TechLife Chronicle

 Binance, the world's largest cryptocurrency exchange, and its CEO Changpeng Zhao have filed a complaint with the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) on the 27th of March. This marks the first time that US regulators have targeted Zhao, who is considered the most influential person in the virtual currency industry, and it is expected to have significant repercussions throughout the industry. According to Bloomberg News, the CFTC filed a complaint with the Chicago Federal Court on the same day, accusing Binance and Zhao of violating regulations on derivatives. The complaint alleges that CEO Zhao violated eight key provisions of the Commodity Exchange Regulations (CEA) related to preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. The former chief compliance officer of Binance, Samuel Lim, was also named in the lawsuit for aiding and abetting these violations. The CFTC has requested the court to impose civil fines and a permanent ban on trading and registration, along wit...

As the collapse of California's Silicon Valley Bank sparked fears of a bank run and financial crash, no one from the Biden administration called House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, the most influential politician from California and the most powerful Republican in Congress. Although McCarthy proactively contacted Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, he did not connect with any top White House officials over the weekend. An internal White House memo shows that Biden has reached out to the House Republican leader again and again, calling him on his birthday and on his becoming speaker. Overall, the White House has invited McCarthy to visit more than 20 times; he came eight. Despite this, the two leaders are barely on speaking terms, which is a major problem as they will need to strike a compromise in the coming months to keep the nation from defaulting on its debt and to prevent the government from shutting down in the fall. Biden accuses some Republicans of wanting to 'take the economy ho...

 Nvidia, the artificial intelligence (AI) computing company, has launched a cloud service optimized for AI technology development. This announcement was made at the "GTC 2023" developer conference, where Nvidia presented its DGX cloud service. This cloud service is designed to provide facilities that are optimized for AI technology development, without users having to invest in costly initial infrastructure. DGX is a comprehensive solution that includes software and hardware support for deep learning. This cloud service allows any internet user to pay a monthly fee to connect to Nvidia's cloud service, and develop their own artificial intelligence products. The cloud service uses eight H100 or A100 flagship high-performance graphic processing units (GPUs) per server unit. The A100 80GB model can transfer data at a rate of 2 terabytes per second (TB/s). Nvidia has set a price of $36,999 per month for the cloud service that uses eight A100 80GB GPUs. This cloud service is e...

 The recent bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) has caused First Republic Bank to face its largest crisis yet, with large-scale withdrawals and a steep decline in stock prices. This has led to anxiety in the market, with concerns that small and medium-sized U.S. banks could also face collapse. In response, Jamie Dimon, Chairman of JPMorgan Chase, is gathering large banks to come up with a strategy to stabilize First Republic. According to The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), Dimon is leading the preparation of measures to stabilize First Republic by considering ways to increase its capital with the CEOs of large banks. The options on the table include selling First Republic, injecting external capital, or direct investment by the banks. These banks are also beneficiaries of attracting deposits withdrawn from SVB and First Republic. The situation facing First Republic is dire. After the news of SVB bankruptcy broke on the 10th, First Republic's customers withdrew USD 70 billion, which...

  The recent financial crisis at Silvergate Bank has been a game-changer for Bitcoin traders. The cryptocurrency has been fluctuating wildly over the weekends, reflecting the volatile nature of the trading market without any closing. This situation has forced coin investors to keep a watchful eye on Bitcoin's price, especially during weekends. Bitcoin's price has surged significantly over the past weekend, starting from Friday, the 17th of the month. The cryptocurrency, which was hovering around the late $24,000 range, witnessed a sudden spike in the afternoon of the 17th and has since crossed the $27,000 mark over the weekend. In just two days, it has risen by more than 8%, and on a weekly basis, it has seen a jump of more than 30%. The primary reason behind this surge in Bitcoin's price is the prospect that the crisis in the U.S. banking industry is far from over. Following Silvergate Bank, other banks such as Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank are also at risk. In Eu...

