| August 18, 2021 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | | | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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$53,406/$300,000 (17.8%)
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
For my Chicago readers, if you are interested in volunteering to help with this year's LaSalle Street Trading Tech Award fundraiser by joining the steering committee, please contact me at johnlothian@johnlothian.com.
This is the 50th year of the LaSalle Street Trading Tech Awards event, formerly the LaSalle Street Dinner. Terry Duffy, chairman & CEO of the CME Group, is this year's chairman. This year's event is bound to be a memorable one and it would be great to have the broad industry support this event has historically generated for its 50th.
Chicago publisher William D. Boyce incorporated the Boy Scouts of America, and leaders of the Chicago futures industry were among the founders of the organization, including a former Chicago Board of Trade president, A. Stamford White
With some of the proceeds of this fundraising event the Pathway to Adventure has joined mHub in Chicago, a public-private partnership manufacturing innovation center where we can teach engineering and hands-on technical merit badges. From the proceeds of the Fearless Girl National Youth Leadership Training Fund we have sent girls to leadership camps to turbocharge their leadership skills. Fourteen girls in the Pathway to Adventure Council were among the first class of girls to earn the rank of Eagle Scout. Your support is making a difference and this year is your chance to step up and be a part of this impactful history by serving on our steering committee.
The good people at the law firm of Vinson & Elkins submitted a panel for consideration at the March 2022 SXSW conference, which celebrates the convergence of the tech, film, and music industries, and it was accepted for a vote. The panel is based on research Vinson & Elkins are doing with Pitchbook -- "Renewable Energy: What's Powering the Way Forward?" Using data provided by Pitchbook, they are publishing a study at the end of 2021 that looks at data from 2011 analyzing where private and public finance have invested in renewable energy and green tech. From this data, they will then analyze where investments are most likely to flow in the coming years. This session will be moderated by a journalist to discuss these trends, talk about the future of capital investments, examine the risks and hurdles for clean energy, and showcase where innovations are taking place in renewable energy. Here's the link for more details and how you can vote.
The New York Times is reporting that "Pope Francis Encourages Covid Vaccines in Media Campaign." They quote the pope saying in a video from the Ad Council, "Getting the vaccines that are authorized by the respective authorities is an act of love." -- NY Times
Ivy Exec has a story titled: "How 3 Firms Built Outstanding Company Cultures," that features the DTCC, calling the clearing giant "A People-Focused Company Culture." -- Ivy Exec
Chicago has now mandated the wearing of masks indoors as the number of new cases of COVID-19 has topped 400 per day. Starting Friday, everyone over 2 must wear a mask while in indoor spaces, Chicago public health Commissioner Dr. Allison Arwady said Tuesday in a news conference, the Chicago Tribune reported. -- Chicago Tribune
Ed Haravon of Get Real XR is featured in the company's "Tech Tuesday" YouTube video with a commentary on the future release of Facebook Smart Glasses and how the implementation of a metaverse may change our lives. -- YouTube
Metaverse is the word of the day.
Dan Raju of Tradier has a commentary titled: "Bundling Execution: Capped by Ad-Supported and Paywall Model Limitations, Financial Content Creators are Monetizing their Retail Bases with an Emerging New Model." -- Tradier
There were no new donations to the JLN MarketsWiki Education GoFundMe campaign yesterday.
Have a great day and stay safe and treat people the same way you want to be treated: with respect, equality and justice.~JJL
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The Futures Industry Association released its July 2021 report on volume and open interest for exchange-traded derivatives, and it shows an overall volume gain of 26.9% compared with July 2020 for a combined total of 4.91 billion contracts. However, trading slowed down from its torrid pace of early summer -- July volume was down 2.4% from the month earlier. Year-to-date volume for the first seven months of 2021 year was 33.82 billion contracts, up 31.3% from the same period of 2020. Total open interest at the end of July 2021 was 1.11 billion contracts, the FIA report shows, up 1.8% from the previous month and up 11.2% from a year ago. A further breakdown of the data shows options trading again led the volume uptick in July with 2.69 billion options contracts traded versus 2.23 billion futures. Looking at asset classes, equity indexes paced futures and options volume, but trading in interest rate futures also was up, jumping by 51.0% in July. Trading in precious metals futures and options contracts declined 45.0%. On a regional basis, futures and options trading in the Asia-Pacific led the pack last month, up 38.3% from July 2020, followed by North America, which saw volume increase by 25.6%.~SC
MIAX reported a SPIKE futures volume record Tuesday, with an estimated total of 8,202 contracts traded. So far in August, month-to-date average daily volume is 3,602 contracts, compared with ADV of 1,596 last month. ~SC
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A 50-year quest for monetary stability; Nostalgia for the gold standard is misguided and misplaced
The editorial board - FT
This week marks 50 years since President Richard Nixon announced to the world that Washington would no longer redeem US dollars for gold. The gold peg, fixed at $35 per ounce, was central to the design of the postwar Bretton Woods system of fixed exchange rates. The "Nixon shock" removed that pillar, and the system soon unravelled altogether, ushering in a chaotic period of unstable exchange rates and high inflation.
/on.ft.com/3k1tdcZ
***** I wish for the days of gold doubloons. I really want to walk around in a tin hat and suit. ~JJL
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Victim of Major DeFi Cyberattack Offers Its Hacker a Job
Olga Kharif and Kartikay Mehrotra - Bloomberg
PolyNetwork is courting attacker as it tries to recoup money; 'Mr. White Hat' says the breach was 'hacking for good'
About a week after a hacker stole $610 million from PolyNetwork in what was likely the biggest heist in history of so-called decentralized finance, the victim has offered its attacker a job. The hacker claimed the attack against the PolyNetwork platform -- which lets users swap tokens across multiple blockchains -- was an act of "hacking for good" to "save the project." The attacker has since promised to return the money and so far delivered about half of it.
