S&S Activewear’s Debt Ratings Downgraded on Weak Sales Trends
S&P Global Ratings cut S&S Activewear’s issuer credit rating to B‑ minus from B, citing soft revenue trends and elevated leverage. The company ended fiscal 2025 with 8.6‑times leverage and free operating cash flow to debt below 1 percent, reflecting the impact of the 2024 Alphabroder acquisition and a $100 million spend on warehouse automation. S&P expects leverage to fall into the high‑7x range in 2026 as synergies materialize, while the outlook remains stable due to ample liquidity on an $800 million revolver.
‘Spin-Out of a Spin-Out’ Altair Industries Raises Initial Capital for Debut Fund
Altair Industries announced the launch of its debut private‑equity fund, marking the firm’s first independent capital raise. The fund is being spearheaded by two former Stellex Capital Management executives who exited Stellex in September 2023. While the exact size of...
Munis Cheapen, USTs End Mixed
Municipal bond yields fell across the curve on Tuesday as U.S. Treasuries posted mixed moves and equity markets closed lower. Analysts linked the muni decline to the Treasury market’s range‑bound behavior and the Federal Reserve’s likely decision to hold rates...
Aecon Reports First Quarter 2026 Results with Record Backlog of $10.9 Billion
Aecon Group posted Q1 2026 revenue of C$1.257 billion, an 18% year‑over‑year rise, while narrowing its operating loss to C$8 million from C$40.7 million a year earlier. The company announced a record C$10.9 billion backlog—about US$8.1 billion—the highest in its history, bolstered by new contracts and...
$25 Minimum Wage: The Hidden Cost for Jobs, Prices and Small Business
A federal $25 minimum wage, championed by legislators Analilia Mejia and Delia Ramirez and backed by over 100 groups, would turn labor from a modest expense into a cost shock for many sectors. The rise would force firms to choose...
IRS Offers Extension Option for Taxpayers Facing ERC Claim Deadlines
The IRS announced a streamlined process allowing eligible taxpayers to extend the two‑year deadline for resolving employee retention credit (ERC) disallowances. By filing Form 907 before the deadline expires, taxpayers can gain additional time for administrative review or to file a...
Integris Expands Overseas With Acquisition Of First Focus: CEO
Integris announced the acquisition of First Focus, a leading Australian‑New Zealand managed‑services provider, marking its first international expansion. The deal adds roughly 300 employees and about $60 million in annual revenue, bringing Integris’s global headcount to around 1,200. Backed by OMERS Private...
Saba Capital to Expand Second-Hand Liquidity Platform for BDCs, Interval Funds
Activist hedge fund Saba Capital announced an expansion of its second‑hand liquidity platform to include both public and private Business Development Companies (BDCs) and interval funds. The firm will focus on securities trading at discounts of 30% or more to...
MagicCube Adds E& to $10M Financing Round
MagicCube announced that e& Capital has joined its $10 million financing round, marking the second closing of the round. The round also includes strategic investor Verifone, along with Bold Capital Partners, Mosaik Partners and other backers. MagicCube’s software‑only security platform protects...
ARKK Flows Signal a Spring Resurgence
The ARK Innovation ETF (ARKK) recorded a dramatic surge in April 2026, pulling in $715 million on April 24 and $1.9 billion on April 27, for a total of $3.3 billion in net inflows that month. This inflow spike lifted the fund’s assets under management...
Managing Assets in an Uncertain World: Opening Remarks
In opening remarks at the Managing Assets in an Uncertain World event, ISDA CEO Scott O’Malia highlighted the accelerating shift toward digital assets and tokenization within derivatives markets. He noted that tokenized collateral can cut settlement friction and expand usable...
Vernon Building Society Partners with FintechOS to Power New Mortgage Platform
Vernon Building Society has teamed with FintechOS to launch a unified mortgage platform built on FintechOS 8. The solution runs above Vernon’s legacy core, eliminating the need for a costly system replacement while covering the full origination workflow. Powered by no‑code...
