Wall Street's optimism sends the S&P 500 to a new record

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Private equity is betting on an unexpected place: Big Sky, Montana.

In addition to the exclusive Yellowstone Club, the Forbes Recently featured, Boston real estate investment firm CrossHarbor Capital made two acquisitions in 2013 that ultimately created Big Sky Resort one of the largest ski areas in the country, with about 5,800 hectares of motorable area.

In total, CrossHarbor has spent at least $4 billion over the past 15 years, in a city with just 3,300 full-time residents. Big Sky has seen rapid growth during the Covid-19 crisis, although it is slowing, due to Montana's relatively mild restrictions and easy access to nature.

First

The S&P 500 posted another record on Monday, the second anniversary of the bull market, just 2.3% away from the 6,000 mark. It is a remarkable 68% increase from the trough in October 2022, as corporate profit growth proved resilient despite high interest rates and inflation moderated from a four-decade high.

Shares of Nvidia rose more than 2% on Monday, closing at a record high and denting Apple's reputation as the world's most valuable company. The company's The market valuation is currently around $3.4 trilliontrailing Apple's $3.5 trillion, as shares of the chip giant have risen 19% so far in October.

Wealth + Entrepreneurship

Shares of Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of former President Donald Trump's social media platform Truth Social, rose more than 18% on Monday. This increases Trump's net worth by more than $500 million. Trump, who owns 57% of Trump Media shares, was worth $5.5 billion, according to filings late Monday Forbes' Real-time billionaire tracker.

MORE: Even after its recent run-up, Trump Media stock has been a disaster for many investors, but it has enriched its CEO and former congressman Devin Nunes. Since leaving the House of Representatives in January 2022 to take over Trump Media, Forbes appreciates that Nunes has raised approximately more than $2 million salary, $600,000 in cash bonuses and stock worth an additional $3.2 million. In total, Forbes It is estimated that Nunes made about 13 times as much money running Trump's struggling social media company than if he had remained in Congress.

TECH + INNOVATION

According to executives at several reproductive health companies, fertility startups have had their ads for in vitro fertilization and egg freezing blocked or restricted on TikTok, Google and Meta. On the one hand, these giant platforms have valid reasons for their strict advertising rules, which often stem from the need to comply with complex healthcare and medical legal requirements, as well as user security and privacy laws. But some companies and brands in the space I view these decisions as censorship– In a time after Roe v. Wade, even issues like fertility care became politicized.

ChatGPT maker OpenAI is working with Carahsoft, a billion-dollar government contractor that helps tech companies provide their software to the Pentagon. Give him a path to defense contracts. But the government contractor was recently accused of price-fixing on Defense Department contracts.

MONEY + POLITICS

A majority of economists believe in Vice President Kamala Harris' proposal Economic policies would lead to lower inflation than that of former President Donald Trump, according to a new poll released by the Wall Street JournalHowever, voters are far more divided over who would best handle inflation. Perhaps Trump's most notable and potentially inflationary policies are his proposed tariffs of 60% on Chinese goods and 10% on other imports, while Harris' economic proposals include $6,000 in tax credits for children and $25,000 in down payment assistance Include first-time home buyers.

TRENDS + EXPLAINERS

Both presidential candidates have rolled out one Various tax proposals in the run-up to the election: Harris' proposals include expanding the child tax credit, providing tax credits for first-time home buyers and developers building affordable housing, and increasing taxes on corporations. Meanwhile, Trump recently said he would end double taxation for Americans living abroad and allow interest on auto loans to be tax deductible.

DAILY COVER STORY

Fintech app trap: Angry customers fight to cancel their subscriptions

TOPLINE TomoCredit, a six-year-old San Francisco startup backed by investors including Morgan Stanley and Mastercard, promises to improve consumers' credit scores by, among other things, helping them report additional on-time payments to the credit bureaus.

But together with other startups it is also the same the target of hundreds of online complaints.

Tomo CEO Kristy Kim says the company has about 100,000 paid subscribers. And last year Consumers filed 557 complaints with the Better Business Bureau about the startup. To put this level of customer dissatisfaction in perspective, PNC Bank, the sixth-largest bank in America with more than 10 million customers, received 599 Better Business Bureau complaints that same year. Most of the complaints filed against Tomo in August and September cited service discontinuation issues.

To be fair, the problem of difficult solutions is not unique to fintechs. In March 2023, the FTC proposed a comprehensive “click-to-cancel” rule that would make it as easy for a consumer to cancel a subscription service as to sign up for it. The commission received 1,163 public comments and has not yet issued a final decision.

However, it is worth noting that many fintech startups have advertised their mission as We serve consumers who are left behind being mistreated (or mishandled) by traditional financial companies. This makes the cancellation issue particularly worrisome.

WHY IT'S IMPORTANT The fintech industry's reputation has been hit this year by a surge in regulatory enforcement actions and the failure of banking-as-a-service provider Synapse to expose vulnerabilities in fintech “banks”' FDIC insurance claims. The subscription cancellation issue could occur in several startups become another black eye.

MORE Is your money really safe in an “FDIC-insured” fintech account?

FACTS + COMMENTS

Business owners in states hit hard by recent hurricanes can apply for financing through a Small Business Administration Disaster Loan. Such means can Help entrepreneurs recover quickly from natural disasters Since insurance companies are notoriously slow:

Up to $2 million: The amount that qualified businesses and most private nonprofit organizations can receive to cover disaster losses that are not fully covered by insurance through the SBA's Business Physical Disaster Loans

4%: The interest rate will not exceed 4% for applicants who cannot obtain another loan or 8% for those who can

Up to 30 years: When the physical disaster loans come due, depending on the ability to repay them

STRATEGY + SUCCESS

Losing your job is incredibly stressful, but there are practical steps you can take to regain control of your financial situation. Start with Analyze all the cash and assets you have on handas well as your essential and non-essential expenses and try to reduce the non-essential expenses as much as possible. Take a look at emergency assistance programs like unemployment and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program to help with food. Once you find your next job, prioritize building a financial safety net for times of crisis.

VIDEO

QUIZ

A new documentary about the life of a famous rapper is set to debut on Prime Video later this month. Who is it? around?

A. Megan Thee Stallion

B. Cardi B

C. Missy Elliott

D. Lil' Kim

Check your answer.

Thanks for reading! This edition of Forbes Daily was edited by Sarah Whitmire and Caroline Howard.