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January 9, 2023

The FTC thinks banning non-compete agreements could increase American wages by $300 billion per year

Lina Khan testifies before congress. — The architect of the Biden Administration’s ambitious consumer protection reforms, Lina Khan is the youngest head of the FTC in the agency’s history.

The US Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is proposing a ban on non-compete agreements that prevent workers from moving to another company or starting a business in the same field, a decision that could affect roughly 30 million Americans. FTC chair Lina Khan argued that non-compete restrictions drive down wages and prevent better working conditions, estimating that the ban could increase workers’ earnings by $300 billion per year.

“Non-competes are bad for workers and undermine labor competition. When one set of workers are locked in place, that reduces churn overall,” Khan said in a news conference announcing the proposed ban.

The ban would only apply to employees, exempting companies that look to bar an ownership partner from selling a business before immediately founding or joining a competitor. The agency will allow public comment on the proposal for 60 days before moving to make it final. Then, companies will have six months to terminate existing non-compete clauses.

The FTC also announced it was suing three companies (Prudential Security, O-I Glass, and Ardagh Group—the latter two are largest manufacturers of glass food and beverage containers in the country) as well as two individuals it accused of exploiting non-compete restrictions. The order accuses the companies of driving down wages and making it difficult for new competitors to enter the market. According to the agency’s press release, this legal action marks the first time the FTC has sued to halt unlawful non-compete restrictions.

President Biden first endorsed expanded regulation of non-compete contracts in a July 2021 executive order, where he called on the FTC to regulate the unfair use of any clauses that limit worker mobility. Additionally, a coalition of labor organizations, including the AFL-CIO and the SEIU, filed a petition to the FTC in 2019 demanding the elimination of the practice.

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US non-compete agreements, by the numbers:

18%: The estimated share of American workers with non-compete clauses in their contracts.

$300 billion: How much total wages could increase per year once a ban on non-compete agreements is in place

1 in 3: A recent Department of Treasury report estimates over 35% of tech workers are bound by non-compete restrictions.

Person of Interest: Lina Khan

Nearly two years into her job as chair of the FTC, Khan was appointed by president Biden in 2020 as an aggressive proponent of antitrust legislation. The youngest commissioner in the agency’s history, Khan has spent much of her career attempting to reign in massive tech companies and regulate personal data usage in advertising.

While at law school, she published a widely-read essay in the Yale Law Journal called “Amazon’s Antitrust Paradox,” which challenged the traditional interpretation of antitrust law that focuses on securing the lowest price possible for consumers, arguing that Amazon’s ability to use its size to undercut competitors’ prices does not justify its monopolistic practices.

Her nomination was opposed by figures in the tech world. NetChoice, a tech lobbyist group employed by Amazon, Google, Meta, and Twitter, issued a statement calling Khan a “radical” and saying she would turn the FTC into a “tool for progressive activists to change the law.” After her appointment, Amazon and Facebook filed petitions with the FTC seeking her recusal from any investigation of their companies, arguing that her previous criticism of the companies prevented her from being an impartial actor.

As chair of the FTC, Khan has pursued an ambitious agenda. In July, Khan and the FTC blocked Meta’s purchase of a virtual reality company called Within Unlimited, stifling the company’s foray into the Metaverse. One month later, the FTC proposed limits on “commercial surveillance” by companies that sell or share information about people. And, just last month, she blocked Microsoft’s $69 billion attempt to purchase Activision Blizzard after the FTC said the deal would harm consumers and prevent corporate competition.

MGO Global’s accelerated rise

2018: MGO Global is co-founded by Ginny Hilger and Maximiliano Ojeda, with the aim of leveraging the “fame, celebrity power, and global social media influence of world-class athletes, entertainers, and other cultural icons.”

2019: MGO acquires the Messi Brand, a clothing and accessories line inspired by Lionel Messi, currently the company’s sole asset.

2022: MGO files an $8 million IPO, backed by Boustead and Sutter Securities.

2024: Messi’s current licensing contract with MGO ends, encompassing all of MGO’s current products.

