From Louvre Heist to Boeing’s Bruise: Arrests, Reforms, and Global Shifts

27th October 2025

The suspects behind the $102 million Louvre jewel heist have been caught, just as one tried to flee France. Meanwhile, Japan makes history with the launch of the world’s first yen-pegged stablecoin, signaling a new era for digital finance. Over in the U.S., Boeing’s 13-week strike drags on after workers rejected yet another contract, deepening tensions in its defense arm. And in India, regulators are racing to patch cracks in the financial system after $17 billion fled its markets this year. All this and more in today’s Read It And Eat.

Major Headlines 

• Suspects in Louvre jewel heist arrested near Paris, prosecutor says

Suspects have been arrested over the brazen jewellery heist at the Louvre, just as one of them was about to fly out of France, the Paris prosecutor said on Sunday. Two men in their 30s and originally from the capital's Seine-Saint-Denis suburb - which includes some of the country's most deprived areas - were detained on Saturday evening, according to Le Parisien newspaper, which first broke the story. 

They were known to French police and one of the suspects was about to fly to Algeria from Charles de Gaulle airport, the newspaper said. There was no indication on Sunday that any of France's stolen crown jewels had been recovered. Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau did not say how many people were arrested or give any more details about them. In a statement, she deplored the fact that information about their arrest was leaked.

 "This revelation can only hinder the investigative efforts of the 100 or so mobilised investigators, both in the search for the stolen jewellery and for all the perpetrators. It is too early to provide any specific details," Beccuau said. Interior Minister Laurent Nunez, under public pressure to deliver results a week to the day after the robbery, congratulated investigators in a tweet, but gave no more detail.

Four hooded thieves made off with eight precious pieces worth an estimated $102 million from the Louvre's collection on October 19, exposing security lapses at the world's most-visited museum. They broke in using a crane to smash an upstairs window during opening hours and escaped on motorbikes. News of the robbery reverberated around the world, prompting soul-searching in France over what some regarded as a national humiliation. Reuters

• World's first yen-pegged stablecoin debuts in Japan

The world's first stablecoin pegged to the yen launched in Japan on Monday, a small but significant move in a country where many consumers still prefer to use traditional payment means like cash and credit cards. JPYC, a Japanese startup, began issuing the stablecoins - also called JPYC - which are fully convertible to the yen and backed by domestic savings and Japanese government bonds (JGBs).

The company aims to issue 10 trillion yen ($66 billion) worth of JPYC over three years and have the digital assets used widely overseas. It does not initially plan to charge transaction fees to encourage its usage, and instead aims to earn money from interest on holdings of JGBs. "We hope to spur innovation by giving startups access to low transaction and settlement fees," CEO Noritaka Okabe told a press briefing. "Increasing global interoperability would benefit us too, so we're open to capital tie-ups," he added.

Blockchain-based stablecoins are typically pegged to a fiat currency and offer faster and cheaper transactions. With strong backing from U.S. President Donald Trump, stablecoins pegged to the U.S. dollar have surged and now account for over 99% of global stablecoin supply, according to the Bank for International Settlements. Interest in stablecoins is also gaining momentum globally, and Japan's three megabanks will jointly issue stablecoins, the Nikkei daily reported this month.

Tomoyuki Shimoda, a former Bank of Japan executive who is currently an academic at Japan's Rikkyo University, said yen stablecoins are not going to have the same momentum as those backed by the U.S. dollar - the world's reserve currency used across the globe. "There's a lot of uncertainty on whether yen stablecoins will become widespread in Japan," he said. "If megabanks join the market, the pace could accelerate. But it could still take at least two to three years." Reuters

• Workers reject Boeing's latest offer after nearly three months on strike

Striking workers at Boeing Defense (BA.N), in the St. Louis area rejected the company's latest contract proposal on Sunday, sending a strike that has already delayed delivery of fighter jets and other programs into its 13th week. In a statement after the vote, union leadership said the company had failed to address the needs of the roughly 3,200 members of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM) District 837.

