Gaza Reconstruction Politics: Israel’s Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich and National Missions Minister Orit Strock are pushing for a new vote on the government’s Board of Peace recommendations, arguing ministers were misled on legal and operational consequences tied to Gaza postwar reconstruction. Central Banking Appointments: The RBI named Monisha Chakraborty Executive Director, overseeing the Foreign Exchange Department and Financial Markets Regulation Department, effective Aug. 3. Iraq Public Finance Pressure: Iraq’s finance minister asked parliament for permission to brief lawmakers on mounting public-finance challenges as oil export disruptions strain the budget and threaten salary payments. AI Infrastructure Credit Demand: Citadel Securities forecasts another $500B+ of debt by 2028 to fund AI chip supply chains, with much of it likely 3–5 year issuance. Crypto Market & Custody Moves: American Bitcoin reported a $57.2M Q2 net loss while growing its BTC holdings; Bitmine added 10,399 ETH to treasury and kept buybacks going. Regulatory Enforcement: FinCEN assessed a record $125M penalty on UBS Financial Services for repeat Bank Secrecy Act violations. Banking Risk Research (Haiti): Haiti’s central bank published stress-test work showing resilience to moderate shocks but vulnerability when macro and institutional weaknesses stack up. Corporate Finance: Sundaram Finance posted Q1FY27 consolidated profit up 34% to ₹636 crore, with improved asset quality.