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• Civil rights groups joined Uber and Lyft in opposing proposed legislation to limit the amount of ride-sharing vehicles in New York City. 
• Some Black and Latino New Yorkers fear racial discrimination by yellow cabs and for-hire vehicles. 
• Uber has launched a social media campaign against the proposed legislation, including the hashtag #DontStrandNYC.
  

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Civil rights groups joined Uber and Lyft in their fight against the New York City Council's proposed plan to place a cap on the number of vehicles that ride-share services can operate in the city.

After City Council Speaker Corey Johnson revealed his proposal to place a freeze on new ride-sharing vehicles allowed in New York City, the N.A.A.C.P., the National Urban League, and the National Action Network all joined Uber and Lyft in publicly opposing the proposed legislation. 

According to an article published on Sunday by the New York Times, some Black and Latino New Yorkers feel that getting to their destinations is harder for them as yellow taxis deliberately pass them up on the street. 

Dr. Johnnie M. Green Jr., a pastor in Harlem, told the New York Times, “It’s a racial issue. The people that champion the crusade against Uber do not have a problem hailing yellow cabs.”

Neither the N.A.A.C.P. nor the National Urban League responded to Business Insider for comment. 

On Saturday, Reverend Al Sharpton spoke publicly at the Harlem headquarters of his organization, the National Action Network. Sharpton stood in-front of an audience and loudly denounced City Council's proposed cap on Uber and Lyft cars saying, "I'm trying to get to work, I'm trying to get to school. I want somebody that's gonna pick me up." 

The City Council's proposed legislation would place a one-year freeze on any new ride-sharing vehicles (driving for companies like Lyft or Uber) while studying what effect the growth of ride-sharing services has had on New York City. Mayor Bill DeBlasio voiced support for the plan in a radio interview on Friday.

City Council is motivated to limit the amount of ride-sharing vehicles on the road because of increased congestion in New York City, and the fact that multiple yellow cab and for-hire vehicle drivers have killed themselves in the past year.  

According to Curbed New York, Speaker Johnson said he understood the concerns of civil rights groups but stressed that the existing vehicles wouldn’t be taken off the streets — only the addition of new ones would be stopped for a year-long period to examine their full impact.

The City Council could vote on the measure as early as August 8.

Uber spokesperson Danielle Filson said in a statement to Business Insider: "New Yorkers have been demanding that our leaders fix the subways; instead, they have decided to break Uber. Capping Uber will strand riders in the outer boroughs where subway service is the worst." 

Uber has already mobilized a $1 million advertising campaign against the initiative, including the use of the hashtag #DontStrandNYC.

SEE ALSO: New York City may restrict the number of Uber and Lyft cars allowed to operate in the city

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• Uber is ending its self-driving truck program, TechCrunch first reported.
• An Uber representative confirmed the news to Business Insider and said the company had determined that developing autonomous trucks was not necessary to stay competitive in the freight logistics industry.
• Uber Freight, which allows companies to find truck drivers to haul their cargo, will not be affected by the decision.
• The company recently said it was taking the first steps toward resuming its self-driving car program.

Uber is ending its self-driving truck program, TechCrunch first reported.

An Uber representative confirmed the news to Business Insider and said the company had determined that developing autonomous trucks was not necessary to stay competitive in the freight logistics industry. Uber Freight, which allows companies to find truck drivers to haul their cargo, will not be affected by the decision.

"We've decided to stop development on our self-driving truck program and move forward exclusively with cars. We recently took the important step of returning to public roads in Pittsburgh, and as we look to continue that momentum, we believe having our entire team's energy and expertise focused on this effort is the best path forward," Eric Meyhofer, the head of Uber's Advanced Technologies Group, said in a statement.

Employees who were working in the self-driving truck program will be shifted to other roles related to autonomous-driving technology. In cases where a comparable role isn't available, the company will offer relocation benefits or a severance package.

Uber acquired the self-driving truck program when it bought the startup Otto in 2016. Otto was co-founded by Anthony Levandowski, the former Waymo engineer who was the subject of a lawsuit between Uber and Waymo over trade secrets Levandowski allegedly stole from Waymo before he left the company. The suit was settled in February.

Uber recently took the first steps toward resuming its self-driving car program, which was put on hold after one of its test vehicles hit and killed a woman in Tempe, Arizona, in March. The test vehicles have returned to the road in Pittsburgh, but are being controlled by human drivers rather than operating autonomously.

SEE ALSO: The CEO of Turo rents out his 5 cars, including the trifecta of Teslas, to strangers — here's why he thinks nearly everyone will be doing it in 10 years

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NOW WATCH: An early investor in Uber, Airbnb, and bitcoin explains why it's actually a good sign that no one is spending their crypto

Three-quarters of U.S. investors think bitcoin is too risky to invest in, a new poll by Gallup and Wells Fargo showed Monday.

