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EL SALVADOR HAS BECOME THE FIRST COUNTRY TO ADOPT BITCOIN AS LEGAL TENDER
After a supermajority vote, in which Bitcoin Law received 62 out of 84 of the legislature’s vote, the digital currency will become legal tender in El Salvador. The Republic of El Salvador is the first country in the world to adopt bitcoin as legal tender, with the price of bitcoin up by 5% soon after the vote.
SPACS – ANOTHER BUBBLE THAT’S DEFLATING
SPACs are very much a child of this age of fervid expectation, which was founded in how quickly the adoption of new tech is going to change the world. Everything from space tugs to hydrogen cars was apparently possible – whatever the realities of profits and costs suggested. Just a few months ago SPACs were perceived to be the simplest route into hot new companies across the disruptive tech market – new EV makers, spaceships, health and sports firms.
UK PATENT BOX SCHEME SET TO BECOME AN EVEN MORE VALUABLE TAX BENEFIT
The UK Patent Box scheme is set to become an even more valuable tax benefit in the near future. With Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s announcement of higher corporate tax rates from 2023, larger and more profitable companies in the UK will be able to enjoy even greater savings on profits qualifying for Patent Box relief.
Currently, Patent Box allows UK companies to benefit from a reduced 10% corporate tax rate for income derived from qualifying intellectual property, rather than the standard 19%.
FACTORS THAT AFFECT A LENDER’S DECISION ON YOUR LOAN
When you’re applying for a mortgage, auto loan, personal loan, or any other loan, you want to get the best outcome. However, your loan application may not go well all the time. It’s because lenders consider a range of factors to ensure that they are extending the loan responsibly.
If you don’t know what your lender is looking for, it can be more difficult for you to get approval. It would be best to acquaint yourself with the different factors that may significantly affect a lender’s decision on your loan.
KEY PROVISIONS IN NDAS IN A COMPETITIVE M&A SALES PROCESS
In any M&A sales process, the seller’s counsel will negotiate a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) with potential buyers and their legal counsel. The one-way NDA that each buyer executes protects the seller’s confidential information. There could be 30, 40, 50 or more potential buyers in a highly competitive M&A sales process, which means an NDA for each potential buyer. Scott Rissmiller has counselled sellers in two different sales processes in the last nine months that involved over 30 and over 50 NDAs, respectively. While some buyers sign the NDA as provided, many buyers negotiate it. Comments on an NDA from the two types of buyers (i.e., strategic and financial sponsors) will vary, especially regarding certain NDA provisions.
ARCHEGOS LOSSES: UBS TAKES UNEXPECTED $774 MILLION HIT
UBS reported on Tuesday a net income of $1.8 billion for the first quarter, revealing that it had taken a considerable hit to earnings from the collapse of Archegos Capital Management.
The Swiss bank said that it had taken a $774 million hit to revenue as a result of Archegos’s default earlier in the quarter. The hedge fund was a client of UBS’s prime brokerage business.
UBS added that it had ended all exposure to Archegos and that any related losses in the second quarter would be “immaterial”.
UK ECONOMY EXPECTED TO GROW AT FASTEST RATE ON RECORD
The UK economy is predicted to grow at the fastest rate since the second world war this year, according to a widely cited economic forecaster.
The EY Item Club has upgraded its forecast for GDP growth during 2021 from 5% to 6.8%, which would mark the fastest annual growth since 1941. This comes in the wake of relaxing COVID-19 restrictions and optimism that rapid progress with the country’s vaccine programme will enable a swift return to business as usual.
FTSE 100 REBOUNDS AFTER WORST DAY IN TWO MONTHS
The FTSE 100 rose on Wednesday, rallying after a mass sell-off led to a 2% fall in the previous session.
The index rose 0.6%, lifted by oil giants BP Plc’s and Royal Dutch Shell’s respective gains of 2.0% and 1.7%. The surge followed a report from Azerbaijan’s energy ministry said BP’s oil output reached 5.9 million tonnes in the first quarter.
Some stocks continued to slip, however. Just Eat Takeaway.com fell 4.2%, slumping to the bottom of the index, following news that rival Uber Eats plans to expand into Germany.
PAYSAFE PARTNERS WITH HUAWEI FOR ONLINE CASH PAYMENTS IN THE HUAWEI APPGALLERY
Leading specialised payments platform, Paysafe , today announces a new partnership with Huawei, a leading global provider of information technology and communications technology infrastructure and smart devices. Paysafe’s online cash payment solution paysafecard is now available as an alternative payment method in the Huawei App Gallery in Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Italy, Norway, Poland, Spain, Sweden and the UK. Plans to continue the rollout throughout most countries where paysafecard is available, will make cash-based online purchases available to millions of customers.
