Are you hoping to increase your retirement account contributions in 2020? That's a great financial goal, since many Americans are saving far too little.

Saving for retirement in a tax-advantaged account such as a 401(k) or an IRA is the best way for most people to prepare for their golden years. Investing costs less when the money you set aside for it lowers your taxable income and decreases your eventual bill from the IRS.There are annual limits to the tax-advantaged contributions you can make, but these limits went up in 2020.

Image source: Getty Images.

The table below shows the maximum you can personally contribute to different kinds of retirement savings accounts in 2020. This is separate from any employer contributions, which are subject to a different limit.

While there are no income limits for making 401(k) or Simple IRA contributions, there are some income-based restrictions for traditional and Roth IRAs.

Employers are also allowed to make contributions to your retirement accounts for you. These are subject to a separate limit and employer contributions don't affect how much you can personally contribute.

The table below shows the maximum contributions employers can make in 2020.

Often, employers match a percentage of the contributions you make to your own 401(k) or Simple IRA. For example, your company may match 50% of your 401(k) contributions up to a maximum of 4% of your salary.

If your employer offers this help, you should contribute enough to earn the maximum match, or you'll be leaving free money on the table.

Now you know the maximum you can contribute to tax-advantaged retirement accounts in 2020. You should aim to contribute as much as possible to them. If you have enough money to max them out, you'll be well on your way to a secure future.

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What Are the Maximum Limits for Investing in Your Retirement Savings Accounts in 2020? - The Motley Fool

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City is not going anywhere anytime soon and will invest more money into its boardwalk facility despite issues the CEO said he has with the city.

During the first of two employee town hall sessions held at the Mark G. Etess Arena in Atlantic City Thursday morning, Hard Rock CEO Jim Allen announced the company would invest $15 million more in capital improvements in 2020 at the hotel and casino. Among the upgrades will be renovations to the ballroom, suites, and adding additional restrooms. The $15 million is on top of the initial $562 million investment in the beachfront hotel. Allen also said despite rumors floating around, Hard Rock is currently not looking at purchasing the adjacent Showboat property.

Allen told employees the company was giving 2,782 full-time employees, union and non-union, a minimum $250 bonus as a way to give back to its employees. The bonuses to be doled out will total more than $2 million. Allen said the bonuses were a way to thank the employees for the job they have done thus far.

We are going above and beyond and not just giving the holiday turkey, gift cards, and all those things that we do, but we wanted to put cash in their pocket and show them that we are putting our money where our mouth is, Allen said. We want to deliver the best product in Atlantic City, and we want them to have the entrepreneurial spirit so that they go the extra step. This is a sign of our thanks and appreciation.

Jim Allen, chairman of Hard Rock International and CEO of Seminole Gaming, right, talks to Marcellus Osceola Jr., chairman of Seminole Tribe of Florida, during a town hall meeting in Hard Rock Live at Etess Arena in Atlantic City, Thursday, Jan. 16, 2020.Tim Hawk | NJ Advance Media for NJ.com

Although the company has invested millions in the resort town, Allen said he wishes the city and state would do more to help spur more growth in Atlantic City, including improved safety and more efficient traffic signals around the resort town.

Frankly the towns in worse shape today than it was when we bought the building, he said.

He noted the street lights have been out for two months on several blocks along Pacific Avenue, a sign of a continuing trend that concerns him.

When youre in a resort environment where safety and security is so important, if the city cant get something fixed as simple as the street lighting, then maybe a change is needed, he said.

Allen also specifically referenced the state of the properties at the vacant Trump Plaza and Sands Casinos, even suggesting officials use the enforcement of eminent domain to force the property owners to maintain their holdings.

Carl (Ichan) is worth how many billions of dollars? Allen asked. To leave a vacant casino like that sitting, that is a safety hazard with debris falling off the building potentially hurting someone. I do not know why the city and Carl cant come together. I hear that they are in some form of negotiations. We work with Carl. He and his CEO are fine people, but we do not understand why that building is still there. And rather than finding out what happened at the Sands where it is a field full of weeds and a chain-link fence that looks like it is at a prison, do something to make it at least look nice. Nothing. Nobody does anything.

