| February 19, 2025 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
President Donald Trump signed an executive order placing independent agencies under White House control, significantly expanding presidential authority and setting the stage for legal battles, Politico reported. The order, influenced by budget chief Russ Vought, aligns with the unitary executive theory, which asserts the president's sole control over the executive branch. It grants Vought supervisory power over agencies like the FCC, FTC, and SEC, requiring performance reviews and budget oversight to align with Trump's policies.
The move effectively strips these agencies of their independence, a principle historically upheld by Congress and past presidents. It also formalizes actions Trump has already taken, including firing Gwynne Wilcox (NLRB chair), Jennifer Abruzzo (NLRB general counsel), and David Huitema (Office of Government Ethics director).
While the order does not affect the Federal Reserve's monetary policy, it extends to its regulatory functions. Legal challenges are expected, as critics argue the order violates laws protecting agency independence from political influence.
One has to ask why are DOGE and the Trump administration firing new employees for government agencies, employees who are likely highly educated, technologically savvy, and data oriented? Many agencies have hired new employees with math, technology, AI and data science skills over the last five years as they have sought to modernize. Why are these employees among those being let go? Why was DOGE seeking access to IRS information? What is the common denominator in all of this? Data. Data about you and me and millions of other people. And with that data comes ultimate power.
As President Trump consolidates power and accumulates data, we move deeper into the world of surveillance capitalism, or better put, Surveillance Authoritarianism or Data-Driven Autocracy.
Surveillance Authoritarianism or Data-Driven Autocracy is a system in which governments use mass data collection, AI, and digital surveillance to consolidate power, control populations, and suppress dissent. Unlike Surveillance Capitalism, which monetizes personal data for commercial profit, this model exploits data to monitor, influence, and manipulate political behavior. Governments employ mass surveillance through social media, telecom networks, and smart technology to track citizens' activities and communications. AI-driven propaganda is used to shape public opinion and sway election outcomes, while predictive policing and big data analytics enable political suppression. Algorithmic censorship allows authorities to control information flows and silence opposition, and social credit systems enforce political compliance by rewarding or punishing behaviors aligned with state interests. Together, these tactics create a highly controlled political environment where digital tools serve as mechanisms of governance, often under the guise of national security or social stability.
Don't be fooled by the DOGE cover story about looking for government waste. Yes, there is waste, and just like the poor, it will always be with us. And we can and should make an effort to reduce government waste, just as we try to reduce the number of poor, homeless and hungry people. Making more people poor, hungry and homeless in the name of reducing government waste is the wrong strategy.
As the U.S. and Russia engage in talks over ending the war in Ukraine, tensions are rising over potential peace terms. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov declared that foreign troops, including NATO or EU forces, would be unacceptable in post-war Ukraine. Meanwhile, Donald Trump has demanded that Volodymyr Zelensky hold elections that could remove him from office as a condition for peace. Trump further inflamed tensions by blaming Ukraine, not Russia, for the war, a statement widely condemned and dismissed by Zelensky as Russian propaganda.
Amidst growing pressure, Elon Musk backed accusations that Zelensky prioritizes power and money over peace, adding to Ukraine's diplomatic struggles. Eastern European populist leaders, including those from Bulgaria and Slovakia, rejected calls to send peacekeeping troops. Zelensky, increasingly isolated, warned that ceding territory would abandon millions of Ukrainians under Russian rule. As negotiations unfold, fears grow that a peace deal could be reached without Ukraine's input, reshaping the war's outcome on terms dictated by Moscow and Washington.
Here are the headlines from in front of FOW's paywall from some recent stories: OPINION: Crypto markets - the giant shift on the horizon, ANALYSIS: ICE natural gas futures margin jumps two thirds on price spike, BGC rings senior management changes as Lutnick steps down, TP ICAP appoints two to run Liquidnet multi-asset sales, ANALYSIS: Basel III clearing rules 'punitive' for trading banks - ISDA FCA shuts cum-ex probe after Mako fine takes total over £30m.
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:
- BofA Survey Shows Investors Haven't Been This Risk-On Since 2010 from Bloomberg.
- Cboe's 'Follow the Sun' Model Will Help 24×5 US Equities Trading from MarketsMedia.
- Vanguard Overtakes State Street as World's Biggest ETF from Bloomberg. ~JB
Subscribe to the JLN Options Newsletter HERE (it's free).
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 Blockfills Expands Crypto Services, Eyes Institutional Growth Amid Regulatory Shifts JohnLothianNews.com Blockfills, a digital asset trading and technology firm, is expanding its services to meet growing demand in the cryptocurrency market, according to Blockfills Co-Head of Digital Exotics Paul Sacks. In an interview with John Lothian News at the FIA EXPO in November, Sacks highlighted the firm's focus on institutional clients and qualified professional traders globally. "We post massive volumes in Bitcoin and Ether," Sacks said, noting that most clients trade spot through the company's front-end platform, Vision Trader, or via API. Watch the video »
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Zelenskiy, on US minerals deal, says: I can't sell Ukraine
Reuters
President Volodymyr Zelenskiy on Wednesday rejected U.S. demands for $500 billion in mineral wealth from Ukraine to repay Washington for wartime aid, saying the United States had supplied nowhere near that sum so far and offered no specific security guarantees in the agreement. The Ukrainian leader, who is under major pressure from Trump's White House, said Washington had supplied his country with $67 billion in weapons and $31.5 billion in direct budget support throughout the nearly three-year war with Russia.
/jlne.ws/4gPK11M
***** I am just disgusted by the shakedown of Ukraine by the current administration.~JJL
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A Lingering Question at Coinbase: Who Really Owns the Customers' Crypto? Coinbase's accounting change significantly affects its numbers and highlights an old worry
Jonathan Weil - The Wall Street Journal
An odd thing happened when Coinbase reported its quarterly financial results last week. The bulk of its assets and liabilities abruptly disappeared. The cryptocurrency exchange had shown $291 billion of assets as of Sept. 30. At year-end, they were $23 billion. Total liabilities, once $282 billion a few months earlier, dropped to $12 billion. There wasn't any great change economically. Rather, the company started using a different accounting treatment for the digital tokens it holds on behalf of customers. Now they are off Coinbase's balance sheet. They used to be on.
/jlne.ws/3Qmxet9
***** Now here is a problem. Customers don't own their assets at Coinbase. Or do they? Only time and a Coinbase bankruptcy will tell.~JJL
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Record-breaking cold: Temperatures to plunge to as much as 50 degrees below normal
Hanna Park, Robert Shackelford and Mary Gilbert - CNN
Dangerously cold conditions will impact over 60 million Americans between Wednesday and the weekend spanning a large swath of the US and setting the stage for widespread disruptions from a winter storm. Arctic air is interacting with a strengthening storm system to bring hazardous winter weather to the central US, which will eventually reach the mid-Atlantic coast. The bitter cold and snow will also complicate recovery efforts in parts of Kentucky, West Virginia and Virginia, where communities are still reeling from deadly floods caused by a storm over the weekend.
/jlne.ws/4hO34Ly
****** Be safe, don't freeze.~JJL
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Yosemite halts camping reservations, with no timetable for their return
Molly Burke, Hearst Fellow - San Francisco Chronicle
Yosemite National Park announced Friday that reservations for some of the park's most popular campgrounds will be delayed. The park will delay the sale of reservations between June 15 and July 14 for the Upper Pines, Lower Pines, North Pines, Wawona and Hodgdon Meadow campsites. The reasoning behind the delay is unclear. The announcement comes amid a staffing shortage during a federal hiring freeze and an indefinite delay on the park's entrance reservation system.
/jlne.ws/4hFL9GH
****** Wait until the bears start to wander from the parks due to the lack of food from the tourists. ~JJL
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Tuesday's Top Three
Our top story Tuesday was Trump's reckless experiment with financial deregulation, an opinion piece from the editorial board of the Financial Times. Second was Vanguard Overtakes State Street as World's Biggest ETF, from Bloomberg. Third was Venture Capital Kills 'More Value Than It Creates,' Author Says, from Bloomberg.
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| Lead Stories | Trump, Musk target tax enforcers, rocket scientists, bank regulators for job cuts
Andrea Shalal, Pete Schroeder, Jack Queen and Karen Freifeld - Reuters
President Donald Trump's administration targeted on Tuesday bank regulators, rocket scientists and tax enforcers for dismissal, as a federal judge gave the green light for its unprecedented remaking of the U.S. civil service, at least for now. With Trump's blessing and praise, tech billionaire Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency, or DOGE, has swept through federal agencies slashing thousands of jobs since Trump became president last month and put Musk, his biggest campaign donor, in charge of a drastic overhaul of government.
