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One more domino in the dollar reserve supremacy regime falls. Following the announcement two weeks ago that "Australia And China will Enable Direct Currency Convertibility", which in turn was the culmination of two years of Yuan internationalization efforts as summarized by the following: "World's Second (China) And Third Largest (Japan) Economies To Bypass Dollar, Engage In Direct Currency Trade", "China, Russia Drop Dollar In Bilateral Trade", "China And Iran To Bypass Dollar, Plan Oil Barter System", "India and Japan sign new $15bn currency swap agreement", "Iran, Russia Replace Dollar With Rial, Ruble in Trade, Fars Says", "India Joins Asian Dollar Exclusion Zone, Will Transact With Iran In Rupees", and "The USD Trap Is Closing: Dollar Exclusion Zone Crosses The Pacific As Brazil Signs China Currency Swap", China has now launched yet another feeler to see what the apetite toward its currency is, this time in the heart of the Eurozone: Paris. According to China Daily, as reported by Reuters, "France intends to set up a currency swap line with China to make Paris a major offshore yuan trading hub in Europe, competing against London." As a reminder the BOE and the PBOC announced a currency swap line back in February, in effect linking up the CNY to the GBP. Now it is the EUR's turn.

Ponzinomics

Mainstream Media Awakens to the fact that Fukushima Is Still a Total Mess

• Obama to report to his bosses today: Obama Meets With Blankfein, Dimon and Moynihan Today (BBG)
• 2007 is here all over again: Seeking Relief, Banks Shift Risk to Murkier Corners (NYT)
• Kuroda Calls BOJ Inflation Target 'Flexible' (WSJ)
• Lagarde warns over three-speed world (FT)
• N. Korea’s Retro Propaganda Calls U.S. Boiled Pumpkin (BBG)
• Luxembourg To Ease Bank Secrecy Rule, Share Data In 2015 (BBG)
• Bank of Korea Keeps Policy Steady (WSJ)
• BOE Stimulus Dilemma Persists as Inflation Seen Higher (BBG)
• EU Sounds Alarm on Spain (WSJ)
• Qatar gives Egypt $3bn aid package (FT)
• RBNZ Says Deposit Insurance May Increase Risk of Bank Failure (BBG)
• Plosser Calls for Reducing QE Pace Citing Gains in Labor Market (BBG)
• Obama budget aims to kick start deficit-reduction talks (Reuters)

Central Banks, Bank CEOs, politicians… all of these people are focused primarily on maintaining CONFIDENCE in the system, NOT on fixing the system’s problems. Indeed, they cannot even openly discuss the system’s problems because it would quickly reveal that they are a primary cause of them.

• George Soros: 'What Japan is doing is actually quite dangerous because" (BBG)
• North Korea lacks means for nuclear strike on U.S., experts say (Reuters)
• Yellen latest to hint about slowing of QE3 (FT)
• Hollande approval rating hits new low (FT)
• Hollande Dismisses Reshuffle as Crisis Hits Popularity (BBG)
• Japan Upper house approves full 5 year term for BOJ gov. Kuroda (BBG)
• US: Plan to Cap Tax Breaks Is Gaining Steam (WSJ)
• BOE Says Investors May Be Taking ‘Too Rosy’ a View of Stress (BBG)
• Kiwis Say ‘Ni Hao’ as China Ties Trump Australia Sales (BBG)
• Obama Avoids Trading Threats With North Korea’s Kim (BBG)

We now know that when it comes time to STEAL, the STEALING will only hit those who are not well connected with the corrupt elite. It will be the people.

A day after former Cypriot President Vassilou was found to be among many elite Cypriot (politicians and businessmen) who had loans written-off by the major (now insolvent) banks; it appears the rot is far fouler than expected. In a somewhat stunning (or purely coincidental) revelation, ENETEnglish reports that Cypriot newspaper Haravgi claims that current President Nicos Anastasiades' family businesses transferred 'dozens of millions' from their Laiki Bank accounts to London just a week before the devastating depositor haircuts were unleashed upon his people. Of course, the denials are loud and Anastasiades has demanded an investigation into the claims; we are sure the government-selected 'independent' committee will be as thorough as the Libor anti-trust investigators. As a reminder, as we noted yesterday, here are Cyprus' gun control laws.

A few days ago, when news hit that Cyprus has begun investigating who the people were who had managed to pull cash out of nation's insolvent banks, both during the capital control "blackout" period and previously, we asked "how much longer will the rule of law remain in Cyprus once full blown class warfare is unleashed, and the 99% are generously handed the list of the 1% who were "informed" enough to pull their money from the flaming sovereign equivalent of Bernie Madoff, while every other uninsured depositor is facing losses of up to 80%, and soon 100%?" We may get the answer much sooner than expected, as the first iteration of this list: one naming the beneficiaries of millions of loans written off by the now insolvent Cyprus banks and therefore indirectly responsible for the "impairment" of the banks' depositors, was released yesterday by Greece's daily Ethnos newspaper. But what virtually assures substantial political fallout is that among the people listed is Cyprus' former president, George Vassiliou.

