U.S. home-loan banks lent billions of dollars to crypto banks

 The United States Federal Home Loan Banks System (FHLB) is lending billions of dollars to two of the largest cryptocurrency banks in an effort to mitigate the effects of a surge in withdrawals, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal on Jan. 21. 

The FHLB is a consortium of 11 regional banks across the United States that provide funds to other banks and lenders. Founded during the Great Depression to support housing finance, the system has $1.1 trillion in assets and over 6,500 members.

Traditional finance has remained immune to crypto contagion following the collapse of FTX, but FHLB loans to crypto-exposed banks could increase that risk, notes the report.

The entity reportedly lent nearly $10 billion to commercial bank Signature Bank in the last quarter of 2022, making it one of the largest borrowing transactions by a bank in recent years. In 2018, the Signature received approval from the Department of Financial Services of New York for its blockchain-based digital platform.

The second bank to requeste funds from the FHLB was Silvergate, receiving at least $3.6 billion. In the last quarter of 2022, Silvergate experienced significant outflows of deposits and took steps to maintain cash liquidity, including selling debt securities. The net loss attributable to common shareholders in the period summed to $1 billion, Cointelegraph reported.

According to Silvergate's report, the average digital asset customer deposits in the fourth quarter of 2022 was $7.3 billion, a significantly lower amount compared to the prior quarter when deposits reached $12 billion.

In comments to WSJ, Senator Elizabeth Warren noted that “this is why I’ve been warning of the dangers of allowing crypto to become intertwined with the banking system," claiming that taxpayers should not "be left holding the bag for collapses in the crypto industry", which she called a market full of "fraud, money laundering and illicit finance."

FTX's group collapse caused a ripple effect across the crypto industry, affecting many companies. In the most recent development, crypto lender Genesis filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Jan. 19, having liabilities estimated between $1 billion and $10 billion.

https://cointelegraph.com/news/u-s-home-loan-banks-lent-billions-of-dollars-to-crypto-banks-report

School staff recall requests for help, past incidents preceding 6-year-old shooting teacher

 Staff at the Virginia school where a 6-year-old boy shot a teacher have recalled requests for help the teacher made about the student that were reportedly ignored and incidents preceding the shooting that raised concerns about the boy’s behavior. 

The Washington Post reported Saturday that educators at the school said the teacher, Abigail Zwerner, had repeatedly asked school officials for help with handling the boy but was ignored.

The Post reviewed screenshots of an online conversation between teachers at the school and Newport News Superintendent George Parker III that it reported show several staffers saying that Zwerner had asked for help throughout the school year prior to the shooting. 

One staff member wrote that “she had asked for help,” per the outlet, while others said “several times,” “two hours prior” and “all year.” 

The Post received the messages from the spouse of a teacher at the school. 

The messages shared by the newspaper did not clarify what help Zwerner asked for or whom she asked for help

The incident occurred on Jan. 6 at Richneck Elementary School in Newport News, Va. Officials say the boy shot Zwerner with a handgun but that no one else was injured. 

Zwerner sustained life-threatening injuries but recovered and was released from the hospital earlier this week. She is continuing to recover as an outpatient. 

Officials have confirmed that the gun the student used was legally purchased by his mother, but they have not said how he got possession of the weapon. 

The Post reported a separate message from a teacher who said the boy once wrote a teacher a note saying that he hated her and wanted to light her on fire. The teacher who received the note told administrators about it but was told to drop the issue, according to the message.

The teacher requested anonymity to avoid possible retaliation, per the Post.

The message said the boy also once threw furniture and other items in the classroom, leading other students in the class to hide under their desks, according to the Post. He also barricaded the doors to a classroom and blocked a teacher and students from leaving, the message reportedly said. 

The teacher said the boy was not receiving the educational assistance he needed and that he sometimes walked around the school unsupervised, according to the Post. 

The family of the boy has said he has an “acute disability” and that one of his parents was usually in class with him, though not during the week of the shooting. 

