| February 21, 2025 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | | | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
|
| | | | First Read | | |
| | 2025 Newsletter Subscriptions: | |
Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
Welcome to the age of disinformation. This is a huge risk to the market. It was something that was against the rules of the exchanges back in the days of open outcry. But the Trump administration is opening the doors for a flood of disinformation and even trumpeting some and parroting some from Russia. Bloomberg has a story about how "Trump's Cuts at US Agencies Starve Internet Watchdogs That Fight Disinformation" with the subheadlines "Fact-checking groups warn against surge of online falsehoods; Nonprofits slash operations and staff as US reduces support."
The story can be summarized as: President Trump's administration, in collaboration with X owner Elon Musk, has implemented significant budget cuts to U.S. agencies, severely impacting internet watchdogs and fact-checking organizations worldwide. These cuts, affecting programs at the Justice Department and USAID, have led to staff reductions and operational cutbacks at nonprofits combating online extremism and disinformation. Organizations are facing funding shortfalls of up to 80%, jeopardizing efforts to counter false information from extremists and authoritarian regimes. The cuts align with Trump and his allies' view that content moderation is a form of censorship, as exemplified by Vice President JD Vance's recent criticism of European countries. This shift comes amid growing concerns about the spread of disinformation, particularly regarding the war in Ukraine, and follows social media companies' reduced focus on fact-checking. Critics warn that these cuts could create a vacuum exploited by propagandists and undermine global democracy and stability.
There is a freelance media literacy trainer and disinformation analyst from Vienna named Dietmar Pichler who is vice president of the Vienna-based NGO 'Vienna Goes Europe' and the founder of the initiative 'Disinfo Resilience Network,' which aims to connect experts from various fields to analyze, debunk, and expose disinformation and propaganda activities. The focus of his work is on foreign interference conducted by autocratic regimes, especially the Russian Federation. There is a GoFundMe campaign to support the Disinfo Resilience Network, which I gave to yesterday.
Pichler decided to do a little experiment since President Reagan is no longer with us and asked ChatGPT what Reagan might say about the current situation. The results are quite interesting and while I did not vote for Reagan, his messaging about freedom always resonated with me.
AI generated "Reaganesque" speech (ChatGPT):
"My fellow Americans,
I speak to you today not as a Republican, not as a Democrat, but as an American who believes in freedom, in democracy, and in the sacred duty we have to stand against tyranny wherever it may rise.
For decades, the United States has been a shining city on a hill-a beacon of hope for those oppressed, a defender of liberty, and a friend to those who fight for their own freedom. That is who we are. That is who we have always been. And that is who we must remain.
Today, we see a tyrant in Moscow-Vladimir Putin, a man who mourns the fall of the Soviet Union, not because he seeks peace, but because he longs for empire. A man who crushes dissent, silences opponents, and wages war against a free and sovereign Ukraine.
And yet, we hear voices here at home-some even within our own party-who would rather appease this dictator than oppose him. Who would rather shake his hand than stand firm against his aggression. Who mock and belittle a man like President Zelensky, not because he has failed, but because he has dared to succeed. Because he has dared to resist. Because he has dared to stand on his feet and say, not today, not ever!
Let me be clear: America does not cower before tyrants. America does not abandon its allies. America does not betray those who fight for the very ideals upon which this nation was founded.
Some would have us turn inward, retreat from the world stage, and cozy up to those who despise our way of life. But we have seen this story before, and we know how it ends. Weakness invites aggression. Silence encourages oppression. And appeasement? Appeasement is but a prelude to disaster.
So I ask you, my fellow Americans: Shall we stand with the man who jails his critics, poisons his opponents, and invades his neighbors? Or shall we stand with the man who fights-not for conquest, but for the right of his people to live in peace and liberty?
If America is to remain the last, best hope of Earth, we must choose wisely. Because the free world still looks to us, as it always has. And I say, as I have always said: Mr. Putin, we will not yield. And Mr. Zelensky, we stand with you.
God bless you, and God bless the United States of America."
There are alarm bells going off about what the Trump administration is doing. One of those sounding the alarm is the American political and corporate strategist Steve Schmidt, who ran Mitt Romney's Presidential campaign. In a video titled "Steve Schmidt Reacts to Trump's Stance on War in Ukraine" on YouTube, Schmidt offers a warning about the latest moves of President Trump on Ukraine.
Another politician who sounded the alarm in an eloquent and moving speech was Illinois Governor JP Pritzker during his State of the State speech this week. He talked about his experience speaking to Holocaust victims and the manner and speed with which Germany's republic was destroyed.
Eurex announced in a press release that Erik Tim Muller, CEO of Eurex Clearing AG, will depart Deutsche Borse Group by the end of 2025 after nearly three decades of service. Muller, who joined in 1997 and has held various leadership roles, will not renew his term after March 2025 to pursue new entrepreneurial opportunities. He has been instrumental in positioning Eurex as a global leader in Euro-denominated markets and a trusted industry partner. Thomas Book and Stephan Leithner, executives at Deutsche Borse Group, praised Muller's contributions and dedication. Muller expressed gratitude for his time with the company and will assist with the transition while continuing his roles on the Board of ISDA and the CFTC's Global Markets Advisory Committee until his departure.
Acting CFTC Chairman Caroline D. Pham will participate in a fireside chat titled "Transatlantic Trends - The U.S. Election and Its Impact on Europe" at the Derivatives Forum Frankfurt 2025. The event will take place on February 26, 2025, at 10:20 a.m. CET at the Congress Center Messe Frankfurt in Germany.
She will also participate in a fireside chat at the Sixth Joint Conference on CCP Risk Management 2025 on February 25, 2025, at 11:40 a.m. CET. The event will take place at the ECB Main Building in Frankfurt, Germany.
Bloomberg has a story by Dorothy Gambrell and Reyhan Harmanci titled "It's a Good Time to Be a Scammer in America; Investment fraud is up, and not just for Boomers." The story can be summarized as: In recent years, investment fraud has surged in the United States, with reported losses more than tripling since early 2020. By the third quarter of 2024, $2.5 billion was lost to fraud, with a median loss of $500. Investment-related scams have overtaken impostor schemes as the most lucrative form of fraud, accounting for nearly half of all categorized losses in 2024. While cryptocurrency and bank transfers yield the highest losses, credit cards and payment apps are the most common methods used by scammers. Contrary to popular belief, fraud affects all age groups, not just older adults. Although those 80 and older represent only 4% of fraud reports, they suffer the highest median loss at $1,450. The digital age has created new opportunities for scammers, with social media becoming an increasingly prevalent platform for fraudulent activities.
Here are the headlines from in front of FOW's paywall from some recent stories: Regulation leading to poorer European liquidity versus US - Liquidnet, CME, ICE hit natural gas records on hedging boom, CME, ICE hit natural gas records on hedging boom, Clear Street hires two more top brokers in London, New York, US crypto leadership would benefit from bank policy reforms - trade bodies, Trade bodies call for consultation on European power trading hubs and Eurex Clearing chief Mueller to step down in March.
The New York Yankees baseball team is going to allow its players to have beards in a change of policy, leaving the clean cut image imposed by the late owner George Steinbrenner behind. The players will be allowed to have "well-groomed beards," Bloomberg reported.
Have a great day and stay safe and treat people the same way you want to be treated: with respect, equality and justice.~JJL
*****
Our most read stories from our previous edition of JLN Options were:
- Traders Piling Into VIX Call Hedges Raise Pressure on Dealers from Bloomberg.
- Innovations expected to turbo-charge crypto ETF industry from the Financial Times.
- OCC Welcomes J.P. Morgan Executive Michael Kurd to Board of Directors from the OCC. ~JB
Subscribe to the JLN Options Newsletter HERE (it's free).
++++
++++
KRX's Chihun Kang Reflects on WFE Program Experience and Market Insights
JohnLothianNews.com
Chihun Kang, a project manager at Korea Exchange (KRX), recently participated in the World Federation of Exchanges (WFE) Market Infrastructure Certificate (MIC) program, an intensive global initiative aimed at enhancing expertise in financial infrastructure. The program covers key topics such as payment systems, banking, clearing, settlement, and environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. "It consists of a full four-module subject covering financial infrastructure, including recent developments in exchange business and ESG," Kang explained. The final module requires participants to apply their learning in an industry project, producing an academic-style report.