/bloom.bg/3k31qbZ
******Like I said, there is nothing in crypto that surprises me anymore.~JJL
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Covid-19 Booster Shot to Be Offered to People Fully Vaccinated With Pfizer, Moderna; Biden administration is expected to unveil booster program Wednesday, citing threat from Delta variant
Stephanie Armour and Jared S. Hopkins - WSJ
The Biden administration is expected to call for a third Covid-19 shot for Americans who were fully vaccinated with the two-shot regimen, citing the threat from the highly contagious Delta variant and heightened concerns over data showing initial immunity wanes over time.
/on.wsj.com/2Xr9vQ7
*****Here comes shot number three.~JJL
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OPM Rule Eases Agency Hiring of Interns; Under regulations slated for publication Wednesday, agencies will be able to hire job candidates still in college to temporary jobs and can eventually convert them to permanent positions.
Erich Wagner - Govexec.com
The Office of Personnel Management is issuing regulations to make it easier for federal agencies to pay and offer jobs to their interns who are still in college, implementing provisions of recent laws aimed at improving recruitment of young federal employees.
/bit.ly/3gffv57
*****Recruiting is getting harder, so making it easier to keep the ones you do catch makes sense.~JJL
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Tuesday's Top Three
Our most-read story Tuesday was a history lesson, Britain's fourth Afghan war is a replay of the first infamous retreat 170 years ago, from The Telegraph via Yahoo News. Second was the MarketsWiki page for Scott Johnston, who just joined Hudson River Trading as head of operations management. Third was Optiver Airs Concerns on Options Market Structure, from Traders Magazine.
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MarketsWiki Stats
26,551 pages; 235,416 edits
MarketsWiki Statistics
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| Lead Stories | Facebook Plays the Underdog; The tech giant says it's a "challenger" in finance.
Andrew Ross Sorkin, Jason Karaian, Sarah Kessler, Stephen Gandel, Lauren Hirsch, Ephrat Livni and Anna Schaverien - New York Times Dealbook
Facebook wants a 'fair shot' in finance
Facebook's mission is to "bring the world closer together." Increasingly, that's not just about connecting friends and family to share messages, but also serving as a platform for people's financial lives. Some $100 billion in payments have been enabled by Facebook over the past year, said David Marcus, who runs the company's financial services unit. But that's just the start of the social network's ambitions in the finance industry, Marcus writes in a new memo about America's "broken" payments system.
/nyti.ms/2W7vDyP
US banks and brokers set stage for shift to one-day equities settlement; Review by industry participants comes after meme trading saga bolstered calls for shorter cycle
Philip Stafford - FT
Banks and brokers have told US regulators there are no insurmountable hurdles to halving the two-day window for finalising share deals, a market practice put under scrutiny following this year's meme trading boom.
/on.ft.com/3xUJOE7
Junior Bankers Have Seized the Upper Hand on Wall Street, for Now; With potential recruits balking at 100-plus-hour weeks, banks are raising salaries in a race to attract grunts—er, "talent."
Sridhar Natarajan, Mary Biekert - Bloomberg
At first, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. executives watched with puzzled detachment. One competitor after another was bumping up pay for junior bankers—the entry-level grunts who can churn out 100-plus-hour weeks trying to get their footing in the business. But as the raises kept spreading, Goldman managers grew agitated. One senior executive groused that rivals were using gimmicks to gain an edge in recruiting because they lacked the prestige of Wall Street's premier investment banking franchise.
/bloom.bg/37TY2L2
Goldman Masks, Scrutiny at Morgan Stanley as Delta Spreads
Sridhar Natarajan - Bloomberg
More big banks are revising the rules for returning to offices; At Goldman, talks center on asking staff to wear masks at work
Just months after rivals Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley embraced diverging strategies for returning staff to their towers, they're suddenly in agreement: More stringent precautions are probably needed. Goldman, the first major Wall Street bank to require employees to return to U.S. offices, is working on new measures to prevent outbreaks in the workplace, according to people with knowledge of the discussions. Plans under development include asking staff to wear masks inside offices and stepping up testing to spot infections before they can spread, the people said.
/bloom.bg/2XsDiIc
From Doge Soldiers to Bitcoinists: A Field Guide to the Crypto Faithful; For Ethereans, maxis, yield farmers, and no-coiners, digital assets aren't just an investment but a way of life.
Christopher Beam - Bloomberg
In a now-famous 1994 clip from the Today show, Bryant Gumbel asks his fellow hosts, "What is internet, anyway?" They fumble through various answers before a technician behind the camera explains. The hosts still appear confused.
/bloom.bg/3geXO5P
Top Fed official warns massive bond purchases are ill-suited for US economy; Boston's Eric Rosengren calls for speedy taper, arguing stimulus does not address supply shortages
Colby Smith - FT
A top Federal Reserve official has warned that the US central bank's emergency bond-buying programme is ill-suited for an economy held back by supply constraints, urging instead a speedy end to the stimulus to avoid burdensome debts and inflationary pressures.
/on.ft.com/3gdat9h
The uncertain lessons of Covid: preparing for the next pandemic; Governments have discovered it is hard to create back-up vaccine plants and even harder to devise plans for a new crisis
Hannah Kuchler - FT
Richard Hatchett is, in his own words, one of the few people who have "made a career out of worrying about pandemics". After the 2009 H1N1 influenza pandemic, the expert in responding to epidemics who was then a White House staffer, helped the US government establish pharmaceutical factories ready to be switched on to defend against a future health threat.
