What's the future of crypto?

The financial revolution once promised by cryptocurrencies has been knocked off course by regulators and allegations of fraud. So what does the future hold for crypto?

How London became the dirty money capital of the world

Russian oligarchs and companies have been investing in London for two decades, encouraged by British politicians of all stripes, but critics say the 'London laundromat' cleans dirty money from Russia and across the globe. 

The FT examines why it took Russia's invasion of Ukraine to put the issue in the spotlight and whether new sanctions and measures to tackle the problem go far enough.

How Blockchain Technology Is Being Used In Clearance & Associated Services

The financial sector has shown an increasing interest in blockchain technology. The technology sprang to prominence when it was used to trade cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, which are produced and authenticated by a peer-to-peer network of users rather than a central authority.

Blockchain technology has already seen adoption by big players in traditional finance. 

Want to know who they are and what they are using the Blockchain for? Click HERE. 

Crypto exchanges refuse to block Russian users

Amid a wave of firms cancelling services in Russia, cryptocurrency exchanges are standing by what they call "financial freedom". This as the conflict in Ukraine continues to weigh heavy on markets causing stocks to slump in the beginning of the week. We'll break it all down. And China is facing mounting pressure as the world's second-most powerful economy in the wake of the Ukraine crisis and trade woes.

On the Brink of Disaster or Start of a Golden Age?

From Bitcoin to DeFi (in 12 Short Years)...

Even if you’ve been living under a rock, you’re probably familiar with Bitcoin. Now, just as crypto disrupted the concept of value, decentralized finance is poised to disrupt finance itself. The populist movement promises huge returns for daring investors. But with DeFi’s promise of inclusion comes risk and uncertainty.

Is there something in this or are people that gullible or just plain stupid?

So the question is - is this the start of a new Golden Age or are we on the edge of Disaster? You be the judge.

The Fed Plans to Taper. Here’s What That Means

The Federal Reserve says it will accelerate the wind-down of its bond-buying program, the biggest step the central bank has taken in reversing its pandemic-era stimulus. Here’s how tapering works, and why it sends markets on edge.

Where crypto 'anarchy' will end - Lex Megatrends

Cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin have gained traction in finance worldwide thanks to dissent, greed, idealism and fear of missing out. But, in the absence of centralised authority, where will it all end? Ever get the feeling you've been cheated?

 

Can the Vatican reform its finances? - FT Film

The FT investigates the Holy See's finances and looks at how landmark proceedings linked to a controversial London property deal are seen as part of Pope Francis's reforms in the city-state. 

 

SEC sets its sights on the crypto “Wild West”

"When Garey Gensler took over as the head of America’s Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in April, he might have seemed pretty crypto-friendly. Only months before he had taught a course on cryptocurrencies at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; he has said that the innovation associated with bitcoin will be a “catalyst for change” in finance. Yet, speaking at the Aspen Security Forum on August 3rd, he probably dashed the hopes of crypto buffs. He signaled that he would seek tougher policing of the crypto-sphere, which he described as “rife with fraud, scams and abuse”."

 

So writes The Economist in a recent edition.  

Read the full article HERE.

Could digital currencies put banks out of business? - The Economist

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin have been billed as a major disruptor to finance. But digital currencies issued by governments (CBDC) might be even more radical—they may even threaten the future of traditional banking.Could they even bankrupt banks?

Crypto: will the bitcoin dream succeed? - The Economist

Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies set out to upend the financial order and replace conventional money. Bitcoin has certainly disrupted the global financial system, but can it ever live up to the hype? 

You can read more in The Economist's latest report on cryptocurrency- https://econ.st/3wnYfRr

 

Greensill, Gupta and Cameron: what went wrong - FT Film

The story of Greensill Capital's rise and fall has everything: investment banks, opaque finance, private jets, trophy mansions and the biggest British lobbying scandal in a generation, involving former prime minister David Cameron. 

The Financial Times charts the rise of Lex Greensill and Sanjeev Gupta and examines where it all went wrong.

