In a strategic move, Sui Network, a fast-growing layer 1 blockchain known for its innovative use of the Move programming language, has partnered with Franklin Templeton Digital Assets, a global leader in asset management with over $1.5 trillion in assets under management.

This collaboration is set to accelerate the growth of the Web3 ecosystem, drawing increased institutional interest and support for the Sui blockchain.

Partnership to boost web3 development

The partnership between Sui and Franklin Templeton Digital Assets aims to enhance the adoption and development of decentralized applications (dApps) on the Sui blockchain.

Franklin Templeton has been involved in blockchain since 2018, operating node validators and developing blockchain investment strategies.

Their extensive experience and expertise in the space position them as a key player in helping Sui developers build and scale products on the blockchain.

As part of the partnership, Franklin Templeton will focus on enabling Web3 developers to leverage the advanced capabilities of the Sui blockchain.

This includes support for promising decentralized finance (DeFi) projects such as DeepBook, a decentralized order book for DeFi trading; Karrier One, a decentralized mobile network; and Ika, a tool for secure cross-chain interactions.

These projects illustrate the potential of the Sui blockchain to revolutionize industries ranging from finance to telecommunications.

Institutional investor interest in Sui Network

The Sui Network’s strategic partnership with Franklin Templeton also comes at a time when institutional investors are showing increasing interest in blockchain technology and decentralized finance.

Major players in the investment world, such as VanEck and Grayscale Investments, have already expressed strong support for the Sui ecosystem, providing a solid foundation for further growth.

The network has seen remarkable growth, with its total value locked (TVL) increasing from below $50 million to approximately $1.64 billion over the past year.

This surge in TVL highlights the growing trust and adoption of the Sui blockchain, particularly within the DeFi space. Additionally, the introduction of stablecoins like USDC and FDUSD further has enhanced liquidity, driving drives mainstream adoption of digital assets.

Grayscale Investments has also introduced the Grayscale Sui Trust, offering institutional investors exposure to the Sui network.

As of the latest report, the Sui Trust has amassed over $6 million in assets under management. This is a strong indicator of the increasing interest in Sui, which is now seen as one of the top-tier blockchain projects attracting both retail and institutional investors.

Sui token price on a strong bullish trend

The SUI token, the native token of Sui network, has been one of the standout performers in the cryptocurrency market over the last few months. SUI has surged by more than 350% since early September.

This rise in price is a clear indication that the market is bullish on the potential of Sui and its growing ecosystem.

The SUI price is currently hovering around $3.49, and it is entering the price discovery phase of the macro bull market.

However, the Relative Strength Index (RSI) recently surged above the 70% mark resulting in a retracement amidst the strong bullish momentum.

Therefore, while Sui is expected to continue its upward trajectory, particularly with the backing of institutional investors like Franklin Templeton Digital Assets, investors should be wary of the continuation of the current pullback.

The post Sui Network partners with Franklin Templeton to drive Web3 and DeFi adoption appeared first on Invezz

Stellar Lumens (XLM) has been on an impressive upward trajectory recently, drawing attention for its rapid price surge.

With high-profile collaborations and endorsements from the United Nations and the World Bank, XLM is positioned as a key player in the future of global finance.

The surge in Stellar Lumens price: a 106% jump in a week

Stellar Lumens has been experiencing an extraordinary rally in recent weeks, with the price of XLM surging by 106% in just seven days and a massive 188% increase over the past two weeks.

At the time of writing, XLM was trading at $0.2932, marking a high point not seen for some time. This price movement has significantly outpaced Bitcoin’s performance over the same period, with the flagship cryptocurrency rising just 6.7% in the past week and 26% in the last fortnight.

This rapid growth has been largely driven by increasing optimism surrounding Stellar’s role in the evolving global financial system. Notably, high-profile collaborations have fueled XLM’s price momentum.

A key factor behind this surge is the recent partnership with MasterCard, a major global payments player, which has sparked a wave of investor interest.

Additionally, Stellar’s endorsement by the United Nations as part of its vision for a new global financial system has been a catalyst for the cryptocurrency’s explosive rise.

Endorsements from the World Bank and the United Nations

The backing of both the United Nations and the World Bank is a powerful endorsement for Stellar Lumens in the context of its growing role in the financial ecosystem.

The World Bank’s recognition of XLM as part of a transformative two-tier monetary system positions it as a critical asset in facilitating global financial inclusion. This two-tier system, as discussed by financial analysts, envisions XRP (Ripple) handling institutional liquidity for cross-border payments, while XLM focuses on enabling peer-to-peer remittances.