Watch the video »
Paul Sacks - Blockfills
Watch Video »
Andrej Bolkovic - OCC
Watch Video »
++++
Exclusive: Almost 90% of Japanese companies see Trump as bad for business, Reuters survey shows; More than 40% of firms expect Japan interest rate rise to 1% to undermine capital spending - survey
Kiyoshi Takenaka - Reuters
Almost nine out of 10 Japanese companies expect U.S. President Donald Trump's policies to negatively affect business, a Reuters survey showed on Thursday, the clearest sign yet of mounting worry in the United States' top foreign direct investor . The results of the survey show how the prospect of higher tariffs and increased trade friction between the United States and China has clouded the outlook for companies in the world's fourth-largest economy.
/jlne.ws/3XbcLem
***** Chaos is never good for business unless you are a proprietary trading firm.~JJL
++++
Trump's Commerce Secretary Confirms Plan to Gut Medicare-and More
Malcolm Ferguson - The New Republic
Howard Lutnick, Trump's billionaire buddy turned commerce secretary, has confirmed that the administration was simply lying to MAGA supporters about not touching Social Security and Medicare. "Back in October ... I flew down to Texas, got Elon Musk to [set up DOGE], and here was our agreement: that Elon was gonna cut a trillion dollars of waste fraud and abuse," Lutnick told Jesse Waters of Fox News Wednesday night. "We have almost $4 trillion of entitlements, and no one's ever looked at it before. You know Social Security is wrong, you know Medicaid and Medicare are wrong. So he's gonna cut a trillion and we're gonna get rid of all these tax scams that hammer against America and we're gonna raise a trillion dollars of revenue."
/jlne.ws/41rHGWH
****** I have one more year before I am eligible for Medicare. Will it be there? Who knows after Lutnick guts it.~JJL
++++
Wall Street's 'Original Rogue Trader' Nick Leeson Is Starting to Get Worried; Leeson reflects on the push to roll back certain financial regulations three decades after his own rogue trades sparked the collapse of one of the UK's most venerated financial institutions.
William Shaw and Caroline Hepker - Bloomberg
As a growing chorus of bankers and politicians around the world demand the roll-back of crisis-era regulations, Nick Leeson - the former rogue derivatives trader who brought down one of the UK's most venerated financial institutions - is starting to get worried. Leeson, whose illicit trades sparked the collapse of 230-year-old Barings Bank and sent him to prison for four years, said he fears that in its push to keep pace with US President Donald Trump's deregulation drive, the UK could face some unforseen risks to its financial stability.
/jlne.ws/4bbdfXM
****** Some would say, who cares what Leeson says. But then another side says, if it concerns Leeson, then you know it has to be bad.~JJL
++++
It's a Good Time to Be a Scammer in America; Investment fraud is up, and not just for Boomers.
Dorothy Gambrell and Reyhan Harmanci - Bloomberg
It's no secret that the Digital Age has been good for scam artists. In the third quarter of 2024, the most recent period for which US government data is available, $2.5 billion was reported lost to fraud-more than tripling since the first quarter of 2020, with the median loss increasing from $321 to $500. Colorado was the leader in imposter scams, but investment fraud happened most in Hawaii. The biggest increase in money affected people contacted on social media. The nature of fraud has changed in recent years. Impostor scams, where the aggressor pretends to be someone known or trusted, defrauded people of the most money through the third quarter of 2021, with the majority of that cash involving romantic come-ons. The largest number of reported cases in 2020 involved scammers pretending to be government officials. In 2021, most reports were business scams. But by the end of that year, investment-related fraud took over and accounted for almost half of all categorized fraud losses in 2024's reports.
/jlne.ws/3XbwbAa
****** The floodgates are open for scamming. The cops are being taken off the beat, the rules are not being enforced, the convicted are being pardoned for all kinds of crimes and SBF's time in jail might be coming to an end soon.~JJL
++++
'There are a lot of bad actors': Gen Z is finding out the hard way not to get their financial advice from TikTok; More young people than ever are turning to influencers for financial tips-but for some, bad advice has led to scams, IRS trouble, and costly mistakes.
Eve Upton-Clark - Fast Company
The internet can be a great place to learn random life hacks and cry over anglerfish. But what about when it comes to managing your money? According to new data from Intuit Credit Karma, 77% of Gen Z and 61% of millennials are turning to social media for financial advice. Millennials mainly seek out YouTube, Facebook, and Instagram for information, while for Gen Z, TikTok has emerged as an unlikely hub for financial advice, under the hashtag FinTok. Here, content creators such as @YourRichBFF and @JohneFinance have combined followings of millions with videos that offer tips on everything from credit card rewards to flight costs to 401ks, crunched into less than a minute.
/jlne.ws/4ka4S2H
****** Let me tell you everything I know about investing in 60 seconds.~JJL
++++
Thursday's Top Three
Our most clicked story Thursday was The American Who Went Undercover in Ukraine-for Moscow, from The Wall Street Journal. Second was Maggie Sklar's LinkedIn post saying she had been "let go by the government this week" because she was a new employee at the FDIC. And third was Blackadder Would Like a Word About the Last Five Years, an opinion piece about the Covid-19 pandemic by John Authers, from Bloomberg.
++++
|
| | | | |
| Lead Stories | CFTC Fires Some Employees in Latest Government Job Terminations
Nicola M White and Lydia Beyoud - Bloomberg
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission terminated about a dozen probationary employees this week as President Donald Trump continues his bid to shrink the federal workforce. The employees, who include attorneys in the agency's enforcement and market oversight divisions, received emails notifying them of their terminations, effective immediately, according to people familiar with the matter.
/jlne.ws/41rQPyt
Trump's Cuts at US Agencies Starve Internet Watchdogs That Fight Disinformation; Fact-checking groups warn against surge of online falsehoods; Nonprofits slash operations and staff as US reduces support
Jeff Stone and Daniel Zuidijk - Bloomberg
An internet watchdog that identified participants in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection is preparing to cut staff. A media startup in Kosovo that hunts Russian disinformation has shuttered a weekly show amid a divisive political landscape. Privacy advocates are dialing back work in Iran that helps users in the Islamic Republic browse the web freely. Around the world, nonprofits that target online extremism and authoritarian propaganda are slashing operations and laying off employees after a government cost-cutting push led by X owner Elon Musk with President Donald Trump's blessing halted vital US support, according to nearly a dozen people familiar with the moves.
/jlne.ws/4gXQ98d
Wall Street Pushes Back on Tough Margin Rule for Zero-Day Options; Broker-dealers face intraday margin calls, add-on charge; New measures, if approved, will be implemented in September
Lu Wang and Katherine Doherty - Bloomberg
Wall Street brokers and dealers are pushing back on a new margin rule that the world's largest derivatives-clearing house has proposed to address the risk from the boom in zero-day options even after some revisions. Options Clearing Corp. should consider rolling out a new add-on charge - one that's designed to mitigate spillovers in the event of market turmoil - in phases before sunsetting it within two years, the Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association, or SIFMA, wrote in a letter Thursday.
/jlne.ws/4i3O6QY
Musk Looks at Auditing the Federal Reserve; Billionaire gives remarks at the Conservative Political Action Conference
Aaron Zitner - The Wall Street Journal
Elon Musk on Thursday offered hints about the work to come, including auditing the Federal Reserve, as his Department of Government Efficiency bulldozes through federal agencies in its effort to identify and implement budget and staffing cuts under authority from President Trump. Asked if he plans to audit the Federal Reserve, Musk said yes without offering elaboration. He also added fuel to the possibility of giving payouts to the public from some of the budget savings that DOGE identifies. Trump said Wednesday that he was weighing the idea.
/jlne.ws/4hN3LVk
***** What does the FED have to do with the budget and spending? More data scraping?~JJL
'Mar-a-Lago Accord' Chatter Is Getting Wall Street's Attention; Jim Bianco discusses proposal on call with clients Thursday; Backers float US debt deal, weak dollar as part of plan
Liz Capo McCormick - Bloomberg
It sounds too radical to even warrant a second thought. That President Donald Trump could force some of the US's foreign creditors to swap their Treasuries into ultra long-term bonds to ease the country's debt burden. And yet, that's what Jim Bianco corralled his clients to discuss on Thursday after rumors of a so-called 'Mar-a-Lago Accord' began making the rounds. To be clear, Bianco doesn't see it happening anytime soon, if ever. But in some ways that's beside the point. Trump, he said in no uncertain terms, could very well upend the entire global financial order over the next four years, and Wall Street needs to be prepared.
