| June 28, 2024 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | | | John Lothian
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
We would very much like to thank David Klotz for being our guest editor all this week at the John Lothian Newsletter. This is the last day of his commentary, and then we are back to the usual: John Lothian's commentary. We would also like to thank Drew Mauck, the founder of 3Points Communications, for helping David out. It's been a fun week! ~SR
From David:
Happy Friday, all. First up, thank you to John for the opportunity and thank you to John, Sarah, Jeff, and the entire Team Lothian for helping me through the week as guest editor. If I didn't make you laugh at least once, ask John for a refund. I enjoyed the process and have a new appreciation for what they do for us. It makes sense that financial news never really slows, since money never sleeps, and keeping track of the most salient commentary and then determining what that means for your business isn't always easy. This newsletter helps quite a bit. Speaking of keeping track, please give a young scrappy upstart a follow on one of our social media channels (LinkedIn, IG, X) to stay abreast of our news. We've got a big mountain to climb, but thus far it's been a lot of fun and the support we've received has been powerful. On to today's news:
Evidently AI isn't free. Good thing there are places you can go to hedge that.
In my only commentary on the debate, I would just like to thank both candidates for scaring the crap out of my 10-yr old son. But I'm sure the message resonated differently with voters, as he only saw two angry old men yelling at each other. I did find it entertaining that Trump was hit with all types of insults but nothing seemed to really bother him until Biden declared a 6 handicap.
"Do you believe in miracles?!" hits different when it's from a bot...or does it?
Also, I would just like to take a poll of who thought to immediately buy Chewy after seeing this Roaring Kitty post. I just thought his kid got a hold of his X login again.
Finally, in my last act as guest editor, and in keeping with the JLN theme of highlighting a charity on Fridays, I'd like to make a fundraising pitch for my wife's 2-mile Chicago river charity swim for ALS in September. She was one of only 500 open water swimmers chosen for the first organized Chicago river swim in nearly a century!
Although we'll be sleeping in separate beds until the tests come back after the swim, I am really proud of her and I want to make sure she reaches her ALS fundraising goals for A Long Swim. More information on the Chicago River Swim can be found here. - DK
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Nasdaq published its 2024 ETF Retail Investor Survey, which highlights the growing influence of Gen Z investors and compares generational trends affecting ETF opportunities. Surveying 2,000 retail investors from Gen Z to Baby Boomers, the study reveals increased economic confidence and a decline in aggressive investing since 2022. Notably, 46% of ETF holders are most intrigued by financial technology, while 59% of Gen Z and 57% of Millennials remain interested in cryptocurrencies. Additionally, reliance on major social media platforms for financial decisions has decreased, with 76% of users now favoring YouTube, an 8% drop from the previous survey.~JJL
Cboe Canada team members yesterday volunteered at the Daily Bread Food Bank, a charity organization providing food and support to people facing hunger in Toronto.
Also, Cboe's Adam Inzirillo shared on LinkedIn that Cboe is looking to fill some positions, including director, platform sales - APAC, director of platform sales (EMEA) and senior associate, market data sales (US).
Veteran attorney and good guy Gary DeWaal was honored at a retirement ceremony at Katten yesterday, with some of his colleagues donning fishing vests to wish him well.
Former John Lothian News Chief Marketing Officer Ryan Lothian has been promoted to senior manager of conservation impact at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Phil Bellini is joining Benzinga as director of strategic partnerships, he shared on LinkedIn. Bellini is the former co-founder of Dean Media.
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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Our most read stories from our previous edition of JLN Options were:
- CME Group expands Google Cloud partnership to launch new futures and options platform from The Trade.
- Hong Kong stock exchange to offer weekly options based on Hang Seng Tech Index from South China Morning Post.
- Hedge Funds Sell Tech Stocks 'Aggressively,' Goldman Says from Bloomberg. ~JB
Subscribe to the JLN Options Newsletter HERE (it's free).
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DASH Head of Equities Creates Social Awareness for Rides FAR
Anna Lyudvig - Traders Magazine
This fall DASH Financial Technologies will be once again participating in Rides FAR (For Autism Research), the annual charity cycling and walking event series benefitting the Autism Science Foundation (ASF). Jennifer Fagenson Bringing together the institutional trading community in support of the ASF, Wall Street Rides FAR is an event that many in the financial industry - including DASH Head of Equities Jennifer Fagenson, who also sits on the Rides FAR board - find especially meaningful given autism's increasing prevalence. According to the most recent CDC data, 1 in 36 children in the US is diagnosed with an ASD.
/jlne.ws/3xMRUVg
***** Can you DASH on a bicycle? Not sure, but you can lead at DASH.~JJL
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Ann Lurie, multifaceted philanthropist who backed children's hospital, dies at 79
Steven R. Strahler - Crain's Chicago Business
Ann Lurie, a prominent philanthropist who promoted health care, food security and animal welfare, among other causes, including gardens in Millennium Park, died today at Northwestern Memorial Hospital, according to Northwestern University. She was 79 and had been diagnosed with the brain cancer known as glioblastoma. While keeping an otherwise low profile, Lurie emerged as one of the city's most dedicated benefactors after the 1990 death of her husband, Robert Lurie, a real estate investor partner of Sam Zell. Northwestern said she doled out more than $60 million to the school over the years, a relationship that began when her husband was being treated for colon cancer.
/jlne.ws/3Y078kP
**** This news is from June 24, but Ann Lurie did a lot for the philanthropic environment of Chicago, especially with the Children's hospital with her name on it.~JJL
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The new work etiquette: If you can't spot the jerk, it might be you; From avoiding unclear meeting invitations to gossiping more, these are some rules of the modern workplace.
Danielle Abril - The Washington Post
There is a nonzero chance something you do is driving your co-workers nuts. Maybe it's a meeting invite with no context, or the way you hold back on important office chitchat. Perhaps it's how you pound on your keyboard like you're tenderizing a flank steak. Knowing and following modern workplace technology etiquette can help you build stronger professional relationships - or at least lead to fewer enemies.
/jlne.ws/4biENJb
****** This is just like a poker game, if you don't know who the mark is, you are the mark. I work with all great people. Ooops!~JJL
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Thursday's Top Three
Our top story Thursday was CME Group expands Google Cloud partnership to launch new futures and options platform, from The Trade. Second was The Wall Street Journal's Berkshire Stock Glitch at NYSE Cost Interactive Brokers $48 Million. Third was Want to Bet on the CPI or Jobs Report? A Prediction Market Is Coming to This Brokerage, about Interactive Brokers, also from The Wall Street Journal.
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| Lead Stories | Supreme Court Curbs SEC's Enforcement Powers; Justices say regulator violated Constitution by using in-house tribunals where it has home-court advantage
Jan Wolfe, and Jess Bravin - The Wall Street Journal
The Supreme Court on Thursday limited the ability of the Securities and Exchange Commission and other federal agencies to impose monetary penalties through special in-house tribunals, a blow to regulators that could have ripple effects across the U.S. government. The 6-3 decision, which split the court along ideological lines, said the SEC's use of administrative proceedings to seek civil penalties violated the right to a jury trial enshrined in the Seventh Amendment. The ruling, written by Chief Justice John Roberts, was the capstone of a decadeslong effort by legal conservatives and defense attorneys to weaken the SEC's power over Wall Street and other corners of the investment industry.
/jlne.ws/4cj0jz3
Coinbase Accuses U.S. SEC, FDIC of Improperly Blocking Document Requests
Jesse Hamilton - CoinDesk
A research firm Coinbase contracted is suing the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and a federal banking agency, accusing them on Thursday of failing to produce documents under open-records laws that would shed light on the regulators' views on cryptocurrencies. On behalf of the U.S. digital assets exchange, History Associates Inc. said it's been improperly rebuffed by the SEC and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. regarding documents that Coinbase contends should be available under the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). At the SEC, Coinbase is seeking written communications in three closed cases for how the agency formally worked out what digital assets it thinks qualify as securities, including Ethereum's ether {{ETH}}. And at the FDIC, the exchange wants copies of the so-called "pause letters" the agency's inspector general said were sent to financial firms advising that they slam the brakes on crypto activity.
