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☆ Emerging venture fund managers had few banking options to begin with. After Silicon Valley Bank's collapse, where do they turn now?
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-22 | by ( Melia Russell | Vishal Persaud | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +10 min

Silicon Valley Bank had long banked a class of startup investors known as emerging managers. He was able to quickly switch from Silicon Valley Bank with an email to his contact at AngelList. Novak is part of a contingent of investors who are shifting their banking strategy in the fallout of Silicon Valley Bank's failure. After Silicon Valley Bank's demise, the big banks have gotten more selective, the three investors said. The big banks like JPMorgan set account minimums for its private banking group, locking out emerging fund managers.

☆ The 8-year-old daughter of a Vladimir Putin ally is listed as the owner of a multimillion-dollar apartment in one of London's most exclusive areas
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-15 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Vladimir Gruzdev is a Vladimir Putin ally whose net worth was estimated to be $900 million in 2021. His 8-year-old daughter owns a London apartment that could be worth $5 million to $10 million today. Vladimir Gruzdev made his name as a grocery-store tycoon before starting a career in politics, which won him special recognition by Putin in 2010. The apartment was purchased for £2.3 million in 2000 through a company based in the Cayman Islands, where the tax rate is 0%. One property-valuation website suggests it could be worth over $10 million, but its actual value on the open market is unclear.

Joseph HostetlerThe Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card comes with 40,000 miles after spending $1,000 on purchases within three months from account opening. There are many fun things you can do with the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card bonus — from free flights to free hotel stays and more. There are two reasons Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card is the best offer we've ever seen on a no-annual-fee credit card. With the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card bonus, you could transfer 36,000 Capital One miles to British Airways for two round-trip tickets and have a Caribbean getaway with your travel buddy. What you need to know about the Capital One VentureOne bonusThe 40,000-mile bonus that comes with the Capital One VentureOne Rewards Credit Card is worth $400 in travel at the very least.

☆ China formalizes rules for overseas IPOs
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-20 | by ( Evelyn Cheng | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: 1 min

BEIJING – China-based companies now have more clarity on whether they can list overseas in the U.S. The China Securities Regulatory Commission announced late Friday new rules that require domestic companies to comply with national security measures and the personal data protection law before going public overseas. The securities regulator's rules do not ban the variable interest entity structure commonly used by Chinese companies when listing in the U.S. The CSRC said its rules for overseas listings are set to take effect March 31. The new rules also call for IPO underwriters, typically international investment banks, to annually report to the CSRC their involvement with Chinese listings overseas.

How to earn Southwest pointsCompare Southwest credit cards Southwest Rapid Rewards® Plus Credit CardSouthwest Rapid Rewards® Premier Credit CardSouthwest Rapid Rewards® Priority Credit CardSouthwest® Rapid Rewards® Premier Business Credit CardSouthwest® Rapid Rewards® Performance Business Credit Card Chevron icon It indicates an expandable section or menu, or sometimes previous / next navigation options. Transfer points from Diners Club or hotel loyalty programsDiners Club members can also transfer Club Rewards points to Southwest — 1,500 Club Rewards points, for instance, would convert to 1,200 Southwest points. It's also possible to redeem points earned through participating hotel loyalty programs if you'd rather put them toward flights than hotel stays, though redemption rates are pretty low:5,000 Best Western Rewards points = 1,200 Southwest points6,000 Choice Privileges points = 1,800 Southwest points2,000 Radisson Rewards America points = 200 Southwest points50,000 Radisson Rewards America points = 5,000 Southwest points100,000 Radisson Rewards America points = 10,000 Southwest points9,000 Marriott Bonvoy points = 3,000 Southwest points30,000 Marriott Bonvoy points = 10,000 Southwest points60,000 Marriott Bonvoy points = 20,000 Southwest points90,000 Marriott Bonvoy points = 30,000 Southwest points120,000 Marriott Bonvoy points = 40,000 Southwest points5,000 World of Hyatt points = 2,400 Southwest points50,000 World of Hyatt points = 24,000 Southwest pointsNote that World of Hyatt throws in an additional 6,000 Southwest points as long as you're a member, while Marriott Bonvoy adds 5,000 Southwest points for every 60,000 Marriott points transferred. For instance, a $220 Business Select fare would yield 2,640 Southwest points, while a $200 Anytime ticket would yield 2,000 Southwest points, and a $100 Wanna Get Away ticket would yield 600 Southwest points. Earn Southwest points by taking online surveysYou can earn points by taking online surveys through E-Rewards — $15 worth of E-Rewards yields 300 Southwest points, $25 worth of E-Rewards yields 600 Southwest points, $50 worth of E-Rewards yields 1,200 Southwest points, and $100 worth of E-Rewards yields 2,400 Southwest points.