/on.ft.com/3md3VeL
Transmission revamp will reshape the financial world; The business of transacting is barrelling down a path of unstoppable change
Anne Richards - FT
Markets never stand still. In the past year, we've seen an explosion in options trading by retail investors, the Spac boom and the rise of digital tokens, used by everyone from Damien Hirst to central bankers. Most of the world may have been on intermittent pause since March 2020, but the business of transacting is barrelling down a path of unstoppable change.
/on.ft.com/3gdJevk
Why Hong Kong's crypto crown is slipping; Territory's flourishing industry is increasingly at odds with China's tougher stance
Tabby Kinder - FT
Hong Kong has played a pivotal role in the short history of cryptocurrencies. The Chinese territory is the birthplace of some of the world's largest crypto companies and the industry's most pioneering inventions, with trillions of dollars traded through its homegrown exchanges.
/on.ft.com/3AUKTxx
Microsoft is looking to use the ethereum blockchain to prevent piracy
Isabelle Lee - Business Insider
Software giant Microsoft is looking to use the ethereum blockchain to combat digital piracy by relying on the network's transparent and decentralized nature, according to a new paper released by the firm's research department.
/yhoo.it/3CWWYnV
Bill Ackman's SPAC Gets Sued; The lawsuit could have far-reaching consequences for the entire blank-check industry.
Andrew Ross Sorkin, Jason Karaian, Sarah Kessler, Stephen Gandel, Lauren Hirsch, Ephrat Livni and Anna Schaverien - The New York Times
An existential question for SPACs
Pershing Square Tontine Holdings, the special purpose acquisition company run by the billionaire hedge-fund investor Bill Ackman, got sued this morning in a novel case that could have far-reaching implications for the SPAC industry.
/nyti.ms/3APYKW2
Janet Yellen is getting another chance to shape the future of the Federal Reserve.
NY Times
Jerome H. Powell's term as chair of the Federal Reserve ends in February. Slots for the vice chair and the Fed's top bank regulator will also be up for grabs soon, and a position on the Fed's Board of Governors is already vacant.
/nyti.ms/3g9Cqi3
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | New Zealand Cases Climb; Routine Shots Possible: Virus Update
Bloomberg News
New Zealand found six additional cases of Covid-19 as it began a nationwide lockdown, all connected to a single delta infection discovered Tuesday with a link to Australia. The country's finance minister said he doesn't expect a "very prolonged" outbreak.
/bloom.bg/2VW4COR
India's COVID-19 Numbers Have Fallen. A Third Wave Still Looms.
Shalini Venugopal Bhagat and Mujib Mashal - NY Times
In the state of Maharashtra, one of the first places struck by India's devastating second wave of COVID-19 this year, scientists are anxiously looking for signs of a third.
/yhoo.it/3jXEQkY
U.S. To Recommend COVID-19 Vaccine Boosters At 8 Months, Sources Say; Experts are expected to recommend boosters for Americans of all ages to ensure lasting protection as the virulent delta strain takes hold around the country.
Zeke Miller - AP
U.S. experts are expected to recommend COVID-19 vaccine boosters for all Americans, regardless of age, eight months after they received their second dose of the shot, to ensure lasting protection against the coronavirus as the delta variant spreads across the country.
/bit.ly/3CXA5AU
Delta Variant Threatens Small Businesses as It Slows Return-to-Office Plans; Many big employers now intend to keep staffers home after Labor Day, in a new blow to the shops, retailers and restaurants that rely on them
Peter Grant - WSJ
Tens of thousands of downtown small businesses that have been scraping by were eagerly awaiting the week of Labor Day, when many companies expected that their employees would return to the office.
/on.wsj.com/2XGTAxv
The Coronavirus Is Here Forever. This Is How We Live With It; We can't avoid the virus for the rest of our lives but we can minimize its impact.
Sarah Zhang - The Atlantic
In the 1980s, doctors at an English hospital deliberately tried to infect 15 volunteers with a coronavirus. COVID-19 did not yet exist—what interested those doctors was a coronavirus in the same family called 229E, which causes the common cold. 229E is both ubiquitous and obscure. Most of us have had it, probably first as children, but the resulting colds were so mild as to be unremarkable. And indeed, of the 15 adult volunteers who got 229E misted up their nose, only 10 became infected, and of those, only eight actually developed cold symptoms.
/bit.ly/3AXuOrf
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | Record Trading Day Causes Outage at Johannesburg Exchange
Adelaide Changole - Bloomberg
Follows heavy trading in local market giant Naspers on Tuesday; Delay means local traders can't react to Tencent results
The start of equities trading on South Africa's main stock exchange was delayed Wednesday after the bourse was unable to fully process record transactions in the previous session as investors adjusted their holdings in local market giant Naspers Ltd. Tuesday saw 145 billion rand ($9.7 billion) of equities traded, which caused "significant delays" in processing on some systems, bourse operator JSE Ltd. said. Trading was due to start at 9 a.m. local time, but the exchange said at 12 p.m. that the open is still delayed and that it would update clients an hour later.
/bloom.bg/3gcLfb6
SGX named Asia's Best FX Exchange and FX Clearing House by FX Markets
SGX
SGX, building Asia's largest one-stop integrated FX ecosystem and marketplace for global participants; Ease of access across multiple front-end systems and innovative products were highlighted by the award judges as SGX's clear winning factor
Singapore Exchange (SGX) has been named "Best FX Exchange in Asia" and "Best FX Clearing House in Asia" at the FX Markets Asia Awards 2021, based on voting and review by a panel of judges comprising representatives from banks, asset management houses, investment funds and trading firms, respectively.
