE's free True Crime newsletter for breaking crime news, ongoing trial coverage and details of intriguing unsolved cases.

Mangione is currently awaiting both federal and state trials at MDC, where inmates refer to him as the "ambassador" because of the work he does acclimating new inmates to the facility.

Authorities arrested Mangione at a McDonald's in Pennsylvania on Dec. 9, 2024, five days after the killing of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson outside his Manhattan hotel.

Mangione was extradited to New York City 10 days later and charged with four federal crimes by prosecutors for the Southern District of New York.

He was then booked into the MDC, where he has remained since.

Mangione will be back in court on Dec. 1 for a pretrial hearing in his New York state case.

on People

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Entertainment"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

Which Taylor Swift Song Did Luigi Mangione Listen to While 'Walking Laps' Around His Brooklyn Jail Unit?

Which Taylor Swift Song Did Luigi Mangione Listen to While 'Walking Laps' Around His Brooklyn Jail Unit? Chris...
Read More
New Photo - Dodgers shuffle their slumping lineup for World Series Game 5, moving Betts down and benching Pages

Dodgers shuffle their slumping lineup for World Series Game 5, moving Betts down and benching Pages GREG BEACHAM October 29, 2025 at 11:14 PM 0 1 / 2APTOPIX World Series Dodgers Blue Jays BaseballLos Angeles Dodgers' Mookie Betts reacts after striking out against the Toronto Blue Jays to end Game 1 ...

- - Dodgers shuffle their slumping lineup for World Series Game 5, moving Betts down and benching Pages

GREG BEACHAM October 29, 2025 at 11:14 PM

0

1 / 2APTOPIX World Series Dodgers Blue Jays BaseballLos Angeles Dodgers' Mookie Betts reacts after striking out against the Toronto Blue Jays to end Game 1 of baseball's World Series, Friday, Oct. 24, 2025, in Toronto. (AP Photo/David J. Phillip)

LOS ANGELES (AP) — The Los Angeles Dodgers have shuffled their slumping lineup for Game 5 of the World Series on Wednesday, notably moving Mookie Betts down in the order for the first time in four years and benching Andy Pages.

Betts will bat third in the lineup submitted by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, while Freddie Freeman moved down to fourth. Catcher Will Smith moved up to second behind Shohei Ohtani.

Roberts made the changes after the defending champions batted .214 while splitting the first four games with the Toronto Blue Jays. Los Angeles has only 34 hits — 10 fewer than Toronto — and has relied heavily on seven homers to drive in its 17 runs.

"In the postseason, you've got to be a little bit more reactive than the regular season," Roberts said. "When I netted out the value of what I feel gives us the best chance to win today, that was a decision I made."

Roberts wouldn't get any deeper into the details of his reasons for the moves at the top of his lineup.

"As far as Mookie and Will, I just feel that that's the best way to win the game tonight," Roberts said. "So both players were alerted, and both players are all on board."

Game 5 will be the first time since 2021 that Betts isn't starting in one of the top two spots in Los Angeles' lineup.

The eight-time All-Star and three-time World Series champion has been the Dodgers' No. 2 hitter nearly all season behind Ohtani. Roberts resisted any temptation to move Betts during rough spots in his underwhelming regular season at the plate.

But Betts is 3 for 19 with no RBIs and no extra-base hits in the World Series after going 2 for 12 without scoring a run in the past two games at Dodger Stadium, and Roberts decided he could wait no longer.

"There's some mechanics," Roberts said. "They're making good pitches. He's working hard to kind of clean some things up. ... All that matters is just going out there and taking four or five good at-bats, and so all I'm concerned about is tonight, and I know that's what's on Mookie's mind, too."

Smith is 4 for 17 with a homer and four RBIs in the World Series while also catching every inning.

Alex Call is in the lineup in place of Pages, who is 1 for 15 in the World Series and 4 for 50 with one RBI in the entire postseason. Call will play left field while Kiké Hernández moves to center.

Pages had an .828 OPS at the start of July during a first half that inspired All-Star talk around the outfielder, but he dropped off in the second half. Only his defense in center field — and the Dodgers' lack of a tempting alternative — likely kept Pages in the lineup this long into his October struggles.

Roberts is giving a start to Call, who is 4 for 17 in his first MLB postseason as a backup outfielder. The Dodgers are eager to get more runners on base for Ohtani from the bottom of their lineup.

