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☆ Scientists are racing to explore more of the ocean hoping to discover medical breakthroughs and address the climate crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

Two of the Basecamp Research team taking samples in Azores, Portugal. A Heritage Malta diver taking samples. The protocol omitted the high seas, which refers to parts of the seas that are not under territorial control of any specific country. This is particularly important as policy evolves with the ratification of the High Seas Treaty. Joseph MarlowThe treaty also puts into action an agreement to protect 30% of the high seas by 2030.

Persons: Basecamp, Emma Bolt, Rob Finn, Finn, Saif Ur, Rehman, Basecamp Research's Bolton, Joseph Marlow, Bolton Organizations: Service, Basecamp Research, Basecamp, Heritage, Heritage Malta, Heritage Malta Technology Locations: Azores, Portugal, Heritage Malta, Antarctica, silico, Nagoya

☆ FTC seeks to ban fake reviews with new proposed rule
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-30 | by ( Annie Palmer | In Annierpalmer | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

The Federal Trade Commission on Friday proposed a new rule that seeks to ban fake online reviews, marking its most aggressive step yet to thwart review fraud. Fake reviews and review abuse have been a persistent issue for online platforms such as Amazon , Google and Yelp . Bad actors often rely on fake reviews to boost their products in search results and drive more sales. Amazon, which has struggled to combat fake reviews on its third-party marketplace, has increasingly gone after fake review brokers and Facebook group administrators in court. The agency has filed several other cases in recent years against companies that used fake reviews to sell products online, and blocked their users from leaving negative reviews.

Persons: Samuel Levine Organizations: Federal Trade Commission, Consumer Protection, Google, Facebook, FTC, Bountiful, CNBC Locations: FTC's

☆ TikTokers say berberine is 'nature's Ozempic': Here's what doctors want you to know about the buzzy supplement
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-28 | by ( Renée Onque | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

The rise in the use of Ozempic for reasons beyond treating diabetes has led to a national shortage. Now, attention has shifted to a dietary supplement called berberine, which is being touted on social media as "nature's Ozempic." Similar to Ozempic, berberine decreases blood sugar and can lead to weight reduction, says Giordano who is also co-founder of Rebesana, a company that researches healthspan and lifespan. "It doesn't slow down how the stomach empties, which is one of the main ways that Ozempic and Mounjaro work." But Giordano says berberine appears to have great health benefits that far exceed weight loss: "I don't know why doctors don't recommend this regularly."

Persons: Elon Musk, Dr, Carl Giordano, Giordano, Neil Paulvin, berberine Organizations: CNBC, Rite Aid, Walgreens Locations: New Jersey, goldenseal, Oregon, NY

☆ We're losing the battle against bird loss. Scientists estimate North America's bird population is down 3 billion and dropping fast in other countries worldwide.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Emily Sohn | Knowable Magazine | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

In North America, more than half of 529 bird species have declined, according to one study. Another study of 378 European bird species estimates numbers fell by as much as 19% from 1980-2017. There are birds on mountains, birds in cities, birds in deserts, birds in oceans, birds on farm fields and birds in parking lots. Bird numbers are falling across a broad range of habitats, as these graphs from Europe and North America show. A recovery program has boosted the species' numbers to more than 500, with several hundred living once more in the wild.

Persons: —, Peter Marra, It's, Alexander Lees, Lees, Christopher Michel, Marra, we're, Lees et, Philip McGowan, Glenn Simmons, McGowan Organizations: Service, Penguins, Earth Commons, Manchester Metropolitan University, Cornell, of Ornithology, National Audubon Society, Survey, US Geological Survey, Environment Canada, European Union, International Union for Conservation, Environment, Resources, Newcastle University, IUCN, California condor, Recovery Initiative Locations: North America, Antarctica, ptarmigan, Everest, Georgetown, England, Canada, United Kingdom, Gould Bay, eBird, United States, Science, Costa, India, Europe, California, Arizona, Brazil

☆ The US has the second-highest number of endangered species. California, Florida, and Arizona lead the nation in threatened creatures.
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Tim Paradis | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The US is second behind Indonesia for the number of endangered species, according to a new report. Among US states, California, Florida, and Arizona have the most threatened species. The report draws its data from a conservation group's Red List of Threatened Species. California, Florida, and Arizona held the top spots in the US for most endangered species: The Golden State had 18, followed by 13 in the Sunshine State, and seven in the Grand Canyon State. The US total of 1,178 endangered species includes 43 mammals and 284 types of fish.