School officials searched the boy’s backpack for a weapon ahead of the shooting but did not find anything.

https://thehill.com/homenews/state-watch/3822999-school-staff-recall-requests-for-help-past-incidents-preceding-6-year-old-shooting-teacher/

As flood waters rise, outdated standards make the nation unsafe

 In late 2021, the federal government announced it would do something it hasn’t done since the 1970s: overhaul key aspects of its flood insurance rules. Since then, the need for this update has been made abundantly clear. The recent chain of storms in California caps off yet another year marked by devastating floods in eastern Kentucky, St. Louis, Dallas, Yellowstone National Park and many other locations. And Florida still is recovering from Hurricanes Ian and Nicole.

Flooding exacts a terrible toll on homeowners and residents, many of whom are completely unaware that they are at risk.

Climate change has made flood disasters more severe and more frequent. Yet, developers keep building in harm’s way, because outdated rules and construction standards allow them to. The result: Our nation is locked into a perpetual cycle of flood-rebuild-repeat.

One year ago, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) took the first step toward overhauling its outdated rules and standards and asked the public what changes were needed to effectively govern development in low-lying, flood prone areas. Hundreds of people, organizations and institutions urged FEMA to update its standards. There was a clear call for climate-smart reforms that curb floodplain development, provide more accurate flood maps and ensure disclosure of past flood damages to renters and homebuyers.

As administrator of the National Flood Insurance Program, FEMA has a legal duty to adopt rules and standards that minimize the potential for future flood damages. One year and many more record-setting floods later, we’re still waiting for FEMA to propose new rules.

Outdated standards

Despite its name, the National Flood Insurance Program does a lot more than sell flood insurance policies. It establishes minimum requirements for all local and state building codes. It also produces flood risk maps that guide local development decisions and inform engineers, architects, planners and banks where it is safe to build. More than 22,000 towns, cities, counties and states rely on these flood-risk maps and land use standards that FEMA establishes through the flood insurance program.

But the land use standards have not been updated since the mid-1970s, when Gerald Ford was president. A lot has changed since then. We now know about sea-level rise and extreme storms. We now know that it’s safer and more cost-effective to either elevate homes to be safer from flooding or (better yet) not develop low-lying areas at all. We now know it’s often more cost-effective to help a person move to higher ground, rather than paying them to rebuild over and over. And we know that tens of billions of dollars in damage are being caused each year by flood disasters and millions of lives disrupted.

FEMA’s land use standards are stuck in the past while communities cope with the floods of the 21st century. Archaic practices like “fill and build,” whereby developers haul in dirt to raise entire new subdivisions, are still allowed, even though this pushes runoff and floodwaters onto the now lower-lying neighborhoods that were already there.

FEMA’s land use standards also fail to require that drinking water plants, hospitals, power plants and other critical infrastructure assets be built to a greater margin of safety for flooding. These are the facilities that communities need to withstand disasters like flooding. But under FEMA’s current rules, critical infrastructure assets are built to the same standard of flood protection as a hot dog stand.

Compounding these problems, FEMA’s flood maps don’t always paint an accurate picture of where it is safest to build, nor do they tell us critical information about future flood risk. For instance, these maps do not incorporate sea-level rise projections, which are essential to guide development in coastal areas. And they don’t account for more intense storms, leaving inland communities unaware of the greater future potential for flooding. As a result, people who live outside of the floodplain — as mapped by FEMA — are surprised when their homes flood on a regular basis.

FEMA’s flood insurance program should be a linchpin in the nation’s efforts to deal with flooding, sea-level rise and extreme storms caused by climate change. In its current form, the flood insurance program is worse than unhelpful; it’s a liability.

FEMA should be commended for asking members of the public for input on the changes that are needed. Members of flood-prone communities answered that call, loud and clear. They said they want tougher standards, better maps, and more accurate information about potential flooding.  

