On March 31, President Trump signed a $2 trillion economic relief plan offering assistance to millions of American households and businesses affected by the coronavirus pandemic. And then, only a minute later it seemed, scams related to the stimulus started circulating. At the same time, parts of the stimulus bill may seem like scams but are real. […]
Archives for April 2020
Rupeek terminates HR contract with Aasaanjobs
Rupeek, which operates an online marketplace for gold loans, terminated a human resource contract with Aasaanjobs, a recruitment marketplace for blue and grey-collar jobs, allegedly indirectly impacting 600 jobs. The Bengaluru-based firm said it had to take the “unfortunate decision” of not renewing the contract with the human resource contractors and had to reduce the […]
Party, network, socialise: A new hit web series
Millennials stuck at home and bored are going online to party, network and socialise. And, companies like Paytm Insider, MyScoot and BookMyShow, which relied on physical events earlier, are helping them by taking their offerings online. MyScoot, an events and party curator, has seen its user base swell by 50% in the wake of restrictions […]
Nearly 90% of the US Navy hospital ship in New York is empty amid coronavirus fight
The USNS Comfort is seen as it enters the New York Harbor during the outbreak of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) in New York City, U.S., March 30, 2020. Andrew Kelly | Reuters WASHINGTON — The USNS Comfort hospital ship holds fewer than 80 patients in New York City, leaving nearly 90% of its available space unused after its […]
Ecomm firms start taking orders for ‘non-essentials’
Illustration: Rahul Awasthi Ecommerce firms will accept online orders for ‘non-essential’ items starting this weekend, as they gear up to restart operations fully from Monday in line with a central government order issued on April 15. Sale of products deemed non-essential — including smartphones, personal computers, electronics items, apparel, furniture and home décor — form […]
IRS posts FAQs on paid sick and family leave
The IRS on Friday posted 67 FAQs on the employer tax credits for paid sick and family leave enacted in the Families First Coronavirus Response Act, P.L. 116-127. Businesses with fewer than 500 employees (referred to as “eligible employers”) will obtain funds to provide employees with paid sick leave and family and medical leave for […]
Veterans Affairs recipients to receive automatic economic impact payments
Recipients of Veterans Affairs benefits were added to the list of individuals who will automatically receive economic impact payments, the IRS announced on Friday (IR-2020-75). They join recipients of Social Security retirement and disability payments, Railroad Retirement benefits, and Supplemental Security Income as people who will automatically receive an economic impact payment with no further […]
How to take retroactive 100% bonus depreciation on QIP
The IRS issued procedures Friday for how taxpayers can take advantage of the recently enacted technical correction to the rules for qualified improvement property (QIP) (Rev. Proc. 2020-25). Qualified improvement property was unintentionally classified, under the law known as the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, P.L. 115-97, as nonresidential real property, which does not qualify […]
How the COVID-19 crisis is leading to lasting change
Everywhere you turn, you hear the very real and also very bad news coming from the COVID-19 pandemic. The crisis has delivered painful and sobering impacts, starting with the loss of tens of thousands of lives in the United States and the grief associated with those deaths. People have also feared for their own safety […]
Prove your value as markets careen
Coronavirus now has the whip hand of the U.S. economy, financial markets and clients’ portfolios — for how long, no one can say. But it also presents an rare opportunity for advisors to demonstrate how they’ve prepared clients’ portfolios for an inevitable market downturn, to show how clients could potentially profit from the volatility and […]