| November 09, 2023 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
The big industry news this morning is CQG announcing it has entered into an agreement for its senior management to buy the firm from founder Tim Mather. Details of the transaction, expected to be completed this month, were not disclosed. At FIA EXPO 2023, CQG CEO Ryan Moroney hinted he would have some big news that I would like, but said nothing more. JLN hopes to have an interview with Moroney later today that we will have for tomorrow's newsletter.
The bond market has a knack for giving different bonds nicknames depending on attributes or origin. There are the gilts, JGBs and bunds. Back when I was a futures broker, I had a Commodity Trading Advisor customer who traded all kinds of foreign bond futures, including Italian government bonds, colloquially known as "BTPs," which stands for "Buoni del Tesoro Poliennali." The market called BTPs "Vinnies."
Now the bond market has come up with a less offensive name for the AT1 bonds that were supposed to be under boycott after Swiss authorities wiped out $17 billion in AT1 bonds during the demise of Credit Suisse. After UBS raised $3.5 billion in AT1 bonds this week, the new bonds were christened as "Dory Bonds." Dory Bonds as in Dory from the movie Finding Nemo, the one who struggles with short-term memory loss. This sounds about right.
The big financial shindig in Hong Kong produced many gripes from various investment bank CEOs, The Wall Street Journal reports in a story titled "Wall Street Bosses Got Together This Week. They Had a Few Gripes."
The Industry Person of the Year Award is designed to celebrate those individuals who have made a significant impact on their own organization and, equally, the industry externally, with a commitment to bettering and future proofing the markets for years to come.
Also, The Trade reported that Christoph Hock, the head of multi-asset trading at Union Investment, was recognized with the Lifetime Achievement Award at Leaders in Trading 2023 gala awards. This award is in recognition of significant contribution and longstanding service to the industry.
The whole list of the winners of the Leaders in Trading 2023 announced at the event last night at The Savoy Hotel in London can be found HERE.
As the saying goes, you can run, but you cannot hide. According to Bloomberg,
"'No One Is Safe From Climate Change' After Hottest 12 Months Ever Recorded." The subheading of the story is "Extreme weather and heat affected almost every human during an 'extraordinary' 12 months of climate hazards, researchers said."
BMLL is offering something it calls "View from the Feed" that examines the market behavior of key futures contracts across CME, Eurex and IC over the past six months. It uses BMLL's granular Level 3 Data to explore the micro-structure for a variety of future assets. BMLL says, "The metrics used to describe the market state include Liquidity, Volatility, Iceberg order (CME), and more."
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 yesterday on JLN Options were:
Investors spurn options hedges as U.S. stock rally crushes fear from Reuters.
Big hedge funds pay 'silly' money, says founder of Europe's largest manager from the Financial Times.
New Cboe CEO to Refocus Strategy on Less M&A from Traders Magazine. ~JB
Subscribe to the JLN Options Newsletter HERE (it's free).
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The Russell 2000 Index provides live index tracking data, with historical performance dating back to January 1984. Academic and practitioner research confirms that large-cap stocks behave differently to small-cap stocks and performance is variable. There are sub-periods during which the Russell 1000 outperforms the Russell 2000 and vice versa. Quarterly performance assessments provide valuable datapoints for understanding market sentiment and US economic activity. View the report: Russell 2000 Index Quarterly Chartbook - October 2023 | LSEG"
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Nasdaq's Greg Ferrari on Using AI in Derivatives and Nasdaq's New Order Type
JohnLothianNews.com
Greg Ferrari, vice president, exchange business management at Nasdaq, was one of the presenters on a panel at FIA Expo 2023 called, "AI in Action: Use Cases in Derivatives." He sat down with Sarah Rudolph of John Lothian News at Expo to talk about the panel and how Nasdaq is using AI, especially regarding options.
Watch the video »
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Citigroup to Pay $25.9 Million for Armenian-American Discrimination; Bank singled out credit-card applicants based on surname: CFPB; Company says that 'a few employees took impermissible actions'
Daniel Taub and Jennifer Surane - Bloomberg
Citigroup Inc. was ordered to pay $25.9 million in fines and redress for illegally discriminating against credit-card applicants the bank identified as Armenian American. The bank, from 2015 to 2021, singled out applicants for certain credit-card products suspected of being of Armenian descent, based on their surnames, then Citigroup supervisors conspired to hide the discrimination by instructing employees not to discuss the practices in writing or on recorded phone lines, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau said in a statement Wednesday. The bank will pay $1.4 million to harmed consumers along with a $24.5 million penalty.
/jlne.ws/3MCsoGJ
***** As a somewhat honorary Armenian (I have a good friend who is of Armenian ancestry and my name ends in "ian"), I wonder if I was caught in this Citi net?~JJL
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The Coffee Futures Got Stale; Also Prophecy, hedge fund pay, Bridgewater's clever computer, UBS AT1s and NFT/AI emotional support cats.
Matt Levine - Bloomberg
Fresh coffee. The way I like to think about commodities futures is that there are two metaphysically distinct types of each commodity. Consider nickel. There is the sort of nickel that is produced by producers and delivered to industrial users for making cars or whatever. If you want nickel to make cars, you will negotiate with a supplier for a particular amount of a particular grade of nickel to show up in particular shapes at a particular time and location.
/jlne.ws/4678zOF
****** Matt Levine rubbing two nickels together for a cup of coffee.~JJL
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Dissecting Gensler's Treasury speech; Or, how to make enemies and annoy (the right) people
Robin Wigglesworth - Financial Times
Earlier this week we wrote about Ken Griffin's annoyance with the SEC and its efforts to clamp down on the Treasury basis trade. Yesterday the SEC's Gary Gensler gave an interesting speech laying out his own views. You can read the whole thing here. It talks about the dangers of leverage and opacity in the Treasury market, and features a fun anecdote from a meeting he had as a young investment banker at the WSJ's offices on Black Monday, coincidentally with another budding investment banker called Jay Powell. Yes, that Jay Powell.
/jlne.ws/3SBwNNM
****** The debate over the Treasury market continues.~JJL
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Wednesday's Top Three
Our top story Wednesday was CFTC Union Files Harassment Grievance Against Commissioner, from Above The Law, which has been updated with a statement from CFTC Commissioner Caroline Pham. Second was Off target: SEC dealer rule will hurt those it aims to protect, a comment from Don Wilson in Risk.net. Third was Former NYSE President in Talks to Reboot FTX Exchange, from The Wall Street Journal.
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| Lead Stories | CQG Enters into Agreement on Acquisition by Group of its Senior Executives
CQG
CQG, a leading global provider of high-performance technology solutions for market makers, traders, brokers, commercial hedgers and exchanges, today announced that the privately held company has entered into an agreement for a group of its senior executives to acquire the company. Until now, the firm has been owned by Tim Mather, who founded the company in 1980. Details of the transaction, expected to be completed this month, were not disclosed. CQG CEO Ryan Moroney said: "Tim and I have been intently focused on a transition plan when he was ready to step away that would put the company in the strongest position while serving the best interests of our customers and employees. We're truly excited about this agreement, which ensures stability, continuity of leadership, control of our own destiny and reinforcement of our commitment to innovation to meet our clients' needs going forward. This is a fantastic outcome for all of our stakeholders, and we're so grateful to Tim for his integrity and unwavering devotion to the business, our people and our unique culture for more than four decades."
