Closing summary
Bitcoin has just broken through $83,000 for the first time, on hopes that president-elect Donald Trump will favour cryptocurrencies when he returns to the White House.
The world’s largest cryptocurrency reached a record high of $83,460, up by 9%. The price has more than doubled from around $37,000 a year ago.
The Trump trade has spread throughout financial markets since his victory became clear last Wednesday, with the dollar gaining in value as investors await a high-spending US government, which would limit the Federal Reserve’s room for interest rate cuts.
The dollar rose by 0.6% on Monday against a trade-weighted basket of currencies, with the euro dropping to its lowest since May, falling by 0.7% to $1.0641. The pound was also down, by 0.46% to $1.2862.
Stocks on Wall Street have hit fresh highs and European shares are also pushing higher.
Trump has in the past called bitcoin a “scam against the dollar”, but he changed tack during the recent US presidential election campaign, courting the crypto community and appearing at industry events. That has created an expectation of a relaxation of rules to make it easier for retail savers to invest in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies – although Trump has not specified any policies.
NatWest has bought back shares worth £1bn from the UK government, as the privatisation of the bailed-out bank continues after a plan to offer a chunk of the stock to retail investors was abandoned.
The government and NatWest said on Monday that the Treasury’s holding will drop from 14.2% to 11.4%, after the sale of shares at a price of about £3.81, the bank’s closing price on Friday.
The sale means the government has now recouped more than £20bn from the sale of shares that it has held since a £46bn bailout in 2008 during the financial crisis, when the Treasury was forced to step in to prevent the bank, then called Royal Bank of Scotland, from going under. The government owned 84% of NatWest when it was part-nationalised.
Our other main stories:
Thank you for reading. We’ll be back tomorrow. Take care – JK
Updated
Switzerland's Six Group to buy Aquis Exchange
Switzerland’s exchange operator Six Group has struck a deal to buy Aquis Exchange, a UK-based trading exchange and data provider, in a deal worth £194m.
The offer is for 727p in cash for every Aquis share, representing a 120% premium to Friday’s closing price. It has been unanimously recommend by Aquis directors, according to a statement. The Aquis share price more than doubled to 705p on the news.
The takeover would be the biggest for Six since its acquisition of Bolsas y Mercados Espanoles, which runs Spain’s stock exchange, for €2.8bn in 2020. The company said the deal will allow it to expand its exchange business beyond Switzerland and Spain and add the UK firm’s technology and data products.
Wall Street stocks at record highs
On Wall Street, stocks have opened at record highs, as the post-election rally continued.
The Dow Jones gained by 1% while the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq both added 0.3%, hitting fresh highs.
The dollar has risen by 0.6% against a basket of major currencies, as investors are betting that the incoming Trump administration’s inflationary polices will limit the Federal Reserve’s scope for further interest rate cuts.
Major European stock markets are more than 1% ahead – Germany’s Dax, France’s CAC and Italy’s FTSE MiB – while the UK’s FTSE 100 index rose by 0.9% to 8,143.
FTX sues Binance and former CEO for $1.76bn
The collapsed crypto exchange FTX is suing Binance, the world’s largest cryptocurrency exchange, and its former boss Changpeng Zhao for $1.76bn over an allegedly “fraudulent” share deal.
The lawsuit also accuses Zhao of sending “false, misleading and fraudulent tweets”.
In a lawsuit filed in Delaware on Sunday, the FTX estate claims that a stock repurchase agreement in July 2021 between Binance and FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried was “fraudulent” because, it says, FTX and its sister company Alameda Research were insolvent at the time, making the deal invalid.
The filing claims that FTX and Alameda “may have been insolvent from inception and certainly were balance-sheet insolvent by early 2021”.
FTX bought back Binance’s and its executives’ 20% stake in FTX’s international business and 18.4% holding in its US-based unit in July 2021, the filing shows.
Bankman-Fried is in prison after being sentenced to 25 years for fraud in March.
