| July 27, 2018 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes
By JLN Staff
One takeaway from the CME's second quarter earnings report yesterday: Average daily volume at the exchange through the first half of the year was 20.2 million. In 2000, ADV was just over 2.5 million.~JK
B3, formerly BM&F Bovespa, posted a volume increase of 52 percent on 1.3 billion contracts for the first half of 2018. FOW noted that it topped the Intercontinental Exchange's volume, moving B3 into third in terms of volume behind top exchange, CME Group up 20 percent with 2.5 billion contracts and the National Stock Exchange of India, up 43 percent to 1.6 billion contracts.~JK
Do you know who invented the "Ring The Bell" marketing event at the stock exchange? Equities.com points to a man named Enzo Villani, now a board member of a new crypto markets infrastructure firm called Alt 5 Sigma.~JK
Here is a video of Blythe Masters and her CTO about the partnership between Google and Digital Asset from the Google Next '18.~JJL
This July, NFA partnered with Six Flags Great America to offer staff discounted admission for the month. NFA auditors will be double checking for fake hand stamps and making sure rider harnesses are nice and tight.~JJL~JK
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Global Blockchain Company AlphaPoint Adds Industry Veteran Kristin Boggiano as Chief Legal Officer to Executive Team
AlphaPoint
AlphaPoint, a leading blockchain company focused on enabling institutions to launch, scale, and operate digital asset networks and exchanges all over the world, today announced the appointment of Kristin Boggiano as its Chief Legal Officer. In this role, Boggiano will oversee the company's legal, regulatory, and government relations functions as well as contribute as a member of AlphaPoint's executive team.
/jlne.ws/2LrzdNR
**Kristin spoke at our MarketsWiki Education event in New York in 2016 about her trek through the jungles of Ecuador.~JK
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Kudlow says US GDP figure will be 'big'; Top economic adviser says he has no specific knowledge but wanted to 'help'
Mamta Badkar - FT
US President Trump's top economic adviser on Thursday told Fox Business that he expected Friday's US GDP figure to be "big" but denied knowing the specifics, less than two months after Mr Trump's tweet in advance of a jobs report drew fire.
/jlne.ws/2JZMcR2
***** This is irresponsible.~JJL
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Trump Predicts Data Will Show U.S. Economy in 'Terrific' Shape
Greg Sullivan and Toluse Olorunnipa - Bloomberg
Bloomberg survey points to 4.2% expansion in second quarter; Data to be released at 8:30 a.m. in Washington on Friday
President Donald Trump predicted data on Friday will show the U.S. economy is in "terrific" shape amid forecasts that growth topped 4 percent in the second quarter, the fastest since 2014.
/jlne.ws/2JXaZFj
***** And so is this.~JJL
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Fake news of Napoleon's death cited in guidance to help traders
Huw Jones - Reuters
Fake news that Napoleon had died is cited in new analysis aimed at helping commodity, bond and forex traders to stop fraud, an industry body said on Friday.
/jlne.ws/2mLvZWr
***** Seems fake news, which we once called rumors, has been around a while.~JJL
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The Girl Scouts have gone from baking and sewing to cybersecurity and financial literacy
Myelle Lansat and Richard Feloni - Business Insider
The Girl Scouts is much more than selling cookies; it's an organization that provides a foundation for young women to take leadership roles in society. And since Sylvia Acevedo was named CEO of Girl Scouts in 2017, it's also teaching its members about STEM (science, technology, engineering, and math) Â shifting the sole focus away from traditionally female tasks, like baking and sewing.
/goo.gl/kwHCjs
***** In the name of fairness, some Girl Scout news.~JJL
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Thursday's Top Three
Yesterday's top stories were led by Bloomberg's How Traders Have Changed Since the Massive Selloff Earlier This Year. Second was Equities.com's From Exchanges Old To Exchanges New: Chicago Mercantile Exchange and Alt 5 Sigma about new crypto trading systems. Third went to Financefeeds' FCA approves ION-Fidessa deal
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MarketsWiki Stats
130,088,709 pages viewed; 23,215 pages; 214,399 edits
MarketsWiki Statistics
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| Lead Stories | Up to Two-Thirds of Bitcoin Transactions Have No Economic Value
Olga Kharif - Bloomberg
Services developing tools to add clarity to blockchain data; Value of activity about half of what appears, researcher says
On any given day, as much as two-thirds of the transaction activity registered on the Bitcoin network has nothing to do with buying goods and services or trading the virtual currency.
