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| Sharpe Investing |
| Building a foundation for the future by studying quality information is key to success in any field. This site is devoted to organizing and posting quality information gathered from online and traditional study of finance and investing. |
| Language: English |
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Statistics |
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| Total Unique Visitors: 0 |
| Visitors Out: 955 |
| Total Visitors Out: 1340 |
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| VISA IPO - Goldman Sachs Financial Institutions Group |
| 2008-01-12 12:35:58 |
Overview:
Visa, a leading provider of credit and debit cards, plans to raise up to $10 billion in the second largest IPO in United States history. The San Francisco-based company processes more than half of all credit card transactions in the United States and has a strong global brand. Visa plans to be listed under the [...]...
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| Rothschild - Firm Overview |
| 2008-01-09 17:38:58 |
Rothschild is an over 200-year-old international investment bank that primarily provides investment banking, corporate banking, and private banking and trust services to business, governments, and individuals. The London based firm has over 2,000 employees worldwide. By utilizing advanced information and new approaches and solutions Rothschild attempts to have a competitive edge that can help clients
With [...]...
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| When to Issue Debt Versus Equity |
| 2007-11-05 19:41:24 |
Companies face the challenge of determining whether to issue debt or equity for financing needs. Issuance of debt or equity both have advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of Issuing Debt:
1. Issuance of debt has a tax benefit because of the debt tax shield. The interest payments to debt owners are expensed, causing a reduction taxable income. A [...]...
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| WallStreetOasis.com |
| 2007-10-28 09:08:56 |
I am very interested in investment banking. Currently, I am searching for internships related to investment banking, asset management, or equity research. WallStreetOasis.com is a great resource for this job search. The forum contains a wide variety of wall street professionals and other students searching for similar careers. Combined, the group serves to facilitate a [...]...
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| Liar’s Poker |
| 2007-09-02 22:27:48 |
I just finished reading Liar’s Poker by Michael Lewis. Liar’s Poker is Lewis’s account of his four years (from 1984-1987) working on Wall Street for Salomon Brothers. Lewis details his career from the first days of training to his later success in bond sales and trading.
The book is filled with Wall Street greed, trickery, deceit, innovation, and [...]...
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| LIBOR – London Interbank Offered Rate |
| 2007-08-29 10:50:00 |
LIBOR stands for London interbank offered rate. Banks in London, similar to the United States, can exchange money between banks. LIBOR is the rate at which banks borrow funds from other banks in the London interbank market.
LIBOR Calculation
LIBOR is an average of actual rates used by banks. To calculate LIBOR, the British Banker’s Association (BBA), [...]...
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| In Investing, You Get What You Don’t Pay For - Speech by John Bogle |
| 2007-08-11 13:32:44 |
In Investing, You Get What You Don’t Pay For
Remarks by John C. Bogle
Founder and Former Chairman, The Vanguard Group
The World Money Show
February 2, 2005
Orlando, Florida
I’m delighted to be here again to keynote this conference. One very important thing has changed since I last spoke here six years ago, and two vital elements have remained unchanged. [...]...
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| 130/30 Fund Strategies |
| 2007-08-10 13:24:02 |
As the popularity of hedge fund strategies increases, the influence of these strategies in the traditional mutual fund world continues to grow. Once limited to only high net worth accredited individuals or institutional investors, many hedge fund strategies are now be deployed within mutual funds.
130/30 funds are one of these new mutual fund structures. The 130/30 [...]...
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| Merger or Risk Arbitrage Overview |
| 2007-08-09 00:41:18 |
Introduction to Merger Arbitrage
Merger arbitrage, also known as risk arbitrage, is an event driven trading strategy that attempts to exploit the market price spreads of equities during the merger process.
When one corporation announces plans to purchase another corporation, the target corporation’s market price normally increases to a price slightly below the offer price.
Because the merger [...]...
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| George Soros Theory of Reflexivity MIT Speech |
| 2007-08-07 14:04:23 |
The MIT Department of Economics World Economy
Laboratory Conference Washington, D.C.
Delivered April 26, 1994
When Rudi Dornbusch invited me to speak at this conference, he gave me a totally free hand in deciding what I wanted to talk about. Well, I want to discuss a subject which fascinates me but doesn’t seem to interest others very much. [...]...