Over the past 24 hours, the valuation of the crypto market has dropped slightly from $300 billion to $295 billion, as the bitcoin price declined from $8,300 to $8,150. Tokens including Aelf (ELF), Holo (HOT), Zilliqa (ZIL), Binance Coin (BNB), and 0x (ZRX), which performed well against both bitcoin and the U.S. dollar last week, … Continued

The post Crypto Market Cap Down to $295 Billion, Short-Term Drop For Bitcoin Price Expected appeared first on CCN

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

• The TSA has been secretly tracking airline passengers through a recently revealed domestic surveillance program called Quiet Skies, the Boston Globe reported.
• Quiet Skies uses federal air marshals to monitor individuals that are not under investigation by another intelligence agency and not in the terrorist database.
• According to the TSA, Quiet Skies has been around since 2010. 

The Transportation Security Administration has been secretly monitoring US airline passengers for years, the Boston Globe reported.

According to the publication, federal air marshals have been covertly surveilling individuals that "are not under investigation by any agency and are not in the Terrorist Screening Data Base."

The surveillance is part of a recently revealed domestic surveillance program, called Quiet Skies, that aims to head off threats to commercial aviation by "unknown or partially known" terrorists. However, the Boston Globe's reporting indicates that the program has called for the monitoring of 40 to 50 private citizens per day, many of whom seemingly pose no security threat, such as a businesswoman, a flight attendant, and even a federal law enforcement official. 

At the heart of Quiet Skies is the observation of individuals for certain behaviors, such as whether they were abnormally aware of their surroundings or were excessively nervous. In addition, their appearance would be scrutinized for changes in comparison to their photo identification. Other passenger behavior would also be noted, such as whether they checked bags or slept on the flight.

A TSA spokesperson confirmed to Business Insider that Quiet Skies has been in existence since 2010. 

In a statement, the TSA equated the Quiet Skies to "putting a police officer on a beat" and offered assurances that the intelligence-gathering activity includes "robust oversight."

In addition, the TSA also pushed back against the publication's reporting.  

"Contrary to the article 'Welcome to the Quiet Skies' published by The Boston Globe, the program doesn't take into account race and religion, and it is not intended to surveil ordinary Americans," the agency said. 

Here is the TSA's statement in its entirety:

"The purpose of this program is to ensure passengers and flight crew are protected during air travel. Contrary to the article 'Welcome to the Quiet Skies' published by The Boston Globe, the program doesn't take into account race and religion, and it is not intended to surveil ordinary Americans. In the world of law enforcement, this program's core design is no different than putting a police officer on a beat where intelligence and other information presents the need for watch and deterrence. The program analyzes information on a passenger's travel patterns, and through a system of checks and balances, to include robust oversight, effectively adds an additional line of defense to aviation security. With routine reviews and active management via legal, privacy and civil rights and liberties offices, the program is a practical method of keeping another act of terrorism from occurring at 30,000 feet."

SEE ALSO: American Airlines just announced a major change to its basic economy tickets that passengers will love

FOLLOW US: On Facebook for more car and transportation content!

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NOW WATCH: An early investor in Airbnb and Uber explains why he started buying bitcoin in 2009

The bitcoin price slipped back below the $8,000 mark on Monday, reversing the recovery that it had made heading into the weekend. Bitcoin entered the day trading above $8,100, a mark it largely held until shortly after 17:30 UTC when — after flirting with that level for approximately 20 minutes — BTC/USD experienced a sudden

The post Newsflash: Bitcoin Price Slips to $7,861 as Market Tests Key Support Level appeared first on CCN

• Tesla CEO Elon Musk delivered a Model 3 sedan directly from its Fremont, California, factory to a customer's home and indicated the company will continue to deliver vehicles in this way.
• "We tried out a new delivery system using an enclosed trailer straight from factory to owner’s home, so super convenient & car arrives in pristine condition without wasting plastic wrap," Musk said on Twitter.
• Traditionally, Tesla customers pick up their vehicles from the nearest Tesla service center, or, if they live more than 160 miles from their nearest service center, they can have a vehicle shipped to their home.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk delivered a Model 3 sedan directly from its Fremont, California, factory to a customer's home and indicated the company will continue to deliver vehicles in this way.

"We tried out a new delivery system using an enclosed trailer straight from factory to owner’s home, so super convenient & car arrives in pristine condition without wasting plastic wrap," Musk said on Twitter.

The delivery was made in Playa Vista, Los Angeles, according to a location tag on a tweet posted by the Model 3 customer. Playa Vista is around a 350-mile drive from Tesla's Fremont factory.

When asked if Tesla would continue delivering cars directly from its factory to customers' homes, Musk said, "Yes."