/jlne.ws/4hZ5F4S
Wall Street's New Money Is Shaking Up the Ranks of the Superwealthy; Worth over $61 billion, the private credit titans made their fortunes in a once obscure corner of finance.
Tom Maloney and Benjamin Stupples - Bloomberg
Twenty years ago, swaggering hedge fund managers, leveraged buyout kings and corporate raiders would have dominated any list of masters of the Wall Street universe. Today another corner of finance has become a billionaire factory: the decidedly less glamorous business of making loans directly to Âcompanies-often small and medium-size ones, the kind that are squeezed out of the traditional bond market and are often deemed too risky for banks. This line of work has become broadly known as private credit. And it's booming. In only a decade, its assets have more than tripled, to $1.6 trillion, as institutional investors and wealthy individuals seek alternatives to regular stocks and bonds. Making private loans is lucrative, thanks to higher yields and the potential for fund managers to earn a share of gains on top of steep fees. So the world's biggest investment firms, including BlackRock Inc., are snapping up credit shops, creating unimaginable wealth for their founders.
/jlne.ws/417BAsY
Singapore to Invest $3.7 Billion With Fund Managers to Help Boost Local Stocks
David Ramli and John Cheng - Bloomberg
Singapore plans to invest S$5 billion ($3.7 billion) with fund managers to help boost the local stock market, and will start requiring some family offices to deploy a portion of their assets into domestic equities. Regulators will also make it easier for companies to list on the city-state's stock exchange, by switching to a more disclosure-based system for initial public offerings and speeding up the listing approval process.
/jlne.ws/430LVto
Wall Street Is Selling ETFs That Mimic the Private Equity Boom
Vildana Hajric - Bloomberg
Wall Street is still awaiting regulatory approval for the first full-blown private-asset ETFs, but for now opportunistic issuers are continuing to churn out products that claim to replicate the booming asset class - and stretching the definition of "liquid private equity." The movement to debut private-asset ETFs gained momentum last year after Apollo Global Management and State Street Global Advisors filed for a fund that would directly hold private credit investments. Regulators are still considering whether - and how - such a product would be allowed to function given that the underlying instruments are inherently hard to trade.
/jlne.ws/3EYZ8IZ
Trump's Cuts at US Agencies Starve Internet Watchdogs That Fight Disinformation; Fact-checking groups warn against surge of online falsehoods; Nonprofits slash operations and staff as US reduces support
Jeff Stone and Daniel Zuidijk - Bloomberg
An internet watchdog that identified participants in the Jan. 6 Capitol insurrection is preparing to cut staff. A media startup in Kosovo that hunts Russian disinformation has shuttered a weekly show amid a divisive political landscape. Privacy advocates are dialing back work in Iran that helps users in the Islamic Republic browse the web freely. Around the world, nonprofits that target online extremism and authoritarian propaganda are slashing operations and laying off employees after a government cost-cutting push led by X owner Elon Musk with President Donald Trump's blessing halted vital US support, according to nearly a dozen people familiar with the moves.
/jlne.ws/4gXQ98d
Four Banks Settle UK Gilts Collusion Case For £104 Million
Upmanyu Trivedi - Bloomberg
Four major banks will pay fines totaling over £100 million ($127 million) to settle a long-running antitrust case over collusion by their traders, who shared sensitive information in chatrooms about buying and selling gilts after the 2008 financial crisis. Traders at Citigroup Inc., HSBC Holdings Plc, Morgan Stanley and Royal Bank of Canada unlawfully shared details on pricing and trading in chatrooms between 2009 and 2013, the Competition and Markets Authority said on Friday. Deutsche Bank AG, was exempted from the penalty as it was the first to self report its involvement.
/jlne.ws/438mmqi
Investors call for shake-up of Europe's 'failed' securitisation market; Fund managers and insurers say long-overdue reforms could unlock hundreds of billions of euros in financing
Ian Smith, Euan Healy and Alan Livsey and Paola Tamma - Financial Times
Investors are urging Europe's politicians to make sweeping reforms to its moribund market for debt securitisation, in a move the industry claims could attract hundreds of billions of euros in financing for the region's economy. Asset managers including bond giant Pimco and insurers such as Italy's Generali have called for a shake-up during a consultation on EU rules governing the market, where the likes of risky corporate loans, car finance and mortgage borrowing are packaged up into debt securities that can then be sold by banks to investors.
/jlne.ws/4iaEPXo
CEO of Eurex Clearing to Step Down
Markets Media
Erik Tim Muller, CEO of Eurex Clearing AG, has informed the Supervisory Board of Eurex Clearing that he will not serve another three-year term after March 2025 and offered to assist Deutsche Borse with the transition. He will leave Deutsche Borse Group by year end 2025 to pursue new entrepreneurial opportunities. Erik Tim Muller joined Deutsche Borse in 1997, taking over Group Treasury and Investor Relations after the IPO in 2001. He then became Managing Director for Corporate Strategy and Mergers & Acquisitions. Since 2013 he is a member of the Executive Board of Eurex Clearing AG and member of the Eurex Deutschland Management Board.
/jlne.ws/4gZSQqc
IRS layoffs of 7,000 may cut revenue collection and foil efforts to snag rich tax dodgers, experts say
Fatima Hussein and the Associated Press via Fortune
The layoffs of roughly 7,000 IRS probationary workers beginning this week likely mean the end of the agency's plan to go after high-wealth tax dodgers and could spell disaster for revenue collections, experts say.
/jlne.ws/3XbrWoe
Carlyle, Thoma Bravo Shortlisted in Bidding for SmartTrade; TA Associates has also proceeded into final round of bidding; Current bids value French software firm at up to EUR600 million
Pamela Barbaglia and Swetha Gopinath - Bloomberg
Private equity firms Carlyle Group Inc. and Thoma Bravo are among the suitors shortlisted in the bidding for French software firm smartTrade Technologies, according to people with knowledge of the matter. TA Associates has also been picked to proceed into the final stage of bidding, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information isn't public. The current offers value smartTrade at about EUR550 million ($577 million) to EUR600 million, one of the people said.
/jlne.ws/3EKvLKq
JPMorgan, Charlie Javice Both Accused of Lying as Fraud Trial Begins; Prosecutor says Javice lied to make her company more valuable; Bank acquired her college-loan site for $175 million in 2021
Bob Van Voris and Jazper Lu - Bloomberg
JPMorgan Chase & Co. bought a 29-year-old entrepreneur's lies when it acquired her college financial-planning startup for $175 million, federal prosecutors told a Manhattan jury at the start of Charlie Javice's fraud trial. But Javice's lawyer said it was JPMorgan that was lying about being cheated. Instead, he said the bank cried fraud because it had "buyer's remorse" over its 2021 purchase of her company, Frank, after the government changed the rules on filing student financial aid forms through the site.
/jlne.ws/4i5OVc1
Coinbase Says the SEC Is Close to Dismissing Enforcement Case
Olga Kharif and Sonali Basak - Bloomberg
Coinbase Global Inc. (COIN) said the Securities and Exchange Commission has agreed to drop its lawsuit that accused the largest US cryptocurrency trading platform of running an illegal exchange. The agreement is pending commissioner approval. The decision is the latest retreat from the policies of former SEC Chair Gary Gensler, who officials in the crypto industry complained had sought to regulate the industry through enforcement actions. Last week, the SEC filed a request to put a similar case against Binance on hold, citing the pending development of a regulatory framework for digital assets under President Donald Trump's crypto-friendly administration.
/jlne.ws/3Qy0Fs0
***** Here is The Wall Street Journal's version of this story.~JJL
|
| | | |
|
| Trade War and Tariffs | | A roundup of today's trade war and tariff news and the global economic ripple effects shaping markets, industries, and investment strategies. | | |
| | | |
|
| World Conflicts | | News about various conflicts and their military, economic, political and humanitarian impact. | Ukraine Invasion
Exclusive: US refusing to co-sponsor UN motion backing Ukraine ahead of war anniversary, diplomats say
Tom Balmforth, Emma Farge and Sabine Siebold - Reuters
The U.S. is refusing to co-sponsor a draft U.N. resolution marking three years since Moscow's invasion of Ukraine that backs Ukraine's territorial integrity and again demands Russia withdraw its troops, three diplomatic sources told Reuters, in a potential stark shift by Ukraine's most powerful Western ally. Washington has also objected to a phrase in a statement the Group of Seven nations was planning to issue next week that would condemn Russian aggression, two other sources told Reuters.