The Hard Rock Casino finished with the second highest amount of revenue in both slot and table games, garnering $324 million. The hotel also received $62 million in hotel revenue.

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Hard Rock says it will continue to invest in Atlantic City despite concerns - NJ.com

After the Federal Communications Commission approved a $64.7 billion merger between Bell Atlantic and GTE Corp. in 2000, Verizon Communications (NYSE:VZ) was born. It became the largest local telephone company in the United States, serving 25 million mobile phone customers in 40 states. Verizon became a highly anticipated IPO for investors.

The first day of trading for Verizon Communications was July 3, 2000, with an IPO price set to $45.53 per share. An investor purchasing $10,000 of Verizon stock at the IPO would have 220 shares. Fast-forward to today, and Verizon is currently trading at $60.81 per share. A shareholder with 220 shares would have received $8,080 in dividends and a stock appreciation of $3,378 -- totaling $11,458, a 114.58% return on investment over the period of 19 years. Investors would have a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 1.53% not including dividends -- 2.69 percentage points below the S&P 500's CAGR of 4.22% during the same period.

That 114% return over 19 years has been a solid run for a large, established company (although the S&P 500 rose 121% over the same time frame). And there are indications that the company can continue to show growth. But is it a stock for IPO shareholders to continue holding onto?

Image source: Getty Images.

Nomura Instinet and HSBC Securities downgraded Verizon in November 2019 for several reasons -- mainly pointing to a potential price war between Verizon and the competition. After the Department of Justice approved a merger between Sprint (NYSE:S) and T-Mobile US (NASDAQ:TMUS), Nomura and HSBC became concerned over a "race to the bottom," in which companies lower pricing to beat out each other -- and ending in very cheap unlimited plans offered to customers with small profit margins to sustain the business. AT&T (NYSE:T) fired the first shot at Verizon, announcing a price reduction on unlimited plans $5 cheaper than Verizon's unlimited plan.

The merger between Sprint and T-Mobile US will increase the competition for Verizon, as the company is currently serving 150 million customers in the United States -- which is 9 million more than AT&T's 141 million and 24 million more than the combined total of 126 million from the upcoming merger of Sprint and T-Mobile US. Competing for customers will be a daily battle that will rely on pricing, network speeds, and network availability.

Income investors will be keeping an eye on the performance of the two largest telecommunications providers: Verizon and AT&T. The company with the better forward dividend yield, price to earnings, and price to sales is currently AT&T. Verizon has a forward dividend yield of 4.02% versus AT&T's 5.32%, a forward price to earnings ratio of 12.7, which is higher than AT&T's 10.85, and a price to sales ratio of 1.93 over AT&T's 1.55. These fundamentals show a stronger case for owning AT&T than Verizon in the near term.

An investor holding 220 shares of Verizon will want to consider diversifying the holding and perhaps consider purchasing shares of AT&T if they want to continue investing in the sector as it is currently capturing a higher dividend yield and a better value. As the investments in 5G start to blossom, investors will see an increase in revenues from Verizon in 2021. However, AT&T is investing in 5G network speeds alongside Verizon.

In addition, AT&T has an advantage over Verizon, as AT&T is investing heavily in streaming by acquiring DIRECTV in 2015 and Time Warner in 2018 -- increasing revenue diversification.

Verizon's lack of revenue diversity puts pressure on growth during an industry consolidation and a potential price war, which hampers earnings-per-share growth. Verizon's forward dividend yield of 4.02% is great for income investors; however, AT&T's yield of 5.32% is better.

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If You Invested $10,000 in Verizon's IPO, This Is How Much Money You'd Have Now - The Motley Fool

A private survey has found that nearly 90 percent of institutional investors are worried about the possible negative effects of a law revision that tightens restrictions on foreign investment.

