R8 jp

BOSTON: JPMorgan Chase & Co CEO Jamie Dimon has led calls for companies to consider the needs of workers, communities and customers as well as those of shareholders. But now it is clear: investors come first. That is how activist investor John Harrington interprets a recent decision by JPMorgan's board - chaired by Dimon - not to convert itself to a "public benefit corporation," a Delaware legal structure gaining attention among would-be financial reformers. JPMorgan's board cited a legal review it commissioned stating, among other things, that when the interests of stockholders and other constituencies conflict at a corporation like JPMorgan, "the board's fiduciary duties require it to act in a manner that furthers the interests of the stockholders." That would not be the case for a public benefit corporation, however. Directors at such companies must balance stockholder interests with the interests of other constituencies, according to the review sent to shareholder … [Read more...] about JP Morgan’s board rejects switch to stakeholder-focused entity

Sony has swapped the usage of the X and Circle buttons for the PlayStation 5 user interface in Japan, meaning X is now used to confirm settings, while Circle is used to cancel. This is, of course, how PlayStation consoles and games have operated in the West for 25 years. But it's a big shift for Japan, where X has not historically been used to mean "accept", "X marks the spot", or "X to Jason". There, X typically means "cancel" or "quit", whereas the "O" of Circle means "OK". The detail comes from Famitsu , one of several Japanese outlets to get more details on PlayStation 5 over the weekend, and which has now reported a further wrinkle. Perhaps even more confusingly, the Japanese versions of PS5 games will still use the previous definitions of X and Circle, separate and contradictory to the PS5 hardware itself. "Wow, this is big news for UI/UX," Famitsu editor Kenji Iguchi wrote on Twitter yesterday. "Muscle memory frustration for the nearly 10 million PS users in Japan … [Read more...] about In a historic move, PlayStation 5 swaps X and Circle button use in Japan

LONDON: Britain began its third COVID-19 lockdown on Tuesday (Jan 5) with the government calling for one last major national effort to defeat the spread of a virus that has infected an estimated one in 50 citizens before mass vaccinations turn the tide. Finance minister Rishi Sunak announced a new package of business grants worth £4.6 billion (US$6.2 billion) to help keep people in jobs and firms afloat until measures are relaxed gradually, at the earliest from mid-February but likely later. Britain has been among the countries worst-hit by COVID-19, with the second highest death toll in Europe and an economy that suffered the sharpest contraction of any in the Group of Seven during the first wave of infections last spring. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the latest data showed 2 per cent of the population were currently infected - more than a million people in England. "When everybody looks at the position, people understand overwhelmingly that we have no choice," he told … [Read more...] about Bleak start to new year for Britain as it enters third COVID-19 lockdown

LONDON: The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and US oil companies see a limited rebound in shale oil supply this year as top US producers freeze output despite rising prices, a decision that would help OPEC and its allies. OPEC this month cut its 2021 forecast for US tight crude, another term for shale, and expects production to decline by 140,000 barrels per day to 7.16 million bpd. The US government expects shale output in March to fall about 78,000 bpd to 7.5 million bpd. The OPEC forecast preceded the freezing weather in Texas, home to 40 per cent of US output, that has shut wells and curbed demand by regional oil refineries. The lack of a shale rebound could make it easier for OPEC and its allies to manage the market, according to OPEC sources. "This should be the case," said one of the OPEC sources, who declined to be identified. "But I don't think this factor will be permanent." While some US energy firms have increased drilling, production is … [Read more...] about OPEC, US oil firms expect subdued shale rebound even as crude prices rise

NEW YORK: Bitcoin touched a market capitalisation of US$1 trillion as it hit yet another record high on Friday (Feb 19), countering analyst warnings that it is an "economic side show" and a poor hedge against a fall in stock prices. The world's most popular cryptocurrency jumped to an all-time high just below US$55,772, posting a weekly jump of 13 per cent. It has surged roughly 66 per cent so far this month and was last up 6.8 per cent at US$55,079. Bitcoin's gains have been fuelled by signs it is gaining acceptance among mainstream investors and companies, from Tesla and Mastercard to BNY Mellon. All digital coins combined have a market cap of around US$1.7 trillion. "If you really believe there's a store of value in bitcoin, then there's still a lot of upside," said John Wu, president of AVA Labs, an open-source platform for creating financial applications using blockchain technology. "If you look at gold, it has a market cap US$9 or US$10 trillion. Even if bitcoin gets … [Read more...] about Bitcoin hits US$1 trillion market cap, surges to fresh all-time peak

