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☆ Betting against First Republic, short sellers made $848 mln in March - Ortex
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

April 4 (Reuters) - Short sellers made a whopping $848 million in paper profit by betting against beleaguered First Republic Bank (FRC.N) in March, financial data company Ortex said on Tuesday, making it the most profitable short trade last month. The lender's shares slumped 88.6% in March, its worst monthly performance, as the U.S. banking crisis fueled fears that the San Francisco-based bank could also fall prey to the issues that hit Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. Silvergate Capital Corp wound down operations on March 8 and days later Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank were seized by regulators amid liquidity crises, denting investor confidence in the U.S. banking sector. Reporting by Medha Singh and Sruthi Shankar in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun KoyyurOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Dogecoin jumps as Musk's Twitter flips logo to Shiba Inu dog
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/3] A representation of cryptocurrency dogecoin is seen in front of a stock graph and U.S. dollar in this illustration taken, January 24, 2022. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationApril 4 (Reuters) - Dogecoin's Shiba Inu dog replaced Twitter's blue bird as the social media company's logo on Tuesday, helping the meme coin add as much as $4 billion to its market value. loadingWith a market capitalization of $13.7 billion, dogecoin is now the seventh biggest cryptocurrency, according to data site CoinMarketCap.com. Dogecoin more than doubled in October after Musk, dubbed "the dogefather" by retail traders, sealed a $44 billion deal to take over Twitter in October. The shiba inu token, a spinoff of dogecoin which trades in fractions of cents, rose 5.6% to $0.000014.

☆ US energy stocks join European peers' rally after surprise oil output cut
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

April 3 (Reuters) - U.S. energy stocks hit an over one-month high on Monday, following a rally in European peers as crude prices rose more than 6% following a surprise announcement by Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ oil producers to cut production. The S&P 500 energy index (.SPNY) added 4.2%, eying its best day in six months, while the benchmark S&P 500 (.SPX) traded flat. So any amount of oil price incrementally higher from here is very good for margins and it's very good for these stocks." Other oil producers Occidental Petroleum (OXY.N), ConocoPhillips (COP.N), Devon Energy (DVN.N), Marathon Oil (MRO.N) and APA Corp (APA.O) gained between 6.3% and 9.5%. Alastair Syme, head of energy research at Citi, said investors had recently been reducing the weight of energy stocks in their portfolios, and that any move to re-weight would likely benefit most of the largest cap stocks.

☆ Trump-linked stocks gain on attracting retail traders' attention
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Andrew Kelly/File PhotoMarch 31 (Reuters) - Shares of companies tied to former U.S. President Donald Trump gained in premarket trading on Friday, drawing interest from retail investors after the ex-president was indicted in a historic first. "It might seem counter intuitive ... but Donald Trump's indictment might actually make him more electable with a certain portion of U.S. voters," Danni Hewson, analyst at AJ Bell, said. "If more people are talking about Trump, more will gravitate to his social media platform and there's likely to be a lot more cash swelling the coffers of his campaign budget." Shares of Digital World Acquisition Corp (DWAC.O), the blank-check company looking to take Trump's social media venture Truth Social public, rose 12.1%. Digital World and Rumble were among the top 10 most touted stocks on investor-focused social media stocktwits.com.

☆ China's Alibaba to break up empire into six units as Jack Ma returns home
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Josh Horwitz | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Alibaba said the biggest restructuring in its 24-year history would see it split into six units - Cloud Intelligence Group, Taobao Tmall Commerce Group, Local Services Group, Cainiao Smart Logistics Group, Global Digital Commerce Group and Digital Media and Entertainment Group. Zhang will continue as chairman and CEO of Alibaba Group, which will follow a holding company management model, and also serve as CEO of Cloud Intelligence Group. The exception would be Taobao Tmall Commerce Group that handles China commerce businesses and will remain a wholly owned unit of Alibaba Group. Investors said the split signals the clearing of regulatory worries and allays concerns that Alibaba had lost the potential to grow. [1/2] The logo of Alibaba Group is seen at its office in Beijing, China January 5, 2021.

Yet investors aiming to amp up their bets face an ominous obstacle: a lack of liquidity that could trigger wild price swings. Slippage, a liquidity measure describing how much prices change between the placement and execution of a trade, has also increased. The vanishing liquidity can be traced back to the collapse of Sam Bankman-Fried's FTX exchange and hedge fund Alameda Research. Until then, "liquidity is probably going to get worse and worse", said Joseph Edwards, investment adviser at Enigma Securities. "Even if some players haven't left the place, they are on the sidelines right now because of what's happening with banking turmoil," Edwards said.