/bit.ly/3mdgbvN
TriOptima's triResolve Margin Connects to Major Tri-Party Agents Through SWIFT
CME Group
TriOptima, a leading infrastructure service that helps to lower costs and to mitigate risk in OTC derivatives markets, has announced that it now offers integration via SWIFT to the four main tri-party agents; BNY Mellon, Clearstream, Euroclear and J.P. Morgan.
/bit.ly/3k1INFz
Notice of Summary Action
CME Group
MEMBER: MAREX NORTH AMERICA LLC
CME RULE VIOLATION: 536. RECORDKEEPING REQUIREMENTS FOR PIT, GLOBEX AND NEGOTIATED TRADES
F. CTR Enforcement Program and Sanction Schedule; (In pertinent part)
The Market Regulation Department will conduct audits of clearing members in order to verify the accurate recording and submitting of required audit trail information.
PENALTY: Pursuant to the Rule 536.F sanction schedule, Marex North America LLC was issued a $2,500 fine on August 13, 2021 for its first violation of Rule 536.F. within 24 months.
/bit.ly/3ARbk7l
World's Most Traded Crypto ETPs, From ETC Group, To List On The Vienna Stock Exchange - ETC Group's Listings Of Bitcoin, Ethereum And Litecoin ETPs In Vienna Follows Listings In London (Aquis); Paris (Euronext); Amsterdam (Euronext), Zurich (SIX) And Frankfurt (Xetra)
Mondovisione
ETC Group (www.etc-group.com), Europe's leading specialist provider of innovative, digital asset-backed securities[1], announces that it is listing its entire portfolio of market leading crypto exchange traded products (ETPs) on Austria's national stock market.
/bit.ly/3AWf9bF
Client Alert: SEC Approves Nasdaq's Board Diversity Disclosure Requirements
Katten
On August 6, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) approved Nasdaq listing rules implementing new board diversity disclosure requirements that will apply to most Nasdaq-listed companies (the Board Diversity Rules). The Board Diversity Rules will generally require Nasdaq-listed companies to: have, or publicly disclose why they do not have, at least two diverse directors (including at least one self-identified female director and at least one director who self-identifies as an "underrepresented minority" or LGBTQ+, each as defined below); and publicly disclose board diversity statistics using a standardized format on an annual basis.
/bit.ly/2XDSXVi
- Reduction of the Minimum Price Increment of the Euro/U.S. Dollar ("EUR/USD") Contracts on Spot FX Transactions ("FX Link") -- CME
- Amendments to NYMEX Rule 588.H. ("Globex Non-Reviewable Trading Ranges") Table for the CBL Global Emissions Offset Futures Contract -- CME
- Performance Bond Requirements: Energy, Agriculture, Metals - Effective August 18, 2021 -- CME
- OTC IRS New Release Advisory - Dress Rehearsal for Basis Swap Splitting - Effective August 17, 2021 -- CME
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | TNS Extends Presence in Asia Pacific to 11 Countries
Business Wire
Transaction Network Services (TNS) has significantly expanded its low latency global backbone across the Asia Pacific region and now offers access to most Asian exchanges including major financial players such as Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing (HKEX), Singapore Exchange (SGX) and Japan Exchange Group (JPX).
/bwnews.pr/3spM3OG
News Direct Joins OTC Markets Group's Premium Provider Directory; Inclusion of News Direct in the Premium Provider Directory will streamline access to enhanced news content and distribution services for OTC companies
News Direct
News Direct, the state-of-the-art news and content distribution service designed to meet the demands of modern media outreach, today announced it has joined the OTC Markets Group Premium Provider Directory in the News Dissemination section. Through inclusion in the Premium Provider Directory, News Direct's news and content distribution services will be easily accessible to the thousands of companies that trade on the OTCQX®, OTCQB® and Pink® markets.
/bit.ly/2W6fwkt
Amazon Enters Indian Wealth Management With Bet on Smallcase
Saritha Rai - Bloomberg
Startup raises $40 million from the likes of Faering, Sequoia; Retail investing boom helped it add users in the past year
Amazon.com Inc. has made its maiden investment in India's wealth management sector, participating in a $40 million round by fintech startup Smallcase Technologies Pvt. The Bangalore-headquartered startup said the round was led by Faering Capital Pvt and also joined by another new investor PremjiInvest, the private investment office of technology billionaire Azim Premji. Existing backers including Sequoia Capital India and Blume Ventures also participated, bringing the total capital raised by the firm to over $60 million.
/bloom.bg/3CPR47Y
Big Tech wants its workers back in the office; Smaller companies could attract those opposed to a return to in-person working
Elaine Moore - FT
The San Francisco exodus is over already. According to data from the US Postal Service, the number of people moving out of the Bay Area is back to pre-pandemic levels. Big Tech wants its workers back where it can see them.
/on.ft.com/3CVolif
Lex in depth — remittance fintechs herald a payments revolution; Investors and governments can benefit from new start-ups shaking up old oligopolies
Jonathan Guthrie - FT
For the past few years, Pedro Coelho has been periodically sending £400-£500 at a time home to Portugal. "My grandparents needed surgery so I got together with family to fund it," he says of one payment. The entrepreneur, who lives in London, is among 170m expatriate workers around the world. Their cash pulses through the veins of the financial system, reinforcing family ties and nurturing weaker economies.
/on.ft.com/3D07Q4j
Smaller buy-side firms falling behind in applying smart data to inform trading decisions, report finds; GreySpark report found that the new pre-and post-trade form of reporting will give buy-siders and their end clients a better view of transaction quality.