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| Theory of Reflexivity |
| 2007-08-06 22:59:54 |
George Soros
George Soros is an extremely successful stock speculator and investor. From 1970 to 1980, Soros’s Quantum Fund returned an average of 42.5% per year. Forbes ranked Soros as the 24th wealthiest person in the world in 2004, with an estimated net worth of $7.2 billion.
Soros is famously known for breaking the Bank of England in [...]...
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| Finally Done Updating |
| 2007-08-05 21:29:44 |
I have finally finished updating this blog and moving to Wordpress. This process took longer than I expected, but I have learned a large amount about Wordpress. I think the move to Wordpress will be very helpful in the long-run. I apologize for the lack of posting the past week.
New Features
The blog has some new [...]...
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| Site Update |
| 2007-07-26 06:51:00 |
I have decided to move this blog from Blogger to Wordpress. Wordpress is a blogging platform that has many more features and will allow me to customize the blog more. Also, Wordpress is more reader friendly than Blogger, so hopefully it will provide a better experience for everyone.
I’m not sure when this transition will be [...]...
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| Yankee Bonds |
| 2007-07-25 06:21:00 |
No, this post is not about the New York Yankees or Barry Bonds, despite the picture. This post is about a much more interesting topic, Yankee bonds.
Yankee bonds are dollar-denominated bonds issued in the United States by foreign corporations, banks, and governments.
Yankee bonds are registered with the SEC (Securities and Exchange Commission) and traded in [...]...
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| Hedge Fund of Funds |
| 2007-07-24 06:11:00 |
Hedge fund of funds are investments that invest in other hedge funds. Hedge fund of funds provide opportunities for increased diversification, access to highly desirable funds, and fund selection and monitoring expertise. However, hedge fund of funds include a double layer of fees, dramatically reducing the investments’ appeal.
Hedge fund of funds allocate contributed capital between [...]...
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| Roth 401k Overview |
| 2007-07-23 02:01:00 |
The Roth 401k allows participants to contribute after-tax dollars but then withdrawal tax-free dollars during retirement. This way, you can spend more on that retirement beach front property, and send less money to the IRS.
Unlike the Roth 401k, participants using traditional 401k accounts contribute pre-tax dollars that reduces taxable income. However, the dollars contributed are [...]...
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| GSTrUE: Goldman Sachs’s Tradable Unregistered Equity OTC Market |
| 2007-07-20 06:12:00 |
As private equity, hedge funds, and other alternative asset management firms seek additional capital, keeping internal operations confidential remains an important priority.
These companies rely on secrecy and limited disclosure to protect future plans, unique trading strategies, or other business practices. Because of this need to keep operations confidential, raising capital through global exchanges that are heavily regulated and require large amounts of disclosure is a less attractive option.
GSTrUEThis need to raise capital but limit disclosure is a service Goldman Sachs’s GSTrUE (GS Tradable Unregistered Equity OTC Market) intends to provide. GSTrUE is a private market that provides access to only institutional and highly sophisticated investors. This market allows private companies to raise capital without the disclosure requirements of public markets.
GSTrUE follows specific SEC rules to avoid the disclosure requirements. Under these rules, companies are able to sell secu...
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| GSTrUE: Goldman Sachs's Tradable Unregistered Equity OTC Market |
| 2007-07-20 06:12:00 |
As private equity, hedge funds, and other alternative asset management firms seek additional capital, keeping internal operations confidential remains an important priority. These companies rely on secrecy and limited disclosure to protect future plans, unique trading strategies, or other business practices. Because of this need to keep operations confidential, raising capital through global exchanges that are heavily regulated and require large amounts of disclosure is a less attractive option.GSTrUEThis need to raise capital but limit disclosure is a service Goldman Sachs's GSTrUE (GS Tradable Unregistered Equity OTC Market) intends to provide. GSTrUE is a private market that provides access to only institutional ...
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| Carbon Credits: An Emissions Trading Market Created to Reduce Global Warming |
| 2007-07-19 06:47:00 |
As global economies grow, use more natural resources, and emit more Carbon Dioxide (CO2), more solutions will be needed to reduce global warming. The financial markets provide one unique way of limiting CO2 emissions through the creation of a carbon credit market. Each carbon credit represents one tonne of C02. The carbon credit market creates a monetary value for carbon credits and allows the credits to be traded.
