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☆ Failed crypto exchange FTX's spectacular collapse was due to 'hubris, incompetence, and greed,' says first debtors' report
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-10 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

On Sunday, its debtors released their first report on the collapse of the crypto exchange. The report alleged a lack of controls including in management, governance, and accounting. Read further for the three key allegations from the debtors' report. The report alleged the management and governance of FTX were largely limited to Bankman-Fried, Singh, and Wang. The report also alleged FTX failed to put in place "basic, widely accepted" security controls to safeguard its crypto assets.

☆ Swiss finance minister sees no 'stumbling blocks' to UBS takeover of Credit Suisse
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] Federal Councillor and chief of the finance federal department Karin Keller-Sutter attends a news conference on Credit Suisse after UBS takeover offer, in Bern, Switzerland, March 19, 2023. REUTERS/Denis BalibouseZURICH, April 8 (Reuters) - UBS's (UBSG.S) multi-billion state-sponsored takeover of Credit Suisse (CSGN.S) should proceed smoothly without political obstructions, Swiss Finance Minister Karin Keller-Sutter said in an interview published on Saturday. The Swiss parliament is due to hold an extraordinary session next week to discuss the emergency merger engineered by the Swiss authorities after Credit Suisse came close to collapse. "The primary goal of the Federal Council was to ensure the stability of the Swiss economy and the Swiss financial center and to prevent an international financial crisis," she said. The special parliamentary session next week was important, she added, and a welcome opportunity to get to the truth of the Credit Suisse debacle.

☆ Sudan's years of political strife
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

April 6, 2019 - Hundreds of thousands of protesters begin a sit-in outside army headquarters in Khartoum. Five days later the army overthrows and detains autocratic leader Omar al-Bashir, ending his three-decade rule. Aug. 17, 2019 - Civilian groups that backed the uprising sign a deal to share power with the military during a transitional period leading to elections. June 16, 2022 - The U.N. World Food Programme says more than a third of Sudan's population is facing acute food insecurity due to factors including economic and political crises, climate shocks and conflict. Dec. 5, 2022 - Civilian groups sidelined by the coup sign an initial deal with the military to start a new, two-year political transition and appoint a civilian government.

☆ A hidden time bomb? A 'Big Short' investor sees financial disaster brewing in housing markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( Sam Meredith | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Josh Edelson | Afp | Getty ImagesMore than a decade after a U.S. mortgage meltdown threatened to destroy the international financial system, a "Big Short" investor once again sees financial disaster brewing in the real estate market. Now, Burt believes an overlooked climate risk could see history repeating itself. U.S. housing market overvalued? watch now"The biggest reason why it matters from our perspective is that climate risk isn't being priced into the housing market," Jeremy Porter, head of climate implications at First Street Foundation, told CNBC. 'A humanitarian crisis'Far from a domestic issue, Burt stressed the climate risks associated with the U.S. housing market posed a major problem for countries worldwide.

☆ At Least 10,000 Foreign Companies to Be Hit by EU Sustainability Rules
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( Dieter Holger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +7 min

The estimates exclude foreign companies that are subject to the reporting requirements due to other conditions, such as having an EU bond listing. Foreign companies with EU listings will need to start reporting these disclosures in 2025 if they have more than 500 employees in the EU. Businesses based in the EU that reported under the bloc’s previous sustainability rules must follow the new requirements from 2025. The EU rules call for limited-assurance audits to start, with a goal of eventually moving to reasonable assurance. Other sustainability reporting regulations are also set to go into effect in the next few years.

☆ IMF warns geopolitical fragmentation could raise financial stability risks
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-05 | by ( David Lawder | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

WASHINGTON, April 5 (Reuters) - Rising geopolitical tensions and the resulting fragmentation of the global economy could increase financial stability risks, reducing cross-border investments, asset prices, payment systems and banks' ability to lend, the International Monetary Fund said on Wednesday. Such7 stability risks are driven through financial channels, IMF researchers said in the paper, prepared for next week's IMF and World Bank spring meeting as part of the Global Financial Stability Report. The paper cited research using the U.S.-China divergence in UN Security Council voting since 2016 as a proxy for rising geopolitical tension between an investing and a recipient country. Countries also should strengthen regional safety nets, through currency swap lines or precautionary credit lines from international financial institutions such as the IMF. Economies also reliant on external financing should build stronger buffers of international reserves, capital and liquidity buffers at financial institutions, the paper said.

