| September 27, 2024 | "Irreverent, but never irrelevant" | | |  | John Lothian
Publisher
John Lothian News | |
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Hits & Takes
John Lothian & JLN Staff
Shigeru Ishiba has been elected leader of Japan's ruling Liberal Democratic Party (LDP) and is set to become the next prime minister, succeeding Fumio Kishida, the Financial Times reported. Ishiba, a former defense and agriculture minister, is known for his hawkish stance on China and his desire for a more balanced defense relationship with the U.S. His victory led to a surge in the yen and a decline in Nikkei 225 futures, reflecting mixed market reactions. Ishiba's focus includes strengthening Japan's military, addressing deflation risks, and potentially creating a ministry for disaster management. Despite his long career in politics, this win marks his fifth attempt at securing the LDP leadership.
Secretary of State Antony Blinken, speaking at the U.N. General Assembly, emphasized the U.S.'s commitment to ensuring that AI is developed and used in ways that are safe, secure, and beneficial globally. He highlighted the U.S.'s efforts to work with partners through initiatives like the Freedom Online Coalition to establish global standards for AI, combat digital surveillance, and counter disinformation. The U.S. also aims to make AI more inclusive by partnering with major tech companies to expand access to AI resources, particularly in developing countries, and to enhance training and create localized datasets. Blinken announced a new public-private partnership and over $100 million in commitments to support these goals, stressing the importance of global cooperation in harnessing AI for good.
The FT's Lex column has a commentary titled "Lex. Rivals are not the only reason for CME's lost lustre." Unfortunately I don't have access to this feature, so I can't share what it said.
Michelle Neal, head of the Markets Group at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, will keynote FIA's Treasury Clearing forum in New York on October 15. The event will feature senior executives from clearinghouses, banks, asset managers, hedge funds, and trading firms. Discussions will focus on the development of clearing models ahead of mandatory clearing, the practical implications of Treasury clearing, and how firms can prepare for upcoming changes.
A recent study by Elm Partners Management, titled "When a Crystal Ball Isn't Enough to Make You Rich," revealed that even with advanced knowledge of major economic events such as Federal Reserve decisions, traders struggled to consistently profit, Bloomberg reported. The study involved participants with varying levels of financial experience who were given early access to key economic news before placing their trades. The results showed that even seasoned traders only correctly predicted market directions 63% of the time, while amateur traders fared worse, often losing money due to poor leverage and trade sizing decisions. The study underscores the difficulty of beating the market, even with inside information, and highlights the efficiency of the financial markets.
The list of recently updated page on MarketsWiki includes: Sergey Sergeevich Ivanov, Cryptex, U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, Aitan Goelman, Douglas Tillett, ELX Markets, Fraud, U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Department of the Treasury, Richard H. Redding, Charles Xioajia Li, Joseph Guinan, John H. Stassen, Cantor Futures Exchange, L.P., FMX Futures Exchange, Clear Street, Sharon Brown-Hruska, Vlad Tenev, James Koutoulas, GameStop short squeeze, Caroline Ellison, Robert Allen, Robinhood and Terry Belton
The list of new pages on MarketsWiki includes: Sergey Sergeevich Ivanov, U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control, Cryptex, GameStop short squeeze, Robert Allen, Vlad Tenev, Whistleblower, Daniel Koh, Rich Winter, ICE Voice, BestEx Research, Hitesh Mittal, Vasco Sousa, Patti Paladino, Rich Robinson, Securities lending, Velocity Clearing, Craig Resnick, Henry Blodget, Jamie Heller, Business Insider, Robert L.D. Colby, Marcia E. Asquith, CFTC Office of International Affairs, Melanie T. Devoe, CFTC Office of Customer Outreach and Education, Prometheum Inc., Prometheum Ember Capital LLC, LODAS Markets and David Clarke
Here are excerpts from in front of FOW's paywall from some recent stories:
Singapore Exchange (SGX) is set to enhance market transparency by publishing detailed commodity derivatives exposure reports next week, focusing on its most traded markets. Meanwhile, SIFMA has advocated for the inclusion of additional derivatives exemptions in the revised US Basel III rules to benefit derivatives users. Experts are calling for better benchmarks in the commodities market to support the energy transition and emphasize the importance of maintaining optionality in low-carbon fuels for the shipping industry. In other news, several new US equity and index derivatives have started trading, and Marex has acquired a minority stake in Canadian carbon credit firm Key Carbon. Lastly, there is increasing liquidity in freight derivatives, although regulatory frameworks for emissions remain insufficient.
The National Futures Association (NFA) has released its latest Board Update Video, which highlights key topics from their August meeting. The video discusses NFA's recent testimony before the U.S. House Agriculture Committee's Subcommittee on Commodity Markets, Digital Assets, and Rural Development. It also covers NFA's organizational culture, updates on digital assets, and details about the upcoming FY 2024 Innovation Days event.
The NFA and the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) are hosting a free webinar titled "Protecting Yourself: NFA and CFTC Investor Resources" as part of the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO)'s eighth annual World Investor Week. The webinar, scheduled for October 9th, will focus on recognizing investment fraud, verifying the credentials of investment professionals, and conducting proper due diligence before making investment decisions. The event aims to educate investors on safeguarding themselves against financial scams. You can register HERE.
Volume on FMX yesterday was 2 contracts of the 3M SOFR Futures Dec24 futures. See the FMX Daily Trade Report page for what details there are.
Longtime NYSE member Kenny Polcari is now a partner as well as the chief market strategist at SlateStone Wealth, he shared on LinkedIn.
Jerry O'Connor is starting a new position as a director at FMX, he shared on LinkedIn.
Maggie Smith, the iconic British actress known for her remarkable roles on stage and screen, passed away at 89 in London, The New York Times reported. Celebrated for her diverse performances, Smith earned numerous accolades throughout her career, including two Oscars, multiple Tony Awards, and several BAFTAs. Her fame skyrocketed with her portrayal of the sharp-tongued Dowager Countess in Downton Abbey, making her a household name later in life. Despite her success, Smith remained modest, often shunning the limelight. Her career spanned from early roles like The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie to her memorable appearances in the Harry Potter series as Professor McGonagall. Smith's passing marks the end of an era in both British and global cinema.
Have a great day and stay safe and treat people the same way you want to be treated: with respect, equality and justice.~JJL
*****
Our most read stories from our previous edition of JLN Options were:
- Bitcoin Climbs Past $65,000 Ahead of $5.8 Billion Options Expiry from Bloomberg.
- TCW backtracks on ETF conversion plan from the Financial Times.
- JPMorgan Rises on Tide of Active ETFs from Morningstar. ~JB
Subscribe to the JLN Options Newsletter HERE (it's free).
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Deadly Helene Unleashes Floods and Knocks Out Power to Millions; Storm struck Florida as a Category 4 hurricane late Thursday; More than 5.2 million people face downpours across the US
Brian K Sullivan - Bloomberg
Tropical Storm Helene is triggering dangerous rain and flooding across the US South, where it has killed at least four people and cut power to nearly 4 million customers after coming ashore in Florida as a major hurricane. More than 5.2 million people face a moderate or high risk of excessive rain Friday as Helene, with winds of 60 miles (97 kilometers) per hour, pushes inland, said Scott Kleebauer, a forecaster at the US Weather Prediction Center. The heaviest rain will now be shifting into Tennessee and Kentucky after pummeling portions of Georgia and the Carolinas.
/jlne.ws/47Qn5Ni
***** Lots of power out in Florida and Georgia, including Sarasota. My power company says I have power. I don't know when to head down there, but it won't be tomorrow. ~JJL
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Sports Betting Apps Are Even More Toxic Than You Thought; Pro bettors have taken to disguising themselves as gambling addicts so sportsbooks keep the free money flowing.
