Bitcoin Roller-Coasters As The U.S. And Iran Send Mixed Messages [Updated] - Forbes

Bitcoin, perhaps finally finding its place as a so-called safe haven asset, has moved sharply higher after Iran retaliated for the U.S. killing of Iranian general Qassem Soleimani.

The bitcoin price, now up 15% so far this year, has added 5% to its value in the last 12-hour trading period. The jump in the bitcoin price came shortly after news of Iran’s missile attack on U.S.-led forces in Iraq early on Wednesday.

[Updated 7:10pm EST 01/09/2020] The bitcoin price has fallen back following U.S. president Donald Trump's comments downplaying the situation in Iran and suggesting "Iran appears to be standing down." Meanwhile, rockets have apparently been fired at the U.S. embassy and military facilities in Baghdad. The bitcoin price dropped to just under $8,000 per bitcoin following Trump's White House speech.

People across Iran have mourned the killing of General Qasem Soleimani by the U.S. military in Iraq. ... [+] The escalation in tensions between the U.S. and Iran has pushed up safe-haven assets such as gold, with the bitcoin price also climbing.

SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images

The bitcoin price, down almost half from its 2019 high, surged around $600 in a matter of minutes to almost $8,500 per bitcoin on the Luxembourg-based Bitstamp exchange before falling back slightly to trade around $8,300.

Bitcoin followed traditional safe haven assets gold and the Japanese yen higher with Iran's retaliation raising international concerns the conflict between the U.S. and Iran could continue to escalate.

Gold prices have hit their highest since March 2013.

The price of oil has also soared, with brent crude up 2.5% to around $70 per barrel on concerns there could be disruption to oil supplies from the Middle East.

U.S. president Donald Trump said via Twitter he will be making a statement on Wednesday morning, adding: "All is well! Assessment of casualties and damages taking place now. So far, so good!"

Bitcoin and cryptocurrency watchers have long speculated whether the bitcoin price could eventually perform in the same way as traditional safe haven assets, though this has so far failed to happen consistently.

"The resemblance between digital gold and the physical stuff is uncanny," Mati Greenspan, the founder of crypto and financial analysis outfit Quantum Economics, wrote in a note ahead of bitcoin's latest rise. "They've basically been moving in a very similar pattern throughout most of last year."

The bitcoin price has climbed well over $8,000 per bitcoin, with the price adding some 15% so far in ... [+] 2020.

Coinbase

Last week, following the killing of general Soleimani, with Matthew Graham, chief executive of Sino Global Capital, asked if bitcoin has begun "moving in reaction to geopolitical risk."

Meanwhile, after general Soleimani was killed by U.S. forces in Iraq it was widely reported the bitcoin price in Iran had soared to around $24,000—this was, however, based on a common misunderstanding of exchange rates in Iran.

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2020-01-09 06:25:31Z
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Ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn claims Japanese prosecutors leaked false information, hid evidence - CNBC

Former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn, in his first public appearance since fleeing Japan, accused the country's prosecutors on Wednesday of trying to force a flawed confession.

In an internationally broadcast news conference in Beirut, Ghosn said that while he was under arrest he was questioned for up to eight hours a day, without access to lawyers, and was told his family would suffer if he didn't confess.

""Just confess and it will be over. Not only will we go after you, and we will go after your family,'" the 65-year-old Ghosn said he was told.

Without elaborating, the ex-auto exec also said Japanese prosecutors had leaked false information to the media and concealed evidence that would have helped his case. Japanese prosecutors had no immediate response to Ghosn's comments.

Ghosn was arrested in November 2018 on charges of underreporting his salary, using Nissan money for private investments and employing his sister as a highly paid consultant. He denies wrongdoing.

He escaped from house arrest on Dec. 29 and was flown on a stealth journey that eventually took him to Lebanon, where he has citizenship.

He told reporters he had looked forward to Wednesday's opportunity to speak for more than 400 days after he had been "ripped from my family, friends, communities, from Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi and the 450,000 women and men who comprised those companies."

Carlos Ghosn, former chief executive officer of Nissan Motor Co. and Renault SA, gestures as he speaks to the media at the Lebanese Press Syndicate in Beirut, Lebanon, on Wednesday, Jan. 8,. 2020. Ripped from my family, my friends, my communities, from Renault, Nissan and Mitsubishi and the 450,000 women and men who comprise those companies. It is impossible to express the depth of that deprivation and my profound appreciation to once again be able to be reunited with my family and loved ones, Ghosn said. Photographer: Hasan Shaaban/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Hasan Shaaban/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Ghosn has suggested that his arrest was the result of a plot to prevent him from fully merging Nissan with French automaker Renault.