/jlne.ws/41bWt6y
Trump Tightens Grip on Bank, M&A Regulators in Latest Order; Directive curbs power of independent agencies, including SEC; Federal Reserve largely exempted from oversight directives
Nicola M White, Lydia Beyoud, and Leah Nylen - Bloomberg
President Donald Trump sought to rein in independent federal agencies in an executive order Tuesday that aims to curb the ability of some of Washington's most powerful regulators to oversee banks and other companies. The order, which applies to agencies including the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission and the Federal Communications Commission, calls for the entities to submit draft regulations for White House review before publication and consult with the Trump administration on their priorities and strategic plans.
/jlne.ws/3Xb7Zh5
UK to cut securities settlement time in 2027; Britain aligns with EU and Switzerland on stock market modernisation project
Nikou Asgari and Ortenca Aliaj - Financial Times
The UK will join the global move to cut the time to settle stocks and bonds in late 2027, aligning itself with an EU timetable in an attempt to attract more investors to London's capital markets. The government on Wednesday confirmed that Britain would switch to next-day settlement on October 11 2027, in a move aimed at boosting market liquidity. "Speeding up the settlement of trades makes our financial markets more efficient and internationally competitive," said chancellor Rachel Reeves.
/jlne.ws/3XaCXpM
Trump signs order to claim power over independent agencies; The action is likely to face court challenges and test a once-fringe legal theory.
Megan Messerly and Bob King - Politico
President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed a sweeping executive order bringing independent agencies under the control of the White House - an action that would greatly expand his power but is likely to attract significant legal challenges. It represents Trump's latest attempt to consolidate power beyond boundaries other presidents have observed and to test the so-called unitary executive theory, which states that the president has the sole authority over the executive branch. And it reflects the influence of Russ Vought, Trump's budget chief, one of several conservatives in his orbit who have called for axing independent arms of the executive branch.
/jlne.ws/42XvJsT
****Here is the Wall Street Journal's version of the story.
Federal Mortgage Insurer to Lay Off About Half Its Workforce
Courtney Rozen - Bloomberg
The Trump administration is planning to lay off at least 40% of the workers at the federal agency that provides mortgage insurance on loans for people who otherwise wouldn't qualify for one, according to two sources familiar with the agency's plans. Federal officials are preparing to cut employees at the Federal Housing Administration, the office that helps certain homebuyers secure a loan if they can't afford a down payment or have below-average credit scores, the sources said. It also protects lenders against losses on those loans.
/jlne.ws/42W7kE1
Wall Street's Utility Players Are Now Profit Machines; Companies including S&P Global and Moody's have become indispensable to the financial ecosystem.
Nir Kaissar - Bloomberg
If I were to ask investors to name the best businesses in America, I suspect many would point to the Magnificent Seven, and understandably so. Technology giants such as Apple Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Alphabet Inc. are near monopolies that churn out reliably outsized profits. Fewer, I'm guessing, would name the handful of companies that are arguably the Magnificent Seven's biggest beneficiaries - businesses whose industry dominance and profitability are just as compelling and may prove to be more enduring.
/jlne.ws/4k1ezk1
U.S.-Sanctioned Countries Such as Iran Leaning Heavily Into Crypto: Chainalysis; A new report from the analytics firm says that sanctioned jurisdictions and groups were responsible for 39% of illicit crypto transactions last year.
Jesse Hamilton - CoinDesk
Countries targeted by U.S. government sanctions have surged in illicit crypto activity, receiving nearly $16 billion in digital assets last year - about 39% of illicit token transactions - according to a report from Chainalysis released on Wednesday. 2024 was a year in which those nations - especially Iran - surged over individuals in sanctions-related activity, noted the report from the crypto-analytics firm.
/jlne.ws/3D6PrHV
First-Day IPO Trading Flops Threaten Next Wave of US Debuts
Bailey Lipschultz - Bloomberg
Wall Street loves a perfectly choreographed IPO, with more shares offered and prices increased in the lead-up to the deal, to signal rising demand. At the climax, shares of newly-listed companies pop on their first trading day, priming the market for even more hyped-up debuts. Instead, three of the US's four largest initial public offerings this year have traded below their offer price in their first session - a black mark on any deal, never mind while stock benchmarks flirt with record highs.
/jlne.ws/4i0GqPB
Tiger Brokers adopts DeepSeek model as Chinese brokerages, funds rush to embrace AI
Samuel Shen and Tom Westbrook - Reuters
Tiger Brokers said on Tuesday it embedded DeepSeek's model into its AI-powered chatbot, as brokerages and money managers race to capitalise on the Chinese start-up's artificial intelligence breakthrough, and develop use cases for the financial industry. The integration of the DeepSeek-R1 model into TigerGPT follows DeepSeek's meteoric rise which stunned Silicon Valley and triggered a rally in Chinese tech shares on bets of an AI revolution sweeping across sectors from education to finance.
/jlne.ws/4b58rTW
Trump's Commerce Secretary Pick Howard Lutnick Confirmed by Senate; Lutnick will lead administration's tariff and trade agenda; Billionaire has said he would step down from Cantor role
Daniel Flatley - Bloomberg
Howard Lutnick, the billionaire CEO of Cantor Fitzgerald LP, was confirmed by the Senate Tuesday to be President Donald Trump's Commerce secretary. Lutnick, approved on a vote of 51-45, will oversee a large department with responsibilities ranging from fisheries management to export controls. Trump has tasked Lutnick with leading the administration's tariff and trade agenda and has said he will have direct responsibility for the Office of the US Trade Representative.
/jlne.ws/42WrDBf
Howard Lutnick Taps Two Sons, Three Business Heads to Run Cantor; Brandon Lutnick and Kyle Lutnick to run parent organization; Pascal Bandelier, Sage Kelly, Christian Wall to run core unit
Todd Gillespie - Bloomberg
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick has named his two eldest sons and three company deputies to run the core of his business group after his Senate confirmation Tuesday and resignation from Cantor Fitzgerald LP. Lutnick, 63, named Brandon Lutnick as chairman of the Wall Street group, and his older brother Kyle Lutnick as executive vice chairman, according to a company statement Tuesday. Cantor Fitzgerald's core unit, the private brokerage and investment bank, will be run by the heads of its three businesses - Sage Kelly, Pascal Bandelier and Christian Wall - who lead investment banking, equities and fixed income, respectively, the statement added.
/jlne.ws/3EX32SE
Trump Administration Wants To Let Banks Jack Up Overdraft Fees; The administration's assault on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is turning into a direct attack on consumers
Nikki McCann Ramirez - Rolling Stone
The Trump administration is looking to overturn a Biden-era rule limiting major banks' ability to penalize customers with overdraft fees, a reversal that has major banking associations salivating at the mouth. Last week, House Financial Service Committee Chair French Hill (R-Ark.) and Senate Banking Committee Chairman Tim Scott (R-S.C.) introduced legislation to repeal the rule, which eliminated junk fees associated with account overdrafting - capping the penalty at $5 - and gave banks several options to manage overdraft costs without placing an excess burden on consumers. The Trump administration endorsed the legislation on Monday, with Office of Management and Budget Director and Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Interim Director Russ Vought writing on X that he was "grateful" that the representatives had introduced legislation overturning the rule.
/jlne.ws/3EEJB0U
Private Jets, Political Cash Among $1B in Sam Bankman-Fried's Forfeited Assets: Court; A federal court confirmed the final tally of SBF assets the government staked a claim to, including $606 million in Robinhood stock sales and two private jets.
Jesse Hamilton - CoinDesk
A federal court has outlined just how extensive Sam Bankman-Fried's assets were before the young CEO of FTX was tried and imprisoned for fraud, and the government swooped in to seize roughly $1 billion in financial assets and two aircraft. The final order of forfeiture issued on Tuesday by the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York formally severed Bankman-Fried's ownership stake in a property list dozens of pages long. The court document revealed the wide swath of assets the one-time billionaire claimed ownership in, including extensive crypto holdings of Alameda Research, the trading firm SBF co-founded.
/jlne.ws/3CWjEcN
ECB Warns Bank Lending for Risk Swaps Can Hide Dangers in System
Nicholas Comfort - Bloomberg
The European Central Bank said it will keep a close watch on banks that are providing leverage to credit funds to invest in synthetic risk transfer trades because that could result in "substantial hidden risks being retained in the banking system.""That raises prudential concerns," the ECB said in a newsletter on Wednesday, citing the resulting lower capital coverage.
