Payments Giants' $80 Billion Blunder Ignites Market Mayhem

Payment titans Worldline SA, Adyen NV, and Nexi SpA have sent seismic shockwaves through the international market as their shares plunged dramatically this week.

This is an all-time low for these payment giants contributing to an eye-popping $80 billion wipeout.

As the pandemic-fueled e-commerce boom runs out of steam, growth prospects appear shrouded in uncertainty.

Making a spectacular nosedive, Worldline SA shares dropped a jaw-dropping 60% after the company slashed its outlook, uncorking a contagion effect that tarnished the prospects of Adyen NV and Nexi SpA.

Adding to the market drama, newcomer CAB Payments Holdings PLC nosedived 72% in London, following a reduction in revenue guidance.

This unfortunate misstep earned it the dubious honor of being the world's worst-performing major initial public offer this year.

It's as if these payment Goliaths, in an attempt to play a game of financial limbo, collectively asked, 'How low can you go?'

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Mortgage Massacre: US Home Loan Rates Soar to Record Highs in Two Decades

In a record-breaking surge not witnessed since the turn of the century, the interest rates on the most sought-after US home loans leaped to their highest in more than 23 years.

The past week witnessed the seventh consecutively weekly hike, catapulting mortgage applications to a pitiful 28-year low.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage saw an alarming jump of 20 basis points, settling at a staggering 7.9%.

As per the Mortgage Bankers Association data, mortgage activity has hit the brakes, reaching the slowest weekly pace since 1995.

This rapid rise in mortgage rates has knocked the wind out of potential homebuyers, effectively quashing refinance activity.

Despite the Federal Reserve's pause on their inflation-battling rate-hike mission, the cost of borrowing for home purchases continues to skyrocket.

The 30-year fixed-rate mortgage has seen an increase of 81 basis points since the Federal Reserve increased its benchmark policy rate to 5.25-5.50% in July this year from near zero.

If this mortgage "skyrocket" keeps up its pace, we may need to start looking for homes on Mars sooner than Elon Musk anticipated.

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Google's Investors Lose Their Heads As Microsoft Shows Off Its Silver Lining

Alphabet, parent company of Google, had Wall Street in a tailspin this Wednesday, with its stock experiencing the steepest drop in an entire year, a wallet-clenching 9% to about $126.

Investors had their nerves jangled by Google's cloud business taking a nosedive.

Ironically, that same afternoon, Microsoft was featured in Forbes' "best dressed" with its cloud unit growing more than anticipated and the share prices swelled by 2%

The tech giant had, in fact, surpassed analysts' predictions for revenue, profit, and sales for its advertising division in its Tuesday earnings.

Rosenblatt analyst Barton Crockett claimed the cloud blip to be the sole stain on the otherwise pristine report, yet it was enough to ignite a flurry of panic amongst investors.

The company's stumble in the cloud market and its slow margins growth (two out of three reasons most investors are bullish about Alphabet) have set alarm bells ringing.

Analysts from Wedbush stated that relying on Alphabet's cloud business is akin to betting your life savings on Michael Jordan's baseball career - a short-lived and not particularly successful venture.

Alphabet failed to share how YouTube's eye-watering $2.5 billion per year contract with NFL for broadcasting out-of-market games impacted its bottom line.

As Alphabet clouds up and Microsoft shines, lets remember that there is no rainbow without rain, and in the tech world, it's always anyone's game.

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SBF : Crypto Kingpin or Scapegoat?

Former high-flying crypto guru, Sam Bankman-Fried, is facing the fight of his life, as he steps up to defend his actions following the spectacular collapse of his digital-asset kingdom FTX.

With his reputation under a cloud, Bankman-Fried has taken to the stand to face the music after a parade of ex-colleagues painted him as the crafty orchestrator of a devious multi-year plot to dupe FTX customers and investors.

His legal team stated on a conference call that the 31-year-old defendant may testify as early as Thursday afternoon, potentially spinning a plot twist in this gripping fraud trial saga.

As the crypto tycoon's defense moves to bat off charges, onlookers suggest this trial might offer more twists and turns than SBF's whirly curls.

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