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☆ At Taser maker Axon, ex-staff say loyalty meant being tased, tattooed
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-30 | by ( Scottsdale | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +34 min

Reuters also interviewed 63 current and former Axon employees, including nine former executives. No one with whom Reuters spoke was aware of deaths or lawsuits stemming from tasings of Axon staff. Axon has faced fewer lawsuits since 2009, the year it introduced a new Taser model with a lower charge. Screenshots from an Axon promotional video show CEO Rick Smith taking a Taser hit in 1993, the year he co-founded the business. And that’s off-putting.”Gorman, the former Axon lawyer, said he “vividly” remembers an executive asking him if he was going to be tased.

Persons: Ross Blank, Blank, Steve Tuttle, Shawn Gorman, ”, Jennifer Chatman, Rick Smith, Andrea James, ” James, Axon’s, tasings, ” Blank, Tuttle, Staff tasings, “, Valencia Gibson, Gibson, Reuters –, Axon’s “, Bro, Josh Isner, Isner, James, –, Ann Rosenthal, Rosenthal, ” Rosenthal, Sigma Chi, Smith, ” Smith, ” Michael Church, Hans Marrero, Marrero, ” Marrero, “ I’m, ’ ” Smith, “ It’s, ” Gibson, ” ‘, impressionable, squinting, Keara, Rylan, Mihir Shah, ” Shah, Mario Barth, “ Willing, It’s, Isaiah Fields, Wayne Guay, Lamar Cousins, Cousins, Kevin De Rosa Jr, De Rosa, ” Isner, Smith’s, De Rosa bellowed, They’re, ” Gorman, You’re, Jeffrey Dastin, Paresh Dave Art, John Emerson, Julie Marquis Organizations: Enterprise Inc, Reuters, Haas School of Business, University of California, Staff, Scottsdale, Yorker, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, . Occupational Safety, Health Administration, federal, Safety, Health, Labor, Sigma, Harvard, Sigma Chi, Boston Magazine, Harvard’s Sigma Chi, U.S . Marine Corps, YouTube, Employment, Los, Keara Berlin, ” Employees, Los Angeles Police Department, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, strapping, Culture Locations: Berkeley, Rome, United States, Arizona, U.S, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, “, Berlin, Sacramento, San Jose , California, tasings, Mandalay, Scottsdale, wasn’t

☆ A worldwide lithium shortage could come as soon as 2025
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-29 | by ( Lee Ying Shan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesThe world could face a shortage for lithium as demand for the metal ramps up, with some analysts forecasting that it could come as soon as 2025. BMI, a Fitch Solutions research unit, was among those that predict a lithium supply deficit by 2025. In a recently published report, BMI largely attributed the deficit to China's lithium demand exceeding that of its supply. "We expect an average of 20.4% year-on-year annual growth for China's lithium demand for EVs alone over 2023-2032," the report stated. While that could point to a global lithium surplus next year, shortages could start to plague supply chains in 2028.

Persons: Susan Zou, Corinne Blanchard, Deutsche, Blanchard, Zou Organizations: Sigma, Bloomberg, Getty, BMI, Fitch Solutions, Economic, Rystad Energy, P, Commodity, EV Locations: Itinga, Minas Gerais, Brazil, China, skyrocket, transportations, U.S, Europe

☆ Sigma Lithium, eyeing buyout, sues ex-CEO and daughter-in-law over trade secrets
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-22 | by ( Jonathan Stempel | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, Aug 22 (Reuters) - Sigma Lithium (SGML.V), , which produces metal used in electric vehicle batteries, has sued a former co-chief executive officer, accusing him of stealing trade secrets to undermine the company's effort to sell itself. The lawsuit said Cabral-Gardner and Gardner lead a fund, A10 Investimentos, with a 44% stake in the company, with Cabral-Gardner owning 76% of the fund and Gardner owning 24%. In a July 28 interview, Cabral-Gardner said Sigma has been looking to strengthen its "unique environmentally competitive position" in the global supply chain. The case is Sigma Lithium Corp v Gardner et al, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, No. Reporting by Jonathan Stempel in New York; Additional reporting by Tatiana Bautzer; Editing by Jonathan OatisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Calvyn Gardner, Sigma's, Ana Cabral, Gardner, Luisa Valim, Gardner's, Valim, Cabral, Sigma, misappropriated, Jonathan Stempel, Tatiana Bautzer, Jonathan Oatis Organizations: Sigma, Bank of America, Sigma Lithium Corp, Court, Southern District of, Thomson Locations: Manhattan, Vancouver , British Columbia, Brazil, U.S, Southern District, Southern District of New York, New York