/jlne.ws/41k3x1Y
Citrone Joins Top-Paid Hedge Fund Ranks With $730 Million Payday; Izzy Englander, Ken Griffin topped Bloomberg's annual ranking of the best-paid hedge fund managers.
Tom Maloney and Hema Parmar - Bloomberg
Rob Citrone, who started last year with a mere $1.5 billion in his macro hedge fund, made more money for himself in 2024 than billionaires Bill Ackman, Andreas Halvorsen and Paul Singer. Citrone, 60, posted a 52% net return last year, making an estimated $730 million for himself, mostly from his own stake. That payday ranked him No. 9 on Bloomberg's annual list of the best-paid hedge fund founders and marks his first appearance since the ranking's inception in 2019. It's tough for someone overseeing single-digit billions to crack the top-paid hedge fund founders. Millennium Management's Izzy Englander and Citadel's Ken Griffin, whose firms have each amassed more than $60 billion in assets, top the list for the second year in a row with returns of about 15% for their flagship funds.
/jlne.ws/3EIBvo6
The quiet queen of American finance; Hi, Fidelity
Robin Wigglesworth - Financial Times
FT Alphaville has long been banging on for a while now about how Fidelity is a vast and under-recognised financial empire. Yesterday, the investment company released its latest results and ooooh boy do we feel vindicated. Details beyond these headline numbers are sparse, given that Fidelity is a private company mostly owned by Abigail Johnson and her extended Boston clan. Operating income is a bit mushy; it would have been nicer to have a net number.
/jlne.ws/3CNC0Nc
Glencore reviews London listing as miners sour on UK market; Chief Gary Nagle says mining group is seeking to boost its valuation
Leslie Hook - Financial Times
Glencore is reviewing whether to ditch its London listing, paving the way for a potential move to New York and threatening the UK market's historic status as a magnet for the global mining industry. Chief executive Gary Nagle said the mining group, one of the 20 most valuable members of the blue-chip FTSE 100 index, was assessing whether other exchanges would be "better suited to trade our securities".
/jlne.ws/3X48rh6
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| Trade War and Tariffs | | A roundup of today's trade war and tariff news and the global economic ripple effects shaping markets, industries, and investment strategies. | Trump Floats 25% Tariffs on Autos, Chips, Pharmaceuticals; President provides further details about his expected tariff moves
Gavin Bade - The Wall Street Journal
President Trump on Tuesday said he was considering tariffs of 25% or more on automobiles, semiconductors and pharmaceutical products. Here's what we know: What Trump said Tariffs will be "in the neighborhood of 25%" on those industries and may increase over time, he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago club in Florida. He added they would "go very substantially higher over the course of the year." Trump also said companies in the U.S. may be given a phase-in period on items they import, giving them time to move production to the U.S. He said he would allow "a little bit of a chance" to re-shore production, without providing details.
/jlne.ws/4hYxg6N
Trump's 25% Auto Tariffs Hurts These Stocks the Most
Al Root - Barron's
The performance of car stocks just hasn't lined up with the threat of new import tariffs. There are a couple of reasons for that, but investors should consider whether a change is coming as President Donald Trump's threat likely becomes a reality in a few weeks. The president said Tuesday that automotive tariffs could be 25%. Previously, Trump has threatened 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports. It appears the rest of the auto industry is getting caught up in his plans.
/jlne.ws/3EW3ikT
Canada is focused on making sure US doesn't impose tariffs, says Trudeau
Reuters
Canada is totally focused on making sure the United States does not go ahead with a threat to impose tariffs on Canadian imports, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday. "If ever there are tariffs brought in Canada, our response will be immediate and strong, but we don't want that. We are going to do the work to make sure they don't come on," he told a televised news conference in Montreal.
/jlne.ws/4k3hLvE
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| World Conflicts | | News about various conflicts and their military, economic, political and humanitarian impact. | Ukraine Invasion
Trump Wants Ukraine's Minerals. But What Exactly Is Up for Grabs?
Thomas Biesheuvel and Mark Burton - Bloomberg
Ukraine's mineral wealth has been thrown into the spotlight as US President Donald Trump looks to seize control of its resources in return for military support. Yet very little is actually known about what's up for grabs. Various reports have suggested that Ukraine has mineral deposits worth upwards of $10 trillion, and President Volodymyr Zelenskiy's government has been keen to promote crucial materials that can be exploited as it seeks more military and economic support. Rare earth elements - which play a key role in defense and other high-tech industries - have become a particular focus for Trump as he seeks to secure supplies of critical minerals. The President said last week he wanted the equivalent of $500 billion worth of rare earth.
/jlne.ws/4b3aPdP
Trump blames Ukraine over war with Russia, saying it could have made a deal; President hits back at Ukraine's complaint that it has been left out of US-Russia talks, saying it had years to make a deal 'without the loss of much land'
David Smith in Washington and agencies - The Guardian
President Donald Trump has criticised Volodymyr Zelenskyy, saying he was "disappointed" that the Ukrainian leader complained about being left out of talks between the US and Russia over ending the Ukraine war. Trump also seemed to blame Kyiv for Moscow's invasion - even as he said he was more confident of a deal to end the war after US-Russia talks - claiming Ukraine could have "made a deal" to avert war. "I'm very disappointed, I hear that they're upset about not having a seat [at the talks]," Trump told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida when asked about the Ukrainian reaction. The US president said a "half baked" negotiator could have secured a settlement years ago "without the loss of much land". "Today I heard, 'oh, well, we weren't invited.' Well, you've been there for three years ... You should have never started it. You could have made a deal," he said.
/jlne.ws/3EVSrYb
The Rapid Rehab of Vladimir Putin; The Russian marauder has become an ostensible peace-maker in a month.
The Editorial Board - The Wall Street Journal
President Trump campaigned on ending the war in Ukraine, and his negotiators on Tuesday began the process with a meeting in Saudi Arabia between Secretary of State Marco Rubio and his Russian counterpart. Global politics can be an ugly business, but the looming rehabilitation of Vladimir Putin is especially hard to take. Mr. Trump said last week after a phone call with Mr. Putin that he's convinced the Russian dictator wants "peace." He didn't say what kind of peace Mr. Putin has in mind, though if history is a guide it won't be what most Americans understand by the word.
/jlne.ws/41nU0Hr
Donald Trump signals Ukraine should hold elections as part of Russia peace talks
Steff Chavez and Christopher Miller - Financial Times
Donald Trump has signalled there should be elections in Ukraine, in his first public remarks after the US held high-level talks with Moscow in Riyadh. Russia and the US on Tuesday agreed to "lay the groundwork for future co-operation" on ending the war in Ukraine and a lightning normalisation of relations after their first high-level talks since President Vladimir Putin's full-scale invasion.
/jlne.ws/4b806yO
Russia says NATO states can't enforce Ukraine peace, wants membership pledge scrapped
Dmitry Antonov and Guy Faulconbridge - Reuters
Russia on Tuesday demanded NATO scrap its 2008 promise to one day give Ukraine membership of the U.S.-led NATO military alliance and dismissed the idea that NATO member forces could be keepers of the peace under some sort of ceasefire deal. Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said talks in Saudi Arabia, where he met Secretary of State Marco Rubio, U.S. national security adviser Mike Waltz and Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff, had been useful and that both sides had listened to each other.
/jlne.ws/41mo5Hm
Europe Flails for Response After Trump Blames Kyiv for Ukraine War; Stunned by U.S. outreach to Russia over Ukraine, European leaders are groping for common ground
Daniel Michaels and Laurence Norman - The Wall Street Journal
/jlne.ws/42XvttV
Middle East Conflict
Tens of thousands of Palestinians flee West Bank refugee camps
Ali Sawafta - Reuters
Tens of thousands of Palestinians living in refugee camps in the occupied West Bank have left their homes as a weeks-long Israeli offensive has demolished houses and torn up vital infrastructure in the heavily built up townships, Palestinian authorities said. Israeli forces began their operation in the refugee camp in the northern West Bank city of Jenin on Jan. 21, deploying hundreds of troops and bulldozers that demolished houses and dug up roads, driving almost all of the camp's residents out.
