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☆ From 25 years in prison to just four months: Inside the final verdict on a crypto billionaire CEO archrivalry
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-05 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +18 min

Combination showing Former FTX CEO, Sam Bankman-Fried (L) and Zhao Changpeng (R), founder and chief executive officer of Binance. A month earlier, on the opposite coast in downtown Manhattan, FTX's Sam Bankman-Fried received a 25-year prison sentence for his crimes. At the beginning of his trial, SBF sported a fresh haircut and wore suits, but by its end, his curls were wild again. Cryptocurrency exchange Binance founder and CEO Changpeng Zhao speaks at a Binance fifth anniversary event in Paris, France, July 8, 2022. watch nowMoney makes all the differenceUnlike SBF, CZ didn't have his wealth wiped out by bankruptcy of the crypto company he founded.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Zhao Changpeng, Mike Segar, Benjamin Girette, Changpeng Zhao, FTX's Sam Bankman, Fried, Zhao, Binance's Zhao, FTX's, Toyotas, Braden Perry, Perry, Manfred, SBF, Michael Lewis, Lewis, Sam didn't, Amr Alfiky, Sam, Caroline Ellison, —, Zhao's, Yi He, Binance, David Ryder, Yang, Rachel Zhao, Yesha Yadav, Yadav, Mark Bini, Lewis Kaplan, Bankman, Kaplan, perjured, Neama Rahmani, Rahmani, Tre Lovell, Zhao hasn't, Lovell, weren't, FTX Organizations: Reuters, Bloomberg, Getty, Department of Justice, CFTC, Stanford University's, Bankman, CZ, Staff, Reuters Prosecutors, Alameda Research, Vanderbilt University, Wall Street, CNBC, FTX, Emergency Economic, Justice Department, DOJ Locations: Seattle, Manhattan, California, Hong Kong, Bahamas, Palo Alto, U.S, New York City, Alameda, Seattle , Washington, Paris, France, Angeles, Binance, Dubai, Delaware

☆ Former Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao sentenced to four months in prison
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-30 | by ( Aaron Mok | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Changpeng Zhao, founder of crypto exchange Binance, has been sentenced to 4 months in prison. AdvertisementChangpeng Zhao, the founder and ex-CEO of crypto exchange giant Binance, has been sentenced to four months in prison after pleading guilty to charges in a Seattle federal court that the trading platform violated US anti-money laundering requirements. Related storiesAfter pleading guilty, Zhao, once one of the wealthiest people in crypto, was directed to step down from the helm of Binance last November. Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of the exchange, was eventually sentenced to 25 years in prison after he was found guilty of multiple fraud charges. Binance and the US Department of Justice didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider before publication.

Persons: Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, —, Sam Bankman, Binance, US Department of Justice didn't Organizations: DOJ, Service, US Department of Justice, Commodity Futures, Trading Commission, Business Locations: Seattle, Binance, Iran

Changpeng Zhao, former chief executive officer of Binance, arrives at federal court in Seattle, Washington, US, on Tuesday, April 30, 2024. Binance's billionaire founder Changpeng Zhao was sentenced to four months in prison on Tuesday, after pleading guilty to charges of enabling money laundering at his crypto exchange. The sentence in Seattle federal court was significantly less than the three years that federal prosecutors were seeking for Zhao. In November, Zhao struck a deal with the U.S. government to resolve a multiyear investigation into Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange. The action against Binance and its founder was a joint effort by the Department of Justice, the CFTC and the Treasury Department, though the SEC was notably absent.

Persons: Changpeng Zhao, Binance, Zhao Organizations: U.S, Bank, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Binance, Department of Justice, CFTC, Treasury Department, SEC Locations: Seattle , Washington, US, Seattle, Binance, U.S

☆ Woman Could Have Prevented Great Recession; Ignored by Wall Street Men
▼ + stars: | 2024-03-04 | by ( Josie Cox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +21 min

The story of Brooksley Born is not only the tale of a remarkable regulator whose Cassandra-like warnings — if heeded — could've prevented the great financial crisis from exploding into raging, ruinous enormity. Not long after she assumed chairmanship of the CFTC, Born started to feel a lingering unease with the rapidly expanding derivatives market. So to Rubin, Born was more of an inconvenience than anything, and she certainly wasn't in his club. Not long after, Treasury officials lobbied Congress to pass legislation preventing the CFTC from being able to regulate the OTC derivatives market. In the months and years that followed, it became increasingly hard to deny that the multi-trillion-dollar OTC derivatives market was the root cause of the great financial crisis.