MOODY’S ANALYTICS LAUNCHES ASSET-LIABILITY MANAGEMENT TOOL FOR INSURANCE INVESTMENT
Moody’s Analytics is pleased to announce the launch of RiskIntegrity™ Investment Insight, an asset-liability management (ALM) solution for insurance companies. The new tool combines data and modeling capabilities from across Moody’s Analytics to help insurers to build liability-aware investment portfolios and better evaluate their investment strategies across a range of business metrics.
Insurance companies face a variety of challenges in managing their organization’s investment strategy including understanding the impact of alternative asset classes, reducing the operational risk of maintaining complex data and models, and adapting to regulatory change. Available as a software-as-a-service (SaaS) solution, RiskIntegrity Investment Insight helps insurers’ ALM and investment teams address these challenges by bringing Moody’s Analytics core content and models to life to deliver user-friendly analytics and reports on demand.
KBR ENHANCES ITS CAPITAL STRUCTURE AND FINANCING FLEXIBILITY
KBR announced today that on November 18, 2021, the company successfully closed the fifth amendment to its credit agreement dated April 25, 2018, as previously amended.
Following a strategic shift in the company’s business mix, consistent performance against long-term financial targets, improvement in corporate credit ratings, and the continued resolution of legacy matters, the amendment measurably improves the company’s flexibility and reduces its debt service cost.
COINANALYST LAUNCHES CRYPTO INTELLIGENCE NEWSLETTER GLOBALLY
CoinAnalyst Corp. a company that provides an artificial intelligence-based big data analytics platform (the “Platform”) which delivers detailed AI-powered analysis of market sentiment, fundamentals, and technical indicators to investors in the digital asset sector and other industries, announced today the worldwide distribution of their Crypto Market Letter.
FUTURE FINTECH ANNOUNCES PLANS TO LAUNCH FINANCIAL APP IN THE UK
Future FinTech Group Inc. , a leading blockchain-based e-commerce business and a fintech service provider, announced today that its new subsidiary, FTFT UK Limited (“FTFT UK”), held an inauguration ceremony on November 19, 2021 for the opening of its new office in London, during which FTFT UK announced that it has entered the beta testing phase for its mobile financial app which will enable customers to engage in a comprehensive suite of e-wallet activities. Representatives from the local business and financial sectors, including executives of MasterCard, JP Morgan Chase, China Mobile and Bank of China attended the event.
REMITTER OFFICIALLY PARTNERS WITH VISA READY FOR FINTECH ENABLEMENT CERTIFICATION PROGRAM
Remitter USA Inc., an AI-powered, digital communications and collections platform used to optimize customer engagement and improve collections, is pleased to announce its official partnership with the VISA Ready Fintech Enablement Certification Program.
The Visa Ready program enables partners to accelerate their growth by providing certification guidelines and access to Visa products and go-to-market expertise. The program will allow Remitter to differentiate its solution, establish trust with potential clients and expand its business with the Visa Ready seal of approval.
COMPLYSCI ACQUIRES ILLUMIS, PREMIER TECHNOLOGY PROVIDER TO FINANCIAL SERVICES FIRMS AND AGGREGATOR OF POLITICAL CONTRIBUTION DATA
ComplySci (the “Company”), the leading provider of regulatory technology and compliance solutions for the financial services sector, announced today that it has acquired illumis Inc., a premier data aggregator and technology provider whose solutions are used by financial services firms to identify and mitigate risk from employee political contributions. The transaction is ComplySci’s second acquisition in Q4 2021 and the latest step in the company’s mission to provide private equity firms, hedge funds, broker dealers and other financial services institutions with a comprehensive platform for streamlining and automating employee compliance functions.
WALMART REWARDS MASTERCARD LAUNCHES FIRST-EVER PAYMENT INSTALLMENT PLAN EXPANDING SERVICES AND PAYMENT OPTIONS FOR WALMART CUSTOMERS
Walmart Canada and Duo Bank of Canada are launching the first-ever Walmart Rewards™ Mastercard® Installment Plan to offer Walmart customers even more convenient and flexible payment options.
Customers have said they want more payment flexibility when they shop. The new Installment Plan through the Walmart Rewards Mastercard provides flexible ways to pay for larger ticket items and shopping baskets. Duo Bank is the issuer of the Walmart Rewards Mastercard.