/jlne.ws/4b9vyNa
US official says Trump's frustration with Zelenskyy is 'multifold' and blasts 'insults' from Ukraine
Aamer Madhani - Associated Press
A top White House official said Thursday that President Donald Trump's increasingly tough criticism of Volodymyr Zelenskyy reflects the administration's growing frustration with what they see as the Ukrainian leader creating roadblocks to finding an endgame to Russia's invasion of Ukraine.
/jlne.ws/4hOYhJz
Musk: Zelensky is 'despised' by the Ukrainian people
Kieran Kelly - The Telegraph
Volodymyr Zelensky is "despised" by the Ukrainian people and is "feeding off the dead bodies" of his countrymen, Elon Musk has claimed. Parroting criticisms voiced by Donald Trump, Mr Musk wrote on X that Mr Zelensky's approval ratings had slumped and accused the Ukrainian leader of rigging online opinion polls and the media to boost his popularity, without citing evidence.
/jlne.ws/4hQKCls
U.S. Doubles Down on Demand That Ukraine Sign Minerals Deal; Kyiv's refusal to sign immediately has sparked a rising war of words between Trump and Zelensky
James Marson, Alexander Ward and Alan Cullison - The Wall Street Journal
The Trump administration is stepping up its push for Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky to hand mineral rights worth hundreds of billions of dollars to the U.S., after Zelensky's initial rejection of the demand fueled President Trump's escalating broadsides against Ukraine's leader. The White House called Zelensky's refusal to sign a deal it proposed and his criticism of Trump unacceptable, a day after Zelensky said Trump is living in a "disinformation" bubble and Trump countered by calling Zelensky a dictator.
/jlne.ws/41orAgn
Middle East Conflict
Israel says hostage body returned by Hamas not Bibas mother
AFP
A Hamas official told AFP the group was investigating the matter and Bibas was likely "mistakenly mixed" with others killed and buried under the rubble in Gaza. On Thursday militants in Gaza handed back the bodies of four people they said were Israeli hostages. The transfer occurred under a fragile ceasefire which is on Saturday to see the latest swap of live Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners. Hamas's armed wing confirmed on Friday that it will release six Israelis. Hamas had said the remains returned on Thursday included those of Bibas and her two young sons, whose father the Palestinian group released earlier this month.
/jlne.ws/4hEJTUd
|
| | | |
|
| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | Erik Tim Muller to leave Eurex and Deutsche Borse Group
Deutsche Borse Group
Erik Tim Muller, CEO of Eurex Clearing AG, has informed the Supervisory Board of Eurex Clearing that he will not serve another three-year term after March 2025 and offered to assist Deutsche Borse with the transition. He will leave Deutsche Borse Group by year end 2025 to pursue new entrepreneurial opportunities. Erik Tim Muller joined Deutsche Borse in 1997, taking over Group Treasury and Investor Relations after the IPO in 2001. He then became Managing Director for Corporate Strategy and Mergers & Acquisitions. Since 2013 he is a member of the Executive Board of Eurex Clearing AG and member of the Eurex Deutschland Management Board. Erik Tim Muller also serves on the Board of ISDA and is a member of the CFTC's Global Markets Advisory Committee.
/jlne.ws/41q3ZvC
OCC Welcomes J.P. Morgan Executive Michael Kurd to Board of Directors
OCC
OCC, the world's largest equity derivatives clearing organization, today announced the appointment of Michael Kurd, Managing Director, Head of Americas Prime Financial Services at J.P. Morgan, as a Member Director to its Board of Directors. Kurd brings with him more than 20 years of experience, primarily in equity derivatives trading. "We're pleased to welcome Michael to our board as a Member Director," said Craig Donohue, OCC Chairman. "His familiarity with our industry will serve as a valuable addition to our leadership bench. Together, our Board's collective experience and guidance support our goals of driving operational excellence and innovation, helping OCC ensure confidence in the global financial markets."
/jlne.ws/4bbPtuE
ICE First Look at Mortgage Performance: Foreclosure Starts Jump as VA Moratorium Ends; Wildfire Delinquencies Emerge
Intercontinental Exchange
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE:ICE), a leading global provider of technology and data, reports the following "first look" at January 2025 month-end mortgage performance statistics derived from its loan-level database representing the majority of the national mortgage market.
/jlne.ws/4hP2k8J
Euronext Lisbon Awards 2025
Euronext
Euronext, the leading pan-European market infrastructure, today announced the winners of the 14th edition of the Euronext Lisbon Awards. These awards recognise issuers, financial intermediaries, institutions, and individuals who have made a significant impact on the Portuguese capital markets in 2024. The awards were unveiled at Euronext's annual event in Portugal, sponsored by Capgemini, and attended by prominent financial market representatives and industry leaders. The evening began with opening remarks from the Minister of State and Finance, Joaquim Miranda Sarmento, followed by a keynote address from Professor Joao Cesar das Neves on the theme: "The world went to elections in 2024: what economy can we expect in 2025?"
/jlne.ws/3EOeu3c
Change of Director's Interest Notice - David Clarke
ASX
Attached is an Appendix 3Y Change of Director's Interest Notice for David Clarke.
/jlne.ws/3XcDszH
Performance Bond Requirements: Agriculture, Energy and Interest Rates-Effective February 21, 2025
CME Group
As per the normal review of market volatility to ensure adequate collateral coverage, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc., Clearing House Risk Management staff approved the performance bond requirements for the following products listed in the advisory at the link below. The rates will be effective after the close of business on February 21, 2025.
/jlne.ws/4hNTE2p
HKEX Enhances Stock Settlement Fee Structure For Securities
Mondovisione
Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX) is pleased to announce today (Friday) enhancements to the securities market stock settlement fee structure that are aimed at boosting market efficiency and ensuring consistent fee application across all trade sizes. The current stock settlement fee structure, which includes a minimum fee of $2 and a maximum fee of $100, disproportionately impacts lower-value trades. To address this, HKEX will remove the minimum and maximum fee components, and adjust the ad valorem rate to 0.42 bps (0.0042%) for each trade. The new fee structure is designed to be cost-neutral to the market as a whole, creating a more equitable fee structure across all trade sizes.
/jlne.ws/4iayDyC
NZX Delivers Strong All-Round Performance To Enable Growth
NZX via Mondovisione
NZX today announced Group operating earnings (EBITDA) of $48.5 million (excluding integration and restructure costs) for the financial year ended 31 December 2024 - up 21%. Including integration and restructure costs, reported Group operating earnings (EBITDA) for the same period were $47.2 million - up 21.3%. "NZX continued to experience positive momentum towards achieving its strategic goals, due to the diversified nature of the Company's activities and the strong growth opportunities in front of us," NZX Board Chair John McMahon says.
/jlne.ws/4gQy9gg
Singapore dangles $3.74bn fund to jolt stock exchange Panel to review equities market woos fund managers, moots tax rebates
Nikkei Asia
Singapore on Friday proposed a 5 billion-Singapore-dollar fund ($3.74 billion) to jolt its equities market, as authorities attempt to inject some buzz into its stock exchange that some investors have called staid. The fund was suggested by a panel made up of officials and private sector leaders, which was set up last August to study the development of the local market, with the committee deciding to rope in domestic and foreign fund managers as partners to boost Singaporean equities.
/jlne.ws/4hLIQlj
|
| | | |
|
| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | Battle for Top AI Talent Brings Silicon Valley Perks to India; With its pickleball courts and mini golf, Google's new campus in Bangalore reflects the tight competition to hire engineers.
Saritha Rai - Bloomberg
An indoor mini golf course. Relaxation zones complete with hammocks. A tunnel slide between floors. For tech workers in Silicon Valley, such perks provided by companies like Google and Apple Inc. are routine. But this isn't a new complex in Mountain View - it's in Bangalore, and a sign of the growing competition to lure talent in India's tech hub amid a global boom in artificial intelligence.