According to the survey, 86 percent of responding institutional investors worldwide believe the revised foreign exchange and trade law could negatively affect foreign investment in Japanese stocks.

Enacted in November, the revised law requires foreign investors to notify the government before acquiring a stake of 1 percent or more in listed companies in national security-related fields such as weapons, nuclear energy and semiconductors.

The threshold is far lower than the current 10 percent. The revised law is expected to take effect around May next year.

Organizations including the CFA Society Japan conducted the survey from Nov. 15 to 27, collecting answers from 115 institutional investors working for asset management companies, banks, life insurance businesses and others.

Institutional investors will be exempt from the tighter regulations unless they demand a position on the companys board or the transfer or discontinuance of a key business.

But many respondents are critical of what they see as an attempt to restrain shareholders from exercising the right to submit proposals.

Of the respondents, 70 percent opposed the revised law, citing the stricter requirement and the wide range of companies the obligation covers.

A respondent said the revised law is intended to suppress activist shareholders, and another commented that it bucks the current trend of improving corporate governance.

Market players say the scope of exemption is unclear and that details of the revised law are not widely known abroad because the government is not proving enough information in English.

The Finance Ministry is drawing up related ordinances.

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Survey reveals worry over Japan's tougher rules on foreign investment - The Japan Times

320 South Canal Street, BMO Financial Group CEO Darryl White and Riverside Investment and Development CEO John ODonnell (Credit: Google Maps, BMO, Riverside Investment)

Riverside Investment & Development and Convexity Properties officially broke ground on their 50-story BMO Tower, after landing a $476 million construction loan for the West Loop project earlier this month.

The 1.5 million-square-foot-building will be home to BMO Financial Group, which signed a lease for 500,000 square feet and 14 floors. The firm also snagged naming rights to the building. Other companies with signed leases include the law firm Chapman and Cutler, which will also be headquartered there.

Globe St. first reported on the ground-breaking ceremony, held Friday.

The building, which will rise at 320 S. Canal St., and is expected to open in 2022. It will include 400 parking spaces, and there will be a 1.5-acre park adjacent to it. The project is near the Old Post Office, whose 2.5 million-square-foot space is undergoing a massive redevelopment.

Mayor Lori Lightfoot attended the groundbreaking ceremony, and said the BMO Tower will serve as a vital link to economic, cultural and recreational investments for residents and visitors, according to Globe St. [Globe St.] Jacqueline Flynn

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Riverside Investment breaks ground on 1.5M sf BMO Tower project - The Real Deal

As speculation started to ramp up regarding the sale of Weyerhaeusers forest lands in Montana, the buyer stepped forward to keep rumors in check.

On Saturday, attorney James A. Bowditch sent an email to media outlets announcing that Southern Pine Plantations would be buying 630,000 acres of timberland from Weyerhaeuser. The sale is expected to close in the second quarter of 2020.

While we cant provide specifics before the deal closes, (Southern Pine Plantations) has no plan to change the long-standing practices of the prior owners related to public access, forest management, grazing, existing outfitting agreements and conservation easements, and other programs. Again, we cant comment further at this time, but we felt it was in the public interest to provide this assurance to concerned Montanans, Bowditch wrote in the email.

Weyerhaeuserannounced the saleon Dec. 17, saying a private timberland investment company had agreed to by the land for $145 million in cash.

Because the sale includes a 110,000-acre conservation easement and Weyerhaeuser has long allowed locals to recreate on some its lands, people worried what the intent and policies of the new owner would be. Would they still be able to hunt, hike or cross-country ski in their favorite areas of the Salish Mountains between Kalispell and Libby?

In particular, wildlife advocates were concerned how new ownership and possible development would affect the ability ofgrizzly bears to migratebetween the Northern Continental Divide and Cabinet-Yaak ecosystems. Such connectivity is essential to keeping grizzly populations healthy, both in numbers and genetically. Without gene flow among all the populations, grizzlies could become inbred, particularly in the Cabinet-Yaak, which hosts only about 60 bears.