/jlne.ws/3u8xq7s
Euronext nears finish line in move to in-house clearing; LCH's European clearing house will no longer be the default option for trades on Euronext
Jeremy Chan - Financial News
Euronext will finish moving equities traded across its venues to a new clearing house this month, according to the pan-European bourse's boss. Euronext Brussels became the first Euronext exchange to shift to its new venue on 6 November. Euronext chief executive Stéphane Boujnah said migration for all other exchanges would be completed in November.
/jlne.ws/3QRTz2D
Citadel's Griffin Says World Peace Dividend at 'End of the Road'
Lulu Yilun Chen and Dexter Low - Bloomberg
Citadel founder Ken Griffin said the world is facing structural changes, challenged by geopolitical risks and restructuring of supply chains. "The peace dividend is clearly at the end of the road," Griffin said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum on Thursday in Singapore. "Now we are talking about de-globalization, re-routing supply chains. Countries are much more sensitive to what we want to produce domestically, so we are not exposed to global trade."
/jlne.ws/3SFUowG
A billionaire hedge fund kingpin is feuding with the sheriff of Wall Street over an obscure rule in the multitrillion-dollar bond market
Will Daniel - Fortune
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Chairman Gary Gensler is used to ruffling the feathers of some of the most powerful men in finance, if not the planet. There's his well-reported unpopularity with the crypto crowd, for one, and there's noted disagreements with figures such as Marc Andreessen over whether AI could cause a market crash. But now he's locking horns with Ken Griffin, the founder of market-maker Citadel Securities, the hedge fund Citadel, and the owner of the best annual performances in hedge fund history. The billionaire has adamantly opposed rule changes proposed by Gensler for the world's greatest safe haven market: the multitrillion-dollar trading of Treasurys.
/jlne.ws/3u5rv2R
The $2 Million Coal Mine That Might Hold a $37 Billion Treasure; Wyoming discovery could be America's first new source of rare-earth elements since 1952
Julie Steinberg - The Wall Street Journal
Twelve years ago, former Wall Street banker Randall Atkins bought an old coal mine outside Sheridan, Wyo., sight unseen, for about $2 million. He thought the mine might eke out a profit. Instead, Atkins recently learned it could bring a windfall. Several years after Atkins bought the Brook Mine, government researchers came around asking if they could run some tests to see if the ground contained something called "rare-earth elements."
/jlne.ws/3u6i9Ef
If you build it, will they come? With consolidated tapes (CT) on the way and the market looking at increased transparency and competition, Claudia Preece delves into data access, cost, and risk in fixed income post-Brexit - does data hold the key to a healthier market?
Claudia Preece - The Trade
The fixed income data landscape is facing imminent change. In response to calls for greater transparency and enhanced data access, regulators are set to implement consolidated tape models in a bid to improve overall data quality and lower costs. But how will this play out empirically? In recent years, the fixed income markets have undergone especially significant transformations, evolving from more manual to increasingly electronic workflows - via MTFs and direct connectivity - and this has made data all the more essential to traders.
/jlne.ws/40xVj4f
Citadel's Griffin, Business Leaders Say AI to Change Economies; Citadel's Griffin sees AI as a wake up call for productivity; Hillary Clinton expects Biden-Trump rematch in 2024 election
Malcolm Scott, Philip Heijmans, and Saritha Rai - Bloomberg
Global business leaders contemplated how emerging technologies will change the way people live and work in an increasingly divided world on day two of the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore. "Generative AI is the next new thing in machine learning," Citadel founder Ken Griffin said Thursday. "This will be another wake up call for corporate America to focus on how to create productivity gains."
/jlne.ws/40ySe3S
Hong Kong's 'back in business' claim rings true, as client focus on mainland China undiminished: Deutsche Bank CFO
South China Morning Post
The leaders of global banks need to get out of their boardrooms and come to Hong Kong to see for themselves that the city is well and truly back in business, according to the chief financial officer of Deutsche Bank. "From the outside looking in, you're worried that various things like Covid, geopolitics and economic challenges would have taken some of the dynamism away from Hong Kong," James von Moltke told the Post in an interview. "However, my impression has been that's just not the case, and that impression has been reinforced at the meetings I have had while here. It's certainly been more positive than my original expectations."
/jlne.ws/3sqxA9A
Globalization Is Fracturing. So What Comes Next?
Bloomberg
After the Cold War ended, globalization took hold as the world became a network of interconnected economies. But events of recent years have caused fractures along geopolitical lines, prompting both leaders and companies to reevaluate who they do business with, and how. Amid the turmoil, a group of countries are capitalizing on this new reality, and thriving. (Source: Bloomberg)
/jlne.ws/3Stt9Wh
The battle to revive FTX is down to a former NYSE president, a fintech startup, and a private investment firm
Ben Weiss - Fortune
The crypto exchange FTX declared bankruptcy almost exactly a year ago, and Sam Bankman-Fried, its cofounder and former CEO, has been convicted of seven counts of fraud in one of the most high-profile white-collar crime trials in recent memory. However, this legacy of failure and fraud hasn't discouraged deep-pocketed investors from making a play to revive Bankman-Fried's crypto exchange. The FTX estate, led by John J. Ray III, reached out to more than 75 bidders interested in rebooting the company, and now there are three finalists, according to reports from CoinDesk and the Wall Street Journal: Bullish, a crypto exchange led by former New York Stock Exchange president Tom Farley; Figure Technologies, a fintech startup; and Proof Group, a private investment firm.
/jlne.ws/3SEOcFz
In D.C., crypto is pivoting to tokenization-if AI doesn't take the spotlight first
Leo Schwartz - Fortune
DC Fintech Week is not your average crypto conference. There are no yachts, which would likely have trouble navigating the Potomac, nor edible delights shaped after the organizers' favorite tokens. Instead, the annual event-now in its seventh year-draws bureaucrats and policy wonks ready to discuss the merits of digital assets.
/jlne.ws/3u5py6x
UBS issues $3.5bn Dory bond; Well that boycott didn't last long!
Jerome Legras - Financial Times
Less than eight months after Swiss authorities wiped out $17bn of Credit Suisse's AT1 bonds, UBS - which made a $29bn profit by buying Credit Suisse for $3bn - was able to issue a new AT1 structure. Let's call this a Dory bond, named after the character from Finding Nemo who struggles with short term memory loss. The $3.5bn deal reportedly attracted north of $35bn of orders, more than twice the amount of AT1 securities destroyed by the Swiss authorities. Not bad for an asset class that was supposed to be dead after the controversial decision!
