Working in finance became cool again
Part of the aftermath of the financial crisis was that young, talented workers didn’t want to work in finance. The stink of greed on Wall Street was too strong for those whose job prospects were hit hard by the crisis, so many turned their eyes to Silicon Valley. Leaders in the finance industry recognized this problem, talked about it, tried hard to overcome it, and generally failed.
But lo and behold at a recent Internapalooza in Manhattan, young STEM students showed a newfound willingness to work in finance. One even noted Wall Street is as appealing as Silicon Valley. That will be music to the ears of financial services recruiters.
Surely the infusion of fintech – and its hip culture – has helped turn the tide in favor of Wall Street. But nothing has helped as much as the passage of good ol’ father time.
Speaking of Wall Street and technology…
It is no secret that Adena Friedman brought serious tech chops when she ascended to the CEO suite at Nasdaq. So it should come as no surprise that her first acquisition is all about tech; or more specifically, RegTech.
Behavioral science is doing more and more research into the mind of traders. To see that research being combined with the latest tech advances in an effort to catch rogue traders is actually pretty refreshing. Maybe this is the kind of do-gooder work that has the STEM students at that Internapalooza so excited?
On Europe’s banking union
I would say the jury is definitely still out, but Martin Sandbu thinks the banking union is a smash hit and will only help to bring the people and politics of the continent closer together. I am not so sure about that, but it sounds good. I also like the new term Sandbu introduces: the bank-state complex.
What a concept!
This paper is all about an initiative to provide loan-level data transparency in order to enhance the securitization process. Can we all just step back for a second and admire how awesome such an endeavor is in the year 2017. We are a decade removed from a crisis wherein little to no loan-level data was transparent and here is this little team of people chugging along trying to improve it. Mind you, their efforts are only 5 years old.
It is almost as if the very notion of having loan-level data transparency is just so far beyond the pale that it is something that can only be the stuff of dreams. When it should be an absolute reality.
Now this is a ‘nothingburger’
When I saw the headline hinting at how Sen. Gary Peters, D-Mich., leverages his unique insight as a former broker when weighing in on the fiduciary rule, I thought I was gonna get … well … some unique insight.
Instead, all the article offers are nuggets of wisdom such as:
“We have to deal with the reality of what we have now.”
“We have a rule in place. I don’t want ideology to drive the debate.”
“The devil’s in the details.”
“I try to check ideology at the door [and operate] in a practical, common-sense way.”
“It’s a lot easier to save early than save later.”
Wow … what insight.
WYWW Appetizers
- Uber for truckers … sounds good to me.
- PIMCO likes what it sees in Europe.
- When Tim Buckley talks, people listen. Or at least they should.