This article was written by Follow Michael A. Gayed is portfolio manager, and author of five award-winning research papers on market anomalies and investing. He has a BS with a double major in Finance & Management from NYU Stern School of Business, and is a CFA Charterholder.
 Michael runs the investing group The Lead-Lag Report, focused on helping investors outperform in all market conditions.

Crypto analysts are anticipating XRP’s price to trade sideways heading into the new year, at least until more bullish catalysts emerge. “We maintain a view that the latter half of 2026 will provide more constructive conditions for risk assets in general, but in the short term, we have a slightly bearish tilt on altcoins until BTC consolidates or forms a bottom,” Nansen senior research analyst Jake Kennis told Cointelegraph.

This article was written by Follow At Vega North we write about investments and portfolio construction for readers who care more about process than predictions. We test ideas with open data (FRED, filings, index/factor libraries) and reproducible notebooks, focusing on position sizing, regime-aware risk, and the psychology of holding through drawdowns. Each piece moves from base rates to a simple model—returns, volatility, and correlations—then ends with a decision checklist: what to own, how much, when to rebalance, and what could go wrong.

Dominion Energy, an offshore wind developer and utility serving Virginia’s “data center alley,” filed suit against the Trump administration this week over its decision to pause federal leases for large offshore wind projects. The move puts a sudden stop to five wind farms already under construction, including Dominion’s Coastal Virginia Offshore Wind project. The complaint Dominion filed Tuesday alleges that a stop work order that the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) issued Monday is unlawful, “arbitrary and capricious,” and “infringes upon constitutional principles that limit actions by the Executive Branch.” Dominion wants a federal court to prevent BOEM from enforcing the stop work order.

Mixmike | E+ | Getty Images Many student loan borrowers have hit a repayment obstacle: the U.S. Department of Education denied their application to switch into a new payment plan. The department rejected 327,955 borrower requests to be enrolled in an income-driven repayment plan in August alone, according to a Dec. 15 court filing. The denials mean many of these borrowers may remain stuck in their prior repayment plan with a higher monthly payment, or in an interest-accruing forbearance.

Altcoins have trended lower lately as market liquidity gradually dried up. This downturn has affected different segments unevenly, with the Artificial Intelligence (AI) sector recording one of its steepest losses so far. This move could mark the early phase of a broader market decline as investors reassess risk ahead of the close of the 2025 trading year. Is an AI bubble building?

Market Digest: MNST

Constellation Research founder R. ‘Ray’ Wang joins ‘Mornings with Maria’ to discuss AI-driven market gains, Nvidia’s latest chip deal, the fight for real assets and what investors should watch as 2026 approaches. The theme song for the exchange-traded fund industry could very well be Frank Sinatra’s "It Was a Very Good Year," as the industry hit $1.25 trillion annually in assets through November, faster than any other time in history.

When I reviewed the GR III, I wrote about how much I liked snap focus mode, which allows you to set a predetermined focus distance regardless of the aperture. I set up my GR III to use autofocus when I half-pressed the shutter and snap when I quickly pressed, so that snap focus fired off the shot at my predetermined focus distance (usually 1.5 meters).

On a cold ‘Betwixmas' December morning, the mood around Bitcoin feels familiar and strange at the same time. Familiar, because the story still swings between euphoria and anxiety. Strange, because the people watching the chart now include a different crowd. Market Cap $1.74T 24h Volume $43.03B All-Time High $126,173.18 Some are still the veterans who lived through 2017 and 2021, some are newer, the ones who got exposure through a brokerage account and an ETF ticker, the kind of investor who never had to learn what a seed phrase is.

As shoppers dealing with higher living costs continue to seek out bargains, Target has struggled to compete with Walmart.

Argentina’s Congress approves 2026 budget, first under Milei

In brief NFT marketplaces OpenSea and Magic Eden have both added fungible token trading to their platforms this year. A market researcher says this is likely due to NFT activity cooling down, and that the moves have helped the platforms stabilize. Magic Eden said token trading isn't a major focus, and that it's gunning to expand into what it calls "crypto entertainment."

