Britain’s City minister, Bim Afolami, has emphasized the need to attract young investors involved in cryptocurrencies to the mainstream financial markets. Afolami expressed his desire to encourage risk-taking young investors in crypto and bitcoin to participate in London’s mainstream stock market. The move aims to address the challenge London faces in attracting companies to its stock exchange, coupled with a growing trend of businesses delisting. In 2023, London witnessed a decline of 40% in funds raised by companies, totaling less than £1 billion. Afolami highlighted that approximately 6 million people in the country hold some form of crypto assets, and by making mainstream capital markets appealing to them, it could stimulate capital flow and increase ownership, especially among the younger generation.

Meanwhile, on Wall Street, the rally that drove the S&P 500 and Dow Jones to record highs is expected to slow down. Tesla’s announcement of disappointing sales led to a 7.8% premarket decline in its shares. Tesla cautioned that sales growth might sharply decelerate in the coming year, despite plans to commence production of next-generation electric vehicles at its Texas factory in the latter half of 2025. Other electric vehicle manufacturers, Rivian Automotive and Lucid Group, also experienced over a 2% decline each. The S&P 500 achieved its fourth consecutive record high close, boosted by Netflix’s nearly 11% surge following robust quarterly results. Speculations about interest-rate cuts starting in May, rather than March, gained traction, reaching 87%, according to CME Group’s FedWatch Tool. In premarket trading, the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 0.1%, the S&P 500 remained flat, and Nasdaq 100 futures rose by 0.1%.