This is a segment from The Breakdown newsletter. To read more editions, subscribe. “There are three kinds of lies: lies, damned lies, and statistics.” — Mark Twain The 2004 edition of the Economic Report of the president included a creative proposal it hoped the statistical agencies would consider: reclassifying fast-food cooks as manufacturing workers. ”When
Today, Semler Scientific (Nasdaq: SMLR) shares rose over 2.64% to $35.37 after the company released its second quarter 2025 financial results, reporting an increase in net income driven by unrealized gains from its Bitcoin holdings. Semler Scientific Reports Second Quarter 2025 Financial Results, BTC Holdings of 5,021 and BTC Yield of 31.3% YTD through July
Grayscale Investments has expanded its executive team and board as part of its “next phase of growth,” adding four financial industry veterans to key leadership roles and reappointing founder Barry Silbert as board chairman. The expanded leadership team includes Diana Zhang as chief operating officer, Ramona Boston as chief marketing officer, Andrea Williams as chief
Bridgewater Associates founder Ray Dalio says the US government needs to rethink how it comes up with its economic data. Over the weekend, President Donald Trump fired the head of the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Erika McEntarfer, because of a large downward revision of job numbers. On Friday, the BLS revised down the job growth
During the months-long debate over stablecoin legislation this spring, crypto industry leaders tried, and failed, to notch a key victory: getting lawmakers on board with interest-bearing stablecoins. The GENIUS Act, which formally legalizes approved stablecoins in the U.S. and was signed into law last month, now prohibits stablecoin issuers from engaging in the increasingly common
Verb Technology will use $558 million in proceeds from a private placement to begin stockpiling and staking Toncoin, the Las-Vegas based marketer said in a press release on Monday. The cryptocurrency, which serves as the native token of the Telegram-linked The Open Network, will be treated as the company’s “primary treasury reserve asset,” it said—representing
FED San Francisco Branch President Mary Daly made noteworthy statements about interest rate cuts. Daly said monetary policy adjustments would be discussed “immediately” at each Fed meeting going forward, but noted there was still significant uncertainty about whether a rate cut would occur in September. While Daly stated, “Two interest rate cuts would still be