Sacramento School Bonds Dropped to Junk on Fiscal Woes
Fitch Ratings downgraded Sacramento City Unified School District’s issuer default rating to BB‑minus and its unlimited‑tax general‑obligation bonds to junk, while dedicated‑tax bonds remain investment‑grade. The agency cited rapidly depleting liquidity, eroding reserves and overspending that began in fiscal 2025...
The Real AI ROI Problem Isn’t Technology — It’s Measurement
Enterprises are pouring money into AI, yet boards and CFOs struggle to prove returns. The gap isn’t weak models but outdated ROI measurement methods that treat AI like traditional automation. Forrester’s new AI Value Matrix separates financial outcomes from value...
New Bill Would Autofill Tax Forms
Rep. Bill Foster (D‑Illinois) introduced the “Autofill Act,” a bill that would let taxpayers download tax forms already filled with data the IRS receives from employers, the Social Security Administration and financial institutions. The pre‑populated forms would be available both...
Financial Trade Group Creates Stablecoin Certificate for Treasury
The Association for Financial Professionals (AFP) has partnered with treasury‑software firm Kyriba to introduce a four‑module stablecoin certificate, launching in June 2026. The program aims to equip corporate treasurers, CFOs and other finance leaders with practical guidance on stablecoin risks,...
How Mortgage Revenue Bonds Can Boost Your Portfolio
The article explains how state and local housing finance agencies issue mortgage revenue bonds (MRBs) to fund affordable single‑ and multi‑family housing, detailing their structures, credit quality, and market dynamics. It highlights that MRBs, backed by government‑pledged assets and often...
Calgary Co-Op Sales Rise in 2025 as Company Reports Profit of $6.12 Million
Calgary Co‑op posted a profit of roughly $4.5 million USD for fiscal 2025, rebounding from a $7.4 million USD loss the year before. Total sales rose about 5% to $1.15 billion USD, helped by strong pharmacy revenue, while petroleum and liquor sales slipped...
Park Capital's Latest RMBS Raises $380.8 Million
Park Capital is set to sell $380.8 million of residential mortgage‑backed securities (RMBS) through the PRKCM 2026‑AFC3 transaction, slated to close on May 5. The deal features five A‑1 tranches with coupons near 5.44% and AAA ratings, alongside lower‑rated A2, A3, M1 and...
How the Best-Run Accounting Firms Measure Performance (Hint: It’s Not Just About Revenue)
After the 2026 tax season, accounting firms are reassessing performance beyond headline revenue. Leaders are adopting five operational benchmarks—net profit margin, utilization rate, days sales outstanding, real‑time visibility, and technology integration—to gauge true health. The article shows that many firms...
Cyber Insurance Data Gives CISOs New Ammo for Budget Talks
Resilience’s new cyber‑insurance analysis translates technical threats into monetary loss, giving CISOs a data‑driven script for board budget discussions. The study of manufacturing claims from March 2021‑February 2026 shows ransomware responsible for 90% of incurred loss while representing only 12% of claims....
Sazerac Nabs Minority Stake in Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila
Sazerac has taken a minority equity position in Kendall Jenner’s 818 Tequila and will serve as the brand’s exclusive U.S. sales and distribution partner. Financial terms were not disclosed. The partnership aims to broaden 818’s shelf presence across formats from 50 ml...
Paid Tariffs on a Shipment? UPS and FedEx Announce Refund Plans
UPS and FedEx will refund billions in tariff charges after the U.S. Treasury begins reimbursing them for Trump‑era levies deemed unlawful. The Supreme Court’s ruling opened a $166 billion pool of potential refunds, with UPS having collected roughly $5 billion from its...
Property Tax Compliance Tops Six Figures Annually for Most Large Enterprises, Avalara Research Finds
Avalara’s new report reveals that property‑tax compliance consumes a massive share of large enterprises’ resources, with 60% of firms logging 81‑160 hours each month and 22% spending between $250,000 and $500,000 annually. Despite this investment, only 3% of respondents have...
Form 990 Revisions Aimed at Cracking Down on Fraud by Tax-Exempt Groups, Treasury and IRS Say
The Treasury Department announced that the IRS will revise Form 990 to tighten reporting on government contracts, grants, and fiscal sponsorships, aiming to expose fraud in tax‑exempt organizations. The "Form 990 transparency initiative" follows a recent IRS whistleblower alert seeking...
