Author: Money Mechanics

Key Takeaways Oracle shares rose on Monday after the company said it planned to raise up to $50 billion through debt and equity sales this year to fund its AI data center buildout.Oracle is dramatically increasing its infrastructure spending to meet an AI-driven surge in demand for cloud computing and take on incumbents Microsoft, Alphabet, and Amazon. Oracle plans to raise billions to fund its ambitious bets on AI and cloud computing. That has the stock rising today. The company on Sunday night said it intends to raise between $45 billion and $50 billion this year through a combination of…

Key Takeaways Bitcoin’s latest swoon is driving analysts’ concerns about Strategy, which is one of the biggest buyer of the leading cryptocurrency around. The company’s paid $76,000, on average, for its stockpile of 713,502 bitcoins. That’s not that far below current prices. A fire sale in bitcoin is throwing some harsh light on one of its major buyers. Bitcoin evangelist Michael Saylor, executive chairman of Strategy (MSTR), is taking heat as crypto markets keep taking hits. Shares of Strategy, the biggest publicly traded holder of bitcoin, are down more than 2% Monday, trading at prices unseen since 2024. Crypto-linked stocks…

Key Takeaways Disney topped estimates in its latest quarterly report, but investors may be focusing on the succession plan for CEO Bob Iger.Reports emerged over the weekend that Iger is planning to leave before his contract expires, with Experiences chief Josh D’Amaro reportedly a likely successor.Disney shares were down sharply this morning, leading decliners in the Dow Jones Industrial Average. Disney shares fell sharply Monday morning, despite a better-than-expected quarterly earnings report, as investors assessed reports about the company’s CEO succession plans. The Walt Disney Company (DIS) early today reported fiscal first-quarter results that topped Wall Street estimates on the…

Key Takeaways The Super Bowl Indicator, which claims an NFC win predicts a rising stock market that year, proved correct in 2025: the Eagles won, and the S&P 500 gained almost 18%.Don’t let that fool you. Since 2000, the indicator has been right less than half the time. If your portfolio could take a rooting interest in Sunday’s Super Bowl, it would pick the Seattle Seahawks. That’s according to the Super Bowl Indicator, a bit of Wall Street folklore that suggests wins by National Football Conference teams predict a good year for the stock market while American Football Conference victories…

Key Takeaways The average freelancer in the U.S. makes $99,230 per year.Most freelancers earn between $50,500 and $128,500 per year, depending on experience and specialization.​Tech specialists can earn double or even three times as much as freelancers who offer creative services.Freelancers who transition from hourly (time-based) to project-based or retainer pricing often see significant income increases.​ Freelancers are self-employed professionals who work independently, often for multiple clients. Over one in four skilled knowledge workers in the U.S. was a freelancer in 2025. They include 1099 contractors, consultants, and gig workers across virtually every industry. As a freelancer, you might be…

While cross border payments have modernised, Exceptions and Investigations (E&I) remain stuck in a slow, manual past. It’s an issue the industry has tolerated for too long, but Swift’s 2027 Case Management mandate seeks to change this by replacing unstructured messages with a standardised framework. To comply with this change, banks will have to automate how investigation cases are created, exchanged and resolved. However, as regulatory demands intensify, the mandate risks being overshadowed by competing deadlines and legacy constraints.Banks need to treat the next two years as a strategic runway, not an administrative countdown. Those who invest early in native…

In-brief analysis February 2, 2026 Data source: U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates, based on Hitachi Velocity Suite Average wholesale day-ahead electricity prices at most major trading hubs in the Lower 48 states were higher in 2025 than in 2024, driven largely by higher natural gas prices to electric generators. The largest increase in price was $29 per megawatthour (MWh) in New England’s Independent System Operator (ISO-NE), and the largest decrease was $14/MWh in the upper Northwest’s Mid-Columbia. The wholesale price of electricity on the electric power grid reflects the day-ahead and real-time…

Minneapolis unrest fuels budget deadlock risk, raising shutdown fears and pressuring the US dollar. US Dollar weakens as markets eye Fed meeting, with rate cuts now expected later in the year. EUR/USD tests 1.19 resistance, with downside risk toward 1.1600 if momentum fades. Protests in Minneapolis turned violent, with two people shot, and the fallout has reached Washington. Democrats said they will not support the budget bill that needs to be passed by January 30, raising the risk of another US government shutdown. Against this backdrop, the US dollar has weakened, including against the euro, with the pair moving closer…

China’s President Xi Jinping (R) and Britain’s Prime Minister Keir Starmer shake hands before their meeting at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing on January 29, 2026.Carl Court | Afp | Getty ImagesChinese businesses have pledged hundreds of millions of pounds’ worth of investment in the U.K. and struck new partnerships with British peers as Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s visit to China spurred a flurry of bilateral business activity and investment flows. During his four-day visit in China last week, Starmer met Chinese President Xi Jinping and secured deals that would see hundreds of millions worth of new investments…

Digital meeting notetakers like Read AI, Fireflies.ai, Fathom, and Granola help record and transcribe online meetings. But for in-person or more versatile options, many people prefer physical recording devices These physical notetakers transcribe audio and give users summaries and action items of meetings using AI. Some of these devices are wearable—pins or pendants with dedicated mics for recording—while others are credit-card sized with dedicated mobile apps to transcribe and extract insights using AI. A few even offer live translation. Below is a non-exhaustive list of physical AI notetakers and transcription tools. Plaud Note/Plaud Note Pro This credit card-sized notetaker has…