List of All Articles with Tag 'person'

WASHINGTON & TAIPEI, Taiwan--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug 8, 2023--

PayPal has launched a new cryptocurrency that is tied to and backed by the US dollar. PayPal USD, issued by Paxos Trust Company, is a type of digital currency called a stablecoin, which differs to other cryptocurrencies like bitcoin as their values are tied to traditional fiat currencies like dollars, pounds or euros. “The shift toward digital currencies requires a stable instrument that is both digitally native and easily connected to fiat currency like the US dollar,” said PayPal chief executive Dan Schulman. “Our commitment to responsible innovation and compliance, and our track record delivering new experiences to our customers, provides the foundation necessary to contribute to the growth of digital payments through PayPal USD.” The new crypto token will roll out first to US PayPal customers, offering the ability to send and transfer PayPal USD to other people, as well as fund purchases when checking out at online stores. The new cryptocurrency comes at a time of increased scrutiny at the crypto industry, with regulators looking to avoid a repeat of the TerraUSD stablecoin collapse that wiped tens of billions of dollars from markets in 2022. The TerraUSD token was also pegged to the US dollar, however unlike PayPal USD it was not backed up by any dollar reserves. Instead, it used a partner cryptocurrency to maintain its value algorithmically, which ultimately caused both cryptocurrencies to crash in tandem. Other companies have also attempted to launch stablecoins, including Facebook’s Libra project, which was shut down last year after facing push back from regulators. The US House Financial Services Committee has since advanced a bill aiming to set up a federal framework for stablecoins in order to integrate them into modern payment systems. “We are currently at a crossroads to keep America at the forefront of digital asset innovation,” US Representative Patrick McHenry, who chairs the committee, said in a statement following PayPal’s announcement. “Congress is making significant, bipartisan progress on legislation to ensure the US leads the financial system of the future.” Read More What is Elon Musk’s ‘everything app’ X? Kenya suspends eyeball-scanning crypto worldcoin

Months after access to a popular children’s book about a male penguin couple hatching a chick was restricted at school libraries because of Florida’s so-called Don’t Say Gay law, a central Florida school district says it has reversed that decision

The leaders of South America’s Amazon nations will gather in Brazil this week as President Luiz Inacio Lula

The ocean is home to all manner of mysteries, from “alien” shape-shifters to ancient shipwrecks. And so, when Richard Branson and a team of scientists took a submersible down to the bottom of Belize’s iconic Giant Blue Hole, they were braced for some truly extraordinary sights. The Blue Hole is the largest sinkhole in the world, measuring 300m (984 feet) across and around 125m (410 feet) deep but, until Branson’s expedition in 2018 its depths had not been fully explored. The British billionaire was joined on his groundbreaking journey by Fabien Cousteau – the grandson of pioneering underwater explorer Jacques Cousteau – and oceanographer Erika Bergman. Sign up for our free Indy100 weekly newsletter Their mission was to create a 3D map of the hole’s interior but, when they reached the bottom, they were met by some disturbing discoveries. To be fair, they got off to a good start. The first thing they encountered as they edged down the hole was a wall of giant stalactites, which were “breathtakingly beautiful,” according to Branson. Then, at around 300 feet, they pierced a thick layer of toxic hydrogen sulphide, plunging them into darkness and cutting out the oxygen from the water around them. In an interview with CNN, Bergman explained that once you pierce that layer, which forms naturally over centuries, “you lose all of that Caribbean sunlight and it just turns completely black.” Elsewhere, Branson described it as “extremely eerie,” saying: “We didn’t expect to see any creatures below. But when we got to the bottom we could see crabs, conches and other creatures that had fallen into the hole, arrived on the bottom and then ran out of oxygen and died.” As the team continued to travel further down into the abyss, they were faced with the remains of a tragedy. In an interview with Business Insider back in July 2020, Bergman revealed that they found the bodies of two people who have “been lost in the Blue Hole”. “We found the resting place of a couple [of] folks,” she said. “And we just sort of very respectfully let the Belize government know where we found them.” She added that “everyone decided that we would just not attempt any recovery”, noting: “It's very dark and peaceful down there, [so we] just kind of let them stay.” As they reached the bottom, the team found something else unexpected, and very much unwelcome: human rubbish. It came in the form of a 2-litre Coke bottle and a lost GoPro containing some holiday snaps, according to Business Insider. “As for the mythical monsters of the deep? Well, the real monsters facing the ocean are climate change – and plastic,” Branson lamented following the discovery. “Sadly, we saw plastic bottles at the bottom of the hole, which is a real scourge of the ocean.” The business magnate said the expedition had offered “one of the starkest reminders of the danger of climate change [he had] ever seen.” He pointed out: “The Blue Hole is made of a complex system of caves that once formed on dry land. It is proof of how oceans can rise quickly and catastrophically. “Sea levels were once hundreds of feet lower. 10,000 years ago the sea level rose by about 300 feet when a lot of ice melted around the world. At 300 feet down you could see the change in the rock where it used to be land and turned into sea.” He added in his blog: “Hopefully by this trip taking place we have raised even more awareness of the need to protect the ocean and tackle climate change now – before it is too late.” He stressed that he didn’t want his grandchildren to “grow up in a world without corals, without the wonders of the ocean”. Have your say in our news democracy. Click the upvote icon at the top of the page to help raise this article through the indy100 rankings.