☆ Chaos and intrigue reign in UK court fight over Castro-era Cuban debt
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-30 | by ( Michelle Caruso-Cabrera | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

The Cuban government and an investment firm are battling in a British court over decades-old debts racked up by the communist-run island nation. Kin Cheung | APIllegally recorded videos, chaotic protests and testimony from an imprisoned Cuban bank official marked the first week of a high-stakes trial in the UK High Court between Cuba and an investment fund. Adding to the intrigue: a court attendee who's a dead ringer for Raul Castro's son and Fidel Castro's nephew, Alejandro. Cuban officials say the man is just a press officer for the Cuban Embassy in the UK. Debt in distressDefaulted sovereign debt, like that of Cuba, trades on the secondary market.

☆ Here's what you need to know about a blockbuster court fight over Cuba's debt
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( Michelle Caruso-Cabrera | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +6 min

The legal battle is over a portion of Cuba's unpaid commercial debt dating back to the 1980s. If they don't reach a deal, Cuba could then face yet another court fight over whether it finally has to pay. Because of the U.S. embargo against Cuba, American investors are prohibited from owning and trading Cuban debt, which frustrates some frontier-market hedge fund managers in the U.S. They argue that holding Cuban debt would better serve U.S. foreign policy interests because it would give Americans a seat at some future negotiating table. CRF, meanwhile, says in court filings that it first reached out to Cuba 10 years ago to settle the debt but were ignored.

☆ Where are the safest places to travel in 2023? It depends on how you define 'safe'
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-18 | by ( Monica Pitrelli | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +4 min

Sharjah, United Arab Emirates Dubai, United Arab Emirates Doha, Qatar Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates Singapore, SingaporeParis topped market research company Euromonitor International's "Top 100 City Destinations" for 2022, but the United Arab Emirates' Sharjah, shown here, ranked highest in terms of health and safety. Its Travel Risk Map 2023 shows that much of North America and Western Europe — as well as places like Turkey, Israel, Japan, Singapore and the United Arab Emirates — have "low" medical risks. Medical risks by country. This map does not reflect the Covid-19 outbreak currently occurring in China, said Dr. Irene Lai, medical director at International SOS. Safest places: security risksInternational SOS's Travel Risk Map also assesses security risks, which include crime as well as political violence such as terrorism and war, social unrest and susceptibility to natural disasters, according to the company.

☆ Four accused in Bulgarian probe of crypto lender Nexo -investigators
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SOFIA, Jan 13 (Reuters) - Investigators looking into crypto lender Nexo on Friday said that four citizens of Bulgaria had been accused of participating in an organised crime group for money laundering as well as tax and computer fraud. Nexo had said after Thursday's operations that the raided office was not customer facing but has only back office functions. Some 35 artworks, including from Salvador Dali, Henri Matisse and Pablo Picasso, had been seized from one of the accused, investigators said. According to Bulgarian prosecutors $94 billion has gone through the Nexo platform in the past five years. Crypto lenders act like banks for the crypto world, offering customers interest on cryptocurrencies they deposit with the platform.