"I was ready to retire before June 2018. ... I unfortunately accepted this offer to continue to integrate the two companies," Ghosn said. "Some of my Japanese friends thought that the only way to get rid of the influence of Renault on Nissan was to get rid of me."

Hitoshi Kawaguchi, who previously handled government affairs for Nissan; Hidetoshi Imazu, the auto firm's statutory auditor; and board member Masakazu Toyoda were identified by Ghosn as the three main people behind a plot to topple him.

"With the strings being pulled and manipulated by those dead set on securing a confession or conviction whose only goal is to save face, the facts, truth and justice are irrelevant to these individuals," he said.

A spokesperson for Nissan was not immediately available for comment when contacted by CNBC.

The former executive also accused the Japanese prosecution of working closely with Nissan. "The collusion between Nissan and the prosecutor is everywhere," he said.

Ghosn, who also holds French and Brazilian citizenship, made his dramatic escape from Japan while awaiting trial in Tokyo. He had been released from prison last April after posting a $14 million bail.

Ghosn reportedly took Japan's bullet train from Tokyo to western Osaka, before using a private jet to ferry himself to Istanbul and then switching planes to travel on to the Lebanese capital.

Lebanon, which has no extradition treaty with Japan, has said Ghosn entered the country legally.

Interpol, the international police cooperation body, has issued a "red notice" for Ghosn's arrest but so far Lebanese authorities have taken no action.

Ghosn said his decision to escape was not difficult.

"You're going to die in Japan or you have to get out," he said.

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2020-01-08 13:30:00Z
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Dow Jones Today, Futures Await Trump's Iran Response; Lennar, Tesla Jump; Boeing Tumbles On Tehran Crash - Investor's Business Daily

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1. Dow Jones Today, Futures Await Trump's Iran Response; Lennar, Tesla Jump; Boeing Tumbles On Tehran Crash  Investor's Business Daily
2. Stock futures rise, making back overnight drop as Iran retaliation less than feared  CNBC
3. US stock indexes slip, but rush for safety slows  KSL.com
4. US-Iran Clash Troubles Wall Street  Newser
5. 5 Stocks With Recent Price Strength for Spectacular Returns  Yahoo Finance
6. View full coverage on Google News

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2020-01-08 13:25:00Z
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Carlos Ghosn tells his side of the story: Live updates - CNN

Carlos Ghosn took a moment in his press conference Wednesday to praise fellow auto executive Greg Kelly, who was arrested at the same time he was and remains in Japan where he faces charges.

"While my plight has captured the headlines, we and you can not forget Greg’s ordeal. He’s being punished precisely because he is honorable," said Ghosn.

He said that Kelly was tricked into coming to Japan in November of 2018, when he was arrested, even though he needed to have medical attention at home.

Ghosn called Kelly "an honorable man, husband and father who was brutally torn from his work and his family on that November day."

"Greg remains a victim of the hostile Japanese justice system with no trial date in sight," he said.

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2020-01-08 13:10:00Z
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Carlos Ghosn will hold a press conference: Live updates - CNN

Carlos Ghosn wasted no time attacking the Japanese justice system after he fled the country last week, but he has remained tight-lipped about the circumstances behind his escape.

There has been plenty of speculation, and several media outlets have floated theories about how he left Japan. CNN Business has been unable to confirm details of the escape.

The governor of Istanbul, though, said last week that Turkish police had detained seven people in connection with an investigation into Ghosn's "illegal escape" from Japan. Anadolu news agency said that Ghosn traveled via the city's Ataturk airport.

Flight tracker Flightradar24 showed a private jet flying from Osaka, Japan, to Istanbul and then another continuing to Lebanon at the time Ghosn is said to have arrived in the country.

Then on Friday, the Turkish company MNG Jet, which charters private planes, said a rogue employee aided with Ghosn's escape. The company said that two of its jets were used "illegally" to transport Ghosn without the knowledge of company management, and added that it has filed a criminal complaint.

