Brands
KFC drops everything on the menu to make way for the Rice Bowlz
Mumbai: ‘Bring back Rice Bowlz!’. ‘I want Rice Bowlz’.‘Rice Bowlz were the best. KFC should bring them back.’
These are just some of the comments made by fans over the last few years on KFC India’s page. And after a long time of waiting and wishing, petitioning, and requesting, commenting, DM-ing, and even meme-making – KFC India surp-riced every Rice Bowlz fan! The iconic Rice Bowlz are back! And not just that, they are the only thing on the KFC menu.
Wait, what?
It all started with a cryptic message on KFC India’s Instagram handle hinting at a comeback. Next up the brand’s profile picture on Instagram proudly displayed the Rice Bowlz, which got netizens buzzing. With so many hints, all pointing towards KFC fans’ biggest wish potentially coming true, consumers couldn’t contain their excitement anymore and rushed to their nearest KFC restaurant. And all they saw was Rice Bowlz!
In a fan video released on social media, consumers were stunned to find nothing but Rice Bowlz on the KFC menu. Excitement levels max, fans rushed to place their orders. But wait…
Where was the rest of the menu? The OG Hot and Crispy Bucket? The juicy and crispy Zinger? The Chicken Roll?
In the video, KFC team members seem to have just one answer – “Only Rice Bowlz are available”.
Thrilled, yet thoroughly confused, fans asked, ‘KFC, what’s this behaviour?’ only to realize that this was the brand’s bold, yet hilarious way to announce the comeback of everyone’s favourite Rice Bowlz, on April Fool’s Day.
Brands
UK’s OnlyFans seeks US investor at $3bn valuation after owner’s death
The adult video platform is seeking stability after the death of its billionaire owner
LONDON: OnlyFans is looking for a new partner. The London-based adult video platform is in advanced talks to sell a minority stake of less than 20 per cent to Architect Capital, a San Francisco-based investment firm, in a deal that would value the business at more than $3bn (£2.2bn).
The move is driven by an urgent need for stability. Leonid Radvinsky, the Ukrainian-American billionaire who owned OnlyFans, died of cancer last month at the age of 43, leaving the future of one of Britain’s most profitable privately held businesses suddenly uncertain.
The choice of Architect Capital is not arbitrary. The firm has deep expertise in financial services, which aligns neatly with OnlyFans’ ambitions to offer banking products to its creators, many of whom have long struggled to access basic financial services because of the nature of their work.
The numbers behind OnlyFans are, by any measure, staggering. The platform posted revenues of $1.4bn in the year to 30th November 2024, with a pre-tax profit of $684m, up four per cent on the prior year. Payments to creators totalled $7.2bn over the same period, a rise of nearly ten per cent. Radvinsky personally collected $701m in dividends from the business in 2024 alone, on top of more than $1bn in such payments he had already received. The platform, run through its parent company Felix International, hosts 4.6m creator accounts, with performers keeping 80 per cent of subscription proceeds and the platform pocketing the remaining 20 per cent. It has 377m fan accounts in total.
The current minority stake talks represent a notable scaling back of ambitions. In January, OnlyFans was reported to be in discussions with Architect about selling a majority stake of 60 per cent. Before that, the company had explored a sale to a consortium led by Forest Road Company, a Los Angeles-based investment firm. Neither deal materialised.
OnlyFans has built an enormously lucrative business on content that mainstream finance has long refused to touch. Now, with its owner gone and a $3bn valuation on the table, it is looking for the kind of respectable institutional backing that might finally persuade the banks to take its calls.