Roberts said he inserted Call to improve the Dodgers' "at-bat quality, seeing pitches, the potential to get somebody on base for Shohei at the top. I feel good with Kiké in center field and Alex's defense in left."

___

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/MLB

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Sports"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

Dodgers shuffle their slumping lineup for World Series Game 5, moving Betts down and benching Pages

Dodgers shuffle their slumping lineup for World Series Game 5, moving Betts down and benching Pages GREG BEACHAM Octob...
Read More
New Photo - NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season

NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season Elizabeth Flores, USA TODAY October 29, 2025 at 11:15 PM 0 NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season The NBA is back, and NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime each have seen vi...

- - NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season

Elizabeth Flores, USA TODAY October 29, 2025 at 11:15 PM

0

NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season

The NBA is back, and NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime each have seen viewership rise in the most-watched October opening week in 15 years, according to the NBA.

The NBA Tip-Off 2025 had nearly 37 million viewers in the United States tuning in across NBC/Peacock, ESPN and Amazon Prime. This marks a staggering 100% increase year-to-year and the most viewers for an opening week in 15 years.

The NBA season kicked off with a bang on October 21, featuring two thrilling matchups. In the first game, the Oklahoma City Thunder, the defending champions, emerged victorious against the Houston Rockets in a nail-biting 125-124 double-overtime finish. This game, averaging 5.85 million viewers on NBC and Peacock, was the most-watched opening-night game since 2010. The second game of opening night saw the Golden State Warriors securing a 119-109 win against the Los Angeles Lakers. This matchup, with an average of 5.11 million viewers, was the most-viewed game during the late window.

ESPN experienced a surge in viewership, recording its second-highest opening week since 2014, with an average of 2.2 million viewers across four games on Oct. 22 and 23. Meanwhile, Amazon Prime saw a 13% increase in viewership, averaging 1.25 million viewers during its debut, which featured matchups between the New York Knicks and Boston Celtics, as well as the Minnesota Timberwolves and Lakers.

NBA GAMBLING SCANDAL TIMELINE: Chauncey Billups, Terry Rozier, Mafia ties explained

Oct. 26: The Brooklyn Nets' Michael Porter Jr. dunks in front of the San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama at Frost Bank Center.

" data-src=https://ift.tt/7G1fxsn class=caas-img data-headline="Dribble into this collection of dunk photos as NBA stars posterize opponents" data-caption="

Oct. 26: The Brooklyn Nets' Michael Porter Jr. dunks in front of the San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama at Frost Bank Center.

">Oct. 26: The Brooklyn Nets' Michael Porter Jr. dunks in front of the San Antonio Spurs' Victor Wembanyama at Frost Bank Center.

" src=https://ift.tt/7G1fxsn class=caas-img>

1 / 8Dribble into this collection of dunk photos as NBA stars posterize opponentsOct. 26: The Dallas Mavericks' Cooper Flagg dunks the ball past the Toronto Raptors' Sandro Mamukelashvili at the American Airlines Center.

The USA TODAY app gets you to the heart of the news fast. Download for award-winning coverage, crosswords, audio storytelling, the eNewspaper and more.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Sports"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season

NBA sees a surge in viewership across NBC, ESPN and Amazon Prime to kick off the season Elizabeth Flores, USA TODAY Oc...
Read More
New Photo - Colts RT Braden Smith continues to find coping techniques for his mental health struggles

Colts RT Braden Smith continues to find coping techniques for his mental health struggles MICHAEL MAROT October 29, 2025 at 11:15 PM 0 FILE Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle Braden Smith, right, greets teammate center Tanor Bortolini before an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers Sun...

- - Colts RT Braden Smith continues to find coping techniques for his mental health struggles

MICHAEL MAROT October 29, 2025 at 11:15 PM

0

FILE - Indianapolis Colts offensive tackle Braden Smith, right, greets teammate center Tanor Bortolini before an NFL football game against the Los Angeles Chargers Sunday, Oct. 19, 2025, in Inglewood, Calif. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull,File) ()

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — Indianapolis Colts right tackle Braden Smith felt the dark thoughts creeping back into his mind before last weekend's game.

This time, though, he won the battle.