/jlne.ws/2K5LOAM
Bitcoin Drops as U.S. Rejects Winklevoss ETF for Cboe Trading
Todd White - Bloomberg
Technical indicator also moves into bearish territory; Digital currency has declined after more than 30% July rally
Bitcoin fell for a third day, slipping below $8,000, after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rejected a request to list an exchange-traded fund run by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.
/jlne.ws/2K14LEn
Facebook's $119 Billion One-Day Rout Makes U.S. History
Sophie Caronello - Bloomberg
It's official. Facebook Inc. just had the biggest stock-market wipeout in American history. Shares tumbled 19 percent on Thursday to close at $176.26 after sales and user growth disappointed investors. The drop translates to a $119.4 billion decline in market capitalization, the largest-ever loss of value in one day for a U.S. traded company.
/jlne.ws/2JWxavv
FINRA Announces Enforcement Structure, Senior Leadership Team; Integration of Enforcement Functions Complete; Unified Enforcement Program Key Outcome of FINRA360
FINRA
FINRA announced today the Department of Enforcement's new structure and senior leadership team. This marks the completion of the final phase of the integration of FINRA's enforcement functionsÂa process that began with the July 2017 promotion of Susan Schroeder to FINRA's Head of Enforcement to create a unified enforcement function.
/jlne.ws/2K02VDG
Twitter Shares Plunge 17% as Monthly Users Decline
Selina Wang - Bloomberg
Company reports 1 million fewer visitors from previous quarter; Revenue climbs to $711 million, topping analyst' projections
Twitter Inc. said monthly users dropped by 1 million in the second quarter, and predicted that number will decline further as the company continues to fight against spam, fake accounts and malicious rhetoric on its social network. The shares plunged 17 percent in early trading.
/jlne.ws/2JWSiBO
Hedge Fund Titans Who Bet Big on India Now Say They Were Scammed
Olivia Carville, Anto Antony, and Jeanette Rodrigues - Bloomberg
Axon Capital, CIFF say they are victims of a massive fraud; Dispute is playing out in courts in India and Mauritius
The $1.5 billion India wager that went horribly wrong for some of the world's biggest hedge funds began with a tantalizing offer.
/jlne.ws/2K0v9hO
Juncker's Trade Pitch to Trump: 'I Can Be Stupid, as Well'; How bravado, flip cards and a White House ally helped European official sell U.S. president on trade detente
Valentina Pop and Vivian Salama - WSJ
When Jean-Claude Juncker arrived at the White House on Wednesday, he had no idea how the meeting with President Donald Trump would end.
/jlne.ws/2K01wNF
High speed trader Virtu's profits miss the mark
Nicole Bullock - FT
Virtu Financial, the high speed trader, reported adjusted net income of $59.6m in the second quarter below Wall Street expectations amid a "markedly worse" operating environment, the company said.
/jlne.ws/2LunLRp
'F' Is For? This ETF Is Named After FANGs and Holds No Facebook
Carolina Wilson and Sarah Frier - Bloomberg
Fund, known by ticker FNG, sold out of Facebook during scandal; Earlier, ETF had dumped Apple holdings ahead of earnings boost. What's in a name? When hearing the acronym FANG, four technology stocks come to mind: Facebook Inc., Amazon.com. Inc., Netflix Inc., and Alphabet Inc.'s Google.
/jlne.ws/2JXeQ5f
Several banks dismissed from U.S. metals price-fixing lawsuits
Jonathan Stempel - Reuters
A U.S. judge has dismissed five large banks from two antitrust lawsuits by investors alleging multi-year conspiracies to rig prices for hundreds of billions of dollars of transactions in the global silver and gold markets.
