My financial adviser mostly opts for index funds. Is he worth what I pay him?

Is your financial adviser worth the money you pay them? Getty Images/iStockphoto Question: If a manager is just putting my money into index funds that track the market, are they actually doing anythin...

Borrowers are on edge—will Biden cancel student debt or not? Here’s what’s going on.

The “he” is, of course, President Joe Biden. Some 43 million borrowers are hanging onto hope that Biden will take executive action to relieve at least some of their collective $1.7 trillion debt. Rumo...

Peter Thiel-Backed Crypto Lender Vauld Suspends Withdrawals

A cryptocurrency lender backed by Peter Thiel and Coinbase Global Inc. suspended withdrawals, trading and deposits on its platform, citing volatile market conditions and financial difficulties facing ...

Bitcoin Prices Struggle Below $20,000. Why Tuesday Could Bring a Bigger Move.

Text size Bitcoin has failed to consistently breach the key $20,000 mark. Ozan Kose/AFP via Getty Images Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies were largely unchanged on Monday, with digital assets contin...

KKR Stock Looks Cheap. Why It Might Be Time to Buy.

Text size KKR has loads of capital and a cheap stock. It could be a recipe for gains. Dreamstime It has been a brutal first half of the year for alternative-asset managers. Shares of KKR , Apollo , Bl...

‘It could be the difference between an approval and denial’: Experian, Equifax and TransUnion remove fully-paid medical debt from credit reports. Will this help your credit score?

Paid medical debt is rolling off consumer credit reports in an overhaul that the credit bureaus say will improve people’s financial wellbeing. In a time of rising interest rates and increased costs wi...

Biden Administration Weighs Move to Trim Mortgage Costs as Home Prices Rise

WASHINGTON—The Biden administration is weighing a move to trim mortgage costs for first-time and lower-income buyers, a bid to boost affordability when average home prices are at an all-time high. Pre...

Crypto Took Wall Street on a Wild Ride. Now It’s Ending in Tears.

Cory Klippsten is a big fan of Bitcoin. But his affinity for cryptocurrencies ends there. Klippsten, head of a company called Swan Bitcoin, sees a growing minefield of scams, fraud, and risky products...

Banks Get Burned by Risky Debt, Imperiling Buyout Activity

By Laura Cooper July 3, 2022 9:03 am ET Listen to article (2 minutes) Investment banks are facing big losses on leveraged buyouts they agreed to finance before markets soured, further chilling the out...

Celsius Customers Are Losing Hope for Their Locked-Up Crypto

It has been three weeks since crypto lender Celsius Network LLC took the drastic step of halting customers’ withdrawals. Many people are starting to wonder if they will ever see their money again. All...

The 60-40 portfolio is supposed to protect investors from volatility: so why is it having such a bad year?

The first half of 2022 has been a historically bad stretch for markets, and the carnage hasn’t been limited to stocks. As stocks and bonds have sold off in tandem, investors who for years have relied ...

Tesla Vehicle Deliveries Tumble After China Factory Shutdown

Tesla vehicle deliveries fell quarter-over-quarter for the first time in more than two years, reflecting an extended shutdown in China, supply-chain disruptions and challenges associated with opening ...

Grayscale Bitcoin Trust’s Discount Is Tempting. Why It’s Not a Slam Dunk.

There is a way to buy Bitcoin for nearly a third less than the market price, but investors do so at their peril. That is the broad lesson to draw from the travails of the Grayscale Bitcoin Trust (tick...

Crypto’s Domino Effect Is Widening, Threatening More Pain

Turmoil in the digital-assets ecosystem has grown in recent weeks, with losses in cryptocurrencies blowing holes in balance sheets and pushing firms near bankruptcy. After a pair of cryptocurrencies c...

Crypto hedge fund Three Arrows files for U.S. bankruptcy

Crypto hedge fund Three Arrows Capital has filed for bankruptcy under Chapter 15 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code, according to a court filing in the Southern District of New York on Friday. Three Arrows C...

