Author: Steven Sahiounie

Tesco, Britain’s biggest supermarket chain, is to kick off a review of its presence in the UK banking sector – a move that could lead to a sale of the business. Sky News has learnt that the grocery giant is lining up Goldman Sachs to advise on the future of Tesco Bank, which launched in 1997. City insiders said this weekend that the review was at a very preliminary stage and may not lead to a formal sale process. One source suggested that a partial sale or joint venture could also be an option for the retailer. A banking analyst…

Parliament on Friday reconstituted its Committee to advise the Speaker on the appointment of other members of the Parliamentary Service Board.The membership of the reconstituted advisory Committee include: Mr Osei Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, the Majority Leader and Leader of Government Business, Dr Cassiel Ato Baah Forson, the Minority Leader, Mr Alexander Kwamina Afenyo-Markin, the Deputy Majority Leader and Mr Emmanuel Armah-Kofi Buah, the Deputy Minority Leader.Mr Kyei-Mensah-Bonsu, in moving the motion for adoption by the House, said the reason for reconstituting the advisory Committee was due to the changes in the Leadership of the Parliamentary Caucus of the National Democratic Congress (NDC).“Mr…

The number will not change the path of Federal Reserve interest rate hikes. While a lot of the higher prices for long-lived goods bought during the pandemic when people were unable to shop in person or visit restaurants has reversed itself, the shift to services spending on items like eating out, getting a haircut or taking a pet to the vet has seen those costs rise. How quickly they might come down or stop growing is an open question.Then there are wages. Employee pay surged during the pandemic and while the pace of its growth has slowed, it is still…

As the Bank of Canada monitors the economy’s response to higher interest rates, governor Tiff Macklem says it is still overheated and the labour market is too tight.The governor’s comments come after Statistics Canada’s most recent labour force survey revealed the economy added 150,000 jobs last month as the unemployment rate hovers around record lows.While testifying before the House of Commons finance committee on Thursday, Macklem told MPs the economy is in excess demand, which is putting upward pressure on prices. TThat’s despite the Bank of Canada aiming to slow the economy and cool inflation by hiking its key interest rate…

Roaring job market could mess with the Fed’s plansFed chair Jerome Powell at last week’s press conference. Photo: Samuel Corum/Getty ImagesThe Federal Reserve is in risk management mode and is more worried about the possibility it will do too little to quash inflation rather than too much. Meanwhile the economy, and especially the job market, is proving surprisingly resilient.Why it matters: It creates a meaningful risk of new disruptions to financial markets — and the possibility of a hard economic landing — as the Fed tries to wrestle inflation to a place where it’s persistently low.But another possibility is that they’re both wrong, and…

ADA, the token that powers the smart-contract-enabled Cardano blockchain, has been surging on Tuesday. The cryptocurrency, the world’s eighth largest by market capitalization according to CoinMarketCap, was last up around 8.5% on the day, with ADA/USD changing hands in the $0.39 area, giving it a market cap of around $13.5 billion. ADA is getting a lift from a broader rally being seen across the crypto space – Bitcoin was last up 1.7% and Ethereum around 3.0% on Tuesday, with traders relieved that the latest US inflation numbers, while still hot, weren’t as bad as some had feared. Cardano’s latest rally has seen it…

As U.S. regulators set their sights on crypto companies, does this mean that other countries are in with a chance at becoming a crypto hub? The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is hunting down Web3 companies with its strict policies. Recently it fined Kraken $30 million and ordered the closure of its staking reward facilities. Then, the SEC warned Paxos of possible legal action for violating securities law. Regulators also oppose listing Bitcoin spot Exchange Traded Funds (ETFs.) But it is the SEC’s lawsuit against Ripple Labs that is the most notable. What I don’t understand about America is; You were so liberal with the…

This cryptoweek…many a-stuff happened. Bitcoin fell out of favor after losing grip on $22K, ethereum dipped below $1,500, Blockstream founder said that bitcoin market cap could reach $200 trillion by 2032, bitcoin volatility expectations remained subdued despite hot US inflation figures, the subdued volatility expectations suggested traders were relaxed about bitcoin and ethereum price risks, crypto whales were increasing their holdings in several altcoins, certain cryptos might explode 10x in 2023, a Wells Fargo’s top analyst predicted the end of stocks bear market, a Bloomberg expert sounded the alarm as BTC bulls fought hard to keep the New Year’s rally rolling, crypto experts gave their cardano prediction prices, and Mark Cuban wants BTC…

Consumer prices in January in the Eurozone’s second-largest economy jumped 6% from a year ago, official data shows The cost of consumer goods in France jumped 6% in January in annual terms from 5.9% in December, conclusive data by the country’s statistics agency Insee showed on Friday. The higher consumer price index (CPI) rate was prompted by an acceleration in food costs, which were up 13.3% year-on-year, and in energy prices, which soared 16.3%. The price increases of manufactured goods and those of services have slowed, according to Insee. The report showed that seasonally adjusted, consumer prices increased by 0.8%…

Russia’s SPFS interbank messaging system is expanding at an unprecedented pace and now includes 469 participants, according to Alla Bakina, head of the Central Bank’s national payment system department. “Over the past year, we have connected as many [members] as for the entire period of the system’s operation,” the banking official stated on Friday on the sidelines of a forum in Ekaterinburg. Around 115 of the participants are foreign entities from 14 countries, Bakina added. She noted that the Russian Central Bank is working to connect even more countries to its SPFS system. “We work with friendly countries; they connect in different…