With the Federal Reserve's recent hikes of its federal funds rate, borrowers with small-business loans may think that they've missed their opportunity to refinance to a lower interest rate. A lower interest rate may still be within reach, because the rate you pay on your business loan is influenced by more than the Federal Reserve. "If someone is looking to get a…
Advisor News
Consumer prices jumped 8.2% in the 12 months through September, and the Federal Reserve is raising interest rates. Famed investor Cathie Wood, chief executive of Ark Investment Management, reiterated her view Nov. 8 that deflation is the big economic concern, not inflation. Companies in the innovation technology areas that Ark focuses on now have a market…
BMO Financial Group must pay the bankruptcy trustees of Tom Petters $563.7 million in damages for the role a predecessor bank played in the multibillion-dollar fraud by the Minnesota businessman, a federal jury in St. Paul ruled Tuesday. The judgment is believed to be the largest financial penalty ever handed out by a jury in a Minnesota courtroom, attorneys…
District Judge Edward Davila is the latest setback for Holmes, a former Silicon Valley star who once boasted an estimated net worth of $4.5 billion but is now facing up to 20 years prison that would separate her from her 1- year-old son. In the latest twist in a Silicon Valley soap opera, Holmes appeared to be pregnant when she showed up for an Oct. 17 hearing about her…
The seizure occurred during a previously undisclosed raid on a Georgia residence in connection with a 2012 wire fraud scheme conducted via the infamous, now-shuttered dark web blackmarket, Silk Road. The DOJ' s raid remains its second-largest cryptocurrency seizure ever after this year's recovery of $3.6 billion in Bitcoin from Ilya Lichtenstein and…
Survey: Americans fear recession, seek personalized financial advice
Many Americans fear the country may slide into recession, according to a new MDRT study, which also found that people would prefer personalized financial advice rather than relying on digital platforms or “universal rules.”
DENVER— Many of us are dreaming a Powerball dream, now that the jackpot is approaching $2 billion. "You do not want to lose that ticket so make sure you have it in a safe spot where you know you can get to at any time," said Thomas Reilly with Strategic Wealth Designers. Wally Darling, owner of Lakewood Hills Investments, agrees.
Life insurance gap persists for Black Americans
With a life insurance gap still present among Black Americans, an MDRT member shares some critical insights agents should keep top-of-mind as they pursue the African- American market.
Federal Reserve officials are battling the fastest inflation in four decades, and as they do they are parsing a wide variety of data sources to see what might happen next. If they check in on how executives are describing their companies' latest financial results, they might have reasons to worry. "While we are seeing signs of economic slowing, consumers and…
J. Mitchell Lowe, previous CEO of the movie ticket subscription service, and Theodore Farnsworth, former leader of the company's now-defunct parent firm Helios& Matheson Analytics Inc, allegedly schemed to defraud MoviePass investors by producing "materially false and misleading representations" of business activities to boost stock prices and attract…
The trial is set to start Jan. 23 in Walterboro, and Murdaugh’ s lawyers, Dick Harpootlian and Jim Griffin, had petitioned the court to allow Murdaugh to cash out his 401 to pay for expert witnesses and other trial expenses. Meanwhile, court appointed receivers have been given approval to sell the island, which is in Beaufort County and west of Hunting Island.
Tesla shares fell into a funk after Musk took a stake in Twitter, agreed to buy it and then tried to wiggle out of the deal. Tesla shares didn't react much after Musk clinched the acquisition, then took a whack along with much of the market Wednesday, when Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell said the central bank will keep raising interest rates to tame inflation.
Final figures aren't available, but Lee County asserts that Hurricane Ian destroyed about 5,000 homes and severely damaged 13,000. The Category 4 hurricane also targeted other counties, states and countries. Reportedly, 127 people in Florida died because of Ian. Taxpayer-funded costs for the Federal Emergency Management Agency include more than $500…
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigation, in 2021 there were 92,371 older victims of fraud resulting in $1.7 billion in losses. Government imposter scams: These are fraudulent telephone calls from people claiming to be from the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration or Medicare. Or they may say your Social Security or Medicare…
Riders to the rescue? LTC needs can be met if agents know the facts, expert says
Some chronic illness riders have monthly charges like LTC riders with predictable benefits. Others do not. It’s up to producers to know what they are selling, one expert told NAIFA members.
Southington writer Phil Hall was not short of material for his new book“ 100 Years of Wall Street Crooks.” published this month by Bicep Books. The criminals range from household names like Howard Hughes, Bernie Madoff and Martha Stewart to lesser-knowns such as Billie Sol Estes, Pat Vesco and Jordan Belfort. Hall, a Southington resident who has lived in…
—Think you're a sure bet for Wednesday night's estimated $1.2 billion Powerball jackpot? If so, you need to decide whether to take cash, which would actually pay out $596.7 million, or choose the $1.2 billion annuity option that is twice as large but is paid out over 29 years. All that losing has let the Powerball jackpot grow to be the fourth-largest in U.S. history.
Americans expect to need $1.25M for a comfortable retirement, study finds
Given inflation spikes and volatile markets, Americans surveyed expect they’ll need $1.25 million for a comfortable retirement – a 20% increase over last year’s expectations, according to recent study.
The Mega Millions lottery drawing has garnered quite the buzz after a winner has yet to claim the big prize, with the nationwide jackpot now at $1.2 billion. The largest jackpot won by a North Carolina resident was a $344 million Powerball jackpot in 2019.. Van Denton, director of communications at North Carolina Education Lottery, gave The Charlotte Observer a…