☆ First Republic's marginal gains keep stock close to record-low levels
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 23 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) rose 5% on Thursday as they drew the attention of bargain-hunting retail investors, but still hovered near record-low levels on lingering fears about the future of the U.S. regional lender. The stock was the second most traded by retail punters in Wednesday's session and the fifth most popular trade by 10:00 a.m. First Republic's shares have lost nearly 90% of their value this month, the worst performing stock among the members of S&P 1500 regional banks index (.SPCOMBNKS), which has fallen 30.2% during the same period. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Wednesday dashed all hopes that U.S. regulators would insure all consumer deposits through the end of the banking crisis, sending First Republic's stock down 15% on the day. Reporting by Medha Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Shinjini GanguliOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ GameStop's surprise profit triggers short squeeze, meme stocks rally
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Medha Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

AMC and GameStop were at the heart of a meme-stock frenzy in 2021 driven by small investors coordinating on social media. Among other highly shorted meme stocks, Koss Corp (KOSS.O) climbed 9.5%, Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY.O) reversed course to slip 1.3%, while the Roundhill MEME ETF (MEME.P) rose 4.2%. "Luckily, this go around is not due to meme investors, but an actual tangible fundamental event," said David Wagner, portfolio manager at Aptus Capital Advisors. SOURING SHORT BETSWhen there is a rush of demand from short sellers looking to exit their bearish bets amid a rise in a stock's price, it pushes prices even higher, resulting in a short squeeze. Another favorite among retail investors - Carvana Co (CVNA.N) - jumped 22% after the used-car retailer said it expects a smaller core loss in the current quarter.

☆ First Republic seeks new ways to escape unrealized losses
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

March 21 (Reuters) - First Republic Bank's (FRC.N) efforts to secure a capital infusion continued without success on Tuesday, as the troubled regional lender started to plan for the possibility it may need to downsize or get a government backstop. Bloomberg News reported U.S. officials and Wall Street leaders seeking to aid First Republic were exploring the possibility of government backing that would help overcome the issue of the bank's unrealized losses. JPMorgan is advising First Republic on its options to raise capital from investors, a source familiar with the situation previously said. "There are a number of factors lifting the (financial) stocks, including the comments by Yellen. "We believe First Republic remains in crisis," said Jason Benowitz, senior portfolio manager at CI Roosevelt.

☆ GameStop jumps after swinging to profit, ignites rally in meme stocks
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 22 (Reuters) - Meme stock GameStop Corp (GME.N) jumped nearly 40% in premarket trading on Wednesday after the video game retailer posted its first profitable quarter in two years, igniting a surge in other stocks popular among retail traders. GameStop posted an adjusted profit of 16 cents per share for the fourth quarter, compared to a loss of 47 cents a year ago, helped by a tight lid on costs including job cuts. Other popular stocks among retail traders also rose, with AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc (AMC.N) gaining 10%, while Bed Bath & Beyond (BBBY.O) added 11%. The high interest rate regime of the past year has roiled stock markets, with speculative areas of the market such as meme stocks taking a severe blow. GameStop shares slid 25% in the past 12 months, compared to a 10.3% slide in the S&P 500 (.SPX).

☆ First Republic slumps after report of potential government backing in deal
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

March 21 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) tumbled 14% in extended trade on Tuesday following a report that a potential deal for the troubled bank could rely on government backing to encourage buyers. Potential government backing in a deal to save First National could involve conditions at the expense of the bank's shareholders, said Dennis Dick, a trader at Triple D Trading in Ontario, Canada. While a sale of the entire bank remains possible, First Republic is currently focused on raising capital, the third source said. First Republic's shares had surged as much as 60% on Tuesday before closing up 30%, but even so First Republic's stock has lost over 80% in value in the past two weeks. JPMorgan is advising First Republic on its options to raise capital from investors, a source familiar with the situation previously said.

March 20 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) closed 47% lower on Monday, adding to recent losses as concerns about its liquidity continued to worry investors despite a $30 billion influx of deposits last week. The bank's stock fell as much as 50% and closed at $12.18 after the New York Stock Exchange halted it several times due to volatility. S&P Global downgraded First Republic deeper into junk status on Sunday and said the recent cash infusion from 11 large U.S. banks last week may not solve its liquidity problems. A First Republic Bank branch is pictured in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., March 13, 2023. First Republic Bank's stock market collapseFirst Republic's stock market value has collapsed by over 80% in the past 10 trading sessions due to fears of a bank run as a large proportion of the lender's deposits are uninsured.

