15/07/2025

BIZ & FINANCE TUESDAY | JULY 15, 2025

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Malaysian Paper

/thesundaily /

Bitcoin tops US$120,000 level for the first time

Tesla to offer shareholders chance to invest in xAI: Musk NEW YORK: Tesla will give its shareholders the option to invest in artificial intelligence startup xAI, billionaire owner of both companies Elon Musk said on his social media platform X. “It’s not up to me. We will have a shareholder vote on the matter,”Musk said in response to a social media user suggesting that the electric car maker take a stake in xAI, which recently acquired X. “If it was up to me, Tesla would have invested in xAI long ago,” the world’s richest man said. According to the Wall Street Journal , another company controlled by Elon Musk, SpaceX, will invest US$2 billion into xAI as part of its US$5 billion capital raise. Responding to an X user who cited the WSJ ’s news story, Musk said“it would be great”but would depend on “board and shareholder approval”. Since the launch of xAI – which developed the generative AI assistant Grok – Musk has floated the potential synergies between the AI start-up and his two crown jewels, SpaceX and Tesla. According to the Financial Times , the businessman is seeking a valuation between US$170 and US$200 billion for xAI in a new funding round. Launched in July 2023, xAI is hoping to catch up with its major generative AI competitors, OpenAI (ChatGPT), Anthropic (Claude) and Google (Gemini). The start-up has invested heavily in a gigantic data centre in Memphis, Tennessee, which Musk claims will become the “most powerful AI training system in the world”. He has purchased another plot of land nearby to create more data centres, which are essential for developing and running large-scale artificial intelligence models. According to Bloomberg, xAI is costing over a billion dollars every month as it builds upgraded models, with its expenses far exceeding its revenues. xAI’s virtual assistant Grok has been the source of a series of controversies. After an update on July 7, some of the chatbot’s responses praised Adolf Hitler and suggested that people with Jewish surnames were more likely to spread online hate. On Saturday, xAI apologised for offensive posts, announcing that it had corrected the instructions that had led, according to the company, to these slip-ups. – AFP LONDON: AstraZeneca’s experimental drug baxdrostat has been successful in lowering high blood pressure in a late-stage study of people whose condition was hard to control or treat, the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker said yesterday. The drug met the main and secondary goals of the study at two dosages, with a statistically significant and clinically meaningful reduction in systolic blood pressure at 12 weeks when given with standard treatment, and compared with placebo. AstraZeneca added baxdrostat to its roster after it acquired CinCor Pharma in 2023 as part of its efforts to build out its pipeline of heart and kidney disease treatments. The drug works by targeting and suppressing the hormone aldosterone, which is responsible for increasing blood pressure and causing risk of heart and kidney diseases. The drug is currently also being investigated as a standalone therapy for hypertension, and as part of a combination therapy for chronic kidney disease and the prevention of heart failure in high-risk patients with hypertension. – Reuters AstraZeneca drug lowers high BP in late-stage study

seen as a long-term reserve asset, not just by retail investors and institutions but even some central banks,” said OKX’s Singapore CEO Gracie Lin. “We’re also seeing increasing participation from Asia-based investors, including family offices and wealth managers. These are strong signs of bitcoin’s role in the global financial system and the structural shift in how it is perceived, suggesting that this isn’t just another hype-driven rally.” Earlier this month, Washington declared the week of July 14 as “crypto week”, where members of Congress are set to vote on the Genius Act, the Clarity Act, and the Anti-CBDC Surveillance State Act. The most significant bill is the Genius Act, which would create federal rules for stablecoins. Elsewhere, prices of crypto-listed exchange-traded funds (ETFs) in Hong Kong similarly surged yesterday. Spot bitcoin ETFs launched by China AMC, Harvest and Bosera all scaled record highs, while the three ether ETFs managed by the asset managers were up more than 2% each. – Reuters

himself the “crypto president” and urged policymakers to revamp rules in favour of the industry. “It’s riding a number of tailwinds at the moment,” said IG market analyst Tony Sycamore, citing strong institutional demand, expectations of further gains and support from Trump as reasons for the bullishness. “It’s been a very, very, strong move over the past six or seven days and it’s hard to see where it stops now. “It looks like it can easily have a look at the US$125,000 level,” he said. The surge in bitcoin, which is up 29% for the year so far, has sparked a broader rally across other cryptocurrencies over the past few sessions even in the face of Trump’s chaotic tariffs. Ether, the second-largest token, scaled a more than five-month top of US$3,059.60, while XRP and Solana gained about 3% each. The sector’s total market value has swelled to about US$3.81 trillion, according to data from CoinMarketCap. “What we find interesting and are watching closely are the signs that bitcoin is now being

SINGAPORE: Bitcoin crossed the US$120,000 (RM510,000) level for the first time yesterday, marking a milestone for the world’s largest cryptocurrency as investors bet on long-sought policy wins for the industry this week. Bitcoin scaled a record high of US$122,571.19, before pulling back slightly to last trade 2.4% higher at US$121,952.61. Later this week, the US House of Representatives will debate a series of bills to provide the digital asset industry with the nation’s regulatory framework it has long demanded. Those demands have resonated with US. President Donald Trump, who has called o Tailwinds include strong institutional demand, expectations of further gains and support from Trump

EU ready to hit US with €21 billion in tariffs: Italy minister MILAN: The European Union has already prepared a list of tariffs worth €21 billion (RM104 billion) on US goods if the two sides fail to reach a trade deal, Italy’s Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani said in a newspaper interview yesterday. President Donald Trump on Saturday threatened to impose a 30% tariff on imports from Mexico and the EU starting on Aug 1, after weeks of negotiations with major US trading partners failed to reach a comprehensive deal. Tajani also told Il Messaggero daily that the European Central Bank should consider a new “quantitative easing” bond-buying programme and more interest rate cuts to help the euro zone economy. The European Union said on Sunday it would extend its suspension of countermeasures to American tariffs until early next month and continue to press for a negotiated settlement. Tajani said the €21 billion package of tariffs the EU has already prepared could be followed by a second set if a deal with the US proves impossible. The minister added, however, that he was confident that progress could be made in negotiations. “Tariffs hurt every one, starting with the United States,” he said. “If stock markets fall, that puts at risk the Sefcovic speaking to the media, ahead of a European Union Foreign Affairs Council (Trade) meeting to discuss EU-US relations, in Belgian capital Brussels yesterday. – REUTERSPIC pensions and the savings of the Americans.” He said the goal should be “zero tariffs” and an open market among Canada, the United States, Mexico and Europe. German Chancellor Friedrich Merz said on Sunday he would work intensively with French President Emmanuel Macron and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen to resolve the escalating trade war with the United States. European trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic said yesterday that Washington and Brussels were approaching a positive outcome for both sides, and warned that a 30% tariff would practically eliminate trade. – Reuters