Article: Malaysia, 1MDB seeks more than $ 5.6 billion in damages from KPMG partners

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Malaysia, 1MDB seeks more than $ 5.6 billion in damages from KPMG partners

Rosanna Zambon and Liz Lee, 10 July 2021

Kuala Lumpur (Reuters)-Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), a Malaysian government and state fund, has sought more than $ 5.6 billion in damages from KPMG partners on suspicion of violations and negligence related to corruption scandals at the fund. A court document seen by Reuters showed.

Audit firm KPMG denied the allegations on Friday, promising to “violently” challenge the proceedings filed against 44 current and previous partners, and auditing 1MDB’s financial statements from 2010 to 2012. Linked to.

The proceedings confirmed by the Treasury on Tuesday are the latest in a series of proceedings filed by Malaysian authorities to recover the billions of dollars missing from 1MDB, worldwide. Continue reading “Article: Malaysia, 1MDB seeks more than $ 5.6 billion in damages from KPMG partners”

Article: Are Power Companies Playing Texas Hold’em?

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Are Power Companies Playing Texas Hold’em?

Jinjoo Lee, 05 July 2021

It isn’t even close to the peak of Texas’s sizzling summer season and already the state’s power grid has given out two warnings of tight conditions after a higher-than-usual volume of plants went offline. Wear and tear from the February winter storm is one possible explanation; market manipulation is another. They aren’t mutually exclusive.

Warm weather and low wind output played a role, but what was surprising about the alerts—one in April, the other in June—was the number of power plants that were offline at the same time. On June 14, the Electricity Reliability Council of Texas, the state’s grid operator, said some 11 gigawatts of generation (roughly 15% of that day’s peak load forecast and enough to power 2.2 million homes in the summer) was on forced outage for repairs. In April, Ercot had said roughly 33 GW of generation was out of service for maintenance. Of course, that isn’t entirely surprising after the February disaster that strained the entire system and left millions without power. Continue reading “Article: Are Power Companies Playing Texas Hold’em?”

Article: [News Focus] Legal risks persist at Samsung as Lee’s trial continues

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[News Focus] Legal risks persist at Samsung as Lee’s trial continues

Song Su-hyun, 10 June 2021

Samsung Group’s de facto chief Lee Jae-yong attended a court hearing on Thursday as part of an ongoing trial on alleged irregularities surrounding his ascension to the helm of the South Korean tech conglomerate.

As always, the tycoon, who is serving a 2 1/2-year jail term over a previous bribery conviction, didn’t utter a single word throughout the full-day session held at the Seoul Central District Court, as his attorneys fought hard to fend off additional convictions. The charges brought against him include stock market manipulation, accounting fraud and breach of trust. Continue reading “Article: [News Focus] Legal risks persist at Samsung as Lee’s trial continues”

Article: Meme Stocks Mania: What Is ‘Naked Shorting’ and Why Is It Trending on Twitter?

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Meme Stocks Mania: What Is ‘Naked Shorting’ and Why Is It Trending on Twitter?

William White, 07 June 2021

Naked shorting is trending on Twitter (NYSE:TWTR) today and it looks like there’s no end in sight to the meme stock mania as users react to the news that kicked this all off.

All of the excitement around naked shorting started after CNBC host Melissa Lee mentioned that the practice was taking place with shares of AMC Entertainment (NYSE:AMC) stock. The host said the following while discussing the matter.

“There’s a lot of people, a lot of short sellers out there borrowing stock they didn’t have.” Continue reading “Article: Meme Stocks Mania: What Is ‘Naked Shorting’ and Why Is It Trending on Twitter?”

Article: Next Digital trading halted after Jimmy Lai’s assets frozen

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Next Digital trading halted after Jimmy Lai’s assets frozen

Associated Press, 17 May 2021

Hong Kong – The Hong Kong stock exchange halted trading of Next Digital shares Monday at the media company’s request after authorities froze assets belonging to its founder, Jimmy Lai, who has been a high-profile voice in the the territory’s pro-democracy movement.