Persons: Lehman Brothers, jolting, — could've, It's, Potter Stewart, Henry Edgerton, Porter, she'd, Bill Clinton, Clinton, Janet Reno, Brooksley, Michael Greenberger, Born, Gibson, weren't, Robert Rubin, Goldman Sachs, Rubin, Michael Hirsh, Alan Greenspan, Greenspan, Ayn Rand, Hirsh ., Hirsh, Greenspan didn't, braggadocian machismo, lauding Rubin, Lawrence Summers, Arthur Levitt, Josie Cox, Levitt, Summers, Jim Leach, Richard Lugar, —, Bethany McLean, Joe Nocera, Bob Rubin, Born's Cassandra, George W, Bush, Lauren Rivera, Christine Lagarde, Lehman, ABRAMS Organizations: Stanford University, Stanford Law School, Stanford, Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit, Arnold, Futures Trading Commission, American, CFTC, Bankers Trust, Procter, Gamble, Sumitomo, Federal Reserve, Fed, Securities and Exchange Commission, Financial Markets, Abrams, Term Capital Management, Enron, SEC, Born, Northwestern's Kellogg School of Management, Financial, International Monetary Fund, Lehman Brothers, Reuters, Street, The Washington Post, Guardian, Abrams Press Locations: California, Vietnam, United States, Washington, America, ABRAMS , New York

☆ Former New York cop charged with swindling investors in foreign exchange trading fund
▼ + stars: | 2024-02-28 | by ( Dan Mangan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Peace's office said that as Rodriguez, who was arrested Wednesday, lost an increasing amount of money in trading in foreign exchange, he used money from new investors to pay prior investors their promised investment returns. Ex-cop Jason Rodriguez, 37, is accused of falsely promising investors in his fund, Technical Trading Team, that there would be guardrails to protect the trading risks for their money. That included a vow to never put a maximum of 1% of investors' funds at risk at any given time, the indictment says. A former New York City police officer was indicted for conspiracy to commit wire fraud after he allegedly lied to investors and lost most of the $4.8 million they put into his foreign exchange -focused investment fund, prosecutors said Wednesday. The suit says the defendants lost more than $3 million in trading forex on a leveraged basis, and "misappropriated participant funds for personal use."

Persons: Peace, cryptocurrency, Rodriguez, Attorney Breon, Jason Rodriguez, Benjamin Yaster, Edwin Carrion, Carrion, Danielle Hass, TTT, Defendants Organizations: Attorney, Eastern, of, U.S . Justice, Washington , D.C, Brooklyn U.S, Trading, New York Police Department, NYPD, Attorney's, U.S, Futures Trading Commission, Commodity, CFTC, Investments, CNBC PRO Locations: of New York, Washington ,, New York City, Bellerose , Queens, U.S, Brooklyn, Florida, Colombia, TTT

Details of the medical procedure were also blacked out in the letter, which noted that federal prosecutors had not consented to Zhao's request. Jones held a closed hearing on the request on Dec. 29, and denied Zhao's bid to travel, court records show. Jones earlier in December rejected another request to allow Zhao to travel to the UAE. The judge said Zhao's "enormous wealth" made him a significant flight risk. His family resides in the UAE and it appears that he has favored status in the UAE," Jones wrote in a six-page order on Dec. 7.

Persons: Zhao Changpeng, Binance, Changpeng, Richard Jones, Zhao, Judge Jones, Jones, Zhao's Organizations: Viva Technology, Porte de, United Arab Emirates, Jan Locations: Porte, Paris, France, U.S, Seattle, Abu Dhabi, UAE, United States

Here's the state of play globally for crypto regulation and enforcement in 2023 — and a look at what to expect in 2024. "However, much of their work has involved providing guidance to the industry through enforcement actions," continued Levin. Crypto market participants nevertheless hope that the spate of legal challenges brought to crypto companies in 2023 will bring clarity in the form of new regulations. The U.S.'s dominant role in global finance and its focus on consumer protection plays a crucial role in its leading position in crypto regulation enforcement. The region has been increasingly warming to crypto assets, despite a broader anti-crypto push from China, which banned bitcoin trading and mining in 2021.

