2026-01-14 20:39
Additional sales expected in coming days and weeks Revenue held in U.S.-controlled bank accounts Main account located in Qatar for neutral fund movement WASHINGTON, Jan 14 (Reuters) - The U.S. has completed the first sales of Venezuelan oil that are part of a $2 billion deal reached earlier this month between Caracas and Washington, a U.S. official told Reuters on Wednesday. Additional sales are expected in the coming days and weeks, the official added. Sign up here. Revenue from the initial oil sales - valued around $500 million - is being held in bank accounts controlled by the U.S. government, according to an administration official, citing an order issued on Friday. The main account is located in Qatar, according to an industry source familiar with the plan, who said the country represented a neutral venue where funds can move with U.S. approval and without risk of seizure. Semafor first reported that the sales had been completed. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/us-completes-first-venezuelan-oil-sales-valued-500-million-us-official-says-2026-01-14/
2026-01-14 20:20
Deal includes option to double supply to 2 mtpa Aramco aims to expand LNG presence in U.S. market Commonwealth LNG targets 8 mtpa sales before construction LONDON/HOUSTON, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Saudi Aramco (2223.SE) , opens new tab and Commonwealth LNG have signed a long-term contract for the U.S. LNG developer to supply the world's largest oil exporter with 1 million metric tonnes per annum (mtpa), three people familiar with the deal tell Reuters. The deal includes an option for Saudi Aramco to double the volume to 2 mtpa. Sign up here. Saudi Aramco wants to become a major liquefied natural gas player, especially in the U.S., where LNG capacity is set to almost double over the next four years. It has already signed deals with other U.S. players including NextDecade's (NEXT.O) , opens new tab Rio Grande LNG project. Commonwealth LNG and Saudi Aramco were not immediately available for comment when contacted by Reuters. Commonwealth LNG is looking to build the country's first integrated LNG export facility in Cameron, Louisiana, with its major shareholder Kimmeridge selling gas from Eagle Ford shale production to the plant. The deal will bring the LNG developer closer to the 8 mtpa it wants to sell out from the proposed facility's total capacity of 9.5 mtpa ahead of construction. The firm is targeting the end of the first quarter to make a positive final investment decision on the project. Saudi Aramco is targeting 20 mtpa of LNG capacity to eventually sell into the global market, with 4.5 mtpa currently in progress, Aramco President and CEO Amin Nasser said in a call with analysts last August. https://www.reuters.com/business/energy/saudi-aramco-commonwealth-lng-sign-long-term-supply-deal-2026-01-14/
2026-01-14 19:56
WASHINGTON, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Verizon Communications' (VZ.N) , opens new tab network was down for tens of thousands of users in the U.S. on Wednesday, preventing people from making calls or texting from cell phones and prompting two major cities to advise residents to use other providers to make emergency calls. The U.S. wireless carrier said it was working to address the issue that was impacting cellphone users across the country. Sign up here. "Our teams remain fully deployed and are focused on the issue," Verizon said. "We understand the impact this has on your day and remain committed to resolving this as quickly as possible." Federal Communications Commission Chair Brendan Carr told Reuters after a congressional hearing the agency will review the issue "and take appropriate action." New York City told residents the outage may affect some users trying to call 911. "Call using a device from another carrier, a landline, or go to a police/fire station to report emergencies," the city said on X. The District of Columbia issued a similar alert. There were more than 180,000 incidents of people reporting issues with Verizon's services at the peak just before 1 p.m. ET, according to Downdetector, which tracks outages by collating status reports from a number of sources, including user-submitted errors on its platform. That number had fallen to around 93,000 about an hour later. There were also reports of more than 1,700 incidents each for T-Mobile and AT&T services, according to Downdetector. AT&T and T-Mobile did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the outages. The actual number of affected users may differ from what is shown on Downdetector, as the reports are submitted by users. Verizon had faced a nationwide wireless outage in late 2024 that impacted over 100,000 users at its peak. The outage drew the FCC's attention after several services were affected and iPhone users were stuck in "SOS" mode. https://www.reuters.com/business/media-telecom/verizons-network-down-thousands-users-us-downdetector-shows-2026-01-14/
2026-01-14 19:52
SANTIAGO, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Chilean state-run miner Codelco said on Wednesday it had received environmental approval to extend the life of its Ministro Hales copper mine until 2054, a project that will require an investment of $2.8 billion. The world's largest copper producer said the initiative will allow the mine to increase production to 200,000 tons per year, up from the current 170,000 tons. Sign up here. https://www.reuters.com/sustainability/chiles-codelco-gets-environmental-permit-28-billion-ministro-hales-mine-2026-01-14/
2026-01-14 18:53
