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Federal Reserve Governor Stephen Miran has called for a reworking of Wall Street regulations before policymakers weigh other economic questions around the central bank’s balance sheet. “For many years, financial regulation mostly moved in one direction, increasingly restricting the banking sector,” Miran said, going on to observe that there was regulatory over-reach following the 2008 financial crisis, which caused many traditional banking activities to migrate away from the regulated sector. “While I have no bias against nonbank financial companies, credit allocation should be driven by market forces, not regulatory arbitrage,” he said.

 

Bloomberg

Ransomware Shifts You Must Act On

Ransomware is evolving faster than most security teams can respond, and the latest data from 1,300 organizations shows how quickly risk is escalating. With 900 victims hit by encryption or exfiltration in the past year alone, leaders can no longer rely on outdated assumptions about attacker behavior. Law enforcement crackdowns are reshaping threat dynamics. Data theft is rising even as ransom payments fall. Legal exposure is growing. These shifts demand sharper preparedness, stronger resilience and a clearer understanding of the operational and compliance risks that follow an attack. This report distills six critical trends and the real-world strategies organizations are using to harden defenses, improve recovery outcomes and limit business disruption. It is a concise, high-value briefing for anyone responsible for protecting data, ensuring continuity and reducing the financial and regulatory fallout of a breach.

 

Meta has begun notifying young Australians to download their digital histories and delete their accounts from Facebook, Instagram, and Threads ahead of a new law banning accounts for users under 16. The Australian government mandated that platforms must exclude users younger than 16 starting December 10th. Meta informed thousands of young users via SMS and email, saying: “We will start notifying impacted teens today to give them the opportunity to save their contacts and memories.” With an estimated 350,000 Australians aged 13 to 15 on Instagram, the company is taking steps to comply with the law. Meta's vice president, Antigone Davis, emphasized the need for a more accurate age verification system, suggesting that app stores should collect age information during sign-up. Dany Elachi, founder of Heaps Up Alliance, supported the age restriction, observing: “children under the age of 16 are better off in the real world.”

 

AP News

BBC News

Reuters

Sydney Morning Herald

U.S. President Trump has said that broadcasting licenses used by affiliates of Walt Disney's ABC should be revoked after he disagreed with a question posed by a reporter for the network. "I think the license should be taken away from ABC, because your news is so fake and it's so wrong," Trump said during an Oval Office event. Trump has repeatedly urged the Federal Communications Commission to revoke the station licenses of ABC and Comcast-owned NBC and charge them for using the public airwaves.

 

CNBC

Reuters

The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is investigating whether the BBC’s editing of a speech delivered by President Donald Trump in a Panorama documentary breached U.S. regulations. FCC chairman Brendan Carr has written to executives at the BBC and to the heads of U.S. broadcasters PBS and NPR to find out whether the report was aired in the U.S. PBS and NPR distribute BBC programming in the U.S.

 

Financial Times

The Daily Telegraph

Growing electricity demand from data centers is raising the risk of blackouts across parts of the U.S. during extreme conditions this winter, according to a report from the North American Electric Reliability Corp. (NERC), the regulatory body overseeing grid stability. "Record-setting demand is anticipated for some areas and may strain the grid in areas with double-digit growth rates," NERC said, observing that areas including PJM, the U.S. Southeast, and parts of the U.S. West have the largest increase in peak demand forecasts.

 

Reuters

South Korea has won its 13-year legal battle with US private equity firm Lone Star after an international arbitration panel under the World Bank Group annulled a 2022 ruling that had ordered Seoul to pay the firm $216.5m in damages. "The annulment committee of the International Centre for Settlement of Investment Disputes in Washington . . .  has annulled all obligations outlined in the Aug. 31, 2022 arbitration ruling, including the order to pay Lone Star $216.5m in principal and interest," Korean Prime Minister Kim Min-seok said. Lone Star Funds had claimed that it suffered $4.68bn in damages due to what it alleged was unfair interference by the Korean government in its sale of Korea Exchange Bank.

 

Korea JoongAng Daily

Korea Herald

Nine Republican state attorneys general have raised antitrust concerns over Union Pacific’s proposed $85bn merger with Norfolk Southern, warning it could “stifle competition” and harm U.S. manufacturers, farmers, and national security. In a letter to the Surface Transportation Board, they cited risks of higher shipping costs and reduced innovation. Union Pacific said the merger would benefit the public and enhance competition. Shareholders at both companies overwhelmingly approved the deal, which aims to create the first U.S. coast-to-coast freight rail operator. The STB review process is expected to last up to 18 months.