/jlne.ws/4i3tgS2
LIVE: Israel kills 3 in Gaza, Hamas offers all captives for permanent truce
Maziar Motamedi - Al Jazeera
At least three Palestinians have been killed and 11 injured in Israeli attacks across Gaza in the past 24 hours, according to the enclave's Health Ministry. Earlier, Hamas proposed exchanging all Israeli captives and Palestinian prisoners in "one go" during the second phase of the Gaza ceasefire deal, with the aim of reaching a permanent truce and a full Israeli pullout.
/jlne.ws/3QqpTsE
Anti-Israel protesters shout 'settlers go back home' at NYC Orthodox Jews
Luke Tress - The Times of Israel
Anti-Israel protesters shout "settlers" and "Zionists" at residents of an Orthodox Jewish neighborhood in Brooklyn. The protest, led by the Pal-Awda activist group, takes place in Boro Park, an area with a large Orthodox population. The crowd is separated into three parts. The anti-Israel protesters and a group of pro-Israel counterprotesters gather inside police opposing barricades on the street, and a crowd of Jewish residents watch from the opposite sidewalk. The anti-Israel protesters mostly shout at the neighborhood residents, who are closer. They chant "settlers settlers go back home, Palestine is ours alone," and "Zionists go to hell."
/jlne.ws/4gNZhMA
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | Nasdaq leads push to reform options regulatory fee; Proposed rule change would pare costs for traders, raise them for banks and defund smaller venues
Bernard Goyder and Emma Hilary Gould - Risk.net
US exchange Nasdaq is leading an effort to reform equity options fees. It's a move that could cut costs for traders and raise them for banks - but would also remove an important revenue source for smaller exchanges. Exchanges routinely charge users an options regulatory fee (ORF) to cover the cost of monitoring cross-exchange transactions. But the fee's application to trades 'done away' from a given exchange is a long-standing source of industry dissatisfaction.
/jlne.ws/4b8W9tu
What's in store for retail investors?
Eurex
Retail investors are playing an increasingly prominent role in the European derivatives markets, driven by technological advancements and broader financial education. Eurex continues to engage with this evolving landscape. Ahead of Derivatives Forum Frankfurt, we spoke with Randolf Roth, Member of the Executive Board at Eurex, to discuss key trends, the impact of innovation, and regulatory considerations for retail market participation.
/jlne.ws/3ELL6ur
Artificial Intelligence Alone Not the 'Silver Bullet' as Compliance Chiefs Wrestle with Rising Costs and Complexity
LSEG
Growing levels of financial crime and regulatory scrutiny are forcing organisations to step up spending on compliance, but they are less sold on AI as the standalone solution, according to a global survey of risk and compliance officers by LSEG Risk Intelligence. The survey finds that 87% of respondents expect their organisation's annual budgets for Know Your Customer Enhanced Due Diligence (KYC EDD) to increase over the next 12 months, with an average expected increase of 5.2%.
/jlne.ws/4hIsfz0
Deutsche Bank selects LSEG for FRTB Compliance Solution
LSEG
LSEG (London Stock Exchange Group), a leading global financial markets infrastructure and data provider, today announces Deutsche Bank has selected its Trade Discovery solution, a key tool for compliance for the Fundamental Review of the Trading Book (FRTB) regulation. The FRTB regulation requires institutions implementing the rules via their own market risk models, to access accurate and comprehensive data on cross-asset class financial instruments traded in both regulated and over-the-counter (OTC) markets. Our Trade Discovery solution aggregates this critical data from a variety of sources, including regulated markets, "transparent" OTC markets, and "opaque" OTC markets. LSEG has extensive coverage across exchange-traded and OTC derivative instruments through LCH and Tradeweb as well as through strategic partnerships with other providers such as Fenics Market Data, and Parameta Solutions.
/jlne.ws/3D5RSdO
Shanghai International Energy Exchange has released its Announcement of Market Makers for Futures and Options
SHFE
Shanghai International Energy Exchange has released its Announcement of Market Makers for Futures and Options as follows: In accordance with the Market-Making Management Rules of the Shanghai International Energy Exchange, Shanghai International Energy Exchange announces market makers for futures and options as follows:
/jlne.ws/4h3Sq25
Natural Resources and Innovation Companies Central to Global Economic Interests, the Annual TSX Venture 50 Ranking Shows; TSX Venture Exchange releases the 2025 TSX Venture 50, Canada's Top-Performing Growth Stage Public Companies
TMX
Canada's natural resources and technology-driven businesses continue to shape the country's economy. Today, TSX Venture Exchange (TSXV) announced the 2025 TSX Venture 50, spotlighting how mining and innovation companies are advancing Canada's long-term economic agenda and global competitiveness.
/jlne.ws/41jNjWO
New Product Summary: Initial Listing of the HLS (Argus) vs. WTI Trade Month Futures Contract - Effective March 17, 2025
CME Group
Initial Listing of the HLS (Argus) vs. WTI Trade Month Futures Contract.
/jlne.ws/3EJ755a
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | DBS, HSBC have best-performing mobile banking apps in Asia, according to a new report
South China Morning Post
Hong Kong and Singapore have the best performing mobile banking apps in Asia, a global study found, though they lag behind some Western counterparts that do a better job of integrating services from partners into their apps. The report was conducted by Sia, a Paris-based international management consulting firm. The study assessed 140 apps in 22 markets with a slate of 95 criteria, including functionality, user experience and feedback, with each receiving a score from 0 to 100. The Post got an exclusive preview of the study, the Mobile Banking Benchmark 2024, on Tuesday before it is published later this month.
/jlne.ws/3CY64pi
ION Markets joins PASLA to enhance securities lending in APAC
Rick Steves - Finance Feeds
ION has become a solutions member of the Pan Asia Securities Lending Association (PASLA) to strengthen its position in the securities finance market across the Asia-Pacific region. PASLA confirmed ION's membership and stated that the addition supports its objective to improve market structures and establish best practices.
/jlne.ws/4gOCJve
Revolut's Road to IPO Will Test Fintech's Hype; The neobank's ambitious expansion comes with renewed pressure on cost.
Lionel Laurent and Paul J. Davies - Bloomberg
In traditional European banking, where cross-border deals are finally stirring, the question is: "Will they merge?" In the world of fintech, where whizzy venture-backed growth has cooled in the face of increased competition, regulation and a funding drought, it's: "Will they list?" For neobank Revolut, the fintech hype looks set to be tested, with co-founder Nik Storonsky recently flagging that backers will want an initial public offering "sooner or later" and that the US looks a preferable listing destination.
/jlne.ws/3X8MVI1
How a Once-Hot Fintech's AI Bet Led to Bankruptcy; Bench collapse caused temporary panic for over 10,000 clients; Buyer of assets holds onto most clients, rehires employees
Emily Mason - Bloomberg
Bench Accounting, like many fintech startups, had ambitions to shake up a boring but important corner of finance - in this case, bookkeeping for small businesses. It racked up more than 10,000 clients in a little over a decade, and seemed well on its way. Yet that wasn't fast enough to make it the hot fintech it aspired to be when it raised over $100 million in venture financing. In a final push to improve its business, Bench turned to tech's favorite new go-to: AI. It laid off staff and introduced new automation programs, including a bot named BenchGPT.
/jlne.ws/413V8OP
EU accused of leaving 'devastating' copyright loophole in AI Act; Architect of copyright law says EU is 'supporting big tech instead of protecting European creative ideas'
Jennifer Rankin in Brussels - The Guardian
An architect of EU copyright law has said legislation is needed to protect writers, musicians and creatives left exposed by an "irresponsible" legal gap in the bloc's Artificial Intelligence Act. The intervention came as 15 cultural organisations wrote to the European Commission this week warning that draft rules to implement the AI Act were "taking several steps backwards" on copyright, while one writer spoke of a "devastating" loophole. Axel Voss, a German centre-right member of the European parliament, who played a key role in writing the EU's 2019 copyright directive, said that law was not conceived to deal with generative AI models: systems that can generate text, images or music with a simple text prompt. Voss said "a legal gap" had opened up after the conclusion of the EU's AI Act, which meant copyright was not enforceable in this area. "What I do not understand is that we are supporting big tech instead of protecting European creative ideas and content."
/jlne.ws/3X6WrM2
For AI's magic hammer, every problem becomes a nail; Risk.net survey finds high hopes - and seemingly infinite applications - among front-office users of AI
Lukas Becker, Kris Devasabai, Duncan Wood, Menghan Xiao - Risk.net
Hammers are great at knocking in nails. It's the job for which they were made. Bankers don't need to tackle that job very often - professionally, at least - so banks don't issue hammers en masse to the workforce. Artificial intelligence, on the other hand, is great at a whole slew of things. Banks have responded by giving staff access to it by way of general-purpose assistants and co-pilots. But when you have an all-purpose tool, where do you start? What should you use it for? Everything?
