tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-38641613931844694272024-03-18T15:58:35.914-04:00workminutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.comBlogger3572125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-14190426109729878032020-01-29T15:00:00.001-05:002020-01-29T15:00:29.197-05:00Connecting the SOFR Curve to SOFR Swaps <div class="panel-panel panel-col">
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Connecting the SOFR Curve to SOFR Swaps </h2>
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April 09, 2019</div>
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In my <a href="http://www.fincad.com/blog/building-sofr-curve-was-easy">last blog</a>,
I wrote about my experience with building the SOFR curve. Now FINCAD F3
can handle any instrument market data for curve building. But at the
moment an important question is, “<strong>Which instruments are the right ones to use to build the SOFR curve?</strong>”</div>
Right now, the market for SOFR-linked derivatives is just starting to
take shape, and market quotes are becoming available for CME SOFR
futures and SOFR swaps. There are three types of swaps that are being
traded: SOFR OIS, SOFR-FF basis swaps, and SOFR-Libor basis swaps. The
first one is an overnight indexed swap which pays SOFR versus fixed, and
the last two are basis swaps between SOFR and either the Fed Funds
effective rate (FF) or Libor.<br />
<img alt="" src="https://fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Connecting_SOFR_Curve_Blog_Image_700x361%20%281%29.png" style="height: 361px; width: 700px;" /><br />
The odd thing about introducing SOFR as an alternative benchmark
interest rate is that, for now, it makes the USD rate basis much more
complicated. This is because it adds two new basis spreads between
FF/SOFR and Libor/SOFR, in addition to the previous FF/Libor basis. So
now there are many possible ways to build the SOFR curve. These
include:<br />
<h2>
Single curve-building:</h2>
<ol>
<li>Use FF OIS to build the Fed Funds effective rate curve.</li>
<li>Use ED futures and Libor swaps to build the 3-month Libor curve.</li>
<li>Use SOFR futures and either SOFR OIS, FF/SOFR basis, or Libor/SOFR basis to build the SOFR curve.</li>
</ol>
<h2>
Global curve-building:</h2>
<ol>
<li>Use ED futures, Libor swaps, FF OIS, FF/Libor basis swaps, SOFR
futures, and either SOFR OIS, FF/SOFR basis, or Libor/SOFR basis to
simultaneously build the 3-month Libor curve, Fed Funds effective rate
curve, and SOFR curve.</li>
</ol>
For many people, their instinct would be that building the
curves individually is the easiest. However, the dual dependence of the
FF OIS and FF/SOFR basis swaps on the OIS discount and SOFR curves
creates a curve construction problem, which necessitates a global
solver.<br />
As mentioned in my <a href="http://www.fincad.com/blog/building-sofr-curve-was-easy?platform=hootsuite">previous post</a>,
I chose to use the global method, because it is actually easier to just
let F3 automatically determine how to solve the curves from the
instruments selected. This approach also allows using the FF/Libor basis
for longer maturities, since often the Fed Funds OIS is not as liquid.
But there is still a big question here, “Which SOFR instruments should
we choose?”<br />
Imagine swapping Fed Funds into Libor and then swapping Libor
exposure into SOFR. Now compare this with swapping Fed Funds into SOFR
directly. The question about the new SOFR basis is, “Does it roundtrip
so we get the same SOFR in both cases?” The answer right now is that
there is not enough trading on SOFR derivatives to closely round-trip
these two ways of swapping Fed Funds into SOFR. The symptom of SOFR
illiquidity is large bid-ask spreads in the market quotes for basis
swaps on SOFR, so that by using mid-quotes as market data, the SOFR
curve will look a little different in the two cases.<br />
A recent <a href="https://www.risk.net/comment/6458901/swaps-data-sofr-swaps-slip-futures-flip">summary of SOFR swap trading volumes</a>
shows that there is a lot of uncertainty regarding where the volume
will show up in SOFR-linked derivatives. It is expected that they will
become traded more as time goes on, and competitive markets will result
in smaller bid-ask spreads. But we don’t know which swaps will be the
best to build the SOFR curve. Surely with Libor going away we shouldn’t
rely too much on Libor/SOFR basis swaps, but whether the future will
show volumes in the FF/SOFR basis or SOFR OIS is unknown. This is
another good reason to have a global curve-building solution which can
handle any and all instruments you throw at it. Such an approach will
help you react quickly to changes in trading volume in SOFR derivatives
to continue building the most accurate SOFR curve possible.<br />
In case you missed it, you can check out my previous SOFR blog post here, “<a href="http://www.fincad.com/blog/building-sofr-curve-was-easy">Building a SOFR Curve was Easy</a>.” Also, be on the lookout for my next post, “<strong>Eliminating the SOFR Basis: What Do We Lose?</strong>”<br /><br />
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<strong>About the author</strong><br />
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<img alt="Bin Hou's picture" height="100" src="https://fincad.com/sites/default/files/styles/thumbnail_square/public/pictures/picture-1600-1552320910.jpg?itok=J_3dbO2g" width="100" /></div>
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Bin Hou</h2>
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<em>Senior Financial Engineer, FINCAD</em></div>
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Bin
is a member of the Financial Engineering Hub in Vancouver. Since he
joined FINCAD in 2013, Bin has made contributions to FINCAD products
through conducting model validations and encoding the best market
practice in examples and documents.<br />
Bin holds a Master of Science in Finance degree from Simon Fraser University. He is also a CFA® and FRM® charterholder.<br /><br />
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minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-33791941646131748092019-12-05T13:34:00.002-05:002019-12-05T13:34:30.530-05:00 SABR/LIBOR Market ModeFor which class of instruments the SABR/LIBOR Market Model does perform better than the classical LIBOR Market Model?<br />
<h2>
The LIBOR Market Model</h2>
The LIBOR Market Model — also known as Brace, Gatarek, Musiela model —
is an interest rate model capable of <b>reproducing the correlation
structure of forward rates</b>. One-factor models are unable to reproduce
this structure and therefore cannot price accurately derivatives whose
prices reflect these correlations. A typical example of such
derivatives are swaps paying a non-linear function of the difference two
swap rates for two different maturities.<br />
The model is constructed by using a family of LIBOR rates: <span class="MathJax_Preview" style="color: inherit;"></span><span class="MathJax" data-mathml="<math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><msub><mi>L</mi><mn>0</mn></msub><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi>t</mi><mo stretchy="false">)</mo><mo>,</mo><mo>&#x2026;</mo><mo>,</mo><msub><mi>L</mi><mi>n</mi></msub><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi>t</mi><mo stretchy="false">)</mo></math>" id="MathJax-Element-2-Frame" role="presentation" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0"><nobr aria-hidden="true"><span class="math" id="MathJax-Span-3" style="display: inline-block; width: 8.169em;"><span style="display: inline-block; font-size: 120%; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 6.778em;"><span style="clip: rect(1.361em, 1006.68em, 2.694em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -2.278em;"><span class="mrow" id="MathJax-Span-4"><span class="msubsup" id="MathJax-Span-5"><span style="display: inline-block; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 1.11em;"><span style="clip: rect(3.15em, 1000.65em, 4.167em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -4em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-6" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">L</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span><span style="left: 0.681em; position: absolute; top: -3.85em;"><span class="mn" id="MathJax-Span-7" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; font-size: 70.7%;">0</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span></span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-8" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">(</span><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-9" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">t</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-10" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">)</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-11" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">,</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-12" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; padding-left: 0.167em;">…</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-13" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; padding-left: 0.167em;">,</span><span class="msubsup" id="MathJax-Span-14" style="padding-left: 0.167em;"><span style="display: inline-block; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 1.18em;"><span style="clip: rect(3.15em, 1000.65em, 4.167em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -4em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-15" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">L</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span><span style="left: 0.681em; position: absolute; top: -3.85em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-16" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-size: 70.7%; font-style: italic;">n</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span></span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-17" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">(</span><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-18" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">t</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-19" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">)</span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 2.278em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span><span style="border-left: 0px solid; display: inline-block; height: 1.333em; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: -0.367em; width: 0px;"></span></span></nobr></span><br />
, where <span class="MathJax_Preview" style="color: inherit;"></span><span class="MathJax" data-mathml="<math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><msub><mi>L</mi><mi>i</mi></msub><mo stretchy="false">(</mo><mi>t</mi><mo stretchy="false">)</mo></math>" id="MathJax-Element-3-Frame" role="presentation" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0"><nobr aria-hidden="true"><span class="math" id="MathJax-Span-20" style="display: inline-block; width: 2.614em;"><span style="display: inline-block; font-size: 120%; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 2.167em;"><span style="clip: rect(1.361em, 1002.07em, 2.694em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -2.278em;"><span class="mrow" id="MathJax-Span-21"><span class="msubsup" id="MathJax-Span-22"><span style="display: inline-block; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 1em;"><span style="clip: rect(3.15em, 1000.65em, 4.167em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -4em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-23" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">L</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span><span style="left: 0.681em; position: absolute; top: -3.85em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-24" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-size: 70.7%; font-style: italic;">i</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span></span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-25" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">(</span><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-26" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">t</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-27" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">)</span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 2.278em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span><span style="border-left: 0px solid; display: inline-block; height: 1.333em; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: -0.367em; width: 0px;"></span></span></nobr></span> is LIBOR forward rate starting at <span class="MathJax_Preview" style="color: inherit;"></span><span class="MathJax" data-mathml="<math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><msub><mi>t</mi><mi>i</mi></msub></math>" id="MathJax-Element-4-Frame" role="presentation" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0"><nobr aria-hidden="true"><span class="math" id="MathJax-Span-28" style="display: inline-block; width: 0.836em;"><span style="display: inline-block; font-size: 120%; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 0.667em;"><span style="clip: rect(1.374em, 1000.67em, 2.491em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -2.167em;"><span class="mrow" id="MathJax-Span-29"><span class="msubsup" id="MathJax-Span-30"><span style="display: inline-block; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 0.68em;"><span style="clip: rect(3.207em, 1000.33em, 4.178em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -4em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-31" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">t</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span><span style="left: 0.361em; position: absolute; top: -3.85em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-32" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-size: 70.7%; font-style: italic;">i</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span></span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 2.167em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span><span style="border-left: 0px solid; display: inline-block; height: 1.074em; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: -0.256em; width: 0px;"></span></span></nobr></span> and ending at <span class="MathJax_Preview" style="color: inherit;"></span><span class="MathJax" data-mathml="<math xmlns="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML"><msub><mi>t</mi><mrow class="MJX-TeXAtom-ORD"><mi>i</mi><mo>+</mo><mn>1</mn></mrow></msub></math>" id="MathJax-Element-5-Frame" role="presentation" style="position: relative;" tabindex="0"><nobr aria-hidden="true"><span class="math" id="MathJax-Span-33" style="display: inline-block; width: 1.947em;"><span style="display: inline-block; font-size: 120%; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 1.611em;"><span style="clip: rect(1.374em, 1001.61em, 2.541em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -2.167em;"><span class="mrow" id="MathJax-Span-34"><span class="msubsup" id="MathJax-Span-35"><span style="display: inline-block; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 1.584em;"><span style="clip: rect(3.207em, 1000.33em, 4.178em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -4em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-36" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">t</span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span><span style="left: 0.361em; position: absolute; top: -3.85em;"><span class="texatom" id="MathJax-Span-37"><span class="mrow" id="MathJax-Span-38"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-39" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-size: 70.7%; font-style: italic;">i</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-40" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; font-size: 70.7%;">+</span><span class="mn" id="MathJax-Span-41" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; font-size: 70.7%;">1</span></span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span></span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 2.167em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span><span style="border-left: 0px solid; display: inline-block; height: 1.134em; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: -0.316em; width: 0px;"></span></span></nobr></span>, following<br />
<span class="MathJax_Preview" style="color: inherit;"></span><br />
<div class="MathJax_Display" style="text-align: center;">
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font-style: italic;">d<span style="display: inline-block; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; width: 0.003em;"></span></span><span class="msubsup" id="MathJax-Span-65"><span style="display: inline-block; height: 0px; position: relative; width: 2.352em;"><span style="clip: rect(3.15em, 1001.05em, 4.189em, -1000em); left: 0em; position: absolute; top: -4em;"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-66" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">W<span style="display: inline-block; height: 1px; overflow: hidden; width: 0.104em;"></span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span><span style="left: 1.129em; position: absolute; top: -4.413em;"><span class="texatom" id="MathJax-Span-67"><span class="mrow" id="MathJax-Span-68"><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-69" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-size: 70.7%; font-style: italic;">i</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-70" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; font-size: 70.7%;">+</span><span class="mn" id="MathJax-Span-71" style="font-family: MathJax_Main; font-size: 70.7%;">1</span></span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 4em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span></span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-72" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">(</span><span class="mi" id="MathJax-Span-73" style="font-family: MathJax_Math; font-style: italic;">t</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-74" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">)</span><span class="mo" id="MathJax-Span-75" style="font-family: MathJax_Main;">.</span></span><span style="display: inline-block; height: 2.278em; width: 0px;"></span></span></span><span style="border-left: 0px solid; display: inline-block; height: 1.494em; overflow: hidden; vertical-align: -0.367em; width: 0px;"></span></span></nobr></span></div>
<h2>
The SABR LIBOR-Market Model</h2>
An<b> important flaw of the LMM is known as </b><em><b>sticky volatilities</b>:</em>
<b> if the model is calibrated in a highly volatile market it assumes that
this high volatility lasts forever</b>, which leads to inaccurate results.<br />
The SABR LMM attempts to address this issue. In this model, each LIBOR rate is assumed to follow a log-normal dynamic having <em>stochastic</em> volatility:<br />
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minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-17003870626353679262019-08-20T10:35:00.002-04:002019-08-20T10:35:44.920-04:00No One Is Buying Your Real Estate Token<div class="sa-art-hd" id="a-hd">
<h1 itemprop="headline">
No One Is Buying Your Real Estate Token</h1>
<div class="a-info">
<time content="2019-04-12T12:29:30Z" itemprop="datePublished">Apr. 12, 2019 8:29 AM ET</time></div>
</div>
<div class="p p1">
<div class="article-summary article-width">
<div class="title">
Summary</div>
<div class="a-sum" itemprop="description">
Tokenized Real Estate Lacks Features for Success.<br />
Product-Market Fit Remains Deficient.<br />
These Offerings Are Instructive in Seeking Better Offerings.</div>
</div>
</div>
<span><a class="a-l" data-height="1440" data-width="1920" href="https://static.seekingalpha.com/uploads/2019/4/12/49537391-15550718398259938_origin.jpg" itemprop="image" itemscope="true" itemtype="https://schema.org/ImageObject" rel="lightbox"><img alt="Token Example" class="a-l" data-height="480" data-width="640" height="480" src="https://static.seekingalpha.com/uploads/2019/4/12/49537391-15550718398259938.jpg" width="640" />
</a></span>Tokenized real estate has long been discussed as a leading
use for digital securities. Yet, really no successful sales have taken
place. Some of the most notable and widely marketed projects were
pre-arranged to signal successful optics and had side deals to
incentivize investment. Though tokenized real estate will eventually
emerge, the benefits over existing financial offerings do not yet offer
the level of value needed to overcome market inertia and successfully
scale.<br />
It’s no surprise that many real estate owners have an interest in
selling their property via a digital security fundraise. By
“fractionalizing,” breaking down investments into smaller pieces, real
estate sellers can ask for higher prices than they would selling
wholesale. Or alternatively, those that can not find buyers in
traditional markets turn to digital securities as a last resort à la
adverse selection.<br />
Though this looks attractive to sellers, who would buy these
offerings? Consider the typical profile of a real estate investor -
conservative, interested in wealth preservation, sensitive to margin
costs. Generally, they do not want what most perceive to be experimental
investment technology. Furthermore, with the extant availability of
public REITs, fund managers, <a href="https://www.thebalancesmb.com/top-crowdfunding-sites-for-real-estate-985237" rel="nofollow">real estate crowdfunding</a>,
and direct investments, the benefits of liquidity and access to foreign
inventory espoused by many security token evangelists are already
available. The short-term benefit to the investor is marginal at best
and comes with a high degree of perceived technology risk.<br />
Ultimately, the real estate asset class suffers from the lack of high
upside to achieve product-market fit. A great real estate investment
for a passive investor might yield 20% a year. Why take all of this
perceived risk and adopt a new behavior when available investments can
offer similar returns without the unknowns? Due to adverse selection,
existing public and private market dynamics, and investor
characteristics, it’s hard to find a scenario by which both sides of the
transaction could find value meaningful enough to exceed the threshold
for adopting a new behavior.<br />
The pool of digital security investors today is small and comprised
of, predominantly, blockchain/ICO-savvy investors. These people, still
nostalgic for their +1000% 2017 returns, have a high-risk tolerance,
want high-returns, and understand technology. They don’t want an 8%
fixed-income real estate debt product.<br />
The primary exception to this may be those in countries with tight
capital controls (aka China), that want to expatriate their wealth into
stable, foreign assets. In this case, the primary benefit of security
token real estate, in short, is the ability to hide the movement of
capital from their government. I don’t know about you, but hiding cash
for the wealthy and circumventing national governments is not why I got
involved with blockchain.<br />
Though real estate digital securities remain weak, their use-case
provides a helpful tool in exploring what a good investment would look
like. A “good” deal must benefit both parties in a transaction. The
product-market unfit of Real Estate and Security Tokens raises the
question of what, currently, a good deal would look like? What is the
ideal security token?<br />
Ideally, digital security or not, the best investment has no risk and
infinite upside. Though such a perfect investment is unattainable,
features like downside risk protection (which can take many forms), a
known industry, and available liquidity can help to move an offering in
the right direction. At the same time, blockchain-based ownership needs
to offer some unique capability that necessitates a digital security
approach. This could take the form of high-complexity financial
structures, streamlined asset diligence, or blended “utility token”
benefits offering added value. This isn’t real estate.<br />
Revenue streams backed by equity or a bond or other conversion
options may offer one strong example. In this case, a company may offer
investment into a new product-line or intellectual property asset and,
if the upside doesn’t manifest (as measured by some predetermined
milestone), offer conversion into company equity or other available
assets. If successful, the company could finance their CAPEX needs on
better terms and without diluting shareholders while investors could
gain exposure to high-upside in an otherwise unavailable investment.
Additional benefit could come in broadening company exposure or markets
via this fundraise as well.<br />
For example, imagine an investment into the future revenues of a new
model of SpaceX rocket. The capital intensive requirements for creating
such a technology would typically lead to equity dilution and less
internal control of the business. In an STO raise, SpaceX could engage
the public, find financing on better terms, avoid dilution, and offer
high returns upon the successful commercialization of the product. In
the event of failed commercialization, investors could convert into the
equity of SpaceX at some pre-defined conversion ratio. Compared to the
compromises made via traditional means of financing, this approach could
make sense.<br />
The market will surely mature. A blockchain-based security can
ultimately offer all the features of existing securities with additional
ones - reducing costs and increasing distribution. They are
fundamentally better. However, incremental benefit in an immature
market, like a real estate token, will not catalyze a seismic shift in
capital markets. The potential future benefits for portfolio managers of
real estate is clear, but <a href="https://genuinevc.com/2012/01/23/start-your-marketplace-engines/" rel="nofollow">how to jumpstart this marketplace remains murky</a>. Real estate is just kinda boring.<br />
Regulatory compliance is unavoidable and important, but those in the
industry (myself included) could gain from asking more often, what do
people actually want? The ICO world is imperfect, but the stodgy ethos
of STOs - middle-aged white men in blazers, their lawyers ever by their
side, talking in finance jargon about tranches of multi-asset EB5 blah
blah blah - could benefit from the creativity, boldness, and fun of the
crypto-craze that got us here.<br />
---<br />
<em>The views and opinions expressed are those of the author and do
not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of Atomic
Capital, Inc. This is not intended as investment advice. Any content
provided is not intended to malign any religion, ethic group, club,
organization, company, individual or anyone or anything.</em>minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-53314292830996213292019-08-20T10:07:00.001-04:002019-08-20T10:07:44.568-04:00What is an Asset-Backed Token? A Complete Guide to Security Token Assets<div class="jv jw dz ap jx b jy jz ka kb kc kd ke" id="9e9d">
<h1 class="jx b jy kf dz">
What is an Asset-Backed Token? A Complete Guide to Security Token Assets.</h1>
</div>
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<a href="https://medium.com/@blockwriter?source=post_page-----f7a0f111d443----------------------"><div class="en kh ki">
<svg class="ha gn kj kk kl km dk" height="58" viewbox="0 0 52 58" width="52"></svg></div>
</a></div>
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<div>
<a href="https://medium.com/@blockwriter?source=post_page-----f7a0f111d443----------------------"><div class="en kh ki">
<img alt="Elliot Hill" class="l ft ki kh" height="48" src="https://miro.medium.com/fit/c/48/48/1*iI261xL02W919SmNxEnvlg.jpeg" width="48" /></div>
</a></div>
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<span class="ao b ap aq ar as l dz al"><div class="ko af ag kp">
<span class="ao cr ec aq bx kq ee ef kr eh dz"><a class="cx cy ax ay az ba bb bc bd be jl bh bi dv dw" href="https://medium.com/@blockwriter?source=post_page-----f7a0f111d443----------------------">Elliot Hill</a></span></div>
</span></div>
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<span class="ao b ap aq ar as l at au"><span class="ao cr ec aq bx kq ee ef kr eh at"><div>
<a class="cx cy ax ay az ba bb bc bd be jl bh bi dv dw" href="https://medium.com/ico-launch-malta/what-is-an-asset-backed-token-a-complete-guide-to-security-token-assets-f7a0f111d443?source=post_page-----f7a0f111d443----------------------">Feb 15</a> · 11 min read<span style="padding-left: 4px;"><svg class="star-15px_svg__svgIcon-use" height="15" style="margin-top: -2px;" viewbox="0 0 15 15" width="15"></svg></span></div>
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<figure class="lf lg lh li lj ez x y paragraph-image"><div class="x y lk">
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<img class="gn n o gm ab lq lr rn ro" height="467" src="https://miro.medium.com/max/30/1*2TyzHMXL9B7-uh_Ro9ovog.jpeg?q=20" width="700" /></div>
<img class="rf rg gn n o gm ab gj" height="467" src="https://miro.medium.com/max/700/1*2TyzHMXL9B7-uh_Ro9ovog.jpeg" width="700" /></div>
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<figcaption class="at ec lt lu ht dh x y lv lw ao cr" data-selectable-paragraph="">Traditional real-world assets, such as gold, are finding higher liquidity by being tokenized.</figcaption></figure><div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="a90c">
Utility tokens have traditionally been the<em class="ml"> modus operandi </em>for
new blockchain company funding rounds, through the initial coin
offering (ICO). But although utility tokens supposedly have value within
the platform they operate on, they often lack a unique value
proposition and likewise, by definition they do not represent an actual
tangible asset. In fact, utility tokens are so far removed from real
world assets, that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
have recently been cracking down on those ICOs which cross the
boundaries into the territory of being a security in their efforts to
provide fundamental value to holders.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="6e6e">
This
is one of the main reasons that the value of utility tokens, either
during their token sale or once they are trading on third party
exchanges, is driven predominately pure speculation, rather than the
robustness of their <a class="cx bt mm mn mo mp" href="https://icomalta.com/tokenomics/" target="_blank">tokenomic</a> model.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="2e62">
However, <a class="cx bt mm mn mo mp" href="https://icomalta.com/asset-backed-tokens/" target="_blank">asset-backed tokens</a>, often offered during a <a class="cx bt mm mn mo mp" href="https://icomalta.com/security-token-offering/" target="_blank">Security Token Offering</a>
(STO) carry an actual value, because they are correlated with an
external, real-world asset’s value. Asset-backed and security tokens
offer secure, rapid and minimal cost trading of traditional assets via
blockchain technology, and increase liquidity for traditional
securities.</div>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="87e5">
Why Make an Asset-Backed Token?</h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="dcbe">
Security
tokens, or asset-backed tokens, increase the potential initial raise
for fund operators and other parties who issue securities. However, the
main reason it’s beneficial for crypto fund managers to create
cryptographic analogues of traditional assets is to increase the
underlying assets liquidity — defined as the ease and speed at which
assets are purchased or sold (liquidated) at market price. Generally,
bonds and stocks are assets with high liquidity, in contrast to assets
such as vehicles, real estate, jewellery, art and collectibles which
lack access to high trading volumes, trading opportunities on exchanges,
and liquidity.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="18e1">
But
why is liquidity so important? Liquidity correlates strongly with an
asset’s trading volume, and subsequently affects that assets price. Good
liquidity can enhance the underlying assets value, as it negates the
risk associated with being unable to exit a position in a given asset
quickly. For example, whilst it’s easy to exit a position in a stock via
a third-party exchange, liquidating your position in a piece of
real-estate is a significantly longer process, as in simplest terms, it
takes longer to find a buyer.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="6eb1">
<mark class="ri rj er">A
tokenized asset trading market which trades 24 hours a day, 7 days a
week and 365 days a year not only provides enhanced price discovery and
reduces price volatility, but it may also reduce the risk of a sudden
price crash in asset value.</mark></div>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="288e">
An Overview of Asset-backed Token<code class="lo ni nj nk b">s Use Cases</code></h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="42bb">
Tokens
which are backed by external assets are somewhat comparable to gold
backed paper currencies, like many traditional fiat currencies were
under the ‘gold standard’. But the situation becomes more complex when
we examine tokens associated with assets which are ‘non-fungible’— for
example, real estate.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="e91e">
The
real estate market is fairly illiquid, and heavily afflicted with
multiple inefficiencies; such as middlemen who receive a portion of an
investment for taking on counter-party risk. However, these pain points
could be alleviated and given greater value with asset-backed tokens,
which would tokenize a portion of an individuals position in a
real-estate asset.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="e237">
The
most novel use cases for asset-backed tokens are therefore emerging
from tokenomic models which are backed by limited liquidity assets —
such as derivatives, private equity, real estate, collectibles, and
other assets which have been traditionally difficult to find immediate
buyers for. Currently, assets which are non-fungible are worth
trillions, but are for the most part they are stored in vaults worldwide
as hedges against inflation rates.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="009b">
Illiquid
assets aside, the largest use cases for asset-backed tokens, which have
the highest potential to raise funds during an STO, generally manifest
from tokenizing a portion of a large established company’s debt or
equity.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="6ad4">
A quick look at some examples of asset-backed token use cases include:</div>
<ul class="">
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="ef6b">The issuance of corporate debt or equity via a security token.</li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="1c4a">Real
estate investment trusts (REITs), for investors that wish to diversify
their portfolio to include real estate. Real estate investment trust
tokens would also allow customization, and may be purchased by investors
willing to accept a certain credit risks, for a pre-determined
duration.</li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="5271">Equity
from commercial properties and rental income. Retail investors who have
a relatively modest amount of capital are currently unable to diversify
into the commercial property and rental market. Ownership
fractionalization through security tokens offers the opportunity to
democratize commercial and rental investing.</li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="375b">Intellectual
property asset backed tokens, such as film licenses and royalty
payments, may be distributed to every party who owns a portion of a
patent, film, or book.</li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="794b">Accounts
payable and receivable, represented by security tokens, has the
potential to replace supply chain finance and factoring, with tokens and
data flowing between accounts receivable and accounts payable, in ERP
systems.</li>
</ul>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="cdee">
Real world assets represented as tokens on the blockchain therefore provides access to potentially large addressable markets.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="52dc">
Smart
contracts associated with tokenized assets may likewise improve access
to trading opportunities. Although professional investors can currently
use the services of lawyers and other service provides to perform due
diligence on new investments, investors with lower capital amounts can
generally not afford to take on such risk. Tokens with built in smart
contracts can automate due diligence to an extent, which in turn has the
potential to open markets to retail investors who lack access to due
diligence providers— creating even greater liquidity.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="813a">
Likewise,
a private equity backed token can be developed to feature protocols
with inbuilt dividend and profit share functions, transforming an asset
class with traditionally low liquidity into a passive income generating
investment. This offers startups and VC firms a greater opportunity for
funding, cost-savings and profit.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="d3cf">
Below, we examine the four main asset-backed token categories in greater detail.</div>
</div>
</section><hr class="nt cr hj nu nv ht nw nx ny nz oa" />
<section class="jp jq jr js jt"><div class="ae ju ab dh v w">
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms ob mu oc mw od my oe na of nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="291a">
What are the Main Asset-Backed Token Categories?</h1>
<figure class="lf lg lh li lj ez x y paragraph-image"><div class="x y lk">
<div class="ln l en lo">
<div class="og l">
<div class="dj ll gn n o gm ab bx t lm">
<img class="gn n o gm ab lq lr rn ro" height="466" src="https://miro.medium.com/max/30/1*hjI24okLswJ8gkBonSkQgg.jpeg?q=20" width="700" /></div>
<img class="rf rg gn n o gm ab gj" height="466" src="https://miro.medium.com/max/700/1*hjI24okLswJ8gkBonSkQgg.jpeg" width="700" /></div>
</div>
</div>
<figcaption class="at ec lt lu ht dh x y lv lw ao cr" data-selectable-paragraph="">Fine
art could likewise benefit from asset-backed tokens, allowing
fractionalization of paintings — for example among multiple recipients
of inheritance.</figcaption></figure><div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="16fc">
Earlier
we introduced an overview of asset-backed tokens, why you would want to
tokenize an asset, and looked at some of the most obvious use cases for
asset-backed tokens.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="2c4c">
Now, we are going to break asset-backed token use cases down further into the following four categories:</div>
<ul class="">
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="1c3a"><strong class="lz oh">Debt and equity tokenization</strong></li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="7239"><strong class="lz oh">Asset-Backed Tokens for Commodities</strong></li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="ca5c"><strong class="lz oh">Hard Assets which are Non-Fungible</strong></li>
<li class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma no mc np me nq mg nr mi ns mk nl nm nn" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="8ef2"><strong class="lz oh">Soft Assets which are Non-Fungible</strong></li>
</ul>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="d3a1">
Debt and Equity Tokenization</h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="21c3">
Debt
and equity asset-backed tokens are used predominately for funding
start-up companies, which in turn circumvents intermediaries such as
investment banks and traditional exchanges (for IPOs).</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="6f24">
Fractional
ownership for equity isn’t a new concept — stock certificates and
mutual funds have already existed for decades. But what asset-backed
tokens now offer is a percentage digital ownership of an immutable,
liquid and trustless representation of company debt or equity.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="e9a6">
Anyone
may access the blockchain protocol on which an asset-backed token
resides, including security token exchanges, and may verify the
ownership of the token and the authority of a specified individual to
trade. Arbitrage opportunities for market makers should maintain an
asset-backed token’s trading closely within its true net value.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="a2b2">
Debt
and equity are already assets which can be traded today, but blockchain
makes this process more efficient, which could significantly grow the <a class="cx bt mm mn mo mp" href="https://icomalta.com/security-token-offering/" target="_blank">STO</a>
market. Subsequently, a 50% decrease in price (via destruction of asset
value) could easily be counter-balanced by a thousand percent volume
increase (via creation of new market value). This would assist both
incumbents and entrepreneurs alike, who would need to react quickly
during emerging production and marketing industry shifts, which are
expected to enhance value of company assets and company market share.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="7ea2">
Holdings
of private equity funds are most often low liquidity assets which
require investors to hold for over one year. Likewise, hedge funds often
hold assets with relatively low liquidity which often require investors
to hold assets for at least a few months. Therefore, enhanced liquidity
via asset tokenization would increase the value of assets for both
private equity funds and hedge funds, enabling private equity ventures
to adapt easily to market fluctuations.</div>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="262a">
Tokenization of Commodities</h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="847b">
Exchange
traded commodities can likewise be converted into security tokens.