Later in the day, the media tycoon and nine other pro-democracy activists pleaded guilty to taking part in an unlawful assembly in 2019. Lai is already serving a 14-month sentence for his role in two other unauthorized assemblies during a period when Hong Kong residents were involved in mass anti-government protests. Continue reading “Article: Next Digital trading halted after Jimmy Lai’s assets frozen”

Article: ANALYSIS: Beyond GameStop—10 Takeaways From Gensler’s Testimony

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ANALYSIS: Beyond GameStop—10 Takeaways From Gensler’s Testimony

Preston Brewer, 10 May 2021

In testimony Thursday before the House Financial Services Committee, newly appointed SEC Chairman Gary Gensler signaled that he is prepared to change existing rules to better adapt to the challenges of today’s market environment, and to ask Congress for more authority where needed.

Gensler was there ostensibly to speak about the speculative trading in GameStop shares that occurred in late January. But the hearing went beyond GameStop and Robinhood to include a discussion of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s regulatory response about a wide range of topics. Continue reading “Article: ANALYSIS: Beyond GameStop—10 Takeaways From Gensler’s Testimony”

Article: A $953 Million Singapore Fund Ensnared by Alleged Fraud

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A $953 Million Singapore Fund Ensnared by Alleged Fraud

David Ramli, Yoolim Lee, Chanyaporn Chanjaroen and Alfred Cang, 06 May 2021

Technology startup investor Vickers Venture Partners has been caught up in the allegedly fraudulent nickel trading scheme of a Singaporean businessman and his Envy Global Trading, prompting a review by the city-state’s monetary authority.

Vickers would be the highest-profile investor yet to have fallen victim to the suspected $740 million swindle, which Singaporean authorities have said could be the biggest investment fraud the financial hub has ever seen. The alleged mastermind, Ng Yu Zhi, has been charged with a range of suspected crimes from faking the purchase and sale of nickel to falsifying transfers from Citibank and account statements that showed millions in funds. Continue reading “Article: A $953 Million Singapore Fund Ensnared by Alleged Fraud”

Article: Samsung Heirs to Pay $11 Billion Tax Amid Succession Cases

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Samsung Heirs to Pay $11 Billion Tax Amid Succession Cases

Yoojung Lee and Sohee Kim, 28 April 2021

Samsung Group’s billionaire heirs outlined a long-awaited plan to pay one of the largest inheritance-tax bills in history, a more than 12 trillion won ($11 billion) transfer of assets that will take place over several years.

The family of Lee Kun-hee, who died last year, revealed the size of the total bill, along with its intention to donate 1 trillion won for medical facilities and approximately 23,000 works of art. Under South Korea law, the heirs are allowed to make the tax payment over five years. Continue reading “Article: Samsung Heirs to Pay $11 Billion Tax Amid Succession Cases”

Article: VLSI Tells Jury $3B Intel Case Hinges On Witness Credibility

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VLSI Tells Jury $3B Intel Case Hinges On Witness Credibility

Cara Salvatore, 20 April 2021

Patent holder VLSI made its final argument Tuesday that Intel owes $3 billion for allegedly infringing chip-voltage-regulation technology, telling a Texas federal jury Intel’s witnesses contradicted themselves at moments they weren’t “getting the script right.”

In the second of three planned trials in the multipatent case, hedge-fund-owned VLSI has argued that Intel chip properties directly echoed two technologies invented by engineers at a company called Sigmatel around the year 2000. The patents are U.S. Patent Number 6,633,187, which covers “waking up” chip cores very quickly from power-saving idle states, and U.S. Patent Number 6,366,522, which covers regulating power draw while the cores are awake. Continue reading “Article: VLSI Tells Jury $3B Intel Case Hinges On Witness Credibility”

Article: SoftBank pays $2.8B to acquire 40% stake in warehouse automation firm AutoStore

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SoftBank pays $2.8B to acquire 40% stake in warehouse automation firm AutoStore

DUNCAN RILEY, 05 April 2021

SoftBank Group Corp. said today it has invested $2.8 billion to acquire a 40% stake in Norwegian warehouse automation company AutoStore AS.