/jlne.ws/42Wj49A
Superhuman introduces AI-powered categorization to reduce spammy emails in your inbox
Ivan Mehta - TechCrunch
/jlne.ws/3QoLBwZ
Hyperlume wants to make chip-to-chip communication faster and more efficient
Rebecca Szkutak - TechCrunch
/jlne.ws/4b3MCEj
Tokenisation a 'defining trend' for Web3 in Hong Kong as city hosts major Consensus event
South China Morning Post
/jlne.ws/3QoMoxX
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | Trump's workforce blitz comes for CISA
John Sakellariadis - Politico
The Trump administration is poised to announce another round of large scale layoffs at the Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and those familiar with the move fear it will unintentionally gut the agency's top technical talent.
/jlne.ws/41wQQkN
Zero Trust Must be a Cybersecurity Priority for the Trump Administration
Niranjan Shankar - Infosecurity Magazine
With President Trump taking office soon after China-backed actors hacked the US Treasury and several telecommunications companies, cybersecurity is an immediate and pressing national security priority for the new administration. Despite President Biden's extensive efforts to bolster America's digital defenses, the recurring cyber-attacks and intrusions conducted by cybercriminals and nation-state-linked threat groups over the last several years demonstrate that US systems remain highly vulnerable. As geopolitical tensions increase, such attacks will only become more frequent and sophisticated.
/jlne.ws/4hIu9zE
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | Libra Token's Co-Creator Claimed He Paid Argentinian President Milei's Sister; It was unclear if any money was exchanged between Davis and Milei's inner circle in advance of Libra's launch.
Danny Nelson - CoinDesk
A key player behind the Libra token bragged about buying access to Argentine President Javier Milei's inner circle months before the memecoin's scandalous launch and crash. In text messages reviewed by CoinDesk, Hayden Davis, CEO of Kelsier Ventures, claimed he could "control" Milei because of payments he had been making to Karina Milei, a powerful figure in Milei's government, not to mention the president's sister.
/jlne.ws/4hFLyZR
Binance CEO Teng Sees 'Fresh Reset' for Crypto in New US Regime; Says Hong Kong regulatory limits not conducive for big players; "A couple" of HQ options under "careful consideration"
Annabelle Droulers and Suvashree Ghosh - Bloomberg
The US under President Donald Trump has moved on from a crypto regulatory regime marked by "a bit of oppression", according to Richard Teng, chief executive officer of Binance Holdings Ltd. Digital asset executives have loudly complained that regulators under previous President Joe Biden sought to engage in "regulation by enforcement", their description for a spate of high-profile lawsuits against and hefty fines levied on companies including Binance, Coinbase Inc. and Ripple LLC.
/jlne.ws/3EUlvPL
Crypto Has Moved Past FTX, Still Needs 24/7 Risk Management, Brevan Howard Digital CIO Says; Panelists discussed challenges and opportunities in crypto, including managing counterparty, credit and market risks 24/7.
Omkar Godbole - Financial Times
The crypto ecosystem has come a long way since the implosion of Sam Bankman Fried's FTX destroyed billions in investor wealth in 2023. However, the industry as a whole needs to more to become bulletproof, said TradFi experts at the "Views From Wall Street to Crypto" event held at Consensus Hong Kong on Wednesday. "You have traditional players who have come into the space now, especially for us, most of our trading happens of exchange settlement, where you actually keep your assets on custodians while you are able to trade on exchanges," Gautam Sharma, CEO and CIO of Brevan Howard Digital said. "So the technology has come far ahead in terms of the last 18 months since then, [but] there's more work to do."
/jlne.ws/433tZhU
Milei Crypto Scandal Widens With Allegations Against His Sister; Memecoin investor reportedly bragged about paying Karina Milei; Argentine president facing biggest scandal of his term yet
Manuela Tobias and Patrick Gillespie - Bloomberg
The political uproar over Argentine President Javier Milei's role in a crypto scandal has cast the spotlight on his closest adviser and gatekeeper: his sister. Hayden Davis, a key figure behind the Libra token - which surged then crashed on Friday night after Milei promoted it on X - bragged in a text message to another investor that he was paying Karina Milei to get the president to do his bidding, according to separate reports Tuesday by Argentina's marquee La Nacion newspaper and crypto industry site CoinDesk. Davis, who hasn't responded to multiple requests for comment, denied to CoinDesk that he had made payments to the president.
/jlne.ws/4be178E
Crypto Custody Firm BitGo Adds OTC Trading as It Mulls IPO
David Pan - Bloomberg
Crypto custody firm BitGo Inc. has launched a global over-the-counter trading desk for digital assets amid its plan to go public. The expansion comes as demand for cryptocurrencies from institutional investors such as hedge funds increases with prices rising. BitGo, one of the largest US-based custodians that help investors hold their digital assets, is considering an initial public offering, people familiar with the matter said earlier this month.
/jlne.ws/3X9XJFT
Ribbit Leads $50 Million Investment in Crypto Security Platform
Suvashree Ghosh - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3X6gnym
Michael Saylor's Big Bet on Bitcoin Is Inspiring Copycat CEOs; Dozens of public companies are using their cash to buy Bitcoin; The tactic can bring in new investors, but also new dangers
David Pan and Bailey Lipschultz - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/4i25V2R
Will Argentinian President Milei's Crypto 'Fiasco' Be a Deathblow for Memecoin Craze? "At this point, memecoins are synonymous with 'pump and dump' schemes," says FRNT Financial.
Aoyon Ashraf - CoinDesk
/jlne.ws/4b9kjnJ
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Judge Denies Bid to Halt Musk Access to US Agencies for Now
Zoe Tillman - Bloomberg
A federal judge denied a request to temporarily bar Elon Musk and the Trump administration's "government efficiency" team from accessing internal systems and removing employees at multiple US agencies, handing a win to President Donald Trump over one of his signature initiatives. US District Judge Tanya Chutkan in Washington on Tuesday rejected a bid for immediate court intervention from Democratic state attorneys general who contend Musk is exercising power to reshape the US government that is supposed to be reserved only for high-level, Senate-confirmed officials.
/jlne.ws/3QoLhON
Donald Trump's late-night posts send currency traders to Asian markets; US president's out-of-hours policy statements and U-turns boost contracts traded in Singapore
Owen Walker and Arjun Neil Alim - Financial Times
Donald Trump's return to the White House has been a boon to Asia's currency markets as traders in the US and Europe respond to his late-night social media posts and announcements by logging on to the only open trading venues. The first few weeks of Trump's second term have been marked by out-of-hours policy statements in the US that have shaken markets and sent traders reeling to adjust their positions.
/jlne.ws/3D5Xbde
Despite DOGE, Trump's agenda calls for adding trillions of dollars to U.S debt; Budget experts say Trump's tax and spending priorities would increase red ink, even as he boasts of balancing the budget. "I don't think their rhetoric matches reality," says one.
Sahil Kapur - NBC News
President Donald Trump and his billionaire adviser Elon Musk have sent shock waves through the federal government by attempting to take a hatchet to certain agencies in the name of reducing the federal deficit. "BALANCED BUDGET!!!" Trump posted this month on Truth Social. Musk added on X, "Balanced budget is going to happen." But the reality is less simple. Budget experts say that even if Trump succeeds at slashing the spending his Musk-led Department of Government Efficiency is targeting - like the U.S. Agency for International Development and diversity, equity and inclusion initiatives governmentwide - his policies would still substantially add to the deficit if they come to fruition.
/jlne.ws/4hIEhbA
Bessent Says DOGE Effort Has Saved Estimated $50 Billion So Far; US Treasury chief says no need to worry about private data
Viktoria Dendrinou and Daniel Flatley - Bloomberg
US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said US taxpayers don't need to worry about the security of their private data while Elon Musk's Department of Government Efficiency team seeks to make the federal government more efficient. The DOGE team has identified an estimated $50 billion in savings so far, Bessent said Tuesday during a Fox News interview. "So that's a very good start." He added the cost-cutting effort could eventually lead to "several percent of GDP that we are saving."
