September 2024 - cypherpunks - lists.cpunks.org

Google Accused Of Apple 'Stranglehold' In £7B Class Action
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

Google Accused Of Apple 'Stranglehold' In £7B Class Action <https://www.law360.com/competition/articles/1880355?nl_pk=6416fd97-1dc4-4e0…> By William Janes A consumer champion bringing a £7 billion ($9.3 billion) class action against Google told a tribunal Thursday that the tech giant has maintained a "stranglehold" on Apple devices through an illegal exclusivity deal with the iPhone-maker. Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/competition/articles/1880355?nl_pk=6416fd97-1dc4-4e0…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/competition/articles/1880355?nl_pk=6416fd97-1dc4-4e0…>

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Texas Judge Tosses Crypto Co.'s SEC Challenge As 'Unripe'
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

Texas Judge Tosses Crypto Co.'s SEC Challenge As 'Unripe' <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1880747?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…> By Aislinn Keely A Texas federal judge found Thursday that blockchain firm Consensys can't sue the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for a determination that its MetaMask software doesn't offend securities laws because the agency's threat of enforcement and subsequent suit aren't final actions the court can review. Order attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1880747?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/fintech/articles/1880747?nl_pk=d2b3e7ef-ab62-4a62-80…>

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Defunct Crypto Exchange Liable For Bitcoin Withdrawals
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

Defunct Crypto Exchange Liable For Bitcoin Withdrawals <https://www.law360.com/capitalmarkets/articles/1880707?nl_pk=abe82add-2a33-…> By Rachel Scharf A New York judge held Thursday that bygone cryptocurrency exchange Bitfloor improperly failed to return more than 200 of its customers' bitcoins upon shutting down in 2013, but said damages will be limited to the dollar value of the digital assets over a decade ago. Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/capitalmarkets/articles/1880707?nl_pk=abe82add-2a33-…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/capitalmarkets/articles/1880707?nl_pk=abe82add-2a33-…>

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X Corp. Shuts Down Disability Bias Suit Over Musk Takeover
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

X Corp. Shuts Down Disability Bias Suit Over Musk Takeover <https://www.law360.com/mergersacquisitions/articles/1872235?nl_pk=a34c25b5-…> By Grace Elletson A California federal judge scrapped a proposed class action Wednesday alleging Twitter targeted employees with disabilities for termination following Elon Musk's takeover of the business, but left the door open for the former worker behind the suit to revise his claims. Opinion attached | Read full article » <https://www.law360.com/mergersacquisitions/articles/1872235?nl_pk=a34c25b5-…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.com/mergersacquisitions/articles/1872235?nl_pk=a34c25b5-…>

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AI Helping Rise In UK Insurance Fraud, Report Shows
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

AI Helping Rise In UK Insurance Fraud, Report Shows <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880334?nl_pk=a94fc…> By Joel Poultney Nearly one in five insurance claim handlers believe that many fraud claims now involve fake supporting documents created or altered using artificial intelligence tools, a new report shows. Read full article » <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880334?nl_pk=a94fc…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880334?nl_pk=a94fc…>

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Gov't Urged To Push Collective Defined Benefit Pension Plans
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

Gov't Urged To Push Collective Defined Benefit Pension Plans <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880338?nl_pk=a94fc…> By Joel Poultney The U.K. government should push forward new collective pension plans with "bold and innovative" thinking to address Britain's retirement adequacy challenge, Hymans Robertson LLP said Thursday. Read full article » <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880338?nl_pk=a94fc…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880338?nl_pk=a94fc…>

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EU Wrong To Block Berlusconi's Bank Stake, Top Court Rules
by Gunnar Larson 20 Sep '24

20 Sep '24

EU Wrong To Block Berlusconi's Bank Stake, Top Court Rules <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880347?nl_pk=a94fc…> By Najiyya Budaly Europe's highest court ruled Thursday that the European Central Bank was wrong to decide that a prior conviction for tax fraud prevented former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi from holding a stake in a bank in the country. Read full article » <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880347?nl_pk=a94fc…> | Save to favorites » <https://www.law360.co.uk/financial-services-uk/articles/1880347?nl_pk=a94fc…>

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As Trump Launches a Crypto Firm, FBI Reports Crypto Fraud Has Exploded to $5.6 Billion; Representing Almost 50 Percent of All Financial Fraud
by Gunnar Larson 19 Sep '24

