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☆ Arrowstreet, Coatue Management among big hedge funds buying Meta in first quarter
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( David Randall | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NEW YORK, May 15 (Reuters) - Prominent hedge funds including Arrowstreet Capital LLC, D1 Capital Partners and Coatue Management LLC were among the investors that bought shares of Meta Platforms Inc in the first quarter of the year, amid an eye-popping rebound in the Facebook-parent’s stock. Arrowstreet Capital added about 5 million shares during the quarter, brining its total position to slightly more than 7 million shares, while Coatue more than doubled its position in the company by buying 4.2 million shares. Winslow Capital Management, meanwhile, initiated a new position in the firm by buying about 927,000 shares, and D1 Capital Partners bought slightly more than 1 million shares. Norges Bank, the central bank of Norway, was the largest seller among all firms, unloading more than 35 million shares during the quarter. Two Sigma Investments sold its entire stake of about 569,000 shares, while Glenview Capital Management, run by billionaire Larry Robbins, sold its entire stake of about 526,000 shares, according to filings.

☆ EU takes aim at Chinese firms in proposed new Russia sanctions - sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-08 | by ( Gabriela Baczynska | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

A spokesman for the European Commission on Monday confirmed the proposal was sent out to member states and aimed at closing loopholes in Russia trade restrictions but declined to give detail. In what would be the EU's 11th package of sanctions against Russia since it invaded Ukraine in February, 2022, the bloc would introduce a new mechanism to cut its exports to third countries seen as involved in bypassing Russia sanctions. "It will be an empty vessels for now that can then be filled up as needed," said one EU diplomat. "The analysis... shows a sharp drop in direct exports from the EU to Russia following the introduction of sanctions in March 2022. "Both patterns are particularly pronounced for product groups partially or fully subject to the EU sanctions as well as goods that are similar to the sanctioned ones," the EBRD said.

☆ Brussels plans to slap sanctions on Chinese companies aiding Russia’s war machine, Financial Times reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-07 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

May 7 (Reuters) - The European Union has proposed sanctions on Chinese companies accused of selling equipment that could be used in weapons to support Russia's war machine, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. Seven Chinese businesses have been listed in a new package of sanctions that will be discussed by EU member states this week, the report said, citing a copy of the sanctions list seen by the FT. According to the FT, the sanctions list includes two mainland Chinese companies, 3HC Semiconductors and King-Pai Technology, along with five from Hong Kong including Sinno Electronics, Sigma Technology, Asia Pacific Links, Tordan Industry and Alpha Trading Investments. Some companies like King-Pai Technology have already been placed under sanctions by the United States, which said it was a China-based supplier for multiple entities in Russia's military-industrial complex. Reporting by Jyoti Narayan in Bengaluru; Editing by Sandra MalerOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ As lithium prices bounce, analysts love these stocks — giving one 155% upside
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( Weizhen Tan | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

After a tough few months, lithium — a battery metal crucial in electric vehicles — is back in the spotlight as prices start to rebound. By the end of last week, however, lithium prices had started to bounce back. "Lithium prices in China gained for the first time this year on signs demand growth may be finally gathering pace … [and] amid thinning inventories across the supply chain," the ANZ Research analysts added. Canadian miner Sigma Lithium stood out for getting the highest potential upside from analysts at 155%, and a buy rating from 75% of analysts. Stocks that received a 100% buy rating included American EV battery maker Microvast Holdings and Australian miner Piedmont Lithium .

ORLANDO, Florida, April 5 (Reuters) - When U.S. government bonds become the epicenter of global market volatility, investors' room for taking on additional risk shrinks, sucking the oxygen out of their risk budget. The shock blindsided speculative investors who had been positioned for higher U.S. interest rates and yields. The full extent of the turmoil - hedge funds were among those who got crushed - will become clearer as first-quarter readouts emerge. A pension fund's tolerance for risk, and therefore its VaR, will be lower than a hedge fund's. "When you plug a two-year Treasury into any risk model now using past returns models, expected risk will be higher going forward," van Vliet said.

☆ Ukraine's tech entrepreneurs fight war on a different front
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Michael Kahn | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

It's an example of how some startups in Ukraine's dynamic tech sector are switching to pursue military projects. Pavlo Kartashov, director of the Ukrainian Startup Fund (USF), a government-backed organization that seeds technology startups, told Reuters his group resumed funding in October. Demand from the government has driven the shift to military technology, but most of the entrepreneurs who spoke to Reuters said that patriotic duty also played a role. "There are much more ideas in military technology," said Krasovsky, the founder and chief executive of Swedish-Ukrainian Sigma Software Group. Groups like the Polish-Ukrainian Start Up Bridge - a Polish-government backed venture - offer emerging Ukrainian tech companies small grants to fund basic business needs and a co-working space in Warsaw.