/jlne.ws/2JWBVFn
Fyre Festival Promoter Pleads Guilty to Ticket-Scam Charges
Bob Van Voris - Bloomberg
Billy McFarland, the architect of the failed 2017 Fyre Festival, pleaded guilty to new charges that he ran a fraudulent ticket business while on bail facing earlier fraud charges connected to the disastrous luxury concert series in the Bahamas.
/jlne.ws/2K0AoOw
Fannie Mae Debt Sale Sets Milestone For New Borrowing Benchmark; New index taking aim at scandal-ridden Libor passes $6 billion test.
Vipal Monga and Daniel Kruger - WSJ
A benchmark lending rate that regulators and investors hope can replace the scandal-plagued Libor as the foundation for trillions of dollars of debt from credit cards to business loans easily passed a key test.
/jlne.ws/2JYY9GR
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | CME to launch six gasoline futures contracts
Reuters Staff
CME Group says it plans to launch six gasoline futures contracts effective on Aug. 26 and for trading from Aug. 27
/jlne.ws/2K0xN7e
CME Group Achieves International Average Daily Volume of 4.2 Million Contracts in Q2 2018, Up 13 Percent from Q2 2017
CME Group
CME Group, the world's leading and most diverse derivatives marketplace, today announced that it achieved quarterly international (defined as outside of the US) average daily volume (ADV) of 4.2 million contracts during the second quarter of 2018, up 13 percent over the same period last year.
/jlne.ws/2K07pdJ
CME profits miss despite bump in trading volumes; Concerns around global protectionism sparked higher trade, particularly in agricultural products
Joe Rennison - FT
CME Group, the world's largest futures exchange, today reported mixed earnings, tempered by trade concerns fuelling volumes as investors sought to protect against price fluctuations.
/jlne.ws/2K1xgSm
CME quarterly earnings boosted by volumes, market data
John McCrank - Reuters
CME Group Inc (CME.O), the world's largest futures exchange operator, said on Thursday its second-quarter earnings rose on the back of higher trading volumes and market data fees, as it works toward the close of its $5.5 billion acquisition of NEX Group (NXGN.L).
/jlne.ws/2K5ifiu
MGEX Reports 25th Best Electronic Volume Day
MGEX
MGEX, a Designated Contract Market (DCM) and Derivatives
Clearing Organization (DCO), reports July 25th as the fourth July date on the Daily Electronic Volume's top 25 records list. Coming in at 19,396 contracts and beating out the previous title holder by 160 contracts, yesterday's electronic volume now occupies the 25th-best overall spot.
/jlne.ws/2K0yeP4
While the ECB holds on to its monetary policy, why not visit the home of the euro yield curve?
Eurex
The European Central Bank has decided to keep its monetary policy unchanged and freeze its benchmark interest rate on the deposit facility at -0.40 per cent. This is again a good opportunity to take a closer look at what Eurex interest rate derivatives have to offer.
/jlne.ws/2LqwSCw
Exchange Publishes CG Code Consultation Conclusions and Guidance for Boards and Directors
HKEX
Proposed changes to CG Code and related Listing Rules receive strong support; Amendments to CG Code and related Listing Rules to take effect 1 January 2019; Exchange publishes "Guidance for Boards and Directors" to help directors to be more effective
The Stock Exchange of Hong Kong Limited (the Exchange), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing Limited (HKEX), published today (Friday) conclusions from its consultation on its Corporate Governance Code (CG Code) and related Listing Rules (Consultation Conclusions on Review of the Corporate Governance Code and Related Listing Rules, or Consultation Conclusions)1 along with "Guidance for Boards and Directors".
