Author: Steven Sahiounie

Crypto firms are scrambling to find institutions to bank with after the collapse of Signature Bank and Silvergate Capital, two lenders that were friendly to digital currency companies. Some of these companies have turned to crypto-friendly Swiss banks, flooding them with requests for banking services, according to multiple industry insiders who spoke to CNBC. Typically, the crypto industry has found it difficult to access banking services from traditional lenders, who don’t want to touch anything that does not have a clear regulatory framework. This has included blockchain and crypto firms, who have instead had to turn to specialist banks. But with two of…

Skyrocketing inflation has dampened household consumption, an official report says Retail sales in Poland slumped for a second straight month in February, at the fastest pace since 2020 as inflation continued to squeeze spending power, Statistics Poland reported on Tuesday. Last month, sales in the sector dropped by 5% year-on-year, far more than an expected 1.4% decline, the figures showed. On a monthly basis, retail saw a 3.6% decline from January. “Retail sales of goods, with calculations based on data from stores with at least 10 employees, decreased by 5% in February. At the same time, in January this fall…

Türkiye has resumed the transit of some sanctioned goods to Russia, business outlet Kommersant reported on Tuesday, citing market participants. Goods of European origin have been cleared for further shipment to Russia since March 17, the outlet stated. However, the transit of products of US and Canadian origin is still reportedly being blocked by Turkish customs. Reports of refusals by Türkiye to clear transit cargo of non-Turkish origin destined for Russia first emerged on March 6. It was claimed that Ankara had distributed a list of foreign goods banned for export to Russia, and had instructed domestic companies not to…

Tehran wants stronger ties with Moscow amid Western sanctions, according to its economy minister Iran is aiming to expand its partnership with Russia in the energy sector, including projects involving nuclear power and renewables, as the two countries boost economic ties to offset Western sanctions, Iranian Economy Minister Ehsan Khandouzi said on Tuesday. “The prospect of cooperation in the field of ‘new energy’ and renewable energy sources, as well as in the field of other types of energy, including peaceful nuclear energy, certainly causes great interest and motivation to expand economic relations with Russia,” Khandouzi told RIA Novosti. Russia is…

Settlements between Moscow and Beijing are already carried out mostly in national currencies, the Russian president says Russia is ready to increase settlements in yuan in its foreign trade, President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday during talks with his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, who is in Moscow on a three-day official visit. “We are for the use of Chinese yuan in settlements between Russia and the countries of Asia, Africa, and Latin America. I am sure that these forms of settlements in yuan will be developed between Russian partners and their counterparts in third countries,” Putin said. Two thirds of current…

France’s Energy Ministry has revealed that strategic national reserves of fuel have been utilized “in a targeted manner” since the beginning of March. According to a Reuters report on Tuesday, the ministry did not provide details of any shortages, citing confidentiality. The ministry highlighted that supply problems have been building in some southern regions while several refineries were still blocked from delivering products after two weeks of strikes. Workers protesting proposed changes in the French pension system have disrupted fuel deliveries and refining operations, it said. According to the report, the Normandy refinery operated by oil giant TotalEnergies will be shut down…

The banking crisis has shattered the country’s reputation as a pillar of the Western financial system, CEO of Opimas claims The troubles of once-major Swiss investment bank Credit Suisse is undermining Switzerland’s reputation as a global financial hub, says Opimas CEO Octavio Marenzi, as cited by CNBC on Tuesday. His warning follows a historic takeover of Credit Suisse by the UBS Group, its domestic rival. On Sunday the two banking giants announced a Swiss-government-brokered deal aimed at shoring up public confidence in the Western financial system and at averting a global crisis. UBS agreed to acquire the embattled bank for…

Steven Sahiounie, journalist and political commentator The recent Chinese brokered agreement between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran stunned the world. The Biden administration was among the most surprised, as they saw yet another example of the diminishing status of the US in the Persian Gulf region. Saudi Arabia and its oil-rich neighbors have watched as the US has walked away from the region. Steven Sahiounie of MidEastDiscourse interviewed Dr. Javad Masoumi, a geopolitical researcher and analyst, to shed light on some key issues surrounding this new agreement. #1. Steven Sahiounie (SS): The Chinese…

The International Council Supporting Fair Trial and Human Rights called on the international community to relinquish its incorrect approach towards Syria, address the humanitarian situation there and end the embargo imposed on the country. Head of the Council, Abdul Hameed Dashti, in an interactive dialogue Tuesday with the so-called “International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic,” said it is the task of the international community to abandon it incorrect method regarding Syria and immediately move to lift embargo on Syria. Dashti regretted that the Human rights council is going ahead in applying the double standards policy, referring to…

Iran’s Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian said the European Union and the UK’s recent repetitive move to impose sanctions on Iranian targets will be met with a proportional response from Tehran. “The confrontational and sanction policy will be met with Iran’s proportional response,” Amirabdollahian told his Belgian counterpart Hadja Lahbib during a telephone conversation on Monday. Earlier in the day, the European Union announced that it was imposing restrictive measures on additional eight individuals and one entity, including members of the Judiciary, a member of the Iranian parliament, clerics, and a senior official of the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB).…