Risk and compliance knowledge in Fintech is a superpower

Whatever you think about regulation, it is a fact of life, it exists for a good reason. Moving money is a serious responsibility, and if it goes wrong, it can literally cost lives. If everything is fintech, then the value is in productizing the tricky bits of finance. 

Want to find out more? Check out the full article HERE on Fintech Brain Food

Robinhood’s Big Gamble

In eliminating barriers to investing in the stock market, is the app democratizing finance or encouraging risky behavior? The app gives new investors an easy way to buy and sell stocks. Its founders say that it could help reduce inequality, but critics fear that it will only reinforce the wealth gap.

Read Sheelah Kolhatkar's article in The New Yorker HERE.

High-Frequency Trading: A Sociologist’s Take

For Donald MacKenzie, individuals’ interactions with machines, mathematics and technology in competitive settings – and the risks that may ensue – are subjects of great fascination, whether in financial markets, bitcoin mining or nuclear weaponry.

MacKenzie comes at it not as a technologist, mathematician or engineer, but rather as a social scientist.

Professor Donald MacKenzie weighs the risks of models, algorithms, market concentration and jitter in this article by Katherine Heires and published on the GARP website. Read it HERE.

What Happened to China's Superstar Entrepreneur Jack Ma? - WSJ

After Jack Ma criticized Chinese regulators, Beijing scuttled the initial public offering of his fintech giant Ant and he largely disappeared from public view. WSJ looks at recent videos of the billionaire to show how he got himself into trouble.

The minimum wage: does it hurt workers? - The Economist

Joe Biden has pledged to raise America's national minimum wage to $15 an hour. Economists traditionally believed that minimum wages actually hurt workers, but recent research has led to a rethink.

SustainableFinance.Live: SF.Live Highlights - Collaboration, diversity & action key for 2021

   

Maya Hennerkes, ESG Sector Lead, EBRD, speaks off the back of SF.Live's Re-Imagining Risk Modelling for Sustainable Finance Co-Creation Workshop about her key takeaways from the event and highlights how it spurred on that sense of urgency within the Sustainable Finance community, the need to dispatch finance at a larger scale and follow up on our ESG commitments.

Brexit and the City - How Brexit is affecting London’ position and status

The fortunes of financial centers may swing less wildly than the markets they host, but swing they do. Brexit has robbed the City of London, the capital’s financial district, of much of its swagger. World-conquering ambition has given way to anxious defensiveness.

When the post-Brexit transition period ends and Britain leaves the single market on December 31st, British-registered financial firms will lose the “passporting” rights that have long allowed them to sell funds, debt, advice or insurance to clients across the EU unimpeded, as if they were domestic.

Read the full article HERE

International banking supervisory community meets virtually - Focus on the future of banking supervision in a changing world

The 21st International Conference of Banking Supervisors (ICBS), hosted virtually by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions (OSFI) and the Bank of Canada, was held on 19-22 October 2020. Approximately 450 senior banking supervisors and central bankers representing close to 100 countries took part.

Delegates discussed a wide range of issues related to the future of banking supervision in a changing world. The discussions covered the digitization of finance and the evolution of banking models, operational resilience, climate-related financial risks and remote working arrangements. Participants also exchanged views on the challenges for central banks and bank supervisors in advanced and emerging market economies during the Covid-19 pandemic, as well as adapting to the changing operating environment for central banks and supervisors.

The event included several panel discussions and keynote speeches by Pablo Hernández de Cos, Chair of the Basel Committee on Banking Supervision and Governor of the Bank of Spain, and Prithwiraj Choudhury, Associate Professor at Harvard Business School.

This successful event marks the first time that the Basel Committee has worked with a host country to offer a completely virtual conference.

The ICBS, which has been held every two years since 1979, brings together bank supervisors and central bankers from around the world as well as representatives of international financial institutions. The conference promotes the discussion of key supervisory issues and fosters the continuing cooperation in the oversight of international banking. With its wide membership of senior supervisors and policymakers, the ICBS presents a unique opportunity for a broad-based discussion on issues that are timely and relevant to supervisors in both advanced and emerging market economies.