China's Luckin Coffee opens first stores in New York. Can they take on Starbucks on home ground?
China's Luckin Coffee opens first stores in New York. Can they take on Starbucks on home ground?
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CNA
5 minutes ago
- CNA
Exclusive-EQT to acquire software provider Neogov for more than $3 billion, sources say
NEW YORK :Investment firm EQT has agreed to acquire Neogov from its private equity owners, valuing the human resources software provider at more than $3 billion including debt, people familiar with the matter said on Monday. Warburg Pincus, the majority owner of Neogov, and Carlyle, which owns about a third of the company, will fully exit their investment as part of the sale to EQT, said the sources. The sources spoke on condition of anonymity to discuss the matter before a formal announcement, which is expected as early as this week.
CNA
2 hours ago
- CNA
China to offer childcare subsidies in bid to boost birth rate
BEIJING: China's government will offer subsidies to parents to the tune of US$500 per child under the age of three per year, Beijing's state media said on Monday (Jul 28), as the world's second most populous nation faces a looming demographic crisis. The country's population has declined for three consecutive years, with United Nations demography models predicting it could fall from 1.4 billion today to 800 million by 2100. The nationwide subsidies apply retroactively from Jan 1, Beijing's state broadcaster CCTV said, citing a decision by the ruling Communist Party and the State Council, China's cabinet. "This is a major nationwide policy aimed at improving public wellbeing," CCTV said. "It provides direct cash subsidies to families across the country, helping to reduce the burden of raising children," it added. There were just 9.54 million births in China last year, half the number than in 2016, the year it ended its one-child policy, which was in place for more than three decades. The population declined by 1.39 million last year, and China lost its crown as the world's most populous country to India in 2023. Marriage rates are also at record low levels, with many young couples put off having babies by high child-rearing costs and career concerns. "GROUNDWORK FOR THE FUTURE" Analysts warned that the subsidies alone would not reverse China's population decline, nor boost its long-standing domestic spending slump. "The sums involved are too small to have a near-term impact on the birth rate or consumption," Zichun Huang, China economist at Capital Economics, said. "But the policy does mark a major milestone in terms of direct handouts to households and could lay the groundwork for more fiscal transfers in future." Many local governments have already rolled out subsidies to encourage childbirth. In March, Hohhot, the capital of China's northern Inner Mongolia region, began offering residents up to 100,000 yuan (US$14,000) per newborn for couples with three or more children, while first and second children will be eligible for 10,000 and 50,000 yuan subsidies. In Shenyang, in northeastern Liaoning province, local authorities give families who have a third child 500 yuan per month until the child turns three. Hangzhou, in eastern Zhejiang province, offers a one-time payment of 25,000 yuan to couples who have a third child. More than 20 provincial-level administrations in the country now offer childcare subsidies, according to official data. Premier Li Qiang vowed to provide childcare subsidies during the government's annual work report in March. China's shrinking population is also ageing fast, sparking worries about the future of the country's pension system. There were nearly 310 million people aged 60 and over in 2024.
CNA
3 hours ago
- CNA
Interactive Brokers considers launching new stablecoin for customers
NEW YORK :Interactive Brokers Group is considering launching a stablecoin for customers, joining a number of large financial firms that are betting big on the digital token boom as the U.S. eases regulations around the crypto industry. The deliberations come at a time when the underlying infrastructure of global financial markets is undergoing a once-in-a-generation transformation due to the proliferation of blockchain-based assets like stablecoins. In an interview with Reuters, Interactive Brokers' billionaire founder Thomas Peterffy said the company is working on potentially issuing stablecoins, but has yet to make a final decision on how that will be offered to customers. Interactive Brokers, which is one of the world's leading discount brokers with a market value of about $110 billion, currently has a partnership with crypto platform Paxos and is also an investor in crypto exchange Zero Hash. Through these tie-ups, Interactive Brokers offers trading in various cryptocurrencies to customers. The popular trading platform is now working on enabling instant, 24/7 stablecoin funding for brokerage accounts, as well as supporting asset transfers for commonly traded cryptocurrencies, said Peterffy, who also sounded a note of caution on the risks of rapid widespread adoption of crypto. "It's basically hard to grasp its fundamental value. If we see people adopting it and ascribing a value to it, I'm okay with that, but I'm still not convinced," said Peterffy. Among the options being considered, the Greenwich, Connecticut-based firm could allow customers to use stablecoins issued by other financial institutions to fund their accounts, depending upon the credibility of the issuer. Stablecoins are blockchain-based tokens acting as a proxy for an asset that allow people to move money across borders without interacting with the banking system. Critics have warned that this makes them useful for criminals who want to avoid banks' anti-money laundering checks. Online brokerage firm Robinhood recently launched a stablecoin pegged to the U.S. dollar called the Global Dollar Network through a consortium that included other crypto platforms like Kraken and Galaxy Digital. The Global Dollar Network is based around a stablecoin called USDG, which is issued by Paxos. Interactive Brokers, which last year launched a predictions market called ForecastEx that allows investors to buy "yes" or "no" contracts in response to questions, is one of the largest U.S. trading platforms with about 3.87 million customer accounts at the end of June, a jump of 32 per cent from last year. Like other brokerages, Interactive Brokers has benefited from elevated levels of trading due to market volatility this year that was triggered by U.S. tariff policy. Its shares have surged about 47 per cent since the start of the year, outperforming the S&P 500 Investment Banking & Brokerage index, which has risen roughly 20 per cent during the same period.