Regardless of whether it’s oil, natural gas, wheat, or sugar,
commodities which are already traded on third party exchanges can be
effectively tokenized.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="bf16">
Trading
of other more fringe commodities, like renewable hydro-electric, wind,
and solar electric energy can also be facilitated through a blockchain
based exchange. As a result, governments, utilities companies, and
individuals could participate and transact together on one platform.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="1142">
However,
tokens which are backed by physical assets require verification to
establish the tokens validity. A mature market already exists for
auditors who verify the security and trustworthiness of custodial
storage facilities for commodities. Those same auditors could take
advantage of new opportunities using blockchain technology, by utilizing
manual assessment methods in conjunction with blockchain tracking —
relying upon technology to create confidence in the market.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="f692">
Although
gold commonly trades as paper assets through gold ETFs, gold which has
been tokenized is fundamentally different. Each gold backed token
represents a whole or fraction of a a gold bar which is stored and
audited, through the services of an“oracle” provider, for it’s weight,
purity level, and it’s authenticity — Therefore, those who tokenize gold
or other commodities have to first solve the issues with oracle
providers to realize widespread asset-backed token adoption.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="2089">
The
leading cryptocurrency, Bitcoin, often referred to as ‘digital gold’,
may potentially be replaced as the primary store of digital value by
using tokenized gold. Current advantages which Bitcoin holds over
physical gold, is it’s relatively easy divisibility and transferability.
For example, it is simple for token exchanges to take 1% of a Bitcoin,
sending the equivalent dollar value of BTC into an individuals
cryptocurrency portfolio.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="0ada">
In
contrast, it is conceivably of far greater difficulty to take a gold
bullion bar, fractionalize it, and send it to an individual. If that
gold bar were to be tokenized, one could easily sell and transfer any
given percentage of gold in a similar way to traditional paper
currencies backed by gold— and the same is true for other real-world
commodities.</div>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="d15a">
Hard Asset Tokenization</h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="d07a">
<a class="cx bt mm mn mo mp" href="https://www.investopedia.com/terms/h/hard_asset.asp" target="_blank">Hard assets</a>
are tangible and physical items or objects of worth that are owned by
an individual or company. There are many possibilities for the
tokenization of hard assets on the blockchain.</div>
<h2 class="oi mr dz ap ao dx oj ok ol om on oo op oq or os ot" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="4d2f">
Tokenization of Real Estate</h2>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="9acc">
As
we briefly touched on earlier, when compared to REITs or private
property ownership, real estate token funds could become a borderless,
more profitable, and a more democratic way to invest in things such as a
portfolio of rental properties, senior-care homes, or a hotel chain.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="c53f">
With
the rise of real estate backed tokens and tokenized rental income,
investors of every wealth bracket can build out a diverse and flexible
real estate portfolio with minimal exchange fees.</div>
<h2 class="oi mr dz ap ao dx oj ok ol om on oo op oq or os ot" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="16da">
Collectibles tokenization</h2>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="7b81">
Bitcoin’s
are fungible. Every Bitcoin is interchangeable, just as Euros, Dollars,
and Pound Sterling. They are indistinguishable from each other, as they
are all, at their core, units of currency and exchange.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="9ccd">
In
contrast, asset-backed tokens have the ability to represent exotic and
non-fungible assets, like collectibles, and therefore they are
distinguishable from one other tokens by design. Each token is unique,
creating digital scarcity, with blockchain network participants knowing
how many are in circulation and their distinguishing features.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="f1b6">
The
back-end component of non-fungible asset tokenization for exotic assets
have a sophisticated design. Asset management firms which currently
deal with traditional assets may fill new roles as oracles, ensuring the
back-end of non-fungible tokens are kept in safe storage, undergoing
regular audit certification, asset insurance, and conversion mechanisms
from tokens into a physical asset delivery. Auction houses currently
fill this role with fine jewelry, furniture, art, wine, and other
collectibles.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="e937">
For
example, as it stands, most retail investors lack the opportunity to
buy an ownership share of a rare piece of artwork. Incumbent auction
houses such as Sotheby’s and Christie’s control a majority of secondary
art markets from the world’s financial centres, far from reach for
retail investors. However, smart contracts are being used to create
joint ownership of artworks or art collections stored in museums. These
artworks can still be displayed publicly, but the asset will be encoded
on a blockchain.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="6a61">
Likewise,
it’s possible for individual objects to be tokenized, acting as
appreciating assets. For example, a rare, valuable painting may be
inherited by several siblings. With asset-backed tokens, the painting
could be tokenized and then distributed to each sibling via the
blockchain, becoming “shares” representing a portion of the original
painting. These shares, represented by asset-backed tokens, could be
sold via a public security token exchange, if a sibling wishes to sell
their holdings. In this simplified example, the token holders have
access to immediate liquidity, while private investors can add a
valuable exotic asset to their portfolio, which they would normally not
have exposure to — therefore, a novel class of exotic assets are given
previously unrealized liquidity.</div>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="373c">
Non-Fungible Soft Asset Tokenization</h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="665a">
Soft assets, in contrast to hard assets, are <a class="cx bt mm mn mo mp" href="https://www.forensisgroup.com/expert-witness/intangible-assets/" target="_blank">intangible assets,</a>
which have been traditionally hard to quantify and evaluate.
Asset-backed tokens can likewise bring price discovery and liquidity to
these assets.</div>
<h2 class="oi mr dz ap ao dx oj ok ol om on oo op oq or os ot" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="e169">
Intellectual Property (IP) Tokenization</h2>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="3d85">
Somewhat
harder to quantify than other assets we have examined, IP assets, such
as copyright licences, trademarks, patents and royalties from music and
media rights generally have low liquidity and currently lack a secondary
marketplace to trade on. It is not a difficult concept to tokenize the
IP ownership, but the realized benefits could be many — such as enhanced
liquidity and increased value of IP assets, bringing benefits to media
producers and artists.</div>
<h2 class="oi mr dz ap ao dx oj ok ol om on oo op oq or os ot" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="9c31">
Digital Asset Collectibles Tokenization</h2>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="a43b">
Digital
collectibles, such as CryptoKitties, are examples of asset-backed
tokens which generate value and scarcity. This is in contrast to
ownership of digital collectibles, which is managed via central
databases, such as vanity items earned during whilst playing online
games. These assets have been traditionally difficult to prove ownership
over, as they are often just represented as contracts with the software
provider. However, blockchain could offer digital collectibles
specialized marketplaces, created with asset-backed tokens.</div>
<h2 class="oi mr dz ap ao dx oj ok ol om on oo op oq or os ot" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="3c44">
Stable Coins are not Typical Security Tokens</h2>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="6294">
By
certain definitions, stable coins linked to fiat are a form of stable
asset-backed token. Stable coin issuers in this case maintain fiat
reserves, so they retain a stable ratio with their chosen fiat currency,
which is then matched to the circulating supply of the specific stable
coin.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="def5">
Stable
coins are distinctly different from security tokens as they’re not a
means of investment. Instead, they are created to represent currencies
rather than assets. Stable coins provide an easy exit for investors who
trade cryptographic assets on token exchanges, and remain fundamentally
distinct from security tokens representing assets.</div>
<h1 class="mq mr dz ap ao dx ms mt mu mv mw mx my mz na nb nc" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="e526">
Opportunities and Challenges for Security Tokens</h1>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma nd mc ne me nf mg ng mi nh mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="fd32">
Compared
to traditional currency, Bitcoin has been generally regarded as having
greater fungibility, divisibility, transferability, scarcity, and
durability. Likewise, asset-backed tokens retain most of the same
benefits, applying them to real assets.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="81bf">
Regulators
are eyeing security tokens with caution. There could be high risks for
new user error whilst using exchanges, and investors who are not
cautious may lose their tokens through wallet address mishaps for
example, something protected against when using traditional third-party
exchanges.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="ce3b">
As
a result of regulatory uncertainty, some countries, such as China and
Qatar, have completely banned asset-backed tokens being issued. Other
countries, such as Bermuda, Switzerland, Estonia, and Liechtenstein,
allow security token issuance, albeit with certain restrictions and
confusing regulatory oversight.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="d854">
Malta,
by contrast, places no limitations or restrictions on asset-backed
tokens. Approval, fund certification, and fund license requirements are
legally well-defined, with regulatory stringency. These conditions make
Malta the premier jurisdiction to issue asset-backed or security tokens.</div>
<div class="lx ly dz ap lz b ma mb mc md me mf mg mh mi mj mk" data-selectable-paragraph="" id="670c">
Asset-backed
and security tokens are, by design, prone to lower volatility than
utility tokens and cryptocurrencies. As discussed, tokens listed on
exchanges may trade constantly, offering greatly enhanced price
discovery. Markets which operate irrespective of geographical location
or time zones may provide security token trading opportunities to
investors worldwide. Likewise, established companies may soon begin
issuing security tokens worth billion of dollars into token exchanges —
creating one of the most exciting asset classes seen in decades.</div>
</div>
</section>minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-4829038296384168482018-06-29T10:07:00.005-04:002018-06-29T10:07:56.736-04:00<h1 class="headline_2zdFM">
China's penetration of Silicon Valley creates risks for startups</h1>
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SAN
FRANCISCO (Reuters) - Danhua Capital has invested in some of Silicon
Valley’s most promising startups in areas like drones, artificial
intelligence and cyber security. The venture capital firm is based just
outside Stanford University, the epicenter of U.S. technology
entrepreneurship. </div>
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<figcaption><span class="caption_KoNH1"><span>FILE
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Yet it was also established and funded with help from the Chinese government. And it is not alone. <br />
More
than 20 Silicon Valley venture capital firms have close ties to a
Chinese government fund or state-owned entity, according to interviews
with venture capital sources and publicly available information. <br />
While
the U.S. government is taking an increasingly hard line against Chinese
acquisitions of U.S. public companies, investments in startups, even by
state-backed entities, have been largely untouched. <br />
That may
well be poised to change as the U.S. Congress finalizes legislation that
dramatically expands the government’s power to block foreign investment
in U.S. companies, including venture investments. <br />
The new law
would give the U.S. government’s Committee on Foreign Investment in the
United States (CFIUS) wide latitude to decide what sorts of deals to
examine, eliminating certain ownership thresholds, with a particular
focus on so-called “critical” technologies. <br />
“The perception is
that a lot of the tech transfer of worry to the U.S. security
establishment is happening in the startup world,” said Stephen Heifetz, a
former member of CFIUS and now a lawyer representing companies going
through CFIUS review. <br />
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The
latest version of the bill exempts “passive” investors, which would
cover many of the limited partners that back venture firms. But limited
partners that have some control over the business, or firms whose
managing partner is a “foreign person”, could be subject to scrutiny. <br />
The
university endowments and family offices that traditionally provide
most of the money for venture firms are usually one of many limited
partners and have minimal if any involvement in the startups they help
fund. <br />
Chinese entities also sometimes take a passive role in big
venture funds. But venture capital sources say that Chinese government
funds often play a more influential role in the smaller venture firms
they back by providing a greater percentage of their funding. That
empowers them to request information about startups or help them to
open offices in China - potentially opening those startups to CFIUS
review. <br />
The possibility of a regulatory crackdown has caused
unease in the startup world. Venture firm Andreessen Horowitz is
counseling startups that if they raise money from a China-backed
investor, they put themselves at risk of government scrutiny, a person
with knowledge of the matter said. <br />
“The window for some
startups to raise money from China may be closing,” said Chris
Nicholson, co-founder of AI company Skymind, which has raised money from
Chinese Internet group Tencent Holdings Ltd and a Hong Kong family
office. <br />
<h3>
SENSITIVE AREAS </h3>
Until recently, the original
source of funds for venture investments has not been an issue in Silicon
Valley. Venture firms are not obliged to disclose who their investors
are and entrepreneurs rarely ask, leading some dealmakers to question
how CFIUS could keep tabs on startup investing. <br />
Danhua Capital,
which is backed by the Zhongguancun Development Group, a state-owned
enterprise funded by the Beijing municipal government, has holdings in
some of the most sensitive technology sectors. <br />
Its
investments include data management and security company Cohesity,
which counts the U.S. Department of Energy and U.S. Air Force among its
customers. Drone startup Flirtey, which in May was selected by the U.S.
Department of Transportation to participate in projects to help the
agency integrate drones safely into U.S. air space, is also part of the
Danhua portfolio. <br />
Shoucheng Zhang, Danhua’s founder and a
Stanford University physics professor, declined to answer specific
questions from Reuters. In an email, he said: “Most of our (limited
partners) are publicly listed companies in New York or Hong Kong stock
exchanges. We will of course fully comply with any legislations and
regulations.” <br />
Cohesity declined to comment. A spokeswoman for
Flirtey said Danhua’s minority investment did not come with any
information rights or a board seat, and the firm is not involved in
Flirtey’s operations. <br />
“We would not knowingly accept money from
the Chinese government; we take investment from Delaware-registered,
Silicon Valley-based venture capital firms,” the spokeswoman said. <br />
She
added that Flirtey would support any new “mandate that investors must
disclose if they have any form of backing from government entities, to
help ensure there is never a question in the future.” <br />
The
practice of investing through layers of funds, known as funds of funds,
can make it all but impossible to know where money is coming from.
Westlake Ventures, backed by the Hangzhou city government in eastern
China, invests in at least 10 other Silicon Valley venture funds,
including Palo-Alto based Amino Capital. <br />
Larry Li, founder and
managing partner at Amino Capital, said he took the money that was on
offer when he launched his fund in 2012. He said he felt his firm wasn’t
the kind of known quantity that could tap the big pensions and
endowments. <br />
“We weren’t going to the Harvard endowment or Yale
endowment; that’s like mission impossible,” Li said. “You need to have
some special source of funds to get started.” <br />
China-backed
funds include Oriza Ventures, which belongs to the investment arm of
the Suzhou municipal government, and has backed AI and self-driving car
startups. SAIC Capital, the venture arm of state-owned auto company SAIC
Motor, has invested in Silicon Valley autonomous driving, mapping and
artificial intelligence startups. <br />
Even well-known startup accelerator 500 Startups raised part of its main fund from the Hangzhou government. <br />
500 Startups and Oriza declined to comment, while SAIC did not respond to a request for comment. <br />
Capital
controls have slowed the flow of Chinese money into the United States
since 2016, but sources say venture investments have been more resilient
than sectors like real estate, in part due to the Chinese government’s
focus on improving its domestic high-tech industry. <br />
<h3>
‘CROWN JEWELS’ </h3>
U.S.
politicians suspicious of China’s intentions were galvanized by a
Department of Defense report released last year that warns that Chinese
venture investors are accessing “the crown jewels of U.S. innovation.” <br />
The
report helped guide Sen. John Cornyn, a Texas Republican who sponsored
the Senate version of the CFIUS reform bill, people with knowledge of
the matter said. A spokeswoman said Cornyn “is especially concerned with
Chinese state-backed venture capital investments.” <br />
But the report was also panned by many private sector experts as overly simplistic and fear-mongering. <br />
For
now, at least, President Donald Trump has backed away from his declared
intention to clamp down on a wide range of Chinese technology
investments through a special emergency order, saying he would leave the
job to CFIUS. But if Congress fails to pass the bill quickly, Trump
said he would use his executive powers. <br />
<div class="container_28wm1">
<div class="attribution_o4ojT">
<div class="content_27_rw">
Reporting
by Heather Somerville in San Francisco. Additional reporting by the
Shanghai newsroom.; Editing by Jonathan Weber and Martin Howell.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="trustBadgeContainer_1gqgJ">
<span class="trustBadgeTitle_7sKLj">Our Standards:</span><span class="trustBadgeUrl"><a href="http://thomsonreuters.com/en/about-us/trust-principles.html">The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.</a></span></div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-84084153385459240282017-12-06T11:51:00.001-05:002017-12-06T11:51:05.922-05:00Why Bitcoin Matters<h1 class="entry-title" itemprop="headline">
Why Bitcoin Matters</h1>
<div class="story-meta-footer">
<address class="byline author vcard" itemprop="author creator" itemtype="//schema.org/Person">
By Marc Andreessen </address>
<time class="dateline " datetime="2014-01-21T16:54:30+00:00" itemprop="datePublished">January 21, 2014 11:54 am</time>
<span class="visually-hidden updated">January 21, 2014 11:54 am</span></div>
<div class="entry-content">
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<figure class="media photo promo" itemid="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/01/22/business/dbpix-marc-andreessen/dbpix-marc-andreessen-articleInline.jpg" itemprop="associatedMedia" itemscope="" itemtype="//schema.org/ImageObject" role="group"><span class="visually-hidden">Photo</span><div class="image">
<img alt="Marc Andreessen, a co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz." height="163" id="100000002662257" itemid="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/01/22/business/dbpix-marc-andreessen/dbpix-marc-andreessen-articleInline.jpg" itemprop="url" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2014/01/22/business/dbpix-marc-andreessen/dbpix-marc-andreessen-articleInline.jpg" width="190" /></div>
<figcaption class="caption" itemprop="description"><span class="caption-text">Marc Andreessen, a co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz.</span><span class="credit" itemprop="copyrightHolder"><span class="visually-hidden">Credit</span> Keith Bedford/Reuters</span></figcaption></figure></div>
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<em>Editor’s note:
Marc Andreessen’s venture capital firm, Andreessen Horowitz, has
invested just under $50 million in Bitcoin-related start-ups. The firm
is actively searching for more Bitcoin-based investment opportunities.
He does not personally own more than a de minimis amount of Bitcoin.</em></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
A mysterious new
technology emerges, seemingly out of nowhere, but actually the result of
two decades of intense research and development by nearly anonymous
researchers.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Political idealists project visions of liberation and revolution onto it; establishment elites heap contempt and scorn on it.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
On the other hand,
technologists – nerds – are transfixed by it. They see within it
enormous potential and spend their nights and weekends tinkering with
it.</div>
<div class="w592">
<figure class="promo media video blog-video " data-autoplay="" data-embedded="true" data-media-action="modal" data-videoid="100000002563247" role="group"><div class="video-bind" id="video_outer_position_embedded_100000002563247">
<div class="video-container nytd-player-container idle vhs-plugin-sharetools vhs-m" id="video_inner_position_embedded_100000002563247" style="background: rgb(0, 0, 0) none repeat scroll 0% 0%; height: 0px; overflow: hidden; padding-bottom: 56.25%; position: relative; width: 100%;">
<div class="nytd-player-poster" style="background: rgba(0, 0, 0, 0) url("https://static01.nyt.com/images/2013/11/20/business/video-gillen-bitcoins/video-gillen-bitcoins-videoSixteenByNine310.jpg") no-repeat scroll center center / cover; height: 100%; width: 100%;">
<div class="vhs-media-action-overlay vhs-article-cover">
<div class="vhs-metadata-container">
<section class="vhs-metadata">
<span class="vhs-show-name">Everyone’s Business</span>
<span class="vhs-byline">By Channon Hodge, David Gillen, Kimberly Moy and Aaron Byrd</span>
<span class="vhs-video-length">2:21</span>
</section>
<section class="vhs-video-title">
<span>Bitcoin Believers</span>
</section>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<span class="visually-hidden">Video</span>
<figcaption class="caption">
<h4 class="headline">
Bitcoin Believers</h4>
<div class="caption-video">
<div class="summary-credit">
<div class="summary">
While regulators debate the pros and cons
of bitcoins, this volatile digital currency inspires the question: What
makes money, money?</div>
<span class="credit video-credit" itemprop="copyrightHolder">
By Channon Hodge, David Gillen, Kimberly Moy and Aaron
Byrd on <span class="visually-hidden">Publish Date </span>November 24, 2013.
</span>
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</span>
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</div>
</figcaption>
</figure>
</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Eventually mainstream
products, companies and industries emerge to commercialize it; its
effects become profound; and later, many people wonder why its powerful
promise wasn’t more obvious from the start.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
What technology am I talking about? Personal computers in 1975, the Internet in 1993, and – I believe – Bitcoin in 2014.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
One can hardly accuse
Bitcoin of being an uncovered topic, yet the gulf between what the press
and many regular people believe Bitcoin is, and what a growing critical
mass of technologists believe Bitcoin is, remains enormous. In this
post, I will explain why Bitcoin has so many Silicon Valley programmers
and entrepreneurs all lathered up, and what I think Bitcoin’s future
potential is.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>First, Bitcoin at its
most fundamental level is a breakthrough in computer science – one that
builds on 20 years of research into cryptographic currency, and 40 years
of research in cryptography, by thousands of researchers around the
world.</b></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>Bitcoin is the first
practical solution to a longstanding problem in computer science called
the Byzantine Generals Problem.</b> To quote from the original paper
defining the B.G.P.: “[Imagine] a group of generals of the Byzantine
army camped with their troops around an enemy city. Communicating only
by messenger, the generals must agree upon a common battle plan.
However, one or more of them may be traitors who will try to confuse the
others. The problem is to find an algorithm to ensure that the loyal
generals will reach agreement.” </div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>More generally, the
B.G.P. poses the question of how to establish trust between otherwise
unrelated parties over an untrusted network like the Internet.</b></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
The practical
consequence of solving this problem is that Bitcoin gives us, for the
first time, a way for one Internet user to transfer a unique piece of
digital property to another Internet user, such that the transfer is
guaranteed to be safe and secure, everyone knows that the transfer has
taken place, and nobody can challenge the legitimacy of the transfer.
The consequences of this breakthrough are hard to overstate.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<span style="color: red;"><b>What kinds of digital
property might be transferred in this way? Think about digital
signatures, digital contracts, digital keys (to physical locks, or to
online lockers), digital ownership of physical assets such as cars and
houses, digital stocks and bonds … and digital money.</b></span></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
All these are
exchanged through a distributed network of trust that does not require
or rely upon a central intermediary like a bank or broker. And all in a
way where only the owner of an asset can send it, only the intended
recipient can receive it, the asset can only exist in one place at a
time, and everyone can validate transactions and ownership of all assets
anytime they want.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
How does this work?</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Bitcoin is an
Internet-wide distributed ledger. You buy into the ledger by purchasing
one of a fixed number of slots, either with cash or by selling a product
and service for Bitcoin. You sell out of the ledger by trading your
Bitcoin to someone else who wants to buy into the ledger. Anyone in the
world can buy into or sell out of the ledger any time they want – with
no approval needed, and with no or very low fees. The Bitcoin “coins”
themselves are simply slots in the ledger, analogous in some ways to
seats on a stock exchange, except much more broadly applicable to real
world transactions.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
The Bitcoin ledger is a
new kind of payment system. Anyone in the world can pay anyone else in
the world any amount of value of Bitcoin by simply transferring
ownership of the corresponding slot in the ledger. Put value in,
transfer it, the recipient gets value out, no authorization required,
and in many cases, no fees.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
That last part is
enormously important. Bitcoin is the first Internetwide payment system
where transactions either happen with no fees or very low fees (down to
fractions of pennies). Existing payment systems charge fees of about 2
to 3 percent – and that’s in the developed world. In lots of other
places, there either are no modern payment systems or the rates are
significantly higher. We’ll come back to that.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Bitcoin is a digital
bearer instrument. It is a way to exchange money or assets between
parties with no pre-existing trust: A string of numbers is sent over
email or text message in the simplest case. The sender doesn’t need to
know or trust the receiver or vice versa. Related, there are no
chargebacks – this is the part that is literally like cash – if you have
the money or the asset, you can pay with it; if you don’t, you can’t.
This is brand new. This has never existed in digital form before.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>Bitcoin is a digital
currency, whose value is based directly on two things: use of the
payment system today – volume and velocity of payments running through
the ledger – and speculation on future use of the payment system.</b> This
is one part that is confusing people. It’s not as much that the Bitcoin
currency has some arbitrary value and then people are trading with it;
it’s more that people can trade with Bitcoin (anywhere, everywhere, with
no fraud and no or very low fees) and as a result it has value.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
It is perhaps true
right at this moment that the value of Bitcoin currency is based more on
speculation than actual payment volume, but it is equally true that
that speculation is establishing a sufficiently high price for the
currency that payments have become practically possible. The Bitcoin
currency had to be worth something before it could bear any amount of
real-world payment volume. This is the classic “chicken and egg” problem
with new technology: new technology is not worth much until it’s worth a
lot. And so the fact that Bitcoin has risen in value in part because of
speculation is making the reality of its usefulness arrive much faster
than it would have otherwise.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Critics of Bitcoin
point to limited usage by ordinary consumers and merchants, but that
same criticism was leveled against PCs and the Internet at the same
stage. Every day, more and more consumers and merchants are buying,
using and selling Bitcoin, all around the world. The overall numbers are
still small, but they are growing quickly. And ease of use for all
participants is rapidly increasing as Bitcoin tools and technologies are
improved. Remember, it used to be technically challenging to even get
on the Internet. Now it’s not.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
The criticism that
merchants will not accept Bitcoin because of its volatility is also
incorrect. Bitcoin can be used entirely as a payment system; merchants
do not need to hold any Bitcoin currency or be exposed to Bitcoin
volatility at any time. Any consumer or merchant can trade in and out of
Bitcoin and other currencies any time they want.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Why would any merchant
– online or in the real world – want to accept Bitcoin as payment,
given the currently small number of consumers who want to pay with it?
My partner Chris Dixon recently gave this example:</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
“Let’s say you sell
electronics online. Profit margins in those businesses are usually under
5 percent, which means conventional 2.5 percent payment fees consume
half the margin. That’s money that could be reinvested in the business,
passed back to consumers or taxed by the government. <b>Of all of those
choices, handing 2.5 percent to banks to move bits around the Internet
is the worst possible choice. Another challenge merchants have with
payments is accepting international payments.</b> If you are wondering why
your favorite product or service isn’t available in your country, the
answer is often payments.”</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>In addition, merchants
are highly attracted to Bitcoin because it eliminates the risk of
credit card fraud. </b>This is the form of fraud that motivates so many
criminals to put so much work into stealing personal customer
information and credit card numbers.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Since Bitcoin is a
digital bearer instrument, the receiver of a payment does not get any
information from the sender that can be used to steal money from the
sender in the future, either by that merchant or by a criminal who
steals that information from the merchant.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Credit card fraud is
such a big deal for merchants, credit card processors and banks that
online fraud detection systems are hair-trigger wired to stop
transactions that look even slightly suspicious, whether or not they are
actually fraudulent. As a result, many online merchants are forced to
turn away 5 to 10 percent of incoming orders that they could take
without fear if the customers were paying with Bitcoin, where such fraud
would not be possible. Since these are orders that were coming in
already, they are inherently the highest margin orders a merchant can
get, and so being able to take them will drastically increase many
merchants’ profit margins.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Bitcoin’s antifraud properties even extend into the physical world of retail stores and shoppers.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
For example, with
Bitcoin, the huge hack that recently stole 70 million consumers’ credit
card information from the Target department store chain would not have
been possible. Here’s how that would work:</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
You fill your cart and
go to the checkout station like you do now. But instead of handing over
your credit card to pay, you pull out your smartphone and take a
snapshot of a QR code displayed by the cash register. The QR code
contains all the information required for you to send Bitcoin to Target,
including the amount. You click “Confirm” on your phone and the
transaction is done (including converting dollars from your account into
Bitcoin, if you did not own any Bitcoin).</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Target is happy
because it has the money in the form of Bitcoin, which it can
immediately turn into dollars if it wants, and it paid no or very low
payment processing fees; you are happy because there is no way for
hackers to steal any of your personal information; and organized crime
is unhappy. (Well, maybe criminals are still happy: They can try to
steal money directly from poorly-secured merchant computer systems. But
even if they succeed, consumers bear no risk of loss, fraud or identity
theft.)</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Finally, I’d like to
address the claim made by some critics that Bitcoin is a haven for bad
behavior, for criminals and terrorists to transfer money anonymously
with impunity. This is a myth, fostered mostly by sensationalistic press
coverage and an incomplete understanding of the technology. Much like
email, which is quite traceable, Bitcoin is pseudonymous, not anonymous.