Now a year has passed. More flooding has devastated communities across the country. More new homes were built in harm’s way. More people were displaced from their homes. And we wait for FEMA to take the all-important next step: proposing modern rules and regulations that bring standards for building in floodplains out of the 1970s and into the era of climate change.

The nation — and the millions of people living in harm’s way — are running out of time.

Rob Moore is a senior policy analyst in the Climate Adaptation Team at NRDC (Natural Resources Defense Council). Prior to joining NRDC in 2013, he spent nine years as executive director of Environmental Advocates of New York and, prior to that, served as executive director of the Prairie Rivers Network in Illinois.

https://thehill.com/opinion/energy-environment/3822936-as-flood-waters-rise-outdated-standards-make-the-nation-unsafe/

Merck found the source of Januvia contamination, plans to fix the issue this year

 In a report to the FDA, Merck says it has figured out how its blockbuster Type 2 diabetes drugs have become contaminated with nitrosamine. And the company has told the regulator that it can fix the issue by the end of this year, a source told Bloomberg.

Five months ago, the FDA detected Nitroso-STG-19 (NTTP) in Januvia and Janumet, the franchise which generated sales of $5.3 billion for Merck in 2021.

While it wasn’t clear whether Merck or a third-party manufacturer was responsible for the contamination, the agency temporarily allowed sales of the drug to continue even though some samples exceeded the 37 nanogram (ng) threshold for daily intake.

The FDA’s decision also was influenced by a shortage of the injected blood-sugar-reducing drug, which if discontinued by a patient can have dangerous consequences.

"(Merck) has already instituted additional quality controls and expects to be able to consistently reduce NTTP levels to meet the long-term acceptable daily intake level this year," the company said in a statement to Fierce Pharma. "The specific timeframe will be based on the progress of timing to institute process modifications and on engagement with FDA and other health authorities."

Over the last few years, nitrosamines have turned up in a variety of commonly used medicines, including Sanofi, Pfizer, Boehringer Ingelheim and GSK’s blood pressure drug Zantac, Pfizer’s smoking cessation therapy Chantix and another Type 2 diabetes treatment, metformin, which is sold by several companies as a generic.

The contamination has triggered recalls, shortages and—in the case of Zantac—lawsuits. Last month, a judge in Florida sided with the sellers of Zantac, saying claims did not have sound scientific basis.

While the FDA has pointed out that nitrosamines can cause cancer, the compounds are a part of life as they are commonly found in water and in foods—particularly dairy products, vegetables and grilled and cured meats. The risk of cancer comes with high-level exposure over extended periods of time.

https://www.fiercepharma.com/pharma/merck-has-found-source-januvia-contamination-tells-fda-it-can-fix-year-report

Sanofi launches new scholarship program to boost diversity in healthcare

 Citing the “trust gap” as one of the greatest challenges in global health today, Sanofi announced its new NextGen Scholarship program, a global initiative aimed at getting more people from underrepresented communities—specifically Black and ethnic minority groups, women, people with disabilities and LGBTQ+ communities—into the healthcare profession.

The announcement was made at the 53rd Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 18. NextGen is initially kicking off in five countries—Brazil, France, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S.—and will help with tuition and living costs for 100 students at higher education institutions across the globe. In addition, there will be mentoring, internships and employment opportunities at Sanofi post graduation.

The NextGen Scholarship program is part of Sanofi’s 50 million euro DE&I project, “A Million Conversations,” which aims to increase trust within marginalized groups and healthcare stakeholders by 2030.

“We felt we had an obligation as one of the world's largest health care companies to do something about [the trust gap],” Raj Verma, Sanofi’s chief diversity culture and experience officer, said. “We’ve spent the past nine to 12 months really thinking this through—doing the research, testing our theory, bringing people into the conversation and co-creating something that we felt would make a meaningful impact in society.”

