Tag: Popularity

Categories
Politics

As stablecoins explode in reputation, regulators put together a response.

Hong Kong Website Doxxing Police Gets Blocked, Raising Censorship Fears

Leading U.S. financial regulators met on Monday to discuss stablecoins, asset-backed digital currencies that are gaining popularity so quickly the government is struggling to keep up – and economic officials increasingly as a risk to financial stability look at.

Stablecoins are cryptocurrencies that derive their value from an underlying currency or basket of assets, and they have long been a matter of particular concern. When news broke in 2018 and 2019 that Facebook was looking to create a stablecoin, the Federal Reserve and other regulators took notice, fearing the project could quickly grow in scope. The pressure to develop a framework for their surveillance has increased recently as prominent stablecoins such as Tether and Binance have grown in popularity.

The Treasury Department announced Friday that Secretary of State Janet L. Yellen would convene a meeting of the President’s Working Group on Financial Markets to discuss the work of regulators on stablecoins. That group includes Jerome H. Powell, chairman of the Federal Reserve, as well as the leaders of the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission. Monday’s session was expanded to include the Heads of the Auditor’s Office and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

The meeting’s attendees “discussed the rapid growth of stablecoins, the potential use of stablecoins as a means of payment, and potential risks to end users, the financial system and national security,” said a Treasury Department statement released after the meeting on Monday. Ms. Yellen “underlined the need to act quickly to ensure that an adequate US regulatory framework was in place.”

Mr Powell has been particularly open about the need for better oversight of stablecoins, repeatedly saying at two appearances in Congress last week that they are inadequately regulated.

“If we want something that looks like a money market fund, or a bank deposit, a narrow bank and it’s growing really fast, we really need proper regulation – and today we don’t,” he said while giving evidence to the banking committee Senate.

Eric Rosengren, the president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, has similarly warned about Tether, arguing that it relies on underlying financial assets that could see investor runs during troubled times. The New York attorney general said earlier this year that Tether misled investors by claiming it was fully backed by US dollars at all times.

The Treasury Department said the working group expects to issue recommendations on stablecoins in the coming months. The group previously warned stablecoin operators that they must hold adequate cash reserves to cover their offerings.

The Fed could also try to crowd out digital offerings by offering its own alternative.

The central bank is looking at a digital currency offering that would likely work similarly to the digital cash you spend when you swipe your debit card. But where that debit card money is tied to the commercial banking system, the central bank’s digital currency would be backed directly by the Fed, as would physical cash.

Mr Powell told lawmakers last week that going without stable coins could be one of the stronger arguments in favor of a digital dollar.

But Mr Powell remains undecided whether central bank digital currency makes sense, he told lawmakers. The Fed plans to release a comprehensive report on the possibility of a digital dollar, expected in September.

Categories
Business

Laborious seltzer’s recognition propels the rise of the canned cocktail

Hard seltzer's popularity propels the rise of the canned cocktail

This summer’s hottest cocktail comes in a can.

Between 2019 and 2020, the premixed cocktails category in the US grew by 50%, according to industry tracker IWSR. The segment is still relatively small, accounting for only 3% of US spirits volume, based on data from the United States Distilled Spirits Council. However, companies and industry experts expect enormous growth after the pandemic boom. Bank of America Securities predicts the category will generate revenue of $ 3 billion to $ 4 billion over the next few years.

The rise of the tough seltzer has fueled the growing popularity of canned cocktails. Ready-to-drink vodka sodas or gin and tonics appealed to consumers looking for a stronger flavor or a more alcoholic beverage, and the category has expanded with greater variety.

Canned cocktails, like Hard Seltzer, appeal to consumers who choose their alcoholic beverages based on convenience and taste. However, ready-to-drink cocktails are usually of higher quality because their base is made from real spirits, not the sugar or malt found in hard seltzer or lemonade. A six-pack of hard seltzer usually brings back about $ 10 for consumers, which is also the starting price of a four-pack of canned cocktails.

