| September 06, 2024 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
Do you have a pinewood derby car from your childhood at home? Why have you kept it? Maybe the reason was to run another race some day. That day has come. The LaSalle Street Racing to Move Scouts Forward Fundraiser on September 25 features a pinewood derby race where you can earn honors for your childhood car, or a car you built today. See below for details on how to sign up and attend the event.
AI-powered lie detectors, like CyberQ, are being developed to detect deception during virtual interactions, such as Zoom calls, Bloomberg reports. Phil Houston, a former CIA officer and founder of CyberQ, is using AI to enhance traditional lie detection methods by analyzing linguistic patterns in real-time video calls. This technology can assess speech during interviews, earnings calls, or meetings, detecting signs of deceit, such as qualifiers or evasive answers, with a claimed 92% accuracy. Unlike polygraphs, which rely on physical responses, CyberQ focuses on the spoken word, making it ideal for virtual environments like Zoom, while reducing human bias in the process.
In August, Cboe Global Markets reported its August monthly trading volume statistics that saw significant trading volumes across its global derivatives and global FX markets. On August 5th, 4.5 million S&P 500 Index (SPX) options contracts were traded, marking the second-highest single-day volume ever recorded. Additionally, total volume in Cboe Volatility Index (VIX) options reached 26.1 million contracts, with an average daily volume (ADV) of 1.2 million contracts, the second-best monthly volume after February 2018. In global FX, the market set new monthly volume records, including a spot full amount average daily notional value (ADNV) of $15.3 billion and a Cboe swap execution facility (SEF) non-deliverable forwards ADNV of $1.5 billion.
Here are excerpts from in front of FOW's paywall from some recent stories:
BGC Group is set to launch SOFR futures on its FMX futures venue on September 23, marking its entry into the growing US rates market. Meanwhile, the ZISHI team, led by Danny Langley and Robert Russell, completed a 15-mile charity walk from Tower Bridge to Putney Bridge, nearing their fundraising goal. Cboe Global Markets reported flat August trading volumes, with a decline in single-stock options offsetting a rise in index trading. Additionally, CME Group plans to boost liquidity by launching Bloomberg Commodity Index options on futures contracts on September 23.
In futures trading I was taught you liquidate your longs and cover your shorts. There is another type of liquidation, though: Chapter 11. The irony of LL Flooring's story is stark: once known as Lumber Liquidators, the company has now found itself being liquidated, Fortune reported. After years of success in selling flooring products, the chain is winding down operations, having failed to find a buyer during Chapter 11 bankruptcy proceedings. Adding to the irony is its 2021 rebrand from "Lumber Liquidators" in an effort to distance itself from scandals, including selling flooring with illegal formaldehyde levels. Despite the name change and attempts to recover, the company is now closing its doors for good, fittingly through liquidation sales.
Kevin "Lex" Luthringshausen will once again host Tradier's virtual Options Summit on September 18th. The summit, themed "Adapting Trading Strategies to Major Market Events," is particularly timely given the upcoming election. The event will feature 10 speakers over 6 hours, with live interactive panels. To register, visit this link.
Risk.net's RiskLive Roadshow will take place in Berlin on October 1, 2024, offering insights into key risk indicators such as market, credit, liquidity, and operational risks. The event will feature a panel of industry experts, including Erik Vynckier from Foresters Friendly Society, Joost Dijkers from Transtrend, and Justin C. McCarthy, PRM, ORM from PRMIA (Professional Risk Managers' International Association). Attendees can expect discussions on the latest trends and challenges in risk management. Register HERE.
CME Group is seeking a new manager to lead its intranet strategy and provide internal communications support for its global business lines. If you know any skilled communicators with relevant experience, they are encouraged to apply HERE.
The London Metal Exchange has announced the panelists for the metals debate at the LME Metals Seminar 2024, which will be chaired by Andrea Hotter. This highly anticipated session is known for its fast pace and insightful content, with each panelist allotted five minutes to present their views and outlook on their chosen metal. Find out more and register for the seminar HERE.
The CFTC is hiring an attorney advisor (Ethics) to join its innovative Ethics team, which focuses on addressing cutting-edge issues in the financial derivatives markets. For details click HERE.
Have a great day and stay safe and treat people the same way you want to be treated: with respect, equality and justice.~JJL
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Our most read stories from our previous edition of JLN Options were:
- CME Group Reports Second-Highest Monthly ADV of 31.7 Million Contracts in August and Double-Digit Increases Across All Six Asset Classes from CME Group.
- What investors are getting wrong about the VIX right now from Yahoo Finance.
- CBOE Starts Platform for Trading Private Company Shares from Bloomberg. ~JB
Subscribe to the JLN Options Newsletter HERE (it's free).
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Exberry CEO Previews Groundbreaking Tech Day for Exchange Industry
JohnLothianNews.com
In a recent video interview at the FIA IDX conference in London, Guy Melamed, CEO of Exberry, shared insights about the upcoming Tech Day 2024, a pioneering conference set to bring together exchange industry professionals in Amsterdam on October 9th. This event, organized by the Association of Futures Markets (AFM) in collaboration with Exberry, marks the first time non-members will be invited to participate, signaling a new era of openness in the exchange technology sector.
Watch the video »
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New Eurex CEO Outlines Vision for European Derivatives Exchange
JohnLothianNews.com
In a recent video interview at the FIA IDX conference in London, Robbert Booij, the newly appointed CEO of Eurex Frankfurt AG, shared his insights and plans for the leading European derivatives exchange. Speaking with John Lothian News, Booij reflected on his transition from the banking sector to heading an exchange and outlined his strategic vision for Eurex.
Watch the video »
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 LaSalle Street Racing to Move Scouts Forward Fundraiserwww.tinyurl.com/LaSalle4Scouts On September 25, the Pathway to Adventure Council of the Boy Scouts of America is hosting the LaSalle Street Racing to Move Scouts Forward event at the Chicago Board of Trade Building. This annual tradition, dating back to 1971, brings together professionals from LaSalle Street to support Scouting in our community. The highlight of the evening will be a pinewood derby race. You'll have the opportunity to build your own car or lease one at the event. It's a fantastic way to tap into your competitive spirit while enjoying cocktails and delicious food with colleagues and friends. Your participation will directly benefit Scouting programs that help develop leadership skills and character in our youth. There are various sponsorship levels available to suit your preferences. The event will be held at Ceres, with plans to move outdoors if weather permits. It's a perfect opportunity to network, have fun, and make a difference. Click Here to Register »
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LODAS Markets Becomes First to Execute Fully Electronic Secondary Market Trades of Delaware Statutory Trusts
LODAS Markets
LODAS Markets, the only fully automated online marketplace to buy, sell and manage alternative investments, announces the first fully electronic trades of Delaware Statutory Trust (DST) assets in the secondary market. The transactions occurred in August via three trades on LODAS' SEC-registered Alternative Trading System*. Buyers, sellers, and DSTs are undisclosed. Currently there is more than $10 million in seller interest across 10 DST instruments on LODAS, allowing buyers to purchase DSTs electronically.
/jlne.ws/3TjJ9JV
***** JLN's Sarah Rudolph recently interviewed LODAS Markets' CEO Brian King. Look for that video interview coming soon.~JJL
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Americans Eat 42 Pounds of Cheese a Year. $4 Billion Says They Want More; Dairy processors are planning facilities across the US to meet surging demand.