/jlne.ws/3QQhBuO
UBS marks new chapter for AT1 bonds with first since Credit Suisse deal
Yoruk Bahceli and Noele Illien - Reuters
UBS said it raised $3.5 billion on Wednesday from its first Additional Tier 1 (AT1) bond sale since taking over Credit Suisse, seeing strong demand in a further sign of confidence returning after the rescue rocked the risky bank debt market.
/jlne.ws/3MzFSmx
Bringing the HEAT: The CFTC Steps Up Their Enforcement Activity - What Stricter Regulation Means for Market Participants
BornTec - LinkedIn
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has long been thought of as an industry "friendly" regulator, especially when compared to its much larger cousin, the SEC. That view may be changing, however, as a recently released enforcement advisory from the agency signals a new, "get tough" stance in several important areas. Or, as Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero puts it, a Heightened Enforcement Accountability and Transparency (HEAT) Test. In all, the CFTC is taking a new, harder line going forward and it is certain to affect the industry as a whole.
/jlne.ws/40sYOsV
Investors Are Rationally Crazy to Buy UBS's CoCos; There's method in the madness of investing in an asset class that just burned you.
Paul J. Davies - Bloomberg
It is easy to point and chuckle at investors who pile back into an asset class that's just handed them brutal losses, but there are sound reasons behind the roaring success of this week's $3.5 billion junior bond sales from UBS Group AG. Even investors who got burned when the Swiss government forced Credit Suisse Group AG to write off $17 billion of such bonds in March ahead of its rescue by UBS have bought into the new deal. That sounds like the definition of monetary masochism, but there's a string of differences in the bonds and in markets that helped the two-part UBS trade attract $36 billion in orders.
/jlne.ws/3sv7DWv
SEC faces fierce pushback on plan to police AI investment advice; Brokers, hedge funds and advisers say proposals are unnecessary and impossible to implement
Jennifer Hughes - Financial Times
Brokers, hedge funds and investment advisers are pushing back hard against attempts by the main US markets regulator to manage how artificial intelligence is used to give financial advice to investors. Rules proposed by the Securities and Exchange Commission in July would force banks and fund managers to neutralise or eliminate any conflict of interest involving almost any form of technology when they advise clients.
/jlne.ws/49sRyRI
Former TD Securities bond trader charged with alleged fraud in Treasuries market; US prosecutors claim accused engaged in 'spoofing' and 'layering' during alleged year-long scheme
Joe Miller and Joshua Franklin - Financial Times
A former senior bond trader at TD Securities in New York has been charged with attempting to "deceive and defraud" the US Treasuries market in an alleged year-long scheme that involved placing a number of fake orders to create a false impression of true supply or demand to counterparties. A federal indictment was unsealed on Wednesday charging 39-year-old Jeyakumar Nadarajah, who was head of the US Treasuries trading desk at the bank during the period in question, with 16 counts including wire fraud, securities fraud and securities manipulation.
/jlne.ws/3FO9ysm
Robinhood No Longer Looks Like a Steal; Upstart still well short of big boys in the brokerage business as 'YOLO' traders continue to retrench
Telis Demos - The Wall Street Journal
Robinhood Markets may be building the brokerage of the future-and maybe it always will be. Shares of the online brokerage are down nearly 15% after its third-quarter earnings report on Tuesday. One big factor: The revenue momentum from higher interest rates is petering out.
/jlne.ws/3QzpxQ5
UBS Chief Ermotti Doesn't See Cultural Clash With Credit Suisse
Francine Lacqua and Leonard Kehnscherper - Bloomberg
UBS Group AG's chief executive officer pushed back against suggestions that cultural differences between his bank and Credit Suisse are complicating the integration of the former rival. "I don't think that per se there is a cultural clash between the two organizations," Sergio Ermotti said at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore on Thursday. "We have been competing very fiercely but basically, more or less, with the same business model."
/jlne.ws/47rSmo6
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| Ukraine Invasion | | News about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and its military, economic, political and humanitarian impact | UK sanctions oil trader Paramount and others over Russia ties; Emirates-based businesses among 29 entities subject to measures aiming to stem funding for Ukraine war
Tom Wilson, David Sheppard and Harry Dempsey - Financial Times
The UK government has imposed sanctions on Dubai-based oil trader Paramount Energy & Commodities DMCC as part of a swath of actions against companies and individuals accused of supporting Russia's gold, oil and finance industries. The sanctions, which target 29 people and entities including several based in the United Arab Emirates, "will hit those who provided succour to [Vladimir] Putin by helping him to lessen the impact of our [existing] sanctions on Russian gold and oil", said UK foreign secretary James Cleverly.
/jlne.ws/3SyEu7h
Russian Fertilizer Tycoon Mazepin Loses EU Sanctions Appeal; UralChem founder was targeted by sanctions soon after invasion; EU General Court rejects his appeal in Wednesday ruling
Stephanie Bodoni - Bloomberg
Russian fertilizer tycoon Dmitry Mazepin lost his legal challenge to European Union sanctions imposed on him soon after the invasion of Ukraine. The EU cited "a set of sufficiently specific, precise and consistent" indicators to show "that Mr. Mazepin is a leading businessperson involved in a sector providing a substantial source of revenue to the Russian Government," the EU's General Court ruled in Luxembourg on Wednesday. "Consequently, the sanctions imposed on Mr. Mazepin are such as to increase the costs of Russia's actions in Ukraine."
/jlne.ws/478aML8
Opinion: Could this man bring down Putin?
David Ignatius - The Washington Post
Ilya Ponomarev, a renegade former member of Russia's parliament, has a provocative idea: He argues that the only way to end the Ukraine war on acceptable terms is through a coup that topples Russian President Vladimir Putin. Personally, I think Ponomarev's plan is potentially dangerous for both the United States and Ukraine. A central precept of Ukraine's resistance to Russia's invasion, after all, is that countries shouldn't send military forces across their borders to foment violence. And while his ideas are intriguing, there's no way to independently confirm some of the claims and assertions he makes.
/jlne.ws/47rcQgM
Russia's war economy leaves businesses starved of labour; Busy armaments factories are depriving other industries of scarce workers
Anastasia Stognei and Polina Ivanova - Financial Times
Russia's army and its weapons factories are sucking in a growing number of workers as Moscow braces itself for a long war in Ukraine, leaving civilian sectors with painful labour shortages and destabilising the broader economy. "The labour market is extremely tight," the head of a big Russian mining company told the Financial Times. "It is not just the mobilisation, or people fleeing Russia. The main problem is arms production."
/jlne.ws/3QQRyUr
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| Israel/Palestine Conflict | | News about the recent (October, 2023) conflict between Israel and Palestine | Gaza Tensions Undercut Ukraine's Peace Summit Hopes; Kyiv had been pushing for a gathering of global leaders in coming months to broaden international support for peace
Laurence Norman - The Wall Street Journal
A Ukrainian push for a high-level summit aimed at bolstering international support for its fight with Russia is losing steam, a casualty of rising tensions in the Middle East, Western diplomats said. Dozens of countries-including India, South Africa, Brazil and other major powers that have been neutral on the war between Ukraine and Russia-have for months sought to define core principles, such as the territorial integrity of states, that could underlie peace talks.
