PRESS AND PUBLICATIONS
EXPLORING THE RATIONALE BEHIND GLASS-STEAGAL
Readers, who have basic knowledge of the U.S. financial system history, have certainly heard about the famous “Glass-Steagall” Act, which was one of the measures enacted in response to the financial collapse experienced during great Depression. Due to conflict of interest concerns and due to incompatibility of high risk inherent......
COMPARATIVE ANALYSIS OF CORPORATE FIDUCIARY DUTIES: DECEPTIVE SIMPLICITY OF THE CONCEPT
Important disclaimer: the contents are for general informative purposes and do not constitute legal or other professional advice. Readers should seek legal or other professional advice in relation to any particular matters they may have. More than four centuries have passed since the first corporations ever were established and respectively......
CORPORATE CHRONICLE FROM DELAWARE
It is of no secret that Delaware is the go-to jurisdiction when it comes to registering business entities in the US. To understand the magnitude of Delaware’s popularity in this area consider two of the following facts: 1) the number of businesses registered in this state exceeds its overall population.......
APPLYING COACHING TOOLS TO PUBLIC POLICY OBJECTIVES
Industrial revolutions coupled with progression of capitalism and the competitive nature of human beings has led to a society that is more than ever obsessed with goal-setting, achievement and efficiency. No wonder a new profession known as coaching has emerged in the second half of the last century and has......
CSDR MANDATORY BUY-IN REGULATIONS: WHAT THE FALLINGS-OUT ARE ABOUT
Mandatory buy-ins are one of the most controversial rules in the EU Securities Market that are set to enter into force in the near future. Ever since their adoption, the regulators and the industry participants have been in strong disagreements about their effectiveness for ensuring the safety of securities settlement......
JUDGES, DISCRETION AND ECONOMIC GROWTH
Policymakers across the world have reached wide if not absolute consensus that courts are a key component to economic development. The OECD has long recognized the crucial role judicial systems play in determining economic performance by guaranteeing the security of property rights and the enforcement of contracts [1]. It occasionally......
COVID-19: Key measures taken by governments and central banks
Response to the coronavirus pandemic How Global Central Banks are Responding to COVID-19 When times get tough, central banks typically act as the first line of defense. However, modern economies are incredibly complex—and mishaps like the 2008 financial crisis have already pushed traditional policy tools to their limits. In response,......
Helicopter yes, or Helicopter no
Synopsis This is an unconventional monetary policy tool. It involves printing money and distributing it to the public. Imagine waking one morning to find extra cash in your account, a gift from your country’s central bank. But the concept of so-called helicopter money has been seriously debated by economists for......
Bank of England Should Slow Interest-Rate Cuts, Pill Says – WSJ
The Bank of England should be more cautious in its cycle of interest-rate cuts as inflation and wage growth continue above target, its chief economist said Tuesday.“While disinflation toward the 2% inflation target continues, disinflationary momentum has shown signs of stuttering,” Huw Pill said in a speech in London....
How to Deal With Economic Uncertainty? Emergency Savings Are a Start – The New York Times
You have no control over the volatility in financial markets or the economic tumult caused by President Trump’s tariff policies. But you can prepare for financial potholes by bolstering your rainy-day fund.“Emergency savings is one of the single best predictors of a person’s financial well-being,” said Stephen Roll, co-director of......
Reserve Bank of Australia Cuts Rate as Global Risks Rise – WSJ
Australia’s central bank on Tuesday cut interest rates for a second time, citing easing inflation risks while warning of ongoing shocks to the global economy from the Trump administration’s trade policies and a deteriorating geopolitical environment.The Reserve Bank of Australia lowered its benchmark cash rate by 25 basis points to......
Crypto elite increasingly worried about their personal safety – Techcrunch
Cryptocurrency executives and other investors with significant wealth from crypto holdings are getting more serious about personal security, according to stories this weekend in both the Wall Street Journal and Bloomberg. While cryptocurrencies have always created unique security risks, it seems there’s a rising threat of violent abduction due to......
