Latest news with #MegFlippinBenzinga
Associated Press
30-07-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
No Longer Just An Institutional Darling: Uranium.io Allows Direct Investment In Uranium For Retail Traders
By Meg Flippin Benzinga Get diversification that's not correlated with gold, oil and the S&P 500 with DETROIT, MICHIGAN - July 30, 2025 ( NEWMEDIAWIRE ) - When it comes to alternative investments, cryptocurrency, non-fungible tokens, foreign currency and fine art usually come to mind. But now investors can add direct exposure to an asset that is powering the energy needs of tomorrow to their portfolio thanks to is the first platform that enables everyday investors to buy, own and trade physical uranium, in this case uranium ore concentrate (U3O8). U308, also known as yellowcake, is contained in mill concentrates extracted from uranium ore. Once uranium ore is mined, it is processed further at a regulated warehousing and conversion facility and converted into uranium oxide. U3O8 is an intermediate product used for nuclear fuel production to power Big Tech's AI infrastructure and by governments around the world to meet their net-zero goals. Uranium Demand On The Rise Demand for uranium is increasing as AI takes off and the world moves to a greener future. Companies are investing hundreds of millions of dollars to purchase energy from nuclear power plants to power their growing AI initiatives. Meanwhile, President Donald Trump is gearing up to invest $70 billion into AI and energy in an effort to make the U.S. the leader in this space. But AI isn't the only driver of uranium demand. Countries around the globe are transitioning to nuclear energy as part of their efforts to achieve their net-zero carbon targets. Nuclear power is increasingly seen as a low-carbon power source to help countries around the world meet their goals. It also comes at a time when many investors are looking for long-term investment assets that give them diversification that isn't correlated with oil, gold and the S&P 500. They get that with uranium. Even if the S&P is tanking and oil demand is declining, uranium could still remain in demand. The boom in AI and the power necessary to build out AI infrastructure isn't dependent on oil or how much gold is mined. It doesn't hurt that spot uranium has outperformed the S&P 500 substantially over the past five years. It's why it's attractive to institutions and why wanted to make it easier for everyday investors to get direct access to it. Want to get in on the tokenization craze with as little as $5? Click here to get started today with Leveling The Playing Field While uranium is in demand, direct investment in physical uranium has long been reserved for institutions. Uranium trades over-the-counter in large lots, with deals often requiring millions of dollars, shutting retail investors out of the market. Sure there are Exchange Traded Investment Trusts, managed funds and mining stocks, but investors don't get direct exposure to the underlying commodity through these investment vehicles. Through a partnership with Tezos Foundation, which supports the development of the Tezos blockchain - an open-source, self-amending blockchain platform known for its focus on smart contracts - was able to acquire a tradable lot of uranium, store and tokenize it, enabling average investors to purchase fractional shares of uranium in the form of a smart contract ledger known as an xU308. Each xU308 represents a unit of ownership of U3O8 held by Archax, which serves as the custodian for investors. Archax is the UK's first regulated digital securities exchange. Meanwhile, the physical uranium backing xU3O8 is securely stored in a regulated depository operated by Cameco Corp., one of the world's largest uranium providers. Trading is made possible thanks to Curzon Uranium, a globally recognized uranium trader with more than $1 billion in transactions. The integration of these three institutions in the trading platform helps facilitate the tokenization process for this heavily regulated asset, ensuring that the handling of trades is carried out with seamless regulatory compliance, reports There is no minimum purchase amount, which means you can start small, with as little as $4, and grow from there. Plus, it's easy to begin buying uranium. All a customer has to do is sign up, create an account, fund it and start buying. Unless you are a regulated person with a converter account, you cannot request physical delivery of U3O8 – but everyone can buy, sell and hold your shares of the units you purchase. Users only pay custody and administration fees with the platform, ensuring what the company says is a transparent and accessible pricing structure. Plus, you can trade uranium 24/7, 365 days a year from anywhere in the world on participating exchanges and the platform, and enjoy near-instant settlements. When it comes to tokenizing real-time assets, uranium may not be among the first to come to mind but it should. After all, it is in demand, is hard for regular investors to get their hands on and has been outperforming the S&P 500 for several years. For investors looking for a way to diversify their portfolio and get exposure to a booming market, is giving them that. Ready to get started investing in uranium? Click here to learn more. Featured image fromShutterstock. This post contains sponsored content. This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investing advice. This content was originallypublished on Benzinga. Read further disclosureshere.