Persons: Al Drago, Binance, Sam Bankman, Renato Mariotti, Mariotti, Richard Levin, Nelson Mullins Riley, Levin, ada, Changpeng Zhao, Damian Williams, Brian Armstrong, Armstrong, Alyse Killeen, Scarborough's Levin, FinCEN, Killeen, Diem, USDC, Braden Perry, it's, Kennyhertz Perry, Perry, Bafin Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Bloomberg, Getty, Regulators, Securities and Exchange Commission, U.S, Alameda Research, U.S . Justice Department's Securities, Commodities, CNBC, Capitol, SEC, Futures Trading Commission, Department of Justice, Scarborough, CFTC, Protocol Labs, Southern, of, Stillmark, Meta, Visa, Mastercard, U.S ., European, IRS, European Union, EU, France's Financial Markets Authority, AMF, Treasury, Monetary Authority of, Three Arrows, Terra Labs, Terra, Hong Kong Securities, Futures Commission, SFC, OSL Locations: Washington, Europe, Asia, U.S, Alameda, of New York, European, Crypto, Ireland, Germany, France, Italy, Netherlands, Singapore, Dubai, Hong Kong, Monetary Authority of Singapore, China, East, Africa

☆ Binance might be peak for U.S. crypto enforcement cases, says CFTC official
▼ + stars: | 2023-12-05 | by ( Huw Jones | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Representations of cryptocurrencies are seen in front of displayed Binance logo in this illustration taken November 10, 2022. U.S. regulators have brought several cases against crypto firms such as Binance, helping to establish "guardrails" to bring "order and structure" to the market, CFTC Commissioner Kristin Johnson told an FT crypto and digital assets summit. She urged crypto firms to study the Binance settlement to see what sort of governance regulators look for at crypto firms. The CFTC will also be "deeply thoughtful" on requiring better disclosures at crypto firms that are vertically integrated, combining different activities under one roof. In the meantime, crypto firms are setting up shop in Britain to build an ecosystem that can service the rest of the world and benefit from "nuanced" regulators, Quintenz said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Kristin Johnson, Johnson, Brian Quintenz, Quintenz, Xiao, Xiao Zhu, Huw Jones, Mark Potter Organizations: REUTERS, Futures Trading Commission, Treasury Department, Justice Department, European Union, CFTC, KKR, Thomson Locations: U.S, Binance's, Britain

☆ In the Market: Regulators look to pry open the dark corners of Treasury markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-29 | by ( Paritosh Bansal | Thomson Reuters | Paritosh Oversees The Work Of More Than Journalists Across The Globe Who Write About Finance | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

Duffie said more could be done, but added that the "official sector Treasury market datasets are far more comprehensive now than they were a few years ago." They would have much better estimates of the basis trade, for example, but they still wouldn't know exactly how big it is. The trade involves hedge funds exploiting the difference between a Treasury security and its derivative in the futures market. The CFTC data includes other trades that hedge funds enter into that involve shorting treasury futures, the two industry sources said. At a major Treasury market conference earlier this month, officials underscored the importance of good data.

Persons: Darrell Duffie, Duffie, John Williams, Sherlock Holmes, Paritosh Bansal, Anna Driver Organizations: U.S . Federal Reserve, Financial Research, Stanford University, Treasury, Futures Trading Commission, Securities, Exchange Commission, Regulators, ” New York Fed, Thomson Locations: ”

Funds' $10 billion net long dollar position in the week ending Nov. 7 was the biggest bullish bet on the greenback since October last year and a huge turnaround from the net short position worth more than $20 billion in mid-July. The last decade has shown that CFTC funds' net dollar positions tend to be long-term, directional trades held for at least a year, the longest of which was the net long from May 2013 through June 2017. But this time may be different - funds have only been net long dollars for nine weeks. The long dollar liquidation in the week to Nov. 14 was mostly against the euro and Japanese yen. Funds expanded their net long euro position by $2.9 billion, or nearly 21,000 contracts, the sixth increase in a row and the biggest since July.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, that's, Morgan, Jamie McGeever, Christina Fincher Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Futures Trading Commission, Traders, Reuters, Funds, Bank of Japan, FX, Thomson Locations: Rights ORLANDO , Florida

