Second bank hit by cyber heist, Rousseff out, Temer in, and Earth’s rules of attraction
Apple could be beaten by Alphabet for the position of most valuable. Image: REUTERS/Aly Song
Swift, the financial payments system that has about 11,000 banks as customers, has warned of a second financial cyber attack, mirroring one of the biggest ever robberies earlier this year at the Bangladesh central bank.
Without naming the bank, Swift said the “attackers clearly exhibit a deep and sophisticated knowledge of specific operational controls within the targeted banks — knowledge that may have been gained from malicious insiders or cyber attacks, or a combination of both”. (FT)
In the news
The recession risk The Bank of England warned that a vote for Brexit could cost jobs, raise prices, send the pound plummeting and even lead to recession, as Governor Mark Carney delivered the Bank's most outspoken comments to date on the EU referendum. (FT)
Rousseff out, Temer in Brazil’s new leader Michel Temer has pledged that investigations into corruption at Petrobras, the state-owned oil company, would be protected from political interference. His comments come hot on the heels of a Senate decision to suspend Dilma Rousseff and open a formal impeachment process against her for budgetary crimes. (FT)
Apple ‘most valuable’ crown at risk Wall Street has been engaged for months now in a battle for supremacy that could see the iPhone maker lose the position it has held for the past four years in one of the tech industry’s periodic changes of leadership. A retreat on Thursday left Apple’s market capitalisation at $494.7bn, effectively putting it neck-and-neck with Alphabet. (FT)
Drug-fuelled Olympic glory Grigory Rodchenkov, who ran the lab that handled testing for thousands of Olympians during the 2014 Sochi games, said he developed a three-drug cocktail of banned substances that he gave to dozens of Russian athletes, including at least 15 medal winners. (NYT)
Donald Trump and Paul Ryan: A united front? The presumptive Republican nominee and the highest-elected GOP official emerged from a closed-door meeting pledging to work toward unifying the party, even as Mr Ryan refused to explicitly endorse the former reality TV star. The situation is complicated for Mr Ryan, as he considers his own political future both as Speaker of the House and a potential future presidential candidate. Sign up for our daily US politics newsletter here. (FT, NYT)
Bayer explores $40bn bid for Monsanto The German chemicals and drugs company has been studying how a combination with the US genetically-modified seeds company would be structured. If a bid is launched, it would come nearly a year after Monsanto's failed attempt to acquire another rival, Switzerland’s Syngenta. (FT)
Test your knowledge with the week in news quiz. Which world leader described Nigeria and Afghanistan as “fantastically corrupt”?
It's a big day for
The Tories David Cameron’s plea for his party not to tear itself apart during the EU referendum campaign is looking increasingly forlorn as bitter exchanges reach new levels. Sir John Major looks set to enter the fray by accusing Brexiteers of “morphing into Ukip”. (FT)
The Guardian The Scott Trust, which owns Guardian Media Group, will attempt to reach a decision on the future of Alan Rusbridger, former editor of The Guardian who is due to take over as chair. (FT)
US-Nordic relations President Barack Obama hosts the leaders of Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden for a summit and state dinner. Here, the countries' ambassadors lay out why these ties are important. (HuffPo)
Food for thought
Israel: diamonds in the rough Long operated on a system of trust, the opaque world of Israel’s diamond bourse has come under scrutiny due to a criminal investigation over alleged fraud. At stake is the future of a major industry in Israel with deep roots in Jewish history. (FT)
Earth’s rules of attraction Physicists have observed a mysterious process called “magnetic reconnection” for the first time, a discovery that may help unlock the secrets of space weather and provide insight into the invisible magnetic field surrounding the planet. (Gizmodo)
Lunch with Sean Penn The Oscar-winning actor doesn’t want to eat at Chez Jay, a steaks and beer joint in Santa Monica. He is in debt to “every bookmaker that waterhole hosts”. Instead, he opts for a pack of cigarettes — with some food on the side — at a quiet nearby hotel, where he talks about new movies, activism and that infamous interview with a Mexicandrug kingpin. (FT)
Bring outdated dress codes to heel The FT’s Brooke Masters on the high-heels flap that has ensnared PwC and staffing agency Portico. “Whatever your personal preference, a heels requirement certainly has no place in the lobby of a consulting firm that regularly bangs on about the need for diversity and even sponsors a blog about equality issues called ‘The Gender Agenda’.” (FT)
The British spin-doctor doing Beijing's bidding With his towering frame and voluminous afro, he may stand out among Beijing’s top propaganda and media officials. But Briton Sameh El-Shahat says he and the Chinese bureaucrats who seek his help are all in the same boat: rowing against a tide of Western cynicism. (WSJ)
Is London the world’s greatest city? Many people think the heyday of the British capital has long since passed, but there is a compelling case to be made that the city is now more exciting than ever. (BBC)
Video of the day
Google v Apple, round 2 As Google again draws level with Apple as the world’s largest company, John Authers looks at the historic performance of companies once they havebecome the largest. (FT)
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Filipe Beato and Jamie Saunders
November 21, 2024