TheChek News Flow

EU investigation finds Beijing discriminating against medical device manufacturers in bids for public contracts

The EU has threatened “decisive action” against China after finding it has been discriminating against medical device manufacturers in bids for public contracts.

The finding follows a months-long investigation under new EU legislation seeking to prise open overseas procurement markets.

EU manufacturers say Chinese policies force hospitals to choose domestic suppliers. 

Maroš Šefčovič, EU trade commissioner, said he was seeking talks with Beijing over the issue. 

“While we continue to prioritise dialogue as a first step to finding solutions, we stand ready to take decisive action to defend the level playing field, and support fair competition, he said.

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Tether is moving its operations from the British Virgin Islands to El Salvador after being granted a digital asset service provider license.

Stablecoin issuer Tether announced that it would move the company and its subsidiaries to El Salvador after it had secured an operating license in the Latin American nation.

In a Jan. 13 notice, Tether said it had acquired a license to operate in El Salvador as a digital asset service provider and stablecoin issuer. The company said it planned to relocate its headquarters and subsidiaries to El Salvador due to its “forward-thinking policies, favorable regulatory environment, and [...] growing Bitcoin-savvy community.”

“This decision is a natural progression for Tether as it allows us to build a new home, foster collaboration, and strengthen our focus on emerging markets,” said Tether CEO Paolo Ardoino, adding:

“By rooting ourselves [in El Salvador], we are not only aligning with a country that shares our vision in terms of financial freedom, innovation, and resilience but is also reinforcing our commitment to empowering people worldwide through decentralized technologies.”

The move followed reports that Ardoino and Tether’s chief operating officer, Claudia Lagorio, acquired real estate and became naturalized citizens in the Latin American nation in 2024. Cointelegraph reached out to Tether for comment but did not receive a response at the time of publication.

“World’s coolest dictator” pushing Bitcoin adoption

Since Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele announced his intention to have the country adopt Bitcoin as legal tender in 2021, many in the crypto industry have formed ties with the government or local businesses. In 2023, Tether announced it would contribute to one of El Salvador’s proposed renewable energy projects, including geothermal facilities.

Ardoino appeared to have met or talked with Bukele several times, posting messages to social media echoing the Salvadoran President’s calls to bring in new companies and residents.

In an August 2024 interview, Bukele claimed BTC adoption had been a “net positive” for El Salvador but said he had not seen as many benefits as he had anticipated. The government reported holding more than 6,000 BTC as of December — worth more than $550 million at the time of publication.

Since taking office in 2019 and getting reelected in 2024, the Salvadoran president, who once branded himself as the “world’s coolest dictator,” has been praised by many for helping reduce the country’s murder rate. However, reports have alleged that Bukele has also wrongly detained individuals critical of his administration and committed human rights abuses.

Deal follows strong investor interest in businesses connected to the AI boom

Macquarie will invest up to $5 billion in data centers being built by artificial-intelligence infrastructure company Applied Digital APLD -6.33%decrease; red down pointing triangle, adding to the Australian bank’s substantial AI-related investments.

Macquarie’s asset-management arm agreed to invest up to $900 million in a data-center campus that Applied Digital is developing in North Dakota. Macquarie also has a right of first refusal to invest an additional $4.1 billion in future Applied Digital data centers for 30 months, aligning with the company’s expansion plans. The investment will come in the form of preferred equity.

As part of the deal, Macquarie will get a 15% stake in Applied Digital’s high-performance computing business, with Applied Digital retaining the remaining 85%.

Applied Digital’s origins were in cryptocurrency mining and, like others in that field, it has pivoted to supplying computing power to the artificial-intelligence boom. The company started as Applied Blockchain before changing its name in 2022.

The Nadsaq-listed company’s stock has risen more than 40% in the past year amid the AI surge.

The new funding will be used to repay debt Applied Digital took on to build the facilities in North Dakota and will allow it to recover over $300 million of its equity investment in them, the company said.

Wes Cummins, Applied Digital’s chief executive, said the deal also provides a significant amount of the equity needed to build data centers that require enormous amounts of power—more than two gigawatts.

AI chips and the infrastructure that supports them are expensive and power-hungry, throwing up major financing challenges for companies that want to participate in the boom.

Investors have piled money into AI in the past couple of years, helping vault AI-chip giant Nvidia into the ranks of the world’s most valuable companies. Firms such as Blackstone have found ways to play the AI boom by investing in companies that serve the broader ecosystem, including providers of data storage and companies that lease out access to AI chips.

Macquarie led an asset-backed financing vehicle last year for Lambda, another AI-computing infrastructure company. It has also made large investments directly in data centers around the world.