Zhao stepped down from Binance in April and was sentenced to four months in jail after pleading guilty to money-laundering violations, which are unrelated to this lawsuit.
The lawsuit says:
Because of its insolvency, the Debtor Plaintiff’s July 2021 transfer of at least $1.76 billion worth of cryptocurrency to its equity holder Binance and certain Binance executives, in the form of a share repurchase, was a constructive fraudulent transfer.
The lawsuit also alleges:
Beginning on November 6, 2022, Zhao sent a series of false, misleading, and fraudulent tweets that were maliciously calculated to destroy his rival FTX, with reckless disregard to the harm that FTX’s customers and creditors would suffer.
A Binance spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg:
The claims are meritless, and we will vigorously defend ourselves.
Horizon inquiry: Badenoch says 'extremely disappointing' that it took ITV drama to speed up compensation
Kemi Badenoch has said it is “extremely disappointing” that it took the ITV drama about the Post Office scandal to get the government to accelerate compensation payments for wrongfully prosecuted post office branch owners, the inquiry into the Horizon scandal has heard.
Badenoch, the leader of the opposition who held the post of business secretary for 17 months until the general election, said she and then postal minister Kevin Hollinrake had been battling behind the scenes to get Treasury to sign off on funding to more rapidly and generously pay subpostmasters affected by the Horizon IT scandal.
The inquiry was shown a letter sent last August by Badenoch to Jeremy Hunt, the then chancellor, asking for funding and a plan to increase payments to improve the compensation schemes.
Hunt rejected the request and “encouraged” Badenoch “to explore the full breadth of other options”. Badenoch, giving evidence on Monday, said:
I was not expecting the documentary [ITV Bates vs the Post Office drama] in January which helped speed things along. It suddenly turned it from a value for money question to a public perception question. This is the point I have been talking about. It is not enough to do the right thing, you have to be seen to be doing the right thing. Many people had not known the arguments [already] taking place behind the scenes at Whitehall. Work was being done by no one was seeing what was taking place.
Badenoch said that the TV drama “changed the priority of the [Horizon] issue which was behind the NHS and security and so on to something we needed to solve now. It raised the prioritisation”.
Jason Beer, counsel for the inquiry, said that it is disappointing to hear that it took a TV drama to get the government to change its priorities in relation to the scandal. Badenoch said:
It is extremely disappointing. If you look at it in the context of what is happening in government. There are 1000 things money is being requested for. After a while decision makers become very dispassionate, it becomes another line in the ledger. It is not irrational but it has to change, it is not helpful either. There is an absence of common sense in a lot of Whitehall. They don’t trust their judgement. People want legal cover.
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Bitcoin breaks through $82,000; dollar rises to four-month high
Bitcoin has broken through $82,000 on so-called ‘Trump trades’ – with investors betting that a second Donald Trump administration will be more favourable towards the cryptocurrency.
Bitcoin, the world’s biggest cryptocurrency, touched $82,413 this morning, and is now trading at $82,105.
AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould said:
Bitcoin always seemed a likely beneficiary of a Trump victory and so it is proving as the cryptocurrency hits a new record high.
It’s not just the incoming occupant of the White House which has helped bitcoin, there have also been down-ticket victories for candidates who have a positive stance on the asset class. Notably, one of its main critics, Senate banking chair and Democrat Sherrod Brown, fell to his Republican opponent and a crypto fan Bernie Moreno.
The dollar has also gained, rising to a four-month high, as Trump is expected to usher in more inflationary policies, which would limit the Federal Reserve’s scope for further interest rate cuts.
The dollar is up by 0.4% against a basket of other major currencies. The euro lost nearly 0.6% to $1.0657, its lowest level since June. Investors worry about potential US tariffs that would damage the eurozone and global economy, once Trump takes office.
Updated
Here’s our full story on Bitcoin reaching a new record high:
President-elect Donald Trump has in the past called bitcoin a “scam against the dollar”, but he changed his tune on cryptocurrency during the US presidential election campaign, courting the crypto community and appearing at industry events. That has created an expectation of a relaxation of rules to make it easier for retail savers to invest in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies – although Trump has not specified any policies.