Ilena Peng - Bloomberg
Is there such a thing as too much cheese? Producers across the US are betting billions of dollars that the answer is no. America's per capita cheese consumption has more than doubled since the government began keeping track in 1975, to about 42 pounds a year-more than all the butter, ice cream and yogurt combined. Facilities for making cheese account for more than half of the $8 billion in US dairy-product projects slated to come online from 2023 to 2026, according to the International Dairy Foods Association.
/jlne.ws/3B5mivi
****** When you take out Wisconsin, the average dips to 8 pounds of cheese per American.~JJL
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Illinois man arrested after police find guns, drugs inside suburban home
Jenna Carroll - WFLD
An Illinois man was arrested last week for allegedly possessing two dozen guns and drugs. Michael T. Sund, 43, of St. Charles, has been charged with unlawful possession of a controlled substance with the intent to deliver, unlawful possession of a controlled substance, unlawful possession of cannabis with the intent to deliver, unlawful possession of cannabis, unlawful possession of a machine gun, unlawful possession of a controlled substance and unlawful possession of a firearm without a serial number. On Aug. 30, prosecutors said Sund was allegedly in possession of more than 200 grams of a substance that contained psilocybin, a hallucinogenic obtained from certain types of mushrooms.
/jlne.ws/3XlUzyi
****** Sund is an investment strategist for Calamos Wealth Management. I don't see how this activity is very strategic.~JJL
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Thursday's Top Three
Our top clicked item Thursday was the FIA's job description page for a Senior Vice President-Global Events, Marketing and Communications, a position that replaces the one Emma Davey will step down from at the end of the year. Second was Clear Street's Chris Pento's post on LinkedIn sharing that at year end he will be joining co-founder Uriel Cohen at his family office and Ed Tilly will become the CEO of Clear Street. Third was the page where you can get tickets for AFM & Exberry's "Tech Day 2024: Technology of the Future - Navigating Solutions for Exchanges."
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| Lead Stories | How Nvidia Became the Market's Most Important Stock, in Charts; The graphics-chip maker lost nearly $280 billion in market value Tuesday, the most ever by a company in a single session
Alana Pipe and Jack Pitcher - The Wall Street Journal
Major stock indexes are more beholden to the moves of a handful of big tech companies than ever. And none more so than Nvidia, the market darling of the artificial-intelligence craze. Investors' fervor for the graphics chipmaker sent it to a multitrillion market valuation in record time. The stock is the best performer in the S&P 500 this year, more than doubling in 2024 after more than tripling in 2023. Now the third-largest company in the S&P 500 by market value, Nvidia is known for greater volatility than some of its megacap peers. Its earnings and conference calls have become must-watch TV, with the report leading to market reactions that rival those seen after reads on the entire U.S. economy.
/jlne.ws/3AU4nb6
China Creates $230 Billion Brokerage to Take on Wall Street
Bloomberg
China is combining two of its largest state-backed brokerages to create a new behemoth as it seeks to consolidate the $1.7 trillion sector and build stronger investment banks to compete with overseas financial firms. Guotai Junan Securities Co. will merge with smaller rival Haitong Securities Co. through a share swap, according to statements from both companies on Thursday. The combination of the firms, both partly owned by Shanghai's state assets administrator, will create a new entity with assets of 1.6 trillion yuan ($230 billion), topping Citic Securities Co. as the largest brokerage.
/jlne.ws/3XdkYOG
***** Here is the Reuters version of this story.~JJL
China's $100 Billion Short Against Dollar Enriches Hedge Funds; State-owned banks are helping support the yuan and the trade is saddling them with huge potential losses.
Bloomberg News
China's embrace of a stealthy strategy to manage its currency is exposing the nation's banks to billions of dollars of potential losses - and handing easy profits to investors on the other side of the trade. At the center of it all are transactions known as foreign-exchange swaps. These have quietly become a key tool for state-run Chinese banks seeking to prop up the yuan during periods of outsized selling pressure, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to be named discussing a sensitive subject.
/jlne.ws/47gIM8K
The stakeholder doctrine is flourishing despite attacks on ESG; Corporate leaders realise they can't ignore the social and political context in which they operate
Gillian Tett - Financial Times
This month a striking free-speech fight has erupted in Texas. No, this is not yet another social media salvo from Elon Musk or a battle over book bans. Instead, the American Sustainable Business Council is suing the Texas government over its 2021 and 2022 decisions to blacklist companies that uphold environmental, social and governance strategies. Rightwing Texas politicians initially justified these moves as a bid to prevent ESG activists from imposing their views about climate change, say, on everyone else. However, the plaintiffs argue it is actually the anti-ESG movement that is breaking free-speech rules, by implicitly forcing finance to support fossil fuels. The suit is thus a form of legal ju-jitsu - or a bid to redefine the idea of "freedom".
/jlne.ws/47kUXSe
China to create megabrokerage by combining Guotai Junan and Haitong Securities
South China Morning Post
China plans to combine its largest state-backed brokerages, Guotai Junan Securities and Haitong Securities, as it consolidates its investment banks to better compete on a global level. The combined brokers - which are both part-owned by Shanghai's state assets administrator - will have a collective 1.6 trillion yuan (US$230 billion) in assets under management, besting competitor Citic Securities. The merger is pending approval from the companies' boards and shareholders, as well as regulatory authorities. Guotai issued a statement to the Hong Kong exchange on Thursday night saying it intends to merge with Haitong Securities by issuing A shares to all A-share exchange shareholders of Haitong, while issuing H shares to all H-share exchange shareholders of Haitong.
/jlne.ws/3XxPP9R
Chinese Mega Merger Sends Brokerage Meme Stock Up by Limit; Sealand surges after news of Guotai Junan, Haitong tie-up; Sealand's Chinese name sounds like pairing of merging firms
Charlotte Yang - Bloomberg
A small Chinese brokerage has emerged as an unlikely winner from the merger plan of industry leaders Guotai Junan Securities Co. and Haitong Securities Co., thanks to its name. Sealand Securities Co., whose Chinese name "Guohai" sounds like the merger of names for "Guotai Junan" and "Haitong," saw its shares jump limit-up on Friday - far outperforming peers - after the merger proposal that will create the largest brokerage in China.
/jlne.ws/3ZdvKH2
CFTC Cracks Down: Escalating Enforcement and Raising the Stakes in the Voluntary Carbon Market
Deanna R. Reitman, Julian E. Harrell, Tamara Criss - Faegre Drinker
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has taken a significant step in its oversight of the voluntary carbon markets with a recent enforcement action against defendants who misappropriated funds through a carbon credit program. In the case of CFTC v. Ikkurty, the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois granted summary judgment after finding that the defendants violated the Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) by engaging in fraudulent conduct through a voluntary carbon credit program and crypto-related investment scheme. The court ordered more than $83 million in restitution and nearly $37 million in disgorgement. This case marks the first major action by the CFTC's Environmental Fraud Task Force - which was established in 2023 to combat fraud in environmental markets, including voluntary carbon credits and related derivatives - and underscores the CFTC's growing focus on policing and regulating carbon markets.
/jlne.ws/3XuMB70
FCA shows its teeth with record rise in criminal charges; UK financial regulator also takes tough approach on crypto asset registrations
Martin Arnold - Financial Times
The UK financial watchdog intensified its attempts to clean up the system by bringing a record number of criminal charges against individuals and doubling the number of institutions that it stripped of regulatory approval. The step-up in the Financial Conduct Authority's enforcement activity was accompanied by a surge in both staff numbers and operating costs. But the amount it collected in fines fell sharply to £35.3mn in the year to April, down from £212.6mn the previous year and its lowest for more than a decade.