☆ A top Two Sigma investment executive has taken leave from the firm amid a series of challenges for the hedge fund giant
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-16 | by ( Alex Morrell | Rebecca Ungarino | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

A Two Sigma chief investment officer has taken a medical leave, Insider has learned. The firm announced the leave of Alex Ginsburg, CIO of equities, to investors and employees in July. A senior Two Sigma investment executive has taken a leave of absence from the firm, Insider has learned. Two Sigma chief data strategist Ali-Milan Nekmouche, who has been with the company since 2004, has been named as Ginsburg's replacement. Siegel did not leave the firm and the group ended up staying at Two Sigma, the Journal reported.

Persons: Alex Ginsburg, Jeff Penney, Timothy Reynolds, Ali, Milan Nekmouche, Ginsburg's, David Siegel, John Overdeck, Siegel, Overdeck, Ginsburg, Geoffrey Duncombe, Alex Morrell, Rebecca Ungarino Organizations: Sigma, Street Locations: amorrell

☆ Opinion | This Summer Is Pointing Us Toward Uncharted Territory
▼ + stars: | 2023-08-02 | by ( David Wallace-Wells | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +2 min

On the last day of July, Phoenix finally registered a temperature high below 110 degrees Fahrenheit — the first time that had happened in 31 days. The I.C.U.s are filling up, too, and the region’s iconic saguaro cactuses are crumpling and collapsing in the heat. “The era of global boiling has arrived.”It was, worldwide, the hottest month on record. June was the hottest June on record. Every single day for four straight weeks, as Canada burned and Sicily burned and Algeria burned, global temperatures surpassed the daily record set in 2016 and matched last summer, when 61,000 Europeans are estimated to have died as a result of the heat.

Persons: Biden, António Guterres, ”, “ Organizations: Phoenix, Florida Locations: Maricopa, Canada, Sicily, Algeria, Atlantic, Beijing, Chile, Argentina

☆ Exclusive: Sigma Lithium CEO says in talks with potential buyers
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-28 | by ( Ernest Scheyder | Thomson Reuters | Ernest Scheyder Is An Award-Winning Senior Correspondent Covering The Green Energy Transition | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Bank of America has been Sigma's bank on retainer for some time and has been holding meetings for at least four months with parties that approach with interest in acquiring the lithium miner, Sigma CEO Ana Cabral-Gardner said in an interview. Cabral-Gardner said that while Bank of America is coordinating meetings with parties that approach Sigma, Sigma has not yet picked a bank to advise on any potential transaction. "We need to find someone to marry, and when we find someone to marry, then we choose a priest," Cabral-Gardner said, making an analogy between an M&A banker and a priest. Cabral-Gardner added that Sigma does not plan to sell the Brazilian mine separately from the company itself. Sigma has projected the mine will reach annual free cash flow of $455 million for its first phase of production.

Persons: Ana Cabral, Gardner, Cabral, " Cabral, Ernest Scheyder, Cynthia Osterman Organizations: Sigma, Bank of America, Reuters, LG Energy, Bloomberg News, Tesla Inc, Vancouver, Nasdaq, Thomson Locations: Brazil, Sigma's

☆ Ron DeSantis makes Biden's 4-year-old granddaughter the punchline of a tweet as he dodges blowback over Florida teaching students that some parts of slavery were a positive thing
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-21 | by ( Brent D. Griffiths | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Ron DeSantis took a personal shot at Joe Biden's treatment of Hunter Biden's four-year-old daughter. DeSantis' barb comes as Republican politicians increasingly antagonize Biden over Hunter Biden's four-year-old daughter in Arkansas. Roberts told The New York Times that she and Hunter Biden reached a mutual decision about the surname. President Biden has not publicly acknowledged the child, whose name was not listed in the court records. "Florida students deserve to learn how slaves took advantage of whatever circumstances they were in to benefit themselves and the community of African descendants."