Bond Insurance Usage Rises Nearly 5% in Q1
Bond insurance volume rose 4.9% year‑over‑year to $7.704 billion in Q1 2026, covering 350 deals. The two largest municipal insurers, Assured Guaranty and BAM, together accounted for the entire market, but Assured’s share slipped to 53.1% while BAM’s grew to 46.9% with...
CEO Pay Growth Accelerates at S&P 500
A new ISS‑Corporate study of 318 S&P 500 firms shows median CEO compensation jumped 10.6% to $17.7 million in the 2025‑26 filing period, up from a 7.5% rise the year before. Over 74% of CEOs received pay increases, driven mainly by larger...
Why Choose ONESOURCE for Your Direct Tax Software?
Thomson Reuters ONESOURCE Direct Tax consolidates federal, state, local and international tax compliance into a single cloud‑native platform. The solution claims a 148% return on investment, halving tax‑preparation time and averting roughly $275,000 in annual compliance penalties. Automatic regulatory updates, including...
Report: Billions of Dollars in Data Center Construction Risk Is Uninsured
Annual data‑center investment is set to exceed $300 billion by 2027, pushing individual campus values to $10‑$30 billion. Insurers can no longer provide full replacement coverage; instead they underwrite based on probable maximum loss, limiting policies to $1.5‑$3.5 billion for most projects. This...
Push to Expand Financing Tools, Like PABs and TIFIA, for Ports
The Trump administration’s Maritime Action Plan calls for expanded financing tools for U.S. ports, including a national volume cap on private activity bonds (PABs) and access to the Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan program. Attorneys from Squire...
A Global Fight over Banking Rules Is Just Getting Started
Eighteen years after the 2008 crisis, the BIS’s liquidity‑risk principles gave rise to Basel III, which imposed stricter capital buffers on banks worldwide. Today, a nascent battle is emerging as the United States, Europe and emerging economies push divergent revisions to...
BridgeWise Taps X to Bring Social Media Sentiment Into Institutional Investing
BridgeWise announced a partnership with X to feed the platform’s social media stream into its AI‑driven investment suite. The API link converts X posts into real‑time sentiment scores using BridgeWise’s S‑Factor framework and Context Analytics technology. The new product, SentimentWise,...
St. Regis Chicago Hotel Owners Land $125M Refi: The Chicago Deal Sheet
Gencom and GD Holdings have secured a $125 million refinancing for the 192‑key St. Regis Chicago hotel, replacing the original $76 million acquisition loan from Varde Partners. The new financing, arranged with Banco Inbursa, allows the owners to extract roughly $49 million in equity....
SIFMA Submission to House Financial Services Committee on Capital Proposals
SIFMA submitted a letter to the House Financial Services Committee urging refinements to the 2026 U.S. bank capital proposals. The association praised recent improvements over 2023 drafts but warned that overly conservative requirements could curb liquidity, raise costs, and stifle...
Mamdani Pushes to Shrink NY Hedge-Fund, Private-Equity Tax Break
New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani is delaying the city’s $127 billion budget while urging Governor Kathy Hochul to trim the pass‑through entity tax (PTET) credit that benefits hedge funds and private‑equity firms. Mamdani and City Council Speaker Julie Menin propose cutting...
The Scylla and Charybdis of Accounting Technology
Accounting firms are caught between two extremes of technology adoption: doing the bare minimum and over‑investing in every new solution. The article warns that minimal engagement leaves firms vulnerable to talent loss, client dissatisfaction, and competitive lag, while excessive focus...
REC Posts Record ₹162.8 Billion Profit, Declares Highest Dividend
REC Ltd, the Indian state‑run financier, posted a record net profit of ₹162.8 billion (about $1.96 billion) for FY2025‑26, its highest ever. The firm’s loan sanctions jumped 21% to ₹4.09 trillion (~$49 billion) and disbursements rose 10% to ₹2.11 trillion, while its net worth climbed...