☆ Companies Get Another Year for Some International Sustainability Disclosures
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Dieter Holger | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +4 min

The International Sustainability Standards Board voted Tuesday to give companies an extra year to disclose sustainability metrics unrelated to climate issues to investors under its soon-to-be-finalized standards. The ISSB is part of the International Financial Reporting Standards Foundation, whose accounting rules are followed in more than 140 countries. The February vote also would have had companies disclose non-climate sustainability metrics as soon as 2025. ISSB staff recommended the one-year delay after companies said reporting all sustainability information at once would be too burdensome. Some ISSB members on Tuesday said a delay would give companies more time to prepare better disclosures and understand investor expectations.

[1/2] Goldman Sachs CEO David Solomon speaks during the Goldman Sachs Investor Day at Goldman Sachs Headquarters in New York City, U.S., February 28, 2023. REUTERS/Brendan McDermidHONG KONG/SHANGHAI, March 31 (Reuters) - A flurry of top financial executives have visited China for the first time since the COVID-19 pandemic as global financial giants seek to cement their relations with Beijing at the start of President Xi Jinping's new term. International financial institutions and investors are welcome to expand in China, the chairman of the country's securities regulator said. Goldman Sachs' Solomon and Blackstone (BX.N) CEO Stephen Schwarzman met Peng Chun, chairman of China Investment Corporation (CIC), this week, according to official social media posts from the $1.35 trillion sovereign wealth fund. Meanwhile, Chip Kaye, Warburg Pincus's CEO, met Beijing's major Yin Yong during his visit to the city last week, according to a municipal statement from Beijing.

WASHINGTON, March 31 (Reuters) - The International Monetary Fund said on Friday its executive board approved a four-year $15.6 billion loan program for Ukraine, part of a global $115 billion package to support the country's economy as it battles Russia's 13-month-old invasion. The Extended Fund Facility (EFF) loan is the first major conventional financing program approved by the IMF for a country involved in a large-scale war. Ukraine's previous, $5 billion long-term IMF program was canceled in March 2022 when the fund provided $1.4 billion in emergency financing with few conditions. The latest loan is expected to unlock about $100 billion worth of additional international support for Ukraine. An IMF official said the $115 billion package includes the IMF loan, $80 billion in pledges for grants and concessional loans from multilateral institutions and other countries, and $20 billion worth of debt relief commitments.

“I have argued for years that the biggest banks in the world are still too big to fail. In practice, however, the economic damage would be considerable.”Keller-Sutter was at the center of a government-orchestrated rescue of Credit Suisse by its larger rival UBS (UBS) earlier this month. Global standards for dealing with teetering “too big to fail” banks were key a part of the package of rules introduced after the global financial crisis. They were designed to make it possible to wind down a big bank without destabilizing the financial system or exposing taxpayers to the risk of losses. The rest is lent out at higher interest rates or invested, because that’s how big banks make most of their profit.

☆ China's recovery isn't 'full-blooded' but it's significant, World Bank says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | 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 EmailChina's recovery isn't 'full-blooded' but it's significant, World Bank saysAaditya Mattoo of the international financial institution says 2022 was "the hard year" for China, which is now seeing a "significant bounce back."

“I have argued for years that the biggest banks in the world are still too big to fail. In practice, however, the economic damage would be considerable.”Keller-Sutter was at the center of a government-orchestrated rescue of Credit Suisse by its larger rival UBS (UBS) earlier this month. They were designed to make it possible to wind down a big bank without destabilizing the financial system or exposing taxpayers to the risk of losses. Although some investors in Credit Suisse bonds lost everything, Swiss taxpayers are still on the hook for up to 9 billion Swiss francs ($9.8 billion) of potential losses arising from certain Credit Suisse assets. The rest is lent out at higher interest rates or invested, because that’s how big banks make most of their profit.