Background and the Kyoto Protocol
The carbon credit market was a result of the Kyoto Protocol. The Kyoto Protocol created legally binding emission targets for developing nations. To meet these targets, nations must limit C02 emissions. This can be accomplished by either reducing emissions or by absorbing emissions through processes such as tree-planting and sequestration. Nations limit emissions by establishing quotas on the amount of emissions businesses can produce.
The Carbon Credit Exchange Process
If a business has greater emissions then permitted by the quota it must p...
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| Carbon Credits: An Emissions Trading Market Created to Reduce Global Warming |
| 2007-07-19 06:47:00 |
As global economies grow, use more natural resources, and emit more Carbon Dioxide (CO2), more solutions will be needed to reduce global warming. The financial markets provide one unique way of limiting CO2 emissions through the creation of a carbon credit market. Each carbon credit represents one tonne of C02. The carbon credit market creates a monetary value for carbon credits and allows the credits to be traded. Background and the Kyoto ProtocolThe carbon credit market was a result of the Kyoto Protocol. The Kyoto Protocol created legally binding emission targets for developing nations. To meet these targets, nations must limit C02 emissions....
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| Finance, Investing, and Economics Reading List |
| 2007-07-17 02:44:00 |
The following are books I have read and am currently reading.
These books focus on a wide variety of finance, investing, and economics topics. I have learned a great deal by reading and studying a variety of information, including many books.
Many of these books are highly recommended by investment professionals and academics. I hope you will learn more by reading and enjoying some these texts.
Currently Reading:1. The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio- William Bernstein
2. The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You’ll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Invests Today- Larry Swedroe
3. The Intelligent Asset Allocator: How to Build Your Portfolio to Maximize Returns and Minimize Risk- William Bernstein
4. Liar’s Poker: Rising Through the Wreckage on Wall Street- Michael Lewis
5. All About Asset Allocation- Richard Ferri
Finished Reading:1. The Wall Street Journal Guide to Understanding Personal Finance- Kenneth Morris
2. High Probability...
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| Finance, Investing, and Economics Reading List |
| 2007-07-17 02:44:00 |
The following are books I have read and am currently reading.These books focus on a wide variety of finance, investing, and economics topics. I have learned a great deal by reading and studying a variety of information, including many books.Many of these books are highly recommended by investment professionals and academics. I hope you will learn more by reading and enjoying some these texts.Currently Reading:1. The Four Pillars of Investing: Lessons for Building a Winning Portfolio- William Bernstein2. The Only Guide to a Winning Investment Strategy You'll Ever Need: The Way Smart Money Invests Today- Larry Swedroe3. The Intelligent Asset Allocator: How to Build Your Portfolio to M...
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| Henry Paulson, Jr. Inteview by Charlie Rose at the Harvard Business School |
| 2007-07-16 06:22:00 |
Henry Paulson JR is the United States Treasury Secretary. Paulson has been serving as Treasury Secretary since May 30, 2006. In addition, Paulson serves as a member of the the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Board of Governors. Before becoming Treasury Secretary, Paulson served as CEO and Chairman of Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs is one of the most successful and prestigious global investment banks.
These credentials evidence how experienced, knowledgeable, and successful Paulson is. In this 2004 video, filmed at the Harvard Business School, Paulson comments on a variety of business, economic, and investing issues. Also, Paulson fields some interesting and funny audience questions.
Specifically, Paulson discusses some of the following topics:1. Concerns about the defect and the importance of government spending control2. Free Trade3. Globalization4. Balance between regulation and the free market5. Business leadership and social responsibility7. Investment banking and having a work-l...
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| Henry Paulson, Jr. Inteview by Charlie Rose at the Harvard Business School |
| 2007-07-16 06:22:00 |
Henry Paulson JR is the United States Treasury Secretary. Paulson has been serving as Treasury Secretary since May 30, 2006. In addition, Paulson serves as a member of the the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Board of Governors. Before becoming Treasury Secretary, Paulson served as CEO and Chairman of Goldman Sachs. Goldman Sachs is one of the most successful and prestigious global investment banks.These credentials evidence how experienced, knowledgeable, and successful Paulson is. In this 2004 video, filmed at the Harvard Business School, Paulson comments on a variety of business, economic, and investing issues. Also, Paulson fields some interesting and funny audience questions.Spec...
