5 Cybersecurity Spending Areas to Evaluate

As computing environments change and bad actors switch tactics, most organizations will need to increase or redirect their investment in cybersecurity.With inflation pushing up costs, the question most CFOs will seek to answer is where spending is producing the most value, said Raj Patel, cyberse...

By Bob Violino • Jan. 28, 2022

Coinbase Buys Crypto Futures Platform FairX

Coinbase has announced it will acquire futures exchange FairX in a move to offer crypto derivative products to U.S. investors.The acquisition of FairX, which lists futures contracts that track markets including stock indices and oil, comes four months after Coinbase applied for membership in the ...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 18, 2022

Explore the Trendline➔

Tax policy shifts: What CFOs need to know to stay ahead

Discover how evolving tax policies are creating new opportunities and challenges for CFOs.

By CFO.com staff

U.S. Inflation Surges at Highest Rate Since 1982

U.S. inflation rose in December at the fastest rate in nearly 40 years as price gains spread beyond a few pandemic-disrupted categories to such areas as shelter costs.The Labor Department reported Wednesday that the consumer price index (CPI) increased 7% last month on a year-to-year basis, match...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 12, 2022

Citadel Gets $1.1B in First Outside Investment

Global trading giant Citadel Securities has secured its first outside investment in a deal that may set the stage for it to move into digital assets.Venture-capital firm Sequoia Capital and cryptocurrency investor Paradigm made the $1.15 billion investment, which values Citadel at around $22 bill...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 12, 2022

World Bank Cuts 2022 Global Growth Forecast

The World Bank has cut its forecast for global economic growth in 2022, saying COVID-19 flare-ups, supply chain shortages, and waning government support have resulted in a “pronounced slowdown” of the recovery from the pandemic.In its latest Global Economic Prospects report, the bank was less bul...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 11, 2022

U.S. Adds Only 199,000 Jobs in December

A record year for U.S. job growth ended with a smaller-than-expected gain in December though economists are optimistic the labor market is in good shape going into 2022.The Department of Labor reported Friday that the economy added 199,000 jobs in December, down from 249,000 in November. The gain...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 7, 2022

Activist Calls for Zendesk to Scrap Momentive Deal

Activist investor Jana Partners has stepped up its campaign to derail customer-service platform Zendesk’s proposed acquisition of the parent of web-survey company SurveyMonkey.Jana, which owns a large stake in Zendesk, first objected in November to the acquisition of Momentive Global, saying it “...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 6, 2022

Fed Minutes Show Heightened Inflation Concerns

U.S. Federal Reserve officials may be leaning toward speeding up the timetable for hiking interest rates after concluding that inflationary pressures have exceeded their expectations.According to the minutes of their December meeting, members of the Federal Open Market Committee noted that “infla...

By Matthew Heller • Jan. 6, 2022

Best Advice for CFOs 2021

CFO publishes columns from experts, consultants, and finance chiefs each year. We assembled some of the best from the wealth of advice our guest authors dispensed in 2021. These pieces struck a chord with readers and remain as relevant as the day they were published.5 Leadership Traps to Avoid Po...

By Vincent Ryan • Dec. 21, 2021

Oracle to Buy Cerner in $28B Health Care Play

In its largest deal ever, Oracle will acquire electronic medical records company Cerner for $28.3 billion to accelerate its push into health care.Oracle’s move comes seven months after cloud-computing rival Microsoft agreed to pay $19.7 billion for Nuance Communications, a provider in voice-recog...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 20, 2021

Reddit Eyeing IPO at Valuation of $15B

After several successful rounds of private funding that have brought its valuation to $10 billion, Reddit is testing the IPO waters.The social media platform known as the internet’s town hall said it confidentially filed paperwork with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission for an initial pu...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 17, 2021

U.S. Cracks Down on Chinese Tech Firms

DJI drones The Biden administration has slapped an investment ban on eight Chinese tech companies, citing their support for Beijing’s repression of the Uyghur minority.The latest additions to a list of firms designated as owned or controlled by the Chinese military includes DJI, which is the larg...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 17, 2021

M&A Is Better in Small Gulps

Mergers and acquisitions are back in a big way. Through the first nine months of 2021, the value of global M&A reached almost $4.3 trillion — comfortably more than the full-year $4 trillion in 2015. The third quarter was robust ($1.4 trillion), with corporate transactions (3,500 deals worth m...