/jlne.ws/2LuV7iW
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | FIA Announces Partnership With Rise New York, Created By Barclays, To Promote Innovators Pavilion
Press Release
FIA today announced that Rise New York, created by Barclays, has joined the FIA Innovators Pavilion as a community partner. Rise New York will help FIA promote the Innovators Pavilion, FIA's annual fintech showcase. Now in its fourth year, the Innovators Pavilion is part of FIA Expo, the world's largest gathering of professionals in the derivatives markets. This year's FIA Expo will take place in Chicago on Oct. 16-18.
bit.ly/2vbiG5H
Goodbye HipChat: Slack and Atlassian Team Up on Chat Software; Stewart Butterfield's startup will subsume Atlassian's corporate chat tools to take on Microsoft.
Dina Bass and Ellen Huet - Bloomberg
Atlassian Corp. is selling its corporate chat software to rival Slack Technologies Inc. and taking a small stake in the startup, as they face greater competition from Microsoft Corp.
/jlne.ws/2JYY3is
Fortnite Mania Fuels Epic Growth to $8.5 Billion; Epic Games' profits on the game have made "legendary character" Tim Sweeney a billionaire.
Devon Pendleton, Christopher Palmeri - Bloomberg
Tim Sweeney made Fortnite a phenomenon by doing something that sounds crazy: He gave it away. That strategy has made him a billionaire. In an industry chock-a-block with monster hits, such as Candy Crush and Pokemon Go, Fortnite's popularity isn't surprising. Its revenues are. Between the release of the current version in September and the end of May, Fortnite brought in more than $1.2 billion, according to SuperData Research. As of early June, it has been played by 125 million people.
/jlne.ws/2LoVcF5
Schroders CEO: fintech is the 'greatest opportunity we face'
Mark Cobley - Financial News
Peter Harrison, the boss of one of the UK's largest asset managers, has said innovations in financial technology are the "single biggest opportunity" for his industry right now  as his firm Schroders steps up its efforts to build links with fintech entrepreneurs.
Speaking as the fund manager reported its first-half results on July 26, Harrison told Financial News the "really interesting step-change for our industry will come from technological innovation". He added: "We are working with 25 or 26 fintechs across the business, across a whole range of different things  I see this as the single biggest opportunity we face."
bit.ly/2v5pTnE
CySEC to Establish FinTech Innovation Hub with Focus on Blockchain
David Kimberley - Finance Magnates
Regulatory financial technology (FinTech) initiatives have been springing up across the globe over the past few years. This Friday, the main Cypriot regulator, the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC), announced that it would also be creating an innovation hub.
bit.ly/2vaVB2Z
Alexa, What's Wall Street Saying About Amazon's Earnings Beat?
Joe Easton and Jeran Wittenstein - Bloomberg
Shares up 4 percent pre-market amid cloud, advertising boost; Goldman Sachs, others raise price targets for the stock
Amazon.com Inc.'s record second-quarter profit drew a flurry of price target boosts on Wall Street. Analysts say strength in the cloud and advertising business, as well as operational improvements, have positioned the company for long-term growth. The shares rose 4 percent in pre-market trading in New York and are on track to open at a record high.
/jlne.ws/2K1e4nN
Thomson Reuters unit to be renamed Refinitiv after Blackstone deal
Reuters Staff
Thomson Reuters Corp's (TRI.TO) Financial and Risk unit, in which U.S. private equity firm Blackstone Group (BX.N) is buying a majority stake, will be renamed Refinitiv once the deal closes, the company said in a statement on Friday.
/jlne.ws/2LptpnM
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | The Winklevoss Twins Want To Sell You A Bitcoin Fund; The Winklevoss twins filed a form with the SEC that's the first step to selling shares in a fund that would track the price of Bitcoin. A look at the next move for the Facebook-suing twins.
Matthew Zeitlin - BuzzFeed News
Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, impossibly strong-jawed and broad-shouldered rowers, tech entrepreneurs, and famous litigators of Mark Zuckerberg, are now two of the biggest and most famous players in Bitcoin, the cryptographic, digital currency whose wild price gyrations and security issues captivated the business press for a few weeks in March and April of this year. In April, the twins revealed to The New York Times that they owned some $11 million worth of Bitcoin.
