The buzz surrounding artificial intelligence means there's a growing need for AI experts in the workplace. These courses offer education, certification, and even university-degree credits to help students find a job in artificial intelligence.Guillaume/Getty Images With the buzz surrounding AI, there's a growing need for experts in the workplace. Insider compiled a list of eight free Coursera classes on AI and its capabilities. While several are highly rated, others were created by prominent firms and educational institutions. There's a growing need for artificial-intelligence experts in the workplace.Workplace experts suggest employees upskill in a competitive environment.Trevor Williams/Getty ImagesWith the buzz surrounding artificial intelligence and its capabilities — from writing and refusing to write cover letters to giving business advice — there's a growing need for AI experts in the workplace.To help workers learn and improve their skills in AI, Insider compiled a list of eight free Coursera classes on the subject. These courses offer education and can help students find a job in the field. Several are highly rated on the platform, and the ones listed without ratings were created by prominent firms and educational institutions.What is the metaverse?What is the Metaverse?screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: MetaRating: 4.6/5Length: 10 hoursClass description: This course covers the metaverse and how it interacts with the world around us. It also addresses the professional and business opportunities that come with the metaverse and is taught by experts from Meta, Facebook's parent company."You'll learn about augmented reality, virtual reality, extended reality, NFTs, blockchain, Web3, cryptocurrency," Coursera says.Once they complete the course, students can collect Meta professional certificates, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés.Find the course here.New technologies for business leadersNew technologies for business leaders.screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: RutgersRating: 4.4/5Length: 19 hoursClass description: In this course, Rutgers professors teach students about blockchain, artificial intelligence, and virtual-reality technologies. The class is designed to help business leaders understand the technologies and implement them in business organizations. It helps leaders "improve client and customer engagement and ultimately the bottom line of their businesses," Coursera says.A course certificate, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés, is available for purchase after the course is completed.Find the course here.The economics of AIThe economics of AI.screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: The University of VirginiaRating: No ratingLength: 28 hoursClass description: Topics in this course include the nature of artificial intelligence and information theory, analysis and technological change in economics, how technological change drives economic growth, and the influence of AI-driven technology on workers. "The course introduces you to cutting-edge research in the economics of AI and the implications for economic growth and labor markets," Coursera says.Find the course here.Artificial intelligence: ethics & societal challengesArtificial intelligence: ethics & societal challenges.screenshot, Coursrea.comOffered by: Lund UniversityRating: 4.6/5Length: Four weeksClass description: The class covers the ethical and societal aspects of artificial intelligence over four modules that each equal about one week of part-time studies, according to Coursera.  Subject matter includes algorithmic bias and surveillance, the influence of AI on democracy, the concept of consciousness, and responsibility and control. "The aim of the course is to raise awareness of ethical and societal aspects of AI and to stimulate reflection and discussion upon implications of the use of AI in society," Coursera says. A course certificate, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés, is available for purchase after the course is completed. Take the course here.Introduction to machine learning on AWSIntroduction to machine learning on AWS.screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: Amazon Web Services Rating: No ratingLength: Seven hoursClass description: The class teaches students the difference between artificial intelligence, machine learning, and deep learning. It also covers how to build, train, and deploy machine-learning models. "We'll cover services which do the heavy lifting of computer vision, data extraction and analysis, language processing, speech recognition, translation, ML model training, and virtual agents," Coursera says. "You'll think of your current solutions and see where you can improve these solutions using AI, ML, or deep learning."A course certificate, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés, is available for purchase after the course is completed. Take the course here.Trustworthy AI for healthcare managementTrustworthy AI for healthcare management.screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: The Polytechnic University of MilanRating: No ratingLength: Three hoursClass description: This class is specific to the healthcare sector of artificial intelligence. Students will learn how AI systems work, which tasks can be carried out by AI, and common challenges for AI in healthcare. The course "gives an introduction to trustworthy artificial intelligence and its application in healthcare," Coursera says, adding it's "aimed at healthcare professionals, patients, and AI practitioners."A course certificate, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés, is available for purchase after the course is completed. Take the course here.AI, empathy & ethicsAI, empathy & ethics.screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: The University of California, Santa CruzRating: No ratingLength: Four hoursClass description: This course covers the basics, such as artificial-intelligence definitions and the future of AI."This nontechnical course provides an overview of artificial intelligence advancements and the ethical challenges we now face as we navigate the development, implementation, and ubiquitous global use of AI," Coursera says. A course certificate, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés, is available for purchase after the course is completed. Take the course here.Introduction to embedded machine learningIntroduction to Embedded Machine Learning.screenshot, Coursera.comOffered by: Edge ImpulseRating: 4.8/5Length: 17 hoursClass description: This course gives students an overview of machine learning, a branch of artificial intelligence that uses data and algorithms to solve problems and imitate the way humans learn.The course includes segments on "how to use machine learning to make decisions and predictions in an embedded system" and "the concepts and vocabulary necessary to understand the fundamentals of machine learning," according to Coursera. It also provides students with demonstrations and projects for hands-on experience.A course certificate, which can be shared on LinkedIn profiles or résumés, is available for purchase after the course is completed. Take the course here.Read the original article on Business Insider.....»»

There are 186 US banks that face risk of collapse like SVB should their depositors rush to pull their money, according to one research paper. Photo by Rob Kim/Getty Images US authorities could help ease bank concerns by protecting all depositors at mid-tier banks, Mohamed El-Erian said.   Widespread consolidation in mid-tier banks would not be good as smaller lenders serve local needs.   One economic analysis finds 186 banks vulnerable to failing like SVB should depositors rush to withdraw funds.  Anxiety about the US banking system following the implosion of Silicon Valley Bank could be lessened if regulators extended the protection given to SVB depositors to those at regional banks nationwide, according to economist Mohamed El-Erian. "I got lots of phone calls over the weekend from people with deposits in these banks. And I kept on telling them, 'Your deposits are safe,' and then they said, 'Well, what do I lose if I just move them to a bigger bank that's too large to fail?' And it's very difficult to counter that argument," El-Erian said in a Sky News interview on Monday. Shares of First Republic Bank and other mid-tier lenders were slammed lower over the past week on worries the companies could experience bank runs like the one that crippled SVB after depositors were spooked by its $1.8 billion loss on a massive bond sale.Regional bank stocks continued to be hit even after the Financial Deposit Insurance Corporation and others authorities said they would "fully protect" all depositors who had funds in Silicon Valley Bank beyond the FDIC's $250,000 limit per account. Should deposits stream out of mid-tier banks, that will lead to damaging consolidation in the US banking sector, said El-Erian. "The US banking system relies on these regional banks and the smaller banks to serve local and regional needs. So it's not a good thing. I think you can stop this process from destabilizing by simply saying that the deposit insurance that was given to the depositors at Silicon Valley Bank is now available to all banks."The collapse of SVB and Signature Bank left more than $200 billion in cash deposits looking for a new home, and big banks seen as "too big to fail" such as Bank of America and JPMorgan were expected to be among the top beneficiaries of inflows. Mid-tier banks will likely suffer deposit outflows, "but not for any reason to do with them," Allianz's chief economic advisor said. "They just happen to be in the wrong neighborhood. And I think the authorities need to move really quickly. And it's very easy to do - you formalize what you did for Silicon Valley Bank for these other banks." There are 186 US banks that face risk of collapse like SVB should their depositors rush for withdrawals, according to findings by economists in a paper posted on the Social Science Research Network.First Republic last week landed a $30 billion rescue package from a group of 11 banks led by JPMorgan and Bank of America. Its shares dropped Monday after S&P Global Ratings downgraded the San Francisco lender's credit rating further in so-called junk territory, saying the package may not be enough to resolve its liquidity and other challenges.  But PacWest and Western Alliance Bancorp shares were moving higher early Monday. Read the original article on Business Insider.....»»

The layoffs will affect employees in teams including advertising, Twitch, and Amazon Web Services, CEO Andy Jassy said in a memo. Amazon is laying off an additional 9,000 employees.Getty Amazon is laying off another 9,000 employees. That's on the top of the 18,000 job cuts announced earlier this year. CEO Andy Jassy said the additional cuts weren't announced sooner because some teams hadn't finished their cost-cutting analysis. Amazon is laying off an additional 9,000 employees, the e-commerce giant's CEO Andy Jassy said Monday. The layoffs will come on top of the cuts to 18,000 positions that the company disclosed in January. "Some may ask why we didn't announce these role reductions with the ones we announced a couple months ago," Jassy wrote in a memo to staff. "The short answer is that not all of the teams were done with their analyses in the late fall; and rather than rush through these assessments without the appropriate diligence, we chose to share these decisions as we've made them so people had the information as soon as possible. The same is true for this note as the impacted teams are not yet finished making final decisions on precisely which roles will be impacted."The company is planning to make the additional cuts "in the next few weeks," Jassy wrote in the statement, which noted that the layoffs would affect employees including in Amazon Web Services, the live-streaming platform Twitch, and advertising. "The overriding tenet of our annual planning this year was to be leaner while doing so in a way that enables us to still invest robustly in the key long-term customer experiences that we believe can meaningfully improve customers' lives and Amazon as a whole," Jassy wrote. Read Jassy's memo to Amazon employees on Monday: As we've just concluded the second phase of our operating plan ("OP2") this past week, I'm writing to share that we intend to eliminate about 9,000 more positions in the next few weeks—mostly in AWS, PXT, Advertising, and Twitch. This was a difficult decision, but one that we think is best for the company long term.Let me share some additional context.As part of our annual planning process, leaders across the company work with their teams to decide what investments they want to make for the future, prioritizing what matters most to customers and the long-term health of our businesses. For several years leading up to this one, most of our businesses added a significant amount of headcount. This made sense given what was happening in our businesses and the economy as a whole. However, given the uncertain economy in which we reside, and the uncertainty that exists in the near future, we have chosen to be more streamlined in our costs and headcount. The overriding tenet of our annual planning this year was to be leaner while doing so in a way that enables us to still invest robustly in the key long-term customer experiences that we believe can meaningfully improve customers' lives and Amazon as a whole. As our internal businesses evaluated what customers most care about, they made re-prioritization decisions that sometimes led to role reductions, sometimes led to moving people from one initiative to another, and sometimes led to new openings where we don't have the right skills match from our existing team members. This initially led us to eliminate 18,000 positions (which we shared in January); and, as we completed the second phase of our planning this month, it led us to these additional 9,000 role reductions (though you will see limited hiring in some of our businesses in strategic areas where we've prioritized allocating more resources).Some may ask why we didn't announce these role reductions with the ones we announced a couple months ago. The short answer is that not all of the teams were done with their analyses in the late fall; and rather than rush through these assessments without the appropriate diligence, we chose to share these decisions as we've made them so people had the information as soon as possible. The same is true for this note as the impacted teams are not yet finished making final decisions on precisely which roles will be impacted. Once those decisions have been made (our goal is to have this complete by mid to late April), we will communicate with the impacted employees (or where applicable in Europe, with employee representative bodies). We will, of course, support those we have to let go, and will provide packages that include a separation payment, transitional health insurance benefits, and external job placement support.If I go back to our tenet—being leaner while doing so in a way that enables us to still invest robustly in the key long-term customer experiences that we believe can meaningfully improve customers' lives and Amazon as a whole—I believe the result of this year's planning cycle is a plan that accomplishes this objective. I remain very optimistic about the future and the myriad of opportunities we have, both in our largest businesses, Stores and AWS, and our newer customer experiences and businesses in which we're investing.To those ultimately impacted by these reductions, I want to thank you for the work you have done on behalf of customers and the company. It's never easy to say goodbye to our teammates, and you will be missed. To those who will continue with us, I look forward to partnering with you as we make life easier for customers every day and relentlessly inventing to do so.AndyRead the original article on Business Insider.....»»

