Smoky Singapore gears up to talk money ahead of F1

Regional, ​business, cryptocurrency and sports leaders are meeting in Singapore for a slew of finance-focused ‌conferences ahead of this weekend's Grand Prix as haze continues to shroud the city-state.

Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr, famed investor Ray Dalio and Eric Trump, co-founder of the family-backed cryptocurrency business, are expected, while hundreds of thousands ​of Formula 1 fans will converge on the island.

The night race through the city ​streets and some 40 sideline events are typically a global showcase for Singapore ⁠and hotel room rates have soared.

The Fullerton Bay Hotel next to the race track is charging ​S$5,030 ($3,933) a night for a room that typically costs $1,460.

This year the pall from Indonesia's most intense fires ​in more than a decade will probably form part of the backdrop. Air quality was forecast at the "high moderate to low unhealthy" range on Monday by Singapore's environment agency. No longer-range forecast was provided for Sunday's Grand Prix.

Singapore's ​tourism board said F1 and its surrounding events had "strong momentum" reflecting confidence despite economic and geopolitical ​uncertainty.

Jitters in financial markets where bond prices are slumping and sentiment around AI is shifting from euphoric to cautious will ‌occupy investors ⁠and business chiefs at the Forbes Global CEO Conference and Milken Asia Summit, which runs from Wednesday.

Trump, a co-founder of crypto venture World Liberty Financial, is due to speak at the TOKEN2049 cryptocurrency event with digital asset markets fragile following a bruising 12 months.

A hoped-for regulatory framework failed last ​month to clear the ​US Senate, in part ⁠as President Donald Trump's personal crypto dealings became a flashpoint for Democrats.

Despite a recent bounce, the total value of the cryptocurrency market is down ​about a quarter over the last 12 months to $3 trillion, according to ​data aggregator ⁠CoinGecko.

Still, organisers say their event is nearly sold out with 25,000 attendees expected, the same as last year. The Straits Times reported that about 90,000 "c-suite," or top-ranking, executives will be in town.