A VPN service used by criminals to distribute ransomware, malware and facilitate other forms of cybercrime has been taken offline following a coordinated international operation by police. As part of the joint action by Europol, Germany's Hanover Police Department, the FBI, the UK's National Crime Agency (NCA) and others, the 15 servers used by the VPNLab.net service have been seized or disrupted, rendering it no longer available. https://www.zdnet.com/article/this-vpn-service-used-by-cyber-criminals-to-deliver-ransomware-has-just-been-taken-down-by-police/

Turkey- The process of de-dollarizing the Turkish economy will be accelerated in the coming weeks. The government will step up the conversion of the nation’s foreign currency holdings into Turkish lira, he said, adding that more than 131 billion lira ($9.69 billion) had been deposited in accounts under the plan. The government program, unveiled last month, is intended to protect lira deposits from further forex depreciation, as well as to make citizens feel more secure when holding their savings in a bank. https://www.rt.com/business/546201-turkey-ditching-dollar-lira-crisis/

Malaysia’s central bank recently completed a proof-of-concept for a CBDC with three other nations and may consider developing its own cross-border payment system using the blockchain. It also stated that the ostensible reason for the current research effort was to ensure it is prepared to launch a CBDC program “should the need to issue CBDC arise in the future.” https://cointelegraph.com/news/malaysia-s-central-bank-actively-assessing-cbdc-options?utm_source=Telegram&utm_medium=social

Russian state energy giant Gazprom said it has not booked any capacity to pump gas to Europe through the Yamal pipeline next month, underscoring a sharp drop-off in Russian exports to the region so far this year. Gazprom said pipeline exports of Russian gas have tumbled 41% from a year ago so far in January, underlining the impact of a reversal in the Yamal-Europe pipeline, which usually pumps Russian gas into Europe, from Germany to Poland. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/yamal-gas-pipeline-flows-still-heading-eastward-germany-poland-2022-01-17/

China's 2021 corn imports almost tripled in volume from the previous year, hitting a new record, as buyers turned to cheaper alternatives overseas amid soaring prices and a domestic supply crunch. The world's top grains market brought in 28.35 million tonnes of corn in all of 2021, up 151% from an annual record figure of 11.3 million in 2020. Imports of wheat in the first 12 months of the year also hit a record at 9.77 million tonnes, and were up 16.6% from 8.38 million in 2020. China's corn prices hit record highs in 2021 after Beijing whittled down its massive temporary stockpile of the grain and bad weather hit output in the main production region the previous year. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/chinas-corn-imports-soar-to-new-record-in-2021

The most populous county in the United States is becoming too dangerous for freight trains to pass through without being looted. This debacle throws another wrench into supply chains. Union Pacific is looking to avoid that stretch of track entirely, and FedEx and UPS may route their shipments to avoid Los Angeles County. https://www.nationalreview.com/corner/train-robberies-in-la-up-356-percent-in-2021/

Hot, dry weather in December and early January has analysts and trade groups lowering their estimates for soy production in key producers Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay, helping push up prices of the oilseed by about 12% since the end of November. https://www.bloombergquint.com/onweb/paraguay-soybean-giant-girds-for-worst-harvest-in-two-decades

Germany’s gas storage facilities are 50.6% full (as of January 11, 2022),” the German Ministry of Economy said, “This corresponds to a theoretical working gas availability of 17.7 days,” https://www.rt.com/business/546399-germany-reveals-gas-reserves/

Oil prices rose for a 4th day to a 7 year high as an outage on a pipeline from Iraq to Turkey increased concerns about an already tight supply outlook amid worrisome geopolitical troubles in Russia and the UAE. Brent crude futures to $88.30 per barrel. Turkey’s state pipeline operator Botas said that it cut oil flows on the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline after an explosion on the system. https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/19/oil-markets-middle-east-tensions-iraq-turkey-pipeline.html

Canadian border agents began refusing entry to unvaccinated American truckers just days ago, and it’s already causing chaos -- particularly in fruit and vegetable markets. The mandate is adding to Canada’s supply chain turmoil that was already abundant due to recent storms as well as the pandemic. The Canadian Trucking Association estimates the mandate will take as many as 16,000 drivers off the road. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-01-19/fruit-and-veggie-outages-in-canada-get-worse-with-trucker-shortages