Persons: —, Jane Smart, Smart Organizations: Service, State, Sunshine State, International Union for Conservation of, International Union for Conservation, IUCN's Centre for Science, Associated Press, AP Locations: Indonesia, , California, Florida, Arizona, California , Florida, Nations

[1/3] Packaged food for sale is seen on shelves at a Dollar Tree in Islandia, New York, U.S., May 12, 2023. Razor manufacturer Edgewell Personal Care Co (EPC.N) and Kraft Heinz Co (KHC.O) have overhauled or built new teams dedicated to working with the biggest U.S. dollar stores like Dollar Tree Inc (DLTR.O) and Dollar General Corp (DG.N) in the last year. Makers of food and household staples are pushing deeper into dollar stores because the low-cost retailers are opening thousands of locations each year. Griffin added that dollar stores are also introducing more "premium" private label brands, like Dollar General's Nature's Menu for pets. Kraft-Heinz also created a new team of five people late last year to identify and develop products for dollar stores, a spokesman said.

☆ Private-credit firms see opportunity as banks tighten lending
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-10 | by ( Lisa Pauline Mattackal | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

May 10 (Reuters) - Private-credit firms are eyeing fresh opportunities from a potential borrowing squeeze in the United States as battered regional banks tighten lending after the turmoil in the sector, according to fund managers and investment strategists. Such lenders see commercial and residential real estate as particularly attractive, given the prominence of regional banks in these sectors. Regional U.S. banks accounted for about 70% of outstanding loans to the commercial real estate (CRE) sector alone, according to Capital Economics. "Signature was one of the biggest providers of real estate lending in the New York area, commercial real estate is very vulnerable ... as a lender you want to be on the other side of that," Handa said. Many private credit funds have plenty of excess funds, or "dry powder" to invest, said Matt Malone, head of investment management at private investment management firm Opto Investments.

The latest case in point: The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) chose JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) as the winning bidder in an auction to buy collapsed lender First Republic Bank on Monday. FDIC officials, however, say would-be buyers risk losing out if they allow the value of an acquisition target to deteriorate over time while waiting for an FDIC receivership. SWEETENERSU.S. bank mergers were already sluggish as interest rates rose and recession loomed, analysts at Raymond James wrote in an Apr. The first quarter was the quietest opening to a year for bank deals in a generation, they said. Market volatility stops bank buyers from pulling together enough money to cover writedowns on struggling assets, which would be triggered by a traditional acquisition, said David Sandler, co-head of financial services investment banking at Piper Sandler Companies (PIPR.N).

Depositors had pulled $100 billion from accounts at the bank in the panic triggered by the SVB and Signature failures, imperiling its survival. Both SVB and Signature failed last month. Both SVB and Signature grew quickly in recent years, outpacing the ability of regulators to keep up, especially with shrinking resources. Regulators closed Signature two days after SVB was shuttered. Signature lost 20% of its total deposits in a matter of hours on the day that SVB failed, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg has said.

Both SVB and Signature failed last month. Regulators shut SVB on March 10, a day after customers withdrew $42 billion and queued requests for another $100 billion the following morning. Both SVB and Signature grew quickly in recent years, outpacing the ability of regulators to keep up, especially with shrinking resources. Regulators closed Signature two days after SVB was shuttered. Signature lost 20% of its total deposits in a matter of hours on the day that SVB failed, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg has said.

☆ Factbox: Highlights from US regulators' reviews of SVB, Signature failures
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Below are key details from the government's post-mortems, which underscore management failings at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank and too-slow, too-soft responses from regulators. * In 2022, SVB failed to test its capacity to borrow at the discount window and did not have appropriate collateral and operational arrangements in place to obtain contingency funding, the U.S. central bank said. The New York-based bank's board of directors and management pursued "rapid, unrestrained growth" without adequate risk management. * The Fed's judgments of SVB were "not always appropriate" given that bank's weaknesses. A single examiner was responsible for reviewing the bank's interest-rate risk and investment portfolio, and in some cases, would also review liquidity and model risk management during a two-to-three-week timeframe.

☆ Signature Bank failure due to 'poor management,' US FDIC report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

April 28 (Reuters) - Last month's failure of New York-based Signature Bank was caused by "poor management" and a pursuit of "rapid, unrestrained growth" with little regard for risk management, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said on Friday in a report detailing its supervision and regulation of the regional bank. Bank management and its board chased growth and deposits without "developing and maintaining adequate risk management practices and controls appropriate for the size, complexity and risk profile of the institution," according to the 63-page report. The same day SVB failed, Signature lost 20% of its total deposits in a matter of hours, FDIC Chair Martin Gruenberg has said. Similar to SVB, Signature examiners reported weak corporate governance practices and failures by bank management to address shortcomings identified by supervisors, including the firm's reliance on uninsured deposits. Like SVB, Signature relied heavily on uninsured deposits and experienced a boom in growth between 2019 and 2020, when its assets grew 64%, according to Gruenberg.