☆ Investors should keep buying stocks for the long-term despite attractive yields from short-term money market funds, Bank of America says
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Matthew Fox | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

High cash yields shouldn't stop investors from buying stocks for the long term, according to Bank of America. "For long term investors, the S&P 500's price to normalized earnings has explained 80%+ of subsequent 10-year S&P 500 returns. That means money market funds that yield close to 5% are viable alternatives for investors, but only for short-term money. According to the note, investors' long-term holding period for stocks has fallen over time due to fixations on short-term price moves. For example, zero-day S&P 500 options now account for 45% of options volume versus less than 5% a decade ago.

☆ Another cultish cost-saving formula gets off-track
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-29 | by ( Jeffrey Goldfarb | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +9 min

Despite its multiple interpretations and approaches, success is widely gauged by a railway’s operating ratio, a simple measure of how much it spends to make a buck. Union Pacific’s peers improved similarly, indicative of the antiquated ways the industry had been deploying resources. Union Pacific also found itself unable to bring back enough furloughed workers in areas where they were most needed. “In a significant departure from the railroad industry's recent past, we deliberately moved away from a singular focus on operating ratio,” he told lawmakers. “If we wanted to drive [operating ratio] lower over time, we could,” the board wrote in a letter to shareholders in late 2021.

☆ Binance 'could be in big trouble' as the CFTC lawsuit alleges the crypto behemoth dodged regulators and breached laws
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Zahra Tayeb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Binance is being blow-torched from all angles as US regulators close in on the world's largest crypto exchange. The CFTC sued the exchange this week for violating US financial laws, whilst some reports suggest Binance has engaged in secret fund transfers. On Monday, the Commodities Futures and Trading Commission (CFTC) sued Binance and Zhao himself, for allegedly breaching US financial laws. Following the shocking implosion of Sam-Bankman Fried's FTX exchange late last year, concerns have risen whether Binance faces similar risks. If US authorities decide the links meant the crypto exchange had control over the US platform, it could expose the company to enforcement action.

☆ This fund for socially conscious investors offers stability during volatile markets
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-23 | by ( Alex Harring | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

There's a socially conscious fund that's providing some stability at a time when broader market volatility reigns supreme — and rates continue to rise. The Invesco Floating Rate ESG Fund (AFRYX) last year shed just 2.25% on a total return basis, per Morningstar. In other words, the lion's share of the fund is in short-term bonds that have floating interest rates. Relative stability Morningstar said the fund has returned mixed results during periods of market stress, though it has performed better in recent years. Many senior loans are illiquid, meaning they can't always be sold quickly or at a fair price.

☆ ‘I am personally sticking with SVB.’ Prominent tech figures pledge support for bank
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-16 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

CNN —After a rollercoaster week for Silicon Valley Bank’s customers, some prominent voices in the tech world are now publicly saying they will keep their money with the embattled lender – and they’re urging others to do the same. It also comes after the regional bank’s saga sent shockwaves across global financial markets. The push to continue doing business with Silicon Valley also highlights the unique relationship between the tech lender and the startup community, and their mutual dependence on each other. The bank has worked with nearly half of all US venture-backed tech and health care companies. But not everyone shares the desire to stay loyal to the bank after its implosion.

☆ SVB's tech failings were a problem long before the bank run that led to its demise, critics say
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-12 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

But long-time clients and others with intimate knowledge of how SVB operated say the bank did itself no favors. In April 2020, Tech Crunch reported on other SVB customers complaining that the bank mishandled the PPP process. The central bank said it's creating a new Bank Term Funding Program aimed at safeguarding institutions impacted by the SVB failure. In addition, regulators said depositors at both SVB and Signature Bank in New York will have full access to their deposits. Roughly 95% of SVB's deposits are uninsured, which makes the bank particularly unique in that it serves primarily businesses.

☆ Silicon Valley Bank collapse sends tech industry into a panic
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-10 | by ( Catherine Thorbecke | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Following the bank’s collapse on Friday, uncertainty in the startup community only grew. Founders Fund, an influential venture capital firm founded by billionaire Peter Thiel, reportedly advised its portfolio companies to pull money from the bank. “SVB is the most important capital provider to tech startups and the biggest supporter of the community,” he said in a tweet. “Now is the time to support them.”The rapidly unfolding fallout at Silicon Valley Bank comes at a challenging moment for the tech industry. Now, the bank’s collapse risks compounding the industry’s cash crunch and broader turbulence.

