Posts for August 25, 2026

Victoria's government has launched Australia’s inaugural offshore wind auction, initiating a request-for-proposals process for a 2-gigawatt project.

The project is anticipated to supply electricity for roughly 1.5 million homes. The auction is set to close in August next year, with related contracts expected to be finalised in the second half of 2027.

Energy Minister Jacqueline Symes noted the state possesses world‑leading offshore wind resources and described the auction as a major step toward delivering Australia’s first offshore wind projects.

CME FedWatch shows the market assigns a 60.4% probability to no rate change in September, with a 39.6% probability priced in for a 25-basis-point rate hike, according to Jiemian News.

For October, the odds are 45.7% for no change, 44.7% for a 25-basis-point increase, and 9.7% for a 50-basis-point move, per the same report.

Disney-themed Ooshies, small plastic figurines, are said to have influenced buying patterns among Australia's major supermarket chains, according to Bloomberg.

The promotion is described as providing a lift for Woolworths, as customers pursued the collectible toys.

The remarks, reported by Wallstreetcn, come from Sara Araghi of Franklin Templeton. She said that Nvidia's earnings beat may not be sufficient for investors without clearer details on how the company plans to deploy capital and sustain its spending trajectory.

Araghi added that investors would benefit from specifics on the investments Nvidia is pursuing and the potential value those investments could generate over time, beyond headline earnings results.

Jin10 cited four people familiar with the matter as saying Iran's missile and drone strikes inflicted substantial damage on U.S. intelligence facilities and surveillance equipment in the Middle East.

The report notes that reconstruction and replacement costs are expected to run into the billions of dollars.

Zerohash, a Chicago-based provider of crypto infrastructure, has resubmitted its application for a U.S. national trust bank charter to the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency following a return of the July filing for missing materials.

The OCC said the July 17 submission was returned because it lacked sufficient materials.

Zerohash described the return as an administrative step that enables a fresh filing this month and said it does not affect its current operations. The company noted that the initial filing encompassed a broad set of digital asset and fiduciary services, and it has chosen a phased approach that targets national trust banking activities that align with its launch timeline.

Headquartered in Chicago, Zerohash provides back-end crypto infrastructure services to institutions including Morgan Stanley's E*Trade, BlackRock, Franklin Templeton, Stripe, Interactive Brokers, and DraftKings. The company already holds a state trust bank charter.

Former Republican congressman Kevin Brady said the United States is failing to restrain spending even as federal revenues reach record levels, according to Bloomberg.

Brady argued that Congress must act to curb spending, including by reviewing Social Security and Medicaid as they move toward insolvency.

Term Labs has permanently closed all Term Meta Vaults following a governance attack, and it has revoked the DAO's governance rights while allowing withdrawal channels to stay open. The closure is described as irreversible and blocks any new deposits, with the team not disclosing the remaining assets in the vaults and indicating it will explore methods to address any shortfall.

Blockchain security firm PeckShield estimates attackers took about 2,843 ETH and 1.68 million USDC, for total losses around $8.5 million. On-chain activity shows transfers tied to addresses labeled by Etherscan as "Term Finance Exploiter 1" and "Term Finance Exploiter 2."

Yearn noted that Term's vault contracts run on its V3 architecture, but the attack targeted Term's custom governance wrapper and did not impact standard Yearn vaults. Term stated its underlying protocol and direct lending markets were unaffected and said it is working with external security teams on remediation and recovery, without offering a compensation timeline or guarantee.

BBC reported that Nigeria’s President Bola Tinubu has ordered a manhunt for armed kidnappers after deadly attacks on four villages in Niger State last Friday.

Local residents said several mosques were targeted during prayers, and a local youth leader estimated as many as 500 people may have been abducted, though that figure is unverified.

Police spokesman Wasiu Abiodun said more than 40 people were killed, but the toll has not been independently confirmed.

The attackers released a video on social media showing people they claimed were abducted last week seated in a forest.

Authorities had previously suspected the assailants were bandits, criminal gangs that kidnap and loot for ransom across parts of Nigeria. No ransom demands have been reported.

The villages attacked were Dekara, Gidan Zana, Sabon Gida and Masaka.

Tinubu condemned the killings and abductions in a statement issued through presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga, and said those responsible would be brought to justice.

Wallstreetcn reported that U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement arrested 49,571 migrants in July, the highest monthly total since the start of President Trump's second term. The July figure was about 15% higher than June's 43,021 and roughly 70% higher than February's 29,241, according to government data ICE provided to the University of California, Berkeley.

On Aug 25, 2026, at 17:57 UTC, Binance Market Data reported that BNB slipped below the 700 USDT level.

The token is currently trading at 699.809998 USDT, reflecting a 0.31% decrease over the last 24 hours.