/jlne.ws/3FSI58T
How Israel's spymasters misread Hamas; Overconfident intelligence agencies missed multiple warnings before October 7 attacks in a 'failure of imagination'
John Paul Rathbone and Neri Zilber - Financial Times
For two years, Menachem Gida wrestled with a dark sense of foreboding. The communications hobbyist was part of a team of volunteers who, using a "satellite farm" in southern Israel, compulsively monitored Gaza's communications networks and Arab media, passing on nuggets of information to the Israeli military.
/jlne.ws/40urGRk
Israel-Hamas war won't tear the world economy apart; Unless it gets Donald Trump elected or spurs China to invade Taiwan, the Gaza conflict is not disastrous for trade
Alan Beattie - Financial Times
If trade and economics really are all about politics these days, the horrific Hamas attacks and Israel's deadly bombing of Gaza will surely open up a new global fissure between rich and poor nations. The US has dutifully supported Israel, its long-term client, and low and middle-income countries have generally sided with the Palestinians. Could the Gaza conflict be the moment when the soi-disant "global south" finally asserts itself as a geoeconomic force?
/jlne.ws/3ues62c
Israel's Archeologists Are Helping Locate Those Killed by Hamas; Scholars who usually sift ancient ruins are called in to help; Israelis mourn deadliest attack in years as world watches Gaza
Alisa Odenheimer, Marissa Newman, and Felice Maranz - Bloomberg
It seemed as if there was little trace of human life left in the wake of Hamas's attack in southern Israel a month ago - just a desolate trail of burned homes, scorched rooms, bullet-scarred doors and charred cars. Volunteers from Israel's high-tech industry initially helped authorities try to identify the dead and missing, using artificial intelligence to sort through photos and videos. Yet still dozens of people were left unaccounted for after the worst day of violence in the nation's history.
/jlne.ws/49tIxIc
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | DTCC Launches OTC Direct Connect
Markets Media
DTCC, the premier market infrastructure for the global financial services industry, announced the launch of DTCC's OTC Direct Connect, a service providing seamless access to OTC derivatives transactions data that are reportable in the U.S. and Canada.
/jlne.ws/4746uV3
LME appoints new technology manager to strengthen expertise for flagship project
Reuters
The London Metal Exchange (LME), which faces lengthy delays to its trading technology revamp, said on Thursday that it had appointed a chief information officer at NatWest Markets, Alistair Baldwin as LME's new chief technology officer. The LME is the world's largest and oldest forum for metals. Its three-year-long flagship project to overhaul its electronic trading system faces up to a year of further delays and mounting costs, four people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters in October.
/jlne.ws/3FRm2iN
LME Group appoints new Chief Technology Officer
LME Group
LME Group is pleased to announce the appointment of Alistair Baldwin as its new Chief Technology Officer. Alistair will join the Group on 15 January 2024, succeeding Mario Quonils who has decided to relocate back to Germany. LME CEO, Matthew Chamberlain, said: "I would like to thank Mario for his many contributions to the Group over the last five years. He has been instrumental in building-out and strengthening our IT function and spearheading our technology transformation programme. On behalf of the Board and Management Team I would like to wish Mario all the very best for the future as he returns to Germany."
/jlne.ws/3vimcfa
LME announces new rules to enhance stocks data transparency; Enhancing scope of off-warrant stock reporting to include all eligible metal stored in LME-registered sheds; New simplified off-warrant stock reporting requirements, designed to provide greater visibility of LME-warrantable material, will replace the current rules from 29 February 2024; Existing low-stock measures to be adopted on a permanent basis with effect from 11 December 2023
LME
The London Metal Exchange (LME) is pleased to announce that, following a market-wide consultation, it will introduce new requirements designed to provide greater visibility of unwarranted metal stocks in LME warehouses, and make permanent existing controls around the management of low stock environments.
/jlne.ws/3EEQs7p
BME sponsors the SME Awards and hosts the Conference of the Federation of European Stock Exchanges (FESE) in Bilbao; Spanish companies Arteche, Axon Partners and Sngular are nominated for awards promoted by the European Commission, European Issuers and FESE; FESE conference to address issues such as Capital Markets Union and retail investment in financial markets.
BME
Bilbao will be the European capital of financial markets next week. The city will host SME Week 2023, a meeting promoted by the European Commission in the framework of Spain's rotating presidency of the European Council. BME is joining this initiative and the Bilbao Stock Exchange will host the Small and Mid-Cap Awards (SME Awards) on Tuesday, November 14 and the FESE Conference on Wednesday, November 15. BME will sponsor the awards ceremony and host the conference, which each year addresses the current issues in the European markets.
/jlne.ws/470oQ9g
CME Group Declares Quarterly Dividend
CME Group
CME Group Inc., the world's leading derivatives marketplace, today declared a fourth-quarter dividend of $1.10 per share. The dividend is payable December 28, 2023, to shareholders of record as of December 8, 2023.
/jlne.ws/3QQQy2D
Euronext publishes Q3 2023 results; Strong quarter driven by organic growth in non-volume-related business and continued cost discipline. Q3 2023 costs positively impacted by FX rate. Full-year 2023 costs expected to be lower than guidance.
Euronext
Euronext, the leading pan-European market infrastructure, today publishes its results for the third quarter of 2023. Q3 2023 revenue and income was 360.2 million euro , up +2.8% compared to Q3 2022 underlying revenue and income (+19.5% compared to Q3 2022 total revenue and income): Strong performance of non-volume-related business: Technology Solutions reported 27.4 million euro of revenue (+5.5%[1]), thanks to the continued benefits from the internalisation of colocation services following the migration of the Core Data Centre to Bergamo and the good performance of Nord Pool technology activities.
/jlne.ws/3QqRbyu
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. Commences Private Exchange Offer and Consent Solicitation for Black Knight InfoServ LLC's Outstanding 3.625% Senior Notes Due 2028
Intercontinental Exchange
Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE) ("ICE") announced today that it is commencing a private exchange offer (the "Exchange Offer") and related consent solicitation (the "Consent Solicitation") with respect to the outstanding 3.625% Senior Notes due 2028 (the "BK Notes") issued by Black Knight InfoServ, LLC ("BK"), a wholly owned subsidiary of ICE. Pursuant to the Exchange Offer, ICE is offering to issue, in a private offering to eligible holders of BK Notes, and for the consideration set forth in the table below, new notes (the "ICE Notes") and, for BK Notes tendered by the Early Tender Deadline (as defined below) and not validly withdrawn before the Withdrawal Deadline (as defined below), Cash Consideration (as defined below), in exchange for any and all of the $1 billion aggregate principal amount of the BK Notes held by eligible holders of BK Notes.
/jlne.ws/3siFa6l
Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX) Leverages ICE Global Network to Offer Direct Market Access to Global Investors
Intercontinental Exchange
Abu Dhabi Securities Exchange (ADX), one of the largest financial markets in the Middle East, announced today that it has selected the ICE Global Network from Intercontinental Exchange, Inc. (NYSE: ICE), a leading global provider of data, technology and market infrastructure, to offer direct market access to global institutional investors, a first initiative of its kind for a financial market in the Middle East. By leveraging the ICE Global Network, ADX aims to expand its global investor base by facilitating real-time access to market data and order entry.