/jlne.ws/45ItWXM
Big Banks to Pay $46 Million to Settle Swaps Collusion Case
Sabrina Willmer - Bloomberg
Ten major US and European banks, including Goldman Sachs Group Inc., JPMorgan Chase & Co. and BNP Paribas SA, plan to pay a combined $46 million to end a lengthy legal battle with pension plans that accused them of conspiring to block competitors in interest-rate swaps trading. The payments are part of a deal to settle an antitrust lawsuit brought by investors more than eight years ago. The settlement was filed Thursday in New York federal court, and plaintiffs have asked US District Judge Paul Oetken to preliminarily approve it.
/jlne.ws/4eVPmoT
***** Here is the Reuters version of this story.~JJL
T+1 to increase costs and volumes in ETF securities lending; Industry observers are expecting stock lending to increase in the short term as managers seek to cover short positions
Vibeka Mair - Financial Times
Exchange traded fund providers face additional costs in their securities lending activity due to the US moving its settlement cycle to T+1 at the same time as industry observers expect stock lending to increase. The US, Canada and Mexico moved to a shortened settlement cycle at the end of May for US equities and corporate bonds from two business days after the trade date, referred to in the industry as T+2, to one day, or T+1.
/jlne.ws/3L0dXLr
Financial industry grappling with AI's gifts and perils, executives say
Ross Kerber and Suzanne McGee - Reuters
The spread of artificial intelligence-based systems offers big opportunities for financial services firms, executives say, but asset managers also face higher stakes than other consumer-facing businesses because they manage sensitive information. For example, AI systems could be better than humans at explaining to clients why they arrived at recommendations like portfolio allocations or lending decisions, said Zack Kass, a former head of business partnerships at OpenAI. People, he said, are not good at explaining subconscious biases that could affect such decisions. "AI should make that a ton better. The problem is, if we're not careful, it will just make it worse," Kass said at an investor conference staged by Morningstar this week in Chicago where the rise of AI systems was a frequent topic of discussion.
/jlne.ws/4bpuTWc
SEC's Top Cop Concerned About Private Credit Valuations, Opacity
Austin Weinstein - Bloomberg
The booming private credit market is of growing concern to the top enforcement official at the US Securities and Exchange Commission. During a wide-ranging interview this week, Gurbir Grewal said he sees a range of potential risks in the $1.7 trillion private-lending industry. The enforcement chief signaled everything from market concentration to the way assets are valued will face more scrutiny.
/jlne.ws/3XJHGQq
Supreme Court blocks EPA's 'downwind' air-quality initiative; The high court has challenged the agency's power to regulate pollution two other times in the past three years.
Justin Jouvenal and Maxine Joselow - The Washington Post
The Supreme Court dealt a blow to the Environmental Protection Agency's regulation of air quality on Thursday, putting on hold a major initiative to improve public health by reducing smog-forming pollution from power plants and factories that blows across state lines. Cut through the 2024 election noise. Get The Campaign Moment newsletter. The decision is the third time in as many years that the court's conservative majority has challenged the EPA's power to regulate pollution. Court rulings in 2022 and 2023 targeted the agency's ability to limit greenhouse gases and protect wetlands from runoff.
/jlne.ws/3xN7xMt
In conservative win, Supreme Court limits use of SEC in-house tribunals; Justices said the SEC's reliance on internal tribunals, rather than federal courts, to bring enforcement actions for securities fraud violates the Constitution.
Justin Jouvenal and Ann E. Marimow - The Washington Post
A divided Supreme Court on Thursday invalidated the Securities and Exchange Commission's use of in-house legal proceedings to discipline those it believes have committed fraud - a blow to the federal agency in one of several cases this term challenging the power of the executive branch. In a 6-3 ruling, the court said the SEC's reliance on internal tribunals, rather than federal courts, to bring enforcement actions in securities fraud cases violates the Constitution. The court's decision has implications for other regulatory agencies.
/jlne.ws/4cBXtoq
The Top Three Needs for Operational Resilience in Derivatives Markets: Takeaways from FIA IDX 2024
Andy Jennings - BornTech
FIA IDX celebrated its 16th year in London last week and revealed an industry that was much like the previous year's edition: dealing with continued global turbulence, racking up impressive volume numbers, and facing the challenge of perpetual regulatory expansion. Conference attendance was strong and a general feeling of optimism prevails but there are a number of challenges being addressed.
/jlne.ws/4cEZKiQ
Coinbase sues SEC, FDIC over FOIA requests, says federal regulators trying to cut out crypto
Sarah Wynn - The Block
Crypto exchange Coinbase filed two lawsuits against the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation for not complying with Freedom of Information Act requests and has asked a court to force those agencies to comply. Coinbase, which retained consultant firm History Associates Inc. to file the FOIA requests, took aim at the SEC and FDIC in lawsuits filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia on Thursday, accusing federal financial regulators of trying to cut off the crypto industry from the banking sector. FOIA requests, made under the Freedom of Information Act, allow for the public to ask for records from any federal agency.
/jlne.ws/45H1zcJ
Liberal Justice Sotomayor bemoans 'dismantling' of federal agency power as Supreme Court curbs SEC; The case is one of several on the docket in which the conservative-majority court is weighing business-backed efforts to curb the power of federal agencies.
Lawrence Hurley - NBC News
Liberal Justice Sonia Sotomayor accused the Supreme Court's conservative majority of seizing power for itself as it curbs the authority of federal agencies in a series of rulings, including one Thursday that went against the Securities and Exchange Commission. She said in a dissenting opinion that the ruling, which limits the SEC's ability to enforce securities laws, was part of a "disconcerting trend" in which the court has pared back the power of regulators. She cited other recent decisions in which the court made it easier for presidents to fire the heads of independent agencies and limited the authority of in-house judges.
/jlne.ws/3xBKQed
Junior Bankers Log 100-Hour Weeks Again, And Tensions Are Rising; Trainee workloads swell as rainmakers chase an upturn in deals; Underlings at JPMorgan, UBS and BofA debate how to game system
Katherine Doherty - Bloomberg
To see the stress mounting again on Wall Street's junior bankers, just look a half-rung higher, at staffers. Not staff, as in employees, but staffers, the unheralded deputy managers who dole out assignments to trainees. When investment bankers or clients want something done, staffers find underlings for the drudgery. That's getting trickier as banks exit a slump in deals with thinner headcount and big ambitions for landing new mandates. Trainees and staffers alike are now feeling the strain.
/jlne.ws/3xsArBF
No, Solar Panels Won't Leave You Starving; The fears outweigh the genuine risks to agriculture - and attempts to control where rollouts happen may end up being net negative for farmers.
Lara Williams - Bloomberg
At nearly every turn, the pace of the solar rollout has been greatly underestimated. The chart below shows it best. While forecasts have stuck to sober projections of linear growth, the reality has been an exponential curve as costs have plummeted. In 2023, solar panels provided 6% of the world's electricity, and BloombergNEF expects another 585 gigawatts of new solar capacity to be installed throughout 2024.
/jlne.ws/4ckzQRC
Indian Restaurants Are Wall Street's New Celebration Spots; It's happening as New York extends its lead over London in the quality Indian food department.
Bobby Ghosh - Bloomberg
My credentials as a culinary contrarian may have peaked three summers ago, when I argued that New York had better Indian restaurants than London. The piece provoked outrage in the British capital, where I was then in residence, and in India, the land of my birth. "Nothing you ever write, for the rest of your life, will annoy more people than that one," declared an old schoolmate. When I moved back home to the Big Apple soon afterward, uncharitable friends asked if I had been chased out of London by cleaver-wielding locals. Inevitably, on my first visit back last month, some of these friends asked if I was now ready to recant.
/jlne.ws/4eLtxIf
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| Ukraine Invasion | | News about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and its military, economic, political and humanitarian impact | How Putin handed America the keys to the world's energy market
Jonathan Leake - The Telegraph
It did not take long for Vladimir Putin's invasion of Ukraine to reshape the world's energy markets, as countries long reliant on Russian gas sought to sever ties as soon as possible. Yet, while willing to give up apparent control of Europe's energy market, what the Russian president didn't foresee was to whom he was giving up the keys. According to a new report, America's energy industry has emerged as the main beneficiary of the war in Ukraine, as the country's gas suppliers have filled the void left by Russia.
