February, 2022

• 21 February

  ECB officials edge towards rate hike to stem inflation

  

    Bloomberg More European Central Bank (ECB) officials are conceding that interest rates will likely need to rise late this year in the face of a stronger inflation outlook. A consensus is emerging before the March 10 policy meeting to set September as the end-date for asset purchases, according to people familiar with the situation who asked not to be …

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• 21 February

  Crypto lender Nexo halts interest on new deposits

  

    Bloomberg Crypto platform Nexo appears to be changing the terms for US customers to a product that offers the ability to earn high interest rates on crypto deposits. The decision follows the US Securities and Exchange Commission’s recent settlement with BlockFi Inc. over a similar product. In a statement posted to its official subreddit by a moderator who isn’t …

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• 21 February

  JPMorgan expects string of nine straight Fed rate hikes

  

    Bloomberg JPMorgan Chase & Co economists said the Federal Reserve is likely to raise interest rates by 25 basis points at nine consecutive meetings in a bid to tamp down inflation. The bank is joining others on Wall Street in ramping up bets for faster policy tightening, after US consumer prices posted the biggest jump since 1982 in January. …

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• 21 February

  Credit Suisse pays $81mn to end lending-stock suit

    Bloomberg Credit Suisse will pay $81 million to resolve a lawsuit by some US pension funds over control of the more than $1 trillion market for stock lending and agreed to help with similar cases pending against other banks. It’s the first settlement of a class-action lawsuit filed in 2017 alleging a group of major banks blocked development of …

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• 21 February

  Nigeria targets $200bn of inflows with new forex plan

  

    Bloomberg Nigeria’s central bank has a new plan to lure $200 billion of inflows to Africa’s biggest economy: make it attractive for exporters to bring home foreign currency. The central bank of Nigeria will stop selling the greenback to local banks and instead ask lenders to source foreign currency on their own. The regulator will offer long-term cheap credit …

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• 20 February

  HSBC shuts some branches in Hong Kong

    Bloomberg HSBC Holding Plc shut some branches in Hong Kong, including the one in its main office, after several staff tested positive for Covid. HSBC is closing the BL1, L3, L5 and L6 floors which offer branch services at its main building in the Central district, the London-based bank said in a statement. Five branches in Tuen Mun and …

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• 20 February

  BofA spies recession risk in rush for Treasuries, shuns credit

  

    Bloomberg After their worst start to a year in decades, Treasuries are reasserting their haven status and eclipsing the appeal of riskier assets — a troubling combination for Bank of America Corp (BofA) strategists. US sovereign debt attracted $7.4 billion in inflows, the most since the coronavirus pandemic first struck, according to a BofA note citing EPFR Global data …

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• 20 February

  Google brings ad-friendly privacy sandbox to android

  

    Bloomberg Google said it would bring its Privacy Sandbox initiative to Android phones, vowing to chart a less “blunt” path than rival Apple Inc., whose push to protect users’ personal information has dinged the digital advertising market. The Alphabet Inc company, which relies on ads for most of its revenue, said it can protect phone users’ data while giving …

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• 20 February

  New chip crisis means Japan’s auto giants aren’t in clear yet

  

    Bloomberg Japan’s top automakers emerged from a tough 2021 punctuated by a global semiconductor shortage and are forecasting profit will increase on the back of higher vehicle prices. However, a looming shortage of analog chips threatens to cloud the outlook. While tight supplies of semiconductors are set to ease later this year, the next bottleneck is likely to come …

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• 20 February

  Ford’s CEO explores ways to separate its EV business

  

    Bloomberg Ford Motor Co is looking at ways to separate its electric-vehicle operation from its century-old legacy business, hoping to earn the sort of investor respect enjoyed by Tesla Inc. and other pure-play EV makers. Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley wants to wall off Ford’s electric operations from its internal combustion engine business and has even considered spinning off …

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