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The European Business Bank will buy €600bn of bonds, Boris Johnson warns of 'many job losses' and will women be driven out of the workplace if childcare providers are not bailed out and more
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The European Business Bank will buy €600bn of bonds, Boris Johnson warns of 'many job losses' and will women be driven out of the workplace if childcare providers are not bailed out and more

Weekly newsletter for women who want to be smart about money: financial news, personal finance and investing

Welcome to our #23 weekly newsletter in 2020.

Every week we curate key articles and content so you can stay informed and inspired about money and investing. And we spend hours sifting through content every week so you don’t have to.

We apply a female-lens to news and content about money and investing so that it is more meaningful to you.

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 2020 during Covid-19 and beyond.

If you’re short on time, listen to the editorial on audio for a brief overview.

“When we take control of our financial future we can live life on our terms”

-Jana Hlistova

Photo: Marcus Aurelius


From The Purse…

Editorial from the Founder


The European Central Bank (ECB) expanded its stimulus package on Thursday: it will buy an additional €600bn of bonds to help revive the eurozone due to the pandemic crisis.

Meanwhile UK Chancellor Rishi Sunak confirmed that he would be delaying a further stimulus package of tax cuts and spending commitments until the autumn.

Boris Johnson warned of ‘many, many job losses’ and UK consumer confidence fell to its lowest point in May, since January 2009.

And the Trade Unions Congress has warned that women will be driven out of the workplace ‘if the government does not urgently bail out childcare providers’.

In the US, unemployment was expected to reach 20% in May but instead fell to 13.3% (in May) from 14.7% in April. The S&P 500 rose 2.6% higher; the index has risen more than 40% since the March lows-despite the devastating economic impact the coronavirus has had and even the George Floyd protests. #BlackLivesMatter.

According to a report by Bloomberg, the price of bitcoin could surge to $20,000 this year and we spotlight whether it is a good idea to invest in gold.

Some good news, for the first time the highest earning CEO in the S&P 500 index is a woman and we track a minority and female-led health-tech startup called Incredible Health which has raised $17m to date.

Read about GameAbove Capital which has just launched and will invest in minority and women-owned businesses with a focus on sustainability.

In the ‘Coffee Break? Read this’ section we have selected a few articles from the Harvard Business Review on how to refuel if you feel emotionally drained and how you need to change how you see if you want to change how you think.

Stay safe, take care of yourself and your loved ones.

I hope you enjoy this week’s newsletter. And until next week!

Jana


The Big Picture

Global markets and economy news, trends and indicators


The Coronavirus Effect:

  • The European Central Bank (ECB) expanded its stimulus package on Thursday.

    • It will buy an additional €600bn of bonds to help revive the eurozone whilst reducing its forecasts for inflation and growth.

    • The ECB’s pandemic emergency purchasing programme will take it to $1.35tn and extending the scheme to June 2021.

    • Its asset portfolio could increase to $4tn: approximately a third of its gross domestic product (GDP).

    • Inflation forecast has been reduced to 0.3% this year, to 0.8% next year and 1.3% in 2022 (well below its target of 2%).


Looking Ahead in 2020/2021



Coronavirus Impact: Your Money

Insights, trends and what this means for you and your money



Companies to Watch: winners & losers

Companies to watch and share price movements


  • FTSE 100: travel and leisure shares surge

    • FTSE 100 airlines International Consolidated Airlines and easyJet surged on the prospect of a ramping up in air travel, rising over 11% and 7% respectively.

    • Shares in cruise operator, Carnival, were up as much as 20% and were the FTSE 100’s top riser on Friday.

  • Ted Baker founder cuts stake by 55% in emergency funding bid

    • Ray Kelvin has reduced his stake by 55% to 15.8% as part of an emergency £105m fundraising to get the business through the pandemic crisis.

    • Investment firm, Toscafund founded by Martin Hughes, has nearly doubled its stake to 26.4%.

    • Ted Baker reported a loss before tax of £79.9m in the year to 25 January, before the pandemic started to affect sales, and a 1.4% fall in revenues. That compares to a £30.7m profit a year before.

  • Gap posts a $932m loss in the 3 months to May, shares fall 8%

    • The clothing retailer reported a 43% fall in sales during the period, as 90% of the group’s stores were closed amid the Coronavirus pandemic.

    • However, online sales is growing. For the month of May, online sales at the retailer had doubled compared to the same month last year.

    • Gap is said to owe the Simon Property Group, a shopping mall operator $65.9m for three months of rent.


In the Spotlight

Is there a topic you'd like us to Spotlight? Please tweet @jointhepurse


Is investing in gold a good idea right now?

  • Perceptions of gold has changed over the last 20 years.

  • Gold’s unique attributes as a scarce, highly liquid and uncorrelated asset highlight that it can act as a genuine diversifier over the long term.

  • Gold is regarded as a safe haven during uncertain times. However it can also generate a positive return during ‘the good times’.

  • Extensive analysis suggests that adding between 2%-10% of gold to a pound sterling-based portfolio will make a tangible improvement to performance and boost returns over the long-term.

  • Source: Gold hub & World Gold Council


Have You Seen This?

Female-focused news, reports, research, campaigns



What We’re Tracking

Female-focused products or services, crowdfunding campaigns, start-ups and businesses led by female entrepreneurs & investment, research


  • Incredible Health (US)-cofounded by female entrepreneur Iman Abuzeid and Rome Portlock. It is a software business which makes it easier for hospital clients to find medical staff.

  • GameAbove Capital (US): -has just launched and it aims at investing in minority and women-owned businesses with a focus on sustainability.

    • Started by CapStone Holdings, GameAbove is deploying $50 million amid the economic downturn that is hurting small and medium-sized companies.

    • The minimum transaction for each investment deal will be $3 million.

    • And the focus will be on companies which target environmental and social sectors, such as clean water ventures, transportation, education and worker development.


Money Habits of the Week

Do you have a money habit you would like to share with us? Tweet @jointhepurse


Commit to reading up about the blockchain, digital assets and bitcoin.

Understand the key concepts and why bitcoin is more relevant than ever before.

If you’re short on time, listen to the podcast interview with Veronica Mihai Das, the Partner at Bloomwater Capital, who explains the fundamentals of blockchain and digital assets.


What We’re Watching


  • Wendy De La Rosa is a co-founder of Common Cents Labs where she focuses on using behaviourial science to help people make better financial decisions.

  • In this Ted talk, Wendy explains what can help you save more and spend less.


Coffee Break? Read This



We’d love to hear from you. Do you have feedback? Get in touch with Jana via the The Purse website or tweet @jointhepurse and @janicka.

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