[This article is part of the Understanding Money Mechanics series, by Robert P. Murphy. The series will be published as a book in 2021.] In chapter 7 we summarized some of the major changes in how central banks have operated since the 2008 financial crisis. In the present chapter, we detail some of the even more recent changes in Federal Reserve operations since the onset of the coronavirus panic in March 2020. Size of the Fed’s Balance Sheet The most obvious change...
Read More »FQX Secures $4.7M in Seed Funding Led By Earlybird Venture Capital and SIX Ventures
Zurich-based FQX secures $4.7M in seed funding to scale their revolutionary eNoteTM infrastructure. Earlybird led the round with participation of SIX Fintech Ventures, the non-strategic corporate venture arm of SIX, and the unicorn founder Carsten Thoma. FQX is radically facilitating trade finance & money markets by using eNotesTM, a disruptive short-term financing & payment instrument. In essence, an eNoteTM is an unconditional promise to pay a specific sum...
Read More »FX Daily, June 02: The Dollar Snaps Back
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.13% to 1.0965 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, June 02(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The US dollar is enjoying broad, even if not large, gains today following yesterday’s recovery from three-year lows against sterling and four-year lows against the Canadian dollar. The greenback is firmer against all the major currencies. The Australian and New Zealand dollars the...
Read More »Swiss Aviation Sector Aims to go Carbon Neutral by 2050
Today, airplanes account for 2-3% of global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, but their share has been growing rapidly and is expected to triple by 2050. © Keystone / Christian Beutler The Swiss aviation sector, which includes Swiss International Air Lines and Zurich Airport, has pledged to slash CO2 emissions and make flying net zero by 2050. On Tuesday, Zurich, Geneva and Basel airports, together with SWISS, Easyjet, and the umbrella organisation Swiss Business...
Read More »Gold’s Middle Finger To Lying Currencies
Authored by Matthew Piepenburg via GoldSwitzerland.com, Sensationalism, like central bankers and policy makers, has many faces, views and voices. This may explain why so many want to hold their ears, hug their knees and beg the heavens for a beacon of guiding light amidst a 24/7 fog of info-cycle pablum masquerading as information. Facts in a Fog of Sensationalism With so many opposing ideas, movements, policies, parties, and personalities buzzing galvanically for...
Read More »West Virginia Gov. Personally On The Hook For $700MM In Greensill Collapse
The collapse of Greensill Capital has been the biggest financial scandal of the year so far, having set off a massive public corruption scandal in the UK that has deeply embarrassed the ruling Conservative Party due to the close involvement of former PM David Cameron, who was on the Greensill payroll and was caught trying to steer relief funds meant for small businesses to Greensill to help avert its collapse. Most recently, Credit Suisse cited Greensill as its...
Read More »FX Daily, June 01: CNY Softens after PBOC’s Move; Equities Advance on Stronger World Outlook
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.15% to 1.0948 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, June 01(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: The US dollar fell against most major currencies following the PBOC’s modest move to reduce the upward pressure on the yuan. Follow-through selling was seen earlier today, and sterling reached a new three-year high. However, the dollar found a bid in the European morning, while the...
Read More »How Swiss Asset Managers Opened their Doors to Lex Greensill
David Solo’s role in supply-chain firm Greensill’s pursuit of Swiss riches was pivotal Keystone / Steffen Schmidt In late 2014, David Solo lent A$12.2 million (CHF8.5 million) to a little-known supply-chain finance group with eye-catching claims. Greensill Capital, which was trying to muscle in on a corner of finance dominated for decades by banks, vowed to make “finance fairer” and declared that it would be “democratising capital”. The cheque was helpful, but the...
Read More »Private Security Isn’t Enough: Why America Needs Militias
[unable to retrieve full-text content]In late May we learned that, after a five-month deployment to one of the most dangerous cities in the world, the American military would finally be going home. Well, not really. They already were home. The dangerous warzone was the American federal capital, Washington, DC. And the “danger” that the military was supposed to be countering was entirely government made.
Read More »FX Daily, May 31: China Raises Reserve Requirement for FX, Stemming the Yuan’s Rise
Swiss Franc The Euro has risen by 0.22% to 1.0986 EUR/CHF and USD/CHF, May 31(see more posts on EUR/CHF, USD/CHF, ) Source: markets.ft.com - Click to enlarge FX Rates Overview: US and UK markets are closed for holidays today, contributing to the rather subdued price action today. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index rallied two percent last week, the most in three months, and most markets began off the week with modest gains. Japan, Australia, and Singapore, for...
Read More »