By Andy West • Dec. 16, 2021

Fed Shifts Toward Rate Hikes Next Year

The U.S. Federal Reserve signaled Wednesday it is preparing to raise interest rates as it shifts toward easing inflationary pressures in the economy.After a two-day meeting, the Fed’s policy-making committee said the central bank was “committed to using its full range of tools to support the U.S....

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 16, 2021

Symbotic to Go Public in $5.5B SPAC Deal

Robotics maker Symbotic said Monday it will go public through a merger with a SPAC sponsored by SoftBank to accelerate its push into warehouse automation.Symbotic makes AI-powered mobile robots that are already being used in the warehouses of major retailers, grocers and wholesalers, including Wa...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 13, 2021

U.S. Inflation Leaps 6.8% in November

U.S. inflation rose at the fastest rate in nearly 40 years in November, providing further evidence of the pandemic’s disruptive effects on supply and demand.The Labor Department reported Friday that the consumer price index (CPI) jumped 6.8% last month from a year ago, the biggest gain since 1982...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 10, 2021

7 Keys to Communicating an M&A Deal Effectively

Just when you think that merger and acquisition transaction numbers can’t get any higher, they keep breaking records. Fueled by near-zero interest rates, monetary stimulus, and investor demand for corporate debt, M&A showed the highest level of activity over the past nine months than at any t...

By Moira Conlon • Dec. 9, 2021

Biden Orders Federal Carbon-Free Push

In a major push to advance his climate change agenda, President Biden signed an executive order on Wednesday to make the federal government carbon-neutral by 2050.The order requires the government to use 100% carbon pollution-free electricity in its buildings by 2030; that the U.S. fleet of cars ...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 8, 2021

What to Do When a Key Supplier Is in Trouble

The spread of the coronavirus in 2020 caused lockdowns of businesses and schools and shutdowns of industries worldwide. Throw worker shortages, dwindling supplies of raw materials, surging prices, and other complications into the mix, and it’s no surprise that some U.S. manufacturers are hurting....

By David G. Dragich • Dec. 8, 2021

Intel to Take Self-Driving Car Unit Public

Intel announced its Mobileye unit would go public in mid-2022 in a move to accelerate its turnaround effort amid investor enthusiasm for self-driving technology.The chip maker said Mobileye has been thriving since it acquired the Israeli firm for around $15 billion in 2017. Mobileye specializes i...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 7, 2021

How to Lower Total Payroll Costs: Metric of the Month

Everything seems to be getting more expensive. From wages and fuel costs to lumber prices, office paper, and essential grocery store items, very few areas of the economy have been spared from rising costs. Now is the time for a financial examination of all your business processes to determine if ...

By Perry D. Wiggins • Dec. 6, 2021

Grab Shares Slump After Mega-SPAC Merger

Grab delivery drivers in Bangkok After completing a record-setting SPAC merger, ride-hailing and delivery app Grab made its trading debut on Thursday, offering investors an opportunity to bet on the Southeast Asian tech boom.Shares in Southeast Asia’s leading “super-app” opened at $13.06, up 19% ...

By Matthew Heller • Dec. 2, 2021

CFOs Expect Higher Costs May Last Through 2022

Most economists, Federal Reserve presidents, and business executives hoped to put inflation in the rearview mirror in 2022. However, they’re gradually realizing that won’t be the case.Finance chiefs knew it as early as November. According to results of the fourth-quarter CFO Survey released on Th...

By Vincent Ryan • Dec. 2, 2021

Inflation Surge Adds to Pressure on Fed

The U.S. Federal Reserve’s preferred measure of inflation jumped in October to its highest level in nearly 32 years, increasing pressure on the central bank to tweak monetary policy.The Commerce Department reported Wednesday that personal consumption expenditures prices excluding food and energy ...

By Matthew Heller • Nov. 24, 2021

CFOs Battle Margin Pressures and Production Delays

Robert Hartwig, University of South Carolina Profits are slimmer for businesses beset by a combination of stalled supply chains and higher commodity prices. Delays in production schedules caused by idled container ships off ports in California, combined with rising commodities prices, are dampeni...

By Russ Banham • Nov. 24, 2021