Centuries-old network faces government heat as authorities link it to cryptocurrency, gold smuggling and tax evasion.
Category: Economy
A 34-year-old programmer from Braunschweig is wagering that Michael Saylor’s debt fueled Bitcoin empire cannot withstand a crash, setting up an unlikely duel between a small investor and crypto billionaire.
Researchers in China say a rising number of unemployed university graduates feel as though they are being forced to pursue master’s or doctoral degrees. It is distorting the entire Chinese academia system.
In the sprawling, often anonymous world of global e-commerce, a question nags at many of us: Where is this actually coming from?
In parts of Europe, some shops already run on card-only payments. While many nations are pushing toward a cashless future, global tensions are prompting them to reconsider.
A week of record highs flipped to panic with new China tariff talk, exposing fragile nerves as experts warn that a fast growing $2.2 trillion private credit market with light oversight, risky PIK structures, and bank and insurer exposure could turn the next shock into a chain reaction.
Armed with cameras, case files and witness tips, Frankfurt city inspectors track down covert Airbnb-style apartments that are squeezing an already tight housing market.
A decision by the country’s highest court opens up nearshore waters to export-minded commercial trawlers, waters that had been reserved for the small-scale fishers who feed the nation.
Land reforms gave Zimbabweans farms — but contract tobacco deals have handed power to private companies.
With an 80% market share in the house-swap space, and explosive growth, HomeExchange, bought and reinvented by two Frenchmen, has become the undisputed champion of house swapping. Will it undercut the American giant’s hold on the market.
Nowadays, the auto industry produces “entry-level” cars that are going for double what they cost 25 years ago, leaving young buyers struggling to enter the market while luxury and high-performance brands continue to thrive
Will compulsory social security weigh down small and medium-sized enterprises and jobs, or safeguard the future of ordinary workers?
From remote work to unlimited time off to now, the four-day working week, the workplace continues to evolve. While workplaces seek to avoid employee burnout, and workers hoping for greater flexibility, what was once a dream is quickly becoming reality around the world.
Sales are falling, rivals are surging, and China no longer craves the four rings. CEO Gernot Döllner is cutting bureaucracy, betting on speed, and trying to steer the brand through a maze of tariffs, scandals, and shifting markets.
President Trump’s push to revive nuclear energy relies on deregulation, but experts say that strategy is misplaced.
Particularly young sports fans are digitally oriented, and tend to be more “crypto-native”, which makes them a natural target for the industry.
Despite their leaders’ opposing politics, Argentina and Brazil’s similarities outnumber their differences. These neighboring countries must work together, writes former Argentine ambassador to Brazil Juan Pablo Lohlé.
Cuba has long been a country where very few people work, the fields do not produce, and it is one of the most aged countries in Latin America. A revolution that is no more.
Sham Wings Airlines, long sanctioned for its ties to the Syrian regime, has reemerged under a new name: Fly Cham. Despite the rebranding and change in ownership on paper, investigative findings reveal the same personnel, aircraft, and operations — raising serious questions about sanctions evasion.
In 2022, 62 million tons of electronic devices ended up in the trash. This results in the loss of valuable resources, significant social and environmental impact, and the perpetuation of a linear production and consumption system based on waste.
Coffee is a multi-million dollar industry in Costa Rica. But the work on coffee farms is demanding and carried out mainly by migrants, many of whom have left neighboring Nicaragua in search of a better life.
Far from being a threat, migration has contributed to maintaining the balance between workers and retirees, delaying a demographic collapse that would otherwise already be underway.
Once seen as a regional military power reliant on outdated Soviet tech, China is now emerging as a global force with cutting-edge weaponry. From stealth jets to next-gen drones, the country’s rapidly advancing arsenal is redefining the balance of power in global conflict zones.
In Argentina, gas and oil are more than fuels — they’re sacred words, woven into the nation’s identity. But this devotion is not just economic, it’s linguistic: The way Argentinians talk about hydrocarbons builds a cultural fortress, which makes any shift toward cleaner energy all the more difficult.
As Spotify CEO Daniel Ek pours millions into an AI weapons company, bands like Deerhoof, Xiu Xiu, and King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard are pulling their music from the streaming platform, challenging a model they say was never built for them.
In Valencia, Spain, the expansion of both licensed and unlicensed tourist accommodations is raising housing prices and pushing locals out of traditionally working-class neighborhoods.
The tipping culture is a deep-rooted phenomenon in several societies, which raises the question about its pertinence and necessity. Should this practice disappear? What is its role in different parts of the world?
Trump’s approach to U.S.-EU trade relations prioritizes dominance and loyalty over partnership, leaving Europe with little choice but to comply to avoid severe economic fallout. Breaking free from U.S. leverage would require Europe to build a new global alliance, effectively acknowledging the end of the traditional transatlantic trade partnership.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s controversial trade deal may look like a surrender to U.S. President Donald Trump, but it could be a calculated play in a surreal game of bluff, designed to keep Europe afloat — and Trump distracted.
As others bristle at tariffs and concessions, Rome recasts humiliation as heroism, embracing a lopsided deal that feeds the myth of a benevolent Caesar-like Donald Trump while draining European coffers.
As Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government doubles down on highways and combustion engines, critics warn that ignoring electric trends and digital innovation could cost Germany its place in the global auto industry.
From the ancient Greeks to modern times, thinkers and economists have pointed to the economic virtues of sympathy. So what role should empathy — and even social equity — have in Argentina’s economy?
Environmentalists crusading against air conditioners are mistaken: excessive heat actually harms economic growth and, indirectly, the decarbonization of our society.
Across Mexico, where gentrification has pushed housing prices up by 247% from 2005 to 2021, locals are angry over their forced displacement and lack of housing rights. They recently protested against mass tourism and “digital nomads.”
In Gurgaon this month, a professional tennis player was slain by her own father after neighbors jeered, “The house runs on your daughter’s money,” exposing how community shame can turn deadly when masculinity is tied to income earning.
America is carrying massive debt, and half of it is financed by the rest of the world. If foreign nations and investors coordinated, they could force Trump to negotiate more reasonably on tariffs. Will they take the risk?
In the midst of discussions about the use of artificial intelligence, ecofascist narratives have crept in. How did this happen? What are the dangers?
Some of Colombia’s wealthiest families prefer to move abroad, with their money, following a custom of the super-rich in many places. They should remember, the homeland they spurn gave them all the opportunities to become rich.
With Chinese bank loans overdue, Harare charges residents for major upgrades that were never completed.
👋 Alò!* Welcome to Friday, where the EU imposes new sanctions on Russia, Donald Trump struggles to tamp down the Jeffrey Epstein uproar, and a famed Austrian daredevil dies in a paragliding accident. We also feature an article on the rise of the “Instagram Sheikhs” — a diverse group of digital-savvy Muslims who fuse Islamic […]