🇺🇸🏴‍☠️💥🇻🇪🇻🇪 — Erik D. Prince, founder of the private army Blackwater, along with Donald Trump Jr., is discussing covert actions to remove Nicolás Maduro's regime in Venezuela, which he describes as a "narco-state" and a "communist threat to America." He claims that "processes are already underway" and mentions the fundraising campaign "Ya Casi Venezuela."

📈🌏🇪🇺 Asian defence stocks soar to record highs as Europe prepares to re-arm

Japanese and South Korean defence stocks have surged to record highs on expectations that European countries will purchase more military equipment from Asia after Donald Trump threatened to withdraw the US’s security umbrella.

Shares in Hanwha Aerospace, South Korea’s leading artillery company, are up 134 per cent this year, while Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Japan’s largest defence contractor, has gained 26 per cent.

The stocks rose 6.8 per cent and 12.2 per cent, respectively, on Monday after German lawmakers agreed to increase infrastructure and defence spending last week.

https://archive.ph/Sd80A

https://www.ft.com/content/25226697-47ca-4701-a431-4b45cb85a635

🇨🇳🚘 Cheap Chinese Cars Are Taking Over Roads From Brazil to South Africa

Donald Trump wants to keep Chinese carmakers out of the US, but that won’t stop them from taking over the rest of the world. They already are.

From Bangkok to Johannesburg to Sao Paulo, the streets are increasingly jammed with inexpensive compacts, crossovers and SUVs made by companies like Great Wall Motor Co., BYD Co., Chery Automobile Co. and SAIC Motor Corp.

While the Trump administration is expected to shield the US’s Big Three from Chinese rivals at home, and Canada and the European Union have placed tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles, buyers in emerging markets have welcomed Chinese cars and trucks with open arms — posing a new threat to growth-hungry global automakers.

China sends more vehicles abroad than any other country, and its passenger car exports surged nearly 20% to 4.9 million in 2024 alone, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers — from less than 1 million in 2020.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2025-03-17/chinese-carmakers-threaten-ford-gm-stellantis-in-global-markets

https://archive.ph/4yc6c

🇺🇸❌🇮🇷❗️ — US Secretary of State Marco Rubio:

President Trump is ready to do anything to prevent Iran from having a nuclear weapon

💰 Kraken to acquire NinjaTrader: Introducing the next era of professional trading

We are excited to announce we have entered into an agreement to acquire NinjaTrader, the leading U.S. retail futures trading platform, for $1.5 billion, subject to certain purchase price adjustments.

This acquisition strengthens our position as a 24/7, always-on technology platform built for professional traders, making us a leader in U.S. futures for both traditional and crypto markets. It also accelerates Kraken’s multi-asset-class ambitions, which include plans for equities trading and payments.

Founded in 2003, NinjaTrader provides advanced futures trading tools to nearly two million traders and operates as a CFTC-registered Futures Commission Merchant (FCM). This transaction marks the largest-ever deal combining traditional finance (TradFi) and crypto.

NinjaTrader is a trusted hub for professional futures traders. With this acquisition, strategic benefits include:

➡️ U.S. futures – NinjaTrader’s CFTC-registered FCM license allows Kraken to offer crypto futures and derivatives in the U.S.

➡️ Unlocked global regulatory licensing and growth – Kraken’s U.K. MTF, EU MiFID and Australian securities licenses accelerate NinjaTrader’s expansion into the U.K., Europe and Australia.

➡️ Seamless multi-asset trading – For both Kraken and NinjaTrader clients, the ability to trade crypto, futures and traditional financial products.

➡️ Access to elite trading tools – Clients will benefit from NinjaTrader’s pro-grade analytics, execution engines and futures liquidity, combined with Kraken’s best-in-class crypto liquidity and trading experience.

“Traditional markets run on post-WWII, 1950s banking systems, exchanges that close at 4 p.m. ET and settlement delays that take days to resolve. Crypto rails fixed these issues, operating with efficient and real-time infrastructure. But legacy finance and crypto have remained separate ecosystems, until today. This transaction is the first step in our vision of an institutional-grade trading platform where any asset can be traded, anytime,” said Arjun Sethi, Kraken’s co-CEO.

https://blog.kraken.com/news/kraken-to-acquire-ninjatrader

Follow @FelipeChannel

🇷🇺 Russia has expanded its gold reserves to a record high, reaching $217.4 billion as of March 1.

Gold now accounts for 34.4% of the country’s total foreign exchange reserves

🔗 Gold Telegraph