Person of interest: Lionel Messi

Messi’s star power has surely never been stronger. His Instagram post celebrating Argentina’s victory at the Qatar World Cup last month became the most popular photo in the app’s history, receiving more than 74 million likes (by comparison, Argentina’s population is 45 million people). Messi’s home province of Santa Fè saw the number of newborns named Lionel and Lionela increase by more than 50% in December compared to the previous month, and the soccer star is also leading recent polling for the Argentine presidential election scheduled later this year by double digits.

But Messi’s future, for now, appears to remain in sports. A free agent this June, multiple outlets have speculated that Messi is headed to the MLS, as David Beckham’s Inter Miami FC aggressively attempts to sign the seven-time Ballon d’Or winner. However, after his recent success, some reports say Messi is considering a one-year extension at Paris St. Germain (PSG), his current club, to chase further success in the UEFA Champions League.

How does Exness ensure proper quality of the trading experience for its traders?

Exness has 6 millions trades executed on average daily and over 350,000 active traders around the world, it is hard to name a silver bullet. We have to address the trading experience aspect holistically.

Firstly, we ensure proper geographical scale and round-the-clock monitoring of our trading infrastructure. Secondly, we provide fair and reliable pricing for every single tick and thirdly, we address common pain-points that traders may face in the trade execution area.

So what does this consistent and reliable service look like in action?

Let’s take the common challenges many traders face:

Spread instability is very common over highly volatile periods, for example, high economic news. Naturally, brokers will try to keep your spreads as tight as possible, however that means quotes have to be updated extremely fast, which can cause slowness and freezes across the price distribution chain.

Another common challenge is the execution of stop orders and stop losses. By nature, those orders cause slippages that are painful for clients and may cause dissatisfaction. Brokers should also find ways to minimize slippages when possible.

Additionally, brokers must remember that fair position liquidation is extremely important in case an account faces margin call and consecutive stop out. Often market situations such as spread widening can trigger position liquidation, causing a lot of unease from clients.

So how do you find balance between tightness of spreads and performance?

We have alerts and monitoring at every step of the price-making and execution process in order to make sure that we are always staying informed about what is going on.

The simple omission of certain quotes is actually not a very good option because you would lose some important market data updates or even execute at a price that has never been sent to the client.

We have found a scientific way to keep our spreads tight and stable while still limiting the load.

There are complex calculations that are happening inside our trading engine, mathematically optimizing the feed we’re sending through the data infrastructure, keeping it at maximum efficient capacity while filtering the market noise that does not affect the execution quality.

All this is happening in high-performance trading engines that have the most processing capacity throughout the whole chain across our regions of presence.

The chart below shows our spreads on GBPUSD during non-farm payrolls, compared with some of our top competitors.

This is made possible thanks to the strong collaboration between different teams – support engineers, quantitative researchers, and developers.

In what ways do you ensure transparency and reliability of the trading experience?

As I said earlier, pricing is only one part of the puzzle. We execute on every tick we send to the client, meaning proper price transparency and the ability to reliably backtest your trading strategies.

More than that we aim to provide certain enhancements to the product which are similar to institutional markets, but for our retail clients. When executing stop orders we aim to fill the client at the requested price, despite moderate market gaps.

That means we effectively offset slippage for ~90+% of orders, making execution more predictable and stable.

Of course, there may be some cases of slippage despite this, but for the vast majority of clients we ensure low slippage and no stop-level experience, which is a rare combination.

Another problematic area is position liquidation in case an account faces a stop-out. We benchmark account stop-out thresholds from mid-price, ensuring price volatility protection for clients, except for rare cases of extremely leveraged positions where it is technically impossible.

Price volatility protection is covering individual accounts, delaying stop outs and protecting from liquidation in case of sudden spread widening, for example during rollover period.

To make sure clients see those mechanisms in action, we will soon add detailed information in the Personal Area, to provide even better visualization and transparency.

How does Exness ensure proper quality of the trading experience for its traders?

Exness has 6 millions trades executed on average daily and over 350,000 active traders around the world, it is hard to name a silver bullet. We have to address the trading experience aspect holistically.

Firstly, we ensure proper geographical scale and round-the-clock monitoring of our trading infrastructure. Secondly, we provide fair and reliable pricing for every single tick and thirdly, we address common pain-points that traders may face in the trade execution area.