Traditionally, Tesla customers pick up their vehicles from the nearest Tesla service center, or, if they live more than 160 miles from their nearest service center, they can have a vehicle shipped to their home.

According to Jeremy Acevedo, a manager of industry analysis for Edmunds, Tesla's new delivery strategy illustrates the company's effort to speed up delivery times, but is unlikely to be scalable or cost-effective.

Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment when asked how many vehicles would be delivered directly from its factory, which vehicles would be eligible, which cities would be eligible, how much time a direct-from-factory delivery saved, and whether customers would be able to ask for a direct-from-factory delivery.

As Tesla has increased its rate of vehicle production, some Twitter users have described delivery problems resulting from contract issues .

On July 23, Musk said the company is attempting to eliminate contracts for its customers and simplify the return process, and said in the past year the company has increased vehicle deliveries in the US from around 1,000 per week to around 6,000 per week, which he suggested has been difficult.

"It's like hitting a square wave," he said .

The Model 3, Tesla's first mass-market vehicle, has put a strain on the company's finances, as it has posted significant losses in the quarters since it was launched. But Musk has said the company will become profitable in the second half of this year. During Tesla's first-quarter earnings call in May, Musk said the Model 3 would earn around a 20% profit margin by the end of this year and a 25% margin in 2019.

Tesla will report its second-quarter earnings on Wednesday.

If you've worked for Tesla and have a story to share, you can contact this reporter at [email protected].

SEE ALSO: Tesla's second-quarter earnings are expected to be terrifyingly bad, but it likely won't send stock crashing — here's why

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NOW WATCH: An early investor in Uber, Airbnb, and bitcoin explains why it's actually a good sign that no one is spending their crypto

Welcome to Finance Insider, Business Insider's summary of the top stories of the past 24 hours. Sign up here to get the best of Business Insider delivered direct to your inbox.

A JPMorgan chief strategist reveals the one thing that will keep the market soaring

David Kelly, Chief Global Strategist of JPMorgan Asset Management, says there is only one god of the stock market and that is future earnings growth. He believes this year's strong earnings growth will push the market higher in 2018. The biggest threat he sees to equities is a substantially worse trade conflict.

Here's a transcript of his chat with BI. 

The top tech executive at Fortress is leaving to start his own data-focused fund

Hylton Socher, the chief technology and information officer of Fortress Investment Group, the $41 billion hedge fund, is leaving the fund to start his own venture, Business Insider has learned.

Socher, whose career at Fortress spans a decade, fell down the rabbit hole of big data and other new-wave technologies sweeping Wall Street, he said in an interview.

Socher's firm, which he expects to be up-and-running by the first quarter of 2019, will focus on algorithmic trading leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning. He's calling it VaraQuest, which stands for valuable relationship awareness.

Deutsche Bank is shifting business out of London 

Deutsche Bank has executed plans to shift around half of its euro clearing activities out of the UK in a move that will worry those seeking to defend the City of London's place at the heart of European finance post-Brexit.

The move, first reported by the Financial Times late on Sunday, will see Deutsche Bank repatriate euro clearing to the bank's Frankfurt operation, where it is headquartered. Deutsche Bank, Germany's biggest lender, is one of the top five clearers of interest rate derivatives.

Clearinghouses manage credit risk, acting as a middle-man in swaps and derivatives trades to guarantee the contract in the event that one of the parties involved in the trade goes bust. The acceptance of English law and widespread use of English language has made London a hub for clearing globally. It handles more than 70% of the daily euro clearing business, equivalent to around €930 billion (£792 billion, $995 billion) of trades per day, according to a House of Lords report.

In markets news

• Tech stocks are diving, and traders have never been more scared of a massive meltdown
• GOLDMAN SACHS: The stock market is hurtling toward disaster, and only one thing can save it
• There may be a simple way to profit if one of Wall Street's most feared recession signals is triggered soon

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: An early investor in Airbnb and Uber explains why he started buying bitcoin in 2009

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Will social media empress Kim Kardashian help bring more users to bitcoin? Matthew Roszak, co-founder of Bloq and other cryptocurrency initiatives, must have thought so when he presented the social media titan a physical bitcoin during the First Annual “If Only’ Texas Hold’Em Charity Poker Tournament,” an event he announced on Twitter. Big fun at

The post Kim Kardashian Publicly Accepts Her First Bitcoin appeared first on CCN

Litecoin creator Charlie Lee revealed Monday he will serve as an advisor to HTC's Exodus, the blockchain-powered smartphone.

• A polar bear was shot and killed on Saturday by guards from the German cruise ship MS Bremen. 
• According to the ship's owner, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, the bear was shot after it attacked a "polar bear guard" who was looking to see if the area was safe for tourists to explore. 
• Many on social media were not pleased that an endangered animal was killed in its natural habitat. 