19 Sep '24

https://wallstreetonparade.com/2024/09/as-trump-launches-a-crypto-firm-fbi-… By Pam Martens and Russ Martens: September 17, 2024 ~ Last Thursday, the Senate Banking Committee held a hearing on combating financial frauds against consumers. During the hearing, Senator Jon Tester of Montana held up his mobile phone and said: “Everyday, everyday, I either get an email or a phone call from somebody who’s trying to screw me out of my money.” According to the FBI, it is highly likely that a large number of the people trying to screw both you and Senator Tester out of your money are crypto fraudsters. On September 9, the FBI released its 2023 report on crypto fraud, which made the following findings: “In 2023, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) Internet Crime Complaint Center (IC3) received more than 69,000 complaints from the public regarding financial fraud involving the use of cryptocurrency, such as bitcoin, ether, or tether. Estimated losses with a nexus to cryptocurrency totaled more than $5.6 billion.” “While the number of cryptocurrency-related complaints represents only about 10 percent of the total number of financial fraud complaints, the losses associated with these complaints account for almost 50 percent of the total losses.” “The decentralized nature of cryptocurrency, the speed of irreversible transactions, and the ability to transfer value around the world make cryptocurrency an attractive vehicle for criminals, while creating challenges to recover stolen funds.” (Bold emphasis on the word “irreversible” was added by Wall Street On Parade.) “Once an individual sends a payment, the recipient owns the cryptocurrency and often quickly transfers it into an account overseas for cash out purposes.” Elsewhere in the report, the FBI delves a little deeper into why the irreversible nature of crypto transactions makes them a magnet for criminals. It writes: “Irrevocable Transactions that Move Quickly: A cryptocurrency transfer can occur anywhere. The only requirements for transmitting funds from a particular address is the associated private key (which functions like a password or a PIN) and an Internet connection. Third parties do not sit between, or authorize, transactions and transactions are irrevocable – meaning they cannot be reversed. Criminal actors connected to the Internet from anywhere in the world can also exploit these characteristics to facilitate large-scale, nearly instantaneous cross-border transactions without traditional financial intermediaries that employ anti-money laundering programs.” Let that sink in for a moment: no anti-money laundering compliance personnel that are required at banks in the U.S.; no ability to reverse transactions as banks can do to correct errors. This would seem to be an ideally formatted platform for criminals. The FBI report breaks down the amount of financial fraud by age group, with the finding that people over 60 years of age are the number one target for crypto fraudsters. These seniors account for $1.6 billion of the $5.6 billion lost to crypto fraud in 2023, or 29 percent of the total. Crypto Complaints to FBI Given the increasing role that crypto is playing in fraud against the most vulnerable citizens in the U.S., one has to seriously question Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump’s decision last evening to announce that he and his family are launching a crypto firm called World Liberty Financial. CNBC reported the following about the new crypto firm yesterday: “A copy of an early internal report, known as a white paper and obtained by CoinDesk, listed Barron [Trump] as ‘Chief DeFi Visionary,’ Eric and Donald Jr. as ‘Web3 Ambassadors,’ and Trump Sr. as ‘Chief Crypto Advocate.’ “But while the Trumps will receive compensation from the project, the platform itself is ‘not owned, managed, operated or sold’ by members of the Trump family. “[Steve] Witkoff, a real estate investor, and Eric Trump, executive vice president of the Trump Organization, are the two people calling the shots at World Liberty Financial, according to a person familiar with the project. Both are new to the crypto industry.” Witkoff was the individual who was playing golf with Trump at his golf club in West Palm Beach, Florida on Sunday when there was an attempted assassination of Trump – the second attempt since July. For more background on what’s behind Trump’s recent embrace of crypto, see our report: Donald Trump Gives a Speech on Not Letting China Win the Crypto Race – Not Realizing China Banned Crypto Mining and Transactions Four Years Ago.

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Re: [EXTERNAL EMAIL] - Fwd: Complaint Referral Form Internet Crime Complaint Center - New York State's Notary Verification System
by Gunnar Larson 19 Sep '24