So what does this consistent and reliable service look like in action?

Let’s take the common challenges many traders face:

Spread instability is very common over highly volatile periods, for example, high economic news. Naturally, brokers will try to keep your spreads as tight as possible, however that means quotes have to be updated extremely fast, which can cause slowness and freezes across the price distribution chain.

Another common challenge is the execution of stop orders and stop losses. By nature, those orders cause slippages that are painful for clients and may cause dissatisfaction. Brokers should also find ways to minimize slippages when possible.

Additionally, brokers must remember that fair position liquidation is extremely important in case an account faces margin call and consecutive stop out. Often market situations such as spread widening can trigger position liquidation, causing a lot of unease from clients.

So how do you find balance between tightness of spreads and performance?

We have alerts and monitoring at every step of the price-making and execution process in order to make sure that we are always staying informed about what is going on.

The simple omission of certain quotes is actually not a very good option because you would lose some important market data updates or even execute at a price that has never been sent to the client.

We have found a scientific way to keep our spreads tight and stable while still limiting the load.

There are complex calculations that are happening inside our trading engine, mathematically optimizing the feed we’re sending through the data infrastructure, keeping it at maximum efficient capacity while filtering the market noise that does not affect the execution quality.

All this is happening in high-performance trading engines that have the most processing capacity throughout the whole chain across our regions of presence.

The chart below shows our spreads on GBPUSD during non-farm payrolls, compared with some of our top competitors.

This is made possible thanks to the strong collaboration between different teams – support engineers, quantitative researchers, and developers.

In what ways do you ensure transparency and reliability of the trading experience?

As I said earlier, pricing is only one part of the puzzle. We execute on every tick we send to the client, meaning proper price transparency and the ability to reliably backtest your trading strategies.

More than that we aim to provide certain enhancements to the product which are similar to institutional markets, but for our retail clients. When executing stop orders we aim to fill the client at the requested price, despite moderate market gaps.

That means we effectively offset slippage for ~90+% of orders, making execution more predictable and stable.

Of course, there may be some cases of slippage despite this, but for the vast majority of clients we ensure low slippage and no stop-level experience, which is a rare combination.

Another problematic area is position liquidation in case an account faces a stop-out. We benchmark account stop-out thresholds from mid-price, ensuring price volatility protection for clients, except for rare cases of extremely leveraged positions where it is technically impossible.

Price volatility protection is covering individual accounts, delaying stop outs and protecting from liquidation in case of sudden spread widening, for example during rollover period.

To make sure clients see those mechanisms in action, we will soon add detailed information in the Personal Area, to provide even better visualization and transparency.

FTX Collapse: Barry Silbert’s Crypto Empire Is In the Crosshairs of Regulators

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January 9, 2023

FTX Collapse: Barry Silbert’s Crypto Empire Is In the Crosshairs of Regulators

The bankruptcy of Sam Bankman-Fried’s crypto empire continues to cause waves in the crypto space.

The various firms continue to monitor each other to find out who will be the next collateral victims of this disaster after the lender BlockFi went down.

All eyes have been on lender Genesis, a subsidiary of crypto juggernaut Digital Currency Group, aka DCG. Last November, the brokerage stopped customers from making withdrawals and issuing new loans as a result of the bankruptcy of FTX. The division that has halted the withdrawals is Genesis Global Capital, which works with institutional clients and had $2.8 billion in total active loans as of the end of the third quarter.

The company had funds locked in its FTX trading account.

Genesis is also closely watched by regulators. According to Bloomberg News, the Department of Justice and the Security and Exchange Commission are conducting separate investigations into the parent company of the lender and the relationship between the two firms.

Turbotax Webinar 0305 10 Cryptocurrency Lead — Shutterstock

Relations Between DCG and Genesis

Federal prosecutors are, for example, closely examining the transfers of funds between DCG and Genesis. They also want to determine what was told to investors about the transactions between the two companies.

This is similar to the interest of the investigators in the incestuous relations between FTX and its sister company Alameda Research, a hedge fund which was also a trading platform for institutional investors. The fall of the Bankman-Fried empire showed that funds from FTX clients had been loaned to Alameda, amounting to approximately $10 billion. However, the two companies were supposed to be independent even if they shared the same founder.