/jlne.ws/3AUfuRi
Why Jane Street should pay more than Citadel Securities & both should pay more than banks
Sarah Butcher - Efinancialcareers
Not long ago, the most able students with an interest in financial markets wanted to work for Goldman Sachs or JPMorgan. Now they're more likely to aspire to work for Jane Street or Citadel Securities. This week's revelations about first half revenues at the two electronic market making firms help explain why. Bloomberg says revenues at Citadel Securities hit $4.9bn in the first six months of 2024, while those at Jane Street reached $8.4bn. Net earnings for the two firms over the period were $2.7bn and $6.1bn respectively.
/jlne.ws/3TiXTc7
Clear Street's CEO Chris Pento to Assume Executive & Partner Role at Investor White Bay; Co-Founder & CEO Pento Launched and Led Firm to Record Heights Over Six Years of Leadership; President Ed Tilly to Become CEO of Clear Street at Year End
Clear Street
Clear Street ("Clear Street," "the Company"), a financial technology firm modernizing the global capital markets and brokerage ecosystem, today announced that Co-Founder and CEO Chris Pento will assume an executive and partner role at White Bay, the family office of Co-Founder Uriel Cohen, effective at year-end 2024.At that time, Pento will depart his CEO role at Clear Street, and will remain on the Board of Directors where he will continue to guide the Company based on his expertise and leadership over six years of transformative and record-setting growth. Ed Tilly, the Company's President, will become CEO & President upon Pento's departure.
/jlne.ws/3AWI18T
Tilly to take over as CEO of Clear Street; Edward Tilly joined Clear Street in July, less than a year after his resignation from Cboe following the conclusion of an investigation that determined he had failed to disclose personal relationships.
Claudia Preece - The Trade
Edward Tilly is set to take over as chief executive of Clear Street, two months after having been appointed president at the firm. He replaces CEO and co-founder Chris Pento. Upon his departure, Pento is set to assume an executive and partner role at White Bay, the family office of co-founder Uriel Cohen. He will remain on the board of directors at Clear Street.
/jlne.ws/3yYFpH5
Fireside Friday with... Fidelity International's Tim Miller; The TRADE sits down with Tim Miller, senior trader at Fidelity International, to discuss the continuing evolution of ETFs, the impact of fragmentation, and what lessons can be learnt from the US when it comes to boosting trading volumes.
Wesley Bray - The Trade
How have ETFs evolved over the last few years? One of the biggest themes in ETF evolution over the last few years has been in the increase in scope of products offered to the market. With increased competition, new launches are now targeting gaps in investors' universes with more specific products. This has been witnessed across asset class as well as developments in actively-managed funds being launched in an 'exchange traded' wrapper. Some more recent examples would include funds tracking crypto, ESG or other fundamental factors such as quality or income.
/jlne.ws/47l5SLt
Bank of America Shared Nonpublic Information With Investors in India, Whistleblower Says; Bank is investigating complaint, which centers on three deals since 2023
Alexander Saeedy - The Wall Street Journal
Bank of America is investigating allegations that bankers in Asia shared nonpublic information with investors before the bank sold hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of stock. The whistleblower complaint alleged that bankers shared transaction details with investors before a stock sale in India was announced this spring, according to a copy of the complaint reviewed by The Wall Street Journal-potentially enabling the investors to engage in what is known on Wall Street as "front running."
/jlne.ws/4gi9KkK
Transition to T+1 'harder than expected' finds Citi report; Reduction in clearing margin a key challenge for custodians, while European firms report most significant impact of T+1.
Chris Lemmon - The Trade
The switch to a shortened settlement cycle in North America has had a bigger effect than expected, with 44% of market participants reported to being significantly impacted by the transition - up from 28% a year ago. This is according to a new report from Citi, which tracked the impact of a shortened settlement cycle across the world.
/jlne.ws/3XdBEp3
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| Ukraine Invasion | | News about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and its military, economic, political and humanitarian impact | Putin Says Russia Ready to Continue Sending Gas Via Ukraine
Bloomberg
Russia is ready to continue sending gas to Europe via pipelines across Ukraine beyond 2024, according to President Vladimir Putin. Europe has tried to wean itself off Russian gas since Moscow's invasion, but some nations continue to receive it through those pipelines. However, Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelenskiy has said he doesn't want to extend the transit contract with Russia. "We don't want them making money here," he said in July.
/jlne.ws/4e6LvVb
Zelenskyy presses top U.S. military officials to allow Ukraine to strike deeper in Russia
Tara Copp - Associated Press
Ukraine needs the ability to strike deep within Russia now, President Volodymyr Zelenskyy urged top U.S. and allied military leaders Friday in Germany, as Kyiv continues to press its case that without long-range strikes and bolstered air defenses, it faces a bleak winter. The meeting of the Ukraine Defense Contact Group was taking place during a dynamic moment in Ukraine's fight against Russia, as it conducts its first offensive operations of the war while facing a significant threat from Russian forces near a key hub in the Donbas. It also comes days after Russia launched a deadly airstrike against a Ukrainian military training center that killed more than 50 and wounded hundreds.
/jlne.ws/3MCZ9Df
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| Israel/Hamas Conflict | | News about the recent (October, 2023) conflict between Israel and Hamas | Hamas Releases Video of Hersh Goldberg-Polin Filmed Before He Was Killed; Grieving parents of American-Israeli hostage permit airing of Hamas video
Jared Malsin - The Wall Street Journal
Hamas released a video of American-Israeli hostage Hersh Goldberg-Polin filmed before he was killed that shows him urging President Biden to end the war in Gaza through a hostage deal, nearly a week after Israel accused the militant group of killing him and five others in Gaza. Israeli media has generally not published Hamas's hostage videos, which the government sees as psychological warfare, unless the family consents. But hours after the video of Goldberg-Polin was released late Thursday, his parents said they were choosing to allow publication to galvanize efforts to return the remaining hostages.
/jlne.ws/4dVeQ4O
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | Tradeweb Reports Record August 2024 Total Trading Volume of $50.9 Trillion and Record Average Daily Volume of $2.21 Trillion
Tradeweb Markets
Tradeweb Markets Inc. (Nasdaq: TW), a leading, global operator of electronic marketplaces for rates, credit, equities and money markets, today reported record total trading volume for the month of August 2024 of $50.9 trillion (tn)[1]. Average daily volume (ADV) for the month was a record $2.21tn, an increase of 53.9 percent (%) year-over-year (YoY).[2] Excluding the impact of the ICD acquisition, which closed on August 1, 2024, total ADV for the month of August was up 35.7% YoY.
/jlne.ws/4cVH4Ln
CBOE Starts Platform for Traders Seeking to Tap Private Markets; CBOE Private Markets registered an alternative trading system; London-based Globacap to provide technology for new venture
Miles Weiss - Bloomberg
CBOE Global Markets Inc. is partnering with a London-based tech firm to create a US trading platform for shares of closely held companies, a traditionally illiquid market that investors have increasingly sought to access. CBOE Private Markets registered with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority as a broker-dealer, according to a filing in August - an essential step in setting up a so-called alternative trading system. The new venue will compete with a platform that Nasdaq Inc. spun out in 2021.