 

Reuters

On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve published the minutes from October's meeting of the Federal Open Market Committee, revealing that many officials were hesitant about a December rate cut, with several preferring to keep rates unchanged despite the recent decision to lower them to 3.75%–4%. The discussion showed significant division among policymakers, though most supported eventual rate reductions. At the heart of the debate was a disagreement over how “restrictive” the current policy is for the economy. Some participants thought that even with the quarter-point cut policy was still holding back growth, while others saw that “the resilience of economic activity” indicated that policy is not restrictive.

 

AP News

CNBC

New York Times

Wall Street Journal

Billionaire investor Bill Ackman dismissed the idea of an IPO for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as “neither feasible nor desirable” in the near term. While the Trump administration is evaluating a potential 2025 offering to end government conservatorship, Ackman instead suggested moving the companies’ over-the-counter listings to the NYSE, estimating this could yield a combined valuation near $400bn. He also proposed recognizing past government repayments and adjusting capital requirements. The merger of Fannie and Freddie is off the table due to required congressional approval. Structuring challenges and legal limits complicate alternative listing strategies.

 

Reuters

Norway is considering lifting its $2.1trn sovereign wealth fund’s ban on defence companies, potentially allowing investment in firms such as Lockheed Martin and Boeing by 2027. The ethical shift, prompted by Russia’s war in Ukraine and security concerns over U.S. policy, would end a 20-year exclusion of firms involved in nuclear weapons components. Finance Minister Jens Stoltenberg noted the inconsistency of buying from these firms while forbidding investment in them. A commission will issue recommendations in 2026. The fund’s past investment stances have shaped global ESG trends, making this potential reversal especially significant.

 

Reuters

Airlines for America (A4A), representing major U.S. carriers, will urge Congress to permanently prevent aviation disruptions during government shutdowns by ensuring pay for air traffic controllers and key Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) staff. In a Senate hearing, A4A CEO Chris Sununu will cite the recent 43-day shutdown that disrupted 6m passengers and 50,000 flights, calling it a “serious safety, human and economic” issue. FAA-imposed flight cuts on 40 airports caused 7,100 cancellations. Nick Daniels of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association will also support legislation, stressing families should not bear the cost of political gridlock. The FAA remains 3,500 controllers short of staffing targets.

 

Reuters

Many Americans are unintentionally losing investment gains when changing jobs because their small 401(k) balances are being moved into low-yield “safe harbor” IRAs without their active involvement. As job switching increases and automatic 401(k) enrollment becomes more common, millions of small accounts are being transferred into IRAs invested only in cash. These involuntary rollovers happen when former employees have between $1,000 and $7,000 in their 401(k). Employers are allowed to move these accounts after notifying the worker - though many people overlook or never receive the notice. Once transferred, the money often sits in accounts earning minimal interest while still being charged fees, so savings can stagnate or even shrink. An example is a worker whose balance decreased despite a strong stock-market year because her money sat in cash and incurred fees. The scale of the problem is growing: 1.7m involuntary rollovers are expected this year, rising to 2.2m by 2030. Safe harbor IRAs currently hold about $28bn, and are projected to reach $43bn.

 

Wall Street Journal

Insurance executives are increasingly concerned about severe convective storms (SCS), which they view as the top threat to their financial stability, according to a recent survey by reinsurance MGA Demex. The survey revealed that 87% of respondents expressed significant concern over future SCS losses. Traditional reinsurance remains the primary risk transfer tool, but 63% of respondents are considering aggregate working-layer cover. Jim Botsis from AcrisureRe noted that multiple SCS events could erode surplus, while Matt Coleman from Demex highlighted the need for innovative risk transfer solutions to mitigate these losses.

 

Insurance Business Magazine America

Reinsurance bosses have told the Financial Times that a flood of capital from private credit firms is pushing reinsurers into taking on riskier business through more lightly regulated intermediaries.

 

Financial Times

Younger adults consuming high amounts of ultra-processed foods are at an increased risk of developing pre-cancerous polyps, according to a study published in JAMA Oncology. Women under 50 who ate the most ultra-processed foods had a 45% higher risk of polyps compared to those with lower consumption. Dr. Andrew Chan, senior researcher at Mass General Brigham Cancer Institute, emphasized the need to reduce ultra-processed food intake to combat the rise of early-onset colorectal cancer. The study analyzed data from over 29,000 female nurses, revealing that those consuming an average of 10 servings of ultra-processed foods daily faced a significantly higher risk. Christine Molmenti, a cancer epidemiologist, noted that these foods often lack nutritional value and can disrupt the microbiome, leading to inflammation and metabolic issues. "Ultra-processed foods and junk foods promote disease," she said, highlighting the urgent need for dietary awareness.

 

US News and World Report