Federal investigators have requested documents from DCG and Genesis. Both investigations are still in the initial stages and no allegations have yet been made against Digital Currency Group or Genesis.

“While we do not comment on specific legal or regulatory matters, Genesis maintains regular dialogue and cooperates with relevant regulators and authorities when it receives inquiries,” a spokesperson told TheStreet in an emailed statement.

“DCG has a strong culture of integrity and has always conducted its business lawfully. We have no knowledge of or reason to believe that there is any Eastern District of New York investigation into DCG,” a spokesperson said.

The DoJ and the SEC also did not respond. The DoJ investigation is led by the United States Attorney’s Office Eastern District of New York.

The information on the investigations of the regulators comes at a very bad time for DCG and its subsidiary. The Wall Street Journal reported a few days ago that Genesis was on the verge of bankruptcy. The company has also decided to take emergency measures, in particular the elimination of 30% of its workforce.

“We continue working with our advisors, in collaboration with DCG and advisors appointed by various client groups, to evaluate options to preserve client assets and move the business forward,” a spokesperson told TheStreet on Jan. 5.

A Genesis bankruptcy filing would also affect the Gemini cryptocurrency exchange founded by the billionaire twin brothers Tyler and Cameron Winklevoss.

Genesis Providing Loans

Genesis is Gemini’s partner in a reward program offered by the platform to attract customers. This program is called Gemini Earn. It’s a high-yield savings product that promises customers of the cryptocurrency exchange up to an 8% annual return on crypto deposits, depending on which assets are held. Under this program, Genesis serves as Gemini’s primary lender.

Genesis owes $900 million to Gemini’s Earn users. Gemini was also forced to pause withdrawals related to Gemini Earn following the decision of Genesis, which is owned by crypto juggernaut Digital Currency Group.

For several weeks the two companies have been trying to solve the problem, but apparently things are not moving forward. So said Cameron Winklevoss in an open letter to Barry Silbert, the founder and CEO of DCG.

Silbert told investors, last November, that DCG received a $575 million loan from Genesis that is due in May. He also said there’s a $1.1 billion promissory note due in June 2032 tied to the collapse of hedge fund Three Arrows Capital, or 3AC.

He asserted that the loans were “always structured on an arm’s length basis and priced at prevailing market interest rates.”

Besides DCG and Genesis, Silbert also controls Grayscale Investments, a digital asset management company that runs a Bitcoin Trust. DCG is also the parent company of Foundry Digital, a crypto mining service provider, and Luno, a London-based cryptocurrency exchange.

Finally, DCG also owns the crypto news site CoinDesk, which had published the article that caused suspicion around FTX.

Define ‘World Domination’ on SLictionary for a $500 prize

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January 9, 2023

Define ‘World Domination’ on SLictionary for a $500 prize

What does the term “World Domination” mean to you? Popularity? Military conquest? A large social media following? Mass fame? Or something else entirely? If you think you have an original definition for World Domination, here’s your chance to dominate the SLictionary Word Bounty polls and earn yourself $500 for the trouble. But get in quick because the contest ends this Saturday night.

Go straight to the contest by clicking here.

“Word Bounties” are regular contests by creative word definitions and the dictionary app SLictionary. It’s a great Bitcoin app because anyone can use it anywhere in the world. You don’t have to have any knowledge of Bitcoin, finance, or alt-finance to join in. As founder and CEO Jack Pitts said, “even your nonagenarian Grandma can onboard herself to Bitcoin (if she’s any good).”

Why is this particular contest special? Well, the record-setting prize money for starters of the World Domination contest is $504.40, sponsored by nChain CEO Christen Ager-Hanssen. There are many others up for grabs, too, though the prize is usually between a few cents and $5 (for example, you can create a definition for the term “Christen Ager-Hanssen” itself and win $4).

