Money Talk – Page 6

Bitcoin, government, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

What can we learn from Sweden, the ultimate cashless society?

October 16, 2019

Demand for notes and coins in Sweden is so limp that cash is literally disappearing: the amount in circulation has fallen 27.5pc in the last four year

The collapse of cash in Britain has been dramatic. There were 11.5 billion fewer cash transactions in 2018 than in 2008 – a decline of 51pc. It’s a pace of change that has surprised everyone, even industry insiders.

“The rise of the debit card and the decline of cash is the phenomenon of the last decade,” says Adrian Buckle, head of research for UK Finance, the banking sector trade body.

But Britain, while on the podium, is not the world champion in cashless. That title goes to Sweden, where demand for notes and coins is so limp that cash is literally disappearing: the amount in circulation has fallen from 80bn kronor (£6.6bn) to Skr58bn (£4.8bn) in the last four years, a reduction of 27.5pc. The same period has seen ATM withdrawals fall by more than half.

Continue reading… “What can we learn from Sweden, the ultimate cashless society?”

Analysis, Genes, Human Behavior, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

People with this eye color make the most money

October 14, 2019

The human eye boasts a riveting evolutionary journey. Ninety-five percent of all living organisms possess the ability of sight, though not a single pair perceives the world the same. For the developed beasts, vision funds everything from poetry to judicious engagement. At one time, brown eyes were the human default, but a chain of mutations has authored varying shades of blue, green and even gray. You’ve likely read poesy dedicated to the each, but what real-world associations does eye color submit?

Thankfully, the authors over at 1-800 contact have done the leg work for us, surveying 1,000 people in regards to the practical perception of “peepers”.

Continue reading… “People with this eye color make the most money”

Banking, Bitcoin, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Should central banks issue digital currency? Suddenly, it’s an urgent question.

October 9, 2019

Stable digital currencies—and particularly Facebook’s plans to launch one—have central bankers playing defense.

For years, powerful central banks around the world have claimed to be studying digital currencies, and most have left open the possibility that one day they might launch their own. That day may be dawning—much earlier than anyone expected.

In a recent blog post, IMF economists Tobias Adrian and Tommaso Mancini-Griffoli called on policymakers to take “prompt regulatory action” to address the “notable risks” posed by privately issued digital currencies, called stablecoins, that are designed to maintain a consistent value. More to the point: central banks may need to get into the stablecoin business themselves.

Continue reading… “Should central banks issue digital currency? Suddenly, it’s an urgent question.”

Banking, Money Talk, People Making a Difference, Science & Technology News

The $100 trillion opportunity: The race to provide banking to the world’s poor

September 29, 2019

Two years ago, Amylene Dingle lived with her husband and 7-year-old daughter in Payatas, an impoverished Manila neighborhood with the largest open dump site in the Philippines. Her husband worked on the security staff in a government building, earning 4,000 pesos a week, the equivalent of $80. She had always wanted to start a business, but she was unemployed, had no money saved, no credit history and couldn’t get a credit card or a bank loan.

Dingle’s fortunes took a dramatic turn after she responded to a Facebook ad for Tala, a Santa Monica-based startup that makes small loans through a smartphone app. After granting Tala access to her phone, through which the app cleverly parses mobile data to assess a borrower’s risk, she got a 30-day, $20 loan. She paid 15% interest and used the money to buy cold cuts, hamburgers and hot dogs. She marked them up 40% and sold them door-to-door, earning $4 in profit after paying back the interest and a small processing fee.

Continue reading… “The $100 trillion opportunity: The race to provide banking to the world’s poor”

Human Behavior, Latest Trend, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Fewer people are getting married. The reason why is stunning, according to science

September 15, 2019

It’s come to this. Perhaps it’s about time.

We live in singular times.

Technology encourages us to disappear into our own personal worlds.

Meanwhile, relationships seems to get harder and harder.

Why, in a sign of apocalyptic avenues approaching, even Facebook is launching a dating service.

Continue reading… “Fewer people are getting married. The reason why is stunning, according to science”

Bitcoin, government, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

Bitcoin And Cryptocurrencies are a hedge for bad government

September 5, 2019

World leaders and delegates depart a family photo session at the Group of 20 (G-20) summit in Osaka, Japan, on Friday, June 28, 2019.

There’s been a lot of news recently, especially with the advent of a news cycle focused on a potential recession, on the role of bitcoin and cryptocurrencies from a short-term investment perspective. Some have placed bitcoin and cryptocurrencies in the category of hedges, a form of digital gold or silver that can be used to store value through inflation and the debasement of fiat currency.