  Credit Suisse Staff to Receive Bonuses Despite Merger with UBS Credit Suisse staff have been assured that their bonuses will still be paid despite the merger with UBS. The bank has issued two internal memos addressing concerns from employees following the announcement of the merger. According to Bloomberg, the memos state that there will be no changes to payroll arrangements and that employees will still receive their salaries and bonuses as previously communicated. The bonuses for work done in 2023 will also be paid as planned. The merger, which was brokered by the Swiss government, comes after Credit Suisse's share price took a hit last week due to concerns over the collapse of several US banks. The bank's outflows have been increasing over the past few months, and investors fear that the crisis could spread and cause a global financial crisis. Despite the uncertainty caused by the merger and the current crisis in the banking sector, Credit Suisse has assured staff that the...

  Do you ever wish you could carry one less thing around in your pocket or purse? Thanks to your smartphone, you can now store a variety of items in one place. And now, Apple is taking it a step further by allowing residents in certain states to store their driver’s license or state ID in their Apple Wallet. Here’s what you need to know. Photo by Yura Fresh on Unsplash Available in These States Residents in Arizona, Colorado, and Maryland are currently able to store their driver’s license or state ID in their Apple Wallet. They can then use it at select TSA security checkpoints located in several US airports, including:   - Baltimore/Washington International Thurgood Marshall Airport,   - Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport,   - Denver International Airport.   Other airports where this feature is available include:   - Gulfport-Biloxi International Airport,   -  Harry Reid International Airport,   -  Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Intern...

  Mark Zuckerberg's Meta Platforms Announces End of Tech Party and Embrace of Conventional Normality In a significant shift for the tech industry, Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of Meta Platforms, has announced the end of the era of cool and relaxed tech offices and the adoption of a more traditional corporate culture. In a blog post on March 14, Zuckerberg declared the start of the "Year of Efficiency," which will see the elimination of 10,000 additional jobs, following the 11,000 job cuts in November 2022. The tone of Zuckerberg's announcement has changed significantly, from an apologetic and sensitive tone in November to a cold and business-like tone in March. He is now adopting the vernacular of the boss of an old-economy company, using corporate lingo to say everything and nothing. He is focused on improving the financial performance of the company, optimizing workstreams and processes, and returning to a more optimal ratio of engineers to other roles. The new approach is ...

  Google to Launch Its First Foldable Phone, Pixel Fold, and Pixel 7a This Summer It has been reported that Google is planning to launch its first-ever foldable phone, the 'Pixel Fold', along with 'Pixel 7a' in mid-June this year. According to IT media 9to5Google, the information was obtained from retail stores and the company has not yet provided any official statement regarding the release. 360-Degree Rendering of Pixel Fold Revealed A 360-degree rendering video of the Pixel Fold has been released by HowToiSolve on YouTube, showcasing the design and features of the device. It is expected to be available in two colors - 'Carbon' and 'Porcelain'. The former features a black and grey design while the latter is white. Pixel Fold Equipped with Google's Tensor G2 Chip The Pixel Fold will be powered by Google's Tensor G2 chip, which is developed in-house. It is a powerful chipset that can handle complex processes with ease, delivering fast and efficie...

  The FIFA Council has made several significant decisions about the future of men's and women's football competitions at a recent meeting before the 73rd FIFA Congress in Kigali, Rwanda. Following a thorough consultation process, the FIFA Council unanimously approved the international match calendars for both men and women. The Men's International Match Calendar for 2025-2030 will consist of four windows for international matches, including a nine-day, two-match window in March and November and a nine-day, two-match window in June for friendly matches leading to final tournaments. A 16-day, four-match window will be added from 2026 in late September and early October, while the release period for the FIFA World Cup 2026 will begin on May 25, 2026. The total number of rest, release, and tourname nt days will remain the same as the 2010, 2014, and 2018 FIFA World Cup editions. The detailed Men's International Match Calendar 2025-2030 will be available in the coming days. ...