500$ for the the best definition of:
“WORLD DOMINATION” for #BSV in 2023 here:https://t.co/fUoOZS6N3N
Happy New Year from my friend @EquityDiamonds & me. Winner will be announced within 7days pic.twitter.com/H1htO4Y8Dk
— Christen Ager-Hanssen (@agerhanssen) January 1, 2023

Having wit and originality helps, though SLictionary says all you need is “a faint interest in words and a competitive spirit” to make some money. If you’re reading this far, you probably qualify for that. You don’t have to pay anything to join in, so a good definition could be your first-ever BSV. The most talented definition wins.

“The record-setting World Domination bounty really shows off the power of our own-your-own-data dictionary product,” Pitts says. “Mr. Ager-Hanssen, a newspaper magnate, will have what he’s always wanted: a majority ownership share of a phrase in the English lexicon which can generate him passive cash-flows in perpetuity. He will have cornered the market on World Domination by Monday, LITERALLY ???? … or hell, just put up another $500 for the wink emoji on Word Bounty and corner that market too! It’s possible on the world’s most sporting dictionary!”

Here is my @SLictionary #WordBounty submission for ‘#WorldDomination‘ sponsored by @agerhanssen
Submit your definition or vote on your favorite: https://t.co/k1oTB81G4W pic.twitter.com/vmD1Zwx7CV
— Bryan Daugherty (@BWDaugherty) January 4, 2023

If you’re already a BSV user, you can log in to SLictionary with a HandCash wallet. If you’re not, you can create an account with a regular email address. The app recommends adding an image, audio file, or an original example sentence to make your entry stand out.

Here’s a video showing how to do it:

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Allowing users who aren’t already Bitcoin users is part of SLictionary’s onboarding drive for 2023. Of course, if you win a Word Bounty contest, you’ll need to get your own BSV wallet to collect the prize money, but by then you’ll want to anyway, right?

Keep using SLictionary even after the contest

If you have a new word you’d like to define, you can also create your own bounty and set the prize money (you’ll have to provide that). Maybe there’s a slang word you don’t really get, or maybe you just want to see people get creative with a term that’s already popular.

SLictionary uses Bitcoin’s online micropayment economy concept to earn revenue and payout to users, similar to other BSV social networks like Twetch and LaMint. You can search for existing and already-defined words for a cent or vote on other people’s definitions you like.

“Word Barons” are the people who sponsor Bounties. “WordSmiths” are the creative ones who define words. It’s an educational, fun, and gamified way to play with words and make some money along the way. Or maybe even achieve… world domination.

Watch: A way with words: NFTs with cash flows via SLictionary

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New to Bitcoin? Check out CoinGeek’s Bitcoin for Beginners section, the ultimate resource guide to learn more about Bitcoin—as originally envisioned by Satoshi Nakamoto—and blockchain.

Robert Kiyosaki: SEC Will ‘Crush’ Most Cryptos, Burry on US Recession, Gold Bug Schiff on Inflation in 2023 — Week in Review

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January 9, 2023

Robert Kiyosaki: SEC Will ‘Crush’ Most Cryptos, Burry on US Recession, Gold Bug Schiff on Inflation in 2023 — Week in Review

2023 is off to a rough start, with crypto business bankruptcies, inflation, and recession impacting markets and looming darker on the horizon. Rich Dad Poor Dad author Robert Kiyosaki says that other than bitcoin, the Unites States Securities and Exchange Commission is going to “crush” most cryptos with regulations. Other investors and economists such as Michael Burry and Peter Schiff have also been weighing in on the foreboding atmosphere for the year ahead. Still, peer-to-peer exchange without the need for institutions stifling economic freedom (the original value proposition of bitcoin) remains a reality, and so does the fact that there’s no shortage of crypto news. This is the Bitcoin.com News Week in Review.

Robert Kiyosaki Buying More Bitcoin — Warns SEC Regulations Will Crush Most Cryptocurrencies

The famous author of the best-selling book Rich Dad Poor Dad, Robert Kiyosaki, has revealed why he is buying more bitcoin. He warned that the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations will “crush” most other cryptocurrencies.

‘Big Short’ Investor Michael Burry Warns of Another Inflation Spike — Expects US to Be ‘in Recession by Any Definition’

Hedge fund manager Michael Burry, famed for forecasting the 2008 financial crisis, says inflation has peaked in the U.S. but there will be another inflation spike. He expects the U.S. economy to be in a recession “by any definition.”

