Commercial banking

Daily report for April 03, 2025

Gordon Gray is the executive director of the Pinpoint Policy Institute. Prior to launching Pinpoint, Gordon served as the vice president for economic policy at the American Action Forum, where his portfolio included the federal budget, taxes, the macroeconomic outlook and general economic policy matters.

Details surrounding the tariffs — which could be anything from reciprocal tariffs to finally implementing delayed tariffs on Canada and Mexico and on pharmaceuticals — have remained unclear, but uncertainty has plagued the market for weeks.

Moody's Ratings upgraded Nebraska's issuer rating to Aaa from Aa1 on Monday. It also upgraded the state's $24 million certificates of participation to Aa1 from Aa2.

Fallout from the Legacy Cares deal includes bondholder lawsuits against the underwriter and bond counsel, payment defaults, a Chapter 11 bankruptcy, and now fraud charges from the SEC and DOJ.

Karen Madry is the president and CEO of Afena Federal Credit Union.

Washington Gov. Bob Ferguson told lawmakers approving an unsustainable budget would put bond ratings at risk.

Wenzel R. Reyes is a senior audit executive and technology leader with over 20 years of experience across public company audits, regulatory compliance, and global standard setting. He previously held key roles driving audit quality and methodology at PwC Canada and PwC UK, where he contributed to the development of global auditor reporting standards and led firmwide audit transformation initiatives. Now serving as senior director of methodology and audit solutions at MindBridge, he helps firms harness AI and analytics to modernize audit execution, enhance quality, and meet evolving regulatory expectations. He is a recognized speaker on the future of assurance and data-driven audit innovation.

A bill exempting local governments from a law prohibiting contracts with firms that "boycott" fossil fuels met a key milestone as did a pro-gun blacklist bill.

The deal will raise money for general purposes as the Ivy League school faces cuts to government grants as the Trump administration attacks higher education.

As Chicago transit agencies and Illinois lawmakers near a deadline to fix a transit budget shortfall of about $770 million, some are calling for a services tax.

Lawmakers have proposed record high spending but left key needs unfunded, the Citizens Budget Commission warns as the state misses its April 1 deadline.

Daily report for April 02, 2025

Jenn Graham is the Founder and CEO of Inclusivv, dedicated to helping organizations transform from a culture of monologue to a culture of dialogue. By providing facilitator training and structured peer-to-peer conversations, Inclusivv helps leaders harness the power of conversation to shape environments where respect, trust, and creativity flourish. Since founding Inclusivv, Jenn has built a digital platform, a content library of over 50 topics, and a variety of trainings that have enabled tens of thousands of people to gather for conversations around the world – both in person and online on the most important issues of our time.

The SEC and DOJ announced charges in connection with municipal bonds issued for the Legacy Cares sports complex in Arizona, which defaulted and went bankrupt.