Ira Boudway - Bloomberg
Among the main challenges for a pro bettor is finding places that will take your money. If you show signs of being good, or even just highly methodical, most sportsbooks will drastically limit how much you can wager. But there are ways around this. Sharps, as pros are known, often employ surrogates to place bets on their behalf in exchange for a share of the winnings. Or they "prime" their accounts by making wagers that a casual bettor, or square, typically would. "If I open an account in New York, maybe for a few weeks I just bet the Yankees right before the game begins," says Rufus Peabody, a pro bettor and co-host of the Bet the Process podcast. If this trick works, the book sees these normie, hometown bets as a sign that it's safe to raise his limits. That gives Peabody a bigger purse to work with when he switches to making bets he thinks will pay out-and that the book will likely recognize as coming from a skilled player. The idea is to win as much as you can before the house catches on.
/jlne.ws/4dlN2oX
***** It seems to me the customers are spoofing the house to disguise their identity as pros. Where is Dodd-Frank when you need it? ~JJL
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Thursday's Top Three
Our top story Thursday was Bloomberg's Biggest Futures Trade on Record Notched in SOFR Market. Second was the picture of the cars from the Boy Scouts of America Pathway to Adventure Council pinewood derby race on Wednesday. Third was Daily FMX Futures Exchange Prices, Volume, and Open Interest, from the newly launched FMX Futures Exchange.
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| Lead Stories | What Wall Street's Women Pioneers Had to Put Up With; The untold battles of women in finance who broke into the old boys' club-and stayed.
Paulina Bren - The Wall Street Journal
When women first arrived on Wall Street in the 1950s and '60s, there was a playbook they were expected to follow if they wanted any chance of success. "Wall Street" was still centered around actual Wall Street, a compact area with not only the major firms-JP Morgan, Goldman Sachs, Lehman Brothers, Merrill Lynch, Bear Stearns-but also many smaller brokerage houses. A veritable army of female secretaries, teletypists and data-entry clerks would pour out of the subways in the early morning, daring to enter this male bastion in heels and skirt. Those who started to climb the ladder usually found their foothold in the smaller firms. They put up with a lot, none of it subtle, all of it exacerbated by the two-martini lunch.
/jlne.ws/3BkAOj3
China's Biggest Stock Buying Frenzy in Years Overwhelms Exchange
Bloomberg
Chinese equities capped their biggest weekly rally since 2008 with a burst of trading that overwhelmed the Shanghai stock exchange, underscoring a dramatic shift in investor sentiment after Xi Jinping's government ramped up economic stimulus. In an echo of the rally that followed China's massive stimulus during the global financial crisis, the CSI 300 Index of large-cap shares soared 4.5% on Friday - bringing this week's gain to 16%. Trading activity was so intense that it led to glitches and delays in processing orders, according to people familiar with the matter. The Shanghai exchange said it was investigating the issues, without elaborating.
/jlne.ws/47JxpXe
Britain Is Prepared to Make T+1 Switch in 2027 Without the EU; Latest technical report raises prospect of UK switching first; Industry groups are pushing for a coordinated transition
Greg Ritchie - Bloomberg
The group spearheading the UK's shift to a faster trading regime is preparing for the possibility that the country makes the switch in advance of the European Union, a move that could create a litany of headaches for financial professionals across the region. The UK will follow the US to the one-day settlement cycle known as T+1 in the final quarter of 2027, according to Andrew Douglas, chair of the government-appointed team advising on the shift. In a report published Friday, the group set out its vision for how firms should prepare. An exact transition date will be published in January, Douglas said.
/jlne.ws/4ekyQxV
Quant Hedge Funds Trapped in Short Squeeze After China Glitch
Bloomberg
A number of quantitative hedge funds in China were hit severely on Friday as the nation's equities staged their biggest rally in years, according to people familiar with the matter. Some firms suffered heavy losses because they shorted index futures for their so-called Direct Market Access strategies, said the people, asking not to be identified discussing a private matter. Some saw their losses exacerbated by a Shanghai Stock Exchange glitch that left them unable to sell holdings to meet margin requirements, another person said.
/jlne.ws/3N2wveN
Hong Kong's daily stock trading soars to record US$57 billion as market rally gathers legs
South China Morning Post
Hong Kong stocks surged for the fourth day amid record trading volume, reclaiming the 20,000 floor and registering the best week in 26 years as a buying spree went into overdrive after Beijing injected fresh fuel into the Chinese economy. The Hang Seng Index jumped 3.6 per cent to 20,632.30 at the close of Friday trading, the highest level since April 2023. That brings the gain this week to 13 per cent, as the best rally since a 14.9 per cent jump in October 1998 restored more than US$440 billion in value to local stocks.
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Two Russian Nationals Charged in Connection with Operating Billion Dollar Money Laundering Services
U.S. Department of Justice
The Justice Department today announced actions coordinated with the Department of State, Department of the Treasury, and other federal and international law enforcement partners to combat Russian money laundering operations. The actions involved the unsealing of an indictment charging a Russian national with his involvement in operating multiple money laundering services that catered to cybercriminals, as well as the seizure of websites associated with three illicit cryptocurrency exchanges. "Today's actions highlight the Department's continued disruption of malicious cyber actors and their criminal ecosystem," said Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco. "The two Russian nationals charged today allegedly pocketed millions of dollars from prolific money laundering and fueled a network of cyber criminals around the world, with Ivanov allegedly facilitating darknet drug traffickers and ransomware operators. Working with our Dutch partners, we shut down Cryptex, an illicit crypto exchange and recovered millions of dollars in cryptocurrency."
/jlne.ws/3ZEALbW
SEC Chair Gensler Still Sees Regulatory Gap in Exchange Registration; Gensler signals desire to finish plan that might affect DeFi; SEC hasn't received applications for Treasury central clearing
Lydia Beyoud - Bloomberg
The US Securities and Exchange Commission isn't giving up on a proposal to force alternative trading systems to register as brokers with the agency. "This update would close a regulatory gap among platforms," SEC Chair Gary Gensler said Thursday in prepared remarks for the annual US Treasury Market Conference at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
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Tradeweb CEO talks AI's impact on investing: Opening Bid
Brian Sozzi - Yahoo Finance
If you've never heard of Tradeweb Markets (TW), don't be too hard on yourself-but do make a mental note for the future. This company deserves your attention, having seen its stock soar by more than 200% over the past five years, with a current market cap of approximately $26 billion. Tradeweb Markets operates in the financial services sector, specializing in electronic trading platforms for various asset classes. At the helm is CEO Billy Hult, who has been with Tradeweb since it was founded in 1996. Hult became CEO in 2023 and has led several acquisitions to expand the company's reach.
/jlne.ws/3XHONab
'Crystal Ball' Breaks as Traders Fail to Get Rich in New Study
Lu Wang - Bloomberg
If investors had known in advance the size of the Federal Reserve's latest interest-rate cut, would they have made big money on stocks and bonds trading on this market-moving intel? Surprisingly, the answer appears to be a resounding no, at least when it comes to amateur traders and their ilk, according to a recent study from Elm Partners Management's Victor Haghani and James White. The researchers placed participants in a dream position of knowing the future in an experiment called "The Crystal Ball Challenge." Players got an early read of major economic news and Fed policy decisions - without knowing the precise market moves of the day in advance - before placing their bets.
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Hong Kong could regain top 3 IPO ranking by year-end after jumping to fifth in September
South China Morning Post
Hong Kong could potentially climb back into the top three among global initial public offering (IPO) markets by the end of the year, as analysts believe the recent bull run is set to attract some massive deals. A total of 42 companies raised US$7.14 billion via IPOs on the main board of the Hong Kong stock exchange in the year's first nine months, double the total from a year earlier, according to London Stock Exchange Group (LSEG) data released on Friday.