German cruise operator Hapag-Lloyd Cruises is facing some heavy backlash from the public after a guard employed by the company shot and killed a polar bear on an island in the Arctic Ocean.

The incident occurred on Saturday after the MS Bremen stopped off the island of Spitsbergen, in the Norwegian archipelago of Svalbard. A group of "polar bear guards" from the ship went on land ahead of the tourists to make sure none of the animals were in the area. One of the guards was "unexpectedly attacked" by a polar bear, which was shot dead by another guard in an act of self-defense, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises said in a statement on Monday.

The company claims that the animal was only shot once it became apparent the attacked guard's life was in danger and that the animal would not leave the scene.

The Joint Rescue Coordination for northern Norway confirmed in a tweet on Saturday that the animal had been shot and killed. 

"We very much regret this incident," the cruise line said. "Hapag-Lloyd Cruises is very aware of its responsibility when traveling in environmentally-sensitive areas and respects all nature and wildlife." 

According to the Hamburg-based firm, its guard suffered head injuries from his encounter with the animal and was airlifted out to receive medical attention. His condition is stable and he "remains responsive." 

In a phone call with the New York Times, Moritz Krause, spokesman for Hapag-Llyod Cruises, said that usually, if a wild bear is seen, guards “shoot into the air” to scare the animal away. But he said the injured guard did not see the polar bear before it attacked. 

There are apparently 3,500 polar bears found in the Svalbard area, which forms the Arctic Ocean cluster the Spitsbergen island resides in. With a worldwide population of no more than 31,000, polar bears are among the most endangered species in the world. Public attention has recently increased to the plight polar bears face as their living conditions have changed drastically due to climate change.

Even so, the dangers of encountering polar bears are well known to those traveling in the area. 

According to the Governor of Svalbard's website, "Due to the polar bear danger in Svalbard, any person traveling outside the settlements shall be equipped with appropriate means of frightening and chasing off polar bears. We also recommend carrying firearms outside the settlements."

On the Norwegian Polar Institute website, the Cruise Handbook for Svalbard states, "Due to the risk of meeting polar bears visitors travelling in Svalbard must always have firearms and protection devices at hand, such as a big-game rifle and ammunition for self-defence, flare gun or an emergency signal flare pen for driving off polar bears and tripwire with flares for camping." 

Despite these warnings, some people expressed anger on social media that a cruise ship company leading tourists on an exploration of an animal's natural habitat led to the death of an animal that is among the world's most endangered species. 

If the face of withering criticism appearing on public forums, Hapag-Llyod Cruises closed its statement with an apology:  

"Hapag-Lloyd Cruises has been traveling to these destinations for many years with an experienced crew. The cruise operator is respected in the destinations as a responsible partner and the experts actively inform the guests about the appropriate behavior required in these areas. We are extremely sorry that this incident has happened."

The company was founded in 1891 and the MS Bremen cruise ship has been in operation since 1990. 

SEE ALSO: Great-power competition is growing in the Arctic, but lawmakers want to cut funding for the US's next icebreaker

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NOW WATCH: An early investor in Uber, Airbnb, and bitcoin explains why it's actually a good sign that no one is spending their crypto

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

Midway through 2013, when the bitcoin price was trading at $104, cryptocurrency hedge fund Pantera Capital published an investor letter that made what at the time seemed to be a moonshot prediction: The bitcoin price, the firm said, will one day hit $5,000. Five years on, a $5,000 bitcoin price target is considered bearish, and

The post This Cryptocurrency Hedge Fund Has a Lifetime Return of 10,136% appeared first on CCN

This is a paid-for submitted press release. CCN does not endorse, nor is responsible for any material included below and isn’t responsible for any damages or losses connected with any products or services mentioned in the press release. CCN urges readers to conduct their own research with due diligence into the company, product or service mentioned

The post Cloudbet Celebrates Bitcoin Cash Birthday by Doubling All Deposits appeared first on CCN

This article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

So now we are at the start of another week, but Bitcoin value hasn’t really managed to extend the previous week’s powerful rally towards $8,512. As far as the long-term holdings are concerned, there is nothing much happening inside the market. In the last 24 hours itself, the BTC/USD pair continued to trend sideways within

The post Bitcoin Price Intraday Analysis: BTC/USD Bias Conflict Prevails appeared first on CCN

• In the wake of Theranos — the buzzy blood-testing unicorn that's fallen from grace and whose founder faces criminal charges — startups are still working to make blood-testing faster and cheaper. 
• One new startup called Essenlix uses an iPhone and an attached device to run tests like a complete blood count, used to measure red and white blood cells in the body. 
• The device, not yet approved, could bring blood-testing technology to more people who might not have access to a full lab. 

