Air India crash kills at least 290, one survives

Good morning. Here's what happened overnight and what you need to know today.

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1.

Boeing crash: Authorities say that one British man survived after an Air India flight from Ahmedabad to London Gatwick crashed shortly after take-off on Thursday. “We regret to inform that, of the 242 aboard, there are 241 confirmed fatalities. The sole survivor is being treated in a hospital,” the company said in a statement. The plane crash killed additional people on the ground. The plane hit a hostel for doctors when it crashed, with at least 290 people dead in total, CNN reported citing health officials. The cause of the crash is still unknown, but footage on social media shows the plane with its landing gear still down and slowly descending after take-off, before exploding into a fireball upon impact with a medical college. The Boeing 787-8 Dreamliner was carrying Indian, British, Portuguese and Canadian nationals, and leaders from the victims’ countries have responded to the devastating incident. Shares in Boeing fell 4.77%. (Capital Brief)(GS Malik)(Modi)(Reuters)(Air India)(Bloomberg)(FT)

2.

Enriched tension: Iran said it will step up its enrichment efforts after the UN’s nuclear watchdog said it would censure Iran for breaching its nuclear obligations. The move prompted US President Donald Trump to say an Israeli strike on Iran “could very well happen”, though he said he would not call it imminent. Trump said he wants to avoid conflict and reach a peaceful solution, but warned of a “massive conflict” and authorised dependants of American military personnel to leave the region. Iran responded to the IAEA decision by announcing plans to open a third uranium enrichment plant and upgrade centrifuges. US officials have warned that Israel could carry out strikes targeting Iranian nuclear facilities if negotiations between the countries fail. A new round of talks is scheduled to take place in Oman over the weekend, but President Trump said earlier this week that he is now “less confident” of a deal being struck. (Capital Brief)(AP)(Reuters)(Iran International)(Bloomberg)(CNN)

3.

Bond test: A closely watched USD22 billion ($33.7 billion) auction of 30-year US Treasury bonds drew solid demand, with investors accepting a 4.844% yield, below the level seen before bidding closed. The result pushed 30-year yields down by eight basis points and eased fears of a buyers’ strike in long-term US debt. Primary dealers took 11.4% of the supply, below the 14.4% average from the previous six auctions, according to BMO data cited by The Wall Street Journal. Foreign investors bought 65.2%, which was also below the 67.4% average, Barron’s noted. Investors are watching Washington closely amid concern over President Donald Trump’s tax-and-spending bill, his administration’s tariff policies and rising debt levels driven by successive governments. The auction came as markets adjust to Moody’s downgrade of the US credit rating and rising global bond yields. (Capital Brief)

4.

Fintech flare: Chime Financial’s shares jumped as much as 66.4% in its Nasdaq debut after raising USD864 million ($1.32 billion) in an IPO priced above the marketed range at USD27. The stock opened at USD43 and peaked at USD44.94, valuing the company at USD16.4 billion. Shares closed 37.44% higher at USD37.11. Chime and its investors sold 32 million shares, with demand exceeding 20 times the available stock, according to Bloomberg. Founded in 2012, the San Francisco-based fintech nearly collapsed in 2016 while seeking a Series A extension, after being rejected by more than 100 investors. It was later valued at USD25 billion in 2021 and became profitable this year. As of 31 March, Chime had 8.6 million active users, processed USD121 billion in transactions over the prior year, and reported USD13 million in net income on USD519 million in Q1 revenue. (Reuters)(TechCrunch)(Capital Brief)

5.

Sold: Pharmacist Joe Zhou bought the assets of collapsed pharmacy start-up StrongRoom AI for $3 million, four months after the business imploded following fraud allegations from its largest investor. Zhou, who runs five pharmacies through Aceso Group and was a customer of StrongRoom, said he completed the drawn-out transaction with a $1 million loan from investor EVP. He said the new StrongRoom will operate as a separate entity, and confirmed the existing staff would be offered jobs, excluding chief executive Max Mito. Liquidators are now expected to pursue recovery of missing funds and possible legal action against former directors. (Capital Brief)(AFR)

6.

Senator pinned: US Senator Alex Padilla was handcuffed and forcibly removed by federal agents as he tried to confront US Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem during her press conference on a federal immigration crackdown in Los Angeles. Video shows Padilla identifying himself and saying, “I’m Senator Alex Padilla. I have questions for the secretary,” before being stopped, shoved back, forced to the ground and handcuffed. His office said he was trying to ask a question and was in the federal building to receive a briefing with US Air Force General Guillot. DHS defended the response, claiming Padilla didn’t sufficiently identify himself and “lunged” at Noem, though video shows he was detained before reaching her. Padilla was later released. (Politico)(Bloomberg)

7.

Stable bet: The Depository Trust and Clearing Corp (DTCC), the clearinghouse that processes US stock trades, is weighing issuing a stablecoin should legislation on the tokens be approved, The Information reports. The DTCC, which is owned by US banks, brokers and fund companies, is assessing whether introducing stablecoins could streamline settling trade involving traditional assets. As the DTCC clears and settles hundreds of billions of dollars in trades every day, its role in the market and its ownership structure mean its stablecoin could gain wide adoption by market participants. Sources told the outlet that the firm is “monitoring policy development in the US Congress and regulatory agencies” and will assess its options accordingly. While some banks have pushed back against parts of the stablecoin bill, which has President Trump’s backing, a number of large Wall Street banks are exploring issuing their own stablecoins to fend off competition from crypto players. (The Information)

8.

Grow slow: UK GDP declined 0.3% in April, its most severe contraction since 2023, after tax increases and US tariffs dragged on the economy. Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed that the decline was the steepest since October 2023, and came in below the 0.1% contraction predicted by Reuters. The services sector saw output fall by 0.4% in April, following growth of 0.4% in March, and was the largest contributor to the April GDP drop. While April’s GDP contraction followed expansion of 0.7% in the three months to March, the Bank of England is forecasting the pace of growth to slow to 0.1% for the second quarter. ONS data also showed additional levies on companies saw UK unemployment reach a four-year high in April. The GDP data is a reality check for PM Keir Starmer who has repeatedly hailed the UK’s economy as a G7 outperformer. (Capital Brief)(ONS)