According to Jin10, Iranian Foreign Minister Araghchi spoke by telephone with Qatar's Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Al Thani on Tuesday afternoon local time.

The talks reviewed the latest regional developments and stressed the importance of fully utilizing diplomatic channels and enhancing coordination to prevent any escalation in regional tensions.

Bloomberg notes the Federal Reserve chair’s communication approach is under the spotlight at the Jackson Hole gathering.

The backdrop includes bond-market turbulence and criticism from Wall Street, intensifying scrutiny of how policy signals are conveyed.

According to Jin10, a U.S. Air Force Boeing C-17 transport aircraft departed from Moscow's Vnukovo Airport. The report notes that it remains unclear whether the CIA director was on board.

A number of large investors have expressed opposition to the dual share structure used by Prosus NV and its parent company Naspers Ltd., and have voiced concerns about how executives and board members are compensated, according to Bloomberg.

US natural gas futures fell along with crude and European gas prices after Bloomberg said the plan to increase economic pressure on Iran is unlikely to disrupt physical supply.

The rand advanced to a six-month high against the dollar, and government bonds rose after an auction drew the strongest demand in almost three months, Bloomberg reported.

Empery Digital, a Nasdaq-listed company, said its bitcoin holdings have fallen to 1,179 coins.

The firm also reported about $62 million in cash and $35 million in debt, per ChainCatcher.

The former head of Deutsche Bank's private banking unit admitted in court to siphoning off more than €626,000 ($729,950) from wealthy clients in multiple installments over one-and-a-half years, according to Bloomberg.

Jack Ma has bought Alibaba Group Holding Ltd. shares together with two senior Alibaba executives to signal backing for the company’s artificial-intelligence ambitions.

The move was reported by the South China Morning Post, citing people familiar with the matter, with Bloomberg also reporting on the development.

Kit Juckes, Societe Generale's chief FX strategist, described the U.S. Treasury's plan to increase purchases of long-dated government bonds as market management rather than direct intervention. He discussed the remarks on Bloomberg Surveillance.

A global borrower is pursuing its first offshore bond issue in New Zealand in nearly a decade, a development noted by Bloomberg.

The decision mirrors a broader uptick in AI-linked debt issuance across major credit markets, with borrowers seeking funding in less traditional venues as a result.

Hong Kong's July trade activity strengthened as demand for AI-related products supported both exports and imports, according to the Census and Statistics Department as reported by RTHK.

Total exports of goods rose 50.7% year on year to HK$672.5 billion in July, following a more than 53% rise in June. Imports climbed 41% to HK$677.4 billion.

In the January–July period, exports were up 40.9% from a year earlier, while imports advanced 40.6%. The seven-month trade deficit stood at HK$299.4 billion, equivalent to about 6.8% of Hong Kong's imports.

A government spokesman said there had been impressive growth in exports of AI-related electronic products and that robust global demand should continue to support merchandise trade. He cautioned, however, that downside risks remain from geopolitical tensions in the Middle East, protectionism among advanced economies, and rapid expansion of global AI investment.

AM Intelligence, an Indian AI infrastructure company, has placed an order for 9,000 Nvidia Vera Rubin systems, Bloomberg reports.

The firm said it aims to be among the first in Asia to deploy Nvidia's Vera Rubin advanced computing platform.

Citing Jin10, Kazakhstan's energy minister said on Tuesday that the oil output forecast would be reduced by 3.5 million tons after Ukrainian drone strikes hit facilities of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC).

The minister indicated that the 2026 production target has been adjusted from 98 million tons to 96 million tons as a result of the disruption.

A 51job report, cited by Jiemian News, found that nearly 30% of Chinese companies have added AI-related roles to campus recruitment, with 56.8% of firms reporting higher demand than a year earlier. The findings are based on responses from more than 8,000 companies and individuals.

AI application development engineers were the most in-demand role, cited by 53.9% of surveyed companies.

Employers placed the greatest emphasis on mathematics and statistics skills, at 58.9%, followed by machine-learning theory and practice, at 46.5%.

The report also highlighted a wide salary gap across AI roles. Large-model algorithm engineers posted a median monthly salary of 27,329 yuan, while multimodal and deep-learning positions both exceeded 26,000 yuan. AI data trainers had a median salary of 8,977 yuan per month, far lower than the top-paying roles.

AIB Group Plc is joining forces with Banco Santander SA and Howden Group to execute a sizeable risk-transfer arrangement tied to project finance. The deal appears to reflect a broader rollout of the hedging instrument across AIB's lending portfolio, according to Bloomberg.

Strive expanded its BTC treasury by 1,110 coins for about $81.5 million last week, bringing total holdings to 21,356 BTC and lowering the average cost to around $93,257 per BTC.

BeInCrypto, citing an Aug. 24 SEC filing, reports that the paper loss remains over $292 million on the reserve.