Further, every transaction in the Bitcoin network is tracked and logged
forever in the Bitcoin blockchain, or permanent record, available for
all to see. As a result, Bitcoin is considerably easier for law
enforcement to trace than cash, gold or diamonds.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
What’s the future of Bitcoin?</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>Bitcoin is a classic
network effect, a positive feedback loop. </b>The more people who use
Bitcoin, the more valuable Bitcoin is for everyone who uses it, and the
higher the incentive for the next user to start using the technology.
Bitcoin shares this network effect property with the telephone system,
the web, and popular Internet services like eBay and Facebook.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>In fact, Bitcoin is a
four-sided network effect. There are four constituencies that
participate in expanding the value of Bitcoin as a consequence of their
own self-interested participation. Those constituencies are (1)
consumers who pay with Bitcoin, (2) merchants who accept Bitcoin, (3)
“miners” who run the computers that process and validate all the
transactions and enable the distributed trust network to exist, and (4)
developers and entrepreneurs who are building new products and services
with and on top of Bitcoin.</b></div>
<b>
</b><div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
All four sides of the
network effect are playing a valuable part in expanding the value of the
overall system, but the fourth is particularly important.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
All over Silicon
Valley and around the world, many thousands of programmers are using
Bitcoin as a building block for a kaleidoscope of new product and
service ideas that were not possible before. And at our venture capital
firm, Andreessen Horowitz, we are seeing a rapidly increasing number of
outstanding entrepreneurs – not a few with highly respected track
records in the financial industry – building companies on top of
Bitcoin.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
For this reason alone,
new challengers to Bitcoin face a hard uphill battle. If something is
to displace Bitcoin now, it will have to have sizable improvements and
it will have to happen quickly. Otherwise, this network effect will
carry Bitcoin to dominance.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>One immediately
obvious and enormous area for Bitcoin-based innovation is international
remittance. </b>Every day, hundreds of millions of low-income people go to
work in hard jobs in foreign countries to make money to send back to
their families in their home countries – over $400 billion in total
annually, according to the World Bank. Every day, banks and payment
companies extract mind-boggling fees, up to 10 percent and sometimes
even higher, to send this money.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Switching to Bitcoin,
which charges no or very low fees, for these remittance payments will
therefore raise the quality of life of migrant workers and their
families significantly. In fact, it is hard to think of any one thing
that would have a faster and more positive effect on so many people in
the world’s poorest countries.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Moreover, Bitcoin
generally can be a powerful force to bring a much larger number of
people around the world into the modern economic system. Only about 20
countries around the world have what we would consider to be fully
modern banking and payment systems; the other roughly 175 have a long
way to go. As a result, many people in many countries are excluded from
products and services that we in the West take for granted. Even
Netflix, a completely virtual service, is only available in about 40
countries. Bitcoin, as a global payment system anyone can use from
anywhere at any time, can be a powerful catalyst to extend the benefits
of the modern economic system to virtually everyone on the planet.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
And even here in the
United States, a long-recognized problem is the extremely high fees that
the “unbanked” — people without conventional bank accounts – pay for
even basic financial services. Bitcoin can be used to go straight at
that problem, by making it easy to offer extremely low-fee services to
people outside of the traditional financial system.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>A third fascinating
use case for Bitcoin is micropayments, or ultrasmall payments. </b>
Micropayments have never been feasible, despite 20 years of attempts,
because it is not cost effective to run small payments (think $1 and
below, down to pennies or fractions of a penny) through the existing
credit/debit and banking systems. The fee structure of those systems
makes that nonviable.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
All of a sudden, with
Bitcoin, that’s trivially easy. Bitcoins have the nifty property of
infinite divisibility: currently down to eight decimal places after the
dot, but more in the future. So you can specify an arbitrarily small
amount of money, like a thousandth of a penny, and send it to anyone in
the world for free or near-free.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Think about content
monetization, for example. One reason media businesses such as
newspapers struggle to charge for content is because they need to charge
either all (pay the entire subscription fee for all the content) or
nothing (which then results in all those terrible banner ads everywhere
on the web). All of a sudden, with Bitcoin, there is an economically
viable way to charge arbitrarily small amounts of money per article, or
per section, or per hour, or per video play, or per archive access, or
per news alert.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Another potential use
of Bitcoin micropayments is to fight spam. Future email systems and
social networks could refuse to accept incoming messages unless they
were accompanied with tiny amounts of Bitcoin – tiny enough to not
matter to the sender, but large enough to deter spammers, who today can
send uncounted billions of spam messages for free with impunity.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<b>Finally, a fourth
interesting use case is public payments.</b> This idea first came to my
attention in a news article a few months ago. A random spectator at a
televised sports event held up a placard with a QR code and the text
“Send me Bitcoin!” He received $25,000 in Bitcoin in the first 24 hours,
all from people he had never met. This was the first time in history
that you could see someone holding up a sign, in person or on TV or in a
photo, and then send them money with two clicks on your smartphone:
take the photo of the QR code on the sign, and click to send the money.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Think about the
implications for protest movements. Today protesters want to get on TV
so people learn about their cause. Tomorrow they’ll want to get on TV
because that’s how they’ll raise money, by literally holding up signs
that let people anywhere in the world who sympathize with them send them
money on the spot. Bitcoin is a financial technology dream come true
for even the most hardened anticapitalist political organizer.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
The coming years will be a period of great drama and excitement revolving around this new technology.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
For example, some
prominent economists are deeply skeptical of Bitcoin, even though Ben S.
Bernanke, formerly Federal Reserve chairman, recently wrote that
digital currencies like Bitcoin “may hold long-term promise,
particularly if they promote a faster, more secure and more efficient
payment system.” And in 1999, the legendary economist Milton Friedman
said: “One thing that’s missing but will soon be developed is a reliable
e-cash, a method whereby on the Internet you can transfer funds from A
to B without A knowing B or B knowing A – the way I can take a $20 bill
and hand it over to you, and you may get that without knowing who I am.”
</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Economists who attack Bitcoin today might be correct, but I’m with Ben and Milton.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
Further, there is no
shortage of regulatory topics and issues that will have to be addressed,
since almost no country’s regulatory framework for banking and payments
anticipated a technology like Bitcoin.</div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
<br /></div>
<div class="story-body-text" itemprop="articleBody">
But I hope that I have
given you a sense of the enormous promise of Bitcoin. Far from a mere
libertarian fairy tale or a simple Silicon Valley exercise in hype,
Bitcoin offers a sweeping vista of opportunity to reimagine how the
financial system can and should work in the Internet era, and a catalyst
to reshape that system in ways that are more powerful for individuals
and businesses alike.</div>
</div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-35464364966416451482017-12-06T09:21:00.001-05:002017-12-06T09:21:18.932-05:00The Best Articles to Learn about Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Cryptocurrency<header class="entry-header"> <h1 class="entry-title" itemprop="name">
The Best Articles to Learn about Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Cryptocurrency</h1>
<div id="author_pic_nat">
<img alt="" class="avatar avatar-60 photo grav-hashed grav-hijack" height="60" id="grav-df74a0b4ea7feefb565e8cbc98103f97-1" src="https://secure.gravatar.com/avatar/df74a0b4ea7feefb565e8cbc98103f97?s=60&d=mm&r=r" width="60" /> </div>
<h2 class="entry-title-meta">
<span class="entry-title-meta-author">
<span class="byline"><span class="author p-author vcard h-card"><a class="u-url url fn n" href="https://www.nateliason.com/" rel="author" title="View all posts by Nat Eliason">Nat Eliason</a></span></span>
</span>
in <a href="https://www.nateliason.com/category/crypto/" title="View all posts in Crypto">Crypto</a>
</h2>
</header>
<div class="entry-content" itemprop="mainContentOfPage">
About a month ago I decided to dive in and learn more about cryptocurrency since <u><a href="https://www.nateliason.com/invest-bitcoin-cryptocurrency/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">my investing in it</a></u> was doing well.
The challenge with Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies, though, is that it’s
such a new and rapidly changing field that it’s hard to find any good
books or established resources on the topics. You mostly have to read
blog articles, original whitepapers, and Wikipedia pages and figure it
out as you go.<br />
Since it took me a while to filter through what was helpful and what
wasn’t, I thought others might appreciate a list of the articles that
were most helpful for me learning about Bitcoin, Ethereum, and other
cryptocurrencies.<br />
I’d recommend definitely reading everything in the “Getting Excited”
and “Learning More About Bitcoin” sections, then picking and choosing
from what sounds interesting in the rest of the article.<br />
<h2>
Getting Excited About Bitcoin & Crypto in General</h2>
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://dealbook.nytimes.com/2014/01/21/why-bitcoin-matters/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Why Bitcoin Matters</a></u></h3>
By Marc Andreessen<br />
This is the best intro to why you should be excited about Bitcoin.
Andreessen Horowitz has been a major investor in Bitcoin related
companies, and Marc Andreessen has been talking about its potential
since the early days.<br />
<em>“One can hardly accuse Bitcoin of being an uncovered topic, yet
the gulf between what the press and many regular people believe Bitcoin
is, and what a growing critical mass of technologists believe Bitcoin
is, remains enormous. In this post, I will explain why Bitcoin has so
many Silicon Valley programmers and entrepreneurs all lathered up, and
what I think Bitcoin’s future potential is.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://startupboy.com/2013/11/07/bitcoin-the-internet-of-money/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Bitcoin — The Internet of Money</a></u></h3>
By Naval Ravikant<br />
Naval wrote this post back in 2014, explaining how Bitcoin was so
much more than just an online currency. He walks through some of the
potential applications of the technology, many of which have since
started being worked on by startups.<br />
<em>“Most people are only familiar with (b)itcoin the electronic
currency, but more important is (B)itcoin, with a capital B, the
underlying protocol, which encapsulates and distributes the functions of
contract law.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.coinbase.com/how-digital-currency-will-change-the-world-310663fe4332" rel="noopener" target="_blank">How Digital Currency Will Change the World</a></u></h3>
By Brian Armstrong<br />
Brian is the founder of <a class="external" href="https://nateliason.com/coinbase" target="_blank">Coinbase</a>
and wrote this article to explain how cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin
could have a massive positive impact on global prosperity. The short
version: as economic freedom increases, prosperity increases, and crypto
has the potential to provide greater global economic freedom whether
governments like it or not.<br />
“<em>Economic freedom is one of the great meta-problems of our time
(right up there with A.I., quantum computing, and cheap renewable
energy). If we can create more economic freedom in the world, it will
serve as a giant economic stimulus package for the world, accelerate
innovation, reduce wars, make the poorest 10% better off, overthrow
corrupt governments, and raise happiness.”</em><br />
<h2>
Learning More About Bitcoin</h2>
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Original Bitcoin Whitepaper</a></u></h3>
By Satoshi Nakamoto<br />
Read it once, go read other crypto stuff, read it again… keep doing
this until the whole document makes sense. It’ll take a while, but
you’ll get there. This is the original whitepaper introducing and
explaining Bitcoin, and there’s really nothing better out there to
understand on the subject.<br />
<em>“What is needed is an electronic payment system based on
cryptographic proof instead of trust, allowing any two willing parties
to transact directly with each other without the need for a trusted
third party.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://qz.com/154877/by-reading-this-page-you-are-mining-bitcoins/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">By reading this article, you’re mining bitcoins</a></u></h3>
By Ritchie S. King<br />
This article helps to understand the blockchain and mining parts of
Bitcoin, which in turn will help the white paper make more sense next
time you go back to read it.<br />
<em>“What bitcoin miners actually do could be better described as
competitive bookkeeping. Miners build and maintain a gigantic public
ledger containing a record of every bitcoin transaction in history.
Every time somebody wants to send bitcoins to somebody else, the
transfer has to be validated by miners: They check the ledger to make
sure the sender isn’t transferring money she doesn’t have.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://www.coindesk.com/information/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Coindesk Information</a></u></h3>
By Coindesk<br />
For almost any other question you’d have about Bitcoin after reading
the whitepaper, you can find a concise answer and explanation here. They
explain everything in simple terms, and you may find yourself asking
questions you didn’t know you should be asking.<br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://www.usv.com/blog/fat-protocols" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Fat Protocols</a></u></h3>
By Joel Monegro<br />
This was extremely helpful for helping me understand the app/protocol
difference and why it’s so important in the case of bitcoin and
blockchain tech. It also highlights why this is a fundamental shift in
the architecture of the Internet and applications built on it, and why
that matters. Must read.<br />
<em>“This relationship between protocols and applications is reversed
in the blockchain application stack. Value concentrates at the shared
protocol layer and only a fraction of that value is distributed along at
the applications layer. It’s a stack with “fat” protocols and “thin”
applications.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://startupboy.com/2014/04/01/the-fifth-protocol/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Fifth Protocol</a></u></h3>
By Naval Ravikant<br />
Naval explains how coins can be used as a fifth protocol in machine
to machine communication for the exchange of value, to weed out
transactions and other demands on data that can be costly in huge
quantities. It could be used to prevent Spam, DDOS attacks, etc. and
even let machines operate autonomously among each other (such as a
vending machine ordering its own restocks).<br />
<em>“Cryptocurrencies are electronic cash, and as such, will be used
by electronic agents to exchange value, verify contracts, and track
identity and reputation. All of a sudden, the computing resources spent
by the Bitcoin miners doesn’t seem wasted – it seems efficient, given
that it can be used for congestion control and routing of other network
resources.”</em><br />
<h2>
Learning More About Ethereum</h2>
Ethereum is the second most discussed cryptocurrency right now, and
the subject of many of the other articles in this series, especially as
it relates to tokens.<br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.coinbase.com/a-beginners-guide-to-ethereum-46dd486ceecf" rel="noopener" target="_blank">A beginner’s guide to Ethereum</a></u></h3>
By Linda Xie<br />
This intro from Linda at Coinbase gives you a quick overview of
Ethereum and some of its exciting potential before you dig into the more
meaty articles.<br />
<em>“With Ethereum, a piece of code could automatically transfer the
home ownership to the buyer and the funds to the seller after a deal is
agreed upon without needing a third party to execute on their behalf.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://github.com/ethereum/wiki/wiki/White-Paper" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Original Ethereum Whitepaper</a></u></h3>
By The Ethereum Foundation<br />
Like the Bitcoin whitepaper, you’ll have to keep re-reading it until
you start to understand more of it, but the whitepaper is the best way
to get to know Ethereum in addition to learning more about
cryptocurrencies, blockchains, and smart contracts.<br />
<em>“What Ethereum intends to provide is a blockchain with a built-in
fully fledged Turing-complete programming language that can be used to
create “contracts” that can be used to encode arbitrary state transition
functions, allowing users to create any of the systems described above,
as well as many others that we have not yet imagined, simply by writing
up the logic in a few lines of code.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=66SaEDzlmP4&t=22s" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Ethereum in 25 Minutes</a></u></h3>
By Vitalik Buterin<br />
This will be more approachable than the whitepaper when you’re first
trying to understand Ethereum. Vitalik is a good speaker and explains
Ethereum and its potential well, the only downside is that the camera
crew failed to record the slides.<br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.ethereum.org/2015/04/13/visions-part-1-the-value-of-blockchain-technology/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Visions, Part 1: The Value of Blockchain Technology</a></u></h3>
By Vitalik Buterin<br />
This could also fit in the “getting excited” section, but Vitalik,
the creator of Ethereum, outlines his vision for blockchain technology
in general in a very easy to read, non-technical way.<br />
<em>“…we will likely discover that at some point we will hit an
inflection point, where most instances of “blockchain for X” will be
made not by blockchain enthusiasts looking for something useful to do,
coming upon X, and trying to do it, but rather by X enthusiasts who look
at blockchains and realize that they are a fairly useful tool for doing
some part of X.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.ethereum.org/2015/04/27/visions-part-2-the-problem-of-trust/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Visions, Part 2: The Problem of Trust</a></u></h3>
By Vitalik Buterin<br />
Part 2 of this series covers why trust is such a big issue, and how
blockchains and Ethereum’s smart contracts can help move us to a world
where trust isn’t such a big issue in business dealings.<br />
“<em>Trust is a complicated thing. We all want, at least to some
degree, to be able to live without it, and be confident that we will be
able to achieve our goals without having to take the risk of someone
else’s bad behavior – much like every farmer would love to have their
crops blossom without having to worry about the weather and the sun. But
economy requires cooperation, and cooperation requires dealing with
people.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.ethereum.org/2015/08/01/introducing-casper-friendly-ghost/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Introducing Casper: The Friendly Ghost</a></u></h3>
By Vlad Zamfir<br />
A big difference between Ethereum and Bitcoin, at least eventually,
is Ethereum’s plan to use “proof of stake” instead of “proof of work.”
This article explains what that might look like and why it matters.<br />
<em>“It is called Casper “the friendly ghost” because it is an
adaptation of some of the principles of the GHOST (Greedy
Heaviest-Observed Sub-Tree) protocol for proof-of-work consensus to
proof-of-stake.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.ethereum.org/2014/11/25/proof-stake-learned-love-weak-subjectivity/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Proof of Stake: How I Learned to Love Weak Subjectivity</a></u></h3>
By Vitalik Buterin<br />
This article digs in more on the proof of stake model, why it matters, and why Ethereum is planning on implementing it.<br />
<em>“Proof of stake continues to be one of the most controversial
discussions in the cryptocurrency space. Although the idea has many
undeniable benefits, including efficiency, a larger security margin and
future-proof immunity to hardware centralization concerns, proof of
stake algorithms tend to be substantially more complex than proof of
work-based alternatives, and there is a large amount of skepticism that
proof of stake can work at all…”</em><br />
<h2>
Learning More About Appcoins, Tokens, etc.</h2>
You’ve probably seen some businesses using appcoins and tokens to
raise money and create their own cryptocurrencies. These are about how
that process works and the theory behind it.<br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://startupboy.com/2014/03/09/the-bitcoin-model-for-crowdfunding/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Bitcoin Model for Crowdfunding</a></u></h3>
By Naval Ravikant<br />
Naval proposes a Bitcoin style crowdfunding model back in 2014 before
the recent ICO craze. It wasn’t really being done back then, but the
market has evolved fairly true to his predictions.<br />
“<em>This is true crowdfunding – get funded by your users in
proportion to their usage. Reward early adopters, network operators, and
developers with upside.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://medium.com/the-coinbase-blog/app-coins-and-the-dawn-of-the-decentralized-business-model-8b8c951e734f#.9qcbu16t2" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Blockchain Tokens and the dawn of the Decentralized Business Model</a></u></h3>
By Fred Ehrsam<br />
Written two years after Naval’s post, Fred’s article on the
decentralized business model will help you understand the potential for
tokens more at the conceptual level, with examples from ones we’re
seeing in the marketplace today.<br />
<em>“[Company equity] has been used by startups for years to attract
employees to a young company, and now decentralized apps are using it to
incentivize all potential users around the world to join the app early
on.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://blog.gdax.com/how-to-raise-money-on-a-blockchain-with-a-token-510562c9cdfa#.rw9pz8i7p" rel="noopener" target="_blank">How to Raise Money on a Blockchain with a Token</a></u></h3>
By Fred Ehrsam<br />
This is the followup to the previous article where Fred dives more into the <em>how</em> of
raising money through token sales. It covers what kinds of businesses
it makes sense to have a token for, and then how to create and sell
those tokens.<br />
“<em>Should we consider the token model? In short: if your project has a network effect, yes.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://news.21.co/thoughts-on-tokens-436109aabcbe" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Thoughts on Tokens</a></u></h3>
By Balaji Srinivasan<br />
Balaji co-wrote the last article with Naval, and these are his
thoughts three years later on the growing Token and ICO market. He
covers some of the opportunities, challenges, and thoughts on where
tokens might go from here.<br />
<em>“The most important takehome is that tokens are not equity, but
are more similar to paid API keys. Nevertheless, they may represent a
>1000X improvement in the time-to-liquidity and a >100X
improvement in the size of the buyer base… This in turn opens up the
space for funding new kinds of projects previously off-limits to venture
capital, including open source protocols and projects with fast 2X
return potential.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://medium.com/@willwarren89/the-difference-between-app-coins-and-protocol-tokens-7281a428348c#.pzk5vjfxd" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The difference between App Coins and Protocol Tokens</a></u></h3>
By Will Warren<br />
These terms get thrown around a lot, so this article was really
helpful for understanding the difference between coins, app coins,
protocol tokens, dApps, and all of the other token related lingo.<br />
“<em>Each additional building block that is added to our communal
tool set will accelerate innovation, leading to new applications for
Ethereum smart contracts.”</em><br />
<h2>
Other Interesting Articles</h2>
This is a collection of papers and articles related to Bitcoin and
crypto and the various other projects that I’ve found interesting and
helpful, in no particular order.<br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="http://unenumerated.blogspot.com/2005/12/bit-gold.html" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Bit Gold</a></u></h3>
By Nick Szabo<br />
Szabo proposed the idea of “Bit Gold” back in 2005, and it’s
extremely similar to what eventually became Bitcoin, leading some people
to speculate that he is the pseudonymous Satoshi Nakamoto who created
Bitcoin. This paper outlines Nick’s idea of Bit Gold.<br />
<em>“Thus, it would be very nice if there were a protocol whereby
unforgeably costly bits could be created online with minimal dependence
on trusted third parties, and then securely stored, transferred, and
assayed with similar minimal trust. Bit gold.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="http://nakamotoinstitute.org/the-god-protocols/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The God Protocols</a></u></h3>
By Nick Szabo<br />
This article provides some context on why the blockchain system for
decentralized trust is so important, and how it compares to old third
party mediated protocols. It was written long before Bitcoin was created
(1996), and touches on some of the issues that Bitcoin and Ethereum
have been created to solve.<br />
“<em>If mutually confidential auditing ever becomes practical, we
will be able to gain high confidence in the factuality of
counterparties’ claims and reports without revealing identifying and
other detailed information from the transactions underlying those
reports.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://coincenter.org/entry/what-is-the-lightning-network" rel="noopener" target="_blank">What is the Lightning Network and how can it help Bitcoin scale?</a></u></h3>
By Elizabeth Stark<br />
Stark is one of the co-founders of Lightning, and she explains here
in pretty simple language (impressive in any blockchain article) how it
works and why it’s important.<br />
<em>“Imagine if every computer had to store every e-mail, to receive
any. That’s how blockchains work. Lightning Network allows computers to
make blockchain transactions, only storing the data they care
about—their own money.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://medium.com/@korzhikdmitry/the-company-of-the-future-dao-18ac7135349d" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Company of the Future: DAO</a></u></h3>
By Dmitry Korzhik<br />
This article goes over some of the potential and benefits of a DAO.
It’s a good quick read if you’re not familiar with the concept already.<br />
<em>“The future of the organization is distributed, the DAO happened.
Imagine an organization where bosses don’t exist as a definition and
voices of all members are heard despite their position in the company.
Furthermore, employees don’t exist as well but the company gains its
market share and earns the profit.”</em><br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://prestonbyrne.com/2017/09/01/the-bear-case-for-crypto/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The bear case for crypto</a></u></h3>
By Preston Byrne<br />
Preston is a legal tech entrepreneur who analyses the current ICO
market from a legal / tech perspective, pointing out why it’s ripe for
popping and some mechanisms for how that might happen.<br />
“<em>The ICO bubble and its promise of cheap, quick gains is rightly
the focus of attention for most folks at the moment. It is the promise
of the greatest gains in the shortest time with the least effort. That
bubble needs to pop before we can get down to business with the
utility-driven applications of this technology. And pop it will, as
surely as the sun rises in the morning.</em>”<br />
<h3>
<u><a class="external" href="https://www.fool.com/investing/general/2015/12/06/fiat-currency-what-it-is-and-why-its-better-than-a.aspx" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Fiat Currency: What It Is and Why It’s Better Than a Gold Standard</a></u></h3>
By TMFVelvetHammer<br />
A quick overview of Fiat currency (like the dollar) and, as you can
guess, why it’s better than the Gold standard. Also some data on how
gold hasn’t been a great investment historically which I found
surprising.<br />
<em>“Currency is a tool of trade. People tend to hoard gold and
silver when things are uncertain, and that’s harmful when it limits
currency flows on a large scale. Removing the relationship between a
currency and commodity doesn’t create “worthless money.”</em><br />
Thank you to Taylor Pearson for writing “<u><a class="external" href="https://taylorpearson.me/crypto/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">The Top 10 Cryptocurrency Resources for Non-Technical People</a></u>,” Chris Dixon for his “<u><a class="external" href="https://medium.com/@cdixon/crypto-token-roundup-4d57c32a87d7" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Crypto token roundup</a></u>,” and Nick Tomaino’s for his list of “<u><a class="external" href="https://thecontrol.co/some-blockchain-reading-1d98ec6b2f39" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Some Blockchain Reading</a></u>.”<br />
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minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-82799908657624117122017-11-13T13:48:00.003-05:002017-11-13T13:48:46.806-05:00Bitcoin Crashes and Then Surges in Wild Weekend Action<div class="lede-text-only__container">
<div class="lede-text-only__content">
<h1 class="lede-text-only__hed">
<span class="lede-text-only__highlight">Bitcoin Crashes and Then Surges in Wild Weekend Action</span></h1>
<address class="lede-text-only__byline">
By <div class="author">
Justina Lee
</div>
and <div class="author">
Yuji Nakamura
</div>
</address>
<div class="lede-text-only__times">
<time class="article-timestamp" data-status="localized" data-type="updated" datetime="2017-11-13T02:05:22.706Z" itemprop="datePublished">November 12, 2017, 9:05 PM EST</time>
<span class="updated-wrap"><span class="updated-text">Updated on </span>
<time class="article-timestamp" data-status="localized" data-type="updated" datetime="2017-11-13T14:59:19.087Z" itemprop="dateModified">November 13, 2017, 9:59 AM EST</time>
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Buyers return to market after cryptocurrency slid 15% Monday
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Offshoot called bitcoin cash is luring users amid tech debate
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CBA Europe’s Peter Kinsella and Bloomberg’s Ed Robinson examine the issues behind the sudden decline in bitcoin.</div>
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Bitcoin is proving that investing in digital currencies isn’t for the faint of heart.<br />
After
plunging as much as 29 percent from a record high following the
cancellation of a technology upgrade on Nov. 8, the largest
cryptocurrency came roaring back in early trading Monday before
fluctuating between gains and losses.<br />
“Crypto
trading is not for the novice investor,” said John Spallanzani, chief
macro strategist at GFI Securities LLC in New York.<br />
While multiple reasons are being cited for the price
volatility, one of the more viable is that some investors are switching
to alternative coins. Bitcoin cash, an offshoot of bitcoin that includes
many of the technical upgrades being debated by developers, has more
than doubled in the same period. <br />
<figure class="figure-expandable" data-align="center" data-id="320362138" data-image-size="full" data-image-type="chart" data-type="image" style="max-width: 1200px;"><div class="image">
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</div>
</figure>“We
have seen similar steep falls in bitcoin throughout the year --
specifically in June and September -- but every time a considerable
decline occurs, new investors jump in to experience the new asset
class,” Hussein Sayed, chief market strategist at ForexTime Ltd., a
currency broker that uses the brand FXTM, wrote in a note Monday.<br />
While
markets had been focusing on bitcoin’s more than 500 percent surge this
year, bitcoin cash was gaining popularity because of its larger block
size. That’s a characteristic that makes transactions cheaper and faster
than the original.<br />
When a faction of the cryptocurrency community canceled plans
to increase bitcoin’s block size on Wednesday -- a move that would have
created another offshoot -- some supporters of bigger blocks rallied
around bitcoin cash.<br />
The resulting volatility has been extreme
even by bitcoin’s wild standards and comes amid growing interest in
cryptocurrencies among <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-13/eu-markets-cop-warns-investors-of-initial-coin-offering-risks" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="EU Markets Cop Warns Investors of Initial Coin Offering Risks">regulators</a>, banks and fund managers. While skeptics have called its rapid advance a bubble, the asset has become too big for many on <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-10-31/bitcoin-growing-up-as-futures-open-floodgates-to-wall-street" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Bitcoin Matures as Futures Open Wall Street Floodgates (Correct)">Wall Street</a> to ignore. Even after shrinking as much as $38 billion since Nov. 8, bitcoin boasts a market value of about $110 billion.<br />
Supporters of bitcoin’s technology upgrade “are now switching
support to bitcoin cash,” said Mike Kayamori, head of Tokyo-based
Quoine, the world’s second most-active bitcoin <a href="https://www.coinhills.com/market/exchange/rank-for/btc/" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" title="Market data">exchange</a>
over the past day. “There’s a panic about what’s happening. People
shouldn’t panic. Just hold on to both coins until we see how it plays
out.”<br />
<div data-tout-type="story">
<a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-09-21/why-bitcoin-could-split-into-three-in-november-quicktake-q-a" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Click for full story">Read more: A QuickTake on the bitcoin community’s infighting</a></div>
The
cancellation of last week’s bitcoin upgrade has left users to choose
between the two versions of the cryptocurrency. On one side is the
original bitcoin, powered by so-called SegWit technology, which aims to
improve its performance by moving unessential data off of its underlying
blockchain. On the other side is bitcoin cash, which allows its
blockchain to handle eight times as much data as the original.<br />
<aside class="inline-newsletter" data-state="ready"></aside>Proponents
of bitcoin cash believe their approach is simpler and closer to the
original goal of bitcoin, which was described primarily as a payment
system in its <a href="https://bitcoin.org/bitcoin.pdf" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" rel="nofollow noopener" target="_blank" title="Click to view webpage.">white paper</a>.