☆ Australia's key financial regulators to review global banking turmoil
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Renju Jose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SYDNEY, March 28 (Reuters) - Australian Treasurer Jim Chalmers will convene a meeting of the country's top financial regulators to check how the latest volatility in global financial markets could affect the country, an official in the treasurer's office said on Tuesday. Australia's Council of Financial Regulators (CFR) will meet on Thursday after Chalmers discussed the latest market turmoil in phone calls with U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen on Tuesday and European Central Bank President Christine Lagarde overnight. "It's clear from my conversations that international authorities are prepared to do what's necessary to reassure markets at a time of uncertainty and volatility," Chalmers said in a statement. The discussions with key global financial officials come ahead of meetings of the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund in Washington, D.C. from April 10 to 16, which Chalmers is expected to attend. Coordinated action by global central banks and international financial authorities have helped ease some concerns but the volatility is contributing to uncertainty more generally in the global economic outlook, Chalmers said.

☆ TSX opens week higher as banking crisis fears ebb
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-27 | by ( Johann M Cherian | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

ET (14:03 GMT), the Toronto Stock Exchange's S&P/TSX composite index (.GSPTSE) was up 62.9 points, or 0.32%, at 19,564.39. "First Citizens' announcement of the acquisition of Silicon Valley Bank instilled a broad sense of confidence and calm in the stability of the banking system." The energy sector (.SPTTEN) added 0.3%, tracking strength in crude oil prices. If gains hold, the TSX is on course to eke out a gain of 0.9% for the quarter ending in March. Reporting by Johann M Cherian in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi AichOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ I Visited Miami After the Stock Market Crash, Crypto Bubble Pop
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( Linette Lopez | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +13 min

And if any city is the city where you can see just how remarkably things have shifted, it's also Miami. If the draw in the 1920s was imaginary land, Miami's bubble in the 2020s was driven by imaginary money — crypto. The newcomers — and the crypto kids, especially — believed they could master Miami as easily as they had mastered the markets. The new Miami money party started to run out of libations. "There were a lot of true believers in the Miami crypto scene.

☆ Tencent's online ad revenue grows for the first time in more than a year
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Overall revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 31 came in at 144.95 billion yuan ($21.07 billion), higher than the 143.89 billion yuan estimated by FactSet. Average monthly users of WeChat in China and overseas rose by 3.5% from a year ago 1.31 billion accounts in the fourth quarter. Ad spendingIn-feed ads for video accounts generated more than 1 billion yuan in revenue in the fourth quarter, Tencent said. Revenue sourcesThe largest revenue segment, which includes the giant gaming business, fell by 2% to 70.4 billion yuan in the fourth quarter, in line with FactSet estimates for 70.2 billion yuan. Tencent's second-largest revenue source, financial technology and business services revenue fell by 1% to 47.2 billion yuan, below FactSet estimates for 49.49 billion yuan.

☆ Crowds swarm Art Basel Hong Kong as galleries report sales bonanza
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

[1/3] An installation titled "Calligraphic Wig" by Daniel Knorr is displayed at Art Basel in Hong Kong, China, March 23, 2023. Art Basel Hong Kong is one of the first big events the city has held since dropping its COVID-19 mask mandate this month. City authorities are welcoming the art fair as they try to reinvigorate the economy and promote Hong Kong as a vibrant cultural hub. Teresa Choi, a visitor from Macau, said Hong Kong was much busier than during COVID times. "Hong Kong has always been the international financial hub for Asia ... Travellers are regaining their confidence about Hong Kong and the economy and want to come."

☆ UBS acquiring Credit Suisse is 'no bailout' says Swiss finance minister — but top economist Mohamed El-Erian disagrees
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-20 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Switzerland's finance minister said UBS' $3.25 billion acquisition of Credit Suisse is not a bailout. The UBS and Credit Suisse deal — worth 3 billion Swiss francs, or $3.25 billion — comes with government guarantees and liquidity provisions. In particular, the Swiss government is guaranteeing UBS will get up to 9 billion Swiss francs if they incur losses from certain assets. The Swiss National Bank is also providing 100 billion Swiss francs in liquidity support to both banks. "The bankruptcy of Credit Suisse would have had a huge collateral damage - on the Swiss financial market also internationally," she said.

