Georgia Financial Adviser Pleads Guilty to $380 Million Ponzi Scheme
A Georgia financial adviser admitted Wednesday to orchestrating the largest Ponzi scheme in state history, defrauding more than 2,000 investors of $380 million to finance a lavish lifestyle of yachts, luxury condos and private jets. Todd Burkhalter of St. Petersburg, Florida, pleaded guilty to wire fraud in federal court. He founded Drive Planning LLC, an […]
European Lawmakers Warn Trump Could Cut Off Visa, Mastercard Access Across Continent
European lawmakers are sounding an alarm over the continent’s near-total dependence on American payment networks, warning that President Donald Trump could weaponize Visa and Mastercard to cut off transactions across Europe with little warning. “Visa, Mastercard… the emergency is our payment system. Trump can cut us off completely,” Aurore Lalucq, chair of the European Parliament’s […]
China Dumps $680B In US Treasury, Holdings Plunge To 18-Year Low As Gold Holdings Rise
China’s reported US Treasury holdings have fallen to about $680 billion, described as an 18-year low, alongside a stated rise in gold reserves to near 74 million ounces, and the pairing is being framed publicly as a deliberate rotation out of US paper into bullion. Northern European investors are also reportedly increasingly wary of holding […]
Indonesia Revokes Permits for 28 Companies After Deadly Sumatra Floods
Indonesian authorities revoked permits for 28 resource companies on January 21 after linking their alleged forest violations to devastating floods that killed more than 1,000 people in Sumatra in December. The revocations affect companies across mining, logging, pulpwood plantations, and hydropower operations covering more than one million hectares, according to a government presentation on Wednesday. […]
Oracle-Led TikTok US Deal Clears China Despite Algorithm Concerns
China appears to have signed off on a TikTok deal that would spin out the app’s US business to a mostly US-led investor consortium, with an announcement described as imminent. People familiar with the matter said the transaction is set to close this week, capping a yearslong dispute that has repeatedly stalled on regulatory approval […]
Canadian Oil Headed To Non-US Countries Surges, China Leads
Canada’s oil export model is shifting fast enough that non-US markets are now the primary driver of year-over-year export growth, with October’s non-US share surging to nearly 16% and the US share falling to about 84% of total exports. The non-US share is roughly 5 times the pre-TMX level, implying a pre-expansion baseline near 3% […]
Capstone Copper Sees Sulphide, Oxide Operations Halt At Mantoverde Following Strike Action
Capstone Copper (TSX: CS) reported yesterday that strike action at its Mantoverde mine in Chile has escalated, with damage to equipment now being reported on site. The company reported that individuals entered the mines’ desalination plant facilities on January 18 while operations were ongoing and “interfered” with the desalination plant’s electrical system. The action resulted […]
Equinox Gold Cuts Senior Debt To $580 Million After Sale Of Brazilian Operations
Equinox Gold (TSX: EQX) has significantly deleveraged its balance sheet, with the company reporting this morning that it has completed the US$1.0 billion sale of its Brazilian operations. The sale, which saw its Aurizona Mine, RDM Mine and Bahia Complex sold to a subsidiary of CMOC Group, has reportedly closed, with Equinox receiving upfront consideration […]
Trump Pauses EU Tariffs Following NATO Deal
President Donald Trump said he will not impose tariffs on European countries that had been scheduled to take effect on February 1 after he and NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte “formed the framework of a future deal” covering Greenland and “the entire Arctic Region.” Trump framed the outcome as a NATO-wide win and tied the […]
Tesla Disputes Reports of 1,700 Job Cuts at German Factory
Tesla employed 10,703 workers at its Berlin-area factory as of January 2026, down approximately 1,700 from the 12,415 listed two years earlier, according to internal documents cited by German business newspaper Handelsblatt. The 14% workforce decline at the Grünheide plant comes from documents prepared for upcoming works council elections scheduled for March. Tesla denied the […]