Canned cocktails can also be harder to find outside of liquor stores, as states regulate them differently than flavored malt beverages.

In a March report to customers, Bank of America beverage analysts Anheuser-Busch selected InBev and Diageo as the two companies that will be key players. Currently, according to analysts, some of the standout brands are E. & J. Gallos High Noon, Monaco, AB InBevs Cutwater Spirits, and Beam Suntorys On the Rocks.

Alcohol giant AB InBev entered the segment in 2019 by purchasing Cutwater, a San Diego-based craft distillery. Cutwater is the second best canned cocktail brand in US dollar sales, accounting for 10% of the ready-to-drink cocktail segment based on IRI data for the 13 weeks ended May 9th.

For the Budweiser brewer, the acquisition was an opportunity to enter new categories, as beer consumption has declined in recent years. Fabricio Zonzini, president of the company beyond the beer division, said that his division’s first priority is ready-to-drink beverages.

“I think Covid was a propeller for ready-to-drink products because it brought the convenience of the bar to your home,” he said. “And we’ve seen that growth. Thank goodness we had Cutwater.”

In addition to Cutwater, AB InBev has also partnered with a Canadian distiller for Nutrl, a line of vodka beverages. Zonzini said the company will be testing the beverages in the U.S. to appeal to consumers who want a lighter, more refreshing cocktail, similar to the taste profile of a hard seltzer. Last year the company released flavored vodka under its Natural Light brand, which could mean the brewer will get canned vodka cocktails from the brewer if the liquor sells well.

“When we see the results, if it connects the way we believe it will open another door,” said Zonzini.

Johnnie Walker owner Diageo is now pushing itself into the segment. In April it bought Loyal 9, which mixes vodka and lemonade in a can. Before the purchase, the company had already launched cocktail offshoots from Crown Royal, Ketel One Botanical and Tanqueray.

“The category did really well. It’s the fastest growing part of [total beverage alcohol] and just accelerates quickly, “said Jay Sethi, senior vice president of North American convenience food for Diageo.

Sethi said consumers are starting to look for more premium canned cocktails, which means they are ready to spend more too.

It’s not just the alcohol giants who want to capitalize on the growth of canned cocktails. Smaller upstarts like the Cardinal Spirits craft distillery have also released versions.

Zing Zang, who has cult following for his Bloody Mary blend, launched its first line of canned cocktails in the alcoholic beverage market last year. The move took several years as he perfected the recipes and found vendors who could easily carry alcohol, but the drinks have been good so far, according to CEO Brent Albertson.

Albertson, who spent three decades at Diageo before joining Zing Zang, said the company’s market research found that 25- to 37-year-olds were the target market for the beverages.

“You don’t drink it to get drunk,” said Albertson. “They want to do it on boats, on golf courses. They want that convenience and portability.”

Even if consumers return to their favorite bars, the canned cocktail trend cannot be expected to wear off. Brandy Rand, chief operating officer for America at IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, said she expects more ready-to-drink beverages to appear on the menu.

“Consumers like them and offer local operators a viable option when faced with capacity and staffing issues, tighter margins and leaner menus,” said Rand. “Canned cocktails are also a great take-away option in states where it’s legal.”

Categories
Business

Germany’s Merkel and CDU/CSU recognition falls in the course of the pandemic

Germany's Merkel and CDU/CSU popularity falls during the pandemic

Chancellor Angela Merkel takes part in a press conference after discussing the vaccination strategy in the Federal Chancellery with the heads of government by video on March 23, 2021 in Berlin.

Pool | Getty Images News | Getty Images

LONDON – A third wave of the coronavirus pandemic has created more political problems for Chancellor Angela Merkel and her ruling CDU party as the country nears the federal elections later this year.

Germany was initially widely lauded for its handling of the coronavirus pandemic, skillfully handling the country’s first outbreak, isolating cases and tracking contacts, while its modern and well-equipped hospitals helped keep the death toll low.