So far, only a few bears have tried to navigate across the people-packed Flathead Valley. Reducing the forested areas around the populated areas would make travel more treacherous for the large carnivores.

Bowditchs words may put a few fears to rest for now.

Montana Fish, Wildlife & Parks director Martha Williams said last week that her employees would reach out to the prospective buyer once it was known. The identity known, theyll try to educate the Georgia-based company about Montanas wildlife concerns, from grizzlies and lynx to elk and grouse.

But a few concerns remain about why the southern company would want Montana timber. Although most of its property is in Georgia, Florida, Mississippi and South Carolina, it is an investment company that touts its ability to move fast on acquisition opportunities.

According to its website, We buy large acreage; keep some of the land that fits our long term management goals; then sell some of the land as large investment blocks and some of the land as individual tracts.

In other words, they can buy big stuff and turn around and sell it as small stuff that the rich can more easily afford.

Thats what happened three years ago in Idaho.

Thats when the Potlatch Corporationsold 172,000 acresof former Boise-Cascade land in southern Idaho to Southern Pine Plantations for $114 million. Potlatch had bought the land in 2007, anticipating the development of the Tamarack ski area, which later went bankrupt.

Three months after Southern Pine Plantations bought the land in May 2016, the company quietlyturned around and sold itto the Wilks Brothers.

Dan and Ferris Wilks of Cisco, Texas, are two billionaire brothers who have been buying up land in both Idaho and Montana since 2012 after making more than $3 billion in the fracking industry.

They gained notoriety in Montana after they tried to talk the Bureau of Land Management into swapping some land for the public inholding on their Lewistown-area ranch known as the Duffee Hills, a haven for elk and elk hunters who can fly into the little landing strip. When the BLM refused after an outcry from hunters, the Wilks shut down an access road to the Wild and Scenic Missouri River.

Having already developed a working relationship with Southern Pine Plantations, the Wilks Brothers may be trying to raise money to buy some new property. Earlier this year, theyput four ranches up for salein eastern Montana. If they scored the total asking price for all four, theyd pocket almost $44 million.

Contact reporter Laura Lundquist atlundquist@missoulacurrent.com

The rest is here:
Weyerhaeuser selling to timber investment group with Wilks Brothers ties - Missoula Current

Dan Hallett is vice-president and principal of Highview Financial Group

I have often criticized the investment industry for pumping out products designed to sell rather than build wealth for investors. I have also worked to raise investor awareness of how gimmicky products destroy wealth. The battle against such products took a step backward recently with an Ontario Securities Commission panels decision to allow the launch of a bitcoin investment fund.

The OSCs Investment Funds Branch was initially opposed to the fund; citing several concerns pertaining to public interests. The panels decision document clearly lays out the OSCs legal limits when it comes to approving products that are considered risky and speculative. Ultimately, the panel concluded that the fund will be able to reliably value the funds assets, secure the holdings (from hacks/theft) and complete a full financial audit.

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Many look to bitcoin and other assets such as gold and other commodities to provide diversification from traditional financial assets. An investment must meet two basic conditions for it to effectively diversify a portfolio. First, it must be weakly correlated with other investments. Second, it must produce a positive return. Bitcoin passes the first test with flying colours. But the second a positive return is quite a leap of faith, and violates the warning attached to virtually all investment products.

Regulators have long required every investment fund prospectus to be stamped with a statement reminding investors that past performance is no indication of the future. And yet, it seems that any assumption that bitcoin offers portfolio diversification is implicitly based on bitcoins performance during its one decade in existence. This is a drop in the bucket of financial market history. But there are two problems with this assumption.

First, we have no idea even using history how bitcoin will behave in a recession, financial crisis or bear market. History can be useful to gauge behavioural patterns and worst-case scenarios. But bitcoin hasnt existed through any such environment.