The article was one of a series of reports this year by the news agency on Binance's financial compliance and relationship with regulators across the world. Reuters also asked representatives of the local Binance units and affiliates about their relationship with the main Binance exchange. In Italy, Binance's public corporate filings detail just the unit's capital base and its ownership by a separate Binance company in Ireland. The Italian company, Binance Italy S.R.L., has its listed address in a block of shops and apartments in the southern city of Lecce. Just two of the Binance units analysed by Reuters offer more substantial details in their filings.

☆ The cofounder of venture capital firm Target Global left after his Russian oligarch father was sanctioned
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-12 | by ( Shona Ghosh | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Alexander Frolov, the son of a sanctioned Russian oligarch, has left his tech investment firm. The UK sanctioned Alexander Frolov Senior on November 2. Alexander Frolov, the son of a sanctioned Russian oligarch, has left the venture capital firm he cofounded and ran, Target Global, amid ongoing concerns about Russian money flowing into European tech startups. The move was first reported by German publication FinanceFwd and was confirmed to Insider Monday by a spokesman for Target Global. The UK sanctioned Russian oligarch Alexander Frolov, formerly CEO of steel-mining firm Evraz, in November 2022.

In this article BTC.CM=ETH.CM= Follow your favorite stocks CREATE FREE ACCOUNTKris Marszalek, CEO of Crypto.com, speaking at a 2018 Bloomberg event in Hong Kong, China. Paul Yeung | Bloomberg | Getty ImagesKris Marszalek wants everyone to know that his company, Crypto.com, is safe and in good hands. While no evidence has emerged of wrongdoing at Crypto.com, Marszalek's business history is replete with red flags. Over the course of 2008 and 2009, Marszalek and his partner were transferred nearly $3 million in payments from Starline, according to the documents. As a result, when the bank forced Starline into liquidation, Marszalek and his partner were forced into bankruptcy as well.

☆ From Portugal to Bali, these 28 countries and territories offer 'digital nomad visas' for remote workers
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-08 | by ( Hannah Towey | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

28 countries offer residence visas for remote workers, also known as "digital nomad visas." Spain and Italy are still in the process of establishing a legal framework for the programs. The so-called "digital nomad visas" allow remote workers to live and work in countries like Malta, Portugal, and Costa Rica — as long as your income comes from outside the country. Here are 28 countries that currently offer visas specifically for remote workers and the minimum income required in order to apply:Europe digital nomad visasLisbon, Portugal. Flavio Vallenari/Getty ImagesGrenada: Minimum salary required of EC$100,000.00 a year (around $37,000) St. Lucia: Currently no salary requirements Curaçao: Currently no salary requirements Montserrat: Minimum salary required of $70,000 a year Dominica: Minimum salary required of $50,000 a year Cayman Islands: Minimum salary required of $100,000 a year Anguilla: Currently no salary requirements Antigua and Barbuda: Minimum salary required of $50,000 a year Barbados: Minimum salary required of $50,000 a yearNorth, Central, and South America digital nomad visasLaguna del Hule in Costa Rica.

☆ Sen. Warren demands answers from Silvergate Bank about its business dealings with FTX
▼ + stars: | 2022-12-06 | by ( Gretchen Morgenson | Gretchen Morgenson Is The Senior Financial Reporter For The Nbc News Investigative Unit. A Former Stockbroker | She Won The Pulitzer Prize In For Her | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +13 min

“Life as a crypto firm can be divided up into before Silvergate and after Silvergate,” Bankman-Fried gushed in a testimonial featured recently, and prominently, on Silvergate Bank’s website. But in a conversation with an investment manager, a former top FTX employee said Silvergate was FTX’s primary banking partner. As a regulated bank, Silvergate has a duty to monitor clients’ accounts for suspicious activities that could signal fraud, money laundering or tax evasion, the filings note. FTX frequently used the Silvergate Exchange Network, according to the former FTX employee with direct knowledge of the transactions. A Silvergate spokeswoman said the change reflected a shift in functions taken on by a new president at the bank.

