The Daily Dose will not publish Monday, June 20. Your next issue will be Tuesday, June 21.
TOP NEWS IN BANKING & FINANCIAL SERVICES
* Alabama, Kentucky, New Jersey, Texas and Washington securities regulators are probing cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network Ltd.'s suspension of customer redemptions, citing concerns that investors' inability to access their assets when they need to "may result in significant financial consequences," Reuters reported, quoting Joseph Rotunda, enforcement director at the Texas State Securities Board. Celsius announced on its website June 12 that "due to extreme market conditions," it is pausing all withdrawals, swaps and transfers between accounts to put itself "in a better position to honor, over time, its withdrawal obligations."
* The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is studying and seeking public comment on whether to classify providers of financial information such as indexes, model portfolios and pricing services as investment advisers and apply to these entities the agency's registration and regulation framework for investment advisers. In a statement, Commissioner Caroline Crenshaw cited that financial indexes often form the benchmarks for fund and manager performance or compensation, or as guideposts in academic research.
➤ US D&O insurance industry direct written premiums see modest growth YOY in Q1
Activists and investors are pushing companies to make net-zero commitments, which could have ramifications for the directors and officers insurance market as the potential for increased shareholder suits over environmental, social and governance issues grows.
➤ Short interest in consumer discretionary stocks hits highest level since 2020
After appearing to peak in mid-May, short interest in consumer discretionary stocks resumed its rise through the end of May as the worst inflation in more than 40 years promised to rein in U.S. household spending.
READ MORE
BANKING
* Jonesboro, Ga.-based Heritage Southeast Bancorp. Inc.'s stock took a nosedive, down more than 19% at market close June 16, after the announcement that same day of the mutual decision to terminate Jacksonville Fla.-based VyStar CU's acquisition of the company.
* Citigroup Inc.'s relationship with troubled cosmetic company Revlon Inc. could be getting smudged as the bank now claims rights to the repayment of some $500 million loans caught up in a court battle after Citigroup's payment error to Revlon lenders in 2020, Bloomberg News reported. Revlon has hinted it might not yield to Citigroup's claims, according to the report, citing regulatory filing and recent bankruptcy court filings. Citigroup was Revlon's administrative agent on a credit facility.
* The indicator of U.S. interbank lending risk may be showing signs of stress on the heels of the Federal Reserve's aggressive rate hike, Reuters reported, citing Refinitiv data.
FINANCIAL SERVICES
* The U.S. SEC charged registered broker/dealer Western International Securities Inc. and five of its brokers with violating best interest obligation regulations as they recommended and sold $13.3 million worth of high-risk bonds to retirees and other retail investors.
* Cryptocurrency lending platform BlockFi Inc. is trying to allay fears caused by reported issues at cryptocurrency hedge fund Three Arrows Capital Pte. Ltd., Bloomberg News reported. BlockFi said it continues normal operations and no client funds are impacted by the event, according to the report.
POLICY AND REGULATION
* The Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council said closed-end home purchase loans for first-lien, one- to four-family, site-built, owner-occupied properties made to Black or African American borrowers accounted for 7.9% of mortgage lending transactions in 2021, up from 7.3% in 2020, while those made to Hispanic-White borrowers increased slightly to 9.2% from 9.1%, and those made to Asian borrowers were up at 7.1% from 5.5%.
Click here for a summary of indexes on the S&P Capital IQ Pro platform.
The Daily Dose is updated as of 8 a.m. ET. Some external links may require a subscription. Links are current as of publication time, and we are not responsible if those links are unavailable later.