Second, by claiming that bitcoin can diversify portfolios, I wonder what basis is used for assuming positive future returns. As I stated for a Globe and Mail article on the panels decision:

We design client portfolios to achieve a specific goal a specific long-term return target. I can take each component of the portfolio and give you a very good ballpark estimate of how each piece will contribute to achieving that long-term goal. I have no idea how anyone can do this with bitcoin or any cryptocurrency. It cant be done.

We have designed an algorithm to forecast long-term asset-class returns. (The method is summarized in a 2012 blog post and has been pretty accurate.) But bitcoin doesnt fit into this or any other sensible model that facilitates a confident return forecast. Im certainly not comfortable blindly relying on 10 years of data to form any type of future return expectation; particularly since that decade overlapped a very long economic recovery and bull market.

Bitcoin and other crypto or digital currencies are likely to have a future. And blockchain technology seems destined to change some industries e.g., the way we handle legal documents. But investment assets require fundamental characteristics upon which to base some value assessment and, in turn, return expectations. In the absence of such characteristics, buying bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies either for attractive returns or portfolio diversification is speculating not investing.

See more here:
Cryptocurrency is a tool for speculation not an investment - The Globe and Mail

Dont miss these top money and investing features:

The eve of a new year is a time to take stock. In the case of your investment portfolio, its a time to take away stocks, along with other holdings that no longer work if they ever did.

Assess your assets, and make sure your portfolio reflects your current views and goals. Read about how to get your portfolio in order by clearing out the ghosts of investments past, plus several stories on current and expected stock market trends, and what happened when one investment manager took Tesla stock for a test-drive. And check out video reports on managing investment risk and how to save on 2019 taxes.

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Trump is widely expected to be acquitted by Senate after House votes to impeach him. Why stock investors arent rattled by Trumps historic impeachment and what it would take for that to change

Market timers are as bullish now as they were bearish a year ago, writes Mark Hulbert. If you believe stock market bulls have the bears locked out, this will rattle your cage

This past decade has delivered some of the best stock market returns in history, which unfortunately is a bad sign for the next 10 years, Mark Hulbert reports. Brace yourself for mediocre stock market returns in the next decade

U.S. economic growth, not interest rates, is the biggest concern impacting markets, writes Mark Hulbert. Stock investors No. 1 worry now is not what youre probably thinking

Managers of fixed-income funds may be able to add more value than many stock-pickers do - or at least that may be the perception of investors. Fixed-income strategies dominate actively managed ETFs

Risk parity involves choosing asset classes and including them in a portfolio in a manner that equalizes the riskiness of each. A hedge-fund strategy inside an ETF: Good idea? Bad idea?

Unemployment matched a 50-year low of 3.5% in November, but a New York Federal Reserve Bank survey released on Monday shows more U.S. borrowers this year getting rejected for car loans. More borrowers are getting rejected for auto loans

Google, Twitter and Amazon.com provide useful information for homeowners and property investors. Want clues about home and real estate trends in 2020? Check out these simple internet tools

The Index of Leading Economic Indicators is now below its six-month moving average Why retirees should care about the downturn in the Index of Leading Economic Indicators

Carmakers fanatical bulls, raging bears, and unproven business model creates a lions den for investors, writes Vitaliy Katsenelson. This money manager drives a Tesla but wont buy the stock

Chris Hyzy, Bank of America Private Bank & Merrill CIO, explains how investors can effectively maneuver risks and find opportunities in 2020. Managing investment risk in 2020

Here are three ways to reduce this years tax bill even if you got a late start. Dont worry, its not too late to save on this years taxes

Suresh Iyengar, Vice President at Invesco-owned digital advice platform Jemstep, dispels the three most common myths about robo-advisors. 3 myths about robo-advisors that investors need to know

Read the rest here:
How to confront the ghosts of investments past plus other top investing tips - MarketWatch

As the end of the year draws closer, discussing what the future holds for the crypto industry becomes increasingly relevant. In particular, how global financial and technological trends will affect the adoption of cryptocurrencies in the coming year.