Yet that misses the forest for the trees. Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies at scale are not just a hedge for inflation and an ever-expanding monetary supply — they are a fundamental hedge against bad governance and bad governments. In this respect, it may be easier to evaluate them along a longer-term horizon than just a short-term store of value.

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Analysis, Money Talk, Report, Science & Technology News

The world’s $86 trillion economy visualized in one chart

August 30, 2019

The world’s GDP still grew a healthy 6.9% in 2018, up from $80.2 trillion in 2017 to $85.8 trillion. Nearly half of this growth came from the world’s two largest economies: the United States, at $20.5 trillion (up 5.4% from 2017), and China, at $13.6 trillion (up 10%). However, fear of a global recession are mounting — much of it related to growing economic tension between the two leading economies.

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Bitcoin, government, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

IRS says it’s sending warning letter to US cryptocurrency owners

August 11, 2019

The U.S. Internal Revenue Service (IRS) announced Friday that it has begun sending letters to taxpayers who own cryptocurrency, advising them to pay any back taxes they may owe or to file amended tax returns regarding their holdings.

In a news bulletin, the agency said that it began mailing what it called “educational letters” last week. According to the statement, there are three variations of the letter that were sent.

The IRS further said that it will have sent such letters to “more than 10,000 taxpayers” by the end of this month,” adding that “the names of these taxpayers were obtained through various ongoing IRS compliance efforts.”

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Bitcoin, Blockchain, government, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

How Crypto could bring tax evasion to the masses

August 2, 2019

Loopholes in lending laws are allowing cryptocurrency users to escape taxes — and the government can’t keep up

WWealthy families and merchants first conjured up the idea of offshore banking in 19th century Europe, seeking a place to store funds away from tax-hungry governments in the aftermath of the Napoleonic wars. Since then, it’s been a race to the bottom. Over the course of the last two centuries, deregulation and lenient financial laws have allowed the rich to tread the fine line between legal tax avoidance and illegal tax evasion.

But blockchain, which first emerged as a concept in 2008, is now offering ordinary people the same possibilities. Using cryptocurrency, anyone with a little technical know-how can open what is effectively the equivalent of an offshore bank account — albeit offshore in cyberspace.

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Analysis, Big Problems, Hot Issues, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

The writing on the wall: America’s retirement crisis by the numbers

July 26, 2019

Thousands of Americans are at risk of going broke in retirement, and it’s only going to get worse.

These days, overwhelming student loan debt and the uncertain future of Social Security’s solvency garner most of the attention, but there’s another equally severe financial crisis looming on the horizon for millions of Americans. Thousands of people retire every day, and many don’t have the savings they need to last the rest of their lives.

When that well runs dry, they’ll need to lean on their family members to support them or seek government assistance to cover their basic living expenses. It’s a fate thousands of Americans are already experiencing, and based on data from the latest Northwestern Mutual Planning & Progress survey, tens of thousands more are set to join them in the coming decades.

Continue reading… “The writing on the wall: America’s retirement crisis by the numbers”

Bitcoin, Blockchain, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

New ECB boss Christine Lagarde issued a serious bitcoin warning

July 20, 2019

Bitcoin and other crypto-assets have long divided traditional economists and bankers with some warning over their instability and others praising their ingenuity.

The bitcoin price rebound so far this year has caused some to change sides, though many continue to warn bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies will be a mere flash in the pan.

Earlier this year, Christine Lagarde, who has just been nominated to replace Mario Draghi as president of the European Central Bank (ECB), warned that cryptocurrencies are “shaking the system”—something that could signal a change in the ECB’s approach to bitcoin and crypto and potentially spur adoption.

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Employment, Latest Trend, Money Talk, Science & Technology News

1 in 4 Americans have no plans to retire

July 20, 2019

CHICAGO — Nearly one-quarter of Americans say they never plan to retire, according to a poll that suggests a disconnection between individuals’ retirement plans and the realities of aging in the workforce.

Experts say illness, injury, layoffs and caregiving responsibilities often force older workers to leave their jobs sooner than they’d like.

According to the poll from The Associated Press-NORC Center for Public Affairs Research, 23% of workers, including nearly 2 in 10 of those over 50, don’t expect to stop working. Roughly another quarter of Americans say they will continue working beyond their 65th birthday.

Continue reading… “1 in 4 Americans have no plans to retire”