The seemingly sudden recognition of Ponzi schemes following the arrest of Bernard Madoff for operating an illegal Ponzi scheme. Ponzi mania took full force in December of 2008 when federal investigators discovered that Bernard Madoff had operated a huge Ponzi scheme over the past decade, defrauding investors of nearly $65 billion. |||In the wake of Madoff's arrest, the Securities and Exchange Commission and other federal investigators put their complete efforts into finding and shutting down illegal Ponzi schemes that were responsible for billions of dollars worth of losses to investors. Following the huge losses seen by Bernard Madoff's investors, individual investors across the world became much more conscious of the signs of potential Ponzi and pyramid schemes.
1. Types of listed company stock that are differentiated by the level of voting rights shareholders receive. For example, a listed company might have two share classes, or classes of stock, designated as Class A and Class B. 2. With load mutual funds, there are three share classes, Class A, Class B and Class C, which carry different sales charge, 12b-1 fees and operating expense structures. Taobiz explains Class Of Shares 1. Owners of companies that have been privately owned and go public often create class A and B share structures with different voting rights in order to maintain control and/or to make the company a more difficult target for a takeover. Obviously, it's the original owners that end up with the preferential voting class of stock. 2. Class A mutual fund shares charge a front-end load, have lower 12b-1 fees and a below-average level of operating expenses. Class B mutual fund shares charge a back-end load and have higher 12b-1 fees and operating expenses. Class C mutual fund shares are considered level-load - there's no front-end load but a low back-end load applies, as do 12b-1 fees and relatively higher operating expenses.
A non-refundable tax credit available for taxpayers who are aged 65 or over, or who are permanently and totally disabled. The Elderly and Disabled Credit is designed to provide a measure of financial relief for low-income senior citizens and taxpayers who are unable to engage in any kind of gainful employment as a result of their disability. The Elderly and Disabled Credit is claimed on Schedule R of the 1040, or part 3 of the 1040A. Married couples must file jointly to claim the credit, and income and Social Security benefit limitations also apply. A physician must certify that the taxpayer meets the IRS' criteria for disability in writing the first year that the credit is claimed.
A technical indicator developed by Hans Hannula that was invented to determine price efficiency over a user-defined time period. This indicator fluctuates between -100 and +100 with 0 as the center line. Securities with a PFE greater than zero are deemed to be trending up, while a reading of less than zero indicates the trend is down. |||The strengh of the trend is measured by the position of the PFE relative to the zero line. As a general rule, the further the PFE value is away from zero, the stronger and more efficient the given trend is. A PFE value that fluctuates around the zero line could indicate that the supply and demand for the security are in balance and price may trade sideways.
A classification of common stock that may be accompanied by more or fewer voting rights than Class A shares. Although Class A shares are often thought to carry more voting rights than Class B shares, this is not always the case. Companies will often try to disguise the disadvantages associated with owning shares with fewer voting rights by naming those shares "Class A", and those with more voting rights "Class B". Taobiz explains Class B Shares For example, one Class A share may be accompanied by five voting rights, while one Class B share may be accompanied by only one right to vote, or vice versa. A detailed description of a company's different classes of stock is included in the company's bylaws and charter.
An anti-takeover strategy that a firm undertakes by liquidating its valuable and desired assets and assuming liabilities in an effort to make the proposed takeover unattractive to the acquiring firm. In extreme cases, this strategy might end up being a 'suicide pill'.The scorched earth policy is actually a classic military strategy: generals would instruct troops to burn any land/crops/trees as they retreated so there would be no supplies to refresh the advancing army.
An above-the-line deduction for teachers and other education professionals to compensate for unreimbursed out-of-pocket expenses incurred in the course of their teaching duties. The educator expenses deduction is intended to provide a measure of tax relief for teachers and educators. This deduction is not subject to the 2% adjusted gross income (AGI) floor like most other unreimbursed employee expenses; it is a deduction for AGI and not an itemized deduction. An educator expenses deduction can be claimed by teachers, instructors, counselors, principals, and educational aides provided they work at least 900 hours in a given school year.
A place where sales are made. On a macro-level, a point of purchase may be a mall, market or city. On a micro-level, retailers consider a point of purchase to be the area surrounding the counter where customers pay. Also known as "point of sale". |||In recent years, the point of purchase for products and services has become an important focus for marketers, because consumers tend to make purchasing decisions on very high-margin products or services at these strategic locations. Points of purchase may be real, as in the case of a "brick and mortar" store, or virtual, as in the case of an electronic retailer that sells goods and services over the internet.