General News

December 30, 2025 @ 11:35 am By Omar Faridi  |  

KPMG UK has recently noted that a relatively cautious consumer landscape is now expected to continue into upcoming year. KPMG’s Consumer Pulse survey measures the overall consumer confidence as the current year finally comes to an end and 2026 begins. KPMG UK Q4 2025 Consumer… Read More

December 30, 2025 @ 12:28 am By Tony Zerucha  |  

Ahead of the Christmas spending peak, the October 2025 credit card data from global analytics software leader FICO showed a decline in credit card spending in the UK compared with the previous month and the previous year. Lower spending led to average balances falling for… Read More

December 28, 2025 @ 9:32 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Analysis from the Federal Trade Commission shows that since 2020 consumers reported nearly 65,000 rental scams, many of which originated from fake listings on sites like Facebook and Craigslist, and “losses totaling about $65 million.” Rental scams usually involve fake rental listings, which “can often… Read More

December 26, 2025 @ 3:51 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mastercard (NYSE: MA) SpendingPulse has unveiled that savvy consumers and e-commerce are fueling U.S. holiday retail sales growth by 3.9% year over year. Getting a strong early start, consumers have now seemingly embraced convenience and connection through the season, blending online and in-store purchases and… Read More

December 25, 2025 @ 4:36 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

New government figures released on December 24, 2025, reveal a drop in the number of US workers / professionals now seeking unemployment aid for the first time, highlighting ongoing fluctuations typical of the holiday period while the broader job sector shows resilience without major disruptions…. Read More

December 22, 2025 @ 9:03 am By Omar Faridi  |  

KPMG UK has recently shared key insights on the latest labour market data along with other commentary on recent developments. Persistent inflation, growing unemployment concerns, along with more general economic uncertainty remain potentially significant factors that could have a considerable impact on the United Kingdom‘s… Read More

December 21, 2025 @ 1:38 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Eurozone economy is expected to grow by 1.3% this year, followed by 1.1% in 2026, according to KPMG’s latest European Economic Outlook. Eurozone fiscal policy is anticipated to be broadly neutral in 2026 “as consolidation efforts in many countries offset increased public spending on… Read More

December 18, 2025 @ 11:07 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) is now said to be taking action against Illusory Systems Inc. for allegedly failing to implement “adequate data security measures, leading to a major security breach in which hackers stole $186 million from consumers.” Under a proposed order settling the… Read More

December 18, 2025 @ 12:47 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Caroline D. Pham will join MoonPay as Chief Legal Officer and Chief Administrative Officer following the conclusion of her service as Acting Chairman of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC). According to an update from MoonPay, Pham will be responsible for overseeing all global legal… Read More

December 16, 2025 @ 6:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Betterment at Work, a provider of modern, scalable 401(k) plans for growing businesses, today launched the fifth installment of its annual Retirement Readiness Report. The report reveals that nearly half (48%) of U.S. workers believe they’ll need “at least $1 million to retire comfortably—up from… Read More

December 12, 2025 @ 5:10 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

BNY (NYSE: BK) has recently announced its active participation in the U.S. government’s investment initiative for children, continuing the company’s long history of expanding financial access and opportunity for employees and their families. As reportedly one of the first financial services companies to join the… Read More

December 10, 2025 @ 11:10 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

DTCC, the market infrastructure for the global financial services industry, and Ernst & Young LLP (EY US) announced the release of their latest research findings on 24×5 trading, entitled “The Shift to 24×5 Trading: What It Means for U.S. Equity Markets.” The report details the… Read More

December 9, 2025 @ 10:20 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

If Australians redirected around 10% of overall household spending from big businesses to small businesses, it could potentially mean $76 billion more in the hands of small retailers according to the latest analysis by small business platform Xero. This new figure highlights the seemingly immense… Read More

December 7, 2025 @ 4:53 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Mobile apps have transformed the customer experience in various industries with their streamlined, easy-to-navigate interfaces and convenient access. The mortgage servicing industry has been one of the few exceptions to that rule, until recently relying on their websites and offline communications as the primary means… Read More

December 7, 2025 @ 2:01 pm By Tony Zerucha  |  

Global markets are increasingly positioning for a US interest-rate cut at the Dec. 9–10 policy meeting of the Federal Reserve, with investors concluding that current monetary settings no longer align with an economy losing momentum. Nigel Green, CEO of global financial advisory giant deVere Group,… Read More

December 4, 2025 @ 11:30 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Analysis of Bank of Ireland customer behavior during the third quarter (Q3) of 2025 shows that contactless payments rose again while ATM usage continues on a downward trend, compared to the same period in 2024. In Q3 2025, eCommerce contactless card transactions (digital wallets, Apple… Read More

December 2, 2025 @ 2:23 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

The ECB noted that financial stability vulnerabilities still remain fairly elevated given uncertainty over current geo-economic trends and the anticipated tariffs impact. Moreover, the central bank said that the currently stretched valuations in increasingly concentrated asset markets raise risk of sharp price adjustments. The ECB… Read More

December 2, 2025 @ 12:19 am By Omar Faridi  |  

Carta has released its Q3 2025 State of Private Markets report. Authored by Ashley Neville and Kevin Dowd,  the extensive research report has noted that the industry continued to grow steadily, marked by several key trends: Early-stage valuations keep on rising, meanwhile, down rounds are… Read More

December 1, 2025 @ 9:21 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

Small and mid-sized business owners operating across the US are now said to be cautiously optimistic about the coming year, with the majority or 74% expecting revenue increases and around 60% planning to expand their businesses, according to the latest Bank of America (NYSE: BAC)… Read More

November 30, 2025 @ 1:28 pm By Omar Faridi  |  

PitchBook noted in its latest global private market fundraising report that dry powder on the rise despite a fairly tough fundraising environment. PitchBook also mentioned in the extensive research report that even though fundraising was a bit slow so far this year, private markets remain… Read More