15% Reported Revenue Growth & 8% Constant Exchange Rate Revenue Growth: Demand for Abcam In-house Products Continues CAMBRIDGE, England and WALTHAM, Mass.  , March 20, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Abcam plc (NASDAQ:ABCM) ('Abcam', the 'Group' or the 'Company'), a global leader in the supply of life science research tools, today announces its results for the year ended 31 December 2022 (the 'period').                                         SUMMARY PERFORMANCE     Year-End 31 December 2022 £m 2021 £m Revenue 361.7 315.4 Gross profit margin, % Adjusted gross profit margin, % 74.8% 75.5% 71.2% 72.2% Operating profit margin, % Adjusted operating profit margin, % Diluted (loss) / earnings per share ('EPS') (£) (2.8%) 21.1% (0.037) 2.3% 19.2% 0.019 Adjusted diluted earnings per share ('EPS') (£) 0.249 0.206 Return on Capital Employed ('ROCE'), % 8.9 % 7.6 % FULL YEAR FINANCIAL HIGHLIGHTS[1] Reported revenue growth of 15%; constant exchange rate ('CER') revenue growth of 8%- In-house revenues, including BioVision and Custom, Products & Licensing, recorded 26% reported revenue growth and 18% CER revenue growth Reported gross profit margin of 74.8%: Adjusted gross profit margin of 75.5%, an increase of 330 basis points from 72.2%, driven by the contribution of in-house revenues, including BioVision and Custom, Products & Licensing Operating loss of £10.1 million impacted by £18.3 million impairment charge on asset held for sale; adjusted operating profit increased 26% to £76.3m, resulting in a 190 basis points increase of adjusted operating profit margin to 21.1% Diluted loss per share of (£0.037) impacted by impairment charge on asset held for sale; adjusted diluted earnings per share increased 21% to £0.249 Return on capital employed increased to 8.9%, a 130-basis point improvement, favourably impacted by efficient capital utilization and higher adjusted operating profits [1] These results include discussion of alternative performance measures which include revenues calculated at Constant Exchange Rates (CER) and adjusted financial measures. CER results are calculated by applying prior period's actual exchange rates to this period's results.  Adjusted financial measures are reconciled to the most directly comparable measure prepared in accordance with IFRS in note 3 to the financial statements. BUSINESS HIGHLIGHTS In-house revenues, including BioVision and Custom, Products & Licensing, represent 67% of total sales, an increase of 600 basis points- Academic & Biopharmaceutical customers experienced double-digit percent reported revenue growth, Academic grew mid-single digits and Biopharmaceutical grew double-digit percent on a CER basis Partnering with biopharma, diagnostic and multiplex platform partners continued to generate current and future sources of growth with the number of commercialized antibodies with these partners rising to a total of more than 2,100   To support future growth, we've implemented an Oracle Cloud ERP system, and expanded sites in Waltham, Singapore, and Amsterdam Expanded Life Science Industry experience within the Board of Directors with the appointment of Luba Greenwood, as Non-Executive Director Cancellation of admission to trading on AIM completed and sole Nasdaq listing as of 14 December 2022 FY23 OUTLOOK The Company anticipates reported revenues of approximately £420 million to £440 million, representing 15% to 20% constant exchange rate revenue growth, combined with lower operating expense growth, resulting in adjusted operating profit margin expansion. FY2024 GOAL  The Company is reiterating its 2024 revenue goals of £450m-£525m with adjusted operating profit margins of greater than 30%.  Commenting on the performance, Alan Hirzel, Abcam's Chief Executive Officer, said:  "Our team is dedicated to supporting life science discovery, and the translation of discovery to social impact.  In the last ten years, our business has grown revenue at double digit rates because of the trust the market has in our team, our innovation, and our brand.  As we look ahead, we can be confident that we have and continue to build a sustainable and profitable growth company.  I am grateful to everyone at Abcam for their ongoing efforts through this exciting period. I also thank our customers and partners bringing Abcam into their labs and giving us all the opportunity to demonstrate our company's role in making progress happen together." Analyst and investor meeting and webcast: Abcam will host a conference call and webcast for analysts and investors today at 12:00 GMT/ 08:00 EDT. For details, and to register, please visit corporate.abcam.com/investors/reports-presentations A recording of the webcast will be made available on Abcam's website, corporate.abcam.com/investors The information communicated in this announcement contains inside information for the purposes of Article 7 of the Market Abuse Regulation (EU) No. 596/2014.   For further information please contact: Abcam + 44 (0) 1223 696 000 Alan Hirzel, Chief Executive Officer Michael Baldock, Chief Financial Officer Tommy Thomas, Vice President, Investor Relations     About Abcam plc  As an innovator in reagents and tools, Abcam's purpose is to serve life science researchers globally to achieve their mission faster. Providing the research and clinical communities with tools and scientific support, the Company offers highly validated antibodies, assays, and other research tools to address important targets in critical biological pathways.  Already a pioneer in data sharing and ecommerce in the life sciences, Abcam's ambition is to be the most influential company in life sciences by helping advance global understanding of biology and causes of disease, which, in turn, will drive new treatments and improved health.  Abcam's worldwide customer base of approximately one million life science researchers' uses Abcam's antibodies, reagents, biomarkers, and assays. By actively listening to and collaborating with these researchers, the Company continuously advances its portfolio to address their needs. A transparent program of customer reviews and datasheets, combined with industry-leading validation initiatives, gives researchers increased confidence in their results.  Founded in 1998 and headquartered in Cambridge, UK, the Company has served customers in more than 130 countries. Abcam's American Depositary Shares (ADSs) trade on the Nasdaq Global Select Market (NASDAQ:ABCM).  For more information, please visit www.abcam.com or www.abcamplc.com  Forward-Looking Statements    This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the following words: "may," "might," "will," "could," "would," "should," "expect," "plan," "anticipate," "intend," "seek," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "potential," "continue," "contemplate," "possible" or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. They are not historical facts, nor are they guarantees of future performance.  Any express or implied statements contained in this announcement that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding Abcam's portfolio and ambitions, and our future results of operations and financial position such as our outlook for FY2023 and performance goals for FY2024 are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including, without limitation:  challenges in implementing our strategies for revenue growth in light of competitive challenges; the development of new products or the enhancement of existing products, and the need to adapt to significant technological changes or respond to the introduction of new products by competitors to remain competitive; our customers discontinuing or spending less on research, development, production or other scientific endeavors; failing to successfully identify or integrate acquired businesses or assets into our operations or fully recognize the anticipated benefits of businesses or assets that we acquire; the ongoing COVID 19 pandemic, including variants, continues to affect our business, including impacts on our operations and supply chains; failing to successfully use, access and maintain information systems and implement new systems to handle our changing needs; cyber security risks and any failure to maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of our computer hardware, software and internet applications and related tools and functions; failing to successfully manage our current and potential future growth; any significant interruptions in our operations; our products failing to satisfy applicable quality criteria, specifications and performance standards; failing to maintain and enhance our brand and reputation; ability to react to unfavorable geopolitical or economic changes that affect life science funding; failing to deliver on transformational growth projects; our dependence upon management and highly skilled employees and our ability to attract and retain these highly skilled employees; and as a foreign private issuer, we are exempt from a number of rules under the U.S. securities laws and Nasdaq corporate governance rules and are permitted to file less information with the SEC than U.S. companies, which may limit the information available to holders of our American Depositary Shares ("ADS"); and the other important factors discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in Abcam's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the year ended December 31, 2022 ("Annual Report") with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on March 20, 2023, which is available on the SEC website at www.sec.gov, as such factors may be updated from time to time in Abcam's subsequent filings with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement speak only as of the date hereof and accordingly undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Abcam disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than to the extent required by applicable law.    Use of Non-IFRS Financial Measures  To supplement our audited financial results prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards ("IFRS") we present Adjusted Operating Profit, Adjusted Operating Profit Margin, Return on Capital Employed ("ROCE"), Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share, Total Constant Exchange Rate Revenue ("CER revenue"), Adjusted Selling, General and Administrative expenses, Adjusted Research & Development expenses, and Free Cash Flow, which are financial measures not prepared in accordance with IFRS ("non-IFRS financial measures"). We believe that the presentation of these non-IFRS financial measures provide useful information about our operating results and enhances the overall understanding of our past financial performance and future prospects, allowing for greater transparency with respect to key measures used by management in its financial and operational decision making.  These non-IFRS financial measures are supplemental in nature as they include and/or exclude certain items not included and/or excluded in the most directly comparable IFRS financial measures and should not be considered in isolation, or as a substitute for, financial measures prepared in accordance with IFRS. Further, other companies may calculate these non-IFRS financial measures differently than we do, which may limit the usefulness of those measures for comparative purposes.  Management believes that the presentation of (a) Adjusted Operating Profit, Adjusted Operating Profit Margin, ROCE, and Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share, provide useful information to investors and others as management regularly reviews these measures as important indicators of our operating performance and makes decisions based on them, (b) CER revenue provides useful information to investors and others as management regularly reviews this measure to identify period-on-period or year-on-year performance of the business and makes decisions based on it, and (c) Adjusted Selling, General and Administrative expenses and Adjusted Research & Development expenses provide useful information to investors and others as management regularly reviews these measures to identify period-on-period or year-on-year performance of the business and makes decisions based on it, and (d) Free Cash Flow provides useful information to investors and others because management regularly reviews this measure as an important indicator of how much cash is generated by business operations, excluding capital related items, and provides an indication of the amount of cash available for discretionary investing or financing after removing capital related items, and makes decisions based on it. Please see "Non-IFRS Financial Measures" for a reconciliation of non-IFRS financial measures to their most directly comparable IFRS financial measures.  We define: Adjusted Operating Profit as profit for the period / year before taking account of finance income, finance costs, tax, exceptional items, share-based payments, and amortization of acquisition intangibles. Exceptional items consist of certain cash and non-cash items that we believe are not reflective of the normal course of our business; and we identify and determine items to be exceptional based on their nature and incidence or by or by their significance ("exceptional items"). As a result, the composition of exceptional items may vary from period to period / year to year. Adjusted Operating Profit Margin as adjusted operating profit calculated as a percentage of revenue. ROCE as Adjusted Operating Profit divided by capital employed, defined as total assets less current liabilities. Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share as Adjusted Profit for the year divided by the weighted average number of ordinary shares for the purposes of diluted earnings per share. Adjusted Profit for the year used in this calculation is defined as profit for the year plus adjusting items (impairment of intangible assets, system and process improvement costs, acquisition costs, integration and reorganization costs, net of tax effects). Adjusted Diluted Earnings per Share is calculated with an adjustment to the weighted average number of shares outstanding to assume conversion of all potentially dilutive ordinary shares. Adjusted Selling, General and Administrative expenses as reported selling, general and administrative expenses for the year before taking account of exceptional items, share-based payments, and amortization of acquisition intangibles. Adjusted Research & Development expenses as reported research and development expenses for the year before taking account of exceptional items, share-based payments, and amortization of acquisition intangibles. CER as our total revenue growth from one fiscal period / year to the next on a constant exchange rate basis.  Free Cash Flow as net cash inflow from operating activities less net capital expenditure, transfer of cash from/(to) escrow in respect of future capital expenditure and the principal and interest elements of lease obligations. Management is unable to present quantitative reconciliations of Adjusted Operating Profit, Adjusted Operating Profit Margin, and CER revenue to their respective most directly comparable IFRS financial measures of Operating Profit, Operating Profit Margin and Reported Revenue on a forward-looking basis, because items that impact these IFRS financial measures are not within our control and/or cannot be reasonably predicted. Such information may have a significant, and potentially unpredictable, impact on our future financial results.   Year-end management report Introduction We are pleased with the continued progress of our business over the last 12 months and the way our people have responded to the evolving impact of COVID-19.  Indeed, the challenges presented since the pandemic began over three years ago have served to highlight the resilience of both our employees and our business, as well as the role Abcam and its customers have in advancing critical life science research. We are convinced more than ever that by continuing to develop our technologies, people, and capabilities, and focusing on customer needs, we can extend our market leadership, sustain durable growth, and become an increasingly influential partner within our industry. Demand for our products, and particularly Abcam's in-house developed products, continued to increase as customers continued to focus on their research, enabling greater productivity.  Whilst the global pandemic once again impacted revenues – we estimate that overall lab activity is now approaching pre-COVID levels in the Americas and EMEA, our largest geographical markets representing nearly 70% of total sales. In the year ended 31 December 2022, demand for our products continued but revenue growth was interrupted by the implementation of an Oracle Cloud ERP system and COVID-19 headwinds in China.  The combination of these factors impacted revenues by approximately £30 million on a reported basis resulting in total revenues increasing 8% CER (15% reported) to £361.7 million. On a reported basis, we incurred a net loss of £8.5 million impacted by £18.3 million impairment charge on an asset held for sale; and diluted EPS declined to -£3.7p. On an adjusted basis, adjusted operating profit increased 26%, to £76.3 million (2021: £60.4m), and adjusted diluted EPS increased 21% to 24.9p (2021: 20.6p). Despite the recent disruptions, the opportunities for growth in our markets remain, and we are committed to our customers and their long-term success thereby driving our future growth. As we near completion of our five-year strategic plan, we thank our approximately 1,800 employees for their ongoing commitment in the delivery of our plans – they are fundamental to the Group's future success. We continue to have a strong balance sheet (net debt of £30.6 million), and we are focused on investments in attractive organic and inorganic growth opportunities, as they arise.  Looking forward, with our expanding capabilities, financial position and market opportunities for growth, the Group is well-placed to sustain long-term value creation. Financial review Year ended 31 December Reported revenues  Change in reported revenues  %  CER growth  %  2022  £m  2021  £m  Catalogue revenue – regional split  Americas  147.2 114.8 28 % 16 % EMEA  87.1 82.3 6 % 6 % China 60.3 57.2 5 % (2 %) Japan  17.4 18.7 (7 %) 0 % Rest of Asia Pacific  27.8 23.4 19 % 9 % Catalogue revenue  339.8 296.4 15 % 8 % CP&L revenue1  21.9 19.0 15 % 5 % Total reported revenue  361.7 315.4 15 % 8 % Total revenue – product type  In-house  243.9 193.1 26 % 18 % Third party  117.8 122.3 (4 %) (9 %) Total reported revenue   361.7 315.4 15 % 8 %   REVENUE  We recorded revenue of £361.7 million for the year ended 31 December 2022 (2021: £315.4 m). Revenue grew 8% on a CER basis and reported revenues grew by 15%.  During the year, two factors impacted revenue growth. First, the implementation of the new Oracle Cloud ERP system disrupted revenues in September and October. Second, China revenues were impacted by COVID-19 controls and outbreaks. Based on the differences between forecasts and actual results, we estimate the aggregate impact to sales was approximately £30m. We estimate this headwind negatively impacted revenue growth by approximately 10% on a reported and 9% on our CER growth rates."  Catalogue revenues: £339.8 million (2021: £296.4m), grew approximately 8% CER and 15% on a reported basis, including BioVision. Catalogue revenue growth by region is as follows:   Americas +16% CER / +28% Reported  - Excluding Distributors, Americas sales were driven by high-teens digit CER in Biopharma, and high-single digit CER in Academia.  Excluding the estimated headwinds on revenues in 2022, Americas grew over 20% CER.  EMEA +6% CER / +6% Reported  - Excluding Distributors, EMEA sales were driven by high-teens digit CER in Biopharma, and low-single digit CER growth in Academia.  Excluding the estimated headwinds on revenues in 2022, EMEA grew low teens CER.  China (-2%) CER / +5% Reported - Excluding the estimated headwinds on revenues in 2022, China grew mid-teens digit CER. Rest of Asia Pacific including Japan +5% CER / +7% Reported   - Excluding Japan which experienced flat growth (on a CER basis), rest of Asia-Pacific grew high-single digit CER  From a served end markets basis, total catalogue sales are as follows:     Academia +4% CER / +11% Reported    Biopharma +10% CER / +18% Reported     Distributors +12% CER / +18% Reported  Custom, Products & Licenses revenues: £21.9 million (2021: £19.0m), grew approximately 5% CER and 15% on a reported basis: GROSS MARGIN Reported gross profit margin of 74.8%. Adjusted gross margin increased by 330 basis points, to 75.5%, in the year ended 31 December 2022, reflecting both a favourable movement in product mix towards high margin in-house products, and the positive impact of the BioVision acquisition. OPERATING COSTS   Year ended 31 December  Reported  Adjusted  2022  £m  2021  £m  2022  £m  2021  £m  Selling, general & administrative expenses ('SG&A')  224.5 189.7 176.3 150.6 Research & development expenses ('R&D')  56.1 27.8 20.6 16.7 Total operating costs and expenses  280.6 217.5 196.9 167.3   Selling, general and administrative expenses   Reported selling, general and administrative expenses of £224.5 million. Adjusted selling, general and administrative expenses increased by £25.7 million, to £176.3 million for the year ended 31 December 2022 compared to £150.6 million for the year ended 31 December 2021. The overall increase was due to an increase in salaries, IT systems and licenses, higher travel costs off a lower prior period, increased headcount for in-house teams and the inclusion of BioVision.     Research and development expenses   Reported research and development expenses of £56.1 million. Adjusted research and development expenses increased by £3.9 million, to £20.6 million, for the year ended 31 December 2022 compared to £16.7 million for the year ended 31 December 2021. The overall increase was due to increases in salary, and related costs in connection with the BioVision acquisition.      On a reported basis, total reported costs were £280.6 million (2021 £217.5m) reflect the adjusting items noted below.   ADJUSTING ITEMS  Total reported expenses include the following adjusting items:   £6.6 million relating to the Oracle Cloud ERP project (2021: £7.0m)  £15.7 million from acquisition, integration, and reorganisation charges (2021: £13.0m)  £16.9 million relating to the amortisation of acquired intangibles (2021: £9.1m)  £18.3 million related to impairment charge for asset held for sale (2021: £nil) £26.2 million in charges for share-based payments (2021: £20.0m)  £2.7 million relation to the amortization of fair value adjustments (2021: £3.1m) NET PROFIT   Adjusted net profit was £57.7 million (2021: £47.2m) driven by revenue growth, favourable product mix enabling gross margin expansion offsetting operational and innovation investments in the business.  Reported net loss was £8.5 million (2021: £4.4m Net Profit).   CASH  As of 31 December 2022, we had cash and cash equivalents of £89.0 million with drawings of £119.6 million as at the year ended 31 December 2022 resulting in a net debt position of £30.6 million.  We assess our liquidity, in part, through an analysis of our working capital together with our other sources of liquidity. As of 31 December 2022, our working capital balance, which is comprised of inventories, trade and other receivables and trade and other payables, was £84.2 million, an increase of £34.5 million from £49.7 million for the year ended 31 December 2021.  The increase in working capital during the year ended 31 December 2022, was impacted by: (i) the implementation of the new Oracle Cloud ERP system that disrupted revenues in the second half of the year ended 31 December 2022 (predominantly September and October), and (ii) the impact the COVID-19 pandemic in China, and the related preventative and precautionary measures, had on our business. Specifically, the increases in inventory and accounts receivables were driven by our inability to ship and invoice product sales and collect cash on a timely basis. LOOKING AHEAD We continue to experience good order demand across the business as market activity has largely resumed in most major geographies. Investments we have made, and that we continue to make, are enabling the business to sustain growth and we remain committed to generating revenue of £450 million – £525 million for the year ending 31 December 2024 (calculated at the average exchange rates for the 12 months ended June 2021). In the more immediate term, uncertainty in China arising from COVID-19 remains, yet research and commercial laboratory activity and demand have continued to recover and trading performance year to date is in line with the Board's expectations for January and February 2023. The business' cash generation and financial position continue to provide a foundation from which to pursue opportunities, including innovation, acquisitions and partnerships. We will continue to invest in our business to enable Abcam to provide innovative, trusted, and improved solutions for our customers. While the rate of investment is expected to moderate from recent levels as we pass the peak for this 2019-2024 strategy implementation, we have a continuing appetite to invest in growing Abcam sustainably for the long term. Supported by a clear purpose and strategy, and thanks to the efforts of all our employees and partners, we believe that Abcam is well positioned to continue delivering long-term value for our shareholders. Alan HirzelChief Executive Officer Michael S BaldockChief Financial Officer 20 March 2023 Forward-Looking Statements   This announcement contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Any express or implied statements contained in this announcement that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements, including, without limitation, statements regarding Abcam's portfolio and ambitions, and our future results of operations and financial position such as our guidance for FY2023 and performance goals for FY2024 are neither promises nor guarantees, but involve known and unknown risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected, including, without limitation:  potential changes from unaudited management accounts, which are provisional and subject to review, to our audited financial statements; regional or global health pandemic, including the novel coronavirus ("COVID-19"), which has adversely affected elements of our business, and could severely affect our business, including due to impacts on our operations and supply chains; challenges in implementing our strategies for revenue growth in light of competitive challenges; developing new or enhancing existing products, adapting to significant technological change and responding to the introduction of new products by competitors to remain competitive; failing to successfully identify or integrate acquired businesses or assets into our operations or fully recognize the anticipated benefits of such businesses or assets; risks that our customers discontinue or spend less on research, development, production or other scientific endeavors with us; failing to successfully use, access and maintain information systems and implement new systems to handle our changing needs; cyber security risks and any failure to maintain the confidentiality, integrity and availability of our computer hardware, software and internet applications and related tools and functions; failing to successfully manage our current and potential future growth; failing to successfully increase access to the U.S. capital markets, which we anticipated would provide greater liquidity potential than AIM; any significant interruptions in our operations; risks that our products fail to satisfy applicable quality criteria, specifications and performance standards; failing to maintain our brand and reputation; our dependence upon management and highly skilled employees and risks that we are unable to attract and retain these highly skilled employees; and the other important factors discussed under the caption "Risk Factors" in Abcam's Annual Report on Form 20-F filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on 20 March 2023, which is available on the SEC website at www.sec.gov, as such factors may be updated from time to time in Abcam's subsequent filings with the SEC. Any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement speak only as of the date hereof and accordingly undue reliance should not be placed on such statements. Abcam disclaims any obligation or undertaking to update or revise any forward-looking statements contained in this announcement, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, other than to the extent required by applicable law.       Consolidated income statement For the year ended 31 December 2022 Year ended 31 December 2022.....»»

