Gen. George on the Army's push into new tech
CNBC's Morgan Brennan speaks exclusively with Army Chief of Staff Gen. Randy George about his plans for rolling out new technology like autonomous Infantry Squad Vehicles and hundreds of drones to make the Army more effective and lethal than ever before.
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2 hours ago
- CNBC
CNBC Markets Now: June 25, 2025
CNBC Markets Now provides a look at the day's market moves with commentary and analysis from Michael Santoli, CNBC Senior Markets Commentator.
CNBC
2 hours ago
- CNBC
Zohran Mamdani's victory in NYC mayoral primary leaves Wall Street 'alarmed' and 'depressed'
To say Wall Street isn't a fan of Zohran Mamdani would be an understatement. In fact, high-profile investors and business leaders in the Big Apple are up in arms about the stunning win by the democratic socialist in the primary to win the Democratic nomination to serve as the next New York City mayor. The three-term Assemblymember's potential victory in the November general election could bring what the Street hates most — tax hikes and tighter regulation threatening corporate and investment interests. Philippe Laffont, founder of hedge fund Coatue Management, told CNBC that a Mamdani win could trigger another exodus of wealthy investors. Since the pandemic, a wave of wealthy residents and institutional firms have fled the nation's largest city for low-tax states such as Florida and Texas. "Some people are going to, for sure, go," Laffont said on CNBC's "Squawk Box" Wednesday after former New York Governor Andrew Cuomo conceded the Democratic nomination. "It's not quite done yet. There's still an election. Maybe Cuomo will re-enter as an independent." Mamdani's emphasis on socialism and redistribution of wealth runs counter to Wall Street's preference for unbridled capitalism and policies that support growth, such as deregulation and low taxes. The 33-year-old has supported taxing the ultra-wealthy, financial transactions and passive income like dividends. He has also endorsed a state-level wealth tax and increased marginal income tax rates on high earners. Hedge fund magnate Bill Ackman said he woke up Wednesday "a bit depressed" by Mamdani's victory. The the Pershing Square chief said he's now looking at the logistics for another candidate, not himself, to run. Lawrence Summers, the former Treasury Secretary and president of Harvard University, also expressed his distaste Mamdani's nomination. "I am profoundly alarmed about the future of the [Democratic National Committee] and the country, by yesterday's NYC anointment of a candidate who failed to disavow a 'globalize the intifada' slogan and advocated Trotskyite economic policies," Summers said in a post on X. Part of the stock market has already felt the pain from the prospect of a Mamdani-led NYC. Shares of New York regional bank Flagstar, with exposure to the New York real estate market, sank nearly 4% Wednesday. Office-focused real estate stocks also suffered, with SL Green Realty down more than 6% and Vornado Realty Trust down nearly 7%. Mamdani advocates for universal rent control, and the New York City mayor has the power to appoint representatives to the regulatory board that oversees rent-controlled and rent-stabilized apartments. A pause on rent increases would hurt the profits of multi-family rental properties. Roughly one million New York City apartments are rent stabilized but only about 20,000 are still rent controlled. "It appears that NYC is electing to commit suicide by Mayor," Jim Bianco, president and macro strategist at Bianco Research, said in a post on X Tuesday evening. Mamdani's solution to most problems relies on an ideological commitment to taxpayer-funded spending, and that leaves the business community concerned, said Kathryn Wylde, president of the Partnership for New York City, a nonprofit group of CEOs founded by David Rockefeller in 1979. "Terror is the feeling," Wylde said on CNBC Tuesday morning as voters headed to the polls, although she noted that "there's much positive in New York. But that could quickly shift if we lose confidence in the mayor." Wylde said the state government, led by Gov. Kathy Hochul, should keep the city out of a "disaster" scenario. She acknowledged concerns about the high cost of living and doing business, but said that raising taxes isn't the solution. Some of former Governor Cuomo's strongest support came from the Upper East Side of Manhattan, the home to many of New York City's highest earners and business titans. The former Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development in the Clinton administration received more than seven out of every 10 first-choice votes in several of the precincts in this neighborhood, according to Associated Press data as of Wednesday. In 2013, Bill de Blasio's win also triggered anxiety among the financial elite, but he was able to ease fears by meeting business leaders directly before implementing sweeping reforms. "We had Mayor DeBlasio for eight years. New York is really strong. I'm hopeful the same will happen," Laffont said.
Yahoo
2 hours ago
- Yahoo
Why a billionaire investor thinks bitcoin's total market value could more than double to $5 trillion
Philippe Laffont, the founder of hedge fund Coatue, thinks bitcoin's market value could soar to $5 trillion. His forecast implies bitcoin's market cap more than doubling from its $2.1 trillion level. Laffont said there are several reasons he's become more bullish on the crypto. The total value of all bitcoins could more than double, according to one billionaire investor who says he wishes he had bought the crypto sooner. Philippe Laffont, the founder of hedge fund Coatue Management, said he added bitcoin to his firm's Fantastic 40 list, a collection of investments it sees as major winners through 2030. That's partly because Laffont believes the total market cap of the world's biggest crypto could rise to as much as $5 trillion one day. That implies bitcoin's total value rising 134% from a market cap of around $2.1 trillion on Wednesday. "I have not gotten involved in bitcoin. I wake up every day at 3 in the morning and I'm like, 'why am I such an idiot? What have I been waiting for, not being involved in it?' And it just goes up and up," Laffont told CNBC on Wednesday. Bitcoin's price has been volatile this year amid tariff-related volatility and a mix of geopolitical and economic concerns. The crypto has rallied to $107,000 in recent days, bringing its price up 14% year-to-date. It hit an all-time high above $111,000 in May. This embedded content is not available in your region. Laffont, who said he initially brushed off bitcoin as an attractive investment, added that there were a few reasons why he's warming up to the cryptocurrency and sees the value soaring. For one, bitcoin's current valuation relative to the rest of the world seems too low, according to Laffont. The net worth of all world assets hovers around $500 trillion, Laffont said. That means bitcoin represents around 0.5% of the world's total assets, but Laffont thinks it's reasonable for bitcoin to represent 1%-2% of the total. Global stocks, by comparison, make up around $120 trillion of the world's assets, while gold makes up around $20 trillion, he added. Second, bitcoin's volatility appears to be declining relative to stocks. Bitcoin dropped 11% in the days after President Donald Trump announced his sweeping array of tariffs. That's a slightly less severe decline when compared to the Nasdaq 100, which dropped 12% from April 2 to its low on April 8. "I always thought, bitcoin's amazing, but it's double or triple the volatility of the Nasdaq," Laffont said. "It seems its volatility as an asset class is coming down." Third, bitcoin could benefit from concerns around de-dollarization and the end of US exceptionalism. Global investors have shown some signs that they're less willing to park their wealth in US assets after this year's tariff-fueled sell-off. More than half of global investors surveyed by Bank of America in June said they believed international equities would be the best-performing asset over the next five years, compared to just 23% of investors who said they believed US equities would be the top performer. The US Dollar Index, which measures the dollar against a basket of foreign currencies, has also declined 10% year-to-date. Laffont said he was now considering purchasing bitcoin. "Do I own it now? Do I own it tomorrow or in a few days? But every day, I do think, 'Why do I not own it?'" Laffont said. "Sometimes you have to change your mind and you have to say, well, I made a mistake," he added. Read the original article on Business Insider Sign in to access your portfolio
