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Banking and Security

Weighing the Conveniences, Risks of Using Payment Apps By Kathleen Marteney, CRPC

Posted September 6, 2023

Peer-to-peer mobile payment processing apps, such as Cash App, PayPal and Venmo, have made it easy for people to send and receive money with the click of a button. To be sure, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) estimates that these apps handled $893 billion in transactions in 2022. However, whether you are a business accepting […]

Managing Interest Rate Risk with Bond Ladders By Todd A. Moll, CFP®, CFA

Posted April 26, 2023

Bonds are an important component of diversified portfolios because they offer investors predictable returns and reliable cash flow without the volatility of the public equity markets. However, this is not to say that bonds are not subject to risks. They are, especially in times of rising interest rates. The good news is you can mitigate […]

What Do I Need to Know about the Debt Limit Debate? By Shane Phillips, CFA, CAIA, CFP ®

Posted February 15, 2023

Congressional Democrats and Republicans are once again battling over what seems to be an annual standoff over the country’s debt limit, or the maximum amount of money the government may borrow to pay all the existing financial obligations it has accumulated over the years. Should the government fail to agree on whether to raise or […]

What does the Federal Interest Rate Hike Mean to your Wallet? By Scott Montgomery, CLU, ChFC

Posted August 10, 2022

In July 2022, the Federal Reserve Bank enacted its fourth interest rate hike for the year and its second consecutive 0.75 percentage point increase in an attempt to rein in record-high inflation without triggering a prolonged recession. While additional rate increases are expected in the Fall, the benchmark federal funds rate, which began the year […]

How to Help Beneficiaries Manage Financial Affairs, Thrive After a Family Member Dies By David L. Burg, CFP®, JD, LL.M., MBA, CLU®, ChFC®, RICP®, CRPS®, ADPA®, CASL®

Posted February 15, 2022

One of the most critical yet often forgotten steps in the estate-planning process is preparing a surviving spouse to take over a family’s financial affairs. Even if you checked off all the boxes on your estate-planning to-do list, creating a will, properly titling accounts, naming beneficiaries and structuring assets for tax efficiency, your plan may […]

Where to Stash your Cash in a Low Interest Rate Environment By Joseph Karl, CFA

Posted November 22, 2021

A unique phenomenon to come out of the pandemic has been a marked increase in the country’s personal savings rate despite record numbers of business closures and job losses. According to the Federal Reserve Bank, the personal saving rate in July 2021 remained elevated at 9.8 percent, down from a high of 26.6 percent in […]

IRS Continues to Target Taxes on Cryptocurrency By Todd A. Moll, CFP®, CFA

Posted July 21, 2021

Investors who can stomach the wild swings of cryptocurrency’s rapid fluctuations should be forewarned: the IRS is fortifying its efforts to regulate crypto assets and enforce investor’s tax reporting and payment obligations. How investors proceed is critical. In 2014, the IRS released initial guidance on cryptocurrency, defining it as property subject to federal taxes on […]

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