Be careful who you trust online: more people are getting scammed out of thousands of dollars by people who claim to love them. Romance scams are booming and costing Americans billions, and they often start on Facebook or Instagram.iStock; Robyn Phelps/InsiderHow digital grifters are bilking the lonely out of $1.3 billion a yearKate Kleinert was home by herself one day in summer 2020 when she received a friend request from an attractive stranger on Facebook. He introduced himself as Tony, a Norwegian physician stationed in Iraq. Kate, who is 69, often received friend requests from single men. They usually fell in the same category: handsome, successful, and stationed in another country. "I never accepted those friend requests," she told me, "but there was something about this one. I don't know if it was the mood I was in that day, or what." She decided to accept Tony's friend request."I had been widowed at that point for 12 years and had never looked for another romance," she told me. "My heart was still married to my husband. I never went on dating sites. I never went out to clubs or bars looking for someone, but this man arrived in my living room."Over the next couple of months, Kate became swept up in what she thought was a whirlwind romance. Tony would message her daily, sending pictures of himself and sharing stories about his two children and his wife who he said died of leukemia. Before long, he was professing how much he loved Kate, asking her to look at houses for them to eventually move into together and check out schools for the children. "I really looked forward to someone saying to me, 'How was your day, honey?' I hadn't heard that in many years, so I'd forgotten how good it felt to have someone, anyone really, to talk to — but a man to talk to was especially nice," she told me. When Tony began to ask for money, it was initially for help with his daughter's expenses. Not having children of her own, Kate was thrilled at the chance to adopt a motherly role — and Tony assured her she would be paid back when they all were finally together at Christmas. Bypassing her initial doubts, she began sending money in the form of gift cards to help with various "emergencies," and by December 2020, she had sent $39,000. But the fairy-tale romance wouldn't last. A lover left in the lurch is a tale as old as time. But as the pandemic's isolation has sent more people online in search of companionship, the stakes have grown. According to the US Federal Trade Commission, the combination of pandemic isolation, online dating, and cryptocurrencies have spawned "a combustible combination for fraud." Americans lost $1.3 billion to romance scams last year — an 164% increase from 2019 — and $3.3 billion in total since the start of the pandemic. And according to the experts I talked to, the country's ongoing loneliness crisis has created the perfect opportunity for swindlers to strike. "They really invest in developing a relationship," Stacey Wood, a forensic neuropsychology expert, said about the scammers. "It may be six months before they ask for money. That's a commitment."A passionless crimeEver since the dawn of relationships, scammers have found ways to take advantage of people by spinning a convincing tale. But with the rise in online dating, these scams have proliferated, evolving into more sophisticated long cons to win the trust of victims. According to the FTC report, the most popular way scammers reached out to their victims last year was through Instagram (29%) and Facebook (28%).And as these schemes get more widespread and more complex, the number of people falling for romance scams keeps growing. Last year, 70,000 people reported they were a victim of a romance scam, with a median loss of $4,400. And that may just be the tip of the iceberg — the FTC notes that because the vast majority of scams aren't reported to the government, "these figures reflect just a small fraction of the public harm."One theory for the boom? The pandemic. Wood told me that while the COVID-19 lockdowns were not the sole factor for the increase, it certainly accelerated the problem. "Advances in technology, advances in crypto technology, having people isolated from third parties that might have been able to intervene, and less opportunity for affection all came together in a perfect storm," she said. People had a good excuse for not wanting to meet in person, and millions of people were more isolated than ever.The day Kate and Tony were finally due to meet, Kate got her hair and nails done and waited by the phone. Hours after Tony was supposed to land at the local airport, there was still no word. Eventually, she received a call from someone who claimed to be Tony's lawyer. Tony had run into legal trouble at the airport and needed bail money, the person said. After a flurry of calls over the next few days from both Tony and the lawyer trying to convince Kate to sell her car, cash in her life insurance policy, put another mortgage on her house, or ask a relative for money, Kate started to get suspicious. Tony was supposed to be in jail — how was he making this many phone calls? "I knew then, and it was like a bomb had gone off in my heart," she said. "This was not real."The nearly $40,000 that Kate had sent Tony had devoured her savings, her late husband's life insurance, her pension, and her income from Social Security. But more tragically, it left her heartbroken. "Losing the money — that was devastating. But losing that love and the thought of that family that we had? That's what crushed me," Kate said. An epidemic of lonelinessWhile the pandemic certainly added more fuel to the fire, America's long-simmering loneliness problem has facilitated financial scammers for years. Looking back to 2018, a study by the Kaiser Family Foundation found that one in five Americans said they always or often felt lonely or socially isolated, and among teenagers and young adults, reported loneliness nearly doubled in prevalence between 2012 and 2018.Wood told me that loneliness is a pretty consistent factor across different types of scams. "Psychological validation is a human need and these scammers do a lot of validation," she said. The scammers' tactics keep "people engaged and rewards behavior that is compliant with their requests and punishes behavior that's not. It's terrible but it's effective."Losing the money — that was devastating. But losing that love and the thought of that family that we had? That's what crushed me.And while the "loneliness epidemic" has been building for years, the pandemic turbocharged the problem. A recent Harvard survey of American adults found that 43% of young adults reported increases in loneliness since the outbreak of the COVID crisis. The survey also found that about half of lonely young adults reported that no one in the past few weeks had "taken more than just a few minutes" to ask how they are doing in a way that made them feel like the person "genuinely cared." Even now that the world has opened back up, virtual chats and video meetups have become an established part of dating culture, leaving the door open for swindlers.According to a survey conducted in 2022 by the UK financial company Nationwide Building Society, 82% of people had experienced bouts of loneliness or social isolation at some point, and 20% felt lonely on a daily basis. Among those who have felt lonely, 29% said they felt more vulnerable to a romance scam. And 17% of people who frequently felt lonely or socially isolated said they would keep talking to someone even if they were suspicious of their motives. "Anybody can be victimized," Wood said, but added that "psychological vulnerabilities, in particular depression and anxiety, can increase the risk for financial exploitation."The surge in loneliness is going to make these scams more likely, Wood said. "You can give practical advice, like make sure you meet someone in person before you give any money, etc., but I think there needs to be more structural interventions," she told me. "This is a growing problem that we need to actively change what we're doing to solve."Confluence of crypto and romanceIf loneliness was the reason "why" for the soaring number of romance scams, then crypto is the "how." Based on the reports filed with the FTC, the No. 1 payment method for romance scams last year was cryptocurrency. Crypto scams start in a similar way to other romance scams, but instead of asking for gift cards or wired money, the scammer convinces the victim to invest in cryptocurrency. In what's known as "pig butchering," the victim is tricked into investing ever-larger sums in fake currencies controlled by the scammer (the pig is fattened). Then the scammer cuts contact and absconds with the cash (the pig is butchered). Once someone falls for a scam, they are more likely to be preyed upon again."When I first saw Ren, he was very attractive, tall, fit, and really educated and successful," Sarrah Rose told Insider reporter Doree Lewak. She met him through a dating app, where he explained that one of his hobbies was trading cryptocurrency. He offered Sarrah advice on making trades with the crypto-trading app Coinbase. "He was having me move my money into an unregulated wallet that I wouldn't be able to get back," Rose said. "He tried to convince me that it was connected to Coinbase — considered a safe and established platform — so I would be fine. I didn't believe him."On day two, he sent her a screenshot of his crypto portfolio supposedly showing $5.5 million, with $150,000 in daily gains. Ren told Rose he was planning to make a trade and invited her to join him as a "way to get closer to one another.""You can try doing cryptocurrencies. That way, we might also have a common interest by doing something together," he wrote in a text seen by Insider. "It's a way for me to show my self-worth. If you trust me, I'll be happy," he added, while walking her through a transfer of funds to her Coinbase account. Because the crypto market was trending down, he said it was a "very good opportunity" to invest. "He refused to meet me in person but wanted to act like a boyfriend and expected me to trust him as a girlfriend would," Rose said. Though Rose was quickly wise to the scam, others haven't been as fortunate. In February, a woman from Tennessee shared that she had been scammed out of nearly $400,000 by a fraudster she met on the dating app Hinge. Nicole Hutchinson, a 24-year-old who, like Rose, had little knowledge of cryptocurrency, was contacted on Hinge with an investment opportunity. Unaware that the digital wallets she was instructed to transfer money to were controlled by her scammer, she ultimately lost both her own and her father's life savings.CipherBlade, a cryptocurrency investigative-analysis firm, estimates that worldwide losses from pig-butchering scams were in the "tens of billions" of dollars in 2021 alone, adding that the presumed losses are "incredibly high." Both crypto and non-crypto romance scams can be devastating to victims, but to make matters worse, once someone falls for a scam, they are more likely to be preyed upon again. After contacting AARP for help with her case, Kate was warned to be vigilant. She was told she was now on a green list that had been sold around the world with scammers spotlighting her as an easy target. No easy solutionsWhile the FBI website offers advice like "be careful what you post and make public online" and "research the person's photo and profile using online searches" to avoid scams, Wood would like to see more social-media platforms step in. She said that platforms could flag suspicious transactions and allow social workers or behavioral-health experts to intervene and hopefully limit the financial and emotional damage. Kate also said that educational commercials targeted at seniors would help expose people to these kinds of scams. "If we could see more about scams and how they're run, people would accept the fact that this is a danger and we need to do more against it," she said. A year after losing all her money to Tony's scam, Kate's house caught fire, destroying all her possessions, killing her dogs, and nearly taking her life. When a GoFundMe page was set up by a friend to help, Tony got back in contact. "It scared me because I knew he was watching me," she told me. "He's waiting for another opportunity. But I think I've learned a lot since then. I'm not nearly as vulnerable."Eve Upton-Clark is a features writer covering culture and society.Read the original article on Business Insider.....»»

"This Is It!" - Von Greyerz Warns "The Financial System Is Terminally Broken" Authored by Egon von Greyerz via GoldSwitzerland.com, The financial system is terminally broken, toast, kaput! Anyone who doesn’t see what it happening will soon lose a major part of their assets either through bank failure, currency debasement or the collapse of all bubble assets like stocks, property and bonds by 75-100%. Many bonds will become worthless. Wealth preservation in physical gold is now absolutely critical. Obviously it must be stored outside a broken financial system. More later in this article. The solidity of the banking system is based on confidence. With the fractal banking system, highly leveraged banks only have a fraction of the money available if all depositors ask for their money back. So when confidence evaporates, so do the balance sheets of the banks and depositors realise that the whole system is just a black hole. And this is exactly what is about to happen.  For anyone who believes that this is just a problem with a few smaller US banks and one big one (Credit Suisse), they must think again. RE CREDIT SUISSE SEE ‘STOP PRESS’ AT THE END OF THE ARTICLE. THE BANKS ARE FALLING LIKE DOMINOS, INCLUDING CREDIT SUISSE TONIGHT Yes, Silicon Valley Bank (16th biggest US bank) is gone after an idiotic and irresponsible  policy to invest short term customer deposits in long term US Treasuries at the bottom of the interest rate cycle. Even worse, they then valued the bonds at maturity rather than market, to avoid taking a loss. Clearly a management that didn’t have a clue about risk. SVB’s demise is the second biggest failure of a US bank.  Yes, Signature Bank (29th biggest) is gone due to a run on deposits.  And yes, First Republic Bank had to be supported by US lenders and the Fed by a $30 billion loan due to a run on deposits. But this won’t stop the rot as depositors attack the next bank and the next one and the next one………. And yes, the Swiss second largest bank Credit Suisse (CS) is terminally ill after a number of poor investments over the years combined with poor management that has come and gone virtually every year.. I wrote an important article about the coming demise of CS 2 years ago here: “ARCHEGOS & CREDIT SUISSE – TIP OF THE ICEBERG.” The situation at CS is so dire that a solution needs to be found before Monday’s (March 20) opening. The bank cannot survive in its present form. [ZH: a 'solution' was found... for now] A failure for Credit Suisse would not just rock the Swiss financial system but have severe global repercussions. A merger with UBS is one solution. But UBS had to be bailed out in 2008 and doesn’t want to be weakened again by Credit Suisse without state guarantees and support from the Swiss National Bank (SNB). The SNB injected CHF50 billion into CS last week but the share price still went to a new low. No one should believe that a state subsidised takeover of Credit Suisse by UBS will solve the problem. No, it will just be rearranging the deck chairs on the titanic and making the problem bigger rather than smaller. So rather than a lifebuoy, UBS will have a massive lead weight to carry which will guarantee its demise as the banking system collapses. And the Swiss government will take on assets which will be unrealisable.  Still, it is likely that by the end of the present weekend a deal will be announced with UBS being offered a deal they can’t refuse by taking over the good assets and the SNB/Government nurturing the bad assets of Credit Suisse in a rescue vehicle. The SNB is of course in a mess itself, having lost $143 billion in 2022. The SNB balance sheet is bigger than Swiss GDP and consists of currency speculation and US tech stocks. This central bank is the world’s biggest hedge fund and the least successful.  Just to put a balanced view on Switzerland. It has the best political system in the world with direct democracy. It also has low Federal debt and normally no budget deficits. It is also the safest country in the world. SWISS BANKING SYSTEM TOO BIG TO SAVE But the Swiss banking system is very unsound, just like the rest of the world’s. A central bank which is bigger than the country’s GDP is extremely unsound. And a banking system which is 5x Swiss GDP makes it too big to save.  Although the Fed and ECB are much smaller in relation to their countries’ GDP than the SNB, these two central banks will soon discover that their assets of around $8 trillion each are grossly overvalued.  With a global banking system on the verge of a systemic failure, Central Bankers and bankers have been working around the clock this weekend to temporarily avoid the inevitable collapse of the bankrupt financial system.  BIGGEST MONEY PRINTING IN HISTORY COMING As I pointed out above, the main Central Banks would also be bankrupt if they valued their assets honestly. But they have a wonderful source of money that they will tap to save the system.  Yes, I am of course talking about money printing.  We will in coming months and years see the most massive avalanche of money printing that has ever hit the world. For anyone who believes that we are just seeing another bank run that will quickly evaporate, they will need to take a shower in ice cold Alpine water.  What we are witnessing is not just a temporary drama that will be sorted out by “the all powerful and resourceful” central banks.  THE DEATH OF MONEY No, instead what we are seeing is the end phase of this financial era which started with the formation of the Fed in 1913 and in the next few years, or much sooner, will end with the death of money. But the Death of Money doesn’t just mean that the dollar (and most currencies) will make their final move to ZERO, having already declined 98% since 1971.  Currency debasement is not the cause but the effect of the banking Cabal taking control of the money for their own benefit. As Mayer Amschel Rothschild said in the late 1700s: “Let me issue and control a nation’s money and I care not who makes the laws”. Sadly, as this Cassandra (me) has written about since the beginning of the century, the Death of Money is not just all currencies going to ZERO as they have throughout history.  No, the Death of Money means a total and final collapse of this financial system.  Cassandra was a priestess in Greek mythology who was given the gift of predicting major events accurately but also given the curse that no one would  believe her predictions.  No depositor must believe that the FDIC (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp) in the US or similar vehicles in other countries will save their deposits. All these organisations are massively undercapitalised and in the end it will be the governments in all countries which step in.  We know of course, that the government has no money. They just print whatever they need. That leaves ordinary people taking the final burden of all this money printing.  But ordinary people will have no money either. Yes a few rich people will be taxed heavily to cover bank deficits and losses. Still, that will be a drop in the ocean. Instead ordinary people will be impoverished with little income, no government handouts, no pension and money which is worthless.  The above is sadly the cycle that all economic eras go through. The issue this time is that the problem is global and of a magnitude never seen before in history.  Regrettably a rotten and bankrupt financial system needs to go through a cleansing period which the world will now experience. There cannot be sound growth and sound values until the current corrupt and debt infested system implodes. Only then can the world grow soundly again.  The transition will sadly be dramatic with a lot of suffering for most people. But there is no other way. We won’t just see poverty, famine but also many human tragedies. The risk of social unrest or civil war is very high plus the risk of a global war. Central banks had of course hoped that their Digital Currencies (CBDC) would be ready to save them (but not the world) from the present debacle by totally controlling people’s spending. But in my view they will be to late. And since CBDCs are just another form of Fiat money, it would just exacerbate the problem with an even more severe outcome at the end. Still, it won’t prevent them from trying. MARKET VALUE OF US BANKING ASSETS $2 TRILLION LOWER THAN BOOK VALUE A paper issued by 4 US academics in finance, illustrates the $2 trillion black hole in the US banking system:  “Monetary Tightening and U.S. Bank Fragility in 2023: Mark-to-Market Losses and Uninsured Depositor Runs?” March 13, 2023  Erica Jiang, Gregor Matvos, Tomasz Piskorski, and Amit Seru  CONCLUSION “We provide a simple analysis of U.S. banks’ asset exposure to a recent rise in the interest rates with implications for financial stability. The U.S. banking system’s market value of assets is $2 trillion lower than suggested by their book value of assets. We show that these losses, combined with a large share of uninsured deposits at some U.S. banks can impair their stability. Even if only half of uninsured depositors decide to withdraw, almost 190 banks are at a potential risk of impairment to even insured depositors, with potentially $300 billion of insured deposits at risk. If uninsured deposit withdrawals cause even small fire sales, substantially more banks are at risk. Overall, these calculations suggest that recent declines in bank asset values significantly increased the fragility of the US banking system to uninsured depositors runs.”  What is crucial to understand is that the $2 trillion “loss” is only due to higher interest rates. When the US economy comes under pressure, the loan books of the banks will deteriorate dramatically and bad debts increase exponentially. With total assets of US commercial banks at $23 trillion, I would be surprised if 50% is repaid or recoverable in the coming crisis.  The above risks are just for the US financial system. The global system will be no better with the EU under massive pressure partly due to US led sanctions of Russia. Virtually every major economy in the world is in a dire position.  Lets just look at the debt pyramid which I have discussed in many articles LINK In 1971, when Nixon closed the gold window, global debt was $4 trillion. With gold backing no currency, this became a free for all to print unlimited amounts of money. And thus by 2000 debt had grown 25x to $100t. In 2006, when the Great Financial Crisis started, global debt was $120 trillion. By 2021 it had grown 75x from 1971 to $300 trillion.  The red column shows global debt at $3 quadrillion sometime between 2025 and 2030.  This assumes that the shadow banking system plus outstanding derivatives of currently probably around $2 quadrillion will need to be saved by central banks in a money printing bonanza. This will obviously lead to hyperinflation and thereafter to a depressionary implosion. I know this sounds sensational but still a very likely scenario at the end of the biggest credit bubble in history.  GOLD – CRITICAL WEALTH PRESERVATION  I have been standing on a soapbox for over 20 years, warning the world about the coming financial crisis and the importance of physical gold for wealth preservation purposes. In 2002 we invested important funds into physical gold with the purpose of holding it for the foreseeable future. Between 2002 and 2011 gold went from $300 to $1,900. Since then gold corrected and then went sideways as stocks and the asset markets surged backed by massive credit expansion.  With gold currently around $1990, there is not much gain since 2011. Still since 2002 gold is up 7x. Due to the temporarily stronger dollar, gold’s gains measured in dollars are much smaller than in Euros, Pounds or Yen. But that will soon change.  In the final section of the article “WILL NUCLEAR WAR, DEBT COLLAPSE OR ENERGY DEPLETION FINISH THE WORLD?”, I outlined the importance of owning physical gold to store it in a safe jurisdiction away from kleptocratic governments. “2023 is likely to be the year of gold. Both fundamentally and technically gold looks like it will make major up moves this year.”  And at the end of this article, I explain the importance of how and where gold should be held:“PREPARE FOR 10 YEARS OF GLOBAL DESTRUCTION.” “So my own preference would be to own physical gold and silver that only I have direct control of and can withdraw or sell with very short notice.  It is also important to deal with a company that can move your metals at very short notice if the security or geopolitical situation would necessitate it.” In February 2019 I wrote about what I called the Gold Maginot Line which had held for 6 years below $1,350. This is typical for gold. Having gone from $250 in 1999 to $1,900 in 2011, it then spent 8 years in a correction. At the time I forecast that the Maginot Line would soon break which it did and swiftly moved to $2,000 by August 2020. We have now had another period of consolidation since then and the next move above $2,000 and towards $3,000 is imminent.  Just to remind ourselves what happens to your money and gold during a hyperinflationary period, here is a photo from China’s hyperinflation in 1949 as people try to get their 40 grammes (just over one ounce) that they were allocated by the government. At some point in the next few years, there will be a panic in the West to buy gold at any price.  So as I have been urging investors for over 20 years, please get your gold NOW while it is still available.  STOP PRESS Intense discussions are right now going on here in Switzerland between UBS, Credit Suisse, the regulator FINMA, the Swiss National Bank – SNB – and the Swiss Government. The Fed, the bank of England and the ECB are also involved.  The latest rumour is that UBS will buy Credit Suisse for CHF900 million ($1 billion). The shares of CS closed at a market cap of CHF8 billion on Friday. The deal would clearly involve backing from the SNB and the Swiss government which would have to take on major liabilities.  The December 2022 book value of CS was CHF42 billion, as with all banks massively overstated.  The deal isn’t done at this point, 5.30pm Swiss time, but the whole banking world knows that without a deal, there will be global contagion starting tomorrow Monday the 20th.  Even if a provisional deal will be done by Monday’s open, the financial system has now been permanently injured with an open wound which won’t heal.  The problem will just move on to the next bank, and the next and the next…. Hold on to your seats but buy gold first. Tyler Durden Mon, 03/20/2023 - 07:20.....»»