/jlne.ws/4cF4tAT
Russia is flooding Europe with discounted gas to win back Western buyers
Filip De Mott - Business Insider
Russia has unleashed discounted gas onto European markets, working to keep countries hooked on its energy supply, the Center for European Policy Analysis said. It's a strategy meant to incite support for a key transit deal between Russia and the West, the think tank explained. In under six months, the contract on a major pipeline will expire, ending a historic trade corridor that runs through Ukraine - it's in Kyiv's hands to renew it.
/jlne.ws/4clF2o7
Zelenskiy says Russia's recent offensive shows pressure on Kremlin 'not enough'; Ukrainian president signs military agreement with EU and says 'fulfilment of every promise' of support is important
Jennifer Rankin and Lili Bayer - The Guardian
Ukraine's president, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, has told EU leaders that Russia's spring offensive in Kharkiv showed that international pressure on the Kremlin was "not enough", as he signed a military agreement with the bloc. Vladimir Putin had tried to "expand the war" in May with a new offensive in eastern Ukraine, Zelenskiy said on Thursday, referring to relentless attacks on the Kharkiv region. "Thanks to the bravery of our people and the decisions of you, of our partners, we stopped this Russian offensive. But this new Russian offensive proved that the existing pressure on Russia for the war is not enough," he said.
/jlne.ws/4cCacrd
The Russians May Have Lost An Entire Airborne Brigade In Vovchansk; Russia's Victory Day offensive is turning into a bloodbath ... for Russian troops.
David Axe - Forbes
Russia's Victory Day offensive across Ukraine's northern border with Russia may have aimed to capture a wide, deep swathe of territory to bring heavy artillery closer to the city of Kharkiv, 25 miles to the south. More ambitiously, Russian commanders may have hoped to march on Kharkiv itself. Neither happened. Within a couple of weeks of the offensive kicking off on May 9-the day Russia celebrates its defeat of Nazi Germany in World War II-the force of 30,000 or so Russian troops got bogged down in the town of Vovchansk, just a few miles south of the border.
/jlne.ws/3XPs8KC
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| Israel/Hamas Conflict | | News about the recent (October, 2023) conflict between Israel and Hamas | Biden and Trump talk about Israel-Hamas war; Trump advocated to let Israel loose on Hamas.
Alexander Ward - Politico
Donald Trump said the U.S. should just let Israel "finish the job" against Hamas in Gaza. Joe Biden has stood staunchly by Israel after Hamas' Oct. 7 attack, but he withheld a shipment of large bombs ahead of the Rafah invasion and has pushed the country to allow more humanitarian aid for Palestinians suffering famine-like conditions.
/jlne.ws/3zl29k9
US in talks to send Israel's Patriot systems to Ukraine; Transfer of up to eight batteries would mark shift in Israel's relations with Moscow
James Shotter, Henry Foy, Christopher Miller, John Paul Rathbone and Felicia Schwartz - Financial Times
The US, Israel and Ukraine are in talks to supply Kyiv with up to eight Patriot air defence systems, dramatically improving its ability to counter Russian air strikes. While not finalised, the arrangement would likely involve the highly prized Patriot systems being sent first from Israel to the US, before being delivered to Ukraine. The outlines of the deal, which would mark a shift in Israel's relations with Moscow, have been discussed between ministers and senior officials of the three countries, according to five people briefed on the negotiations.
/jlne.ws/3L2jsJq
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | Trading Commences in Physically-Settled LNG and Carbon Futures on Abaxx Commodity Futures Exchange and Clearinghouse
Abaxx
Abaxx Technologies Inc. (CBOE:ABXX)(OTCQX:ABXXF) ("Abaxx" or the "Company"), a financial software and market infrastructure company, indirect majority shareholder of Abaxx Singapore Pte Ltd. ("Abaxx Singapore"), the owner of Abaxx Commodity Exchange and Clearinghouse (individually, "Abaxx Exchange" and "Abaxx Clearing"), and producer of the SmarterMarkets Podcast, today announced the launch of Abaxx Commodity Futures Exchange and Clearinghouse, with trading commencing in its physically-deliverable liquified natural gas (LNG) and carbon futures contracts.
/jlne.ws/3L2bznd
HKEX Signs Cooperation Agreement With Shanxi Government
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) is pleased to announce today (Friday) it has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the People's Government of Shanxi Province (Shanxi Government) to strengthen cooperation and support listings of companies from Shanxi on Hong Kong's equities market. Under the MOU, HKEX and the Shanxi Government will exchange information on the latest developments in the capital markets of Hong Kong and Shanxi, as well as jointly host seminars for Shanxi-based firms on capital raising opportunities in the region.
/jlne.ws/4clqiWz
ICE Benchmark Administration Provides Update Regarding the Cessation of U.S. Dollar LIBOR
Intercontinental Exchange
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE), a leading global provider of technology and data, today announced that ICE Benchmark Administration Limited (IBA), the authorized and regulated administrator of LIBOR, has provided an update regarding the cessation of U.S. dollar LIBOR. In line with previous statements, the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has decided to exercise its powers under the U.K. Benchmarks Regulation (U.K. BMR) to compel IBA to continue to publish the 1-, 3- and 6-Month "synthetic" U.S. dollar LIBOR settings using an unrepresentative "synthetic" methodology until September 30, 2024. The FCA has stated that it has no intention to compel publication beyond this date and has issued a reminder of the expected cessation of these final three remaining LIBOR settings after publication on Monday, September 30, 2024. No new LIBOR settings are expected to be published following this date.
/jlne.ws/3L03OOR
ASX confirms plans for staged implementation of CHESS replacement project, confirms it is progressing with delivery of the first phase in 2026
ASX
ASX confirms it is progressing with the targeted delivery of the first phase of the CHESS replacement project in 2026, as previously announced in November 2023. This comes as ASX today released its response to feedback received on the proposed two stage approach to implementation and the scope and design for delivery of clearing services (Release 1). ASX Group Executive, Securities and Payments, Clive Triance, said: "The completion of the first of two key industry consultations on CHESS replacement is a notable milestone and the strong support we received for our initial proposals reflect the detailed engagement and consultation undertaken in the reassessment of the solution design."
/jlne.ws/4cntxN6
BME joins REDI to promote LGTBI diversity
BME
BME joins REDI, the Business Network for LGTBI Diversity and Inclusion, which has more than 260 associated organizations, including large companies, SMEs, institutions, individuals and expert consultants. Yesterday, on June 27, during the REDI Academy, a full day of training, celebration, sharing of best practices and networking activities for REDIBME associates, she received the diploma accrediting her as a new associate, along with the rest of the new companies in the association. This is another step forward in the company's commitment to LGBTI diversity, as part of its commitment to sustainability.
/jlne.ws/45IAPIC
Portugal Capital Markets Day: connecting investors and opportunities in the capital markets
Euronext
Euronext, the leading pan-European market infrastructure, and AEM, the Portuguese Issuers Association, today announced the success of the first edition of the Portugal Capital Markets Day, an initiative dedicated to highlighting the wealth of opportunities available within the Portuguese economy, with a particular focus on the capital markets. This initiative, supported by AON as the main sponsor, and VdA - Vieira de Almeida and JP Morgan as sponsors, aims to connect investors, corporations and financial institutions, fostering stronger investment ties and economic growth.
/jlne.ws/3VHMSRV
Appointment of the Exchange Supervisory Board for a New Term of Office
GPW
The Annual General Meeting of the Warsaw Stock Exchange has elected the GPW Supervisory Board for the new term of office. The Exchange Supervisory Board is composed of Paweł Hominski, Waldemar Markiewicz, Piotr Prazmo, Wiesław Rozłucki, Małgorzata Rusewicz, Iwona Sroka, Katarzyna Szwarc. The GPW Supervisory Board is composed of up to seven persons. The term of office of the Exchange Supervisory Board is three years On 27 June 2024, the Annual General Meeting of the Warsaw Stock Exchange (GPW) has elected a seven-member Exchange Supervisory Board for a new three-year term of office. The following persons have been appointed to the Exchange Supervisory Board: Paweł Hominski, Waldemar Markiewicz, Piotr Prazmo, Wiesław Rozłucki, Małgorzata Rusewicz, Iwona Sroka, Katarzyna Szwarc.
