Using Donations to Buy a Ferrari? UK Reform Party Leader Calls Tether Shareholders' $6.7 Million Donation an "Unconditional Gift"

Overnight into this morning, US stocks suffered a brutal sell-off, with markets in widespread distress. Wall Street traders commenting on today’s plunge cited algorithmic and programmatic selling as amplifying market volatility. A Goldman Sachs equity trader bluntly described today’s market as "extremely painful". Goldman Sachs top trader John Flood noted that long institutions are once again stuck in a stalemate, with hedge funds rapidly unloading their massive cloud computing positions bought during yesterday’s rebound, adding that "no buyers have yet stepped in to take over". Several senior traders described the liquidity conditions at the US stock market open as "highly liquidation-like", pointing out that algorithmic and CTA fund programmatic selling exacerbated the straight plunge amid an initial lack of buyers. Separately, Vanda Research data shows that retail selling in the first 30 minutes of Thursday’s market open hit the largest single 30-minute sell volume in recent months, approaching the peak recorded during retail investors’ panic exodus in late July 2024.

According to CNN, Texas Governor-elect Gina Inohosa stated, "Don't hate data centers—hate how they take advantage of Texans. We can build a strong partnership with Elon Musk and his company on our terms. Until measures are found to protect the safety of Texas residents, we must halt the current construction of data centers."

U.S. President Trump posted: "The stock market has experienced one of the worst trading days in history due to the election results. It’s really upsetting to watch! We put in so much effort to reach unprecedented levels, and this is what happened as a result. So, your 401(k) retirement accounts have shrunk. Remember, this isn’t the fault of Republicans—it’s the 'Dumocrats' (a deliberate misspelling of Democrats) who did it. But don’t be afraid; we will soon become stronger than ever before in some way. Make America Great Again!"

South Korea's Finance Minister: Will take necessary measures to prevent the stock market from overreacting and deviating from fundamentals.

According to people familiar with the matter, following a sharp stock market sell-off triggered by the liquidation of AI-related investments, major investors are growing skeptical about whether Anthropic’s initial public offering (IPO) can hit its targeted $1.5 trillion valuation. Anthropic had originally planned to debut its IPO during the week of November 16, with the offering expected to raise up to $100 billion, putting the company’s valuation at around $1.5 trillion. However, three large investors planning to participate in the IPO said the valuation may need to be adjusted downward, with one noting it could be closer to $1 trillion. Another investor said that even if the market rebounds, convincing institutional investors that recently suffered losses in the sell-off to take on significant risks in the AI sector again could be a challenge. This investor expressed doubt that Anthropic will delay the offering, adding that another option is the company may raise less capital than expected. People familiar with the matter said Anthropic’s executives and their advisors are expected to hold meetings in the coming days to discuss IPO plans. Some added that they have avoided committing to specific plans throughout the process to retain flexibility.

According to data from the BIT Stock Platform, the S&P 500 index’s decline widened to 4%, the Nasdaq 100 index fell more than 6%, the Dow Jones index dropped over 3%, the Nasdaq index fell more than 5%, and the semiconductor index declined by more than 10%.