☆ CFTC says access to US customers 'is a privilege, not a right,' in aggressive case against Binance that is only just getting started
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-23 | by ( Laila Maidan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

CFTC says case against Changpeng Zhao and Binance is the beginning of an aggressive pursuit. Commissioner Caroline D. Pham said the CFTC has no borders when it comes to prosecuting non-US entities. AdvertisementA statement made by CFTC Commissioner Christy Goldsmith Romero read: "There are no pirate ships in US markets" and that "access to US customers is a privilege, not a right." Goldsmith added that the CFTC plans to continue its aggressive pursuit of crypto exchanges that violate trade laws. In a separate statement, CFTC Commissioner Caroline D. Pham said the CFTC's reach has no border.

Persons: Changpeng Zhao, Binance, Caroline D, Pham, Zhao, —, it's, Sam Bankman, Christy Goldsmith Romero, Goldsmith Organizations: CFTC, Service, Commodity Futures Locations: U.S

Just this week, the SEC sued Kraken, another crypto exchange, alleging that it is operating as an unregistered securities exchange. Binance is exiting the US as part of the agreement the crypto exchange made with law enforcement agencies. That also includes the Justice Department, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission , and the Treasury Department. There is even a National Cryptocurrency Enforcement Team within the Justice Department actively identifying and investigating criminal cases involving digital assets. That is precisely how the feds secured the first ever corporate settlement with a crypto exchange.

Persons: Sam Bankman, Zhao, Binance, Brian Armstrong, Coinbase, ” Armstrong, “, General Merrick Garland, ” Changpeng Zhao, Anthony Kwan, cryptocurrencies, ethereum, Bitcoin, ’, it’s, Ethereum, Treasury Department —, Kraken, Tiffany Hagler, ” Garland, Lisa Monaco, Tuesday’s presser, “ I’ve, Benham Organizations: New, New York CNN, Justice Department, Bloomberg, Getty, Washington DC, US Department of Justice, Department of Justice, Treasury, Securities and Exchange Commission, Treasury Department, SEC, Geard, Futures Trading Commission, Cryptocurrency, feds Locations: New York, United States, Binance, Washington, U.S, “, rulemaking

WASHINGTON (AP) — While the scandals in the cryptocurrency industry seem to never end, Washington policymakers appear to have little interest in pushing through legislation to codify the structure of the industry. The latest shoe to drop is Binance’s multibillion dollar settlement with U.S. authorities and the resignation of its CEO this week. When cryptocurrencies collapsed and a number of companies failed last year, Congress considered multiple approaches for how to regulate the industry in the future. Brown has been highly skeptical of cryptocurrencies as a concept and he’s been generally reluctant to put Congress’ blessing on them through legislation. Yesterday’s development marks the same inflection point that we saw earlier at the intersection of the .com and post-.com eras.”

Persons: Sam Bankman, cryptocurrencies, Janet Yellen, Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, Binance, General Merrick Garland, — Binance, Debbie Stabenow, John Boozman, Sen, Sherrod Brown, Brown, He’s, ” Brown, Fried, can’t, ”, Dennis Kelleher, Yiannis Giokas Organizations: WASHINGTON, Treasury, White, Biden Administration, Binance, U.S . Treasury, U.S, Securities and Exchange Commission, Coinbase, SEC, PayPal, Futures Trading Commission, Agriculture Committee, U.S ., Financial Services, Senate, Consumer, Better, Moody’s Analytics, U.S . Authorities Locations: Washington, United States, Cayman Islands, Ohio, stablecoins, U.S

☆ Binance was slapped with a $4.3 billion fine because it let groups like Hamas and ISIS receive funds: Treasury Department
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-22 | by ( Kai Xiang Teo | Matthew Loh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The treasury department says the company enabled transactions from Hamas, the Islamic State, and Al Qaeda. The treasury department said Binance failed to report over 100,000 suspicious transactions involving terrorist groups, ransomware, child sexual exploitation material, and scams. Lim had been told about "HAMAS transactions," and responded by saying that terrorists often send "small sums" of money because "large sums constitute money laundering," the CFTC complaint said. Advertisement"I HAZ NO CONFIDENCE IN OUR GEOFENCING," Lim was told by a Binance employee, who was tasked with reporting money laundering, the complaint said. The justice department opened an investigation into Binance's compliance with anti money laundering law in 2018.