How to Incorporate Rising Political Risk Into Investment Management
The article outlines how investment managers can systematically embed rising political risk into portfolio construction and oversight. It highlights the shift from ad‑hoc news monitoring to quantitative scenario modeling, stressing the need for granular country‑level exposure data. The piece also...
SEBI Weighs Uniform Regime for Options Strike Prices
India’s securities regulator, SEBI, is reviewing a proposal to institute a uniform regime for options strike prices across exchanges. The plan would let exchanges introduce new strike levels during market hours, especially when underlying assets experience sharp intraday moves, eliminating...
Centene Hikes 2026 Profit Guidance After Buoyant Q1
Centene posted Q1 adjusted earnings of $3.37 per share, far surpassing analysts’ $2.25‑$2.30 expectations, driven by rate hikes that offset a 2‑million drop in ACA enrollment. Net profit rose 18% to $1.5 billion on revenue of $49.9 billion, prompting the company to...
House Passes IRS Whistleblower Program Improvement Act
The U.S. House approved the bipartisan IRS Whistleblower Program Improvement Act (H.R. 7959) by a 346‑10 vote, sending the measure to the Senate. The legislation tightens the appeals process by allowing new evidence in Tax Court and guarantees anonymity for whistleblowers...
Moody’s Analysts Discuss Their Outlook Downgrade for BDCs
Moody’s has revised its outlook for Business Development Companies (BDCs) to negative, citing mounting pressures across the sector. The rating agency highlighted four core concerns: elevated leverage ratios, heightened redemption activity, weakening asset quality, and the looming threat that artificial‑intelligence‑driven...
Private Credit Boom Pushes Fund Finance Market Past $1 Trillion
Fund finance market has surpassed $1 trillion, according to Moody’s and Haynes Boone reports, as private credit and equity funds increasingly tap subscription lines and newer debt structures. The surge is fueled by a booming $16 trillion private‑credit universe and slower deal exits,...
JBND: Active Management Cannot Fix Structural Risk
JPMorgan Active Bond ETF (JBND) merges intermediate‑duration Treasuries, agency mortgage‑backed securities with negative convexity, and investment‑grade credit at historically tight spreads. The fund’s structure forces downside risk rather than diversification, and the traditional carry premium no longer offers adequate protection....
Frothy, but Not Like 1999: This New Valuation Indicator Has Stocks Beating Inflation
Mark Hulbert’s MarketWatch column introduces a revised cyclically adjusted price‑to‑earnings (CAPE) ratio that adjusts earnings for inflation and real growth, painting a less frothy picture of U.S. equities. The new model suggests the S&P 500 can generate positive real returns and...
Airtel Eyes Fintech IPO Spin Off in $10bn Boost for London Market
British telecom giant Airtel is weighing a London Stock Exchange listing for its mobile‑money arm, Airtel Money. The spin‑off could raise up to $2 billion and value the business at roughly $10 billion, leveraging a customer base exceeding 50 million across Africa. Mastercard...
Beneficial Ownership of Bank Accounts & Exchange of Information
The CEPR paper released on April 28, 2026 examines how governments and financial institutions are tightening rules around the beneficial ownership of bank accounts and the mechanisms for exchanging that information across borders. It highlights recent OECD and FATF standards that compel...
Ryan Lulow Named Mountain Mike’s CFO
Mountain Mike’s appointed Ryan Lulow as its chief financial officer, elevating him from vice president of finance after a decade with the brand. Lulow will steer franchisee profitability, refine promotional and loyalty programs, and hunt for supply‑chain cost savings while...
Ondo Partners with Broadridge to Bring Shareholder Voting to Tokenized Stocks
Ondo Finance announced a partnership with Broadridge Financial Solutions to enable on‑chain proxy voting for more than 250 tokenized U.S. stocks and ETFs. The collaboration integrates wallet authentication into Broadridge’s ProxyVote platform, allowing token holders to cast votes and access...
CFOs Lean on AI, ‘Synthetic Audiences’ to Decode Consumer Behavior
Stubborn inflation and shifting consumer demand are forcing CFOs in retail to revamp forecasting and pricing strategies. A recent CFO Dive and Retail Dive panel highlighted how finance leaders are leveraging AI to generate synthetic audiences, drive precise markdowns, and...