It appears the European Central Bank is having trouble keeping its lies straight. When Jeroen Dijsselbloem ("Diesel-BOOM", "D-Boom", or just "Diesel") made his now infamous "template" comment last week, reality was shattered for many trend-following, momentum-monkey, hope-and-dreamers that actual real monetary pain could exist for a bank that was entirely incompetent (and insolvent). Instantly the rest of Europe stepped up to deny-deny-deny (as did D-Boom himself) explaining this was a 'unique' situation with French ECB Director Benoît Coeuré explicitly stating that Cyprus is not a model for future bank rescues. However, as Reuters reports, it appears fellow-Dutchman and ECB Governing Council member Klaas Knot said last night that there was "little wrong" with J-Boom's comment and that "the content of his remarks comes down to an approach which has been on the table for a longer time in Europe. This approach will be part of the European liquidation policy." Further confirming D-Boom's perspective, Knot added that, "there has to be transparency about losses in the banking sector... and banks have to wind down their loss-making operations." It seems that in 2012 the ECB split was between the Germans and Draghi on unlimited inflation threats; in 2013 it will be between those who want bail-ins and bail-outs.

• Lines Form as Cyprus Banks Reopen (WSJ)
• Greek Bets Sank Top Cyprus Lenders - Banks at Heart of Cyprus Mess Were Bullish on Athens as Other Investors Fled (WSJ)
• Hollande Economic Woes Masked by Cyprus Fig Leaf (BBG)
• M&A Stumbles Amid March Deal Drought (BBG) ... but any minute now
• Train hauling Canadian oil derails in Minnesota  (Reuters) - must be an evil pipeline riding first class
• Slovenian Austerity After Cyprus Fails to Stem Yield Gain (BBG)
• Banks Seek to Overturn Judge’s Ruling in Critical Mortgage Case (NYT)
• Ships Costing U.S. $37 Billion Lack Firepower, Navy Told (BBG)
• OECD still gloomy on eurozone recovery (FT)
• BOJ's Kuroda says asset purchase limit already broken (Reuters)
• Kuroda warns Japan debt ‘not sustainable’ (FT)
• BOJ’s Kuroda Vows to Continue Easing Until 2% Target Achieved (BBG)
• South Korea cuts economic forecast (FT)

The BTFD mantra is alive and well in a market, where futures overnight briefly dipped to a low of -0.5% only to be set to open at record high, following the biggest one day drubbing in China in months, where the Shanghai Composite closed -2.82% after new rules were issued by the Chinese banking regulator to limit the expansion and improve the transparency of so-called “wealth management products”. The products, which are marketed as higher yielding alternatives to bank deposits, are often used to fund risky projects including property developments, short-term corporate lines of credit or for speculative purchases of commodities and have been identified as contributing to the rise of shadow-banking in China’s financial system. As Deutsche reports, Fitch estimates the total amount of outstanding wealth-management products was around 13 trillion yuan at the end of last year—equal to about 15% of total banking-system deposits. Japanese equities were also weaker overnight (Nikkei –1.3%) and the yen is 0.3% firmer against the dollar after BoJ Governor Kuroda told parliament that he has no intention of buying foreign bonds because doing so could be seen as currency intervention. Finally, South Korea informally entered the currency wars after it slashed its GDP forecast from 3% to mid-2%, announcing it would use "interest rates" to boost growth, which naturally means use of monetary means and directly challenging the BOJ.

The Cyprus deposit scramble contagion spreads as Reuters reports that "Swiss banks would be required to "motivate" remaining U.S. clients to come clean to U.S. tax officials. If they failed to do so, confidential bank data would be forwarded to U.S. officials. The initial shipment of data from those banks would not include client names but, based on the data, U.S. officials would be able to submit a judicial aid requests to get the names of alleged tax evaders."

Some late news indicates that the 'deal' is further away than many hoped (or rumored) earlier in the day. Welt am Sonntag reports that German FinMin Schaeuble exclaimed "I won't allow myself to be blackmailed," adding his responsibility to the stability of the Euro. Simply put, he adds Cyprus must respect the rules, insistent that, "Cyprus is a hard road to go either way; but that is not the result of European stubbornness, but a business model that no longer works." With that as background, Cyprus President Anastasiades will be meeting with the IMF's Christine Lagarde tomorrow morning with talks at a "delicate point," with his spokesperson admitting the situation is "very difficult." The disinformation-to-total-confusion train pushes on forward; beggars can be choosers and 'demanders' won't be blackmailed.

Many commentators have spent a great deal of ink proclaiming China to be the next great economic power. While it is true China has seen dramatic improvements in its economy over the last 30 years, my view has been and remains that most of the “growth” of the China “miracle” is just a debt-fueled bubble built upon a loose foundation of Government corruption and fraud.