Three wildfire-relief bills, including one that would let homeowners pause mortgage payments after a disaster declaration, cleared their respective California committees this month and are headed to formal votes.
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State Assemblymember John Harabedian, D-Pasadena, whose district includes some of the neighborhoods hardest hit by the early-2025 Los Angeles wildfires, led proposals for all three bills, aimed at homeowner protections against threat of foreclosure or loss of insurance.
The new emergency mortgage relief proposal
AB 1842, titled the California Mortgage Relief Act, would establish a legal framework and reporting rules for the first time, with the legislation allowing homeowners to pause monthly loan payments in the event of a state emergency declaration after future natural disasters or catastrophic events.
If passed, servicers will be mandated to offer an initial 180-day forbearance period upon emergency declaration, with additional 90-day extensions allowed on borrower request, for up to 12 months. Assessment of late fees or default interest rates would be prohibited during the forbearance period per terms of the law, as well as any lump-sum repayment obligation following the end of the full term.
“California is facing more frequent and severe natural disasters, and families should not have to worry about mortgage payments on homes they cannot live in,” Harabedian said when he introduced the bill earlier this year.
California Assemblymember John Harabedian, D-Pasadena, in 2024.
“By extending protections and creating a statewide safety net, we are standing with families when they need it most, helping them heal, rebuild and stay rooted in their communities.”
During a state of emergency and 90 days thereafter, servicers will also be required to report to the state’s department of financial protection and innovation monthly reports detailing the number of requests received and resulting approvals or denials.
California’s leading mortgage advocacy group raises warnings
While supporting the bill’s objective to assist homeowners, the California Mortgage Bankers Association raised warnings that the bill could prove detrimental to those it is intended to help. The trade group pointed out AB 1842 would introduce new rules that go beyond current laws and guidelines federal regulators and investors already have in place.
“This bill goes further than current law by applying these requirements to any state-declared emergency, even if the federal government has not issued a state of emergency,” said CMBA CEO Paul Gigliotti in a video detailing legislative updates on the association’s YouTube channel.
The bill runs the risk of coming into conflict with other guidelines and would necessitate alignment of multiple sets of requirements during emergency conditions, which could delay assistance rollout, he continued.
“At the very moment when clarity and speed are most important, conflicting requirements can create confusion, and that is the last thing homeowners need during a crisis.”
Also passing in April was AB 1847, which Harabedian introduced alongside the relief act. The law would extend the forbearance period for victims of the January 2025 wildfires for an additional two years. Homeowners in the affected communities were originally granted one year of forbearance upon request.
The proposal also pushes out the deadline to request forbearance relief to Jan. 7, 2029, the four-year anniversary of the catastrophe.
Both bills passed through the California Assembly’s banking and finance committee on April 21.
“These bills are about more than mortgages — they are about giving families hope, security, and a chance to rebuild their lives after unimaginable loss,” Harabedian continued.
While California originally passed mortgage relief laws requiring 12 months of forbearance and outlawed foreclosures immediately following the wildfires, homeowners reported instances of servicers denying or delaying relief. The reports drove Harabedian’s efforts to put requirements into law, he said.
Insurance law would extend cancellation moratoriums
Separately, Harabedian also saw another of his proposals that would require one-year extensions of existing insurance coverage on wildfire-stricken properties move from committee to a floor vote.
AB 2038 would prevent home-insurance providers from canceling coverage on clients with complete property losses in the Los Angeles wildfires for a total of three years, adding an additional 12 months to the existing prohibition.
Similarly, insurers will see a two-year moratorium on cancellation of coverage for clients with homes located in ZIP codes within the wildfire perimeters.
Co-sponsored by Assemblymember Rick Zbur, D-Los Angeles, the bill cleared the assembly committee on insurance in mid April. Current rules do not adequately take into account the difficulty of recovery, according to Harabedian.
“Navigating recovery after a wildfire has not been a straight path,” he said following the committee vote. “Granting more time to homeowners so they can focus on recovery without the burden of insurance coverage remains crucial to reducing displacement and providing stability to our communities.”