/jlne.ws/3MBszC3
NSE inaugurates Investors Service Centre in Agartala with SEBI & BSE
National Stock Exchange of India
SEBI In order to cater to the needs of securities market investors in the state of Tripura, SEBI along with stock exchanges NSE and BSE has established an "Investor Service Centre" at Agartala. The Investor Service Center managed by NSE, was inaugurated by Shri G Ram Mohan Rao, Regional Director, Eastern Regional Office, SEBI on November 08,2023 in the presence of Shri Debankur Majumdar, Regional Regulatory Head (East) of NSE and other officials from NSE and investors. The Investor Service Centre will facilitate resolution of complaints of investors against listed corporate entities and other registered intermediaries in the securities market and will also facilitate conducting of investor awareness programs in the state.
/jlne.ws/463PzjX
TMX Group Equity Financing Statistics - October 2023
TMX Group
TMX Group today announced its financing activity on Toronto Stock Exchange (TSX) and TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) for October 2023. TSX welcomed 29 new issuers in October 2023, compared with 10 in the previous month and 10 in October 2022. The new listings were 27 exchange traded funds, one mining company and one oil & gas company. Total financings raised in October 2023 decreased 88% compared to the previous month, and were down 45% compared to October 2022. The total number of financings in October 2023 was 46, compared with 29 the previous month and 25 in October 2022.
/jlne.ws/3MDhIYm
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | After Tumbling 90%, Fintechs Battle Brazil Instant-Payment Mania; Pix payment system seen as step toward future without cards; More firms are fighting 'over a smaller piece of the pie'
Leda Alvim, Cristiane Lucchesi, and Maria Eloisa Capurro - Bloomberg
The once-hot Brazilian fintechs StoneCo Ltd. and Pagseguro Digital Ltd. are losing market share to old-time payment processors and new competition from an unlikely source: a system created by the nation's own central bank.
/jlne.ws/3QuHH5d
HSBC eyes non-crypto digital asset custody in 2024
Dan Ennis - Banking Dive
HSBC plans next year to launch a custody service to store blockchain-based tokens representing traditional financial assets but not cryptocurrency or stablecoins, the bank said Wednesday.
/jlne.ws/3MAGbO0
Nvidia develops AI chips for China in latest bid to avoid US rules; Performance of the technology has been moderated compared to what was previously sold in the key market
Qianer Liu and Eleanor Olcott and Tim Bradshaw - Financial Times
Nvidia has developed three new chips tailored for China that aim to meet the region's growing demand for artificial intelligence technology while complying with US export controls, according to leaked documents and four people familiar with the situation. The latest effort marks the second time in little more than a year that Silicon Valley-based Nvidia has been forced by new US regulations to reconfigure its products for Chinese customers, as it strives to maintain its foothold in one of its most important markets.
/jlne.ws/472iExJ
JPMorgan is Working With US Regulators on Generative AI Pilot Projects; JPMorgan is testing AI applications that can generate earnings summaries for every company that the bank tracks and helpdesk service that provides exact problem-solving steps.
Saritha Rai - Bloomberg
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is working with US regulators and walking them through its first set of generative AI pilot projects to ensure all controls are in place, as the bank attempts to bound ahead of rivals in deploying artificial intelligence in the highly-regulated industry.
/jlne.ws/3SGsdh8
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Don't Forget to Put SEC Cybersecurity Matters on Your Board Agenda This Fall!
Sharon R. Klein, Yelena M. Barychev, Karen H. Shin - National Law Review
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") earlier this year adopted rules requiring public companies to provide enhanced disclosure of material cybersecurity incidents, as well as cybersecurity risk management, strategy, and governance. The deadlines for providing these disclosures are fast approaching. In addition, on October 30, 2023, the SEC filed charges against SolarWinds Corp. ("SolarWinds") and its chief information security officer ("CISO") for fraud and internal control failures relating to allegedly known cybersecurity risks and vulnerabilities. These new SEC rules and the SEC's complaint against SolarWinds and its CISO underscore the fact that cybersecurity is an overall business issue, not just an IT problem, which demands proactive and ongoing attention by a company's officers and directors.
/jlne.ws/3Sz2Yxd
The Permanence Of AI In Cybersecurity: Why This Trend Is Here To Stay
Anshu Bansal - Forbes
The digital space we navigate daily is filled with hidden threats and vulnerabilities just waiting to be exploited by cybercriminals. The conventional notion of cybersecurity isn't simply a task to be checked off on a proactive business security checklist; rather, it constitutes a constantly evolving and persistent challenge.
/jlne.ws/3u7EkK9
Iran and Hamas showed no signs of cyber coordination in run-up to war, researchers say
Tim Starks - The Washington Post
There's no sign that Iranian hackers attacking Israeli targets have coordinated with Hamas in that war, new Microsoft research out today concludes. Instead, the Iranian attacks have been opportunistic in their approach, the researchers say. Media outlets have focused some attention on whether Iran worked with Hamas in advance of its Oct. 7 attack, when Hamas militants killed 1,400 people and took around 240 other people hostage. But at least in cyberspace, among hackers connected to Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS) and Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the answer seems to be "no," per Microsoft.
/jlne.ws/3sikziB
Allen & Overy data hit by hackers in ransomware attack; The London-headquartered law firm is the latest major corporate targeted by cyber criminals
Suzi Ring - Financial Times
Allen & Overy, the "magic circle" law firm, has suffered a cyber attack on its systems, making it the latest big corporate to fall victim to a ransomware hack. A&O confirmed it had "experienced a cyber security incident impacting a small number of storage servers", after posts on social media platform X on Wednesday claimed the hacking group LockBit had attacked the legal giant and threatened to publish data from the firm's files on November 28.
/jlne.ws/3su0QMU
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | 70% Crypto Yields Are Back With DeFi Becoming a Hot Spot for Leverage Again; Yield farming is being used again to attract new users to DeFi; Demand for leverage is source of high yields, Monad's Hon says
Muyao Shen - Bloomberg
Memories are proving to be extremely short in the crypto world, with returns of 70% and higher being offered once again by trading platforms through the re-emergence of the investment strategy known as yield farming. Less than 18 months after the collapse of the Terra algorithmic stablecoin project that triggered an industry-wide meltdown, exchanges ranging from GMX to Binance are offering double-digit incentives as a way to jumpstart trading activity after months of stagnation. Terra, once the most ambitious experiment in DeFi, had promised nearly 20% returns to investors who deposited funds in its protocol.
/jlne.ws/464K7NW
Can spot Bitcoin ETFs push Hong Kong to the crypto throne?