/jlne.ws/3VZpPUb
27four Debuts First Actively Managed ETF on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange; South African financial services group, 27four, today listed its first Actively Managed Exchange Traded Fund (AMETF), the 27four Large Cap Equity AMETF, on the Johannesburg Stock Exchange (JSE).
Johannesburg Stock Exchange
This listing marks the beginning of the group's strategic rollout of four AMETFs designed to provide retail and institutional investors with enhanced exposure to the country's largest and most liquid companies. The 27four Large Cap Equity AMETF is designed to achieve long-term, sustainable capital growth by investing in some of the largest and most stable companies listed on the JSE. By managing risk effectively, it aims to minimise the impact of volatility in the markets while seeking to maximise returns. This strategy involves a careful selection of investments that closely follow the fund's benchmarks but allows for slight adjustments in sector allocation and investment style to capitalise on market efficiencies.
/jlne.ws/3RO2ja2
Derivatives Holiday Trading Days (Finalized) for the First Half of 2025
Japan Exchange Group
Osaka Exchange, Inc. (OSE) and Tokyo Commodity Exchange, Inc. (TOCOM) announce the derivatives holiday trading days (finalized) for the first half of 2025 as follow website. (The finalized dates for the second half of 2025 shall be announced in December respectively.)
/jlne.ws/3zf8Rbl
Replacement in Nifty SME Emerge index
National Stock Exchange of India
In accordance with NSE circular NSE/CML/62508 dated June 19, 2024 regarding shifting of security to Z category, the Index Maintenance Sub-Committee (Equity) of NSE Indices Limited has decided to make the following exclusion from Nifty SME Emerge index. The change shall become effective from July 01, 2024 (close of June 28, 2024).
/jlne.ws/3L3GaRr
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | Thai Energy Billionaire Steps Up Data Center Push to Tap AI Boom
Anuchit Nguyen - Bloomberg
Energy billionaire Sarath Ratanavadi, Thailand's second-richest person, is accelerating his push into data centers to tap a booming market fueled by rising demand for cloud computing and artificial intelligence. His energy company, Gulf Energy Development Pcl, and its partners plan to spend an additional 10 billion baht ($271 million) to double their outlay on a data center facility in suburban Bangkok. The expansion will increase the center's energy consumption to 50 megawatts from a previously announced 25 megawatts, with completion expected in March, Gulf Energy Chief Financial Officer Yupapin Wangviwat told reporters Thursday.
/jlne.ws/45IwXHI
Nvidia CEO Huang Has Billions at Foundation Where He Logs 1-Hour Weeks; Jen-Hsun & Lori Huang Foundation owns 69 million Nvidia shares; It has mostly given stock to a donor-advised fund at Schwab
Miles Weiss - Bloomberg
Nvidia Corp.'s stock surge over the past two years has, in theory, created a multibillion-dollar windfall for the philanthropic world - but only if Chief Executive Officer Jensen Huang and his wife Lori give the money away. The couple had stockpiled 69 million Nvidia shares in the Jen-Hsun & Lori Huang Foundation by the end of 2022 through repeated annual donations that began almost two decades ago, public tax filings show. The blistering rally in the company's stock puts the value of that stake at more than $8 billion, according to John Seitz, the founder of FoundationMark, a firm that tracks foundations' investment performance.
/jlne.ws/4clF67l
Exegy Announces Up to 49% Faster Tick-to-Trade Execution
Exegy Press Release via Traders Magazine
Exegy, a leading developer of high-performance trading solutions for capital markets, in collaboration with AMD, today announced a record-breaking actionable latency of up to 13.9 ns for the execution of a trade in the latest STAC T0 report. For the first time ever, this was achieved using an off-the-shelf solution with an asynchronous implementation for the critical path of the algorithm and network stack. With up to a 49% latency reduction, this is the lowest tick-to-trade (the time it takes for an order to be sent to the exchange in response to a market data update) latency performance of any published STAC-T0 benchmark.
/jlne.ws/3VJxNiP
Sequoia Leads Fundraising In Dust, French AI Startup From Ex-OpenAI Scientist; Latest AI newcomer makes virtual assistants for companies
Mark Bergen - Bloomberg
Sequoia Capital is leading a $16 million investment in Dust, a French startup building customized AI bots for companies. Dust is one of several newcomers selling services to make it easier for enterprises to tap large-language models like OpenAI's GPT or Google's Gemini. The company, which announced its financing round on Thursday, said clients use its digital assistants to improve customer service replies, manage sales data and parse libraries of code. Rather than build artificial intelligence models, Dust makes software that plugs into offerings from OpenAI, Alphabet Inc.'s Google, Anthropic and Mistral AI and then links up to apps like Slack.
/jlne.ws/4bnR5Qs
The AI we could have had; In the late 1960s, a secret US lab was dedicated to mapping the edges of computing
Evgeny Morozov - Financial Times
At around 3pm on October 24 1968, a sharply dressed executive from the computer manufacturer Control Data Corporation took the stage in the auditorium of the National Bureau of Standards in Gaithersburg, Maryland. He was addressing the audience of the second annual symposium of the American Society for Cybernetics. The society, a nexus of academics, spies, policymakers and businesspeople, was dreamt up a few years earlier by a CIA operative. It was designed to counter the USSR's growing clout in computing and mastery of "cybernetics", the precursor to today's artificial intelligence. Consensus in the US of the late 1960s was fractured by foreign and domestic conflicts, but cybernetics promised to reassert control, deploying computers to tame the chaos and make life predictable again. The man from Control Data Corp, himself a CIA confidant, was there that day to sell a plan for what he called "communal information centers", to make CDC's supercomputers serve the public by providing news, recipes, public health monitoring, even dating advice. Computers, he told the audience, were going to be our "willing slaves...employed in the service of mankind".
/jlne.ws/4bpAhso
Wealth managers need to adopt AI - and fast
The industry is at risk of overplaying the quality of its 'human' support
Moira O'Neill - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/4cxtGNS
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Opinion: Vladimir Putin's latest escalation has hit far too close to home
Colonel Richard Kemp - The Telegraph
Russian hackers have caused chaos in the NHS and put patients in danger. This month, one of the most serious cyber attacks we have ever faced hit London hospitals and GP surgeries by locking pathology service providers out of their own IT systems. This has forced more than 1,100 operations to be postponed, including cancer treatments and organ transplants. Thousands of outpatient appointments have been cancelled and vast numbers of patients' records stolen, some of which have been published on the dark web. They include results of blood tests for cancer and HIV.
/jlne.ws/4cbxiVP
Teamviewer accuses Russia-linked hackers of cyberattack
Reuters
German software company Teamviewer said on Friday it was the victim of a cyberattack earlier this week and accused the Russian hacker group APT29 of being behind the attack. The group, also known as "Cozy Bear" or Midnight Blizzard, is alleged by Western intelligence to act on behalf of Russia's foreign spy agency.
/jlne.ws/4chUemn
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | VanEck Files for Solana ETF, SOL Rises 8%; The filing is the first Solana ETF to be filed in the U.S. and follows six days after a similar product filing in Canada.
Oliver Knight, Helene Braun - CoinDesk
Asset manager VanEck filed to sell shares in a Solana (SOL) exchange-traded fund (ETF), the first such registration in the U.S., just six days after 3iQ filed for a similar product in Canada. The S-1 registration form lodged with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), helped lift the SOL token's 24-hour gain to almost 8%. The CoinDesk 20 Index (CD20), a measure of the broader crypto market, has added 1.8%. VanEck has been known to be a first mover in this space. The asset manager was the first to file for a spot ether (ETH) ETF back in 2021, almost three years before the SEC began to engage with issuers that now include BlackRock, Fidelity, Ark Invest and others. An additional filing was lodged in September last year.