All three bills still must pass a California Assembly vote and negotiations, followed by a similar Senate process before being signed into law.
You would have to go back quite some time to find an initial public offering (IPO) as anticipated as SpaceX’s. The aerospace company is looking to IPO this summer with around a $1.75 trillion valuation (the highest in IPO history). How much it ultimately fetches will depend on the market, but the lead-up has sparked significant investor interest.
Unless you’re an institution or “accredited investor,” you can’t buy shares of SpaceX on the stock market before its IPO. However, there are a few different ways to get exposure to it right now, before its IPO.
Image sourc: Getty Images.
Invest in a company with a stake in SpaceX
The best way for the average investor to get exposure to SpaceX before its IPO is to invest in a company that owns shares in it. Google parent Alphabet(GOOG +1.81%)(GOOGL +1.78%) is a good option because it reportedly owned 6.11% of SpaceX at the end of 2025.
In January 2015, Alphabet invested $900 million in SpaceX as part of a $1 billion package with Fidelity. At the time, SpaceX was valued at around $12 billion, and Alphabet’s initial stake was around 7%. Its stake has since been diluted — especially after SpaceX and xAI merged in February — but 6% is still a sizable holding.
There are plenty of reasons to invest in Alphabet aside from its stake in SpaceX, but knowing that Alphabet’s investment could be worth around $105 billion if SpaceX fetches its record-breaking valuation is encouraging at a time when Alphabet is increasing its spending to keep up in the AI arms race.
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EchoStar(SATS +3.52%) is a key partner of SpaceX that is planning to sell the company spectrum licenses that provide crucial frequencies that SpaceX’s Starlink relies on.
As part of the agreement — which is awaiting regulatory approval — EchoStar will gain millions of SpaceX shares. The EchoStar/SpaceX deal is expected to be approved in the first half of this year. The market is optimistic that it will go through. In the past 12 months, EchoStar’s stock is up 420% (as of April 24), largely because of its relationship with SpaceX.
There are funds that contain SpaceX shares
No fund has a higher allocation to SpaceX than the Baron Partners Fund(BPTRX 0.10%). As of March 31, 33% of the mutual fund was in SpaceX. Tesla accounts for 20%. The fund has a minimum initial investment. It’s either $2,000 or $500 if you set up automatic investments.
Ark Venture Fund(ARKVX 0.04%) has 17% of its holdings in SpaceX. It’s an “actively managed closed-end interval fund that seeks long-term growth of capital by investing both private and public equities securities of companies that are relevant to the Fund’s investment theme of disruptive innovation.” It has a $500 minimum initial investment, but one key thing to note is that there are specific windows every quarter where the fund repurchases up to 5% of its outstanding shares. If you miss that window, you’ll need to wait until the next one to sell shares.
Destiny Tech100(DXYZ +1.46%) is 32 companies into its mission of having a portfolio of “100 of the top venture-backed private tech companies.” SpaceX is one of those companies, accounting for 16% of the fund. This is a closed-end management investment company. As with all investments, potential investors will need to dig into fees and other information before making a decision.
Should you wait until SpaceX’s IPO before investing?
If you want to invest in SpaceX as directly as possible, then waiting until its IPO is the route to take. However, if you’re looking to gain exposure to SpaceX without waiting to buy its shares on the market, going through Alphabet is likely the most direct (and beneficial) route among the options above.
SpaceX’s stock will inevitably be volatile in the time after its IPO, especially with the high valuation it’s aiming for. By investing in Alphabet, you get a trifecta: SpaceX exposure, shares of one of the best tech companies in the world, and a shield from the volatility or potential struggles of SpaceX’s stock early on.
The funds are good options if you want exposure, but the mutual funds aren’t as straightforward to buy as your typical exchange-traded fund. Realistically, though, most investors are better off waiting until SpaceX’s IPO to invest in the company directly.
AngelList just announced a new registered, non-traded fund, USVC, to enable retail participation in the private securities sector. Fundrise, an investment platform that originally targeted private real estate investments rather than early- or later-stage private investing, recently launched a publicly traded fund, Fundrise Growth Tech Fund (VCX). These two funds, along with other options for smaller investors, are good for retail investors because they provide a path to participate in private securities, typically the realm of VCs and other professional investors.