☆ US digital asset fund, venture capital firm to raise $100 million for two new blockchain funds
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

NEW YORK, March 8 (Reuters) - Alpha Sigma Capital, a U.S.-based digital asset fund, and Transform Ventures, a venture capital firm, will raise $100 million for two new funds focused on the blockchain and so-called decentralized Web 3.0 ventures, Alpha Sigma founder and Chief Executive Officer Enzo Villani said on Wednesday. Transform Ventures, founded by crypto investor Michael Terpin, also merged some of its assets with Alpha Sigma's parent to form a new holding company called Alpha Transform Holdings. Truglia along with other participants stole 3 million tokens from Terpin's cellphone account in early 2018. The second fund, a closed-end venture capital firm called the Aegean Fund, is still in the process of being established, Villani said. "A lot of things that are happening right now (in the crypto and blockchain space) may be challenging.

☆ Lithium prices in China have tumbled 29% as slower EV demand hits 'white gold'
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

The price of lithium, essential to EV batteries, has fallen by 29% from November highs in China. The metal is still worth eight times more than it was before 2021. Sigma Lithium sharply jumped Tuesday following a report that Tesla is thinking about buying the Canadian miner. While this spells an end to its two-year rally, the "white gold" of clean energy continues to be worth eight times more than it was two years ago. China's CATL, which is the world's largest battery producer, reportedly agreed to sell batteries to Chinese EV makers at lower rates.

☆ Sigma Lithium spikes 21% on report Tesla is considering a buyout of the Canadian battery-metals miner
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Carla Mozée | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Sigma Lithium shares jumped Tuesday after Bloomberg reported that Tesla is considering a buyout. Nasdaq-listed shares of Sigma Lithium gained as much as 21% in hitting an intraday high of $35.55. Sigma Lithium shares have surged over the past year with prices for lithium rising as demand for the metal has overtaken supply. Sigma Lithium last year said it may nearly triple lithium production at one of its projects in Brazil in 2024. Sigma Lithium's biggest shareholder, A10 Investimentos, a Brazilian private equity fund, has been gauging buyout interest from miners and carmakers, the report said.

☆ PayPal's CEO search amid an uncertain economy will be no easy task
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

In case you missed it, PayPal CEO and President Dan Schulman announced his plan to retire at the end of 2023 earlier this month. Coming off an extremely difficult 2022, and with competition seemingly coming at them from every which way, PayPal has to find a new CEO. I hesitate to compare this to the seemingly never-ending CEO search at Carlyle, but it's easy to see how a difficult quarter or two could complicate this entire search. The rich stay rich thanks to another loophole that helps them save on taxes. Elliott Management's Paul Singer and Two Sigma's David Siegel both played second fiddle to Haidar Capital's Said Haidar in 2022 when it came to comp.

☆ Here are Tuesday's biggest analyst calls: Apple, Tesla, Carvana, Nvidia, Netflix, Zoom, Meta & more
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( Michael Bloom | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +7 min

Bank of America downgrades Constellation Energy to neutral from buy Bank of America downgraded the energy company mainly on valuation. " Raymond James reiterates Carvana as market perform Raymond James said it's cautious heading into Carvana earnings later this week. Bank of America reiterates Meta as buy Bank of America said it's bullish on the company's recently announced Meta Verified subscription service. " Bank of America reiterates Alphabet as buy Bank of America said it's standing by its buy rating despite the ChatGPT thread to Alphabet. Barclays reiterates Zoom as equal weight Barclays said expectations are low heading into Zoom earnings later this month.

☆ Lithium miner Sigma jumps on report Tesla considering buyout
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Feb 17 (Reuters) - U.S.-listed shares of Sigma Lithium Corp rose 21% in extended trading on Friday after Bloomberg News reported that Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) was weighing a takeover of the Canada-based battery metals miner. Tesla and Sigma Lithium did not immediately respond to Reuters requests for comment. U.S. stock of Sigma Lithium, which has a market capitalization of $3.21 billion, nearly trebled in value last year. Tesla and other automakers routinely talk to mining companies of all sizes about potential supplies of lithium and other EV metals without necessarily signing contracts. Tesla also has supply contracts for nickel, lithium and a range of other EV metals from suppliers across the globe.