/jlne.ws/4cigQTD
Bitcoin Falls After U.S. Sends $240M Worth of Silk Road-Related BTC to Coinbase
Aoyon Ashraf - CoinDesk
Bitcoin {{BTC}} fell back towards $60,000 on Wednesday, after a wallet tagged to the U.S. Government moved about $240 million worth of seized BTC to a Coinbase Prime address, igniting concerns among traders that the digital assets will likely to be sold. Some 3,940 bitcoin originally seized from a Silk Road vendor was moved by the the wallet, according to an Arkham Intelligence social media post. "This BTC was originally seized from narcotics trafficker Banmeet Singh, and forfeited at trial in January 2024," the post said.
/jlne.ws/3W1SibR
Bitcoin Miner Marathon Mined $15M Worth Kaspa Tokens to Diversify Revenue
Aoyon Ashraf - CoinDesk
Bitcoin {{BTC}} miner Marathon Digital (MARA) is now a multi-coin crypto miner, after it started mining layer 1 protocol Kaspa {{KAS}} to diversify its mining revenue. nKaspa uses a proof-of-work (PoW) consensus mechanism called GHOSTDAG protocol, and unlike bitcoin, it allows multiple blocks to be produced simultaneously. This process helps make transactions faster and provides more block rewards for miners, according to a statement from Marathon.
/jlne.ws/4eKHJ4c
Coinbase Partners With Stripe to Enable USDC Transfers on Base; Stripe is adding USDC on Base to its fiat-to-crypto on-ramp; Partnership is Stripe's latest to bring back crypto payments
Teresa Xie - Bloomberg
Coinbase Global Inc. announced a partnership with payments processor Stripe Inc. that will enable USDC stablecoin transfers on Base, the crypto exchange's blockchain project meant to be the centerpiece of its expansion into decentralized finance. Stripe is also adding USDC on Base to its fiat-to-crypto on-ramp, and in turn that on-ramp is being added to the Coinbase Wallet. That will enable users on either platform to instantly buy USDC with credit cards and Apple Pay.
/jlne.ws/46118KB
Block CFO Says Cash App Owner's Bitcoin Bet Is Long-Term Play
Paige Smith - Bloomberg
Block Inc.'s investment in Bitcoin allows the firm to learn more about what could be a "potentially transformative" technology, according to one of its top executives. Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer Amrita Ahuja said the firm's bet on Bitcoin is a long-term play. Block said earlier this year that it will invest 10% of gross profit from Bitcoin products each month into buying the cryptocurrency.
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Europe's MiCA Is Finally Here. How Will the U.S. Respond? It's time for the U.S. to reassert its place as the global leader in financial services regulation and innovation, writes Circle's Dante Disparte.
Dante Disparte - CoinDesk
On Sunday, the first wave of the European Union's landmark, comprehensive law governing digital assets will take effect. With the Markets in Crypto-Asset Regulation framework, Europe has succeeded in doing what other jurisdictions, including the U.S., are still avoiding: provide legal and regulatory clarity for not one piece of the digital asset market, but all of it. Catalyzed by the specter of Big Tech, like Meta's Diem (formerly Libra) initiative, entering financial markets, or because of fears of unchecked cryptocurrency, the last five years have been marked by concerted policy development in Europe. MiCA will have a profound effect of permanently bridging digital assets and the real economy and doing so in a characteristically European way.
/jlne.ws/3VMl0fo
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Democrats Privately Discuss Replacing Biden on Presidential Ticket; Halting debate performance spurs turmoil in the party over 2024 candidate
Aaron Zitner, Catherine Lucey, Annie Linskey and Andrew Restuccia - The Wall Street Journal
President Biden's halting performance against Donald Trump on Thursday left the Democratic Party in turmoil, with officials trying to sort through the president's prospects after an appearance in which he stumbled over words, stammered through many answers and elevated widespread voter concerns that he is too old to serve. For months, many Democrats have argued that the 81-year-old president is fit for a second term. But following the debate, some Democratic strategists, donors and advisers to donors said they were shocked by Biden's showing, which they said had spurred private discussions about replacing him on the presidential ticket. They acknowledged, however, that the chances of the president withdrawing remained slim.
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Biden's Debate Failure May Mean It's Time to Step Aside; The president bet that he could stand shoulder-to-shoulder with Trump and prove he was more vital and acute. He lost.
Timothy L. O'Brien - Bloomberg
Joe Biden could have started writing the final chapter of his political career a year or so ago, when he still controlled the narrative. "I've capped my long journey in public service by defeating Donald Trump, revivifying our economy and moving the US past the Covid era," he might have said. "Therefore, I've decided not to seek a second term so the next generation of Democrats can succeed me and secure the White House and democracy for the American people."
/jlne.ws/3L09Ajs
It is not too late for Joe Biden to go; Democrats already knew the risks of replacing their candidate. The upsides are suddenly clearer
Edward Luce - Financial Times
The best that can be said of Joe Biden's stumbling debate performance was that it took place in June. If he were pressed to step down as nominee there would still be two months to go before the Democratic convention. For Biden's loyalists, who have always moved swiftly to shut down any hint of dissent about his candidacy, Thursday night was a moment of truth. For more than a year, private conversations in Washington have been dominated by the president's ageing. But the public omerta on that topic broadly held up. That cognitive dissonance has now collapsed. The story is now about whether Biden can be persuaded to step down.
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Joe Biden Is a Good Man and a Good President. He Must Bow Out of the Race.
Thomas L. Friedman - The New York Times
I watched the Biden-Trump debate alone in a Lisbon hotel room, and it made me weep. I cannot remember a more heartbreaking moment in American presidential campaign politics in my lifetime, precisely because of what it revealed: Joe Biden, a good man and a good president, has no business running for re-election. And Donald Trump, a malicious man and a petty president, has learned nothing and forgotten nothing. He is the same fire hose of lies he always was, obsessed with his grievances - nowhere close to what it will take for America to lead in the 21st century.
/jlne.ws/3W3ftCS
What happens if Joe Biden or Donald Trump drops out of the presidential race? Democratic and Republican parties have contingency rules but White House contest could get messy
Steff Chavez - Financial Times
Joe Biden's faltering performance in the first 2024 US presidential debate on Thursday exacerbated voter concerns about his fitness for office. The US president's meandering answers and hoarse voice rekindled worries about his age - 81 - and prompted top Democrats to call for him to halt his bid for re-election. Donald Trump, 78, also faces questions about his age, mental acuity and temperament. Next month he will be sentenced for his criminal conviction in New York.
/jlne.ws/4ckEejp
US stockpiles of the rare earth minerals it would need to fight a war against an adversary like China are a mystery, and experts warn it's a problem
Kelsey Baker - Business Insider
Rare earth minerals are needed to make all sorts of things, from F-35 stealth fighters and night-vision goggles to internet fiber-optic cables and MRI machines. They are a subset of the critical minerals deemed essential for national security. If the supply chain for these minerals is disrupted, the negative impact on the US could be considerable. Stockpile sizes are unclear, yet there are indications that levels aren't where they need to be. Part of the military's mission at home is to keep stockpiles of goods like critical minerals on hand for emergency wartime use. Recent government research suggests that Congress knows that the stockpile levels are insufficient, but the numbers aren't made available to the public. That opacity is troubling to some experts.
/jlne.ws/4eVPJzN
Why is insider betting even a thing? Caveat bookie
Daniel Davies - Financial Times
The last two weeks have given UK voters reason to wonder whether British elections are regulated by the Electoral Commission or by the Gambling Commission. Several constituencies have effectively lost candidates as a result of investigations into whether they placed bets on the timing of the election based on inside knowledge, or whether they made "hedge" bets on an opponent to win.
/jlne.ws/3XKZpGW
A Den of Spies: Vienna Emerges as Hub for Russian Espionage; Moscow allegedly plotted to kill an investigative journalist in Austria. Now his home is protected by officers with submachine guns.
