Global ETF News Older than One Year
Money is about to enter a new era of competition
April 12, 2022--Digital technology is poised to change our relationship with money and, for some countries, the ability to manage their economies.
Money is one of humankind's most remarkable innovations. It makes it possible to trade products and services across great geographic distances, between people who may not know each other and have no particular reason to trust each other.
It can even be used to transfer wealth and resources over time. Without money, trade and commerce-all human economic activity, really-would be severely constrained in terms of time and space.
The privilege of issuing money is synonymous with economic power. So it should come as little surprise that history is replete with examples of currency competition, both within countries and between them. In China, home of the world's first paper money, currencies issued by private merchants and provincial governments competed for many centuries.
Source: technologyreview.com
Metaverse real estate prices are booming. This is why
April 10, 2022--Prices for land in the metaverse have surged this year, with some plots selling for millions of dollars.
Many brands want to secure space they think will be popular in the metaverse, in the same way they buy advertising space on popular websites.
PricewaterhouseCoopers, Adidas and Warner Music Group have all invested.
But some say that location might not matter in the metaverse, as headsets will allow us to teleport around.
Imagine you live in a time before the internet. When we all had to work in offices, go to shops to buy things, when TV couldn't be streamed on demand and when most monetary transactions were made using notes and coins.
Source: weforum.org
Proof of Stake Explained
April 8, 2022--Proof of stake is a consensus mechanism used to verify new cryptocurrency transactions. Since blockchains lack any centralized governing authorities, proof of stake is a method to guarantee that data saved on the network is valid.
What Is Proof of Stake?
Decentralization is at the heart of blockchain technology and cryptocurrency. There's no central gatekeeper to manage a blockchain's record of transactions and data. Instead, the network relies on an army of participants to validate incoming transactions and add them as new blocks on the chain.
Proof of stake is the consensus mechanism that helps choose which participants get to handle this lucrative task-lucrative because the chosen ones are rewarded with new crypto if they accurately validate the new data and don't cheat the system.
Source: forbes.com
Fight for Junior Talent in ETF Industry Drives 42% Surge in Pay
April 7, 2022--Average bonus across industry makes up 68% of salary: survey
Women, on average, were paid 16% less than men in the industry
The global exchange-traded fund industry is willing to pay a premium for junior staffers
While the average total compensation across the industry last year rose 10% to $265,000 from a year earlier, total compensation for analysts--considered entry-level workers in the industry--jumped by 42% to $87,000, according to a survey led by Blackwater Search & Advisory, a Europe-based ETF and digital assets recruiting firm.
Source: bloomberg.com
World Bank-From low to high inflation: Implications for emerging market and developing economies
April 7, 2022--1 Introduction
Global inflation has risen over the past year from less than 2% to over 6%, the highest level since 2008. The pickup has been broad-based, across nine-tenths of countries. Inflation is now running well above central bank inflation targets in almost all advanced economies and most inflation-targeting emerging market and developing economies (EMDEs).
The recent commodity price surge triggered by Russia's invasion of Ukraine will raise inflation further in 2022. This persistence of above-target inflation creates a historic monetary policy challenge. Price stability, generally defined as a low and stable rate of inflation, is a key aspect of the credibility of monetary policy, and of macroeconomic stability. Low and stable inflation, sustained over time, has generally been associated with robust and stable output growth and employment. In contrast, both very low and very high inflation have been associated with severe macroeconomic problems (Mishkin 2000, 2008, Schmidt 2021, Fell et al. 2021).
Source: cepr.org
Gold ETP inflows hit record high of $11.3bn in March
April 6, 2022--Investors dump European equity funds as fallout from the Ukraine war rocks markets
Purchases of gold exchange traded products hit an all-time record in March, while investors pulled record amounts from domestically listed European equity funds as the fallout from Russia's invasion of Ukraine ripped through markets.
Global net inflows into gold ETPs rose fivefold month-on-month to $11.3bn in March, according to data from BlackRock, eclipsing the previous peak of $9.4bn in July 2020. The surge in buying helped push the gold price to within a whisker of its all-time high in early March, although it has since eased back.
Source: ft.com
Silver Hues: Building Age-Ready Cities
April 5, 2022--Highlights
The global population is growing older, and the world is getting more urban, which will require cities and towns to meet changing demands.
To prepare, cities need to become "age-ready", and the report suggest that they could start by focusing on these six areas: universal design, housing solutions, multigenerational spaces, physical mobility, accessible technology, and efficient spatial forms.
Creating age-ready cities allows older persons to continue to contribute economically and permits citizens of all ages and abilities to lead full, productive, and dignified lives.
The world is aging and becoming increasingly urban. For the first time, there are more older persons than children under five, and unprecedented challenges, from extreme weather events to continued conflict and violence are driving more people to cities for livelihoods, to be closer to family, have access to essential services and simply to enjoy their golden years.
view the World Bank report-Silver Hues: Building Age-Ready Cities
Source: worldbank.org
71% of executives say the metaverse will be good for business. Here’s why
April 5, 2022--The metaverse will be positive for business, according to most respondents to an Accenture survey.
It will be "breakthrough" or "transformational", 42% say.
This reimagining of the internet is one of four tech trends identified by Accenture.
The metaverse will be worth more than $1 trillion in annual revenues, according to JP Morgan.
Many companies are already embracing it, including Disney, Gucci and Warner Bros.
The metaverse: while some of us are still coming to terms with the idea that we're likely to spend increasing amounts of time in a 3D version of the internet, companies are already scrambling to define the space, carve out their niche, and even snap up virtual real estate.
Source: weforum.org
UN climate report: It's 'now or never' to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees
April 4, 2022--A new flagship UN report on climate change out Monday indicating that harmful carbon emissions from 2010-2019 have never been higher in human history, is proof that the world is on a "fast track" to disaster, Antonio Guterres has warned, with scientists arguing that it's 'now or never' to limit global warming to 1.5 degrees.
Reacting to the latest findings of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), the UN Secretary-General insisted that unless governments everywhere reassess their energy policies, the world will be uninhabitable.
His comments reflected the IPCC's insistence that all countries must reduce their fossil fuel use substantially, extend access to electricity, improve energy efficiency and increase the use of alternative fuels, such as hydrogen.
Unless action is taken soon, some major cities will be under water, Mr. Guterres said in a video message, which also forecast "unprecedented heatwaves, terrifying storms, widespread water shortages and the extinction of a million species of plants and animals".
view the IPCC Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability
Source: news.un.org
An ESG Lens on Blockchain and Public Equities-Looking at ESG in Crypto, Blockchain, and Public Equities Thematic Research Report
April 1, 2022--Investors can face risks related to noncompliance with respect to tightening regulations targeting the crypto market. This market also faces challenges related to the energy intensity of crypto mining which can have a large carbon footprint, depending on the sources of energy used in mining.
On the other hand, the efficiency of crypto blockchains may have positive social impacts, such as reducing the costs of transactions for people sending remittances. Moreover, some cryptos function without relying on mining operations by using a proof-of-stake rather than proof-of-work consensus mechanism.
Beyond the volatile crypto market, blockchain has several features that lend well to commercial applications. Blockchain can help improve the transparency, speed and efficiency of data transfers and monetary transactions. Businesses in multiple industries are using blockchain tools to enhance payment platforms and secure supply chain management systems.
Source: sustainalytics.com