The World Bank has lauded XLM for its low-cost and efficient transaction model, particularly beneficial for users without access to traditional banking services.

The United Nations’ endorsement of Stellar and Ripple further supports the narrative of blockchain technology as a cornerstone of a tokenized economy.

Stellar’s focus on retail-level remittances and the ability to facilitate peer-to-peer transactions in emerging markets, particularly in South America, makes it an attractive solution for global financial inclusion.

The UN’s support signals a broader push toward a digital, decentralized financial system, with XLM playing a key role in its implementation.

Technical indicators point to a potential correction:

Despite the bullish outlook for Stellar Lumens, caution is advised for potential investors. While XLM has demonstrated impressive gains, technical indicators suggest the cryptocurrency may soon face a sharp correction.

The Relative Strength Index (RSI) has spiked to 87.47, indicating that the asset is overbought and may soon experience a price pullback.

Additionally, the Stochastic Oscillator is nearing 100, a level that often precedes a price decline.

The surge in price has also pushed XLM 142% above its 50-week and 200-week Exponential Moving Averages (EMAs), a clear sign that mean reversion could occur. This suggests that XLM may fall back toward these averages before continuing its upward trend.

Furthermore, many technical analysts anticipate a potential retest of the $0.1624 support level, which could trigger a temporary reversal before the price resumes its upward movement.

While the long-term outlook for XLM remains strong, investors should be cautious of the technical signals that suggest a short-term correction is on the horizon.

The post Stellar Lumens price surges on United Nations and World Bank endorsements appeared first on Invezz

Reddit Inc (NYSE: RDDT) opened about 8.0% down on Friday after Tencent Holdings unloaded about $88.5 million shares of the forum social network.

The weakness may also be related to a report that Advance Magazine Publishers is considering trimming its position on Reddit as well.

Still, there are three solid reasons to consider loading up on Reddit stock on the recent sell-off. Let’s take a look at each of them individually.

Reddit stock price is backed by solid financials

Reddit has already turned a quarterly profit even though it hasn’t even been a year since it went public.

More importantly, the forum social network is attracting users at an unparalleled rate. Its daily active users went up another 47% on a year-over-year basis to 97.2 million in Q3.

That’s significant since more users will likely drive more advertisers to the platform – and more advertisers will continue to drive the company’s bottom line over the coming quarters.

Reddit topped Street estimates for all metrics in its latest report. Profit, revenue, daily active users, average revenue per user, you name it – this company surpassed all of them in Q3.

That speaks volumes about the state of business and what the future may hold for Reddit stock.

RDDT could benefit from AI tailwinds

Reddit stock is trading at a significant premium at writing but it may continue to justify it as RDDT is uniquely positioned to benefit from the AI frenzy.

On top of stealing ad spend from X (formerly Twitter), it’s selling data to big tech names and helping them train their large language models.

Reddit already has a deal in place with Google and OpenAI – and will likely secure similar deals with others as users continue to register on its online platform over the next few quarters.

Note that Statista estimates the artificial intelligence market to grow at a compound annualized rate of over 28% through the end of this decade which confirms AI as a meaningful potential tailwind for RDDT.

Reddit stock does not, however, pay a dividend.

Reddit is catering to an international audience

Reddit is also tapping on artificial intelligence to translate the wealth of data on its forum social network from English to a whole bunch of other languages.

That exposes it to an international audience and positions it to become a significantly bigger platform over the next five years. Steve Huffman – the company’s chief executive told investors in the earnings press release last month:

Reddit continues to be one of the most visited and trusted sites in the world with opportunities available to us that aren’t available to most companies.

Wall Street currently has a consensus “overweight” rating on Reddit stock, suggesting they continue to see further upside despite its massive year-to-date run.  

The post Top 3 reasons why I’m buying Reddit stock on recent weakness appeared first on Invezz

US equity benchmarks rose on Friday as investors’ sentiments were boosted by positive economic data from the world’s biggest economy. 

At the time of writing, the Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 0.8%, while the S&P 500 index gained 0.3%. The tech-heavy Nasdaq Composite inched up just 0.1%. 

All the benchmarks were headed for a more than 1% weekly gain this week.

This marked a change from last week when the major averages fell after a post-election rally. 

According to a report by CNBC, Friday’s moves in Wall Street were a continuation of a trend where investors shifted exposure to other economically sensitive corners of the market from major tech companies. 

Tech stocks struggled on Friday with both major companies, NVIDIA Corp and Alphabet slipping during the trading session. 

