The Financial Crisis continues...
De-dollarization and the Sandman... More bankster fraud...
SVB hearing live updates: Senators grill Fed, FDIC and Treasury over bank failures... Martin Gruenberg, chairman of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Michael Barr, vice chair for supervision at the Federal Reserve and Nellie Liang, undersecretary for domestic finance at the Treasury Department will all testify before the Senate Banking Committee at a hearing on the recent bank failures starting at 10 a.m. The regulators will also defend the decisions they made in the hours after the collapse, particularly the unanimous vote to invoke the systemic risk exception to the FDIC’s deposit limit, according to their written testimony released ahead of the hearing.
Paris banks raided in €100 billion tax fraud probe... French authorities on Tuesday conducted raids in and around Paris in what they say is a possible tax fraud case that may have cost governments more than €100 billion ($108 billion). A spokesperson for France's Financial Prosecutor's Office (PNF) said the raids, which began at 9:30 a.m. and were still ongoing at midday, targeted four French banks and one international bank on suspicion of money laundering and fiscal fraud. The banks being investigated are: Societe Generale , BNP Paribas, Exane, Natixis and HSBC.
Kuroda says BOJ needs to be ready to issue digital yen... The Bank of Japan must be ready to issue central bank digital currencies (CBDC) that coexist with various other forms of money to offer the public a safe digital payment system, its governor Haruhiko Kuroda said on Tuesday. The central bank will start a pilot programme in April to test the use of a digital yen, joining a growing number of countries seeking to catch up with front-runner China in launching a CBDC.
Sam Bankman-Fried paid $40M bribe to Chinese officials to unfreeze accounts: feds... Embattled crypto guru Sam Bankman-Fried paid a $40 million bribe to at least one Chinese government official to get access to accounts that had been frozen by Beijing, federal prosecutors alleged Tuesday. Details of the 2021 bribe were included in a new indictment against Bankman-Fried – the former head of cryptocurrency exchange FTX and hedge fund Alameda Research – filed by federal prosecutors in Manhattan. The feds allege the shaggy-haired accused fraudster sought to unlock $1 billion in cryptocurrency in accounts that had been seized by the authoritarian state.
U.S. Accuses Sam Bankman-Fried in the new bribery conspiracy charge of directing the transfer of at least $40M of Cryptocurrency to benefit Chinese government officials....
Sam Bankman-Fried's Lawyers, Prosecutors Agree on Proposed Bail Conditions... Lawyers for Sam Bankman-Fried, the founder of crypto exchange FTX, have agreed on new bail conditions with U.S. prosecutors, according to court documents filed on Monday. Among the conditions submitted for approval to District Judge Lewis Kaplan of the Southern District of New York, Bankman-Fried will be given a new phone that won't have internet access and will be limited to text messages and voice calls. He will also be provided a new laptop with limited functionality that will be allowed access only to approved websites. Bankman-Fried's parents, in whose home the FTX founder will be residing, have agreed not to allow their son to use their devices nor bring unpermitted devices into the home.
Central Bank of Kenya whips banks to unlock dollars after President Ruto warning... The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has spooked banks with a new foreign exchange code that comes with threats of punitive fines and licence suspension for offenders, on a day President William Ruto warned traders hoarding dollars to expect losses in a few weeks.
De-Dollarization: More Countries Seek Alternatives to the U.S. Dollar... The U.S. dollar has dominated global trade and capital flows over many decades. However, many nations are looking for alternatives to the greenback to reduce their dependence on the United States. This graphic catalogs the rise of the U.S. dollar as the dominant international reserve currency, and the recent efforts by various nations to de-dollarize and reduce their dependence on the U.S. financial system.
Saudi National Bank chair resigns just days after Credit Suisse comments sparked sell-off... Saudi National Bank Chairman Ammar al-Khudairy has resigned his post. He will be replaced by SNB Managing Director and group CEO Mohammed al-Ghamdi.
What is going on here?
Don’t Mess With Texas: State Lawmakers Introduces Bill To Protect Bitcoin Holders... This article discusses recent developments in Texas and the federal government regarding the use and regulation of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. It highlights the introduction of a bill to protect the legal interests of Bitcoin investors, miners, and developers within the state and a proposed bill by Senator Ted Cruz to ban the implementation of centralized digital currency by the Federal Reserve and the Biden administration.
Nasdaq to Launch Crypto Custody Services in Q2 2023... After the recent bankruptcies, the exchange group Nasdaq is attempting to fill in the boots of crypto middlemen. Back in September 2022, Watcher Guru reported that Nasdaq Inc. was preparing to launch its own set of crypto custody services. According to the latest report, the services will be launched by the second quarter of this year.
100+ nations have global agreement now being deployed called ‘Project Sandman’ to drop and end dominance of U.S. dollar and petrodollar... “Project Sandman” describes a 100+ nation agreement that, when triggered, will see those nations simultaneously dump the dollar and abandon the “petrodollar” status that has allowed the USA to enjoy 50 years of fiat currency counterfeiting and material abundance at the expense of everyone else. When this decision is triggered, the dollar and all dollar-denominated assets will plunge to near-ZERO literally overnight. This means all dollar-denominated bank accounts, bonds, pension funds, treasuries and other investment vehicles will essentially be worth zero for the simple reason that all banks and markets will freeze operations. (This is the James Rickards “Ice-9” scenario.)
Hammer dropping... FOMO in gold: price explodes, analysts watch the test of record highs. Former Brazilian President Rousseff to chair BRICS Bank. Egypt joins BRICS bank as new member weeks after President Sisi's India visit. India and Saudi Arabia to create investment bridge. Bank of America to redeploy wealth management, banking employees. Putin, Xi Vow to Use Yuan as Russia and China Move to Settlements in National Currencies
Deutsche Bank shares drop 13% as global banking crisis anxieties swell... Shares of Deutsche Bank tumbled as much as 13% on Friday after the German lender learned it would have to pay higher rates to insure its bondholders against default. Deutsche Bank’s stock dropped for a third consecutive day as concerns abound over the stability of the global banking system following the recent emergency rescue of Credit Suisse by rival UBS as well as the collapse of US-based lenders Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank of New York.