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China Cuts Key Rate, Frees Up Cash for Banks to Spur Growth
Bloomberg News
China cut the amount of cash banks must keep in reserve Friday and lowered a key policy rate, as Beijing rolls out a strong stimulus package unveiled this week in a push to shore up the slowing economy and investor confidence. The People's Bank of China's 0.5 percentage point reduction to the reserve requirement ratio was announced earlier this week by central bank chief Pan Gongsheng, who didn't provide a timeframe.
/jlne.ws/3Y0KBni
Wall Street's ETF Assets Hit $10 Trillion Milestone; 2024 saw $691 billion in inflows so far, amid the market rally; ETF ecosystem hit the $1 trillion milestone just 14 years ago
Isabelle Lee - Bloomberg
Assets held by exchange-traded funds in the US hit $10 trillion for the first time as the investor-friendly products continue their relentless takeover of Wall Street. A combination of inflows and market gains carried total assets over the milestone this week, according to data compiled by Bloomberg Intelligence. Investors have poured $691 billion into the funds this year, as US stock gauges have notched repeated records.
/jlne.ws/4eibk4E
The Cocoa Crop Looks Bigger But It Won't Solve Chocolate Crisis; Analysts and traders see cocoa shifting into a small surplus; It may not be enough to bring prices down significantly
Mumbi Gitau and Megan Durisin Albery - Bloomberg
Cocoa harvests are looking better for the new season, but it may not be enough to bring chocolate costs down much. After poor crops in West Africa fueled huge bean shortages and turmoil across the market this year, focus has turned to how production will fare in the 2024-25 season that officially starts next week. Global output may exceed demand by about 90,000 tons, according to the average of 15 analyst and trader estimates compiled by Bloomberg, partly due to better harvests in top grower Ivory Coast.
/jlne.ws/3ZFnSOQ
France Risks Losing Its Spot Among Europe's Safest Bond Markets; 10-year yield is higher than Spain's for first time since 2007; Government under pressure to present budget to trim deficit
Aline Oyamada, Alice Gledhill, and William Horobin - Bloomberg
France's status as one of the safest bond markets in Europe risks coming to an end as a fragile minority government struggles to address a debt problem years in the making. For the first time since at least the global financial crisis, France's benchmark bond yield is higher than that of Spain and Portugal. The rate is also the closest it's been in over a decade to that of Italy and Greece.
/jlne.ws/3TKhNgo
Singapore Exchange Insiders Cast Doubt on Stock Market Revival; Internal target to double new listings seen as unattainable; Regulators, SGX staffers have disagreed on how to boost stocks
John Cheng, Low De Wei, Ishika Mookerjee, and Chanyaporn Chanjaroen - Bloomberg
Singapore has kicked off a big effort to revive its withering stock market. Inside its exchange operator and among market participants, there is deep pessimism that the reboot will succeed. The city-state's government unveiled a task force in August to come up with ways to revitalize the S$811 billion ($632 billion) market, which lost its title as Southeast Asia's largest after delistings far outnumbered initial public offerings.
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| Ukraine Invasion | | News about the invasion of Ukraine by Russia and its military, economic, political and humanitarian impact | As the Ukraine war enters a critical period, the EU moves ahead without the US
Lorne Cook - Associated Press
As the war in Ukraine enters a critical period, the European Union has decided that it must take responsibility for what it sees as an existential threat to security in its own neighborhood and is preparing to tackle some of the financial burden, perhaps even without the United States. EU envoys have been working in Brussels this week on a proposal to provide Ukraine with a hefty loan package worth up to 35 billion euros ($39 billion). It was announced by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen during a trip to Kyiv last Friday.
/jlne.ws/3XYHV9E
Biden's new Ukraine weapons package is not the one Zelensky wants
Joe Barnes - The Telegraph
An $8 billion weapons package for Ukraine won't make up for Joe Biden's indecision over granting permission for British Storm Shadow missiles to strike targets deep inside Russia. The assistance package was announced on Wednesday shortly before the president met Volodymyr Zelensky, Ukraine's leader, for talks on how to end the war with Russia in the White House.
/jlne.ws/3ZIHodk
Putin's Nuclear Doctrine Isn't His Worst Threat; Nuclear warnings are part of a deception strategy with Soviet-era roots. There are other warnings to pay attention to.
Marc Champion - Bloomberg Opinion
President Vladimir Putin has outlined a much-trailed change to his nuclear doctrine, leading to predictable warnings of a radioactive Armageddon should the US let Ukraine use American-made mid-range missiles against targets in Russia. That was, of course, his purpose. The latest change of doctrine should be seen as an attempt by the Kremlin to restore credibility to nuclear threats that have begun to lose their power. It does nothing to remove the enormous hurdles to actually following through with a nuclear attack.
/jlne.ws/3BmmYwD
Ukraine's Allies Are Strapped for Cash and Arms Supplies Are at Risk; Funding for 2025 hinges on $50 billion in frozen-asset loans; Cash crunch means funding still insufficient, people say
Alberto Nardelli and Daryna Krasnolutska - Bloomberg
Ukraine's military supplies for next year are at risk because some allies are struggling to secure funding and others balk at increasing financing to help Kyiv, according to people familiar with the matter. Ukraine is struggling to convince Western allies to make good on their promises as it confronts its third full winter since Russia's 2022 invasion, the people said, asking not to be named discussing private conversations. Moscow's war machine, in contrast, is outpacing Kyiv's ability to acquire badly needed ammunition, missiles and other hardware to fend off attacks.
/jlne.ws/3BpvnzC
Ukraine's new infantry recruits 'freeze' in face of Russian onslaught; Inadequate training, burnout and rising age of soldiers affect survival on the battlefield after conscription drive
Christopher Miller - Financial Times
For six gruelling days this month a small team of experienced Ukrainian soldiers managed to withstand Russia's relentless assault on their position on the eastern front. All aged under 40 and with two years of fighting experience, the six men held their ground despite a barrage of rockets and killed over 100 Russian soldiers, said their commander in Ukraine's eastern Donetsk region.
/jlne.ws/3XZMe4N
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| Israel/Hamas Conflict | | News about the recent (October, 2023) conflict between Israel and Hamas | Benjamin Netanyahu says Israel 'shares the aims' of US ceasefire proposal; Washington reacted with frustration to Israeli prime minister's insistence on continuing to strike Hizbollah with 'full force'
James Shotter and Polina Ivanova and Raya Jalabi - Financial Times
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Israel "shares the aims" of a US-led proposal for a ceasefire with Hizbollah, after officials in Washington reacted with frustration to his insistence that Israel would continue striking the Lebanese militant group with "full force". US President Joe Biden and French President Emmanuel Macron on Wednesday put forward a proposal for a 21-day ceasefire in a last-ditch attempt to prevent the hostilities between Israel and Hizbollah spiralling into a full-blown war.
/jlne.ws/3XYK8BX
Israel to continue ceasefire discussions for Lebanon, Netanyahu says
James Mackenzie and Timour Azhari - Reuters
Israel will press on with discussions on ceasefire proposals for Lebanon in the days ahead, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Friday, and Washington warned that further escalation would make it harder for civilians on both sides to return home. Israel's foreign minister on Thursday rejected global calls for a ceasefire with the Iran-backed Hezbollah group and continued airstrikes that have killed hundreds of people in Lebanon and heightened fears of a regional war.
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| Exchanges, OTC & Clearing | | Top news from exchanges, clearing, settlement and trade execution facilities | SGX Group wins multiple derivatives exchange awards from Asia Risk, GlobalCapital and FOW
SGX
Singapore Exchange (SGX Group) has clinched the top Asian derivatives exchange accolade at three distinguished financial-industry awards for its multi-asset service offering, reflecting growing global institutional demand for its trusted investment and risk-management solutions. SGX Group was named "Derivatives Exchange of the Year" at the Asia Risk Awards, one of the longest-running awards for the derivatives and risk-management industry. Leading publication Asia Risk cited how SGX Group's approach across equity, currency and commodity derivatives was "particularly welcomed" by both international and regional market participants as they navigated persistent uncertainty and volatility. Its continued development of market connectivity in India, as well as strengths in offering efficient access to China, were also lauded. The award was announced on 26 September in Singapore.