Lawyers for collapsed crypto exchange FTX said in the company's first bankruptcy hearing on Tuesday that regulators from the Bahamas, where FTX was headquartered, have agreed to consolidate proceedings in Delaware. "What we are dealing with is a different sort of animal," said FTX counsel James Bromley. FTX lawyers confirmed earlier reports that the Southern District of New York's Cyber Crimes unit has begun an investigation into the matter. FTX lawyers have also made reference to cyberattacks, suggesting there were multiple attacks beyond the $477 million hack that occurred shortly after the company entered bankruptcy on Nov. 11. FTX customers had a global presence, but many were based in tax havens.

☆ In bankrupt Lebanon, locals mine bitcoin and buy groceries with tether, as $1 is now worth 15 cents
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-05 | by ( Mackenzie Sigalos | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +32 min

Others arrange clandestine meetings via Telegram to swap the stablecoin tether for U.S. dollars in order to buy groceries. In Jan., police raided a small crypto mining farm in the hydro-powered town of Jezzine, seizing and dismantling mining rigs in the process. But mining crypto tokens to earn a living is not for everybody. Younes tells CNBC that he initially moved 15% of his money into bitcoin, and he kept the remaining balance in cash. Lebanon has six bitcoin ATMs — one in Aamchit and five in Beirut, according to metrics offered by coinatmradar.com.

Tropical Storm Lisa strengthened Tuesday as it pushed across the western Caribbean south of the Cayman Islands and was forecast to make landfall, likely as a hurricane, in Central America as early as Wednesday. And Mexico was also preparing as Lisa was forecast to strengthen in warm tropical waters and strike Belize late Wednesday. The U.S. National Hurricane Center said Lisa had maximum sustained winds of 65 mph and was moving west at 15 mph. A hurricane warning was in effect for Roatan and the other Bay Islands of Roatan, and Guatemala declared a warning for its entire Caribbean coast. Hurricane expert Philip Klotzbach, a Colorado State University meteorologist, tweeted that Lisa would be the first hurricane to make landfall in Belize during November since 1942.

☆ South Africa will allow a Russian oligarch to moor his superyacht in Cape Town as it continues on epic global cruise avoiding Western sanctions
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-26 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

The yacht, owned by sanctioned billionaire Alexei Mordashov, is now headed to Cape Town, South Africa. Nord has now left the city state, and is sailing towards South Africa where it is expected to moor on November 9, Marine Traffic data shows. When it arrives in South Africa, it will be allowed to dock, despite outcry from some in the country. "South Africa has no legal obligation to abide by sanctions imposed by the US and EU," Vincent Magwenya, a spokesman for South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said, per the BBC. South Africa was among the 35 countries which abstained from a UN resolution in March which demanded the withdrawal of Russian troops from Ukraine.

☆ The rich can use offshore life-insurance policies to pass down everything from stocks to yachts to their kids tax-free. Here's how it works and why the Senate is targeting it.
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-12 | by ( Hayley Cuccinello | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The richest of the rich can use life insurance to avoid estate and income taxes. Life insurance is probably the least sexy area of financial planning. Private-placement life insurance is a little-known tax-avoidance tactic. When structured correctly, PPLI policies can be used to pass on assets from stocks to yachts to heirs without incurring an estate tax. A 40% federal estate tax applies to estate values topping $12.06 million for single people and $24.1 million for married couples.

☆ Dr. Oz accused of 'money grab' as settlement talks fail in ugly inheritance battle
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-06 | by ( Laura Italiano | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

Dr. Oz is fighting his Istanbul-based sister over the rental income from two Manhattan apartments. The TV doctor-turned-Senate candidate is making a 'money grab,' his sister's lawyer said Thursday. "While Nazlim claims that Dr. Oz has cut off her distributions, it in fact appears that she was never receiving any distributions," Cohen said. "The discussions were preliminary," the lawyer for Nazlim Oz said when asked about the settlement talks. The lawyer for Dr. Oz did not respond to a request for comment.