March 20 (Reuters) - Shares of U.S. lender First Republic tumbled nearly 50% on Monday on fears it will need a second rescue to stay afloat, bucking a broader rally in bank shares driven by UBS Group's state-backed takeover of Credit Suisse. "First and foremost, the Credit Suisse, UBS merger certainly takes a lot of stress out of the global banking system." The 3 billion Swiss franc ($3.2 billion) deal for the troubled Swiss bank - which was once worth more than $90 billion - was engineered by Swiss regulators and announced on Sunday. European bank shares (.SX7P) rebounded from recent losses, while on Wall Street the S&P 500 banks (.SPXBK) index recovered 0.6%. [1/2] Buildings of Swiss banks UBS and Credit Suisse are seen on the Paradeplatz in Zurich, Switzerland March 20, 2023.

March 20 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) extended a recent slump on Monday with a 15% drop, after a report the regional bank could raise more money fanned worries about its liquidity despite a $30 billion rescue last week. On Sunday, Reuters reported that the lender was still trying to put together a capital raise but that no deal was imminent. Short sellers in First Republic made about $560 million profit on paper since last Monday, analytics firm Ortex said. The S&P 1500 regional banks index (.SPCOMBNKS) added nearly 3.4%, while S&P 500 banks (.SPXBK) gained 2.3%. A U.S. official told Reuters on Sunday that the deposit outflows that left many regional banks reeling in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's failure had slowed and in some cases reversed.

☆ First Republic shares fall on fresh liquidity fears as peers rebound
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Medha Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

March 20 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) slumped 13.1% on Monday, after a report the regional bank could raise more money fanned worries about its liquidity despite a $30 billion rescue last week. Shares of some of the big banks involved in the unprecedented support rose, reversing premarket losses. "Even though First Republic Bank says that they have the financial backing to survive, investors are concerned that they too will have to be taken over," said Jason Pride, chief investment officer of private wealth at Glenmede. The S&P 1500 regional banks index (.SPCOMBNKS) added nearly 4%, outperforming S&P 500 banks' (.SPXBK) 2.6% rise. A U.S. official told Reuters on Sunday that the deposit outflows that left many regional banks reeling in the wake of Silicon Valley Bank's failure had slowed and in some cases reversed.

☆ First Republic shares fall as private placement report stirs fresh liquidity fears
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 20 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) slumped 16% on Monday, leading losses among U.S. lenders in premarket trading, after a report the regional bank could raise more money fanned worries about its liquidity despite a $30 billion rescue last week. S&P Global downgraded the bank deeper into junk status on Sunday and said the recent cash infusion from 11 large U.S. banks may not solve its liquidity problems. Shares of the banks involved in the unprecedented support also fell. On Sunday, Reuters reported that the lender was still trying to put together a capital raise but that no deal was imminent. PacWest Bankcorp (PACW.O) climbed 5.9% after the bank said deposit outflows had stabilized and its available cash exceeded total uninsured deposits.

A source with knowledge of the matter said that Swiss regulators are encouraging UBS and Credit Suisse to merge, but that both banks do not want to do so. Credit Suisse shares jumped 9% in after-market trading following the FT report. Credit Suisse and UBS declined to comment on the report. "Credit Suisse is a very special case," said Frédérique Carrier, head of investment strategy at RBC Wealth Management. The supervisors were told deposits were stable across the euro zone and exposure to Credit Suisse was immaterial, a source familiar with the meeting's content told Reuters.

[1/2] A person walks past a First Republic Bank branch in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., March 13, 2023. REUTERS/Mike SegarMarch 17 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) lost almost 33% on Friday, totaling a loss of around 80% in the last 10 sessions, despite a rescue package with $30 billion in deposits injected by large U.S. banks. Founded in 1985, First Republic had $212 billion in assets and $176.4 billion in deposits as of the end of last year, according to its annual report. The rescue package came less than a day after Swiss bank Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) clinched an emergency central bank loan of up to $54 billion to shore up its liquidity. The ratings agency had downgraded its outlook on the U.S. banking system to negative earlier this week.

[1/2] A person walks past a First Republic Bank branch in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., March 13, 2023. REUTERS/Mike SegarMarch 17 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) extended losses to 32% in afternoon trading on Friday after being briefly halted as $30 billion in deposits injected by large U.S. banks failed to quell investor worries about the beleaguered lender. First Republic suspended its dividend and disclosed it has $34 billion in cash excluding the new deposit injection. Founded in 1985, First Republic had $212 billion in assets and $176.4 billion in deposits as of the end of last year, according to its annual report. The ratings agency had downgraded its outlook on the U.S. banking system to negative earlier this week.