19 Sep '24

Dear FBI Public Information Officer: The FOIA allows requesters to file an administrative appeal with the agency for any information that was denied in response to a FOIA request. Can you please advise if thr FOIA request should be appealed one of the following reason(s): - the refusal to release a record, either in whole or in part - the determination that a record does not exist or cannot be found - the determination that the record you sought was not subject to the FOIA - the denial of a request for expedited processing the denial of a fee waiver request. Thank you, Gunnar Larson On Wed, Sep 4, 2024, 3:05 PM FOIPAQUESTIONS(a)FBI.GOV <FOIPAQUESTIONS(a)fbi.gov> wrote: > The FOIPA does not require federal agencies to answer inquiries, create > records, conduct research, or draw conclusions concerning queried data. > Rather, the FOIPA requires agencies to provide access to reasonably > described, nonexempt records. The question posed is not a FOIPA request > because it does not comply with the FOIPA and its regulations. > > > > Please resubmit your FOIPA request for the specific information you are > requesting, rather than asking questions and your request will be forwarded > to Initial Processing for review. Information regarding the Freedom of > Information Act/Privacy is available at http://www.fbi.gov/foia/. Note: > The foipaquestions(a)fbi.gov email address is not the proper submission > method for new FOIPA requests. > > > > You may submit your request electronically at https://efoia.fbi.gov > (available 24 hours a day), or mail it to FBI, Attn: FOIPA Request, 200 > Constitution Drive, Winchester, VA 22602-4843 > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/200+Constitution+Drive,+Winchester,+VA+2…>. > Please be sure to include your contact information, to include complete > mailing address, on any correspondence. > > > > In an effort to better assist you, what is the FOIA number you received > for your request? > > > > Respectfully, > > > > Public Information Officer > > FBI - Information Management Division > > 200 Constitution Drive > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/200+Constitution+Drive?entry=gmail&sourc…> > > Winchester, VA 22602 > > O: (540) 868-4593 > > E: foipaquestions(a)fbi.gov > > > > Do you have further questions about the FOI/PA process? Visit us at > http://www.fbi.gov/foia > > > > Please check the status of your request online at > https://vault.fbi.gov/fdps-1/@@search-fdps Status updates are > performed on a weekly basis. > > > > Note: This is a non-emergency email address. If this is an emergency, > please call 911 directly. If you need to report a tip for immediate > action, please contact FBI Tips at http://tips.fbi.gov/ or reach out to > your local field office. > > > > *From:* Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> > *Sent:* Tuesday, September 3, 2024 2:04 PM > *To:* FOIPAQUESTIONS <FOIPAQUESTIONS(a)FBI.GOV> > *Cc:* cypherpunks <cypherpunks(a)lists.cpunks.org> > *Subject:* Re: [EXTERNAL EMAIL] - Fwd: Complaint Referral Form Internet > Crime Complaint Center - New York State's Notary Verification System > > > > > > On Thu, Aug 22, 2024, 7:56 PM Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> wrote: > > Dear FBI Public Information Officer: > > > > The FOIA allows requesters to file an administrative appeal with the > agency for any information that was denied in response to a FOIA request. > > > > Can you please advise if thr FOIA request should be appealed one of the > following reason(s): > > > > - the refusal to release a record, either in whole or in part > > > > - the determination that a record does not exist or cannot be found > > > > - the determination that the record you sought was not subject to the FOIA > > > > - the denial of a request for expedited processing > > the denial of a fee waiver request. > > > > Thank you, > > > > Gunnar Larson > > > > On Thu, Aug 22, 2024, 2:15 PM FOIPAQUESTIONS(a)FBI.GOV < > FOIPAQUESTIONS(a)fbi.gov> wrote: > > The Record/Information Dissemination Section is not an investigative > section of the FBI and only processes Freedom of Information/Privacy Act > (FOIPA) requests. > > > > To report criminal activities please access the FBI’s homepage on the > internet at