/jlne.ws/3QslTHX
OpenAI Bans Accounts Appearing to Work on a Surveillance Tool; The AI startup said the accounts were likely linked to China.
Shirin Ghaffary - Bloomberg
OpenAI recently banned several accounts that had been using ChatGPT to write sales pitches and debug code for a suspected social media surveillance tool that likely originated in China, the company said - part of a broader effort by the AI startup to police malicious uses of its powerful AI models. According to a report the San Francisco startup released on Friday, the accounts were using ChatGPT to advertise and augment what they claimed was an AI assistant capable of collecting real-time data and reports about anti-China protests in the US, UK and other Western countries. That information would then be relayed to Chinese authorities, the report said.
/jlne.ws/4i8PdyX
|
| | | |
|
| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | SEC Replaces Crypto Enforcement Team with Smaller 'Cyber' Unit
Nicola M White - Bloomberg
The US Securities and Exchange Commission is replacing its enforcement unit devoted to misconduct in the cryptocurrency markets, the latest sign of the regulator's more friendly approach to digital assets. In its stead, there will be a smaller team with a broader mandate to combat all kinds of cyber-related fraud, including through the use of social media platforms, artificial intelligence, machine learning and blockchain technologies, the agency said Thursday.
/jlne.ws/41qETwH
|
| | | |
|
| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | Financial Institutions Support Administration's Effort To Maintain U.S. Leadership In Digital Assets
Mondovisione
Leading financial services trade associations voiced strong support today for the goals of the President's Working Group on Digital Asset Markets. The organizations include the Bank Policy Institute, American Bankers Association, Americas Focus Committee of the Association of Global Custodians, Financial Services Forum, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association and The Clearing House Association. In a joint letter, the Associations propose recommendations to bolster U.S. leadership in digital assets by removing obstacles to bank engagement with digital asset activities.
/jlne.ws/3EQ5EC4
Trump Crypto Push Leaves World No Choice but to Embrace Digital Assets: Bitpanda's Demuth
Helene Braun - CoinDesk
In the wake of shifting U.S. policy, the crypto landscape is undergoing a fundamental change - from fast-moving speculative bets to long-term, anchored investments, said Bitpanda CEO Eric Demuth during a fireside chat at Consensus Hong Kong on Wednesday. Demuth said the 2024 bull run wasn't a repeat of the retail-fueled 2021 cycle. Instead, it was being driven by what he calls "sticky money" - institutional capital that's less volatile and more committed.
/jlne.ws/4kbn4t6
U.S. Crypto Investors Are Still Piling Into Memecoins Despite the Huge Risks: Kraken
Will Canny - CoinDesk
Crypto investors are still piling into memecoins despite the outsized risks associated with this type of digital asset, Kraken said in a report on Wednesday, after conducting a survey of holders in the U.S.. 85% of respondents said that they invested in memecoins, and 76% said they believed the "potential rewards justify the risks."
/jlne.ws/4b7GE5f
Time for the SEC to get serious on crypto; There is a real opportunity to take this industry forward by creating a sensible regulatory framework
Ari Rubenstein - Financial Times
With a new chair incoming at the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Trump administration has an opportunity to return US markets regulation to a more predictable path. President Donald Trump's pick of Paul Atkins is a good start. He'll have his hands full in unravelling former chair Gary Gensler's activist campaign at the SEC while addressing a number of consequential challenges. These include competition from overseas rivals, reviving the flow of initial public offerings and the need to create a regulatory framework for crypto assets.
/jlne.ws/3XbhOMb
Bitcoin Hashrate Growth Slows Amid Tough Market Conditions for Smaller Miners
Tom Carreras - CoinDesk
After months of rapid expansion, Bitcoin's hashrate growth slowed down in January, according to the latest report from TheMinerMag. The network's difficulty saw its first decline since September, indicating that even though publicly listed companies have kept increasing their hash power, their growth isn't enough to compensate for the capitulation of other, probably smaller operators.
/jlne.ws/3D2tV7i
Dan Patrick's new plan would only enrich crypto bros with millions of dollars of taxpayers' money
Chris Tomlinson, Columnist - The Houston Chronicle
Cryptocurrency bros are not satisfied with making money off our wobbly electric grid, now they've convinced Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick to spend tens of millions of taxpayer dollars on a Strategic Bitcoin Reserve to boost an industry that many experts warn will end in tears. Patrick made creating the reserve one of his top priorities. In testimony before the Senate Business and Commerce Committee, Texas Comptroller of Public Accounts Glenn Hegar, the state's chief financial officer, said he worked on Senate Bill 21, but he still couldn't answer basic questions even though he would manage the fund.
/jlne.ws/3QvAX7y
|
| | | |
|
| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Trump Dismantles Government Fight Against Foreign Influence Operations; Dozens of employees who had been working to fight foreign interference in U.S. elections have been reassigned or forced out, according to current and former officials.
Steven Lee Myers, Julian E. Barnes and Sheera Frenkel - The New York Times
The Trump administration is targeting government officials who had been flagging foreign interference in U.S. elections, despite ongoing concerns that adversaries are stoking political and social divisions by spreading propaganda and disinformation online, current and former government officials said.
/jlne.ws/3Dexwz4
Trump Takes Aim at San Francisco Park Treasured by Nancy Pelosi
Eliyahu Kamisher and Biz Carson - Bloomberg
President Donald Trump is looking to scale back the federal agency that manages a treasured San Francisco park that is also a hallmark of Representative Nancy Pelosi's legislative legacy. Trump ordered the Presidio Trust, which manages a sprawling green space dotted with rehabilitated military barracks in view of the Golden Gate Bridge, to slash "all non-statutory components and functions." The White House called the Presidio Trust a "Nancy Pelosi pet project" and took aim at the trust's board of directors, who include Democratic donors.
/jlne.ws/4gSpKss
Apple's Tim Cook Meeting With Trump as Tariffs Threaten iPhones
Akayla Gardner and Kate Sullivan - Bloomberg
President Donald Trump is meeting with Apple Inc. CEO Tim Cook at the White House on Thursday, according to a person familiar with their plans. The person shared the details of the meeting on the condition of anonymity, but did not provide the agenda for the discussion. Cook is among the tech industry leaders who have sought to nurture a close relationship with the president since his reelection, attending his inauguration last month and traveling to his Mar-a-Lago estate in Florida during the presidential transition.
/jlne.ws/3D1ma1m
Treasury agrees to block DOGE's access to personal taxpayer data at IRS; U.S. DOGE Service reps will see anonymized tax data, not individual returns.
Jacob Bogage - The Washington Post
The Trump White House and Treasury Department officials have agreed to prohibit the U.S. DOGE Service from accessing personal taxpayer data, according to two people familiar with the arrangement, heading off a brewing privacy crisis at the tax agency. Gavin Kliger, a software engineer with Elon Musk's DOGE effort assigned to the IRS, will have read-only access to anonymized tax data, the same access granted to academic researchers and IT professionals who work on IRS systems, said the people, who spoke on the condition of anonymity to share details of the agreement.
/jlne.ws/3EQa9MY
Mitch McConnell Won't Seek Another Term in Senate; Longtime Republican lawmaker helped Trump enact agenda but also clashed with the president
Siobhan Hughes - The Wall Street Journal
WASHINGTON-Sen. Mitch McConnell (R., Ky.) said he wouldn't seek another term, winding down the career of a party leader known for brass-knuckled partisanship in pushing through conservative policy as well as his tangles with President Trump. McConnell, who turns 83 Thursday, was set to make a formal announcement from the floor of the Senate, where he has served since 1985. McConnell, who was the longest-running Senate party leader in U.S. history, stepped aside from that role at the end of the last Congress.
/jlne.ws/4k52z15
Fox News, CNN and Other News Outlets Urge White House to Drop Ban on The A.P.; Dozens of major news organizations, including some conservative outlets, urged the Trump administration to stop blocking The Associated Press from press events.
Katie Robertson - The New York Times
Dozens of major news organizations, including CNN, The Washington Post and Fox News, wrote to the White House this week urging the Trump administration to immediately lift its ban on The Associated Press, which had been prohibited from attending a number of official press events over the past week. The White House has said it is blocking reporters from the news service because the outlet refers to the Gulf of Mexico in its articles, rather than "Gulf of America," as decreed by President Trump in an executive order on Jan. 20.