READING, England: Bitcoin achieved a remarkable rise in 2020 in spite of many things that would normally make investors wary, including US-China tensions, Brexit and, of course, an international pandemic. From a year-low on the daily charts of US$4,748 (£3,490) in the middle of March as pandemic fears took hold, bitcoin rose to just below US$30,000 by the end of the year. Since then it has climbed to all-time highs above US$38,000 , making headlines day after day and driving up the prices of other cryptocurrencies at the same time. So what has driven this huge price appreciation and is it different to the bubble of 2017? One reason for the massive price rise is that there has been a big influx of investors from large-scale institutions such as pension schemes, university endowment funds and investment trusts. This was not the case during the last bull market in 2017, in which the bitcoin price rose about 20-fold to almost US$20,000, only to slide back to the low … [Read more...] about Commentary: The rise and further rise of Bitcoin

As India on Saturday launched the world's largest vaccination drive against the coronavirus pandemic, we bring you the full list of documents needed for registration. The COVID-19 vaccination drive showed the light at the end of a 10-month tunnel that upended millions of lives and livelihoods. READ | World's largest COVID-19 vaccine drive celebrates Make in India at unparalleled scale: PM Modi; top points According to the government, the shots will be offered first to an estimated one crore healthcare workers , and around two crore frontline workers , and then to persons above 50 years of age, followed by persons younger than 50 years of age with associated comorbidities . READ | | India fought most successful war against coronavirus in world under PM Modi's leadership: Amit Shah A person can produce any of these identity cards with photo at the time of registration--Aadhar Card, … [Read more...] about As COVID-19 vaccine drive starts, here’s full list of documents needed for registration

A US intelligence report found Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman approved the 2018 killing of journalist Jamal Khashoggi. The report released Friday comes the day after US President Joe Biden's first call with Saudi King Salman. "The Crown Prince viewed Khashoggi as a threat to the Kingdom and broadly supported using violent measures if necessary to silence him," the report said. The document cites Salman's power over Saudi intelligence and security forces since 2017. Washington Post journalist Khashoggi — a critic of the prince's apparent authoritarian consolidation of power — was killed in the Saudi consulate in Istanbul in October, 2018. Saudi Arabia sentenced five people to 20 years each in prison over the murder. The release of the report could prove a test for normally close relations between Washington and Riyadh. What did the report reveal? The intelligence document concluded that a Saudi delegation arrived in Istanbul in October 2018 , that … [Read more...] about US intelligence blames Saudi prince for Khashoggi murder

NEW YORK: An army of retail investors that has routed Wall Street's professionals in recent days was dealt a blow on Thursday (Jan 28), after online brokerages including Robinhood Markets restricted trading in red-hot GameStop and other stocks that had soared this week. Retail investors, celebrities and policymakers decried the restrictions. Participants in online forums seethed, accusing the trading platforms of seeking to protect Wall Street's interests at the expense of smaller investors. "Robin Hood: a parable about stealing from the rich to give to the poor. Robinhood: an app about protecting the rich from being short squeezed by the poor," Jake Chervinsky, a lawyer for fintech company Compound, wrote on Twitter. Robinhood reversed course by the end of the day and said limited trading in the stocks would resume on Friday. Shares of retail favorites including GameStop and AMC Entertainment, which erased an early surge on news of the restrictions then rose after hours. The … [Read more...] about Small investors behind surge in GameStop and other shares hit by trading curbs

REUTERS: South Korean e-commerce giant Coupang, backed by Japan's SoftBank, on Friday (Feb 12) filed to go public on the New York Stock Exchange, hoping to cash in on strong demand for high-growth tech stocks as it reported a near-doubling of annual revenue and narrowing losses. Coupang is aiming for a valuation of around US$50 billion in its US initial public offering (IPO), according to a person familiar with the matter. This would make it the largest IPO in New York by a company based outside the United States since Alibaba Group Holding in 2014, Dealogic data showed. Founded in 2010 by Harvard graduate Bom Kim, Coupang made a splash in Korea with its 'Rocket Delivery' service, which promised delivery within 24 hours, shaking family-owned retail conglomerates such as Shinsegae and Lotte. Coupang was valued at US$9 billion in its last private fundraising round in 2018, according to data provider PitchBook. In a regulatory filing, Coupang said total revenue jumped 91per … [Read more...] about SoftBank-backed Coupang reveals revenue surge ahead of US IPO