The EU is seeking critical minerals from Vietnam to reduce reliance on China, according to internal documents. The documents recommend financial support for Vietnam's mining and processing sector, focusing on tungsten, bismuth, antimony, and titanium. China's export restrictions last year disrupted European supply chains. Vietnamese leader To Lam is expected to visit Brussels next week.

Ray Dalio warned that the United States is caught in a debt death spiral, citing an excess supply of government debt. The investor expects the federal government to issue $2.1 trillion in net new marketable debt in 2026. Countries go broke, he said, when debt supply outpaces demand and debt-service costs rise enough to force painful cuts elsewhere. Both conditions are now present in the US, according to Dalio. More issuance pushes yields higher, lifting interest expenses and deficits and requiring even more borrowing. Credit-market participants call that compounding cycle a death spiral. The Treasury is struggling to contain rising yields despite expanding bond buybacks. In September it tripled long-term buyback operations to a maximum of $6 billion to support market liquidity. The 10-year Treasury yield still climbed to multiyear highs. The Kobeissi Letter said the bond market was resisting Treasury efforts and warned of adverse consequences for consumers and borrowers if yields stayed above 5%. Corporate debt and equity issuance are also surging, driven largely by artificial intelligence capital expenditures. Dalio expects combined government and corporate issuance to create excess supply of financial assets, including debt and equity, relative to demand. The economy is in a midcycle phase in which interest rates have not yet caused asset prices to collapse. He anticipates that persistent supply imbalances will eventually weaken the economy and weigh on equity markets. At the latest check, the 10-year Treasury yielded 5.20%, the 2-year 4.78% and the 30-year 5.55%. The iShares 20+ Year Treasury Bond ETF (TLT) closed Tuesday up 0.41% at $78.37. TLT tracks the ICE U.S. Treasury 20+ Year Bond Index, which measures public US Treasury securities with remaining maturities greater than 20 years. TLT was down 10.80% year-to-date, fell 3.09% over the past month and was 13.47% lower over the year. The S&P 500 advanced 13.81% year-to-date, the Nasdaq Composite rose 17.08% and the Dow Jones gained 6.80%. The SPDR S&P 500 ETF Trust (SPY), which tracks the S&P 500, closed Tuesday down 0.012% at $778.01. The Invesco QQQ Trust ETF (QQQ), which tracks the Nasdaq-100, closed down 0.33% at $743.57. The State Street SPDR Dow Jones Industrial Average ETF Trust (DIA), which tracks the Dow, closed up 0.33% at $516.21.

New York Fed President John Williams said it may take more than two years for AI equipment supply to meet demand, potentially adding inflationary pressure. He reiterated the Fed may need one more rate hike this year. Williams expects AI investment to remain strong despite higher rates. The shortage could impact Bitcoin miners entering the AI sector, as they compete for chips and power.

Tribunalul Popular Intermediar al Doilea din Tianjin a anunțat pe 13 octombrie că a acceptat, pe 28 septembrie, cererea depusă de a Doua Filială a Parchetului Popular din Tianjin privind confiscarea câștigurilor ilicite de la suspectul Qian Zhimin, potrivit ME News. Dosarul vizează strângerea ilegală de fonduri de peste 40 de miliarde RMB și 61.800 de bitcoini. Conform listei activelor supuse confiscării publicate de instanță, criptomonedele implicate mai includ aproximativ 72.700 Bitcoin Cash, circa 72.700 Bitcoin Gold, aproximativ 72.700 Bitcoin Satoshi's Vision, circa 3,606 milioane Ripple (XRP) și în jur de 70.081.200 Dogecoin. Dogecoinul a fost convertit de autoritățile judiciare britanice și depus într-un cont purtător de dobândă. Pe lista activelor confiscabile figurează și numerar în dolari americani, euro și lire sterline, bijuterii, precum și solduri bancare și portofolii de investiții. A Doua Filială a Parchetului Popular din Tianjin susține că Qian Zhimin este suspectat de fraudă prin colectare de fonduri, a fugit și este urmărit de peste un an fără să se prezinte, iar cei peste 61.800 de bitcoini și celelalte active sechestrate în Regatul Unit reprezintă câștiguri ilicite și produsele acestora, care trebuie confiscate potrivit legii, cu excepția sumelor ce urmează a fi restituite investitorilor afectați. (Sursa: ODAILY)

Bank of Korea will not issue its own stablecoin, keeping monetary policy separate from commercial token issuance. The decision leaves room for licensed private firms to pursue won-denominated stablecoins. Separately, South Korean authorities blocked 27 crypto exchange websites, continuing enforcement against unlicensed platforms. Both actions show Seoul's dual-track oversight of digital assets.

U.S. maritime sanctions have cut Iran's seaborne crude oil exports to zero since the second week of September, with no recovery as of October 5. Iran's offshore oil storage has fallen to 83 million barrels, with 43 million stranded west of the Strait of Hormuz. Russia's crude exports rose 6% month-over-month to 3.79 million barrels per day in September.

Software engineer Lewis Barber filed a £20 million High Court claim against HDR Global Trading Limited, owner of BitMEX, alleging it sold crypto derivatives to UK investors without FCA approval. Barber says he lost bitcoin worth £20 million from 2018 to 2022. His lawyers cite the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000, which voids such contracts. BitMEX says no claim has been served.

French Finance Committee adopted amendment ICF82 requiring holders of self-custodied crypto worth 100,000 euros or more by Dec 31 to declare it or face penalties up to 10,000 euros. Sponsors cited a parliamentary inquiry finding 3.5 billion euros in 2021 gains versus 400 million declared. The amendment is not law and must be reintroduced after the committee rejected 2027 budget revenue section.

Bank of America has been fined $1.2 billion over anti-money laundering failures. The bank allegedly failed to flag $5 billion in suspicious transactions linked to suspected illicit finance.