The story might sound familiar: An entrepreneur out of a prestigious US university has developed a new blood-testing technology that can be run using only a small sample of blood. 

While that might leave visions of black turtlenecks, and Silicon Valley-level valuations in your head, Stephen Chou, a professor of electrical engineering at Princeton University, is trying to make sure his startup, Essenlix, doesn't meet the same fate as Theranos. 

The New Jersey-based company is developing a a system that uses an iPhone and an attachment to run lab samples on-the-go. 

"You basically have a mobile chemical biological lab in your hand," Chou said. 

To start, Chou developed a test for a complete blood count (or CBC), which measures the number of white and red blood cells in the body as well as hemoglobin, a protein responsible for transporting oxygen.

While the test is used to monitor overall health, it's also frequently used in blood cancer practices to check a person's blood count before chemotherapy. The company's raised about $20 million from investors including Quadrant Management, Carret Private Investments, and other high net worth individuals. 

Here's how it works

Essenlix's system, dubbed the iMOST (short for "Instant Mobile Self-Test"), consists of a few different components: there's an app, an attachment, a cartridge for the sample, and of course the iPhone itself. The attachment sits over the iPhone's camera and flash. 

The test starts with a finger-prick. The first drop of blood gets wiped away, but the second gets put on a thin plastic cartridge. 

Once that's done, the cartridge is loaded into the green attachment, and the test is run in a matter of seconds, leveraging the insides of the iPhone including the flash and camera. 

Typically, complete blood count tests are done on machines found in the labs at doctor's offices. To vet Essenlix's system, the team ran clinical trials comparing the new technology to traditional devices. 

In two trials of 92 patients total run at Hunterdon Hematology Oncology in New Jersey, Essenlix tested patients with both the standard machine and its blood test. In the end, there was on average a 6% difference between Essenlix's white and red blood cell counts and what traditional machines found, and a 3% difference in hemoglobin measurements, all within the FDA requirements for allowable total error.

"Our error is clearly smaller than the FDA’s requirement so the data is very, very good," Chou said.

With that data, Chou said the company is working with the FDA to move toward a potential approval, and ideally hopes to publish the clinical trial results in a publication. 

Proliferating lab testing

While doctors who already have access in their offices to a lab that runs blood count tests might not need an iPhone-based version, the implications of a mobile testing platform could be significant in rural areas that may not have access to traditional, expensive equipment. And ultimately, because the test can be run rather simply, it might lead to lower lab costs.

There are others companies trying to make the blood testing process easier and cheaper. In July, a company building a tabletop machine got the European OK for its CBC tests.

The lab-testing community is optimistic for a day when tests like a CBC can be run on smaller, more portable machines, which will inevitably improve access to the technology. 

"This is necessary," Dennis Dietzen, a medical director at St. Louis Children's Hospital and professor of pediatrics and pathology and immunology at Washington University School of Medicine and president of the American Association for Clinical Chemistry told Business Insider. But miniaturizing the technology needed to run these kinds of tests, Dietzen said, isn't easy. Dietzen said he's still waiting to see clinical data published in an academic journal that compares Essenlix's technology to the standard way blood tests are run. 

The dearth of clinical data and published articles about its technology was a common refrain for criticism to Theranos. For a long time, the company didn't publicly share its data, saying it'd rather go through the FDA approval process. 

In the future, the hope is to use Essenlix's iMOST technology for other blood tests to detect viruses or bacterial infections, and ideally one day on other types of body fluids beyond blood.  

See also: 

• The lines around healthcare are being redrawn, and Walgreens just laid out its plan to go beyond the pharmacy counter
• We spoke to the CEO of Roche Pharmaceuticals about how the pharma giant became a deal machine in 2018

SEE ALSO: The billion-dollar healthcare unicorns you should be watching in 2018

DON'T MISS: Meet the 30 healthcare leaders under 40 who are using technology to shape the future of medicine

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: An early investor in Uber, Airbnb, and bitcoin explains why it's actually a good sign that no one is spending their crypto

The year is more than halfway over, but hedge fund manager Mark Yusko isn’t backing down from his prediction that the bitcoin price will reach a new all-time high in 2018, the first rumble of a moonshot that will see the flagship cryptocurrency crack the six-figure threshold in less than a decade. Writing on Twitter, … Continued

The post Bitcoin Price Headed to $500,000 in Six Years: Hedge Fund Mgr. appeared first on CCN

This promoted article originally appeared on Bitcoin Magazine.