Forkast.News
The verdict is in. Sam Bankman-Fried, founder and former chief executive officer of failed cryptocurrency exchange FTX, has been found guilty in what U.S. government prosecutors labeled one of the biggest financial fraud cases in history. As Bankman-Fried awaits a likely decades-long sentence for his part in FTX's collapse - a truly catastrophic implosion that contributed in large part to the digital asset market's travails over the past year - the industry is now looking forward.
/jlne.ws/3StQyXD
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Senator Ted Budd Introduces "Keep Your Coins Act" to Preserve Crypto Self-Custody Rights
Hope C - CoinMarketCap
Senator Ted Budd (R-NC) presented the "Keep Your Coins Act" in the Senate, which aims to protect individuals' rights to self-custody of their crypto assets while eliminating dependency on intermediaries. This legislative action comes at a critical point for the crypto industry, particularly in light of the FTX exchange collapse last year, which highlighted the need for self-custody of digital assets.
/jlne.ws/3QzEtxy
Obama Is the AI Czar We Need for Global Cooperation; Effective regulation of artificial intelligence will require someone who can inspire unprecedented worldwide consensus. One man has a head start.
Dave Lee - Bloomberg
Not long after President Joe Biden unveiled his sweeping executive order on artificial intelligence, it emerged he had enlisted some notable outside help to craft it. Over about five months, according to Jeff Zients, Biden's chief of staff, former President Barack Obama quietly advised the best way forward. Obama met with tech leaders and discussed key issues with leading advocacy groups and policy think tanks. It was the first time the current White House had reached out to Obama for direct help on policymaking. The result was a deep, detailed plan for the adoption and safeguarding of AI. Running to almost 20,000 words, the document was lauded for both its thoroughness and its ambition.
/jlne.ws/3QP8DOD
U.K. Hits Russian Gold, Oil Sectors With New Sanctions Package; The U.K. government has sanctioned 29 entities and individuals, including two large producers of Russian gold and a Geneva-based oil trading company
David Smagalla - The Wall Street Journal
The U.K. government has sanctioned 29 entities and individuals operating in and supporting Russia's gold and oil sectors, in an effort to cut off revenue streams funding its war in Ukraine. Entities sanctioned Wednesday include Nord Gold and Highland Gold Mining, two of the largest producers of Russian gold, and Paloma Precious DMCC, a United Arab Emirates-based network the U.K. said has channeled more than $300 million in gold revenue to Russia.
/jlne.ws/3u7VirI
Germany to Force Landowners to Accept New Renewables Infrastructure
Petra Sorge - Bloomberg
German landowners will no longer be able to refuse access if grid operators need to connect renewable infrastructure on their property. The measure - which has sparked criticism from farmers - is part of a series of new regulations agreed on by federal and state leaders on Tuesday. The aim is to speed up the expansion and connection of clean energy, which has stalled because of lengthy approval periods and local opposition.
/jlne.ws/3QOXZYb
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | Fed Probes Morgan Stanley's International Wealth-Management Practices; At issue is how the bank vets foreigners and the origins of their money before taking them on as customers
AnnaMaria Andriotis - The Wall Street Journal
Morgan Stanley's wealth-management arm is being scrutinized by the Federal Reserve, which is looking into whether the bank has sufficient controls in place to prevent rich foreign customers from laundering money. The Fed has been probing how Morgan Stanley vets foreigners and the origins of their money before taking them on as customers, according to people familiar with the matter. What started out as a routine review a few years ago escalated after regulators found the bank's due diligence on clients and anti-money-laundering efforts lacking.
/jlne.ws/3QswQJf
Commissioner Johnson to Deliver a Keynote Address and Participate in a Fireside Chat at the Financial Times Crypto and Digital Assets Summit: Winter Edition
CFTC
/jlne.ws/49qXcE4
Commissioner Goldsmith Romero to Participate on AI Panel at the American Fintech Council Policy Summit
CFTC
Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero will participate on a panel - Is AI the Key to Regulatory Modernization? - at the American Fintech Council Policy Summit with Elizabeth Kelly, Special Assistant to the President, National Economic Council.
/jlne.ws/3QuKAD7
SEC Obtains Judgment Against Former Hedge Fund Trader Related to Hedge Fund Valuation Scheme
SEC
On November 7, 2023, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York entered a final consent judgment against Jeremy Shor, a trader for a private fund advised by now-defunct New York-based investment adviser Premium Point Investments LP, permanently enjoining him from violating the antifraud and other provisions of the federal securities laws.
/jlne.ws/47s8NkC
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | China Is Becoming a Problem for Investors; U.S.-listed companies that do a lot of business in the country have struggled
Charley Grant - The Wall Street Journal
China has long been a source of stock-market optimism. Now it is turning into a reason for worry. Investors started the year by pouring money into China-focused funds, a bet that the end of Covid-19 restrictions would unleash supercharged spending in the world's second-largest economy. Instead, a stubborn lack of growth and escalating political tensions with the U.S. are fostering poor returns and uncertainty about the future.
/jlne.ws/40xot3r
A Coveted 1932 Picasso Sells for $139.4 Million; 'Woman with a Watch' becomes the artist's second-highest auction price as a formerly high-flying art market slows down
Kelly Crow - The Wall Street Journal
A Pablo Picasso painting, "Woman with a Watch," sold for $139.4 million at Sotheby's on Wednesday. The sale of the portrait, the unrivaled trophy of New York's ongoing major fall auctions, marks the second-highest price ever paid for a work by the artist. The 1932 portrait depicts the artist's blonde mistress, Marie-Thérèse Walter, dressed in a hat and green-checkered dress and sitting curled up in a chair. The work surpassed the $115 million paid in 2018 for 1905's "Young Girl with a Flower Basket," which was owned by banker David Rockefeller. It also surpassed the $106.5 million paid in 2010 for another 1932 view of Walter, "Nude, Green Leaves and Bust."
/jlne.ws/3Sziz06
The coming wave of business bankruptcies; Following years of low interest rates, creative destruction should be embraced
The editorial board - Financial Times
Joseph Schumpeter shocked many with his forthright views about the power of free markets. The early 20th century Austrian economist once told his students at Harvard University: "Gentlemen, a depression is for capitalism like a good, cold douche". He was, of course, referring to the forces of creative destruction that drain away weak enterprises during a downturn - and the term for shower. Right now, while a depression is not on the cards, higher interest rates are straining economic activity and a wave of corporate insolvencies are expected. After a decade of rock-bottom rates a Schumpeterian cold shower may not be a bad thing.
/jlne.ws/460LqgI
'Dark Matter' Bond Metric Mesmerizes Wall Street and Washington; Rising term premium stays Fed's hand, alters Treasury issuance; Some say focus on measure makes predicting rate path harder
Liz Capo McCormick and Michael Mackenzie - Bloomberg
It's the buzz word on Wall Street and in the hallways of the Federal Reserve and Treasury Department. It's blamed for triggering bond selloffs, shifts in debt auctions and interest-rate policy. That few agree on what exactly it reflects, or how to measure it, seems to matter little - the term premium is a powerful new force in the market. Typically described as the extra yield investors demand to own longer-term debt instead of rolling over shorter-term securities as they mature, the term premium, in the broadest sense, is seen as protection against unforeseen risks such as inflation and supply-demand shocks, encapsulating everything other than expectations for the path of near-term interest rates.
