The Bank of Nova Scotia (BNS) News & EventsBNSThe Bank of Nova Scotia

Scotiabank Launches Growth Institute with Over $100B Commitment

Scotiabank announced the launch of the Scotia Growth Institute, a new platform dedicated to supporting key stakeholders in advancing long-term economic growth and competitiveness in Canada and across North America. Alongside the launch of the Institute, Scotiabank commits over $100B in financing, underwriting, and investment to be available to support Canadian companies and projects in key sectors that will drive forward Canada's economic growth agenda over the next five years.

Coinbase Files for U.S. Derivatives Registration

As bitcoin, ethereum and other cryptocurrencies see major legal, institutional, and technological developments, the financial landscape continues to adapt. Stay up on the crypto news that matters with the "Crypto Currents" weekly from The Fly. Also, join us for your essential daily recap, every day at 2 PM ET on FlyCast radio.COINBASE CPO REPORTS FILING FOR EQUITY PERPETUALS:In a Thursday X post, Faryar Shirzad, Chief Policy Officer at Coinbase, stated, "This week @coinbase took the first step to offer them in the U.S on our derivatives exchange by filing notice registration documents with the @SECgov. Equity perps have proven demand internationally, and we're excited at the prospect of a regulated pathway for U.S. investors. The next step is product approval with the @CFTC. The coordination between the SEC and CFTC making this possible is long overdue - and it's exactly what needs to happen for the U.S. to stay competitive on products investors already want. This is only the beginning."On Wednesday, the company announced eligible Canadian traders can now access regulated derivatives contracts on Coinbase. The company said, "Offered through Coinbase Financial Markets, Coinbase is the first major crypto native platform to offer direct native crypto futures in Canada. These capital-efficient perpetual and dated contracts allow sophisticated investors to trade, speculate, and hedge on a platform they already trust."On Monday, Coinbase announced Webulliswith Coinbase as its crypto infrastructure partner. Built on Coinbase's Crypto-as-a-Service platform, Webull Canada will leverage Coinbase's institutional-grade custody and trading services. This expansion follows similar launches in the U.S., Brazil and Australia.Additionally, Cantor Fitzgerald raised the firm's price target on Coinbase to $212 from $184 and kept an Overweight rating on the shares. The firm modestly updated its model to better reflect management commentary and Q3 guidance.STRATEGY BUYS MORE BITCOIN:In a Monday regulatory filing, Strategyannounced an update on its bitcoin holdings. The company reportedat an average purchase price of $80,318 between August 24 and August 30. As of August 30, Strategy holds 845,050 bitcoin acquired for an aggregate purchase price of approximately $63.73B.The company also noted that, as part of its capital framework, Strategy maintains a U.S. dollar reserve, which is intended to support the payment of dividends on Strategy's preferred stock and interest on its outstanding indebtedness, and "USD Cash", which management maintains to deploy for broader general Bitcoin Treasury Company purposes, which may include acquiring bitcoin, expanding the USD Reserve, broader capital management uses, and other similar purposes. As of August 30, the balances of the USD Reserve and USD Cash were $5.1B and $1.61B, respectively. These amounts include expected cash proceeds from shares sold under Strategy's ATM that had not yet settled as of such date.Following the filing, Alliance Global initiated coverage of Strategy with a Buy rating and $217 price target. The company's bitcoin holdings total 845,050, making it the largest holder and representing 4% of the entire supply of the cryptocurrency in existence, the analyst said. Alliance expects a "bull run" in bitcoin over the next 6-18 months given "scarcity and increased demand as the regulatory picture becomes clearer." Strategy is creating yield that results in outperformance compared to bitcoin, contended the firm.B. Riley raised the firm's price target on Strategy to $175 from $155 and kept a Buy rating on the shares. The firm increased targets across its digital asset treasury coverage to reflect token appreciation quarter-to-date, accumulation pace, preferred issuance, and at-the-market usage. Digital assets "re-rated sharply over the past two weeks on a macro-driven liquidity impulse," driven by the Treasury's announcement on August 18 of larger long-end buybacks beginning September 9, an SEC token proposal, and a White House crypto summit alongside renewed presidential pressure on the CLARITY Act, the analyst said. Riley adds that $2.7B of shorts were liquidated in the first 24 hours of the move.B. Riley also raised the firm's price target on Bitmine ImmersiontoNakamototoSolana Companyto, Strivetoand Forward IndustriestoThe firm kept a Buy rating on all the names.BITDEER ANNOUNCES SELL-OUT OF MALAYSIA DATA CENTER:Bitdeer AIannounced Monday that it hasfor AI Cloud business ahead of energization in 1Q27. Inclusive of the offtake commitment announced on August 19, Bitdeer AI has now entered into five-year long term offtake commitments with total expected revenue of over $800M at this site. As a general matter, Bitdeer