A couple of big-time SCOTUS opinions released yesterday will leave their mark on the financial world— First, the High Court found that internet retailers can be “required to collect sales taxes in states where they have no...more
6/22/2018
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Appointments Clause ,
Banks ,
CEOs ,
Chipotle Grill ,
Commerce Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Department of Labor (DOL) ,
Deregulation ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
EU ,
Fannie Mae ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Fraternization Policies ,
Freddie Mac ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Intel ,
Internet Retailers ,
Interstate Commerce ,
Lucia v SEC ,
Physical Presence Test ,
Quill ,
Regulation A ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Removal For-Cause ,
Sales & Use Tax ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Single Director ,
South Dakota v. Wayfair ,
Special Trial Judges (STJs) ,
Stress Tests ,
Substantial Nexus ,
Tariffs ,
Trade Relations
After more than 110 years as one of its mainstays, General Electric is out of the Dow Jones Industrial Average. It will be replaced by drugstore retailer Walgreens Boots Alliance....more
6/20/2018
/ Asset Freeze ,
Automotive Industry ,
Banks ,
Bonds ,
China ,
Debt Instruments ,
Dow Jones ,
Elon Musk ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FDIC ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Ford Motor ,
General Electric ,
Investment Fraud ,
Living Will ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Tariffs ,
Tesla ,
Trade Policy ,
Trade Retaliation ,
Volkswagen ,
Walgreens ,
Wall Street
A surprisingly strong May US jobs report helped propel stocks up on Friday and end a tumultuous week on a high note....more
6/4/2018
/ Administrative Appointments ,
Apple ,
Australia ,
Banks ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Drug Trafficking ,
E-Commerce ,
Economic Development ,
Financial Markets ,
Hulu ,
Job Creation ,
Money Laundering ,
Referendums ,
SEC Commissioner ,
Smartphones ,
Stock Prices ,
Switzerland ,
Tariffs ,
Trump Administration ,
Unemployment ,
US Trade Policies ,
Warren Buffett
A political crisis in Rome has economics [at least partially] and EU commitment at its core and is reminding some observers of the Greece morass of a few years back. The uncertainty the situation’s creating is not expected to...more
5/29/2018
/ Automotive Industry ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Canada ,
Chrysler ,
Coinbase ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Data Breach ,
Digital Currency ,
Director Mulvaney ,
Dodd-Frank ,
EU ,
Fiat ,
Fidelity Investments ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) ,
Global Market ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Italy ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Retail Market ,
RICO ,
Sun Capital Partners ,
Volcker Rule
Campbell’s Soup CEO Denise Morrison retired abruptly late last Friday. Though the company’s stock has struggled in the past year, Morrison gave no reason for stepping down—a move that drops the number of female chief...more
5/21/2018
/ Banks ,
Campbell Soup Company ,
CFTC ,
China ,
Commodities ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Corporate Culture ,
Credit Ratings ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cyprus Bailout ,
Derivative Suit ,
Financial Instruments ,
Foreign Trade Regulations ,
Goldman Sachs ,
Greece ,
Media ,
Rating Agencies ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Tariffs ,
Theranos ,
Trade Relations ,
Wells Fargo ,
Woman Board Members
Vodafone will spend $23 billion in cash to snap up operations in four European countries from Liberty Global PLC, which specializes in cable operations....more
5/9/2018
/ Australia ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Comcast ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Corporate Culture ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Breach ,
Equifax ,
Incentive Compensation ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Iran ,
Iran Sanctions ,
Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) ,
Nike ,
NYSE ,
Oil & Gas ,
Oil Prices ,
Token Sales ,
Trading Platforms ,
Trump Administration ,
Valeant
As has been buzzed about for several months, music-streaming startup Spotify has officially filed [directly] a prospectus for its listing on the New York Stock Exchange....more
3/1/2018
/ Bank of America ,
Banks ,
Basel Committee on Banking Supervision (BCBS) ,
Capital Raising ,
Corporate Culture ,
Credit Cards ,
Credit Ratings ,
Debt ,
EU ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Herbalife ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Millennials ,
Mortgage Servicers ,
Music Streaming ,
Ocwen ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Spotify ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
Unemployment
The Times explores the $27 billion in fixed-income-trading income that has seeped out of Wall Street over the past 5 years thanks to “a combination of tough regulations, new technologies, calm markets and changing customer...more
1/12/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Data Storage Providers ,