/jlne.ws/3ERKwv9
Trump Free Speech Attack on Europe Sets Up Big Tech Fight; Allies of president eager to boost far-right parties in Europe; EU social-media laws under fire from Trump and US tech giants
Gian Volpicelli and Alberto Nardelli - Bloomberg
Donald Trump's administration is using freedom of speech as the latest line of attack on the European Union in a campaign that's shaking the foundations of an alliance that stretches back to the dawn of the Cold War. The interest in free speech, which includes attacks on European protections against election interference from malign actors such as Russia, appears focused on boosting far-right parties. Trump has found allies among tech magnates like Elon Musk and Mark Zuckerberg, who are fighting regulators' attempts to rein in US tech giants.
/jlne.ws/4i814xo
Poland's political rift deepens as 'coup' allegations fly; Ultraconservative opposition allege Tusk government planning to interfere in presidential election
Raphael Minder and Natalia Sawka in Warsaw - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/3D3867K
|
| | | |
|
| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | US president to oversee financial institution regulation amid deregulation drive
Dan Barnes - Markets Media
New executive orders signed by US president, Donald Trump, have given him oversight of all US financial regulation, outside of monetary policy, while also setting a deregulatory agenda. The first order, entitled 'Ensuring Accountability for All Agencies', signed on 18 February 2025, decries the lack of accountability to the President "and through him, to the American people" of "so-called 'independent regulatory agencies'". It also notes that the agencies have been permitted to "promulgate significant regulations without review by the President."
/jlne.ws/4362R1G
Justice Dept. to Drop Discrimination Case Against Elon Musk's SpaceX; The Justice Department had sued SpaceX in 2023, accusing the company of violating federal law by refusing to hire refugees and people granted asylum in the United States.
Qasim Nauman - The New York Times
The U.S. Justice Department said Thursday that it would dismiss a case against Elon Musk's SpaceX, in which the rocket company had been accused of discriminating against people based on their citizenship status. In an unopposed motion filed with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, the Justice Department said it intended to file a notice of dismissal with prejudice, which means prosecutors would not be able to file these charges again. The motion did not say why the case was being dropped.
/jlne.ws/4aXlK8H
Analysis-China regulatory easing hopes brighten outlook for offshore equity fundraising
Kane Wu and Scott Murdoch - Reuters
Chinese companies, mainly those in the tech sector, are accelerating plans to raise funds offshore, tapping into a rebound in investor sentiment fueled by hopes of Beijing's support for private firms and the popularity of DeepSeek, bankers said. In a sign of the pickup in offshore equity sale momentum, two tech companies raised $500 million in total this week alone, and bankers and lawyers said a growing list of firms is preparing to launch offshore equity sales in the coming months.
/jlne.ws/41cs3AQ
DOJ, SEC Investigating $32 Million CrowdStrike Deal With Carahsoft; $32 million deal to sell cyber tools to IRS under examination; Security firm stands behind accounting of 2023 transaction
Jake Bleiberg - Bloomberg
US prosecutors and regulators are investigating a $32 million deal between CrowdStrike Holdings Inc. and a technology distributor to provide cybersecurity tools to the Internal Revenue Service, according to two people familiar with the matter and a document seen by Bloomberg News. Investigators for the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission have been interviewing people and collecting records related to the deal, according to the document and people. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the matter.
/jlne.ws/3D3c1Bu
SEC Announces Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit to Protect Retail Investors
Laura D'Allaird appointed chief of the new unit
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced the creation of the Cyber and Emerging Technologies Unit (CETU) to focus on combatting cyber-related misconduct and to protect retail investors from bad actors in the emerging technologies space. The CETU, led by Laura D'Allaird, replaces the Crypto Assets and Cyber Unit and is comprised of approximately 30 fraud specialists and attorneys across multiple SEC offices.
/jlne.ws/4iaEjIY
Introductory Remarks at the 2nd Annual Judge Stanley Sporkin SEC Division of Enforcement Directors Panel
Mark T. Uyeda - SEC
Judge Sporkin served as the Director of Enforcement from 1974 to 1981. He saw enormous changes in technology and the financial markets during his time at the SEC, and later as a federal judge. In the late 1980s, Judge Sporkin said, "I cannot recall any period in the past where change has been so dramatic and rapid. What we are seeing is literally happening before our eyes."[1] He held up the typewriter as one example of the demise of entire products and industries, before observing that the changes "so permeate our society that they will have a substantial impact on the future structure and performance of our financial markets."[2] Sitting here today, it might be hard to imagine how the demise of the typewriter could have an impact on financial markets. But back then, it was just one of many changes happening all at once. If you look at all the changes happening now, it's not so hard to imagine.
/jlne.ws/4120j1G
SEC Granted Summary Judgment and Obtains Final Judgment Against Individual in $33 Million Fraud Scheme
SEC
On January 24, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York granted the SEC's motion for summary judgment and ordered final judgment against James B. Panther, Jr. for his role in a fraudulent scheme to secretly control and inflate the price of shares of a microcap issuer, and then make millions by selling shares to unwitting investors.
/jlne.ws/3EYCtMW
SEC Obtains Final Judgments Against Recidivist and His Companies in Offering Fraud Scheme
SEC
On December 23, 2024, the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California entered final consent judgments against Christopher Slaga a/k/a Keith Renko and his companies, Q4 Capital Group, LLC and J4 Capital Advisors LLC. The entry of the final consent judgments resolves all claims arising out of the SEC's complaint, filed on August 7, 2023, which alleged that the defendants defrauded investors when they raised $3.5 million between 2018 and 2022 through an unregistered offering of interests in three purported private investment funds. The complaint charged Slaga, Q4 Capital Group, and J4 Capital Advisors with violations of Sections 5(a), 5(c), and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder.
/jlne.ws/3EYZyix
SEC Obtains Final Judgments Against Perpetrators of Fraudulent Mortgage Investment Scheme and Ponzi Scheme
SEC
On January 28, 2025, the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas entered final judgments against Thurman P. Bryant, III, Bryant United Capital Funding, Inc., Arthur F. Wammel, and Wammel Group, LLC. The entries of the final judgments resolve all claims arising out of the SEC's complaint, filed on May 15, 2017, and amended on January 26, 2018. The amended complaint alleged that Bryant and Bryant United fraudulently raised $22.7 million from investors based on false promises of guaranteed investment returns in the mortgage industry. The amended complaint also alleged that Wammel and Wammel Group operated a related $44.7 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded Bryant's investors and others. The amended complaint charged defendants with violations of Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 and Section 10(b) the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder.
/jlne.ws/4i8NFVF
AustralianSuper fined $27 million after ASIC investigation into failing to merge multiple superannuation accounts
ASIC
AustralianSuper, the trustee of Australia's largest superannuation fund, will pay a $27 million penalty after the Federal Court today found that it failed to merge multiple member accounts. The Court held this to be a breach of the fundamental duties and obligations AustralianSuper owed to its members, and that it was inexcusable for Australian Super not to have had the processes and systems in place to ensure compliance.
/jlne.ws/3XcSZ2j
FCA announces winners of its economics research competition
FCA
The FCA has announced the winners of its research competition, which aims to increase understanding of how regulation can support economic growth. Six projects have been selected and awarded funding of up to £30,000 each. The competition, launched in November 2024, attracted 43 entries from 41 organisations, including academics, think tanks and consultancies.
/jlne.ws/3QugnEM
Our T+1 journey starts now
FCA
Speech by Mark Francis, interim director of wholesale markets sell-side, at UK Accelerated Settlement Taskforce industry event.
/jlne.ws/3XdEqeN
A comprehensive set of measures to strengthen Singapore's equities market
MAS
The Equities Market Review Group has announced its first set of measures to strengthen the competitiveness of Singapore's equities market. This includes the three tax incentives announced by the Prime Minister and Minister of Finance at Budget 2025 on 18 February 2025.
/jlne.ws/3ENEcot
SFC forges consensus with regional counterparts on regulatory roadmap for sustainability, technology and investor protection
SFC
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) spearheaded dialogues among Asia-Pacific securities regulators at the regional committee meetings of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO), reaching common ground on the future pathways to tackle wide-ranging capital market issues. Chaired by the SFC's Chief Executive Officer Ms Julia Leung, the IOSCO Asia-Pacific Regional Committee (APRC) met for three days from 19 to 21 February 2025 in Vietnam to foster collaboration on issues of mutual interest (Note 1). Members agreed on a coordinated regional approach to tackle scams and online harm. They also shared experiences and techniques to detect and investigate investment frauds and to harness the transformative forces of technology in addressing emerging issues.