/jlne.ws/3XdLJCv
CME Group to Launch Options on Bloomberg Commodity Index Futures on September 23
CME Group
CME Group, the world's leading derivatives marketplace, today announced that it will launch options on Bloomberg Commodity Index (BCOM) futures on September 23, pending regulatory review. The company also announced that it has extended its license with Bloomberg for commodity index products through 2027. Options on BCOM futures will provide market participants a new way to access broad market exposure with additional flexibility to express a range of views on commodity market movements.
/jlne.ws/3MAV3eO
CME Clearing Limit Increase for Gold - Effective September 05, 2024
CME Group
On September 5, 2024, CME Clearing is increasing the combined limit for COMEX Gold Warrants and London gold bullion from $750 million to $1 billion per Clearing Member (and affiliates).
/jlne.ws/4cXy0FL
September 2024 Corporate Bond, Stock and ETF Update Effective September 05, 2024
CME Group
The September 2024 acceptable CUSIPs for stocks, ETFs and corporate bonds are now available via CME DataMine. Please refer to CME's website for further details regarding acceptable collateral criteria, haircuts, and limits.
/jlne.ws/4ec6Qfd
Performance Bond Requirements: Equity Margins - Effective September 06, 2024
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 September 06, 2024.
/jlne.ws/4dTc0Nq
Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX) signs MoU with ITM Skills
MCX
Multi Commodity Exchange of India (MCX), India's leading Commodity Derivatives Exchange has signed a formal Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the ITM Skills University - ITM Business School (ISU-IBS), a leading institution in higher education, skill development & employment generation, to contribute towards knowledge sharing, training and undertake various educational initiatives in the commodity derivatives markets.
/jlne.ws/47l0esL
Nasdaq Announces New Leadership and Structure for Financial Crime Management Technology
Nasdaq
Nasdaq (Nasdaq: NDAQ), today announced a new leadership structure including leadership appointment for its Financial Crime Management Technology business, designed to support the business' strong momentum and continuing its growth trajectory. Effective today, Brendan Brothers, EVP, Head of Financial Crime Management Technology, and Verafin Co-Founder will step back from his current executive responsibilities and will transition into a senior strategic advisory role until at least December 31, 2024.
/jlne.ws/4gt2TVJ
Nasdaq Implements AxiomSL Revenue Recognition Change
Nasdaq Nasdaq, Inc. (Nasdaq: NDAQ) today announced that it has implemented a change to the accounting treatment of the revenues associated with AxiomSL on-premises subscription contracts. This change was previously referenced during Nasdaq's second quarter earnings and is related to the finalization of the U.S. GAAP purchase accounting in connection with the Adenza acquisition.
/jlne.ws/3ZedzB1
Nodal Exchange achieves new August volume records in power (up 58%) & environmental (up 189%) market
Nodal Exchange
Nodal Exchange announced new power and environmental trading records in August 2024. In power, Nodal set a calendar month record for August with 266 million MWh of traded power futures volume in the month, up 58% from the prior year. Nodal continues to be the market leader in North American power futures having the majority of the open interest with 1.4 billion MWh. Environmental futures and options on Nodal Exchange set a new all-time volume record of 105,571 lots in August, up 189% from 36,495 lots a year earlier. The monthly volume topped the prior record in July of 64,562 lots.
/jlne.ws/4e7KJY1
Circular on Adjusting the Calculation of Order Fees of Option Products
SHFE
The order fees for option products will be adjusted by the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) on October 25, 2024 (i.e., starting from the nighttime continuous trading session on October 24), from a contract-based formula to a contract month-based formula. The specifics are as follows.
/jlne.ws/3TiARC4
Notice on Investigation and Penalties for Violations of Relevant Rules and Regulations in August 2024
SHFE
Shanghai Futures Exchange (hereinafter referred to as "the Exchange") has been on continuous efforts in investigating and penalizing violations of relevant rules and regulations, so as to strengthen the risk management of the futures market, regulate the futures trading activities and protect the legitimate rights and interests of futures market participants. The enforcement against such violations in August 2024 is listed as follows:
/jlne.ws/3XxwVQn
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | Axoni Wins Risk Technology Award for Operational Risk Innovation of the Year
Axoni
Axoni, a leading provider of trade workflow applications and real-time data replication technology, and LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group), announced that its Hydra platform was named Operational Risk (OpRisk) Innovation of the Year at the Risk Technology Awards 2024. The Risk Technology Awards recognize vendors "doing the most to help the industry meet its various challenges" in asset liability management (ALM), credit, operational risk, and wider enterprise risk management. Award winners are decided by a judging panel, consisting of technology users, analysts and the editors of Risk.net, the world's leading publication for risk management and risk transfer.
/jlne.ws/47fciM2
Israel's Tower Semiconductor, Adani plan $10 billion chip project in India
Tanvi Mehta - Reuters
Israel's Tower Semiconductor and Adani Group will invest 839.47 billion rupees ($10 billion) for a semiconductor project in India's western state of Maharashtra, its chief minister said in a post on X on Thursday. India has taken steps to encourage global companies to set up their manufacturing units in the country, with Prime Minister Narendra Modi aiming to make the country a chipmaker for the world despite initial setbacks.
/jlne.ws/47fctHc
AI-Powered Lie Detectors Can Help Tell If You're Lying on a Zoom Call; New tech trained on CIA tactics may be coming to an office near you.
Tracy Alloway - Bloomberg
Phil Houston knows how to spot a lie. A former career CIA officer who's sometimes been called the human lie detector, he literally wrote the book on detecting deception. His techniques are used by US intelligence agencies, businesses and billionaires. Now he's seeking to harness the power of artificial intelligence to supercharge his system - and market it to hedge funds listening to earnings calls, investigators interviewing suspects, employers considering potential new hires, or anyone else trying to discover duplicity.
/jlne.ws/3MBmsxe
Intel in crisis: chipmaker considers drastic change to catch AI rivals; Senior departures and plunging share price hit chief executive Pat Gelsinger's plans for company turnaround
Michael Acton - Financial Times
Intel chief executive Pat Gelsinger received an unusually direct demand from the company board in the spring of last year: pay closer attention to its strategy on artificial intelligence. According to three people familiar with the directive, the board expressed concern it would miss out on a new multibillion-dollar market to create chips that power generative AI which had emerged in the months after OpenAI launched ChatGPT. Gelsinger's response was to set up an AI Acceleration office, charged with co-ordinating its AI plans across multiple business segments. The office would be led by Srinivas Lingam, transferred to California from his post at its AI product group in India.
/jlne.ws/4ebaXbB
OpenAI could reportedly charge as much as $2K a month for high-end subscriptions
Reuters via NY Post
OpenAI executives have discussed higher-priced subscriptions for upcoming large language models, such as its reasoning-focused Strawberry and a new flagship LLM dubbed Orion, the Information reported Thursday. In early internal talks at OpenAI, subscription prices ranging up to $2,000 per month were discussed, the report said, citing one person with direct knowledge of the numbers.
/jlne.ws/3Tk2Pxp
AI start-up hopes contrast with pullback in hype for listed stocks; Volatility looks like becoming the new reality in the sector on public markets
Richard Waters - Financial Times (opinion)
Is the AI bubble deflating, or only just getting going? Nvidia shed nearly half a trillion dollars in stock market value in the four trading sessions after its latest quarterly earnings, even though it comfortably beat official expectations. Add in Apple, Microsoft, Alphabet, Amazon and Meta, which have dominated the stock market indices since AI mania took off, and the pullback over the past two months has cost investors $1.8tn. Amid mixed economic signals and signs of a stock market rotation into other sectors, AI hype has no longer been enough to carry the market before it.