Persons: Binance, —, Samuel Lim, Lim, Zhao, Merrick Garland, Richard Teng —, Binanace, Yesha Yadav Organizations: Service, Zhao, Brigades, Hamas, Islamic, Futures Trading, AK, New York Times, Vanderbilt University, Reuters, Futures Trading Commission, Securities and Exchange Commission Locations: Islamic State, Al Qaeda, Iraq, Syria

Zhao Changpeng, founder and chief executive officer of Binance, speaks at the Blockchain Week Summit in Paris, France, on Wednesday, April 13, 2022. Binance chief Changpeng Zhao will plead guilty to criminal charges and step down as the company's CEO as part of a $4.3 billion settlement with the Department of Justice, according to court documents. The plea arrangement with the government resolves a multi-year investigation into the world's largest crypto exchange. The Securities and Exchange Commission targeted the company with an expansive lawsuit in June, alleging that Binance was running an illegal securities exchange and mishandling customer funds. To this day, Binance remains the world's largest crypto exchange globally, processing billions of dollars in trading volume every year.

Persons: Zhao Changpeng, Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, Brian Tsuchida, Binance, Kraken, Gary Gensler, wasn't, Samuel Lim, —, ada, Kevin Breuninger Organizations: Department of Justice, Justice Department, DOJ, Emergency Economic, U.S, CNBC, Securities and Exchange Commission, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Binance, Authority Locations: Paris, France, U.S, Seattle, Iran, Cayman Islands

Whatever is driving it, the sheer size of the record short positions and the pace at which they are growing suggest the reversal, when it comes, could be powerful. Leveraged funds - those more likely to be active in the basis trade - grew their net short position by 149,000 contracts to 2.08 million, a new record. Reuters Image Acquire Licensing RightsIn the two-year space, non-commercial accounts grew their net short position slightly to a new record 1.454 million contracts, and leveraged funds' net short position rose substantially to 1.716 million contracts, also a new record. A short position is essentially a bet that an asset's price will fall, and a long position is a bet that it will rise. Reuters Image Acquire Licensing RightsIf softer inflation and a more dovish U.S. central bank keep yields under downward pressure, funds' short Treasuries position is likely to come under increasing pressure too.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Jamie McGeever, Paul Simao Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Federal Reserve, Futures Trading Commission, Reuters, Bank of America, UST, Thomson Locations: Rights ORLANDO , Florida, U.S

A recently edgy bond market gobbled all that up. Funds' bonds allocation in November soared 18 points over the month to leave them net 19% overweight - almost 3 standard deviations above long-term averages. Asset managers' overweight bond positions - or at least those in government bonds and U.S. Treasuries - tends to be mirrored by big short positions in Treasury futures among speculative hedge funds. CFTC numbers show the scale of that speculative 'Big Short' on the flipside of the mounting 'Big Long' built by regular asset managers. Lamont points out that U.S. Treasury yields and investment grade corporate debt yields would have to rise about another 100bps for the capital losses to wipe out current yields.

Persons: Sarah Silbiger, Lazard, Ronald Temple, Lombard Odier's Florian Ielpo, Duncan Lamont, Lamont, Jason Pride, Mike Dolan, Susan Fenton Organizations: El Progreso Market, Washington , D.C, REUTERS, Bank of America's, Treasury, Reuters, Thomson Locations: Mount Pleasant, Washington ,, what's

Down 45% so far this year, palladium is on course for its worst year of losses since 2008, when the financial crash hit demand. Top producer Russia's Nornickel expects the palladium market to swing to a surplus of 300,000 ounces in 2024 from a 200,000-ounce deficit in 2023 due to supplies, boosted by recycling, outpacing demand. Consultancy Metals Focus forecasts above-ground palladium stocks of about 11.64 million ounces in 2023, compared with 12.35 million in 2022 and 12.89 million in 2021 - meaning ample supplies. In March 2022, palladium was trading at more than double the price of platinum, prompting a switch by automakers. However, longer-term Metals Focus is quite bearish on palladium," said Nikos Kavalis, managing director at Metals Focus.