A year later, and the situation is very different: Europe’s largest economy is facing a third wave of infections, a rising death toll and allegations of mismanagement of the health crisis directed against the government.

On Wednesday, Merkel made waves by reversing a plan to lock the country down during the Easter vacation, saying she made a “mistake”. It did so after criticism from health experts and business leaders who said the proposal could do more harm than good.

The concession comes when experts think about how Germany is dealing with the pandemic and investigate how the ruling parties of the Christian Democratic Union and the Christian Social Union could be affected if the Germans cast their votes in a federal election in September.

Merkel’s CDU party has already done poorly in the recent state elections, suggesting that it could be punished again later in the year by voters who are wrong against the center-left Social Democrats, and especially the environmentalist Greens, their support has increased significantly.

“Mismanagement hurts,” commented Holger Schmieding, chief economist at Berenberg Bank, in a note on Thursday.

“Last March, a clever reaction to the pandemic almost brought Chancellor Angela Merkel and her CDU / CSU into the stratosphere.” But he added that while Germany weathered the first wave of the pandemic better than most other industrialized countries, “it is no longer the case”.

“Confusing political changes and slow vaccination progress have now undermined public confidence in the ability of the CDU / CSU, which led the government to steer Germany through the crisis for much of its post-war history, including the past 15 years,” noted he

Schmieding noted that a kickback scandal involving CDU-CSU MPs had met with public approval. Surveys showed that support for the CDU-CSU had returned to pre-pandemic levels. “Merkel’s U-turn from an ‘Easter shutdown’ could exacerbate the suffering, ” he added.

What’s wrong

A decline in the popularity of the CDU and its Bavarian sister party, the CSU, is due to the fact that in September, when Merkel’s last term of office comes to an end, the question of who will head the German government remains open. The CDU-CSU has not yet said which candidate it will propose for election.

Merkel’s U-turn on Wednesday was unusual, as she was considered a firm hand in times of crisis for a long time. The move showed that the federal government is also under pressure to have to make difficult decisions in a fast-moving pandemic situation.

After the U-turn on Wednesday, Merkel rejected demands by the opposition to ask parliament for a vote of confidence in her government.

According to the Johns Hopkins University, Germany has now recorded more than 2.7 million cases and 75,498 deaths. This is far less than the UK. Compared to 4.3 million cases in the UK and over 126,621 deaths.

The country recently started easing lockdown measures, allowing schools to reopen in February and some unneeded stores to resume customers earlier this month. As in other European countries, the company relied on coronavirus vaccines to slowly reopen its largest economy in Europe.

Germany is not the only one who has to adjust its plans. Italy will impose a national lockdown for the second consecutive year during Easter, while Paris and other parts of France are again partially locked.

Public tolerance of re-locks could be higher if the introduction of vaccines in the EU is planned. Overall, however, vaccination programs in the entire block show a changeable vaccination rate.

EU leaders practically met on Thursday to discuss whether to block EU vaccine exports as other countries like the UK push their programs forward. On the previous Thursday, Merkel had defended the EU’s strategy of not purchasing vaccines individually, but as a block.

“Now that we see that even small differences in the distribution of vaccines are causing big debates, I don’t want to imagine if some Member States had vaccines and others didn’t. That would shake the internal market to the core,” she told German lawmakers Reuters reported on the EU summit.

She also suggested that vaccination problems in the area had more to do with lower production capacity than under-ordering shots.

“British factories don’t produce for the UK and the US doesn’t export, so we rely on what we can make in Europe,” she said. “We have to assume that the virus with its mutations may well occupy us for a long time, so that the question extends well beyond this year,” she added.

Categories
Business

Recognition of leisure robots grows amid pandemic

Popularity of entertainment robots grows amid pandemic

The Gundam warrior robot in Yokogama’s Ymahita Habor is a major attraction for Japanese sci-fi fans.

