Who Is Going to Win This Holiday Season?
As the holiday season approaches, with customers making purchasing decisions based on their social media feeds and when “free two-day shipping” is the norm, both pure-play and brick and mortar retailers must be prepared to meet high customer expectations.
Despite the “Retail House-is-Falling” headlines, consumer spending is projected to increase 3.5 percent this year. With festivities around the corner, the season will usher in more than tinsel and lights — it will bring more customers to stores. So, what is key to being a “winner” in this competitive environment?
In this edition of “Retail & Consumer: Act Now,” A&M Senior Director Kristin Kohler Burrows, Manager Jana Gold and Managing Director Michael Simoncic examine the five types of retailers that are poised to have a profitable holiday season as well as what best practices each is leveraging on their way to the bank.
New Tax Treaty Between Spain and the Netherlands: Signing Approved by the Spanish Council of Ministers and the Expected Impact on Spanish Real Estate Investments
March 24, 2026
On March 10, 2026, the Spanish Council of Ministers approved the signing of a new double tax treaty between Spain and the Netherlands, formally replacing the current agreement signed in 1971, one of the oldest treaties in Spain’s tax treaty network.
Migrating from Systems of Record (SoR) to Systems of Intelligence (SoI)
March 24, 2026
Financial institutions do not have a core banking problem. They have a decisioning problem. For decades, banks optimized Systems of Record (SoR) to post transactions with precision and maintain regulatory integrity. That battle has largely been won. What now differentiates institutions is not how accurately they book activity, but how intelligently and quickly they make decisions.
Prediction Markets: CFTC Issues Guidance and Potential Rulemaking Notice
March 24, 2026
On March 12, 2026, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) issued two key documents aimed at clarifying regulatory oversight in the prediction markets – an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) and a staff advisory letter to Designated Contract Markets (DCMs). In this article, we will highlight key takeaways from both.
CBUAE Resilience Package: What It Means for Your Institution
March 24, 2026
The CBUAE’s five-pillar Resilience Package (17 March 2026) is a proactive intervention backed by the CBUAE’s AED 1 trillion asset base.
