Welcome to our #59 weekly newsletter.
Every week we curate key content and apply a female lens so you can stay informed and inspired about money and investing.
Stay in the know.
Keep on top of global economic, financial and investing news and trends. And read about what this means for you and your money in 2021 during Covid-19 and beyond.
If you’re short on time, listen to the audio for a brief overview.
“For women taking control of their financial future”
-Jana Hlistova
From The Purse
Editorial from the Founder
Global stocks have lost $1.1tn in market cap this past week. Yields on 10 year US Treasuries have risen to 1.57%. The pace of the rise has raised concerns that ‘long duration’ stocks like tech stocks can not absorb it.
US Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome Powell has failed to calm investors that the central bank would keep surging bond yields and inflation expectations in check. Powell said that ‘the economic reopening could create some upward pressure on prices...’.
Meanwhile, UK Chancellor, Rishi Sunak delivered the Budget on Wednesday. He said: there has been acute damage to the economy, with more than 700,000 people losing their jobs, the economy shrinking by 10% – the largest fall in 300 years, and borrowing is highest it has been outside of wartime.
According to a report by Citi, bitcoin could become the currency of choice for international trade.
Goldman Sachs is restarting its cryptocurrency desk: it is part of Goldman’s activities within the fast-growing digital assets sector, which also includes projects involving blockchain technology and central bank digital currencies.
And hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, says he’s taking a crypto ‘deep dive’.
In the Future Focus section, read about the fact that UK economic growth next year will be the fastest since 1948. And what are NFTs, non-fungible tokens?
Tesla, Ark EFT and solar stocks have plunged into a bear market.
In the Have You Seen This? section, we cover UK women winning a £2.7bn top-up to underpaid state pensions.
And according to the Bank of America, S&P 500 companies that are more diverse and inclusive see better results and have lower risk.
We are tracking US tech start-up Smartgurlz, co-founded by CEO Sharmi Albrechtsen. It is the world's first line of self-balancing coding robots for girls. As seen on Shark Tank, the award-winning products have been recommended by the Girl Scouts of America and BlackGirlsCode. They are currently crowdfunding, but please do your own research.
And don’t forget to listen to The Purse Podcast interview with Barbara Huson (formerly Barbara Stanny). She is the leading authority on women, wealth and power. As a bestselling author, financial therapist, teacher & wealth coach, Barbara has helped millions take charge of their finances and their lives.
This is a very special podcast interview-I hope you enjoy it.
***
I’d like to wish all of you Happy International Women’s Day tomorrow.
Why not reach out to your female family member, friend, colleague and have a conversation about money or how you choose to invest? Why not think about reaching out to a financial advisor to help you plan for how you’re going to achieve your financial goals?
Stay safe, look after yourselves and your loved ones.
I hope you enjoy this week’s newsletter.
Until next week,
Jana
The Big Picture
Global markets and economy news, trends and indicators
Global stocks have lost $1.1tn in market cap this past week (ie de-frothing).
Yields on 10 year US Treasuries have risen to 1.57%.
The pace of the rise has raised concerns that ‘long duration’ stocks like tech stocks can not absorb it.
US Federal Reserve Chairman, Jerome Powell fails to ease rates fears
U.S. stocks fell sharply on Thursday, after Powell failed to reassure investors that the central bank would keep surging bond yields and inflation expectations in check.
Powell said ‘the economic reopening could ‘create some upward pressure on prices...’
UK Chancellor, Rishi Sunak delivered the Budget (Wednesday)
He said: there has been acute damage to the economy, with more than 700,000 people losing their jobs, the economy shrinking by 10% – the largest fall in 300 years, and borrowing is highest it has been outside of wartime.
Sunak confirmed the extension of the furlough scheme until the end of September.
The chancellor confirms the £5bn restart grant for businesses to help companies get going after lockdown.
The stamp duty holiday will be extended.
The government will not raise national insurance, income tax or VAT, but will freeze personal tax thresholds – as anticipated.
In April 2023, the rate of corporation tax will increase to 25%.
The UK continued its heavy-duty money printing:
Rishi Sunak said that the budget deficit will be £355bn this year, or 17% of GDP – the highest level in peacetime.
Bitcoin & cryptocurrencies
Global news, trends and insights
Bitcoin could become the currency of choice for international trade, says Citi
Citi’s researchers believe bitcoin could evolve into an international trade currency, helping to simplify global trade.
But a number of issues – including concerns over scalability and potential regulatory backlashes – stand in the way.
The report concludes by stating that bitcoin is as “the tipping point of its existence”, noting that its evolution will have wide-ranging repercussions.
Goldman Sachs restarts cryptocurrency desk amid bitcoin boom
Goldman Sachs will begin dealing bitcoin futures and non-deliverable forwards for clients from this coming week.
The desk is part of Goldman’s activities within the fast-growing digital assets sector, which also includes projects involving blockchain technology and central bank digital currencies.
Hedge fund manager Daniel Loeb, says he’s taking a crypto ‘deep dive’
The New York-based CEO described cryptocurrency as a "real test of being open to new and controversial ideas" in a series of tweets last Monday.
Loeb likened bridging crypto and mainstream finance to "finding a portal" between two different worlds.
