(CNBC) Mnuchin says Treasury will ensure bitcoin doesn’t become ‘Swiss-numbered

Mnuchin says Treasury will ensure bitcoin doesn’t become ‘Swiss-numbered bank accounts’

KEY POINTS
  • “We’re going to make sure that bitcoin doesn’t become the equivalent of Swiss-numbered bank accounts,” Mnuchin tells CNBC on Thursday.
Secretary of the Treasury Steven Mnuchin
SAUL LOEB | AFP | Getty Images
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said that the department will police bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies with “very, very strong” regulations so that they don’t become like anonymous Swiss bank accounts.
“We’re going to make sure that bitcoin doesn’t become the equivalent of Swiss-numbered bank accounts, which were obviously a risk to the financial system,” Mnuchin told CNBC’s “Squawk Box.”

“I want to be careful that anybody who’s using bitcoin — regardless of what the price is — is using it for proper purposes and not illicit purposes,” he added. “And there are billions of dollars of transactions going on in bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies for illicit purposes.”
Mnuchin was asked if bitcoin’s use in illegal transactions disqualifies it as a legitimate currency given that the U.S. dollar is often used by bad actors for illegal purposes.
“I don’t think that’s accurate at all, that cash is laundered all the time,” Mnuchin replied. “We combat bad actors in the U.S. dollar every day to protect the U.S. financial system.”

>>> US Gapping down

Gapping down
In reaction to disappointing earnings/guidance:

  • LLNW -16.4%, NFLX -10.5%, URI -5.7%, SAP -5.7%, CCK -5%, PLXS -4.8%, UMPQ -3.8%, MTB -2.6%, AA -2.4%, KMI -2%, TCBI -2%, PPG -1.4%, WBS -1.1%, CCI -0.7%, IBM -0.6%, HON -0.5%

Other news:

  • KERN -13.6% (files for 6,699,766 share common Stock offering by holders)
  • SENS -13.2% (prices registered underwritten public offering of 22,727,273 shares of its common stock at $1.10 per share and $82 mln aggregate principal amount of 5.25% convertible senior notes due 2025)
  • AMRN -7.6% (commences underwritten public offering of $400 mln American Depositary Shares pursuant to a shelf registration)
  • FTSV -6.2% (prices offering of 9.375 mln shares of common stock at $8.00 per share)
  • EFC -3.2% (prices public offering of 3.5 mln shares of common stock at a price to the public of $17.66 per share)
  • W -2.6% (announces retirement of COO James Savarese; appoints Thomas Netzer as successor)
  • ROKU -2.6% (following NFLX results)
  • NYMT -2.6% (prices offering of 20 mln shares of common stock for gross proceeds of $122.2 mln)
  • QCOM -1.2% (fined €242 mln by the EU for engaging in predatory pricing) IQ -1.1% (following NFLX results)

Analyst comments:

  • TCBI -2% (downgraded to Hold from Buy at SunTrust)
  • MGM -1.8% (downgraded to Equal-Weight from Overweight at Morgan Stanley)
  • USCR -1.7% (downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel)
  • TTD -1.2% (downgraded to Hold from Buy at SunTrust)
  • AMD -1.1% (downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho)
  • APD -0.6% (downgraded to Mkt Perform from Outperform at Bernstein)
  • SWKS -0.5% (downgraded to Equal Weight from Overweight at Barclays)

>>> US Early premarket gappers

Early premarket gappers

Gapping up:

  • NVS +5.6%, EBAY +5.3%, TSM +0.9%, HON +0.8%, DOV +0.8%, UNH +0.5%, DHR +0.5%, GTLS +0.5%

Gapping down:

  • LLNW -16.4%, KERN -13.5%, NFLX -11.2%, AMRN -8.2%, URI -6.2%, SAP -5.9%, CCK -5%, PLXS -4.8%, EFC -3.6%, AA -3.2%, NYMT -2.7%, W -2.6%, ROKU -2.1%, KMI -2.1%, TCBI -2%, UMPQ -1.8%, SDRL -1.6%, CCI -1.2%, MTB -0.8%

>>> After Hours Summary: NFLX -12%, URI -6%

PAfter Hours Summary: NFLX -12%, URI -6%, AA -2.4%, KMI -2%, EBAY +6% among notable earnings/guidance movers

After Hours Gainers:

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: EBAY +5.6%, IBM +0.3%

Companies trading higher in after hours in reaction to news: SDRL +4.5% (secured a nine well contract with three options, each for two wells, for the West Gemini in West Africa), ADTN +3% /  BBT +0.8% (ahead of earnings)

After Hours Losers:

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to earnings/guidance: LLNW -17.8%, NFLX -12.1%, URI -6%, CCK -4%, PLXS -3.9% (light volume), UMPQ -3%, AA -2.4%, KMI -2%

Companies trading lower in after hours in reaction to news: AMRN -9.7% (commences underwritten public offering of $400 mln American Depositary Shares pursuant to a shelf registration), W -3.9% (announces retirement of COO James Savarese; appoints Thomas Netzer as successor), EFC -3.3% (commenced an underwritten public offering of 3,500,000 shares of common stock), KERN -2.9% (files for 6,699,766 share common Stock offering by holders), ROKU -2.8% / IQ -1.1% (following NFLX results), NYMT -2.1% (plans to make a public offering of 20 mln shares of common stock; also reports prelim Q2 estimates), MGNX -1.2% (light volume; provides update on program for flotetuzumab in acute myeloid leukemia)

FT : UK competition watchdog to investigate $6bn Inmarsat take-private deal

UK competition watchdog to investigate $6bn Inmarsat take-private deal
Buyout would see Britain’s largest satellite company return to private equity ownership

The UK’s competition watchdog has launched an investigation into plans to take Inmarsat, Britain’s largest satellite company, private.

The Competition and Markets Authority said on Tuesday it was considering whether the acquisition of Inmarsat by private equity firms led by Apax and Warburg Pincus would reduce competition in the market.

The deal, announced in March, would see Inmarsat return to private equity ownership almost 15 years after it was floated, valuing it at around $6bn, including debt. It had been expected to be completed by the end of the year, pending regulatory approvals.

The CMA will now consider whether the deal will create a “relevant merger situation” under the Enterprise Act 2002 and, if so, whether it is likely to result in a “substantial lessening of competition” within the UK.

The watchdog has invited comments from any interested parties by the end of this month. The deadline for a decision on a Phase 1 investigation is September 10.

Inmarsat has in the past regularly been linked with a takeover by an industry rival but has struggled to attract investors because of its recent poor performance. In May it reported a 13 per cent drop in first-quarter earnings.