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TMX Group Limited announces release date for Q3 2024 financial results and analyst conference call
TMX
TMX Group Limited will announce its financial results for the third quarter ended September 30, 2024 in the evening of Wednesday, October 30, 2024. An analyst conference call to review the results will be held on Thursday, October 31, 2024 at 8:00 a.m. ET. Phone numbers for the live call are 437-900-0527 or 1-888-510-2154. An audio replay of the conference call will be available at 289-819-1450 or 1-888-660-6345, 68235#.
/jlne.ws/3N0WKSY
Performance Bond Requirements - Metal Margin - Effective September 27, 2024
CME Clearing
As per the normal review of market volatility to ensure adequate collateral coverage, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc., Clearing House Risk Management staff approved the performance bond requirements for the following products listed in the advisory at the link below. The rates will be effective after the close of business on September 27, 2024.
/jlne.ws/3TLWcUS
Performance Bond Requirements - Equity, Metal Margin - Effective September 27, 2024
CME Clearing
As per the normal review of market volatility to ensure adequate collateral coverage, the Chicago Mercantile Exchange Inc., Clearing House Risk Management staff approved the performance bond requirements for the following products listed in the advisory at the link below.
/jlne.ws/3XKFKFH
Caution for Investors
NSE
It has been brought to the notice of the Exchange that a person named "Aparna" associated with entity named "Ram Investment Academy" operating through mobile number "7045279137" is providing securities market tips, assured/guaranteed returns on investment in stock market and offering to handle trading account of investors by asking investors to share their Login ID/password.
/jlne.ws/4dpbV2Y
Caution for Investors
NSE
It has been brought to the notice of the Exchange that person named "Rahul Jain" having telegram channel named "Gamechanger_calls_trader" and link "https://t.me/Gamechanger_calls_Game_changer_2" operating through mobile number "8619849334" is providing securities market tips, assured/guaranteed returns on investment in securities market, collecting funds from the investors and providing account handling services.
/jlne.ws/4gDCEf9
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| Fintech | | A roundup of today's market tech news and a look at tomorrow's disruptors | ByteDance to Sign $10.8 Billion Corporate Loan in Asian Record
Chien Mi Wong - Bloomberg
ByteDance Ltd., the Chinese owner of TikTok, is set to sign a $10.8 billion loan in what would be the largest-ever dollar-denominated corporate facility in Asia ex-Japan, according to people familiar with the matter. About 20 lenders - comprising international and Chinese banks, including some branches - will fund the deal, said the people, who asked not to be identified discussing private matters.
/jlne.ws/4dp9PjC
Amazon's $4 Billion Anthropic Deal Cleared by UK Watchdog; UK CMA said tie-up didn't meet threshold for a merger review; Approval adds to list of AI investments given the green light
Katharine Gemmell - Bloomberg
Amazon.com Inc.'s $4 billion investment pact with AI firm Anthropic was cleared following heightened UK scrutiny into Big Tech's spending spree on artificial intelligence software. The Competition and Markets Authority said Friday that the tie-up wouldn't qualify for an investigation under UK merger laws. It found that Anthropic's local revenue did not meet threshold limits or have a large enough share of supply in the country. Amazon has twice invested in the builder of AI tools, which is able to generate text and analysis. As part of the tie-up, Anthropic agreed to use Amazon Web Services data centers to power some of its operations, and to use Amazon's custom-built computer chips.
/jlne.ws/3BkkY8l
OpenAI chair says board has discussed equity compensation for CEO Sam Altman
Reuters
OpenAI Chair Bret Taylor said on Thursday the company's board has discussed whether to compensate CEO Sam Altman with equity but no decision has been made. In a statement, Taylor said no specific figures have been discussed for any equity compensation for Altman. Reuters reported on Wednesday that OpenAI was working on a plan to restructure its core business into a for-profit benefit corporation and that Altman would receive equity for the first time in the for-profit company.
/jlne.ws/4ebfJWV
Turning OpenAI Into a Real Business Is Tearing It Apart; Executives and researchers have left this year amid disputes over the company's values and fights among its leaders
Deepa Seetharaman - The Wall Street Journal
In less than two years, OpenAI has gone from a little-known nonprofit lab working on obscure technology to a world-famous business whose chief executive is the face of the artificial-intelligence revolution. That change is tearing the company apart. On Wednesday, OpenAI's chief technology officer became the latest high-profile executive to announce an exit, departing as the company prepares to become a for-profit corporation. The exits are public eruptions of tensions that have been growing in the company behind ChatGPT since CEO Sam Altman returned following his brief ouster last year.
/jlne.ws/3N3an48
Nuclear Power Is the New A.I. Trade. What Could Possibly Go Wrong? Artificial intelligence's hunger for energy has set off a boom in utility stocks and may lead to the reopening of the Three Mile Island nuclear plant, our columnist says.
Jeff Sommer - The New York Times
Want to make a wager on the future of artificial intelligence? Nvidia is the obvious bet. It designs the chips and software that make A.I. run, is the stock market favorite and has gained 150 percent this year alone. But some stock traders have found a less obvious, backdoor choice: utility shares, specifically those of companies that own nuclear power plants.
/jlne.ws/4dqyrIV
UK T+1 taskforce publishes recommendations ahead of proposed 2027 switch; Technical group stresses the need for automation ahead of the implementation process, urging market participants to begin automating as soon as possible.
Chris Lemmon - The Trade
The T+1 technical group (TGT) of the UK Accelerated Settlement taskforce (AST) has published its proposed recommendations for a transition to T+1 in the UK, calling for market participants to review and provide feedback. The report outlines 43 'principal recommendations', covering critical post-trade activities that firms must be able to complete efficiently in a T+1 environment. They cover the areas of success criteria, settlement, FMIs, static data, corporate actions, securities financing and FX.
/jlne.ws/4eYa9r5
Fireside Friday with... H2O Asset Management's Timothee Consigny; The TRADE sits down with Timothee Consigny, chief technology officer at H2O Asset Management, to unpack the current state if play when it comes to artificial intelligence across the financial services industry, including what should be front of mind and how to best approach implementing the technology in the day to day.
Claudia Preece - The Trade
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| Cybersecurity | | Top stories for cybersecurity | EU privacy regulator fines Meta 91 million euros over password storage
Reuters
The lead European Union privacy regulator fined social media giant Meta 91 million euros ($101.5 million) on Friday for inadvertently storing some users' passwords without protection or encryption. The inquiry was opened five years ago after Meta notified Ireland's Data Protection Commission (DPC) that it had stored some passwords in 'plaintext'. Meta publicly acknowledged the incident at the time and the DPC said the passwords were not made available to external parties.
/jlne.ws/4gJyL8k
**** Here is the Bloomberg version of this story.~JJL
Fidelity Slashes Mobile Deposit Limits Following Fraud Wave; Online check-fraud scheme shares some similarities with the fraud wave that hit JPMorgan Chase
Justin Baer and Oyin Adedoyin - The Wall Street Journal
Fidelity Investments put stricter guardrails on the deposits customers make through its mobile app, hitting back against a check-fraud scheme that targeted the investing giant earlier this month. Fidelity slashed the amount certain customers can deposit into their cash-management accounts to $1,000 from $100,000, people familiar with the matter said. The Boston firm is also subjecting some account-holders to a 16 business-day hold on deposits before the money is made available for withdrawal or investment.