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2020-01-08 11:42:00Z
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Macy's closing another Massachusetts store - WCVB Boston

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1. Macy's closing another Massachusetts store  WCVB Boston
2. Macy's is reportedly closing more than two dozen stores. Is your location on the list?  USA TODAY
3. Macy’s reportedly closing dozens of stores, including 1 in Massachusetts  Boston News, Weather, Sports | WHDH 7News
4. Meriden Mall Anchor Store To Close  Meriden, CT Patch
5. Macy's is closing at least 15 stores. Here's the full list  msnNOW
6. View full coverage on Google News

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2020-01-08 11:18:00Z
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Ghosn lawyers blast Nissan before much-anticipated news conference - CNBC

Fugitive ex-Nissan chief Carlos Ghosn's lawyers opened fire on the car maker on Wednesday, hours before he was scheduled to hold a highly anticipated news conference, accusing it of using a "flawed, biased" internal probe to engineer his arrest.

The international legal team said in a statement that Nissan Motor was trying to prevent Ghosn from more closely integrating the Japanese company and its French alliance partner Renault SA, which he also formerly headed.

Ghosn's Japanese lawyers, meanwhile, despite their client having vanished from the country on Dec. 29, blocked Tokyo prosecutors from seizing a computer Ghosn had used.

The once-feted executive, who was awaiting trial in Tokyo on charges of financial misconduct and is now in Lebanon which has no extradition treaty with Japan, was allowed to use internet-only under his lawyers' supervision under his bail conditions.

Based on attorney-client privilege, "we refused to allow them access to the (local lawyers') office and asked them to leave", said an official with the Tokyo law firm.

Ghosn has said that he fled a "rigged" Japanese justice system after authorities delayed his trial into 2021.

His daring escape involved slipping away from his Tokyo residence, crossing Japan on a bullet train and being smuggled onto charter jets that delivered him from Osaka to his childhood home of Lebanon via Istanbul.

Ghosn is expected to hold a news conference in Beirut at 10 p.m. Japan time (1300 GMT). He has spoken in his defense in court and issued a video statement of his innocence since his initial arrest in November 2018, but has not spoken openly with reporters or otherwise publicly defended himself.

Ghosn has said he will fight to restore his reputation.

His international lawyers said Nissan "never once" tried to interview the executive or share with him evidence it had accumulated against him.

Turkish and Japanese authorities are investigating how Ghosn was smuggled out to Beirut. Interpol has issued a "red notice" seeking his arrest.

Japanese authorities on Monday issued an arrest warrant for Ghosn's wife, Carole, for alleged perjury in connection with her husband's financial dealings.

Carole told French newspaper Le Parisien that Japanese prosecutors were "hoping to put pressure on my husband" ahead of his press conference in Lebanon.

The statement from Ghosn's legal team seeks to focus attention on his claim that he was the victim of a coup by Nissan executives who opposed giving up more authority to Renault.

'Perversion of the truth'

Nissan said an internal investigation found that Ghosn had engaged in personal use of company money and had under-reported his income in violation of Japanese law.

Ghosn's lawyers said Nissan's claim of "a robust, thorough internal investigation" is a "gross perversion of the truth".

The investigation "was initiated and carried out for the specific, predetermined purpose of taking down Carlos Ghosn to prevent him from further integrating Nissan and Renault, which threatened the independence of Nissan", the lawyers wrote.

Ghosn has denied all charges against him, saying he was the victim of "backstabbing" and "conspiracy" by Nissan executives.

Ghosn's legal team also accused Nissan of allowing Hari Nada, an executive "whose own conduct was the subject of the investigation", to run the probe of Ghosn.

The statement also charged that Latham & Watkins, the law firm that assisted Nissan's investigation, was not independent because it has long acted as outside counsel for the company.

Ghosn's lawyers said Nissan's investigation failed to uncover evidence that then-CEO Hiroto Saikawa had also benefited from improper compensation.

Saikawa resigned last year after admitting he had been overpaid in violation of internal procedures.

Nissan said it had no further comment on its Tuesday statement.

In the past, the automaker has said it cannot comment on the specifics of the investigation since the company itself was also the subject of a criminal investigation.

Japan's ambassador to Lebanon, Takeshi Okubo, met Lebanese President Michel Aoun on Tuesday, calling Ghosn's flight to Lebanon "deeply regrettable" and requesting cooperation from Beirut, according to a Japanese foreign ministry statement.

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2020-01-08 10:37:00Z
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