FirstHeaven32: The best stories of the day | Financial times

Melvin Capital, the hedge fund duped by retailers who increased shares in GameStop and other companies it has played against, lost 53% in January, according to people familiar with People’s company results.

The New York-based hedge fund saw its assets drop by $ 4.5 billion from the end of last year to $ 8 billion, even after a $ 2.75 billion injection from Point72 Asset Management by Steve Cohen and Ken Griffins. citadel.

Melvin has become the target of retailers who coordinated to increase GameStop’s share price on online message boards such as Reddit after the company announced its bet against the company in regulatory filings.

The Securities and Exchange Commission said on Friday it was investigating what happened when Redditor’s stock skyrocketed, but lawyers doubt it will lead to prosecution. To prosecute traders, regulators would need to find evidence of fraud to prove market manipulation, lawyers say.

However, in addition to investigating traders who bought stocks last week, the SEC is also investigating brokers who allowed trading before being temporarily restricted, causing sudden drops in prices. (Heaven32, Bloomberg)

Further reading

Meet the Reddit Distributors from the WallStreetBets forum in the eye of a market hurricane.

Renowned short seller Jim Chanos He says the GameStop saga was the most “surreal” episode of his career, worrying about populist politicians trying to take advantage of the situation.

It is important to remember Short seller They play an important role in the financial ecosystem, writes Michael Mackenzie.

Heaven32 Editorial Team: Amid the turmoil in the US market, there is a palpable sense of anger among many traders who feel that previous generations have wrested them out of wealth by mismanaging the economy since the financial crisis. (FOOT)

Coronavirus digestion

Malaysia has reported more than 5,000 new cases for the third day in a row, according to data from the Ministry of Health. Be up to date Live Blog.

In the news

Kremlin orders police to act against Putin protests Tens of thousands of people in dozens of Russian cities resisted a heavy police presence to protest jailed opposition activist Alexei Navalny on Sunday for the second week in a row. At least 4,710 protesters were arrested in dozens of towns. The protests gave new life to anti-Putin sentiment. (FOOT)

Biden shows his Hawk side in China The new President of the United States has received unexpected praise from prominent Chinese hawk Robert O’Brien. Donald Trump’s latest national security adviser said the Biden administration had “got off to a good start in China” after Chinese military planes simulated missile strikes against a US aircraft. (FOOT)

India plans to create an official digital currency The Indian Parliament plans to introduce a law that will create a “framework for the creation of the official digital currency issued by the Reserve Bank of India” and ban private cryptocurrencies such as Bitcoin. (Reuters)

Businesses consider removing Hong Kong from legal contracts Major international companies operating in Asia are considering excluding Hong Kong from legal treaties, according to interviews with regional trade advisers, over concerns that China’s increased influence could undermine the rule of law In the region.

China executes ex-CFO for corruption China has executed Lai Xiaomin, the former head of one of its largest asset management companies, who was convicted of corruption. This punishment has been harshly criticized by international human rights experts. (FOOT)

China rejects UK passports for Hong Kong residents China has vowed not to recognize a passport offered by the UK to Hong Kong residents as valid identification and has accused London of violating its sovereignty after the UK offered up to 3 million of urban residents a new path to citizenship.

What has changed a month after Brexit? The Financial Times covers five different areas of Brexit-related disruption. While some are initial problems, others may turn into long-term problems if changes are not made. (FOOT)

The next day

India reveals its budget Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman will announce the annual budget on Monday if fiscal policy is expected to play a leading role in generating growth as the central bank seeks to return to normalized monetary policy.

Business conversations in the UK UK Trade Secretary Liz Truss will meet with ministers from Japan and New Zealand on Monday to ask to join the broad and progressive Trans-Pacific Partnership agreement. Formal negotiations are due to start this year. (FOOT)

What else do we read?

What is holding back India’s recovery? The Indian economy is experiencing its worst decline in decades. But even if the viral threat abates, India’s medium-term growth prospects will be affected by high tariffs and flexible bankruptcy rules, writes Urjit Patel, former Governor of the Reserve Bank of India. (FOOT)

Lunch with the Sky32: Bellingcats Eliot Higgins The internet researcher and his colleague have shown that the Syrian regime uses chemical weapons against its citizens. They denounced the Russian “murder teams” who poisoned defector Sergei Skripal and opposition leader Alexei Navalny. A glance in the dark corners of the internet allowed Higgins to find himself. (FOOT)

Wall Street’s new mantra: green is good For most people outside of Wall Street, climate change is an existential or moral issue, not a financial issue. However, the fight against climate change offers an opportunity to generate future gains. Is this a turning point? Too many conference rooms today are still climate-competent, writes Pilita Clark. (FOOT)

Joe Biden’s “Buy American” isn’t bad, you have to The US president’s plan is more than Trump’s slogan “Make America Great Again” with a friendlier face, writes Rana Foroohar. It’s part of a critical effort to convince Americans that the Biden administration will serve more than 10% of households that own more than 80% of the stock exchanges. (FOOT)

The nuclear boom in the world Nine countries have nuclear weapons, while 31 others have flirted with weapons at one time or another. But the struggle for proliferation is the world’s deadliest weapon. (Economist)

Wiring Africa: the big data square Africa’s internet capacity is exploding – it is getting faster, denser and more local, which has a profound impact on the continent’s economy. Google and Facebook, in particular, have done their best to provide connectivity to the “last billion” in the world who are not yet properly connected to the Internet. (FOOT)

Video of the day

Building a more sustainable food system with AI A host of new innovations using artificial intelligence are increasing our potential to create a healthier and more sustainable food system. (FOOT)