MarketWatch

🔗 https://trib.al/MGO7t6B After years of roping investors into what would balloon into a $658 million Ponzi scheme, Nicholas Salzano made a critical mistake.⁠ ⁠ When an investor in Cupertino, Calif. — who had already sunk $150,000 into the real-estate venture Salzano was selling — asked to see the loan documents behind the purported project he was asking her to put more money into, he sent them to her.⁠ But because there was no actual project, the documents were forgeries, prosecutors said. What Salzano didn’t count on was that the woman would call the bank to check.

🔗 https://trib.al/SqcjU2A Dear Moneyist: “I’m young, debt-free and happy-go-lucky. Though by no means would I consider myself financially literate, I’ve been able to save, max out my 401(k), and contribute to a Roth IRA. My boyfriend has had a very different life. He’s been married and has two children from that relationship. His education has not made much difference, as he is a business owner (with side jobs to supplement his income). Currently, I don’t own my own home. Lately, we’ve been discussing the future, including marriage. I’ve been advised by several people to run for the hills. Any advice or input you can give me would be much appreciated. I want to protect my assets.”

🔗 https://trib.al/PIfCkwt As a candidate, Donald Trump tapped into Americans’ persistent frustration with a higher cost of living, blaming both President Joe Biden and a wave of new immigrants for post-pandemic inflation that sent prices soaring on eggs, car insurance and more. He falsely said the country was on the verge of a depression and made frequent promises that he said would ease economic pains, including carrying out mass deportations of immigrants, imposing sweeping tax cuts, capping credit-card interest rates and making car-loan interest payments tax deductible. Trump’s proposals could indeed have a massive impact — though some would actually raise costs for consumers. Whether he can bring them to fruition is yet to be determined.

From MarketWatch Picks: If sleep is one of your New Year’s resolutions for 2025, look no further than these mattress companies offering great early Black Friday deals.

Nvidia’s AI boom — and that of hardware providers like Super Micro and Cerebras — relies on a few big tech spenders like Microsoft and Google. As these giants pour billions into AI, risks mount. Here’s how concentrated the AI boom is and why it matters. Watch more: https://trib.al/nIitOyN

From MarketWatch Picks: "Would it be best for me to hire a financial planner who charges hourly? How can I find out what options are available?”

🔗 https://trib.al/UhNg1aa “I’m trying to get into the middle class, and I can’t get there because of the increase [in my car payment],” Chezni Carrion of La Crosse, Wis. told MarketWatch. She’s not alone. Vehicle expenses have gotten too high for many car owners, drawing scrutiny from an increasing number of personal-finance experts who say cars should function as a tool that shuttles people to their main source of income and wealth: their jobs. Instead, they say, rising prices have turned cars into a financial trap for many Americans.

🔗 https://trib.al/sGWHQ7D Over the years, gift cards have become a popular option for people seeking an easy solution to their search for the perfect present. But some consumer advocates are starting to voice concern that this form of gifting equates to a lump of coal in a holiday stocking. Bankrate estimates that Americans are in possession of $244 in unused gift cards per person, on average. And that can add up big time: Bankrate puts the total value of unused cards at $27 billion.

🔗 https://trib.al/mciI61H "Soooo, who said taking my Rams salary in bitcoin was dumb again?" That was Miami Dolphins wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. on Wednesday reminding people that he took his 2021 salary in bitcoin. The Super Bowl champion converted his $750,000 salary into cryptocurrency in a deal with Cash App. Beckham, who played for the Los Angeles Rams at the time and now plays for the Miami Dolphins, made the move at a time when many athletes first started publicly touting crypto and other digital assets.

From MarketWatch Picks: "Should I seek out another expert, or is using an investment account to pay down my mortgage sound advice?”