News Nuggets | 25 May: Gate.io in Hong Kong; CFI's New Office

TradingView Integrates Dhan and Bourse de Casablanca

TradingView has announced two new integrations this week, adding Dhan to the available brokers' list and data from the Bourse de Casablanca (CSE). The latest addition will allow TradingView users to see the charts and trade the instrument from the capital market of the Kingdom of Morocco.

The Casablanca Stock Exchange, founded in 1929, stands as Africa's second-largest stock market and has garnered recognition for its outstanding performance within the Middle East and North Africa region.

FCA Warns against Ultimos FX

The British FCA updated its warning list on Thursday, adding Ultimos FX. According to the market watchdog, the company might offer financial services or products without authorization. The FCA strongly advises against engaging with this firm and urges caution regarding potential fraudulent activities.

Ultimos FX operates under the ultimosfx.com website, offering "a revolutionary 100% crypto trading platform" and suspiciously high rates of return on automatic investments.

Citi Will Not Finalize Its $7B Sale

After investing 16 months in preparation, Citigroup Inc. found its plans to sell its Banamex unit abruptly derailed due to the Mexican President, Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador's interference.

Citigroup and representatives from Grupo Mexico SAB, owned by German Larrea, had diligently worked together to finalize a $7 billion deal. However, In a surprising move that sent shockwaves through Mexico, the president expanded state control over railroad, mining and aviation sectors. Larrea was scared that the local banking sector might be next in line. As a result, it backed out of the deal.

Gate.io Launches in Hong Kong

Gate Group, the operator of crypto exchange Gate.io, has entered Hong Kong with its new local crypto trading platform, Gate.HK. The launch came when the crypto exchange is preparing to apply for a digital asset license in Hong Kong.

The platform, which already started services on 23 May, offers spot trading with cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin. It also has plans to broaden its offerings by adding services for retail and professional investors.

“In the future, the new platform will roll out various other services to provide a more extensive range of trading choices, tailoring each new product and service to meet the needs of users and the regulatory requirements in Hong Kong,” the announcement added.

IG Cautions Volatility with Turkish Elections

London-headquartered IG has released another warning on possible market volatility with the run-off voting for the Turkish presidential election to be held on next Sunday. The Turkish presidential and parliamentary elections were held last Sunday, but none of the parties could manage to receive 50 percent of the votes, resulting in the run-off elections.

“During the trading on May 14th (Sunday) before and after the Election Day, the liquidity of the Turkish lira market dropped significantly, resulting in a time period during which online trading could not be provided,” the notice said. “There is a possibility that the Turkish lira market will fluctuate suddenly depending on the trend of the election as well.”

“From the second half of this week to the first half of next week, especially in the morning of Japan time and on Monday, May 29th, we expect a sharp increase in volatility in the foreign exchange market due to election results, etc., so we will start trading as usual. Please note that there is a good chance that you will not be able to do so.”

Bitget Taps Copper’s ClearLoop

Lionel Messi-endorsed crypto exchange, Bitget has become the sixth platform to integrate Copper’s Clearloop. It will allow institutional clients of the exchange to trade with cryptocurrencies without taking them out of cold storage.

“Institutional crypto investors are primarily seeking ways to safeguard their assets and optimize trading,” Bitget’s Managing Director, Gracy Chen, said. “Bitget’s partnership with Copper exemplifies our ongoing efforts to boost confidence among institutional crypto users.”

CFI Opens Egypt Office

Credit Financial Invest (CFI), a prominent FX/CFDs broker in the Middle East, expanded its physical presence in the region with the opening of a new Egypt office.

“Unlocking new possibilities in Egypt! We celebrate today the grand opening of our extended offices, as we proudly bring our services to the vibrant land of Egypt,” the social media handle of the broker stated.

CFTC Goes after Icomtech

The US Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) has joined the country’s securities market regulator to take enforcement action against the five promoters of Icomtech, a fraudulent crypto investment scheme.

The regulator highlighted that the five defendants fraudulently siphoned hundreds of thousands of dollars from more than 170 individuals for the supposed trading of Bitcoin and other digital assets. The scheme predominantly targeted Spanish-speaking communities, offering ‘daily returns’ of between 0.9 percent to 2.8 percent and promising to double the investment in about four to eight months.

Now, the CFTC is trying to recover the victims’ investments and seeking to impose civil penalties on the five defendants, along with permanent trading and registration bans and injunction.