Is This Bull Timid or Ready to Charge?
On June 8, 2023, the S&P 500 index closed at 4,293.93, just over 20% higher than its lowest recent closing value of 3,577.03 reached on October 12, 2022. According to a standard definition of market cycles, this indicated that the benchmark index was officially in a bull market after a bear market that began in […]
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Rescuing America’s Safety Net
A March 2023 survey found that more than 90% of Americans worry about the Social Security program, and about half of those said they worry a great deal. A separate survey the same month found that more than 80% of Americans worry Medicare will not be able to provide the same level of benefits in […]
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What You Should Know About the Federal Reserve’s NewInstant Payments System
The use of mobile payment apps and person-to-person (P2P) payments are more popular than ever, giving businesses and consumers the ability to send and receive money instantly. According to a recent study, the share of P2P payments made with mobile apps nearly doubled in one year, increasing from 15% in 2020 to 29% in 2021. […]
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SECURE 2.0 Helps Small Employers Help Their Employees
Approximately 78% of people who work for companies with fewer than 10 employees and about 65% of those who work for companies with 10 to 24 employees do not have access to a retirement plan at work. That’s unfortunate because workers with a retirement plan are far more likely to save for retirement than those […]
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Tax Form 1099-K: What you need to know
Form 1099-K is an IRS information return used to report certain payment transactions for goods and services. It is not a new form, but legislation changes in March 2021 significantly decreased the filing threshold that was scheduled to be implemented for the tax year 2022. The IRS has delayed the change in the filing threshold […]
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Bank Failures Shine Light on Interest Rate Risks
Financial markets reacted turbulently to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) on March 10, 2023, followed two days later by the failure of Signature Bank of New York. With $209 billion in assets and $175 billion in deposits, SVB was the nation’s 16th-largest bank and the second-largest to fail in U.S. history. This news […]
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U.S. Banking Crisis: Should You Be Worried?
Unable to meet withdrawal requests triggered by depositor panic, Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was placed into receivership by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) on March 10, 2023. SVB represents the second-largest bank collapse in U.S. history. Two days later, the FDIC announced the closure of a second bank — Signature Bank — and that […]
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The Debt Ceiling and Deficit Spending
On January 19, 2023, the outstanding debt of the U.S. government reached its statutory limit, commonly called the debt ceiling. The current limit was set by Congress at about $31.4 trillion in December 2021. On the day the limit was reached, Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen instituted well-established “extraordinary measures” to allow necessary borrowing for a […]
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REAL ID Deadline Extended Again
After years of numerous delays, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security has once again extended the REAL ID enforcement deadline from May 3, 2023, until May 7, 2025. What is a REAL ID? A REAL ID is a type of enhanced identification card. The REAL ID Act, passed by Congress in 2005, set minimum security […]
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Five Ways SECURE 2.0 Changes the Required Minimum Distribution Rules
The SECURE 2.0 legislation included in the $1.7 trillion appropriations bill passed late last year builds on changes established by the original Setting Every Community Up for Retirement Enhancement Act (SECURE 1.0) enacted in 2019. SECURE 2.0 includes significant changes to the rules that apply to required minimum distributions from IRAs and employer retirement plans. […]
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