Trump even went as far as giving his backing in September to a cryptocurrency venture, World Liberty Financial, run by his family, a move that could leave him open to criticisms over potential conflicts of interest if he moves to deregulate digital assets. His son, Donald Trump Jr, has said that cryptocurrency offers an alternative to a banking system that he alleges is tilted against conservatives.
Updated
Direct Line to cut 550 jobs after losing 71,000 motor insurance customers
The UK insurer Direct Line said it will cut around 550 jobs after losing more motor insurance customers amid higher premiums.
The company, which rejected a £3.1bn takeover bid from Belgian rival Ageas earlier this year, lost a further 71,000 own-brand motor customers in the third quarter when insurance premiums rose by 3% year-on-year, on average.
The job reductions are part of efforts to save £50m next year, and create a “leaner and more efficient operating model”. The firm said the cuts will include vacancies no longer being filled.
The job reductions represent more than 5% of the 9,000 workers employed by the group.
Direct Line shares rose by 0.4% this morning.
Matt Britzman, senior equity analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown, said:
Direct Line is looking to cut around 550 jobs as the insurance giant continues to battle with internal demons and a tough trading environment. Cutting costs is one angle of attack to try and bring performance back on track, the other angle must come from stabilising the customer base, especially in the all-important motor division.
The good news is that the rate of decline in customer numbers is slowing, as insurance prices are now starting to come down after some mammoth hikes were put through earlier in the year.
It’s no secret that Direct Line has struggled over the past few years to deal with a challenging motor insurance market, and operational missteps have weighed on performance. But armed with a new leadership team, a more refined strategy, and new growth angles like the relaunch on price comparison sites, this looks like the best version of Direct Line for some time. Whether it’s able to deliver all that’s promised remains to be seen.
Adam Winslow took over as chief executive in March, joining from rival insurer Aviva. Jane Poole recently became chief financial officer, and in December, Maz Bown will become chief risk officer, both also joining from Aviva.
Winslow said:
We delivered double-digit premium growth year on year in motor, home and commercial direct. However, we are in the early stages of a significant turnaround and our Q3 trading is not yet fully reflective of the actions we have taken.
Updated
Dollar rises as rate cut expectations are pared
The dollar is rising this morning, as investors are betting that president-elect Donald Trump’s policies could lead to more inflation, and force America’s central bank to keep interest rates higher.
The dollar index, which measures its performance against a basket of major currencies, rose by nearly 0.4%. The pound lost by 0.2% against the dollar to $1.2894 while the euro slid by 0.35% versus the US currency, to $1.0680.
Ricardo Evangelista, senior analyst at ActivTrades, explained:
Despite the Federal Reserve’s recent 25-basis-point rate cut, the greenback is benefiting from market speculation that incoming US policies could spark inflationary pressures, potentially altering the Fed’s future rate trajectory.
Donald Trump has announced plans for a protectionist trade agenda, including significant tariffs on imports. If implemented, these measures could drive consumer prices higher, potentially limiting the Fed’s options for future rate cuts. Against this backdrop, financial markets are responding by offloading Treasuries [US government bonds], which is pushing yields higher.
This shift is also creating greater demand for the dollar as investors seek yield advantage, which in turn strengthens the greenback’s position. As a result, the dollar has been gaining momentum across major currency pairs, supported by expectations that US interest rates may remain elevated for a longer period.
Traders see a 65% chance of another 25 basis-point rate cut from the Fed in December, according to the CME Fedwatch tool. Several Fed officials, including chair Jerome Powell, are due to speak this week.
IG market strategist Yeap Jun Rong said:
Trump being the president-elect has directly led to some paring in rate-cut expectations into 2025, with a potential ‘Red Wave’ translating to little resistance to his tax cuts and spending plans, coupled with his stance for more tariffs.