Associated Press
24-07-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Safeguarding Users' Assets: BTCC Reports Total Reserve Ratio of 132% For July, ETH Leads At 170%
By Meg Flippin Benzinga DETROIT, MICHIGAN - July 24, 2025 ( NEWMEDIAWIRE ) - BTCC, one of the world's longest-serving cryptocurrency exchanges founded fourteen years ago, had a total reserve ratio of 132% for July, marking the fourth month in a row in which it maintained reserves well above 100%. The reserve ratio is the amount of customer funds the exchange holds in reserve compared to the amount of customer funds deposited. It measures the exchange's ability to cover withdrawals by customers. The higher the reserve ratio, the greater the exchange's ability to meet withdrawals; the lower the reserve ratio, the higher the risk the exchange could run into trouble. BTCC, which prides itself on transparency, has been releasing Proof of Reserves (PoR) reports since April, and reserves have been above 100% in every month since then. Safeguarding Users' Assets Proof of Reserve is an audit procedure that verifies assets held by exchanges through cryptographic proof, public wallet ownership checks and repeated audits, reports BTCC. Custodians provide transparent proof that on-chain reserves truly exist, demonstrating that the total tokens held and freely available on the platform are greater than or equal to the total token assets of all users. In centralized trading platforms, each user's assets are recorded through a ledger in a database. Securely proving that the platform is properly safeguarding all users' assets is a challenge that each platform must address. BTCC uses Merkle tree tools to verify platform reserves and user asset proof reports, allowing users to verify their assets within the platform. Being able to verify the assets can give users peace of mind that their assets are safe. Several cryptocurrency exchanges have gone under over the years, including FTX and BlockFi, resulting in large losses for customers. In April, BTCC reported that the ratio was 161%. In May, the figure was 152%, and in June, it was 135%. Ethereum Leads The Way In the latest PoR report, BTCC said the exchange had strong asset backing across all major cryptocurrencies, with Ethereum showing the highest reserve ratio at 170%. Bitcoin, the world's leading cryptocurrency, has a reserve ratio of 120%, while XRP has a reserve ratio of 145% and Tether has a reserve ratio of 143%. USD coin ended the period under review with a reserve ratio of 110% while Cardano had a reserve ratio of 120%. BTCC said the strong reserves across all the digital coins demonstrate the exchange's commitment to maintaining sufficient reserves 'July has been a remarkable month for the cryptocurrency market,' said Alex Hung, head of operations at BTCC Exchange. 'Rising geopolitical tensions and new US tariff policies have driven increased safe-haven demand, with Bitcoin breaking through the historic $120,000 milestone for the first time. Throughout this period of market volatility, BTCC has maintained its strong financial position while continuing to grow both our asset base and user community.' BTCC: Standing The Test Of Time With Zero Security Incidents BTCC is one of the world's longest-serving cryptocurrency exchanges, founded in June 2011, providing crypto futures trading services to users worldwide. The exchange offers perpetual futures on over 390 crypto and spot trading on more than 300 currencies, including BTC, ETH, DOGE, LTC, SOL, XRP and SHIB. The cryptocurrency exchange adopted industry-leading security standards early on, which it credits with zero security incidents since its inception fourteen years ago. As of April, BTCC has over 9.1 million registered users around the world. For the second quarter, BTCC reported a volume of $850 billion in futures trading. Crypto exchanges come and go but BTCC has been able to stand the test of the time, thanks to its security, transparency and ability to safeguard customers' assets. With reserve ratios that surpass 100% for consecutive months, BTCC is demonstrating why it's one of the world's longest-serving cryptocurrency exchanges. Featured image fromShutterstock. This post contains sponsored content. This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investing advice. This content was originallypublished on further disclosureshere. View the original release on
Associated Press
18-07-2025
- Health
- Associated Press
SeaStar Medical And AREVA Team Up To Advance Treatments For Severe Burns With DoD Grant
By Meg Flippin Benzinga DETROIT, MICHIGAN - July 18, 2025 ( NEWMEDIAWIRE ) - When it comes to severe burns, inhalation injuries and septicemia, oftentimes they are associated with destructive hyperinflammation that can lead to a plethora of problems including organ failure and even death. For critically wounded service members and civilian patients, treating those complications requires a multi-prong approach that is often invasive and not always completely effective. Patients who do survive face a long recovery that can include life-long dialysis. That's why research and money is being directed at finding new therapies, including a focus on a therapeutic approach in which the body's immune response is modified by treating blood outside the body. With this approach, the destructive hyperinflammation caused by certain overactive immune cells is treated by neutralizing the cells and then returning them to the body in a less active state. It's in that context that the Autonomous Reanimation and Evacuation (AREVA) Research Institute was awarded a grant from the United States Department of Defense (DoD). The grant, one of four selected out of 160 total submissions by the 2024 Military Burn Research Program (MBRP), supports a three-year research study that is scheduled to begin in July 2025 with more than $2 million in DoD funding. SeaStar Medical's SCD Therapy The study will explore the application of SeaStar Medical's Selective Cytopheretic Device (SCD) therapy to reduce hyperinflammation after severe burns, inhalation injury and infection. SeaStar says the award represents a significant step towards the advancement of potential treatments for burn, inhalation injury, and septic patients through the use of the SCD therapy, a therapeutic device designed to neutralize destructive hyperinflammation in order to improve survival in both combat casualties and civilian patients suffering from severe trauma and infection. Used alongside continuous renal replacement therapy (CRRT), the SCD therapy is designed to support organ recovery, which may reduce the need for dialysis in patients with severe acute inflammatory conditions and potentially save lives, reports the company. 