Bloomberg Japan’s financial regulator (FSA) is keeping a closer watch on the nation’s banks and insurers as their drawn out hunt for yield pushes them into riskier non-traditional assets. After years of ultra-low interest rates and record levels of deposits, it’s “inevitable” that firms are taking bigger risks, according to Toshinori Yashiki, who’s in charge of assessing risk at banks …

Bloomberg Bank of America Corp.’s (BofA) online-banking platform went down for several hours, leaving thousands of customers locked out of their accounts before service was restored. The outage started in the morning and began to be resolved midday. Bank of America’s website and app were both at full capacity in New York, according to a company spokesman. “Today, some of …

Bloomberg Amazon.com Inc unveiled a home robot called Astro, a screen on wheels that works with the company’s Alexa voice software. The $1,000 bot, which Bloomberg first reported was in development in 2018, was shown at an Amazon event checking on pets while a user was away and following a child through the home during a video call. The device’s …

Bloomberg YouTube will begin removing content questioning any approved medical vaccine, not just those for Covid-19, a departure from the video site’s historically hands-off approach. The division of Alphabet Inc’s Google announced that it will extend its policy against misinformation to cover all vaccines that health authorities consider effective. The ban will include any media that claims vaccines are dangerous …

Bloomberg Fashion houses such as Stella McCartney and Victoria Beckham have long eschewed animal products in their wares, while automakers including Audi, BMW, Land Rover, and Tesla offer leather-free and sustainable interiors as options in their cars. So far, Volvo is among the very few brands to say it will not offer any leather at all, even as an option, …

Bloomberg Facebook Inc said it’s pausing work on rolling out an Instagram Kids site after social networking company came under criticism for its negative effect on children, especially on teenage girls. Facebook said it’s not abandoning the idea to create a dedicated experience for kids under 13, but will take time to discuss with experts, parents and policymakers to “demonstrate …

Bloomberg China’s central bank injected liquidity into the financial system for a ninth day in the longest run since December as it sought to meet a surge in seasonal demand for cash. The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) pumped in 100 billion yuan ($15.5 billion) of cash with 14-day reverse repurchase agreements, resulting in a net injection of 40 billion …

Bloomberg UK consumers have just one year left to spend about $32 billion of paper 20- and 50-pound notes as the Bank of England (BOE) withdraws them from circulation. The notes, which have been superseded by polymer equivalents featuring artist JMW Turner and mathematician Alan Turing, will no longer be accepted in shops after September 30, 2022, the BOE said …

Bloomberg Thailand’s central bank held its key interest rate unchanged amid optimism that an economic rebound will hold, as Southeast Asia’s second largest economy loosens growth-stifling restrictions and virus cases ease. The Bank of Thailand voted unanimously on Wednesday to hold one-day repurchase rate at a record-low 0.5% for an 11th straight meeting, as predicted by 19 of 22 economists …

Bloomberg JPMorgan Chase & Co invested in 10 banks with diverse leadership, acquiring stakes with a total value of more than $60 million, and is giving their customers free access to thousands of ATMs as part of its effort to help address the racial wealth gap. The “investments and commitments” JPMorgan has made in minority deposit institutions, known as MDIs, …