/jlne.ws/3zrnau6
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| Cryptocurrencies | | Top stories for cryptocurrencies | BNY Approved by SEC for Crypto Custody Beyond ETFs, Gensler Says; BNY's individual wallet structure protects customers: Gensler; Up to the bank on expanding beyond Bitcoin, Ether ETF custody
Jonnelle Marte, Lydia Beyoud, and Olga Kharif - Bloomberg
The structure Bank of New York Mellon Corp. is using to offer custody services for digital assets could be used beyond the Bitcoin and Ether exchange-traded funds that the bank is considering, according to US Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler. Earlier this week, the bank acknowledged that it had presented a plan to the SEC's Office of Chief Accountant to custody those two assets in a way that would protect customer funds in the event of bank insolvency. The agency provided BNY with a "non-objection" to the plan, a regulatory term that gives comfort to the bank that its structure won't fall afoul of the agency's requirement that banks reflect the value of the digital assets they custody on their balance sheet. BNY previously told Bloomberg News that the SEC's non-objection was specific to the ETF use case.
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| Politics | | An overview of politics as it relates to the financial markets | Trump Can Take Heart: Mark Zandi Says Harris Will Win; The Moody's Analytics chief economist says she's on a glide path. He's been wrong before-and often.
Allysia Finley - The Wall Street Journal
Most polls show Donald Trump trailing Kamala Harris. Yet he may take comfort that the media's favorite soothsayer-Moody's Analytics chief economist Mark Zandi-is projecting victory for Ms. Harris. "The economy's performance is an increasingly strong tailwind to the presidential election bid of Kamala Harris," Mr. Zandi tweeted last week. According to his model, "Harris is expected to win 286 electoral votes by winning the swing states of Wisconsin, Michigan, Pennsylvania, and North Carolina."
/jlne.ws/3XJNcAz
Natural gas producers press Harris for answers in battleground state
Jarrett Renshaw - Reuters
Drillers in energy-rich Pennsylvania this week called on Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris to detail her position on natural gas, a fuel the energy industry bills as clean but which climate activists say is a global warming menace. President Joe Biden put a freeze on new liquefied natural gas (LNG) export permits in January to study its environmental impacts, in an election-year move aimed at making gains with the party's green voting blocks.
/jlne.ws/47J44fs
Consultant fined $6 million for using AI to fake Biden's voice in robocalls
David Shepardson - Reuters
The Federal Communications Commission on Thursday finalized a $6 million fine for a political consultant over fake robocalls that mimicked President Joe Biden's voice, urging New Hampshire voters not to vote in that state's Democratic primary. In May, Steven Kramer, a Louisiana Democratic political consultant, was indicted in New Hampshire over calls that appeared to have Biden asking residents not to vote until November. Kramer had worked for Biden's primary challenger, Representative Dean Phillips, who denounced the calls.
/jlne.ws/47NpdFl
Newsmax settles Smartmatic defamation suit over 2020 false election claims
Tom Hals - Reuters
Newsmax Media reached a confidential settlement of a lawsuit by Smartmatic, the voting machine maker that had alleged it was defamed by the news outlet's false claims that its machines were rigged to help steal the 2020 U.S. presidential election from Donald Trump, the companies said on Thursday. The agreement came on the eve of a four-week jury trial, with opening arguments scheduled to begin in Wilmington, Delaware on Sept. 30.
/jlne.ws/4el9YWz
Many Wall Street executives are worried about Trump but wary of Harris
Michelle Price, Carolina Mandl and Lananh Nguyen - Reuters
Many Wall Street executives have reservations about backing either candidate in the U.S. presidential election, worried that former President Donald Trump's policies will hurt the economy but wary Vice President Kamala Harris will lean too far left. While multiple Wall Street heavy-hitters including Bill Ackman, John Paulson and George Soros have backed a candidate, many other senior executives are still weighing the economic policies central to the closely fought race and the ramifications for legal and democratic institutions, according to conversations with two dozen executives in recent weeks.
/jlne.ws/3XFo0v7
Melting Alps Glacier Means Switzerland and Italy's Border Has to Move
Bastian Benrath-Wright - Bloomberg
Switzerland and Italy tweaked their mountain border under the Matterhorn peak as climate change in the Alps is melting the glaciers that have historically marked the frontier between the two countries. "Significant sections of the border are defined by the watershed or the ridge lines of glaciers, firn or perpetual snow," the Swiss government said Friday in a statement. "These formations are changing due to the melting of glaciers."
/jlne.ws/3MZJTQW
Chaos in Bangladesh Opens Door to Islamic Extremists; Militants are gaining strength after a tumultuous change in government, creating security concerns across Asia.
Kai Schultz - Bloomberg
Soon after student protesters dramatically took down Bangladesh's government last month, a group of boys broke into the home of Tureen Afroz, the former chief prosecutor of a tribunal for war crimes committed during the nation's independence movement in the early 1970s. They burst into her bedroom, interrogated her about why she wasn't wearing a hijab - a head covering worn by some Muslim women - and then proceeded to shave her head. For days, the youths kept her hostage, stabbing her with pencils and lecturing her about Islam. Afroz worried that they'd rape her young daughter. "I thought they'd kill me," she said, recalling the incident from her house in Dhaka, the capital. "We were terrified."
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| Regulation & Enforcement | | Stories about regulation and the law. | Former Connecticut-Based Energy Trader Convicted of International Bribery Scheme
U.S. Department of Justice
A federal jury in Bridgeport, Connecticut, convicted a former oil and gas trader today for his role in a nearly eight-year long scheme to bribe Brazilian government officials and to launder money to secure business for two Connecticut-based commodities trading companies. According to court documents and evidence presented at trial, Glenn Oztemel, 65, of Westport, Connecticut, paid bribes to officials of Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (Petrobras), the Brazilian state-owned oil and gas company, to obtain lucrative contracts for Arcadia Fuels Ltd. (Arcadia) and Freepoint Commodities LLC (Freepoint).
/jlne.ws/3Y06WSa
US charges two Russians accused of running billion-dollar money laundering schemes
Sean Lyngaas - CNN
US federal prosecutors have filed criminal charges against two Russian men accused of operating billion-dollar money-laundering services and seized websites associated with illicit crypto exchanges as part of a major US crackdown on Russian cybercrime. One of the men, Sergey Ivanov, has operated for nearly two decades as one of the longest-running professional cyber money-launderers known to US law enforcement, according to Justice Department officials. The other man, Timur Shakhmametov, is accused of running a notorious cybercriminal marketplace called Joker's Stash that US authorities said made hundreds of millions of dollars in profits from selling stolen payment card information.
/jlne.ws/3XWtrY3
"From Hamilton to Yellen": Remarks before the 10th Annual U.S. Treasury Market Conference
Chair Gary Gensler - SEC
I'm honored to be speaking with you today following Secretary Yellen, under whose leadership we are in the midst of much needed reforms of our Treasury market. I think our nation's first Treasury secretary, Alexander Hamilton, would tip his tricorn hat to his 77th successor, for focusing on the efficiency and resiliency of the Treasury market. A couple hundred years before he became a Broadway star, in 1790, Hamilton told Congress that "the proper funding of the present debt, will render it a national blessing."[1] Hamilton's prophecy has turned out to be prescient. Treasuries are called "risk-free assets," not just here in the U.S. but around the globe. They are the base upon which our entire capital markets are built. The U.S. Treasury markets play an integral role in the dollar's dominance. They are how we, as a government and as taxpayers, raise money to fund roads, bridges, and public universities. We are the issuer. They are integral to how the Federal Reserve conducts monetary policy.
/jlne.ws/3TKgJcs
CFTC Orders CHS Hedging, LLC, To Pay $650,000 for Recordkeeping and Unauthorized Trading Violations
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission today issued an order simultaneously filing and settling charges against CHS Hedging, LLC, a Minnesota based futures commission merchant, for recordkeeping deficiencies and failure to obtain customer authorizations before entering trades for customers.
/jlne.ws/4dnnl7p
CFTC Requests Public Comment on a Rule Certification Filing by KalshiEX LLC
CFTC
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is requesting public comment on a rule certification filing by KalshiEX LLC, which would amend its rulebook to include rules for a request for quote functionality and amendments to its prohibited transactions rule. Comments must be submitted on or before Oct. 28, 2024.