/jlne.ws/4cVK7mw
City investors accused of financing Telegram's 'toxic business model'; British firms urged to reconsider funding messaging app after founder's arrest
Matthew Field - The Telegraph
City investors have been warned against financing Telegram's "toxic business model" after the messaging app was accused of failing to tackle child abuse. Campaigners urged British and US funds that own the company's debt to reconsider their position following the arrest of Pavel Durov, its Russian-born founder, in Paris on charges of "complicity" in the spread of child abuse and drug dealing. The messaging app has raised around $2.4bn (£1.8bn) from bond markets since 2021. Vicky Wyatt, of corporate accountability group Eko, said investors had been sent a "clear warning" by the arrest of Mr Durov.
/jlne.ws/3Xv9Xtk
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Every Board Room, Not Just The Tech Department, Must Own Cybersecurity
Sajal Singh - Forbes
How is it that the whole world and the systems of technology it depends on were all brought to a screeching halt by a software update? While at an individual level, in real life, we often come head to head on different topics, arguing and pressing our points of view, it is the same people who largely agree within the enterprise construct. In fact, in the Crowdstrike case, that agreement seemed to be no less than a global one cutting across companies.
/jlne.ws/3Z9JJxK
White House launches cybersecurity hiring sprint to help fill 500,000 job openings; National Cyber Director Harry Coker Jr. unveiled the program as part of an effort to fill a continued gap in cyber, technology and AI positions.
David Jones - Cybersecurity Dive
The White House Office of the National Cyber Director launched a program Wednesday to help fill the gap of about 500,000 available cybersecurity jobs across the country. Service for America, a program developed alongside the Office of Management and Budget and the Office of Personnel Management, is a recruitment and hiring push that will help connect Americans with available jobs in cybersecurity, technology and artificial intelligence.
/jlne.ws/3TikHsw
FCC to Open Funding for Cybersecurity in K-12, Libraries
Brandi Vesco - Government Technology
The three-year $200 million Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program opens its application window this fall. The near-term goal is to secure schools most in need, but long-term it will help nationwide. In an important step toward federal funding for much-needed school cybersecurity tools and services, the application window for the three-year $200 million Schools and Libraries Cybersecurity Pilot Program is set to open this fall, although as of press time, the exact date had yet to be announced.
/jlne.ws/3XwdKqk
Darktrace chief Poppy Gustafsson to step down ahead of takeover; Chief operating officer Jill Popelka to lead cyber security group being acquired by Thoma Bravo
Yasemin Craggs Mersinoglu - Financial Times
Poppy Gustafsson is stepping down as chief executive of UK cyber security company Darktrace ahead of the completion of its acquisition by US private equity group Thoma Bravo. Chief operating officer Jill Popelka will take over the top job and rejoin the FTSE 100 company's board on Friday, Darktrace said. The company said in April that Thoma Bravo had agreed to take the group private in a transaction valuing it at £4.3bn.
/jlne.ws/3Mwku18
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | Odd Lots: The Booming Crypto Use Case That's Happening Right Now
Bloomberg
Pretty much since the moment that cryptocurrencies came into existence, there's been a chorus of skeptics who argue that they solve no real world use cases, except for gambling and speculation. For a while, there was a lot of hype about things like Web3 or DeFi, but for the most part, these still remain in the realm of pure speculation and gambling. And so, the ultimate use case for crypto remains elusive. Our guest on this episode argues otherwise.
/jlne.ws/47oiVMf
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Citi Says US Election Risk to Contain Metals Prices for Now; Copper heads for second weekly loss after Goldman forecast cut; Sentiment may be more positive in fourth quarter, Citi says
Bloomberg News
Uncertainty around the US presidential election in November will prevent meaningful gains for metals by subduing global risk appetite and possibly delaying government stimulus in China, according to Citigroup Inc. "We think Fed rate cuts, further China policy easing, and an upturn in global manufacturing sentiment will be more constructive for metals pricing in late fourth quarter/early 2025, once the US election is behind us," analysts including Tom Mulqueen wrote in a note, referring to the Federal Reserve.
/jlne.ws/3z8wlzg
Russian money was funneled to right-wing creators through a pro-Trump media outlet, prosecutors say
Ryan J. Reilly and Lisa Rubin and Brandy Zadrozny and David Ingram and Ken Dilanian and Kevin Collier - NBC News
Employees of the Russia-backed media network RT funded and directed a scheme that sent millions of dollars to prominent right-wing commentators through a media company that appears to match the description of Tenet Media, a leading platform for pro-Trump voices, according to an NBC News review of charging documents, business records and social media profiles. The indictment on Wednesday of two RT employees, Konstantin Kalashnikov and Elena Afanasyeva, includes allegations that the duo implemented a nearly $10 million plan to fund an unnamed Tennessee-based company as one of their "covert projects" to influence American politics by posting videos to TikTok, Instagram, X and YouTube.
/jlne.ws/3ThRuxH
Trump Media's 69% Plunge Wipes Out Billions Before Lockups End; Shares fall in 22 of last 27 sessions, losing 46% of value; Trump's personal profit from deal takes $3.7 billion haircut
Bailey Lipschultz - Bloomberg
The stock price of Donald Trump's media company is sinking just as the lockup period from its blank-check deal is about to end, potentially flooding a saturated market with even more shares. Trump Media & Technology Group Corp., which was worth nearly $10 billion in mid-May, has fallen 69% since its market capitalization peaked on May 9 and is now worth less than $3.4 billion. The selloff has accelerated in the past month, with the shares falling in 22 of the 27 sessions through Wednesday's close and losing more than 45% in the process. That pressure is only expected to increase when the deal lockup expires as soon as Sept. 19 and insiders can start unloading their equity.
/jlne.ws/3XeDm9F
Kremlin accuses US of unacceptable pressure on Russian media
Reuters
The Kremlin on Friday accused the United States of applying unacceptable pressure on Russian media after the U.S. Justice Department charged Russian TV contributor Dimitri Simes and his wife with schemes to violate U.S. sanctions. The two indictments were announced just one day after the U.S. took several legal actions against Russia to combat alleged efforts to meddle in the 2024 presidential elections, including charging two employees of the Russian state media network RT and sanctioning RT and its top network editor.
/jlne.ws/3XhfYbz
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | Ex-UK trader loses lawsuit against Deutsche Bank over bonus dispute
Reuters
A former Deutsche Bank trader on Thursday lost her London lawsuit against the bank for just over 2.6 million pounds ($3.4 million) after she was not paid an individual bonus nearly a decade ago. Shikha Gupta worked until 2017 for Deutsche Bank's non-core operating unit, which was set up in the wake of the 2008 financial crisis to streamline its operations. Gupta said she helped dispose of billions of dollars of assets for Deutsche Bank, in particular helping it pay a $7.2 billion settlement in 2016 with the U.S. Department of Justice over pre-crisis sales of mortgage-backed securities.
/jlne.ws/3ASXNlc
Mexico bank regulator approves details of stock market reform
Reuters
The board of Mexican bank regulator CNBV on Thursday approved the terms of a stock market reform passed last year, Deputy Finance Minister Gabriel Yorio, who spearheaded the reform, said. The overhaul, which aims to revamp the nation's stock exchanges and boost trading after a spate of delistings in recent years, will allow small-and-medium-size businesses to access up to 70 billion pesos ($3.51 billion) in financing a year, Yorio said in a post on X.
