Anna Irrera

The franc’s recent surge hasn’t changed economists’ views on the Swiss National Bank’s interest-rate path, even after traders pivoted bets toward more aggressive easing. A majority of respondents in a Bloomberg survey expect just one more quarter-point cut this year, bringing the key rate to 1% next month — an outlook unchanged from July. Eight out of the 21 economists surveyed predict another reduction after that. by Bastian Benrath-Wright Harumi Ichikura #Switzerland

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Ether's investment case may be less intuitive for the general investor than bitcoin but it's arguably much more interesting (and it's now available in US ETFs) https://lnkd.in/e98Vupnz

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When Wall Street scrambled to launch bitcoin funds earlier this year, there was just one trading company named in regulatory filings as an anchor market-maker for every single one: Jane Street. As our latest instalment in the "Trading Titans" series shows, the move underscored how a quirky and opaque New York firm has used its dominance in ETFs and embrace of more finicky financial securities as a springboard to become the most profitable of ALL the trading firms that are now a significant force in markets. Last year Jane Street's gross trading revenues of $21.9bn were equivalent to roughly one-seventh of the combined equity, bond, currency and commodity trading revenues of all the dozen major global investment banks, according to Coalition Greenwich data. There are no signs of Jane Street slowing down either. If its first-half trading haul can be replicated in the second half of 2024, it would mean Jane Street bringing more trading revenues than the vastly larger Goldman Sachs did last year. And if its 70 per cent profit margin is also maintained, it would mean Jane Street comfortably out-earning the likes of Blackstone or BlackRock this year. I first pitched a series on the trading firm ecosystem – including the likes of Jane Street, Citadel Securities, Susquehanna, DRW, Virtu, HRT, Tower Research – years ago. I'm glad we're finally doing it, because they've only grown bigger, more profitable and more influential since then. Here is the latest piece (deep cuts will be on FT Alphaville later this week):

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Sharing my latest newsletter on Latin America's crypto scene, which Aaron Stanley kindly invites me to write every few weeks. In this edition, we examine Paraguay's crypto mining crackdown, Bolivia's decision to reverse its crypto ban for banks, and more. Please follow Brazil Crypto Report here and on Substack if you find this information helpful.

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NEWS: Graphcore employees have had the value of their shares wiped, as a “conditional agreement” to sell the company has been reached, sources tell Sifted. One former employee says that CEO and founder Nigel Toon told staff on a team call that Japanese investor SoftBank is the acquirer, confirming previous reporting by The Telegraph newspaper. Four former employees, holding either stock options or restricted stock units (RSUs), tell Sifted they’ve been informed that their shares are now worthless. This is because the expected sale price for the company — reported to be around $500m — equates to less the total amount invested in the company to date (more than $600m), one source explains. It means that only holders of preference shares (likely to be the company’s larger investors) who get any payout from the sale, while employees who hold ordinary shares get nothing. https://lnkd.in/eWYxWvZU

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Russian commodities firms struggling to execute financial transactions with Chinese counterparts have started tapping a new method for settling deals — stablecoins. At least two top metals producers, both of which are unsanctioned, have begun to use Tether Holdings Ltd.’s stablecoin and some other cryptocurrencies to settle some of their cross-border transactions with mostly Chinese clients and suppliers, top executives at the companies said, declining to be identified as the information isn’t public. In some cases, the settlements go through Hong Kong. https://lnkd.in/eTAv5Nyd

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🔔 The first tranche of the EU's Markets in Crypto-Asset Regulation (#MiCA) relating to #stablecoins went live yesterday. Algorithmic stablecoins are banned, fiat-backed stablecoins need to be backed 1:1, and issuers should be licensed. 🎧 Helen H. C. and I looked at the fragmented stablecoin regulatory landscape on the #ComplianceClarified #podcast. We looked at criminal use of stablecoins across a range of typologies and talked about their use for payments in super apps like #telegram and #grab. #crypto #AML #KYC #sanctions #regulation #compliance h/t Alison Jimenez Erin West https://lnkd.in/eeVn_7hM