/jlne.ws/2K14a5X
Winklevoss-Backed Bid for Bitcoin-ETF Rejected by Regulators
Benjamin Bain - Bloomberg
Cryptocurrency declines after SEC announces its decision; Agency raises concern about oversight of Bitcoin's spot market
Bitcoin fell after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission rejected a request to list an exchange-traded fund run by Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss, showing the regulator remains skeptical that the market for the cryptocurrency is sufficiently free of abuse to bring trading to the masses.
/jlne.ws/2K1syEa
Brock Pierce: The Hippie King of Cryptocurrency
Neil Strauss - Rolling Stone
Twenty-six men and women are seated along four folding tables laid end to end in the ballroom of a former Masonic lodge in Old San Juan, Puerto Rico. An eclectic mix, ranging from local charity workers to Silicon Valley investors to cryptocurrency early adopters, they all believe that they're about to make history. Specifically, they are here to help Brock Pierce - a child actor turned video-game entrepreneur turned crypto titan - give away a billion dollars to charity. Not in a will after his death, but now, in the prime of his life and the peak of his career, at age 37.
/rol.st/2v8YBwB
Bitcoin $500,000 Creates a Buzz, But Technicals Point to Rally
Olivia Schaber - Bloomberg
Hedge fund manager predicts correction, then massive rally; Directional index shows biggest divergence since last year=
Comments from Morgan Creek Capital Management hedge fund manager Mark Yusko that Bitcoin could reach $500,000 in six years are heartening battered crypto bulls. They may be better served taking a look at some underlying technicals in the meantime.
/jlne.ws/2K5gIJg
Crypto Futures Expansion Won't Happen Soon, CME's Duffy Says
Brian Louis - Bloomberg
Exchange head reiterates cautious approach to other contracts; Rival Cboe has hinted at wanting to expand crypto derivatives=
CME Group Inc. Chief Executive Officer Terry Duffy said that in his nearly four decades in trading, Bitcoin futures "might have been the most controversial launch of a product" and he reiterated the company's not in a hurry to list more cryptocurrency-related contracts.
/jlne.ws/2K1Qdo9
The World's Dominant Crypto-Mining Company Wants to Own AI; In a rare interview, Bitmain's Jihan Wu talks about his plans to take on Nvidia, Intel, and AMD.
Max Chafkin and David Ramli - Bloomberg
Even by the standards of Bitcoin, things are crazy in China. As the boom in cryptocurrencies has become the biggest speculative bubble in recorded history, a single company in Beijing's Haidian District has been selling the chips that generate as much as 80 percent of the world's cryptocoins. "We feel lucky," says Jihan Wu, the co-chief executive of Bitmain Technologies Ltd., which was more or less unknown two years ago and, according to Wu, booked revenue of $3.5 billion in 2017. (On June 4, a Bitmain spokesman said Wu misspoke and the actual figure was $2.5 billion.)
/jlne.ws/2K1LT8j
Crypto Coin Tether Defies Logic on Kraken's Market, Raising Red Flags
Matthew Leising, Mira Rojanasakul, Demetrios Pogkas and Brandon Kochkodin - Bloomberg
In the traditional world of securities exchanges, it would be akin to defying gravity. But at Kraken, one of the most popular venues for trading cryptocurrencies, a coin called Tether does it again and again.
/jlne.ws/2KjhdVi
Self-Regulatory Organizations; Bats BZX Exchange, Inc.; Order Setting Aside Action by
Delegated Authority and Disapproving a Proposed Rule Change, as Modified by Amendments
No. 1 and 2, to List and Trade Shares of the Winklevoss Bitcoin Trust
SEC
/jlne.ws/2K1BbP9
As Crypto Meets Prediction Markets, Regulators Take Notice
Matthew Leising - Bloomberg
The next confrontation between government regulators and a blockchain startup appears set to ensnare a prediction market platform that goes by the name Augur.
/jlne.ws/2K0zFNi
Mike Novogratz's Crypto Firm Lost $134 Million in the First Quarter
Doug Alexander - Bloomberg
Crypto-focused merchant bank releases first financial results; Quarterly losses led by trading digital assets, investments
Galaxy Digital LP, the crypto-focused merchant bank founded by Mike Novogratz, posted a $134 million loss in its first quarter, when the value of Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies plunged.