HTC Corporation has announced that Litecoin co-founder, Charlie Lee, will serve as an advisor to HTC Exodus, the native blockchain smartphone developed by the Taiwanese consumer electronics firm. One small step for @SatoshiLite. One giant leap for blockchain. Team @HTCExodus, @philchen913 @htc are honored to have Charlie Lee to join as our advisor. cc @litecoin

The post Litecoin Founder Charlie Lee Confirms LTC Support for HTC Blockchain Phone appeared first on CCN

• A new report by the Wall Street Journal alleges that American Express lured small companies into attractive foreign exchange deals, then later jacked the rates.
• The logic, according to the Journal, was to increase AmEx's profits without making their clients aware.
• Sources said the company chose smaller clients because they were less likely to watch exchange rates closely and notice a difference.
• American Express pushed back, and said their approach to foreign exchange is "fair and transparent."

The foreign exchange business at American Express reportedly spent more than a decade deliberately hiking its exchange rates for small clients it thought wouldn't notice the difference, current and former employees have told The Wall Street Journal.

According to the Journal, the company's sales team would gain clients by offering them low rates, then later increase them without explicitly saying so. This meant more money for American Express.

Sources said the department increased conversion fees without telling its customers as part of a practice that was widespread since at least 2004 and continued until earlier this year.

According to the Journal, they stopped when allegations of similar practices at Wells Fargo became public.

American Express responded to the Journal by saying that its rates are "fair and transparent." However, they did not specifically deny increasing rates without telling people.

Spokeswoman Marina Norville told The Wall Street Journal: "We have training, control and compliance oversight and believe that our transactions are completed and reported in a fair and transparent manner at the rates which the client has authorized."

The current and former employees said that they would tell potential clients that they could beat the price they were currently paying to convert and send money abroad. They did not inform these clients that the margin was subject to increase without notice. The salespeople would later increase the margin without telling the customer.

In order to notice the increase, a customer would have to log in to their accounts and compare American Express' rate with the market exchange rate at the time.

Current and former employees and emails reviewed by The Wall Street Journal showed that when customers did notice a change and asked about it, salespeople sometimes would blame a glitch or other technicality and lower the margin for that customer.

Business Insider has contacted American Express for further comment.

Read the full report in The Wall Street Journal here.

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: An early investor in Uber, Airbnb, and bitcoin explains why it's actually a good sign that no one is spending their crypto

Bitcoin bulls could make a strong comeback if prices find acceptance above the key resistance at $8,300.

Misthos' new multi-signature bitcoin wallet for businesses aims to empower workers and democratize the setting of wages.

• Big banks are ready to lend money to UK businesses in order to prop up the economy in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
• The bank lobbying body, UK Finance, said it was ready to help coordinate lending as it did following the collapse of Carillion and Monarch Airlines, The Telegraph reported.
• Ministers have drawn up contingency plans for a no-deal exit from the EU and have put the Army on standby to deliver food, medicine, and fuel.

LONDON — Major banks are preparing to support UK businesses with credit if Britain falls out of the EU next March with no deal on future relations with the bloc, highlighting just how disruptive crashing out of the EU could be to the UK economy.

The Telegraph reported on Sunday that CEOs and banking lobbying groups are ready to extend lines of credit to soften the economic blow by blockages in trade and financial flows in the event of a no-deal Brexit. Officials at the Bank of England’s Prudential Regulation Authority (PRA) have reportedly begun talks with lenders in recent weeks over how they can help buttress the economy.

The report came on the same day as The Sunday Times reported that the government has put the army on standby in case of a disruptive Brexit, drawing up plans for them to deliver food, medicine and fuel to keep the country moving.

Prime Minister Theresa May’s government hopes to reach a final agreement on Britain's post-Brexit relationship with the EU at a key summit in October. But Europe’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier has called into question the viability of the UK’s proposals, saying there are elements of the government's proposed deal that he doesn’t understand.

The comments raise the risk that Britain could fall out of the EU without a deal when the Brexit deadline is reached next March. This would likely cause huge disruption to everything from medicine and food supplies to car manufacturing.

One executive at a FTSE 100 bank told The Telegraph: "Extending credit to firms impacted is one thing we’re looking at. It’s a bit Dunkirk spirit type of stuff. But banks are in reasonably good shape and can cope."

Banking lobbying body, UK Finance, told the Telegraph it is ready to help coordinate lending from the banks as it did following the collapse of outsourcing firm Carillion and Monarch Airlines. The funding could be used to help firms who are incurring extra costs from supply chain delays or other effects of a no-deal Brexit.

Stephen Jones, chief executive of UK Finance, told the Telegraph: "If the industry, the Government, and the regulator want us to act as a convener of the industry we will, of course, do that."

Neil Wilson, the chief market analyst at Markets.com, told Business Insider that the Bank of England would likely step in if there is a no deal Brexit, rather than leaving it solely to the private sector.

"I think you would get the BoE making an emergency statement to that effect if we get no deal Brexit – as per the immediate aftermath of the vote when the BoE stepped in quite decisively on that front. The Bank would be critical," he said.