Bojan Pancevski - The Wall Street Journal
/jlne.ws/3zgaXYw
Mexico's Finance Minister Pledges Moderation in London Meetings; Ramirez de la O sought to ease worries about judicial overhaul; Sheinbaum will support Pemex, push to improve performance
Michael O'Boyle and Jorgelina Do Rosario - Bloomberg
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | Supreme Court strips SEC of key enforcement power to penalize fraud
Melissa Quinn - CBS News
The Supreme Court on Thursday ruled against the Securities and Exchange Commission in a dispute over the agency's ability to use in-house tribunals to seek civil penalties against defendants for securities fraud, stripping the agency of a key enforcement tool. The court ruled 6-3 against the SEC in the case, finding that the Seventh Amendment entitles a defendant to a jury trial. The court split along ideological lines, with Chief Justice John Roberts writing for the conservative majority. "A defendant facing a fraud suit has the right to be tried by a jury of his peers before a neutral adjudicator," Roberts wrote for the court. He said that allowing the executive branch to play the role of prosecutor, judge and jury - as in enforcement proceedings conducted by the SEC internally - is the "very opposite of the separation of powers that the Constitution demands."
/jlne.ws/4eEwDxP
A Supreme Court Triumph for Trial by Jury; A 6-3 majority in SEC v. Jarkesy strikes a blow for liberty against the administrative state by ruling that federal agencies can't deny defendants their day in federal court.
The Editorial Board - The Wall Street Journal
The Supreme Court on Thursday ducked a decision on Idaho's abortion law, which as usual is getting all the press. But the day's more important story for American liberty is the 6-3 majority's landmark decision (SEC v. Jarkesy) limiting the power of administrative agencies to charge fraud cases in their own tribunals.
/jlne.ws/45J7TAh
ISDA Publishes Framework to Prepare for Close Out of Derivatives Contracts
ISDA
The International Swaps and Derivatives Association, Inc. (ISDA) has published a new interactive digital framework that market participants can use to help prepare for potential terminations of collateralized derivatives contracts. Launch of the ISDA Close-out Framework is in response to the March 2023 failure of Signature Bank and SVB in the US, which highlighted the complexities of potentially terminating over-the-counter derivatives trading relationships following various post-crisis regulatory reforms. Specifically, in-scope entities are now required to post margin for non-cleared derivatives transactions, while various jurisdictions have introduced mandatory stays on termination rights and remedies as part of bank resolution regimes.
/jlne.ws/3xENikb
Investment manager VanEck files to list first spot Solana ETF in US
Reuters
Investment manager VanEck on Thursday filed to list the first U.S. exchange-traded fund (ETF) tied to the spot price of crypto token Solana , months after a regulatory nod for a similar product tied to bitcoin. Emboldened by the Securities and Exchange Commission's attitude towards spot bitcoin and ether ETFs, asset managers have been mulling ways to expand their portfolio to include other crypto tokens. The SEC approved spot bitcoin ETFs in January after a decade-long tussle and is expected to greenlight ether ETFs as soon as next week, Reuters reported.
/jlne.ws/4eGHuY4
FCA confirms no chance of further Libor extension as September deadline approaches; There are three months to go for the remaining synthetic US dollar Libor settings.
Claudia Preece - The Trade
The UK's Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) today issued a reminder of the expected cessation of the remaining synthetic US dollar LIBOR settings in late September 2024. With three months to go until the Libor transition deadline the watchdog has confirmed that is has no intention to use its powers to compel the ICE Benchmark Administration Limited (IBA) to continue to publish the settings beyond September.
/jlne.ws/3L4867G
CFTC Staff Issues a No-Action Letter Regarding Certain Reporting Requirements for Swaps Transitioning from CDOR to CORRA
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission's Division of Market Oversight (DMO) and Division of Data (DOD) today issued a staff no-action letter regarding certain Part 43 and Part 45 swap reporting obligations for swaps transitioning under the ISDA LIBOR fallback provisions from referencing the Canadian Dollar Offered Rate (CDOR), to referencing the risk-free Canadian Overnight Repo Rate Average (CORRA) following the cessation of CDOR after June 28, 2024.
/jlne.ws/3zjfGZr
CFTC Extends Public Comment Period for Proposed Amendments to Event Contracts Rules
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today announced it is extending the deadline for public comment on a proposal to amend its event contract rules. The extended comment period will close on August 8, 2024. The CFTC is providing an extension to allow interested persons additional time to analyze the proposal and prepare their comments.
/jlne.ws/4cxpNsg
SEC Office of the Investor Advocate Delivers Report to Congress on Objectives for Fiscal Year 2025
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of the Investor Advocate today delivered its Report to Congress on the Office's objectives for fiscal year 2025.
/jlne.ws/4eT6knM
SEC Charges South Florida Company and Principal in Fraud Scheme
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today it filed an action against BorrowMoney.com, Inc. and its sole officer and majority shareholder, Florida resident Aldo Piscitello.
/jlne.ws/4ckHqM6
Defunct payday lender penalised $16 million over prohibited fees and deficient systems
ASIC
Ferratum Australia Pty Ltd (in liquidation) has been ordered to pay a total of $16 million in penalties by the Federal Court for numerous contraventions of the National Consumer Protection Act and the National Credit Code.
/jlne.ws/4eA148e
ASIC cancels licence of Guildfords Funds Management Pty Ltd
ASIC
ASIC has cancelled the Australian financial services (AFS) licence of Guildfords Funds Management Pty Ltd (Guildfords) after ASIC found significant and systemic failures of oversight and compliance in Guildfords' provision of financial services.
/jlne.ws/3XJgCjX
ASIC bans Guilford Funds Management director for four years
ASIC
ASIC has banned managing director of the Guildford group of companies, Dr Robert Payne of Brighton, Victoria, from providing financial services, performing any function involved in the carrying on of a financial services business and controlling an entity that carries on a financial services business for four years.
/jlne.ws/45Hh7x9
ASIC suspends Airrails AFS licence
ASIC
ASIC has suspended the Australian financial services (AFS) licence of Airrails Pty Ltd (Airrails) for three months. Airrails licence suspension means it cannot provide financial services during the suspension period of 21 June 2024 to 21 September 2024.
/jlne.ws/3L1x1sH
Parliamentary Joint Committee Opening Statement, 28 June 2024
ASIC
Opening statement by ASIC Commissioner Alan Kirkland at the Parliamentary Joint Committee on Corporations and Financial Services, Financial Services Regulatory Framework in Relation to Financial Abuse, 28 June 2024.
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Remaining synthetic US dollar LIBOR settings - 3 months to go
FCA
We issue a reminder of the expected cessation of the remaining synthetic US dollar LIBOR settings at the end of September 2024.
/jlne.ws/4cmP5t6
SFC warns public of Tokencan, VBIT Exchange and HKD.com Corporation for suspected virtual asset-related fraud and/or unlicensed activities
SFC
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) today warned the public of entities operating under the following names for suspected virtual asset-related fraudulent activities and/or purporting to operate virtual asset trading platform (VATP) in Hong Kong without a licence (Notes 1 to 3):
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | New era of stock supremacy turns tail-risk hedging upside down
Lu Wang - Bloomberg
Just months after the pandemic broke out, Dennis Davitt was busy pitching his bearish investment fund to panic-stricken clients prepping for the next market crash. These days though, the former Credit Suisse derivatives chief is on a different capital-raising mission altogether: Selling amped-up bullish options strategies to institutional investors fearful of missing out on the next stock boom. "It's primarily client-driven," said Davitt, who heads up Millbank Dartmoor Portsmouth, a volatility firm in Asheville, North Carolina. "Their worry is - as the market continues to move forward as it has been - all the performance in the investing universe is going to be coming from public equities. My feeling is nobody owns enough of them."
/jlne.ws/4cJuKyd
How to Get More Dollars Into Tax-Sheltered Roth Accounts; Many savers can use other ways to boost Roth IRA and 401(k) balances ahead of a 2025 deadline
Laura Saunders - The Wall Street Journal
If you really want to get more dollars into your Roth IRA or Roth 401(k), you may need to take lesser-known paths to get around roadblocks. These paths are newly useful for savers trying to move dollars into Roth accounts before the end of 2025. That's when the 2017 tax cuts expire and income-tax rates will reset higher if Congress doesn't act.