What Follows US Hegemony Authored by Vijay Prashad via thetricontiental.org, On 24 February 2023, the Chinese Foreign Ministry released a twelve-point plan entitled ‘China’s Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis’. This ‘peace plan’, as it has been called, is anchored in the concept of sovereignty, building upon the well-established principles of the United Nations Charter (1945) and the Ten Principles from the Bandung Conference of African and Asian states held in 1955. The plan was released two days after China’s senior diplomat Wang Yi visited Moscow, where he met with Russia’s President Vladimir Putin. Russia’s interest in the plan was confirmed by Kremlin spokesperson Dmitry Peskov shortly after the visit: ‘Any attempt to produce a plan that would put the [Ukraine] conflict on a peace track deserves attention. We are considering the plan of our Chinese friends with great attention’. Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky welcomed the plan hours after it was made public, saying that he would like to meet China’s President Xi Jinping as soon as possible to discuss a potential peace process. France’s President Emmanuel Macron echoed this sentiment, saying that he would visit Beijing in early April. There are many interesting aspects of this plan, notably a call to end all hostilities near nuclear power plants and a pledge by China to help fund the reconstruction of Ukraine. But perhaps the most interesting feature is that a peace plan did not come from any country in the West, but from Beijing. When I read ‘China’s Position on the Political Settlement of the Ukraine Crisis’, I was reminded of ‘On the Pulse of Morning’, a poem published by Maya Angelou in 1993, the rubble of the Soviet Union before us, the terrible bombardment of Iraq by the United States still producing aftershocks, the tremors felt in Afghanistan and Bosnia. The title of this newsletter, ‘Birth Again the Dream of Global Peace and Mutual Respect’, sits at the heart of the poem. Angelou wrote alongside the rocks and the trees, those who outlive humans and watch us destroy the world. Two sections of the poem bear repeating: Each of you, a bordered country, Delicate and strangely made proud, Yet thrusting perpetually under siege. Your armed struggles for profit Have left collars of waste upon My shore, currents of debris upon my breast. Yet today I call you to my riverside, If you will study war no more. Come, Clad in peace, and I will sing the songs The Creator gave to me when I and the Tree and the rock were one. Before cynicism was a bloody sear across your Brow and when you yet knew you still Knew nothing. The River sang and sings on. … History, despite its wrenching pain Cannot be unlived, but if faced With courage, need not be lived again. History cannot be forgotten, but it need not be repeated. That is the message of Angelou’s poem and the message of the study we released last week, Eight Contradictions of the Imperialist ‘Rules-Based Order’. In October 2022, Cuba’s Centre for International Policy Research (CIPI) held its 7th Conference on Strategic Studies, which studied the shifts taking place in international relations, with an emphasis on the declining power of the Western states and the emergence of a new confidence in the developing world. There is no doubt that the United States and its allies continue to exercise immense power over the world through military force and control over financial systems. But with the economic rise of several developing countries, with China at their head, a qualitative change can be felt on the world stage. An example of this trend is the ongoing dispute amongst the G20 countries, many of which have refused to line up against Moscow despite pressure by the United States and its European allies to firmly condemn Russia for the war in Ukraine. This change in the geopolitical atmosphere requires precise analysis based on the facts. To that end, our latest dossier, Sovereignty, Dignity, and Regionalism in the New International Order (March 2023), produced in collaboration with CIPI, brings together some of the thinking about the emergence of a new global dispensation that will follow the period of US hegemony. The text opens with a foreword by CIPI’s director, José R. Cabañas Rodríguez, who makes the point that the world is already at war, namely a war imposed on much of the world (including Cuba) by the United States and its allies through blockades and economic policies such as sanctions that strangle the possibilities for development. As Greece’s former Finance Minister Yanis Varoufakis said, coups these days ‘do not need tanks. They achieve the same result with banks’. The US is attempting to maintain its position of ‘single master’ through an aggressive military and diplomatic push both in Ukraine and Taiwan, unconcerned about the great destabilisation this has inflicted upon the world. This approach was reflected in US Defence Secretary Lloyd Austin’s admission that ‘We want to see Russia weakened’ and in US House Foreign Affairs Committee Chairman Michael McCaul’s statement that ‘Ukraine today – it’s going to be Taiwan tomorrow’. It is a concern about this destabilisation and the declining fortunes of the West that has led most of the countries in the world to refuse to join efforts to isolate Russia. As some of the larger developing countries, such as China, Brazil, India, Mexico, Indonesia, and South Africa, pivot away from reliance upon the United States and its Western allies, they have begun to discuss a new architecture for a new world order. What is quite clear is that most of these countries – despite great differences in the political traditions of their respective governments – now recognise that the United States ‘rules-based international order’ is no longer able to exercise the authority it once had. The actual movement of history shows that the world order is moving from one anchored by US hegemony to one that is far more regional in character. US policymakers, as part of their fearmongering, suggest that China wants to take over the world, along the grain of the ‘Thucydides Trap’ argument that when a new aspirant to hegemony appears on the scene, it tends to result in war between the emerging power and existing great power. However, this argument is not based on facts. Rather than seek to generate additional poles of power – in the mould of the United States – and build a ‘multipolar’ world, developing countries are calling for a world order rooted in the UN Charter as well as strong regional trade and development systems. ‘This new internationalism can only be created – and a period of global Balkanisation avoided’, we write in our latest dossier, ‘by building upon a foundation of mutual respect and strength of regional trade systems, security organisations, and political formations’. Indicators of this new attitude are present in the discussions taking place in the Global South about the war in Ukraine and are reflected in the Chinese plan for peace. Our dossier analyses at some length this moment of fragility for US power and its ‘rules-based international order’. We trace the revival of multilateralism and regionalism, which are key concepts of the emerging world order. The growth of regionalism is reflected in the creation of a host of vital regional bodies, from the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) to the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO), alongside increasing regional trade (with the BRICS bloc being a kind of ‘regionalism plus’ for our period). Meanwhile, the emphasis on returning to international institutions for global decision-making, as evidenced by the formation of the Group of Friends in Defence of the UN Charter, for example, illustrates the reinvigorated desire for multilateralism. The United States remains a powerful country, but it has not come to terms with the immense changes taking place in the world order. It must temper its belief in its ‘manifest destiny’ and recognise that it is nothing more than another country amongst the 193 members states of the United Nations. The great powers – including the United States – will either find ways to accommodate and cooperate for the common good, or they will all collapse together. At the start of the pandemic, the head of the World Health Organisation, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, urged the countries of the world to be more collaborative and less confrontational, saying that ‘this is the time for solidarity, not stigma’ and repeating, in the years since, that nations must ‘work together across ideological divides to find common solutions to common problems’. These wise words must be heeded. Tyler Durden Sun, 03/19/2023 - 23:30.....»»

Cryptocurrencies are now present in almost all industries and fields, including research. Cryptocurrencies and blockchain are now not only a part of those industries and fields, but rather are helping to revolutionize the way those industries operate. Several cryptocurrencies are now in existence that aid developers, scientists and others in their research.  Let’s take a […] Cryptocurrencies are now present in almost all industries and fields, including research. Cryptocurrencies and blockchain are now not only a part of those industries and fields, but rather are helping to revolutionize the way those industries operate. Several cryptocurrencies are now in existence that aid developers, scientists and others in their research.  Let’s take a look at the 10 biggest research cryptocurrencies. 10 Biggest Research Cryptocurrencies We have used the market capitalization of research cryptocurrencies as of March 16, 2022 (from coinmarketcap.com) to rank the 10 biggest research cryptocurrencies. Here are the 10 biggest research cryptocurrencies: .first{clear:both;margin-left:0}.one-third{width:31.034482758621%;float:left;margin-left:3.448275862069%}.two-thirds{width:65.51724137931%;float:left}form.ebook-styles .af-element input{border:0;border-radius:0;padding:8px}form.ebook-styles .af-element{width:220px;float:left}form.ebook-styles .af-element.buttonContainer{width:115px;float:left;margin-left: 6px;}form.ebook-styles .af-element.buttonContainer input.submit{width:115px;padding:10px 6px 8px;text-transform:uppercase;border-radius:0;border:0;font-size:15px}form.ebook-styles .af-body.af-standards input.submit{width:115px}form.ebook-styles .af-element.privacyPolicy{width:100%;font-size:12px;margin:10px auto 0}form.ebook-styles .af-element.privacyPolicy p{font-size:11px;margin-bottom:0}form.ebook-styles .af-body input.text{height:40px;padding:2px 10px !important} form.ebook-styles .error, form.ebook-styles #error { color:#d00; } form.ebook-styles .formfields h1, form.ebook-styles .formfields #mg-logo, form.ebook-styles .formfields #mg-footer { display: none; } form.ebook-styles .formfields { font-size: 12px; } form.ebook-styles .formfields p { margin: 4px 0; } Get The Full Ray Dalio Series in PDF Get the entire 10-part series on Ray Dalio in PDF. Save it to your desktop, read it on your tablet, or email to your colleagues (function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true); Q4 2022 hedge fund letters, conferences and more   CoinFi (COFI) CoinFi provides research, analysis, trading signals, trading algorithms, and market-moving news to cryptocurrency traders. COFI is down by over 3% year to date but is up over 2% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, COFI trading at $0.001601, giving the cryptocurrency a market capitalization of more than $336K. COFI has an all-time high of $0.3608 (Jun 2018) and an all-time low of $0.0005429 (Mar 2020). Curecoin (CURE) Curecoin's objective is to accelerate research in the medical sciences related to Cancer, Diabetes, Zika and more. CURE is up by over 2,342% year to date and up almost 39% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, CURE is trading at $0.02428, giving it a market capitalization of more than $642K. CURE has an all-time high of $1.39 (Jan 2018) and an all-time low of $0.0008298 (Dec 2022). Einsteinium (EMC2) Einsteinium is a community-driven cryptocurrency that uses blockchain technology to raise funds for scientific research. EMC2 is up by over 28% year to date but is down over 5% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, EMC2 is trading at $0.007439, giving it a market capitalization of more than $1.65 million. EMC2 has an all-time high of $2.88 (Dec 2017) and an all-time low of $0.00002538 (Jan 2016). Energi (NRG) Energi works as a governance token for the Energiswap decentralized exchange. NRG is down by almost 6% year to date but is up over 3% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, NRG is trading at $0.2066, giving it a market capitalization of more than $12 million. NRG has an all-time high of $9.90 (Jun 2019) and an all-time low of $0.1443 (Oct 2022). Numeraire (NMR) Founded in late 2015, Numeraire enables developers and data scientists to develop machine learning models that have better reliability. NMR is up by almost 58% year to date but is down over 6% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, NMR is trading at $19.28, giving it a market capitalization of more than $113 million. NMR has an all-time high of $168.49 (Jun 2017) and an all-time low of $1.93 (Nov 2018). Nervos Network (CKB) Nervos Network enables crypto-assets to be stored using the security, immutability and permissionless nature of Bitcoin. CKB is up by almost 86% year to date but is down almost 12% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, CKB is trading at $0.00425, giving it a market capitalization of more than $169 million. CKB has an all-time high of $0.04412 (Mar 2021) and an all-time low of $0.002083 (Dec 2022). Conflux (CFX) Conflux allows creators, communities, and markets from diverse borders and protocols to connect with each other. CFX is up by almost 1,248% year to date but is down almost 24% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, CFX is trading at $0.3013, giving it a market capitalization of more than $799 million. CFX has an all-time high of $1.70 (Mar 2021) and an all-time low of $0.02191 (Jan 2023).   Fantom (FTM) Originally created in 2018, Fantom is a directed acyclic graph (DAG) smart contract platform that offers (DeFi) services to developers. FTM is up by almost 104% year to date but is down over 27% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, FTM is trading at $0.4135, giving it a market capitalization of more than $1.14 billion. FTM has an all-time high of $3.48 (Oct 2021) and an all-time low of $0.001953 (Mar 2020). Algorand (ALGO) Launched in 2019, Algorand aims to speed up transactions and improve efficiency of transactions. ALGO is up by over 17% year to date but is down almost 23% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, ALGO is trading at $0.2091, giving it a market capitalization of more than $1.48 billion. ALGO has an all-time high of $3.28 (Jun 2019) and an all-time low of $0.1024 (Mar 2020). Cardano (ADA) Founded in 2017, Cardano ensures that all technology developed goes through a process of peer-reviewed research. ADA is up by almost 32% year to date but is down over 19% in the last 30 days. As of this writing, ADA is trading at $0.3282, giving the cryptocurrency a market capitalization of more than $11 billion. ADA has an all-time high of $3.10 (Sep 2021) and an all-time low of $0.01735 (Oct 2022)......»»