After missing Indy's final five games last season because of severe obsessive-compulsive disorder that led him to contemplate suicide, the former Auburn lineman is thriving again now that he's learned how to cope with the condition.

"I felt very eager to prove something to myself," Smith said Wednesday. "Every day for me is really a victory because of everything that happened last year. Just being able to actually, truly enjoy life, there's kind of this power that's kind of harnessed when you're able to identify the problem. You know these things still creep in, like I remember Sunday morning some stuff crept and I was like, 'I know what this is,' and I used the tools. I was able to set it aside. I was like, 'All right, you know these things still happen.' OCD is still part of my life, it's just how I manage it."

Getting to this point — staying positive and focusing on the joys of life — so he could be the husband and father he strives to be and the teammate he wants to be, took the 6-foot-6, 312-pound Kansan on a long, unimaginable journey.

Smith was diagnosed with religious scrupulosity. The condition is driven by anxiety about engaging in actions that might offend God or could be seen as blasphemous and can lead to obsessive behaviors such as constant prayer or repeated repentance. In Smith's case, it meant trying to be perfect in every way.

He started seeing a psychologist early last season after telling his wife, Courtney, he would retire at the end of the season if the condition didn't improve. In November, he checked into a mental health facility in Colorado, where he spent 48 days.

When that proved only minimally helpful, Smith traveled to Mexico, where he used a psychoactive compound, ibogaine, that is not legal in the U.S. but has been used to treat addictions, post-traumatic stress disorder, traumatic brain injuries, anxiety and depression.

It changed his life.

"This is me versus my OCD and I, kind of like I said, going back to my values, I know who I am and that's a big part of it," Smith said. "When I had OCD, I don't truly feel like I knew who I was, but I feel like I have a better idea of who I am now, and I can always lean on that."

The key, he said, is staying focused on the here and now, and not letting his thoughts drift.

At home, the new approach helped Smith accept that attempting to do the right things is good enough.

On the field, it helped revive a once-promising career that had been derailed by injuries. He missed seven games in 2023 with various ailments, then missed the last five games in 2024 when he said he was "physically present but nowhere to be found."

Now he's playing the kind of football Indy envisioned when it signed him to a four-year, $72.4 million contract extension in July 2021 — perhaps even better than the Pro Bowl level coaches thought he competed at prior to 2023. Smith and his teammates along the line have paved the way for a Colts team that has the NFL's best record and top rusher and has allowed the second-fewest sacks.

Along the way, Smith has leaned on a strong supporting cast inside the locker room of a team that has invested heavily in "Kicking The Stigma," a campaign to promote mental health awareness.

"I respect Braden Smith wholeheartedly, just for taking the time out for himself to really maximize his well-being, not only for himself, but for his family," cornerback Kenny Moore II said. "I've had a lot of conversations with Braden through the time or probably post that time where he was going through a lot, and I just have a lot of respect and love as a brother and as a friend for my teammate."

But as Smith knows, his battle is not over.

Periodically, obsessive thoughts may return and when they do, Smith has a plan. He's not thinking ahead to next week, whether he'll re-sign with Indy next year or even if he'll be playing football next season. Instead, he's learned how to stay focused on the present.

"I'm honestly grateful for last year because without it, I wouldn't have such a self-awareness of how I think, how I go about things," he said. "I learned a lot about myself through it, and you know I'm a better husband because of it, a better father because of it, a better teammate and I'm continuing to grow as a person. My journey isn't over yet. I still have a lot of room to grow and learn, and I look forward to that."

___

AP NFL: https://ift.tt/ak46goG

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Sports"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

Colts RT Braden Smith continues to find coping techniques for his mental health struggles

Colts RT Braden Smith continues to find coping techniques for his mental health struggles MICHAEL MAROT October 29, 20...
Read More
New Photo - 'It can happen to anyone': California retiree nearly had $120K stolen from her IRA — what every retiree should know with ACATS fraud on the rise

'It can happen to anyone': California retiree nearly had $120K stolen from her IRA — what every retiree should know with ACATS fraud on the rise Monique DanaoOctober 29, 2025 at 11:00 PM 0 The ACATS system expedites transfers between investment firms. It's fast and fraudsters try to exploit that.

