The latest biotech investment craze runs on excitement over Crispr, a technique for making gene editing easier and more precise, which biologists have already used to remove disease-causing genes from human embryos and slow the growth of cancer cells. Although a study published last month raised the possibility that the technology might also cause cancer in human cells, experts think ...
Read More »Thai minister says no need for central bank to hike rate
Bloomberg Thailand’s finance minister said the nation can refrain from raising its policy interest rate as the currency has weakened at a slower pace than peers and capital outflows are unlikely to pose a major risk. The baht’s recent drop will help boost incomes for the 30 million Thais in the farm sector, Apisak Tantivorawong said in an interview. The ...
Read More »VBS paid 5 million rand to officials for quick funding
Bloomberg South African lender VBS Mutual Bank, which collapsed in March, paid senior officials at the Public Investment Corp. (PIC) to fast-track funding for the lender, the Johannesburg-based Sunday Times said, citing an affidavit by the bank’s former head of treasury Phophi Mukhodobwane. The bank’s former treasurer was instructed to deliver a suitcase filled with 5 million rand to a ...
Read More »Goldman taps former Harvard prez as third woman for board
Bloomberg Goldman Sachs Group Inc. tapped former Harvard University president Drew Faust as a director, making her the third woman on an expanded 12-member board. Faust, 70, starts as an independent director this month after an 11-year tenure at Harvard, the New York-based bank said in a statement. She will be a part of the governance, public responsibilities and risk ...
Read More »Australia’s RBA seeks more resilience in electronic retail payment systems
Bloomberg The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) is among financial regulators globally seeking to ensure payment systems that handle retail transactions are more resilient and secure as fewer people carry cash, Assistant Governor Michele Bullock says. “The resilience of the electronic retail payment systems is becoming quite critical to the smooth functioning of economies,†Bullock, who overseas the financial system ...
Read More »SIX to launch digital asset trading platform
Bloomberg SIX, the owner of Switzerland’s securities exchange in Zurich, is creating platform for trading digital assets, boosting a nascent industry that some countries are trying to suffocate. The new platform will offer a “fully integrated, end-to-end trading, settlement and custody service,†the world’s first to do so, the bourse said in a statement. The parent exchange, regulated by Finma ...
Read More »Danske Bank’s laundering profits targeted by Danish government
Bloomberg As indignation grows over what may be the biggest financial crime saga in modern Danish history, politicians are looking for ways to ensure the country’s largest bank isn’t let off the hook. Danish Business Minister Rasmus Jarlov says he wants to focus more effort on finding out just how much money Danske Bank A/S made on illicit dealings amid ...
Read More »Airbus CEO lashes out at UK govt over handling of Brexit
Bloomberg Airbus SE CEO Tom Enders ratcheted up his criticism of the UK government over its handling of Brexit talks as PM Theresa May prepares to hold a key meeting of ministers aimed at thrashing out a common position on the issue. May’s administration has “no clue or consensus on how to execute Brexit without severe harm,†Enders said. The ...
Read More »Thai billionaire’s retail unit eyes China, India expansion
Bloomberg Thai billionaire Dhanin Chearavanont’s retail subsidiary CP All Pcl is considering an expansion of wholesale operations in China and India to tap the might of consumers in the world’s most-populous nations. CP All’s Chief Financial Officer Kriengchai Boonpoapichart said the firm’s cash-and-carry unit Siam Makro Pcl is studying opportunities in the two countries, as well as the possibility of ...
Read More »Air France pilots bristle at prospect of Dutch CEO
Bloomberg Air France pilots said they’re concerned Paris would lose out to Amsterdam if KLM unit chief Pieter Elbers becomes the first Dutch head of Air France-KLM, throwing up another obstacle in the search for a permanent CEO. Elbers, 48, has emerged as a serious contender to take the top job at the parent company after the French government, its ...
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