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| Stay the Course: A Critical Lesson for Long Term Investors |
| 2007-07-14 00:52:00 |
“History shows that in the long run a thoughtfully designed, diversified strategy of “passive” funds typically beats all but a few active managers. It’s not easy to structure and maintain such a strategy. It requires some initial research and discipline to stay the course. But it’s much easier than predicting which active managers will randomly beat this approach.” - Eugene Fama, Jr., DFA
“Time is your friend; impulse is your enemy.” - John Bogle, Vanguard Group Founder
When investing passively for the long term, it is crucial to choose a wise investment strategy and stick with this strategy. Choosing investments, asset allocations, and other aspects of a portfolio is very important, but staying the course once a strategy has been chosen in critical to long term investing success.
One of the most common and most damaging mistakes many average investors make is attempting to time the market. A classic timing mistake, is investors buying equi...
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| Stay the Course: A Critical Lesson for Long Term Investors |
| 2007-07-14 00:52:00 |
"History shows that in the long run a thoughtfully designed, diversified strategy of "passive" funds typically beats all but a few active managers. It's not easy to structure and maintain such a strategy. It requires some initial research and discipline to stay the course. But it’s much easier than predicting which active managers will randomly beat this approach." - Eugene Fama, Jr., DFA"Time is your friend; impulse is your enemy." - John Bogle, Vanguard Group FounderWhen investing passively for the long term, it is crucial to choose a wise investment strategy and stick with this strategy. Choosing investments, asset allocations, and other aspects of a portfolio is very important, but staying the course once a strategy has been chosen in critical to lon...
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| Retirement Calculators Review |
| 2007-07-13 00:58:00 |
Determining when to retire is a very difficult task. A variety of free retirement calculators are available online that allow users to analyze retirement strategies. However, these retirement calculators are not all built alike. Different retirement calculators require different information that effects the calculation quality.
Key Characteristics of a Good Retirement CalculatorWhile almost all of the free online retirement calculators will provide a good general retirement statratgy analysis, certain characteristics make some retirement calculators superior.
1.Monte Carlo SimulationA Monte Carlo simulation utilizes random variables and tests multiple scenarios to calculate the probability of certain outcomes. In investing, a Monte Carlo simulation would test potential returns of a portfolio in thousands of unique scenarios and compute the probability of specific outcomes.
Traditional retirement planning calculators normally ask the user to input an expected rate of return. Then the p...
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| Retirement Calculators Review |
| 2007-07-13 00:58:00 |
Determining when to retire is a very difficult task. A variety of free retirement calculators are available online that allow users to analyze retirement strategies. However, these retirement calculators are not all built alike. Different retirement calculators require different information that effects the calculation quality.Key Characteristics of a Good Retirement CalculatorWhile almost all of the free online retirement calculators will provide a good general retirement statratgy analysis, certain characteristics make some retirement calculators superior.1.Monte Carlo SimulationA Monte Carlo simulation utilizes random variables and tests multiple scenarios to calculate the probability of certain outcomes. In investing, a Monte Carlo simulation would...
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| A New Look and A New Mission |
| 2007-07-12 07:23:00 |
As you can tell, the Sharpe Investing blog now has a new theme. I really like this theme and would be interested to hear any of your comments. I would especially be interested in hearing if you are experiencing any technical difficulties.This first month of blogging has been very interesting. I have learned a large amount about finance and investing by reading and posting. I have also learned a great deal about web development, design, and blogging. The online web design and development community is wonderful. I apologize for neglecting to post as frequently and consistently as I would like to. My focus has been on gaining a better understanding of blogging, web design, and other aspects of running a website.Now that this theme update is completed I will have more time to publish content. I want to start a new mission of publishing more and editing less. Thanks for your patience, and I hope we can continue to learn together and sharpen our finance and investing knowledge.
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| A New Look and A New Mission |
| 2007-07-12 07:23:00 |
As you can tell, the Sharpe Investing blog now has a new theme. I really like this theme and would be interested to hear any of your comments. I would especially be interested in hearing if you are experiencing any technical difficulties.This first month of blogging has been very interesting. I have learned a large amount about finance and investing by reading and posting. I have also learned a great deal about web development, design, and blogging. The online web design and development community is wonderful. I apologize for neglecting to post as frequently and consistently as I would like to. My focus has been on gaining a better understanding of blogging, web design, and other aspects of running a website.Now that this theme update is completed I will have more time to publish content. ...
