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☆ The 'peak boomer' crisis might only get worse: A fifth of Americans 50 and up have no retirement savings, and the majority are worried they won't have enough money
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-26 | by ( Juliana Kaplan | Ayelet Sheffey | Madison Hoff | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

Americans say they don't have enough money for retirement, with a solid chunk having no savings at all. At the same time, the economy is about to see the "peak boomer" generation retire and deplete their savings. Tourangeau is part of a generation of older Americans who don't feel confident in their financial situation. Any of those who leave the workforce to retire may need to rely on any retirement savings they have built. AdvertisementAre you a peak boomer or older American worried you won't have enough money for retirement?

Persons: —, Pam Tourangeau, let's, it's, Indira Venkateswaran, Venkateswaran, Nancy LeaMond, LeaMond Organizations: Service, Congressional Research Service, AARP, Research, Savings, Americans, Federal Reserve, University of Michigan Health, Alliance, Lifetime, Security, Social Security Locations: America

☆ Mastercard says wide adoption of central bank digital currencies would be ‘difficult’ right now
▼ + stars: | 2023-11-17 | by ( Sheila Chiang | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

BARCELONA, SPAIN - MARCH 01: A view of the MasterCard company logo on their stand during the Mobile World Congress on March 1, 2017 in Barcelona, Spain. (Photo by Joan Cros Garcia/Corbis via Getty Images)SINGAPORE — There isn't enough justification for the widespread use of central bank digital currencies right now, which makes broad adoption of such assets "difficult," Ashok Venkateswaran, Mastercard 's blockchain and digital assets lead for Asia-Pacific, told CNBC. A retail CBDC, which is the digital form of fiat currency issued by a central bank, caters to individuals and businesses, facilitating everyday transactions. This is different from a wholesale CBDC which is used exclusively by central banks, commercial banks and other financial institutions to settle large-value interbank transactions. But a lot of the central banks nowadays have gotten very innovative because they are working very closely with private companies like ours, to create that ecosystem," said the Asia-Pacific lead.

Persons: Joan Cros Garcia, Corbis, Ashok Venkateswaran, Venkateswaran, Kong's Organizations: MasterCard, Mobile, Congress, Getty Images, Mastercard, CNBC, Singapore FinTech, Monetary Fund, Atlantic Council, Hong Locations: BARCELONA, SPAIN, Barcelona, Spain, SINGAPORE, Asia, Pacific, Singapore, U.S, Hong Kong

Orsted, the world's largest offshore wind developer, said it would stop developing its 2,248-megawatt (MW) Ocean Wind 1 and 2 projects in New Jersey. The offshore wind industry has found itself in a perfect storm of rising inflation, interest rate hikes and supply chain delays. Norway's Equinor (EQNR.OL), BP's partner on those New York offshore wind developments, booked a $300 million impairment on the projects on Friday. Orsted, which in June announced plans to invest 475 billion crowns by 2030, said it was in the process of reviewing its investments and could introduce cost-saving initiatives. Orsted's share price has tumbled 52% since an August profit warning, cutting its market value to 112 billion crowns from 235 billion.

Persons: Joe Biden, Norway's, Mads Nipper, Nipper, Bernstein, Deepa Venkateswaran, Jacob Gronholt, Pedersen, Louise Rasmussen, Gursimran Kaur, Terje Solsvik, Michael Perry, Mark Potter Organizations: Wednesday, U.S, BP, Thomson Locations: U.S, New Jersey, New York, Danish, Copenhagen, Bengaluru

Thailand's central bank is seen at the Bank of Thailand in Bangkok, Thailand April 26, 2016. Despite inflation in Thailand edging up slightly to 0.88% in August, it remained below the central bank's 1-3% target range for a fourth consecutive month, suggesting little need for the Bank of Thailand (BOT) to continue hiking. A strong majority of economists in a Sept. 18-22 poll, 21 of 27, expected the BOT to keep its benchmark one-day repurchase rate (THCBIR=ECI) at 2.25% on Wednesday. None expected the central bank to raise interest rates at the following meeting in November. Median forecasts showed interest rates remaining at 2.25% through next year.

Persons: Jorge Silva, Sethaput Suthiwartnarueput, Lavanya Venkateswaran, Aris, Anant Chandak, Susobhan Sarkar, Devayani Sathyan, Jonathan Cable, Kim Coghill Organizations: Bank of, REUTERS, Bank of Thailand, Aris Dacanay, HSBC, Thomson Locations: Bank of Thailand, Bangkok, Thailand, BENGALURU, China, ASEAN

☆ No Bidders in British Offshore Wind Auction
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-08 | by ( Stanley Reed | More About Stanley Reed | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +3 min

Why It Matters: Wind developers say they are facing steep costs. Hit with rising costs on all aspects of offshore wind farms, from wind turbines to steel and copper, developers are signaling that they need higher revenues to make the projects financially viable. The costs of electric power from offshore wind, which have declined sharply over the last two decades, also seem likely to rise. The British auction did attract bidders for onshore wind and solar schemes. Recently, Orsted, the largest offshore wind developer, announced a potential $2 billion write-down on planned projects in the United States and warned that it could wind up canceling them.

Persons: Deepa Venkateswaran, Bernstein, ”, Venkateswaran, “ Organizations: British, Offshore Locations: Europe, United States, Britain

☆ Cash in or lose out: Banks are turning to AI, cloud computing, and Web3 to gain competitive advantage and customer loyalty
▼ + stars: | 2023-09-05 | by ( Nicholas Fearn | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +11 min

AI and cloud tech are giving some banks an edge over competitors and enticing brand loyalty. Traditional banks that ignore this reality risk losing loyal customers to digital banks that have emerged over the past few years, research suggests. Digital transformation is a must for banksWith online banking now the norm, digital transformation is no longer optional for banks. Legacy banking systems were not designed to provide the banking experience that people expect today," she said. As a result, banking customers and employees can view transactions in real time and deliver "a more seamless and personalized experience" for all stakeholders, she added.

Persons: Banks, Victoria Newton, Newton, Laura Merling, Merling, Jay Venkateswaran, WNS, Eno, Goldman Sachs, Nigel Vaz, Publicis, Publicis Sapient Nigel Vaz, Venkateswaran, Vaz, James Whybrow Organizations: Service, Starling Bank, Arvest Bank, Banking, Capital One, Microsoft, Bank of America, Amazon Web Services, Google, Economist Intelligence Unit, Arvest, Software AG, Software Locations: Wall, Silicon, It's, Starling, WNS, Morgan

☆ Explainer: How will Germany implement its nuclear power extension?
▼ + stars: | 2022-10-18 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

The operators of the three remaining nuclear power plants are E.ON (Isar 2), RWE (RWEG.DE) (Emsland) and EnBW (EBKG.DE) (Neckarwestheim 2). HOW LONG CAN THE PLANTS RUN WITH EXISTING FUEL RODS? According to industry group Nuclear Technology Germany (KernD), it usually takes around one year until fresh fuel rods are delivered. CAN GERMANY EXTEND NUCLEAR POWER BEYOND APRIL 2023? Politically, extending the lifespan of nuclear power is a red line for the Greens party, which has ruled out buying new fuel rods for longer operation of the country's remaining nuclear power plants.

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