Woodland-based plant genetic analysis company MyFloraDNA's CEO and co-founder Angel Fernandez's interest in plant science was driven by his curiosity about food plants that have been studied since the dawning of the discipline: fruits and nuts......»»

The Comex Is In Far Worse Shape Than SVB If The Run On Physical Accelerates Via SchiffGold.com, Given the potential impacts of the ongoing banking crisis, I will start this article with the conclusion. The current banking crisis could not have come at a worse time for the Comex system. Inventories have seen massive depletion over the last 2+ years as investors have slowly been pulling physical out of the vaults. I have previously called this a run on the vault but labeled it as a stealthy one. As though certain investors did not want to raise the alarm, but slowly take possession while inventory was still available. Now that confidence in the banking system has been put to the test, people will look to alternative means to store their wealth and get their money out of the financial system. The easiest and safest way to do this would be to own physical precious metals, as people have done for thousands of years. It is likely that demand for physical metal could increase significantly in the months ahead. The futures market is already showing a massive move in the price of gold, which is knocking on the door of $2,000. It’s only a matter of time before this moves into the physical market. When it does, the Comex vault run will pick up steam. Investors looked at SVB and saw that it was undercapitalized and people could only get 80-90 cents on the dollar. If investors were to do the same due diligence on the Comex they would find an even worse fractional reserve system in the metals market. The recent discovery by the LME that some of their inventory was stones rather than nickel should only serve as another wake-up call that the supply of physical metal is extremely tight. If everyone rushes for physical at the same time, there won’t be nearly enough to satisfy demand at current prices (silver has 15 paper ounces per 1 physical ounce!). We could be only months away from seeing a break in the Comex system. SchiffGold will be working all weekend to take orders. Best to get physical locked in at current prices while you still can. Current Trends This analysis focuses on gold and silver within the Comex/CME futures exchange. See the article What is the Comex? for more detail. The charts and tables below specifically analyze the physical stock/inventory data at the Comex to show the physical movement of metal into and out of Comex vaults. Registered = Warrant assigned and can be used for Comex delivery, Eligible = No warrant attached – owner has not made it available for delivery. Gold Gold is now in its 11th straight month of net outflows, seeing 285k ounces leave the vault so far in March. The exodus of metal has slowed since last year when some months saw almost 3M ounces leave Comex vaults. Figure: 1 Recent Monthly Stock Change As mentioned above, this could change quickly and may already be changing! As the chart below shows, this latest week was the busiest week of outflows in the last month. Given the price of gold finished the week at $1993, the ongoing banking crisis, and general fear in the market… it seems likely that demand for physical could be ready to soar. That could drive larger outflows from Comex vaults in the near future. Figure: 2 Recent Monthly Stock Change Pledged gold continues to decline, but similar to the inventory at large, the drop has been slowing. Figure: 3 Gold Pledged Holdings Silver Outflows in silver continue at a strong pace, seeing 3.5M ounces in outflows MTD. Registered is actually seeing inflows for the second month in a row, most likely because inventory of Registered had reached dangerously low levels. As mentioned previously, the real floor is not actually zero but somewhere higher. This is for optics to keep confidence in the fractional reserve silver trade. Figure: 4 Recent Monthly Stock Change Unlike gold, the outflows slowed this week. The big moves into Registered occurred just as the March silver contract started its delivery. If Registered silver was not getting close to the bottom, why did the Comex have to move 7M ounces of silver into the Registered category to handle the March delivery volume? This metal was moved specifically to handle that demand which indicates available silver stocks are getting dangerously low. Interestingly, the metal has not flowed back into Eligible as it typically does after delivery. The data shows that it was none other than JP Morgan taking the majority of the delivery at 5.2M ounces. Perhaps JP decided to obtain silver specifically for the purpose of keeping it in Registered to inflate the numbers. This move increased JP Morgan’s total allocation of Registered from 32% to 41.6%. This means almost half of all Registered silver now sits in JP Morgan vaults… most likely for optics. Figure: 5 Recent Monthly Stock Change The table below summarizes the movement activity over several time periods to better demonstrate the magnitude of the current move. Gold Over the last month, gold saw inventories fall by 2.1% Registered remains a bit higher than Eligible Since last year, total gold holdings have fallen by 36.8% or 12.4M ounces Silver Registered has increased 19.3% in the last month Total Registered remains below 40M ounces and has still seen a drop of 55M ounces in the last year Palladium/Platinum Palladium and platinum are much smaller markets but it’s possible that is where the market breaks first. Palladium saw a drop of 2.7% during its delivery month Platinum was very quiet during the month Platinum is heading towards its next delivery month in April. In January, Platinum looked like it could break the Comex. At the time, we highlighted they had only bought a few months. Well, we are now close to where inventory will be put to the test once again. Figure: 6 Stock Change Summary The next table shows the activity by bank/Holder. It details the numbers above to see the movement specific to vaults. Gold 6 vaults lost gold over the month while none added Outflows were evenly distributed across all vaults Silver JP Morgan only shows a net gain of 520k ounces, but as noted above, Registered inventories increased more than 5M ounces This indicates JP Morgan was moving the metal from within its own vaults CNT, HSBC, and Manfra all saw fairly large declines in their inventory Figure: 7 Stock Change Detail Historical Perspective Zooming out and looking at the inventory for gold and silver shows just how massive the current moves have been. The black line shows Registered as a percent of total. Inventories in gold have been falling evenly in both categories, which is why the black line has stayed relatively flat even while supplies have been crashing. It’s amazing how closely the ratio has stayed to the 50% mark. In October, the ratio reached 45%, but quickly rebounded to 50%. In September 2019, all of the Registered stood for delivery, so it is likely this ratio is now being actively maintained to make sure confidence persists in the system. Given current market dynamics, this confidence could be put to the test. Figure: 8 Historical Eligible and Registered Silver has seen far more concentrated outflows from Registered, getting as low as 10.9% of total inventory in February. With the move by JP Morgan, the ratio has since recovered to 13.3%, but this is still at historically low levels compared to history. Figure: 9 Historical Eligible and Registered The recent “spike” can be seen on the far right side of the chart above. From this perspective, the moves by JP Morgan seem much smaller. A similar spike-up happened in March 2022 which quickly reversed as metal started flowing back out of Registered immediately after. Will 2023 see a similar pattern? Figure: 10 Historical Registered The LBMA had been seeing similar outflows of silver from their vault, but that appears to have stopped for now. Figure: 11 LBMA Holdings of Silver Available supply for potential demand Coverage on the Comex continues to deteriorate. On Jan 26, before the recent sell-off in gold, the amount of paper gold for each Registered physical ounce was 4.6. That is the highest level since July 2020, right before all the new supply was added. The ratio now sits at 4.2, but the drop has mainly been driven by a fall in Open Interest rather than a surge in inventory. Figure: 12 Open Interest/Stock Ratio Coverage in silver is far worse than gold. The paper to Registered physical ratio reached 22 ounces on Feb 2nd. It had drifted lower to 19.5 and then after JP Morgan stepped in, the ratio dropped to 15.4. This means that after the move by JP Morgan, there are still 15 paper contracts for every physical ounce of metal available. Figure: 13 Open Interest/Stock Ratio Wrapping Up See above! Tyler Durden Sun, 03/19/2023 - 14:30.....»»

Sen. Mark Kelly, a former Navy combat pilot, compared the drone incident to the "incompetence that we see on the battle field every day in Ukraine." Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., waits to speak during a news conference at the Arizona Capitol in Phoenix, on Nov. 7, 2022.AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File A US drone crashed after a Russian fighter jet clipped its propeller over the Black Sea last week. A think tank suggested the move was "aggressive messaging" by Russia. Sen. Mark Kelly, a former Navy combat pilot, said it was an example of Russia's incompetence. Sen. Mark Kelly flew with Russian pilots as a US Navy combat pilot and as a NASA astronaut.He said the incident last week where a Russian fighter jet dumped fuel on and then clipped the propeller of a US military drone shows how "reckless" and "incompetent" they are."I'm not surprised by this. I mean, I flew with Russian pilots, fighter pilots who couldn't fly formation. And I watched this video, and it's pretty obvious what happened. He lost sight of it, and he crashed into it," Kelly told CNN's Jake Tapper on "State of the Union" Sunday.—CNN (@CNN) March 19, 2023On Tuesday, two Russian Su-27 fighter jets intercepted a US military MQ-9 Reaper drone that was flying over international waters above the Black Sea. The jets dumped fuel on the drone, and one jet eventually clipped the drone's propeller. The drone eventually crashed into the water.Insider previously reported that while one think tank analysis suggested this was aggressive messaging by Russia, US officials have said the incident was most likely due to Russians not knowing how to fly.The incident further soured the tense relationship between Washington and the Kremlin since Russia invaded Ukraine last February.Kelly compared the fighter jet incident to the "incompetence that we see on the battle field every day in Ukraine.""That's why the losses that the Russians are suffering right now are really high. At this point I mean, the best choice for Vladimir Putin would be to say: 'Hey, this isn't working,' and he's got to stop this illegal invasion," Kelly said.Read the original article on Business Insider.....»»

Despite record profits, the oil and gas industry is still headed for a long-term decline, even if it sees more boom-and-bust cycles along the way. Arif Qazi / Insider The era of Big Oil could end sooner than its massive profits suggest, analysts told Insider.  Fossil-fuel companies are under pressure to limit growth. The pace of the clean-energy transition still isn't fast enough to keep the climate crisis in check. President Joe Biden can't quit fossil fuels even though he knows he needs to.Biden, who's made fighting the climate crisis a priority, broke a key campaign promise this month by authorizing one of the largest-ever oil-drilling projects on federal land in an untouched area of Alaska known as North Slope.Biden's move reflects the fix the world is in after Russia's war in Ukraine sparked global energy shortages that sent oil and gas prices soaring last year. Western oil giants cashed in with a record $221 billion in combined profits, raising what experts told Insider are a pair of trillion-dollar questions: How swift will the transition to clean energy be and when will the era of Big Oil come to a close?It may come sooner than today's massive fossil-fuel profits suggest, half a dozen analysts said. The industry's long-term trajectory is downward, even if there are more boom-and-bust cycles along the way. They caution that the pace of the energy transition still remains uncertain given that today the world runs on 80% fossil fuels and only 20% renewable energy.In general, however, oil and gas companies aren't plowing profits into undeveloped drilling sites the way ConocoPhillips is with the so-called Willow project in Alaska, analysts said. In many cases, companies are using the money to try to increase production in existing fields, while also buying back their stock to boost share prices. Oil demand could peak in the early 2030s in part because of the rise of renewables and electric vehicles, while natural gas' horizon is thought to be closer to 2045 because heavy industry doesn't have cleaner fuels to turn to at the scale needed."In the grand scheme of the oil industry, Willow isn't that large a project," said Andrew Logan, the senior director of oil and gas at Ceres, a sustainability nonprofit that works with investors.Willow is expected to max out at 180,000 barrels of oil a day, or about 1.5% of US production, and generate at least 239 million metric tons of greenhouse-gas emissions over 30 years — equivalent to the annual greenhouse-gas emissions of 64 coal plants.A White House official previously told Insider the government's options to block the project were limited because of leases granted to ConocoPhillips by prior administrations. The official added that ConocoPhillips will give up 68,000 acres of existing leases and drilling was limited to three of five proposed sites.Willow "understandably looms large" for environmentalists, given where it is and who approved it, Logan added. It also undermines the US's credibility when it asks other counties to crack down on fossil fuels to avert catastrophic levels of global warming.But the worst-case scenario for the environment — that oil and gas companies reinvest all their extra money to keep growing — isn't happening, Logan said."For a variety of reasons, they are under a lot of pressure from investors not to do that," he said. "It's not just climate concerns. In the past, every time there's a boom, companies plowed money into oil and gas projects when costs were high, and returns were poor. So there's been a push for capital discipline."The role of oil and gas companies in the energy transition is an ongoing debate, analysts told Insider. The industry is split over whether it should use extra cash to diversify into clean energy or stick to its core business, shrink over time, and return excess money to investors.Where Big Oil profits are goingThe European companies BP and Shell are diversifying their businesses into more renewables, while their North American counterparts, like Exxon and Chevron, are shoveling a majority profits back to shareholders, Logan said.Chevron, ExxonMobil, and BP declined to comment. Shell and TotalEnergies didn't respond to requests for comment.Even some oil executives acknowledge the best acreage for drilling and fracking is largely used up, including in the Permian Basin, which extends from Texas to New Mexico. Scott Sheffield, the CEO of Pioneer Natural Resources Co., said this month that oil production could peak in the Permian, which is the largest oil field in the US, in five to six years.But the war in Ukraine means that at least in the short term, the industry will boost production to fill the gap left by Russian supplies, according to Michele DellaVigna, the head of oil and gas research at Goldman Sachs. At least 20 liquefied-natural-gas plants need to be built — mainly in the US, Qatar, and several African countries — to fuel exports, he added, and companies will bring production up by drilling more wells offshore."If we don't develop gas, we burn more coal. That's what happened last year, which means higher emissions and an affordability crisis, which isn't consistent with ESG," DellaVigna said, referring to environmental, social, and governance principles that some investors are pressuring companies to adopt."The problem is we've underinvested in energy, both oil and gas and renewables," he added. "So now we need investment across the spectrum. Our forecast has renewables growing aggressively, but also oil and gas, although never quite to the peak of 2012 to 2014."There was a wave of gas-to-coal switching in Asia last year because gas prices were so high, according to the International Energy Agency. The trend helped send greenhouse-gas emissions to their highest levels on record, though the increase would've been worse without the growth in solar, wind, and electric vehicles.In the long term, however, Russia's war might expedite the transition to renewables, said Hugh Daigle, an associate professor at the University of Texas at Austin. He pointed to the way Europe — which many energy analysts thought was on the verge of a severe crisis this winter — quickly decreased its dependence on Russian gas, in part by building renewables, a model Daigle expects other countries to follow."If you're looking to really get energy independence and energy security, you don't want to be relying on other countries whose interests might not align with yours," Daigle said. "You want to be cultivating domestic sources of energy that can provide energy at low cost, both monetarily and environmentally. So I think that's on a lot of people's minds right now in a way that maybe it wasn't a year ago."The transition to renewables isn't just about building more solar panels and selling more electric vehicles, said Prakash Sharma, the vice president of multi-commodity research at Wood Mackenzie."With every step of decarbonization, you need more electricity," he said. "That demand will grow three to four times over the next 30 years over current levels. And it's not just a question of building new supply, like more solar, wind, and EVs, but also building the infrastructure to deliver that power, which is missing today."That's where national policies like the Inflation Reduction Act — which became law last year in the US — and Europe's plan to reduce its dependence on Russian oil and gas come in. Despite the policies, the transition will be challenging, given long delays in permitting new infrastructure and uncertainty about the availability of critical minerals like lithium, Sharma said.Critics deride oil and gas companies for not investing more of their windfall profits into the transition, especially after the International Energy Agency in 2021 said that to meet a global goal of net-zero emissions by mid-century there shouldn't be any development of new oil and gas fields.BP, which is considered a leader in the energy transition, in January announced less ambitious targets to cut oil production and, therefore, its greenhouse-gas emissions. The UK company cited the need for an "orderly" energy transition. BP is boosting spending on both fossil fuels and low-carbon energy, with the latter accounting for about 30% of capital expenditures in 2022 with plans to grow that to 50% by 2030.That percentage is lower at companies like Exxon and Chevron. Exxon in December said more than 70% of its capital investments in the coming years would flow to oil and gas development in the Permian Basin, Guyana, and Brazil, as well as LNG projects. From 2022 to 2027, Exxon plans to spend $122 billion to $147 billion on capital projects. As much as 14% could go to lower-carbon efforts like carbon capture and storage, cleaner fuels, and reducing methane emissions from oil and gas infrastructure.Sharma said he didn't see oil and gas companies as an obstacle. The world is quickly plowing through its carbon budget — the emissions it can afford to emit while keeping global warming below catastrophic levels — so technology like carbon capture, storage, and removal that oil majors are investing in is becoming more important.An EV future can't come soon enoughPatrick De Haan, the head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, called the future of Big Oil the "trillion-dollar question." He told Insider the biggest threat facing the industry was the rise of electric vehicles, though De Haan expects it to be decades before most Americans drive EVs."To get the US to 25% electric vehicles, it could take 10 to 15 years," he said, adding that reaching 50% could take another 10 to 25 years.Even if EVs costs continue to fall, and the US manages to build a widely accessible charging network — something Biden is working with Elon Musk and Tesla to expedite — De Haan said broad adoption would take time. While California and Europe are banning the sale of gas-powered cars by 2035, it's likely many Americans will still be pumping gas for years to come. Some 90% of new vehicles sold today still have internal-combustion engines, De Haan noted.This is among the reasons De Haan doesn't expect US oil demand to decline significantly for at least 15 to 20 years, calling it a "long, slow-moving process." And while Big Oil's finances may begin to show some cracks over the next decade, he doesn't expect them to "suffer financially" for another 25 to 35 years.He pointed to developing countries that don't have the money a country like the US has to fund the renewable-energy transformation, even if renewables appear to be the cheaper energy source in the long run. They see fossil fuels as their "best bet" for the foreseeable future, he said."It's always hard to predict the last boom," Logan said. "If everyone agrees that this is the last one, that helps set up the next boom because underinvestment leads to higher prices, which leads to overinvestment that leads to busts."Read the original article on Business Insider.....»»