/jlne.ws/2K0dYwN
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Butina Sought a Secret Kremlin Line to the U.S. A Rockefeller May Have Helped
Polly Mosendz , Greg Farrell , and Ilya Arkhipov - Bloomberg
O'Neill hosted 2017 dinner for prayer-breakfast delegates; A Russian-language guide to Rohrabacher and other guests
A scion of the Rockefeller clan, George D. O'Neill Jr., was one of the U.S. conservatives who allegedly helped Mariia Butina's efforts to build a secret line of communication back to the Kremlin, judging by details in recent U.S. filings.
/jlne.ws/2JZwAgD
Mueller Examining Trump's Tweets in Wide-Ranging Obstruction Inquiry
Michael S. Schmidt and Maggie Haberman - NY Times
For years, President Trump has used Twitter as his go-to public relations weapon, mounting a barrage of attacks on celebrities and then political rivals even after advisers warned he could be creating legal problems for himself.
/jlne.ws/2K07PRf
Steve Bannon's plot for the downfall of old Europe; The next EU parliament elections are a chance to defeat the far-right
FT
As an architect of Donald Trump's 2016 presidential election victory, Steve Bannon knows a thing or two about unconventional political warfare. Now the godfather of the US alt-right is gearing for combat in Europe. His arena is the campaign for the next European Parliament elections, scheduled for May 23-26 2019. His chosen weapons, as in the US, are set to be the stoking of social tensions, economic nationalism, incitement of public anger at elites, systematic attempts to discredit reasoned argument and the spread of misinformation.
/jlne.ws/2K5jAWy
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | For more regulatory, visit MarketsReformWiki, our website focused on current market reform efforts. | U.S. regulator stands by decision to block Winklevoss bitcoin ETF
Trevor Hunnicutt, Michelle Price - Reuters
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday stood by a decision blocking an exchange-traded fund that would have tracked bitcoin, citing concerns about market manipulation.
/jlne.ws/2K06iuz
FinTech Regulation Bridges Silicon Valley and Washington D.C.
Stephanie MacConnell - Forbes
The FinTech community is closely watching the latest developments within the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). Recently, Kathy Kraninger was nominated as Director of the CFPB and, if confirmed, she will succeed acting Director Mike Mulvaney, who previously attacked the Bureau's very existence and has worked to change policies and cut budget since taking the helm in November 2017.
/jlne.ws/2JZzO3J
The regulator is looking at platforms and so should you
Taha Lokhandwala - InvestorsChronicle
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA), the financial services regulator, is investigating whether investment platforms are competitive and work in the interests of investors. It has recently published an interim report on its Investment Platforms Market Study, which has highlighted a number of areas of concern, including the difficulties in switching platforms and the poor rates of interest they offer on cash.
/jlne.ws/2K0xM3k
CFTC Chairman Giancarlo To Keynote The West Texas Legislative
CFTC
/jlne.ws/2K1aXMD
Podcast: CFTC Talks EP053: MARK YALLOP FMSB Part Two
CFTC
This week on CFTC Talks, we speak with Mark Yallop, chair of the Fixed Income, Currencies and Commodities Markets Standards Board. We cover the enormous cost to the world financial system of bad behavior, how to historically break down market misconduct into 7 categories and why trust is the heart of the financial markets.
/jlne.ws/2K1qLz8
Nordic Credit Rating AS registered as Credit Rating Agency
ESMA
The EFTA Surveillance Authority (EFTA SA) has registered today the Nordic Credit Rating AS (NCR) as a credit rating agency under Regulation (EC) No 1060/2009 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 16 September 2009 on credit rating agencies (the CRA Regulation), as incorporated into the Agreement on the European Economic Area (EEA Agreement). This decision comes into effect on 3 August 2018. NCR is based in Oslo, Norway, with a branch in Stockholm, Sweden. NRC intends to issue corporate ratings.