Today, much of the capital gains from successful private firms are captured before these firms go public (if they ever do), so allowing retail participation is important for providing access to this asset class.
While USVC and VCX overlap in some of their holdings, there are differences between the two vehicles that investors should recognize.
VCX is publicly listed on an exchange, thus it provides liquidity for investors who need it. It is a tradable fund.
USVC, on the other hand, provides limited liquidity, meaning investors should be patient, as there is currently a limited path to exit their holdings.
If you value liquidity, you should take this fact into consideration.
At the same time, USVC is valued differently from VCX. USVC has a valuation policy that provides a Net Asset Value using audited financials or recent funding rounds.
VCX is market-driven, determined by buyers and sellers on an exchange. It is currently trading at a significant premium to its individual holdings. While NAV is between $18 and $20 per share, VCX is currently trading around $85 per share, or over 4X NAV.
Efficient App founder Alex Bass recently discussed this in a thread on X, stating VCX is why USVC needs to exist.
VCX has traded between $31.21 and $575 a share. This dramatic range is probably due to a small float and a liquidity premium, but the premiums remain. Of course, the premium may diminish over time, but for investors, it is important to understand the similarities and differences between the two vehicles.
As the current administration and leadership at the SEC are supportive of expanding access to private markets for smaller investors, competition should push prices lower. This is a good thing, but it will take some time. And if Congress approves a new definition of an Accredited Investor, where acumen and sophistication count, this will help democratize further access to private markets.
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When RAYE released Escapism as an independent artist in October 2022, the song’s pan-European radio campaign was handled by UK-headquartered plugging specialist Propeller Communications.
Within months, it was charting in more than 20 European territories, before going on to hit No.1 on the UK Singles Chart in early 2023.
Three-and-a-half years later, Tom Rose’s company, now officially rebranded as GRAPE.VN (pronounced Grapevine), is still RAYE’s radio team across Europe.
And in 2026, with the now-superstar’s hit single Where Is My Husband! (Human Re Sources/The Orchard), GRAPE.VN delivered one of its most ambitious pan-EU results yet: Top 10 airplay in 18 markets.
“This would have previously been a huge investment and coordination job [for a distributor] to service that many markets,” Rose tells MBW. He explains that GRAPE.VN is “labelled as disruptive” because the firm doesn’t have “people on the ground in each country”.
Instead, GRAPE.VN employs “a team of polyglots,” who, according to Rose, “speak pretty much every language in Europe across our small team”.
He adds: “We still pick up the phone and try to visit every major station at least a couple of times per year, but we rely on great systems, clear communication of story, data that matters, and building respect with our connections to deliver results that previously were perhaps only attainable with on-the-ground promoters.”
After a decade of trading under the Propeller name, Rose is relaunching the company as a multi-service independent music business offering radio, PR, management, brand partnerships, and label services under a single roof.
“We’re much more than a radio company,” says Rose.
The radio arm, once the whole business and now one of five verticals, remains the engine.
Led by Head of Radio Espen Blödorn-Mentzoni, it delivered more than 300 placements in the top 200 airplay charts across 30 European countries in 2025, running campaigns for Gorillaz, Wunderhorse, MOLIY, WizTheMC, Sonny Fodera, Zerb and Swedish House Mafia. This year has already seen chart success for RAYE, The Neighbourhood, Justé, Sam Feldt and Prospa. Among the new clients are UK indie band Blossoms (for both radio and PR).
The company’s roots run back to 2014, when Norwegian indie label Propeller Recordings launched its UK operation with Rose at the helm. Two years in, while overseeing international marketing for the label, Rose grew frustrated that Propeller’s artists had music with genuine pan-European appeal, but that hiring top-tier radio pluggers in each individual market was expensive.
His response: over the course of a year, he and a small team scoured the European Broadcasting Union’s network of public radio stations and cold-built relationships with music heads, one by one. That contact base became the foundation of everything that followed.
