In the aftermath of Silicon Valley Bank’s bankruptcy — and troubles reported by a handful of other regional banks — many of my clients have been asking whether they should be concerned about the safety of the money they have on deposit with their bank. The answer is: probably not. (This column originally appeared in the Philadelphia Inquirer) “Silicon Valley Bank was not an institution that had a bunch of problem loans,” said Charlie Crawford, the CEO of Hyperion Bank in Philadelphia. “It wasn’t a bank that lacked capital. …

A presidential bid begins with a pie-in-the-sky federal budget proposal. A presidential bid begins with a pie-in-the-sky federal budget proposal, says host Gene Marks, who also is hearing some groundswell for a national pay transparency law after states such as New York amend their own state law on the issue. Guilt tipping catches the interest of regulators, and state senators swing for the fences — and most likely will whiff — with a proposal to pay minor league baseball players less than minimum wage. Gene shares his insights on this week’s episode. Listen here.

According to data from the Small Business Administration, more than half of the small business owners in the U.S. are over the age of 50. Because of this, many of us are starting to think about the future and possibly one day selling our businesses. (This column originally appeared in Entrepreneur) Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. According to data from the Small Business Administration, more than half of the small business owners in the U.S. are over the age of 50. Because of this, many of us are starting to think about…

Like my best clients, I pay close attention to my taxes. Why? Because for a business owner, taxes are usually one of our biggest expenses. (This column originally appeared in Entrepreneur) Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own. I’m a certified public accountant but my firm doesn’t prepare tax returns. However, I’m also a business owner. This means, like my best clients, I pay close attention to my taxes. Why? Because for a business…

Pipedrive is a good CRM product. But unfortunately a recent press release from the company doesn’t help its credibility. (This column originally appeared in Forbes) Pipedrive is a good CRM product. But unfortunately a recent press release from the company doesn’t help its credibility. According to the statement’s headline, Pipedrive reported “record sales growth among small business customers worldwide.” At first when I read this headline I thought, wow…

Taxes headed higher eventually. Gene Marks talks with John Batchelor about what small businesses can expect regarding taxes moving forward. Listen here.

Here are five things in tech that happened this week and how they affect your business. Did you miss them? (This column originally appeared in Forbes) 1 — OpenAI releases GPT-4 OpenAI, the maker of the enormously popular conversational AI chatbot ChatGPT, has released GPT-4, an API that upgrades the underlying technology behind ChatGPT. Users of ChatGPT can access this new technology through their paid membership. There’s a waiting list…

Thanks to all these new point-of-sale devices that every small business seems to be buying nowadays you’re getting asked to tip for things you’ve never tipped for before. (This column originally appeared in The Guardian) I‘m writing this column from Las Vegas where I’m attending a conference. This morning, I went to a coffee shop in the hotel. The cost of my small coffee was $6.49 and no, I am not kidding. Welcome to Vegas.

As interest rates continue to increase and fears of a recession loom, it is becoming harder for some small businesses to get financing. (This column originally appeared in the Daily Herald) However, one very good option remains: the U.S. Small Business Administration. Thanks to a slowing economy, SBA loans have been growing in popularity. In 2022 the agency approved about 57,000 loans totaling $35 billion, with about $1 billion specifically in Illinois and…