/jlne.ws/3zl3c3z
BP halts hiring, slows renewables roll-out to win over investors
Ron Bousso - Reuters
CEO Murray Auchincloss has imposed a hiring freeze and paused new offshore wind projects as he places a renewed emphasis on oil and gas amid investor discontent over its energy transition strategy, sources at the company said. The moves, which have not previously been reported, are part of a decision by Auchincloss to slow down investments in big budget, low-carbon projects, particularly in offshore wind, that are not expected to generate cash for years, said several sources at BP who declined to be named.
/jlne.ws/3RMMosN
Russell rebalancing represents another test for T+1 success story; Experts agree the big tests for T+1 after a promising start are public holidays, market volatility and index rebalances, with a big one arriving today.
Jonathan Watkins - The Trade
Issues stemming from the move to T+1 have been few and far between, but experts do have an eye on the impacts of the Russell Index rebalancing today, according to sister publication, Global Custodian's T+1 War Rooms initiative in partnership with The ValueExchange and Citi. One prominent asset manager stated in the conversation that it still has a war room in place because "we're now into an index rebalancing cycle, with Russell coming up it will be the highest volume of trading activity on the street - it is every single year - on 28 June.".
/jlne.ws/4cmonAV
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | Flouting Biden Pause, Agency OK's Largest LNG Terminal in US; Whether the Louisiana project is built may hinge on federal study of climate and economic impact of the burgeoning liquefied natural gas industry.
Pam Radtke - Floodlight
Despite a much publicized pause on the approval of liquefied natural gas terminals in the United States, a federal regulatory agency Thursday approved the construction of the nation's largest LNG terminal, months before that pause is set to end. The 2-1 vote of the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission approving the $10 billion Calcasieu Pass 2 in Cameron Parish, Louisiana, doesn't mean developer Venture Global will begin construction on the facility to export condensed and super-cooled methane. But it is a big step forward for the company, which has been asking FERC to approve its two-and-a-half-year-old application since February.
/jlne.ws/3zqcYBK
*****Here is reporting on this story from Reuters.
The List of Money Managers Axing Oil Stocks Just Got Longer; PFA pension fund excludes Shell from $110 billion portfolio; No. 1 pension investor in Netherlands also exiting oil, gas
Frances Schwartzkopff - Bloomberg
There's a growing list of institutional investors in Europe who are stripping oil and gas stocks out of their portfolios, in a move they say reduces the risk of ending up with stranded assets and financial losses. The latest to do so is PFA, Denmark's largest commercial pension fund with roughly $110 billion of assets under management. The investor has just offloaded its $170 million stake in Shell Plc based on an assessment that the company's capital expenditure on renewables is worryingly low.
/jlne.ws/4bw5yu4
More than 400 firms adopt TNFD recommendations for nature disclosure
Matt Mace - edie
The TNFD announced in January that 320 organisations across a variety of sectors and countries have aligned themselves with the disclosure framework. To mark London Climate Action Week (LCAW) the TNFD has revealed that 96 organisations are now aligned with the framework, bringing the total number of organisations to 416. Organisations represent more than 50 jurisdictions and 62 sectors. The publicly listed companies represent more than $6trn in market capitalisation and the 114 financial institutions classed as TNFD Adopters represent $15.9trn in assets under management.
/jlne.ws/3xGcyXd
Study Finds Small Streams, Recently Stripped of Protections, Are a Big Deal; Half of the water flowing through regional river basins starts in so-called ephemeral streams. Last year, the Supreme Court curtailed federal protections for these waterways.
Brad Plumer - The New York Times
Last year, the Supreme Court sharply restricted the federal government's ability to limit pollution in small streams that sit dry for much of the year and fill up only after rainfall or snowmelt. Now, a new study finds that those bodies, so-called ephemeral streams, are significantly more important to the nation's waterways than often appreciated.
/jlne.ws/3XHSyhC
US supreme court puts hold on EPA attempt to reduce pollution that drifts across states; Court grants temporary halt to program designed to stop 'upwind' states from causing pollution that flows to 'downwind' neighbors
Oliver Milman - The Guardian
The US supreme court has decided to put a hold on an attempt by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to reduce harmful air pollution that drifts across state lines. The conservative-dominated court has granted a temporary halt to the EPA rule while a lower court challenge to it plays out, siding with three states - Ohio, West Virginia and Indiana - and industry allies that are attempting to derail requirements that prevent pollution from billowing into neighboring states.
/jlne.ws/3RNTJIy
Seine water pollution levels still well above limits one month before Games
Reuters
Water pollution levels in Paris' River Seine were still much higher than allowed for bathing, data showed on Friday, one month before the Olympics in which the capital's landmark waterway is meant to be one of the swimming venues. Updated data published on the city's website showed the concentrations of enterococci and E.coli bacteria remained well above legal thresholds as of Sunday at all four testing points along the river.
/jlne.ws/3XJugnk
How water could be the future of fuel; A new generation of fuels could power planes and ships without warming the planet.
Nicolas Rivero and Emily Wright - The Washington Post
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The great geo-engineering gamble; Climate experiments rightly raise hackles but we need to find out whether these fixes could work
Anjana Ahuja - The Financial Times (opinion)
/jlne.ws/3L328E5
Sinkhole appears in soccer field above Illinois mine: 'Out of a movie'; No one was present when sinkhole, 100ft wide and 30ft deep, suddenly collapsed field in Alton, north of St Louis
Edward Helmore - The Guardian
/jlne.ws/3XJm9XV
'Homes for Nature': Housebuilders promise bird-nesting bricks and hedgehog highways in new homes
Cecilia Keating - Business Green
/jlne.ws/3VGOCel
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Blackstone Mulls Options for $5 Billion Consultancy
Gillian Tan and Ryan Gould - Bloomberg
Blackstone Inc. is exploring options including a sale or an initial public offering of Legence, a company that specializes in sustainability consulting, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The asset-management giant is working with advisers to solicit interest in the company, which in any transaction may be valued at as much as $5 billion, including debt, the people said, requesting anonymity to discuss confidential talks.
/jlne.ws/3VGIFhv
CLOs Are New Target for Passive Managers Seeking Europe Growth
Amedeo Goria and Eleanor Duncan - Bloomberg
A recent deluge of cash into ETFs tracking US collateralized loan obligations is spurring money managers to try to replicate the model in Europe. Talks between investment firms and European regulators both in Ireland and Luxembourg are already underway and engagement is high from all parties, according to two people with knowledge of the matter, who asked not to be named as talks are private. Separately, Janus Henderson, the dominant player in the US market, recently acquired European ETF provider Tabula to help facilitate the trade.
/jlne.ws/3XIlC8B
UBS shakes up flagship wealth business with new unit, memo says
Noele Illien and Oliver Hirt - Reuters
UBS is shaking up its wealth-management arm, the bank's flagship business, to boost its offerings to ultra-rich clients, the division's new co-leaders said in their first internal memo sent on Thursday and seen by Reuters. UBS will create a new unit from July 1, named GWM Solutions, to integrate various client offerings, such as investment management, lending, family and institutional wealth management and alternative investments, the memo from Rob Karofsky and Iqbal Khan said.
/jlne.ws/4bqpA8W
Ackman's Pershing Square USA to offer shares at $50 in NY listing
Reuters
Pershing Square USA, a fund managed by billionaire Bill Ackman, said on Friday it plans to offer shares at $50 each in its initial public offering in New York. Ackman is launching a new investment portfolio that will be available to anyone who can invest in the United States, including retail investors.
/jlne.ws/45K3nl4
Nvidia Retail Craze Unleashes Big Moves in the World of ETFs
Vildana Hajric and Denitsa Tsekova - Bloomberg
From the growth of get-rich-quick schemes to becoming a make-or-break factor for outperformance, Nvidia Corp.'s latest market roller coaster is a cautionary tale of the importance of the AI chip-maker in the $9.2 trillion US ETF complex. Nvidia's meteoric rise has spurred a more-than-2,000% spike in assets of a product juicing up exposure to the AI darling, turning the ETF into a favorite trading vehicle for retail investors - with trading volumes hitting new highs despite recent reversals. Within the ETF industry overall, greater exposure to the stock has been a prime driver in separating winners from losers. Only 96 out of 2,000 equity ETFs with low-to-no exposure to Nvidia have managed to outperform the S&P 500 since the company's initial eruption as an AI bellwether last year, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.