Police seize assets, probe fraud, money laundering Bank failure spurs scrutiny over FGC-backed high-yield debt risk BRASILIA, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Brazil's federal police served search and seizure warrants against businessmen Daniel Vorcaro and Nelson Tanure on Wednesday as part of an investigation into alleged fraud at Banco Master, a Supreme Court decision authorizing the operation showed. The raids are part of the second phase of a police operation launched in November, which at the time led to Vorcaro's arrest on the same day the Brazilian central bank ordered Banco Master's liquidation. Sign up here. Vorcaro was later released, but had to wear an ankle monitor. Vorcaro's lawyers said in a statement on Wednesday they were aware of the warrants and the businessman was fully cooperating with authorities and available to provide clarification "of the facts and a swift conclusion of the inquiry." Lawyers for Tanure, an investor in distressed companies and a major shareholder in power firm Light (LIGT3.SA) , opens new tab and oil company Prio (PRIO3.SA) , opens new tab, said the businessman was a client of Master and that investigations will show nothing illicit in that relationship. In the statement, the lawyers said Tanure's cellphone was his only asset seized by police during Wednesday's operation. SECOND PHASE OF POLICE PROBE OF SUSPECTED CRIMES Federal police said in a statement the second phase of the operation investigates suspected crimes including criminal organization, fraudulent management of a financial institution, market manipulation, and money laundering. Authorities executed 42 warrants authorized by the Supreme Court and seized cash, watches, cars, phones, documents and a firearm, images released by the police showed. Police are also seeking to freeze assets totaling more than 5.7 billion reais ($1.1 billion). GOVERNMENT SUGGESTS LARGE-SCALE BANKING FRAUD The operation comes one day after Finance Minister Fernando Haddad warned the case could represent "the largest banking fraud in the country's history." While Banco Master accounts for less than 1% of total banking assets in Brazil, its collapse has drawn scrutiny due to its heavy reliance on high-yield debt, guaranteed by the country's private guarantee fund, FGC. Investors are now awaiting potential payouts from the FGC amounting to 41 billion reais ($7.64 billion). ($1 = 5.3721 reais) https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/brazil-police-raids-target-vorcaro-banco-master-probe-say-sources-2026-01-14/
2026-01-14 18:31
Visa says merchants don't accept stablecoin payments Crypto chief highlights annualised $4.5 billion in stablecoin settlement Visa sees demand for stablecoin-linked payment cards PARIS, Jan 14 (Reuters) - Visa is working to integrate stablecoins into existing payment systems, seeing an opportunity to maintain its market leadership as these tokens gain traction, Visa's head of crypto, Cuy Sheffield, told Reuters. Stablecoins, cryptocurrencies typically pegged to the U.S. dollar, allow funds to be moved outside traditional banking systems. While their circulation has surged, led by El Salvador-based Tether's USDT with around $187 billion tokens in circulation, mainstream merchant acceptance remains limited. Sign up here. Even if new payments systems are built using the technology behind stablecoins, "you still have to come back and connect to the existing merchant acceptance ecosystem if you want that product to be used," Sheffield said, referring to the current network of sellers that accepts payments. NO CURRENT 'MERCHANT ACCEPTANCE AT SCALE' Visa already has various stablecoin-related initiatives, including stablecoin-linked payment cards. In December it launched a pilot programme to allow some U.S. banks to settle with Visa using Circle's stablecoin, USDC. Currently, there's no "merchant acceptance at scale" allowing holders to spend their stablecoins, Sheffield said. This means that companies "need Visa's products and services more than ever to be able to actually get real customers using them," he said. Visa's stablecoin settlement volumes have hit $4.5 billion in annualised run rate, a small fraction of the $14.2 trillion in annual payments volume Visa processed last year. "But this is growing significantly month over month," Sheffield said. "We're seeing demand, and it's mostly this class of stablecoin-linked card providers." SOME BANKS CONSIDER LAUNCHING THEIR OWN STABLECOINS Some banks, including Goldman Sachs, UBS and Citi, last year said they were exploring launching their own stablecoin, following warnings that stablecoins could potentially undermine the role of commercial banks in global payment flows. European banks, including ING and UniCredit, have formed a company to launch a euro-pegged stablecoin, to counter U.S. dominance in digital payments. Visa's Sheffield said he was excited about euro-backed stablecoins. "I think the stablecoin story shouldn't just be about dollars," he said. HIGH-FREQUENCY TRADERS DOMINATE MARKET There are more than $270 billion worth of stablecoins in circulation, more than twice the $120 billion from two years ago, according to a data website run by Visa and blockchain analysts Allium Labs. Still, in a note last year, JPMorgan analysts said the idea of stablecoins replacing traditional money was far from reality. Of $47 trillion in stablecoin transaction volume recorded on blockchain, Visa's website cited $10.4 trillion as "adjusted" volume. Sheffield said the figure was revised down to remove volumes from high-frequency traders who arbitrage across different exchanges, as well as other non-payment activity. https://www.reuters.com/business/finance/visa-crypto-chief-bets-stablecoin-settlement-sees-volumes-growing-2026-01-14/