How to protect your data after a cyber-attack – The Guardian
Another cyber-attack has hit the headlines – this one involving the personal data of hundreds of thousands of legal aid applicants in England and Wales.It comes hard on the heels of recent cyber-attacks that caused huge disruption at Marks & Spencer and the Co-op, and has prompted fresh reminders for......
AI Agents Face One Last, Big Obstacle – WSJ
The race to build useful artificial-intelligence agents that can perform complex actions for people is moving on to a new set of challenges.The large language models at the core of these agents are good enough for many tasks. But there is a growing emphasis on connecting the LLMs inside agents......
Are Big Oil companies prepared for a prolonged market downturn? – The Financial Times
The world’s largest oil companies are braced for a prolonged downturn in crude prices — the third in just over a decade — as they seek to reassure investors that they are prepared for the worst. Executives at ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, TotalEnergies and BP have used their quarterly earnings updates......
What a Weaker US Dollar Means for the Economy – Bloomberg
The dollar typically strengthens in times of economic or geopolitical strife. But that isn’t what happened in the months since Donald Trump has returned to the White House. As he has announced, amended and in some cases suspended the implementation of sweeping tariffs on imports, the US currency has tumbled,......
How has Britain’s economy fared since Brexit? The five charts underpinning the UK-EU summit – The Guardian
Keir Starmer is hosting the first UK-EU summit since Brexit on Monday as the government pushes to “reset” the relationship with Britain’s largest trading partner to boost the economy. Almost a decade on from the EU referendum, and five years since Britain’s formal withdrawal, there are clear economic challenges to......
Americans’ optimism about the economy is at a near-record low – CNN
Americans’ feelings about the US economy remain in the doldrums after President Donald Trump’s tariffs: Consumer sentiment continued its freefall this month, settling in at a near-record low. The University of Michigan’s closely watched consumer sentiment index fell 2.7% to a preliminary reading of 50.8 for May, dropping further from......
Weakening of UK EV sales rules ‘likely to result in significantly more carbon emissions’ – The Guardian
The UK government’s weakening of rules on electric car sales is likely to result in significantly more carbon emissions as sales of plug-in hybrids rise, according to analysis. Relaxed rules could result in as many as 500,000 additional plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) on UK roads by 2030, according to......
US loses last perfect credit rating amid rising debt – BBC News
The US has lost its last perfect credit rating, as influential ratings firm Moody’s expressed concern over the government’s ability to pay back its debt. In lowering the US rating from ‘AAA’ to ‘Aa1’, Moody’s noted that successive US administrations had failed to reverse ballooning deficits and interest costs. A......
ECB may have to cut interest rates below 2%, former hawk says – The Financial Times
The European Central Bank must stand ready to lower borrowing costs to “slightly below” 2 per cent as global trade wars threaten to drag down consumer prices, a top official has said. “If I look at the economy — the shocks we are confronted with and the uncertainty on growth......
Will OpenAI ever make real money? – The Economist
Being Sam Altman is a glamorous gig. Since the launch of ChatGPT in November 2022 the boss of its creator, OpenAI, has turned into a global business superstar. He is the darling of both the starch-collared Davos set and Silicon Valley’s dishevelled techno-Utopians....
Global supply chains threatened by lack of Chinese rare earths – The Financial Times
China has begun allowing some shipments of rare earths under new export control rules, but the slow pace of approvals threatens disruption to global supply chains, according to industry participants. Beijing in early April placed export restrictions on seven rare earth elements and permanent magnets that are vital for products......
UK needs more nuclear to power AI, says Amazon boss – BBC News
The UK needs more nuclear energy to power the data centres needed for artificial intelligence (AI), the boss of the world’s largest cloud computing company has said. Amazon Web Services (AWS), which is part of the retail giant Amazon, plans to spend £8bn on new data centres in the UK......