http://www.fbi.gov/. Option 1-Access the ‘CONTACT US’ link > at the top and then select the “Submit a Tip on Crime/Terrorism”. The > direct link is: http://tips.fbi.gov/. Option 2-Access the ‘CONTACT US’ > link at the top and then select the “Report Internet Crime” link, which > connects to the ‘Internet Crime Complaint Center’. The direct link is: > http://www.ic3.gov/default.aspx. > > > > You also have the option of contacting the FBI’s local field office in > your area and their contact information is available on the FBI’s homepage > which is listed above. > > > > Public Information Officer > > FBI - Information Management Division > > 200 Constitution Drive > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/200+Constitution+Drive?entry=gmail&sourc…> > > Winchester, VA 22602 > > O: (540) 868-4593 > > E: foipaquestions(a)fbi.gov > > > > Do you have further questions about the FOI/PA process? Visit us at > http://www.fbi.gov/foia > > > > Please check the status of your request online at > https://vault.fbi.gov/fdps-1/@@search-fdps Status updates are > performed on a weekly basis. > > > > Note: This is a non-emergency email address. If this is an emergency, > please call 911 directly. If you need to report a tip for immediate > action, please contact FBI Tips at http://tips.fbi.gov/ or reach out to > your local field office. > > > > *From:* Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> > *Sent:* Thursday, August 22, 2024 10:52 AM > *To:* FOIPAQUESTIONS <FOIPAQUESTIONS(a)FBI.GOV> > *Cc:* cypherpunks <cypherpunks(a)lists.cpunks.org> > *Subject:* [EXTERNAL EMAIL] - Fwd: Complaint Referral Form Internet Crime > Complaint Center - New York State's Notary Verification System > > > > Dear Madam or Sir: > > > > My name is Gunnar Larson and I am a co-founder at xNY.io - Bank.org. > > > > On November 3, 2022 I personally made a complaint to IC3 concerning forged > notaries (below). > > > > The FBI has not responded to this matter. > > > > Today I would like to request all FBI records associated with this IC3 > complaint, investigation and/or any records of entrapment associated. > > > > Sending you the very best. > > > > Thank you, > > > > Gunnar > > > -- > > > > Gunnar Larson > > > > xNY.io | Bank.org > > > > MSc - Digital Currency > > > > MBA - Entrepreneurship and Innovation (ip) > > > > > > > > G(a)xNY.io > > > > +1-917-580-8053 > > > > New York, New York 10001 > > ---------- Forwarded message --------- > From: *Gunnar Larson* <g(a)xny.io> > Date: Thu, Nov 3, 2022, 7:02 AM > Subject: Complaint Referral Form Internet Crime Complaint Center > To: cypherpunks <cypherpunks(a)lists.cpunks.org> > > > > [image: Image removed by sender. IC3 logo] > Complaint Referral Form > Internet Crime Complaint Center > > *Thank you. Your complaint was submitted to the IC3. Please save or print > a copy of your complaint before closing this window.This is the only time > you will have to make a copy of your complaint.* > > Victim InformationName: Gunnar LarsonAre you reporting on behalf of a > business? NoBusiness Name: Is the incident currently impacting business > operations? Age: 30 - 39Address: 406 West 25th StreetAddress > (continued): Suite/Apt./Mail Stop: 1RECity: New YorkCounty: Country: United > States of AmericaState: New YorkZip Code/Route: 10001Phone > Number: 6464549107Email Address: g(a)xny.ioBusiness IT POC, if > applicable: Other Business POC, if applicable: Financial > Transaction(s)Transaction Type: OtherIf other, please specify: Notary > FraudTransaction Amount: 2400.00Transaction Date: 10/6/2022Was the money > sent? No > ------------------------------ > > Victim Bank Name: Victim Bank Address: Victim Bank Address > (continued): Victim Bank Suite/Mail Stop: Victim Bank City: Victim Bank > Country: Victim Bank State: Victim Bank Zip Code/Route: Victim Name on > Account: Victim Account Number: > ------------------------------ > > Recipient Bank Name: Recipient Bank Address: Recipient Bank Address > (continued): Recipient Bank Suite/Mail Stop: Recipient Bank City: Recipient > Bank Country: Recipient Bank State: Recipient Bank Zip > Code/Route: Recipient Name on Account: Recipient Bank Routing > Number: Recipient Account Number: Recipient Bank SWIFT Code: Description of > IncidentProvide a description of the