Persons: Ron DeSantis, Joe Biden's, Hunter Biden's, DeSantis, Kamala Harris, Joe Biden, Harris, Biden, Florida he'd, Hunter Biden, Luden Roberts, Roberts, Donald Trump's, Harris zeroed, Dr, William Allen, Frances Presley Rice Organizations: Service, Gov, Twitter, The New York Times, White House, Delta Sigma Theta Convention, Florida Education Association, NAACP Florida, Conference, Miami Herald, Jacksonville Locations: Wall, Silicon, Florida, Arkansas, tussling, Indianapolis

According to the main Spanish pollsters, which are barred from publishing surveys from Tuesday, PP would garner 131-151 seats in the 350-member lower house, falling short of an outright majority of 176. Vox is neck and neck with Sumar, a new alliance of far-left groups that includes Podemos, the junior ruling coalition partner. Sumar would fetch 25-39 seats, polls show. Sumar and PSOE have said they intend to recreate the ruling coalition. Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Andrei Khalip and Mike HarrisonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Vox, pollsters GAD3, Pedro Sanchez's, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Sumar, Sanchez, Feijoo, Francisco Franco's, Inti Landauro, Andrei Khalip, Mike Harrison Organizations: People's Party, Sigma, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics, Pedro Sanchez's Spanish Socialist Workers ' Party, PSOE, PP, coy, Vox, Thomson Locations: MADRID, Spanish, Pedro Sanchez's Spanish, Brussels, Huesca, Sumar

According to the main Spanish pollsters, which are barred from publishing surveys from Tuesday, PP would garner 131-151 seats in the 350-member lower house, falling short of an outright majority of 176. Vox is almost neck and neck with Sumar, a new alliance of far-left groups that includes Podemos, the junior ruling coalition partner. Sumar would fetch 25-39 seats, polls show. Sumar and PSOE have said they intend to recreate the ruling coalition. Reporting by Inti Landauro; Editing by Andrei Khalip, Mike Harrison and Barbara LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

Persons: Vox, pollsters GAD3, Pedro Sanchez's, Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Francisco Franco's, Sumar, Sanchez, Feijoo, Inti Landauro, Andrei Khalip, Mike Harrison, Barbara Lewis Organizations: People's Party, Sigma, Vox, Reuters Graphics Reuters Graphics, Pedro Sanchez's Spanish Socialist Workers ' Party, PSOE, Reuters Graphics Reuters, PP, coy, Thomson Locations: MADRID, Spanish, Pedro Sanchez's Spanish, Brussels, Huesca, Sumar

☆ Conservative Feijoo emerges as winner from debate ahead of Spanish election
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-11 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

MADRID, July 11 (Reuters) - Spanish opposition leader Alberto Nunez Feijoo, leader of the conservative People's Party (PP), won an ill-tempered televised debate on Monday night ahead of an election later this month, a poll published by El Mundo newspaper indicated on Tuesday. With Feijoo leading in polls before the July 23 election, the onus was on Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, a Socialist, to go on the attack. About 54% of voters thought Feijoo won the debate compared to 46% for Sanchez, according to the Sigma Dos survey for El Mundo. It found that 22% of people who voted for the Socialists in the past election felt Feijoo had won the debate while only 6% of PP voters assigned the victory to Sanchez. The expectation is that the election at the height of the summer holiday season will also suffer from a lack of engagement.

