What We’re Reading This Week [September 30, 2022]
Reuters reports that the markets in the US have faced their third straight quarterly decline, the longest period of decline for the S&P 500 and Nasdaq indices since 2008. This comes amid a period of rising interest rates and persistently high inflation (including double-digit inflation in the Eurozone), contributing to fears that a recession is imminent or even ongoing. [Reuters, Sept. 30, 2022; WSJ, Sept. 30, 2022]
It’s been a busy week in the crypto world. Bankrupt cryptocurrency lender Celsius Network filed a motion for approval of a two-step auction process for separate sales of its retail platform and crypto holdings, which comes just days after its CEO suddenly resigned. Meanwhile, Voyager Digital announced that crypto exchange FTX US was the prevailing bidder in Voyager’s bankruptcy auction, netting approximately $1.4 billion in consideration. Finally, Bitcoin miner Compute North just commenced its own Chapter 11 case, seeking approval of a sale of substantially all of its assets. [Law360, Sept. 30, 2022; Morningstar, Sept. 29, 2022; CNBC, Sept. 30, 2022; Forbes, Sept. 30, 2022]
The Wall Street Journal reports that, after years of pandemic-influenced gains in the housing market, a slowdown appears to have begun. Sales of luxury homes dropped nearly 30% during June through August 2022 compared with the same period in 2021, while sales in the rest of the housing market dropped almost 20%. According to the WSJ, inflation, recession fears, and rising interest rates have all contributed to the slowdown, although home prices have so far remained relatively stable. [WSJ, Sept. 22, 2022]
CBS News reports that Senator Elizabeth Warren is planning to reintroduce a bill aimed at, among other things, making it easier for student loan borrowers to have their student loans discharged in bankruptcy. If enacted, the Consumer Bankruptcy Reform Act of 2022 would eliminate Chapter 13’s payment plan process and bar individuals from filing Chapter 7 cases and eliminate Chapter 13 payment plans in favor of a new Chapter 10 intended to be more streamlined than existing alternatives available to individual debtors, while treating student loans the same as other consumer debts. [CBS News, Sept. 28, 2022]