/jlne.ws/49tUMEv
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | Why is the Amazon rainforest drying up?
Ian Sample with Jonathan Watts - The Guardian (podcast)
Ian Sample talks to Guardian global environment editor Jon Watts about the withering drought currently devastating the Amazon rainforest. Jon explains the complex mix of factors that are driving the drought, and considers whether it might be a catalyst for more concerted climate action in Brazil and beyond
/jlne.ws/40tsCFR
Insurers Are Still Backing Oil and Gas Industry Despite Rising Climate Threat
Gautam Naik - Bloomberg
Insurers are continuing to provide cover for increased oil and gas production even as they face large losses fueled by climate change, according to a new report. About 80% of the insurance market and 53% of the reinsurance market don't have restriction policies for oil and gas, a major source of planet-warming emissions, according to data compiled by Insure Our Future. The industry is doing better on coal, where a wider adoption of restrictions has made it much harder to insure new projects, the nonprofit said.
/jlne.ws/3Sz5dRf
Shell sues Greenpeace for $2.1mn in one of largest claims against group; Oil major is 'seeking to silence legitimate demands for climate justice', says environmental organisation
Tom Wilson - Financial Times
Shell is suing Greenpeace for at least $2.1mn in one of the largest-ever legal claims against the environmental group after its protesters occupied a vessel for 13 days earlier this year. The lawsuit follows a protest in February when six Greenpeace activists boarded a ship in the Atlantic Ocean transporting a Shell floating production storage and offloading unit (FPSO) to the Penguins oil and gas field, north-east of the Shetland Islands.
/jlne.ws/3SD1BxF
Big Promise, Little Success: The Precarious State of Carbon Capture; "The technologies have been around for around 50 years, but they haven't been around in a climate-oriented way," professor Emily Grubert says on Zero.
Christine Driscoll and Akshat Rathi - Bloomberg
On its face, carbon capture and storage (CCS) sounds like a great idea. Using chemicals, carbon dioxide can be separated from the emissions generated by power plants and stored underground forever. The fix is so elegant, and the emissions challenge so huge, that CCS is included in the International Energy Agency's projections of how humanity will reach net zero by 2050.
/jlne.ws/3FWec7q
Can Humans Control the Weather? Japanese Scientists Think They Can; Disastrous storms have hit the island nation in recent years. Now, researchers are pursuing a moonshot program to weaken disruptive storms.
Marika Katanuma and Dexter Low - Bloomberg
From New York City to Hong Kong, extreme downpours have unleashed floods around the world this year with deadly results. In an effort to control future rainstorms, scientists in Japan are working on an ambitious government-backed project involving everything from giant curtains floating on the sea to fields of wind turbines to protect the island nation. Their goal, they say, is to turn extreme weather into "a blessing" - if it works.
/jlne.ws/40LGWK5
Number of species at risk of extinction doubles to 2 million, says study; New research on insects - without which the planet would not survive - shows a higher proportion are at risk of disappearing
Phoebe Weston - The Guardian
/jlne.ws/468WmJp
EU and Canada to Form 'Green Alliance' to Speed Up Transition; Two sides will pledge ties on energy shift later this month; EU to bolster push to roll out carbon markets globally
John Ainger - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/49nF5it
Inconclusive US-China Climate Talks Cast Shadow on COP28 Summit; Progress at the global gathering in Dubai will depend greatly on the world's two biggest emitters, but a five-day meeting between their top negotiators ended without any details on new initiatives.
Jennifer A Dlouhy and Alfred Cang - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/49qU8YC
Ex-BlackRock research head: ESG's 'biggest sin' is conflating finance, impact and ethics
Sophie Robinson-Tillett - IPE.com
/jlne.ws/49tBxuU
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Mizuho Said to Raise Rakuten Securities Stake to Almost 50%
Taiga Uranaka and Hideki Suzuki - Bloomberg
Mizuho Financial Group Inc. is planning to make an additional investment in Rakuten Group Inc.'s online securities arm, raising its stake to a little shy of 50%, people familiar with the matter said. The move comes a year after Japan's third-largest banking group bought about 20% of Rakuten Securities Inc. and made a business alliance. The deal is expected to be valued at around 90 billion yen ($596 million), one of the people said. Nikkei reported on the potential transaction earlier.
/jlne.ws/40xmpbH
Goldman's Brauth to Run Global Credit as Lombardi Exits; Saireddy to lead global mortgages and structured products; Lombardi is one of the bank's most senior traders in Europe
William Shaw and Sridhar Natarajan - Bloomberg
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. named Jason Brauth as global head of credit trading as Luca M Lombardi, one of the bank's most senior traders in Europe, prepares to retire. Lombardi, who runs credit and mortgage trading in EMEA and Asia Pacific, is leaving at the end of the year after more than two decades at Goldman Sachs, according to an internal memo Alongside Brauth's promotion, Goldman also named Mahesh Saireddy as global head of mortgages and structured products, according to a separate memo on Wednesday.
/jlne.ws/47niNvl
Quant Giant Dimensional's Pivot to ETFs Reaps $100 Billion Payoff; Firm is among 10 largest ETF issuers three years after debut; Dimensional's mutual funds have shed $74 billion in that span
Katie Greifeld - Bloomberg
For decades, Dimensional Fund Advisors was famous on Wall Street for its exclusive admission policy: Only a hand-selected network of financial advisors enjoyed access to their systematic mutual funds. All that changed drastically three years ago when the quant giant capitulated to the exchange-traded fund revolution.
/jlne.ws/3QUiyTe
Morgan Stanley's Wealth Management Arm Draws Fed Scrutiny; Regulator has sought stronger anti-money laundering controls; Unit's overseer Saperstein privately vowed to fix shortcomings
Sridhar Natarajan and Katanga Johnson - Bloomberg
The Federal Reserve is scrutinizing whether Morgan Stanley's wealth management business is taking adequate measures to prevent potential money laundering by wealthy clients from outside the US. The New York-based bank's top regulator is pressing the firm to improve controls and processes, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Fed officials privately reprimanded the firm earlier for not making all of the changes it sought, the person said, asking not to be identified discussing the confidential talks.
/jlne.ws/47qjuEc
UBS AT1 Bonds Got Orders From Those Stung by Credit Suisse Wipeout; At least two holders of Credit Suisse AT1s placed orders; Yields of over 9% tempt skeptics of Swiss regulatory regime
Abhinav Ramnarayan and Tasos Vossos - Bloomberg
At least two investors whose additional tier 1 holdings were wiped out by Credit Suisse Group AG's historic writedown have put in orders for UBS Group AG's latest offering of the same type of security. The sale was one of the market's most highly anticipated, and got more than $36 billion of bids, roughly 10 times what UBS is raising. Relatively high yields - along with a planned tweak in the documentation offering further protections to creditors - proved too enticing to pass up, despite the losses in March, according to the two investors. They declined to be identified because they aren't authorized to speak publicly about the matter.