Here's our Club Mailbag email investingclubmailbag@cnbc.com — so you send your questions directly to Jim Cramer and his team of analysts. We can't offer personal investing advice. We will only consider more general questions about the investment process or stocks in the portfolio or related industries. This week's question: Hi Jim, could you please do a segment that addresses dividends in detail?

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Key Takeaways In coaching, the hardest milestone is landing the first five clients, and January is the most important month of the year for coaches who want real momentum. Three core assets consistently lead to more clients: Ideal Client Profiles, sustainable value delivery and reliable client-generating actions. December is traditionally the slowest month for coaching in the United States.

Christmas is over, but there’s one more gift to unwrap for all the Wicked fans out there. Wicked: For Good is hitting digital December 30 ahead of a physical release January 20, and there are enough extras to fill a bubble—or maybe even that creepy old castle your family owns but is just sitting there empty, in case you know a witch who needs a hideout.

This article was written by Follow Juan de la Hoz has worked as a fixed income trader, financial analyst, operations analyst, and as an economics professor. He has experience analyzing, trading, and negotiating fixed-income securities, including bonds, money markets, and interbank trade financing, across markets and currencies. He focuses on dividend, bond, and income funds, with a strong focus on ETFs.


 Wintermute said it will vote against Aave’s token alignment proposal, citing unclear governance, weak value capture, and escalating political infighting. Wintermute founder and CEO Evgeny Gaevoy said the trading firm will vote against Aave’s token alignment proposal, adding to the growing opposition within the Aave DAO as the vote nears its conclusion. In a detailed thread on X, Gaevoy said Wintermute disagrees with the proposal “as it stands,” while arguing that it asks tokenholders to commit to a major course of action without sufficient clarity on structure, governance, or outcomes.

Former 'Million Dollar Listing' star and real estate agent Josh Altman joins 'Varney & Co.' to break down soaring home delistings, why buyers want turnkey properties and how skipping mortgage rate shopping is costing families thousands. Lower-budget homebuyers are increasingly gravitating toward markets where their dollars can stretch further. Several attractive metro areas still offer median home prices under $300,000 – well below the $425,000 national median.

Recently appointed NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman on Friday told CNBC that the U.S. will return to the moon within President Donald Trump's second term. Isaacman, a close ally of SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, told CNBC's "Closing Bell Overtime" that Trump's recommitment to exploring the moon is key to unlocking the "orbital economy." "We want to have that opportunity to explore and realize the scientific, economic and national security potential on the moon," he said.

On-chain data shows a chunk of the Bitcoin supply has its cost basis above the current spot price, which could potentially shape volatility if BTC rebounds. Bitcoin Supply Overhang Could Dictate Volatility & Selling Pressure As pointed out by CryptoQuant community analyst Maartunn in a new post on X, over 6.6 million BTC is being held above the latest spot price of the cryptocurrency.

As 2025 draws to a close, bitcoin BTC$87,338.86 faced a tough year, down about 7% year-to-date, while gold, the S&P 500 and technology stocks continue to hit all-time highs. As a result, public bitcoin mining stocks have shown stark contrasts, driven largely by diversification into artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) infrastructure. The standout performers have been companies aggressively pivoting to AI.

Analyst Report: Monster Beverage Corp.

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. Key Takeaways A long-standing annual ritual helps a small business owner reflect on the past year, clarify priorities and prepare thoughtfully for what’s ahead. Through deliberate planning, personal accountability and meaningful connections, the process brings perspective, stability, and renewed focus without relying on rigid systems. I’ve been running a small business for more than two decades.

Gamwell sees echoes of Mitchell’s dark stars, for instance, in Edgar Allan Poe’s short story, “A Descent Into the Maelstrom,” particularly the evocative 1919 illustration by Harry Clarke. “This seemed to have been an early analogy to a black hole for many people when the concept was first proposed,” said Gamwell. “It’s a mathematical construct at that point and it’s very difficult to imagine a mathematical construct.