The purchases occurred between Aug. 17 and 21 at an average price of $73,409 per BTC, inclusive of fees and expenses.

Jin10 reports that Christoph Rieger, head of rates and credit research at Commerzbank, argues that U.S. Treasury bond buyback operations will elevate risk regardless of how they are financed. He notes that cash balances cannot be reduced to prior levels due to political risks and higher government spending.

Rieger also warned that the Treasury is poised to face monthly interest payments exceeding $100 billion. He emphasized that such measures must be accompanied by a coherent and credible long-term fiscal consolidation plan to maintain market stability.

The U.S. Treasury said last week it plans to double the size of its long-dated bond buybacks, and reports on Monday indicated that using the Treasury’s general account could be one funding option for these operations.

According to Jin10, Takayuki Miyajima of Sony Financial Group argues that Japan's nominal GDP growth is around 3%, a level he says could underpin a move above the 3% threshold for the 10-year Japanese government bond yield.

Miyajima expects the 10-year yield to fluctuate around 3% in the near term, but he considers it unlikely to stay above that level for long because the economy is expected to slow later this year.

He also noted that concerns about the Bank of Japan falling behind on inflation are easing as markets anticipate an imminent rate hike, a development that could help cap further upside in long-term yields.

Per Jin10, Japan's Economy, Trade and Industry Minister Ryosei Akazawa said on Tuesday that Tokyo will not release more national oil reserves in September and October.

He noted that September crude purchases are projected to be about 80% of last year's monthly average, down from 100% in August, as tanker traffic originally passing through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait reroutes to the longer Suez route.

Some reserves already earmarked for release have not yet been used because alternative supplies have been secured. Using those reserves would keep September’s supply at last year’s average, and October purchases are expected to return to the prior year's monthly average.

In Polymarket's Pittsburgh Pirates vs. San Diego Padres market, the Pittsburgh Pirates option rose to 65.5% from 47.5% about an hour earlier, an 18-point swing.

ChainCatcher reported that the move signals renewed volatility in the prediction market around this event and could be influenced by late-breaking news.

Apple is approaching the end of Tim Cook’s tenure as chief executive, with the departure set for next Tuesday and John Ternus poised to assume leadership duties as his successor. Sina Finance reports that farewell events were held at Apple’s Cupertino campus as Cook nears the conclusion of his tenure.

Accounts describe a gathering inside Max’s Café in the ring-shaped headquarters, with OneRepublic performing in the central outdoor courtyard. A photo circulating on X shows Cook with a guitar alongside the band. Approximately 200 attendees, mostly Apple employees, attended the event. Speakers included Laurene Powell Jobs and former Apple executive Jeff Williams, while Eddy Cue and John Ternus also addressed the crowd. Cook spoke and acknowledged his partner Mike during his remarks. Cook publicly came out in 2014, and he has generally kept his private life private in public settings.

Beginning next week, Cook will transition to the role of executive chairman, taking on responsibilities that include some liaison work with global policymakers, according to Apple’s leadership announcement.

In internal discussions, observers expect the handover to reflect continuity, with most senior roles remaining unchanged as Ternus leads. There are also notes that Cook’s long-time executive assistant will eventually join Ternus’s team.

During his last earnings call as CEO, Cook described the transition as proceeding smoothly and said he was very excited for John to lead Apple into its next era.

According to Jin10, the Reserve Bank of Australia’s board unanimously decided to keep the cash rate unchanged in August.

While the decision was unanimous on the hold, several members reportedly debated whether a further rate increase would be warranted, citing risks such as the Middle East conflict, higher energy prices, AI-related investment considerations, and domestic inflation pressures.

New York-based AI startup General Intuition is reportedly seeking new funding at a $6 billion pre-money valuation, with several prominent investors expected to participate alongside existing backers, according to ChainCatcher.

The round is said to include Valor Equity Partners, Point72 Ventures and Seven Seven Six, while Khosla Ventures and General Catalyst are also involved.

The company is developing foundation models designed to train general AI agents to move through space and time.

The fundraising would come just weeks after General Intuition closed a $320 million round that valued the company at about $2.3 billion.

CEO Pim de Witte spun the company out of the Medal video game clip-sharing platform in October last year, using hundreds of millions of hours of game data and player action records as initial training data. General Intuition has become one of the most closely watched startups in physical AI.

Entropy.io operates as an independent market deployer within Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 framework, enabling perpetual contracts on a variety of assets. These include stocks, commodities, indices, and pre-IPO shares.

In its latest financing, Entropy.io secured $14 million in a round led by Ribbit Capital. The deal is accompanied by $40 million in HYPE staking support, and its first market, Anthropic Pre-IPO, has gone live on Hyperliquid.

Entropy.io’s role under Hyperliquid’s HIP-3 structure is to deploy new markets independently, expanding access to perpetual contracts across traditional and pre-IPO instruments.