Pokimane's live streams have evolved from simply playing 'League of Legends' to hanging out and conversing with her audience

Tesla’s “Master of Coin” has stepped down after working at the Elon Musk-owned electric vehicle company for over 13 years. Zachary Kirkhorn became Tesla’s chief financial officer four and a half years ago in 2019, and was reportedly a potential successor to Mr Musk in running the EV company. The Tesla boss had dubbed him “Master of Coin” in 2021 – a reference to a title in hit TV series Game of Thrones. “During his tenure, Tesla has seen tremendous expansion and growth. Tesla thanks Mr Kirkhorn for his significant contributions,” Tesla noted in an SEC filing. Tesla’s current chief accounting officer, Vaibhav Taneja, will succeed Mr Kirkhorn, the electric automaker said on Monday. “This morning Tesla announced that I’ve stepped down from my role as Chief Financial Officer, succeeded by our Chief Accounting Officer, Vaibhav Taneja,” Mr Kirkhorn posted on his LinkedIn profile. “Being a part of this company is a special experience and I’m extremely proud of the work we’ve done together since I joined over 13 years ago,” he said. Mr Taneja previously worked as Tesla’s chief accounting officer up to March 2019, prior to which he worked as corporate controller from May 2018. It remains unclear what led to Mr Kirkhorn’s surprise decision to quit his role as Tesla’s CFO. Tesla recently announced its second quarter earnings, reporting a 20 per cent increase from the same quarter last year, better than what analysts estimated. Mr Kirkhorn’s departure also comes ahead of Tesla’s much-anticipated launch of its Cybertruck later this year. “As I shift my responsibilities to support this transition, I want to thank the talented, passionate, and hard-working employees at Tesla, who have accomplished things many thought not possible,” he said. Tesla shares dropped by about 3.5 per cent on Monday following the news, and continued to fall as the market opened. Mr Kirkhorn is expected to stay on till the end of 2023 to assist his successor with the transition. “I would like to thank Zach Kirkhorn for his many contributions to Tesla over the course of 13 often difficult years,” Mr Musk tweeted. Read More ‘It’s the factories that won’t be built’: Understanding the Brexit damage to economy Mark Zuckerberg’s wife not happy as he puts UFC octagon in garden ahead of Elon Musk fight Elon Musk ‘stopped Ukraine military using Starlink for military operation’ Zuckerberg says he is ‘ready today’ but ‘not holding breath’ for cage fight with Musk Musk pledges to fund legal bills of X users ‘unfairly treated’ by employers for posts Mark Zuckerberg reveals his 4,000 calorie diet and large McDonald’s order

By Nate Raymond (Reuters) -A federal appeals court on Monday blocked the Biden administration from proceeding with another piece of

A federal appeals court has put on hold a rule from President Joe Biden’s administration that makes it easier to obtain student loan debt relief for some borrowers

By Akash Sriram (Reuters) -Tesla finance chief Zachary Kirkhorn has stepped down, surprising analysts who considered the 13-year veteran as

Here's what we know so far about the Final Fantasy 16 DLC, potential rumors and release dates.

Neuralink Corp., Elon Musk’s brain-implant company, has raised $280 million in new funding from investors to develop its