By the time Rose exited as MD of Propeller Recordings in 2018 to launch his own label and management business, the radio arm he’d built had quietly become a pan-EU powerhouse. “People were tired of being ripped off by ineffective pluggers at the bottom end of the market and sky-high prices for effective pluggers,” he says.
The 2026 rebrand is, in essence, the formal unveiling of an operation that’s been quietly expanding for a couple of years already.
The new PR division is led by Michael Cleary (formerly of Beggars/XL, Sony/Columbia and WMA), and has already run campaigns for Jason Derulo, Blossoms, grandson, Master Peace, Claire Rosinkranz, and Island [Records UK]’s Westside Cowboy.
Photo credit: Gary Corr
The management roster includes ADMT, who releases his debut LP From Good To Bad And Then Back Again via BMG on May 15 and is currently supporting Louis Tomlinson on a UK/European arena tour. Also on the roster: St. Lundi, co-managed in North America with ex-RCA Co-President Joe Riccitelli, who has amassed over 200 million streams. Dance/pop producer Marcus Wiles has also just been added.
On the label side, Finola Doran (Head of Rock and Alt on the radio team) now leads new imprint Fly Tip Records, whose recent signings include London trio Dead Air, fresh off a UK headline tour and a support slot with Skindred.
And through a JV with Lars Bendix Düysen, (a former VP of Partnerships at Sony Music GSA), who has overseen deals for the likes of Tate McRae and 21 Savage via his Bendix Entertainment business, GRAPE.VN is now offering pan-European artist brand partnerships. The first deal is set to go live in June, alongside “some huge seven-figure global deals in negotiation”, according to Rose.
The team has also just been bolstered by two appointments: New hire Lewis Cleaver, formerly of Sony Music, joins Rose on the management side, while long-time Propeller exec Kevin Benz continues to lead business development in his role as Director of Partnerships.
“WE’RE 100% INDEPENDENT, OPERATE ON OUR PROFITS AND ARE WELL KNOWN FOR OUR SPECIALISM. BUT WE’RE AMBITIOUS. OUR GOAL IS TO BE A BIG PLAYER WITHIN THE WIDER MUSIC SERVICES MARKET.”
TOM ROSE, GRAPE.VN
Here, Tom Rose tells MBW why now was the right moment to rebrand, why “disruptive” radio promotion in 2026 looks very different to the old plugger model, why PR still matters in the streaming age, and more…
PROPELLER HAS BEEN A KNOWN NAME IN EUROPEAN RADIO PROMOTION FOR OVER A DECADE. WHY REBRAND NOW, AND WHY GRAPE.VN?
We’ve discussed rebranding since 2018, but our focus is always on the services we offer first and foremost. Over the last 12 months, we’ve come a long way in the variety of services that we offer, working alongside some of the most reputable artists globally. It felt like an apt time to relaunch.
As for the new name, I like people questioning how it’s spelt, and it feels fun. It sums up what we aim to achieve: ‘I heard it through the grapevine…’
THE COMPANY ORIGINALLY GREW OUT OF PROPELLER RECORDINGS, THE NORWAY-BASED LABEL. HOW DID THE JOURNEY FROM LABEL OFFSHOOT TO STANDALONE, MULTI-SERVICE COMPANY UNFOLD, AND AT WHAT POINT DID YOU REALISE THE OLD NAME NO LONGER FIT?
We started as an offshoot of Propeller Recordings, but I left as MD of the label in 2018 to start my own label and management business. Although the CEO of Propeller Recordings is still a shareholder in the radio part of the business, we operate as totally different entities.
I was managing Au/Ra at the time and had a successful couple of years overseeing the release of Panic Room with CamelPhat and Darkside with Alan Walker. We also took on Seeb for management and delivered brilliant releases with artists like Bastille, and remixes for Taylor Swift.
The radio business was fundamentally built to service Propeller Recordings artists, but it soon became clear that there was a big demand for a pan-EU radio services company. People were tired of being ripped off by ineffective pluggers at the bottom end of the market and sky-high prices for effective pluggers. Our goal was to test the market before investing in territory-specific promo. Fast forward 10 years, and we’re now equally effective compared to top-tier pluggers across most markets in Europe.
