Bitcoin has taken a step toward legitimacy with the launch of a product on a Chicago exchange that allows investors to take bets on its price in the future. The new contract on the Chicago Board Options Exchange came as the digital currency jumped another 10%, sparking fresh warnings of a speculative bubble after last week’s 40% climb in price. Bitcoin was trading at $16,200 – up 10% on the day – while the new futures contract trading in Chicago showed that traders were expecting the cryptocurrency to be trading…
Read MoreDay: December 13, 2017
Branson’s knee-in-the-groin showdown with BA’s Walsh on hold
The most anticipated knee in the groin in modern business history appears to have been dodged after Sir Richard Branson and Willie Walsh both claimed to have won a bet placed five years ago over Virgin Atlantic’s future. Disappointingly for aviation industry observers, a rendezvous to settle a spat that developed across two continents in 2012 appears to be off. At the time, Walsh – the chief executive of British Airways’ parent company, International Airlines Group – made comments suggesting that the Virgin Atlantic brand could disappear after US company…
Read MoreEU could ‘scrap refugee quota scheme’
The EU could scrap a divisive scheme that compels member states to accept quotas of refugees, one of the bloc’s most senior leaders will say this week. The president of the European council, Donald Tusk, will tell EU leaders at a summit on Thursday that mandatory quotas have been divisive and ineffective, in a clear sign that he is ready to abandon the policy that has created bitter splits across the continent. Tusk will set a six-month deadline for EU leaders to reach unanimous agreement on reforms to the European…
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