/jlne.ws/41rLtDl
New speech by Julia Leung: Keynote speech at Vietnam State Securities Commission Symposium
SFC
A speech titled "Living with Complexities: An Asian Perspective on Enhancing Capital Market Resilience" delivered by Ms Julia Leung at the Vietnam State Securities Commission Symposium was posted on the SFC website today.
/jlne.ws/4bdcPQJ
Canadian Securities Administrators Announces Temporary Exemptions For Derivatives Market Participants
Mondovisione
The Canadian Securities Administrators (CSA) today published Coordinated Blanket Order 96-933, which provides temporary exemptions from certain derivatives data reporting requirements relating to unique product identifiers for commodity derivatives. The Coordinated Blanket Order enables market participants to continue to report unique product identifiers for commodity derivatives as required under current derivatives trade reporting rules after amendments to those rules come into effect on July 25, 2025.
/jlne.ws/3EJnE0I
|
| | | |
|
| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Hedge Funds Reload Option Trades for Yen Gains in Coming Months; Macro funds buying yen call options versus various currencies; Yen call volume larger than put volume on CME on Friday
David Finnerty - Bloomberg
After their bullish yen trades were tested last week, hedge funds have wagered again that the Japanese currency will outperform its major peers in coming months. So-called macro hedge funds that try to profit from market swings caused by political or economic events have continued to buy yen call options this week against a range of currencies including the dollar, euro and Swiss franc, according to traders. Yen call options trading volume versus the dollar on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Group's options central limit order book was 93% of the total compared with just 7% for put options as of 2:37 p.m. in Hong Kong.
/jlne.ws/3QvDejg
Wall Street after hours: brokerage firms are extending trading hours to 24/5
Preston Fore - Fortune
For many investors, 4 p.m. on the East Coast is an important part of their day. This brief respite provides an opportunity to digest the day's events, analyze market trends, and formulate strategies for the next trading session. But for others, the day is just beginning-thanks to a growing demand in finance for more trading access.
/jlne.ws/4gQJuwL
SwapsInfo Full Year 2024 and the Fourth Quarter of 2024
ISDA
Interest rate derivatives (IRD) trading activity increased in 2024, driven by interest rate volatility, adjustments in central bank policies and shifting market expectations on inflation and economic growth. Index credit derivatives also saw increased activity, as measured by traded notional, as market participants responded to a changing macroeconomic environment. Factors including credit spread fluctuations, corporate default concerns and geopolitical uncertainties led to higher demand for credit hedging.
/jlne.ws/3X9DKHx
Why Avoiding Investments Is as Important as Investing; On Merryn Talks Money, Stray Reflections' Jawad Mian explains why stock market trends in the '60s and '70s should inform you today.
Merryn Somerset Webb - Bloomberg
Every decade has its story for investors. The 1970s were all about gold. The 1980s were all about Japan. In the 1990s it was the Internet. In the 2000s, we all shoveled money into China and emerging markets. And in the 2010s, we had eyes for nothing but software and American exceptionalism. So what's next? That's the question Jawad Mian, founder and managing editor of Stray Reflections, tries to answer on this week's Merryn Talks Money.
/jlne.ws/4hPjrr2
A Stock Trader's Guide to Navigating High-Stakes German Vote; Domestic stocks might benefit from possible debt brake reform; DAX Index is most expensive to European peers in 15 years
Isolde MacDonogh and Michael Msika - Bloomberg
A federal election is looming for a German equity market trading near all-time highs, and the impact is set to reverberate most across the country's smaller stocks and sectors like defense and real estate. The country's benchmark DAX Index has been partly buoyed by hopes that Conservative front-runner Friedrich Merz will team up with the Social Democratic Party and potentially the Greens to secure a robust voting majority in parliament. That's seen as key to pushing through much-needed economic reforms and any potential loosening of strict borrowing rules, known as the so-called debt brake.
/jlne.ws/4bfbXeC
Energy stocks outperform so far this year as natural gas prices soar
Ines Ferre - Yahoo Finance
Thanks to natural gas, energy stocks have been outperforming other sectors and the broader market. Year to date, the S&P 500 Energy ETF (XLE) is up more than 7%, compared to the broad-based index's rise of almost 4%. "The energy strength is in natural gas (boosted by cold weather), pipelines, and midstream companies," Louis Navellier, founder and chief investment officer of Navellier & Associates, told Yahoo Finance.
/jlne.ws/3Qy7kCw
|
| | | |
|
| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | What an idle copper mine in Panama says about the green transition; Just as the country is battling Donald Trump's threats over the Panama Canal, a bitter environmental feud has reopened over the future of the country's biggest mining project
Michael Stott and Leslie Hook - Financial Times
Earlier this month, board members from the Canadian mining company First Quantum Minerals assembled in a conference room in Panama with a view of one of their prize assets: a vast, open-pit copper mine, set in the lush green Central American rainforest. The snag? The Cobre Panamá mine, one of the biggest and most modern of its kind in the world, has been closed since November 2023. It has no immediate prospect of reopening.
/jlne.ws/4kcRYBo
Useless High-Voltage Power Lines Risk Sparking California Fires; A line idle for decades has been accused of starting the LA area's deadly Eaton Fire.
Mark Chediak and Dave Merrill - Bloomberg
Across drought-prone California, high-voltage power lines that haven't been needed in years hang unused from steel towers - a fire risk hiding in plain sight. One, near Los Angeles, has been accused of sparking January's Eaton Fire, which leveled the community of Altadena and killed 17 people. Another, in Northern California Wine Country, triggered a 2019 blaze that destroyed more than 370 structures.
/jlne.ws/41pe6kh
UK Moves to Ease Offshore Wind Rules to Boost Renewables Rollout; Government unveils its proposals to speed up projects; That includes relaxing planning rules for offshore wind
Eamon Farhat - Bloomberg
The UK government unveiled reforms to speed up the rollout of renewable energy projects such as offshore wind as it targets a clean power system by 2030. The planned changes center around so-called contracts for difference that guarantee fixed prices for power producers and which have been key in driving investment in renewables. The key proposals include relaxing of planning rules for offshore wind, changing how budgets are set and extending contract terms to improve cost effectiveness.
/jlne.ws/41rMI5x
Coca-Cola Warns of Potential Negative Impact From DEI Changes; Beverage company's website still lists diversity targets; Rival PepsiCo has retreated from its DEI initiatives
Brett Pulley - Bloomberg
Coca-Cola Co. warned that policies that could lead to a less diverse global workforce pose a potential risk to its business going forward. The Atlanta-based company included the cautionary statement in an annual filing, which comes as a broad range of companies respond to President Donald Trump's push to end diversity, equity and inclusion programs.
/jlne.ws/3QsCZpe
Citi Scraps Diversity Goals, 'DEI' Term Under Trump Pressure
Todd Gillespie - Bloomberg
Citigroup Inc. is ending workplace representation goals and removing requirements to interview job candidates from diverse backgrounds, citing pressure from the Trump administration. The bank will no longer have "aspirational representation goals" except as required by local law, and abandon a policy for diversity in candidates and interview panels, according to a memo to staff from Chief Executive Officer Jane Fraser seen by Bloomberg News.
/jlne.ws/3QtYdTs
|
| | | |
|
| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | UK Bank Bosses Enjoy Bumper Pay After Cap on Bonuses Ends
William Shaw, Aisha S Gani, and Harry Wilson - Bloomberg
The bosses of the UK's biggest banks are for the most part enjoying bumper pay days, with some looking forward to even bigger maximum awards as the country lifts its cap on variable remuneration. Chief executives at Barclays Plc, HSBC Holdings Plc, NatWest Group Plc, Lloyds Banking Group Plc and Standard Chartered Plc took home a combined £37 million ($46.8 million) in 2024, up a third on £28 million the previous year. That number covers all remuneration, including salaries and bonuses.