Personal average tax rates in Europe: Which countries saw the biggest rise in 2024? – EuroNews
The tax burden on workers, composed of income tax and social security contributions, varies widely across Europe. In 2024, this burden changed significantly in some countries, with notable rises and falls.Workers pay not only income tax but also social security contributions. Together, these two components make up the personal average......
U.K. Economy Raced at Start of Year But Slowdown Looms – WSJ
The U.K. economy outpaced growth in the U.S. and the eurozone in the first three months of the year, though a slowdown likely lies ahead in an environment of rising joblessness, trade tariffs and a pessimistic mood among consumers and businesses. Gross domestic product expanded 0.7% in the quarter through......
US poised to dial back bank rules imposed in wake of 2008 crisis – The Financial Times
US authorities are preparing to announce one of the biggest cuts in banks’ capital requirements for more than a decade, marking the latest sign of the deregulation agenda of the Trump administration.Regulators are in the next few months poised to reduce the supplementary leverage ratio, according to several people familiar......
Eurozone Economy Grew More Weakly Than Thought at Start of 2025, Despite Tariff Frontrunning – WSJ
The eurozone economy grew less rapidly than first estimated at the start of the year, despite a boost to factory output as American firms raced to stock up on imports ahead of the imposition of trade tariffs. Gross domestic product was 0.3% higher across the 20 members of the eurozone......
AI Needs More Abundant Power Supplies to Keep Driving Economic Growth
Artificial intelligence is an emerging source of productivity and economic growth that’s also reshaping employment and investment.AI has the potential to raise the average pace of annual global economic growth according to scenarios in our recent analysis, included in the IMF’s April 2025 World Economic Outlook....
Google Search, Facebook and the iPhone may not last forever. And Silicon Valley is finally admitting it
People aren’t friending each other as much on Facebook these days. The iPhone might not feel necessary in a decade. And Google searches on one of the world’s most popular smartphones are declining....
PODCAST: What ‘Everyone’s Replaceable’ Means in Today’s Job Market
Amid economic uncertainty, some companies expect more work and less complaining from employees. Wall Street Journal reporter Chip Cutter joins host Derricke Dennis to discuss this shift in the workplace and how employees can survive an ‘everybody’s replaceable’ culture....
Banks and AI: realizing business benefits?
AI is moving from experimentation to building strong foundations for the future and delivering value. Quantifying that value is part of the journey. However, banks are struggling to do so. Why?...
A credit union’s mission: Helping consumers identify scams before they become victims
Maryann Bills remembers sensing that the woman who walked into the branch of a credit union was already on edge. Her emotions shifted into high gear, and she wanted to withdraw all her money, quickly. “The police supposedly called her,” according to Bills, a Michigan Legacy Credit Union branch manager.......
How to protect older family members from financial scams
Financial scams aimed at older adults are becoming alarmingly common, often exploiting their trusting nature, less familiarity with digital technology, or even their longing for connection.In a world where staying connected is easier than ever, the same tools that help seniors keep in touch with family or manage money can......
What is crypto mining and how does it work?
The race to obtain bitcoin and other potentially lucrative cryptocurrencies is tied to a complex virtual process called “mining” — with high risks and high rewards for those who want to get involved. Crypto mining is different than services like Best Wallet, which allows users to manage their cryptocurrency holdings,......
PODCAST: What’s News in Earnings: How Car Companies Are Prepping for Tariffs
Bonus Episode for May 7. Big automakers are bracing for tariffs. General Motors, Ford, Stellantis and Tesla say they’re strategizing to address possible price increases and supply-chain disruptions. Automotive regulatory reporter Ryan Felton analyzes the latest earnings results from car companies to explain what they’re doing and what it could......
Crypto Might Get Some Banks
A theme that I have written about a lot around here is that US banking seems to be getting narrower. Traditionally, banks are in the business of (1) taking deposits and (2) making loans, and that is a famously risky combination: If all the depositors want their money back, the......
Better at everything: how AI could make human beings irrelevant
Right now, most big AI labs have a team figuring out ways that rogue AIs might escape supervision, or secretly collude with each other against humans. But there’s a more mundane way we could lose control of civilisation: we might simply become obsolete. This wouldn’t require any hidden plots –......