The Best Income Investments Now

Income-oriented investors, it’s time to celebrate. There are suddenly many more opportunities—in areas ranging from junk bonds to real estate investment trusts—after the bear markets in stocks and bon...

These 10 stocks in the S&P 500 lost $4.2 trillion of investors’ money during the first half of 2022

The first half of 2022 is over, and good riddance for investors: The S&P 500 Index declined 20.6%. Below are two lists of the worst-performing stocks in the S&P 500 SPX, -0.88% this year. Firs...

Crypto Winter Is Coming After SEC Rejects Key Bitcoin ETF

As if crypto bros didn’t have enough to worry about. The Securities and Exchange Commission has rejected Grayscale Investments’ application to convert its $13 billion spot Bitcoin trust into an exchan...

Should You Roll Over Your 401(k) to an IRA? It Can Cost You Tens of Thousands.

Text size Retirement savers would do well to check the fees on fund holdings in 401(k) accounts held at former employers before rolling over to an IRA. Workplace savings plans tend to have more favora...

‘I wouldn’t be successful at my job without her’: My friend cleans, cooks and cares for my child. I pay her $50 a day. Am I taking advantage of her?

I’m a working-from-home mom and my supervisors have no intentions of bringing me back to the office at this time. In order to actually get work done, I have pieced together childcare using the help of...

Chip Stocks Are in for Trouble, Analyst Says. 4 Stocks Get Downgrades.

Text size The iShares Semiconductor ETF has fallen even more than the overall market this year. Courtesy of Texas Instruments BofA Global Research is getting more downbeat about the chip industry. Eve...

This veteran money manager has seen it all. And these 19 dividend stocks pass his rigorous quality screen right now.

Lewis Altfest’s time in the finance industry spans seven decades. He has some words of advice for investors who aren’t used to stomach-churning stock-price moves. He founded Altfest Personal Wealth Ma...

Wall Street’s favorite stock sector has potential upside of 43% as we enter the second half of 2022

At the midpoint of 2022, investors are looking at a remarkable change in stock valuations. The S&P 500 SPX has declined 20%, but the benchmark index’s forward price-to-earnings valuation has falle...

Bitcoin’s Next Headwind: Struggling Crypto Miners

Text size Miners spend an average of $15,000 to produce each coin, JPMorgan estimates. Dreamstime The plummeting price of Bitcoin could force crypto miners to sell the tokens to fund operations, furth...

Why the S&P 500 may be in for a 1966-style bear market, according to DWS Group

The S&P 500 has found good support recently and, while in a bear market, the large-cap index may not fall much further this year, said David Bianco, chief investment officer of the Americas for fu...

Banks Are Healthy. Why They’re Holding Back on Dividends.

Text size JPMorgan Chase held its dividends flat due to increasing capital requirements following the Federal Reserve’s stress test.  Justin Sullivan/Getty Images Banks may have gotten a clean bill of...

SOX semiconductor index could double over the next couple of years, analyst says

Despite potential for further downside, semiconductor stocks could rebound significantly over the next couple of years, according to Columbia Threadneedle Senior Equity Analyst Dave Egan. Semi stocks ...

How long will stocks stay in a bear market? It hinges on if a recession hits, says Wells Fargo Institute

When the S&P 500 officially dropped into a bear market on June 13, closing down more than 20% from its last peak, it stirred debate about whether investors should hold tight or think about buying ...

3 big problems with Congress’ new retirement reforms

A new set of reforms to America’s retirement tax and savings plans passed a key hurdle in Congress last week. Variously known as the SECURE Act 2.0, the EARN Act and the RISE & SHINE Act, the meas...

Bank Stocks Boost Dividends After Fed Stress Tests

Text size The Fed’s annual stress tests were introduced following the 2008-09 financial crisis. Dreamstime Morgan Stanley , Goldman Sachs , Wells Fargo , and Bank of America said they would rais...

Oaktree’s Howard Marks is finding bargains: ‘I am starting to behave aggressively’

Stocks are mostly higher on Tuesday, with China to thank for some of that as the country announced the biggest easing in COVID travel requirements since about March 2020. China’s news may add to the s...