Verma says “A Million Conversations” is built around three pillars: the scholarship is one, and dialogue—fostering conversations with people both within Sanofi and outside and allowing people from marginalized communities to speak directly to the industry about their own experiences, leading to solutions to improve experience and build trust—is the second. The third pillar is about research and policy recommendations to help support global conversations about how to reduce healthcare inequality.

As for the scholarships, each country is in charge of its own plan, as Verma says the local approach makes the most sense in understanding how things work. Sanofi will support and coach when necessary, but ultimately each country’s leader will own the project. That includes the marketing and social media. The goal is really about bringing a more diverse group of people into the Sanofi fold.

“What we're looking for is people who are genuinely interested in a career in healthcare, because that's the pipeline and that that's what's going to be serving our business purpose—bringing people in who can have a long career in healthcare either as doctors, as nurses, as researchers, in digital, in marketing, in communications, that's what we're trying to build,” Verma said. “So we have been very keen to say that this is a global problem, but a local solution.”

https://www.fiercepharma.com/marketing/sanofi-announces-new-scholarship-program-increase-diversity-healthcare

Health group lambasts Novo Nordisk for 'paid' news program on weight loss med Wegovy

 The nonprofit public health advocacy group the Physicians Committee has issued a formal complaint over allegations that Novo Nordisk paid for a promotional segment on "60 Minutes" and dressed it up as a news segment without clearly stating the drug’s risks.

The Washington, D.C.-based group has filed a complaint with federal bodies alleging that CBS’s "60 Minutes" aired on New Year’s Day what amounted to a promotion of Wegovy, Novo’s new weight loss therapy, breaching the FDA’s so-called “fair balance” rules for drug ads.

The Committee said in a release that the feature failed to talk about alternatives to the drug and to medicine in general when it comes to weight loss; that only experts “paid by Novo” were used in the program; and that the piece used overly promotional language. 

“The 60 Minutes program looked like a news story, but it was effectively a drug ad,” said Physicians Committee President Neal Barnard, M.D., FACC, adjunct professor of medicine at George Washington University School of Medicine, in the release.

“And there are FDA regulations on prescription drug advertising related risks and contraindications. Wegovy can cause digestive side effects and increased heart rate. Gallstones, pancreatitis, and serious drops in blood sugar have occurred, especially when Wegovy is combined with other diabetes drugs.”

Barnard added that he also found it “concerning” that Novo Nordisk’s political action committee has “paid more than $250,000 in campaign contributions to members of Congress in an effort to pass legislation to make the U.S. government pay for Wegovy, a $1,300-per-month-per-person proposition.”

The Physicians Committee said there are still four news stories on CBS’ website relating to the Wegovy segment and that they want them removed immediately and have a new “corrective ad” put in their place explaining the side effects and risks associated with Wegovy.

Novo has been suffering from a number of bumps in the road for Wegovy, an injectable form of GLP-1 drug semaglutide, since its FDA approval back in 2021.

Last fall, the drug nabbed a surprise endorsement from Twitter CEO Elon Musk, who tweeted in a reply to questions over his weight loss in 2022 that he had been using Wegovy, though there are questions over whether this was prescribed as per its indication.

There are reports that many others have been doing this same thing, including those with a lower BMI or no weight-loss-related condition that the drug’s label demands, leading to an unusual spike in demand for the drug.

This has caused Wegovy supply issues for Novo which, coupled with manufacturing problems, only deepened bumps in production last year for the drug and led to an official shortage of the drug in 2022. 

Novo said these issues are now mainly in the rearview mirror, but a spokesperson for the Danish pharma told Fierce Pharma Marketing earlier this month that it “will closely monitor prescribing trends and phase promotional efforts as we assess demand” for Wegovy, after its manufacturing issues.