/jlne.ws/3Y136bt
SEC Charges Cassava Sciences, Two Former Executives for Misleading Claims About Alzheimer's Clinical Trial; Cassava-affiliated university scientist also charged for manipulating clinical trial results
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced Cassava Sciences, Inc., its founder and former CEO, Remi Barbier, and its former Senior Vice President of Neuroscience, Dr. Lindsay Burns, will pay more than $40 million to settle charges related to misleading statements made in September 2020 about the results of a Phase 2 clinical trial for the company's purported therapeutic for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
/jlne.ws/3zItFZm
SEC Charges DraftKings with Selectively Disclosing Nonpublic Information Via CEO's Social Media Accounts
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today charged DraftKings Inc. with selectively disclosing material, nonpublic information to investors who followed or otherwise viewed the company CEO's social media accounts without disclosing that same information to all investors, in violation of Regulation Fair Disclosure (FD). DraftKings agreed to pay a $200,000 civil penalty to settle the SEC's charges.
/jlne.ws/47LSEI8
SEC Charges Advisory Firm GQG Partners With Violating Whistleblower Protection Rule; Firm's agreements with potential hires and a former employee raised barriers to reporting information to the SEC
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced settled charges against Florida-based GQG Partners LLC, a registered investment adviser, for entering into agreements with candidates for employment and a former employee that made it more difficult for them to report potential securities law violations to the SEC.
/jlne.ws/3N1EJE5
SEC Charges Texas Resident with Insider Trading
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today filed charges against Bryan Scott McMillan, a resident of Westlake, Texas, for insider trading in advance of the November 29, 2022 announcement that Apollo Endosurgery, Inc. would be acquired by Boston Scientific Corp.
/jlne.ws/3TLUVx4
SEC Charges Additional Persons for Their Roles in a South Florida $196 Million Ponzi Scheme
SEC
On September 24, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed actions against five individuals, Karina N. Fernandez, Marco A. Rosas, Bryant Guayara, Erick M. Ruiz, and Leonela M. Duarte, for their roles in the alleged $196 million securities fraud perpetrated by MJ Capital Funding, LLC (MJ Capital). The SEC's complaints against Fernandez, Rosas, Guayara, Ruiz, and Duarte were filed in U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida.
/jlne.ws/3BoHKMb
SEC Obtains Final Judgments Against Insider Trading Tippees
SEC
On September 24, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained final consent judgments against Dhirenkumar Patel and Ramesh Chitor, whom the SEC previously charged with insider trading that collectively generated ill-gotten gains of more than $1.6 million.
/jlne.ws/4ezTj1a
SEC Charges Cassava Sciences, Two Former Executives for Misleading Claims About Alzheimer's Clinical Trial
SEC
The Securities and Exchange Commission today filed charges against Cassava Sciences, Inc., its founder and former CEO, Remi Barbier, and its former Senior Vice President of Neuroscience, Dr. Lindsay Burns, related to misleading statements made in September 2020 about the results of a Phase 2 clinical trial for the company's purported therapeutic for the treatment of Alzheimer's disease.
/jlne.ws/4gHW8iH
"Towards a "Triple A" Market-Based Approach for Coal Transition" - Opening Remarks by Ms Gillian Tan, Assistant Managing Director (Development & International) and Chief Sustainability Officer, Monetary Authority of Singapore, at the New York Climate Week MAS- World Bank Event on Market-based Approaches for Coal Transition, on 26 September 2024
MAS
/jlne.ws/3N4lfyw
SFC seeks share repurchase order for independent minority shareholders of LET Group Holdings Limited and Summit Ascent Holdings Limited
SFC
The Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) has commenced legal proceedings under section 214 of the Securities and Futures Ordinance (SFO) in the Court of First Instance to seek a share repurchase order to protect the interests of independent minority shareholders of LET Group Holdings Limited (LET) and Summit Ascent Holdings Limited (Summit Ascent) as a result of alleged misconduct of Mr Lo Kai Bong, chairman, executive director and controlling shareholder of both companies (Notes 1 to 3). The share repurchase order would require Lo, LET and/or Summit Ascent to make an offer to purchase shares from both companies' minority shareholders independent of Lo at a price and in a manner to be determined by the Court.
/jlne.ws/3XYJjsS
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| Investing & Trading | | Today's top stories from equities, indices and FICC (fixed income, currencies and commodities) | Costco still selling gold bars like hot cakes as prices surge
Brooke DiPalma and Brian Sozzi - Yahoo Finance
Costco (COST) is slinging a lot of gold bars as prices for the yellow metal continue to surge. Sales of gold were up "double-digits" in the most recent quarter, Costco CFO Gary Millerchip told analysts on its earnings call Thursday evening. Millerchip went on to add that gold was a "meaningful tailwind" to e-commerce sales in the quarter.
/jlne.ws/4eGHBls
Trump Media Co-Founders Moved Quickly to Cash In Their Stake
Bailey Lipschultz - Bloomberg
The former contestants on Donald Trump's TV show The Apprentice who co-founded his media startup wasted no time offloading millions of shares in the company after restrictions that prevented selling were lifted. Andy Litinsky and Wes Moss's United Atlantic Ventures sold more than 7.5 million Trump Media & Technology Group Corp. shares within a week after a lock-up agreement expired last week, according to a regulatory filing on Thursday. The stake would have been worth at least $88 million, based on the lowest price where shares have traded during regular hours since the restrictions were lifted.
/jlne.ws/47KdnMj
Glencore Congo Copper Mine Hit With EUR800 Million Royalty Row; Tax agency says the sum is related to royalty payments; Swiss firm one of the biggest players in No. 2 copper producer
William Clowes, Michael J Kavanagh, and Thomas Biesheuvel - Bloomberg
A Glencore Plc-owned copper mine in the Democratic Republic of Congo is embroiled in a row over royalties with local tax authorities. The government body - known by its French acronym DGRAD - says that Kamoto Copper Co. owes the Congolese state a little over EUR800 million ($894 million), according to people familiar with the matter. After the unit's local bank accounts were frozen earlier this year, the tax collection staff this week also briefly sealed off a warehouse where the company was storing metal, the people said, asking not to be named because the information wasn't public.
/jlne.ws/4ewM0Ys
Quarter-Trillion Dollars of Breakups Drive Dealmaking Recovery; Boardrooms switch from diversification to simplification; Global deal values remain on upward trend after busy summer
Aaron Kirchfeld, David Carnevali, and Crystal Tse - Bloomberg
Chief executive officers are no longer trying to be all things to all people. The return to a more normal post-pandemic environment, in which inflation and supply chains are stabilizing, has prompted executives to re-assess their business mixes to best position companies for future downturns - or before their hands are forced by activist investors. As a result, bankers say, the decision-making pendulum is swinging once more from diversification to simplification, with boards looking for ways to raise cash for core operations and possible strategic acquisitions to support these.
/jlne.ws/47LoZOX
The next carry trade to blow up? When corporate treasurers take an FX punt
Robin Wigglesworth - Financial Times
The yen carry trade that spectacularly reversed in August already feels long ago, but Bank of America thinks it's found another potential landmine: International corporate deposits. The bank's analysts point out that companies in Europe and Asia have been accumulating a huge trove of FX deposits since 2019, initially as a precaution after Covid-19 and afterwards because higher US interest rates and the dollar's strength made them attractive.