Persons: Alexander Manzyuk, hastening, Russia's Nornickel, John Meyer, Edward Meir, Nikos Kavalis, Brijesh Patel, Harshit Verma, Ashitha, Anjana Anil, Anushree Mukherjee, Abhijith, Arpan Varghese, Pratima Desai, Hugh Lawson Organizations: REUTERS, Russia, ICE, International Energy, Consultancy, Metals, Thomson Locations: Siberian, Krasnoyarsk, Russia, Ukraine, Bengaluru

The latest Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) figures show that speculators, especially leveraged funds, ramped up their short Treasuries positions in the week ending Oct. 31, most notably at the short end of the curve. That is significantly larger than the peak combined net short position from 2019 of just over 4 million contracts, boosted by fresh record short positions in the two- and five-year space. In October leveraged funds increased their net short position in two-year futures by 242,000 contracts to 1.6 million contracts, and by 193,000 contracts in five-year futures to 1.93 million. They only grew their net short position in 10-year futures by 10,000 contracts, however. But funds play Treasuries futures for other reasons, like relative value trades, and this year, the basis trade.

Persons: Brendan McDermid, Javier Corominas, Treasuries, Jerome Powell, Jamie McGeever, Miral Fahmy, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: New York Stock Exchange, REUTERS, Rights, Futures Trading Commission, Regulators, Reuters, Oxford Economics, Treasury, Citi's, Thomson Locations: New York City, U.S, Rights ORLANDO , Florida, Citi's U.S

As token prices plummeted last year, the sector saw other stunning meltdowns that put several industry moguls into authorities' crosshairs. Changpeng "CZ" ZhaoThe U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sued Binance and its CEO Zhao in June for allegedly operating "a web of deception." Kwon faces multiple charges of fraud in the U.S. and was arrested in Montenegro earlier this year for allegedly forging documents, authorities said. He has pleaded not guilty to U.S. fraud charges that he misled customers and artificially inflated the value of his company's proprietary crypto token. Barry SilbertSilbert is the boss of crypto group Digital Currency Group whose subsidiary Genesis Global Capital filed for bankruptcy in January.

Persons: Zhao Changpeng, Binance, Costas Baltas, Sam Bankman, Fried, he's, Zhao, Kwon, Luna, Terraform, Alex Mashinsky, Mashinsky, Barry Silbert Silbert, Letitia James, Silbert, Stephen Ehrlich Stephen Ehrlich's, Ehrlich, Justin Sun, Sun, Niket Nishant, Hannah Lang, Michelle Price, Anil D'Silva Organizations: REUTERS, Rights, Zhao, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Korean, Terraform Labs, Montenegrin, Mashinsky, CFTC, U.S . Federal Trade Commission, Digital Currency Group, Genesis Global Capital, New York, FTC, Tron Foundation, Thomson Locations: Athens, Greece, China, Canada, U.S, Montenegro, New York

ORLANDO, Florida, Oct 22 (Reuters) - Leveraged funds trading U.S. Treasuries futures have increased their record net short position across the curve, which will do little to soothe growing concerns among regulators about the potential financial stability risks these bets pose. That is significantly larger than the peak combined net short position from 2019 of just over 4 million contracts. That's a whisker from the two-year record net short of 1.558 million contracts in 2019, and a fresh record five-year net short. A short position is essentially a wager an asset's price will fall, and a long position is a bet it will rise. But funds play Treasuries futures for other reasons, like relative value trades, and this year, the basis trade.

Persons: Jamie McGeever, Miral Organizations: Bank for International, Futures Trading Commission, U.S, Treasury, Reuters, Thomson Locations: ORLANDO, Florida, U.S

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File Photo Acquire Licensing RightsSummary Oil prices drop on Friday but gain over 1% for the weekHamas releases two US hostages in GazaEarlier, Israeli minister said troops to see Gaza 'from inside'Global oil market already faces supply concernsBENGALURU, Oct 20 (Reuters) - Oil prices settled lower on Friday after the Islamist group Hamas released two U.S. hostages from Gaza, leading to hopes the Israeli-Palestinian crisis could de-escalate without engulfing the rest of the Middle East region and disrupting oil supplies. Brent crude futures fell 22 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at $92.16 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures for November delivery , which expired after settlement on Friday, fell 62 cents, or 0.7%, to $88.75 a barrel. Hamas' armed wing released two U.S. hostages from Gaza - a mother and her daughter - "for humanitarian reasons" in response to Qatari mediation efforts in the war with Israel, its spokesman Abu Ubaida said on Friday. "The report took some of the risk premium out of the market," said Phil Flynn, analyst at Price Futures Group.