Supporters of the original bitcoin say that vision is too limited, and
that by improving the blockchain with SegWit technology, bitcoin can
become a new digital-asset class that not only supports payments but
countless other functions.<br />
<h3>
Upgrade Called Off</h3>
While
bitcoin cash has been around for months, it saw limited support as the
community awaited last week’s technology upgrade for the original
bitcoin, which promised similar features. Now that the upgrade has been
called off, businesses that use the cryptocurrency primarily as a
payment method are expected to increase adoption of bitcoin cash.<br />
While
bitcoin cash surged over the weekend, it hasn’t been a straight line
up. The cryptocurrency was trading at $1,300 at 9:47 a.m. in New York,
down from a high of about $2,478 on Sunday, Coinmarketcap.com prices
show.<br />
Bitcoin has been similarly volatile; it initially rose after news that it would avoid another split, but the gains were <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-09/bitcoin-s-spike-toward-8-000-fades-as-free-money-trades-unwind" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Bitcoin’s Push to $8,000 Fades as Free-Money Trades Unwind (1)">short-lived</a>. Its plunge earlier Monday to as low as $5,605 compares with an intraday record $7,882 on Nov. 8.<br />
Volume
across bitcoin exchanges jumped to 436,021 bitcoins on Sunday, the
highest since September, Bitcoinity.org data show. BitMEX, an exchange
for cryptocurrency derivatives that allows <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2017-11-13/bitcoin-shorts-tumble-in-sign-selling-pressure-could-be-easing" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Bitcoin Shorts Retreat in Sign Selling Pressure Could Be Easing">shorting</a>, saw record activity on Sunday, Chief Executive Officer Arthur Hayes said.<br />
<em>— With assistance by Natasha Doff</em>minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-44898348507405958562017-04-20T16:19:00.002-04:002017-04-20T16:19:48.196-04:00Massachusetts Investment Advisor Registration Requirements<div class="row-fluid-wrapper row-depth-1 row-number-4 ">
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http://www.riainabox.com/massachusetts-investment-advisor-registration-requirements </h1>
<h1 style="text-align: center;">
Massachusetts Investment Advisor Registration Requirements</h1>
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State of Massachusetts Investment Advisor Registration Facts & Figures</h3>
While there are some exceptions, in general, investment advisors with
less than $100 million in assets under management (AUM) that are
located in Massachusetts, have more than 5 clients in Massachusetts, or
actively solicit in Massachusetts must register with the State
of Massachusetts as a Registered Investment Advisor (RIA).<br />
<table align="center" border="1" cellpadding="2" cellspacing="5">
<tbody>
<tr valign="middle">
<td style="width: 290px;" valign="middle" width="295"> </td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="168"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">2015 Total</span></strong></td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="175"><strong><span style="text-decoration: underline;">2015 State Rank</span></strong></td>
</tr>
<tr valign="middle">
<td style="width: 290px;" valign="middle" width="295">Number of RIAs</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="168">1,353</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="175">4</td>
</tr>
<tr valign="middle">
<td style="width: 290px;" valign="middle" width="295">Population</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="168">6,398,743</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="175">13</td>
</tr>
<tr valign="middle">
<td style="width: 290px;" valign="middle" width="295">RIA Population Density (residents per RIA)</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="168">4,729</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="175">2</td>
</tr>
<tr>
<td style="width: 290px;" valign="middle" width="295">RIA Geographic Density (sq. land miles per RIA)</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="168">6</td>
<td style="text-align: center;" valign="middle" width="175">2</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<span style="font-size: xx-small;"><em><br /> <span style="font-size: 10px;">Note: RIA firm data courtesy of <a href="http://www.meridian-iq.com/" target="_blank">Meridian-IQ</a>
and includes both SEC and state-registered investment advisory firms
that are based in Massachusetts as of May 2015. Population and
geographic data is courtesy of the <a href="http://quickfacts.census.gov/qfd/#" target="_blank">United States Census Bureau</a> as of the 2010 Census.</span></em></span><br />
<h3 style="text-align: center;">
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<h3 style="text-align: center;">
Massachusetts Investment Advisor Registration Process</h3>
<strong>Investment Advisor Registration Financial Statement Requirements:</strong><br />
<ul>
<li>RIAs with discretion must submit a security bond.</li>
</ul>
<strong>Investment Advisor Representative (IAR) Registration Requirements:</strong><br />
<ul>
<li>Licensing Requirements: Series 65, Series 66 and Series 7 combined, or CFP, CFA, CIC, ChFC, PFS.</li>
<li>Each investment advisor representative must submit the form U-4 and ADV Part 2B.</li>
</ul>
<strong>General Firm Registration Requirements</strong><br />
<ul>
<li><em>Payment of all State of Massachusetts registration filing fees</em></li>
</ul>
<ul>
<li><em>FINRA Entitlement paperwork</em>
<ul>
<li>In order to file a registered investment adviser application with
the state of Massachusetts, one must first apply to the Financial
Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) for an account (Entitlement) to
their WebCRD/IARD on-line system (the web application for the
registration of RIA’s and their representatives). While RIA’s are in no
way regulated or supervised by FINRA, the state of Massachusetts uses
FINRA’s WebCRD/IARD system to process applications.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Form ADV 1 (online)</em>
<ul>
<li>The Form ADV Part 1 is the on-line component to your Firm’s
registration documentation. Note: The Form ADV Part 1 primarily
discloses information about the FIRM. Individual information is
primarily disclosed in the Form U4 as detailed below. The Form ADV Part 1
is also the vehicle to upload your Firm’s Form ADV Part 2A (Firm
Brochure) and Form ADV Part 2B’s (Brochure Supplements).</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Form ADV 2A (paper and online)</em>
<ul>
<li>The Form ADV Part 2A acts as your Firm’s Brochure. It is a narrative
description of your services, fees, disciplinary disclosures, as well
as several other Firm details. The Form ADV Part 2A must be provided to
all Clients and Prospective Clients. The state of Massachusetts requires
that the ADV Form 2A be written in “plain English” and easily
understood by your clients.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Form ADV 2B (paper and online)</em>
<ul>
<li>The Form ADV 2B is the paper brochure that Investment Adviser
Representatives must (in most cases) provide to clients. This form
contains employment, educational, conflict of interest, and disciplinary
information. Generally, Executive Officers, any person generating
investment advice provided to clients, and any representative advising
clients must have a Form ADV Part 2B.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Client Advisory Contract</em>
<ul>
<li>Client Advisory Contract including an investment policy statement
that meets the appropriate regulatory authority standards for client
advisory contracts in Massachusetts state.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Policies and Procedures Manual</em>
<ul>
<li>The firm’s Policies and Procedures manual is the guiding document
that your firm will use to maintain and enforce your firm’s internal
policies on all aspects of your business from the handling of client
complaints to the training of new Investment Adviser Representatives. It
also houses your firm’s Business Continuity Plan, Information Security
Policy, Anti-money Laundering Policy, and Anti-insider Trading Policy.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Privacy Policy Statement</em>
<ul>
<li>The Firm’s Privacy Policy Statement must be provided to all clients
at the beginning of the client relationship and annually thereafter. It
must disclose how the firm stores, and handles and disseminates client
information. Privacy Policy Statements are built to your firm’s
specifications and designed to meet State of Massachusetts compliance
requirements.</li>
</ul>
</li>
<li><em>Code of Ethics</em>
<ul>
<li>Code of Ethics filing ensuring that you meet the standards of the State of Massachusetts.</li>
</ul>
</li>
</ul>
</span>minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-34632112816745666872017-01-24T13:33:00.003-05:002017-01-24T13:33:31.305-05:00Money-Fund Overhaul Gives Federal Home Loan Banks New Prominence <!--[if !mso]>
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<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="table of authorities"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="macro"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="toa heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Bullet 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Number 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="10" QFormat="true" Name="Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Closing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Default Paragraph Font"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="List Continue 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Message Header"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="11" QFormat="true" Name="Subtitle"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Salutation"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Date"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text First Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Note Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Body Text Indent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Block Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Hyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="FollowedHyperlink"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="22" QFormat="true" Name="Strong"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="20" QFormat="true" Name="Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Document Map"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Plain Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="E-mail Signature"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Top of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Bottom of Form"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal (Web)"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Acronym"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Address"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Cite"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Code"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Definition"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Keyboard"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Preformatted"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Sample"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Typewriter"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="HTML Variable"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Normal Table"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="annotation subject"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="No List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Outline List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Simple 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Classic 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Colorful 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Columns 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Grid 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 7"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table List 8"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table 3D effects 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Contemporary"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Elegant"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Professional"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Subtle 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Web 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Balloon Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" Name="Table Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" UnhideWhenUsed="true"
Name="Table Theme"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Placeholder Text"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="1" QFormat="true" Name="No Spacing"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" SemiHidden="true" Name="Revision"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="34" QFormat="true"
Name="List Paragraph"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="29" QFormat="true" Name="Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="30" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Quote"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="60" Name="Light Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="61" Name="Light List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="62" Name="Light Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="63" Name="Medium Shading 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="64" Name="Medium Shading 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="65" Name="Medium List 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="66" Name="Medium List 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="67" Name="Medium Grid 1 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="68" Name="Medium Grid 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="69" Name="Medium Grid 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="70" Name="Dark List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="71" Name="Colorful Shading Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="72" Name="Colorful List Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="73" Name="Colorful Grid Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="19" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="21" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Emphasis"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="31" QFormat="true"
Name="Subtle Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="32" QFormat="true"
Name="Intense Reference"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="33" QFormat="true" Name="Book Title"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="37" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" Name="Bibliography"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="39" SemiHidden="true"
UnhideWhenUsed="true" QFormat="true" Name="TOC Heading"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="41" Name="Plain Table 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="42" Name="Plain Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="43" Name="Plain Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="44" Name="Plain Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="45" Name="Plain Table 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="40" Name="Grid Table Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="Grid Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51" Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52" Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 1"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 3"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 4"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 5"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46"
Name="Grid Table 1 Light Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="Grid Table 2 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="Grid Table 3 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="49" Name="Grid Table 4 Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="50" Name="Grid Table 5 Dark Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="51"
Name="Grid Table 6 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="52"
Name="Grid Table 7 Colorful Accent 6"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="46" Name="List Table 1 Light"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="47" Name="List Table 2"/>
<w:LsdException Locked="false" Priority="48" Name="List Table 3"/>
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<br />
<h1>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Money-Fund Overhaul
Gives Federal Home Loan Banks New Prominence </span></h1>
<h2>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">A rise in debt
issuance by the FHLBs lends fresh support to a U.S. mortgage market in flux</span></h2>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
By <span class="name">Katy Burne</span> </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
The Wall Street Journal</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Jan. 23, 2017 7:30 a.m. ET </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="http://www.wsj.com/articles/money-fund-overhaul-gives-federal-home-loan-banks-new-prominence-1485174626#livefyre-toggle-SB10782002109759823356104582569561846897728">0
<span class="comments-count-word">COMMENTS</span> </a></div>
The Federal Home Loan Banks are emerging as one of the unexpected
beneficiaries of last year’s money-market fund overhaul, lending fresh support
to a U.S. mortgage market in flux as interest rates creep higher.<br />
Money funds that invest in government debt are fueling a rise in debt
issuance by the FHLBs, independently chartered financial institutions created
by Congress 80 years ago to bolster U.S. housing finance. The increase is a
boon to FHLB member banks like <a href="http://quotes.wsj.com/JPM">J.P. Morgan
Chase</a> & Co. and <a href="http://quotes.wsj.com/WFC">Wells Fargo</a>
& Co., which borrow from the FHLBs for a range of needs including to fund
mortgage lending, and is the latest ripple from a series of regulatory changes
at the heart of financial markets.<br />
The home loan banks’ outstanding debt rose nearly 10% from a year earlier in
2016, finishing the year at $989.3 billion, its highest level since 2009. About
30% of their debt is now floating-rate debt, the most since at least 2002, and a
nod to growing money-market fund appetite for short-term government debt.<br />
Each of the 11 regional home loan banks lends to local members such as banks
and other financial institutions, secured by the mortgage loans or bonds posted
by the borrowers. Because the FHLBs were created by Congress, money funds often
consider their debt to be the next best thing to government debt.<br />
The lending surge isn’t the first turn in the spotlight for the FHLBs, which
are headquartered in cities as diverse as Dallas, New York, Pittsburgh and
Topeka, Kan. In the 2008 crisis, the Federal Reserve called FHLBs the “lender
of next-to-last resort” after the Fed’s discount window, citing the home loan
banks’ role in helping lenders survive the financial meltdown.<br />
<h4>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Home Grown</span></h4>
<div class="dek">
Federal Home Loan Banks have increased their outstanding
borrowings, and the component that is floating-rate debt, to help fund new
loans to banks.</div>
<h5>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Total debt
outstanding</span></h5>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<img alt="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OG-AK004_201701_G_20170119185827.png" border="0" height="535" src="file:///C:/Users/yi/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image002.jpg" style="height: 5.575in; width: 12.041in;" width="1156" /></div>
<h5>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Top Borrowers from
FHLBs* </span></h5>
<h5>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
</span></h5>
<h5>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">Loans outstanding
to member banks†</span></h5>
<h5>
<span style="mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">FHLB debt eligible
to be bought by U.S. money funds‡</span></h5>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<img alt="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OG-AK001_201701_CV_20170119185730.png" border="0" height="535" src="file:///C:/Users/yi/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image004.jpg" style="height: 5.575in; width: 3.625in;" width="348" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<img alt="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OG-AK002_201701_CV_20170119185743.png" border="0" height="535" src="file:///C:/Users/yi/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image006.jpg" style="height: 5.575in; width: 3.625in;" width="348" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<img alt="http://si.wsj.net/public/resources/images/OG-AK003_201701_CV_20170119185810.png" border="0" height="535" src="file:///C:/Users/yi/AppData/Local/Temp/msohtmlclip1/01/clip_image008.jpg" style="height: 5.575in; width: 3.625in;" width="348" /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
*through Sept. 30, 2016 †as of year end </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt; mso-fareast-font-family: "Times New Roman";">
<hr align="left" size="1" width="33%" />
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times New Roman",serif; font-size: 12.0pt;">‡Bonds
with 397 or fewer days to maturity </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sources: FHLB Office of Finance; Inside Mortgage Finance
(top banks) THE WALL STREET JOURNAL.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Wall Street Journal</div>
It is the latest sign of how far-reaching the 2016 money-market overhaul has
been. That effort, overseen by the Securities and Exchange Commission, aimed to
prevent a repeat of the 2008 run on a large money-market fund that lost money
on debt holdings issued by Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc.<br />
The new regulations required so-called prime money-market funds holding
mostly corporate securities to report daily share prices that fluctuate with
changes in their portfolios, rather than fixed share values.<br />
Over the past year, this prompted many investors to shift about $1 trillion
from prime funds into government-debt funds that aren’t subject to the same
restrictions. Funds flowed out of prime funds that once were the leading
purchasers of bank commercial paper and certificates of deposit and into
government-only funds.<br />
Now the FHLBs, helped by the appetite from government funds, are lending
money to banks that have seen their access to prime-fund cash curtailed.<br />
“FHLBs have always been a source of attractive financing,” said Mark Cabana,
interest-rate strategist at Bank of America Merrill Lynch. With the money fund
overhaul having limited a source of short-term funding, “having the FHLBs step
up is increasingly convenient.”<br />
The FHLBs are the second-largest issuer of debt held by U.S.-taxable
money-market funds, after the Treasury, according to iMoneyNet.<br />
Government money funds like to buy the FHLB’s floating-rate securities
because while they have maturities ranging from six to 18 months, their
interest rates reset monthly or quarterly with the London interbank offered
rate benchmark, and are attractive to investors anticipating a rising-rate
environment.<br />
Last year, the FHLBs’ regulator—the Federal Housing Finance Agency that also
regulates government-backed mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac—warned
the FHLBs were exposing themselves to the risk that they could be unable to
refund maturing short-term debt called “discount notes” if the market dried up.<br />
“We want them to always take advantage of opportunistic times,” said Andre
Galeano, associate director of examinations in the division of FHLB regulation
at the FHFA. “We don’t want them to have to issue when market conditions are
not apt.”<br />
David Messerly, investor relations director at the FHLB Office of Finance,
said the FHLBs were in dialogue with their regulator about those concerns but
declined to specify further. Since the warning, discount notes have fallen to
41.5% of outstanding FHLB debt, down from a peak of 54% in December 2015.<br />
The increased lending by FHLBs also is timely because demand for their
secured loans is growing, on account of new federal rules requiring banks to
have predetermined levels of cash on hand.<br />
With banks now subject to new liquidity rules and constrained from too much
short-term borrowing, the FHLBs have stepped in and are able to provide
low-cost loans to big U.S. banks.<br />
The largest borrower from FHLBs is J.P. Morgan, which had $79.5 billion in
loans outstanding in the third quarter, up 8% from the year before, according
to Guy Cecala, chief executive of lending-trade publication Inside Mortgage
Finance. A spokesman for J.P. Morgan declined to comment.<br />
Wells Fargo is the second-largest borrower. Its borrowings hit $68.7 billion
as of the third quarter, up 158% from the year earlier period. A Wells Fargo
spokesman said the terms of FHLB loans make them attractive.<br />
“Demand for our debt is strong, and that’s a good thing. It keeps liquidity
flowing to member banks so they can keep lending,” Mr. Messerly said.<br />
<strong>Write to </strong>Katy Burne at <a href="mailto:katy.burne@wsj.com" target="_blank">katy.burne@wsj.com</a> <br />
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-45557911290646820362017-01-05T15:00:00.000-05:002017-01-05T15:00:54.513-05:00Manage Smile Risk with the SABR Model of Stochastic Volatility<div class="field field-name-field-resource-subtitle field-type-text field-label-hidden">
<div class="field-items">
<div class="field-item even">
Manage Smile Risk with the SABR Model of Stochastic Volatility</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="field field-name-body field-type-text-with-summary field-label-hidden">
<div class="field-items">
<div class="field-item even">
<div class="tex2jax">
<a href="http://www.fincad.com/node/34/">FINCAD Analytics Suite</a> 2009 for Excel and FINCAD Analytics Suite 2009 for Developers expand FINCAD's coverage to price and hedge <a href="http://www.fincad.com/node/38/">interest rate derivatives</a> consistent with the market smile dynamics by adding pricing functions using <strong>the SABR model</strong> of stochastic volatility.<br />
To evaluate the lastest version of FINCAD Analytics Suite for free, <a href="http://www.fincad.com/node/55/">contact a FINCAD Representative</a><br />
<h2>
Overview</h2>
<b>The seemingly simple task of pricing and hedging a <a href="http://www.fincad.com/node/332/">swaption</a>
can become challenging if a volatility smile/skew is present in the
market data - defined as a non-constant Black volatility as a function
of the exercise rate of the swaption. This is due to the fact that one
needs a model consistent with the entire volatility surface.</b><br />
<br />
<b>
</b>One of the first successful models to address this need is Dupire's local volatility model [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref3">3</a>] which can be self-consistently calibrated to the entire volatility surface. However, as discussed in [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref4">4</a>],
the dynamic behavior predicted by Dupire's local volatility model is
opposite to the behavior empirically observed in interest rate markets.
Specifically, Dupire's local volatility model predicts that when the
underlying forward rate decreases, the smile shifts to higher prices and
when the underlying forward rate increases, that the smile shifts to
lower prices.<br />
<br />
<span style="color: red;"><strong>The Stochastic Alpha Beta Rho (SABR) model</strong> is a model of stochastic volatility introduced by Hagan et. al. [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref4">4</a>] as an attempt to model the volatility surface and to capture the empirically observed dynamic behavior of the smile.</span><br />
<br />
Besides pricing and hedging the derivatives, another appealing
application is to construct the "volatility cube" (vol cube)[1], <span style="color: red;">which
is a representation of swaption market data characterized by three
parameters: option maturity, swap tenor and exercise rate (or strike).
Some parts of the vol cube can be populated by data easily obtained from
the market, such as at-the-money (ATM) swaption vols and the Black
volatilities for caplets (floorlets) (which can be thought of as
one-period swaptions). The rest of the vol cube can be determined by
interpolation with the help of the SABR model [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref1">1</a>].</span><br />
<span style="color: red;">
</span>The SABR model has gained widespread use due to its tractable
pricing, ability to capture both the correct shape of the smile, as well
as the correct dynamics of the volatility smile. It also gives
practitioners the flexibility to use their intuition regarding market
dynamics. For an in depth introduction to the SABR model, consult [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref4">4</a>], [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref5">5</a>].<br />
<br />
FINCAD Analytics Suite 2009 provides functions to value swaptions and
interest rate caplets/floorlets along with the functionality to
calibrate the SABR model with swaption or caplet/floorlet volatilities.<br />
<h2>
Pricing Interest Rate Derivatives</h2>
Caplets and swaptions are essentially options on the underlying
interest rate and forward swap rate, respectively. The SABR model
assumes that the underlying rate <em>f</em> follows the stochastic differential equations<br />
<img alt="Stochastic differental equations" src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-1.gif" style="height: 245px; width: 546px;" /><br />
Hagan et. al derived the celebrated asymptotic formula for the effective Black volatility in the SABR model [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref4">4</a>],<br />
<img src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-2.gif" style="height: 95px; width: 547px;" /><br />
<img src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-3.gif" style="height: 168px; width: 541px;" /><br />
The beauty of the SABR model is that the prices of caplets or
swaptions are given by the Black formula with a modified volatility
given in Equation (3) as long as the model parameters are in hand.
FINCAD Analytics Suite 2009 provides functions to value
caplets/floorlets and swaptions in the SABR model:<br />
aaCaplet_SABR calculates the price and risk statistics of a caplet/floorlet.<br />aaSwaption_SABR calculates the fair strike and risk statistics of a swaption.<br />aaSwaption_SABR_fs calculates the fair strike and risk statistics of a swaption and allows free-style user inputs.<br />
<h2>
Calibration</h2>
With a suitable set of SABR parameters in hand, pricing simply
reduces to a calculation of the effective Black volatility, via Equation
(3), to use in the Black formula. The bulk of the effort, therefore,
comes down to choosing the "best" set of SABR parameters. The SABR
parameters in Equation (1) can be determined by calibration to
caplet/floorlet or swaption market data. The procedure will be slightly
different for swaption calibration since ATM vol is more important than
non-ATM vols.<br />
It is empirically seen that the two parameters ρ and β have similar
effects on the vol smile in that they both control the amount of
skewness. Mathematically, (sometimes referred to as the "skewness"
parameter) is a constant elasticity of variance (CEV) exponent (see
[2]). β = 1 corresponds to a stochastic lognormal model and β = 0
corresponds to a stochastic normal model.<br />
There are two methods used for determining β, both of which stem from
the analytical form of the ATM vols in the SABR model, calculated by
setting the strike rate <em>k</em> in Equation (3) to equal the forward rate <em>f</em><br />
<img alt="Strike Rate K" src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-4.gif" style="height: 47px; width: 546px;" /><br />
The skewness parameter can be determined by performing linear
regression on the log-log plot of historical par swap rates versus ATM
vols [4] given by Equation (4).<br />
Alternatively, β can be chosen by the practitioner by appealing to
their market intuition. This may seem like an ad-hoc method to choose β,
however by investigating Equation (4), specifically the behavior of the
ATM vol as a function of β<br />
<img src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-5.gif" style="height: 35px; width: 542px;" /><br />
This approximate equation describes the so-called "backbone", defined
as the curve followed by the ATM vol as a function of the par swap
rate. As the par swap rate changes, this curve represents how these
changes affect the ATM vol. Notice that in the stochastic lognormal
model, where β = 1 the backbone is flat. Financially this corresponds to
a constant level of overall forward swap rates as the par swap rate
changes. Some practitioners use this model since it represents a common
model used throughout finance and they believe that the flat backbone
"best represents their market" [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref4">4</a>]. Nevertheless, the parameter β is usually chosen exogenously, and not via calibration.<br />
Calibration of SABR parameters to swaption data proceed differently
than the two other instrument classes (options and caplets/floorlets) in
that when calibrating to swaptions, the parameter α is not determined
by calibration, instead it is determined by the Equation (4). Given α<sub>ATM</sub>,
β, ρ and ν, Equation (4) can be inverted to give a cubic equation whose
roots yield the value of α, meaning that the parameter α is chosen so
that the ATM vols seen in the market are reproduced exactly. This is not
done for caplets because caplets ATM data is not a widely quoted number
- it may or may not exist in the marketplace. Swaption market data, on
the other hand, is typically only quoted as ATM vols, so this must be
taken into account during calibration.<br />
FINCAD Analytics Suite 2009 provides functions to calibrate the SABR model to caplets/floorlets or swaptions data:<br />
aaCalibrateCaplets_SABR calibrates the SABR model to caplet/floorlets.<br />
aaCalibrateSwaptions_SABR calibrates the SABR model to swaptions.<br />
<h2>
Volatility Cube</h2>
As mentioned before, vol cube is a representation of swaption market
data characterized by three parameters: option maturity, swap tenor and
exercise rate (or strike). Market data can be used to directly populate
two of the "faces" of the vol cube as follows.<br />
First, the at-the-money (ATM) swaption vols can populate the ATM
slice (defined by the condition that the exercise rate is the par swap
rate).<br />
Second, rate caps and floors can be used to populate the slice
containing the smallest swap tenor. To achieve this, the caps (floors)
must first be stripped to produce the Black volatility of the
constituent caplets (floorlets) (this step can be achieved by using the
FINCAD function aaVol_Crv2_Rcap_BL). The resulting series of
caplets/floorlets can be thought of as one-period swaptions with a swap
tenor equal to the frequency of the cap/floor.<br />
With one more piece of information, we can construct the entire vol
cube. In order to be able to use the function aaCalibrateSwaptions_SABR,
we need more than just the ATM swaption market quotes. According to [1]
there are two methods to determine non-ATM swaption vols. The method
advocated by FINCAD is to apply the same smile shape as seen in the
caplet data to the swaption vols. Numerically, this means that one
calculates the difference between the furthest out-of-the-money OTM) and
in-the-money (ITM) caplet vols and applies this difference to the
swaption ATM vol to produce the corresponding non-ATM vols. For
instance, suppose the par swap rate is 6%, and we see the following
market caplet vols.<br />
<table class="grey" style="width: 200px;"><tbody>
<tr><td>Strike</td>
<td>Black Vol</td>
</tr>
<tr><td>2%</td>
<td>21.5%</td>
</tr>
<tr><td>4%</td>
<td>16.7%</td>
</tr>
<tr><td>6%</td>
<td>14.4%</td>
</tr>
<tr><td>8%</td>
<td>16.1%</td>
</tr>
<tr><td>10%</td>
<td>15.0%</td>
</tr>
</tbody></table>
The skew can be characterized by two numbers δ<em><sub>2%</sub></em> ≡ α<em><sub>2%</sub></em> - α<sub>ATM</sub> = 7.1% and δ<sub>10%</sub> ≡ α<sub>10%</sub> - α<sub>ATM</sub>
= 0.6%. To produce the swaption data, simply apply these skewness
shifts to the swaption data. A non-ATM swaption vol is approximated as α
= α<em><sub>ATM</sub></em> + δ<em><sub>i</sub></em>. In the above scenario, with a 10Yx10Y swaption with an ATM vol of 11%, the two data points to use in the calibration are α<em><sub>2%</sub></em> = 11% + δ<em><sub>2%</sub></em> = 18.1% and α<em><sub>10%</sub></em> = 11% + δ<sub>10%</sub> = 11.6%. According to [<a href="http://www.fincad.com/resources/resource-library/article/manage-smile-risk-sabr-model-stochastic-volatility#ref1">1</a>]
this procedure is "not just 'parallel shifting' the caplet smile to
longer swap tenors, but we are, on the contrary, calculating the implied
cap smile in the surface instead". The FINCAD function
aaCalibrateSwaptions_SABR will fix α by requiring the calibration to
reproduce the ATM volatility exactly, and the other parameters by the
usual minimization procedure. This method can therefore be used to
interpolate in all the dimensions of the vol cube.<br />
<img alt="Screen shot of the inputs to aaCaplet_SABR for the calculations" src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-6.gif" style="height: 565px; width: 515px;" /><br />
Figure 1: Screen shot of the inputs to aaCaplet_SABR for the calculations<br />
<h2>
Example: Pricing a Caplet</h2>
In this example, we calculate the fair value and all risk statistics
for a caplet using the SABR model. We use the FINCAD function
aaCaplet_SABR for our calculations. Figure 1 shows the inputs for this
function.<br />
Given the inputs in Figure 1, we find the fair value of the caplet is
0:361, which was calculated with the function aaCaplet_SABR. The other
risk statistics are shown in Figure 2.<br />
<img alt="Screen shot of the outputs from aaCaplet_SABR" src="http://www.fincad.com/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/Resources-Wiki/manage-smile-7.gif" style="height: 210px; width: 341px;" /><br />
Figure 2: Screen shot of the outputs from aaCaplet_SABR<br />
<h2>
Summary</h2>
FINCAD Analytics Suite 2009 provides functions to compute prices and
all risk statistics for caplets/floorlets and swaptions using the SABR
model. It also provides a function to calibrate the SABR model to market
caplets/floorlets or swaptions data, which enable users to construct
the volatility cube.<br />
To evaluate the lastest version of FINCAD Analytics Suite for free, <a href="http://www.fincad.com/node/55/">contact a FINCAD Representative</a><br />
<h2>
References</h2>
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" id="ref1" name="ref1"></a>[1] Banking, SEB Merchant (2008), SEB's VolCube, Research Paper.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" id="ref2" name="ref2"></a>[2]Cox, J. (1975), Notes on Option Pricing 1: Constant Elasticity of Variance Diffusions, Working Paper, Stanford University.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" id="ref3" name="ref3"></a>[3]Dupire, B. (1994), <em>Pricing with a Smile, Risk</em>, 7(1): pp. 18-20.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" id="ref4" name="ref4"></a>[4] Hagan, Patrick S., Kumar, D.,
Lesniewski, A. S., and Woodward, D. E. (September 2002), Managing smile
risk, Wilmott, pp. 84-108.<br />
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" id="ref5" name="ref5"></a>[5] Option Pricing with the SABR Model of Stochastic Volatility (2008), Math Reference Document, FINCAD.<br />
</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-28675828605530448532017-01-04T09:06:00.001-05:002017-01-04T09:06:23.785-05:00No One Questioned This Hedge Fund’s Madoff-Like Returns<div class="lede-text-only__container">
<div class="lede-text-only__content">
<h1 class="lede-text-only__hed">
<span class="lede-text-only__highlight">No One Questioned This Hedge Fund’s Madoff-Like Returns</span></h1>
<address class="lede-text-only__byline">
by <div class="author">
Zeke Faux
</div>
</address>
<div class="lede-text-only__times">
<time datetime="2017-01-04T10:00:00.004Z" id="time-0.9176908768713474" itemprop="datePublished">January 4, 2017, 5:00 AM EST
</time>
</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="content-well">
<section class="main-column">
<ul class="abstract">
<li class="abstract__item">
<div class="abstract__item-text">
Red flags abounded while hedge fund claimed 17% annual gains
</div>
</li>
<li class="abstract__item">
<div class="abstract__item-text">
Platinum was embroiled in rogue trades, Florida Ponzi scheme
</div>
</li>
</ul>
<div class="body-copy">
In the years before Mark Nordlicht was arrested for
what’s alleged to be one of the biggest investment frauds since Bernie
Madoff’s, U.S. authorities had plenty of reasons to suspect something
might have been fishy about his hedge fund, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/0705537D:US" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Company Overview">Platinum Partners</a>.<br />
As far back as 2007, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/BMO:CN" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Company Overview">Bank of Montreal</a>
accused Nordlicht of helping a rogue trader, costing it more than $500
million. Three years later, when the Securities and Exchange Commission
was investigating what it called a “scheme to profit from the imminent
deaths of terminally ill patients,” the agency discovered that Platinum
had funded the deals. And in 2011, a Florida lawyer who confessed to
running a $1.2 billion Ponzi scheme testified that Nordlicht, his
biggest funder, lied to help him lure new investors.<br />
<figure class="figure-expandable" data-align="right" data-id="308173739" data-image-size="half" data-image-type="photo" data-type="image"><div class="image">
<img data-native-src="https://assets.bwbx.io/images/users/iqjWHBFdfxIU/iERaFX7.brOU/v0/-1x-1.jpg" src="https://assets.bwbx.io/images/users/iqjWHBFdfxIU/iERaFX7.brOU/v0/360x-1.jpg" /></div>
<figcaption><div class="news-figure-caption-text caption">
Nordlicht exits federal court in Brooklyn on Dec. 19.</div>
<div class="news-figure-credit credit">
Photographer: Michael Nagle/Bloomberg</div>
</figcaption></figure>And
then there were the remarkable profits: 17 percent annually on average
from 2003 through 2015, with no down years. The returns were almost as
smooth as the fake gains that Madoff claimed year after year, as
measured by a popular metric called the Sharpe ratio.<br />
But until Murray Huberfeld, who founded Platinum with
Nordlicht, was caught up in a New York City municipal-corruption probe
in June, no one at the fund had been charged with wrongdoing. Within
weeks of Huberfeld’s arrest, federal agents raided Platinum’s midtown
Manhattan office. On Dec. 19, Nordlicht and six others were arrested in
what the government called a <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-12-19/platinum-fund-s-world-beating-returns-are-undercut-by-indictment" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Platinum Fund’s Outsized Returns ‘Tarnished’ After Charges (3)">$1 billion fraud</a>.