Overall, that may complicate the Fed’s fight against inflation and we may expect the Fed to be more cautious in its easing process ahead, suggesting upside pressures on yields and a stronger U.S. dollar, which could cap gold prices.
The Russian rouble weakened against the dollar as markets pondered the prospects for Russia’s war in Ukraine, following a conversation between Trump and Russian president Vladimir Putin. The rouble fell by 0.4% to 98 per dollar.
The Kremlin has denied that Putin spoke to Trump after his election victory last week.
“There was no conversation,” Dmitry Peskov, the Russian president’s spokesperson, said today, according to Interfax. “This is completely made up, it is just false information,” Peskov told reporters, adding that Putin did not have “concrete” plans to speak to Trump.
Peskov was responding to a Washington Post report that Trump warned Putin not to escalate his invasion of Ukraine during a call last Thursday.
Updated
While European stocks are pushing higher, Asian shares fell today, as China’s stimulus package disappointed investors.
Germany’s Dax gained 1.2% to 19,447. In Paris, the CAC 40 rose by 1.3% to 7,430. Britain’s FTSE 100 climbed by 0.7%, to 8,130.
The futures for the S&P 500, Nasdaq and the Dow Jones rose by between 0.2% and 0.3%, pointing to a higher open on Wall Street later.
China approved a 6 trillion yuan plan during a meeting of its national legislature on Friday, designed to help local governments refinance their mountains of debt, in the latest push to revive growth in the world’s second-largest economy.
Stephen Innes of SPI Asset Management said:
It’s not exactly the growth rocket many had hoped for. While it’s a substantial number, the stimulus is less about jump-starting economic growth and more about plugging holes in a struggling local government system.
The need for action was underlined by weak inflation figures in China. Consumer prices rose by just 0.3% in the year to October, while producer prices fell by 2.9%.
Jochen Stanzl, chief market analyst at CMC Markets, said:
Although the government in Beijing has redoubled its efforts to boost the economy, consumer prices in October rose at their slowest pace in four months. Deflation in producer prices has deepened.
China is suffering from weak domestic demand and no one knows what the impact of the extensive economic stimulus measures will be. Ultimately, the new price data from China gives the impression that prices would have fallen even further if the government had not intervened.
Chinese banks extended 500bn yuan in new loans last month, a sharp drop from 1.59 trillion in September.
Updated
Autolus gets FDA approval for leukaemia treatment
The British biotech sector has received a boost, after London-based Autolus Therapeutics, a UCL spinout, received US regulatory approval for its new treatment for a rare form of leukaemia.
The US Food and Drug Administration has given the UK biotech marketing approval for Aucatzyl, for the treatment of adults with acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL), a severe form of blood cancer that is fatal without treatment.
Spun out from University College London in 2014, the business develops programmed T-cell therapies: also known as living medicines, they re-engineer patients’ immune systems to recognise and attack cancer.
Elias Jabbour, US lead investigator of the FELIX clinical trial of the drug, and professor of leukaemia at The University of Texas, said:
Adult ALL is an extremely aggressive cancer, and there is a high unmet medical need that exists in the treatment of patients with this disease once they relapse, where historically they suffer from poor outcomes.
This milestone approval, based on the demonstrated clinical benefit of Aucatzyl, brings new hope for adult patients with relapsed/refractory B-ALL.
The drug, a T-cell immunotherapy that is delivered via infusion, will be manufactured at Autolus’ manufacturing site in Stevenage.
Around 8,400 new cases of adult ALL are diagnosed every year in the US and EU.
Christian Itin, chief executive of Autolus, said it was “a proud day” for the firm.
This milestone is the culmination of many years of hard work, the foundational work by our partners at UCL and the unwavering commitment of our internal team, our external partners and shareholders.
The company floated on Nasdaq in 2018, and counts the British life science investment firm Syncona, as well as Blackstone Life Sciences among its backers.
