regime uncertainty

French revolutionary rule keeps Paris bakers baking

"The presence of bread – which holds an almost mythical importance for the French – has been guaranteed in the capital since the chaotic and starving days of the French Revolution. And to avoid the possibility of another revolution, the state has since ensured that modern Parisians have no need to rise up for lack of a fresh baguette. City bakers now have strictly regulated summer holidays and are expressly forbidden to abandon the capital en masse and leave behind a potentially dangerous bread vacuum. The rules go back to the Revolution, when in October 1798 baker Denis François was lynched by an angry mob for not opening his shop." Continue reading →

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The Hookah Lounge War Is On

"There are hundreds of hookah lounges in the U-S, mostly in college towns and urban areas. The lounges have enjoyed an exemption to clean indoor air laws because they have defined themselves as 'tobacco shops.' No more. The front line is here in Boston. After allowing a few lounges to open, the city has clamped down and passed a law that forces all of the city’s hookah lounges to shut down by 2019. 'There’s a risk that people who are non-smokers will [..] find themselves addicted to nicotine and needing to buy packs of Marlboros,' says Mark Gottlieb, executive director at the Public Health Advocacy Institute." Continue reading →

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Jim Rogers: Why I’m shorting India

"Hedge fund manager Jim Rogers, who moved to Singapore in 2007 because he thought the centre of the world is shifting to Asia, says India is set to miss out on the Asian century. The chairman of Rogers Holdings says that if there is one country an individual must visit, it has to be India for its 'spectacular sensory feast, beautiful, food, colour and religions', but it is also the worst country to do business in. Rogers also slammed the Indian government’s recent curbs on gold imports, saying Indian citizens had no choice but to buy the metal because they had very little faith in investing in other sectors of its economy." Continue reading →

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Square Fined $507K In Florida For Operating Without A Money Transmitter License

"A little more state-specific financial regulatory hot water for Square, the hot mobile commerce startup: it has been fined $507,000 by Florida’s Office of Financial Regulation for operating a payment service without a money transmission license. This looks like the second time that a U.S. state financial regulator has gone after the company, after Square was served with a cease and desist order in Illinois in March 2013, also for failing to obtain a license before opening up for operations. According to the Florida payment order (embedded below), the $507,000 fine covers over two years of operation, from February 2010 to November 2012." Continue reading →

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Decoding Bitcoin

"Chances are you have never used a Bitcoin, but you’ve probably heard of it. The virtual currency is popping up more and more in the news and the government has been showing an increased interest in the subject. For instance, the top Democrat and Republican on the Senate’s Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee this week told federal financial regulators and law enforcement officials to explain how they are keeping tabs on 'virtual' currencies, including the $1.2 billion market for Bitcoins. So what, errr, is a Bitcoin? What follows is guide to understanding the currency, why it’s used and why the government is paying attention." Continue reading →

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Bitcoin vs Gold: Getting the Most Bang For Your Buck

"There's a new Bitcoin sheriff in town. It's called the Digital Asset Transfer Authority -- or DATA. And it's not just limited to Bitcoins, it will self-govern most of the actors in the digital currency space, including Ripple. Again, this is on a purely voluntary basis. With regulators increasingly cracking down on various crypto-currencies, DATA is attempting to get ahead of the game -- and craft best practices to interact with regulators. Bob talks with Trace Mayer, entrepreneur, and Andreas Antonopoulos, internet security expert, and asks if the new regulatory authority, DATA, goes against the original purpose of Bitcoins -- namely anonymity." Continue reading →

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Justice Department sues to block US Airways-American merger

"In a surprise move Tuesday, the U.S. Justice Department sued to block the $11 billion merger of American Airlines and US Airways, which would create the world's largest airline. The Justice Department said it would harm competition and U.S. consumers, as just four airlines would control more than 80 percent of the U.S. commercial air travel market. The department took action against this merger, yet recently let go other combinations between major airlines. Industry experts said the move was out of step with past practices and would potentially leave US Air and American, which is emerging from bankruptcy, at a competitive disadvantage." Continue reading →

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Bitcoin gets the FBI, Homeland Security treatment

"'The Committee directs the FBI, in consultation with the Department and other Federal partners, to provide a briefing no later 120 days after the enactment of this Act on the nature and scale of the risk posed by such ersatz currency, both in financing illegal enterprises and in undermining financial institutions,' said the bill, which was posted on the Committee's website, and reported Tuesday by several industry blogs. Jon Matonis, executive director of the Bitcoin Foundation, told CNBC that the wording of the bill is the type that encourages innovative startups to seek out more acceptable international jurisdictions." Continue reading →

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‘Affordable’ Care: $1 Pay Hike Costs Middle-Class Family $9,355 Hike in Premiums

"When the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (AKA Obamacare) is fully enforced on individuals and families next year, a middle-aged, middle-class couple with three children could be hit with a $9,355 hike in their annual health-insurance premiums if their annual household income happens to increase by just $1. According to the IRS, which responded to a CNSNews.com inquiry on the issue, a household earning an annual income that is just $1 more than 400 percent of the FPL is ineligible for an Obamacare subsidy, period. A family of four, in which both parents were 56 years old, would hit the 400-percent of FPL threshold at $94,200." Continue reading →

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The Bitcoin crackdown

"Bitcoin is a virtual currency getting a lot of attention by the real world. Coinsetter is a company dedicated to making Bitcoin safe to use. Jaron Lukasiewicz, Coinsetter CEO, shares what the industry has to say. And Benjamin Lawsky, superintendent of NY Department of Financial Services, shares the regulators' side of the story." Continue reading →

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