Annabel Smith - The Trade
Small-to-medium sized buy-side firms are falling behind in applying smart data for pre-trade decision making or post-trade analytics compared to larger competitors and investment banks. According to a report from capital markets consultancy GreySpark Partners, smaller asset managers are struggling to compete effectively with the budgets of larger participants that can deploy resources for effective analytics across asset classes.
/bit.ly/2VZjkVk
TriOptima connects to BNY Mellon, JP Morgan via SWIFT ahead of next UMR phase; Direct connectivity to the four main tri-party agent firms aims to help asset managers as the next phase of the uncleared margin rules looms.
Joe Parsons - The Trade
Collateral optimisation vendor TriOptima has established connectivity with BNY Mellon, JP Morgan, Clearstream and Euroclear through SWIFT ahead of the upcoming phase of the uncleared margin rules (UMR).
/bit.ly/3gf4AZ7
Cassini Systems Named Best Post-Trade Technology in HFM European Technology Awards 2021, Following Major Hedge Fund Client Wins
Cassini Systems
Cassini Systems, the leading provider of pre- and post-trade margin and collateral analytics for derivatives market participants, has won the 2021 HFM European Technology Award for Best Post-Trade Technology.
Rewarding excellence in hedge fund technology services, the HFM European Technology Awards 2021 aim to recognize and reward hedge fund service providers who have demonstrated exceptional client service, innovation and strong and sustainable business growth over the past 12 months. Selection involves a rigorous judging process.
/prn.to/3CYwRwH
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Binance Hires U.S. Cybercrime Expert for Money Laundering Role
Joanna Ossinger and Jesse Hamilton - Bloomberg
Ex-IRS investigator Greg Monahan to join cryptocurrency firm; Company faces scrutiny including criminal probe and new rules
Binance has named Greg Monahan, a former U.S. government criminal investigator, to lead global money laundering reporting at the cryptocurrency firm. Monahan will be based in Washington and be responsible for an existing team, according to the world's biggest crypto exchange. He spent the bulk of his career in the U.S. government, leading cybercrime investigations at the Internal Revenue Service.
/bloom.bg/3k2EbPw
Microsoft Invests in Rubrik, Partners to Protect Customers from Ransomware
Dina Bass - Bloomberg
Microsoft Corp. is investing in software startup Rubrik Inc. and the two companies will combine on products that will help customers hit by ransomware recover their critical data without paying hackers. The companies declined to specify the size of the investment. The funding totaled in the low tens of millions and valued Rubrik at about $4 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter, who asked not to be identified discussing private terms.
/bloom.bg/3APlCFa
Hacks Rank Among Top Power Grid Risks, Watchdog Says
James Rundle - WSJ
Cybersecurity has become a core issue for the U.S. power system, as important as the supply of raw materials used to generate electricity, a senior official at the grid's watchdog said, as government officials push to shore up critical infrastructure from hackers.
/on.wsj.com/3ASuFVP
One-third of businesses are victims of ransomware attacks or data breaches
Daniel Kuhn - Illinois News Today
Once affected, companies are more likely to be affected again, with companies in the manufacturing and financial industries having the highest incidence of ransomware, according to an IDC report. At the other end of the spectrum are people in the transportation, telecommunications, and utilities / media industries.
/bit.ly/2XGRtK5
BOTS Issues Update on its Cybersecurity Products
Bakersfield.com
BOTS, Inc. (OTC: BTZI), ("BOTS" or "The Company"), a global technology company specialized in Blockchain-based solutions including decentralized finance applications for the financial industry, cybersecurity solutions, crypto mining, consulting, mining equipment repair and insurance, today issues an update on its cybersecurity products.
/bit.ly/2UrFXRh
No business is too small for a cyber security strategy
ASIC
Cyber threats can come in many forms - from scam emails to malicious software, ransomware and more. In 2020, scams reported by Australian businesses increased 260% from the previous year, with business email compromise scams causing $128 million in losses (ACCC).
/bit.ly/3CUjVrQ
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | Poly Network tries to persuade hacker to return stolen assets
Alleged thief dubbed Mr White Hat has yet to make good on vow to return millions in crypto tokens
Philip Stafford and Siddharth Venkataramakrishnan - FT
Poly Network has launched a charm offensive focused on the mystery hacker who stole more than $600m in cryptocurrencies in a bid to persuade the alleged thief dubbed Mr White Hat to relinquish control over the outstanding assets.
/on.ft.com/2UoS9lN
'Massive wake-up call': Crypto faces growing legal crackdown
Kellie Mejdrich - Politico
Federal regulators are pursuing cryptocurrency startups in court and striking a growing number of legal settlements for rule violations, triggering complaints from the industry and sympathetic lawmakers who say it threatens a growing sector of the economy.
/yhoo.it/3iUodr7
Ex-Goldman Sachs Traders Raise $4M for DeFi Risk Management Startup
Cheyenne Ligon - Coindesk
Ondo Finance, a protocol meant to accelerate decentralized finance (DeFi) adoption among institutional investors by minimizing risk, has raised $4 million in a funding round led by Pantera Capital.
/yhoo.it/3ASlrJ
China's Central Bank Targets Crypto-Linked Firms in Shenzhen
Bloomberg News
The Chinese central bank's branch in Shenzhen ordered almost a dozen companies operating in the technology hub to rectify illegal activities related to cryptocurrencies, signaling an intensifying crackdown on digital assets.
/bloom.bg/3mcbq5u
Philippines' UnionBank Taps Digital Asset Custodian Hex Trust to Pilot Custody Service
Sebastian Sinclair - Coindesk
The Union Bank of the Philippines (UnionBank), one of the country's largest by total assets, is leaning on Asia's crypto custodian Hex Trust to pilot a digital asset custody service.
