Tag: JPMorgan Chase

FedNow Goes Live In July. Is A CBDC Next?

FedNow Goes Live In July. Is A CBDC Next?

The Fed's FedNow payment network goes live next month. FedNow lays the groundwork for a Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC). FedNow - a CBDC Trojan Horse? It will be interesting to see if any of the large banks opt-in to FedNow. The reason I say this is because if the Fed was to roll out … Continue reading FedNow Goes Live In July. Is A CBDC Next?

Powell’s Puzzle. Dimon A Winner.

Powell’s Puzzle. Dimon A Winner.

Fed Chair Powell has the backbone of a jellyfish. Therefore it will be interesting to see what he and his band of banking flunkies do at their FOMC meeting later this month - especially if Financials continue to trade down and should consumer prices remain elevated as we expect (CPI release is Tuesday at 8:30am … Continue reading Powell’s Puzzle. Dimon A Winner.

Tough Month For Banks

Tough Month For Banks

Tough month for bank stocks. Not a surprise when 3 month T-Bills yield 5%. How many depository institutions can compete at that rate level? Will the Fed blink? If JPM and GS shares crater - Yes. Otherwise, probably not. Also, as we wrote last night, SIVB may have a new owner come Monday. Source: https://g.co/finance/BANK:INDEXNASDAQ?window=1MContinue reading Tough Month For Banks

Square, PayPal, and Apple Will Dominate A Digital Currency World

Square, PayPal, and Apple Will Dominate A Digital Currency World

A digital currency world is coming. The 2022 Beijing Olympics will operate via a digital RMB for local attendees and may include digital cross-border payments as well. Our Federal Reserve is experimenting with digital currency. Both Fed Chair Powell and Treasury Secretary Yellen have talked down Bitcoin and said the U.S. will move slowly with … Continue reading Square, PayPal, and Apple Will Dominate A Digital Currency World

Back To The Office Will Look Different Compared To 2019

Back To The Office Will Look Different Compared To 2019

Director & Officer ("D&O") insurance premiums spiked and coverage narrowed last year as a result of COVID-19. As vaccinations are distributed COVID-related underwriting risk will begin to soften which will be reflected in lower premiums and broader coverage. All of this is to say do not expect every mid-to-large-sized company to be fully back to … Continue reading Back To The Office Will Look Different Compared To 2019

Banks Need To Try Something New

Banks Need To Try Something New

Last night it was reported that M&T Bank (tkr: MTB) would acquire People's United (tkr: PBCT) for more than $7 billion. These "scale" acquisitions between regional banks simply delay the inevitable. What is required is the hard work of evolving business models and service delivery capabilities. More of the same won't suffice. Regional banks are … Continue reading Banks Need To Try Something New

Square’s Cash App Has A Fraud Problem

Square’s Cash App Has A Fraud Problem

We compared a number of Fintech apps in the Google Play Store. Square's Cash App ranked #7 (See our analysis for Fintech rankings). Venmo failed to rank in the top 600. Recent Cash App user reviews from the same Google Play Store analysis suggest Cash App is frequently hacked. View our analysis by clicking the … Continue reading Square’s Cash App Has A Fraud Problem

Technology, Healthcare and Structural Unemployment

Technology, Healthcare and Structural Unemployment

The employment statistic that has concerned us most over the past number of years is the labor force participation rate which stood at only 61.7% as of last week's Employment Situation Summary. Our view is that the labor participation rate will only shrink over time as the global economy continues to become more Technology and … Continue reading Technology, Healthcare and Structural Unemployment

Banks Should Acquire FinTech Companies

Banks Should Acquire FinTech Companies

Large Financial Institutions should acquire FinTech companies. Doing so would enable FI's to diversify beyond the depositary services business which will continue to suffer in a prolonged low interest rate environment. We won't lay out the entire FinTech ecosystem, but here are several examples. Capital Markets: FactSet (tkr: FDS) and SS&C Technologies (tkr: SSNC). FactSet … Continue reading Banks Should Acquire FinTech Companies