- - 'It can happen to anyone': California retiree nearly had $120K stolen from her IRA — what every retiree should know with ACATS fraud on the rise

Monique DanaoOctober 29, 2025 at 11:00 PM

0

The ACATS system expedites transfers between investment firms. It's fast and fraudsters try to exploit that.

Tien Tran logged into his wife's Roth IRA one afternoon to check on a solar energy stock. Instead, The New York Times reports, he stumbled onto a nightmare — nearly half of her retirement holdings, worth about $120,000, had vanished. (1)

The securities had been quietly transferred from her Vanguard account to a Merrill Edge account — without her authorization. A criminal had opened two new accounts in her name and initiated the transfer using the Automated Customer Account Transfer Service, or ACATS, a system designed to move assets efficiently between brokerages.

Fortunately, the couple spotted the theft before the money disappeared completely. Merrill froze the funds and returned the securities. But their case reveals a form of financial crime that experts say is becoming much more prevalent.

What is ACATS fraud?

The ACATS system expedites transfers between investment firms. It's fast and fraudsters try to exploit that. (2)

Once a new account is opened — often using stolen personal data such as a name, Social Security number and address — the criminal simply requests a transfer from the victim's existing brokerage.

The brokerage that holds the assets must validate the request within one business day and complete the transfer within three, leaving little time for human review. (3)

Since ACATS transfers are largely automated, the receiving firm often verifies only basic information, and the customer may not even be notified until after the move.

In Mr. Tran's case, Vanguard only notified him after the transaction began.

"It's scary," he said to The New York Times. "It can happen to anyone." (1)

What's at risk

The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) has warned that ACATS fraud is on the rise and retirement accounts are an obvious target. (4)

There's about $45.8 trillion sitting in retirement accounts across the U.S., and many of these accounts are infrequently checked by their owners and contain highly liquid stocks and funds that can be sold or transferred quickly. (5)

Fidelity reports that the average IRA balance reached roughly $131,366 in 2025. (6) And in 2022, it was reported that approximately $13.9 trillion was held in Roth IRAs alone. (7)

How to protect yourself

Investors can't control the entire system, but they can take preventive steps. Here are some basic tips to follow:

Use extra security measures available: Some firms, like Fidelity, allow you to lock outgoing transfers and send notifications to your phone when your account is accessed. And most offer multi-factor authentication, which makes it harder for other people to get into your account.

Request immediate alerts: Demand that the firm notify you before transfers happen — not just after.

Monitor accounts daily: The sooner you catch unauthorized activity, the better your chance of stopping it.

Shred statements and secure paper mail: Ensure no one can intercept mailed alerts.

Check for unexplained mail: Odd letters from a broker may hint that someone opened an account in your name.

Ask your broker about identity-verification protocols: Do they use "likeness checks," document scans or cross-reference databases? FINRA encourages firms to adopt stronger identity safeguards.

If you discover unauthorized activity, contact your brokerage immediately to freeze the account, then consider filing reports with FINRA, the SEC, local police and the FBI's Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3).

Once stolen securities are liquidated or moved across accounts, recovery generally becomes far more difficult than with traditional bank fraud. In the Trans' case, their quick action saved them from a devastating loss. But they were left shaken by how easily it all happened.

Their story is a reminder that even the most careful investors are only as safe as the systems protecting them. Staying vigilant may be the last and best line of defense.

Article sources

We rely only on vetted sources and credible third-party reporting. For details, see our editorial ethics and guidelines.

The New York Times (1); Lewitas Hyman PC (2); FINRA (3, 4); ICI (5); Fidelity (6); Unbiased (7)

This article originally appeared on Moneywise.com under the title: 'It can happen to anyone': ACATS fraud is on the rise — what every retiree needs to know to protect themselves

This article provides information only and should not be construed as advice. It is provided without warranty of any kind.

Original Article on Source

Source: "AOL Money"

Read More

Source: DEVI MAG

Read More >> Full Article on Source: DEVI MAG

#LALifestyle #USCelebrities
byDonna Devi
in
October 29, 2025

‘It can happen to anyone’: California retiree nearly had $120K stolen from her IRA — what every retiree should know with ACATS fraud on the rise

'It can happen to anyone': California retiree nearly had $120K stolen from her IRA — what every retiree should...
Read More

 

DEVI JRNL © 2015 | Distributed By My Blogger Themes | Designed By Templateism.com