Russia has climbed the ranks to become the largest wheat exporter in the world. There would still be a risk to Russian gas flows via Ukraine to Europe. Potential impact on the production and export of Ukrainian corn and wheat. China, is a large importer of Russian oil. Russian primary aluminium production makes up around 6% of global output, and 15% of ex-China output. Russia is the world's largest palladium producer, while it is also an important nickel producer. Russia is the world's largest palladium producer, while it is also an important nickel producer. https://menafn.com/1103575558/Commodity-prices-could-soar-if-the-Russia-Ukraine-crisis-escalates

US- A digital dollar may also hold tremendous power in terms of tracking every transaction made. This could potentially result in a serious threat to privacy, so safeguards should be put in place to protect individuals from intrusions that threaten their civil liberties. “Every purchase or donation has the potential to be recorded by the government and misused in a number of disturbing ways. https://finance.yahoo.com/news/fed-releases-long-awaited-digital-185221957.html

Diammonium phosphate, or DAP, cost $745 per metric ton in December—more than double its 2020 average price. December prices for Eastern European urea, were nearly four times the 2020 average. Inflation rose in about 80% of emerging-market economies last year, with roughly a third seeing double-digit food inflation. https://www.wsj.com/articles/farms-are-failing-as-fertilizer-prices-drive-up-cost-of-food-11642770182

The data accessed came from at least 60 Red Cross and Red Crescent National Societies located around the world. The hackers targeted a Swiss company that the ICRC hires to store its data. The organization said it was most concerned that the confidential information people shared with them was leaked in the breach. https://www.zdnet.com/article/red-cross-hit-with-cyberattack-that-compromised-data-of-515000-highly-vulnerable-people/ #ICE9

Russia- ... banning transactions from the Russian market, prohibiting digital denominations from being issued, and preventing financial institutions from investing in them. The mining of cryptocurrencies would be banned under the proposed rule change, as would the ability for investors to cash out. Those falling foul of the laws could face prosecution. https://www.rt.com/russia/546628-moscow-proposes-complete-ban-cryptocurrencies/

Late last year was the Cyber Polygon simulation with the IMF, WEF and major nations and the simulated shutdown of the global financial infrastructure. Ireland is now taking part in a large-scale simulated cyberattack by hostile actors on the EU, in a bid to beef up the union’s cyber defences. The massive operation, runs for a total of six weeks. https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-40791447.html

Chicago wheat futures were higher on Monday as the market continued to keep a close watch on tensions between Russia and Ukraine. The most-active wheat contract on the Chicago Board of Trade (CBOT) Wv1 was up 0.5% at $7.84 a bushel. https://www.nasdaq.com/articles/grains-wheat-edges-up-focus-remains-on-russia-ukraine-tensions

Russia may permit the use of gold-backed stablecoins and the mining of cryptocurrencies under government control. Cryptocurrencies should be banned, but Russia could make use of a stablecoin denominated in gold and under state control. The gold-backed stablecoin could be similar to a golden ruble and Russia can employ it to circumvent sanctions and the policy of containment applied against the country. https://www.zerohedge.com/crypto/duma-deputy-chair-insists-gold-backed-stablecoins-crypto-mining-allowed-russia-circumvent

Misconfigurations in smart contracts are being exploited by scammers to create malicious cryptocurrency tokens with the goal of stealing funds from unsuspecting users. The instances of token fraud in the wild include hiding 99% fee functions and concealing backdoor routines. a legitimate contract called Levyathan was hacked after its developers inadvertently uploaded the wallet's private key to their GitHub repository, enabling the exploiter to mint an infinite number of tokens and steal funds from the contract. https://thehackernews.com/2022/01/hackers-creating-fraudulent-crypto.html

The de facto central bank of South Korea has reportedly carried out testing the basic functionalities of a CBDC including manufacturing, issuing, and distribution in a “simulation environment in the cloud,” “The Bank of Korea will partner with the IT and finance industry to seek a utilization plan for the CBDC,” https://www.fxempire.com/news/article/south-korea-enters-phase-2-of-cbdc-tests-after-successful-initial-trials-875286

Turkey slashed electricity supplies to industry after Iran announced a temporary halt in natural gas exports, a move that threatens to hit critical sales abroad. The government has imposed three days of power outages a week in the country’s hundreds of organized industrial zones. Turkey had 1.2 billion cubic meters of gas in storage as of Jan. 18, 42% less than a year earlier. https://www.energyconnects.com/news/utilities/2022/january/largest-ever-power-cuts-hit-turkey-s-industrial-production/