10 THINGS BEFORE THE OPENING BELL

Traders work on the floor of the New York Stock exchange

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1. Global stocks trade at record highs. See what markets are doing today.

2. Bitcoin jumps to within $2 of $50,000. Interest from major financial firms including BNY Mellon and Mastercard has helped add to the asset's legitimacy.

3. Cathie Wood's ARK boosted its Grayscale Bitcoin Trust holdings. The firm bought 2.14 million additional shares in the digital asset product, bringing its total holdings to 7.31 million shares.

4. A House hearing on the GameStop saga takes place Thursday. Witnesses including YouTube streamer Roaring Kitty, as well as executives from Robinhood, Melvin Capital, and Citadel, will testify.

5. Howard Marks and Joel Greenblatt's 9 best quotes from a recent interview. The value investors suggested some companies deserve their lofty valuations.

6. Earnings expected. CVS Health, Palantir, and Occidental Petroleum are highlights.

7. On the data docket. Fed Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman's speech and the US 3-month and 6-month bill auctions are due.

8. EXCLUSIVE: An asset manager overseeing nearly $100 billion divested from Exxon. Kempen Capital Management sold its shares after Exxon was unwilling to engage with shareholders on climate-related policies.

9. Goldman Sachs is looking at heavily shorted stocks for what could be the next GameStop. The firm says these 40 stocks could be squeezed higher if targeted by retail investors.

10. Tom Finke recounts how he went from running a $345 billion money manager to joining in the SPAC boom as a sponsor. He also shares 3 characteristics investors should look for in an ideal blank-check company.