☆ Signature Bank stock plunged to a few pennies and then soared 288% after trading in the failed bank's stock reopened
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-30 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

After being halted for more than two weeks, shares of Signature Bank reopened for trading. Signature Bank trades under the ticker symbol "SBNY" and is in the process of being acquired. To be clear, there is no remaining equity value in Signature Bank despite its stock trading in an extremely volatile range over the past few days. The FDIC is still trying to sell off other assets held by Signature Bank. Similar speculative trading has been seen in Silicon Valley Bank stock after it also reopened for trading on Tuesday.

☆ U.S. FDIC tells Signature Bank's crypto clients to close accounts by April 5
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 28 (Reuters) - The U.S. Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC) has informed collapsed lender Signature Bank's (SBNY.O) crypto clients that they have until April 5 to close their accounts and move their money. "Flagstar's bid did not include about $4 billion in deposits related to Signature's digital-asset business," an FDIC spokesperson said. Flagstar on March 19 entered into an agreement with U.S. regulators to buy deposits and loans from New York-based Signature Bank. The FDIC had said that the deal would see Flagstar Bank assume substantially all of Signature Bank's deposits, some of its loan portfolios and all 40 of its former branches. Roughly $60 billion of Signature Bank's loans and $4 billion of its deposits would remain with it in receivership.

Share Share Article via Facebook Share Article via Twitter Share Article via LinkedIn Share Article via EmailBitcoin reclaims $28,000, and FDIC gives deadline for Signature's crypto clients: CNBC Crypto WorldCNBC Crypto World features the latest news and daily trading updates from the digital currency markets and provides viewers with a look at what's ahead with high-profile interviews, explainers, and unique stories from the ever-changing crypto industry. On today's show, Sergey Nazarov, the co-founder of Chainlink, weighs in on sentiment among blockchain developers amid the current crypto environment.

☆ Endangered Komodo dragons hatch at Spanish zoo
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Jon Nazca | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/5] Embum, a one-month-old baby Komodo dragon, one of the five Komodo dragons born at Bioparc Fuengirola, rests in a terrarium in Fuengirola, southern Spain, March 28, 2023. REUTERS/Jon NazcaFUENGIROLA, Spain, March 28 (Reuters) - Five Komodo dragon hatchlings have been born at a zoo in Spain, the first successful breeding of the world's largest lizard - an endangered species - in the country for a decade. "This is a great achievement for all of us," Milagros Robledo, the head of the Herpetology department at the Bioparc Fuengirola zoo in southern Spain and self-described "mother" of the dragons, told Reuters on Tuesday. The baby dragons' parents mated on June 24 last year, when Spaniards celebrate the feast of St John. In the wild, newborn Komodo dragons tend to move to the treetops and need no maternal or paternal care, Robledo said.

☆ A deadline looms for rules governing deep-sea mining, but a rushed decision may be risky
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Catherine Clifford | In Catclifford | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +12 min

Proponents say that deep-sea mining there is a less damaging way to gather metals like nickel, copper, manganese and cobalt. Opponents of deep-sea mining say there is not enough information to make that kind of decision. Critics of the idea of deep-sea mining have said the process is being rushed. That's what's behind the drive for diversity of supply on land-based mining, as well as exploration of alternatives such as deep-sea mining." Finding consensus for the Wild West of the seaOpponents of deep-sea mining want to tap the brakes.

March 19 (Reuters) - Talks over rescuing Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) rolled into Sunday as UBS AG (UBSG.S) sought $6 billion from the Swiss government to cover costs if it were to buy its struggling rival, a person with knowledge of the talks said. The guarantees UBS is seeking would cover the cost of winding down parts of Credit Suisse and potential litigation charges, two people told Reuters. Credit Suisse, UBS and the Swiss government declined to comment. U.S. President Joe Biden's administration moved to backstop consumer deposits while the Swiss central bank lent billions to Credit Suisse to stabilise its shaky balance sheet. There were multiple reports of interest for Credit Suisse from other rivals.

