Receiving Wide Coverage …
Just right
In his annual letter to shareholders, the Financial Times reports, JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says “It is possible that we will have a Goldilocks moment — fast growth, inflation that moves up gently (but not too much) and interest rates that rise (but not too much).”
“Mr. Dimon’s outlook is decidedly rosier than it was a year ago, when he warned shareholders to brace for a ‘bad recession’ in which U.S. gross domestic product could fall by up to 35%,” The Wall Street Journal reports.
Wall Street Journal
Cryptocurrencies get own trade group
Fidelity, Square “and several other financial firms are forming a new trade group that aims to shape the way bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies are regulated.” The Crypto Council for Innovation “will lobby policy makers, take up research projects and serve as the burgeoning industry’s voice in championing the economic benefits of digital currencies and related technologies.”
“The council’s launch comes as prices of many digital assets have surged, drawing in new mainstream investors and the banks and brokers that serve them. Earlier this year, the total market value of bitcoin, the most popular digital currency, touched $1 trillion for the first time.”
Bitcoin bump
One member of that group, the cryptocurrency exchange operator Coinbase Global, “released estimated results for the first quarter ahead of next week’s highly anticipated direct listing. It expects to report net income between $730 million and $800 million on revenue of $1.8 billion. By contrast, for all of 2020, the company earned $322 million on revenue of $1.3 billion.”
“Coinbase, which plans to list its shares publicly on Nasdaq beginning April 14, would be the first major crypto company to go public. Its fortunes are tied closely to the swings of the crypto market; it lists for trading about 50 cryptocurrencies besides bitcoin.”
More pain before gain
Anyone waiting for a quick turnaround in the shares of Credit Suisse, which Monday said it expects to lose $4.7 billion in the collapse of Archegos Capital Management, had better be patient, the Journal advises. The bank said it will cut its dividend and suspend share buybacks and replaced two top executives.
“Growth prospects are likely to be lower as the bank’s risk management tightens. Any big overhaul also will distract from the day-to-day operation of the group in the increasingly competitive business of banking the world’s wealthy. Overall, this feels more like the beginning than the end of a process of corporate renewal. Those who see the Swiss wealth manager’s shares as a bargain after a tough year need to be prepared for further pain.”
Financial Times
Don’t do it
“The worldwide fall in interest rates over the past two decades has caused a runaway boom in house prices. Therefore, it makes sense to raise interest rates so houses become affordable again. But that would be a disastrous…
