Basel is nudging risks too far onto shareholder shoulders for socially useful bank activities such as financing infrastructure, writes @stheobald.bsky.social. Visit www.krutham.com/insights/stuart-theobald-shift-risk-from-shareholders-to-stimulate-infrastructure-lending/ to read more.

Krutham’s executive chairperson, Dr @stheobald.bsky.social, will speak at the #AfricaImpactSummit in Accra, Ghana. Join the continent’s leading voices working to transform systems and scale capital for real change. Register: africaimpactsummit.org #AfricaImpactSummit #ImpactInvesting

DELETED: Trump administration deleted a webpage summarizing evidence that “undocumented immigrants are arrested at less than half the rate of native-born U.S. citizens for violent and drug crimes and a quarter the rate of native-born citizens for property crimes.” 1/2

@stheobald.bsky.social, chair of Krutham and convenor of the Financial Sector Competitiveness Taskforce, addressed the Operation Phumelela Lekgotla with an overview of reform proposals from the workstreams. To learn more about Operation Phumelela, visit operationphumelela.org.za

Like any reality TV series that has run too long, the Trump administration’s approach is becoming formulaic and predictable, writes @stheobald.bsky.social. Visit www.krutham.com/insights/stu... to read more.

Banks must be solvent and they must be regulated appropriately, writes @stheobald.bsky.social. Read more at www.krutham.com/insights/stuart-theobald-the-sorry-saga-of-trying-to-fix-state-owned-banks/

This is fantastic. open.substack.com/pub/snyder/p...

"On Tyranny" is a #1 NYT bestseller again. I wish the moment were different. But I’m glad the book is useful. And grateful for all the kind words about putting the 20 lessons to work. snyder.substack.com/p/twenty-les...

Looking forward to hearing how this is someone else's fault...

NEW 🧵 The number of people travelling from Europe to the US in recent weeks has plummeted by as much as 35%, as travellers have cancelled plans in response to Trump’s policies and rhetoric, and horror stories from the border. Story: www.ft.com/content/6dc1...

Anyone want to explain game theory to the white house?

Which is worse Trussonomics or Trumponomics?

Trump's 3/27 executive order targets the Smithsonian for advancing "the view that race is not a biological reality but a social construct." Trump argues that the exhibit's statement, below, is unscientific. He's wrong. As a biology professor and population geneticist, I agree with every word of it.

The similarities to Zuma's destruction of Sars are astounding...

SHELLEY RECOGNISED HOW TYRANTS COME AND GO IN JUST A FEW WORDS FROM 1817,

On which side of this picture do you reckon you'd find more of the refugees Donald Trump is welcoming from South Africa? www.nytimes.com/2025/03/15/w...

Trump's actions don't surprise me as much as the cowardice of universities' response.

More of this! We all know this won’t pass but this is a line in the sand and a great talking point. /cc @shasti.bsky.social

As a South African, I can confirm that this is a load of absolute shit. A right wing South African group went to the US to tell Trump this, and he believed them and passed on the lie.

The one thing despots usually know is don't f*ck with the students. Even Jacob Zuma knew to keep them sweet by signing cheques the state couldn't afford. Angry students can be a big political problem. www.nytimes.com/2025/03/06/u...

Look at all this free speech going on here...

I wonder if GD Vance realises that the two "random countries" of Britain and France respectively have economies that are 67% and 51% bigger than Russia's.

Krutham’s recent report unpacks the good and bad ideas from Parliament’s banking sector hearings. From financial inclusion to regulatory reforms, we explore what works and what doesn’t. Read the full report: www.krutham.com/insights/tho... Analysts: @stheobald.bsky.social, Tinashe Kambadza

Among other disasters, a USAID-funded project in South Africa that helped keep orphaned children on their HIV medication has been forced to close. Trump and Musk are killing people. groundup.org.za/article/usai...

We are experiencing an assault on science unparalleled by anything I’ve seen in my life. It’s not one issue or another anymore, the entire institution is under attack by the most powerful individuals in the country. This Friday, where will you be? standupforscience2025.org

Do all those American firms throwing away their once-cherished values in great shows of fealty to Trump realise that four years is a very short time (many long-term incentive schemes won't even have vested). And when retribution comes, it will be very expensive.

Zelenskyy's character can be judge more directly by how he treats others and whether you think he's protected his country. From what I've seen, he has treated Americans with respect. His attire is to remind people he's at war, not unlike Churchill wearing a siren suit to the White House in 1942.

Do all those American firms throwing away their once-cherished values in great shows of fealty to Trump realise that four years is a very short time (many long-term incentive schemes won't even have vested). And when retribution comes, it will be very expensive.

So who'll give me odds on Tesla going into the internal combustion engine market?

The damage to US reputation will be enormous. This is the biggest violation of medical ethics since Tuskagee. It is not just terminating - it is abandoning people, sometimes in the middle of medical trials.

What a disgrace.

South Africa has one of the world's dirtiest power grids - it's dominated by old coal plants built during the Apartheid era (and some new but problematic coal plants). But things are starting to change. December was the best month ever for solar (12% of the mix). That sent coal's share down to 77%.

Yes, regulation is essential. We must not kid ourselves that market forces solve for sustainability alone. Markets are shaped by rules that govern them. Good regulation can lead to good social and environmental outcomes.

Every time I think thing can’t get worse, the appointees can’t get worse, Trump says ‘hold my beer.’ I am stunned, even by Trump standards, that Dan Bongino, a man even Fox got rid of, is now the new deputy director of the FBI. We are so effed.

This reminds me of when Zuma appointed Menzi Simelane to head of the NPA...

My dear Americans, we too were in denial when when had a Putin sycophant kleptocratic president. We too thought it can't be that bad, that our institutions would contain him. Well, six years after him we are still repairing the damage. The criminal justice system is the hardest to repair.

Around 35% of SpaceX’s revenue comes directly from the federal govt. Less than 1% of NPR’s budget comes from the federal govt.

Interested to see how the Americans apply their refugee status for Afrikaners. How will they tell? Perhaps they can dust off the SA Population Registration Act of 1950. The courts later offered these tests:

Interesting to see Americans catching on to the concept of #statecapture and what South Africa can teach them about it www.nytimes.com/2025/02/05/o...

It's nationalising companies next, starting with TikTok. Trump Signs Executive Action to Create Sovereign Wealth Fund www.bloomberg.com/news/article...

Shem not a good day for $tsla shareholders.