Digital Currency ,
Dropbox ,
ETFs ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Fixed Income Investments ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Iran ,
Regulatory Standards ,
Shopping Centers ,
South Korea ,
Virtual Currency
AT&T has dropped plans to sell the Mate 10—the newest smartphone from China’s Huawei Technologies—just before the partnership was to be announced. AT&T gave no reasons for its abrupt reversal, but lawmakers have recently...more
1/10/2018
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
AT&T ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Bond Markets ,
Broker-Dealer ,
China ,
Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA) ,
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Digital Currency ,
Distributed Ledger Technology (DLT) ,
Dominos ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Espionage ,
FCC ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Markets ,
FinCEN ,
Hackers ,
Huawei ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Insider Trading ,
Intel ,
Kodak ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Regulatory Violations ,
Securities Violations ,
Smartphones ,
Telecommunications ,
Telemarketing Sales Rule ,
Virtual Currency ,
Vulnerability Assessments
China has put the kibosh on micro-lending, a move that has cut short not just the consumer loans themselves but the giant asset-backed securities market—a $37 billion industry in China last year alone. The new curbs have had...more
1/9/2018
/ Apple ,
Asset-Backed Securities ,
Banks ,
China ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Markets ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Lending ,
Libor ,
Restaurant Industry ,
Stocks ,
Switzerland ,
Technology Sector ,
Toyota ,
UK
US regulators have given passing grades to the living wills for all 8 major US banks, a reversal from the April 2016 determination that 5 of the 8 had deficiencies in their bailout-prevention plans....more
12/20/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Barclays ,
Bitcoin ,
C-Suite Executives ,
Digital Currency ,
EU ,
Financial Services Industry ,
FinTech ,
Gig Economy ,
Health Care Providers ,
Hospital Mergers ,
Libor ,
Living Will ,
Money Transfer ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Ridesharing ,
Sexual Harassment ,
Sharing Economy ,
Transportation Industry ,
Uber ,
Virtual Currency ,
Woman Board Members
The UK and EU made a significant breakthrough early this morning to “unlock” Brexit divorce negotiations. The still-rough agreement would see Britain repaying $53 billion and addressed in at least vague terms thorny issues...more
12/8/2017
/ Bank of New York (BNY) Mellon ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Basel IV ,
Bitcoin ,
Caterpillar ,
Citigroup ,
Corruption ,
Digital Currency ,
Economic Development ,
Energy Sector ,
EU ,
Federal Reserve ,
General Electric ,
Ireland ,
Job Creation ,
Member State ,
Railways ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
RMBS ,
Stress Tests ,
Tax Reform ,
UK ,
UK Brexit ,
White Collar Crimes
Here’s the inside scoop on “Sheltered Harbor,” a “doomsday project” from US banks that they hope will “prevent a run on the financial system should one of them suffer a debilitating cyberattack.” The gargantuan voluntary...more
12/4/2017
/ Aetna ,
Banks ,
BlackRock ,
Citibank ,
CVS ,
Cyber Attacks ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disney ,
Fox Broadcasting ,
Insurance Industry ,
Investment Adviser ,
Lehman Brothers ,
Pharmacies ,
Qualcomm ,
Rating Agencies ,
RMBS ,
Wells Fargo
As retailers do all they can to fight the e-commerce wave, some bricks-and-mortar shops are experimenting with a rather counterintuitive strategy: smaller spaces and a showroom-style approach....more
11/20/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Brick-and-Mortar Stores ,
Digital Currency ,
E-Commerce ,
FSOC ,
General Electric ,
Global Systemically Important Banks (G-SIBs) ,
Inflation Adjustments ,
Internet Retailers ,
Non-Bank Lenders ,
Phillips Standard ,
Retail Market ,
SIFIs ,
Silicon Valley ,
Technology Sector ,
Virtual Currency ,
Wells Fargo
In a major blow to the SEC, in-house judge Carol Fox Foelak dismissed the agency’s fraud claims against financier Lynn Tilton concerning statements to investors in her Zohar CLO funds. For years, Tilton had worked to avoid a...more
Uber’s got more than a spot of bother on its hands in London after this morning’s announcement that the company’s largest market in Europe won’t renew the ride-hailing service’s license to operate in the city (citing “a lack...more
9/22/2017
/ AIG ,
Banks ,
Bonds ,
China ,
Corporate Social Responsibility ,
Credit Ratings ,
Data Breach ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
EDGAR ,
EU ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Markets ,
FSOC ,
Global Market ,
Google ,
Grocery Stores ,
Hackers ,
HTC America ,
Moody's ,
Payment Systems ,
Public Safety ,
S&P ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Sharing Economy ,
SIFIs ,
Smartphones ,
Technology Sector ,
Uber ,
UK
Activist investor Nelson Peltz is officially taking on his biggest target yet—consumer-products giant Procter & Gamble. The announcement begins the public stage of a fight we’ve been waiting for since Peltz’s Trian Fund Mgmt...more