/jlne.ws/413TSLS
Trump Orders DOJ to Fire All Remaining Biden-Appointed US Attorneys
Gabe Whisnant - Newsweek
President Donald Trump announced Tuesday that he directed the Justice Department (DOJ) to dismiss all remaining U.S. attorneys from former President Joe Biden's era, claiming unprecedented politicization. The president posted on Truth Social, "Over the past four years, the Department of Justice has been politicized like never before. Therefore, I have instructed the termination of ALL remaining 'Biden Era' U.S. Attorneys. We must 'clean house' IMMEDIATELY, and restore confidence. America's Golden Age must have a fair Justice System - THAT BEGINS TODAY!" Newsweek has reached out to the DOJ for comment on Tuesday night via its website.
/jlne.ws/3EDobkL
Europe Is Becoming an Afterthought for the World; The president and his foreign policy team heaped disdain on US allies, and their criticisms were largely valid.
Hal Brands - Bloomberg Opinion
Sometimes a fight reflects badly on everyone. Consider the Meltdown in Munich - the cluster of transatlantic meetings around the Munich Security Conference over the weekend. President Donald Trump's administration used the occasion - as well as yesterday's US-Russia discussions in Saudi Arabia - to make clear that it has little respect for its longtime allies and little desire to lead that strategic community. Europe, for its part, showed that it is slouching toward strategic irrelevance in a world ruled by Washington, Moscow and Beijing.
/jlne.ws/4gVm1uw
EU to Set Aside Funds to Protect Undersea Cables from Sabotage; Bloc will channel millions of euros to securing infrastructure; A number of incidents have exposed EU weaknesses on cables
Samuel Stolton and John Ainger - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3X9fh4V
U.S. and Russia agree to restore embassy staffing in high-level talks on Ukraine war
Chantal Da Silva - NBC News
/jlne.ws/3X7OIwS
China's business innovators say will resist external pressure after meeting with Xi
Che Pan and Brenda Goh - Reuters
/jlne.ws/3D5QLe8
Qatar Plans $10 Billion Investment in India to Deepen Ties
Sudhi Ranjan Sen - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3EVVUpF
Milei's Crypto Defense Backfires After Aide Interrupts Interview
Manuela Tobias and Kevin Simauchi - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3EEIkqE
Milei's Crypto Blunder Carries Big Political Risks; The volatile Argentine leader's credibility will suffer from his Libra endorsement. He can't afford more unforced errors ahead of crucial midterm elections.
Juan Pablo Spinetto - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/41nnZiH
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | DOGE Staffers at CFPB Raise Ethics Concerns, Warren Says
Paige Smith - Bloomberg
A pair of Senate Democrats demanded Department of Government Efficiency staffers associated with Elon Musk vacate the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, saying their presence undermines an agency responsible for regulating the billionaire's yet-to-be-released payments venture. Senators Elizabeth Warren and Adam Schiff said Musk is "not only neutralizing the pro-consumer agency that will supervise X's digital wallet - he is also potentially gaining access to confidential corporate data that could provide X with an unfair advantage over its competitors."
/jlne.ws/4hGu5As
Supervisor in DC federal prosecutors' office told to resign after dispute over investigation
Alanna Durkin Richer and Eric Tucker - Associated Press
A top supervisor in the federal prosecutors' office in Washington said she was forced to resign following a dispute with her boss over a directive that she scrutinize the awarding of a government contract during the Biden administration, according to a letter reviewed by The Associated Press. Denise Cheung, a longtime Justice Department official who led the office's criminal division, wrote in a resignation letter that interim U.S. Attorney Ed Martin ordered her to seek a freeze on assets related to the contract and to issue grand jury subpoenas despite her believing there was an insufficient basis for doing so.
/jlne.ws/4i22UQ5
Thailand to Curb Short Selling, High-Speed Trades Amid Selloff
Anuchit Nguyen - Bloomberg
Thailand's stock exchange will tighten curbs on short selling and high-frequency trading as it attempts to revive investor confidence in the world's worst performing equity market. Short selling and high-frequency trading will be limited to stocks forming the part of SET100 Index, Asadej Kongsiri, president of the Stock Exchange of Thailand, told a press briefing Wednesday. The course currently allows short selling of stocks in SET100 Index and other securities with some conditions, while there are currently no limits set on high-speed trades, according to Asadej.
/jlne.ws/431EMsQ
Excessive Regulation Is Risk for EU Banks, Italy's Panetta Says
Nicholas Comfort and Alessandra Migliaccio - Bloomberg
European lenders could lose out to international competitors if regulators don't look into whether the industry is overly burdened by rules, according to Italian central-bank Governor Fabio Panetta. "We need to avoid excesses in regulation," Panetta said Wednesday in Rome. "In the past, this didn't generate competitive disadvantages. Now it's a concrete risk."
/jlne.ws/3X7TQB8
SEC Charges California Insurance Agents and Their Firm for Fraudulent Securities Offering
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today filed charges against Harshad Shah, Virendra Parekh, and their Milpitas, California-based firm, Namah Wealth Creation and Preservation, L.P., for allegedly perpetrating a $1.5 million securities offering fraud. According to the SEC's complaint, in February 2020, Shah and Parekh offered and sold a $1.5 million "funding note" issued by Namah Wealth to a California investor by falsely representing, among other things, that the investment would pay a guaranteed 50 percent annual return and was protected against loss by an insurance policy that they paid for. The complaint also alleges that Shah and Parekh, who are both licensed insurance agents, falsely told the investor his funds would be invested in international banks that would leverage the principal to generate enormous returns. In reality, the complaint alleges, Shah and Parekh never obtained any insurance to cover the investment principal, and lost nearly the entire $1.5 million when, without accurate disclosure, they invested it in a purported investment management firm based in Cyprus that had promised even more exorbitant returns.
/jlne.ws/4jXI86h
Former Melbourne financial planner Bradley Grimm's appeal dismissed
ASIC
Former Melbourne financial planner Bradley Grimm was unsuccessful in the Victorian Court of Appeal in his attempt to have his dishonesty conviction and prison term overturned. On 5 September 2024 Mr Grimm was convicted of three counts of engaging in dishonest conduct between February and November 2015, while running a financial services business. He was sentenced to 18 months' imprisonment, with nine months to serve, and to be of good behaviour for a period of 18 months upon release pursuant to a recognisance in the amount of $5,000.
/jlne.ws/4gQjB01
FCA and PSR report on digital wallets
FCA
A joint feedback statement from the FCA and PSR assesses the usage and impact of digital wallets. The use of digital wallets has rapidly grown in recent years with the proportion of card transactions using a digital wallet increasing significantly from 8% in 2019 to 29% in 2023. Given the growth, the FCA and PSR engaged extensively with businesses and representative groups to assess the impact of digital wallets, finding significant benefits to consumers through greater convenience, enhanced security measures, and, for some, greater financial inclusion.
/jlne.ws/414cOKj
FCA welcomes the final report of the Accelerated Settlement Taskforce and supports the UK market's move to T+1 settlement
FCA
The Accelerated Settlement Taskforce report provides a set of recommendations for the UK to move to a T+1 settlement cycle by 11 October 2027. On 6 February 2025, the Accelerated Settlement Taskforce published its final report recommending a detailed implementation plan for the UK to move to a T+1 standard for settling securities trades. We have welcomed the recommendationsLink is external, alongside the government and Bank of England. We support the transition to T+1 settlement in UK markets and call on industry to engage and start planning as soon as possible.
/jlne.ws/416jLdP
IOSCO concludes Thematic Review on Technological Challenges to Effective Market Surveillance
IOSCO
IOSCO publishes a Thematic Review on the status of implementation of its recommendations on Technological Challenges to Effective Market Surveillance issued in 2013. Conducted by the IOSCO Assessment Committee, this Thematic Review assessed the consistency of outcomes arising from the implementation by market authorities in 34 IOSCO member jurisdictions. The Review found that most market authorities have implemented the recommendations and have made significant progress in addressing technological challenges to market surveillance, particularly in more complex markets.
SFC sets out new roadmap to develop Hong Kong as a global virtual asset hub
SFC
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) today outlined 12 major initiatives to enhance the security, innovation and growth of Hong Kong's virtual asset (VA) market under a five- pillar "ASPIRe" roadmap, which stands for Access, Safeguards, Products, Infrastructure and Relationships (see Appendix). The initiatives will streamline access for global liquidity, enable adaptive compliance and product frameworks focusing on security, and drive infrastructure upgrades for traditional finance to tap into blockchain efficiency.