Despite the critics, the number of industry experts and crypto enthusiasts who foresee a promising future for cryptocurrencies has been on the rise. Institutional investors are now paying more attention to crypto-related projects and products, and universities have even started to offer courses on cryptocurrency and blockchain technology.

Now, talks of how emerging technologies like artificial intelligence and the Internet of Things can influence crypto have emerged, with possibilities for new applications coming to the fore. Furthermore, a global trend toward a cashless society is set to have a real impact on how privacy and freedom are perceived. Could cryptocurrencies provide a much-needed solution as early as 2020?

Increased use of AI and the IoT

No matter the industry, experts are more than willing to proclaim that artificial intelligence is the next big thing in their industry. The ubiquity of datasets, not to mention machine learning and high-performance scalable computing, are truly propelling the world into an age of AI. Many even consider the technology to be a sure sign of the incoming fourth Industrial Revolution.

However, despite the fast rise of AI technology, few practical applications are being discovered at present. A report called The State of AI 2019 shows that projects associating themselves with the AI buzzword receive up to 50% more funding. This overwhelming hype around AI has led to a scenario where real applications are outnumbered by projects that only claim to be AI-related.

The good news is that the crypto industry has various applications where AI can be used to make cryptocurrencies attractive to the mainstream public. For instance, efficiently optimizing energy consumption during the mining process. For the most part, the energy it takes to mine Bitcoin has been a concern, and certain programs can reduce the energy costs. This provides increased profit margins to miners, who reduce transaction fees as a result.

Once implemented, AI can potentially compute the probability of a particular nodes performance and recommend methods that can be used to enable faster and cheaper transactions on the blockchain. Furthermore, when combined with IoT tech, different nodes will be able to communicate autonomously, achieving an increase in efficiency in terms of consensus protocols on the blockchain.

Al, IoT and blockchain can be used to make electronic devices completely autonomous, so that instead of using credit cards, these devices can be programmed to use cryptocurrencies to transact with one another.

On the subject, Cointelegraph reached out to Dominik Shiener, the founder of Iota a cryptocurrency project that seeks to integrate cryptocurrencies to IoT. Shiener said that he believes autonomy should be the ultimate technological goal:

The ultimate vision of all these technological advances is it to move from automation towards autonomy, and turn machines into autonomous economic agents. By simply giving a machine a wallet and way to verify, receive and send payments, we are creating an entire new Machine Economy where machines provide services and data to each other.

Shiener also added that by combining IoT, AI and DLT, new and groundbreaking applications will become available, and as such, we move away from todays centralized networks with single points of failure, towards Smart Decentralization where our networks are decentralized, resilient, secure, and smart.

Institutional investors increased interest in crypto

Another trend that will likely take cryptocurrencies to the mainstream in 2020 is the increased interest in crypto-related projects from institutional investors.

A survey by Fidelity investment reveals that out of 441 United States-based institutional investors, 47% appreciate that digital assets are an innovative technology play.

The survey also showed that more than 70% of respondents view digital assets favorably, and four in 10 respondents said that they are open to future investments in digital assets.

Whats even more interesting is the fact that 22% of institutional investors already own digital assets. Basically, interest in cryptocurrencies or digital assets has matured from a reserve group of early adopters to financial advisors, traditional hedge funds, and family offices taking a keen interest in the industry.

For instance, JP Morgan issued its customers the JPM Coin as a newly released cryptocurrency aimed at facilitating international money transfers among its institutional clients.

Furthermore, Morgan Creek Digital Assets (an asset management firm) partnered with two pension funds that have a combined $5.1 billion in assets under management. Through the partnership, Morgan Creek Digital Assets reportedly raised $40 million that will go into a venture fund that invests in Bitcoin and other blockchain-related companies.