In 2024, we started looking at other services we could offer. We’ve added pan-EU PR, a brand partnership JV, and we also take on artists and labels on a consultancy basis when we find super-smart people with a monster hit on their hands who haven’t run a label before, or artists with amazing songs who are in need of creative guidance.
THE CORE PROPOSITION OF GRAPE.VN IS BRINGING RADIO, PR, MANAGEMENT, LABEL SERVICES AND CONSULTANCY UNDER ONE ROOF. WHY DOES THAT MATTER IN 2026, AND WHAT’S THE COMPETITIVE ADVANTAGE OF BUNDLING THESE SERVICES?
The competitive advantage is the sheer breadth of our work and contact base. We work with pretty much everyone in one capacity or another. We see how hits are made, not six months ago, but today, and how artists are successfully developed. We’re aware of touring opportunities and are able to present appealing options both to and for our clients.
It’s clear that the road for true artist development is still a long one. You can make shortcuts with breakthrough songs and opportunity, but tenacity wins long-term.
WHERE ARE YOU SEEING THE BIGGEST OPPORTUNITIES IN EUROPE RIGHT NOW, AND WHICH MARKETS ARE THE HARDEST TO CRACK?
From a radio perspective, Poland is often viewed as a wildcard, but it’s a really key market for us.
We’ve worked several No.1 airplay records over there in the last couple of years, and it always has a tangible effect on overall consumption.
“Things don’t happen overnight, but when you have enough of a story, things can really catch fire.”
France is often seen as a tricky market, as is the UK. However, French radio networks just need to be approached at the right time. Things don’t happen overnight, but when you have enough of a story, things can really catch fire, like we’re starting to see with RAYE in France currently.
HOW DO YOU IDENTIFY WHICH VIRAL TRACKS HAVE GENUINE POTENTIAL AT RADIO, AND WHAT’S YOUR HIT RATE?
For us, it’s the case of trial and error, informing our strategy moving forward. Some genres are very hard in Europe. As a rule, you need pace, a big moment in the first 60 seconds and a build throughout the song that leads the listener to want to listen again. Sometimes that can vary [if] the consumption data is so strong, or it’s a specialist record looking for tastemaker support. But for hits, it’s a bit of a formula.
“For hits, it’s a bit of a formula.”
We’ve worked some hugely successful songs that have attained hundreds of thousands of spins, and sometimes it just doesn’t work. Radio networks do a lot of testing, so we can start strong in a market by selling wider consumption data, and then the song tests badly on a playlist.
We’re honest about expectations. People can always send us music and we’ll give our best input on the record. We say no to a lot of songs. We value our contacts on both sides, so we only take on music that we believe has some sort of commercial potential across our network.
THERE’S A LONG-RUNNING DEBATE ABOUT WHETHER RADIO STILL MATTERS IN THE STREAMING AGE. WHERE DO YOU STAND, AND WHAT DOES THE DATA TELL YOU ABOUT RADIO’S ROLE IN BREAKING RECORDS ACROSS EUROPE TODAY?
It’s all important. PR was seen as becoming irrelevant, but tastemakers help build tribes around artists, and this affects streaming, as algorithms scan press to identify artists’ true popularity. Radio is the same. If you get one or two plays on a college radio station in Germany, you won’t see any impact. But if that’s all you’re getting, there’s a chance that the music is not connecting anyway.
“PR was seen as becoming irrelevant, but tastemakers help build tribes around artists, and this affects streaming, as algorithms scan press to identify artists’ true popularity.”
If you have multiple mainstream radio playlists on networks across a market, this will build awareness of the song and artist. It will send people to consume on other platforms, help those revered algorithms and have a tangible effect on live within the market.
Across Europe, it’s part of the mix and has value. A prime example is Europe’s biggest market, Germany. Their airplay chart is where a lot of hits start across most genres outside of domestic rap. Likewise, having your song in high rotation at VRT Studio Brussel will lead to mainstream recognition and sold-out shows in Belgium. Fact.