7/17/2017
/ Activist Investors ,
Automotive Loans ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
China ,
Equity Transactions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Fixed Income Investments ,
Insider Trading ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Subprime Loans ,
Telecommuting ,
Wells Fargo
With politics swirling around in the background, the AT&T/Time Warner mega-merger is still up in the air, with DOJ antitrust officials still working away (8 months after the deal was announced) to determine whether...more
7/10/2017
/ Antitrust Provisions ,
AT&T ,
Banks ,
Berkshire Hathaway ,
Biometric Information ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Employee Benefits ,
Fiduciary Rule ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Investment Adviser ,
Martin Shkreli ,
Retirement Plan ,
Smartphones ,
Time Warner Cable ,
UK ,
UK Brexit
Its recent debt sale was enough to score Italy’s Monte dei Paschi a government bailout, one of the first since the 2008 crisis and a test case for the ECB’s new bank bailout rules....more
6/2/2017
/ Anbang ,
Bailout ,
Banks ,
Blue Apron ,
China ,
Climate Change ,
Exxon Mobil ,
Financial Institutions ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Job Creation ,
Junk Bonds ,
Oil & Gas ,
On-Demand Services
Coach is looking to appeal to a younger generation (hint, big sales running nearly all the time would help), and it’s decided that buying is the way to go, announcing yesterday that it’s snapping up Kate Spade for $2.4...more
5/9/2017
/ Banks ,
Bonds ,
Charter Communications ,
Citigroup ,
Comcast ,
Deutsche Bank ,
Fashion Industry ,
Financial Crisis ,
Financial Institutions ,
JPMorgan Chase ,
Qui Tam ,
Rental Property ,
RMBS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Settlement ,
South Korea ,
Telecommunications
It’s been far from a smooth ride for Uber over the past few weeks. And Friday’s revelation that the ride-sharing company’s been using a tool called “Greyball” to mine and use app data to “deceive the authorities in markets...more
3/6/2017
/ Appeals ,
Automotive Industry ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Blockchain ,
Capital Raising ,
Deutsche Bank ,
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Federal Reserve ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
General Motors ,
Interest Rate Adjustments ,
Mobile Apps ,
RMBS ,
Securities Violations ,
Sharing Economy ,
Summary Judgment ,
Technology Sector ,
Uber ,
Valuation
In this week’s Common Sense entry, James Stewart lets us in on how an entity that loses so much money (Snap) could be worth so much [it gained 44 percent on its offering price in the first day of trading]. The answer is being...more
3/3/2017
/ Amazon ,
Banks ,
Bitcoin ,
Capital Raising ,
Caterpillar ,
Deregulation ,
Digital Currency ,
Dodd-Frank ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Crisis ,
Financial Institutions ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Internet ,
Moody's ,
Offerings ,
Offshore Funds ,
Snapchat ,
Technology Sector
It may lack some of the flourish of a BBG missive, but you can be sure that plenty of insiders are paying close attention to Mr. Buffet’s annual letter to Berkshire Hathaway shareholders....more
2/27/2017
/ Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Berkshire Hathaway ,
Bonds ,
Capital Raising ,
China ,
Citigroup ,
Dodd-Frank ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Financial Markets ,
Foreign Workers ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
Investment ,
Investors ,
Japan ,
Offerings ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Smartphones ,
Stocks ,
Technology ,
Warren Buffett ,
Whistleblowers ,
Wireless Industry ,
Wireless Technology
A review of the Fed minutes released yesterday shows the willingness of some Fed Governors to start rate raising again sooner rather than later....more
2/23/2017
/ Academy Awards ,
Banking Sector ,
Banks ,
Energy Sector ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Crisis ,
Financial Institutions ,
FinTech ,
Foreclosure ,
Innovation ,
Innovative Technology ,
Interest Rate Adjustments ,
Interest Rates ,
NASA ,
Outer Space ,
Renewable Energy ,
Secretary of the Treasury ,
Shareholders ,
Silicon Valley ,
Solar Energy ,
SolarCity ,
Tax Reform ,
TCPA ,
Technology ,
U.S. Treasury ,
Wells Fargo
Activist investor Carl Icahn has taken a sizeable stake in Bristol-Myers Squibb, a move that reportedly caught execs at the drugmaker unawares and sets the stage for a potential sale....more
2/22/2017
/ Activist Investors ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Automotive Industry ,
Automotive Loans ,
Bank Accounts ,
Banks ,
Bristol-Myers Squibb ,
Consumer Financial Products ,
Consumer Lenders ,
Cross-Selling ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Federal Reserve ,
Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Fraud ,
HSBC ,
Interest Rate Adjustments ,
Money Laundering ,
Multinationals ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
UK ,
Universal Health Services Inc v United States ex rel Escobar ,
Wells Fargo