/jlne.ws/3Z7vQQG
Google Is Abusing Dominance in Advertising Technology, UK Regulator Warns; Thousands of UK publishers and advertisers at risk, says CMA; Google said findings based on flawed interpretations of sector
Katharine Gemmell and Samuel Stolton - Bloomberg
Alphabet Inc.'s Google is abusing its dominant position in advertising technology, the UK's antitrust agency warned in a move that could pave the way for hefty fines and an order to change one of the tech giant's most lucrative businesses. The Competition and Markets Authority said Friday in its statement of objections that Google is using its dominance in tech advertising to prioritize its own services and is potentially harming thousands of UK publishers and advertisers.
/jlne.ws/3zbhc0a
*****Here is this story from the Financial Times.
SEC Charges Former Finance Director at CIRCOR International with Accounting Fraud; Company settles SEC's charges for related accounting controls violations; avoids penalties based on self-report, cooperation, and remediation
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced fraud charges against Nicholas Bowerman, a former finance director of CIRCOR International Inc., a formerly publicly traded technology manufacturer. The SEC alleges that Bowerman's fraud led to the company making misleading statements to the public about the company's financial performance from 2019 through 2021. The SEC also announced related settled internal accounting charges against CIRCOR.
/jlne.ws/47eqQLW
SEC Charges TikToker Teddy Miller and Two of His Companies for Fraud
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission yesterday charged West Virginia resident Theodore "Teddy" Miller and his companies, Bear Industries, LLC and Bear Investments and Business Consulting, LLC (collectively "Bear Entities"), for operating two unregistered, fraudulent real estate schemes that raised approximately $370,000 from approximately 170 investors in the U.S. and abroad, many of whom followed Miller on TikTok and other social media platforms. The SEC also named Miller's mother, Deanna Drumm, as a relief defendant to seek disgorgement of ill-gotten investor funds that she received.
/jlne.ws/3ZlfbsK
SEC Charges Broker-Dealer Nationwide Planning and Two Affiliated Investment Advisers with Violating Whistleblower Protection Rule; NJ-based firms impeded clients from voluntarily reporting information to the SEC
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against three affiliated registrants, Commission-registered broker-dealer Nationwide Planning Associates, Inc. and investment adviser NPA Asset Management, LLC, and state-registered investment adviser Blue Point Strategic Wealth Management, LLC, for impeding brokerage customers and advisory clients from reporting securities law violations to the SEC. The firms agreed to pay combined civil penalties of $240,000 to settle the SEC's charges.
/jlne.ws/47fLBHe
CFTC's Uniswap Settlement Sparks Debate on DeFi Regulation
Katten
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) continues to expand its regulatory reach in the decentralized finance (DeFi) space, this time targeting Uniswap Labs, the developer behind a prominent decentralized exchange protocol. This enforcement action continues the CFTC's recent trend of targeting DeFi platforms, following similar cases against protocols like Opyn, Deridex and ZeroEx.[1] The CFTC fined Uniswap $175,000, alleging violations of the Commodity Exchange Act for offering off-exchange leveraged retail crypto commodity products on its platform.
/jlne.ws/4gePUGQ
Court appoints receivers and new voluntary administrators to Keystone
ASIC
On 27 August 2024, the Federal Court made orders appointing Jason Tracy and Lucica Palaghia of Deloitte as receivers and managers of the property of Keystone Asset Management Ltd (Keystone), the responsible entity for the Shield Master Fund (Shield).
/jlne.ws/4dOyK16
ASIC releases August 2024 financial adviser exam results
ASIC
ASIC today released the exam results from the 26th Financial Advisers Exam cycle, held in August 2024. The exam, conducted by the Australian Council for Educational Research (ACER) since inception, follows a rigorous process to ensure all candidates in each cycle are tested to the same standards.
/jlne.ws/3XIKyN3
The FCA's new listing rules and what's to come
FCA
Speech by Sarah Pritchard, executive director of markets and international, delivered at the Capital Markets Industry Taskforce conference.
/jlne.ws/4e8QXGq
Oversight of ARs improving but more to do, says FCA; The FCA has set out good practice and areas for improvement to help principal firms effectively monitor their Appointed Representatives (ARs).
FCA
The findings follow a review of how principals are meeting its enhanced AR rules, introduced in December 2022. The analysis involved a telephone survey with 251 principals and in-depth assessments of documentation from 23 firms. Examples of good practice from principals included keeping clear documentation to show compliance with the FCA's enhanced rules and using a broad range of checks and information to oversee and monitor ARs' activities.
/jlne.ws/3ZfWgQe
FCA publishes decisions against 3 individuals, and fines and bans a fourth, for reckless pension transfer advice
FCA
The FCA has decided to ban 2 financial advisers and 2 partners at St Martin's Partners LLP (SMP) from working in financial services, and collectively fine them £590,544. The regulator considers the 4 were responsible for a pension transfer advice model that put at risk people's guaranteed retirement benefits. Between October 2015 and July 2016, SMP's advice model put 547 customers at significant risk of transferring out of guaranteed defined benefit pensions into investments which were unlikely to be suitable for them, including investments in hotel developments in Cape Verde offered by The Resort Group Plc.
/jlne.ws/3XyUDfo
SFC issues restriction notice to Kingston Securities Limited to freeze account of client involved in suspected corporate misconduct
SFC
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has issued a restriction notice to Kingston Securities Limited (Kingston), prohibiting it from dealing with or processing certain assets held in a client account that belongs to a listed corporation's board member, who is suspected of committing misconduct and breaching his director's duties (Notes 1 and 2). The SFC is not investigating Kingston which has cooperated with the SFC's investigation. The restriction notice does not affect Kingston or its other clients.
/jlne.ws/3TiwDuo
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Yet more fantastical goings-on in Nasdaq-listed Chinese micro-caps; Baiyu Holdings takes a well-timed tumble
George Steer - Financial Times
We wrote earlier this week about some weird price moves among US-listed, China-based micro-caps, rounded off with a warning from a retail trader that Baiyu Holdings (BYU) - which for weeks has been flogged in seedy Whatsapp groups by persons unknown - might be the next Nasdaq stock to plunge from a recent peak. Aaaaannd it's gone: Wednesday's 73 per cent decline coincided with news that Baiyu has signed a letter of intent with Adler International "to cooperate in the construction and operation of charging and swapping stations in Cairo".
/jlne.ws/3MBnxVO
Sports Betting Is Taking Over Fans' Budgets as NFL Season Starts; The proliferation of legal gambling has changed how millions of Americans root for their favorite teams.
Claire Ballentine and Paulina Cachero - Bloomberg
Nathaniel Conrad admits he's lost a lot of money gambling on sports. When football season is underway, though, he can't resist placing a few bets. Starting last year, he threw down at least $300 on games he watched, on top of four fantasy football leagues - each with $100 buy-ins. These days, the 41-year-old Arizona resident tries to limit the wagers to $5.
/jlne.ws/4eevAU8
Andretti Returns to SPAC Arena as Blank-Check Market Heats Up
Bailey Lipschultz - Bloomberg
Former IndyCar driver Michael Andretti is back with another blank-check firm as the US market for a once-hot investing trend shows new momentum with mostly seasoned backers attracting billions in cash. Andretti Acquisition Corp. II raised $200 million Thursday to mark the second special-purpose acquisition company bearing the Andretti name. The SPAC, which counts William Sandbrook as chairman and William Brown as chief executive officer, joins SPACs led by the likes of Howard Lutnick in pricing offerings in recent weeks.