/jlne.ws/3VMrtai
Fireside Friday with... Jefferies' Dean Gray; The TRADE sits down with Dean Gray, head of EMEA outsourced trading at Jefferies, to discuss the rise of outsourced trading, how the market is set to shift as more heads turn in the direction of the white space and what the outlook is for potential future consolidation in the market.
Claudia Preece - The Trade
Just how far is the industry looking to take outsourced trading going forward?
It has been well documented that the past few years have seen a significant shift in the mindset, especially of the larger funds, towards the adoption of outsourced trading. As larger funds utilise the service, other groups such as sovereign wealth and platform providers are becoming increasing involved. These groups have an inherent nature of complexity that require outsourced trading providers to heavily invest in human capital and technology to meet all of their requirements effectively.
/jlne.ws/4ciuo1G
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| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | The majority of Gen Z describe themselves as video content creators; A survey by YouTube found that 65 percent of younger internet users consider themselves as video content creators, a generational shift in online life.
Taylor Lorenz - The Washington Post
For the first two decades of the social internet, lurkers ruled. Among Gen Z, they're in the minority, according to survey data from YouTube. Tech industry insiders used to cite a rule of thumb stating that only one in ten of an online community's users generally post new content, with the masses logging on only to consume images, video or other updates. Now younger generations are flipping that divide, a survey by the video platform said.
/jlne.ws/3xBuF0m
The Great Emptying of the American Office
David Rovella - Bloomberg Evening Briefing
Let this sink in: Not long from now, almost one-quarter of all US office space may be vacant. And if work-from-home-the key culprit-persists, commercial-property values will be further decimated by up to $250 billion, Moody's warns. When combined with the impact of lower rents and lease turnovers, the vicious post-pandemic cycle will reduce revenue for office landlords by as much as $10 billion. That in turn could translate into a quarter-trillion dollars of "property value destruction," Moody's officials said. The figures illustrate the gloomy prospects faced by property owners and lenders as employers continue to jettison square footage or shift from multiyear leases to shorter-term and more flexible co-working arrangements.
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | US Supreme Court rejects plan to shield Sacklers in Purdue bankruptcy; Members of OxyContin maker's founding family had fought to uphold protections in $6bn opioid settlement
Stefania Palma and Sujeet Indap and Amelia Pollard - Financial Times
The US Supreme Court has invalidated a measure in Purdue Pharma's bankruptcy that would shield members of the company's founding Sackler family from future civil liability in exchange for a $6bn contribution, in a closely watched case involving the maker of the opioid OxyContin.
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Deaths Linked to Japanese Supplement Suddenly Rise to 80; The case, involving a supplement intended to reduce cholesterol, has put attention on how companies are allowed to self-report claims about their products.
River Akira Davis and Hisako Ueno - The New York Times
A Japanese pharmaceutical company is investigating 80 deaths possibly linked to a yeast-containing supplement it sells in Japan, the country's health ministry said Friday, in a shocking increase from an earlier revelation that is focusing attention on how supplements are regulated. The company, Kobayashi Pharmaceutical, in March had reported five deaths potentially linked to its CholesteHelp rice and red-yeast pills. Japanese government health officials said the supplement, which claimed to help reduce cholesterol, contained the highly toxic compound called puberulic acid that is a product of mold.
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When the Doctor Says Your Disease is Just Stress; Chronic disease symptoms are often dismissed by physicians - and patients themselves. But that comes from a complex relationship between sickness and stress itself.
Knvul Sheikh - The New York Times
Amina AlTai had always prided herself on her drive and resilience. When she began experiencing brain fog and fatigue, Ms. AlTai, 39, simply thought it was from working long hours in her marketing job. So she started writing down reminders to keep herself on track. But then her hair started falling out, she gained and lost a lot of weight and she started having gastrointestinal issues. Ms. AlTai was certain that something was wrong. But the first six doctors she saw didn't take her seriously, she said. Some told her she had so much hair that losing a little bit shouldn't be a problem. Several said she seemed healthy, and dismissed her symptoms as simply stress. It was only when another physician ordered blood tests that Ms. AlTai was diagnosed with Hashimoto's disease and celiac disease, two autoimmune conditions that can damage the thyroid and the small intestine.
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | Hong Kong Stumbles in Its Own Key Test as a Global Financial Hub; Foreign judges were once seen as canaries in the coal mine for the city's judiciary. China's security crackdown is driving them away.
Rebecca Choong Wilkins and Shirley Zhao - Bloomberg
Four years after Hong Kong began a sweeping crackdown against political dissent, the city is struggling to meet one of its own benchmarks in reassuring foreign investors that it remains a predictable place to do business. Hong Kong's top court, established in 1997 when the former British colony returned to Chinese rule, has seen about half of its 15 overseas judges step down from a 2019 peak. Eight of them either resigned or chose not to renew their three-year terms after Beijing imposed a national security law on the city in 2020, data compiled by Bloomberg News show. Prior to this, there had been no early resignations.
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Hedge Funds Win Big Endorsement From $149 Billion Australia Fund; Future Fund has much of $149 billion portfolio in alternatives; Identifies equity market-neutral, systematic macro strategies
Richard Henderson and Amy Bainbridge - Bloomberg
Australia's sovereign wealth fund has called time on using government bonds to diversify equity exposure and instead favors hedge funds to balance risk in its A$223 billion ($149 billion) portfolio. The Future Fund will look to equity market-neutral and systematic macro strategies offered by hedge funds after declaring "the era of using government bonds to diversify equity-related risk is over," in a position paper released Friday. The shift is the result of the fund's view that rocky geopolitics will reorder global trade, leading to higher inflation, interest rates and volatility and a stronger correlation between stocks and bonds.
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India Set for More Global Attention as Bond Inclusion Begins
Malavika Kaur Makol and Subhadip Sircar - Bloomberg
India is set to lure billions of dollars more inflows when JPMorgan Chase & Co. adds the nation's government bonds to its emerging markets index on Friday, opening up a $1.3 trillion market to a broader range of investors.
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OEC Is Filing for Bankruptcy Protection as BTG Mulls Loan
Giovanna Bellotti Azevedo and Cristiane Lucchesi - Bloomberg
Odebrecht Engenharia e Construcao SA, the struggling Brazilian construction firm, is filing for bankruptcy protection with a $46 million bond set to mature in October, and is in talks with Banco BTG Pactual SA for a loan, according to people familiar with the matter.
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| Miscellaneous | | Stories that don't quite fit under the other sections | Chicago Public Media names new CEO
Brandon Dupre - Crain's Chicago Business
Chicago Public Media, the nonprofit that oversees the Chicago Sun-Times and public radio station WBEZ, tapped Melissa Bell, former publisher of Vox Media, to be its next CEO. Bell will succeed Matt Moog, who has come under fire from his own newsroom for a recent round of layoffs and programming cuts at WBEZ. Moog served as CEO for four years.
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As ice melts, Everest's 'death zone' gives up its ghosts
Paavan Mathema - AFP
On Everest's sacred slopes, climate change is thinning snow and ice, increasingly exposing the bodies of hundreds of mountaineers who died chasing their dream to summit the world's highest mountain. Among those scaling the soaring Himalayan mountain this year was a team not aiming for the 8,849-metre (29,032-foot) peak, but risking their own lives to bring some of the corpses down. Five as yet unnamed frozen bodies were retrieved - including one that was just skeletal remains - as part of Nepal's mountain clean-up campaign on Everest and adjoining peaks Lhotse and Nuptse.
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New Dinosaur Species Rocked Loki-esque Horns; Lokiceratops, an herbivore with unique horns and frill, roamed what is now Montana
Aylin Woodward - The Wall Street Journal
It roamed the Earth, but it invoked a god. A new horned dinosaur, revealed by an international group of paleontologists, sported the most ornate headgear found so far in the fossil record. The group named the plant-eater Lokiceratops rangiformis for its blade-like horns, which bear an uncanny resemblance to the helmet worn by the Norse trickster god Loki. Lokiceratops lived about 78 million years ago in the swamps of what is now Montana. Its skeleton, discovered in 2019, was later purchased by the Museum of Evolution in Denmark, where the skull has recently been displayed and available for study.
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