Nordlicht and Huberfeld have pleaded not guilty, and Platinum’s main
fund is being wound down after filing for bankruptcy. Montieth
Illingworth, a spokesman for Platinum, declined to comment.<br />
<h3>
Smooth Returns</h3>
That
Platinum was able to avoid scrutiny for so long illustrates flaws in
the post-Madoff regulatory regime. While the SEC says it now conducts
“risk-based examinations” of funds that have suspiciously smooth
returns, the agency didn’t do a thorough on-site audit of Platinum until
2015, according to a person with knowledge of the matter. Judy Burns,
an SEC spokeswoman, declined to comment.<br />
“The returns alone make
no sense,” said Joelle Scott, who investigates money managers as senior
vice president at Corporate Resolutions Inc. in New York. “This isn’t a
Madoff thing where it was hard to find. This was a glaring, documented
history of bad behavior.”<br />
The fund’s presentations for investors
touted its top-tier auditors and “independent valuations” by an
experienced consultant. But those gatekeepers relied on Platinum to
provide information about its investments. The valuation consultant says
the firm never visited the California oil fields that supposedly
accounted for much of Platinum’s assets. Even a simple check of public
records would have revealed they were barely producing oil.<br />
Nordlicht,
48, a second-generation commodities trader, started Platinum in 2003
with seed money from Huberfeld, a penny-stock trader from Brooklyn whose
family owned a chain of kosher fast-food restaurants. Nordlicht, who
has the rumpled look of a professor, was the face of the fund.
Huberfeld, 56, who had been sanctioned three times for alleged
securities-law violations, stayed in the background.<br />
Little known on Wall Street, Nordlicht and Huberfeld
cultivated connections in New York’s Orthodox Jewish community. Among
the investors they recruited were the Gindi family, owners of the
Century 21 department-store chain, and real estate moguls Ruby Schron
and Abraham Fruchthandler. The Gindis, Schron and Fruchthandler declined
to comment.<br />
“You win some, you lose some,” said another investor,
Gordon Diamond, a meat magnate who served on the board of a Holocaust
charity with Huberfeld. “I guess I should have done more due diligence.”<br />
<h3>
Platinum Gains</h3>
Platinum’s
first close call came in 2007, when Bank of Montreal discovered that a
natural gas trader had been covering up huge bets, many of them with the
hedge fund. The bank was forced to liquidate the trades, resulting in
big gains for Platinum, among others, according to Vince Lanci, who
handled some of the bets as an independent trader and managed money for
the fund.<br />
The problem was that Platinum’s Nordlicht was also chairman of <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/quote/OPBL:US" itemprop="StoryLink" itemscope="itemscope" target="_blank" title="Company Overview">Optionable Inc.</a>,
a brokerage that, according to prosecutors, provided price quotes to
the rogue trader. Bank of Montreal sued Nordlicht, saying he helped
devise the trades. Nordlicht denied knowing anything about the fraud,
and the case was settled out of court.<br />
The FBI investigated,
arrested the rogue trader and charged the chief executive officer of
Optionable with aiding the scheme. Both men pleaded guilty. Nordlicht
wasn’t accused of wrongdoing by the government. When the Optionable CEO
was released from prison in 2014, he went to work for a company
controlled by Platinum.<br />
The trades with Bank of Montreal helped
Platinum record a 53 percent gain in 2007. That attracted investors, and
its main fund’s assets more than doubled to $567 million by the end of
the year.<br />
<h3>
Ostrich Boots</h3>
Nordlicht needed to put that money
to work. That’s when he found Scott Rothstein, a Florida lawyer who was
promising huge returns to investors who would advance him funds against
future payments from legal settlements. Rothstein’s wild spending had
turned him into a Gatsby-like figure on the Fort Lauderdale charity
circuit. Short and stocky, he wore pinstriped suits, loud hand-painted
ties and orange ostrich boots.<br />
Platinum and related funds advanced
him more than $100 million through a feeder fund at an annual interest
rate of 50 percent. Rothstein would later say that was so high his
investors should have known something was wrong. In 2009, he missed a
payment. Nordlicht flew to Florida for a meeting, which Rothstein
described in a deposition two years later, after he pleaded guilty to
the fraud.<br />
The two men sat facing each other on a couch in his
office. Rothstein said in his deposition that he wasn’t sure if
Nordlicht knew that the lawsuits and settlements didn’t really exist.
“If we go down, you go down,” Rothstein recalled saying. “We’re in this
together.”<br />
Rothstein said Nordlicht told him his father had been
investigated for fraud and that he didn’t want to relive the experience.
He talked about the situation with Bank of Montreal.<br />
“He was
trying to explain to me without using the words that he was a player,
that he got it,” Rothstein said. “He said these things only blow up when
the parties start fighting.”<br />
<h3>
Never Charged</h3>
Rothstein said
in his deposition that Nordlicht agreed to lie by giving positive
references to potential investors. Over the next six months, Rothstein
said, Platinum and related funds stopped advancing him money and
received all but about $20 million back as he raised cash from others.<br />
Nordlicht
was never charged in connection with the Ponzi scheme and has denied
helping Rothstein, who’s now in the witness protection program because
he also informed on organized crime. Nordlicht wrote to investors that
Platinum, like others, was tricked by Rothstein and that the fund
recovered its losses by suing a bank for its role in the scheme.<br />
With
potential losses from Rothstein’s fraud averted, Platinum’s main fund
posted gains of 21 percent in 2009 and 19 percent in 2010, according to
investor presentations.<br />
That year the fund popped up on the radar
of the SEC, which was investigating a scheme involving a Los Angeles
rabbi who, the agency later alleged, tricked terminally ill hospice
patients into providing personal information so annuities could be
purchased in their names.<br />
The annuities were funded by Platinum,
which had put up more than $56 million, according to investigation
records. It spent four years building its case. But when its enforcement
actions were announced in 2014, the SEC only fined the intermediaries
who ran the scheme and a shell company set up by Platinum to hold its
money. Nordlicht and the fund itself weren’t named or accused of
wrongdoing.<br />
<h3>
Oil Flop</h3>
By then, Platinum was inflating its
returns by reporting false valuations for some assets, according to
prosecutors in Brooklyn who brought charges last month. One of the
biggest was the California oil fields. The firm’s year-end financials
for 2014 valued them at about $140 million. In reality, the project was a
flop that barely produced any oil, people familiar with the matter said
in August.<br />
CohnReznick LLP, the New York accounting firm that
audited Platinum’s financial statements, declined to comment. The
valuation agent, Sterling Valuation Group, said it was lied to by the
fund and didn’t check the information it was provided. Sterling’s
reports noted that the valuations depended on what the fund told it,
according to Eric Rose, a spokesman for the New York-based firm.<br />
“Obviously,
a more expensive valuation would involve such activities as visiting
the investment location or interviewing personnel,” said Rose, who added
that the valuation firm isn’t under investigation.<br />
Because
Platinum couldn’t sell the oil fields, the fund started to depend on
money from new investors to pay off those who wanted their money back,
prosecutors said. In December 2013, an intermediary introduced Huberfeld
to Norman Seabrook, who controlled a pension fund as president of the
New York City correction officers’ union, according to prosecutors.<br />
Huberfeld
agreed to pay Seabrook a kickback if he invested his union’s pension
funds with Platinum, the U.S. said. After the union put in $20 million,
the intermediary, who’s cooperating with the corruption probe, allegedly
gave Seabrook $60,000 stuffed in a Ferragamo bag. Seabrook and
Huberfeld pleaded not guilty.<br />
<h3>
‘SEC Room’</h3>
That money tided
Platinum over for only a short time. “It can’t go on like this or
practically we will need to wind down,” Nordlicht wrote in a June 2014
e-mail cited by the SEC.<br />
The next year, SEC lawyers conducted an
examination of Platinum. They spent so much time at its offices that
Nordlicht started calling a conference room “the SEC room,” the person
with knowledge of the matter said. When the lawyers left by the end of
the year without bringing any charges, Nordlicht told investors he’d
been given a clean bill of health, the person said.<br />
That wasn’t
exactly true. The SEC sued Platinum last month at the same time
prosecutors filed their case and credited its examiners with uncovering
suspicious activity.<br />
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</aside>Nordlicht displayed little concern when interviewed for
an October 2015 Bloomberg article. In that story, hedge fund researcher
Nate Anderson said Platinum displayed “red flags you can see from outer
space.” Nordlicht argued that while he exploited loopholes, he always
did it to earn money for the fund’s investors. “We’ll scour the four
corners of the earth for the best risk-adjusted strategy,” he said.The
next month, so many investors asked for their money back that Nordlicht
was forced to admit that some of the fund’s assets couldn’t be sold
right away. By that December, Platinum’s managers were contemplating
fleeing the country, according to prosecutors.<br />
“Assume we are not
coming back to ny,” Huberfeld wrote in an e-mail to Nordlicht cited by
prosecutors. “We can fly straight to Europe from Miami on Tuesday. Take
passport.”minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-90038838324037156842016-12-16T09:21:00.001-05:002016-12-16T09:21:55.606-05:001年后,"美国制造"可能比“中国制造”成本更低!(组图)<h3>
1年后,"美国制造"可能比“中国制造”成本更低!(组图)</h3>
<div id="postmeta">
文章来源: <span itemprop="author">每日经济新闻 </span> 于
<time datetime="2016-12-15T23:44:16" itemprop="datePublished">2016-12-15 23:44:16</time>
<span>- 新闻取自各大新闻媒体,新闻内容并不代表本网立场!</span> </div>
<div id="infometa">
<div>
<span id="countbox" style="display: block;">(被阅读 <span id="countnum">15530</span> 次) </span>
</div>
</div>
15日凌晨3点,美元加息如期而来,而特朗普(Donald
Trump)当天在位于纽约的特朗普大厦也举行了一场圆桌会议。根据此前预期,特朗普上台之后将采取减税+基建+宽松财政的整体策略,很可能带动制造业再度兴起。<br />
<br />
据彭博社报道,在此次会议之前,IBM公司CEO罗睿兰描绘了该公司填补美国技术职位空缺的愿景:在美国新增2.5万个工作职位,并将在未来四年投资10亿美元。<br />
<br />
罗睿兰在《今日美国》(USA
Today)发表的一篇评论文章中曾表示,很多技术职位并不需要太高的学历,她鼓励政府在职业教育和职业培训方面进行大力投资。这一举动也被外界解读为迎合特朗普制造业回归政策的一项积极举措。<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/upload/album/50/41/8f/dea1db1f4412ngKnOlwB.png" /><br />
<br />
▲图片来源:东方IC</div>
<br />
在此背景下,一个不可忽视的真相是,中美制造成本差距正在缩小。<br />
<br />
两个月前(10月7日),来自中国福建的亿万富豪——福耀玻璃董事长曹德旺在美国莫瑞恩投资6亿美元建设的汽车玻璃工厂正式竣工投产,而根据福耀玻璃昨日(15日)向每日经济新闻(微信号:nbdnews)提供的数据显示,当地政府至少向其补贴了3000多万美元。<br />
<br />
一面是中国制造成本的不断上升,一面是美国政府力推的制造业回归。有机构预测,2018年,美国制造成本将比中国制造便宜2%~3%。<br />
<br />
“我购买厂房基本上没花钱”<br />
<br />
“不久前的一个早上,当私人飞机降落在俄亥俄州后不久,曹德旺,这位中国亿万富翁就动身驱车沿75号州际公路前往他所豪赌的工厂。在这间工厂上,他赌上了自己的遗产,以及美国夕阳工业区(原文称之为“铁锈地带”)的未来。”<br />
<br />
这是10月27日,《华盛顿邮报》头版对曹德旺的一篇报道的开头。<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201612/16/83f59c5b68b8dabea8f0c40032ea2c2b.jpg" /><br />
<br />
▲图片来源:华盛顿邮报</div>
<br />
在2016年福布斯全球亿万富豪排行榜上,曹德旺以17.4亿美元的身家位列第1198名。<br />
<br />
根据福耀玻璃向每日经济新闻(微信号:nbdnews)提供的资料显示,福耀玻璃早在1995年就进军美国市场,美国作为全球最重要的汽车消费市场和生产国,一直在福耀的发展战略中占据重要地位。福耀在美国市场的年销售额近4亿美元,是福特、通用、克莱斯勒、卡特彼勒等美国品牌的供应商。<br />
<br />
10月7日投产的福耀玻璃莫瑞恩工厂原址曾是通用汽车的工厂,2008年金融危机后,通用关闭了这座工厂,此后一直闲置,直到2014年3月被福耀买下。<br />
<br />
目前,这座工厂是世界上制造汽车玻璃最大的单体工厂,面积18万平方米,整个厂区占地面积675亩里不仅采用了先进的设备,自动化程度高于国内现有工厂水平,主要生产汽车前挡玻璃、后挡玻璃、门窗玻璃以及天窗等汽车配套玻璃,具备450万套配套产品和400万片配件产品的生产能力,雇佣当地工人2000多名。曾有人预计,全部投产后,美国每四辆汽车就有一辆配有福耀生产的玻璃。<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201612/16/ecdf126cd18cbc56bfcaeab22e53e8c9.png" /><br />
<br />
▲图片来源:东方IC<br />
</div>
福耀玻璃购买该工厂时,奥巴马政府已提出“让制造业回归美国”的政策。为了吸引中国制造业投资,美国从各级政府到民间机构都积极采取措施,营造适合制造业发展的投资环境和社会氛围,让中国制造业企业安心落户。<br />
<br />
那么,曹德旺在美国的新工厂究竟拿到了美国政府的多少补贴呢?<br />
<br />
曹德旺曾亲口表示:“我买这个厂房花了1500万美元,改造用了1500万美元,当地政府通过各种渠道补贴我3000多万美元,所以我购买厂房基本上没花钱。”<br />
<br />
此外,在总统大选期间,曹德旺甚至拿到了更多的优惠承诺。《华盛顿邮报》指出,包括特朗普在总统预选中的对手约翰·凯西克(John
Kasich,共和党)州长在内的州政府官员向福耀承诺提供超过1千万美元的拨款和激励,成为有记录以来最高水平的激励措施之一。<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: center;">
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201612/16/47bfe621faac153805d9af3bca7800dc.jpg" /><br />
<br />
▲John Kasich。图片来源:东方IC</div>
<br />
如此优厚的补贴,有多少企业家能一点也不心动?<br />
<br />
福耀玻璃方面还向每日经济新闻(微信号:nbdnews)记者透露,2014年7月,福耀成立福耀美国伊利诺伊有限公司,收购世界汽车玻璃巨头PPG公司旗下芒山(Mt.Zion)工厂,包括土地、厂房、两条浮法玻璃生产线设备等。2016年6月,芒山工厂的两条浮法玻璃生产线均完成升级改造,进入正式生产阶段,年产量达28万吨。<br />
<br />
除了上述两个项目之外,福耀集团在美国密歇根州有附件装配工厂以及产品设计中心,并在多个州设立了销售部门,形成了汽车玻璃完整的供应链,未来,福耀还将继续在美国建立研发中心和汽车玻璃生产基地的意向,预计总投资额达到10亿美金,以及5000个就业岗位。<br />
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中美制造成本差距在缩小,但人工成本仍是挑战<br />
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据波士顿咨询公司2013年的研究报告,当时在美国制造商品的平均成本只比在中国高5%。2015年,在美国低成本地区生产已经变得和在中国生产一样经济划算。更令人震惊的是,到2018年,美国制造的成本将比中国便宜2%~3%。<br />
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<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201612/16/fd8b584e32b07c23b32c2e9c29759a52.jpg" /><br />
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▲图片来源:财富中文网</div>
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这个预测很可能要成真,因为中美制造的成本差距正在缩小。<br />
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此前,一家浙江制造企业给出的中美制造成本对比的精准数据也颇令人瞩目。浙江省慈溪市江南化纤有限公司成立于2000年,一直位居国内同行出口的前列。<br />
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2014年,“江南化纤”在美国南卡罗莱纳州投资办厂,成为首家在美国建立再生聚酯短纤维制造工厂的中国企业,一期计划投资2500万美元,二期计划投资2000万美元。“江南化纤”反映,去美国投资办厂,主要原因是国内综合成本连年攀升,颇感吃力。“江南化纤”测算比较了创办相同规模企业的中美成本,并提供了部分成本构成对比表。其中:<br />
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土地成本:中国是美国的9倍;<br />
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物流成本:中国是美国的2倍;<br />
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银行借款成本:中国是美国的2.4倍;<br />
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配件成本:中国是美国的3.2倍;<br />
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人工成本:中国成本优势趋弱;<br />
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电力/天然气成本:中国是美国的2倍以上;<br />
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折旧成本:美国是中国的1.7倍;<br />
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……<br />
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只有厂房建设成本:美国是中国的4倍。</div>
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不过,《华盛顿邮报》也指出,对福耀玻璃而言,最大的两个挑战是招聘和发薪水。工人的起薪为一小时约12美元。<br />
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对此,曹德旺表示:“对美国投资,美国工人的工资和福利将占到总营业额的40%,的确比中国高。但制造业的税负却更少,只征收所得税,没有流转税的税负,这样就能省下一半。另外,美国的能源也比中国便宜。比如天然气的价格只是中国的五分之一,电费是国内三分之一。这对我们投资是个很大的鼓励。”同时,将生产基地移到国际市场的前沿,可以降低物流和服务成本。<br />
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当然,即使美国制造的成本真的比中国制造更低,也不能与“卖得更便宜”画上等号。如何避免,或者说如何应对这样一天的到来,值得所有关心制造业的人深刻思考。minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-18385074276212387982016-11-09T18:25:00.001-05:002016-11-09T18:25:58.414-05:00Hillary Clinton’s concession speech full transcript: 2016 presidential election<div class="l-segment" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: #4c4e4d; font-family: Balto, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 18px; line-height: inherit; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
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Hillary Clinton’s concession speech full transcript: 2016 presidential election</h1>
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It was supposed to go like this: At the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center in New York City, standing under a glass ceiling, Hillary Clinton was going to claim her victory as the first woman president.</div>
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That didn’t happen.</div>
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She lost, in a shocking upset, and at a day-after event Clinton took a much smaller stage at the New Yorker Hotel in New York City, conceding the election to Donald Trump — the Republican nominee who not only trailed her in the polls, but was less favorable in the electoral map, running a campaign on divisive, fearmongering tactics.</div>
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The race that was projected to be an easy Clinton win quickly turned into an incredibly tight race Tuesday night, with Trump voters turning out to the polls in surprising numbers in key states.</div>
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The outcome was a huge blow to the Democrats looking to not only bring a third term of liberalism to the White House but make history with the first female president.</div>
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But instead, emotions ran high in the crowd for the wrong reasons: Clinton was stopped short by a bombastic political outsider who has been accused of multiple counts of sexual assault, has repeatedly misled the public, has made wild and potentially dangerous insinuations about national security, and has allegedly avoided decades of taxes.</div>
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None of that seemed to make a difference. The reasons for her loss will be pored over in the days and weeks to come, but a lack of enthusiasm for Clinton paired with a late cycle of scandalous headlines took a strong hit on her once sizable lead; the FBI announced it was reopening an investigation into her private email server, only to again announce there was still nothing to be found, while WikiLeaks continued to dump troves of hacked private emails from her campaign chair John Podesta, revealing the internal conversations of her campaign and closest allies.</div>
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Below, Vox will publish a rush transcript of her speech in full. (Editor’s note: This transcript may have missing words or phrases)</div>
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Thank you. Thank you all.</div>
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Thank you. Thank you all have much.</div>
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[Applause]</div>
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Thank you. Thank you all very much. Thank you so much. A very rowdy group. Thank you, my friends. Thank you. Thank you.</div>
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Thank you so very much for being here. I love you all, too. Last night I congratulated Donald Trump and offered to work with him on behalf of our country.</div>
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I hope that he will be a successful president for all Americans. This is not the outcome we wanted or we worked so hard for, and I'm sorry we did not win this election for the values we share and the vision we hold for our country.</div>
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But I feel pride and gratitude for this wonderful campaign that we built together. This vast, diverse, creative, unruly, energized campaign. You represent the best of America, and being your candidate has been one of the greatest honors of my life.</div>
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I know how disappointed you feel, because I feel it too. And so do tens of millions of Americans who invested their hopes and dreams in this effort. This is painful, and it will be for a long time. But I want you to remember this.</div>
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Our campaign was never about one person, or even one election. It was about the country we love and building an America that is hopeful, inclusive, and big-hearted. We have seen that our nation is more deeply divided than we thought. But I still believe in America, and I always will. And if you do, then we must accept this result and then look to the future. Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead. Our constitutional democracy enshrines the peaceful transfer of power.</div>
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We don't just respect that. We cherish it. It also enshrines the rule of law; the principle we are all equal in rights and dignity; freedom of worship and expression. We respect and cherish these values, too, and we must defend them.</div>
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[Applause]</div>
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Let me add: Our constitutional democracy demands our participation, not just every four years, but all the time. So let's do all we can to keep advancing the causes and values we all hold dear. Making our economy work for everyone, not just those at the top, protecting our country and protecting our planet.</div>
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And breaking down all the barriers that hold any American back from achieving their dreams. We spent a year and a half bringing together millions of people from every corner of our country to say with one voice that we believe that the American dream is big enough for everyone.</div>
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For people of all races, and religions, for men and women, for immigrants, for LGBT people, and people with disabilities. For everyone.</div>
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I am so grateful to stand with all of you. I want to thank Tim Kaine and Anne Holton for being our partners on this journey. [Cheers and applause]</div>
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It has been a joy get to go know them better and gives me great hope and comfort to know that Tim will remain on the front lines of our democracy representing Virginia in the Senate. [Cheers and applause]</div>
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To Barack and Michelle Obama, our country owes you an enormous debt of gratitude.</div>
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We thank you for your graceful, determined leadership that has meant so much to so many Americans and people across the world. And to Bill and Chelsea, Mark, Charlotte, Aidan, our brothers and our entire family, my love for you means more than I can ever express.</div>
<div id="pPrtAg" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
You crisscrossed this country, even 4-month-old Aidan, who traveled with his mom. I will always be grateful to the talented, dedicated men and women at our headquarters in Brooklyn and across our country.</div>
<div id="zQOGth" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
You poured your hearts into this campaign. To some of you who are veterans, it was a campaign after you had done other campaigns. Some of you, it was your first campaign. I want each of you to know that you were the best campaign anybody could have ever expected or wanted.</div>
<div id="X2Yssv" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
And to the millions of volunteers, community leaders, activists and union organizers who knocked on doors, talked to their neighbors, posted on Facebook — even in secret private Facebook sites.</div>
<div id="o1g44z" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
I want everybody coming out from behind that and make sure your voices are heard going forward. [Cheers and applause]</div>
<div id="eoI2F8" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
To anyone that sent contributions, even as small as $5, that kept us going, thank you. To all of us, and to the young people in particular, I hope you will hear this — I have, as Tim said, I have spent my entire life fighting for what I believe in.</div>
<div id="AnUXfW" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
I've had successes and setbacks and sometimes painful ones. Many of you are at the beginning of your professional, public, and political careers — you will have successes and setbacks too.</div>
<div id="DjFRNF" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
This loss hurts, but please never stop believing that fighting for what's right is worth it.</div>
<div id="AjETE4" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
It is, it is worth it. [Cheers and applause]</div>
<div id="IZ0Lta" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
And so we need — we need you to keep up these fights now and for the rest of your lives. And to all the women, and especially the young women, who put their faith in this campaign and in me: I want you to know that nothing has made me prouder than to be your champion.</div>
<div id="1kfi2R" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
Now, I know we have still not shattered that highest and hardest glass ceiling, but someday someone will — and hopefully sooner than we might think right now. [Cheers and applause]</div>
<div id="d4efYd" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
And to all of the little girls who are watching this, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world to pursue and achieve your own dreams. [Cheers and applause]</div>
<div id="p1iLVA" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
Finally, finally, I am so grateful for our country and for all it has given to me.</div>
<div id="swJ1Ta" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
I count my blessings every single day that I am an American, and I still believe, as deeply as I ever have, that if we stand together and work together with respect for our differences, strengthen our convictions, and love for this nation, our best days are still ahead of us.</div>
<div id="OaJKb7" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
Because, you know, I believe we are stronger together and we will go forward together. And you should never, ever regret fighting for that. You know, scripture tells us, let us not grow weary of doing good, for in good season we shall reap. My friends, let us have faith in each other, let us not grow weary and lose heart, for there are more seasons to come and there is more work to do.</div>
<div id="wWiQh3" style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: inherit; font-style: inherit; line-height: inherit; margin-bottom: 1.2rem; padding: 0px; text-decoration: inherit; vertical-align: inherit;">
I am incredibly honored and grateful to have had this chance to represent all of you in this consequential election. May God bless you and may God bless the United States of America.</div>
</div>
</div>
</div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-79307329174243806502016-11-09T10:47:00.001-05:002016-11-09T10:47:06.226-05:00Trump Victory Big For Biotech<h1>
Trump Victory Big For Biotech</h1>
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By Johanna Bennett</h3>
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But health-care stock indexes, of all things, are actually soaring, with the <strong>iShares Healthcare Index </strong>(<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/etf/us/arcx/iyh">IYH</a>) and the<strong> Health care Select SPDR ETF </strong>(<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/etf/us/arcx/xlv">XLV</a>) each up more than 2,.3% in morning market action.<br />
It may seem odd at first glance given Trump’s vow to dismantle the
Affordable Care Act. President Obama’s health-care law extended health
benefits to millions of uninsured Americas, who are now able to pay for
medical care, boosting profits for hospitals, pharmacies and some health
insurers. And with both houses of Congress now in republican hands, the
fear is that he can actually carry it off (though the reality may be
quit different).<br />
But look at what’s happening with drug makers. Biotech and
pharmaceutical stocks, which make up 60% the weighting in the S&P
Healthcare Index, are recovering today after enduring a sharp selloff
over the past year, largely due to Clinton’s outspoken stance against
drug price increases. Her defeat is viewed as a win for the industry,
especially biotech companies developing expensive treatments for cancer,
autoimmune disorders and various rare diseases.<br />
The <strong>iShares Nasdaq Biotechnology ETF</strong> (<a href="http://blogs.barrons.com/stockstowatchtoday/2016/11/09/trump-victory-big-for-biotech/V">IBB</a>) was the big winner, jumping almost 7% today, followed by a 5.3% gain by the <strong>iShares U.S. Pharmaceutical ETF</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/etf/us/arcx/ihe">IHE</a>).<br />
And drug wholesalers are enjoying a similar leap, with<strong> McKesson</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/stock/us/xnys/mck">MCK</a>) and <strong>Amerisource Bergen</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/stock/us/xnys/abc">ABC</a>) climbing more than 5% in recent market action.<br />
It a bit of an odd move. Trump and other republicans made high drug
prices part of their campaign messages. But the issue never had the
priority for them that it did for Clinton, explain <strong>Citigroup</strong> analyst <strong>Robyn Karnauskas. “</strong>We will know more when the new president unveils his plans in coming months,” she writes in a recent note<br />
For hospitals and some health insurers, however, Trump’s victory is
akin to Armageddon, or at least that’s how investors are reacting.<br />
“A GOP Triple Play: The worst possible outcome for HC stocks is a reality,” writes S<strong>heryl Skolnick and Ann Hynes</strong>, health-care service analysts at <strong>Mizuho Securities</strong> in a note published this morning warning of “extreme risk” for stocks exposed to a repeal of Obamacare.<br />
<blockquote>
We see extreme risk of ACA repeal/replace, loss of the
Medicaid expansion, a primary driver of results for both hospitals and
health plans, and reversal of the many value-based regulations that
promote home health care. Only the potential for a Senate filibuster
protects the ACA. We therefore are downgrading our Buys to Neutral and
cutting PTs for our covered companies.</blockquote>
Shares of<strong> Tenet Healthcare</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/stock/us/xnys/thc">THC</a>) toppled 27% and <strong>LifePoint Health</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/stock/us/xnys/lpnt">LPNT</a>) fell almost 12%.<br />
In the insurance industry, <strong>Centene</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/stock/us/xnys/cnc">CNC</a>) and <strong>Molina Healthcare</strong> (<a href="http://www.barrons.com/quote/stock/us/xnys/mol">MOL</a>), the two largest Medicaid-focused health insurers, each fell 18%.minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-45056344650023379402016-04-12T15:54:00.002-04:002016-04-12T15:54:59.828-04:00 Why are swap rates below bond yields?<div class="master-column middleSection " data-timer-key="5" data-zone="middleSection">
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<h1>
Why are swap rates below bond yields?</h1>
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<span>Michael Mackenzie and Joe Rennison</span></div>
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<span class="story-image"><img alt="A trader monitors financial information on computer screens on the trading floor at Panmure Gordon & Co., as results continue to be announced in the 2015 general election in London, U.K., on Friday, May 8, 2015. David Cameron is on course to remain prime minister at the head of a minority government after the U.K. general election, an exit poll and early results indicated. The pound jumped. Photographer: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg" src="http://im.ft-static.com/content/images/11ba897a-32b3-4f44-9faf-e9265094541d.img" /><a class="credit" href="http://www.ft.com/servicestools/terms/bloomberg">©Bloomberg</a></span></div>
<div data-track-pos="0">
US interest rate swaps, popular derivatives that track government bond yields, have experienced a <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/f4896ff2-82dd-11e5-a01c-8650859a4767.html#axzz3qyrBW0Hu" title="US interest rate dislocation intensifies - FT.com">spectacular collapse </a>this month with an array of reasons being suggested by traders. </div>
This market emerged during the 1980s and has become a fundamental
part of finance. Like bonds sold by companies, swap rates have
historically traded at a premium over Treasury yields — seen as the
risk-free rate for pricing other types of debt and derivatives.<br />
<div data-track-pos="1">
Now dealers and users of <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/b3695bce-6da0-11e5-8171-ba1968cf791a.html#axzz3qyrBW0Hu" title="US bond sell-off puts squeeze on swaps trade - FT.com">US swaps</a>,
such as hedge funds, asset managers and companies, are watching the
swap rate relationship to underlying Treasury yields, known as a spread,
become increasingly negative. Last week, the 10-year swap rate at one
stage was quoted 18 basis points below the 10-year Treasury yield. The
current swap rate of 2.225 per cent trails that of the Treasury
benchmark’s yield of 2.33 per cent by 10.5 basis points. </div>
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<span class="story-image"><img alt="" src="http://im.ft-static.com/content/images/d569a598-8796-11e5-90de-f44762bf9896.img" style="width: 599px;" /></span></div>
<strong>Why is a negative relationship prevailing?</strong>
<br />
Analysts at Deutsche Bank say the recent swap spread tightening
reflects “tighter macro prudential regulation, higher capital
requirements and reduced dealer balance sheet capacity”.<br />
<div data-track-pos="2">
Also playing a role is swapping activity from <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/a1413d24-84d7-11e5-8e80-1574112844fd.html#axzz3qyrBW0Hu" title="Dash for debt ahead of US rate rise - FT.com">companies selling debt</a>.</div>
Companies and institutional investors exchange floating rates of
interest for fixed rates via a swap contract. When a company sells
fixed-rate debt, it can use a swap to offset the payment of a bond
coupon and pay a much lower floating rate — three-month Libor.<br />
<div data-track-pos="3">
Such activity pushes swap spreads lower and has
occurred when dealers have been swamped by sales of Treasury bonds from
central banks and other investors. The combination of hefty company debt
sales being swapped and higher dealer inventories of Treasury debt,
helps explain why swap <a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/de1b29b0-6855-11e5-a57f-21b88f7d973f.html#axzz3oMTrVOcW" title="US swap dealers return to negative quotes - FT.com">spreads are negative</a>. </div>
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<span class="story-image"><img alt="" src="http://im.ft-static.com/content/images/d355f3c4-8796-11e5-90de-f44762bf9896.img" style="width: 600px;" /></span></div>
<strong>How serious is the current dislocation between swaps and bonds?</strong>
<br />
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On this topic</h4>
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<li data-track-pos="0">The Short View <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/0f21e0e4-f681-11e5-96db-fc683b5e52db.html">Investors reconsider outlook for US banks</a></li>
<li data-track-pos="1"> <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/0c21c652-f5c8-11e5-96db-fc683b5e52db.html">Yellen reiterates need for rates caution</a></li>
<li data-track-pos="2">Analysis <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/6d43f52e-ec4d-11e5-bb79-2303682345c8.html">Fed’s dovish stance squeezes US banks</a></li>
<li data-track-pos="3"> <a href="http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/356d7bfe-f1c8-11e5-aff5-19b4e253664a.html">Dollar firms as markets look to rate rise</a></li>
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Some
say swaps are a broken market and the most visible example of post-2008
regulation of the banking system that entails serious consequences for
investors, banks, companies and even the US taxpayer. <br />
The bigger implication is that the cost of funding US government
deficits in the coming years, which are projected to climb sharply, may
well be higher due to a tougher regulatory environment for banks that
underwrite Treasury debt sales.<br />
Deutsche’s regression analysis places a fair value of around 3 basis
points for the 10-year swap rate over the underlying 10-year Treasury
yield. It thinks “the days of positive double-digit spreads, and perhaps
positive spreads full stop, could be behind us”.<br />
<div data-track-pos="4">
And with year end and a Federal Reserve interest
rate rise approaching, higher volatility looms for the swaps market.
