With the Presidential election in the U.S. beginning to heat up, it is natural to forget about elections elsewhere in the world. But before our elections start to cause volatility in the Fall, a round of elections in Europe in May could have a very meaningful impact on the marketplace. Given the …
Greece Is A Zit, Portugal Is A Boil, Spain Is A Tumor
"It's Not A Tumor" - Kindergarten Cop The market appears to be blissfully ignoring the massive issues facing Spain due to a better than expected recent auction. But with the impact of the ECB's three -year liquidity injection starting to run it's course, Spain will be a big focus for the market …
iBanker: The Markets Look A Little Muddy
This past Saturday morning, I awoke circa 4:30am, and sluggishly made my way to my car enroute to meet some fellow gym rats at a local parking lot. The 16 of us piled into 4 cars and embarked on a trip we all had been talking about for months on end. What lay ahead was a 5.2 mile all-terrain 36 …
Is Free Checking Here To Stay?
Anytime I have a conversation with somebody about banking, it typically turns out the same; I end up chuckling at the similar responses. "I remember when my bank gave away free toasters. I remember when I didn't have to pay for checks. I remember when I could receive a loan on just a handshake." As …
Why Do Banks Sell Mortgages?
One common question I've gotten recently has been around mortgages. "Why did my bank sell my mortgage? I want to find a bank that holds onto my loan." While this may be a big deal to someone who is shopping around to refinance, it's rather insignificant so a high-level overview is all that's …
How To Effectively Use Credit Cards
I received a blog comment the other day that wasn't too favorable. In a "real life" face-to-face situation, I would quickly become defensive and feel the need to justify myself; but in the realm of blogging I don't have to. Not everything I say is going to resonate with readers. I realize that not …
What To Look For In A Startup
Startup companies have been all the rage lately with this mini tech boom that has overtaken Wall Street. Just last week, a little startup called Instagram sold for $1 billion – and it only had 13 employees and a 26 year old CEO. And starting next year, new rules take effect that potentially allow …