Air Pollution: A Global Health Threat Air pollution is the greatest environmental health hazard to humankind, leading to over six million deaths a year and an economic cost that equates to over $8 trillion dollars. That’s according to the World Air Quality Report 2022 released Tuesday by Swiss air quality technology company IQAir. Statista's Anna Fleck reports that the analysis found that out of a surveyed 131 countries, regions and territories, only 13 met World Health Organization air guidelines of annual PM2.5 concentrations at or below 5 μg/m3 in 2022, many of which were in Oceania. The following chart shows how greatly air quality varies globally, with cities such as Pakistan’s Lahore (97.4 μg of PM2.5 particles per m3) and India’s Delhi (92.6) both exceeded WHO guidelines more than 10 times.  At the other end of the spectrum lie cities such as Reykjavik in Iceland (3.3) and Tallinn in Estonia (4.8) which are among the few that meet guidelines.  You will find more infographics at Statista Air pollution impacts already vulnerable communities particularly hard, with more than 90 percent of pollution related deaths occurring in low-income and middle-income countries, according to the report. Africa, as well as Central and South Asia were overrepresented for having the highest annual average PM2.5 concentrations weighted by population. This is even including the huge disparities in data availability between countries, with only 19 out of 54 African countries having had sufficient data to be usable in the paper. IQAir defines PM2.5 concentration as the amount of fine particulate aerosol particles up to 2.5 microns in diameter. It is one of six major air pollutants commonly used in the classification of air quality and widely considered as the most harmful, in terms of its prevalence in the environment and the impacts it has on health. The latter includes causing and aggravating health conditions such as asthma, cancer, lung illness, heart disease and premature mortality. Tyler Durden Sat, 03/18/2023 - 22:00.....»»

'Conspiracy At Its Height': Fauci Responds To Message Saying He 'Prompted' Anti-Lab Leak Paper Authored by Zachary Stieber via The Epoch Times (emphasis ours), Dr. Anthony Fauci responded on March 15 to a newly released email that said he was among those who “prompted” work on analyzing how COVID-19 came about, which resulted in a paper that claimed the laboratory origin theory was not credible. Dr. Anthony Fauci, former director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, on Capitol Hill in Washington on Sept. 14, 2022. (Drew Angerer/Getty Images) A special U.S. House of Representatives panel on March 5 released the email, sent by scientist Kristian Andersen in February 2020 to the journal Nature. “There has been a lot of speculation, fear mongering, and conspiracies put forward in this space and we thought that bringing some clarity to this discussion might be of interest to Nature,” Andersen wrote at the time. “Prompted by Jeremy Farra[r], Tony Fauci, and Francis Collins, Eddie Holmes, Andrew Rambaut, Bob Garry, Ian Lipkin, and myself have been working through much of the (primarily) genetic data to provide agnostic and scientifically informed hypothesis around the origins of the virus,” Andersen added. In another message that had previously been made public, Andersen said the work was “focused on trying to disprove any type of lab theory.” Anderson was one of the co-authors of a paper published without peer review in February 2020. Both that version and one later published by Nature Medicine said the analysis shows that “SARS-CoV-2 is not a laboratory construct nor a purposefully manipulated virus.” SARS-CoV-2 causes COVID-19. Fauci was asked about the emails on Wednesday during an appearance on NewsNation. “Absolutely not,” he said when host Chris Cuomo inquired whether the paper was drafted to disprove the lab origin theory. Fauci referenced the secret phone call involving himself, Andersen, and others that took place on Feb. 1, 2020, and involved several experts—including Andersen—saying characteristics of COVID-19 pointed to it being engineered. “During the phone call on Feb. 1, where very competent evolutionary biologists were going back and forth, and they decided on the phone call, listen, let’s take a little time and go back and really carefully examine those sequences and see if, in fact, there’s anything to that,” Fauci said. “They did that and they came to the conclusion that, in fact, it is more likely that it was not something that was engineered, but something that actually escaped from a wet market [in Wuhan, China]. And in order to get it peer reviewed, they wrote a paper to let the peer review system evaluate whether it was valid, and it did and that’s how the paper came about,” Fauci added. “So this idea of saying, write the paper to definitively disprove something is conspiracy at its height. It’s really ridiculous.” Grateful for ‘Advice and Leadership’ According to other emails made public after being acquired through the Freedom of Information Act, Fauci was involved in looking over drafts of the paper before it was published. In one email, Andersen thanked Fauci and several others “for your advice and leadership as we have been working through the SARS-CoV-2 ‘origins’ paper.” “Thanks for your note. Nice job on the paper,” Fauci responded. Fauci’s boss, Dr. Francis Collins, was also thanked. In a later email to Fauci, he said that the lab origin theory was “very destructive” and that he had hoped the paper “would settle this” but that it “probably didn’t get much visibility.” “I would not do anything about this right now. It is a shiny object that will go away in times,” Fauci wrote. In April 2020, Fauci cited the paper during an official White House press conference without mentioning his involvement, telling reporters that “a group of highly qualified evolutionary virologists looked at the sequences there and the sequences in bats as they evolve and the mutations that it took to get to the point where it is now is totally consistent with a jump of a species from an animal to a human.” For the natural origin theory to be true, a host animal must have passed the virus on to humans. No such animal has been identified. Fauci has maintained during recent interviews that he’s kept an open mind as to the origin of COVID-19. “If that is true, why did Dr. Fauci tell the American people at a White House briefing televised on April 17, 2020, that COVID-19 was ‘totally consistent’ with a natural origin and never mentioned that half the scientists on a February 1, 2020, conference call thought it was a lab leak,” Rep. Debbie Lesko (R-Ariz.), a member of the special U.S. House panel, the Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Pandemic, told The Epoch Times via email. “That doesn’t sound like someone with an open mind. That sounds like someone misleading the American public,” Lesko added. Read more here... Tyler Durden Sat, 03/18/2023 - 22:30.....»»

Living In Memphis Might Break Paycheck To Paycheck Cycle Americans have been battered by two years of negative real wage growth as personal savings are depleted while credit card debts jump to record highs. Shelter inflation continues to soar while housing affordability is at its lowest in decades.  Homeownership has become unattainable for folks who earn below $100k due to elevated mortgage rates and high home prices, forcing many buyers to stay on the sidelines this spring season.  For those with economic mobility and remote work capabilities, a new report via the fintech website SmartAsset shows the top cities where a $100k household income no longer means living from paycheck to paycheck.  SmartAsset analyzed the after-tax income of 76 major cities and then adjusted those figures for the cost of living in each place. What they found is $100k might go the furthest in Memphis.  Here are the key findings from the report: $100K goes furthest in Memphis. The city may be known as the “Home of the Blues,” but Memphis’ low cost of living surely won’t make you sing them. A $100,000 salary is worth more here ($86,444) than in any other city in our study after subtracting taxes and adjusting for the cost of living. Texas cities dominate the top 10. Thanks to no state income tax and the low cost of living, the Lone Star State looms large in our study. Seven out of the 10 cities in our top 10 are located in Texas. After deducting taxes and adjusting for the cost of living, a $100,000 salary on average is worth $77,885 across the 10 Texas cities that we analyzed in our study. Oklahoma City has the lowest cost of living. A $100,000 goes a long way in the Sooner State’s largest city, considering that the cost of living is only 83.2% of the national average – the lowest out of all 76 cities in our study. A $100,000 salary is worth $84,498 in Oklahoma City after adjusting for the cost of living. In New York City, $100K amounts to just $35,791 when you consider taxes and the cost of living. Taxes and cost of living take a big bite out of a $100,000 income in the Big Apple, which ranked last in our analysis. After adjusting for those factors, $100,000 is worth just $35,791. And the top ten places in the US where $100k goes the furthest: 1. Memphis, TN A person earning $100,000 per year in Memphis takes home $74,515 after federal and local taxes (the state of Tennessee doesn’t tax earned income). Considering the city has a cost of living that’s almost 14% lower than the national average, those after-tax earnings are actually worth $86,444 when adjusting for the cost of living. 2. El Paso, TX A $100,000 salary in El Paso is worth $84,966 after subtracting taxes and adjusting for the local cost of living. A person who makes $100,000 a year in this West Texas city of over 678,000 residents takes home $74,515 after taxes. El Paso’s cost of living is just 87.7% of the national average. 3. Oklahoma City, OK Someone making $100,000 in Oklahoma City will take home $70,302 after taxes. But thanks to the lowest cost of living in our study, those after-tax earnings are worth considerably more: $84,498. 4. Corpus Christi, TX A $100,00 annual salary is worth $83,443 in Corpus Christi after deducting taxes and adjusting for the local cost of living. Located on the Gulf Coast of Texas, Corpus Christi’s cost of living is 10.7% lower than the national average. 5. Lubbock, TX A person who earns $100,000 per year in Lubbock can expect to take home $74,515 after taxes are deducted from their paychecks. Since the cost of living in Lubbock is just 89.4% of the national average, that person’s take-home pay is actually worth $83,350 after adjusting for the cost of living. 6. Houston, TX Like the other Texas cities in the top 10, a $100,000 salary in Houston is reduced to $74,515 after taxes. Those earnings, however, are worth $81,350 when adjusting for Houston’s cost of living, which is 91.8% of the national average. 7 (tie). San Antonio, Fort Worth and Arlington, TX A $100,000 salary is worth the same amount of money in three Texas cities: San Antonio, Fort Worth and Arlington. Thanks to identical tax treatment and no state income tax, a person earning $100,000 takes home $74,515 in each city. That money is worth $80,124 when you adjust for the cost of living in all three cities, which is 7% lower than the national average. 10. St. Louis, MO St. Louis rounds out the top 10. While taxes reduce a $100,000 salary to $69,531, the city’s low cost of living (87% of the national average) makes those after-tax dollars go even further. As a result, a $100,000 salary in St. Louis is worth $79,921 after subtracting taxes and adjusting for the cost of living. One potential solution for those aiming for financial independence and reduced reliance on the government could be a move to one of the ten cities SmartAsset listed.  Tyler Durden Sat, 03/18/2023 - 18:30.....»»

The Federal Reserve's new facility set up after the collapse of two U.S. banks last week could see up to $2 trillion of use, according to a new analysis......»»

MINNETONKA, Minn., March 17, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Electro-Sensors, Inc. (NASDAQ:ELSE), a leading global provider of machine monitoring sensors and hazard monitoring systems, today announced financial results for the year ended December 31, 2022. Record annual revenue of $9.0 million, up 4.9% over prior year Gross Margin of 53.6% Cash and investments of $9.7 million Table in thousands, except per share data FY22 FY21 Change Net Sales $ 9,029 $ 8,607 4.9 % Gross Margin 53.6 % 54.3 % (70) bps Operating Income (Loss) $ (37) $ 441 (108.4) % Operating Income (Loss) Margin (0.5) % 5.0 % (550) bps Income Before Income Taxes $ 72 $ 459 (84.3) % Earnings Per Share (diluted) $ 0.03 $ .12 (75.0) %   Net sales during 2022 increased 4.9% to $9,029,000 from $8,607,000 in the prior year.  Sales growth for the year was driven primarily by increased domestic sales for agricultural and industrial automation applications. "We are pleased to report record annual revenue for 2022," said David L. Klenk, Electro-Sensors' president.  "Our growth was driven by increased sales of both our traditional wired sensor products and our HazardPROTM wireless monitoring systems." Klenk continued, "While significant supply chain disruptions continued during the year, our team did an excellent job addressing these challenges to deliver strong results." A full analysis of results for the year ended December 31, 2022 is available in the Company's Form 10-K, which is available on the Company's website at www.electro-sensors.com or through the Securities and Exchange Commission's Edgar database at www.sec.gov.   Electro-Sensors, Inc. Statements of Income For the Years Ended December 31, 2022 and 2021 (in thousands except share and per share amounts) Years Ended December 31,  2022 2021 Net sales $ 9,029 $ 8,607 Cost of goods sold 4,188 3,930 Gross profit 4,841 4,677 Operating expenses 4,878 4,236 Operating income (loss).....»»