☆ Tech leaders remain oblivious to the true lessons of Silicon Valley Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-19 | by ( Matt Turner | Dave Smith | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

On the agenda today:But first: Insider's Madeline Renbarger shares what happened at the SXSW Festival in Texas as tech founders and entrepreneurs learned about the implosion of Silicon Valley Bank. The festival began just as the FDIC announced it was taking control of Silicon Valley Bank to stop the catastrophic, social media-instigated bank run that was in full swing. Silicon Valley's blame gameiStock; Rebecca Zisser/InsiderIn the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, there's been plenty of finger-pointing but little self-reflection on the part of Silicon Valley, writes Insider's Linette Lopez. But in recent weeks, as companies like Meta and Twitter braced for tougher times ahead, the assault on middle managers has picked up new steam. But middle managers move the needle on a company's overall performance far more than senior executives do — and make a bigger difference to the bottom line.

[1/3] A security guard walks in the ATM lobby of a Signature Bank branch in New York City, U.S., March 13, 2023. The proposed class action against Signature and its former chief executive officer Joseph DePaolo, chief financial officer Stephen Wyremski and chief operating officer Eric Howell was filed in the federal court in Brooklyn. Silicon Valley Bank is the largest. On Sunday, U.S. regulators decided to make Signature and Silicon Valley Bank depositors whole regardless of how much they held in their accounts. The case is Schaeffer v Signature Bank et al, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York, No.

☆ Why stablecoin company Circle is set to be the big winner in crypto after the collapse of Signature Bank and Silicon Valley Bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( April Joyner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The collapse of three crypto-friendly banks is a boon for stablecoin issuer Circle, investors said. Slivergate Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, and Signature all imploded in the space of a week. Circle keeps its reserves at BNY Mellon, which helped its stablecoin USDC recover after SVB's fall. Circle, the company behind the stablecoin USDC, is set to come ahead in the aftermath of the collapses of Silvergate Bank, Silicon Valley Bank, and Signature Bank, according to several investors and founders. One risk, however, is that recent bank failures prompt regulators to bar crypto companies, including Circle, from accessing the US banking system altogether.

☆ Bitcoin, USDC stablecoin rally after U.S. intervenes on SVB
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SINGAPORE, March 13 (Reuters) - Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies rallied on Monday after U.S. authorities announced plans to limit the fallout from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and as cryptocurrency firm Circle assured investors its peg was secure. The moves came as authorities took possession of New York-based Signature Bank (SBNY.O), the second bank failure in a matter of days. Stablecoin USD Coin (USDC) recovered to $0.9917, closer to its par and up from last week's lows around $0.88. Over the weekend, USDC had lost its 1:1 dollar peg and hit a record low on Saturday on concerns over the exposure of Circle — the firm behind USDC — to Silicon Valley Bank. Circle CEO Jeremy Allaire said in a tweet its $3.3 billion USDC reserve deposit held at the collapsed Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) will be fully available when U.S. banks open Monday.

March 12 (Reuters) - State regulators closed New York-based Signature Bank (SBNY.O) on Sunday, the third largest failure in U.S. banking history, two days after authorities shuttered Silicon Valley Bank (SIVB.O) in a collapse that stranded billions in deposits. All of the depositors of Signature Bank and Silicon Valley Bank will be made whole, and "no losses will be borne by the taxpayer," the U.S. Treasury Department and other bank regulators said in a joint statement. Signature's failure followed Silicon Valley Bank's Friday shutdown, the second largest in U.S. history behind Washington Mutual, which collapsed during the 2008 financial crisis. Signature Bank's depositors and borrowers will automatically become customers of the bridge bank, the FDIC said. Signature Bank cut ties with Trump in 2021 following the deadly Jan. 6 riots on Capitol Hill, and urged Trump to resign.

The U.S. Treasury Department and other bank regulators said in a joint statement on Sunday that all depositors of Signature Bank will be made whole, and "no losses will be borne by the taxpayer." Signature Bank reported deposit balances totaling $89.17 billion as of March 8. Representatives for Signature Bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment. The FDIC on Sunday established a "bridge" successor bank to Signature Bank, which will enable customers to access their funds on Monday. Signature Bank's depositors and borrowers will automatically become customers of the bridge bank, the FDIC said.

☆ Crypto just lost both of its main banks. Here's what it means for the industry going forward
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-13 | by ( Tanaya Macheel | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

The days before the industry had crypto-forward banks to turn to were some of the darkest for the industry. At the end of February, three major banking regulators issued a joint statement warning banks of the liquidity risks associated with banking crypto companies. "Banks and law firms are getting a clear message from regulators: distance yourselves from crypto companies," said Ric Edelman, founder of the Digital Assets Council of Financial Professionals. "But for the moment, crypto companies are increasingly finding themselves where cannabis companies were a decade ago." Employees work at a Signature Bank branch in Manhattan on March 13, 2023 in New York City.

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