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LONDON - Stocks, bonds and commodities? Old hat. Once the preserve of the super-rich, or just the eccentric, all kinds of unusual investments from vintage handbags and shares in fine art to rare Pokemon cards are now the happy hunting ground for stuck-at-home punters. Often armed with lockdown-era savings, such amateur investors are seeking higher returns beyond conventional markets where rocketing prices are prompting warnings of bubbles. They have in turn driven prices on some “alternative” assets up several hundred percent higher in the past year. And just like the no-fee trading apps such as Robinhood that enabled hordes of small-time equity traders to rattle seasoned hedge funds during the recent “Gamestonks” episodes, digital platforms are empowering wannabe investors with as little as $20 (S$26) to dabble in collectables. Value can apparently lurk in all sorts of places. Collectors’ cards based on Nintendo’s hit 1990s video game, Pokemon, have exploded in value in the … [Read more...] about The cash-flush amateurs hunting game cards, handbags and art

For an entire generation that grew up in the 1980s and 1990s, the Singaporean dream was defined by the pursuit of the 5 Cs – Car, Cash, Condo, Country Club, and Credit Card. Today, that definition seems woefully out of date. It has been replaced by a new measure of success, which might as well be called the 1 E – Experience. No longer simply driven by material pursuits, the current generation hankers after unique, authentic experiences. Bragging rights now come from, say, having gone on a photography masterclass in the Serengeti. Or having visited a local community in a remote part of Bhutan. “What this means for cards is that they are less interested in what the card can buy; it’s about what the card enables them to do and the experiences it enables them to have,” Ho added. These insights convinced the company to level up the benefits on its Platinum card. The new privileges came into effect on Jul 30, and include such perks as an S$800 travel credit (compared to the … [Read more...] about How Singapore Millennials spend their money, according to American Express

Bob Dylan has sold publishing rights to his catalogue of more than 600 songs, one of the greatest treasures in popular music, to the Universal Music Publishing Group for an undisclosed sum. The catalogue includes such modern standards as Blowin’ In The Wind, Tangled Up In Blue, Knockin’ On Heaven’s Door, and Like A Rolling Stone, a body of work that may only be matched for its breadth and influence by the Beatles, whose songs were re-acquired by Paul McCartney in 2017. The songwriting legend earned an estimated US$300 million (S$401 million) from the sale, according to The New York Times, which first reported it. Dylan, 79, topped the Rolling Stone list of the 100 Greatest Songwriters of All Time in 2015 and the song Like A Rolling Stone was named by the magazine as the best ever written. He won the Nobel Prize for Literature in 2016, the only songwriter to receive the award. “Brilliant and moving, inspiring and beautiful, insightful and provocative, his songs are … [Read more...] about Bob Dylan sells publishing rights to catalogue of more than 600 songs

WASHINGTON: The U.S. Federal Communications Commission said that it was awarding US$9.2 billion to provide high-speed broadband internet service to 5.22 million unserved homes and businesses. Charter Communications Inc won US$1.22 billion to provide service to 1.06 million locations, while Elon Musk's SpaceX won US$885 million to serve 642,000 locations. The Rural Electric Cooperative Consortium won US$1.1 billion to serve 618,000 locations and LTD Broadband LLC won US$1.32 billion to serve 528,000 locations. The FCC estimates the funding will expand broadband to more than 10 million rural Americans. Nearly all the locations will receive broadband with speeds of at least 100/20 Mbpswith an overwhelming majority (over 85per cent) getting gigabit-speed broadband. The funds will be distributed over the next 10 years. The FCC said US$6.8 billion in funding that was not awarded will be rolled over into a future auction that can use up to US$11.2 billion to target … [Read more...] about FCC awards US$9.2 billion to deploy broadband to 5.2 million US homes, businesses

MUNICH: Germany's leading soccer league, the Bundesliga, plans to start an auction for a stake in its overseas broadcasting rights in February, managing director Christian Seifert said on Monday. The deal would bring outside investors into one of the game's biggest leagues, whose revenue has plummeted during the pandemic with matches being played in empty stadiums. The German Football League (DFL), which organises the top two leagues, has sent out information packages about a 10-25 per cent stake in a newly created company managing the broadcasting rights outside Germany, people close to the matter said. The sale could value the overseas broadcasting rights at more than €1 billion, the people said. Investment bank Nomura is handling the deal and has registered expressions of interest from about 30 private equity firms including Bain, BC Partners, Blackstone, Bridgepoint, Carlyle, Cinven, CVC, KKR and Permira, they said. The Bundesliga, like other European leagues, has been … [Read more...] about German football league to kick off partial rights sale in February