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Why is the European Central Bank eyeing a ‘digital euro’?

A digital, or virtual, euro would be an electronic version of euro notes and coins, it would be legal tender and guaranteed by the European Central Bank.

It would also for the first time allow individuals to have deposits directly with the ECB. This could be safer than with commercial banks, which could go bust, or than holding cash that could be stolen or lost.

And like cash, money could be stored outside of the banking system, such as in a “digital wallet”.

It would allow citizens and firms to make their daily payments “in a fast, easy and secure way,” the ECB said as it published a report on virtual money in October

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U.S., AstraZeneca strike deal for COVID-19 antibody treatment touted by Trump

The treatment has come under the spotlight after Trump was treated with Regeneron Pharmaceuticals’ antibody drug last week. The president has also released a video on Twitter touting its benefits.

In a call earlier on Friday, a top U.S. health official said the government was expecting to provide more than 1 million free doses of antibody treatments to COVID-19 patients, similar to the one that was administered to Trump.

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The worst for aviation industry is probably ahead of it, rather than behind

Airlines burned through $51 billion in the June quarter and will eat a further $77 billion in cash in the six months through December, according to analysis this week by the International Air Transport Association. That makes up roughly 80 per cent of the $162 billion of bailout money they’ve already received, and airlines won’t return to pre-Covid traffic levels until 2024. During 2021, they’ll still be going through $5 billion to $6 billion of cash a month, according to IATA.

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Only 1 in 4 global orgs keep Cardholder Payment Data Secure: Report

Payment data remains one of the most sought after and lucrative targets by cybercriminals with 9 out of 10 data breaches being financially motivated, as highlighted by the recent Verizon Business 2020 Data Breach Investigations Report (2020 DBIR). Within the retail sector alone, 99 percent of security incidents analyzed by the 2020 DBIR were focused on acquiring payment data for criminal use.

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Markel consolidates all Property CAT Reinsurance business under Nephila

“This move allows us to more fully leverage Nephila’s market leading competitive position while also generating necessary operational efficiencies.We believe the companies that will win in the future will be those who most efficiently connect risk with capital, and this strategic shift will help us do that in the property CAT market.”,” said Markel Co-CEO Richie Whitt.

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