PODCAST: Why a New Generation of Workers Is Choosing to Join the Family Business
For some young workers struggling to get their foot in the door, the answer is to finally take up mom or dad’s offer to join the family business. Wall Street Journal reporter Rachel Wolfe tells host Ariana Aspuru how they’re making it work....
How to Become a Stockbroker
Interest in financial services careers continues to rise, driven by a diverse set of factors. There’s a growing movement to boost financial literacy among teens and young adults, while many seasoned professionals are seeking more purposeful second careers....
Welcome to the New World of Lower Returns. Where to Invest Now.
Most of what people expect in the future is based on what they’ve known and experienced in the past. For investors, that has generally meant rising prices and strong total returns for the past four or so decades, with nasty interruptions along the way—most recently, the steep drop in stocks......
What Are Stablecoins and Why Are Regulators Wary?
If you put a dollar bill under your mattress, you know you’ll get a dollar bill back when you go looking for it, and that the paper currency will still be worth $1. A branch of cryptocurrencies called stablecoins has grown up based on the idea that such dependability can......
PODCAST: They Let You Go, and Now They Want You Back. What Should You Do?
Some workers are getting a surprising offer from the company that recently laid them off: a chance to come back. Should they accept it? Wall Street Journal columnist Callum Borchers joins host Janna Herron to parse through the pros and cons of boomeranging back to an employer....
How to Protect Your Information When Banking Online
Online banking gives customers real-time access to their finances. The convenience and ease of access to information makes online banking great for everything from long-term financial planning to dealing with emergencies. Most traditional banks offer some form of digital banking in addition to their brick-and-mortar locations, while other banks are......
Evolving the Blockchain
The Internet changed the world, but instead of a solitary event, those changes continue, revolutionizing commerce and communication. The biggest network advances include mobile data and the cloud, and now, blockchain technology. The blockchain, with its resilience, cost-effectiveness, and accessibility, represents the future of networking. These values make it a......
PODCAST: Why More Americans Are Sitting on Cash Piles Instead of ‘Buying the Dip’
With an ongoing trade war and a volatile stock market, some cautious investors are opting to keep their cash on hand. Wall Street Journal reporter Krystal Hur joins host Julia Carpenter to discuss the cash investments gaining traction....
We’re not spending cash, so why are we hoarding it?
Think of the last time you paid for something in cash. This may be a struggle for the 22mn adult Britons who only use it once a month or less, though easier for the 1.5mn whose day-to-day spending relies on it. Notes and coins now account for just 12 per......
Will AI Mean Higher Taxes?
The rapid advance of artificial intelligence is poised to reshape global labor markets, with estimates suggesting that it will eliminate hundreds of millions of jobs worldwide. To mitigate the effects of job displacement and prevent social unrest, governments may be forced to increase taxes on wealth and corporate profits....
AT1: Investors’ Risky Bets that Keep the Banks Running (by Hayk Khekoyan)
When you hear the word CoCo you probably think of a leather bag with the famous Chanel logo on it, or the 2017 critically acclaimed and commercially successful animated movie of the same name. What you probably do not think about is a complex financial instrument, created with the purpose......
Is Artificial Intelligence Going to Replace Us All? (by Hayk Khekoyan)
Nowadays it seems borderline impossible to spend even a few hours without coming across the subject of “Artificial Intelligence”. There is just way too much talk, hype, arguments, doomsday prophecies or bold optimistic statements on how this or that technological advancement or tool, or AI in general is going to......
Did the 2022 World Cup Really Cost More than All the Previous Ones Combined? (by Hayk Khekoyan)
As the World Cup final is played in Lusail, a city that did not even exist a few years ago, Qatar 2022 will go down in the history books for many reasons, not all of them exactly football‑related. Nothing in the world exists as a separate entity in a vacuum:......
