| | | |

China: Harbinger of global economic decline

The latest numbers released by China’s statistics bureau fueled widespread concerns about the outlook of the global economy, as the Asian superpower reported its slowest growth rate since 1990. The figures showed a 6.6% growth for 2018, confirming the view that the growth engine of the world economy is running…

Crypto-crash: An optimistic post-mortem – Part II
| | | |

Crypto-crash: An optimistic post-mortem – Part II

Blatant security deficits and rampant fraud Over the last year, news of crypto hacks and heists became so prevalent that the new breaches were hardly worthy of reporting anymore. Among the headliners, however, was the Coincheck case, the Japanese exchange that lost over $530 million worth of the NEM cryptocurrency,…

Crypto-crash: An optimistic post-mortem – Part I
| | | |

Crypto-crash: An optimistic post-mortem – Part I

2018 was an Annus Horribilis for the entire crypto industry. Believers and crypto enthusiasts, swept up by the rally of 2017, found themselves on the wrong side of a crashing market. On the right side where the early critics, who were once accused of cynicism and a lack of imagination for…

Venezuela: when fiat money reaches its intrinsic value
| | | | |

Venezuela: when fiat money reaches its intrinsic value

Over the last years, Venezuela has become a modern poster child for the failure of socialism and with good reason. It offers an abundance of lessons and stern warnings for many western nations, but it also provides a very insightful and relevant reminder for individual investors too. Economic, social and…

| | |

Former JP Morgan trader pleads guilty to manipulating US metals markets for years

“New York-based J.P. Morgan declined to comment on the case through a spokesman. It was reported earlier by the Financial Times.” An ex-J.P. Morgan Chase trader has admitted to manipulating the U.S. markets of an array of precious metals for about seven years — and he has implicated his supervisors…