Tulip mania: the flower that cost more than a house, and the crash that mostly never happened
The tulip that cost more than an Amsterdam house, the crash that ruined a nation: the famous story of the first speculative bubble is mostly a myth. Here is what the Dutch archives, and a virus,...
Private credit explained: the $3.5 trillion market lending money outside the banks
Private credit is a $3.5 trillion lending market where investment funds, not banks, make corporate loans. It grew out of the 2008 financial crisis, and regulators are watching it closely.
IPOs explained: how a private company becomes a stock you can buy
SpaceX just filed for the largest IPO in history. Here is what an IPO actually is, how the process works from filing to first trade, and what the numbers say about investing in newly public companies.
Consumer sentiment explained: the 74-year-old number that says we’ve never felt worse
The consumer sentiment index just hit its lowest reading in 74 years. What it actually measures, how it is calculated, and why people feel broke in a growing economy.
The Strait of Hormuz explained: why one waterway controls a quarter of the world’s oil
The Strait of Hormuz is only 21 miles wide, yet a quarter of the world's seaborne oil squeezes through it every day. Here's why this narrow waterway between Iran and the Arabian Peninsula controls...
Tariffs are taxes on imported goods — but it's American consumers who pay. Here's how tariffs work, what they cost you, and why they matter more than ever in 2026.