THE PR ARM IS RELATIVELY NEW. YOU’VE ALREADY WORKED ON JASON DERULO’S PAN-EUROPEAN TOUR, THE NEW BLOSSOMS CAMPAIGN AND EMERGING ACTS LIKE WESTSIDE COWBOY AND CLAIRE ROSINKRANZ. WHAT GAP IN THE MARKET DID YOU SEE THAT MADE YOU WANT TO BUILD THIS IN-HOUSE?
We were asked time and time again about PR. If an artist is playing a summer run of festivals, there will be press opportunities in every market, and we can help to maximise awareness.
If you’re a cool indie band with buzz in your market, there are outlets to bring along to your first shows. A good example is Island’s Westside Cowboy, who had a great press run into their most recent EP, then supported Geese, and there’s now a lot of anticipation towards their debut LP.
Blossoms
There are of course many artists that don’t fit into the press landscape in Europe. There are fewer outlets in each market. With a huge amount of international experience, we’re well-positioned to tell teams what will work and won’t, and we pass on as much as we take on.
It took us a while to find the right person, but we partnered with Michael Cleary, formerly of Beggars/XL, Sony/Columbia and WMA, to lead the PR business. He understands the craft of building a story and how to communicate it.
ADMT IS RELEASING HIS DEBUT LP IN MAY AND SUPPORTING LOUIS TOMLINSON ON A UK/EUROPEAN ARENA TOUR. TELL US ABOUT THE A&R JOURNEY WITH HIM.
I discovered ADMT at one of his first shows. He wrote a song called Man Now, a powerful record about not having a strong father figure in his life. We released his first record in the first month of lockdown in 2020, and it’s been a long road to where we are now. We’ve had a few false starts, but we licensed his music to Jamie Nelson [SVP, new recordings] at BMG [in the UK].
We work with their team a lot and I love their attitude towards artist development. It’s a can-do approach that sometimes feels rare in larger companies, especially if you want to be international with your artists.
They live up to their promises and have really invested in upping the game for ADMT. I can’t wait for his debut album to drop next month. Our own EU tour in May/June will be sold out over the next week or so, so it’s exciting times for sure.
ARE THERE OTHER MANAGEMENT SIGNINGS IN THE PIPELINE? WHAT DOES THE IDEAL GRAPE.VN MANAGEMENT CLIENT LOOK LIKE?
Another priority is St. Lundi, who we’ve been developing since 2020. We’ve worked in the indie space with him and amassed 200 million streams. Whilst we’ve not had a ‘hit’ yet, we’re building nicely and have partnered with Joe Riccitelli, ex-President of RCA, for management in North America.
He’s about to record three EPs in three cities over the next 18 months, in LA, Nashville and Stockholm, embedding himself in the creative communities of each. He just sold out 18 of 20 shows on his recent UK/EU tour last month, so there’s great momentum on his side as well.
We’ve also set up Fly Tip Records with Finola Doran, our Head of Rock and Alt, and have a brilliant band called Dead Air just starting to tour Europe, plus a talented dance/pop producer called Marcus Wiles, who’s managed by our Director of Partnerships, Kevin Benz.
We’re looking for talent that has no ceiling, and we’re willing to invest the time needed to build a business around each artist. As such, we can’t take a lot on, but we’ve just appointed Lewis Cleaver, ex-Sony, similarly tenacious, with a good amount of experience in emerging markets, to work with me on the management department.
We’re definitely up for expanding the roster under his oversight and also partnering with non-UK/EU managers who want to make deep connections into Europe for their artists.
YOU’VE RECENTLY PARTNERED WITH LARS BENDIX, SVP OF BRAND PARTNERSHIPS AT SONY GSA, THROUGH BENDIX ENTERTAINMENT, TO OFFER PAN-EUROPEAN ARTIST BRAND PARTNERSHIPS. HOW DID THAT RELATIONSHIP COME ABOUT?
I met Lars on a promo run in Germany. He’s got 20-plus years of experience in the cultural marketing space with brands, and the company he’s building is unique in offering an empirical solution to artist and brand partnerships. I’d not seen something like this before.