Last week’s moves represented some of the<a href="http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/3b8ebf34-a14e-11dd-82fd-000077b07658.html#axzz3n2Sxq8uV" title="Swap spreads turn negative - FT.com"> biggest daily shifts</a> since the financial crisis. </div>
<strong>How long can swap rates trade negative to Treasury yields?</strong>
<br />
Under normal market conditions the current inversion should be
swiftly reversed, but thanks to tougher bank capital regulation,
derivatives trading appears to have entered a new era. Currently, no one
appears willing to normalise the relationship between swap rates and
Treasury yields. <br />
“For a trader, trying to pick the bottom offers a different
risk/reward in today’s heavily scrutinised world, so we haven’t seen the
type of aggressive buyers that we used to see when valuations move to
extremes,” says Michael Cloherty, head of US rates strategy at Royal
Bank of Canada.<br />
Trading Treasuries and swaps relies on funding via the repurchase or
repo market. Thanks to balance sheet constraints, the use of repo by
dealers is shrinking, another factor sustaining negative swap spreads. <br />
“As capital and balance sheet have become more scarce commodities,
banks have responded by reducing the size of their repo books due to
heavy balance sheet consumption and relatively low margins of the
business,” says Deutsche. <br />
That means hedge funds, which in the past would reverse any
inversion, cannot rely on the repo market to buy US Treasuries and pay
the fixed rate on a swap. For a bank, facilitating a repo trade on
behalf of a hedge fund means having it sit on its balance sheet,
consuming precious capital.<br />
</div>
<div class="insideArticleRelatedTopics ft-spc-btm-full" data-track-comp-name="relatedTopics">
<h2 class="ft-heading ft-heading-medium">
Related Topics</h2>
<ul class="ft-list ft-list-plain ft-list-wrapping">
<li class="ft-list-item" data-track-pos="0"><a href="http://www.ft.com/topics/themes/US_Interest_Rates">US Interest Rates</a>,</li>
<li class="ft-list-item" data-track-pos="1"><a href="http://www.ft.com/topics/places/United_States_of_America">United States of America</a>,</li>
<li class="ft-list-item" data-track-pos="2"><a href="http://www.ft.com/topics/themes/Central_Banks">Central Banks</a>,</li>
<li class="ft-list-item" data-track-pos="3"><a href="http://www.ft.com/topics/themes/Derivatives">Derivatives</a>,</li>
<li class="ft-list-item" data-track-pos="4"><a href="http://www.ft.com/topics/themes/US_Treasury_Bonds">US Treasury Bonds</a></li>
</ul>
</div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-47668275530770196012016-04-12T15:40:00.002-04:002016-04-12T15:40:28.176-04:00海淘税改新政对海淘海带的影响其实是这样(组图)<h3>
海淘税改新政对海淘海带的影响其实是这样(组图)</h3>
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文章来源: <span itemprop="author">侨报网</span> 于
<time datetime="2016-04-11T20:38:19" itemprop="datePublished">2016-04-11 20:38:19</time>
<span>- 新闻取自各大新闻媒体,新闻内容并不代表本网立场!</span> </div>
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<span class="print"><a href="http://www.wenxuecity.com/news/2016/04/11/5129272_print.html" target="_blank">打印本新闻</a></span>
<span id="countbox" style="display: block;"> (被阅读 <span id="countnum">22460</span> 次) </span>
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4月8日,跨境电商税改正式实施,一张“浦东机场到处是不愿加税而弃置的商品”的照片顿时在网上传的是沸沸洋洋,隔着手机这小屏幕我都能感到它的热气腾腾。图片配文:<br />
<br />
“上海浦东机场出关口已经贴指示了。不管你是代购还是旅游,只要是带东西回国,2000元/月至20000/年,都要交税!海关会开箱检查,不懂价格的去
网上搜,EMS直邮的也要全部纳税!而且化妆品的税率竟然是60%。所以,出国旅游的小伙伴们,不是自己用的还是别带了,被税了划不来。”<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/8fce1ca23015fb8f22df85c4b4fc9d3e.png" /><br />
<br />
(上面介个是图一)<br />
<br />
这还不够,一张黄渤在海关被扣的照片自然也“不甘示弱”,这个转这个传啊。<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/229b5d3ca22ce02c0b6df8ccee3f5866.jpg" /><br />
<br />
(上面介个是图二,右边那个叉腰的人就是黄渤)<br />
<br />
一票小伙伴炸了,反应各式各样:<br />
<br />
“难道代购的小船已经彻底翻了咩?”<br />
<br />
“南京条约只要百分之五的关税,你这是逼着我们求续约吗?”<br />
<br />
“肿么办肿么办?要我裸着回国接受七大姑八大姨的犀利目光洗礼吗?”<br />
<br />
事实证明,这种说话风格咋咋呼呼+爱用emoji的行文风格已经默默荣升为微博造谣的标准格式了。<br />
<br />
认证为“中华人民共和国上海海关”的微信公众账号“上海海关12360”发文辟谣:你们又被骗了,真是Too Young Too
Naive啊。<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/f670072e3ac0f2161696f9bffb0639ca.png" /><br />
<br />
文章说了,图一发生的背景是这样子滴:一位从韩国归来的游客带了4箱东西,大概2万人民币以上彩妆和1.5万人民币左右的护理品。带太多东西海关需要清点数量,然而恰逢中转大厅装修,没地方清点,海关只能把东西铺在地上进行清点。<br />
<br />
所以图一的画面,只是例行检查而已。<br />
<br />
而黄渤那张照片就更搞笑了,2015年在巴黎机场的黄渤愣生生地穿越到2016年的浦东机场,还跟风走了个微博热搜。远在泰国剧组拍戏的渤哥嘻嘻哈哈地表示:分身术段数太高,在下不会。<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/3455191c25f56f3fbd9cf025729965a3.png" /><br />
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那么,让大伙儿一惊一乍的4月8日跨境电商税改新政到底是个神马东东?<br />
<br />
北京时间3月24日,中国财政部、海关总署、税务总局联合发布《关于跨境电子商务零售进口税收政策的通知》,宣布:<br />
<br />
自2016年4月8日起,中国将实施跨境电子商务零售(企业对消费者,即B2C)进口税收政策,并同步调整行邮税政策。<br />
<br />
1. B2C是个啥玩意?<br />
<br />
2. 行邮税是个啥玩意?<br />
<br />
3. 4月8日税改新政到底跟我有没有关系?<br />
<br />
这分为两个最受人关注的小问题:我往中国寄东西会受到影响吗?我往中国“人肉”东西会受到影响吗?<br />
<br />
下面我就来一一解答。<br />
<br />
B2C是个啥玩意?<br />
<br />
微博上有一位自称是海关工作人员的网友“客官不要急”做了科普。<br />
<br />
(对于真实性有所怀疑的小盆友不要急,我是认真做了真实性分析的。微博认证为“共青团中央官方微博”的“共青团中央”都转发了他的微博,所以还是比较靠谱的。)<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/bd1031d560edb26f12cf8539322e2fd1.png" /><br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/49ab7d32c43e530a167585258169a0cd.png" /><br />
<br />
目前东西从境外进入中国有三种渠道:<br />
<br />
1. B2B (Business to Business)<br />
<br />
商业对商业,商家对商家,走货物渠道。税率为关税+增值税+消费税。<br />
<br />
跟一般小伙伴都没有什么关系,本次改革也不受影响。<br />
<br />
2. B2C (Business to Customer)<br />
<br />
商家对个人,就是广大海淘热爱者熟知的洋码头之流。<br />
<br />
本次税收政改最受影响的群体。<br />
<br />
3. C2C (Customer to Customer)<br />
<br />
不算严谨,但是“自用”“合理”范围的携带和寄送都属于这个类别。<br />
<br />
适用行邮税。<br />
<br />
普罗大众最关注的“我往中国寄东西会受到影响吗?”“我往中国‘人肉’东西会受到影响吗?”都属于这个类别。<br />
<br />
行邮税是个啥玩意?<br />
<br />
正儿八经的来讲:<br />
<br />
行邮税是行李和邮递物品进口税的简称,是海关对人境旅客行李物品和个人邮递物品征收的进口税。
由于其中包含了进口环节的增值税和消费税,故也为对个人非贸易性人境物品征收的进口关税和进口工商税收的总称。<br />
<br />
说人话就是:<br />
<br />
哎呀,我给我在中国的老爸老妈寄点保养品什么的/我好闺蜜出国给我带点东西回中国的,又不是卖的,还要算关税增值税消费税,乱七八糟的好麻烦,合成一个好了啦。于是,行邮税就产生了。<br />
<br />
4月8日税改新政跟我有没有关系?<br />
<br />
简单的来讲,4月8日税改新政对跨境电商的影响最大,体现为:<br />
<br />
a.跨境电商税率变了<br />
<br />
b.跨境电商免税额消失了<br />
<br />
c.跨境电商有数额限制了<br />
<br />
对关心“我往中国寄东西会受到影响吗?”“我往中国‘人肉’东西会受到影响吗?”的小伙伴来说,相关的只是:行邮税变了。<br />
<br />
综合还在实行的旧规定和现行的新规定,具体情况是这样的:<br />
<br />
1. 如果你要“人肉”东西回中国<br />
<br />
(1)你享有的免税额是这个样子滴<br />
<br />
在维持居民旅客进境物品5000元人民币免税限额不变基础上,允许其在口岸进境免税店增加一定数量的免税购物额,连同境外免税购物额总计不超过8000元人民币。<br />
<br />
举例说明:<br />
<br />
?你在美国买了5000人民币+在上海机场免税店买了3000人民币=不用交税<br />
<br />
?你在美国买了3000人民币+在上海机场免税店买了5000人民币=不用交税<br />
<br />
?你在美国买了5000人民币+在上海机场免税店买了5000人民币=超出的2000人民币要交税<br />
<br />
?你在美国买了7000人民币+在上海机场免税店买了1000人民币=超出的2000人民币要交税(虽然总数不超过8000人民币,但是境外部分7000元超出了规定的5000元,超出的2000元部分要交税)<br />
<br />
如果你超出了免税额,中国海关会对超出的部分,按照行邮税进行征税。<br />
<br />
(2)你享有的限额是这个样子滴<br />
<br />
首先需要明确的是,限额不等于免税额。超出免税额要交税,超过限额就要另行处理了。<br />
<br />
如果你要“人肉”东西回国,你带的东西要在自用合理范围内,不能有倒卖嫌疑。如果你一下子带N多N多N多一模一样的口红,谁会信你是自己用啊……<br />
<br />
如果你超过限额,会全部按照货物征收税款,或者退运。<br />
<br />
(3)关于海关严查<br />
<br />
各个口岸不一样,但是百分百开箱查验是不可能的。<br />
<br />
2. 如果你要邮寄东西回中国<br />
<br />
(1)你享有的免税额是这个样子滴<br />
<br />
50块人民币。如果你超出了免税额,中国海关会对全部物品,按照行邮税进行征税。<br />
<br />
(2)你享有的限额是这个样子滴<br />
<br />
自用合理数量+单包裹多物品1000人民币以内。<br />
<br />
超过1000人民币的限额是退运或者按货物报关。重申一点:限额不等于免税额,邮寄的免税额只有50元人民币。<br />
<br />
(3)关于海关严查<br />
<br />
包裹太多,百分百开包也是不可能的。开过箱的包裹里面会放查验告知单。<br />
<br />
(总体是涨了,但是有些东西反而降了。例如护肤品,原先是统一50%的税率,今后是30%。但是未列明的物品从原来10%的税率涨到30%。)<br />
<br />
3. 现行税率<br />
<br />
根据美国侨报报道,行邮税由4档税目调整为3档(税率分别为15%、30%、60%)。其中,税目1主要为最惠国税率为零的商品,税目3主要为征收消费税的高档消费品,其他商品归入税目2。<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/a0932ba47e44b140410b8670e57447f2.png" /><br />
<br />
但据上面提到的”客官不说话”透露,化妆品的税率已经降为30%了,但是网页显示仍为60%。<br />
<br />
完税价格<br />
<br />
简单来说,就是价格不一样的东西,海关会定一个海关价格,差不多在这个价格区间里面的(1/2-2倍),那就套用海关价格。在这个价格区间之外的,那就物主提供海关认可的付款凭证(发票,小票,网站购买截图),海关根据实际价格计算。<br />
<br />
中国海关总署发布了《中华人民共和国进境物品完税价格表》,网址如下:<br />
<br />
http://www.customs.gov.cn/publish/portal0/tab49661/info793342.htm<br />
<br />
下面截取大家最为关心的表、化妆品和包的部分。<br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/2bb969365f6d28a76ce74e18d5ea05cd.png" /><br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/bd374b7a8364a02c44b8a62da64e1158.png" /><br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/827cf93c5a863b56e91d1abf9866517a.png" /><br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/cb14717b77541da9ae129bf191b7c995.png" /><br />
<br />
<img alt="" border="0" src="http://www.wenxuecity.com/data/news/201604/12/c3ccc42f4d31bcb8360a9111dd90a439.png" />minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-19501020846314487252016-04-12T14:52:00.003-04:002016-04-12T14:52:48.122-04:00Swap Spreads Have Fallen, and They Can't Get Up<div data-view-uid="1|0_3_1_6">
<header class="standard-image-lede standard-lede lede"> <h1 class="lede-headline" itemprop="name headline">
<span class="lede-headline__highlighted">Swap Spreads Have Fallen, and They Can't Get Up</span> </h1>
<h2 class="lede-dek" itemprop="description">
<span class="lede-dek__text">Something strange is happening in the U.S. rate market.</span> </h2>
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<a class="author-link" data-tracker-action="click" data-tracker-category="nav" data-tracker-label="author_link" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/authors/AOW9ekpmwpk/tracy-alloway" itemprop="author" rel="author"> Tracy Alloway </a> <a class="author-twitter" data-tracker-action="click" data-tracker-category="social" data-tracker-label="author_twitter" href="http://twitter.com/tracyalloway" target="_blank"> tracyalloway </a> </div>
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Something curious is happening in an esoteric corner of the U.S. rate market.<br />
Swap spreads—a proxy for credit spreads—have turned negative.<br />
This is a relatively <a data-tracker-action="click" data-tracker-category="recirc" data-tracker-label="inline_link.01" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-12-18/u-s-2-year-swap-spread-narrowest-on-record-amid-fed-speculation">rare occurrence</a>
in the market given that swap spreads usually involve a premium over
U.S. Treasuries. The premium is paid by investors striking interest rate
swap deals, exchanging fixed-rates of interest for floating rates
(Libor). Because such deals involve significant counterparty risk,
typically exposure to a bank, swap spreads have historically
been positive.<br />
But that usual relationship has been turned on its head in recent weeks.<br />
You can see the change in the charts below, from Michael Shaoul at Marketfield Asset Management:<br />
Here, for instance, is the five-year swap spread:<br />
<figure class="inline-image inline-media center "> <div class="inline-media__unlinked-image">
<img data-attachment-key="242944242" src="http://assets.bwbx.io/images/iAr0rRclEMJM/v1/488x-1.jpg" style="max-width: 1616px;" /> </div>
<figcaption class="inline-media__info"> <div class="inline-media__credit">
Source; Marketfield Asset Management</div>
</figcaption> </figure>And the seven-year:<br />
<figure class="inline-image inline-media center "> <div class="inline-media__unlinked-image">
<img data-attachment-key="242944254" src="http://assets.bwbx.io/images/i0o.bfytEm_I/v1/488x-1.jpg" style="max-width: 1616px;" /> </div>
<figcaption class="inline-media__info"> <div class="inline-media__credit">
Source; Marketfield Asset Management</div>
</figcaption> </figure>And here's the 10-year, now at its <a data-tracker-action="click" data-tracker-category="recirc" data-tracker-label="inline_link.02" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-05/u-s-10-year-swap-spreads-reach-record-lows-as-treasuries-drop">lowest on record</a>.<br />
<figure class="inline-image inline-media center "> <div class="inline-media__unlinked-image">
<img data-attachment-key="242944266" src="http://assets.bwbx.io/images/ioT.mELLF8ic/v1/488x-1.jpg" style="max-width: 1616px;" /> </div>
<figcaption class="inline-media__info"> <div class="inline-media__credit">
Source; Marketfield Asset Management</div>
</figcaption> </figure>The moves are causing <a data-tracker-action="click" data-tracker-category="nav" data-tracker-label="inline_link.03" data-web-url="http://acrossthecurve.com/?p=23596" href="http://acrossthecurve.com/?p=23596" target="_blank">some consternation</a>
for traders, analysts, and investors who are struggling to figure out
exactly what is causing the trend to lower swap spreads. There are some
varying theories.<br />
Much attention has focused on more limited
balance sheets at dealer-banks in the wake of new regulation, extra
sales of U.S. Treasury bills, hefty issuance of corporate bonds, the
selling of U.S. government debt by emerging market central banks, and
recent hedging activity by investors in mortgage-backed securities.<br />
First up is Shaoul:<br />
<blockquote>
We
typically monitor U.S. Treasury Swap Spreads as an indication of
stress, with the widening of spreads often a reliable [gauge] of
distress within the dealer market (this certainly proved the case in
2008). In recent sessions we have been watching a quite different
phenomenon, namely an unprecedented degree of spread inversion that now
stretches all the way from the four-year to the 30-year portion of the
treasury curve.<strong> This really suggests that something quite
unusual is taking place within the Treasury market, made all the more
interesting by the fact that underlying yields have actually been
relatively placid while the inversion has been gathering steam.</strong></blockquote>
And here are analysts at Société Générale:<br />
<blockquote>
...