Wilson added that interest rate cuts and a restarting of the term funding scheme would also be likely "to maintain credit liquidity."

Banks themselves have concerns over the enforceability of billions of pounds of cross-border contracts, customer data transfers, and access to the European payments system.

The unnamed FTSE 100 banking executive told the Telegraph: "We want to make sure we don’t make a bad situation humongously worse. We’re thinking about what to do in a no deal storm… If there are huge queues of lorries at Calais and Dover, what is the banking equivalent of that?"

SEE ALSO: The British Army is reportedly on standby to deliver food, medicines, and fuel in case of a no-deal Brexit

DON'T MISS: Deutsche Bank is shifting business out of London — and it hints at a troubling post-Brexit future for a $1 trillion industry

Join the conversation about this story »

NOW WATCH: An early investor in Uber, Airbnb, and bitcoin explains why it's actually a good sign that no one is spending their crypto

• Bankers in their 20s and 30s are being admitted to the hospital more frequently with cardiac conditions and heart attacks, cardiologists in the UK told Business Insider.
• One doctor estimated he’s seen a 10% rise in bankers under 30 being admitted to the hospital in the last decade.
• One former banker shared her experience with Business Insider in which she suffered a cardiac event in her early-20's after frequently working until 4 a.m. 
• This all comes even as big banks are trying to reduce stress for junior employees. 

As a second-year analyst at a major European bank, Laura frequently worked until 4 a.m., suffered a cardiac event, and was hospitalized three times in two years. She said she was told by doctors "if you keep working, you will die."

Laura isn't the finance professional's real name. She asked Business Insider not to name her or the bank for fear of retribution. In describing her time at the bank, she said she worked day and night, and was stopped from taking sick days off even after getting a throat infection which eventually spread to her heart in a case of infective endocarditis.

In the early hours one Monday morning in 2015, she shot up in bed with pain in her chest. "I was having basically a heart attack," she said. She previously had good health and didn't take drugs.

She left the bank soon after. 

"My husband told me to get out [saying] ‘the money’s not worth it,'" she said.

Young bankers are facing health issues

Young bankers in their 20's and 30's are being admitted to the hospital more frequently with heart conditions and heart attacks, cardiologists in the UK told Business Insider

Dr. Arjun Ghosh, a consultant cardiologist at Barts Heart Centre in London estimated that in the last decade, he’s seen a 10% rise in heart attacks among bankers under the age of 30. Around one in ten of his patients in this age range work in finance.

This is happening even as banks have put in measures to reduce the workload and stress of their junior staff, such as requiring Saturdays be taken off, following the death of a Bank of America intern in 2013.

Despite the recent efforts of big banks to reduce the working hours of their employees, Dr. Syed Ahsan, a cardiologist with a clinic in Canary Wharf, said he hasn't seen evidence of change.

"In investment banking, I think whatever they [the banks] say… the hours and the pressure that is put on these guys is huge. So as much as they may be doing things to improve — I don’t think it’s changed at all," he said.

To be sure, the increase in heart attacks among young bankers reflects similar trends in the population at large, the cardiologists say, although there hasn't yet been formal research published to reflect this.

"It’s so common now —  young people getting a heart attack. This is common enough not to be shocking… It’s not ‘Oh my god, they’re only 25!’," Dr. Ahmed Elghamaz, a consultant cardiologist at London North West University Hospital said. "We are not shocked anymore."

The increase is perhaps a result of an unhealthy, busy lifestyle with people working longer hours then they have in the past, Dr. Elghamaz said.

Doctors say they regularly see young bankers with two types of heart conditions — cardiac arrhythmia and myocarditis, both of which can lead to a fatal heart attack and can be made more likely by excessive work, stress, and drug use.

Myocarditis is an inflammation of the heart, which can be caused by stress or a viral infection that spreads through the body eventually infecting the heart, and arrhythmia is an uneven heart rhythm that can be brought on by tension and drug use.

The most common of the two heart conditions in bankers under 30 is myocarditis, Business Insider was told, and some of the cardiologists said they see it most in people that have a weakened immune system due to fatigue and unhealthy living.

The Whitehall Study, conducted by University College London’s Department of Epidemiology and Public Health, followed more than 10,000 British civil servants since the mid-1980s and showed that workers under 50 who were chronically stressed were 68% more likely to suffer a heart attack or chest pain.

There's a culture of drug taking 

A culture of drug taking in corporate environments also plays a factor.

Dr. Ashan said he recently treated a banker with heart problems in his late-20s. "He was using increasing amounts of cocaine working 12 to 14 hour a day, barely sleeping and he came in with episodes of blacking out and palpitations," he said.