Another study conducted in the last quarter of 2018 by the Global Custodian and BitGo states that 94% of financial endowments have been making investments in crypto-related projects.

The report further showed that only 7% of the endowments anticipate a decrease in their allocation in the next 12 months and that the rest were optimistic about increasing their allocation. Whats most fascinating is that despite the heavy regulatory pressure and volatility that the cryptocurrency industry has been facing, these institutional investors and endowment fund managers are hardly showing any signs of stepping away.

Because a crypto-asset fund needs to exhibit sufficient capital flow, not to mention liquidity, the increased interest from financial endowments is a clear indicator that the crypto industry is growing. The University of Michigan, for instance, has planned this year to increase its stake in the crypto fund managed by Andreessen Horowitz.

Other top-ranking universities whose endowments have shown interest in cryptocurrencies include Havard and Yale. In 2019, Harvard, together with two pension plans in Virginia have bought about 95.8 million tokens of Blockstack, a digital rights protection platform, valued at about $11.5 million at the time. Furthermore, Blockstacks token sale managed to make history by being the first token sale to get qualified by the SEC.

For Yale, in particular, the move to invest in crypto seems to have been inspired by a study conducted by Yale economists (Aleh Tsyvinski and Yukun Liu). In their study, the Yale economists reported that although cryptocurrencies demonstrate a lot of volatility, they also show a return that is higher than the risk implied by volatility.

Increased microchipping and use of cashless systems globally

All over the world, the movement toward a global cashless society is picking up speed. From Africa to Europe to Asia and America, there is no shortage of countries that are replacing banknotes for the convenience of electronic or plastic money.

In places such as Sweden, the move toward a cashless society has been so efficient that cash in circulation in the country has dropped to just 1% of GDP. Furthermore, Swedish legislation has made it possible for various retailers to refuse cash payments altogether.

Related: Crypto Vs. Cash: Which Countries Expect to Go Digital Soon?

To keep up with the changes, the Swedish central bank has set up plans to issue a digital version of its national fiat currency dubbed e-krona. Add that to the increased popularity for microchipping among the Swedes and, in a few years, experts predict that the country could be among the first in the world to go completely cashless, bringing about several major advantages.

Swedes who make cashless payments with microchip implants report that they can pay for train tickets, eat at restaurants, and even open office doors without the inconvenience of pulling out their wallets, phones or keys. However, the price for this level of convenience is the threat of surveillance and safety of personal information.

Although electronic payment methods might offer convenience, a detailed record of the users purchases, location and time are recorded. This data can be sold and marketed by a users payment provider, retailers, and payment processors.

In China, the ubiquity of digital payments has become so instrumental that the countrys social credit system has been built around it. So far, cash payments in China have been reduced from 96% in 2012 to 15% as of 2019.

As countries further embrace the cashless movement, people will gradually lose the ability to transact value without the involvement of third parties or government entities. A cashless society might enable governments to better protect their people from crime, but it comes at the cost of each citizens data privacy and autonomy. On the subject, Cointelegraph spoke with Ray Wang, founder, chairman and analyst at Constellation Research, who said:

This is the paradox. The companies contending to win our trust to manage our digital identities all seem to have complementary (or competing) business models that breach that trust by selling our data.

Cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin could provide a hedge against the cashless movement, allowing people to transact value without the involvement of third parties or the government. Although not as private as cash payments in terms of user data, Bitcoin payments much like cash payments are decentralized and do not require a third party, thanks to the blockchain. Therefore, as societies go cashless, the demand for alternative payment methods such as what Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies offer will be in demand.

Furthermore, with increased global economic uncertainty (keeping in mind that fiat currencies are affected by government policies), cryptocurrencies will likely provide a hedge against negative interest rates.

Even though global trends can highlight significant changes that are yet to come, the future remains highly unpredictable, and what happens in 2020 and beyond is anyones guess.