SoftBank, Japan’s largest telecommunications companies and one of the world’s largest venture capital firms, acquired shares in the company from funds affiliated with Thomas H. Lee Partners L.P. and EQT Private Equity, among other shareholders. According to the Wall Street Journal, the deal values AutoStore at $7.7 billion. Continue reading “Article: SoftBank pays $2.8B to acquire 40% stake in warehouse automation firm AutoStore”

Article: 77% of people surveyed believe Robinhood’s restriction of meme stocks during the GameStop frenzy was market manipulation, new report finds

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77% of people surveyed believe Robinhood’s restriction of meme stocks during the GameStop frenzy was market manipulation, new report finds

Isabelle Lee, 01 March 2021

A survey by data analytics firm Invisibly found that 77% of people believe Robinhood’s restriction of certain stocks at the peak of the Reddit-fueled frenzy amounts to market manipulation.

Commission-free trading app Robinhood has faced significant backlash and scrutiny in the weeks since January’s Reddit-fueled short squeeze, with CEO Vlad Tenev grilled by legislators at February’s congressional hearing over the company’s decision to restrict buying of many of the “meme stocks” at the heart of the saga.

The move took the wind out of the momentum trade, and marked the end of January’s retail trader phenomenon.
Now, a recent study by data analytics from Invisibly found that a majority of people surveyed believe Robinhood’s restriction of meme stocks was market manipulation.

The study, which surveyed 1,300 people during the first week of February, also revealed that 39% felt the market mania was “exciting and good” for investors, while 17% felt it was “exciting but a bad investment.”

28% said the trading phenomenon was a positive event, and “shaking things up from time to time is a good thing”, while 15% felt it was detrimental to markets. Meanwhile, 40% of respondents believe that Robinhood and other retail trading services restricted some stocks to help hedge funds.

The survey paints a stark picture of the public’s perception of what transpired in late January, despite Robinhood stating that it restricted trading of some stocks due to clearinghouse requirements.

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Article: GameStop frenzy sparks fresh investment in stock-trading apps

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GameStop frenzy sparks fresh investment in stock-trading apps

Jane Lanhee Lee, 18 February 2021

OAKLAND, Calif. (Reuters) – The recent trading frenzy centered on GameStop Corp and other “meme” stocks is sparking a wave of investor interest in start-ups aiming to mimic the success of Robinhood Markets Inc, whose no-fee brokerage app has helped drive a trading boom.

Public.com, a direct competitor to Robinhood that boasts a host of blue-chip backers, said on Wednesday it had raised $220 million, valuing it at $1.2 billion on the private market. Another well-heeled rival, Stash, said earlier this month it had raised $125 million, while Webull Financial LLC, backed by Chinese investors, is also raising fresh funds after enjoying an influx of new users.

Robinhood, meanwhile, raised some $3.4 billion in the midst of the GameStop furor to assure its stability amid rapid growth and demands by its trading partners that it post more collateral. Continue reading “Article: GameStop frenzy sparks fresh investment in stock-trading apps”

Article: GameStop Frenzy Prompts SEC to Weigh More Short Sale Transparency

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GameStop Frenzy Prompts SEC to Weigh More Short Sale Transparency

House lawmakers meeting Thursday plan to examine the GameStop trading and discuss the dearth of short-sale data

Dave Michaels and Dawn Lim, Wall Street Journal, 17 February 2021

The Securities and Exchange Commission was ordered 11 years ago to impose such rules but never did it. Now, dealing with the fallout from frenetic trading in GameStop Corp. shares, the agency under new leadership is considering using its authority to shine more light on the mechanics of the bearish trades.

Comment: Bearish trades my ass. Naked short selling is a Class A Felony. It is counterfeiting.  It is fraud, It is cheating widows and orphans and wiping out inventors and entrepreneurs, turning gold into lead for profit. It is also on occasion collusion with foreign governments (the UK more often than China) and thus treason, sabotaging the US economy the US now being in a state of war.

THE DOLLAR HAS NO INTRINSIC VALUE : DO YOUR ASSETS?