'In my 25-year research career, this particular award and collaboration with SeaStar Medical has the potential to be one of the most impactful,' said Andriy Batchinsky, MD, principal investigator and founder of AREVA. 'It may save the lives of large numbers of patients with infection- and trauma-related lung, kidney, and multi-organ failure.' The Geneva Foundation will provide research administration and operational support to ensure the success of the program at the AREVA Institute in San Antonio, Texas. The grant will cover the purchase of the SCD therapy from SeaStar Medical for use by AREVA in the research study. SeaStar Medical and AREVA are also exploring expanded applications of SeaStar's technology beyond the initial study. 'The AREVA Institute is one of only a handful of around the clock intensive care unit laboratories in the world capable of delivering this type of work. This DoD award represents a major vote of confidence, not only for the AREVA Institute, but also the potential of the SCD therapy to play a major role in the care of critically wounded service members,' said Kevin Chung, MD, chief medical officer of SeaStar Medical. 'This study will evaluate the ability of the SCD therapy to optimize functional recovery after these types of injuries.' Already Proving Effective SeaStar's device is already being used to treat pediatric acute kidney injury or AKI, after being approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration in February 2024. Through clinical trials, it had been shown to cut mortality rates in half and reduce the time patients had to be on dialysis. SeaStar is currently engaged in a trial evaluating the safety and efficacy of its SCD therapy to treat adult AKI. The study has 119 patients enrolled and the company is shooting for a total of 200. From treating inflammation due to severe burns on the battlefield to acute kidney injuries caused by trauma, SeaStar's SCD therapy may have broad applications in multiple acute and chronic kidney and cardiovascular diseases, representing patients who today have no FDA-approved options for treating their disease. The treatment is organ and disease-agnostic, which SeaStar says translates to potential economies of scale and value for its customers. Featured image fromShutterstock This post contains sponsored content. This content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be investing advice. This content was originallypublished on further disclosureshere. View the original release on
Associated Press
29-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Upcoming Benzinga Webinar With Glucotrack To Discuss The Potential Of Its Innovative CBGM Technology To Transform Diabetes Care And Patient Lives
By Meg Flippin Benzinga DETROIT, MICHIGAN - May 29, 2025 ( NEWMEDIAWIRE ) - Glucotrack Inc. (NASDAQ: GCTK) will host a virtual webinar on Thursday, May 29, from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. ET to discuss its Continuous Blood Glucose Monitor (CBGM) technology, a potentially game-changing medical device that could reshape how diabetes is managed. Experts from the Rutherford, New Jersey medical technology company will lead the session, providing a deep dive into how CBGM technology works and how it can transform the lives of people suffering from diabetes. Glucotrack experts will also discuss the critical role real-time continuous blood glucose tracking can play and why diabetes patients need a new, innovative solution. The Existing Tools Are Too Cumbersome When it comes to managing diabetes, historically the main way of tracking a person's sugar in their blood has been via a glucose meter, which requires the person to prick his or her finger several times a day to get a sample of the blood. The results are generally accurate, granted it is stored properly and the patient remembers to test often. Continuous glucose monitoring (CGM) offers a less intrusive alternative. With it, a person's blood glucose level is monitored automatically through a device 24 hours a day. It enables the diabetes patient to review their blood glucose level in real time to make well-informed decisions and adjust behavior on the spot. Glucotrack's Different Approach When it comes to CGMs, not all devices are created equally. The duration for which the monitoring lasts, the placement of the device and how often data is received differ from one manufacturer to the next. Plus, the sensors and implantables on the market need to be reapplied or recalibrated every ten to 90 days. Glucotrack is different. Glucotrack's implantable CBGM measures glucose in the blood, without the lag time associated with subcutaneous sensors that measure glucose in interstitial fluid. With it, Glucotrack says users get real-time readings instead of interstitial lag. What's more, Glucotrack's implant can last two to three years, compared to less than one year for many of the CGMs on the market. Glucotrack's CBGM also offers many other benefits, which will be discussed at the webinar. The webinar will offer insights into how the technology works, the critical role of continuous blood glucose monitoring and the necessity for innovation in the field. Glucotrack is also kicking off a long-term clinical study of its continuous blood glucose monitor in participants with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. A