Photo: Tim Hornyak

When Boston Dynamics released its latest video of its robots defying gravity, this time dancing to The Contours “Cont You Love Me,” the internet was excited. A YouTube clip of Atlas and Spot robots moving with balletical fluidity has generated over 23 million views and countless warnings since Dec. 30 that the Terminator series Skynet is approaching. Boston Dynamics, which Hyundai Motor Group is acquiring from SoftBank Group, makes robots that are not only practical but also fun.

Robots that have long been used by companies like Walt Disney Imagineering are performing as entertainers, despite the introduction of different types of robots in the Covid-19 pandemic, which in a variety of ways to fight the virus and to help society and the economy can contribute – from providing automation in factories and warehouses to working as medical assistants in hospitals and nursing homes. As the world turns to vaccines and reopening economies, intelligent machines will play an increasingly public role as entertainers. According to the International Federation of Robotics (IFR), entertainment robots as a market could grow 10% annually through 2023 as more public venues include machines that don’t get tired, get sick, or need to be quarantined.

The IFR classifies entertainment robots as a type of service robot, a broad category that encompasses everything from hospital delivery droids to edutainment robotic toys. The category grew 32% from $ 8.5 billion to $ 11.2 billion in 2019. Entertainment robot sales rose 13% to 4.6 million units in 2019, with a potential growth of 10% to 5 , 1 million units in 2020 and 6.7 million units in 2023. according to IFR.

Robot popular in Japan

One country that is making great strides in this emerging market is Japan, known for its skills in robotics. In 2018, Japan was the world’s leading manufacturer of industrial robots, supplying 52% of global supply according to the IFR. Japan has actively committed itself to robotics as its population shrinks, its workforce shrinks, and the coronavirus pandemic makes human interaction difficult.

Companies in Japan recently unveiled a giant robot that can move its arms and legs and appear to be walking. The machine is nearly 60 feet tall and about half the height of the copper Statue of Liberty. It is inspired by the science fiction series by Gundam and attracts fans in Japan and on the internet.

Just south of Tokyo, the Gundam Factory Yokohama recently opened as the culmination of a long-term project to build a life-size, mobile version of the Mobile Suit Gundam’s title robot. Yoshiyuki Tomino’s hugely successful anime franchise spawned a merchandise empire that now has annual sales of approximately 78 billion yen ($ 758 million). The series is a sprawling science fiction epic in which humans control giant robots in a space war. While other representations of Gundam robots have been erected since 2009, the one in Yokohama is the result of the Gundam Global Challenge (GGC), an attempt to create a giant, full-size robot that can walk.

When it’s showtime, the Gundam robot appears to slowly step forward, bend its knees, and then get up on a launch pad for a rocket. Bathed in mist and dramatic light, it raises its arms while touching music fills the air. The 25-ton colossus appears to take off over the port city at dusk, but never leaves its supporting portal. The whole setup is a sophisticated sound and light show to create the illusion that the Gundam robot has been kind of brought to life. And that’s good enough for legions of fans who pay 1,650 yen ($ 16) to see it from the ground or 3,300 yen ($ 32) to access the portal.

“The sight of the 18-meter giant run was a surprise that I had never seen in my life,” says a Gundam fan, who is nicknamed Yokkun and asks for anonymity. “It’s like you’re a crew member on the [Gundam spaceship] White base. You won’t get bored no matter how many times you see it. Going up the tower for a close up is a must. “

“No one has ever seen an 18-meter-long Gundam statue move like this, and I think that’s very important,” said Yasuo Miyakawa, associate director of GGC and CEO of Bandai Namco, the nearly 700 million Gundam model kits The decades since the series debuted in 1979. “It’s a new form of entertainment, showing what was created in the anime – that is, the world that is seen in the videos – is closer to reality . “

In a message to the fans, director Tomino apologized that the huge machine could not run due to its large mass. Nevertheless, fans have come to see the “moving Gundam”, to take photos, to have something to eat in the hotel’s own café and of course to buy goods in the souvenir shop, which even sells model kits of the Yokohama Gundam and its portal. A showroom details how nine Japanese companies came together to build the robot, including contractor Kawada Group who assembled the portal, industrial robot manufacturer Yaskawa Electric who made the motors and control units, and engineering firm Nabtesco who made the reduction gears provided get the gundam moving.