Persons: Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Feijoo, Pedro Sanchez, Sanchez, Josep Marti Blanch, Vox, Spain's, GAD3, Barlovento Comunicacion, Charlie Devereux, Andrei Khalip, Angus MacSwan Organizations: People's Party, El Mundo, Sigma, Socialists, ABC, Atresmedia, Thomson Locations: MADRID, Spanish, La Vanguardia, Europe, Italy, Spain

☆ Spain's conservative PP party makes gains a month ahead of national vote, poll shows
▼ + stars: | 2023-07-01 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, July 1 (Reuters) - Spain's conservative People's Party is set to win the most seats in the lower house of parliament in a national election next month, ahead of the ruling Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE), a poll released by El Mundo newspaper showed on Saturday. The survey, carried out between June 26 and 30, showed the PP widening its lead over Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez's PSOE, pollster Sigma Dos said. The poll estimated that the PP would get between 140 and 143 seats in the 350-member lower house, up from 140 in the previous poll held between June 16 and 23. The PSOE would get between 102 and 105 seats, it showed, compared with 102 in the previous survey. The far-right Vox party, the PP's likeliest post-election ally, would get 34-36 seats, compared with 35 seats previously.

Persons: Pedro Sanchez's, pollster Sigma Dos, Podemos, Sanchez, Jessica Jones, Alex Richardson Organizations: People's Party, Socialist Workers ' Party, PSOE, El Mundo, Pedro Sanchez's PSOE, pollster, Vox, Thomson Locations: MADRID

☆ The billionaires' beef at Two Sigma seems pretty petty
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-29 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

ICYMI: This is the last week of 10 Things on Wall Street. Insider's Rebecca Ungarino has more details on how long the beef between Overdeck and Siegel has been brewing behind the scenes. What stands out to me about the drama at Two Sigma is how it all seems to be so petty. The Two Sigma cofounder was included only as an example of the type of managers Haider had eclipsed. The asset manager tapped two internal executives to serve as co-CEOs of the firm, succeeding CEO Jay Wintrob, The Wall Street Journal reports.

Persons: Dan DeFrancesco, I'm, Billy Joel's, —, we've, Goldman, Cofounders David Siegel, John Overdeck, David Siegel, cofounders, Insider's Rebecca Ungarino, Siegel, Rebecca, Haidar Capital's Said Haidar, Haider, Penny, Warren Buffett, Charlie Munger, Scott Olson, Ruobing Su, Michael Broadbery, Goldman Sachs, Maza, Andreessen Horowitz, Seth Klarman, Jay Wintrob, Robert O'Leary, Armen Panossian, Everybody's, they're, Joey Hadden, Jeffrey Cane, Hallam Bullock Organizations: Sigma, Baupost, Oaktree Capital, Street, Wall, LinkedIn Locations: Omaha, New York, London

☆ Hedge fund industry insiders say Two Sigma's unusual risk disclosure was years in the making
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-27 | by ( Rebecca Ungarino | Kaja Whitehouse | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Two Sigma, the successful quant hedge fund, is dogged by two cofounders who don't get along. Disagreements between Overdeck and Siegel only surfaced publicly for the first time last week. The disclosure was highly unusual for a hedge fund since they generally have much lighter disclosure requirements than their public counterparts, experts say, making the filing all the more notable. The firm has been known mainly as a premier quantitative hedge fund since its founding. Then when it comes to planning for the next generation of leaders to take over from hedge fund founders, the transition can be difficult.

Persons: John Overdeck, David Siegel, Overdeck, Siegel, Mark Pickard, Jonathan Hitchon, Sarah Jacobs, Kevin Mullally, Mullally Organizations: Sigma, Street Journal, Overdeck, Wall Street, Business, University of Central Locations: New York, Manhattan's SoHo, University of Central Florida

☆ Spain's conservative PP party lead narrows one month ahead of national election - poll
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

The survey, carried out between June 16 and 23, showed the PP would get 140 seats in the 350-member lower house, down from 141 a week earlier. The poll, commissioned by El Mundo newspaper, showed far-right party Vox, the PP's likeliest post-election ally, would get 35 seats, down from 36 a week earlier, Sigma-Dos said. A likely coalition between Vox and PP would be one seat short of the 176 outright majority. Sanchez on May 29 called a surprise snap election after his party and its junior coalition partner Podemos were routed in regional and municipal ballots. Following the May municipal and regional elections, local negotiations between PP and Vox resulted in bickering in some cases.

