It is not unusual to have economists debate how to manage inflation, growth, and employment.  The solutions vary from extreme Keynes supported by Government spending, to extreme austerity and we have seen all of those especially since 2008. A guiding light of clarity that appeared in 2010 was the Reindhart/ Rogoff book entitled ‘This Time is Different”.  The title implied with irony that in fact it is never different, and that it went on to empirically prove that over 800years of data it is proven that countries with excess debt suffer low or negative growth.  I have quoted the book … Continue reading “This Time is Different” comes under fire from Amherst professors | what does it mean for austerity?

The functionality of linking the QR code to streamline bill payment is a smart idea.  QR codes have become the de rigeur addition to all marketing materials in North America, but they are functionally useless.  I have written about this before. The original use of QR in Japan by marketers was tied to specific offers and coupons for restaurants and the like.  There was a point.  Meanwhile in North American the codes generally link to a marketing page or a home page.  Back to the BillTrust idea.  By tying the QR code to a useful function that bypasses clicks will … Continue reading Finally a North American smart use of QR code

A lot has been said on mainstream media about Mayers decision at Yahoo to eliminate working from home as a regular term of employment.  The standard media line goes something like ‘Yahoo does not get it’ and ‘this is counter directional to the direction technology companys are supposed to be going’. Even Richard Branson chipped in saying he would never work from an office. The two themes that leap out are: technology produces the capability to work from home, and working from home is empowering by allowing employees to operate on their schedule, banishing commuting, and commitment to the schedules … Continue reading Listen to Marissa Mayer | technology and workplace practices have not been properly thought through

I wrote in July 2012 that “Libor is the Catalyst of the next banking crisis” and while that unfortunate prediction is coming true the fines suggest it will be basically shoved under the rug.  Rate-fixing scandal shakes three continents | ft.com The fallout from the interest rate manipulation scandal hit three continents on Wednesday as Royal Bank of Scotland paid £390m ($612m) and admitted criminal price-fixing charges over Libor-rigging. A series of lurid emails cited in the settlement laid bare a culture where employees would readily alter rates in exchange for steak dinners. So far LIBOR fines have been relatively … Continue reading LIBOR fines could hit $22 bn

In Canada Banks have traditionally refused to accept the mortgage broker market and advertised “special offer” interest rates that could be 1.25% over the actual market. This practice has been changing of late, and the driver is internet.  While other countries such as UK and US have rate aggregator sites, Canada has been a stubborn holdout in not having such sites.  This has been driven by the banks oligopoly refusal to advertise in such sites. Banks Try More Up-front Pricing Moreover, the advent of rate comparison sites are making consumers increasingly jaded towards lenders who post 3.99% when the real … Continue reading Another subtle shift in banking being driven by internet–better mortgage rates

The promise of Personal Financial Manager tools (PFM) for banks has been long predicted but slower to be adopted by customers.  This has been a natural outcome because most if not all banks have taken the route of purchasing or partnering with software suppliers.  The result has generally been as highlighted in this American Banker piece that PFM exists in a separate tab within online banking.  With most customers used to going straight to bill payment or transfers it is only natural that the PFM tab will get less use.  Regions bank have introduced charts from their PFM offering that … Continue reading The challenge for PFM lies in seamless integration with OLB

The internet is a weird thing in some respects. I did not know Aaron but I understand who he is.  Above all he is very young and at 26 he Larry writes here about someone he knows.  Prosecutor as bully  Since his arrest in January, 2011, I have known more about the events that began this spiral than I have wanted to know. Aaron consulted me as a friend and lawyer. He shared with me what went down and why, and I worked with him to get help. When my obligations to Harvard created a conflict that made it impossible … Continue reading Aaron Swartz is dead