2019
Highlights from FDIC Underserved Banking Study
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) conducted its biennial survey on unbanked and underbanked households in the United States: the FDIC National Survey of Unbanked and Underbanked Households. The latest statistics are from 2017 and relied on responses from more than 35,000 American households. According to the FDIC, the organization is “committed to expanding Americans’ […]
2019
Model Safe Accounts Pilot Offers Opportunities for the Underbanked
The Model Safe Accounts Pilot was originally launched in January 2011 by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), an independent agency created by Congress tasked with maintaining stability and public confidence in the nation’s financial system. The Model Safe Accounts Pilot was designed as a case study to determine how financial services companies could provide […]
2019
Do Small Business Borrowers Need a Bill of Rights?
Small business owners are the backbone of the American economy — both local and national — and are the heart of the community they are based in. The 30.2 million small businesses in the United States employ 58.9 million people, or 47.5% of the private workforce. Yet, occasionally, small business owners are taken advantage of […]
2019
Small Business Optimism Being Tested
According to the Wells Fargo/Gallup Q1 2019 Small Business Index Survey, small business owners report feeling less optimistic about their financial future (Index score of 46, down 13 points) and less optimistic about the what lies ahead for their business (Index score of 60, down 10 points), most likely due to decreased revenues. While the […]
2019
How Small Business Can Succeed on Amazon
Amazon is the largest online retailer in the world and seems to keep getting bigger every day. In 2018, sales grew by an astonishing 31% to $232.9 billion, compared with $177.9 billion in 2017. Operating income in the year tripled, to $12.4 billion, compared with an operating income of $4.1 billion in 2017. Critics have […]
2019
Losing New York City – What Can We Learn from Amazon’s Failed HQ2
After a selection process that took a year and considered 238 cities, Amazon announced on November 23, 2018 its corporate headquarters, HQ2, will be based in Long Island City, Queens. A multi-billion dollar project, the development and subsequent activity at the new headquarters was estimated to create: 25,000 new jobs by 2029, and 40,000 new […]