That, and the fact he’s got real gravitas in the space (having overseen huge global partnership deals for artists like Tate McRae, 21 Savage and many others) really excited me. He’s also a warm character and fun to work with.
We’re growing a powerful network of connections in the brand and agency space. Our first partnership with a Red Light artist and pan-EU brand is set to go live in June, alongside some huge seven-figure global deals in negotiation. We’re unaffiliated with agencies and labels, so we focus solely on the right artists for each project with no bias. Between Lars and I, there’s no barrier to conversations on both sides of the table.
WHERE DO YOU WANT GRAPE.VN TO BE IN TWO YEARS’ TIME, IN TERMS OF ROSTER SIZE, REVENUE AND REPUTATION?
We’d like to grow our revenue without taking on a million and one new artists. We’d like to build scale by building the careers of our artists.
Maybe a couple more signings, and some partnerships with larger artists wanting a UK/EU home. We want to form more relationships with innovative service providers that can add to our offering. There are some projects in other spaces that are just starting out as well, so our reputation and revenue will continue to strengthen.
IF THERE WAS ONE THING YOU COULD CHANGE ABOUT THE MUSIC BUSINESS IN 2026, WHAT WOULD IT BE AND WHY?
Inequality, and the lack of opportunities for artists from limited means. Whilst there are breakthroughs and viral sensations, for an artist to invest the time and money needed to build a business for themselves, it feels harder and harder to do so when you’re from a less wealthy background.
To take time off work to tour, the sheer cost of recording and marketing your music properly is not for the faint of heart. It must be next to impossible for anyone on a lower income level to feed themselves while making the investment to break through.
This is bad for music because talent isn’t solely an attribute of wealth.
There are some initiatives that we’ve benefited from in the UK, such as the BPI‘s amazing MEGS scheme, which supported St. Lundi. He left his hometown at 21 with just £50 in his bank account and built a life from scratch on his own.
I’d like to see some of these schemes properly means-tested for generational wealth. I’ve no idea how that could happen, but the reality is it takes a lot more than £50k to fully nurture talent. There are a lot of things I could mention, but financial inequality for artists is at the top.
In traditional markets, institutional order flow is largely anonymized. Large positions are not directly visible, and while other participants may infer activity, they usually cannot observe exactly where a position becomes vulnerable.
Decentralized finance changes this. On some blockchain-based trading platforms, positions, leverage, and liquidation thresholds can be visible in real time. In effect, other market participants can see where forced buying or selling may occur.
That transparency creates a more adversarial execution environment. A trader who identifies a large position near its liquidation threshold has a clear incentive to push prices toward that level, trigger forced liquidation, and profit from the resulting order flow. In most traditional markets, conduct of that kind would raise obvious manipulation concerns. In decentralized markets, however, it can arise directly from the market’s design.
The same problem also runs in reverse. A trader executing a large order must consider not only their own price impact, but also whether their trading could trigger liquidation cascades in other positions, moving the market much further than intended and worsening their own execution.
In stress scenarios, a third layer of risk appears. If exchange insurance funds are exhausted, loss-allocation mechanisms such as auto-deleveraging can force healthy counterparties to absorb losses from positions they did not initiate. Execution in that setting depends not only on modeling one’s own impact, but also on understanding the incentives of other participants and the rules by which the venue redistributes risk under stress.
If you’re a Boglehead like myself, you can talk endlessly about the compounding powers of the three-fund “lazy portfolio”: some bonds, some domestic stocks, and some international ones. Set it and forget it; never look at it again until you need to. If you don’t feel comfortable with the three-fund portfolio, you might want to get a financial advisor who can pick specific stocks for you for an AUM. The opportunity cost is in your head: For a low-expense ratio, you can have some ETFs that fit the three-fund portfolio, or you can shove all decision-making onto an advisor who will charge more to manage your portfolio.
If you’re a Warren Buffett aficionado, you’ll recognize this as his ever-touted “circle of competence,” in which you stick to what you know and leave what you don’t know to those, well, who know. Invest in what you understand and on things that have long-term value, and leave the frequent trading and market volatility to those who know what they’re doing.
It seems as if the king of compounding’s philosophy might not just work for investing but also for picking credit cards—and the perks you get with them.