/jlne.ws/3MxXWNB
Bunge Rating Raised by Fitch as Viterra Deal Looks More Certain
Gerson Freitas Jr - Bloomberg
Bunge Global SA's credit rating was raised by Fitch Ratings, putting the agriculture company further into investment grade as its $8.2 billion deal to acquire Glencore Plc-backed Viterra is looking more certain. There is "increased certainty" that the deal will receive the necessary regulatory approvals after being cleared by most jurisdictions, the rating company said in a statement late Thursday.
/jlne.ws/3AQDnJv
Companies Are Racing to the US Debt Market - and Here's Why; Busiest two-day run for corporate bond sales on record; A strong bond rally before Fed's first move has slashed rates
Caleb Mutua and Jeannine Amodeo - Bloomberg
The surge of borrowing in the US corporate debt market, on the surface, looks odd. Despite all the excitement about the Federal Reserve's long-awaited pivot toward easing monetary policy, it hasn't done so yet. In fact, its benchmark interest rate is still pinned at a more than two-decade high. But up and down corporate America, at blue-chip businesses and those heavily burdened by debts, executives are turning to Wall Street to borrow cash at a blistering pace. It's the sort of stampede expected once the central bank is already slashing borrowing costs and actively trying to pump money into the economy. In this case, though, it reflects the swift repricing that's raced through the markets as traders get ahead of the Fed.
/jlne.ws/4gdlgOa
Japanese Firm Sells Hybrid Bond at Widest Spread This Year; Sumitomo Chemical offers 280 basis-point premium on yen debt; Deals Friday boost subordinated sales to record high in 2024
Ayai Tomisawa - Bloomberg
A Japanese borrower that was hit by a record loss sold a yen bond at the widest spread for yen corporate hybrid debt this year in a key test of appetite as interest rates creep higher. Sumitomo Chemical Co. priced ¥100 billion ($700 million) of hybrid debt on Friday at 280 basis points over Japanese government bonds, according to an email from SMBC Nikko Securities Inc., one of the underwriters. That's twice the spread on jumbo subordinated debt deals by Takeda Pharmaceutical Co. and Nippon Steel Corp. in June. Premiums on those offerings were considered generous at the time and came before the Bank of Japan's surprise rate increase late July.
/jlne.ws/3Xij7bm
UK pension funds' allocations to British stocks hit historic low; Retirement schemes shun London-listed equities and private markets
Mary McDougall - Financial Times
UK pension schemes have among the lowest proportion of funds held in domestic stocks and private assets of any significant global pension market, according to a new report, adding pressure on the government to revive investment in British industry. Just 4.4 per cent of UK pension assets are held in domestic equities, down from 6 per cent last year and much lower than a 10.1 per cent global average.
/jlne.ws/3z9ghgD
Why pension surpluses should get investors to prick up their ears; With interest rates higher, many schemes are moving out of deficit, which could feed through to share prices
James Henderson - Financial Times (opinion)
/jlne.ws/47okFFh
A $165 Billion Wave Is Pushing Money Fund Assets to New Records; Money-market fund assets reach a record $6.3 trillion: ICI; Barclays, BofA say money funds attractive despite Fed path
Alex Harris - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/4gdlxAG
Reasons why investors need to prepare for a US recession
Peter Berezin - Financial Times (opinion)
/jlne.ws/47isZqf
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | Podesta Says US and China Narrowed Differences in Climate Talks
Bloomberg News
The US and China were able to somewhat narrow their divide on climate finance issues during talks in Beijing this week that also touched on new plans for emissions cuts. There are still key differences in the countries' approaches to fighting climate change, John Podesta, the US senior adviser to the president for international climate policy said, but the discussions were able to help the two sides find a little more common ground on issues, including how wealthy countries should help provide funds to accelerate the green transition in developing nations and protect them from more extreme weather.
/jlne.ws/4eaOw69
Wealthy families already know they must look beyond ESG to their 'legacy'; New regulations governing fund ratings will help, but there are other ways to navigate the confusion
Sally Hickey - Financial Times
You'd be forgiven for missing the news last month that the new UK chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has brought forward the introduction of regulation for environmental, social and governance rating agencies. From next year, firms evaluating the ESG credentials of companies will be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority.
/jlne.ws/4cY5BPI
World to set heat record for 2024 after warmest northern summer; Temperatures in June to August period remained 1.5C above pre-industrial levels
Attracta Mooney - Financial Times
The world has experienced its hottest northern hemisphere summer on record, as a swath of countries baked in stifling heat, putting 2024 firmly on course to be the warmest on the books, scientists said. The average temperature globally for the June to August period was 16.8C, 0.69C above the 1991-2020 average and 1.5C above 1850-1900 pre-industrial levels, the Copernicus earth observation agency said.
/jlne.ws/4gq7nwe
Solar Farms Have a Superpower Beyond Clean Energy; The sites fight climate change and can help with another global crisis: the collapse of nature. But so far, efforts to nurture wildlife habitat have been spotty.
Catrin Einhorn - The New York Times
It's not your average solar farm. The glassy panels stand in a meadow. Wildflowers sway in the breeze, bursts of purple, pink, yellow, orange and white among native grasses. A monarch butterfly flits from one blossom to the next. Dragonflies zip, bees hum and goldfinches trill. As solar projects unfurl across the United States, sites like this one in Ramsey, Minn., stand out because they offer a way to fight climate change while also tackling another ecological crisis: a global biodiversity collapse, driven in large part by habitat loss.
/jlne.ws/3Zfz98C
Group Therapy Sessions Proliferate for People Afflicted With 'Eco-Distress'; The Good Grief Network grew out of research at the University of Utah and now provides group climate therapy across the United States and around the world.
Nina Dietz - Inside Climate News
LaUra Schmidt first came up with the idea of climate-focused peer support circles when she was in graduate school a decade ago at the University of Utah. She thought of support circles as a way to help front-line climate workers who were feeling isolated and often paralyzed by the magnitude of global warming. Her research in environmental humanities focused on building resilience among those most involved in countering the climate crisis. She found that the more people knew about climate science, the more often they felt alone and wracked by grief, anxiety and despair.
/jlne.ws/4e9qTuT
Wealthy families already know they must look beyond ESG to their 'legacy'; New regulations governing fund ratings will help, but there are other ways to navigate the confusion
Sally Hickey - Financial Times
You'd be forgiven for missing the news last month that the new UK chancellor, Rachel Reeves, has brought forward the introduction of regulation for environmental, social and governance rating agencies. From next year, firms evaluating the ESG credentials of companies will be regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority. And, while the continued development of ESG regulations is unlikely to have featured in earnest summer conversations on the French Riviera, it does indicate the UK government's intent to push for transparency in an oft-confusing sector. But does it really matter to wealthy investors?
/jlne.ws/3Xezwxs
Companies setting climate transition plans up 44% in 2023, research shows
Simon Jessop - Reuters
The number of companies saying they have a climate transition plan in line with the world's most ambitious goal has jumped by nearly half, but many do not give investors enough information to check the claims, according to non-profit data tracker CDP.