Persons: Alberto Nunez Feijoo, Isabel Diaz Ayuso, Jose Luis Martinez, Read, Pedro Sanchez's, pollster, Vox, Sanchez, Podemos, Yolanda Diaz, Inti Landauro, Angus MacSwan Organizations: People's Party, of, Almeida, El Mundo, Pedro Sanchez's Spanish Socialist Workers ' Party, PSOE, pollster Sigma, Sigma, Vox, Labour, Thomson Locations: of Madrid, Madrid, Retiro, Spain, MADRID, Pedro Sanchez's Spanish

☆ The hedge fund industry is reaching a tipping point: Grow up or go bust
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-21 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Some of the biggest hedge funds in the world are facing a problem that's proving just as challenging as predicting the markets. The Wall Street Journal has a story on that very conundrum, reporting on the tension at the $60 billion hedge fund Two Sigma between cofounders John Overdeck and David Siegel. While the structure of the modern hedge fund dates back to the 1940s, the industry really hit its stride during the 1990s. But I imagine not every hedge fund will want to go that route. And here's more on how hedge funds like Citadel and Millennium are transforming themselves with the help of Goldman Sachs' alumni.

Persons: Dan DeFrancesco, we've, cofounders John Overdeck, David Siegel, Overdeck, Siegel, cofounders, Goldman Sachs, Tracy Gray, Zhenni Liu, Wil Chockley, Charlie Hanna, Peter Deaner, Jeffrey Epstein, Jes Staley, Epstein, CliffsNotes, Bill Ackman, We've, Jeffrey Cane, Hallam Bullock Organizations: Sigma, Citadel, MaC, Marcy Venture Partners, JPMorgan, Columbia, Bloomberg, Financial Times, Pershing Square Capital, LinkedIn Locations: NYC, Los Angeles, Swiss, New York, London

☆ A war between 2 billionaire hedge-fund founders spilled out into the open in an alarming filing
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-20 | by ( Matt Turner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

John Overdeck and David Siegel created hedge-fund giant Two Sigma, amassing billions in wealth. Here's the relevant section of the filing:There have been a variety of management and governance challenges at the Adviser. These disagreements can affect the Adviser's ability to retain or attract employees (including very senior employees) and could continue to impact the ability of employees to fully implement key research, engineering, or corporate business initiatives. Nor can it agree on the org chart, the management structure, corporate governance, or succession plans. These disagreements might hurt Two Sigma's ability to retain and attract star employees, and those employees' ability to actually implement research, tech, or business initiatives.

Persons: John Overdeck, David Siegel, Juliet Chung, Gregory Zuckerman, Chung, Zuckerman, Jamie Nash, Kleinberg Kaplan, I've Organizations: Sigma, Bloomberg, Wall Street, Management, Management Committee, Chief Investment Officers

In its 13 charges, the SEC alleged that Binance and Zhao used Merit Peak and Sigma Chain, another trading firm controlled by Zhao, to commingle corporate funds with client assets and use the monies "as they please." This put customers' assets at risk while Binance sought to "maximize" its profits, the SEC wrote in its civil complaint on Monday. "All user assets on Binance and Binance affiliate platforms, including Binance.US, are safe and secure," it said in a statement on Monday. The funds received by British Virgin Islands-based Merit Peak between 2019 and 2021 flowed from Key Vision Development Ltd, also controlled by Zhao, the SEC filing on Tuesday showed. Reuters reported last month that Key Vision and Merit Peak, along with Binance's Cayman Islands holding company, formed the core of the global crypto exchange's financial network.

