FEI Weekly

March 26, 2020

Why leadership diversity matters in handling crises like COVID-19.

What's in the Stimulus Bill, Why Is It so Big, and What Happens Next?

Vox

The plan includes a $500 billion loan program for businesses, expanded unemployment insurance, expanded funds for hospitals, medical equipment, and health care worker protections, increased aid to state and local governments, direct payments to adults below a certain income threshold ($75,000 or less annually), and loans to small businesses. The legislation, which was approved via a unanimous 96-0 vote, now heads to the House, which is expected to vote on it this Friday.

Look Out for Mass Bankruptcies This Year

Yahoo Finance

According to data watched by NYU Stern School of Business professor emeritus Ed Altman, bankruptcy and default potential for high-yield companies doubled from 5% to 10% in just a few weeks. “Today, our numbers are showing a likely default [rate] over the next 12 months of just under 10% that is a huge, unprecedented increase in such a short period of time,” he told Yahoo Finance. “It does signal a crisis in the credit market whenever you get to that 10% level.”

PCAOB Grants Auditors 45-Day Extension

Compliance Week

The PCAOB is allowing those audit firms registered with the agency a maximum 45-day relief period from inspections during the coronavirus pandemic in the hope it will give those firms the “time, resources, and flexibility” to flesh out matters of importance with their issuer and broker-dealer clients.

What the Coronavirus Aid Bill Means for Your Retirement Savings

CNBC

Tucked into the $2 trillion coronavirus relief bill are a series of changes that would relax rules on retirement savings, including a line item that would allow you to take a hardship distribution of up to $100,000 from your 401(k) plan without the 10% early withdrawal penalty if you’re under age 59½.

Diverse Leadership and the COVID-19 Crisis

Knowledge @ Wharton

Diversity is particularly powerful as we come together as a team to consider larger issues that directly impact financial performance. Lloyd W. Howell, Jr., CFO and treasurer of Booz Allen Hamilton, says he can already 'see the value in the context of our more thoughtful responses to COVID-19, a crisis which reflects the increasingly complex, interconnected nature of business today.'