The Growing Importance of Emotional Intelligence in Business (by Hayk Khekoyan)
These days it is borderline impossible to spend a day in the business world without hearing the phrase “emotional intelligence”, its abbreviation “EI” or the closely related term “EQ” (emotional quotient, similar to intelligence quotient colloquially known as IQ). While the concept of emotional intelligence is becoming increasingly prevalent throughout......
The Streaming Wars: Part 2 (by Hayk Khekoyan)
Last year I wrote about the so-called “Streaming Wars”. This term is used to describe the process of the rising number of streaming video on demand (VOD) services from all sorts of corporations trying to position themselves in an ever-growing and yet such a tight market. The world is a......
Working Less or Working Smarter and Better? (by Hayk Khekoyan)
Work less, earn more. That is the plan for most people. Barring the rare cases of people actually loving their work, for most of us a job is simply a means to survive. If you haven’t won the genetic lottery to be born into outrageous wealth, just staying alive requires......
To the Moon or to the Ground? The Jury is Still Out on Bitcoin (by Hayk Khekoyan)
Bitcoin is back. Back to inexplicably losing more than half of its value in six months, back to being one of the biggest controversies in the world, but definitely not back to its all-time highs of more than $60,000 achieved twice during 2021. “When you find yourself in a hole,......
How to Increase Savings in Armenia (by Alexandra Ouzounian from The Pingry School, New Jersey)
Financial literacy is broadly defined as an individual’s financial knowledge and ability to use financial tools to execute his or her financial goals. The people of Armenia demonstrate a level of financial literacy (Figure 1) and gross savings rate (Figure 2) that is lower than the average financial literacy of......
Personal data protection: EU perspective (by Diana Javadyan)
Nowadays, more than ever, data protection issues are actual and crucial in terms of both data protection standard setting and data protection standard implementation. Recent Fintech developments, e-communities, artificial intelligence application and other technological advancements throughout the world bring up the need of robust data protection framework and protected data......
The Streaming Wars that will Shape the Future of Entertainment (by Hayk Khekoyan)
When the CEOs of Netflix and Blockbuster met in the distant year 2000 to discuss a merger between the two, Netflix was a 3-year-old company valuing itself at a measly $50 mln compared to Blockbuster’s market capitalization of around $5 bln (Sloan, 2020). Perhaps, having taken note of the phrase......
Why You Should Consider Learning Cybersecurity (by Hayk Khekoyan)
3.12 million. This is the estimated number of cybersecurity specialists needed globally as cyberattacks around the world keep growing in both frequency and magnitude (Duffy, 2021). The last few months alone have seen some of the biggest security breaches in history, more on which later. The most important development in the......
Will Energy Ever Be the Same Again? (by Hayk Khekoyan)
As recently as the year 2013, the largest publicly traded corporation in the world was an oil company. Exxon Mobil had a market capitalization well north of $400 bln at the time, which was quite the feat considering there were no trillion-dollar companies in the world yet. Fast forward......
A Possible Future of Money (by Hayk Khekoyan)
If you have not spent the last few years in a cave or on an island in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the words cryptocurrency or digital currency should sound familiar. I will not pretend to know or try to explain all the details of the technology behind Bitcoin,......
The Simple, Yet Quite Complex Global Issue (by Hayk Khekoyan)
For almost a week in the end of March one of the most important marine routes of the world was blocked by a giant vessel, approximately matching in size with New York’s famous Empire State Building. It took almost another week after the vessel was removed for the traffic jam......
The Consequences of the Mass Investment Platforms (by Hayk Khekoyan)
By January 11 not as many people had heard about the American company Gamestop as they have today. As of January 11 Gamestop cost around 1.5 billion USD and was a network of computer games and electronics’ stores situated in several states of the USA as well as in a......
Why We Need Governments (by Hayk Khekoyan)
The man regarded as the father of economics devoted a great deal of time and a big chunk of his work talking about how free markets produce the best outcomes for everyone involved. Adam Smith, in his book “The Wealth of Nations”, told us about the invisible hand that guides......