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Prop trading regulations might be knocking at the door. Finance Magnates learned that ESMA and other regulators are doing initial checks on possible prop trading regulations. This includes "conducting studies, gathering data, and engaging in consultations." However, the regulators have yet to come out with anything officially. Another exciting dilemma among experts is who will regulate prop trading - financial or gaming regulators? What do you think? And thanks to Remonda Z. Kirketerp-Møller, Ran Strauss, Evdokia Pitsillidou, Evgeny Sorokin, and Greg Rubin for their insights. The article is by Yam Yehoshua. #proptrading #trading #retailtrading #prop #fundedtrader #cfds #fx #forex #financialservices https://lnkd.in/ge3EW5ah

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CMC Markets wrote off its investment in Strike X. The broker bought 33% of the blockchain company last year for £2.8 million, which is now worth £0. Strike X now actively seeks third-party capital through one of its subsidiaries to improve its financial position. What's more? There were also revelations around the CMC Connect-Revolut deal. Read the full article on Finance Magnates (the link is in the comments). #CMC #broker #cfds #financialservices #cfdsbroker #fx #fxcfds #retailtrading #retailbroker

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Shabby shorts at crypto events? Not anymore. People often talk about the jump in crypto prices and rapid adoption due to institutional involvement, but hardly anyone notices the prominent shift in crypto culture. Gone are the shabby shorts worn by the likes of Sam Bankman-Fried. “The crypto sector continues to mature, it feels more grown up than it was in the past,” said Usman Ahmad, CEO of Standard Chartered-backed crypto firm Zodia Markets. The presence of leading crypto firms at this year's World Economic Forum was another example of how the crypto sector is now becoming an integral part of the global economy. Crypto firms like Circle and Stellar Development Foundation were part of a session at WEF called ‘The Tokenisation Economy’, which discussed how economies can use blockchain technology to improve financial inclusion. Full story: https://lnkd.in/eVKpNiwD #crypto #bitcoin

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🚨 📢 Exclusive: KuCoin Exchange recently became one of the first foreign crypto exchanges to register under FIU-IND. With over 31 million users in more than 200 countries and regions across 800 digital assets, KuCoin is currently the sixth largest crypto exchange globally in terms of market share. In an interview with moneycontrol.com, global CEO Johnny LYU discusses his India strategy, investment plans ahead, challenges of operating a crypto exchange in the country, thoughts on common global regulatory framework, bullishness on Bitcoin prices and more. https://lnkd.in/gd8jZb63

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It was a strange moment for bitcoin, a privately produced form of digital currency conceived to facilitate peer-to-peer transactions free of government intervention or oversight. A leading presidential candidate and prominent Senator called for the federal government to buy the asset en masse. At Bitcoin 2024, a 20,000-person conference in Nashville, Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump and Sen. Cynthia Lummis, a member of the United States Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, called for the creation of a strategic stockpile of bitcoin. The mechanics of how this would work are fuzzy. Trump says the reserve should be filled with cryptocurrencies confiscated from convicted criminals. Lummis said the federal government should purchase 1 million bitcoin overtime using "excess reserves" from the Federal Reserve System (though it is unclear what exactly that means). Either way, the proposal as deemed, "radical," "unprecedented" and unnecessary by financial system experts across the ideological spectrum. It is also unlikely to pass into law. Though the mere fact that these politicians would propose such a policy speaks to their conviction about the asset class as well as their confidence about their electoral prospects. For more about what all this means, see my latest for American Banker. #crypto #bitcoin #btc #reserve #Fed #federalreserve https://lnkd.in/gFSrrK3E

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🚨News🚨 When Revolut needed a new bank after Metropolitan Commercial Bank cut off its fintech customers, it found CFSB, a tiny bank whose only branch sits beneath an elevated subway line an hour’s ride from Manhattan, squeezed between a shuttered Rite Aid and a children’s events space that moonlights as a venue for $10 adult Zumba dance classes. As more banks dump fintech partners, CFSB has leaned into the sector. For the fintech companies joining the bank that has become somewhat of a lender-of-last-resort, striking a relationship comes with its own risks: Court filings, FOI documents and other sources show accounts tied to several of the bank’s fintech partners have been at the center of alleged phishing schemes and other claims of payments fraud. CFSB and its owners have also been ensnared in a legal battle that provided a glimpse into the inner workings of the bank. Its CEO was accused of opening bank accounts for shell companies related to his extended family’s business-one of North America's richest developers-as well as helping process wires to pay for an allegedly fraudulent hand sanitizer scheme run by members of the family. Click to read the full story: https://lnkd.in/ePvnW7SR

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