Economist Peter Schiff Predicts Inflation ‘About to Get Much Worse’ — US Dollar Facing ‘One of Its Worst Years Ever’

Economist Peter Schiff has predicted that the U.S. dollar will have “one of its worst years ever” in 2023, warning that the inflation problem is “about to get much worse.” He also shared his prediction about the worst-performing sectors of the stock market this year.

Disputed Venezuelan Gold Worth $1.8B in Bank of England Vaults Remains Uncertain After Dissolution of Interim Government

The status of the Venezuelan gold currently being held by the Bank of England might fall into regulatory limbo after the dissolution of the interim government of Juan Guaido. The 31 tons of gold have been the subject of dispute between the current president Nicolas Maduro and Juan Guaido since 2019, when Guaido integrated a parallel government.

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What are your thoughts on this week’s hottest stories from Bitcoin.com News? Do you think the global economy and crypto are in for a rough year, or are the recent views of Kiyosaki, Burry, and Schiff mistaken? Let us know in the comments section below.

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Disclaimer: This article is for informational purposes only. It is not a direct offer or solicitation of an offer to buy or sell, or a recommendation or endorsement of any products, services, or companies. Bitcoin.com does not provide investment, tax, legal, or accounting advice. Neither the company nor the author is responsible, directly or indirectly, for any damage or loss caused or alleged to be caused by or in connection with the use of or reliance on any content, goods or services mentioned in this article.

Shibarium Developers Say Each On-Chain Transaction Will Burn SHIB Tokens

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January 9, 2023

Shibarium Developers Say Each On-Chain Transaction Will Burn SHIB Tokens

Shibarium is one of the most anticipated projects, mainly in the Shiba Inu community; most SHIB community members are eager for the launch as it could be enough of a catalyst to pump their SHIB bags.

Latest on the news about the layer two blockchain scaling solution, the developers announced via a short thread on Twitter earlier today that every transaction on the Shibarium network would result in a burn of Shiba Inu (SHIB) token.

Shibarium Burn Mechanism To Boost SHIB Price Over Time?

Currently, SHIB has a circulating supply of 589 trillion units and a total supply that exceeds 900 trillion. Its initial total supply was reduced with a recent burn and with the soon-to-be-introduced burning mechanism by Shibarium, SHIB’s price is likely to appreciate as the supply will be reduced.

Though the amount of SHIB token that will be burned after each transaction has not been revealed, the burning mechanism is likely to be a good enough catalyst for not only the SHIB token but the Shibarium blockchain.

Recent Update Reflects On BONE Token

In its previous update, the Shibarium team cleared some false circulating speculations about the blockchain and what native token it will utilize. Shibarium developers noted that BONE will be the only token that would be used for gas fees and “No other tokens will be necessary to operate within the protocol.”

For context, BONE is a governance token of the Shibaswap ecosystem, allowing the SHIB community to vote on upcoming proposals in the ecosystem. The more BONE coins a user holds, the more weight their vote carries in future proposal.

Though it may seem as though BONE is the main character of the Shibarium blockchain, it is not, but more of a partner that will work hand in hand with SHIB. “Shibarium has been developed for SHIB token and not for the sake of other projects who claim ownership or speculation surrounding its operability dependency on any other tokens,” the Shibarium team announced.

So far, BONE has been moving in a positive direction. With consolidation almost as if it’s waiting for the Shibarium launch to make a significant move, the BONE token currently ranks at a position of 113 on CoinGecko with a market cap of more than $250 million. Its current market price at the time of writing is $1.1, with a 24-hour trading volume of $4.1 million.

SHIB Price Chart On TradingView — SHIB price is moving sideways on the 4-hour chart. Source: SHIB/USDT on TradingView

SHIB token, on the other hand, currently ranks higher on CoinGecko, owning the 16th position with a market cap almost heading to $5 billion. It currently has a trading price of $0.00000845 at the time of writing, with a 24-hour trading volume of $175 million.

-Featured image: Shib Army News

China Reopens to the World

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January 9, 2023