What to watch for today
Will the ECB pull the plug on Greece’s banks? The European Central Bank will decide whether to maintain or increase emergency loans to Greek banks—who are days away from running out of cash. Greece’s banks have been closed for a week in the run-up to the Greek referendum—which the “no” camp won decisively.
The Dalai Lama continues his birthday celebrations. The exiled Tibetan leader is in the US for a three-day celebration of his 80th birthday. The celebrations began on Sunday, where celebrities and Nobel Peace Prize winners were present.
The pope tours South America. After arriving in Ecuador on Sunday, Pope Francis will stop in Bolivia and Paraguay as part a nine-day trip through his home continent.
US commodities trading pits fall silent. In both New York and Chicago, the areas where traders bought and sold a range of commodities—and developed their own specific form of sign language—are expected to close permanently as electronic markets continues to dominate trading.
Over the weekend
Greeks voted “no” to bailout conditions… The country voted overwhelmingly against enduring more austerity in exchange for a new round of bailout funding from its creditors, putting Greece’s future in limbo. A summit of euro leaders has been called for Tuesday.
…and then finance minister Yanis Varoufakis quit. He felt there was a “certain preference“ for him not to be involved with future discussions. “I shall wear the creditors’ loathing with pride,” Varoufakis said. Prime minister Alexis Tsipras is still planning for more negotiations.
A tentative agreement was reached over Iran’s nuclear capacity. Negotiators from Iran and six other nations agreed on which sanctions to lift and when, in return for Iran’s restricting its development of nuclear technology. Negotiators, including US secretary of state John Kerry and Iranian foreign minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, are yet to sign off on the deal.
Rolls-Royce issued another profit warning. The British engineering company reduced its profit forecast for this year by as much as 5% and cut its outlook for next year by as much as 35% to £1 billion ($1.6 billion). Shares fell sharply (paywall).
Pressure mounted on Malaysia’s prime minister. The country’s two main opposition parties called for an emergency meeting of the government after its attorney-general said he had received documents “connected to allegations” that almost $700 million was transferred to prime minister Najib Razak’s personal accounts. Najib has denied taking the money and his government warned that journalists reporting the story could fall foul of the law.
A suicide bomber capped a week of violence in Nigeria. A church attack by the Islamic militant group Boko Haram killed five people on Sunday, bringing the death toll from the group’s attacks to over 200 for the week in Nigeria alone. President Muhhamadu Buhari called for the quick deployment of a regional military force to fight the militants.
Tunisia declared a state of emergency. The measure limits the public’s right to assembly and gives security forces extra powers, for a renewable 30-day period. President Beji Caid Essebsi said the country wasn’t reacting fast enough to terrorism, and also announced plans to close 80 mosques accused of operating “outside government control.”
Quartz obsession interlude
Kate Groetzinger on the world’s most brutal game of football. “It is played only in Florence, Italy, where four 27-man teams representing four historic Florentine neighborhoods face off to beat each other to a pulp, every June. Kicks to the head are forbidden. So are fights of two or more against one. Everything else goes.” Read more here.
Matters of debate
Europe must decide whether to make an example of Greece… It must calculate the benefit of a united Europe against Greece’s demands (paywall).
…although a Grexit wouldn’t be the end of the world. It would allow Greece to devalue its currency, making exports more competitive.
Anyway, Germany is acting like a hypocrite. It is the country that has never repaid its debts, says economist Thomas Piketty.
There’s a science to doing vacations right. Making the most of the first few days will leave you less likely to suffer post-vacation blues.
We cannot rely on the internet to teach our children. Students taught by living, breathing, human instructors score 98% better than those that don’t.
Surprising discoveries
Kenya is building the most efficient wind farm in the world. It will generate 20% of the country’s energy needs.
Malaysia’s home minister uses the “Avengers” font for his signature. It was spotted on a statement supporting the prime minister.
Japan held its first robot wedding ceremony. The bride was an android version of the pop star Yuki Kashiwagi.
Bugs have feelings, too. Scientific research suggests insects experience fear, anger, and empathy.
Seahorses might be the key to better robotics. Their square-shaped tails are ingenious design templates.
Our best wishes for a productive day. Please send any news, comments, robot wedding snaps, and whose loathing you wear with pride to hi@qz.com. You can follow us on Twitter for updates throughout the day.