SEC charges Unicoin and executives for fraud
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on Wednesday charged cryptocurrency company Unicoin and three of its top executives, including its CEO and Board Chairman Alex Konanykhin, for false and misleading statements that raised more than $100 million from thousands of investors.
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CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
US cities brace for more protests as parts of Los Angeles placed under curfew
LOS ANGELES: Several US cities braced for protests on Wednesday (Jun 11) against President Donald Trump's sweeping immigration raids, as parts of the country's second largest city, Los Angeles, spent the night under curfew in an effort to quell five days of unrest. The Governor of Texas, Republican Greg Abbott, said he will deploy the National Guard this week, ahead of planned protests. Protesters and police in Austin clashed on Monday. Trump's extraordinary measures of sending National Guard and Marines to quell protests in Los Angeles has sparked a national debate on the use of military on US soil and pitted the Republican president against California's Democrat governor. "This brazen abuse of power by a sitting president inflamed a combustible situation, putting our people, our officers and even our National Guard at risk. That's when the downward spiral began," California Governor Gavin Newsom said in a video address on Tuesday. "He again chose escalation. He chose more force. He chose theatrics over public safety ... Democracy is under assault." Newsom, widely seen as preparing for a presidential run in 2028, and the state of California sued Trump and the Defense Department on Monday, seeking to block the deployment of federal troops. Trump in turn has suggested Newsom should be arrested. Hundreds of US Marines arrived in the Los Angeles area on Tuesday under orders from Trump, after he also ordered the deployment of 4,000 National Guard to the city. Marines and National Guard are to be used in the protection of government personnel and buildings and not in police action. Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass said the deployments were not necessary as police could manage the protest, the majority of which have been peaceful, and limited to about five streets. However, due to looting and violence at night, she imposed a curfew over one square mile of the city's downtown, starting Tuesday night. The curfew will last several days. Police said multiple groups stayed on the streets in some areas despite the curfew and "mass arrests" were initiated. Police earlier said that 197 people had already been arrested on Tuesday - more than double the total number of arrests to date. Democratic leaders have raised concerns over a national crisis in what has become the most intense flashpoint yet in the Trump administration's efforts to deport migrants living in the country illegally, and then crack down on opponents who take to the streets in protest. Trump, voted back into office last year largely for his promise to deport undocumented immigrants, used a speech honouring soldiers on Tuesday to defend his decision. He told troops at the army base in Fort Bragg, North Carolina: "Generations of army heroes did not shed their blood on distant shores only to watch our country be destroyed by invasion and third-world lawlessness." "FULL-BLOWN ASSAULT" "What you're witnessing in California is a full-blown assault on peace, on public order and on national sovereignty, carried out by rioters bearing foreign flags," Trump said, adding his administration would "liberate Los Angeles." Demonstrators have waved the flags of Mexico and other countries in solidarity for the migrants rounded up in a series of intensifying raids. Homeland Security said on Monday its Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) division had arrested 2,000 immigration offenders per day recently, far above the 311 daily average in fiscal year 2024 under former President Joe Biden. Protests have also taken place in other cities including New York, Atlanta and Chicago, where demonstrators shouted at and scuffled with officers. Some protesters climbed onto the Picasso sculpture in Daley Plaza, while others chanted that ICE should be abolished. Texas Governor Abbott said late on Tuesday that he will deploy the National Guard, which "will use every tool & strategy to help law enforcement maintain order." "Texas National Guard will be deployed to locations across the state to ensure peace & order. Peaceful protest is legal. Harming a person or property is illegal & will lead to arrest," Abbott posted on X. South Texas organizations are expected to hold anti-ICE rallies on Wednesday and Saturday, CNN reported local media as saying. About 700 Marines were in a staging area in the Seal Beach area, about 50km south of Los Angeles on Tuesday, awaiting deployment to specific locations, a US official said. California Attorney General Rob Bonta told Reuters the state was concerned about allowing federal troops to protect personnel, saying there was a risk that could violate an 1878 law that generally forbids the US military, including the National Guard, from taking part in civilian law enforcement. "Protecting personnel likely means accompanying ICE agents into communities and neighbourhoods, and protecting functions could mean protecting the ICE function of enforcing the immigration law," Bonta said. U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement on Tuesday posted photos on X of National Guard troops accompanying ICE officers on an immigration raid. Trump administration officials have vowed to redouble the immigration raids in response to the street protests. The last time the military was used for direct police action under the Insurrection Act was in 1992, when the California governor at the time asked President George HW Bush to help respond to the Los Angeles riots over the acquittal of police officers who beat Black motorist Rodney King.
CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
Asian markets rally after China-US framework on trade
HONG KONG: Asian stocks rose on Wednesday (Jun 11) as investors welcomed a China-United States agreement to lower trade tensions that stoked hopes the economic superpowers will eventually reach a broader tariff deal. After two days of high-profile, closely watched talks in London, the two sides said they had set up a framework to move towards a pact, following negotiations in Geneva last month that saw them slash tit-for-tat levies. The news provided some much-needed relief to markets after US President Donald Trump accused Beijing of violating that deal. The latest round of talks followed a phone call between Trump and his Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping on Thursday. As well as tariffs, a key issue in the discussions was China's export of earth minerals and magnets used in a range of things, including smartphones and electric vehicle batteries, while Beijing was keen to see an easing of restrictions on its access to tech goods. US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said he was upbeat that concerns over rare earths "will be resolved" eventually, as the agreement is implemented. Xi and Trump must approve the framework first. "We're moving as quickly as we can," US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer told reporters. "We would very much like to find an agreement that makes sense for both countries," he added. "We feel positive about engaging with the Chinese." Speaking separately to reporters, China International Trade Representative Li Chenggang expressed hope that progress made in London would help to boost trust on both sides. The deal, which was reached late on Tuesday, boosted Asian markets with Hong Kong and Shanghai among the best performers, while Tokyo, Sydney, Seoul, Wellington, Taipei and Manila were also up. However, analysts said investors would be keen to get a closer look at the details of the agreement. "The US-China trade circus wrapped with what can only be described as a diplomatic tautology," said Stephen Innes at SPI Asset Management. He called it "a late-night announcement that both sides have 'agreed in principle on a framework to implement the Geneva consensus' - a consensus that was ... already agreed upon weeks ago". And he warned that markets could run out of steam if nothing concrete came through. "If the next headline doesn't come with something tangible, such as cargo ships loaded with rare earths or an actual rollback of tariffs, expect risk assets to start demanding more photo opportunities," he wrote. "Until then, this rally relies on faith." And Saxo chief investment strategist Charu Chanana said before the deal was announced that while there was some hope for the talks, "the era of easy wins - tariff pauses and minor concessions - is over". "What's left are deeper, more entrenched challenges: tech restrictions, rare earth supply chains, student visas, and national security-linked concerns. These are strategic disputes, unlikely to be resolved in a few rounds of meetings." Still, she did say that "trade uncertainty has clearly faded since the peak chaos of early April", when Trump unleashed a tariff blitz that hammered worldwide stock and bond markets. Tuesday's news also overshadowed the World Bank's slashing of its 2025 forecast for global economic growth to 2.3 per cent, from the 2.7 per cent predicted in January, citing trade tensions and policy uncertainty. It also said the US economy would expand 1.4 per cent this year, half of its 2024 expansion.
CNA
7 hours ago
- CNA
Cryptocurrency firm Bullish confidentially files for US IPO, FT reports
Peter Thiel-backed crypto exchange Bullish has confidentially filed for an IPO with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in recent weeks, the Financial Times reported on Tuesday. A unit of blockchain software company Bullish had attempted to go public through a special purpose acquisition company deal in 2021 but that fell through in 2022 amid a regulatory crackdown and a sudden rise in interest rates that rattled the equities market. The Trump administration, in contrast to predecessor Joe Biden's, has taken a softer stance on crypto regulation and backed the industry's policy priorities, with the SEC dropping several investigations. Bullish is seeking to capitalise on renewed investor interest in digital assets under the current administration, the FT said. Bullish did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Reuters could not immediately verify the FT report.