At least that’s according to Chris Fred, TD Bank’s head of credit cards and unsecured lending, who said sometimes, points chasing (or “churning,” as those in the know call it) might prove too difficult for the average person.
“Just like Warren Buffett says to buy the index fund, a good flat‑rate card often wins out over all the fancy bonus categories,” Fred told Fortune.
The concept is simple, à la Buffett: If you know what you’re doing, you are fully encouraged to open several cards, each with various amounts of points or cash back per category. If you don’t, you should stick to the “circle of competence” and opt for a blanket cash-back card so you’re not trying to day trade at the checkout counter.
Churning, as a concept
Churning, although a fairly new (within the last three decades) concept with regard to credit cards, might be as old as personal finance itself. You might remember the App-O-Rama days of the aughts, in which people tried to fool financial institutions by opening multiple credit cards at once so as not to tank one’s credit score with each pull.
In 1999, David Phillips brought churning to the mainstream by taking advantage of a pudding promotion to earn over 1.25 million frequent-flier miles. (For what it’s worth, credit card perks had just started—take a blast from the past and go though the 2003 web page of Amex’s offerings to see the beginnings of credit card perks). In the 1900s, banks would encourage folks to open savings accounts with a free $100 or so deposit. And even in the 700s and onwards, people were purchasing silver coins at face value and turning them into the mint in England for new coins, worth more than their initial purchasing price.
Long story short, churning, in various forms, has been around for a while. In the credit card world, the r/churning subreddit boasts nearly 30,000 weekly visitors, and even has a whole FAQ section about dissuading the average person from engaging in churning, offering several reasons that Fred agrees with.
“People think, ‘I can always beat that 2%.’ On average, they don’t,” Fred said.
Fred referenced TD Bank’s three credit card offerings, which include 2% cash back on everything, and another base 1% cash back on everything in addition to 2% to 3% cash back on select categories. When compared with other card issuers that have cardholders deliberating over which card to use at the pump versus the restaurant table, Fred said, the mental math just isn’t worth it for the average consumer, especially when they never end up beating the blanket 2% cash back they are guaranteed to get with other cards.
Take, for example, a premium card that offers 4x on dining but only 1x on pharmacies and basic goods. It offers 3x on groceries, 1.5x on travel, but not transportation. The points on dining and groceries may very well exceed the 2% cash back from other cards, but it would be offset by the 1x and 1.5x elsewhere. Then add in those with multiple cards, and you have cardholders who, Fred joked, would need to constantly refer to a spreadsheet to ensure they are getting the most bang for buck—when a blanket 2% cash back would leave the cardholder without a care in the world knowing they’re getting the most they’ll get.
Add in the annual fees
That’s just the points/cash-back debate. Add in the exorbitant annual fees, and it really becomes a race to use all of your cards’ perks.
“The higher the fee, the more benefits you tend to have,” Fred said. “It’s a dangerous proposition: You’d better start using those benefits, or it’s going to be really hard to justify the fee.”
Some of these cards can cost nearly $1,000—but are marketed as being worth thousands more in perks, only if the cardholder remembers to use it accordingly. Use one card and get a monthly takeout or rideshare credit; use another and get a semiannual hotel bonus or early access to restaurant reservations or exclusive sporting events.
These are designed in a way to discourage using them, Fred said. There’s a reason you have to opt into an offer on your credit card’s portal instead of it being automatically applied as a bill credit. And it’s also the reason that keeps customers coming back.
“Those customers are sticky. They know they’re spending a certain amount each year in annual fees, so they’re vested,” Fred said.
A recent Merry Money Survey by TD Bank found 79% of consumers are actively seeking coupons, sales, and deals, while 72% of credit card users planning to use a card for holiday spending expect to apply rewards toward those purchases. Those offers, Fred said, might be how some even budget their credit card spend.
It gets complicated by the third-party partners who also offer perks to cardholders, which then is how card issuers and cardholders justify the high annual fee.
“They believe they’re going to get a good deal if they keep that card and use it—and that’s what makes these ecosystems so powerful,” Fred said.