/jlne.ws/4b6J6c6
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | FX Volatility Leads Global Firms to Seek Shelter in Options, Longer Hedges
Carter Johnson - Bloomberg
Global companies battered by last year's currency swings are taking the profit hits to heart and revamping their hedging strategies in turn. More than three-quarters of senior finance leaders in the US and the UK surveyed in January by MillTechFX, a division of currency manager Millennium Global Investments Ltd., experienced losses stemming from unhedged currency exposures last year. That dent to the bottom line is leading firms to double down on options, which give them the right to buy or sell a currency - but don't oblige them - and extend the duration of their foreign exchange hedges.
/jlne.ws/4i6atFu
ByteDance's US Backers Say China Growth to Counter Any TikTok Ban Damage; Some American ByteDance investors say they don't need US TikTok for success
Alexandra S. Levine and Sarah McBride - Bloomberg
As TikTok fights to keep its popular video app available in the US, investors in parent company ByteDance Ltd. are being forced to re-evaluate financial prospects for a business valued at more than $300 billion as recently as late last year. Some of these American shareholders argue that, while a ban will take a near-term toll on their stakes, ByteDance's China business is the real driving force behind the lofty valuation and an eventual payday.
/jlne.ws/3Xawefw
Japan's Mitsui & Co. to buy $5bn stake in Australian iron ore project; CEO confident that demand from Southeast Asia and India can complement Chinese market
Ryohtaroh Satoh and Yuichi Nitta - Nikkei Asia
Japanese trading house Mitsui & Co. announced the acquisition of a 40% interest in the Rhodes Ridge iron ore project in Australia on Wednesday. The company will buy 25% and 15% stakes from two existing investors for a total of $5.34 billion. Rhodes Ridge, located in the state of Western Australia, is one of the world's largest undeveloped iron ore deposits, with 6.8 billion tonnes of mineral resources, according to a Mitsui statement. It is expected to start production by 2030.
/jlne.ws/4be8Pzt
Sports Debt Expected to Be Newest Collateral for Securitizations, Academy Says
Immanual John Milton - Bloomberg
Ticket sales to sporting events could become collateral for the next type of debt securitization, according to a Tuesday note from Academy Securities Inc., especially as more investment firms snap up shares of professional sports teams. Private equity firms are buying stakes in sports teams more frequently, at the same time that more stadiums are being built or renovated. That dual dynamic should fuel sales of debt backed by sports facilities, which include ticket sales, and other sports-linked debt, according to Stav Gaon, a strategist at Academy.
/jlne.ws/4hKUGMw
China's holdings of US Treasuries fall to lowest level since 2009; Beijing has been seeking to hold US debt through lower-profile accounts and diversifying into other assets
Arjun Neil Alim and Cheng Leng and Harriet Clarfelt - Financial Times
China's holdings of Treasuries have fallen to their lowest level since 2009, as Beijing holds more of its US government bonds through lower-profile accounts and diversifies into alternative assets. The value of US sovereign debt held by Chinese investors fell by $57bn to $759bn in 2024, data published by the US Treasury on Tuesday showed. This does not include Chinese-owned Treasuries held in accounts in other countries.
/jlne.ws/41kneqx
Liquidnet bolsters multi-asset sales team with two new additions; New appointments are set to help enhance buy-side access to trading opportunities.
Wesley Bray - The Trade
/jlne.ws/4gLe9LR
An AI revolution is about to transform corporate bond trading; Traders and portfolio managers set to further incorporate artificial intelligence into their workflows to analyse and trade corporate bonds, writes Jim Kwiatkowski, CEO of LTX.
The Trade (opinion)
/jlne.ws/3X6O0Aj
Mondelez Sees Chocolate Prices Rising Up to 50% on Cocoa Surge
Truth Headlam - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3Qrehp8
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | China's clean energy investments nearing scale of global fossil investments, researchers find
Reuters
China invested 6.8 trillion yuan ($940 billion) in clean energy in 2024, approaching the $1.12 trillion in global investment in fossil fuels, according to a new analysis for U.K.-based research organisation Carbon Brief. That was despite growth in China's clean energy investments slowing to 7% from 40% in 2023 amid overcapacity. More than half of that investment came from China's burgeoning electric vehicle, battery and solar industries.
/jlne.ws/439fdpw
BlackRock halts meetings with companies after SEC cracks down on ESG; Regulator's rules are part of broader effort to rein in power of largest fund managers
Patrick Temple-West, Amelia Pollard and Eric Platt - Financial Times
BlackRock has cancelled meetings with companies in the middle of shareholder battles because it fears that it could violate guidance on investor activism that the US Securities and Exchange Commission issued last week. BlackRock and other asset managers typically talk with companies about voting ahead of activism campaigns and also about routine proxy ballot issues at annual shareholder meetings.
/jlne.ws/4b9306c
HSBC delays net-zero emissions target by 20 years
Simon Jessop and Tommy Reggiori Wilkes - Reuters
HSBC is ditching its target of reaching net-zero carbon emissions across its business by 2030 because of slow change in the economy, the bank said on Wednesday, compounding fears from campaigners that the world's biggest lenders are rowing back on climate pledges. Europe's biggest bank said it was now aiming to reach the net-zero target 20 years later than planned, by 2050, and it only expects to record a 40% drop in emissions across its operations, business travel and supply chains this decade.
/jlne.ws/41wPiat
HSBC Delays Green Targets Citing Slow Progress in Wider Economy; Bank had previously aimed to zero out some emissions by 2030; Current pace of global decarbonization is slower than expected
Ishika Mookerjee, Alastair Marsh, and Sheryl Tian Tong Lee - Bloomberg
HSBC Holdings Plc said it needs to walk back some of its earlier emissions goals as it responds to the slow pace of decarbonization in the wider economy. Emissions reductions targets for its operations that were initially set for 2030 have now been pushed back to 2050, HSBC said in connection with its fourth-quarter results on Wednesday. The bank also said it's now reviewing the targets it set to reduce the emissions associated with its lending to seven high-carbon sectors.
/jlne.ws/418hrTP
China Revamps Power Market Rules In Challenge to Renewables Boom; President Xi's net zero announcement in 2020 drove expansion Installations are expected to moderate after June 1 deadline
Bloomberg News
China's unprecedented boom in renewable energy is facing a fresh challenge from government rules that will allow market forces to determine the price of new wind and solar power. The mandate from June 1 is likely to slow clean energy additions, although not enough to threaten the country's status as the world's biggest installer of wind and solar. Consumers should benefit from lower electricity rates, but energy storage providers may have to live with greater uncertainty.
/jlne.ws/4i7GEod
Chevron staffers absorb long-awaited layoffs as CEO pledges accountability
Ernest Scheyder, Sheila Dang - Reuters
During an internal town hall meeting last week, roughly 40,000 Chevron employees were shown a video touting the oil giant's success in Colorado as the largest oil and gas producer in the state. Less than 30 minutes later, executives announced plans to cut up to 20% of the global workforce.
/jlne.ws/433rFHE
China is betting big on energy storage as AI drives surge in power demand
South China Morning Post
China has unveiled plans to boost its energy storage sector as it strives to shore up its energy security and cope with a surge in power demand from emerging industries such as artificial intelligence. The action plan, which was jointly issued by eight government departments, includes measures to step up the development of a slew of next-generation battery technologies and create a small group of leading companies in the field.
/jlne.ws/41mbxzx
Oil Flows From Iran to China Jump as Traders Work Around Curbs
Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3EX7dhi
Wood May Need $400 Million Capital Raise, Kepler Analyst Says; Broker cuts price target to just 20 pence, rating to reduce; Stock hit record low after review uncovered 'failures'
Joe Easton - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/3X92Aaq
China reveals world's first carbon-sucking oil ship that can pump 120,000 barrels a day
Kaif Shaikh - Interesting Engineering
/jlne.ws/4k6zGRX
The 45 Companies on the MAGA Anti-DEI Hit List; Conservative activists target "unlawful" corporate practices; Justice Department threatens firms with criminal investigation
Jeff Green - Bloomberg
/jlne.ws/4b7Wgpp
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Private Equity Gets Pushback on Attempts to Strip Investor Protections; Lenders claw back blockers to prevent asset-stripping moves; KPS and Flynn Group among firms that agreed to concessions
Eleanor Duncan and Claire Ruckin - Bloomberg
In 2025's go-go leveraged debt markets, everything is up for negotiation, but a trio of investor protections are proving to be lines that lenders won't cross. The blocking provisions are known simply by the names of the companies that first deployed them - J Crew, Serta and Chewy - and are designed to make it harder to push through debt restructurings that strip lenders of claims to assets. Attempts to secure funding without them were rebuffed recently by credit providers in at least three cases involving buyout firms.