/jlne.ws/3CQaZsv
Standard Chartered CEO Bill Winters says bonus cap led to 'grotesque' banker pay rises; Lender reduces chief executive's basic pay by 40% but higher reward possible after UK's abolition of cap
Kaye Wiggins and Ortenca Aliaj in London - Financial Times
Standard Chartered boss Bill Winters has hit out at the "grotesque" incentives created by a cap on bankers' bonuses, as the lender used the UK's abolition of the rules to slash his salary by 40 per cent and boost his potential performance-based payout. "The effect of the [bonus cap] was everybody got a grotesque increase in fixed pay," the chief executive told reporters on Friday. "I say grotesque because it was exactly the wrong incentive to...clip coupons and not do a very good job."
/jlne.ws/4hP4hlz
How Banks Turned Into Giant Synthetic Hedge Funds; Are lenders in the business of making big bets?
Joe Weisenthal and Tracy Alloway - Bloomberg
Hedge funds are notorious for making big and sometimes risky trades. Banks, meanwhile, are supposed to be a lot more boring by comparison - for obvious reasons. But in recent years, we've seen banks like Silicon Valley Bank make some pretty bad bets themselves. Elham Saeidinezhad, an assistant economics professor at Barnard College, Columbia University, argues that banks have been turning into giant "synthetic hedge funds" by blending traditional lending activities with advanced financial strategies. The big question, of course, is whether they should be doing this at all, given that banks typically operate with a lot more regulatory constraint and might not be as nimble when it comes to entering or exiting positions.
/jlne.ws/41ogXu2
Howard Lutnick gives top Cantor Fitzgerald jobs to his sons Brandon and Kyle
Todd Gillespie, Max Abelson and Bloomberg via Fortune
"Until I run the game, I've got everything to gain," the hip-hop artist Kxtz once rapped. The 20-something wasn't kidding. His real name is Kyle Lutnick, son of the Wall Street billionaire who just became US Commerce secretary. Now, Kyle and his younger brother Brandon have been elevated to the top of their father's sprawling financial empire.
/jlne.ws/437UQtc
Citi, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and Royal Bank of Canada fined a combined $127 million for U.K. bond information exchange
AFP via Fortune
Four major banks have been fined for breaching competition laws by sharing "sensitive" information on UK government bond trading in online chats, Britain's financial regulator said Friday. Citi, HSBC, Morgan Stanley and Royal Bank of Canada will pay a combined total of over £100 million ($127 million) in fines for anti-competitive activities between 2009 and 2013, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said.
/jlne.ws/3ENzYgB
BlackRock Resumes Talks With Companies Following SEC Guidance
Silla Brush - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/4b7kdxb
Amundi lists 11 ETFs in London; Move underlines its 'commitment to UK market', French manager says
Sandra Heistruvers - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/4gUMAQr
|
| | | |
|
| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | While Wall Street pushes 5-day RTO, fintech Revolut is doubling down on hybrid work
Luisa Beltrain - Fortune
While some of the nation's biggest banks continue to push return to office mandates (and rile up some employees who aren't happy about it), one fintech is going in the opposite direction.
/jlne.ws/3XcBOhv
Meta reduces stock options for staff despite trading at record highs, FT reports
Reuters
Meta Platforms has cut back on its yearly distribution of stock options by about 10% for tens of thousands of employees despite the social media giant trading at record highs this month, the Financial Times reported on Thursday. Employees receive equity refreshers every year that make up the majority of their remuneration, alongside base salaries and annual bonuses, the FT reported. These stack and "vest" every three months over four years.
/jlne.ws/41qRAro
US moves to dismiss SpaceX discrimination lawsuit; Musk had rejected allegations that rocket maker unlawfully discriminated against asylum seekers and refugees
Joe Miller - Financial Times
The US government has indicated it will drop a long-running case against Elon Musk's SpaceX, in which it had alleged that the company's hiring procedures unlawfully discriminated against asylum seekers and refugees. The Department of Justice's move comes as Musk, who has repeatedly criticised the case, takes an increasingly prominent role in President Donald Trump's administration, overseeing aggressive cost-cutting measures across government, including at agencies that regulate his six businesses.
/jlne.ws/436sdMN
|
| | | |
|
| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | DOGE shut the funding spigot for medical research overnight. Scientists are calling it 'the end of science' in America
Stuart Dyos - Fortune
The Trump administration's vow to cut $4 billion in medical research targets so-called indirect funding, which he claims to be wasteful. But these costs are key to allowing medical institutions to exist, with scientists decrying the budget moves as a death blow that could lead top American scientists to jump ship to China and alter the scientific exchange of data. Recently, the medical research communities saw their livelihoods flash before their eyes as the Trump administration announced the world's leading benefactor in medical research grants was being put on a diet.
/jlne.ws/4irTBcL
The bird flu outlook has only gotten worse
Lucy Shapiro - Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists
H5N1 avian influenza has been nothing if not a slow-boil crisis. The outlook took a turn for the worse in 2021 when birds brought the virus from Europe to America, mirroring 2014, when Asian migratory flocks sparked widespread outbreaks in the United States and Canada. Both these events led to mass infection of domestic poultry and resulted in the culling of millions of chickens. But the outbreaks that began in 2021 and continue to this day have an additional feature: This time, mammals like seals and big cats have also been infected in large numbers, turning up dead on beaches, in zoos, and elsewhere.
/jlne.ws/4ibbNan
Soaring Egg Prices Reignite Debate Over Bird Flu Vaccinations; Egg companies want government to approve treatment for use on farms, but poultry producers wary of economic toll
Patrick Thomas - The Wall Street Journal
The chicken and egg industries are at odds. The argument isn't over which came first but about bird flu vaccinations. Egg companies are calling for a stronger government response to the bird flu outbreak with the virus roiling farms and sending egg prices soaring. They are also petitioning regulators to greenlight a vaccine that could be administered on farms, a sharp reversal from their position a few years ago.
/jlne.ws/41cpgHS
|
| | | |
|
| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | China's Liquidity Crunch Extends Even as PBOC Injects Cash; Central bank added a net 84 billion yuan via operations; Repo rates remain elevated as cash stress continues in market Bloomberg News
China's ramp-up in liquidity injections has failed to alleviate a squeeze in the money market, keeping borrowing costs elevated. The People's Bank of China added a net 84 billion yuan ($11.6 billion) of short-term funds in daily open market operations on Friday, according to Bloomberg calculations. That's the largest single-day infusion so far in February, when the central bank has been draining liquidity in most sessions.
/jlne.ws/3QrnDkT
India Market Buzz: Mutual Funds Beat Foreign Investor Favorites
Ashutosh Joshi - Bloomberg
Good morning, this is Ashutosh Joshi, an equities reporter in Mumbai. Nifty futures suggest a subdued opening this morning as Asian markets trade in a narrow range. The big news today include Tesla's plans to ship a few thousand cars to India and the release of HSBC's preliminary February surveys, offering insight into the economy's health. Traders tracking weekly charts see the 22,700-22,800 range as a crucial support zone for the Nifty.
/jlne.ws/4bf9Ebs
RBI to Inject $10 Billion Via Forex Swap to Curb Cash Crunch; Forex swap auction to be held on Feb. 28, RBI statement; Liquidity addtion to help lower short-term rates, Dash says
Subhadip Sircar - Bloomberg
India's central bank plans to inject $10 billion through a foreign-exchange swap as it ramps up efforts to tackle a cash crunch in the banking system. The three-year swap auction will be held on Feb. 28, the Reserve Bank of India said in a statement on Friday.
/jlne.ws/3EOjjcO
|
| | | |
|
Disclaimer: All John Lothian Newsletters, JohnLothianNews.com, MarketsWiki.com and MarketsReformWiki.com are products of John Lothian News, a division of John J. Lothian & Company, Inc. The opinions expressed in all John J. Lothian & Company, Inc. publications are strictly those of their respective editors. They are intended solely for informative purposes and are not to be construed, under any circumstances, by implication or otherwise, as an offer to sell or a solicitation to buy or trade in any commodities or securities herein named. Information is obtained from sources believed to be reliable, but is in no way guaranteed. No guarantee of any kind is implied or possible where projections of future conditions are attempted. Security futures are not suitable for all customers. Futures and options trading involve risk. Past results are no indication of future performance. Nothing on any John J. Lothian & Company site should be considered an endorsement by any sponsor of any website or newsletter content.
© 2025 John J. Lothian & Company, Inc. All Rights Reserved. |
|
|