Persons: Changpeng Zhao, Binance, Zhao, Guangying Chen, Chen, Tom Wilson, Jane Merriman Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Sigma, British, Vision Development, Key Vision, U.S, Reuters, Vision, Binance's, Sigma Chain's, BAM, Thomson Locations: Seychelles, British Virgin Islands, Islands, Binance, United States, U.S, Singapore

☆ The SEC charges Coinbase with violating securities regulations
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Max Adams | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The SEC on Tuesday sued Coinbase, the largest US crypto exchange, with violating securities laws. The lawsuit comes one day after the SEC sued Binance and CEO, Changpeng Zhao for operating an illegal exchange and violating US regulations related to the offering of unregistered securities. The suit also takes aim at two other Coinbase services, Coinbase Prime and Coinbase Wallet. The SEC complaint says that these services included trading of crypto assets that are considered securities, "bringing Coinbase's operations squarely within the purview of the securities laws." Read the full SEC lawsuit here.

Persons: Coinbase, Binance, Changpeng Zhao, — Organizations: SEC, Service, Court Southern District of, Coinbase, Sigma, Binance's, Sigma Chain Locations: Court Southern District of New York

☆ SEC asks for emergency order to freeze Binance US assets anywhere in the world
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-06 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +1 min

Co-founder and CEO of Binance, Changpeng Zhao, speaks on stage during the opening night of Web Summit 2022. The freezing order only applies Binance's two U.S. holding companies, not to the non-U.S. regulated international exchange. The order would apply to dozens of accounts held at Axos Bank, the defunct Silvergate Bank, Prime Trust, and other institutions. The emergency restraining order was necessary, the regulator argued, to "prevent the dissipation of available assets for any judgment, given the Defendants' years of violative conduct, disregard of the laws of the United States." The restraining order would also prevent all three entities from destroying evidence.

Persons: Changpeng Zhao, Zhao Organizations: The Securities, Exchange Commission, Binance's, Axos Bank, Silvergate Bank, Prime Trust, Sigma Chain, SEC Locations: Washington ,, Binance's U.S, United States

After receiving $145 million from Binance.US's operator by 2021, Sigma Chain spent $11 million on buying a yacht, the SEC complaint said, without elaborating. It is unclear from the SEC complaint how much money Zhao is alleged to have drawn from Merit Peak and Sigma Chain. The SEC also said Zhao used Merit Peak to direct more than $16 million to fund Binance's purportedly independent U.S. affiliate Binance.US. Binance used its BUSD holdings to meet customer withdrawals by selling them for dollars as needed, Reuters reported in May. The SEC complaint also identified Binance Labs, a venture capital arm of Binance, as part of the exchange's plan to increase demand for BNB.

Persons: Zhao, Binance, Benoit Tessier LONDON, Changpeng Zhao, John Reed Stark, Stark, Binance's, Angus Berwick, Tom Wilson, Lisa Barrington, Hadeel Al, Elisa Martinuzzi, Alexander Smith Organizations: Viva Technology, Porte de, REUTERS, Binance, Securities and Exchange Commission, SEC, Swiss, Sigma Chain, Reuters, Silicon, Internet, Futures Trading Commission, U.S . Justice, Reuters Graphics, Silvergate Bank, Merit, Sigma, Binance Labs, Thomson Locations: Porte, Paris, France, Binance, U.S, Virgin Islands, Dubai, London, Hadeel Al Sayegh

June 5 (Reuters) - The world's largest crypto exchange Binance and its CEO Changpeng Zhao operated a "web of deception" that included artificially inflating its trading volumes and diverting customer assets, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged on Monday. The agency on Monday sued Binance and Zhao for failing to restrict U.S. customers from its platform and misleading investors about its market surveillance controls, as well as for operating an unregistered securities exchange. "We allege that Zhao and Binance entities engaged in an extensive web of deception, conflicts of interest, lack of disclosure, and calculated evasion of the law,” said SEC Chair Gary Gensler said in a statement. The world's biggest crypto exchange, Binance was founded in Shanghai in 2017 by CEO Changpeng Zhao, a Canadian citizen born and raised until the age of 12 in China. Binance's global trading platform, Binance.com dominates the crypto trading landscape, last year processing trades worth about $65 billion a day with up to 70% of the market.