☆ Vishal Garg wants you to understand why he's still Better's CEO, even after getting ridiculed for brutally laying off 900 people via Zoom
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-03 | by ( Alex Nicoll | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +14 min

Vishal Garg, the CEO of Better, spoke out nine months after laying off hundreds of people over Zoom. "I would regularly tell my team that I think I'm the right founder for this company," Garg said. For his younger employees, Queens might be known as a hip borough with diverse populations and menus. But to Garg, Queens was something to be embarrassed by, leading him to pour even more energy into his work. Now at the helm of a slimmed-down Better, Garg is firmly looking forward to the future, SPAC or no SPAC.

☆ Ian to become a major hurricane overnight, officials say
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-27 | by ( Tim Stelloh | Tim Stelloh Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News Digital. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Hurricane Ian was forecast to become a major hurricane overnight as it churned toward Cuba with powerful winds and a storm surge that was expected to swamp the island’s western coast, U.S. weather officials said late Monday. Ron DeSantis declared a statewide emergency, saying Ian could hit the state as a punishing Category 4 hurricane, with wind speeds topping 130 mph. "We already have so little.”Earlier Monday, Ian passed by the nearby Cayman Islands with no major damage reported. The latest on Hurricane Ian By Monday night, Ian, moving northwest at 13 mph, was about 105 miles east-southeast of the western tip of Cuba, with top sustained winds increasing to 105 mph. Forecasters expect Ian to hit Florida’s west coast as a major hurricane as early as Tuesday.

☆ Track Hurricane Ian's path as it takes aim at Florida's west coast
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Mirna Alsharif | Mirna Alsharif Is A Breaking News Reporter For Nbc News. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Hurricane Ian is set to take aim at Florida's west coast as early as Wednesday, according to the National Hurricane Center. "A few tornadoes" are also possible late Monday night and Tuesday "across the Florida Keys and the southern and central Florida Peninsula." What initially formed as Tropical Depression Nine early Friday morning strengthened that night into Tropical Storm Ian, the NHC said. The hurricane is forecast to bring 8 to 15 inches to central West Florida, 3 to 8 inches to the rest of the Florida Peninsula and 4 to 6 inches to the Keys. On Saturday, the governor expanded that to apply statewide, citing the risk of a major hurricane making landfall on Florida’s western coast.

☆ Ian strengthens into hurricane as Cuba, Florida brace for floods
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-26 | by ( Chantal Da Silva | Chantal Da Silva Is A Breaking News Editor For Nbc News Digital Based In London. | ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +3 min

Tropical storm Ian strengthened into a hurricane Monday as Florida prepared for possible floods this week. "Ian will then emerge over the southeastern Gulf of Mexico on Tuesday, and pass west of the Florida Keys late Tuesday, and approach the west coast of Florida on Wednesday," it said. Earlier, the NHC had warned of the possibility of “considerable flooding impacts” later this week in west central Florida. In photos captured Sunday, residents in Tampa, Florida, could be seen filling sandbags to help prevent against flooding ahead of the storm. "Life-threatening" storm surge and hurricane-force winds are also expected to hit parts of western Cuba starting late Monday, with Ian expected to be at or near major hurricane strength by the time it nears western Cuba.

Ian was in the Caribbean Sea on Sunday night, with maximum sustained winds of 60 mph, the National Hurricane Center said, but the storm was intensifying. It was forecast to skirt western Florida on Wednesday and Thursday, according to the National Hurricane Center. Ron DeSantis declared a state of emergency for all of Florida because of the threat, and the Florida National Guard activated 2,500 service members. Tropical storm warnings covered the Cuban provinces of La Habana, Mayabeque and Matanzas, and Little Cayman and Cayman Brac were under a tropical storm watch. The entire western coast of Florida is vulnerable to storm surge, said Rhome, of the National Hurricane Center.

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