Venezuela is slipping into chaos as President Nicolas Maduro called for the popular assembly last week in a fresh attempt to consolidate his hold on the nation. The opposition has refused to help draft a new constitution, calling the process fraudulent. The opposition coalition has accused Maduro of going against the country’s charter as any constitutional change requires the …

  What happens when strongmen meet? We know that the world is slowly filling up with populist nationalists, from Manila to Washington. But how do they plan to deal with each other? Will they join forces against the sanctimonious, supra-national powers that dismay them all? Or will they compete, as erstwhile tough guys seem most comfortable doing? Perhaps we shouldn’t …

  News that Alipay hooked up with First Data Corp. in the US may end up being more significant for both the Chinese fintech player and for Apple Inc. than Jack Ma’s $1.2 billion bid for an old-school payments provider, MoneyGram International Inc. In one swoop, the payments affiliate of Ma’s Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. gets access to 4 million …