incident and how you were victimized. > Provide information not captured elsewhere in this complaint form.Hello: I > was hired as a contractor for a online drop shipping company. The firm sent > packages to my home address. The shipping manager asked me to retrieve a > package by providing a notorized authorization letter. Upon reviewing the > authorization letter and searching New York State's notary verification > system, it appeared the notary was forged. A copy of the letter may be > accessed here: > https://drive.google.com/file/d/1Hqzatqez7yWs7ZZq76RBYy2zzi6NiDw9/view?usp=… > Below, you will find the exchange with the shipping manager. On October 31 > the firm denied payment for employment and has 'gone missing.' Given my > personal and professional association with xNY.io - Bank.org I am concerned > about being associated with felony notary Fraud. Furthrtmore, xNY.io - > Bank.org is party to the Clayton Act and/or an entrapment exercise. Thank > you Gunnar Larson 646-454-9107 Which of the following were used in this > incident? (Check all that apply.)☑ Spoofed Email☑ Similar Domain☑ Email > Intrusion > > ☐ OtherPlease specify: > > Other InformationIf an email was used in this incident, please provide a > copy of the entire email including full email headers. ---------- Forwarded > message --------- From: Dorothy Berry <dorothy.berry(a)dvlemail.com> Date: > Fri, Oct 7, 2022, 2:44 PM Subject: Re: 290283 To: Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> > I will coordinate with our Legal team regarding this. The authorization > letter was given by the customer. --- Kind regards, Dorothy Berry | Manager > Shipping Department Direct number:(475) 330-3037 DELTA VISION (DVS > Logistics US) 45 Ruby St #3 Norwalk, CT 06850 > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/US)+45+Ruby+St+%233+Norwalk,+CT+06850?en…> > (888) 559 9329 Mon-Fri 09:00AM-06:00PM EST Sat-Sun Closed ---- On Fri, 07 > Oct 2022 14:33:19 -0400 Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> wrote --- No. I won't go > present an authorized letter to anyone with a fake notarized stamp on it. > Please advise. On Fri, Oct 7, 2022, 1:48 PM Dorothy Berry < > dorothy.berry(a)dvlemail.com> wrote: Did you try picking up package and > show Authorization letter to them? --- Kind regards, Dorothy Berry | > Manager Shipping Department Direct number:(475) 330-3037 DELTA VISION (DVS > Logistics US) 45 Ruby St #3 Norwalk, CT 06850 > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/US)+45+Ruby+St+%233+Norwalk,+CT+06850?en…> > (888) 559 9329 Mon-Fri 09:00AM-06:00PM EST Sat-Sun Closed ---- On Fri, 07 > Oct 2022 08:56:52 -0400 Gunnar Larson <g(a)xny.io> wrote --- Ms. Berry: I > am having trouble verifying the authentication of the notarized document.. > I just left you a message. Please advise best next steps. Thank you, Gunnar > On Thu, Oct 6, 2022, 4:33 PM Dorothy Berry <dorothy.berry(a)dvlemail.com> > wrote: Good day! Please find the attached file. Thanks. --- Kind regards, > Dorothy Berry | Manager Shipping Department Direct number:(475) 330-3037 > DELTA VISION (DVS Logistics US) 45 Ruby St #3 Norwalk, CT 06850 > <https://www.google.com/maps/search/US)+45+Ruby+St+%233+Norwalk,+CT+06850?en…> > (888) 559 9329 Mon-Fri 09:00AM-06:00PM EST Sat-Sun Closed Are there any > other witnesses or victims to this incident?Yes.If you have reported this > incident to other law enforcement or government agencies, please provide > the name, phone number, email, date reported, report number, etc.[No > response provided]Check here if this an update to a previously filed > complaint: ☐Who Filed the ComplaintWere you the victim in the incident > described above? Yes > > Name: Business Name: Phone Number: Email Address: > > Digital Signature > > By digitally signing this document, I affirm that the information I > provided is true and accurate to the best of my knowledge. I understand > that providing false information could make me subject to fine, > imprisonment, or both. (Title 18, U.S.Code, Section 1001) > > Digital Signature: Gunnar Larson > > Thank you. Your complaint was submitted to the IC3. Please save or print a > copy of your complaint before closing this window. *This is the only time > you will have to make a copy of your complaint.* > >

