Odds and Ends — 16 February 2026

3 days ago

Cryptocurrency, Investing, Money, Economy, Business, AI, and Debt:

Roundhill’s election prediction ETFs are ‘potentially groundbreaking,’ analyst says

The ETF issuer warned that investors who pick the fund tied to the losing US presidential outcome could lose nearly all invested capital.

Nexo Taps Bakkt For US Return Three Years After SEC Settlement Over Lending Product

Its lending product faced scrutiny under former SEC Chair Gary Gensler

Flash Fiction:

”We provide bespoke security services to our clients and complete discretion. Anything they want. Anything.”

”As a general rule, I’m always decisive, but here I’ll really need specificity. What if, hypothetically, I needed someone dead and their body disappeared?”

”We said anything. You won’t be disappointed with our services Mr. Epstein.”

Written for this prompt.

Politics:

Rubio Pledges US Support for Hungary’s Orban Ahead of Tight Vote

US President Donald Trump would be ready to provide assistance if Hungary had any financial trouble, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said at a joint press conference with Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest.
Rubio, speaking as Hungary’s campaign for April’s elections entered the final stretch, also signaled Trump was committed to Orban’s success and that the premier’s re-election was in US national interests.

Pelosi's new campaign: Boost Newsom for 2028

Nancy Pelosi is retiring from Congress, but she has more campaigns in mind. Among them: Boost Gavin Newsom as a potential contender for the White House in 2028.
Publicly and privately, the former speaker has been touting the California governor, a fellow San Franciscan she’s helped mentor for decades.
Pelosi has one of the strongest donor networks in Democratic politics. She’s been a key validator for Newsom as he’s emerged on the national stage and become one of President Trump’s most visible foes.

Maybe concentrate on 2026 first?

https://twitter.com/JonLemire/status/2023147999027728843

In the Trump Administration, the Best Way to Keep Your Job Is to Do It Badly

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth is ‘close’ to cutting business ties with Anthropic and designating the AI company a ‘supply chain risk’ — meaning anyone who wants to do business with the U.S. military has to cut ties with the company.
Said a senior official: “It will be an enormous pain in the ass to disentangle, and we are going to make sure they pay a price for forcing our hand like this…”
Anthropic is prepared to loosen its current terms of use, but wants to ensure its tools aren't used to spy on Americans en masse, or to develop weapons that fire with no human involvement.
The Pentagon claims that's unduly restrictive…