Serve food, drink and laugh

Robots as a point of attraction for guests and tourists are establishing themselves in Asia. Tokyo’s Robot Restaurant was built in 2012 by the Morishita Group at a cost of around 10 billion yen ($ 125 million) and was regularly packed with tourists and locals seeing performers mess around with robotic dinosaurs, LED-lit tanks, and other gadgets a 90-minute cabaret with sensory overload.

While the coronavirus forced the temporary closure of the Robot Restaurant, other companies are mobilizing droids despite and even because of the pandemic. Last summer, a subsidiary of real estate developer Country Garden Holdings opened a restaurant complex in Guangdong Province, China, operated by 20 robots, some of which feature colorful designs and cartoonish faces. Aside from the novelty factor of being machine operated, the facility minimizes human contact and possible infection. In addition, the robots can prepare meals such as hot pot and pasta dishes from a menu with hundreds of choices in just 20 seconds. The company bills the 21,500-square-foot complex with a capacity for nearly 600 people as the world’s first of its kind and announced plans to expand it to produce around 5,000 restaurant robots per year.

In 2019, developers unveiled Gyeongnam Masan Robot Land in South Korea, to be marketed as the first robot theme park of its kind. Robot Land cost around $ 700 million to build and took 10 years to build. It offers 22 rides, 11 other facilities, research and development and convention centers, as well as around 250 robots that do everything from assembly line work to synchronized dances.

The entrance of Gyeongnam Masan Robot Land in South Korea.

Source: Star Networks

Robots also entertain people in much smaller spaces. Toy-like devices like Sony’s Aibo robot dog have won fans for decades, while SoftBank Robotics’ pintsized humanoid NAO, used in the Standard Platform League of the international RoboCup soccer tournament, also does stand-up comedy. Introduced during the pandemic, Moxie is a $ 1,499 tabletop robot embodied by the Californian startup that is designed to help children ages 5 to 10 develop their social skills through fun interaction. Backed by investors such as Amazon, Intel, Sony and Toyota, Embodied is led by Paolo Pirjanian, who said in a blog post by Toyota AI Ventures, “Moxie allows kids to play meaningful games every day with content informed about the best practices in the world child development and early childhood education. “

A humanoid NAO robot developed by Softbank Corp. subsidiary Aldebaran Robotics SA.

Kiyoshi Ota | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Large industrial robot manufacturers also rely on entertainment robots. The German KUKA produces industrial robot arms that can be used to assemble cars, trains, solar panels and other vehicles and infrastructures. But it has also worked with partners like Milan-based beverage maker Makr Shakr to create a fully automated cocktail bar called Toni. The two robot arms reach for beverage ingredients embedded in the ceiling, shake and stir before the finished cocktail is placed on the counter. Toni is considered the world’s first robot bar for the mass market and can serve up to 80 drinks an hour. Industrial robots can also be used for more hands-on experience.

“Our portfolio includes robot-based rides,” says spokeswoman Teresa Fischer, referring to the KUKA Coaster, which can whirl people around in the air. “Here, KUKA offers special robots that have been specially developed for the transport of passengers. They combine the options of action-packed entertainment with the high demands on safety when working with people. In this way, a wide variety of trips can be made to measure, for example in Amusement and theme parks. “

Joanne Pransky, a California-based robotics expert who helped KUKA launch the coaster, notes that many people already spend more time talking to a device than other people. She sees great potential for robots as entertainers.

“Worldwide, the acceptance and use of robotics has particularly catapulted due to Covid and the lack of available people,” says Pransky, who also claims to be the world’s first robotics psychiatrist. “The increasing public acceptance of robots, coupled with the exponential technological increase in the capabilities of robots, will result in societies becoming increasingly accustomed to robots entertaining them, which will further fuel the market for robot entertainment.”