"Boeing claimed they listened to their employees - the result of today's vote proves they have not," IAM International President Brian Bryant said in a statement. "Boeing's corporate executives continue to insult the very people who build the world's most advanced military aircraft - the same planes and military systems that keep our servicemembers and nation safe." "We’re disappointed with the vote result," Boeing said in a statement, adding that "we are turning our focus to executing the next phase of our contingency plan."

The five-year offer was largely the same as offers previously rejected by union members. The company reduced the ratification bonus but added $3,000 in Boeing shares that vest over three years and a $1,000 retention bonus in four years. It also improved wage growth for workers at the top of the pay scale in the fourth year of the contract. "To fund the increases in this offer, we had to make trade-offs," including reduced hourly wage increases tied to attendance and certain shift work, Boeing Vice President Dan Gillian said in a message to workers on Thursday.

IAM leaders have pressed the planemaker for higher retirement plan contributions and a ratification bonus closer to the $12,000 that Boeing gave to union members on strike last year in the company's commercial airplane division in the Pacific Northwest. Boeing's Gillian has called the company's offer a landmark deal and "market-leading," and he has repeatedly said Boeing would not increase the overall value of its terms, and only shift value around.

Boeing is expected to report another unprofitable quarter when it posts its third-quarter results on Wednesday. Wall Street analysts anticipate the company will announce a multi-billion-dollar charge on its 777X program, which is six years behind schedule and not yet certified by regulators. In September, IAM members approved the union's proposed four-year contract. However, Boeing management has refused to consider that offer. Reuters

• India races to reform financial sector as foreigners pull $17 billion

Rattled by nearly $17 billion in foreign outflows this year, India is doubling down on financial sector reforms in a push to beef up capital buffers and lift investment in the country amid wider worries about the economic hit from U.S. tariffs. Several measures to anchor foreign participation and boost credit have already been announced by the central bank and market regulator in recent months. 

These include quicker pathways for companies to list and foreign funds and overseas lenders to enter and rules that allow corporates to borrow more easily and banks to finance mergers. Other areas of regulatory easing in India's $260 billion financial sector are under discussion to be rolled out over the next six-to-12 months, said six regulatory and market sources with knowledge of the matter. The possible changes include bolstering capital market participation by mom-and-pop investors in smaller towns and further easing banking regulations, said the sources.

The dismantling of decades-old restrictions comes as Prime Minister Narendra Modi pushes for greater economic self-reliance after concerns about the hit to India's growth from punitive U.S. tariffs unnerved foreign investors. A SEBI spokesperson, in response to Reuters queries, said it has introduced 11 "major reforms" for foreign investors to improve their access to India and enhance India’s global competitiveness.

"There is an increased focus on ease of doing business and the regulatory cholesterol clogging up the financial sector is being cleared," said Srini Srinivasan, managing director, Kotak Alternate Asset Managers, which manages $20 billion in assets. Foreign investors have net sold nearly $17 billion in Indian equities this year, compared with $124 million in inflows in 2024 and $20 billion in 2023. The sell-off has made India the worst-hit Asian market in terms of foreign portfolio withdrawals. The gradual loosening in India coincides with the initiatives China has unveiled Reuters 

Minor Headlines 

• China presses for stronger economic, trade ties after Trump departs ASEAN summit Reuters

  
  

• More than 8,000 US flights delayed as air traffic control absences persist Reuters

  
  

• Most of the Magnificent 7 to report earnings this week, along with 170 other companies The Economic Times

  
  

• President Javier Milei’s party won over 40 percent of the vote in elections in Argentina seen as a key test for his presidency NPR

  
  

•  Netflix’s Selling Sunset is back for a ninth season on Wednesday Netflix 

  
  

• Kosovo's parliament fails to elect prime minister as snap election looms Reuters

  
  

• Luxury brands turn on the charm in China to kindle nascent spending recovery Reuters

  
  

• UK police arrest wrongly-released asylum seeker jailed for sex assault Reuters