The Morning Pulse – Sunday, January 24, 2021

January 24, 2021                                                                                SUBSCRIBE

• Third stimulus check details: Payment size, new qualifications, when it could happen ; Finances Unscathed by Pandemic? Seize the Moment and Tackle Debt
• University to launch special needs planning center for underserved clients
• Why are some mutual funds changing into ETFs? ; Active vs. Passive Investing: Understanding the Difference ; Thinking about bitcoin? Here are ways to invest without buying volatile cryptocurrency
• Illinois Legislature Passes 36% Interest Rate Cap for Consumer Loans
• Why are gas prices increasing? National average nearing pre-pandemic level
• Weekly mortgage refinance demand drops 5% after rates hit highest level since November ; 4 Kitchen Renovation Trends for Investors To Consider in 2021
• How to get your affairs in order if your spouse is dying
• The New Face of Charitable Giving During the Pandemic ; More Charitable Crypto Donations Spur Calls For Rule Change

• Dementia, Alzheimer’s not an inevitable part of aging: Study ; COVID-19 and the Future of Aging: Technology for Connecting ; The COVID relief law holds good news and bad news for older Americans
• How to Help Your Loved One Retire from Driving
• Why older adults should set New Year’s resolutions and goals
• What worms are telling us about aging ; Studies link hypertension and dementia risk
• Patients Praise Medicare Advantage as Hospice Carve-In Takes Effect ; Amazon surpasses Walmart for most Nevada employees and dependents on Medicaid

• Will COVID-19 Wring Low-Value Healthcare out of the System?
• 8 big ideas in healthcare innovation ; Addressing telehealth’s cybersecurity risk will be an industry-wide problem
• Could This Put a Damper on Investors’ Vaccine Excitement?
• Amazon is offering to help Biden get 100 million COVID-19 vaccinations to Americans in 100 days ; As Covid-19 crisis shows, sovereign wealth funds have a role that goes beyond providing money

• Are You Saving Too Much For Your Kids’ College? ; Save and Earn Money for College
• Universities Use Blockchain To Streamline Student Services

• How Cybersecurity Newbs Can Start Out on the Right Foot ; These are the top cybersecurity challenges of 2021 ; The first line of defense: Why employees are the key to stronger cybersecurity ; Brexit, GDPR, AND The Timeline for Data Breaches ; New FTC Leadership Likely to Put Consumer Privacy in Crosshairs
• Finance apps with ‘gamification’ can increase risk ; AI fairness is an economic and social imperative. Here’s how to address it ; What launching a fintech startup means for Walmart
• Thumb injury forces top gamer to retire at 25
• Amazon, Facebook, other tech giants spent roughly $65 million to lobby Washington last year ; Amazon to hike fees for Spanish users after new digital tax ; China Tightens Grip on Homegrown Fintech Firms After Ant Debacle

• Pandemic Puts More Households at Risk in Retirement ; Should you ditch your workplace retirement plan? Here are some alternatives. ; Why Now Is The Best Time To Consider A Roth IRA
• Annuities Offer Powerful Tax Advantages Plus Some Avoidable Pitfalls ; Annuity options will soon be available in your 401k; As streaming prices rise, how you can pay less ;
• President Biden’s Proposed Changes to 401(k) Plans ;
• 401(k) lawsuits on the rise as participants target fees, conflicts of interest and data privacy ; U. Penn Settles 403(b) Suit for $13 Million—and Change(s) ; 401(k) suits filed against Mercedes, Takeda, American Trust

• The Argument to Save Pensions by Saving Unions ; Multiemployer pension plans could soon see relief
• Growing value with data driven insights: An actuarial perspective
• Vermont Treasurer Calls for Pension Cuts for State Employees, Teachers
• Illinois lawmakers hand Pritzker another tax loss, pass Chicago pension hike
• Pension reinstated for Livonia police, firefighters in new union contracts
• CalPERS records 12.4% return in 2020 ; Contractor found ‘scary’ bacteria levels at CalPERS headquarters — but agency wasn’t notified ; Litigation to open up the pension books
• Hedging Risk and Optimizing Potential in a Large Pension Risk Transfer

• Another Major Pension Reform for Multinational Companies to Watch: Netherlands DB to DC
• One of Canada’s Largest Pensions Vows Net Zero Emissions by 2050
• Spanish pension reforms increase strains within coalition
• GE looks to cut risk, costs in freezing UK pension plans

• Consumer Sentiment Posts Decline in January ; When Investors Forget Fundamentals, the Market Is Broken ; Yellen Opens Debate on Giant Spending, Saying the ‘World Has Changed’; US Treasury yield curve predicted to steepen as investors await Biden’s planned stimulus
• Texas Man Charged In $5 Million PPP Loan Fraud Case ; COVID-19 Scams Target The Business Community ; Surging Grain Prices Fuel Surprise Farm Recovery
• Oil prices decline as US crude supplies rise, COVID-19 flare up dulls demand outlook ; Three Natural Gas Rigs Added in US as Drilling Activity Continues to Rise
• Asian Central Banks Start Year Juggling Politics, Policy Reviews ; Australian consumer confidence clouded by COVID-19 in Jan -survey ; After unprecedented stimulus, the European Central Bank is set for a change of focus ; Emerging market central banks extend easing cycle in December ; UK consumer confidence wanes in January

• Biden Administration Considers Reversing Trump’s ESG Rule Change ; Boards Are Obstructing ESG — at Their Own Peril ; France’s central bank has pledged to green its balance sheet ; The success of carbon farming requires collaborative innovation ; MIT develops method for lab-grown plants that eventually lead to alternatives to forestry and farming ; Can a Tiny Hedge Fund Push ExxonMobil Towards Sustainability?
• Making Private Markets Work in a Barbell Strategy
• Hedge Funds’ Bets on Fannie and Freddie Cause Pain ; The Hedge Fund Roller Coaster Ride Got Even Wilder Last Year ; New ‘asset class’ gives hedge funds second revenue stream from existing strategies
• Private equity could face a reckoning as power shifts in Congress ; Private Equity Has Used the Same Recipe for Returns for Decades. That’s About to Change.
• SEC calls out dubious cryptocurrency traders, miners soliciting customers worldwide ; Janet Yellen Will Consider Limiting the Use of Cryptocurrency ; About 30 charged for allegedly exchanging stolen cryptocurrency
• The Rise of Alternative Real Estate ; Should you invest in stocks or real estate?
• SEC Staff Rationalizes Treatment of Institutional Family Offices under Regulation BI and Form CRS