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The Stock Market Had a Psychotic Episode After the Fed Rate Cut Yesterday, Plunging 479 Points from the Day’s High
by Gunnar Larson 19 Sep '24

19 Sep '24

https://wallstreetonparade.com/2024/09/the-stock-market-had-a-psychotic-epi… By Pam Martens and Russ Martens: September 19, 2024 ~ Fed Chair Jerome Powell Speaking at the FOMC Press Conference on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 Fed Chair Jerome Powell Speaking at the FOMC Press Conference on Wednesday, September 18, 2024 The Federal Reserve yesterday cut its benchmark interest rate, the Fed Funds rate, for the first time in four years. The cut was by half a point rather than the customary quarter point increments typical of Fed rate moves. Only one member of the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC), Michelle Bowman, voted against the action. Bowman wanted a quarter point cut according to the FOMC announcement. A Fed rate cut of a quarter point to a half point was widely anticipated by the market, so the stock market’s wild swings were puzzling to veteran Wall Street watchers. The FOMC released its written announcement at 2 p.m. As the chart above indicates, the written announcement produced a surge in the Dow Jones Industrial Average to an intraday high of 41,981.97, which was also an all-time high on an intraday basis. But within a few minutes, the Dow had plunged by more than 300 points, then spiked by over 200 points as Fed Chairman Jerome Powell’s press conference got underway at 2:30 p.m. Wild market gyrations like this, as the Chair of the Fed is about to take the podium, are not in keeping with what Michelle Smith, the long-tenured and detail-oriented Communications Director at the Fed, wants as background noise as the Fed Chair interacts with the press. (See Reporters Who Ask Tough Questions at Fed Press Conferences Have a Habit of Being Disappeared from the Room.) The Dow gained some ground back as Powell read his prepared statement at his press conference but plunged further as reporters began questioning the Fed Chair. Craig Rugaber, the Federal Reserve and Economics reporter for the Associated Press, asked this question about 11 minutes into the press conference: “The projections show that the Fed officials expect that the Fed Funds rate to still be above their estimate of long-run neutral by the end of next year. So does that suggest to you that you see rates as restrictive for that entire period? Does that threaten the weakening of the job market you said you’d like to avoid? Or does it suggest that maybe people see the short-run neutral as a little bit higher.” Powell responded with this: “I think the way I would really characterize it is this: people write down their estimate – individuals [on the Federal Open Market Committee] do – I think every single person on the Committee, if you ask them what’s your level of certainty around that, and they would say, ‘there’s a wide range where that could fall.’ So I think we don’t know. There are model-based approaches and empirically-based approaches that estimate what the neutral rate will be at any given time but realistically we know it by its works. So that leaves us in a place where we expect in the base case to be continuing to remove restriction and we’ll be looking at the way the economy reacts to that and that will be guiding us in our thinking about the question we’re asking at every meeting, which is – is our policy stance the appropriate one….” Powell’s press conference ended 50 minutes after it began, at about 3:20 p.m. EDT. Some of the worst damage of the day occurred after the press conference ended, with the Dow moving into negative territory and closing with a loss on the day of 103 points. From its high of the day to its closing price, the Dow had plunged 478.87 points. As Michelle Smith must have noticed, this was not a comforting vote of confidence that Jerome Powell – a lawyer, not an economist – knows what he’s doing. (See, for example, For the First Time in History, the Fed Is Reporting Billions in Losses Weekly; It’s Still Paying High Interest Income to the Mega Banks on Wall Street.) Two of the components of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase and Goldman Sachs, are megabanks that have an incestuous relationship with the Fed. The Fed is their regulator; their serial source of bailout loans in the trillions of dollars; their trading partner at the New York Fed’s open market operations; and the banks’ executives sit on the New York Fed’s advisory committees, recommending “best practices” for Wall Street megabanks which have a serial history of getting slapped with felony counts by the U.S. Department of Justice, rigging markets and engaging in predatory behavior against their customers. (See watchdog Better Markets’ Rap Sheet Report here.) And, most dangerous of all, the Fed is the federal agency that just cut in half the amount of capital it said in July of 2023 these megabanks need to hold to operate in a safe and sound manner. The share prices of Goldman Sachs and JPMorgan Chase also experienced wild swings between the 2 p.m. FOMC statement and the close of trading at 4 p.m. Both megabanks, however, own their own Dark Pools where, bizarrely, they are allowed by the Securities and Exchange Commission to trade their own bank shares in darkness, which might offer a possible explanation as to why they fared better by the closing bell than the Dow index. (See Wall Street Banks Are Trading in Their Own Company’s Stock: How Is This Legal? and Goldman Sachs Is Quietly Trading Stocks In Its Own Dark Pools on 4 Continents.) The Goldman Sachs’ chart below, showing how its shares swung wildly yesterday afternoon, bears an uncanny resemblance to the Dow chart. New York Fed Trader A Trader on the New York Fed Trading Desk Monitors the Latest Market Intelligence While the megabanks on Wall Street own their own Dark Pools, the New York Fed (the largest of the 12 regional Fed banks) has its own trading desks – one at its lower Manhattan headquarters at 33 Liberty Street and one near the futures market in Chicago. (See Mission Creep or Creepy Mission: The New York Fed’s Trading Desk Has Ballooned to $6.59 Trillion Today from $576 Billion in 2008 and The New York Fed Has Quietly Staffed Up a Second Trading Floor Near the S&P 500 Futures Market in Chicago.) If all of this has the feel of an institutionalized wealth transfer system instead of an efficient market system worthy of a democracy, please contact your U.S. Senators today. Tell your Senators to hold immediate hearings on the Fed’s non-stop bailouts of the megabanks and demand the restoration of the Glass-Steagall Act, which would separate federally-insured commercial banks from the trading casinos on Wall Street.

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