/yhoo.it/3CU7PyW
Why bitcoin entrepreneurs are flocking to rural Texas
Lauren Aratani - The Guardian
In the middle of rural Texas, a cryptocurrency mine is currently under construction. Hundreds of machines more powerful than the average computer will soon be housed in this 320-acre mining facility in Dickens county, where they will work day and night to solve a complex series of algorithms. If successful, the reward will be newly minted bitcoin, currently worth about $44,000 each.
/yhoo.it/3gc84Mb
BitMEX, Deribit Tap Shyft Network for FATF 'Travel Rule' Solution
Ian Allison - Bloomberg
Cryptocurrency compliance platform Shyft has onboarded two more major exchanges, BitMEX and Deribit, as it begins a phased deployment of its decentralized approach to anti-money laundering rules from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF).
/yhoo.it/3ARg6BP
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Nato allies urge rethink on alliance after Biden's 'unilateral' Afghanistan exit; European leaders criticise US as troop withdrawal 'debacle' brings longest-running mission to end
Helen Warrell, Guy Chazan and Richard Milne - FT
European allies had hoped Joe Biden's election to the US presidency would bolster Nato's relevance after Donald Trump's acrimonious tenure. Washington's messy withdrawal from Afghanistan is prompting a rethink.
/on.ft.com/3m9tfSR
China's Xi calls for wealth redistribution and clampdown on high incomes; Chinese tech tycoons have been under pressure since Jack Ma's Ant Group IPO was cancelled last year
Tom Mitchell and Sun Yu - FT
President Xi Jinping has called for stronger "regulation of high incomes" in the latest sign that a 10-month campaign targeting China's largest technology companies is rapidly expanding to encompass broader social goals.
/on.ft.com/3CXvBKs
Mikhail Gorbachev, who withdrew Russian troops from Afghanistan in 1989, said the American campaign was a 'failed enterprise form the start'
Erin Snodgrass - Business Insider
Former Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev^makes an impression with his hands in cement as he visits the former Berlin Wall border crossing point Checkpoint Charlie, in Berlin November 7, 2014. REUTERS/Hannibal Hanschke
/yhoo.it/3CX8saR
Afghanistan and the tragic verdict on post-9/11 America; Biden's decision to withdraw, like many others in the past two decades, was shaped by domestic concerns
Edward Luce - FT
So it has come full circle. What started as an operation to eradicate al-Qaeda has ended two decades later with the return of its Afghan enablers to power. Rarely have so many lives and so much cash been spent on so little. It would be nice to think that US politics will learn from this debacle — and both parties are complicit. But the story is far from over. America may have quit this "forever war", but it will go on. There will be little time for postmortems as we come to grips with the implications of a rebooted Taliban.
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Break Up Big Chicken
Binyamin Appelbaum - NY Times
President Biden wants to lead a revival of antitrust enforcement, a campaign aimed most obviously at curbing the behavior of feral tech companies. But Mr. Biden can't achieve his goal of expanding fair competition in the United States solely by wrangling with Big Tech. To succeed, he'll need to confront Big Chicken, too.
/nyti.ms/3AQ3Xgp
Maryland Senator sees bipartisan support for carbon tax
Akiko Fujita - Yahoo Finance
Even as Democrats and Republicans grapple over the inclusion of key climate investments in the infrastructure bill and budget reconciliation package, Senator Ben Cardin (D-Maryland) said there is growing bipartisan support to implement a carbon tax, to hold fossil fuel companies accountable.
/yhoo.it/3jXF7Ew
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | For more regulatory, visit MarketsReformWiki, our website focused on current market reform efforts. | CFTC Charges Unregistered Michigan Forex Firm and its Owner with Fraud and Misappropriation
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has filed a civil enforcement action in the Eastern District of Michigan against Ali Bazzi and his company Welther Oaks, LLC, both of Michigan, charging them with fraud and misappropriation in connection with their operation of a foreign currency (forex) commodity pool.
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CFTC Charges Nebraska Commodity Pool Operator and its Owner with Fraud and Regulatory Violations
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today announced that it has filed a civil enforcement action in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nebraska against commodity pool operator (CPO) Centurion Capital Management, Inc. (Centurion), and its owner, Terry M. Svejda (Svejda) of Blair, Nebraska. The complaint alleges that Centurion and Svejda engaged in commodity pool fraud in connection with commodity futures trading, in that he fraudulently misappropriated participant funds and made false or misleading statements about how their funds would be invested in the commodity pool.
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ASIC disqualifies director from managing companies for five years
ASIC
Duncan McLeod of Blacktown, NSW, has been disqualified from managing companies for five years for his involvement in the failure of two companies.
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Warning: Trading crypto-asset related financial products through unlicensed entities
ASIC
ASIC urges Australians to be wary of investing in crypto-asset related financial products, such as options and futures, through unlicensed entities; By dealing with a licensed entity, you have certain investor protections; Check if the entity you are dealing with holds an Australian financial services (AFS) licence or an Australian market licence (AML)
online trading retail trader uses phone for crypto trading
Be wary of entities or platforms unlicensed to offer financial products; ASIC urges Australians to be wary of investing in crypto-asset related financial products and services where the provider does not hold an AFS licence or an AML.
/bit.ly/3CXu9rv
SEC Charges Biopharmaceutical Company Employee with Insider Trading
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged a former employee of California-based Medivation Inc. with insider trading in advance of Medivation's announcement that it would be acquired by pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc.
