☕️ Treasury hits Bank of America with billions

Hi there, this is your daily ☕️ Finpresso.

In today's newsletter:

💰 Treasury reveals $1.21B penalty on Bank of America

🤖 Google launches Gemini 4 Argon undercutting OpenAI

🎭 Character.​AI goes bankrupt sells assets to Disney

📉 Chinese memory chip rattles Micron and SK Hynix

🔧 ASML says AI chip-tool demand outstrips output in 2027-28

Plus: 🌍 9 macro stories, 🏢 9 corporate stories, and 📑 6 research & reports.

📊 Before The Bell

• Bank of America was fined more than $1.21 billion by US regulators yesterday for failing over years to report over $5 billion in suspicious transactions and fix longstanding anti-money-laundering gaps, the third-largest penalty in Treasury history.
• The bank admitted it willfully broke the Bank Secrecy Act, with Treasury saying more than $1 billion of the unreported activity touched national security risks, including Chinese money-laundering networks, as the bank "prioritized its revenues" over compliance resources.
• Bank of America will book a $1.2 billion non-tax-deductible charge in third-quarter results, cutting net income by about 17 cents a share, and its stock fell after hours ahead of earnings due this morning.

• Google has released Gemini 4 Argon, its newest frontier AI model, to developers and enterprises worldwide, pricing it below OpenAI and Anthropic in a bid to win more business and developer customers.
• Introductory rates run at $2 per million input tokens and $10 per million output tokens, roughly half Anthropic's Claude Opus 5.5 and a fifth of OpenAI's GPT-6 Astra, with Mashable pegging Argon's per-task cost at about 60% of GPT-6 Astra's.
• The introductory pricing holds only until November 30, after which it doubles and the cost advantage narrows; on Artificial Analysis' Intelligence Index Argon scores 53, tying GPT-6 Astra but trailing both Claude models by about five points.

• Character.​AI has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the US and agreed to sell some of its technology to Disney for $20 million, a sharp fall for a startup once valued at roughly $2.5 billion.
• The $20 million bid sets a starting price for a court-supervised auction, giving Disney a non-exclusive, perpetual license to certain assets while leaving room for higher offers; the company lists assets and liabilities in the tens of millions.
• Character.​AI plans to keep its chatbot platform running but warns it could shut down without a buyer, with the sale expected to close by late November or early December 2026, subject to court approval.

• A reported design breakthrough from Chinese memory maker CXMT sent rival chipmakers tumbling on Tuesday, with South Korea-listed SK Hynix closing down 10% and Samsung off 7.4%, while Micron slipped in premarket trading.
• CXMT said it had made progress on "4F square" architecture that packs more data into less space, a technology SK Hynix is also pursuing, raising fears a company often seen as trailing its rivals is closing the capability gap faster than expected.
• CXMT's share of the global DRAM market has climbed to roughly 10% from about 4% a year ago, and Citi warns that even without US access, its sales to data centers in regions like Europe could indirectly hit Micron.

• ASML, the top maker of chip-manufacturing machines, warned today that AI-fueled demand will outstrip its output in both 2027 and 2028, and said it is looking at ways to expand production beyond already-planned increases.
• The Dutch company guided fourth-quarter sales of €14.2 billion to €15.2 billion ($15.9 billion to $17.0 billion), above analyst expectations, with a gross margin of around 57%, as customer talks increasingly shift to orders beyond 2027.
• Having said in July it would raise capacity by 30% in 2027 and another 30% in 2028, ASML now reports strong order intake for 2028 and interest stretching into 2029 and, in some cases, 2030, a sign the AI buildout runs well past current planning horizons.

🌍 Macro News

• Williams backs one hike this year, sees no 2027 increase for now. LINK
• Lagarde says France must address debt itself, dampening hopes for ECB bond support. LINK
• IEA says Iran war diesel shortages will persist into the second half of 2027. LINK
• Oil rises after Houthi attack on Saudi Aramco raises supply fears. LINK
• Taiwan pledges up to $4.4 billion for Alaska LNG, securing output. LINK
• India delays UPI merchant fees after retailers and fuel stations object. LINK
• Britain rejects Chinese vehicle tariffs, citing UK interests over EU pressure. LINK
• Singapore third-quarter growth cooled to 5.4%, beating economists' 5% forecast. LINK
• China exports expected to rise 25.5% in September, poll shows. LINK

🏢 Corporate News

• BNY and Citadel completed tokenized Treasury transaction to demonstrate blockchain settlement. LINK
• Bumble to go private in $1.3 billion deal, far below listing valuation. LINK
• Nvidia plans $2 billion in European investments to boost the region's AI race. LINK
• Goldman's third-quarter profit surged 29% as trading and dealmaking held firm. LINK
• Citi traders generated decade-best third-quarter bond, currency and commodities revenue. LINK
• UnitedHealth beats estimates, raises annual profit outlook, lifting shares premarket. LINK
• XM Cyber cut about 250 Israeli staff after CrowdStrike acquired its technology. LINK
• Galderma will buy ZO Skin Health from Blackstone for $1.5 billion. LINK
• Hyundai plans $15.5 billion India investment, positioning the country as a core growth market. LINK

📈 Stocks

📑 Research & Reports

• 7 AI stocks to own in 2026: names the AI companies MarketBeat rates as long-term holds this year, in a free report. Get the free report
• BIS's Aurum project emphasizes privacy over central bank digital currency control. LINK
• IMF lifts 2026 growth forecast, citing debt and AI investment as risks. LINK
• Managers await 5.9% Treasury yields before rotating from stocks into bonds. LINK
• Deutsche Bank warns superintelligent AI could transform portfolio construction by 2030. LINK
• US deposit rates curb USDC growth more than USDT, BIS study finds. LINK
• Goldman says AI boom's inflationary pressure is nearing peak, easing Fed concerns. LINK

📅 Market Calendar

💬 How did you find today's edition?

We read every reply — just reply to this email and let us know how we can improve!