business
The frightening world without the dollar
This article is an on-site version of Free Lunch newsletter. Premium subscribers can sign up here to get the newsletter delivered every Thursday and Sunday. Standard subscribers can upgrade to Premium here, or explore all FT newsletters. This was the week we were supposed to find out what tariffs the US was going to charge … Read more
Tokenised money market funds: pseudo-money
This article is an on-site version of our Unhedged newsletter. Premium subscribers can sign up here to get the newsletter delivered every weekday. Standard subscribers can upgrade to Premium here, or explore all FT newsletters Good morning. Yesterday President Donald Trump threatened Brazil, which the US ran a trade surplus of $24bn with in 2023, … Read more
The Hong Kong stock market’s tentative revival
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Hong Kong’s status as a global financial hub has been dealt several blows in recent years. First came clashes between police and pro-democracy protesters ahead of a national security law, passed by Beijing in 2020, … Read more
What makes a great party?
A budget of $10mn plus, a host of A-listers with a Venetian backdrop all bode well for a great party. I wasn’t invited to that one, but fortunately, I’ve attended many other great parties. Some stand out. Obviously, a cool venue, preferably with a view,impeccable catering, and a band. Just as they hit the chorus … Read more
The UK should press ahead with the inevitable on tax
Unlock the White House Watch newsletter for free Your guide to what Trump’s second term means for Washington, business and the world The writer is president of Queens’ College, Cambridge, and an adviser to Allianz and Gramercy It did not take long after last week’s UK fiscal drama for the typical political response to emerge. … Read more
The law of unintended consequences strikes again
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Economists love to tell each other stories about perverse incentives. The “cobra effect” is a favourite. It describes an attempt by the British Raj to rid Delhi of its cobras by paying a bounty for … Read more
The Swiss solution looming into sight for UBS
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. UBS may have been handed an early win in its battle to moderate stringent new capital requirements imposed by the Swiss government. Who to thank? The pragmatic and slow-moving Swiss political system. The fierce debate … Read more
Octopus Energy’s software spin-off is an idea with legs
Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter. Kraken, named for a giant cephalopod, is the stuff of myth. Can a software platform of the same name bring forth riches from the deep? Octopus Energy, its current owner, hopes so. Octopus plans to … Read more