Secrets of Finances and Payday Loans

The high correlation between M&A activity and equity market performance clearly shows that M&A was a major driver of the equity bubble of the late 1990s. Sometimes even mergers that did not create synergies were rewarded by rising stock prices on the side of the overtaking parties. It was obvious that not every merger was [...]

Tversky and Kahneman  and Shiller  argue that the assumption of rational, utility-maximizing behavior of investors is frequently violated in real life. They also show that these anomalies can be predicted and that they result from the use of simple heuristics to facilitate the process of decision-making. Sophisticated investors can benefit from this fact if they [...]

Geopolitical risks like war and terror can create stress scenarios for all risky asset classes. The geopolitical situation has a strong impact on the risk aversion of investors. The events of September 11, 2001, provide a tragic example after which investors bought safe haven assets such as government bonds and gold at the cost of [...]

Market participants often cite changes in investors’ risk appetite as a possible explanation for developments in global financial markets that cannot be explained by changes of market fundamentals. Indeed, financial crises often seem to coincide with abrupt shifts in market sentiment from risk tolerance to risk avoidance. While fundamentals undoubtedly remain of significant importance, these [...]

Most money managers are astute salespeople. They have slick brochures and charts showing why they are better than the competition. They are not above using guilt and intimidation to keep you with them. They will also influence you to keep your money in their area of expertise. In the current decade, real estate prospects are [...]

Fortunately, comfort zone investing does not require you to be as straitlaced as relationship maturity might. Unlike marriage, multiple partners are fine in investing. Just be sure you know your needs and which investments fill those needs. If your need to conform at work is strong but you also know you need investments that you [...]

A good debt reduction plan will have some fun built into it. Just like a workable diet that lets you order the nachos with extra cheese once in a while, a good debt reduction plan is going to let you blow off some steam to keep you sane. Don’t start packing your bag for Tahiti [...]

One of my favorite quotes on hard work and change comes from Thomas Edison, who was asked about his successes in life. Edison said, “Opportunity is missed by most people, because it dresses in overalls and looks like hard work.” I think this is a great place to start when you think about getting rid [...]

In the R&D world, when a new idea is proposed, it is standard practice to look for the fatal flaw. A fatal flaw is a condition that is certain to preclude, or that has a high likelihood of precluding, exercise of the option. Its existence in effect negates ownership of the option. That flaw can [...]