Global business group

Much of the hope for a revival of India’s jute industry rests on bans on single-use plastics that dozens of countries, including India, have enacted in recent years (Representative Image) Sameer Yasir NADIA, India — When shoppers in places like America take a woven reusable bag to the store, they aren’t just saving the planet. They are reviving a storied industry thousands of miles away in India. Jute, a coarse fibre used to make fabrics like burlap, has been cultivated for centuries in the warm and humid climate of the Ganges Delta. Some of India’s jute factories have been in operation for more than a century, and today the country is the world’s largest producer. But in recent decades, the industry has struggled as less expensive synthetic substitutes have flooded the market. Farmers turned to other crops, cheap labour moved elsewhere and mills deteriorated from lack of investment. Now, though, what had been jute’s weakness is its potential strength. As much of the … [Read more...] about That reusable Trader Joe’s bag? It’s rescuing an Indian industry

After the demise of the FTX empire, the latest casualty is crypto lender Genesis Global Capital. (Representative image) The once-burgeoning realm of crypto and decentralised finance keeps imploding, presenting policy makers with a quandary: Should they just let it burn, or step in to address its now-obvious flaws? I’m with the second group. To maintain their credibility, and to derive the greatest benefit from blockchain technology, regulators should intervene and crack down on scams, protect investors and ensure market integrity. The dominoes keep falling after the demise of the FTX empire. The latest casualty, crypto lender Genesis Global Capital, probably won’t be the last. Each failure further undermines trust, reduces activity and revenue, and puts pressure on the rest of the industry. With no lender of last resort to provide emergency support — as the Federal Reserve does for traditional banks — there’s little to stop the rot. Some think that’s just fine. They argue … [Read more...] about Crypto is worth fixing. Regulators should get moving

Larry Page (Image: Reuters) Last month, Larry Page and Sergey Brin, Google’s founders, held several meetings with company executives. The topic: a rival’s new chatbot, a clever A.I. product that looked as if it could be the first notable threat in decades to Google’s $149 billion search business. Mr. Page and Mr. Brin, who had not spent much time at Google since they left their daily roles with the company in 2019, reviewed Google’s artificial intelligence product strategy, according to two people with knowledge of the meetings who were not allowed to discuss them. They approved plans and pitched ideas to put more chatbot features into Google’s search engine. And they offered advice to company leaders, who have put A.I. front and center in their plans. The re-engagement of Google’s founders, at the invitation of the company’s current chief executive, Sundar Pichai, emphasized the urgency felt among many Google executives about artificial intelligence and that chatbot, … [Read more...] about Google calls in help from Larry Page and Sergey Brin for A.I. fight

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin What Happened In 2022 Even before a months-long winter engulfed the digital-assets market, 2022 was shaping up as the year that Washington began to get serious about regulating the cryptocurrency business. That resolve was bolstered throughout the year by a series of calamities that included a massive stablecoin failure of terraUSD and the associated luna, with contagion effects that impacted BlockFi, Celsius Network and Voyager Digital exchange that called into question the ability of crypto exchanges to be digital asset custodians that would protect investors’ assets. Essentially, the crypto industry managed to recreate the same risks of the traditional banking system, in which the institutions that were responsible for holding customer’s assets were simultaneously lending funds, leading to leverage, liquidity and capital conflicts. Before the year could end, the third-largest exchange, FTX – previously seen as a … [Read more...] about 2022 Year In Review: Crypto Policy Experiences Massive Turbulence In Congress Amid TerraUSD And FTX Failures

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin Even as media consumption skyrockets due to the COVID-19 outbreak, publishers are struggling as advertisers pare back their spending. Hundreds of journalists have already been laid off or furloughed, with more bad news expected in the coming weeks and months. Some outlets, like the Tampa Bay Times , say the cost-saving measures are intended to be temporary. Others, like The Outline, have shuttered entirely. Below is a list of major media companies (in alphabetical order) who have imposed layoffs, furloughs or pay cuts. Forbes will continue to revise this list as updates come in . ADVERTISEMENT Last updated May 29 at 7:30 pm EDT. American Media: The tabloid publisher, whose portfolio includes Us Weekly and In Touch (and previously the National Enquirer ), will reportedly cut employee salaries by 23%. Boston Herald: The paper laid off at least a half-dozen positions, including on its … [Read more...] about Tracker: Media Layoffs, Furloughs And Pay Cuts Due To Coronavirus

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin They’re all closed. Movie Theaters. Bars. Nightclubs. Arenas. Cafes. In New York, Broadway and museums are shuttered. In San Francisco it’s even more dire. Across the country and the world, cities are shutting down, leaving humans from Seattle to Shanghai without traditional ways of finding distraction. The mandate for social distancing that has proven essential at slowing the spread of the coronavirus will cut about $12 billion of entertainment revenue from the U.S. if the shutdown lasts until July, as President Trump signaled . Billions more are not being spent on creating new content as film and television production is frozen. Things could get a lot worse. “ This is definitely unprecedented and turning everyone's lives completely upside down,” says Ryan Borba, managing editor at concert tracker Pollstar. The concert and live event industry brought in $34 billion last year, according to … [Read more...] about Coronavirus Could Be A $12 Billion Hit To Entertainment And Audiences May Never Be The Same

Share to Twitter Share to Linkedin May 2, 2022 4:41pm ET: Story updated. Last month, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) sought public comment on a request from FTX US to modify its derivatives clearing organization (DCO) license to offer a new kind of crypto margin trading to U.S. retail customers. FTX US is requesting the ability to use a new kind of ‘non-intermediated’ model of crypto derivatives trading, meaning there is no intermediary used to hold customer’s funds. As crypto exchanges typically take collateral from the customer directly, the FTX US model would directly custody the margin from retail customers and liquidate positions held by the exchange on a 24-7-365 basis. Under the FTX US model, the customer’s positions will be reviewed for potential margin calls every 30 seconds. Sam Bankman-Fried, the CEO of FTX, recently described this model to Congress as, “...a 24/7 risk engine that is unlike the traditional system where there … [Read more...] about The FTX US Proposal That Shook Congress And The Crypto Derivatives World