Reported sales +4.3% in the fourth quarter compared to prior year and full year 2022 reported sales +5.6% Net loss of $59.5 million for the fourth quarter and $169.3 million for full year 2022 Fourth quarter Adjusted EBITDA was $93.4 million, representing Adjusted EBITDA margin of 13.3% Full year Adjusted EBITDA was $330.1 million, representing Adjusted EBITDA margin of 11.9% FORT MILL, S.C., March 17, 2023 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Diversey Holdings, Ltd. ("Diversey") (NASDAQ:DSEY) announced fourth quarter and full year results.   Year Ended December 31 (millions)   2022     2021   % Change Net sales $ 2,765.9   $ 2,618.9   5.6 % Loss before taxes   (185.5 )   (149.5 ) (24.1 )% Net loss   (169.3 )   (174.8 ) 3.1 % Adjusted net income(1)   86.7     151.8   (42.9 )%         Adjusted EBITDA(1)   330.1     410.1   (19.5 )% % Margin(1)   11.9 %   15.7 % (380 ) bps Unaudited Fourth Quarter Ended December 31 (millions)   2022     2021   % Change Net sales $ 701.6   $ 672.4   4.3 % Loss before taxes   (79.2 )   (17.4 ) (355.2 )% Net loss   (59.5 )   (35.7 ) (66.7 )% Adjusted net income(1)   26.6     51.2   (48.0 )%         Adjusted EBITDA(1)   93.4     109.5   (14.7 )% % Margin(1)   13.3 %   16.3 % (300 ) bps (1) See the "Non-GAAP Financial Information and Segment Adjusted EBITDA" section herein for explanations of these financial measures. Fourth Quarter 2022 Consolidated Results Net sales increased 4.3% versus prior year or 15.4% when adjusting for currency, showing positive momentum exiting the year. Each segment continues to win new customers while passing through pricing to combat high cost inflation. Loss before taxes of $79.2 million in the fourth quarter of 2022 included Special Items (as defined below) impact of $103.3 million and compared to loss before taxes of $17.4 million in fourth quarter 2021 including Special Items impact of $59.0 million. Adjusted net income in fourth quarter 2022 was $26.6 million compared to $51.2 million in the fourth quarter 2021 and $28.6 million in fourth quarter 2020 with Adjusted EPS of $0.09 in fourth quarter 2022 compared to $0.16 in fourth quarter 2021 and $0.12 in fourth quarter 2020. Adjusted EBITDA for fourth quarter 2022 was $93.4 million, representing a decline of 14.7% versus the period in 2021 as reported or a decline of 5.8% when adjusting for currency. Adjusted EBITDA margin declined 300 basis points compared to the same period 2021. In the fourth quarter, pricing accounted for more than 14% revenue growth. However, accelerating pricing and volume was more than offset by higher costs and foreign exchange pressures in the period. Segment Review Institutional Unaudited Fourth Quarter Ended December 31 (millions)   2022     2021   % Change Net sales $ 490.3   $ 486.9   0.7 % Adjusted EBITDA   68.5     86.3   (20.6 )% % Margin   14.0 %   17.7 % (370 ) bps Reported net sales in the Institutional segment of $490.3 million were 0.7% above Q4 2021 or 11.1% when adjusting for currency. Growth in the quarter reflects a combination of new client wins, innovation, pricing, and continued expansion with our existing customers. Adjusted EBITDA of $68.5 million declined 20.6% compared to Q4 2021 or 11.8% when adjusting for currency. Adjusted EBITDA margin declined 360 basis points vs Q4 2021 due to cost pressures, but has grown 280 basis points sequentially from Q1 2022 as pricing has gained traction. Acquisitions contributed $10.0 million to sales growth and $0.7 million to Adjusted EBITDA. Food & Beverage Unaudited Fourth Quarter Ended December 31 (millions)   2022     2021   % Change Net sales $ 211.3   $ 185.5   13.9 % Adjusted EBITDA   24.0     32.4   (25.9 )% % Margin   11.4 %   17.5 % (610 ) bps Net sales of $211.3 million in the Food & Beverage segment were 13.9% above Q4 2021 or 26.7% when adjusting for currency. This was driven by pricing, win rates and success with the new water treatment offering. Adjusted EBITDA of $24.0 million declined 25.9% and margin declined 610 basis points compared to Q4 2021. Adjusted EBITDA declined 17.3% when adjusting for currency. Acquisitions contributed $6.5 million to sales growth and $0.4 million to Adjusted EBITDA. Transaction with Solenis As announced on March 8, 2023, Diversey has entered into a definitive agreement to be acquired by Solenis in an all-cash transaction valued at an enterprise value of approximately $4.6 billion. If the merger is consummated, Diversey's ordinary shares will be delisted from the Nasdaq Global Select Market and the company will cease to be a reporting company. Diversey expects the merger to be completed in the second half of 2023, subject to a number of closing conditions, including, among others, approval from our shareholders, receipt of certain regulatory approvals, and other customary closing conditions. In light of this transaction, as is customary during the pendency of an acquisition, Diversey will not be hosting an earnings conference call or live webcast to discuss its Q4 2022 or 2022 full year financial results and Diversey will not be providing guidance for the first quarter or full fiscal year 2023. For further details and discussion of our financial performance please refer to our annual report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2022. About Diversey Diversey's purpose is to go beyond clean to take care of what's precious through leading hygiene, infection prevention, and cleaning solutions. We develop and deliver innovative products, services, and technologies that save lives and protect our environment. Over the course of 100 years, the Diversey brand has become synonymous with product quality, service, and innovation. For more information about Diversey, visit www.diversey.com or follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, or Twitter @diversey. Diversey Holdings, Ltd.Investor Contact:Grant Graverir@diversey.com Cautionary Statements Regarding Forward-Looking Information This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended, which include all statements that do not relate solely to historical or current facts, such as statements regarding the Company's expectations, intentions or strategies regarding the future, including strategies or plans as they relate to the proposed transaction. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by the following words: "may," "will," "could," "would," "should," "expect," "intend," "plan," "anticipate," "believe," "estimate," "predict," "project," "aim," "potential," "continue," "ongoing," "goal," "can," "seek," "target" or the negative of these terms or other similar expressions, although not all forward-looking statements contain these words. These forward-looking statements are based on management's beliefs, as well as assumptions made by, and information currently available to, the Company. Because such statements are based on expectations as to future financial and operating results and are not statements of fact, actual results may differ materially from those projected and are subject to a number of known and unknown risks and uncertainties, including: (i) uncertainties as to the timing of the proposed transaction; (ii) the risk that the merger may not be completed in a timely manner or at all, which may adversely affect the Company's business and the price of the Shares; (iii) the possibility that competing offers or acquisition proposals for the Company will be made; (iv) the failure to satisfy any of the conditions to the consummation of the proposed transaction, including the adoption of the merger agreement by the Company's shareholders and the receipt of certain regulatory approvals; (v) the occurrence of any event, change or other circumstance or condition that could give rise to the termination of the merger agreement, including in certain circumstances requiring the Company to pay a termination fee; (vi) the effect of the announcement or pendency of the proposed transaction on the Company's stock price, business relationships, operating results and business generally; (vii) risks that the proposed transaction may disrupt the Company's current business plans and operations; (viii) the Company's ability to retain and hire key personnel in light of the proposed transaction; (ix) risks related to diverting management's attention from the Company's ongoing business operations; (x) unexpected costs, charges or expenses resulting from the proposed transaction; (xi) the ability of the buyer to obtain the necessary financing arrangements set forth in the commitment letters received in connection with the merger; (xii) potential litigation relating to the merger that could be instituted against parties to the merger agreement or other transaction agreements or their respective directors, managers or officers, including the effects of any outcomes of such litigation; (xiii) certain restrictions during the pendency of the merger that may impact the Company's ability to pursue certain business opportunities or strategic transactions; (xiv) uncertain global economic conditions which have had and could continue to have an adverse effect on our consolidated financial condition and results of operations; (xv) the continuation of the COVID-19 pandemic may cause disruptions to the Company's operations, customer demand, and its suppliers' ability to support the Company; (xvi) the risks associated with the global nature of the Company's operations; (xvii) fluctuations between non-U.S. currencies and the U.S. dollar; (xviii) political and economic instability and risk of government actions affecting the Company's business and its customers or suppliers; (xix) increases in the pricing of raw materials, availability and allocation by suppliers as well as increases in energy-related costs; (xx) the Company's ability to develop new and innovative products and the acceptance of such products by the Company's customers; (xxi) cyber risks and the failure to maintain the integrity of the Company's operational or security systems or infrastructure; (xxii) the introduction of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's Base Erosion and Profit Shifting; (xxiii) the consolidation of the Company's customers; (xxiv) competition in the markets for the Company's products and services and in the geographic areas in which it operates; (xxv) instability and uncertainty in the credit and financial markets and the availability of credit that the Company and its customers need to operate the Company's business; (xxvi) new and stricter regulations applicable to our business; (xxvii) continued availability of capital and financing and rating agency actions; and (xxviii) other risks described in the Company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"), including its Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, as may be updated or supplemented by any subsequent Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q or other filings with the SEC. All such factors are difficult to predict and are beyond the Company's control. While the list of risks and uncertainties presented here is, and the discussion of risks and uncertainties to be presented in the proxy statement will be, considered representative, no such list or discussion should be considered a complete statement of all potential risks and uncertainties. Unlisted factors may present significant additional obstacles to the realization of forward-looking statements. Consequences of material differences in results as compared with those anticipated in the forward-looking statements could include, among other things, business disruption, operational problems, financial loss, and legal liability to third parties and similar risks, any of which could have a material adverse effect on the completion of the merger and/or the Company's consolidated financial condition, results of operations, credit rating or liquidity. In light of the significant uncertainties in these forward-looking statements, the Company cannot assure you that the forward-looking statements in this press release will prove to be accurate, and you should not regard these statements as a representation or warranty by the Company, its directors, officers or employees or any other person that the Company will achieve its objectives and plans in any specified time frame, or at all. The forward-looking statements speak only as of the date they are made. The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise, except as required by applicable law. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. Non-GAAP Financial Information We present financial information that conforms to generally accepted accounting principles in the United States ("U.S. GAAP"). We also present financial information that does not conform to U.S. GAAP ("Non-GAAP"), as our management believes it is useful to investors. The Non-GAAP financial metrics exclude items that we consider to be certain specified items ("Special Items"), such as restructuring charges, transition and transformation costs, certain transaction and other charges related to acquisitions and divestitures, gains and losses related to acquisitions and divestitures, and certain other items. We evaluate unusual or Special Items on an individual basis. Our evaluation of whether to exclude an unusual or Special Item for purposes of determining our Non-GAAP financial measures considers both the quantitative and qualitative aspects of the item, including among other things (i) its nature, (ii) whether or not it relates to our ongoing business operations, and (iii) whether or not we expect it to occur as part of our normal business on a regular basis. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are supplemental measures that are not required by, or presented in accordance with, U.S. GAAP. We define EBITDA as income (loss) before income tax provisions (benefit), interest expense, and depreciation and amortization, and Adjusted EBITDA, as EBITDA adjusted for other items to (i) eliminate certain non-operating income or expense items, (ii) eliminate the impact of certain non-cash and other items that are included in net income (loss) that we do not consider indicative of our ongoing operating performance, and (iii) eliminate certain unusual and non-recurring items impacting results in a particular period. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are not measures of our financial performance under U.S. GAAP and should not be considered as an alternative to revenues, net income (loss), income (loss) before income tax provision or any other performance measures derived in accordance with U.S. GAAP, nor should they be considered as alternatives to cash flows from operating activities as a measure of liquidity in accordance with U.S. GAAP. In addition, our method of calculating EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA may vary from the methods used by other companies. Our management considers EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA to be key indicators of our financial performance. Additionally, we believe EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA are frequently used by securities analysts, investors and other interested parties in the evaluation of companies in our industry. We also believe that investors, analysts and rating agencies consider EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA useful means of measuring our ability to meet our debt service obligations and evaluating our financial performance, and management uses these measures for one or more of these purposes. Our presentation of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA should not be construed as an inference that our future results will be unaffected by unusual or nonrecurring items. EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA have important limitations as analytical tools and you should not consider them in isolation or as a substitute for analysis of our results as reported under U.S. GAAP. The use of EBITDA and Adjusted EBITDA instead of net income has limitations as an analytical tool. Adjusted Net Income Adjusted Net Income (as defined below) and Adjusted Earnings (Loss) Per Share ("Adjusted EPS") are Non-GAAP financial measures. We define Adjusted Net Income as net income (loss) adjusted to (i) eliminate certain non-operating income or expense items, (ii) eliminate the impact of certain non-cash and other items that are included in net income that we do not consider indicative of our ongoing operating performance, (iii) eliminate certain unusual and non-recurring items impacting results in a particular period, and (iv) reflect the tax effect of items (i) through (iii) and other tax special items. We believe that in addition to our results determined in accordance with GAAP, Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS are useful in evaluating our business, results of operations and financial condition. We believe that Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS may be helpful to investors because they provide consistency and comparability with past financial performance and facilitate period to period comparisons of our operations and financial results, as they eliminate the effects of certain variables from period to period for reasons that we do not believe reflect our underlying operating performance or are unusual or infrequent in nature. However, Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS are presented for supplemental informational purposes only and should not be considered in isolation or as a substitute or alternative for financial information presented in accordance with GAAP. Adjusted Net Income and Adjusted EPS have limitations as analytical tools. Additional Information and Where to Find ItIn connection with the proposed transaction, the Company intends to file with the SEC and furnish to shareholders a proxy statement on Schedule 14A. The Company, certain of its affiliates and certain affiliates of Bain Capital, LP intend to jointly file a transaction statement on Schedule 13E-3 (the "Schedule 13E-3") with the SEC. Promptly after filing its definitive proxy statement with the SEC, the Company will mail the definitive proxy statement, the Schedule 13E-3 and a proxy card to each shareholder of the Company entitled to vote at the meeting relating to the proposed transaction. This press release is not a substitute for the proxy statement or any other document that the Company may file with the SEC or send to its shareholders in connection with the proposed transaction. INVESTORS AND SHAREHOLDERS OF THE COMPANY ARE URGED TO READ THE PROXY STATEMENT, THE SCHEDULE 13E-3 AND OTHER RELEVANT MATERIALS WHEN THEY BECOME AVAILABLE BEFORE MAKING ANY VOTING OR INVESTMENT DECISION WITH RESPECT TO THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION BECAUSE THEY CONTAIN IMPORTANT INFORMATION ABOUT THE COMPANY AND THE PROPOSED TRANSACTION, THE RISKS RELATED THERETO AND RELATED MATTERS. The materials to be filed by the Company will be made available to the Company's investors and shareholders at no expense to them and copies may be obtained free of charge on the Company's website at www.diversey.com. In addition, all of those materials will be available at no charge on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Participants in the Solicitation The Company and its directors, executive officers, other members of its management and employees may be deemed to be participants in the solicitation of proxies of the Company's shareholders in connection with the proposed transaction under SEC rules. Investors and shareholders may obtain more detailed information regarding the names, affiliations and interests of the Company's executive officers and directors in the solicitation by reading the Company's proxy statement for its 2022 annual meeting of shareholders, the Annual Report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2022, and the proxy statement and other relevant materials that will be filed with the SEC in connection with the proposed transaction when they become available. Information concerning the interests of the Company's participants in the solicitation, which may, in some cases, be different than those of the Company's shareholders generally, will be set forth in the proxy statement relating to the proposed transaction when it becomes available. Diversey Holdings, Ltd.Consolidated Balance Sheets (in millions except share and per share amounts) December 31,2022 December 31,2021 Assets     Current assets:     Cash and cash equivalents $ 205.6   $ 207.6   Trade receivables, net of allowance for doubtful accounts of $21.7 and $23.5   457.4     414.3   Other receivables   77.1     59.3   Inventories   354.6     337.6   Prepaid expenses and other current assets   110.6     69.4   Total current assets   1,205.3     1,088.2   Property and equipment, net   254.1     210.7   Goodwill   462.8     471.5   Intangible assets, net   1,984.1     2,147.3   Other non-current assets   348.4     382.3   Total assets $ 4,254.7   $ 4,300.0         Liabilities and stockholders' equity     Current liabilities:     Short-term borrowings $ 3.8   $ 10.7   Current portion of long-term debt   12.4     10.9   Accounts payable   552.6     434.3   Accrued restructuring costs   28.0     16.7   Other current liabilities   399.2     384.5   Total current liabilities   996.0     857.1   Long-term debt, less current portion   1,969.0     1,973.0   Deferred taxes   148.6     164.3   Other non-current liabilities   468.1     520.0   Total liabilities   3,581.7     3,514.4   Commitments and contingencies     Stockholders' equity:     Ordinary shares, $0.0001 par value per share; 1,000,000,000 shares authorized, 324,328,774 and 324,369,517 shares outstanding in 2022 and 2021, respectively   —     —   Preferred shares, $0.0001 par value per share, 200,000,000 shares authorized, 0 shares outstanding in 2022 and 2021   —     —   Additional paid-in capital   1,717.5     1,662.7   Accumulated deficit   (889.4 )   (720.1 ) Accumulated other comprehensive loss   (155.1 )   (157.0 ) Total stockholders' equity   673.0     785.6   Total liabilities and stockholders' equity $ 4,254.7   $ 4,300.0   Diversey Holdings, Ltd.Consolidated Statements of Operations   Three Months EndedDecember 31, Year EndedDecember 31, (in millions except per share amounts)   2022     2021     2020     2022     2021     2020   Net sales $ 701.6   $ 672.4   $ 667.4   $ 2,765.9   $ 2,618.9   $ 2,629.2   Cost of sales   540.6     428.1     409.4     1,890.1     1,601.6     1,559.4   Gross profit   161.0     244.3     258.0     875.8     1,017.3     1,069.8   Selling, general and administrative expenses   182.9     184.3     252.8     797.6     826.8     835.7   Transition and integration costs   25.2     12.7     16.1     51.3     45.8     37.0   Management fee   —     —     1.9     —     19.4     7.5   Amortization of intangible assets   21.7     24.1     24.2     90.2     96.7     98.2   Restructuring and exit costs   (18.9 )   16.0     26.8     48.7     38.4     32.1   Operating income (loss)   (49.9 )   7.2     (63.8 )   (112.0 )   (9.8 )   59.3   Interest expense   29.0     28.9     32.9     112.0     126.3     127.7   Foreign currency (gain) loss related to hyperinflationary subsidiaries   1.7     0.6     1.3     (1.9 )   (2.1 )   1.6   Loss on extinguishment of debt   —     —     —     —     15.6     —   Other (income) expense, net   (1.4 )   (4.9 )   (11.5 )   (36.6 )   (0.1 )   (40.7 ) Loss before income tax provision (benefit)   (79.2 )   (17.4 )   (86.5 )   (185.5 )   (149.5 )   (29.3 ) Income tax provision (benefit)   (19.7 )   18.3     (14.7 )   (16.2 )   25.3     9.2   Net loss $ (59.5 ) $ (35.7 ) $ (71.8 ) $ (169.3 ) $ (174.8 ) $ (38.5 )               Basic and diluted loss per share $ (0.19 ) $ (0.11 ) $ (0.30 ) $ (0.53 ) $ (0.60.....»»