/jlne.ws/4gM0swe
It's Not What Jamie Dimon Said About WFH. It's How He Said It; Leaked audio of the JPMorgan CEO is the latest evidence that the Covid-era celebration of "empathetic leadership" has run its course.
Beth Kowitt - Bloomberg
JPMorgan Chase & Co. CEO Jamie Dimon has said it every which way now: He absolutely does not want his employees working from home. That "it doesn't work for those who want to hustle. It doesn't work for spontaneous idea generation. It doesn't work for culture." That "yes, people don't like commuting, but so what." That "I don't know how you can be a leader and not be completely accessible to your people." But Dimon turned heads last week, when he delivered his anti-remote work stance yet again, just as the company prepares to end whatever remains of its hybrid work-from-home policies in March. It wasn't what he said that made news - the substance was no surprise at this point - but instead how he said it.
/jlne.ws/3X9Vpih
HSBC Expects Revamp to Cost $1.8 Billion Over Two Years; CEO Elhedery says he's creating a 'simple, more agile' bank; Shares swing between gains and losses in early London trading
Harry Wilson and Ambereen Choudhury - Bloomberg
HSBC Holdings Plc will incur $1.8 billion in charges over the next two years as it embarks on a global restructuring program that has seen the lender shutter some of its businesses and slash management ranks. Europe's largest bank, which has been deepening its push into Asia and some Middle East markets, said it hopes the restructuring will allow it to whittle away $3 billion in expenses in the coming years. About half of that would then be reinvested into priority growth areas, according to its full-year earnings presentation Wednesday.
/jlne.ws/41jTZnN
HSBC CEO Is Finalizing a Review of Investment Banking Divisions
Harry Wilson - Bloomberg
HSBC Holdings Plc is finishing up a review of its Wall Street offerings around the world, a process that's already resulted in the bank deciding to shutter certain investment banking businesses. The company has been examining its equities sales and research capabilities as part of the review, Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery said on a conference call with journalists.
/jlne.ws/4182mRW
HSBC to Pay CEO Elhedery Total $6.8 Million as Bonus Pool Steady
Denise Wee - Bloomberg
HSBC Holdings Plc Chief Executive Officer Georges Elhedery will be paid a total of £5.4 million ($6.8 million) including fixed and variable components, following a change in UK rules to allow a higher proportion of compensation to come from bonus awards. The CEO, who took over last year, will receive a base salary of £2.47 million and a variable component of £2.89 million. The bank's overall bonus pool was little changed, bucking an industrywide trend of higher banker bonuses as the firm goes through a restructuring. Payouts for 2024 were at $3.8 billion, compared with $3.77 billion in 2023. HSBC reported a pretax profit of $32.3 billion in 2024.
/jlne.ws/3CXH4yo
Citi Lifts CEO Jane Fraser's Pay by a Third to $34.5 Million; Pay jump for 2024 is largest of Wall Street chief executives; Fraser still faces regulatory hurdles in simplification plan
Todd Gillespie - Bloomberg
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WisdomTree Launches ETP Based on CoinDesk 20
Sam Reynolds - CoinDEsk
/jlne.ws/41meboX
Stacy Brown-Philpot Raises $172 Million to Back Diverse Founders; Cherryrock Capital has funding from investors including Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan.
Sarah McBride - Bloomberg
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Billionaires Court Saudi Wealth at Miami Event With Trump's Help; Attendees include Ken Griffin, Eric Schmidt, Steve Cohen; PIF is hosting event that's themed 'Invest With Purpose'
Dasha Afanasieva and Matthew Martin - Bloomberg
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| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | US judge blocks Trump's removal of Democrat from government workplace board
Nate Raymond and Daniel Wiessner - Reuters
A federal judge on Tuesday ordered that a Democrat who served as the chair of a U.S. agency that hears appeals by federal government employees when they are fired or disciplined be temporarily reinstated after Republican U.S. President Donald Trump fired her. U.S. District Judge Rudolph Contreras in Washington, D.C. issued a temporary restraining order preventing the Trump administration from removing Cathy Harris from her position on the Merit Systems Protection Board while he considers her lawsuit alleging that her termination was unlawful.
/jlne.ws/4jXHfdI
Cameo gives workers $10,000 raises to return to the office 4 days a week
John Pletz - Crain's Chicago Business
Cameo, a tech startup that famously said before the pandemic that it had no need for office space, is giving its workers $10,000 raises to come in to its offices four days a week.
/jlne.ws/4baF9U2
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | USDA accidentally fired officials working on bird flu and is now trying to rehire them; An Agriculture Department spokesperson told NBC News that officials are "working to swiftly rectify the situation."
Allan Smith, Melanie Zanona and Laura Strickler - NBC News
The U.S. Department of Agriculture said Tuesday that, over the weekend, it accidentally fired "several" agency employees who are working on the federal government's response to the H5N1 avian flu outbreak. The agency said it is now trying to quickly reverse the firings. "Although several positions supporting [bird flu efforts] were notified of their terminations over the weekend, we are working to swiftly rectify the situation and rescind those letters," a USDA spokesperson said in a statement. "USDA's Food Safety and Inspection Service frontline positions are considered public safety positions, and we are continuing to hire the workforce necessary to ensure the safety and adequate supply of food to fulfill our statutory mission."
/jlne.ws/3CUQ6we
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | In Saudi Arabia, China's central bank governor pushes for a new global financial consensus
South China Morning Post
China's central bank governor has offered to deepen cooperation with emerging economies on a series of issues and to help them gain a greater voice in global financial governance during a series of speeches in Saudi Arabia. Pan Gongsheng, governor of the People's Bank of China, pledged to work with the Gulf states to promote currency stability, expand bilateral financial investment, and create integrated payment systems during a meeting with central bank governors from the region.
/jlne.ws/4b8ZVTG
Ex-Nomura Strategist Says Analysts Can't Forecast Japan Stocks
Toshiro Hasegawa - Bloomberg
Analysts' forecasts for Japanese stocks show little correlation with their actual performance, according to an analysis of 20 years of data from a former chief strategist at Nomura Holdings Inc. who now teaches at a university in Tokyo. Annual analyst forecasts for the Nikkei 225 Stock Average compiled by Bloomberg and the index's year-end levels showed a slight negative correlation of -0.2, according to Hiromichi Tamura, professor at the Tokyo University of Science's graduate school of management.
/jlne.ws/4k1Lcy7
China Gives Ex-ICBC Banker Zhang Death Sentence With Reprieve
Bloomberg News
China sentenced Zhang Hongli, a former banker at Industrial & Commercial Bank of China Ltd., to death with a reprieve for taking bribes, as authorities maintained their tight grip on the $67 trillion financial sector. The banker, also known as Lee Zhang, was handed the penalty with a two-year reprieve on Wednesday at a court in Zhejiang province, China Central Television reported. All his assets will be foreclosed, it said.
/jlne.ws/4341pwG
Hong Kong expands virtual asset push with new licensing, trading options
Summer Zhen and Jiaxing Li - Reuters
Hong Kong is expanding the ways investors can trade virtual assets, its financial regulator said on Wednesday, as the city races to become Asia's digital assets hub and attract capital. The Securities and Futures Commission will establish new licensing regimes for over-the-counter trading in virtual assets and for custody services, aiming to boost market efficiency and investor protections, it said in an statement on Wednesday.
/jlne.ws/3EIz5G2
Gold Market Ructions Drive Singapore Exports to the US
Yihui Xie - Bloomberg
Gold shipments from Singapore to the US climbed to the highest level in almost three years in January, a further sign of the ructions in bullion trading after pricing disparities opened up in key markets. Volumes of the precious metal shipped from the Southeast Asian city-state to the US rose to about 11 tons last month, up 27% from December, and the largest amount since March 2022, according to data from state agency Enterprise Singapore. Typically, most flows from Singapore go to destinations in Asia.
/jlne.ws/41msaeE
Glencore Weighs Becoming Next Commodity Giant to Quit London
Thomas Biesheuvel, Dylan Griffiths and Pablo Mayo Cerqueiro - Bloomberg
Glencore Plc said it's studying whether to move its primary listing away from London, potentially becoming the latest major miner to leave what has for decades been the industry's global hub. "Ultimately, what we want to ensure is that our securities are traded on the right exchange where we can get the right and optimal valuation for our stock," Glencore Chief Executive Officer Gary Nagle said on a call with reporters. "There have been questions raised previously around whether London is the right exchange."
/jlne.ws/3EHLY3j
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