With the debt ceiling now out of the way, the ramp up of bill issuance
is likely to add renewed pressure on dealer balance sheets over the
coming weeks. ... Corporate issuance is starting to ramp up in November,
the last big month for issuance ahead of year end. The average issuance
for the past three years is around $120 billion. The swapping of
corporate issuance is likely to keep the pressure on swap spreads.</blockquote>
Meanwhile, analysts at BNP Paribas argued a month ago that negative swap spreads are here to stay:<br />
<blockquote>
The
collapse in US swap spreads has caused considerable consternation in
the US rates market, but it has shown little sign of abating. Nor should
it, in our view. <strong>Indeed, we see good reason for negative swap spreads to become the ‘new normal.’</strong> ... <strong>In our view, the drivers of negative swap spreads are primarily regulatory, which has frustrated fair-value models.</strong>
Regulatory-driven hedging costs, balance sheet charges and supply and
demand could easily make swap spreads negative along most of the US
curve.</blockquote>
For now there appear to be few easy answers to this particular <a data-tracker-action="click" data-tracker-category="recirc" data-tracker-label="inline_link.04" href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-05/u-s-10-year-swap-spreads-reach-record-lows-as-treasuries-drop">market conundrum</a>.minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-75595473083210544922016-04-06T11:03:00.001-04:002016-04-06T11:03:23.392-04:00光混个文凭没用 “海归”就业越来越难了光混个文凭没用 “海归”就业越来越难了 www.creaders.net | 2016-04-05 17:17:27 凤凰网 | 0条评论 | 查看/发表评论 <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> 教育部3月25日发布的2015年度《中国留学回国就业蓝皮书》显示,2015年中国大陆学生赴海外留学人数再创新高,达52.37万人,同期学成归国人员也达40.91万人,年度出国与回国人数比例呈逐年拉近的态势。随着越来越多的学成留学人员选择回国发展,“海归”就业难也正在成为一个棘手的社会问题。<br /><br /> 留学生规模的扩大、学位结构的低端化、培养质量的良莠不齐和国外就业环境的恶化,是造成“海归”扎堆回国的重要原因。在美国纽约大学、南加州大学等地,甚至出现了中国留学生扎堆入学的现象。越扎堆,圈子便会越封闭,成功融入当地社会的难度便会越高,社会化失败的极端案例也会越高。虽然中国留学生已经成为一些大学赖以生存和发展的重要“金主”,但有些学校在基础设施建设、公共服务供给及教育管理等方面的投入未必会保持同步增长,留学环境难如早前。在低龄学生聚集的一些地方,校园暴力、交通肇事等恶性事件发生的几率也相对偏高,成为中国对外“输出”教育责任和社会责任的负面窗口。<br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /> 当然,绝大多数中国留学生都是积极向上求进步,而且其中许多人都成为名副其实的“学霸”,但留学生在当地就业所需的,不只是成绩和能力,还要有人脉和圈子。成功的社会融入,不仅包括经济收入和身份上的“达标”,还要受到种族、宗教、文化、婚姻和社会等多方因素的制约。常青藤等名校毕业的白人学生,可以顺理成章地利用父母、家庭、师长等人脉资源,在华盛顿、华尔街等“政商圈”谋得位子。但对于留学生而言,这些资源都极其匮乏,“学霸”的精英光环禁不起毕业季的炙烤。能留下的,多数都是凭技术吃饭的“理工男”,进入管理层的,比例很低。<br /><br /> 对于多数留学生而言,做“海归”才是现实的选择。不过,“海归”的过程也是时隔数年本土社会再融入的过程。其间,不能与时俱进者照样会败下阵来。部分单位更乐意接收熟悉国情的国内毕业生,有些岗位因为“专业不对口”也无法充分利用归国留学生的特长。因此,近三分之二“海归”就业去向都集中在了涉外企业。特别是一些学历层次偏低的“海归”,在与一些国际化程度较高的国内高校毕业生竞争时,竞争力和含金量都难言优势。<br /><br /> 专业不对口、起薪水平低、社会再融入难,让一些“海归”更青睐国际化程度相对较高的东部大城市。但是,人员地域流向的集中化,为就业问题雪上加霜,自主创业者比例低,有些人甚至不得不重启人脉钥匙,回归“传统”择业轨道。在国内经济景气程度亦不如前些年的当下,“海归”的光环也不再那么闪亮。不过,让归国留学生和国内毕业生在同一起跑线上竞争,也是一个开放社会应有的常态。<br /><br /> 目前,“海归”就业难已经开始逆向重塑出国留学市场,淘汰掉一些逃避型和盲从性心态,让出国留学变成一种更有积极、理性预期的选择。无论何时,为了学贯中西的内涵和能力去镀金而不是为了镀金而去镀金,才是出国留学的应有之义。<br />- See more at: http://news.creaders.net/immigration/2016/04/05/1659622.html#sthash.3oYIIe9R.dpuf更多精彩点击:<a href='http://www.creaders.net'>http://www.creaders.net</a><div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
<span class="STYLE3">光混个文凭没用 “海归”就业越来越难了</span>
<span class="STYLE4"><a class="STYLE5" href="http://www.creaders.net/">www.creaders.net</a> | 2016-04-05 17:17:27 凤凰网 | <span class="say1"><span class="num" id="commentcountx">0</span></span>条评论 | <a class="STYLE4" href="http://news.creaders.net/immigration/2016/04/05/1659622.html#comment">查看/发表评论</a></span>
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<div style="clear: both; padding-top: 10px; text-align: right; width: 98%;">
<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"><img src="http://pub.creaders.net/images/tu_03.gif" /></a></div>
<div id="cont">
<div id="newsContent">
教育部3月25日发布的2015年度《中国留学回国就业蓝皮书》显示,2015年中国大陆学生赴海外留
学人数再创新高,达52.37万人,同期学成归国人员也达40.91万人,年度出国与回国人数比例呈逐年拉近的态势。随着越来越多的学成留学人员选择回国
发展,“海归”就业难也正在成为一个棘手的社会问题。<br />
留学生规模的扩大、学位结构的低端化、培养质量的良莠不齐和国外就业环境的恶化,
是造成“海归”扎堆回国的重要原因。在美国纽约大学、南加州大学等地,甚至出现了中国留学生扎堆入学的现象。越扎堆,圈子便会越封闭,成功融入当地社会的
难度便会越高,社会化失败的极端案例也会越高。虽然中国留学生已经成为一些大学赖以生存和发展的重要“金主”,但有些学校在基础设施建设、公共服务供给及
教育管理等方面的投入未必会保持同步增长,留学环境难如早前。在低龄学生聚集的一些地方,校园暴力、交通肇事等恶性事件发生的几率也相对偏高,成为中国对
外“输出”教育责任和社会责任的负面窗口。<br />
<table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody>
<tr><td><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
当然,绝大多数中国留学生都是积极向上求进步,而且其中许多人都成为名副其实的“学霸”,但留学生在当地就业所需的,不只是成绩和能力,还要有人脉和圈
子。成功的社会融入,不仅包括经济收入和身份上的“达标”,还要受到种族、宗教、文化、婚姻和社会等多方因素的制约。常青藤等名校毕业的白人学生,可以顺
理成章地利用父母、家庭、师长等人脉资源,在华盛顿、华尔街等“政商圈”谋得位子。但对于留学生而言,这些资源都极其匮乏,“学霸”的精英光环禁不起毕业
季的炙烤。能留下的,多数都是凭技术吃饭的“理工男”,进入管理层的,比例很低。 对于多数留学生而言,做“海归”才是现实的选
择。不过,“海归”的过程也是时隔数年本土社会再融入的过程。其间,不能与时俱进者照样会败下阵来。部分单位更乐意接收熟悉国情的国内毕业生,有些岗位因
为“专业不对口”也无法充分利用归国留学生的特长。因此,近三分之二“海归”就业去向都集中在了涉外企业。特别是一些学历层次偏低的“海归”,在与一些国
际化程度较高的国内高校毕业生竞争时,竞争力和含金量都难言优势。<br />
专业不对口、起薪水平低、社会再融入难,让一些“海归”更青睐国际化
程度相对较高的东部大城市。但是,人员地域流向的集中化,为就业问题雪上加霜,自主创业者比例低,有些人甚至不得不重启人脉钥匙,回归“传统”择业轨道。
在国内经济景气程度亦不如前些年的当下,“海归”的光环也不再那么闪亮。不过,让归国留学生和国内毕业生在同一起跑线上竞争,也是一个开放社会应有的常
态。<br />
目前,“海归”就业难已经开始逆向重塑出国留学市场,淘汰掉一些逃避型和盲从性心态,让出国留学变成一种更有积极、理性预期的选择。无论何时,为了学贯中西的内涵和能力去镀金而不是为了镀金而去镀金,才是出国留学的应有之义。</div>
</div>
- See more at: http://news.creaders.net/immigration/2016/04/05/1659622.html#sthash.3HYIUn7N.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
<span class="STYLE3">光混个文凭没用 “海归”就业越来越难了</span>
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<div id="cont">
<div id="newsContent">
教育部3月25日发布的2015年度《中国留学回国就业蓝皮书》显示,2015年中国大陆学生赴海外留
学人数再创新高,达52.37万人,同期学成归国人员也达40.91万人,年度出国与回国人数比例呈逐年拉近的态势。随着越来越多的学成留学人员选择回国
发展,“海归”就业难也正在成为一个棘手的社会问题。<br />
留学生规模的扩大、学位结构的低端化、培养质量的良莠不齐和国外就业环境的恶化,
是造成“海归”扎堆回国的重要原因。在美国纽约大学、南加州大学等地,甚至出现了中国留学生扎堆入学的现象。越扎堆,圈子便会越封闭,成功融入当地社会的
难度便会越高,社会化失败的极端案例也会越高。虽然中国留学生已经成为一些大学赖以生存和发展的重要“金主”,但有些学校在基础设施建设、公共服务供给及
教育管理等方面的投入未必会保持同步增长,留学环境难如早前。在低龄学生聚集的一些地方,校园暴力、交通肇事等恶性事件发生的几率也相对偏高,成为中国对
外“输出”教育责任和社会责任的负面窗口。<br />
<table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody>
<tr><td><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
当然,绝大多数中国留学生都是积极向上求进步,而且其中许多人都成为名副其实的“学霸”,但留学生在当地就业所需的,不只是成绩和能力,还要有人脉和圈
子。成功的社会融入,不仅包括经济收入和身份上的“达标”,还要受到种族、宗教、文化、婚姻和社会等多方因素的制约。常青藤等名校毕业的白人学生,可以顺
理成章地利用父母、家庭、师长等人脉资源,在华盛顿、华尔街等“政商圈”谋得位子。但对于留学生而言,这些资源都极其匮乏,“学霸”的精英光环禁不起毕业
季的炙烤。能留下的,多数都是凭技术吃饭的“理工男”,进入管理层的,比例很低。 对于多数留学生而言,做“海归”才是现实的选
择。不过,“海归”的过程也是时隔数年本土社会再融入的过程。其间,不能与时俱进者照样会败下阵来。部分单位更乐意接收熟悉国情的国内毕业生,有些岗位因
为“专业不对口”也无法充分利用归国留学生的特长。因此,近三分之二“海归”就业去向都集中在了涉外企业。特别是一些学历层次偏低的“海归”,在与一些国
际化程度较高的国内高校毕业生竞争时,竞争力和含金量都难言优势。<br />
专业不对口、起薪水平低、社会再融入难,让一些“海归”更青睐国际化
程度相对较高的东部大城市。但是,人员地域流向的集中化,为就业问题雪上加霜,自主创业者比例低,有些人甚至不得不重启人脉钥匙,回归“传统”择业轨道。
在国内经济景气程度亦不如前些年的当下,“海归”的光环也不再那么闪亮。不过,让归国留学生和国内毕业生在同一起跑线上竞争,也是一个开放社会应有的常
态。<br />
目前,“海归”就业难已经开始逆向重塑出国留学市场,淘汰掉一些逃避型和盲从性心态,让出国留学变成一种更有积极、理性预期的选择。无论何时,为了学贯中西的内涵和能力去镀金而不是为了镀金而去镀金,才是出国留学的应有之义。</div>
</div>
- See more at: http://news.creaders.net/immigration/2016/04/05/1659622.html#sthash.3HYIUn7N.dpuf</div>
<div id="stcpDiv" style="left: -1988px; position: absolute; top: -1999px;">
<span class="STYLE3">光混个文凭没用 “海归”就业越来越难了</span>
<span class="STYLE4"><a class="STYLE5" href="http://www.creaders.net/">www.creaders.net</a> | 2016-04-05 17:17:27 凤凰网 | <span class="say1"><span class="num" id="commentcountx">0</span></span>条评论 | <a class="STYLE4" href="http://news.creaders.net/immigration/2016/04/05/1659622.html#comment">查看/发表评论</a></span>
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<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null"><img src="http://pub.creaders.net/images/tu_03.gif" /></a></div>
<div id="cont">
<div id="newsContent">
教育部3月25日发布的2015年度《中国留学回国就业蓝皮书》显示,2015年中国大陆学生赴海外留
学人数再创新高,达52.37万人,同期学成归国人员也达40.91万人,年度出国与回国人数比例呈逐年拉近的态势。随着越来越多的学成留学人员选择回国
发展,“海归”就业难也正在成为一个棘手的社会问题。<br />
留学生规模的扩大、学位结构的低端化、培养质量的良莠不齐和国外就业环境的恶化,
是造成“海归”扎堆回国的重要原因。在美国纽约大学、南加州大学等地,甚至出现了中国留学生扎堆入学的现象。越扎堆,圈子便会越封闭,成功融入当地社会的
难度便会越高,社会化失败的极端案例也会越高。虽然中国留学生已经成为一些大学赖以生存和发展的重要“金主”,但有些学校在基础设施建设、公共服务供给及
教育管理等方面的投入未必会保持同步增长,留学环境难如早前。在低龄学生聚集的一些地方,校园暴力、交通肇事等恶性事件发生的几率也相对偏高,成为中国对
外“输出”教育责任和社会责任的负面窗口。<br />
<table align="left" border="0" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tbody>
<tr><td><br /></td></tr>
</tbody></table>
当然,绝大多数中国留学生都是积极向上求进步,而且其中许多人都成为名副其实的“学霸”,但留学生在当地就业所需的,不只是成绩和能力,还要有人脉和圈
子。成功的社会融入,不仅包括经济收入和身份上的“达标”,还要受到种族、宗教、文化、婚姻和社会等多方因素的制约。常青藤等名校毕业的白人学生,可以顺
理成章地利用父母、家庭、师长等人脉资源,在华盛顿、华尔街等“政商圈”谋得位子。但对于留学生而言,这些资源都极其匮乏,“学霸”的精英光环禁不起毕业
季的炙烤。能留下的,多数都是凭技术吃饭的“理工男”,进入管理层的,比例很低。 对于多数留学生而言,做“海归”才是现实的选
择。不过,“海归”的过程也是时隔数年本土社会再融入的过程。其间,不能与时俱进者照样会败下阵来。部分单位更乐意接收熟悉国情的国内毕业生,有些岗位因
为“专业不对口”也无法充分利用归国留学生的特长。因此,近三分之二“海归”就业去向都集中在了涉外企业。特别是一些学历层次偏低的“海归”,在与一些国
际化程度较高的国内高校毕业生竞争时,竞争力和含金量都难言优势。<br />
专业不对口、起薪水平低、社会再融入难,让一些“海归”更青睐国际化
程度相对较高的东部大城市。但是,人员地域流向的集中化,为就业问题雪上加霜,自主创业者比例低,有些人甚至不得不重启人脉钥匙,回归“传统”择业轨道。
在国内经济景气程度亦不如前些年的当下,“海归”的光环也不再那么闪亮。不过,让归国留学生和国内毕业生在同一起跑线上竞争,也是一个开放社会应有的常
态。<br />
目前,“海归”就业难已经开始逆向重塑出国留学市场,淘汰掉一些逃避型和盲从性心态,让出国留学变成一种更有积极、理性预期的选择。无论何时,为了学贯中西的内涵和能力去镀金而不是为了镀金而去镀金,才是出国留学的应有之义。</div>
</div>
- See more at: http://news.creaders.net/immigration/2016/04/05/1659622.html#sthash.3HYIUn7N.dpuf</div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-10049769830150774032016-04-05T11:34:00.001-04:002016-04-05T11:34:04.199-04:0030 Hot Fintech Startups You Should Be Watching<header class="entry-header"><h1 class="entry-title" itemprop="headline">
30 Hot Fintech Startups You Should Be Watching</h1>
<div class="entry-meta">
By <span class="entry-author" itemprop="author" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person"><a class="entry-author-link" href="http://www.allbusiness.com/author/miranda-marquit" itemprop="url" rel="author"><span class="entry-author-name" itemprop="name">Miranda Marquit</span></a></span> | <span class="entry-categories">In: <a href="http://www.allbusiness.com/finance/accounting-budgeting" rel="category tag">Accounting & Budgeting</a>, <a href="http://www.allbusiness.com/technology/software-technology" rel="category tag">Apps & Software</a>, <a href="http://www.allbusiness.com/operations/innovation" rel="category tag">Innovation</a>, <a href="http://www.allbusiness.com/technology/mobility" rel="category tag">Mobility</a></span></div>
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If
you’re in the banking sector, there’s no doubt that you should be
keeping a close eye to the Fintech industry. Besides providing
innovative new technology and ideas for the banking industry, it’s also
been estimated by <a href="http://www.statista.com/statistics/379517/forecast-of-bank-spending-on-new-tech-by-region/" target="_blank">Statista</a> that “bank spending on new technologies was predicted to amount to $19.9 billion in 2017 in North America.”<br />
Not only that, but these exciting Fintech startups also provide
innovative solutions for the small business owner. If you are looking
for <a href="http://experts.allbusiness.com/5-mobile-payment-options/20518/#.VVjUt9NViko">low-cost solutions to your business accounting and finance needs</a>, from invoicing to payroll to investing, the Fintech sector is an exciting space.<br />
<div class="wp-caption aligncenter" id="attachment_22514" style="width: 460px;">
<img alt="Image: niekverlaan via pixabay" class="size-full wp-image-22514" height="299" src="http://13301-presscdn-0-78.pagely.netdna-cdn.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/05/hot-fintech-startups.jpg" width="450" /><div class="wp-caption-text">
Image: niekverlaan via pixabay</div>
</div>
Whether you’re just getting into Fintech or have been interested in
the technology for some time, here are 30 top-notch Fintech startups
located in the always exciting Bay Area.<br />
<h2>
Due.com</h2>
<a href="http://due.com/" target="_blank">Due.com</a> has
recently redesigned the website of its invoicing service to allow
greater ease of use. Clients can now design their own invoices, upload
company logos, and access an increased amount of data and reports from
the dashboard in a snap. Due.com is also a free invoicing service with
hundreds of templates for business owners to use.<br />
<h2>
SoFi</h2>
<a href="https://www.sofi.com/" target="_blank">SoFi</a>
gives individuals an opportunity to refinance a number of debts
including student and personal loans, mortgages, and MBA loans. SoFi
also provides opportunities for investors.<br />
<h2>
Planwise</h2>
<a href="http://planwise.com/" target="_blank">Planwise</a>
was established to help people in a simple way gain confidence and
skills necessary in financial planning. A user-friendly software program
guides customers as they evaluate their current financial situations,
add monetary goals, and develop plans-of-action to reach these goals.<br />
<h2>
LendUp</h2>
<a href="http://lendup.com/" target="_blank">LendUp</a>
offers an affordable alternative to traditional payday loans. Each loan
has clear terms and can have an interest rate as low as 29 percent. The
LendUp Ladder program allows borrowers who have made steady payments to
obtain better rates and longer terms on future loans.<br />
<h2>
Nok Nok Labs</h2>
<a href="https://www.noknok.com/" target="_blank">Nok Nok Labs</a>
has developed innovative authentication technology for e-commerce
consumers. The company has assembled an experienced web security team
who strive to provide superior customer service, as well as ongoing
support and training for clients<br />
<h2>
Trulioo</h2>
<a href="https://www.trulioo.com/" target="_blank">Trulioo</a> developed an instant bank grade identity verification service called <a href="https://www.trulioo.com/product/identity-verification/" target="_blank">GlobalGateway</a>.
It’s used with compliance systems across the globe to help payment
providers and financial services comply with international Anti-Money
Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements worldwide.
This is done easily through a single API integration.<br />
<h2>
Plaid</h2>
Financial management applications have been brought into the future with the technology developed by <a href="https://www.plaid.com/" target="_blank">Plaid</a>.
Plaid has technology that allows ACH verification to be completed in
just seconds and allows banking data to be quickly accessed and
organized into comprehensive statements.<br />
<h2>
Wealthfront</h2>
<a href="https://www.wealthfront.com/" target="_blank">Wealthfront</a>
is a fully-automated investment management system. It has the most
advanced software that can minimize tax liabilities and react to
changing economic conditions through a schedule of rebalancing
investment portfolios.<br />
<h2>
Giftly</h2>
<a href="http://www.giftly.com/" target="_blank">Giftly</a>
offers the most versatile way to give gift cards. Senders may opt to
send a card by email, text, or U.S. mail; recipients can print the card
or transfer the funds to a credit card or PayPal. They can also
correspond with the sender to offer thanks or to share what they
purchased with the card.<br />
<h2>
FinCon</h2>
If you want to attend one of the best Fintech conferences on the planet, <a href="http://finconexpo.com/" target="_blank">FinCon</a>
is where you should start. FinCon brings together thousands of Fintech
companies for one of the best networking conferences that I’ve been to.
Sessions are sculpted around meeting each other and learning. FinCon
makes this list as it is a startup as well. You can check out the <a href="http://finconexpo.com/compare-fincon-passes/" target="_blank">upcoming conference</a> that takes place later this year.<br />
On top of that, the Plutus Awards are presented each year at FinCon.
If you’re a business owner looking to connect with influencers in the
space, <a href="http://www.theplutusawards.com/2015/partner/" target="_blank">sponsoring the Plutus Awards</a>
is a great way to go about it. I’ve helped plan the Plutus Awards for a
few years now, and it’s always one of the highlights of the conference.<br />
<h2>
Stripe</h2>
<a href="https://stripe.com/" target="_blank">Stripe</a>
provides a wide array of API applications that can handle all aspects
of e-commerce for businesses of any size. Stripe offers complete
security and customer support for electronic payment systems, including
systems on mobile devices.<br />
<h2>
Addepar</h2>
<a href="https://www.addepar.com/" target="_blank">Addepar</a>
is a comprehensive investment management system that allows immediate
access to data, customized reports, dashboards, and the most
sophisticated technology in the field. Addepar can consolidate
information from all departments within your company and can integrate
them with existing software systems.<br />
<h2>
Epiphyte</h2>
<a href="http://epiphyte.com/" target="_blank">Epiphyte</a>’s
award winning software programs allow financial service providers to
convert the currency of one nation to bitcoin, make an international
transfer, and change the bitcoin into the currency of the destination
country. Epiphyte software operates well with crypto-financial networks
and bridges traditional financial services with the latest in bitcoin
technology.<br />
<h2>
Robinhood</h2>
<a href="https://www.robinhood.com/" target="_blank">Robinhood</a>
provides free stock market trading. The goal is to provide a simplified
explanation of the stock market that will allow all individuals an
opportunity to make informed investments and build their wealth.<br />
<h2>
Clinkle</h2>
<a href="https://www.clinkle.com/" target="_blank">Clinkle</a>
is a mobile app that allows users to earn virtual treats by linking the
app with their credit or debit card. When the card is used seven times,
they earn a virtual treat that they can send to a friend. The recipient
can apply the treat as a credit to their account and possibly win a
refund of their most recent purchase.<br />
<h2>
Square</h2>
<a href="https://squareup.com/" target="_blank">Square</a>
is a mobile POS app that can perform a number of functions such as
credit card sales, invoicing, inventory, and analytics. Square offers
users an opportunity to access business capital and provides an
extensive customer support network.<br />
<h2>
Equidate</h2>
<a href="https://www.equidateinc.com/" target="_blank">Equidate</a>
benefits both investors and shareholders by allowing access to
promising startups in the pre-IPO stage. Employees of such companies can
sell their shares before the company becomes highly successful.<br />
<h2>
Tipalti</h2>
Manage your global payments in an automatic, cost-effective manner with <a href="http://www.tipalti.com/" target="_blank">Tipalti</a>.
Tipalti integrates well with partner websites, reduces transaction
fees, and continuously updates your payment system for changes in tax
and regulatory laws.<br />
<h2>
LendFriend</h2>
<a href="http://lendfriend.com/" target="_blank">LendFriend</a>
is an innovative online platform that seeks to serve the population who
are underserved by banks and traditional lenders. LendFriend creates an
opportunity for individuals to lend money to people they know.<br />
<h2>
TrueAccord</h2>
<a href="https://www.trueaccord.com/" target="_blank">TrueAccord</a>
has developed a fully automated debt recovery system for enterprises
and small businesses. It gives those who owe money a method to repay
their debts and for businesses to preserve customer relationships while
recovering past due payments.<br />
<h2>
WePay</h2>
<a href="https://www.wepay.com/" target="_blank">WePay</a>
is a flexible payment option for online merchants. The Connect platform
enables users to use WePay to receive payments, while the Clear
platform allows users to collect payments under their own brand.<br />
<h2>
Flint</h2>
<a href="https://www.flint.com/" target="_blank">Flint</a>
provides mobile businesses a way to accept credit card payments without
the use of a reader. Flint offers immediate activation and a low
transaction fee. No merchant account is required to use Flint.<br />
<h2>
Lending Club</h2>
<a href="https://www.lendingclub.com/" target="_blank">Lending Club</a>
offers a non-traditional way for individuals and businesses to obtain
loans. Groups of investors fund the loans and Lending Club now offers a
program where medical providers can give patients the option of
obtaining loans to cover medical treatments.<br />
<h2>
DataFox</h2>
<a href="http://www.datafox.co/" target="_blank">DataFox</a>
gives businesses access to data concerning tech companies. This
information can then be used to generate leads to proposed business
ventures.<br />
<h2>
Juntos</h2>
<a href="http://juntosglobal.com/" target="_blank">Juntos</a>
is a mobile application that encourages individuals to fully utilize
their online financial accounts. The program is designed to change user
behavior and help people take a greater interest in their financial
future.<br />
<h2>
BTCjam</h2>
<a href="https://btcjam.com/" target="_blank">BTCjam</a>
allows users to invest their bitcoins and earn a high rate of return.
This process is secure and allows investors to participate in
peer-to-peer lending. BTCjam is also a great place for those seeking
loans.<br />
<h2>
NerdWallet</h2>
<a href="https://www.nerdwallet.com/" target="_blank">NerdWallet</a>
offers a wealth of financial information about credit cards, banking,
and mortgages. Visitors can obtain free financial advice and reviews of
credit card offers.<br />
<h2>
Prosper</h2>
<a href="https://www.prosper.com/" target="_blank">Prosper</a>
is a peer-to-peer lending company. Borrowers may request loans from
$2,000 to $35,000 while investments begin at $25. Prosper handles the
loan servicing on behalf of both parties in the transaction.<br />
<h2>
Neighborly</h2>
<a href="https://neighborly.com/" target="_blank">Neighborly</a>
is expected to launch in the summer of 2015 and will allow citizens to
invest in their own communities. Investors will be able to earn
commission-free returns on their investments.<br />
<h2>
LendingRobot</h2>
<a href="https://www.lendingrobot.com/" target="_blank">LendingRobot</a>
allows peer-to-peer lenders to bring automation to their loan
portfolios. This process allows individual investors to have instant
access to lending opportunities, invest according to pre-set criteria,
and receive daily reports on portfolio activity.<br />
<h2>
Final</h2>
<a href="https://getfinal.com/" target="_blank">Final</a>
is a mobile app that allows credit card holders to set time and
spending limits with merchants. Final can help protect consumers in the
event of security breaches.<br />
<h2>
FutureAdvisor</h2>
<a href="https://www.futureadvisor.com/" target="_blank">FutureAdvisor</a>
brings years of financial planning experience to today’s investors. The
company serves clients throughout the nation in areas of retirement and
educational planning.minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-26909395325716294622016-04-05T11:20:00.005-04:002016-04-05T11:20:52.440-04:00Chinese Students and U.S. Universities Connect Through a Third Party<h1 class="headline" id="headline" itemprop="headline">
Chinese Students and U.S. Universities Connect Through a Third Party</h1>
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<a class="byline-column-link" href="http://www.nytimes.com/column/sinosphere">Sinosphere</a> </div>
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By <span itemid="" itemprop="author creator" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/Person">
<span class="byline-author " data-byline-name="Cao Li" itemprop="name">CAO LI</span>
</span>
<time class="dateline" datetime="2016-01-19">JAN. 19, 2016</time>
</div>
</div>
<div class="story-meta-footer-sharetools">
<div class="sharetools theme-classic sharetools-story-meta-footer " data-author="By CAO LI" data-description="A private company that conducts interviews of prospective students helps American colleges keep up with the growing number of applicants from China." data-media="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/15/world/xxCHINACOLLEGE/xxCHINACOLLEGE-jumbo.jpg" data-publish-date="January 19, 2016" data-share-tools-initialized="1" data-shares="facebook,twitter,email,show-all,save" data-title="Chinese Students and U.S. Universities Connect Through a Third Party" data-url="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/20/world/asia/china-us-college-application.html" id="sharetools-story-meta-footer" role="group">
<a class="visually-hidden skip-to-text-link" href="http://www.nytimes.com/2016/01/20/world/asia/china-us-college-application.html?ref=education&_r=1#story-continues-1">Continue reading the main story</a>
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<img alt="" class="media-viewer-candidate" data-mediaviewer-caption="Chinese students and parents visiting college recruitment booths at the Education Expo in Beijing in 2011." data-mediaviewer-credit="Shiho Fukada for The New York Times" data-mediaviewer-src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/15/world/xxCHINACOLLEGE/xxCHINACOLLEGE-superJumbo.jpg" itemid="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/15/world/xxCHINACOLLEGE/xxCHINACOLLEGE-master675.jpg" itemprop="url" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/15/world/xxCHINACOLLEGE/xxCHINACOLLEGE-master675.jpg" /><div class="media-action-overlay">
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<figcaption class="caption" itemprop="caption description">
<span class="caption-text">Chinese students and parents visiting college recruitment booths at the Education Expo in Beijing in 2011.</span>
<span class="credit" itemprop="copyrightHolder">
<span class="visually-hidden">Credit</span>
Shiho Fukada for The New York Times </span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="131" data-total-count="131">
BEIJING
— Zhao Yang, 18, a high school student in Beijing, looked upset as she
emerged from a room equipped with a video camera.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="141" data-total-count="272">
“I
was too nervous, so I spoke too fast,” she told her parents. “The
questions were too weird. I wasn’t prepared for most of them.”</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="331" data-total-count="603">
Ms.
Zhao is a top student with ambitions to go to a top American
university. She has been preparing for years, working with a private
admissions agent and taking the SAT and the Test of English as a Foreign
Language several times. Her parents have invested more than $30,000 in
the project, hoping to give their only child a boost.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="161" data-total-count="764">
On
this afternoon, Ms. Zhao faced a new challenge — being interviewed in
English before a camera. “He asked me what I’m interested in and why,”
she said.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="262" data-total-count="1026">
The
video of the interview, conducted by a private company based in
Beijing, would be uploaded to the company’s website, where it could be
viewed by American admissions officers, who would consider it alongside
Ms. Zhao’s test scores and written application.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="323" data-total-count="1349" id="story-continues-1">
The
number of Chinese students competing to enter high schools and colleges
in the United States has soared in recent years. <span style="color: red;">According to the <a href="http://www.iie.org/en/Who-We-Are/News-and-Events/Press-Center/Press-Releases/2015/2015-11-16-Open-Doors-Data" title="Institute of International Education news release.">Institute of International Education</a>,
in the 2014-15 academic year, more than 300,000 Chinese were enrolled
in American higher education, almost triple the number five years
before.</span></div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="589" data-total-count="1938">
Traditionally, colleges conduct on-campus interviews or enlist alumni to help. But with the surge in applications from <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/china/index.html?inline=nyt-geo" title="More articles about China.">China</a>,
colleges are unable to keep up with the volume of interview requests.
To sift through the flood of applicants, more American institutions have
sought third-party interviews with prospective students. This helps
determine whether students who score high on paper can also engage in
class discussions. It also provides a check against fraud, such as
forged transcripts or application essays ghostwritten by hired agents,
by testing their English-language abilities.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="518" data-total-count="2456">
That in turn has given rise to new services on the Chinese side to meet that demand. Terry Crawford, the chief executive of <a href="http://new.initialview.com/" title="InitialView website (in English).">InitialView</a>, which provides interview services and was founded in Beijing in 2009, said that in 2013, more than 6,000 applications from <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/china/index.html?inline=nyt-geo" title="More news and information about China.">China</a>
included an InitialView interview and that by 2014, the number exceeded
17,000. According to Chinese admissions agents, more than a third of
the 100 top-rated American colleges and universities recommend
third-party interviews, though few require them.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="404" data-total-count="2860">
Jiang
Xiaobo, the director of the college counseling center at the Beijing
National Day School, said, “Third-party interviews require a high level
of communication skills in English and logical thinking, which poses a
challenge to students who grew up in the traditional education system in
<a class="meta-loc" href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/news/international/countriesandterritories/china/index.html?inline=nyt-geo" title="More news and information about China.">China</a>.” That system tends to emphasize written test results, with little regard for extracurricular pursuits.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="71" data-total-count="2931">
Experts say the interviews can change how colleges consider applicants.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="334" data-total-count="3265">
“Students
who are able to articulate their thoughts in understandable (perfection
is not expected) English and who appear ready to succeed in the college
classroom are advantaged,” Jim Miller, a college enrollment consultant
and the former president of the <a href="http://www.nacacnet.org/Pages/default.aspx" title="Association website. ">National Association for College Admission Counseling</a>, wrote in an email.</div>
<figure class="media photo embedded layout-large-horizontal media-100000004146372 ratio-tall" data-media-action="modal" id="media-100000004146372" itemid="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/16/world/asia/16chinacollege02/16chinacollege02-articleLarge.jpg" itemprop="associatedMedia" itemscope="" itemtype="http://schema.org/ImageObject" role="group">
<span class="visually-hidden">Photo</span>
<div class="image">
<img alt="" class="media-viewer-candidate" data-mediaviewer-caption="A high school student in Beijing being interviewed in English for a video that will accompany his applications to American colleges." data-mediaviewer-credit="Courtesy of InitialView" data-mediaviewer-src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/16/world/asia/16chinacollege02/16chinacollege02-superJumbo.jpg" itemid="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/16/world/asia/16chinacollege02/16chinacollege02-articleLarge.jpg" itemprop="url" src="https://static01.nyt.com/images/2016/01/16/world/asia/16chinacollege02/16chinacollege02-articleLarge.jpg" /><div class="media-action-overlay">
</div>
</div>
<figcaption class="caption" itemprop="caption description">
<span class="caption-text">A high school student in
Beijing being interviewed in English for a video that will accompany his
applications to American colleges.</span>
<span class="credit" itemprop="copyrightHolder">
<span class="visually-hidden">Credit</span>
Courtesy of InitialView </span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="203" data-total-count="3468">
Yan
Xiaoliang, 19, who attended a private high school in Chengdu that
offers courses in English, said he believed an interview made the
difference to his admission to the <a href="http://www.gatech.edu/" title="Georgia Institute of Technology website.">Georgia Institute of Technology</a>.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="277" data-total-count="3745">
“My
SAT scores were below average,” he said in a phone interview. But in
his interview, Mr. Yan, who is now a sophomore at Georgia Tech,
discussed his interest in <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/subjects/e/electric_vehicles/index.html?&inline=nyt-classifier" title="More articles about electric vehicles.">electric cars</a> and the novel “Moby-Dick,” explaining what he considered his own personal “white whale.”</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="510" data-total-count="4255">
Rick
Clark, Georgia Tech’s director of undergraduate admissions, said the
institute had worked with InitialView since 2011. “This was based on a
radically increasing number of applicants from China and our desire to
admit and enroll students who were not only academically talented but
who also demonstrated an ability to contribute to classroom dialogue and
the campus community,” he said. While 33 students from China applied in
2007, he said, the number jumped to 1,149 for the class entering in
2011.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="228" data-total-count="4483" id="story-continues-2">
Mr.
