In the Blind Spot (Libor — Scarce reserves — Crypto conglomerates)
This week’s edition of the Blind Spot newsletter was compiled by me, Izabella Kaminska, with the help of Dario Garcia Giner + some of my Politico colleagues, because it features some recycled snippets (or blurbs as they call them) from the dummy runs of our new Politico Europe Central Banker newsletter, which launches on May […]
What’s at stake as Libor rigging scandal resurfaces? (POLITICO)
By Johanna Treeck, Geoffrey Smith What is the scandal about? A new book alleges that the traders who went to jail after the global financial crisis for conspiring to rig benchmark interest rates were victims of a miscarriage of justice. Author Andrew Verity makes the allegation that the traders were under duress from state agencies […]
Fight against ‘shadow fleet’ shipping Russian oil takes EU into uncharted waters (POLITICO)
By Gabriel Gavin · May 22, 2023 BRUSSELS — The EU wants to crack down on an armada of aging tankers carrying Russian oil around the globe that is raising fears of an environmental disaster while sending cash to the Kremlin. But tackling the so-called shadow fleet is proving harder than expected, and the effort […]
In the Blind Spot (Intraday funding — Beyond growth — FRONTEX)
This week’s Blind Spot newsletter was compiled by me, Izabella Kaminska, with the help of my own human version of ChatGPT, Dario Garcia Giner. I had the pleasure this week of taking part in a Cyber Salon event organised by entrepreneur Eva Pascoe at the House of Commons under the auspices of former shadow chancellor […]
Net zero targets risk doing more harm than good, says Italian cbanker (POLITICO)
By Johanna Treeck · May 12, 2023 FRANKFURT — Net zero targets risk doing more harm than good and should be dropped in favor of more realistic strategies to help the environment, one of Italy’s top central bankers warned. Paolo Angelini, deputy governor at the Bank of Italy, said in an interview with POLITICO that […]
In the Blind Spot (Natgas lows — $UNG — US debt deals)
This week’s Blind Spot wrap was compiled by me, Izabella Kaminska, and Dario Garcia Giner. It comes to you (at least in part) by way of the business class lounge at Prague airport, where I find myself late Friday evening on the way back from a CBDC-themed conference attended by some fascinating Czech and Slovak […]
ECB needs a new type of bazooka to battle Baltic risk (POLITICO)
By Johanna Treeck · May 5, 2023 FRANKFURT — Russia’s war has pushed borrowing costs for the Baltic states above those of the most indebted eurozone member countries, opening a new chapter in a saga that has been an obsession of policymakers and financial markets since the sovereign debt crisis. This time it’s not out-of-control […]
In the Blind Spot (Grey economy — Influencers — Drug wars)
Happy coronation weekend to all my royalist readers, but also commiserations to the republicans. It’s been an extraordinarily busy week for me, but things will get into more of a normal flow as soon as the new Charles era begins proper. This edition of the Blind Spot Wrap was mostly compiled by Dario Garcia Giner, […]
In the Blind Spot (Soft power — Gazprom Mercenaries — NIM)
Greetings and welcome to the weekend. I thought it was hayfever that I was suffering from but turns out it was actually a cold, no doubt connected to the lack of any semblance of spring or summer in the UK. I still have my winter coat hanging out, goddammit. This week’s Blind Spot Wrap was […]
Who will pay for the digital euro? Because seigniorage may not be enough (POLITICO)
By Bjarke Smith-Meyer · Apr 27, 2023, 10:41 AM BRUSSELS ― Banks don’t like it, ordinary people have never heard of it, and shopkeepers don’t want to pay for it. Apart from that, the European Central Bank’s digital revolution is getting off to a really great start. The ECB needs to find a way of […]