Persons: Andrew Kelly, Abu Ubaida, Phil Flynn, Yoav Gallant, John Kilduff, Kilduff, Giovanni Staunovo, Brent, Staunovo, Shariq Khan, Paul Carsten, Florence Tan, Sudarshan, Shri Navaratnam, Jason Neely, David Gregorio, Jane Merriman Organizations: REUTERS, Hamas, Brent, . West Texas, Price Futures, Israeli, Pentagon, UBS, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Thomson Locations: Manhattan , New York City, U.S, Gaza, BENGALURU, Hamas, Israel, Yemen, New York, Saudi Arabia, Russia

☆ Premarket stocks: How billion-dollar fines are reshaping digital communications in banking
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-19 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +6 min

A version of this story first appeared in CNN Business’ Before the Bell newsletter. HSBC is blocking staff from texting on their work phones, a person familiar with the matter confirmed to CNN. What’s happening: Banks must follow strict compliance rules for how they use and store their employees’ texts and other business communications. “Banks use a wide range of approved channels to communicate in compliance with regulatory obligations,” a company spokesperson told CNN. Tesla reported adjusted earnings of $2.3 billion in the quarter, or 66 cents a share, down 37% from a year earlier and the smallest profits it reported in two years.

Persons: Banks, ”, ” Sanjay Wadhwa, Tesla, Chris Isidore, Refinitiv, Dan Ives, “ Price, Elon Musk, “, ’, Craig Jelinek, Ron Vachris, Jelinek Organizations: CNN Business, Bell, New York CNN, HSBC, CNN, Bloomberg, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Commodity Futures Trading Commission, “ HSBC, Carlyle Group, Blackstone, Bank of America, Citigroup, Wedbush Securities, Costco, Sam’s Club, Walmart Locations: New York, London, Wells Fargo, WhatsApp, United States

☆ The SEC will continue its efforts to bring oversight to crypto: Former CFTC Chair Timothy Massad
▼ + stars: | 2023-10-16 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailThe SEC will continue its efforts to bring oversight to crypto: Former CFTC Chair Timothy MassadFormer chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission Timothy Massad joins 'The Exchange' to discuss sentiment towards launching a spot bitcoin ETF, the need for basic investor protection in the crypto market, and the risk of which crypto investors should be aware.

Persons: Timothy Massad Organizations: SEC, Futures Trading

Crude oil storage tanks are seen in an aerial photograph at the Cushing oil hub in Cushing, Oklahoma, U.S. April 21, 2020. The conflict in the Middle East has had little impact on global oil and gas supplies, and Israel is not a big producer. Iran's Oil Minister Javad Owji said on Friday oil prices are expected to reach $100 per barrel due to the current situation in the Middle East, according to the ministry's news agency SHANA. If the U.S. tightens enforcement of sanctions on Iran's oil exports due to any role it may have in the conflict, then Iran's oil supply could fall. On the U.S. supply front, drillers this week added four oil rigs in the biggest weekly rise since March, Baker Hughes said.

Persons: Brent, WTI, Israel, Javad Owji, SHANA, Iran's, Hossein Amirabdollahian, Andrew Lipow, Baker Hughes, Stephanie Kelly, Paul Carsten, Katya Golubkova, Andrew Hayley, Marguerita Choy, David Gregorio, Paul Simao Organizations: REUTERS, Companies, . West Texas, Iran's Oil, Hezbollah, U.S, Wall Street, Lipow Oil Associates, The, of, Petroleum, drillers, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Thomson Locations: Cushing , Oklahoma, U.S, Gaza Saudi Arabia, Israel, Gaza, Tehran, Lebanese, Saudi Arabia, Moscow, Ukraine, Russia, Iran, China, New York, London, Tokyo, Beijing

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