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| Return on Investment |
| 2007-07-06 04:00:00 |
Return on Investment OverviewIn business, it is often said "it takes money to make money." Return on Investment (ROI) is a profitability ratio that helps measure the performance of this application of money. ROI allows managements' utilization of assets and overall company profitability to be measured. ROI measures the link between profits and the investment required to generate profits.ROI is frequently used by management to measure performance against internal goals, competitors, or a specific industry. Management also utilizes ROI to determine where to allocate future resources based on previous investment's profitability. ROI allows the return of investments generating different amounts of revenue to be compared. For example, an expensive piece of ...
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| Return on Investment |
| 2007-07-06 04:00:00 |
Return on Investment OverviewIn business, it is often said "it takes money to make money." Return on Investment (ROI) is a profitability ratio that helps measure the performance of this application of money. ROI allows managements' utilization of assets and overall company profitability to be measured. ROI measures the link between profits and the investment required to generate profits.ROI is frequently used by management to measure performance against internal goals, competitors, or a specific industry. Management also utilizes ROI to determine where to allocate future resources based on previous investment's profitability. ROI allows the return of investments generating different amounts of revenue to be compared. For example, an expensive piece of ...
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| Hedge Fund Risks |
| 2007-06-28 03:36:00 |
This interesting PBS video explains the rise and the risks of hedge funds. The video does a good job of explaining the potential negative impact from the dramatic amount of leverage used by some hedge funds. Also, the video features hedge fund manager and author Nicholas Taleb, who discusses the posibility of black swan events.
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| Hedge Fund Risks |
| 2007-06-28 03:36:00 |
This interesting PBS video explains the rise and the risks of hedge funds. The video does a good job of explaining the potential negative impact from the dramatic amount of leverage used by some hedge funds. Also, the video features hedge fund manager and author Nicholas Taleb, who discusses the posibility of black swan events....
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| Bogle Cites ETFs' Drawbacks |
| 2007-06-25 07:39:00 |
John Bogle is the founder of Vanguard, a leading client-owned investment management company. In this video, Bogle explains disadvantages of ETFs in comparison to traditional index funds.
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| Bogle Cites ETFs' Drawbacks |
| 2007-06-25 07:39:00 |
John Bogle is the founder of Vanguard, a leading client-owned investment management company. In this video, Bogle explains disadvantages of ETFs in comparison to traditional index funds....
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| Monkey Business - Investing Lessons from the Investment Banking World |
| 2007-06-25 05:50:00 |
Monkey BusinessMonkey Businessis considered a must read book for anyone considering an investment banking career. The book is the true story of two graduates from Harvard and Wharton business school. Dreaming of magnificent wealth, elite social status, and power, the two graduates decide to become investment banking associates at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ), a prestigious New York investment bank. The associates think they will be making important deals, traveling to exotic locations by private jet, and living an extravagant lifestyle paid for by the company. However, these dreams are quickly destroyed by the realization that investment banki...
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| Monkey Business - Investing Lessons from the Investment Banking World |
| 2007-06-25 05:50:00 |
Monkey BusinessMonkey Businessis considered a must read book for anyone considering an investment banking career. The book is the true story of two graduates from Harvard and Wharton business school. Dreaming of magnificent wealth, elite social status, and power, the two graduates decide to become investment banking associates at Donaldson, Lufkin & Jenrette (DLJ), a prestigious New York investment bank. The associates think they will be making important deals, traveling to exotic locations by private jet, and living an extravagant lifestyle paid for by the company. However, these dreams are quickly destroyed by the realization that investment banki...
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| A Brilliant Financial Plan |
| 2007-06-22 05:17:00 |
This is just a funny video from Saturday Night Live to break up the more serious finance posts. The video is about an innovative method to stay out of debt....
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| A Brilliant Financial Plan |
| 2007-06-22 05:17:00 |
This is just a funny video from Saturday Night Live to break up the more serious finance posts. The video is about an innovative method to stay out of debt.......
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