Meanwhile, Bitcoin neared the long-awaited $100,000 mark, while the Russel 2000 climbed 1%. The Russel 2000 index was on track to end the week with more than 4% gains. 

Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at CFRA Research told CNBC:

Investors are rotating out of the previous high flyers of large-cap communication services and technology and into other cyclical sectors of consumer discretionary, industrials, and financials, as well as mid- and small-cap stocks. 

Purchasing managers index rise in November

Activity in both the manufacturing and services sectors in the US rose during November. 

The flash PMI reading for services moved up to 57.0, a two-point increase from October and the highest reading in 32 months. 

On the manufacturing side, the index nudged higher to 48.8, up slightly from October and the highest level in four months.

The manufacturing reading met the Dow Jones estimate while the services index was slightly better than the 55.0 forecast.

The indexes measure the percentage of companies reporting growth, so anything above 50 represents expansion.

Gap, and Ross retail stocks gain 

Shares of both retail stocks Gap and Ross rose on Friday after posting positive earnings results on Friday. 

Shares of Gap rose 15% after the company beat estimates on the top and bottom lines. The retail store also raised its full-year sales guidance. 

Meanwhile, shares of Ross gained 7% after the company posted adjusted earnings per share of $1.48. Analysts with LSEG projected earnings of $1.40 per share. 

Alphabet, NVIDIA drops

Shares of Alphabet dropped nearly 2% on Friday, extending steep losses from Thursday’s session. 

Shares dropped as the Department of Justice argued to a judge that the company was monopolizing online searches. 

Additionally, shares of NVIDIA Corporation also dropped more than 3% on Friday as investors remained unimpressed about the company’s revenue forecasts. 

The decline of both prominent shares in the US weighed on the tech-heavy Nasdaq. 

Meanwhile, Intuit lost 4.7% after the TurboTax parent projected second-quarter revenue and profit below Wall Street estimates on Thursday.

The post Dow Jones, S&P 500 rise on strong US manufacturing data; Gap jumps 15%, while Alphabet and NVIDIA slide appeared first on Invezz

President-elect Donald Trump’s sweeping tariff proposals have triggered widespread concerns among businesses and economists.

Trump has suggested imposing a 20% tariff on all US imports and steeper duties of up to 60% on goods from China and other key trading partners.

Retailers like Walmart and Lowe’s have already signaled that they may need to raise prices if these tariffs are enacted.

However, TJX—the parent company of TJ Maxx, Marshalls, and HomeGoods—sees an opportunity amid the disruption.

TJX’s unique business model

Unlike most competitors that depend heavily on overseas production, TJX relies on a unique business model that involves acquiring excess inventory from designer brands.

Much of this merchandise is sourced after it has already been imported, meaning tariffs have typically been paid by the original importer.

This “opportunistic buying” strategy allows TJX to sell items at discounts ranging from 20% to 60% below standard retail prices.

CEO Ernie Herrman believes Trump’s tariffs will only enhance the company’s ability to scoop up discounted goods.

“Manufacturers could bring in goods early,” Herrman noted during an earnings call on Wednesday. “That could create even more availability of goods at advantageous prices for us.”

Lessons from 2019 tariffs

TJX’s confidence stems from experience.

When the Trump administration raised tariffs to 25% on $200 billion worth of Chinese goods in 2019, TJX leveraged the ensuing market disruption to secure bargains.

Herrman described that period as a significant “buying opportunity” for the company.

The National Retail Federation forecasts similar dynamics this year, predicting a 13.6% increase in imports this November compared to last year and a 6.1% rise in December.

Retailers are racing to import goods ahead of potential tariff enforcement, creating conditions that TJX can exploit.

Competitors face an uphill battle

The outlook for TJX contrasts sharply with that of its rivals.

Companies like Steve Madden are accelerating plans to relocate production out of China, while Walmart and Lowe’s anticipate unavoidable price hikes.

“Our model is everyday low prices. But there probably will be cases where prices will go up for consumers,” Walmart finance chief John David Rainey told CNBC.

Although TJX acknowledges that some price increases may occur, analysts believe its pricing will remain competitive.

Neil Saunders, a GlobalData Retail analyst told CNN, “Even if prices rise due to tariffs, TJX will still be relatively cheaper than mainstream retailers.”

By capitalizing on supply chain disruptions and leveraging its unique sourcing strategy, TJX aims to reinforce its reputation as a leader in the discount retail space.

As competitors grapple with rising costs, TJX’s ability to adapt positions it well for growth, even in a challenging economic environment.

The post TJX sees opportunity in Trump’s tariff chaos as rivals brace for price hikes: here’s why appeared first on Invezz