/jlne.ws/47qJZcI
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| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | Fall of a 'trailblazer': what WeWork's bankruptcy means for flexible working; As office space group navigates Chapter 11 protection, rivals must also face down threats from tech and hybrid working
Joshua Oliver - Financial Times
With its trendy locations and offers of free beer, WeWork succeeded in making flexible office space cool. There was just one problem: the company could not make it pay. WeWork's slide into US bankruptcy on Monday, under the weight of more than $13bn in office lease obligations, has cast a shadow over flexible workspace providers on both sides of the Atlantic and sharpened fears about financial distress for office landlords struggling with the move to working from home.
/jlne.ws/3SuhOoX
We've All Dreamed of Saying 'Take This Job and Shove It.' These People Actually Did; 'I'm done. Good luck. You've got no clerk.' Town officials are dramatically quitting and walking out of public meetings.
Ray A. Smith - The Wall Street Journal
Frank Hibbard, a longtime public servant, prides himself on not being a quitter. But after disagreeing with council members that spending on a new City Hall in Clearwater, Fla., should be a top priority, he not only quit his job as mayor, he did so in dramatic fashion.
/jlne.ws/3QxBuWh
WeWork's Bankruptcy Tests Claims of a Co-Working Revolution; The business of offering offices on flexible, short leases will survive the company's troubles, but commercial real estate experts say it will probably remain a niche.
Peter Eavis - The New York Times
In its heyday a few years ago, WeWork said it would reinvent offices. But the company never created a sustainable business or changed how most people worked. The business of offering flexible office space on short leases to individuals and businesses, a model that WeWork hoped to make mainstream, remains a niche in commercial real estate despite the billions of dollars the company and others invested in the approach. Flexible office space accounts for less than 2 percent of all office space in the 20 largest U.S. markets, according to Cushman & Wakefield, close to its share before the pandemic.
/jlne.ws/47uohEJ
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | Scientists name eight measures that can slow ageing by up to six years; Measures including healthy sleep and regular exercise may slow pace of body's biological ageing
Andrew Gregory - The Guardian
Scientists have named eight health measures that can slow the body's ageing process by six years. Keeping body weight, blood sugar, cholesterol and blood pressure in check while maintaining healthy sleep and eating regimes, doing regular physical activity and not smoking may slow the ageing process by around six years, US experts say. A study suggests that following these measures promotes good heart health, which in turn may slow the pace of biological ageing by up to six years.
/jlne.ws/3QRJOS3
The global network behind the fentanyl crisis; The illicit trade routes responsible for the worst overdose crisis in US history
Jamie Smyth, Christine Murray Joe Leahy, Sun Yu and Visual Storytelling Team - Financial Times
Alma Sanchez will never forget the last phone call she received from her son Deenilson. He rang her from a drug rehabilitation centre, telling her not to worry about him and that he would return home soon following treatment.
/jlne.ws/4659HlN
US Orders Opioid Overdose Antidote to Defend Against Fentanyl Terrorism; US readies for airborne bioterrorism with fentanyl-like drugs; m Opioid gas was used in 2002 in Russian hostage situation
Cailley LaPara and Riley Griffin - Bloomberg
Drugmaker Indivior Plc clinched a US contract worth up to $111 million for its opioid antidote - part of the government's preparation for a potential bioterrorism attack with drugs such as fentanyl that can be released into the air.
/jlne.ws/3Qo6hEM
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | Why the US Can't Stop Iran's Lucrative Oil Trade With China; Israel-Hamas war has put Tehran's export income in spotlight; China's imports of Iranian oil have hit a record in 2023
Serene Cheong - Bloomberg
Washington's hawks are demanding that President Joe Biden's administration tighten US sanctions on Iran as punishment for its support of Hamas, the militant group behind the attacks that triggered the current conflict with Israel. Tehran, they argue, has been exporting more oil over recent months than it has in years.
/jlne.ws/3Qu67Ms
More Executives Vanish in China, Casting Chill Over Business Climate; The chief executive at livestreaming company DouYu and the chairman of a pharmaceutical business are the latest to go missing
Chun Han Wong - The Wall Street Journal
The list of business executives and political figures who have gone missing in China keeps growing. Top executives at a video-streaming platform and a pharmaceutical company were the latest to disappear, as an intensifying clampdown by Beijing on alleged corruption and malfeasance shakes business confidence in China, among local and foreign firms alike. Chen Shaojie, chief executive of livestreaming firm DouYu, has been unreachable since October, a person familiar with the matter said. The Nasdaq-listed company declined to comment on Chen's status but said its "business operations remain normal." Chinese tech giant Tencent owned a nearly 38% stake in DouYu as of March.
/jlne.ws/3QydWjX
Agricultural Giant Syngenta Delays $9 Bln IPO Amid Chinese Market Volatility
Helena SmolaHow to Rein In Loose-Lipped Bankers? Hong Kong Tries to Figure It Out; Financial regulators, including in the U.S., are grappling with how to prevent market-moving deals from leaking
Frances Yoon - The Wall Street Journal
Hong Kong is wrestling with a question troubling financial regulators around the world: How much should banks be able to tell investors about deals that are brewing? The city's Securities and Futures Commission wants to tighten rules governing what banks and brokers can say to investors when discussing potential transactions, including bond and share sales. The move is an attempt to level the playing field among investors, by making sure that the largest have fewer chances to trade on sensitive information.
/jlne.ws/3sqBq2u
Agricultural Giant Syngenta Delays $9 Bln IPO Amid Chinese Market Volatility
Helena Smolak - The Wall Street Journal
Agricultural company Syngenta Group said its listing on Shanghai's main market won't happen this year due to weak market conditions, the latest delay in its yearslong pursuit of a blockbuster initial public offering. The Swiss company-which was acquired by Chinese state-owned ChemChina for $43 billion in 2017-has been working on an IPO since 2021. The company is aiming to raise 65 billion Chinese yuan ($8.93 billion), which would have made it the biggest IPO globally this year based on Dealogic data.
/jlne.ws/47s7lia
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| Miscellaneous | | Stories that don't quite fit under the other sections | Geothermal resort in Iceland closes after seismic storm causes guests to flee; Blue Lagoon temporarily closes as spate of earthquakes prompt fears of volcanic eruption
Miranda Bryant - The Guardian
One of Iceland's most popular tourist attractions has closed after the Reykjanes peninsula was hit by about 1,000 earthquakes in 24 hours, a "seismic swarm" that has prompted fears of an imminent volcanic eruption. The Blue Lagoon, a geothermal spa south-west of Rejkjavík, announced it would close its doors on Thursday for a week after a particularly powerful earthquake hit just after midnight followed by about 800 smaller quakes. Dozens of terrified guests reportedly fled the resort, which has two hotels, in taxis overnight after the earthquakes began. The Icelandic news website Víkurfrettir reported that about 40 guests had left overnight, adding that rocks had fallen on the road up to the hotel lobby.
/jlne.ws/40ts6Yr
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