Description: Both merchants and banks balk at a Federal Reserve compromise on fees that businesses pay financial institutions Source: Businessweek.com  Date: 07/07/2011 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/sniping-at-charges-for-swiping-debt-cards-07072011.html Questions for discussion: Summarize the key points made in the report. Do you agree or disagree with the decision? Who should set price for these services? What are the consequences… Read more »
Posts Categorized: Financial Planning
Greece Sells Assets to Whittle Down Debt
Description: To help get out of its debt crisis, the Greek government has come up with a way to raise some cash: Sell off everything from planes and trains to huge parcels of land along the Greek coastline. WSJ’s Charles Forelle reports from Athens. Source: Marketwatch.com – video report Date: 06/27/2011 Link: http://www.marketwatch.com/video/asset/greece-sells-assets-to-whittle-down-debt/373566C2-7323-4E8A-8797-36858953526A Questions for… Read more »
Overbuilding in Spain Leaves Many White Elephants
Description: Last March, local officials inaugurated a brand new airport in Castellón, a small city on Spain’s Mediterranean coast. They are still waiting for the first scheduled flight. Source: NYTimes.com Date: 06/24/2011 Link: http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/25/business/global/25iht-transport25.html?ref=business Questions for discussion: Explain the financial planning problems in Spain? How can they be resolved?
Penney Nabbing Johnson From Apple Sets ‘Huge Expectation’
Description: Ron Johnson, who helped turn Apple Inc. (AAPL) into a retail star with flashy big-city stores, now faces the challenge of conjuring up similar buzz around 109-year-old retailer J.C. Penney Co. Source: Bloomberg.com Date: 06/15/2011 Link: http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2011-06-15/j-c-penney-nabbing-johnson-from-apple-sets-huge-expectation-.html Questions for discussion: Why did the stock rise in value so dramatically? Do you think it was… Read more »
50,000 BitTorrent users sued for alleged illegal downloads
Description: The turn of the 21st century was rife with bitter anti-piracy lawsuits pitting studios against their potential customers, with music labels banding together to blast Napster — and its massive user base — to smithereens. Source: CNNMoney.com Date: 06/10/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2011/06/10/technology/bittorrent_lawsuits/index.htm Questions for discussion: How can this legal intervention affect BitTorrent? Is the business… Read more »
General Motors Said to Weigh Buying Shares From Treasury
Description: General Motors Co. executives have discussed buying shares from the U.S. Treasury Department to reduce the government’s 33 percent stake in the automaker, three people familiar with the matter said. Source: Businessweek.com Date: 06/03/2011 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-06-03/general-motors-said-to-weigh-buying-shares-from-treasury.html Questions for discussion: What do you think is the best financial strategy for the company? What is wrong… Read more »
Sino-Forest fire singes bubble king Paulson
Description: The biggest loser in the latest apparent Chinese reverse merger fraud is John Paulson. Source: Fortune.com Date: 06/03/2011 Link: http://finance.fortune.cnn.com/2011/06/03/sino-forest-fire-singes-bubble-king-paulson/ Questions for discussion: Summarize reasons for the dramatic fall in share value. Do you think there might be illegal activity on somebody’s part? How might the firm mitigate this publicity?
Tyler Cowen, America’s Hottest Economist
Description:Â The George Mason University professor has written a bestseller, The Great Stagnation, keeps an influential blog, and reads way too many books. Source: Businessweek.com Date: 05/26/2011 Link: http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/11_23/b4231066695798.htm Questions for discussion: Explain the meaning of the title. What is the thesis of his book? Are there items you agree or disagree with? What lessons… Read more »
BlackRock’s Rick Rieder takes a stand on bonds
Description: Rick Rieder is not the best-known man in bonds. That honor belongs to Pimco’s Bill Gross, manager of Total Return, the world’s largest bond fund. But Rieder, 49, is a titan in his own right. Source: Fortune.com Date: 05/27/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/2011/05/25/pf/rick_rieder_blackrock.fortune/index.htm Questions for discussion: Summarize Rick Rieder’s strategic thinking as reported in the article…. Read more »
LinkedIn CEO: Why we’re so valuable
Description: CEO Jeff Weiner says LinkedIn’s “exclusive focus on professionals” is what makes his company’s social platform so valuable to investors. Source: CNNMoney.com – video report Date: 05/20/2011 Link: http://money.cnn.com/video/news/2011/05/20/n_linkedin_ceo.cnnmoney/ Questions for discussion: Do you think LinkedIn is worth the IPO price? What revenue streams are available to the firm? What types of acquisitions would… Read more »