/jlne.ws/4eCPlF3
Why Silver Is Having a Golden Moment; Silver's unique properties-as a precious metal and industrial commodity-make it an attractive asset to hold today
Jinjoo Lee - The Wall Street Journal
All that glitters isn't just gold-it's also silver. The commodity's price is up about 34% year to date, outpacing gold, which keeps hitting record highs. Year to date, about $856 million has flowed into the iShares Silver Trust, an exchange-traded fund that owns physical silver bullion, according to FactSet. Wheaton Precious Metals, a company that owns the rights to precious metals from mines, including gold and silver, is up about 30% year to date. Demand for silver has been strong, both as a store of value and as an industrial commodity. The Silver Institute, an industry association, estimates that demand for silver has been outrunning supply for the past three years. It projects another deficit this year. Citi Research, which assumes that solar-sector demand has been even higher, calculates that the market has been in deficit for the past five years.
/jlne.ws/3N3BLz6
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| Environmental, Social and Corporate Governance | | Stories about environmental, social and governance investing | Brazil's Environment Minister Wants to Reset the Carbon Credit Debate
Zahra Hirji and Simone Iglesias - Bloomberg
Forest carbon credits, which pay governments and private landowners to conserve carbon-rich forests as a way to slow climate change, face mounting criticism for being less effective than advertised. Brazil's top climate official is pushing back on their dubious reputation. "There's already this story that forest credits don't count," Marina Silva, Brazil's minister of the environment and climate change, told Bloomberg News this week. "Come on - this is an opportunity for those who have forests, because they provide a fundamental service for the balance of the planet."
/jlne.ws/3XG7R8W
EU Aims to Block Chinese Hydrogen Tech in New Auction Rules; Projects will have to limit use of Chinese electrolyzer tech; Move is part of efforts to boost European competitiveness
John Ainger and Will Mathis - Bloomberg
The European Union will take steps to exclude Chinese manufactured hydrogen electrolyzers from an upcoming auction aimed at spurring the production of the fuel during the bloc's green transition. The European Commission, the bloc's executive arm, will conduct a second wave EUR1.2 billion auction through its hydrogen bank from Dec. 3, according to a statement Friday. The process will include new "resilience requirements" to help stave off Chinese competition in the nascent energy sector. Winning projects will have to limit the sourcing of electrolyzer stacks from China to not more than 25% of total capacity, the new guidelines stipulate. Chinese production capacity is already more than half of global production, far surpassing the growth in global demand, they note.
/jlne.ws/3zzKRjP
Europe Can't Seem to Kick Its Russian Energy Habit
Elena Mazneva and Anna Shiryaevskaya - Bloomberg
Three years ago, Russia was the world's biggest exporter of natural gas and Europe was its top customer. For the continent's leaders, access to all that cheap Russian energy outweighed any misgivings over doing business with President Vladimir Putin. Then Russia launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, and this overwhelming reliance on a single supplier suddenly looked like a threat to the region's economic and political security.
/jlne.ws/3TM72tQ
The Race to Save America One Seed at a Time; Native plants are being replaced by invasive weeds thanks to climate change, with grave consequences for humans and animals. But the small industry trying to stem the tide is struggling.
Virginia Gewin - Bloomberg
One day last January, close to two dozen people rose at dawn to hand-sow thousands of pounds of native plant species across a vast swaths of sand, silt and clay that had emerged when the reservoirs behind four hydroelectric dams on the Klamath River in Oregon were drained. The Klamath once boasted the third-largest salmon population in the West. But the dams-built a century ago to provide power to a growing US Northwest-destroyed 90% of them by turning a cool, free-flowing river into a warm, stagnant reservoir thick with toxic algae. The Klamath Dam Removal project, at a cost of about $450 million, is one of the largest efforts in American history to redress an environmental wrong.
/jlne.ws/3ZBr7XG
French bank Credit Agricole buys stakes in 11 wind farms
Reuters
French bank Credit Agricole said on Friday that its Credit Agricole Transitions & Energies unit had bought stakes of up to 32% in 11 wind farms in France. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT: France hopes to have 45 gigawatts (GW) of offshore wind in operation by 2050 to achieve carbon neutrality. The country lags others in offshore wind due to complex permit procedures and multiple appeals lodged against projects.
/jlne.ws/4ejPs8Y
UK set to become first G7 nation to phase out coal power
edie
The UK's last remaining coal-fired power station, Ratcliffe-on-Soar, is set to close on Monday (30 September), marking the end of coal power generation for the nation.
/jlne.ws/3BlPVc8
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| Banks, Brokers & Managed Funds | | The latest from banks, brokers, hedge funds and managed futures | Europe's Lenders Go on AT1 Spree, Unfazed by Regulator Snub; Banks raise a record EUR13 billion in September amid rate cuts; Australian regulator recommended phasing out the bonds
Tasos Vossos - Bloomberg
European banks have issued more Additional Tier 1 bonds in a single month than ever before, dashing concerns about the future of the risky bonds following a snub from Australia's regulator. Lenders have raised EUR13 billion ($14.5 billion) in September of the bonds that were designed after the global financial crisis to take losses when a bank gets into trouble. The month also marked the highest number of individual AT1 bonds sold in major currencies, with most activity taking place in the US dollar market, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
/jlne.ws/3XEaF6t
UBS in talks on Indian minority-owned wealth joint venture, say sources
Siddhi Nayak and Sarita Chaganti Singh - Reuters
UBS is in talks to form an Indian wealth management joint venture with Mumbai-based 360 One WAM, two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The joint venture would help the Swiss bank to expand its Indian wealth business to 'high net worth individuals' from its existing focus on 'ultra high net worth individuals', they said.
/jlne.ws/3TN0dIB
HSBC Legacy Capital Jumps Most in 14 Years After Call Notice; Preferred security is no longer compliant with capital rules; Call is part of bank's effort to clean up the capital stack
Tasos Vossos - Bloomberg
HSBC Holdings Plc is repaying a type of capital issued back in 2000, triggering a big price jump, as it continues to clean up its books of instruments that have been rendered obsolete after the overhaul that followed the global financial crisis. The lender will be redeeming a $900 million preferred security issued by HSBC Capital Funding (Dollar 1) L.P., an issuing entity set up in the island of Jersey, and an associated note. It will pay holders the higher of the face value and the value of a make-whole call option, it said in a statement Friday. In a separate statement, HSBC said it won't be taking any action on a similar sterling-denominated subordinated instrument, issued in 2003.
/jlne.ws/4ejyZl1
German finance minister tells Italy of his concerns on UniCredit move, sources say
John O'Donnell - Reuters
Germany's finance minister has conveyed to Italy's Treasury his concerns about any takeover of Commerzbank by Italian lender UniCredit, two people familiar with the matter said, as Berlin looks to halt a hostile deal. Christian Lindner outlined his position to the Treasury - Italy's economy and finance ministry, led by Giancarlo Giorgetti - in tandem with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz's public criticism this week of UniCredit's move to become the biggest investor in its German rival.
/jlne.ws/3TGCzO4
Private equity tests markets with a mammoth debt-fuelled dividend; Company backed by investors including Clayton, Dubilier & Rice and Hellman & Friedman prepares EUR4.4bn dividend
Antoine Gara and Eric Platt and Alexandra Heal - Financial Times
A company backed by Clayton, Dubilier & Rice, Hellman & Friedman, BlackRock and GIC is preparing one of the largest debt-fuelled dividend payouts in private equity history, as companies owned by buyout firms take advantage of a recovery in debt markets to return cash to investors.
/jlne.ws/3N3a89e
State Street Global Advisors gears up for new ETF disruption; Senior executive says strategy not only takes in private asset potential, but structured products and wealth management
Steve Johnson - Financial Times
State Street Global Advisors may have filed the first application to launch an exchange traded fund that would invest in illiquid, hard-to-value private assets, but Matteo Andreetto is focused on faster ETF growth elsewhere. SSGA's head of intermediary client coverage, Europe, said ETFs are poised to disrupt the lucrative structured products industry globally, while rolling out ranges of branded funds for big wealth managers is "top of my agenda".