A spokesperon for Novo Nordisk told Fierce Pharma Marketing: “Novo Nordisk did not provide any payment or sponsorship to CBS 60 Minutes for their reporting on obesity as part of a news segment that aired on January 1, 2023, and we did not control any of the content or have any role in identifying or selecting the doctors and patients featured in the news segment.”

https://www.fiercepharma.com/marketing/health-group-lambasts-novo-nordisk-60-minutes-paid-news-program-weight-loss-med-wegovy

UAE De-Dollarization Accelerates: "Crypto Play Major Role In Trade Going Forward"

 We are starting to see a pattern in the last week or so in geopolitical events that is anything but good for the unipolar hegemon in the west.

The first, as we detailed here, was when Saudi Finance Minister Mohammed al-Jadaan, on a panel on “Saudi Arabia’s Transformation” in Davos, made it clear that Riyadh “will consider trading in currencies other than the US dollar.”

So is the petroyuan finally at hand? Possibly, but Al-Jadaan wisely opted for careful hedging:

“We enjoy a very strategic relationship with China and we enjoy that same strategic relationship with other nations including the US and we want to develop that with Europe and other countries.”

Second, as we reported here, The Central Banks of Iran and Russia are studying the adoption of a “stable coin” for foreign trade settlements, replacing the US dollar, the ruble and the rial.

The crypto crowd is already up in arms, mulling the pros and cons of a gold-backed central bank digital currency (CBDC) for trade that will be in fact impervious to the weaponized US dollar.

And now, third, Thani Al-Zeyoudi, the United Arab Emirates (UAE) minister of state for foreign trade told Bloomberg TV that he is discussing ways to boost non-dollar trade (in oil and non-oil exports) with some of its largest trading partners.

The UAE and India are discussing ways to boost trade in rupees as the Gulf country looks to strengthen ties with its second-largest trade partner.

“We are still in early-stage discussions with India on this dirham-rupee trade,” Al-Zeyoudi said, adding that oil sales in the Indian currency are “not under consideration... This is only going to be focusing on non-oil trade.”

The UAE has been seeking to step up trade with crucial partners and last year signed multiple economic pacts with countries including India, Indonesia, Turkey, Israel and Ukraine.

In the coming months, the UAE expects to finalize similar agreements with Cambodia and Georgia, Al-Zeyoudi said.

Additionally, discussions on a trade agreement with China are also taking place, the UAE minister said.

“China is our first trade partner,” he said.

“For sure, more is going to be good for consumers, for workers, for people, for businesses.”

Finally, Al-Zeyoudi said that, “Crypto will play a major role for UAE trade going forward."

The UAE - and especially Dubai - has been working to lure the world’s largest firms with its crypto-friendly policies.

“The most important thing is that we ensure global governance when it comes to cryptocurrencies and crypto companies,” Al-Zeyoudi said.

“We started attracting some of the companies to the country with the aim that we’ll build together the right governance and legal system, which are needed.”

All of which seems to confirm what Credit Suisse monetary icon, Zoltan Pozsar, said in his latest note, "War and Commodity Encumbrance" (must read as usual, and available to professional subs), which discusses two main things: i) commodity encumbrance (i.e., rehypothecation) and ii) the missing link of the Bretton Woods III world, the Petroyuan.

Of course, it is never that simple with any Pozsar report, and this one is no exception, so let's start at the top of the most important narrative that will shape the next decade if not century.

As the Hungarian repo expert begins, a recurring theme in his dispatches this year has been that "in a moment when the world is going from unipolar to multipolar, the actions of heads of state are far more important than the actions of central banks." That is because as heads of state lead, and their actions affect inflation, central banks merely follow by hiking rates to “clean up”. It has been Zoltan's contention that central banks will be behind the curve in this game, "and if investors read only the speeches of central bankers but not statesmen, they will be even more behind the curve."

More importantly however, this new multipolar world order is being built not by G7 heads of state but by what Pozsar calls the “G7 of the East” (the BRICS heads of state), which is a G5 really but because of “BRICSpansion” (he took the liberty to round up).

https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/uae-de-dollarization-accelerates-crypto-will-play-major-role-trade-going-forward