☆ SVB Crisis Tests India’s New Finance Hub Potential
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-17 | by ( Megha Mandavia | ) www.wsj.com time to read: +1 min

Many Indian startups rushed this week to open new bank accounts in India’s Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, known as GIFT city. The swift collapse of Silicon Valley Bank has cast an aspiring Indian finance center into sudden relief. India, which has long been a bit player in global finance, has a chance to boost its role—but only if it moves swiftly to rectify some regulatory barriers. This week, many Indian startups rushed to open new bank accounts in India’s Gujarat International Finance Tec-City, known as GIFT city, once they regained access to their SVB deposits. Accounts set up within the hub’s International Financial Services Center, or IFSC, are free of India’s stringent capital controls since the funds are held in U.S. dollars.

☆ How Credit Suisse has evolved over 167 years
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Here is how Credit Suisse has developed over 167 years:1856Politician and business leader Alfred Escher founds Schweizerische Kreditanstalt (SKA) to finance the expansion of the railroad network and promote Swiss industrialisation. 1997A reorganisation turns CS Holding into Credit Suisse Group and drops the SKA name; it also buys insurer Winterthur, a strategic partner. 2002A reorganisation creates two units: Credit Suisse Financial Services and Credit Suisse First Boston; two years later it splits into three units by adding Winterthur. 2005Credit Suisse and CSFB merge and stop using the Credit Suisse First Boston brand name. The Swiss authorities provide assurances that Credit Suisse has met "the capital and liquidity requirements imposed on systemically important banks".

☆ Top US Senate Democrat Schumer wants legislative response to banking ills
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Moira Warburton | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

"We need strong legislation and hopefully we can put something together that's bipartisan," Schumer told reporters following a closed policy lunch with his fellow Democrats. Calls for increased oversight of the U.S. banking industry grew as fallout from Friday's collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) widened. Senate Banking Committee Chairman Sherrod Brown, however, downplayed the likelihood of Congress passing a "significant" banking bill anytime soon. Republicans hold a narrow majority in the House of Representatives and Democrats do not control enough votes in the Senate to advance legislation without Republican cooperation. Reporting by Moira Warburton and Richard Cowan in Washington; Editing by Mark Porter and Nick ZieminskiOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Russia is so cut off from the international financial system that the Kremlin thinks Western sanctions have 'insured' the country against the banking crisis
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The Kremlin said Russia will not be impacted by the US bank crisis. Sanctions over the Ukraine war have cut Russia off from the international financial system. Russia is now so cut off from the global financial system that the Kremlin thinks it will face no impact from the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. In contrast, Russia — like much of the world — faced a credit crunch due to the fallout from the US subprime mortgage crisis in 2008, which ultimately led to the Global Financial Crisis. As the country recovered from the recession, it started working towards its grand ambition of making Moscow a global financial hub.

☆ Bank of England in emergency talks as Credit Suisse crisis deepens - Telegraph
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

March 15 (Reuters) - The Bank of England was holding emergency talks with international counterparts last night amid rising concerns as the crisis deepens in Swiss bank Credit Suisse Group AG (CSGN.S), the Telegraph reported on Wednesday. The report comes after the turbulence at Credit Suisse renewed fears of a banking crisis that is reshaping international financial conditions on a daily - or even hourly - basis. Bank of England declined to comment. Reporting by Anirudh Saligrama in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra Maler and Muralikumar AnantharamanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ A 50% rent increase? Record property demand in Dubai is creating a nightmare for some residents
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Natasha Turak | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +8 min

Beyond the property market, Dubai's economic boom is evident in everyday life. The Dubai International Financial Centre (DIFC) area of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, with the Burj Khalifa in the backdrop, Sept. 16, 2022. Property prices have, too — CBRE says that selling prices are up 11.5% on average in the year to February 2023. Christopher Pike | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesAccording to CBRE's research, in the year through February 2023, average Dubai rents increased by 27.7%. In the meantime, no one expects property prices to ease up anytime soon.

☆ London fears for its future as companies defect to Wall Street
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Hanna Ziady | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +7 min

London CNN —London is used to punching well above its weight in global financial markets. And 70% of global secondary bond market trading happens in the city, according to the London Stock Exchange. Beyond the jobs they create and the tax they generate, financial markets also channel capital into companies to fund future growth. In other words, to safeguard its future, London needs to reinvigorate its stock markets. Those “unicorns” should be listing in London “at an earlier stage,” Haynes argues, “rather than growing through private equity and being sold off to Nasdaq.”Hoggett of the London Stock Exchange puts it this way: “London needs to be young, scrappy and hungry.”

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