/jlne.ws/3z8EOCw
More cleantech companies fail as fundraising challenges emerge; Rising interest rates, competition for funding and delayed federal support contribute to issues facing sector
Patrick Temple-West and Amelia Pollard in New York and George Hammond in San Francisco - Financial Times
/jlne.ws/3Xd6QVz
Azerbaijan In Talks to Send Gas to Three More European Countries; Talks underway with at least three more countries, Aliyev says; Azerbaijan currently ships gas to eight European countries
Zulfugar Agayev, Flavia Rotondi, and Tiago Ramos Alfaro - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/4egMqlv
Another Dark Fleet Ship Set to Dock at Russian Arctic LNG Plant; Sanctioned Everest Energy vessel nears the export facility; The US expanded sanctions against dark fleet ships on Thursday
Stephen Stapczynski - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3Xx4u53
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | AT1 Bond Sales Hit Weekly Record Ahead of Central Bank Rate Cuts; Issuers emerge from summer lull with deluge of bond offerings; Buyers place big bids before potential central bank rate cuts
Tasos Vossos - Bloomberg
Banks are having their busiest week of issuance of Additional Tier 1 bonds since this risky type of bank debt was introduced in the wake of the global financial crisis. European lenders, which account for the bulk of the AT1 market globally, raised the equivalent of EUR7.1 billion ($7.9 billion) of capital this week, surpassing every other weekly tally on record, based on data compiled by Bloomberg.
/jlne.ws/4dQds3n
Morgan Stanley to debut first Pathway-branded ETFs; The funds will be conversions of existing fund strategies and are set to start trading in November
Daniel Gil - Financial Times
Morgan Stanley plans to convert two of its flagship equity funds totalling $3bn in assets into the manager's very first ETFs under the "Morgan Stanley Pathway" brand, according to a regulatory filing. It has filed to refashion the $2.6bn Morgan Stanley Pathway Large Cap Equity Fund and the $470mn Morgan Stanley Pathway Small-Mid Cap Equity Fund into ETFs, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The conversions, approved unanimously by the board of trustees for the funds, will not require shareholder approval, the filings noted.
/jlne.ws/3TlenAt
Hedge Fund Regal Seeks $1 Billion for New Fund on Expansion Push; Feeder fund linked to Australian firm's multi-strategy vehicle; Regal eyeing more acquisitions in public and private markets
Georgina McKay - Bloomberg
Hedge fund manager Philip King's Regal Partners Ltd. is targeting around $1 billion in fresh funds for a new vehicle in the Cayman Islands as it pushes ahead with its expansion plans. Regal Partners Private Fund will be a feeder fund into the company's Australia-based multi-strategy vehicle that posted a 19% return since its December inception. The fund includes private credit, water, power and resources and the flagship global long-short equity fund, which has returned 25% over the past year, beating around 97% of its peers, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
/jlne.ws/4dOPHZx
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| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | Why Gen Z surpassing boomers at work is troubling for managers: 'Age of authority is dropping'; A survey revealed the younger generation is the 'most difficult to work with'
Taylor Penley - FOX Business
Gen Z has a bad reputation for being the most "difficult" generation to work with, and reports say they're slated to take over the workforce by outpacing the number of baby boomers by the end of the year. What does that mean for bosses? A 2023 survey from ResumeBuilder found that 49% of business leaders and managers identified the group as difficult to work with most or all the time and a majority agreed Gen Z - or Zoomers - lack effective communication skills, motivation, effort and even technological skills in some instances.
/jlne.ws/4cU2j08
UnSpot Review: All-in-One Hybrid Work Management
Rebekah Carter - UC Today
Managing a bustling workplace has never been easy. Now that we've moved into the age of hybrid work, it's more complex than ever. With various team members moving in and out of the office according to diverse schedules, businesses need a way to streamline resource allocation. That's where software solutions like UnSpot come in. Combining tools for hybrid work security, desk and meeting room booking, scheduling, and analytics, UnSpot promises businesses a simple solution for workspace optimization. Still, it's far from the only tool offering these benefits. Today's teams can choose from solutions like Appspace, Deskbird, Wisp, and Roomz. There are even options like Microsoft Places, that offer similar functionality. So, how do you know if UnSpot is right for your team?
/jlne.ws/4dTY85y
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | The biggest wellness trends of 2024 (so far)
Madeleine Aggeler - The Guardian
We all want to be well - to feel good or, at least, not feel bad. For the most part, we know how to do this: eat nutritious food, move your body, get adequate sleep, manage stress and nurture your relationships. But eating leafy greens, going on walks and journaling aren't terribly exciting. New trends that promise to revolutionize our health and wellbeing are more intriguing. Often, these trends are old ideas in shiny new packaging (eg detoxing). Sometimes, they are genuine advancements whose implications may not yet be fully understood (eg microbiome testing).
/jlne.ws/3B2wyVa
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | China Should Explain 'Enormous' Data Gaps, US Ex-Official Says; Discrepancies may obscure true size of China's trade surplus; US called for explanation as China boosts exports for growth
Bloomberg News
China should explain widening discrepancies in its balance of payments data that are obscuring growing global imbalances, a top US economist said. The country's surplus in goods trade shown in the BoP data - compiled by its State Administration of Foreign Exchange - has significantly undershot the one reported by the customs since 2022, according to Brad Setser, senior fellow at the Council on Foreign Relations and a former US trade and Treasury official. "These are enormous gaps that call into question some of the adjustments that China is making to that data," Setser said on the sidelines of the Bund Summit in Shanghai on Thursday.
/jlne.ws/3TiyZJK
Manila Electric to sell $600 mln stake in solar subsidiary to Actis
Reuters
Philippine power generator and distributor Manila Electric Co (MER.PS) is selling a 40% stake in a solar power subsidiary to global investment firm Actis for $600 million, the company said on Friday. Proceeds will be used for the joint development and expansion of the Terra Solar energy storage project, Manila Electric said in a statement.
/jlne.ws/47etq4A
Leaders of India and Singapore sign deal to cooperate on semiconductors
Reuters
The leaders of India and Singapore on Thursday signed an agreement to partner and cooperate in semiconductors, in a deal aimed at giving Singaporean firms a greater role in supply chains in the Indian market, the two countries said. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed during Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's two-day visit to Singapore, his fifth overall and first since 2018.
/jlne.ws/3XhMIl2
India to extend sugar export ban to boost local supplies, ethanol output, sources say
Rajendra Jadhav and Mayank Bhardwaj - Reuters
India plans to extend a ban on sugar exports for the second straight year as the world's biggest consumer of the sweetener grapples with the prospects of lower cane output, government sources said. New Delhi also plans to raise the price at which oil companies buy ethanol from sugar mills as part of efforts to boost supplies of the biofuel, said the sources with direct knowledge of the matter. They did not wish to be identified as deliberations were not public.
/jlne.ws/4e9t81h
French Wheat Harvest and Yields Seen Plunging as Troubles Deepen; Lobby group warns of 'structural' damage to the industry; Farmers may lose EUR3 billion amid rising energy bills, salaries
Nayla Razzouk - Bloomberg
France's soft-wheat harvest is seen plunging to the lowest in 40 years, and the nation's farm lobby is warning of "structural" damage to yields. Production will be 25.98 million tons, a 26% decline from last year, said Eric Thirouin, president of AGPB. Yields slumped 17% to 6.2 tons per hectare during the same period, continuing the slide that started in 2015.
/jlne.ws/4dStjOT
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