/jlne.ws/2mMeNQz
FCA proposes changes to rules for crowdfunding platforms
FCA
Following a post-implementation review of its crowdfunding rules, the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is opening a consultation on new rules for loan-based crowdfunding platforms.
/jlne.ws/2mSFeo5
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Is the Key to Beating the Market Written in the Stars?; Henry Weingarten invests his clients' money by charting the movement of heavenly bodies.
Simon van Zuylen-Wood - Bloomberg
It's 11 a.m. at the Princeton Club in Midtown Manhattan. A number of financial professionals have gathered here for the "AFund June 2018 Natural Resources Investment Symposium." Our first speaker is HSBC's chief precious metals analyst, the aptly named James Steel, who promotes gold as a hedge against populist upheaval. After Steel, there are slideshows from several mining companies seeking investors. After that, lunch. A generic networking event, by all appearances.
/jlne.ws/2K1DDVR
ECB Keeps to Policy Path to End Bond Purchases
Carolynn Look - Bloomberg
Mario Draghi holds media briefing at 2:30 p.m. in Frankfurt; President will be quizzed on economic risks as QE exit nears
The European Central Bank stuck to its plan to end bond purchases as the European Union and U.S. stepped back from a trade war and the currency bloc's economic expansion remained solid.
/jlne.ws/2K0B2LO
U.S. domestic stock funds report more demand than peers abroad: Lipper
James Thorne - Reuters
Investors in U.S. funds traded international equities for domestic stocks during the latest week as earnings beat expectations while trade tensions simmered, Lipper data showed on Thursday.
/jlne.ws/2K1vfFM
Wall Street faces up to "bombshell guidance" at Facebook
Jamie Powell
Facebook's second-quarter results -- which prompted the company's shares to plunge as much as 24 per cent (!!) overnight -- was the first time the surveillance-capitalism machine's revenue growth had missed expectations since 2015.
/jlne.ws/2K5QE0U
It's All About Social Media Contagion, Not FAANGs: Taking Stock
Arie Shapira - Bloomberg
Stock futures are holding on to their slight gains thanks to Amazon decoupling from most of its FAANG peers, though momentum gets hit from another whiff from a social media bellwether as Twitter plunges ~16% on weak monthly active user numbers.
/jlne.ws/2K5lDKe
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | What Does a Bank Meltdown Cost? Not Much, Actually; Sabadell hasn't suffered enough from the fiasco at Britain's TSB.
Edward Evans - Bloomberg
It was a spectacular fiasco, made even worse by the clumsy way in which it was handled. TSB Banking Group Plc's attempt in April to transfer the records of its 5 million customers to a new IT system left about a million of them unable to access their accounts and vulnerable to fraud. At first, TSB said things were running smoothly. It makes you wonder what their idea of chaos is.
/jlne.ws/2JWQvN6
A $14 Billion Fund Manager Feels 'Vindicated' by Facebook Plunge
Olivia Carville and Emily Chasan - Bloomberg
John Streur, an investor who sold his fund's Facebook Inc. holding after the Cambridge Analytica privacy scandal, said he felt "vindicated" watching the social media giant's free-fall Thursday.
/jlne.ws/2JWSUaA
Here's How ETFs With Biggest Facebook Exposure Traded Today
Elena Popina , Sarah Ponczek , and Carolina Wilson - Bloomberg
A six-week old Communication Services Select Sector SPDR Fund just had its worst day ever. A rout in Facebook Inc. is to blame for that.
/jlne.ws/2K5PBy0
UBS to review misconduct policies after rape claim; Woman alleged she was assaulted by a more senior bank employee
Laura Noonan in New York - FT
UBS is reviewing how it handles sexual misconduct allegations after an employee who claimed she was raped by a colleague contacted the head of its investment bank, Andrea Orcel, to complain about how the bank dealt with her case.
/jlne.ws/2JZQGHm
UBS Is Cutting Dozens of Staff in Wealth-Management Revamp
Emily Chasan and Sonali Basak - Bloomberg
16.18CHF+0.18+1.16%
UBS Group AG is laying off dozens of staff at its wealth-management division as it revamps the unit's leadership team, according to people briefed on the matter.