/jlne.ws/3XZobTl
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| Work & Management | | Stories impacting work and more about management ideas, practices and trends. | Dell Orders Salespeople Back to Offices Five Days a Week; The tech company's decision to end work from home comes on the heels of a similar order from Amazon.
Jo Constantz - Bloomberg
Dell Technologies Inc. is calling its salespeople back to the office five days a week starting next week. "The expectation is that ALL Global Sales team members who can work from a Dell office be onsite five days a week, regardless of role," sales executives Bill Scannell and John Byrne wrote Thursday in a memo to Dell employees. "We know situations will arise when you need to work remotely. This is expected, but working remotely should be the exception rather than routine." The company previously asked employees to work in the office three days a week.
/jlne.ws/4eFKFhL
Out of work and unwell: the worrying rise of young people on benefits; Data shows increasing numbers in rich countries turning to welfare
John Burn-Murdoch - Financial Times (opinion)
Much has been written about the deteriorating mental health of young people in recent years; survey after survey finds reported rates of depression, anxiety and other mental and behavioural disorders rising in teens and young adults. For all the headlines, there have been several thoughtful challenges to this narrative. One is that shifts in the language used to talk about mental health mean subtle changes in survey wording can produce dramatically different trends. Another is that while young people may now be more likely to say they feel sad or worried, this has not generally been matched by an increase in more concrete markers of distress.
/jlne.ws/4elUzFu
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| Wellness Exchange | | An Exchange of Health and Wellness Information | Superbugs Threaten to Wipe Out Big Amount of Meat Supplies
Agnieszka de Sousa - Bloomberg
It's described as a silent pandemic with risks akin to climate change, and it's bad news for food supplies. Antimicrobial resistance, where viruses, fungi or bacteria become resistant to medicines, kills more than 1 million people every year and is a drag on healthcare resources and economies. But the problem, known as AMR, also affects farm animals including cattle and poultry. If unaddressed, superbugs could result in livestock output losses equal to the consumption needs of 746 million people by mid-century, research released this week showed.
/jlne.ws/3XZWKsG
US farmers call for vaccine option to fight bird flu as wildfowl migration begins
Leah Douglas and Tom Polansek - Reuters
U.S. farmers are increasing pressure on the Biden administration to allow vaccinations for chickens, turkeys and cows to protect them from bird flu infections that have devastated flocks for three years. This autumn, flocks in the $67 billion U.S. poultry industry for the first time face a double risk for infections from dairies and migrating birds that can spread the disease. Bird flu, which is lethal for poultry and reduces milk output in dairy cows, has eliminated more than 100 million chickens and turkeys since 2022 in the biggest U.S. outbreak ever.
/jlne.ws/3TO0dbs
A U.S. Crackdown Targeted a Silicon Valley 'Pill Mill'; Secretly, It Had Already Moved to China; Done Global's owner and others were arrested, but the telehealth company's staff in China still provides easy access to Adderall for Americans
Rolfe Winkler - The Wall Street Journal
Federal authorities came down hard on Done Global, the California-based telehealth startup that prosecutors allege is an Adderall "pill mill" with a "predatory business model." Its founder was arrested and most of its U.S. staff have quit, but it's still pumping out prescriptions to its American clientele. Done's big secret? Key operations were moved to China. Its staff there have been aggressive in making sure customers can still get easy prescriptions for Adderall, a drug prescribed for attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder that is also among the most abused drugs in the country.
/jlne.ws/3TMpfYt
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| Regions | | Stories of local interest from the Americas, EMEA and Asia-Pacific regions | Famine is ravaging Sudan, but the world can't get food aid to millions of starving people
Maggie Michael - Reuters (Special Report)
More than half the people in this nation of 50 million are suffering from severe hunger. Hundreds are estimated to be dying from starvation and hunger-related disease each day. But life-saving international aid - cooking oil, salt, grain, lentils and more - is unable to reach millions of people who desperately need it. Among them is Raous Fleg, a 39-year-old mother of nine. She lives in a sprawling displaced persons camp in Boram county, in the state of South Kordofan, sheltering from fighting sparked by the civil war between the Sudanese army and a paramilitary called the Rapid Support Forces.
/jlne.ws/3TMPMVl
Australia Wheat Crop Dealt Another Blow as Cold Snap Hits South
Keira Wright - Bloomberg
Severe frosts have threatened fields in Australia's south and southeast that were expected to account for more than 10% of the major shipper's wheat production, compounding concerns over dryness in western regions. Temperatures this month reached negative 2C (28F) across almost 1.2 million hectares of wheat fields that were mostly located in New South Wales state, according to crop forecaster Digital Agricultural Services. Frost is particularly damaging for mature wheat crops that are in their final growth stage before harvest, which in Australia usually begins in November.
/jlne.ws/4gCMk9D
China's Market Marred by Glitches as Frenzy Grips Stocks
Bloomberg
China's long-awaited stimulus measures may have been too much for the markets to handle. With shares soaring and turnover reaching 710 billion yuan ($101 billion) in the first hour of trading on Friday, Shanghai's stock exchange was marred by glitches in processing orders and delays, according to messages from brokerages seen by Bloomberg News. The Shanghai Stock Exchange is investigating reasons for delays, it said in a statement.
/jlne.ws/3BiL2Rd
'Moonlighting' Directors Are Problem for Company Boards in Japan; Directors on more than one board may weaken governance: SBI; Shares of companies with dual-board directors underperform
Hideyuki Sano - Bloomberg
Japanese companies with directors that sit on multiple boards are facing the equity market's displeasure as the Tokyo Stock Exchange steps up pressure to improve corporate governance. The bourse tightened listing guidelines in 2022, demanding that firms in its blue-chip Prime section get at least a third of their board members externally. While most companies have tried to meet this request, they are speeding up the process by taking on members already serving on other boards. That has led some companies to hire directors who were too overstretched to focus on maximizing shareholder value. Since April 2019, these firms have underperformed the broader stock market by 8.6%, while the rest beat it by 3.5%, said Akemi Hatano, the chief quants strategist at SBI Securities.
/jlne.ws/3zABzE8
Zimbabwe Devalues ZiG as Latest Bid for Stable Currency Founders; ZiG devalued by 43% to 25 per dollar, central bank prices show; Central bank also raises key interest rates to 35% from 20%
Godfrey Marawanyika and Ray Ndlovu - Bloomberg
Zimbabwe raised interest rates and devalued its gold-backed currency by 43%, following persistent weakness in the ZiG amid deep skepticism that the nation's latest bid to create a viable local unit would succeed. The Reserve Bank of Zimbabwe lifted the benchmark policy rate to 35% from 20%, it said in a statement on Friday. Prices on its website separately showed the ZiG, short for Zimbabwe Gold, quoted at 24.4 per dollar from 14 per dollar earlier in the day.
/jlne.ws/3BlKn1i
Dubai Stocks Confront Regional Risks After Rally to 10-Year High; Dubai's index has outperformed most peers in the third quarter; Valuations now elevated; geopolitical tensions are a concern
Omar El Chmouri and Tugce Ozsoy - Bloomberg
A rally that's propelled Dubai stocks into the ranks of the best global performers looks set to cool as geopolitical risks increase and bargain valuations become harder to find. The Dubai Financial Market General Index has advanced 12% this quarter to the highest since 2014. Its gains are among the 10 biggest across more than 90 equity benchmarks worldwide tracked by Bloomberg.
/jlne.ws/3zMq5gO
Russia expands Baltic ports as it eyes new grain markets
Olga Popova and Gleb Stolyarov - Reuters
Russia, the world's leading wheat exporter, is expanding its Baltic Sea ports as it aims to boost agricultural exports by 50% by 2030 while reducing dependence on traditional Black Sea routes, officials and executives said. The country, which exported at least 72 million metric tons of grain in the 2023/24 season, is looking at new markets in Latin America and Africa to diversify from its traditional grain markets in North Africa and the Middle East.
/jlne.ws/3BuXAET
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