sound money

Visa, MasterCard $5.7 Billion Swipe Fee Accord Approved

"Visa Inc. (V) and MasterCard Inc. (MA) won approval for a $5.7 billion settlement that ended years of litigation with U.S. merchants over allegations that credit-card swipe fees are improperly fixed. U.S. District Judge John Gleeson said that he was satisfied with the settlement, which was estimated to be the largest-ever U.S. antitrust accord. 'For the first time, merchants will be empowered to expose hidden bank fees to their customers, educate them about those fees and use that information to influence their customers’ choices of payment methods,' Gleeson wrote in his ruling today in federal court in Brooklyn, New York." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingVisa, MasterCard $5.7 Billion Swipe Fee Accord Approved

Fed to Explode QE Next Downturn – Can’t Control Velocity

"'What's going to happen the next time there's an economic downturn? They're going to double, triple, quadruple (QE). Instead of making 85 billion per month, they're going to be making 850 billion per month. It'll go up TEN times.'" Continue reading →

Continue ReadingFed to Explode QE Next Downturn – Can’t Control Velocity

Bill Bonner: Is This the World’s Cheapest Commodity Play?

"Brazil has made its share of bad decisions… and suffered its share of bad policies. Generals, dictators, repression, depression and hyperinflation – Brazil has seen it all. In the 1980s, Brazil’s consumer price increases went wild. In constant currency, a taxi ride that might have cost 4 cruzeiros in 1980 would have cost 5 trillion cruzeiros in 1994. The government tried to head off inflation by introducing a new currency, the cruzado. Then came the new cruzado. Then came the cruzeiro back. And finally, the government introduced the real. With prices rising so rapidly, it was impossible for investors and business people to make reasonable projections." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBill Bonner: Is This the World’s Cheapest Commodity Play?

Investors, Run for Cover From the Incoming ‘Taper Bomb’

"The bond market sell-off is leaving fixed-income investors (at least, those who didn’t heed my advice to get out of the way) with the worst annual losses on bonds since 1999. It also proves beyond the shadow of a doubt that the bond market is more powerful than the Fed. Now, against that backdrop, the Fed is about to hold its last policy meeting of 2013. On Dec. 17 and 18, policymakers will gather around a conference table in Washington and decide whether to continue their $85 billion-per-month QE program. My prediction? They drop a taper bomb and start dialing down those purchases, probably by at least $10 billion." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingInvestors, Run for Cover From the Incoming ‘Taper Bomb’

Central banker: Aussie dollar needs to fall further

"Reserve Bank of Australia governor Glenn Stevens has indicated he wants an Aussie dollar closer to 85 US cents, while pointing to 'promising signs' that the economy is transitioning away from the mining boom. But he said that turning the lower currency into a real depreciation that spurs growth would require real wage cuts. 'I thought [US]85 cents would be closer to the mark than [US]95 cents . . .but really, I don't think we can be that precise. I just think that if things over the medium term evolve as we're presently assuming – and I think it's reasonable to make these assumptions – it's going to be surprising if a nine at the front is the right number,' he said." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCentral banker: Aussie dollar needs to fall further

Dismantle the euro, says Nobel-winning economist who backed it

"A Nobel prize-winning economist will on Thursday withdraw his support for the euro saying it has created a 'lost generation' unemployed youngsters and should be broken up. Sir Christopher Pissarides was once a key proponent of a single currency but will on Thursday accuse the euro of 'dividing Europe' and say action is needed to 'restore the euro’s credibility in international markets' and the 'trust that Europe’s nations once had in each other', according to the Daily Mail. The Cypriot-British economist, who won the Nobel prize in 2010, is speaking days after Christine Lagarde, the head of the International Monetary Fund, insisted the crisis in the eurozone was not yet over." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingDismantle the euro, says Nobel-winning economist who backed it

European Union Warns on Bitcoin

"The European Union on Friday added to a string of recent warnings about the safety of using and investing in Bitcoin, the virtual currency that is not issued by any government. The union’s banking authority said consumers needed to be aware that they were not protected through regulation when paying with Bitcoins. The digital currency is vulnerable to hackers, might lose its value and any misuse could prompt law enforcement agencies to close Bitcoin exchange platforms and keep consumers from accessing their investment, the European regulator said, adding that it was looking into whether such currencies could and should be regulated." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingEuropean Union Warns on Bitcoin

Bitcoins Fail Currency Test in Scandinavia’s Richest Nation

"Bitcoins were dealt a blow in Norway as the government of Scandinavia’s richest nation said the virtual currency doesn’t qualify as real money. 'Bitcoins don’t fall under the usual definition of money or currency,' Hans Christian Holte, director general of taxation in Norway, said in an interview. 'We’ve done some assessments on what’s the right and sound way to handle this in the tax system.' Norway will instead treat Bitcoins as an asset and charge a capital gains tax. While tax revenue from Bitcoins isn’t substantial, Holte at the Norwegian tax authority said he plans to work with other countries to hammer out the legal aspects of Bitcoin." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoins Fail Currency Test in Scandinavia’s Richest Nation

Central Banks in New Zealand and Australia Issue Bitcoin Warning

"Representatives from the central banks of New Zealand and Australia have issued their own official warnings on bitcoin, terming the currency 'interesting, but risky'. John McDermott, assistant governor at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand (RBNZ), said banks and businesses should 'tread very carefully' with the digital currency, in a report by the Wall Street Journal. RBNZ Governor Graeme Wheeler cited price volatility as a cause for concern. Next door, the governor of the Reserve Bank of Australia, Glenn Stevens, said he was 'still trying to understand' the cryptocurrency during an interview with theAustralian Financial Review." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingCentral Banks in New Zealand and Australia Issue Bitcoin Warning

Bitcoin and Intrinsic Value: a Layman’s Response to Alan Greenspan

"Once upon a time, at the end of the last millennium, I founded and led the first games company to sell virtual goods or virtual currency for real money. We sold (and still sell) ‘credits’ – virtual currency that is bought for real money, which players can use to buy other things in our games. When I first started selling credits, a lot of people, including almost everyone in the games industry who was aware of what we were doing, thought it was ridiculous. The general criticism was along the lines of: 'Why would someone pay real money for a fake sword?' 16 years later, people are still buying these credits, and they’re even used to pay other people for third-party services around our games." Continue reading →

Continue ReadingBitcoin and Intrinsic Value: a Layman’s Response to Alan Greenspan