☆ A little-known hedge-fund manager's huge bet on inflation earned him $859 million and propelled him into the top 10 list
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The manager of a little-known hedge fund was the 6th highest paid manager last year, per Bloomberg. Said Haidar made a huge leveraged bet on interest rates rising last year, and took home $859 million. The jump in prices last year means the hedge fund, which had positioned itself to profit from the rises, was able to benefit reap huge returns from its bet. His $859 million total was split between a $645 million gain on personal investment and a $314 million share of fund performance fees. Meanwhile, Elliott Management's Peter Singer brought home $317 million, with his hedge fund managing $56 billion in assets.

☆ Binance secretly moved $400 million from its US partner to a trading firm managed by the crypto giant's boss CZ, report says
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( George Glover | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Binance secretly moved $400 million from its US partner to a trading firm owned by boss Changpeng Zhao, according to Reuters. Merit Peak is a market-maker trading firm owned by Binance CEO Zhao, who's often referred to by his initials CZ. Binance claims that Merit Peak and Binance's US partner Binance.US operate independently from the global exchange, which CZ co-founded in 2017. The Securities and Exchange Commission has previously probed ties between Binance.US, Merit Peak, and another CZ-owned trading firm called Sigma Chain AG, according to a Wall Street Journal report published in February 2022. It's not clear why the money was sent from Binance.US to Merit Peak or if any of the funds belonged to US customers.

☆ Wall Street trading firms aren't giving up on crypto just yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-13 | by ( Dan Defrancesco | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

A bunch of high-profile Wall Street investors just piled into a startup that pledges to fix a major issue in the crypto industry. And while plenty of those bets blew up — the most spectacular of which was crypto exchange FTX — that hasn't stopped Wall Street. Click here to read more about a new crypto startup that's got backing from some of Wall Street's top trading firms. For a breakdown of all the key partnerships between Wall Street and cloud partners, check out our running list of more than 30 deals. Cheman Cheung left Wall Street after his father passed away to recover from a state of "mental chaos."

☆ Cyprus probes washed up dead whales, earthquake link possible
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

NICOSIA, Feb 10 (Reuters) - A number of whales have washed up dead on the northern shores of Cyprus, authorities said on Friday, possibly affected by the massive earthquakes in neighbouring Turkey and Syria this week. Six beaked whales were found dead on Friday, while a pod of four were found beached on Thursday, the Cyprus department of fisheries and marine research said. Three of the four from Thursday were guided back to sea, while the fourth died, it said in a statement. It was unclear if the dead pod found on Friday included those whales from Thursday that had been returned to the sea, it said. Monday's mega earthquakes in Turkey and Syria, which have killed tens of thousands of people, were also felt on the east Mediterranean island.

☆ Crypto exchange C3 aims to fix a big flaw exposed in the collapse of FTX. Its cofounders just raised $6 million from hedge fund Two Sigma's venture arm.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( April Joyner | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The crypto exchange C3 has raised $6 million in seed funding led by Two Sigma Ventures. A series of bankruptcies — FTX, BlockFi, Celsius, Voyager, Genesis — has exposed major flaws within several crypto financial institutions. Michel Dahdah believes his company, the crypto exchange C3, can fix one big challenge these crypto companies face: the custody question. C3 has raised $6 million in seed funding led by Two Sigma Ventures, the venture-capital arm of the hedge fund Two Sigma Investments. In the traditional finance world, custody and exchange are separate functions, and crypto needs to follow suit, he said.

☆ Spanish police detain 23 for alleged soccer match-fixing in Spain, Andorra and Gibraltar
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-31 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

MADRID, Jan 31 (Reuters) - A group of 23 people, including soccer players, have been arrested as part of a probe into suspected match-fixing in non-professional Spanish, Andorran and Gibraltarian soccer leagues, Spanish police said on Tuesday. "A second layer of the scam comprised soccer players who took advantage of their position to organise the fixing in the teams under their influence," police said. No players were identified, but police said the ring targeted some 30 games in non-professional leagues such as Spain's third division and the local leagues of micro-state Andorra and British enclave Gibraltar. The investigation was carried out in 2021 and 2022 with the help of several organisations, including Spain's football federation RFEF, LaLiga, the Betting Market Global Investigation Service (SIGMA) and European governing body UEFA's Anti-Match-Fixing Unit. ($1 = 0.9246 euros)Reporting by Inti Landauro and Emma Pinedo; Editing by David Latona, Alexandra HudsonOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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