May 13 (Reuters) – Zest Protocol, a bitcoin lending startup with just six employees, has secured $3.5 million in a funding round led by billionaire investor Tim Draper. Besides venture capital firm Draper Associates, nearly a dozen investors participated in…
Read moreMay 13 (Reuters) – Melinda French Gates is leaving the charitable foundation she co-founded with former spouse Bill Gates more than 20 years ago and will get $12.5 billion for her own work to uplift women and families, she said…
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The Biden administration announced stiff new tariff rates Tuesday on $18 billion worth of Chinese imports. The White House said the tariff hikes were necessary to protect American industries from unfair competition. Starting this year, President Joe Biden will quadruple tariffs on imported Chinese…
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The Reserve Bank of India’s (RBI) proposed norms to tighten project financing, which has recommended an increased standard asset provisioning of up to 5 per cent on loans, is likely to result in an additional provisioning of 0.5-3 per cent…
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Fosun International, one of China’s largest private-sector conglomerates, has agreed to sell an 8.2 per cent stake in Belgian insurer Ageas to BNP Paribas for about €670 million (US$714 million) as part of an effort to reduce its debt amid…
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TAIPEI — The Taiwanese financial conglomerate SinoPac Holdings is entering the Cambodian banking industry by acquiring a local institution that is majority-held by Western investors, the latest example of the diversification of Taiwanese investment into Southeast Asia. SinoPac announced over…
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LONDON/HONG KONG — Concerns by shareholders of an HSBC split with Asia resurfaced at the annual meeting on Friday after HSBC Chief Executive Noel Quinn’s abrupt resignation this week. One shareholder asked about the possibility of another attempt to spin off…
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TOKYO — Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group seeks to invest in an Indian nonbank lender affiliated with top local lender HDFC Bank, aiming to capture retail financing demand in the South Asian country’s growing economy. Negotiations are underway to acquire around 20% of shares…
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HONG KONG — A Tokyo-based law firm is set to reboot efforts to enlist investors hit by the sudden wipeout of certain bonds issued by the now-defunct Credit Suisse, adding to a growing movement to launch legal action across Asia.…
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The Japanese yen strengthened sharply in afternoon trading in Asia, bouncing after it briefly hit a new 34-year low of 160 against the dollar on waning expectations for near-term rate increases from the Bank of Japan. The yen rebounded to 155.07 to…
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