Trends that the three cardiologists shared with BI are anecdotal, but they called for more research to be done into cardiac conditions in young people, and their relationship to stress and the work environment.

Professor Alexandra Michel, a scholar in organizational and behavioral research at the University of Pennsylvania, has studied the health and psychology of investment bankers for over 15 years.

In one piece of research published in 2012 by Administrative Science Quarterly, she followed four groups of investment bankers at two different banks from the start of their careers and tracked their progression over 10 years. At their fourth year, every banker involved in the study had developed a mental or physical health problem.

"Not only are there are new types of illnesses, many of them having to do with burn-out, but also illness that people typically get later in life, they now get earlier in life. And so I’m observing in these young bankers a whole cluster of health issues," Michel told Business Insider.

The work practices on Wall Street, which involve a super fast-paced environment in which employees are tied to their electronic devices 24/7, are spreading to other industries as well. This may bring about a whole new set of health issues to workers outside finance, Michel said. 

The doctors called for more research to be done and action to be taken.

"There’s got to be more research into the direct impact of working conditions, working hours, work stress and how that correlates with cardiac events," Dr. Ashan said.

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NOW WATCH: An early investor in Airbnb and Uber explains why he started buying bitcoin in 2009

Good morning! Here's what you need to know in markets on Monday.

1. Deutsche Bank has moved almost half its euro clearing activities from London to Frankfurt, in the latest sign of European cities winning financial business from the UK ahead of Brexit. The Financial Times reports that the move has provided a significant boost to Deutsche Börse’s ambition to steal business from LCH after Britain leaves the EU next March — six months ago, Deutsche Bank’s euro clearing operation was almost entirely done in London.

2. ARM Holdings, the British computer-chip designer owned by SoftBank, has agreed to buy US-based data analytics firm Treasure Data, people familiar with the matter said. Bloomberg reports that Treasure Data may fetch about $600 million in the sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deal isn’t yet public.

3. Heineken, the world’s second-largest beer maker, cut its guidance for full-year margins on Monday after reporting first-half earnings below market expectations. Reuters reports that the brewer of Heineken lager, Tiger, Sol and Strongbow cider forecast that its operating margin would decline by 20 basis points, compared with a previous forecast of an increase of 25 basis points.

4. The UK owner of bookmakers Ladbrokes and Coral is likely to seal a $200 million (£153 million) tie-up with the world’s biggest casino operator this week, to catapult it into the lucrative, newly liberalised US sports betting market. The Guardian reports that FTSE-listed gambling group GVC Holdings confirmed on Sunday it was in advanced talks to form a joint venture with MGM Resorts, giving both partners a foothold in what is forecast to grow into a multibillion-dollar sector.

5. Asian share markets drifted lower on Monday while currencies kept to familiar ranges ahead of a busy week peppered with central bank meetings, corporate results, and updates on US inflation and payrolls. Japan's Nikkei share index closed down 0.75%, the Hong Kong Hang Seng is down 0.74% at the time of writing (7.20 a.m. BST/2.20 a.m. ET), and China's Shanghai Composite is down 0.48%.

6. US Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said on Sunday that he believes the quickening pace of growth in the nation's economy in the second quarter will persist for the next few years. "I don't think this is a one- or two-year phenomenon. I think we definitely are in a period of four or five years of sustained 3 per cent growth at least," Mnuchin said in an interview with 'Fox News Sunday.'

7. London-focused estate agent Foxtons on Monday posted a pre-tax loss in the first half of the year, hurt by lower sales in the British capital and on more investments. Reuters reports that Foxtons, which was once a symbol of London’s property boom, reported a loss before tax of £2.5 million compared with a profit of £3.8 million a year earlier.

8. The Bank of Japan has intervened to support the domestic bond market for the third time in a week. The Financial Times reports that the BoJ launched another round of bond purchases on Monday, after the yield, which moves inversely to price, on 10-year Japanese government bonds moved above 0.11 per cent - marking its highest level since February 2017.

9. John Hussman, the outspoken investor and former professor who has been predicting a stock market crash, has called out a big mistake he says investors are making as valuations continue to climb. He sees this dynamic specifically playing out in the tech sector, which has been largely responsible for market gains in recent months, leaving them that much more vulnerable.

10. Tesla reports second-quarter earnings this week, and they're expected to be as bad as first-quarter earnings. Tesla is also burning cash at a furious rate, leading short-sellers to intensify their pressure on the company.

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NOW WATCH: An early investor in Airbnb and Uber explains why he started buying bitcoin in 2009

Money management firm VanEck has responded to the SEC’s concerns over bitcoin exchange-traded funds (bitcoin ETF) in a letter to the regulator made public on the agency’s website. Addressed to Dalia Blass, director of the SEC’s division of investment management, the letter tackles the five points of order from the SEC’s previous communication with the

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