recently completed long-term preclinical study showed a Mean Absolute Relative Difference (MARD) of 4.7% at day 90, which is considered highly accurate for a continuous glucose monitor, reports Glucotrack. During the webinar, experts from the company will share highlights from its clinical research, and share details of the latest study. Rounding Things Off – Live Q&A Session Capping off the webinar will be a live Q&A session in which attendees can submit questions directly to Glucotrack about its CBGM device, its trial and where the company sees its device and the diabetes market headed. The event is geared toward anybody who wants to learn more about cutting-edge technology being applied to a disease that is projected to impact 643 million people around the globe by 2030, with the number soaring to 783 million by 2045. Click here to register now! Featured photo courtesy of Glucotrack. This post contains sponsored content. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice. This content was originallypublished on further disclosureshere. View the original release on
Associated Press
20-05-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
SBC Medical's First Quarter Margins Improve; Company Announces Share Buyback Program
By Meg Flippin Benzinga DETROIT, MICHIGAN - May 20, 2025 ( NEWMEDIAWIRE ) - SBC Medical Group Holdings Inc. (NASDAQ: SBC), the Japanese owner and operator of a chain of cosmetic surgery clinics, is in transformation mode, overhauling its pricing structure and adapting to a changing marketplace, which seems to have paid off in the company's first quarter. For the three months ended March 31, 2025, SBC Medical reported earnings per share of $0.21, which was up 5% year-over-year. EBITDA margins were 52%, up from 46% in the year-ago first quarter. The company, which is positioning itself as a leader in the cosmetic surgery market, ended the quarter with 251 clinics, increasing the number by 36 compared to last year's first quarter. Despite a challenging marketplace in Japan, SBC Medical was able to increase its customers in the last twelve months ending in March by 14% to 6.1 million. In a nod to the quality it offers customers at its clinics, SBC Medical also reported that 71% of customers visited franchisee clinics two or more times during the quarter. 'SBC is actively preparing for strategic expansion by enhancing its platform, optimizing its profitability structure, and stabilizing its business through revised pricing strategies and adapting to changing market dynamics,' said Yoshiyuki Aikawa, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of SBC Medical, when reporting first quarter results. 'In the first quarter of 2025, we were pleased to see the expansion of Medical Corporations (MCs) gaining traction in our franchising, procurement and rental business segments as global demand for aesthetic medical services continued to rise.' SBC Medical Group has been focused on expanding its MCs, which are designed to help cosmetic practitioners operate cosmetic surgery centers and at the same time adhere to regulations. SBC Medical Overhauling For Growth While SBC reported revenue of $47 million in the first quarter - down 14% year-over-year - the company attributed that to the discontinuation of its staffing business and the divestitures of Sky Net Academy and SBC Kijimadaira Resort. Despite that, margins increased, and net income increased 15% year-over-year. 'As we move ahead, we remain confident in our ability to build a scalable franchise model while accelerating expansion across domestic and international markets, driving long-term value for shareholders and positioning the Company to capitalize on future opportunities,' said Aikawa. SBC Medical is working hard to position itself as a leader in the cosmetic surgery market, and it isn't resting on its laurels. To address competition and keep its leading position in the industry, the company is pursuing two strategies: expanding the market by making aesthetic medicine more accessible and appealing to the masses and differentiating itself from the competition by offering advanced treatments and better pricing - bringing its treatments to the U.S. and Singapore. The company is preparing for expansion and says its first quarter results are evidence of that. Buying Back Shares The company underscored its confidence in its growth plan by announcing its board has approved a share buyback program of up to $5 million worth of shares. The buyback program will kick off on May 20, 2025, and last through May 20, 2026. The company is using excess cash and future free cash flow to buy back the shares. SBC Medical said it launched the program because it believes the stock at the current share price undervalues its business performance, growth potential and the aesthetic medical market, including SBC Medical's position. The global cosmetic surgery and procedure market was worth $122.08 billion in 2022, and it is expected to grow at a CAGR of 14.7% from 2023 to 2030. SBC Medical will buy the shares on the open market at prevailing market prices and will continue to look at other ways to enhance the liquidity of its shares. It also plans to issue shares as future stock-based compensation in proportion to the number of repurchased shares. In addition to the repurchase program, SBC Medical says it will continue to consider dividend distributions with the goal of improving its total shareholder return. From expanding the number of clinics to overhauling its pricing to lure new customers and repeat business, SBC Medical is positioning itself to capitalize on what it expects to be growth in the aesthetic medicine market. With a new stock buyback program underway, SBC Medical is showing the world and its investors it has confidence in its growth plans. Featured image sourced fromShutterstock. This post contains sponsored content. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice. This content was originallypublished on further disclosureshere. View the original release on