Crawford of InitialView said the admission rate at Georgia Tech among
Chinese applicants who had been interviewed by his company was 17
percent, and 3 percent for those who had not. Mr. Clark would not
confirm those figures.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="291" data-total-count="4774">
“That
seems to imply doing an interview radically changes the admit rate or
puts it at a very high point, and that’s not accurate,” Mr. Clark said.
“However, if a student couples good grades, good testing, good
interview, their holistic profile is certainly strong and compelling.”</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="356" data-total-count="5130">
“We
have definitely found examples of discrepancies between documents and
application materials, as well as instances in which applicants or
agents have falsified materials,” he said. “The interview helps to
confirm a student’s English ability, as well as to really probe into
both curriculum as well as extracurricular involvement and passions.”</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="136" data-total-count="5266">
A
third-party interview can cost $150 to more than $450. Many students
complain, but some parents accept this as the price of admission.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="144" data-total-count="5410">
“I
guess this will help schools to know my daughter better,” said Ms.
Zhao’s mother, who declined to give her name. “But it is tough.”</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="166" data-total-count="5576">
Applying to only American colleges has spared her daughter the ordeal of taking <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2015/01/04/magazine/inside-a-chinese-test-prep-factory.html" title="Times Magazine article.">the gaokao</a>, China’s notoriously stressful university entrance exam, her mother said.</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-para-count="119" data-total-count="5695">
Still, she said her daughter sleeps only about five hours a day, with the demands of homework and applying for college.</div>
</div>
</div>
<div class="story-body-text story-content" data-node-uid="1" data-para-count="92" data-total-count="5787">
“I would say the pressure is just as great as for the gaokao,” Ms. Zhao’s mother said.</div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-74764124953968930422016-03-23T10:18:00.002-04:002016-03-23T10:18:27.448-04:00IHS to buy data provider Markit, combined company to base in UK<h1 class="article-headline">
IHS to buy data provider Markit, combined company to base in UK</h1>
<div class="article-info">
<span class="byline">By <a href="http://www.reuters.com/journalists/abhirup-roy">Abhirup Roy</a></span>
</div>
<div id="relatedInlineVideo">
</div>
<span id="articleText">
<span id="midArticle_start"></span>
<span id="midArticle_0"></span><span class="focusParagraph"><br />
<span class="articleLocatio</span>n">U.S.-based IHS Inc (<span id="symbol_IHS.N_0"><a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=IHS.N">IHS.N</a></span>) agreed to buy Markit Ltd (<span id="symbol_MRKT.O_1"><a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=MRKT.O">MRKT.O</a></span>)
to create a $13 billion London-based data and business research
provider, in the latest example of a U.S. company moving its domicile
overseas where corporate tax rates are lower.</span></span><span id="midArticle_1"></span>The
companies said IHS shareholders will own about 57 percent of the
combined company following the close of the all-stock deal, which values
Markit at about $5.9 billion.<br />
<span id="midArticle_2"></span>Englewood,
Colorado-based IHS, whose businesses include Jane's Defence Weekly and
technology industry research firm iSuppli, will pay the equivalent of
$31.13 per Markit share, a premium of 5.6 percent to Markit's Friday
close.<br />
<span id="midArticle_3"></span>Markit's shares were up 10.9
percent at $32.70 at midday. The shares have risen about 23 percent
since the company went public in June 2014. IHS's shares, which hit a
3-year low of $92.90 last month, were up 5.6 percent at $116.90.<br />
<span id="midArticle_4"></span>Markit,
founded in 2003 by ex-TD Securities credit trader Lance Uggla in a barn
north of London, provides pricing and reference data, index and
valuation services.<br />
<span id="midArticle_5"></span>IHS Chief Executive Jerre Stead will become chairman and chief executive of the combined company, IHS Markit.<br />
<span id="midArticle_6"></span>Uggla will be president for now and take over the top job after Stead’s retirement on Dec. 31 next year.<br />
<span id="midArticle_7"></span>
<span class="first-article-divide"></span>IHS shareholders will get 3.5566 shares of the combined company for each share held.<br />
<span id="midArticle_8"></span>The combined company, while maintaining some "key" operations in Colorado, will be based in London.<br />
<span id="midArticle_9"></span>So-called
tax inversion deals have become the subject of a fierce political
debate in the United States as well as a source of concern for the
government over the potential loss of tax revenue.<br />
<span id="midArticle_10"></span>
<span class="second-article-divide"></span>"We don't see this
transaction as being implicated by the U.S. anti-inversion rules," IHS
Chief Financial Officer Todd Hyatt said on a conference call with
analysts.<br />
<span id="midArticle_11"></span>IHS said the combined
company was expected to have a tax rate in the low- to mid-20 percent
range. IHS's tax rate for the year ended Nov. 30 was 20.5 percent, while
Markit paid taxes at the rate of 31.5 percent for the year ended Dec.
31.<br />
<span id="midArticle_12"></span>The deal is the latest in a
string by IHS, whose energy information business, its biggest, has been
hit by the slide in oil prices. Revenue in the division fell almost 1
percent to $215.9 million in the first quarter ended Feb. 29.<br />
<span id="midArticle_13"></span>IHS
said in January it would buy U.S.-based Oil Price Information Service
(OPIS) to add real-time pricing information to its energy analytics
business.<br />
<span id="midArticle_14"></span>
<span class="third-article-divide"></span>The company agreed
in December to buy Canada-based vehicle data provider Carproof Corp for
$460 million to boost its automotive research business.<br />
<span id="midArticle_15"></span>Markit competes with Thomson Reuters Corp (<span id="symbol_TRI.TO_2"><a href="http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/overview?symbol=TRI.TO">TRI.TO</a></span>) and Bloomberg LP in providing financial data to investors.<br />
<span id="midArticle_0"></span>IHS
also reported on Monday a stronger-than-expected 6.7 percent rise
revenue to $548.4 million, helped mainly by a jump in non-subscription
income, which includes organizing industry events.<br />
<span id="midArticle_1"></span>M.
Klein and Co and Goldman, Sachs & Co were IHS's financial advisers,
while Markit was advised by J.P. Morgan Securities. IHS's legal adviser
was Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP, while Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP
provided legal advice to Markit. <br />
<span id="midArticle_2"></span><span id="midArticle_3"></span> (Reporting by Abhirup Roy and Supantha Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Anupama Dwivedi and Ted Kerr)</span>minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-38056302605604131032016-03-14T10:33:00.005-04:002016-03-14T10:33:41.344-04:00Negative Interest Rates Less Than Zero<section class="section">
<h3>
</h3>
<div class="headline_overlay">
<h1 class="headline" itemprop="name headline">
Negative Interest Rates</h1>
<h2 class="sub_headline">
Less Than Zero</h2>
<div class="byline">
By Jana Randow and Simon Kennedy | Updated Mar 10, 2016 10:19 AM EST
</div>
</div>
<h3>
</h3>
<h3>
Imagine a bank that pays negative interest. Depositors are actually
charged to keep their money in an account. Crazy as it sounds, several
of Europe’s central banks have cut key interest rates below zero and
kept them there for more than a year. Now Japan is trying it, too. For
some, it’s a bid to reinvigorate an economy with other options
exhausted. Others want to push foreigners to move their money somewhere
else. Either way, it’s an <a href="http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2013-11-18/larry-summers-has-a-wintry-outlook-on-the-economy" title="Bloomberg Businessweek article ">unorthodox</a> choice that has <a href="https://medium.com/bull-market/apple-just-proved-that-the-zero-lower-bound-still-exists-4f5402b97e43" title="Medium article ">distorted</a> financial
markets and triggered warnings that the strategy could backfire. If
negative interest rates work, however, they may mark the start of a <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-11/negative-interest-rates-the-new-normal-next-time-economies-slump" title="Bloomberg article">new era</a> for the world’s central banks. </h3>
<h3>
The Situation</h3>
The Bank of Japan <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-29/yen-tumbles-more-than-2-as-boj-adopts-negative-interest-rates" title="Bloomberg article">surprised </a>markets by <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-29/bank-of-japan-adopts-negative-interest-rates-by-vote-of-5-4" title="Bloomberg article">adopting</a> negative
interest rates in January, more than a year and a half after the
European Central Bank became the first major institution of its kind
to venture below zero. With other options to stimulate the economy
limited, more policy makers are willing to test the technique. They
acknowledge that sub-zero rates can <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-09/draghi-has-banking-chiefs-bemoaning-ecb-s-negative-rate-push" title="Bloomberg article">crimp </a>the ability of banks to make money or lead them to take <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-02/ubs-s-ermotti-says-negative-rates-may-encourage-risky-lending" title="Bloomberg article">additional risks</a> in search of profit. The ECB cut rates again March 10, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-03-10/draghi-sees-ecb-done-for-now-on-rates-with-kitchen-sink-stimulus" title="Bloomberg news article">charging banks</a> 0.4
percent to hold their cash overnight. At the same time, it offered a
premium to banks that borrow in order to extend more loans. Sweden also
has negative rates, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-11/fx-speculators-seen-driving-denmark-to-test-world-s-lowest-rate" title="Bloomberg News article ">Denmark</a> is using them to protect its currency’s peg to the euro and last year <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2014-12-18/snb-starts-negative-interest-rate-of-0-25-to-stave-off-inflows" title="Bloomberg News article ">Switzerland</a> moved
its deposit rate below zero for the first time since the 1970s. Janet
Yellen, the U.S. Federal Reserve chair, said in November that a change
in economic circumstances could put negative rates “<a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-11-04/yellen-signals-solid-economy-would-lead-to-december-rate-hike" title="Bloomberg article">on the table</a>” in the U.S. Since central banks provide a <a href="http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-02-24/metal-manipulation-and-negative-rates" title="Bloomberg View opinion piece ">benchmark</a> for all borrowing costs, negative rates spread to a <a href="http://www.bloombergview.com/articles/2015-02-13/money-for-nothing-and-company-cash-for-free" title="Bloomberg View opinion piece ">range of fixed-income securities</a>. By February, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-09/world-s-negative-yielding-bond-pile-tops-7-trillion-chart" title="Bloomberg article">more than $7 trillion </a>of
government bonds worldwide offered yields below zero. That means
investors buying bonds and holding to maturity won’t get all their money
back. While most banks have been <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-01-28/nordea-bank-may-charge-clients-for-deposits-amid-negative-rates" title="Bloomberg News article ">reluctant</a> to pass on negative rates for fear of losing customers, <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-26/julius-baer-charges-institutional-clients-for-snb-negative-rate">a few</a> began to charge large depositors.<br />
<img alt="Source: Bloomberg" src="http://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/content/uploads/sites/2/2016/03/neg0308.png" /><h3>
</h3>
<h3>
The Background</h3>
Negative interest rates are an act of <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-22/the-great-negative-rates-experiment" title="Bloomberg article">desperation</a>, a signal that traditional policy options have <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/bw/articles/2013-11-18/larry-summers-has-a-wintry-outlook-on-the-economy" title="Businessweek article ">proved ineffective</a> and new limits need to be explored. They punish banks that hoard cash instead of <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-07/the-european-bank-s-underwhelming-surprise.html" title="Bloomberg View editorial on Europe's weak economy and bank lending ">extending </a>loans
to businesses or to weaker lenders. Rates below zero have never been
used before in an economy as large as the euro area. While it’s still
too early to tell if they <a href="http://research.nordeamarkets.com/en/2013/12/04/euro-area-viewpoint-qa-on-negative-ecb-deposit-rate/" title="Nordea report with Q&A on negative rates ">will</a> work, ECB President Mario Draghi said in January 2016 that there are “<a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-01-21/draghi-says-ecb-may-ramp-up-stimulus-in-march-on-global-risks" title="Bloomberg article">no limits</a>”
on what he will do to meet his mandate. Europe’s central bank chose to
experiment with negative rates before turning to a bond-buying program
like those used in the U.S. and Japan. Policy makers in both Europe and
Japan are trying to prevent a slide back into <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/deflation/" title="Bloomberg QuickTake on deflation ">deflation</a>,
or a spiral of falling prices that could derail the economic
recovery. The euro zone is also grappling with a shortage of credit and <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-29/euro-area-unemployment-unexpectedly-drops-amid-recovery.html" title="Bloomberg News article on European unemployment">unemployment</a> is only slowly receding from its highest level since the currency bloc was formed in 1999.<br />
<figure class="inline_image">
<img alt="Source: European Central Bank" src="http://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/content/uploads/sites/2/2016/03/ecb_rates_cs_031016_preupdate_cs6.png" />
<span class="magnifier" data-src="http://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/content/uploads/sites/2/2016/03/ecb_rates_cs_031016_preupdate_cs6.png"></span>
<figcaption class="caption">
Source: European Central Bank
</figcaption>
</figure>
</section>
<section class="section">
<h3>
The Argument</h3>
In <a href="http://www.economist.com/blogs/economist-explains/2015/02/economist-explains-15" title="Economist explainer on negative rates ">theory</a>,
interest rates below zero should reduce borrowing costs for companies
and households, driving demand for loans. In practice, there’s a <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2013-11-15/yellen-sees-chance-fed-could-cut-rate-it-pays-banks-on-reserves.html" title="Bloomberg article">risk</a> that the policy might do more harm than good. If banks make more customers pay to hold their money, <a href="http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Documents/other/treasurycommittee/ir/tsc160513.pdf" title="Bank of England report ">cash</a> may
go under the mattress instead, robbing lenders of a crucial source of
funding. But there’s mounting concern that when banks absorb the cost of
negative rates themselves, that squeezes the <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-02-10/ubs-doubles-dividend-as-fourth-quarter-profit-beats-estimates" title="Bloomberg article">profit margin</a> between their lending and deposit rates, and might make them <em>even less</em> willing to lend. The Bank for International Settlements warned in a March 2016 <a href="https://www.bis.org/publ/qtrpdf/r_qt1603e.htm">report </a>of
“great uncertainty” if rates stay negative for a prolonged period. And
if more and more central banks use negative rates as a stimulus tool,
there’s <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2016-02-26/carney-warns-g-20-against-zero-sum-game-of-negative-rates" title="Bloomberg article">concern</a> the policy might ultimately lead to a <a href="http://www.bloombergview.com/quicktake/currency-wars" title="QuickTake on currency wars ">currency war</a> of competitive devaluations.<br />
<br />
</section>
<h3>
The Reference Shelf</h3>
<ul>
<li>A Bloomberg comic <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2016-central-banks/#1">explains</a> how negative interest rates aim to put money to work.</li>
<li>The Bank for International Settlements published a March 2016 <a href="https://www.bis.org/publ/qtrpdf/r_qt1603e.htm">report</a> on negative rates.</li>
<li>An <a href="http://www.riksbank.se/Documents/Rapporter/Ekonomiska_kommentarer/2015/rap_ek_kom_nr11_150929_eng.pdf">analysis</a> of the impact of negative rates in 2015 from Sweden’s central bank.</li>
<li>Blog posts from Francesco Papadia, a former director general for market operations at the ECB, on whether the central bank <a href="http://moneymatters-monetarypolicy.blogspot.de/2013/11/should-ecb-go-negative.html">should have negative rates</a>, and a discussion about <a href="http://moneymatters-monetarypolicy.blogspot.de/2014/05/where-could-ecb-interest-rates-go.html#more">where rates could go</a>.</li>
<li>A <a href="http://www.ecb.europa.eu/press/key/date/2012/html/sp120219.en.html" title="Link to speech">speech</a> by Benoit Coeure, a member of the ECB Executive Board, on monetary policy and the challenges of the zero lower bound.</li>
<li>A Bloomberg News article outlining the <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-06-26/draghi-may-enter-twilight-zone-where-bernanke-fears-to-tread.html" title="Draghi May Enter Twilight Zone Where Bernanke Fears to Tread (1)">pros and cons</a> of a deposit rate of zero or below and a <a href="http://www.bloomberg.com/quicktake/europes-qe-quandry/">QuickTake</a> on the ECB’s debate over quantitative easing.</li>
<li>An ECB research paper on <a href="http://www.ecb.europa.eu/pub/pdf/scpwps/ecbwp1528.pdf" title="Link to Working Paper">non-standard</a> monetary policy and a Bank of England <a href="http://www.bankofengland.co.uk/publications/Documents/other/treasurycommittee/ir/tsc160513.pdf">study</a> of negative rates.</li>
</ul>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-14888342859770101932016-01-05T10:53:00.001-05:002016-01-05T10:53:09.870-05:00北大国家发展研究院长:2016年要准备过苦日子(图)<h3 style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Microsoft YaHei', Tahoma, Verdana, STHeiTi, simsun, sans-serif; font-size: 1.6em; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 0px;">
北大国家发展研究院长:2016年要准备过苦日子(图)</h3>
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文章来源: <span itemprop="author">微信</span> 于 <time datetime="2016-01-04T13:16:02" itemprop="datePublished">2016-01-04 13:16:02</time> - 新闻取自各大新闻媒体,新闻内容并不代表本网立场!</div>
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<br />在近期举办的“学习型中国论坛”上,北京大学国家发展研究院院长姚洋表示,2016年大家要准备过一个苦日子,可能会是这一轮经济调整最困难的一年。他告诫企业家,这一年将会有很多企业被并购掉,被重组掉,还有一些企业可能不得已宣布破产。以下为演讲速记摘编,由演讲者根据录音记录修订。<br /><br />现在经济下行可能是三种原因叠加起来造成的<br /><br />我想现在经济下行,恐怕是三种原因叠加起来造成的:<br /><br />第一,经济危机之后,世界整个经济在收缩。<br /><br />世界贸易实际是在收缩的。中国也在跟着收缩,因为中国现在已经是世界上最大的贸易国。如果世界的贸易在收缩,中国的贸易也在收缩。这样造成了中国经济一个巨大的(转变)。我们在过去的二十多年间,外贸对经济增长的贡献是1/3,现在这1/3基本上没有了,开始变成负的了。这是我们经济减速的一个重要的外部因素。<br /><br />第二,从内部来说,国家经济发展到今天,也面临一个结构转型。<br /><br />我们的工业化进行了二三十年,到2010年、2012年的时候,基本上达到了顶峰。经济学上的一条规律,当你工业化发展到顶峰之后,财力物力就会向着比较低的生产力部门转移。我们工业部门是生产力最高的部门,但是我们现在看到大量的人力物力在转向服务业,服务业的劳动价值没有工业高,这样也会使得我们经济增长减速。<br /><br />第三,最重要的一个,就是经济周期本身的规律。<br /><br />没有一个国家可以避免这个经济周期,只不过你的经济波动是可以大一点、小一点,中国的经济波动应该来说还是蛮剧烈的。<br /><br />从1992年邓小平南巡开始,我们基本上经历了四次大的周期,两次上升、两次下降。<br /><br />第一次上升是1992-1997年,我们的经济上升非常非常快。<br /><br />1997-2003年我们的经济处于下行,而且是一个空缩的状态。如果大家有记忆的话,那一段时间也是我们国家经济非常非常困难的时期。<br /><br />2004-2012年这段时间,是我们经济飞速发展的时间,是有史以来我们经济增长速度最快的几年,得益于外部条件改善,得益于我们工业化往上冲。所以在那个时候,我们有一句话就是“即使是猪站在风口上也会飞起来”,因为那时候风大,所以大家都飞得非常高。<br /><br />但是从2012年之后,我们整个经济开始下行,导火索当然是欧洲的危机,传染到全世界。现在看来,唯一还有一点亮点的地方就是美国经济,这也是为什么美元在升,所有国家的货币相比美元都在贬,中国也不例外,会跟着贬。但是我们这个贬值,会不会贬过7呢?我觉得不太可能,如果真有这样贬值的危机,央行肯定是要干预,尤其是一个心理的关口。<br /><br />过去的周期基本上是大口径,算起来是每七年一个周期,这样算从2012年开始,我们下次的这个周期才刚刚开始。所以2016年大家要准备过一个苦日子,可能会是这一轮经济调整最困难的一年。<br /><br />2016这一年会发生什么事呢?<br /><br />我想第一,会有很多企业会被并购掉,会被重组掉,还有一些企业可能不得已宣布破产。<br /><br />从中央经济工作会议传递出来的消息,明年也是一个重要的调整之年。中央经济工作会议提出五大任务:去产能、去库存、去杠杆、降成本、补短板。<br /><br />前面三个任务实际上对我们来说都不是利好的消息,首先“去产能”,我们这些过剩产能的行业,比如说钢铁、水泥、煤炭都要去产能,与此相关的一些行业也要跟着收缩产能,国家已经确定了这样一个目标。去产能的力度到底有多大?从这次中央经济工作会议传递的精神来看,可能这个力度会非常大,大家要做好这个心理准备。<br /><br />第二是去库存,我们一线的房子在暴涨,特别是深圳房价暴涨,这事说明现在投资机会少了。大家有钱,中国人还是有钱,你要投资要到少数地方。深圳是被投资者看到是“价值洼地”,冲上去了。但在广大二三四线城市库存量是非常非常大的,要消化起来是极端的困难。现在中央经济工作会议提出来要加快农民进城,希望农民把多余库存消化掉。<br /><br />我个人更建议政府发债,政府把这些过剩房子收起来。现在这是绝佳的机会,开发商已经意识到明年日子非常难过,政府把房子拿去,打六折你开发商卖不卖,很多开发商愿意尽快的套现。有这些房源之后怎么办?可以分给这些进城的农民,李克强总理说要解决三个一亿人的住房问题,已经进城的一亿人,还有棚户区改造的一亿人,还有新进城一亿人的住房问题,这是一个绝佳的机会。<br /><br />第三个方面去杠杆,去杠杆不是说要把我们的M2降下来,M2降下来是不太可能,除非你央行大规模的收缩。去杠杆的意思就是要把我们在经济里面说白了就是三角债清理,任务非常艰巨,也会对我们企业产生很大的影响,大家要有心理准备。<br /><br />利好消息就是后面两句话,降成本,会有一些结构性的减税。这次特别提出来要在我们的传统领域要进行减税,甚至要减增值税,这是一个利好消息。尽管具体的政策没有出来,但是方向已经确定。<br /><br />最后一个补短板,就是要把我们的一些供给侧的短板给补上。有些传统的供给还不够,我们要补齐短板。<br /><br />另外一个利好消息就是中央经济工作会议提出来要适度扩大财政赤字,这个是从来没有提出过来的。因为我们国家一直把财政赤字不超过GDP的2%作为一个关口。明年有可能会突破,突破是个利好消息,意味着政府会以更大的力度来促进投资,特别是地方政府的投资,对经济会是一个很大的利好消息。<br /><br />再一个利好消息就是股市,上海的战略新兴板明年一定会开,新三板的转板规则可能会出来,对大家都是个利好消息。我希望注册制改革能够尽快的推出,否则又会像今年一样,本来是很好的一头慢牛最后变成一头疯牛,只有让市场变得更加深厚之后,才能让股市变成一头慢牛。<br /><br />这种情况下,2016年我们企业应该做什么?<br /><br />在寒冬里面,做企业的第一要务是什么呢?保持你的现金流,你不要让你的现金流断掉,投资一定要谨慎,哪怕是明年的股市再出现很大的上升苗头,我也希望大家一定要保证自己的现金流。特别是中小企业,千万不要以为股市的钱好赚,我也赚一把。有现金有血才不会倒下。<br /><br />第二步就是练内功,经济总是会回稳的。经济周期明年是最关键的一年,也是最底部的,经济可能会逐步回升,到了2017年是我们要开“十九大”。通常我们的政治周期,当你要开党代会的时候,经济都会往上走。<br /><br />预期到2017年,我们的经济要开始回暖。在回暖的时候如果大家没有准备好,就不可能赶上下一波风口。就是练好内功,让我们的企业在下一阵风到来的时候,也站在风口上,那我们的事业就可以持续下去。(作者:北京大学国家发展研究院院长姚洋) </div>
minutemanhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/09798035945782569111noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3864161393184469427.post-57829928796458565572016-01-05T08:51:00.001-05:002016-01-05T08:51:49.287-05:00三大黑天鹅现踪,金融市场暴风将至(图)<h3 style="color: #333333; font-family: 'Microsoft YaHei', Tahoma, Verdana, STHeiTi, simsun, sans-serif; font-size: 1.6em; margin: 0px; padding: 5px 0px;">
三大黑天鹅现踪,金融市场暴风将至(图)</h3>
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文章来源: <span itemprop="author">苹果日报</span> 于 <time datetime="2016-01-04T14:25:27" itemprop="datePublished">2016-01-04 14:25:27</time> - 新闻取自各大新闻媒体,新闻内容并不代表本网立场!</div>
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<br />新年开市头一天,诸多专家所“预言”的黑天鹅已一一现踪,宛如未来1年金融市场暴风将至前的预演,沙伊断交导致地缘政治风险骤升,刺激国际油价无预警飙高,中国股汇双杀引发投资人不安、拖累全球股市下挫,加上美国升息动向不确定性带来的潜在压力,地平线彼端已闻惊雷乍响。<br /><br />伴随地缘政治风险加剧,今年金融市场注定不平静。油价所反映的不只是市场结构问题,也与地缘政治情势息息相关,自1973年以叙战争引发首次石油危机以来,历史上每次油价剧烈震荡均难脱地缘政治因素。无论是油价低迷持续带动原物料行情下挫,或如沙伊断交等意料外事件驱使油价大涨,都令投资人深感担忧。<br /><br />在激进组织伊斯兰国(IS)恐怖攻击威胁阴影下,从中东地区、乌俄边境乃至东欧及南中国海等区域局势不安,都可能刺激油价走势脱轨。若能源安全意识提高各国战备储油需求、产油地区情势动荡扰乱生产,促使油价暴冲,恐打击欧洲等高度仰赖能源进口的国家,并推升企业与个人消费成本。<br /><br />从另一方面而言,以沙乌地阿拉伯为首的OPEC(石油输出国家组织)已放弃限制产量,沙、伊撕破脸恐将OPEC内部纷争搬上台面,使全球原油价格战愈演愈烈,增添油价暴起暴落可能性。<br /><br />而中国经济景况似乎无助原物料行情回稳。最新数据显示中国制造业景气已连5个月走疲,创2009年至今连续走软最久纪录。IHS Global Insight亚太首席经济学家毕斯瓦斯(Rajiv Biswas)指出,在制造业景气衰疲的同时,服务业扩张动能却增强,反映经济呈双速发展,钢铁、造船等关键出口领域产能过剩,恐使今年制造业景气持续萎缩。<br /><br />这凸显了中国经济转型过程恐难平稳。即使中国人民银行(人行)预料仍将宽松政策以提振经济,投资人为规避风险仍纷纷撤离中国。若全球经济展望走软、美国联准会(Fed)升息带动美元走强,使资金加速流向美元等避险资产,势必削弱人行对人民币汇价的掌控力,将加深人行稳定汇率及开放资本市场的挑战。<br /><br />今年具美国FOMC(联邦公开市场委员会)决策投票权的克里夫兰Fed总裁梅斯特(Loretta Mester)周日已公开表示,她倾向更为积极的升息路径,称在上月启动升息后,已无需再凭藉更多通膨升温证据才可继续收紧政策,且Fed可在任何一次例会决定升息,包括本月稍晚例会。<br /><br />梅斯特的鹰派论调可能只是FOMC新一年立场转变的先声。部份经济学家原本就担心,若油价下跌等压抑通膨的因素消失,令通膨开始加速增温,恐迫使Fed加快升息步伐。在Fed内部升息步伐预期已快于市场的情况下,市场对政策环境仍将保持宽松太感安心,恐导致届时投资人因措手不及而倍感慌乱。<br /><br />从另一角度来看,倘若中国经济减速进一步拖累新兴市场整体景况,冲击全球经济并加深市场波动,可能反过来迫使Fed延缓升息脚步。但Fed升息步伐若比市场预期更缓慢,恐掀起外界对美国经济前景的疑虑,最终市场依旧难免动荡。</div>
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