AI seeks to structure its AI cloud contracts so that customer prepayments are expected to cover more than 50% of the associated capital expenditure. These contracts are not expected to have a revenue impact in 2026. Revenue and associated costs are expected to begin in 1Q27, when services commence. Bitdeer AI is targeting 350MW of AI Cloud data center capacity to be delivered by 1Q28.The company also announced on Tuesday the acquisition of 200 acres of land in Milam County, Texas, near the company's existing Rockdale facility. Bitdeer has completed the fee simple acquisition of approximately 200 acres of greenfield property for total consideration of approximately $100M, paid in cash. The Milam County sites, including the New Parcel, currently feature approximately 563 MW of interconnected grid capacity with existing plans expected to scale to 742 MW, and a dedicated water supply. Following this transaction, Bitdeer owns and/or operates approximately 255 acres and 742 MW of existing and pipeline power capacity in Milam County, and approximately 3.0 GW of total power capacity across its global site portfolio."Securing outright ownership of land in Milam County reflects the disciplined approach we're taking to expanding powered land under our control," said Michael Potter, CFO. "Rockdale is one of the best-connected locations in our portfolio, and we believe it is well positioned to receive additional power over the coming years. Owning this land gives us greater long-term certainty over our development plans, eliminates the renewal risk associated with a lease, and provides flexibility to maintain our existing Bitcoin mining operations while we develop the newly acquired property. It's a continuation of the progress we've been making across our platform to put Bitdeer in direct control of the sites that matter most to our growth."Keefe Bruyette said Bitdeer's Rockdale land acquisition is a "positive step for unlocking" the company's AI opportunities. The $100M purchase price is below Keefe's expectation, but it remains unclear whether the Service Line Replacement-controlled interconnection rights were transferred in the transaction, the analyst said. The firm kept a Market Perform rating on Bitdeer with a $10 price target.CIRCLE PRESIDENT TESTIFIES IN FAVOR OF GENIUS ACT:Circle Internetpresident Heath Tarbert testified before the House Financial Services Committee towhich establishes a federal framework for payment stablecoins covering reserve requirements, redemption at par, and disclosures that becomes effective no later than January 27, according to media reports. In his testimony, Tarbert described stablecoins as necessary tools for preserving U.S. dollar dominance in future global payment systems, adding that the U.S. should close offshore loopholes, according to 24/7 Wall Street.INTERNATIONAL FINANCIAL INSTITUTIONS PLAN STABLECOIN ENTERPRISE:Twenty‑one leading international financial institutions announced Tuesday that they have committed to establish a new company in 2H26, subject to closing conditions, toThe new company, whose name will be announced in due course, intends to operate globally, with its initial focus on a USD‑denominated stablecoin offering and a longer‑term ambition of expanding issuance into stablecoins denominated in additional G7 currencies, with a EUR offering as a priority.The companies said, "The initiative will draw on the expertise of the participant institutions to offer a safe, robust and trusted solution that combines bank‑grade compliance, strong governance, distribution and institutional risk management. The product will be utilised in a variety of use cases covering wholesale, institutional and retail markets where client benefits can be achieved by utilizing a trusted form of digital money, including cross-border payments and digital asset settlements."The group aims for its stablecoin solution to go to market in 1H27. The group comprises financial institutions headquartered across major geographies, namely: North America: Bank of America, Capital One, Citi, Fidelity Investments, Goldman Sachs, PNC Financial Services, Scotiabank, TD Bank Group, Wells Fargo, WisdomTree; Europe: Banco Santander, BBVA, Commerzbank, Crédit Agricole, Deutsche Bank, Lloyds Banking Group, Coöperatieve Rabobank U.A., UBS; East Asia: MUFG Bank; Middle East: Sirius International Holding; Africa: Standard Bank. The initiative intends to be GENIUS Act and MiCA‑compliant, as applicable. The group will continue to keep appropriate parties updated as the initiative progresses.OTHER CRYPTO NEWS:BitGoopens Singapore office,Strivepurchases 1,800 BTC, reportsHyperscale Dataceases BTC mining operations in Michigan, holdsBitmine ImmersionannouncesGalaxy Digitalprice targetat Morgan StanleyEightco HoldingsreportsSecuritizepartners with Socios.com to, signs MoU with Dubai's VARA to support advancement of tokenizationBitFuFuannouncesSoFi, Payward partner toKeefe views pact as positive developmentCango'sEcoHashat Georgia facilityCurrenc Capital, Mint partner toC1 Fundinitiatedon private market holdingsHyperliquid, Payward reportedlyCRYPTO STOCK PLAYS:Publicly traded companies in the space include Bit Digital, Coinbase, Core Scientific, Mara Holdings, Strategy, Riot Platformsand TeraWulf.PRICE ACTION:As of time of writing, bitcoin rose roughly 1% this week to $79,330 in U.S. dollars, according to CoinDesk.