He also stressed the importance of "maintaining healthy skepticism while deepening one's understanding".
I’ve been doing a deep dive into crypto lately. It is a real test of being intellectually open to new and controversial ideas. Culturally I compare bridging the crypto world with the old as akin to finding a portal @chbetween two distinct worlds in the multiverse.NFTs and a Thousand True Fans https://t.co/III9SMl75X https://t.co/lwzbQMknoL
Chris Dixon @cdixon
Future Focus
Keeping an eye on key predictions, innovations and what’s going to impact the future
UK economic growth next year will be the fastest since 1948, says OBR
The economy is forecast to rebound 7.3% next year, according to the government’s independent economic forecaster.
But the Office of Budget Responsibility (OBR) warned that debts from the pandemic will cost the equivalent of £14,000 for every household as government borrowing hits a postwar high.
‘The scale of these impacts are unprecedented and have not been felt by the UK economy for 300 years, meaning that the economic outlook remains uncertain.’
Mark Cuban: ‘Ethereum will ‘disrupt the f…out of’ big software companies
Mark Cuban, who knows a thing or two about disruption, says Ethereum smart contracts will disrupt software companies, banking, and healthcare.
Cuban has become a very bullish public advocate for NFT collecting.
NFTs are having a moment.
A non-fungible token: ‘non-fungible’ means that it’s unique and can’t be replaced with something else.
At a very high level, most NFTs are part of the Ethereum blockchain. Ether is a cryptocurrency, like bitcoin or dogecoin, but its blockchain also supports these NFTs, which store extra information that makes them work differently from, say, an ETH coin.
Companies: winners & losers
Companies to watch and share price movements
Tesla, Ark ETF and solar stocks have plunged into bear markets
Down another 11% this week, shares of Tesla have lost almost one third of their market value since peaking in January.
Star manager Cathie Wood’s Ark Innovation ETF, which counts Tesla as its top holding, shed 10% over past five days, wiping out all its 2021 gains that at one point swelled to 26%.
As oil rebounded, clean energy lost favour. An ETF tracking solar stocks suffered its worst week in a year, falling 14%.
‘It’s totally reasonable that as the economy reopens, interest rates will rise further and that growth stock multiples will contract further. They are kind of toxic -- they became bond proxies.’
Have You Seen This?
Female-focused news, reports, research, campaigns
UK women win £2.7bn top-up to underpaid state pensions
Approximately 200,000 women could be in line for payouts averaging £13,500 after a UK government review found systemic underpayment of their state pension for up to two decades.
The underpayment error centres on state pension uplifts, or cash increases, for certain married women, widows and over-80s dating back to 1992.
Know this: on average, a woman’s pension is one fifth of a man’s. These older women have potentially been shortchanged for over a decade+. The enhanced pension would have boosted their payments up to 60%. This highlights how important it is to keep on top of your finances, work with a financial advisor and verify money that you are owed, especially as laws and regulation changes or is updated.
US: S&P 500 companies with more gender diversity on boards see 15% higher ROE
S&P 500 companies that are more diverse and inclusive see better results and have lower risk, a new report by Bank of America, Global Research says.
‘We see empirical evidence that companies with superior scores on workforce and board diversity experience higher ROE and lower earnings risk than lower-ranked peers,’ the authors wrote in a report published Wednesday.
For instance, companies with at least 30% of women in management positions have ‘seen a bigger median improvement in annual ROEs over this period,’ the authors stated.
And S&P 500 companies where at least 25% of their executives were female saw consistently higher subsequent 1-year median return on equity since 2010, the authors stated.
Know this: board diversity is essentially an ‘effective signal of improving ROE in almost all sectors’. This is because cognitive diversity which is as a result of gender, ethnic and racial diversity, drives creativity and innovation. In short, businesses which lack diversity and especially at the seniors level of management are most risky for investors.
What We’re Tracking
Female and diversity-focused products or services, start-ups and businesses led by women/diverse founders, investment and research.
Smartgurlz (US)-co-founded by CEO Sharmi Albrechtsen, is the world's first line of self-balancing coding robots for girls. As seen on Shark Tank, the award-winning products have been recommended by the Girl Scouts of America and BlackGirlsCode.
The tech start-up is currently crowdfunding:
They have already $2.7M raised. Join investors Morgan Stanley and NYU.
More than $2M in revenue with a 4+ rating on Amazon.
Educated nearly 1,000 kids via e-learning during the pandemic.
Expanding into $40B Ed-tech market- Signed a deal with former LEGO education distributor, Pitsco Education.
Powerful PR - Featured on CNN, Fox and Friends, Fox Business News, Forbes and Financial Times.
Strong Team - Includes former VP of Hasbro, EVP of LeapFrog and host of MythBusters.
Female founder of colour. Support minority-owned small business.
Disclaimer: this is not investment advice. Please do your own research.
Coffee Break? Read This
‘Mother are livid. We’ve had enough!’ The pregnant women being forced out of the workplace
Government launches call for evidence to improve health and wellbeing of women in England
We’d love to hear from you. Get in touch with Jana via the The Purse website or tweet @jointhepurse and @janicka.
The Purse Ltd. Copyright 2021 & All Rights Reserved.
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