Amazon partnering with Affirm is one of the latest signals that “buy now, pay later” offerings are here to stay, on the heels of strong performance last year, and also signals that online and brick-and-mortar retailers that don’t have BNPL options should assess what that means for their competitiveness. … READ MORE >
Financial services
Booming first half for private equity activity sets stage for a record year in 2021
A resurgent U.S. economy in the first half of the year and forecasts for strong growth in the back half sustained the momentum that started in the fourth quarter of 2019. … READ MORE >
Executive order targeting banking M&A expected to bring more scrutiny
The order is a significant development given that the number of deal announcements continues to gain steam heading into the second half of the year. … READ MORE >
How an ESOP can preserve a business, and a legacy
Many owners in the construction industry are looking to the employee stock option plan, or ESOP, when putting a succession plan in place. … READ MORE >
SPAC IPO market pauses as investors and regulators reevaluate
Now that the SPAC boom and its mid-February crest are behind us, what should we make of the current pause? How do we make sense of the slowdown? What forces will shape what happens next? … READ MORE >
5 key themes from SEC Chair Gary Gensler’s House testimony
With Gary Gensler sworn in as the chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission in April, the direction of the agency under his leadership is now beginning to take shape. This was especially clear during a House Financial Services Committee hearing Thursday on the unprecedented surge in social media induced meme stock trading this year. … READ MORE >
CHART OF THE DAY: The CLO market is back
The volume of CLO issuances over the past two quarters has rebounded to levels last seen in 2019, and spreads have narrowed to pre-pandemic levels as pricing benefited from low interest rates, even with the recent surges in Treasury yields. … READ MORE >
Federal Reserve to end supplemental leverage ratio capital break
The Federal Reserve announced on Friday that it would not extend an important rule accommodation put in place last spring that helped banks continue to lend to small and medium-size businesses as the economic effects of the pandemic took hold. … READ MORE >
Short-term rates and economic expansion at risk without Fed’s SLR extension
With the economic recovery still in its early stages, an important component of the Federal Reserve’s response to the economic collapse last spring is in danger of expiring. … READ MORE >
With embedded finance, Walmart takes aim at consumer financial services
In January, Walmart announced its fintech startup with Ribbit Capital, a fintech-focused venture capital firm. Through this partnership, Walmart plans to build affordable digital financial products for its more than 230 million customers who visit its 10,800 locations. … READ MORE >