Persons: Zhao, Binance, ”, Gary Gensler, BNB, Changpeng Zhao, Jonathan Stempel, Hannah Lang, Tom Wilson, Nick Zieminski Organizations: U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, Washington , D.C, SEC, Sigma, Binance, U.S . Commodity Futures Trading Commission, Justice, Reuters, Silvergate, Thomson Locations: Washington ,, Shanghai, Canadian, China, Cayman Islands, Silvergate Bank, New York, Washington, London

☆ SEC sues Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao for U.S. securities violations
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Binance's ultimate compliance, in 2019, was largely a public show, the SEC complaint continues. The SEC alleged that Binance and Zhao violated "critical" provisions of federal security laws, including self-dealing and market manipulation, through Merit Peak Limited and Sigma Chain, both of which Zhao controlled and owned. Merit Peak, a British Virgin Islands-based company, was one of the "earliest market makers" on Binance's U.S. platform, the SEC alleged. "We will issue a response once we see the complaint," Zhao said on Twitter. The defendants showed a "blatant disregard" of federal law, the SEC alleged.

Persons: Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, Binance, Binance.US Organizations: Securities, Exchange, Binance, SEC, CNBC, Limited, Sigma Chain, Merit, Binance's U.S, Twitter, Media Locations: European, The U.S, USA, U.S, VPNs, Binance.com, British Virgin Islands, Binance's

REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/IllustrationJune 5 (Reuters) - The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Monday accused the world's largest crypto exchange, Binance, and its founder Changpeng Zhao, of operating an "elaborate scheme to evade U.S. federal securities laws." The SEC charged Binance and Zhao with 13 offences, including operating an unregistered securities exchange and failing to restrict U.S. customers from its platform. "Any allegations that user assets on the Binance.US platform have ever been at risk are simply wrong," Binance said. Merit Peak and Sigma Chain were used to transfer tens of billions of dollars involving Binance, Binance.US and other related entities, the SEC said. Zhao instructed Binance.US to onboard Sigma Chain and Merit Peak as market makers on the Binance.US platform, the SEC said.

Persons: Dado Ruvic, Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, Binance, Binance.US, Chain’s, Angus Berwick, Michelle Price, Nick Zieminski Organizations: REUTERS, U.S . Securities, Exchange Commission, SEC, Peak's, Reuters, Silvergate Bank, Sigma, BUSINESS Zhao, BAM, Sigma Chain, U.S, Thomson Locations: U.S, Switzerland, Binance.US, Shanghai, Cayman Islands

☆ The SEC is suing Binance and CEO Changpeng Zhao for violating securities regulation
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Max Adams | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The SEC is suing Binance and its CEO, Changpeng Zhao. The SEC alleged that Binance diverted customers' funds to a trading firm called Sigma Chain that was under Zhao's control. The regulator also said Sigma Chain conducted fraudulent trades to artificially inflate Binance's volume. In February, the Journal reported the SEC was looking into the relationship between the US arm of Binance and two trading firms with ties to Zhao. One area of the investigation's focus was how Binance.US disclosed to customers its links to the trading firms, the report said.

Persons: Binance, Changpeng Zhao, Zhao, —, Binance's Zhao Organizations: SEC, WSJ, Service, US Securities and Exchange Commission, Monday, Street Journal, Sigma, Sigma Chain, District of Columbia, Commodities Futures, Trading Commission, Palestinian, Justice Department, Washington Post, Western, of, Reuters Locations: District, Binance.US, Russian, of Washington, Seattle

☆ Lithium has started coming back after a 'freefall' in China. What to know about the investing landscape
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-17 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

Investors should focus on the long-term story in the lithium investing landscape, not the volatile price swings seen in recent months. Moves in China are driving changes in the global market for lithium as demand for electric vehicles increases, said Keybanc analyst Aleksey Yefremov. DeYoe reiterated his buy rating on Canadian producer Sigma Lithium earlier this month, calling it "the next big thing in lithium." Among the biggest names: Global X has a Lithium & Battery Tech ETF , Sprott has a Lithium Miners ETF and Horizons Global has a Lithium Producers Index ETF . "That's going to be quite a challenge, if we don't literally right now start digging up and finding sites for lithium," Langan said.

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