Javier Pimentel 10/6/26 Javier Pimentel 10/6/26

The Vallog watch robbery in Berlin

Very little has been written in English about the Vallog watch robbery in Berlin. Here is the story from the perspective of one of the actual victims, including the serial numbers of some of the stolen watches.

Javier Pimentel 10/6/26 Javier Pimentel 10/6/26

La música de los Hermanos Gutiérrez

La música de los Hermanos Gutiérrez: El sonido del desierto se encuentra con el blues de la urbe

Javier Pimentel 9/22/26 Javier Pimentel 9/22/26

Tasa de Usura: Innovarla en vez de eliminarla

David Vélez propuso recientemente la eliminación de las tasas de usura. La motivación es loable: Aumentar el acceso al crédito y reducir la prevalencia de los “gota a gota”. Sin embargo, el consenso de la literatura especializada es que dejar las tasas de interés al arbitrio del mercado sería muy malo para la calidad del crédito en Colombia. Acá va un texto breve para explicar por qué y para esbozar dos alternativas que podrían ser más efectivas para lograr los objetivos que propone Vélez sin deteriorar la calidad de la oferta de crédito. Si un titán como Nu se comprometiera con alguna de estas ideas (menos simplistas pero más efectivas) es muy posible que se lograra una reforma que mejorara la inclusión financiera y el acceso al crédito de buena calidad para los colombianos.

Javier Pimentel 9/6/26 Javier Pimentel 9/6/26

Krugman’s Substack

Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Krugman, my favourite economist (and a great beacon of moral clarity in the times of MAGA) left the New York Times in 2024. HIs substack, where you can read him unedited and without going through a paywall is a great thing to follow.

Javier Pimentel 9/4/26 Javier Pimentel 9/4/26

Hiking up Jebel Jais

A travel note about Jebel Jais and the hike to the highest peak in the UAE, for those who claim everything is “artificial” in this part of the world.

Javier Pimentel 8/31/26 Javier Pimentel 8/31/26

Sobre Alpe d’Huez

Esta es una reseña de Alpe d’Huez, la penúltima novela de Ricardo Silva Romero que se ocupa de la colombianidad a través de la hazaña de Lucho Herrera en la “etapa reina” del tour de Francia.

Javier Pimentel 8/25/26 Javier Pimentel 8/25/26

The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque

A quick travel note with my favorite pictures of Sheikh Zayed’s Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi.

Javier Pimentel 8/22/26 Javier Pimentel 8/22/26

Owner’s Review: The Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer with Blue Dial

This is my honest review of the blue dial Speedmaster Moonphase Co-Axial Master Chronometer after owning it for 8 years. In a nutshell: One of my favorite speedies ever (bar the Platinum 321), one of the coolest moon phase displays you can get and perhaps the watch that I would keep if I could only keep one.

Javier Pimentel 8/16/26 Javier Pimentel 8/16/26

The View from Lion’s Head

A brief travel note about my second and finally successful attempt to get to the top of Lion’s Head, Cape Town, just to be rewarded with one of the most beautiful sunsets I can remember.

Javier Pimentel 8/15/26 Javier Pimentel 8/15/26

El Problema con Juanpis González

Siempre me ha parecido que Juanpis Gonzales, el personaje de Alejandro Riaño, es una oportunidad perdida, una sátira más bien tonta. Acá explico por qué.

Javier Pimentel 8/4/26 Javier Pimentel 8/4/26

The ECJ’s Betaal Garant Decision: Good Outcome, Problematic Reasoning

On July 16th, the European Court of Justice weighed in on the critical question of what constitutes a payment service under EU Law. The ruling examined penalties imposed by the Dutch Central Bank to Betaal Garant, a firm that issues deposit guarantees in the context of construction projects without a payments license. In this brief article, I argue that the court achieved the right outcome for the case at hand, but also that its reasoning may reopen a number of previously settled questions about activity-based-regulation that create uncertainty about the scope of PSD2.

Javier Pimentel 7/31/26 Javier Pimentel 7/31/26

Key takeaways (for fintech firms) from the CBUAE’s new Operational Risk Management Regulation

The Central Bank of the UAE recently issued a new Operational Risk Management Regulation (C 1/2026 - issued through public Notice No. 4047-2026) that materially raises operational risk management and resilience expectations for all licensed financial institutions (the previous regulation applied only to banks). It enters into force in one month, so here are some non-AI generated takeaways (Copilot was used for a light proofread) that may be helpful for fintech firms in a rush to comply.

Javier Pimentel 7/28/26 Javier Pimentel 7/28/26

Any Given Sunday at Pike Place Market

A brief travel note about a Sunday at Pike Place Market, Seattle. This is my first photo series completely shot with my then new Leica M11P and the Summilux 35mm 1.4.

Javier Pimentel 7/24/26 Javier Pimentel 7/24/26

Los Relojes de Lafaurie

Este es mi “review” de la colección de relojes de Juan José Lafaurie, el hijo de Jose Félix Lafaurie (célebre presidente de Fedegán) y Maria Fernanda Cabal (senadora de Ultra'-derecha) a quien el próximo ministro de agricultura avaló como “pequeño productor”, elegible para ser beneficiario de un crédito blando por 400 millones y un subsidio de 95 millones para repagarlo.