03/27/23 Fed Now is a new system that allows individuals and businesses to make real-time payments directly to the Federal Reserve, bypassing intermediaries like banks. The system is set to launch on July 1st and is part of a larger effort to create a centralized, closed-loop system of digital payments. The goal is to increase efficiency, safety and convenience for users. However, some are concerned about the implications of a centralized system that is controlled by the government and the Federal Reserve. Some worry that this will lead to more surveillance and control, and that smaller community banks will suffer as a result. Nevertheless, the system is set to launch in July and will likely change the way people make payments in the United States.
03/27/23 The sanctions placed on various countries over the years, particularly Russia, have led to a drop in demand for the dollar and a corresponding drop in its value. As a result, countries such as China, Russia, Iran, North Korea, and Saudi Arabia are forming alliances and looking to limit the use of the dollar in favor of their own currencies or a standardized currency they can all agree on. This move is being driven by the desire to have bankable value and reduce the dominance of the dollar as the world's reserve currency.
02/23/23 China and Iran are building a strategic partnership. A cooperation agreement has been signed where China and Iran will work together to expand their collective interests while diminishing the United States global interest. Iranian President Ebrahim Raisi spoke to a crowd in Beijing, stating “a new world order is forming, and taking the place of the old one, and the epicenter of the new world order is Asia.”
