"S.B. 315 would criminalize simply accessing a computer, app, or website contrary to how the service provider tells you, even if you never cause or intend to cause harm. A violation under S.B. 315 would be classified as 'a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature,' punishable by up to $5,000 and 12 months in jail."
"When it comes to repair, farmers have always been self reliant. But the modernization of tractors and other farm equipment over the past few decades has left most farmers in the dust thanks to diagnostic software that large manufacturers hold a monopoly over. In this episode of State of Repair, Motherboard goes to Nebraska to talk to the farmers and mechanics who are fighting large manufacturers like John Deere for the right to access the diagnostic software they need to repair their tractors."
"With the ticker HBLK, the fund has a management fee of 0.65 per cent and seeks to replicate the performance of the Harvest Blockchain Technologies Index; an index designed in-house to track the performance of issuers in both the large-cap blockchain segment and the emerging blockchain segment exposed to the development and implementation of blockchain technologies in North America. At the same time, two other providers are looking to access the ever-growing popular blockchain technology. Both First Trust Portfolios Canada and Evolve Funds Group Inc. have filed preliminary prospectuses with regulators this week for blockchain funds."
"ATM 'jackpotting' — a sophisticated crime in which thieves install malicious software and/or hardware at ATMs that forces the machines to spit out huge volumes of cash on demand — has long been a threat for banks in Europe and Asia, yet these attacks somehow have eluded U.S. ATM operators. But all that changed this week after the U.S. Secret Service quietly began warning financial institutions that jackpotting attacks have now been spotted targeting cash machines here in the United States."
"Anxiety is only increased by the latest report from Reuters that cash withdrawals at Hong Kong ATMs have surged, prompting scrutiny from monetary authorities, the banking industry, and police amid media reports that mainland Chinese are withdrawing hundreds of thousands of dollars using up to 50 cards at a time. China has battled to curb capital outflows for years. A move that took effect on Jan. 1 caps overseas withdrawals using domestic Chinese bank cards."
"The annual deposit war is particularly fierce this year. The last day of January in the [WeChat] friend groups, bankers 'beg' for deposits one after another. 'There are more than 20 banks looking, every one is asking for deposits.' a listed company's small partner told reporters that he had been too busy to reply, however. The banker's nickname is 'Guixie.' [a combination of beg and thanks] 'Perhaps because the New Year approached, company payments are more numerous, bank account capital is less, bank competition for deposits is even more intense.' A banking source told reporters bluntly, these days are quite difficult."
"Despite being one of China’s largest conglomerates, HNA has been shut out of stock and bond markets as lenders worry about its outsized debt load, forcing the company to pledge some of its core holdings as collateral for short-term loans, as the Wall Street Journal reported last month. And yet, even as the company resorted to loaning out shares and entering into arcane derivative financing agreements to finance its debt-service payments, it quickly found out that traditional avenues of financing are disappearing or becoming too costly."
"In what many will see as the latest sign of investor euphoria — and of our society’s oversharing epidemic — sharing your 401(k) balance on social media seems to have become a thing. With the Dow Jones Industrial Average and the S&P 500 index hitting record after record since President Trump’s election in November 2016, the question, 'How’s your 401(k) doing?' has become a staple in his speeches at campaign-style rallies and fundraisers. And 401(k) balance shoutouts have become a staple among his supporters — and detractors — on Twitter."
"Outgoing Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen said U.S. stocks and commercial real estate prices are elevated but stopped short of saying those markets are in a bubble. 'What we look at is, if stock prices or asset prices more generally were to fall, what would that mean for the economy as a whole?' Yellen said. 'And I think our overall judgment is that, if there were to be a decline in asset valuations, it would not damage unduly the core of our financial system.'"
"As global bond yields break ever higher, it appears The Bank of Japan is realizing it is losing control of its yield curve and today unleashed a double-whammy to stifle the bond bears... Whammy 1 - BoJ offers to buy unlimited 10Y notes at 11bps. Result - a 0.5bps drop in the JGB yield!!"