Page 62 Daily Mail, Tuesday, August 27, 2019WHAT’S IN STARS FOR LIBRA?
LIBRA is a digital currency
that Facebook hopes to
launch in 2020.
Customers will be able to
use it to pay for goods or send
money to friends instantly
without using a bank.
They will be able to buy vir-tual coins on websites owned
by Facebook, such as Insta-
gram and Whatsapp, rival
sites and even real-world
grocery stores. There are
concerns about banking reg-
ulations and the use of sensi-
tive personal finance data.City Editor: Alex Brummer http://www.thisismoney.co.uk Business Editor: Ruth SunderlandCity Finance
425
the number of companies that have
moved, or are mulling over a move,
to the Netherlands from Britain
Carney made
secret trip to
Facebook HQ
Stocks rise
as Trump
offers hope
on tariffs
US STOCK markets rallied yester-
day after Donald Trump said China
was keen to strike a trade deal
that could defuse tension between
the two superpowers.
After a meeting of G7 leaders at
Biarritz, in south-west France, the
US President said: ‘I have great
respect for the fact that China
called, they want to make a deal.
‘This is the first time I’ve seen
them where they really do want
to make a deal, and I think that’s a
very positive step.’
Hours earlier, Trump had said
that his only regret was not rais-
ing tariffs higher.
Although China has not con-
firmed whether or not it made a
call to the Trump team about end-
ing tensions, relieved traders sent
the Dow Jones 1.1pc higher, to
25898.83 points, by the close. The
Nasdaq nudged up by 1.3pc, to
7853.73 points, and the S&P 500
index inched 1.1pc higher, to
2878.38 points. The London Stock
Exchange was closed because of
the August Bank Holiday.
China’s leaders also seemed to
extend an olive branch. Speaking
at a tech conference in Chong-
qing, vice-premier Liu He said:
‘China... resolutely opposes the
escalation of the trade war.
‘An escalation of the trade war is
not good for China, it’s not good
for the US, and it’s also not good
for the interests of people across
the world.’
Yesterday’s gains followed a
bruising day for Wall Street on Fri-
day, after Beijing revealed plans
to slap new tariffs of between 5pc
and 10pc on £61bn of US imports.
In response, Trump pumped up
tariffs on more than £200bn of
Chinese imports, from 25pc to
30pc, and increased levies on a
raft of other goods.
Edward Moya, New York senior
market analyst at foreign exchange
firm Oanda, said: ‘This trade war is
having more plot twists than a
Quentin Tarantino movie.’
He added: ‘Trump’s biggest esca-
lation in the tariff war is a risky
move that will punish the US con-
sumer and possibly send the US
economy closer to a recession by
the 2020 election.’by Francesca WashtellDMGT sells Genscape Predators bet against Metro
DAILY Mail and General Trust
(DMGT), the owner of the Mail
newspapers, has sold data busi-
ness Genscape for £298m.
DMGT acquired the firm, which
provides companies in the energy
market with real-time data about
power, oil and natural gas usage,
in 2006 for an initial sum of £73m.
It is being sold to US-listed Verisk,
which will merge Genscape with
its energy research business. The
sale comes as DMGT is slimming
down its portfolio.
Paul Zwillenberg, the chief
executive of DMGT, said: ‘This
transaction marks another
major milestone in DMGT’s con-
tinued transformation.’
Following the deal, it will have
more than £200m of cash on its
balance sheet.Bank FINALLY admits
Governor held talks with
Zuckerberg as row rages
over new currency
the trip, including how much was
spent on flights and hotels.
Concerns about the currency,
called Libra, have prompted MPs
and experts to call on the Bank to
give details of the pair’s discus-
sion. Carney broke ranks with
other central bankers to say he
was keeping ‘an open mind’ about
Facebook’s new currency Libra.
The European Union’s anti-
trust regulators have since
launched an investigation into
Libra over concerns about anti-
competitive behaviour.
The project has drawn fierce
criticism from finance ministers
of the G7 club of developed
nations, who say Libra threatens
global financial stability and may
help criminals launder money.
They say the social network
would have to be subject to the
same strict regulations as banks.
There is also unease about Face-
book having access to data after
a string of high-profile privacy
scandals at the tech firm. Despite
the heavy criticism, Facebook
says it will test the currency in
some countries this year.
Libra will allow users of the
social network to pay for prod-ucts without leaving its website
or smartphone apps. with a cus-
tomer base of 2bn across Face-
book, Instagram and whatsapp,
it could pose a formidable chal-
lenge to traditional banks.
Carney visited Facebook in Cali-
fornia, on April 16, two months
before Libra was unveiled. Emailsshow bank staff tweaked Carney’s
schedule multiple times to fit the
meeting with Zuckerberg in.
The revelations will spark anger
from MPs on Parliament’s digital
select committee, who have
repeatedly asked Zuckerberg to
appear before them but have
been brushed off. Zuckerberg has
been accused of dodging scrutiny
as Facebook became mired in
scandals around the world.
Carney’s term as Governor is
due to end in January, with the
Government expected to name a
successor in the coming months.
A Bank spokesman said giving
details of Carney’s conversations
with Zuckerberg ‘would be likely
to inhibit the free and frank
exchange of views in the future’.
Facebook did not respond to
requests for comment.MARK Carney flew to the US for a
secret meeting at Facebook’s head-
quarters with founder Mark Zuck-
erberg, the Daily Mail can reveal.
The Bank of England Governor is
thought to have discussed the social
network’s controversial plans for a
digital currency, which will let people
send money to each other without a
bank account.
He went to Facebook’s plush new Sili-
con Valley campus, accompanied by Tom
Mutton, the Bank’s director of financial
technology, documents released under
freedom of information laws show.
It is the first time the long-rumoured
meeting between Carney (pictured right)
and Zuckerberg (left) has been acknowl-
edged. The Bank refused to give details of
what Carney, 54, and Zuckerberg, 35, dis-
cussed, and declined to reveal the cost ofby Matt Oliver
HEDGE funds are ramping up their bets against
Metro Bank as shareholders pile on the pressure for
chairman Vernon Hill to name his exit date.
ENA Investment Capital, a London-based firm run
by ex-Morgan Stanley banker George Kounelakis,
upped its short position against Metro Bank last
week, meaning it will profit if the lender’s shares fall.
It is now shorting 1.71pc of Metro’s shares and has
been building its stake this month.
Canadian asset manager Connor Clark & Lunn
cranked its short position up in Metro last week from
0.9pc to 1pc. The pair of hedge funds join Marshallwace and Odey Asset Management in holding a short
position in Metro Bank of 1pc or more.
Metro is now the ninth most-shorted company on
the London Stock Exchange, with 7.6pc of its shares
in the hands of the four short-sellers.
The increased bets come as shareholders are push-
ing Metro to find a new independent chairman.
Hill said last month that he would step down as
chairman but remain a board director amid govern-
ance concerns. The shake-up of the board follows
the discovery of an accounting error at the bank this
year, which wiped 39pc off its share price in a day.