Bloomberg - Evening Briefing - Where Covid came from

U.S. President Joe Biden said he ordered the U.S. intelligence community to “redouble” its effort to determine the origin of the coronavirus, including whether it came from a Chinese lab accident. In India, doctors and nurses are burning out amid the nation’s continuing Covid-19 catastrophe, one in which a New York Times study said the true death toll could be in the millions. The European Union attacked AstraZeneca’s vaccine supply “failure” and demanded an urgent order for millions more doses. And for those who have been infected and recover, Covid immunity may last a year or longer. Here’s the latest on the pandemic. —David E. Rovella

Bloomberg is tracking the progress of coronavirus vaccines while mapping the pandemic globally and across America. 

Here are today’s top stories  

Wall Street’s main regulator is signaling that the Biden era will include tougher oversight for cryptocurrencies and blank-check companies, two of the white-hot market’s most talked-about asset classes.

Royal Dutch Shell was ordered by a Dutch court to slash its emissions harder and faster than planned, a ruling that could have far-reaching consequences for the rest of the global fossil fuel industry.

Republicans led by Senator Mitch McConnell of Kentucky are poised to block legislation that would create a commission to investigate the Jan. 6 insurrection. The deadly attack on Congress, unprecedented in American history, left five people dead as supporters of President Donald Trump ransacked the heart of American democracy. The mother of Capitol Police Officer Brian Sicknick, who was assaulted with chemical spray by the rioters and subsequently died, urged the Republicans to reconsider.

Cities in the middle of America have turned into hubs for immigration, helping in some cases to reverse generations of declining birthrates. Columbus, Ohio, and Des Moines, Iowa, are among the metropolitan areas with the fastest-growing foreign-born populations.

Long before Jeremy Barnum was promoted to chief financial officer of JPMorgan, he was fired over a trading mishap—by JPMorgan. He later parted ways with hedge fund BlueMountain Capital over another market blunder. Here’s how Barnum wrote his second act.

Justin Trudeau is beginning to sketch out a plan to reopen the U.S. border, but Canadians don’t appear keen to rush it. When travel does resume, they overwhelmingly agree proof of vaccination should be mandatory.

The super-rich have made their choice. In a world overrun by pandemic, economic uncertainty and geopolitical volatility, the 1% are pouring their money into this city. 

What you’ll need to know tomorrow 

• Bank CEOs took punches from both sides of the aisle on Capitol Hill.
• Especially Jamie Dimon, who was slammed by Sen. Elizabeth Warren.
• Big bank CEOs raked in even more cash during the pandemic.
• Exxon’s CEO had a very bad day too, thanks to this activist investor. 
• Wall Street’s greenwashing gold rush conjures up a “Green Bitcoin.”
• A quant pioneer is buying up bonds that Ray Dalio really hates.
• Amazon buys MGM Studio, the home of James Bond, for $8.5 billion. 

You’ll Never Lose Your Luggage Again

When Apple premiered its iPhone in 2007, it wasn’t inventing the cellular phone or even the smartphone. But the company revolutionized communication with a product that’s since been improved by leaps and bounds. Likewise, with its AirTag location tracker, the $2 trillion tech giant hasn’t created a category; it’s rethought an existing item to outpace its competitors. And in doing so, it will perhaps make extinct a special kind of disaster dreaded by travelers since the beginning of commercial flight.

Like getting the Evening Briefing? Subscribe to Bloomberg.com for unlimited access to trusted, data-driven journalism and gain expert analysis from exclusive subscriber-only newsletters.

Cities are changing fast. Sign up for the Bloomberg CityLab Daily newsletter to keep pace with the latest news and perspectives on communities and neighborhoods around the world.

Download the Bloomberg app: It’s available for iOS and Android.

Before it’s here, it’s on the Bloomberg Terminal. Find out more about how the Terminal delivers information and analysis that financial professionals can’t find anywhere else. Learn more.