/jlne.ws/2K1Bjhw
The $5 Trillion Question: How Did the Firm That Pioneered ETFs Lose Its Lead?; State Street developed a hit investment product 25 years ago. Then more-focused rivals came along with better marketing and lower costs. Now the trust bank is No. 3 in the market it started.
Asjylyn Loder - WSJ
For State Street Corp. STT -0.32% , the company that pioneered the $5 trillion exchange-traded fund industry, it's been a long way down.
/jlne.ws/2JZIqr5
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | Why Is China's Currency Falling?; Worries about competitive devaluation are almost certainly misplaced.
Christopher Balding - Bloomberg
Since April, the yuan has fallen by almost 8 percent against the U.S. dollar. This has led many analysts and politicians to speculate that China is intentionally trying to devalue its currency to offset the effect of President Donald Trump's tariffs. It almost certainly isn't.
/jlne.ws/2K1K2QZ
Hey Buddy, Can You Spare 2 Million for Coffee?
Vivianne Rodrigues - Bloomberg
ONE. MILLION. PERCENT. That's how high inflation will climb in Venezuela by year's end, according to the latest forecast by the International Monetary Fund.
/jlne.ws/2JYUKry
China should really start to worry about Trump; As Europe wins a reprieve over trade the portents for Beijing have commensurately darkened
Edward Luce- FT
It was Wednesday so Europe went from being a "foe" of America to a "great friend". Next Monday might be different. Perhaps Europe will still be in Donald Trump's good books. The only person who can say for sure is Mr Trump. Even he probably has little idea. But my hunch is that the ceasefire he struck with Jean-Claude Juncker, president of the European Commission, will hold. Mr Trump loves applause and the last-minute trade agreement with Brussels earned a transatlantic ovation. Europe has won a reprieve. The portents for China have commensurately darkened.
/jlne.ws/2K5RWZO
Mizuho Eyes $11 Trillion Held by Japan's Rich Elderly
Gareth Allan and Yuki Hagiwara - Bloomberg
Bank began offering tailor-made trusts for wealthy retirees; Also expanding consulting for Japan pension funds, CEO says
Mizuho Financial Group Inc.'s trust banking arm has its sights set on exactly where the wealth is in Japan: the $11 trillion held by the nation's elderly.
/jlne.ws/2JZS8ti
Russia Extends Rate Pause as Risks to Inflation Halt Easing
Olga Tanas and Anna Andrianova - Bloomberg
Benchmark kept at 7.25% for third meeting, in line with survey; Central bank stays just a step short of level deemed 'neutral'
Russia's central bank kept interest rates unchanged for a third consecutive meeting and warned that external risks and the highest inflation expectations in almost a year mean monetary easing probably won't resume until 2019.
/jlne.ws/2K1O0cf
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| Brexit | | Financials stories regarding the decision of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union | U.K.'s Brexit Options Narrow as Perilous Choices Loom for May
Tim Ros , Emma Ross-Thomas, and Jess Shankleman - Bloomberg
Barnier rejects compromise at heart of May's Brexit strategy; Chances of no-deal exit, another election creep higher
The U.K.'s Brexit options are narrowing, and most of the choices are hazardous for Prime Minister Theresa May.
/jlne.ws/2K0YwR5
Major French Tech Company's CEO Fears Effects of Hard Brexit
Giles Turner and Mark Barton - Bloomberg
Capgemini SE Chief Executive Officer Paul Hermelin is predicting a hard Brexit will cause a knock-on effect to its British clients, potentially weakening demand.
/jlne.ws/2JYXmpn
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| Miscellaneous | | Stories that don't quite fit under the other sections | 'Disappeared' U.S. Records on Detained Migrant Kids Sparks Probe
Erik Larson - Reuters
Claims by a U.S. ethics watchdog that the Department of Homeland Security and other agencies may have lost or destroyed files relating to the separation of migrant children at the border have triggered a government probe into the proper retention of records.
/jlne.ws/2K01vJm
*****Unforgivable.~JJL
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