☆ First Republic tumbles as $30 billion rescue fails to reassure investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Medha Singh | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] A person walks past a First Republic Bank branch in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., March 13, 2023. REUTERS/Mike SegarMarch 17 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) tumbled 17% in early trading on Friday after being briefly halted as $30 billion in deposits injected by large U.S. banks failed to quell investor worries about the beleaguered lender. Founded in 1985, First Republic had $212 billion in assets and $176.4 billion in deposits as of the end of last year, according to its annual report. "Judging by the market's reaction, it appears that maybe the damage has been done to the brand reputation of First Republic. First Republic said it borrowed up to $109 billion from the U.S. Federal Reserve between March 10 and March 15.

☆ First Republic Bank shares drop as $30 bln rescue fails to reassure investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/2] A person walks past a First Republic Bank branch in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, New York, U.S., March 13, 2023. REUTERS/Mike SegarMarch 17 (Reuters) - Shares of First Republic Bank (FRC.N) tumbled 13% in premarket trading on Friday as $30 billion in deposits injected by large U.S. banks failed to quell investor worries about the beleaguered lender. Shares of other U.S. mid-size banks including Western Alliance Bancorp shares (WAL.N) and PacWest Bancorp (PACW.O) dropped 2% and 5%, respectively. First Republic was caught up in a widening banking crisis triggered by the collapse of two other mid-size U.S. lenders over the past week. The rescue package came less than a day after Swiss bank Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) clinched an emergency central bank loan of up to $54 billion to shore up its liquidity.

☆ Short sellers may pocket $2.3 bln from U.S. bank rout over last three days -S3 Partners
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 15 (Reuters) - Short sellers may have raked in $2.29 billion in profit in the past three sessions, as they took advantage of a selloff in regional bank shares following the collapse of SVB Financial Group (SIVB.O) and Signature Bank (SBNY.O), S3 Partners said. SVB Financial and Signature Bank are among the top five most profitable shorts among regional banks this year, the research firm said in a client note. Short sellers have pocketed $3.53 billion so far in March on a mark-to-market basis, according to S3. "SIVB and SBNY short sellers are sitting on massive mark-to-market profits but have no way to realize those profits at the moment," S3 Managing Director Ihor Dusaniwsky said. Short sellers profit from stock declines by borrowing shares of companies that they believe are overvalued, selling them, and then buying them back at a lower price later.

Just when you thought crypto couldn't get any stranger, bitcoin accidentally births a new breed of NFTs. "I think this is really the start of a fundamental shift in what you can do with bitcoin," said Alex Miller, CEO at bitcoin developer network Hiro. REUTERS/Brendan McDermid/Nonetheless, bitcoin NFTs have built up a head of steam in a short space of time. Satoshis inscribed with NFTs are involved in about 7% of the total number of bitcoin blockchain transactions, according to Glassnode data. "But NFTs on bitcoin are a distraction from the network's core purpose, which is to serve as a permissionless network that is globally available, 24/7, and uncensorable."

☆ Investors tiptoe back into US bank stocks, regulators probe SVB collapse
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-14 | by ( Chris Prentice | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

March 14 (Reuters) - Bruised U.S. bank stocks regained some ground on Tuesday, as a sell-off sparked by Silicon Valley Bank's collapse gave way to bargain-hunting by investors hopeful that efforts to shore up confidence would avert a wider financial crisis. The S&P 500 regional banks index (.SPLRCBNKS) rebounded 1.4%, leaving it with a 26% loss over the past five sessions. Investors worry about the health of smaller banks, the prospect of tighter regulation and authorities' preference for protecting depositors before shareholders. Reuters Graphics Reuters GraphicsINVESTIGATIONSAs markets adjusted to the impact of SVB's collapse, regulars turned their focus to the circumstances around the bank's collapse. Officials are also examining stock sales by officers of SVB Financial Group, which owned the bank, the WSJ reported, citing people familiar with the matter.

Worries about potential contagion had also slammed bank shares in Asia and Europe as investors re-examined their risks, despite assurances from U.S. President Joe Biden and other global policymakers that the financial system is safe. In Europe, where some see lenders as less vulnerable, the banking index (.SX7P) first fell then recovered to rise 2.7%. Asian banking stocks had extended their declines overnight, with Japanese banks hard-hit despite reassurances from the Bank of Japan said about their capital buffers. Regulator FDIC had moved swiftly to close New York's Signature Bank SBNY.O as well as taking control of SVB. Citing people familiar with the matter, the WSJ said the investigators are also examining stock sales that SVB Financial Group's executives made days before SVB failed, adding that the Justice Department's probe involves the department's fraud prosecutors in Washington and San Francisco.

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