The rise of key Industry 4.0 technologies like AI, IoT and blockchain can shift the scales of power quickly and in directions previously unexpected. As much as the increased interest in blockchain technology is worth considering as a telltale sign of what the future has to offer, one still has to take multiple other factors into account before concluding with a definitive answer on whether crypto will go mainstream.

Hopefully, with the increasing flow of institutional capital, not to mention the influence of the trends mentioned above, the industry will be legitimized in the eyes of the mainstream public.

Read the original here:
Tech Development, Investments and NFT to Drive Crypto Adoption in 2020 - Cointelegraph

Many of us were not fortunate enough to buy shares of today's high-growth tech stocks like NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA) at the initial public offering (IPO) price. But for a few reasons, it's a helpful exercise to look at how much money you would have made if you did get in at the beginning.

To start, it reinforces the power of compound returns on a relatively small investment. Along with that, it highlights the importance of patience. There may be some investors who did buy a $10,000 stake in NVIDIA around the IPO price, but did those investors keep holding after that $10,000 turned into $50,000? If not, they left a lot of money on the table.

It can be very tempting to sell a winner after it's risen in value, but investors who think of themselves as business owners will keep holding, knowing that it would be nearly impossible to find another company to invest in that is as good as the one they currently hold.

With that said, let's look at how much you would have made if you had bought shares of NVIDIA at the IPO price.

Image source: Getty Images.

NVIDIA first sold shares to the public on Jan. 22, 1999, at $12 a share.The stock has split four times over the years: Three splits were 2-for-1, while the other was 3-for-2. (A quick note about how splits work: With a 2-for-1 split, shareholders receive two shares for every one share they own. But the stock price is adjusted accordingly so that the value of your investment remains the same. It's not free money.)

A $10,000 investment would have purchased 833 shares at the IPO price. Those shares would have turned into 9,996 shares after all the stock splits. At the current stock quote of around $214, the value of your investment would be $2,139,144.

To be honest, I probably would have been one of those investors who started selling some shares once my initial investment turned into $30,000 or $50,000. But if you have the mindset to let your winners run, all it takes is one moderate NVIDIA investment to make you a millionaire.

NVIDIA's business involves selling very pricey graphics cards that generate high margins.This allows it to generate more free cash flow than management knows what to do with, so the company takes some of that spare cash and pays a small dividend to shareholders. The current quarterly payout is $0.16 per share.

If you owned 9,996 shares, you would be earning $1,599 per quarter in dividend income, which comes to $6,397 over a year.

NVIDIA initiated its first quarterly dividend in 2012 at $0.075 per share.The dividend payout has more than doubled in the last seven years, and it should continue to increase over time as revenue and free cash flow grow.

Another reason that early investors of NVIDIA would have wanted to hang on to their shares is that the business has found more ways to grow over the last decade. The cumulative return of the stock since the IPO is 21,300%.Over the last 10 years, the stock price has increased by 1,290%. That means a $1,000 investment in December 2009 would have already turned into $13,900.

NVIDIA has long been known for its innovation in graphics cards for those who play video games on a PC. It's the market-share leader in the discrete graphics card market, leading its rival Advanced Micro Devices.But management has found additional applications for its core graphics technology, opening up a lot more possibilities for NVIDIA to expand.

More demand is coming from organizations that need powerful graphics chips to process mountains of data with artificial intelligence (AI) and deep learning (an advanced form of AI).NVIDIA has also formed partnerships with several leading automakers to develop self-driving cars using the NVIDIA DRIVE platform.

Sales of gaming graphics cards still make up most of NVIDIA's annual revenue, but the data center, professional visualization, and automotive segments are just as important to the company's future growth.

NVDA data by YCharts.

The stock is up 62% year to date,but it is still below the all-time high in 2018. NVIDIA suffered a setback last year from a slowdown in its gaming and data center business.With those markets starting to return to growth, it's not too late to consider adding shares of NVIDIA to your portfolio.

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