New Evidence May Finally Trigger A Trump Indictment; Georgia DA Has Recording of Third Threatening Phone Call Fani Willis Obtains Recording Of Trump’s Third Call WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 17, 2023) – It has just been revealed that Fulton County DA Fani Willis has a third and previously undisclosed recording of a telephone call by Donald […] New Evidence May Finally Trigger A Trump Indictment; Georgia DA Has Recording of Third Threatening Phone Call Fani Willis Obtains Recording Of Trump’s Third Call WASHINGTON, D.C. (March 17, 2023) – It has just been revealed that Fulton County DA Fani Willis has a third and previously undisclosed recording of a telephone call by Donald Trump, and possibly also of his lawyer Rudy Giuliani, seeking to pressure a government official to illegally alter the presidential vote in Georgia. if (typeof jQuery == 'undefined') { document.write(''); } .first{clear:both;margin-left:0}.one-third{width:31.034482758621%;float:left;margin-left:3.448275862069%}.two-thirds{width:65.51724137931%;float:left}form.ebook-styles .af-element input{border:0;border-radius:0;padding:8px}form.ebook-styles .af-element{width:220px;float:left}form.ebook-styles .af-element.buttonContainer{width:115px;float:left;margin-left: 6px;}form.ebook-styles .af-element.buttonContainer input.submit{width:115px;padding:10px 6px 8px;text-transform:uppercase;border-radius:0;border:0;font-size:15px}form.ebook-styles .af-body.af-standards input.submit{width:115px}form.ebook-styles .af-element.privacyPolicy{width:100%;font-size:12px;margin:10px auto 0}form.ebook-styles .af-element.privacyPolicy p{font-size:11px;margin-bottom:0}form.ebook-styles .af-body input.text{height:40px;padding:2px 10px !important} form.ebook-styles .error, form.ebook-styles #error { color:#d00; } form.ebook-styles .formfields h1, form.ebook-styles .formfields #mg-logo, form.ebook-styles .formfields #mg-footer { display: none; } form.ebook-styles .formfields { font-size: 12px; } form.ebook-styles .formfields p { margin: 4px 0; } Get The Full Henry Singleton Series in PDF Get the entire 4-part series on Henry Singleton in PDF. Save it to your desktop, read it on your tablet, or email to your colleagues (function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true); Q4 2022 hedge fund letters, conferences and more   The first recording was of a telephone call to Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger who was urged to somehow "find" new votes to make Trump the winner. In it Trump threatened Raffensperger with possible federal criminal sanctions if he refused. The second recorded call, also previously known to the public, was to investigator Frances Watson who was conducting an audit of absentee ballots in Cobb County. Trump asked her to somehow uncover unspecified "dishonesty" in the voting, and promised that "when the right answer comes out, you'll be praised." This new recorded telephone call, from Trump to now-deceased Georgia House Speaker David Ralston, asked the Republican to illegally convene a special session of the Legislature to overturn Joe Biden’s victory. It was played for the special grand jury investigating Trump and his allies, and makes the evidence that Trump violated the laws of Georgia even more overwhelming, says public interest law professor John Banzhaf, whose formal legal complaint that Trump violated criminal laws in the state triggered Willis' investigation, and subsequently the calling of the special grand jury. This new evidence further strengthens Willis' already very strong legal hand, and may help pressure her to promptly issue an unprecedented indictment of a former president, especially if she wants to beat the Manhattan District Attorney to be first. DA Alvin L. Bragg just offered Trump an opportunity to testify before his grand jury, which is usually a sign that an indictment is imminent, suggests Banzhaf. Also, the Manhattan prosecutors just met with the recipient of Trump's alleged bribe, Stormy Daniels, as well as took testimony from Trump's former attorney and "fixer," Michael Cohen, who actually paid the hush money. Several experts are suggesting that a Bragg indictment of Trump could come down as early as next week, although it might not then be made public for several more days. Prof Banzhaf notes that an ever growing number of legal experts have also concluded that Trump's gravest legal threat comes from the DA of Fulton County, Georgia; in part because Attorney General Merrick Garland may nix one or more proposed federal prosecutions for legal and/or political reasons, as well as because of the troubling "optics," says Banzhaf. Recently, civil rights attorney David Henderson said on MSNBC that "I think in terms of prosecutors, he has the most to fear down in Georgia because Fani Willis is not going to back off, and many of the arguments that we hear about prosecuting the former president are not going to be persuasive to her." Also, Willis wrote “target” letters to 10 more Republican electors, putting them on notice that they too could be indicted - a very clear indication that she is moving forward. It’s hard to see how electors in a scheme to affect the election could be prosecuted without also including the person behind and encouraging the entire scheme, argues Banzhaf. Laurence Tribe, professor emeritus of constitutional law at Harvard University, has written "It wouldn't surprise me for Georgia to become the first jurisdiction to indict a former president on felony charges. And I think the charges will stick." The Most Significant Legal Threat Earlier, THE HILL reported that legal experts say "an Atlanta-area prosecutor’s investigation into former President Trump’s effort to overturn his 2020 electoral defeat in Georgia poses the most significant legal threat to the former president." “The steps her office has taken, including empaneling a special grand jury and subpoenaing high-profile witnesses, are very likely not steps she would have taken if she did not feel there was at least a significant possibility that she will move forward with charges,” said one expert. He added that “the stakes in holding Trump accountable for an attack on our democratic system of government couldn’t be higher, and the evidence is extremely compelling.” "The most serious prospect of prosecution" that Trump faces is in Fulton County, Georgia, reported the New York Times in an Op-Ed by two experienced prosecutors (one Democrat and one Republican); a conclusion reinforcing an earlier 100-page analysis by seven legal experts who concluded that the former president faces a “substantial risk of possible state charges predicated on multiple crimes.”   As the two former prosecutors concluded, "Willis’s work may present the most serious prospect of prosecution that Mr. Trump and his enablers are facing. . . She has a demonstrated record of courage and of conviction. She has taken on — and convicted [under RICO] — a politically powerful group, Atlanta’s teachers, as the lead prosecutor in the city’s teacher cheating scandal. And she is playing with a strong hand in this investigation. The evidentiary record of Mr. Trump’s post-election efforts in Georgia is compelling." As the New York Times further explained: "What’s more, Georgia criminal law is some of the most favorable in the country for getting at Mr. Trump’s alleged misconduct." For example, there is a Georgia law on the books expressly forbidding just what Mr. Trump apparently did in Ms. Willis’ jurisdiction: solicitation of election fraud. Under this statute [GA Code § 21-2-604], a person commits criminal solicitation of election fraud when he or she intentionally 'solicits, requests, commands, importunes or otherwise attempts to cause' another person to engage in election fraud." Prof Banzhaf and other legal experts have suggested that there is strong evidence that Trump and his allies also violated several additional Georgia criminal statutes. It also seems clear the Willis is planning to bring charges under Georgia's RICO [Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations] Act which is more sweeping than its federal counterpart, says Banzhaf, whose legal memo led to a successful federal RICO prosecution of the major tobacco companies. There are many other indications that Willis may soon indict Trump, suggests Banzhaf, whose criminal complaint triggered her investigation, and who also played a role in obtaining special prosecutors for former president Richard Nixon, and for finally bringing former Vice President Spiro Agnew to justice......»»

There is no singular recipe for building a wealthy retirement faster than your peers. If you talk to 1,000 millionaires, you’ll get 1,000 different suggestions. However, when you drill down and look for the commonalities, there are usually a few things that stick out. And if you’re looking to increase the speed at which you […] There is no singular recipe for building a wealthy retirement faster than your peers. If you talk to 1,000 millionaires, you’ll get 1,000 different suggestions. However, when you drill down and look for the commonalities, there are usually a few things that stick out. And if you’re looking to increase the speed at which you build retirement wealth, you may want to listen up. if (typeof jQuery == 'undefined') { document.write(''); } .first{clear:both;margin-left:0}.one-third{width:31.034482758621%;float:left;margin-left:3.448275862069%}.two-thirds{width:65.51724137931%;float:left}form.ebook-styles .af-element input{border:0;border-radius:0;padding:8px}form.ebook-styles .af-element{width:220px;float:left}form.ebook-styles .af-element.buttonContainer{width:115px;float:left;margin-left: 6px;}form.ebook-styles .af-element.buttonContainer input.submit{width:115px;padding:10px 6px 8px;text-transform:uppercase;border-radius:0;border:0;font-size:15px}form.ebook-styles .af-body.af-standards input.submit{width:115px}form.ebook-styles .af-element.privacyPolicy{width:100%;font-size:12px;margin:10px auto 0}form.ebook-styles .af-element.privacyPolicy p{font-size:11px;margin-bottom:0}form.ebook-styles .af-body input.text{height:40px;padding:2px 10px !important} form.ebook-styles .error, form.ebook-styles #error { color:#d00; } form.ebook-styles .formfields h1, form.ebook-styles .formfields #mg-logo, form.ebook-styles .formfields #mg-footer { display: none; } form.ebook-styles .formfields { font-size: 12px; } form.ebook-styles .formfields p { margin: 4px 0; } Get The Full Henry Singleton Series in PDF Get the entire 4-part series on Henry Singleton in PDF. Save it to your desktop, read it on your tablet, or email to your colleagues (function($) {window.fnames = new Array(); window.ftypes = new Array();fnames[0]='EMAIL';ftypes[0]='email';}(jQuery));var $mcj = jQuery.noConflict(true); Q4 2022 hedge fund letters, conferences and more   Find A Qualified Financial Advisor Finding a qualified financial advisor doesn't have to be hard. SmartAsset's free tool matches you with up to 3 fiduciary financial advisors in your area in 5 minutes. Each advisor has been vetted by SmartAsset and is held to a fiduciary standard to act in your best interests. If you're ready to be matched with local advisors that can help you achieve your financial goals, get started now. The Power of Building Real Wealth When you compare the United States to other countries around the world, we are an incredibly wealthy country. We earn more, per capita, than most other nations. However, wealth seems to be very unevenly distributed among people. While the one percenters are doing great, the majority of the population is either struggling or slowly building toward retirement. Is it possible to build wealth faster as you look toward retirement? According to the latest data available, the average savings for those under the age of 35 is $11,200, while the median is $3,324. For those in the 35-44 age bracket, average savings are $27,900 (with median savings of just $4,710). And while savings do start to increase for those in the 45-54 age bracket ($48,200 and $5,620, respectively) and the 55-64 group ($57,800 and $64,000), these numbers are a far cry from what most people would consider “wealth.” While there’s no tangible number attached to the term “wealth,” most people would consider it to be an amount of money that allows you to feel comfortable and secure. For some people, it’s enough money to where you could retire today and not feel stressed. Over the years, having a seven-figure net worth has sort of been considered the minimum entry point into the world of the wealthy. However, most financial planners would agree that one million dollars isn’t nearly enough to retire on — especially if you want to be comfortable. 11 Wealth-Building Tactics For a Strong Foundation Building wealth is something that many people aspire to, but they often find it difficult to achieve. It can seem like a daunting task to accumulate significant amounts of money, especially when faced with the challenges of debt, limited income, and economic uncertainty. However, there are many strategies and techniques that can help you build wealth faster and more efficiently, whether you’re just starting out or looking to boost your existing financial portfolio. Here are a few tactics to consider implementing, so that you can take control of your financial future and achieve your goals. 1. Erase High-Interest Debt Among the most important steps you can take towards building wealth and paving the way for retirement is to eliminate any high-interest debt that you may have. Credit card debt, personal loans, and other types of consumer debt can be major drains on your finances, as you may end up paying far more in interest charges than you initially borrowed. If you’re carrying a balance on a credit card or other debt with an interest rate above 10%, it’s usually a good idea to prioritize paying it off as quickly as possible. There are several strategies you can use to tackle high-interest debt. One option is to prioritize paying off the highest interest rate debt first, while continuing to consistently make minimum payments on other balances. This is known as the “avalanche” method and can help you save money on interest charges over time. Another approach is the “snowball” method, which involves paying off the smallest balances first while making minimum payments on larger debts. This can help you build momentum and stay motivated as you pay off your debts one by one. 2. Budget Wisely In addition to eliminating high-interest debt, another key step in building wealth is to create a budget that allows you to live within your means and save money. A budget can help you track your expenses, prioritize your spending, and avoid overspending in areas that aren’t aligned with your long-term financial goals. To create a budget, start by calculating your monthly income and expenses. Then, identify areas where you can cut back on unnecessary expenses, such as dining out or subscriptions you don’t use. Consider setting specific savings goals, such as saving for a down payment on a house or building an emergency fund, and make sure to allocate a portion of your income towards these goals every month. By sticking to a budget and saving consistently, you can start to build wealth. 3. Start a Side Hustle If you’re looking for ways to boost your income and accelerate your wealth-building journey, starting a side hustle can be a great option. A side hustle is any type of work you do outside of your primary job, such as freelancing, consulting, or selling products online. (It’s also something that you can take with you into retirement.) There are many benefits to starting a side hustle, including the ability to earn extra income, develop new skills, and build your network. Additionally, many side hustles can be done on a flexible schedule, allowing you to work around your existing commitments. To get started, consider your skills and interests, and identify areas where you could offer services or products that people are willing to pay for. Some popular side hustles include pet-sitting, tutoring, web design, and e-commerce. 4. Trade Futures If you’re interested in investing, futures trading can be an exciting and potentially lucrative option. Futures are contracts that allow you to buy or sell an underlying asset, such as commodities, currencies, or stocks, at a predetermined price and date in the future. Futures trading can be risky, as the price of the underlying asset can fluctuate wildly, but it can also offer high rewards for those who are successful. To get started with futures trading, you’ll need to open a trading account with a brokerage firm that offers futures trading. You’ll also need to do your research and learn about the markets you’re interested in, as well as the factors that can influence price movements. Many traders use technical analysis, which involves analyzing price charts and using mathematical indicators to identify trends and entry and exit points. It’s important to note that futures trading can be highly volatile, and there is always the risk of losing money. As such, it’s important to approach futures trading with caution and to only invest money that you can afford to lose. Additionally, it’s important to have a well-thought-out trading plan in place, including risk management strategies and clear entry and exit rules. 5. Invest in Real Estate Investing in real estate is a powerful way to build wealth over time. Real estate investing can take many forms, from buying and renting out properties to flipping houses for a profit. Real estate can offer both passive incomes through rental income and capital appreciation over the long term. To get started with real estate investing, you’ll need to do your research and identify opportunities that align with your goals and risk tolerance. Some popular real estate investment options include purchasing rental properties, getting involved with real estate crowdfunding, and investing in real estate investment trusts (REITs). When investing in real estate, it’s important to understand the risks and rewards of each option as well as the local market conditions in the area where you’re investing. You’ll also need to have a solid understanding of the financials involved, including rental income, expenses, and financing options. The great thing about real estate investments is that you can hold them in your portfolio throughout retirement and continue to reap the financial rewards. 6. Diversify With Cryptocurrency Cryptocurrency has emerged as a new asset class in recent years, offering investors the potential for high returns but also significant risks. Cryptocurrencies are digital assets that use cryptography to secure and verify transactions on an immutable ledger. Bitcoin is the most well-known cryptocurrency, but there are thousands of others available, each with its own unique features and risks. Investing in cryptocurrency can be a speculative and volatile option, as the price of cryptocurrencies can fluctuate wildly based on a range of factors. However, for those who are willing to take the risk, cryptocurrency can offer high potential returns and the opportunity to diversify their investment portfolio. To invest in cryptocurrency, you’ll need to open an account with a cryptocurrency exchange, which will allow you to buy and sell cryptocurrencies. You’ll also need to do your research and understand the risks involved as well as the technical aspects of cryptocurrencies, such as wallets and blockchain technology. 7. Automate your Finances One of the most effective ways to build wealth over time is to automate your finances, which can help you save money consistently and avoid overspending. Automating your finances involves setting up automatic payments and transfers for bills, savings, and investments. That way, thinking about them on a daily basis isn’t necessary. To automate your finances, start by setting up automatic payments for bills, such as rent or mortgage payments, utility bills, and credit card bills. Then, set up automatic transfers to your savings and investment accounts, so that a portion of your income is automatically saved and invested each month. If you automate your finances, you have the opportunity to avoid the temptation to overspend or skip savings contributions. Additionally, it will save you time and mental energy to automate your finances, as you don’t have to worry about manually making payments or transfers each month. 8. Maximize Your Retirement Contributions Investing in tax-advantaged retirement accounts is an important part of building long-term wealth. By maximizing your retirement contributions, you can take advantage of tax benefits and compound interest to grow your savings over time. If you have a 401(k) or similar employer-sponsored retirement plan, consider contributing the maximum amount allowed each year. For 2023, the maximum contribution limit for a 401(k) is $22,500, with an additional catch-up contribution of $7,500 for those aged 50 or older. If you don’t have a retirement plan sponsored by an employer, consider creating an individual retirement account (IRA). For 2023, the contribution limit for a traditional or Roth IRA is $6,500, with an additional catch-up contribution of $1,000 for those aged 50 or older. By maximizing your retirement contributions, you can build a significant nest egg for your future while reducing your tax liability. 9. Diversify Your Investments Diversification is a key principle of investing, as it helps to spread your risk across a variety of different assets and investments. By diversifying your investments, you can reduce your exposure to any one particular asset class or investment, which can help to protect your portfolio in the event of a downturn in the market. To diversify your investments, consider investing in a mix of stocks, bonds, real estate, and alternative assets such as commodities or cryptocurrencies. Within each asset class, you can also diversify further by investing in a range of different companies or properties, rather than putting all your money into one single investment. While diversification can’t eliminate all investment risk, it can help to mitigate risk and increase the likelihood of long-term growth. 10. Focus on Increasing Your Income While reducing expenses and saving money is important, another way to build wealth faster is to focus on increasing your income. By earning more money, you can save and invest more, which can help to accelerate your wealth-building goals. To increase your income, consider asking for a raise at work, taking on additional responsibilities, or looking for higher-paying job opportunities. You could also start a side business or freelance gig, which can generate additional income and potentially turn into a full-time career.   11. Consider Working With a Financial Adviser If you’re serious about building wealth, consider working with a financial adviser who can help you develop a personalized financial plan, identify investment opportunities, and navigate complex financial decisions. A financial adviser can offer valuable insights and guidance on topics such as retirement planning, tax optimization, investment selection, and risk management. They can also provide accountability and help you stay on track with your financial goals. When choosing a financial adviser, look for someone with relevant experience, certifications, and a track record of success. Meet with several advisers to find someone who you feel comfortable working with and who understands your unique financial situation and goals. While working with a financial adviser comes with a cost, the potential benefits of having a professional on your side can outweigh the expense over the long term. By taking advantage of their expertise and guidance, you can build wealth more efficiently and confidently. Ready, Set, Build Wealth As you can see, there are plenty of different approaches to building a wealthy retirement as you begin to plan. By attacking it from all angles — including earning, saving, and investing — you can increase your chances of being able to achieve your version of financial freedom. Now…buckle down and get to work! Article by Deanna Ritchie, Due About the Author Deanna Ritchie is a managing editor at Due. She has a degree in English Literature. She has written 2000+ articles on getting out of debt and mastering your finances. She has edited over 60,000 articles in her life. She has a passion for helping writers inspire others through their words. Deanna has also been an editor at Entrepreneur Magazine and ReadWrite......»»