- The Debt Discussion
Strong awareness but minimal understanding of Public Service Loan Forgiveness program
AIG Retirement Services, a leading retirement plan provider for tax-exempt and public sector employers, today announced the results of a new study looking at how nonprofit and public service employees think about student loan debt, student loan forgiveness and the Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) program.
read more - Young Adults & Adults Over 75 Most Vulnerable To Fraud Attacks
Emphasizing the importance for companies to protect both new-to-digital and vulnerable customers when transacting online in 2021
LexisNexis® Risk Solutions released its biannual Cybercrime Report covering July 2020 through December 2020, which details how the evolving threat landscape created new opportunities for cybercriminals around the world, particularly as they targeted new online users. Analysis shows that the under 25 age group is most vulnerable to fraud attacks while the oldest age group…
read more - The Impact of COVID-19 On Retirement Savings
401(k)s were by and large able to weather the storm of 2020
It has been well documented that COVID-19 has wreaked havoc on both the US and global economies during the course of the last 12 months. From sky-high unemployment rates to the shuttering of businesses and wild swings in the stock market, the virus has impacted each and every sector of the economy.
read more - Cyber-Attacks On Covid-Response Industries Saw Relentless Targeting
How ‘threat actors’ sought to profit from unprecedented socio-economic challenges of 2020
IBM Security today released the 2021 X-Force Threat Intelligence Index highlighting how cyberattacks evolved in 2020 as threat actors sought to profit from the unprecedented socioeconomic, business and political challenges brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, IBM Security X-Force observed attackers pivoting their attacks to businesses for which global COVID-19 response efforts heavily…
read more - Majority Of Americans Agree Economic Impact Of The Pandemic Will Be More Significant Than Great Recession
Emerging: A greater concern for the effect on finances, troubling rise in earlier-than-expected retirements
As Americans continue to grapple with many aspects of COVID-19, the vast majority believe the pandemic’s impact will be more significant than the Great Recession for both the economy and their own finances, according to the new 2021 Retirement Risk Readiness Study from Allianz Life Insurance Company of North America (Allianz Life).
read more - How Did The Pandemic Impact U.S. Employment, Personal Finances?
Spending, saving and investing were all affected
A new survey from Joy Wallet reveals how the COVID-19 pandemic has impacted personal finances of Americas. Nearly 400 adults across the U.S. answered a series of questions about the pandemic and their personal finances.
read more - AICPA Urges IRS For Certainty And Penalty Relief For 2020 Tax Year
Disposition of Economic Stimulus Package could influence April 15 tax-deadline
The COVID-19 pandemic has created many new challenges for Americans, with individual taxpayers and businesses large and small working to balance the health and safety of their families, employees and clients with meeting their obligations to file and pay taxes in a timely manner. In two recent letters to the Department of the Treasury and…
read more - Access To Guaranteed Lifetime Income Boosts Employee Confidence, Retirement Savings
More than 30 percent of employees increased their retirement savings contributions in 2020; Popularity of in-plan lifetime income solutions grows among 401(k), 403(b) plan sponsors
Helping employees save for retirement remains a priority for a substantial majority (74 percent) of employers and, despite economic uncertainty, more than three in ten employees say they increased their retirement savings contributions in the last year, according to the TIAA Retirement Insights Survey.
read more - Majority Of Working Americans Are Optimistic About Their Financial Future, Even While Lacking Savings
If we’ve learned anything from 2020, it is ‘be prepared'
New polling released today finds more than half (58%) of working Americans believe their financial situation will be better in the future. Younger (69%), Black (75%) and Hispanic (69%) workers are the most optimistic, despite the fact that half (49%, 52% and 49%, respectively) report having two months or less of spending in savings on…
read more - Amid Deep Political Division, Americans Are United In Worry About Retirement
A vast majority agree Social Security remains a priority, with half supporting expansion
A new report finds that despite a highly divisive political climate, Americans across party lines share concerns about their financial security in retirement. The vast majority of Democrats (70 percent), Independents (70 percent) and Republicans (62 percent) agree that the nation faces a retirement crisis. There also is bi-partisan agreement that the average worker cannot…
read more - The New Demographics Of Living In Crisis
Four in 10 American households had difficulty withstanding a financial crisis before COVID-19
Well before the COVID-19 pandemic, nearly four in 10 households lacked financial resilience, making them vulnerable to financial hardships, including those associated with the current pandemic or future financial crises, according to a report from the FINRA Investor Education Foundation. Meanwhile, fewer than two in 10 households appeared to be financially resilient.
read more - US Dividends Climb 2.6% To Record High $503.1 Billion In 2020
Globally, pandemic caused $220bn of dividends cuts
During the worst crisis since World War II, US dividends proved resilient, increasing 2.6% year-over-year to a record high of $503.1 billion in 2020, as just one in fourteen US companies cancelled its dividend between April and December according to the latest edition of the Janus Henderson Global Dividend Index.
read more - Behold The New Diversification Strategy… From The ‘Old Person On The Block’
Four good reasons to look closer at closed-end funds
by Steve Selengut
The S & P 500 struck 33 new "All Time High" (ATH) levels in 2020, a year that also saw a major market value melt down in March and significant volatility throughout. This year began with ten new highs and more chatter about a serious, extended, correction than I've heard over the course of this…
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