The ongoing debt saga in Greece has reached its turning point—and it’s not likely to end well. Last week, a bailout deal between the Greek government and their European creditors appeared certain. But Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras abruptly broke off talks, causing the Greeks to miss their scheduled payment to...
Despite widespread support for a measure that would force brokers to put their clients’ best interests first when managing retirement accounts, it appears that the powers on Wall Street are poised to get their way once again. The House Appropriations Committee introduced a bill on Tuesday that would effectively stop...
On the surface, foreign currency trading looked like an ideal post-recession activity for “Too Big To Fail” banks. The exchanges offered the possibility of considerable returns on investment, coupled with a low risk environment. Those two factors made the exchange market the perfect business venture for an industry reeling from...
Last week, the Department of Labor succumbed to pressure from the financial industry and Congress by extending the comment period on a proposal to impose a fiduciary duty on brokers working with retirement accounts. Despite the 15-day extension agreed upon by Labor Secretary Thomas Perez, many Wall Street figures remain...
This morning, the Commerce Department released the preliminary figure for 1st quarter Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and the results were not encouraging. The initial reading shows that the economy grew at a snail’s pace—0.2%—in the first quarter, an outcome even more disappointing than the anticipated 1.0% growth experts predicted. It’s no...
The stock market ended the first quarter of 2015 in almost the same position where it began the year. But it sure was a bumpy ride to get back to the starting position. The Dow took a beating in January—falling almost 4%—before recovering to gain 5.6% in February. This was...
It’s been nearly a month since President Obama made a strong push for fiduciary responsibility on Wall Street, explaining that biased financial advice robs everyday Americans of billions of dollars each year. Since that time, politicians and financial advisors alike have weighed in on the issue. But on Tuesday, perhaps...
Six years ago, Wall Street was going through a dark time. The 2008 Great Recession cut the value of the stock market by more than half, and it was on this date—March 9, 2009—that the S&P 500 bottomed out at 676.53. Since that day, it’s been the market’s time to shine....
Since the end of the financial crisis, consumer advocates have pushed for fiduciary duty on Wall Street—an obligation for brokers and financial advisors to act in the best interest of clients at all times. Last week, President Obama added his voice to the cause. Speaking to a gathering at AARP...
It’s been almost four years since the Department of Labor (DOL) proposed a rule that would enforce a fiduciary duty on financial advisors who work with retirement accounts. But little progress has been made towards imposing such a standard, thanks to continued protests from the financial industry. The most recent—and...