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SEC Charges Investment Adviser and Associated Individuals with Causing Violations of Regulation SHO
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against Murchinson Ltd.; its principal, Marc Bistricer; and its trader, Paul Zogala (the respondents), for providing erroneous order-marking information that caused executing brokers to violate Regulation SHO. In addition, Murchinson and Bistricer settled charges for causing a dealer to fail to register with the SEC.
/bit.ly/3AUVOav
Hong Kong's accounting watchdog to investigate Apple Daily publisher Next Digital's financial statements, auditors
Enoch Yiu - South China Morning Post
Hong Kong's accounting regulator has started an investigation into the financial statements and two auditors of Next Digital, the publisher of the now-defunct Apple Daily newspaper?. The Financial Reporting Council (FRC) said on Wednesday that its investigation will focus on whether Next Digital's financial statements for the two and a half years up to September 2020 contained any misleading public information.The FRC will also investigate the work of its auditors - Deloitte Touche Tohmatsu in 2019 and CCTH CPA in 2020 - to make sure their audits were reliable.
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Palantir Buys Gold Bars as Hedge Against 'Black Swan Event'
Lizette Chapman - Bloomberg
Company spent $50.7 million on 100-ounce gold bars in August; Customers can now pay for software in gold or Bitcoin
Palantir Technologies Inc. said it's preparing for another "black swan event" by stockpiling gold bars and inviting customers to pay for its data analysis software in gold. The company spent $50.7 million this month on gold, part of an unusual investment strategy that also includes startups, blank-check companies and possibly Bitcoin. Palantir had previously said it would accept Bitcoin as a form of payment before adding precious metals more recently.
/bloom.bg/3ARshyF
Americans Turn Against China Stocks as Crackdown Angst Deepens
Sofia Horta e Costa - Bloomberg
Investors such as Soros are cutting their Chinese holdings; Marshall Wace says the nation's ADRs are uninvestable
For American investors, Chinese stocks are becoming the asset not to own. Influential investors like George Soros have trimmed their China exposure, and Cathie Wood's ARKK ETF no longer holds any such shares. Many others got hit with losses, according to their 13F filings. Betting against the country's stocks was one of the most crowded trades among managers surveyed by Bank of America Corp. In London, Marshall Wace -- one of the world's largest hedge funds -- says Chinese ADRs are now uninvestable.
/bloom.bg/3gw7mcT
Goldman's Moe Flags Varied Asia Vaccine Rate as Key Market Theme
Eric Lam - Bloomberg
Staggered growth rates set up investment opportunities: Moe; More nuanced approach to China needed amid regulatory pressure
A key theme for investors in coming months will be delayed economic recoveries among Asian markets struggling with low vaccination rates and the spreading delta variant, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc.
/bloom.bg/3CX7RpD
How to trade like the investor who made $1bn in a day; Mark Spitznagel won't reveal how he made a 4,144% return, but he does discard plenty of rival trades Trophy case: Spitznagel's pit jacket, complete with bloodstain
Nell Mackenzie - Risk.net
Mark Spitznagel thinks it would be "worthless" to explain how he made a 4,144% return in the first quarter of 2020 by betting on tail risks in financial markets. The trade that paid off so spectacularly does not appear in his new book, Safe Haven: Investing for Financial Storms, and he refuses to confirm reports that attribute his stellar returns to the use of out-of-the-money options.
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | Carbon Offset Deal Helps Michigan Cash In on Its Trees—by Not Cutting Them Down; State forest known as 'Big Wild' sells offsets to energy company greening its gas business
Ryan Dezember - WSJ
The Pigeon River Country State Forest generates cash from timber sales, oil-and-gas leases, hunting licenses and camping fees. Now the foresters who look after its towering red pine, bleach-barked aspen and elk will manage the roughly 110,000 acres for a new moneymaker: carbon offsets.
/on.wsj.com/2W47LvW
Who Created the Renewable-Energy Miracle?
Paul Krugman - NY Times
As terrible as many things in the world are, climate is unique in posing an existential threat to civilization. And it's horrifying that so many political figures are dead set against any serious action to address that threat. Despite that, there's still a chance that we'll do enough to avoid catastrophe — not because we've grown wiser but because we've been lucky. We used to believe that achieving big reductions in greenhouse gas emissions would be difficult and expensive, although not nearly as costly as anti-environmentalists claimed. Over the past dozen years or so, however, we've experienced a technological miracle. As nicely documented in an article by Max Roser, the costs of solar and wind power, once dismissed as foolish hippie fantasies, have plunged to the point that quite modest incentives could lead to a rapid reduction in use of fossil fuels:
/nyti.ms/3maAnhB
The sticky question of Europe's oil-ridden ESG funds; NN Investment Partners SFDR fund holds 91% of investments in oil and gas companies
Samuel Wilkes - Risk.net
"Wow," was the response of the fund manager. "Really?" said another. They had just been told that a European fund with 91% of its holdings in carbon-belching oil and gas producers was marketing itself among a range of products commonly described as "light-green". The fund in question is NN Investment Partners' Energy fund. Its top holdings are Chevron and ExxonMobil. The two oil majors score poorly on sustainability metrics: neither firm has committed to reducing its greenhouse gas emissions
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Schonfeld Plans New Florida Hub as Hedge Funds Move South
Sonali Basak and Hema Parmar - Bloomberg
Another hedge fund is putting down roots in tax-friendly Florida. Schonfeld Strategic Advisors is opening an office in the Sunshine State that will serve as its second headquarters for about 100 staff, according to Ryan Tolkin, the firm's chief investment officer.
/yhoo.it/37X7w85
Ackman says SPAC does not need to be registered, pushes back on lawsuit
Svea Herbst-Bayliss - Reuters
Billionaire hedge fund manager William Ackman on Tuesday said his blank check company is not an investment firm that needs to register with U.S. regulators, pushing back against an investor's lawsuit that alleges that his Pershing Square Tontine Holdings has improperly invested in securities.
