Former FTX Chief Executive Sam Bankman-Fried apologized Wednesday for a "lot of mistakes" in the abrupt collapse of the cryptocurrency firm and said he did not knowingly behave fraudulently.. Bankman-Fried, appearing by video from the Bahamas, said he was "shocked" by many of the details that have surfaced since the cryptocurrency platform's collapse.
The Federal Reserve could ease its pace of interest rate hikes "as soon as" December, chair Jerome Powell said Wednesday, as the US central bank's campaign to cool prices trickles through the world's largest economy.. "The time for moderating the pace of rate increases may come as soon as the December meeting" of Fed policymakers, Powell said in a speech at the Brookings Institution think tank.
Lawmakers in the US House of Representatives voted Wednesday to prevent a potentially catastrophic freight rail strike, stepping in to break an impasse between workers and executives during a critical pre-holiday period.. Graves said he was voting on the resolution to avert an "economically ruinous" rail strike as he blamed the Biden administration for the issue, saying it had "failed" to lead on the impasse. jmb/mlm
Germany and Norway want to start a NATO-led alliance to protect critical underwater infrastructure, their leaders said on Wednesday, weeks after explosions hit two key gas pipelines in the fallout from the war in Ukraine.. The G7 interior ministers warned earlier this month at a meeting in Germany that the Nord Stream explosions had highlighted "the need to better protect our critical infrastructure". fec/hmn/imm
A French judge on Wednesday allowed European aerospace firm Airbus to pay 15.9 million euros ($16.4 million) to avoid a corruption probe into aircraft deals in Libya and Kazakhstan between 2006 and 2011.. But the company said earlier this month that the Libya and Kazakhstan probe had not been covered by that agreement "because of procedural issues".
HSBC on Wednesday announced plans to permanently shut more than a quarter of its remaining bank branches in the UK as customers increasingly switch to making transactions online.. The global bank will from April close 114 branches, it said in a statement, having shut around 150 since last year.
China has room to adjust its strict zero-Covid policy, the IMF said Wednesday, while underlining that the country's tough virus restrictions have been especially hard on its people.. "Covid and Covid-related restrictions are hard on people...
German energy giant Uniper said Wednesday it was taking Gazprom to an international tribunal over the Russian company's failure to deliver gas, saying it has so far cost them 11.6 billion euros ($12 billion).. The German company said it had begun legal action against Gazprom at a tribunal in Stockholm, claiming damages over gas that had not been delivered since June.
The eurozone annual inflation rate fell for the first time in 17 months in November as it slowed to 10 percent, official data showed Wednesday.. "Eurozone headline inflation may now be past its peak but with core inflation unchanged in November and likely to stay well above 2 percent throughout next year, we expect the ECB to press on with another 50 basis point or even 75 basis point deposit rate hike in December," he said.
Britain's financial and professional services sector must boost socio-economic diversity in boardrooms, helping to bridge big differences in pay, a study commissioned by the government concluded Wednesday.. Having at least half of senior leaders in the sector coming from a "non-professional" background by 2030 would help to achieve the goal, said the report by the Socio-Economic Diversity Taskforce.