European shares rise, oil prices edge higher as US storm supply threat fades
UK and other European stocks have risen at the opening bell, while oil prices edged higher after falling earlier, as the threat of supply disruptions from a US storm faded.
The FTSE 100 index in London has added 58 points, or 0.7%, to 8,129 in early trading. NatWest shares rose by 1.6% to £3.86 at after the Treasury announced that it had sold another large chunk of its shareholding back to the bank for £1bn, at £3.81 each.
Germany’s Dax rose by 0.9% while France’s CAC advanced by 0.8% and Italy’s FTSE Mib rose by 1.1%.
In oil markets, Brent crude rose by 0.2% to $74.02 a barrel while US light crude was little changed at $70.44 a barrel.
Both benchmarks fell by more than 2% on Friday. China’s stimulus plan disappointed investors. The country’s oil consumption has barely grown this year as economic growth has slowed.
Donald Trump’s election promises of raising import tariffs to boost the US economy have clouded the global economic outlook, although expectations that he could tighten sanctions on Opec producers Iran and Venezuela and cut oil supply to global markets helped oil prices to gain more than 1% last week.
Updated
German financial journalist Holger Zschäpitz said on X:
#Bitcoin tops $80k for 1st time ever on Trump optimism. Trump was declared the winner in Arizona, marking a clean sweep of the 7 US battleground states. His decisive victory has prompted celebratory chest-thumping from the crypto industry, which spent >$100mln backing a range of… pic.twitter.com/alRrALJNp6
— Holger Zschaepitz (@Schuldensuehner) November 10, 2024
Fund manager Jeroen Blokland said on X:
Impressive!
— jeroen blokland (@jsblokland) November 10, 2024
Like with #gold, traditional asset & wealth managers, financial advisors, and private bankers have a lot of explaining to do to their clients.#Bitcoin! https://t.co/XrSyTZOUS2 pic.twitter.com/gLAhVqC2na
Introduction: Bitcoin breaks $81,000 for first time on Trump trades; UK government sells £1bn of NatWest shares
Good morning, and welcome to our rolling coverage of business, the financial markets and the world economy.
Bitcoin has soared to a new record high of more than $81,000, following Donald Trump’s victory in the US presidential election last week and the election of some pro-crypto candidates to Congress.
The world’s best-known cryptocurrency has more than doubled since its low of $38,505 in January. It touched a record high of $81,899 and is now trading at $81,024, up 5.9% on the day.
Trump promised to make the United States the “crypto capital of the planet” on the campaign trail and to create a strategic stockpile of bitcoin. He also said he would appoint financial regulators that favour digital assets, and sack the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission, Gary Gensler. Gensler has led the regulator’s crackdown on cryptocurrencies.
Other cryptocurrencies such as ether and dogecoin, promoted by Trump ally Elon Musk, also rose.
Other so-called ‘Trump trades’ – from US stocks to shorting bonds – have lost some steam since the election, but cryptocurrencies are still powering ahead.
However, one analyst told Reuters that while bitcoin’s rise is fuelled on hopes for reduced regulation of cryptocurrencies, Trump’s focus on other issues could mean he does not do much on crypto initially.
Matt Simpson, senior market analyst at City Index, also said:
Bitcoin’s Trump-pump is alive and well... with Republicans on the cusp of taking the house to confirm a red wave in Congress, it seems the crypto crowd are betting on digital-currency deregulation.
In the UK, NatWest has bought back shares worth £1bn from the government, taking a further step towards full private ownership following the bank’s bailout during the financial crisis.
In the summer, the government ditched a plan to sell shares to retail investors.
The government and NatWest said this morning that the Treasury’s shareholding will drop from 14.2% to 11.4%, after selling shares for nearly £3.81, the bank’s closing price on Friday.
The sale means the government has now recouped more than £20bn from the sale of shares held since a 2008 bailout during the financial crisis, when the Treasury stepped in to prevent the bank, then called Royal Bank of Scotland, from going under.
The Agenda
8.10am GMT: ECB policymaker Elizabeth McCaul speech
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