/yhoo.it/3m9KUK1
HSBC's Chairman Says China Opportunities 'Too Big to Ignore' Despite Politics
Kiuyan Wong, Ambereen Choudhury, and Denise Wee - Bloomberg
Tucker spoke at Hong Kong Academy of Finance event last week; Comments come amid rising China tensions with Western powers
HSBC Holdings Plc Chairman Mark Tucker, speaking in Hong Kong after passing through the city's rigid three-week quarantine, said the opportunities in China are "too big to ignore" even as geopolitical tensions escalate.
/bloom.bg/3CV9gNv
World's No. 1 Wealth Fund Makes $110 Billion as Stocks Soar
Stephen Treloar and Lars Erik Taraldsen - Bloomberg
Norway's $1.4 trillion sovereign wealth fund, the world's biggest, generated a 9.4% return in the first half of the year after its investments in energy, finance and technology companies helped drive double-digit gains in its stock portfolio.
/bloom.bg/3CX5JOF
Morgan Stanley to require proof of vaccination for returning employees
Lydia Moynihan - NY Post
Morgan Stanley said it will require employees returning to the office to prove they are fully vaccinated against coronavirus by Oct. 1, sources told The Post. Previously, employees at the Wall Street giant had to attest that they received the vaccine but did not have to provide supporting documentation. The bank said in a memo sent Tuesday that proof of vaccination will help create a "comfortable and safe work environment" for employees going back to the office.
/bit.ly/3gdftuz
State Street appoints new country heads for Germany, Luxembourg and Switzerland; New senior appointments will be responsible for developing business, stewarding client engagement, and building on State Street's market network in Europe.
Wesley Bray - The Trade
Boston-based investment bank State Street has made three leadership changes for its business in Germany, Luxembourg and Switzerland, as it looks to continue driving forward with its expansion in Europe.
/bit.ly/2W4fMRy
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | Egypt Readies What May Be Its Biggest IPO as Capital Emerges
Bloomberg
Egypt plans to take the first steps early next year toward selling a stake in the state company behind its new capital city, in what could be the North African nation's biggest-ever initial public offering.
/yhoo.it/3jYVZLj
Afghanistan's Central Bank Chief Explains Why Capital Controls Are Coming
Angela Cullen - Bloomberg
Afghanistan's international reserves would be out of reach of the Taliban after the U.S. froze the country's central bank assets, Ajmal Ahmady, the acting head of the authority who fled the country as Kabul fell, said in a series of tweets Wednesday. The Taliban are now facing a cash crunch and will have to implement capital controls, limiting access to the dollar, he added.
/bloom.bg/3AT76fG
Weather shocks in Brazil ripple across global commodities markets; Products ranging from coffee to oranges have been affected by drought and chilly temperatures
Emiko Terazono and Michael Pooler - FT
After enduring the worst drought in nearly a century followed by a bout of cold temperatures, areas within Brazil's farming belt are bracing for further adversity as the La Niña weather phenomenon threatens to bring more dry conditions later this year.
/on.ft.com/3g8k7Kn
New Zealand delays interest rate rise after Covid outbreak; Government imposes lockdown after first community transmission in 6 months is detected in Auckland
Jamie Smyth - FT
New Zealand's central bank delayed a planned interest rate rise on Wednesday after a Covid-19 outbreak sparked a nationwide lockdown.
/on.ft.com/3CYlaGj
Chinese start-ups caught in US listings limbo; Wall Street bankers rush to identify alternative opti; ns as regulatory crackdown halts IPOs
Tabby Kinder and Hudson Lockett - FT
Some of China's most valuable start-ups are scrambling to find a way out of listings purgatory in the US as their top advisers on Wall Street admit they have been stymied by new demands from regulators in Beijing and Washington.
/on.ft.com/3AStEgE
Pork Giant's Shares Tumble After Father-Son Feud Intensifies; WH Group's stock fell 11% after the son of the Chinese company's chairman publicly accused his father of financial misdeeds
Chong Koh Ping - WSJ
Shares of the world's largest pork producer tumbled 11% Wednesday after the son of the Chinese company's billionaire chairman publicly accused his father of financial misdeeds. WH Group Ltd. 288 -11.33% , which is listed in Hong Kong and owns Virginia-based Smithfield Foods and meat-processing plants in China, said in a statement that the allegations made by its former executive director, Wan Hongjian, were "untrue and misleading."
/on.wsj.com/3gaevPS
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| Miscellaneous | | Stories that don't quite fit under the other sections | Soaring Cost of Food Is Forcing Families to Scrimp at the Dinner Table; Inflation is slamming the freezer shut and leading households around the world to make sacrifices.
Tope Alke, Fabiana Batista, Pratik Parka, Leslie Patton - Bloomberg
Whether at supermarkets, corner stores, or open-air markets, prices for food have been surging in much of the world, forcing families to make tough decisions about their diets. Meat is often the first to go, ceding space to less expensive proteins such as dairy, eggs, or beans. In some households, a glass of milk has become a luxury reserved only for children; fresh fruit, once deemed a necessity, is now a treat.
/bloom.bg/3CWCziP
BCG is bumping base pay for associates and consultants by $10,000
Samantha Stokes and Reed Alexander - Business Insider
Boston Consulting Group is increasing base pay for junior employees, Insider has learned. The consulting firm is raising pay for US associates and first-year consultants by $10,000, a person familiar with the matter told Insider. The raises will take effect in October, the person added.
/bit.ly/3CWYcQ3
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