Leasing News was Hacked
Now Back Up and Running

What an experience! They got through a firewall, Microsoft anti-virus, another program, as well as my procedure in asking about what was attached that was sent.

We found a reputable company who specialized in this dilemma. They had the computer for two
Days, delivered the computer back to office, returning the settings I used.They will also make sure programs are working and up-to-date with online monitoring.

- Kit Menkin

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The Corporate Transparency Act Critical Update
Ken Greene, Leasing News Emeritus

In December 2023, I wrote about the new federal law called The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA). The law is intended to provide law enforcement with beneficial ownership information about reporting companies, ostensibly to combat money laundering, tax evasion, fraud, and other illicit financial activities.

The CTA’s effective date was January 1, 2024. Compliance deadlines are staggered depending on when companies were created. Companies existing before 2024 must file their initial report before January 1, 2025. Companies registered in 2024 have 90 days to comply. Companies formed in 2025 have 30 days.

CRITICAL UPDATE: On March 1, 2024, an Alabama federal judge ruled that the CTA is unconstitutional. Since the case was not a class action, the ruling only applies to Plaintiff National Small Business Association and its 65,000 members. The Treasury Department is appealing the decision and more lawsuits challenging the CTA are ahead. While we await the outcome, here is some additional information about the rules.

Importantly in this time of scam mail, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) will not notify companies of the compliance requirements. If you receive an email or letter from a company purporting to be FinCEN, know that FinCEN does not send unsolicited communications. Any unsolicited email or letter you receive is a scam!

To recap my previous article, companies that are considered “reporting companies” must submit reports of the company’s “beneficial owners” (BOIs) and related information to FinCEN. As an alternative to submitting sensitive BOI information, the beneficial owners can obtain a “FinCEN identifier”. Changes to reported company information must be reported within 30 days of the change. There is no periodic reporting requirement so, apart from updates, the CTA report and BOIs need to be filed just once.

There are numerous exemptions, the most important being the one for large operating companies with more than 20 full-time employees in the U.S., with more than $5 million in gross receipts, and an operating presence and a physical office in the U.S.

I have included in this article a link to FinCEN’s Small Entity Compliance Guide, which deals with BOI reporting requirements. However, the CTA is a very comprehensive set of rules, and failure to comply can be serious.  The penalties for non-compliance include civil or criminal penalties of up to $500 a day, a $10,000 fine, and two years in prison. Penalties for unauthorized disclosure of BOI obtained from FinCEN can be as high as $250,000.Anyone in need of specific guidance should seek legal representation to ensure proper and timely compliance. 

For those of you in New York, state legislation effective on December 22, 2024, will require LLCs to file BOIs when filing articles of organization and amendments or, for foreign LLCs, when filing applications for authority and amendments. Consult counsel for details.

THE ACT: https://www.fincen.gov/sites/default/files/shared/Corporate_Transparency_Act.pdf

SMALL ENTITY COMPLIANCE GUIDE:  https://www.fincen.gov/sites/default/files/shared/BOI_Small_Compliance_Guide.v1.1-FINAL.pdf

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Targeted Lending Co., LLC Achieves
Record-Breaking Month

Portfolio Grows 65% Year-Over-Year

Targeted Lending Co., LLC, a leader in the equipment finance industry, is proud to announce an exceptional achievement: the company has reported its most successful funding month to date and a remarkable 65% increase in its portfolio compared to the previous year. This remarkable performance highlights the effectiveness of Targeted Lending’s strategic vision, disciplined approach, and the invaluable support from its team, investors, and partners.

Brian Gallo, CEO of Targeted Lending Co., LLC., said,
“Our record-breaking funding month is a testament to the dedication of our team and the value we deliver to our stakeholders.

“Our company has also achieved 65% year-over-year portfolio growth, demonstrating its capacity to scale operations effectively and generate substantial returns on investment. This impressive growth is the result of Targeted Lending’s disciplined credit philosophy, strengthened relationships with Third Party Originators (TPOs), and an advanced suite of technology-driven tools.”

Renee Hazard, EVP, said, “Substantially growing our portfolio size in just one year is a significant accomplishment that underscores our strategic execution and the rising demand for our equipment financing solutions.

“We are enthusiastic about the future and are committed to sustaining this growth trajectory by continuing to innovate and deliver exceptional value to our TPOs.”

To build on this momentum, Targeted Lending has recently introduced a portfolio purchasing desk, launched a new TPO portal, and enhanced its innovative Pick Your Own Pricing Calculator. The company remains dedicated to strategically expanding its product offerings and driving progress to create value for all its stakeholders.

www.targetedlending.com

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Leasing and Finance Industry Help Wanted
Excellent Compensation/Marketing Support
Plus other openings for successful, growing funders

Three Suggestions to Increase Sales
By Scott Wheeler, CLFP

A discussion with a successful commercial equipment finance and leasing originator reveals that his glass of opportunity is more than half full. He claims that average originators perceive the market as tough, decreasing, and half empty. He is outperforming his competition by taking control of every interaction with both end-users and vendors. His suggestions include:

One: A positive attitude - Smile constantly. Show your prospects that you enjoy the process and that you are committed to helping your clients succeed. Share your recent success stories with others. Businesses want financial partners that display confidence and enthusiasm.

Two: Focus on the future - The market has changed significantly over the past year and the changes are being acknowledged by smart originators. Businesses want professionals that are able to assist today and are prepared to be a financial resource for the foreseeable future. Originators must be able to articulate their vision.

Three: Set bold goals - Top originators always find a way to exceed expectations. Too many in the industry have fallen into a trap of accepting lower outcomes. Top performers are working harder, smarter, and yes, even longer, to reach their personal goals.

"There is plenty of business in the market for top originators to exceed their goals."

Scott A. Wheeler, CLFP
Wheeler Business Consulting
1314 Marquis Ct.
Fallston, Maryland 21047
Phone: 410 877 0428
Fax: 410 877 8161

Email: scott@wheelerbusinessconsulting.com
Web: www.wheelerbusinessconsulting.com 

Wheeler Business Consulting is working with individual originators and sales teams throughout the industry to ensure that they are well positioned in the market, capturing their fair share of business, and outperforming the competition. To schedule a one-on-one meeting contact Scott Wheeler at: scott@wheelerbusinessconsulting.com

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Don't Quit
By Ken Lubin, ZRG Partner, Managing Director

Quitting is the easy part. What comes after is far worse than the pain you were in when you decided to quit.

When you quit you are looking for the immediate gratification of the pain stopping, looking for the feeling that you are done and don’t need to keep going on! It feels better than anything else for about 30 minutes but what comes next is far worse.

Your brain goes into overdrive. The questions start to come: what could I have done differently, or asked for help on, or just had some more patience. See quitting is often a permanent solution to a temporary problem. The mind or body is saying that you don’t deserve this, or that it is too hard, or why does this only happen to me when, in fact, it happens to everyone. The comfort zone is a strange thing. It allows you to exist and doesn’t want you to push further. When people get out of their comfort zone the first instinct is to quit. They say this is too hard when, in fact, they haven’t figured out an alternative. Often, this is just the beginning on the path to greatness.

As a headhunter, coach and athlete, I have seen many people, including myself, quit something because it was too hard for the moment, likely, it may be too hard for an hour, a day, a month, a year. What most people don’t realize is that no matter how bad something is, it will always end.

I can’t tell you how many people I have spoken with who have quit their jobs because their boss wasn’t nice to them, or that they didn’t feel like they were getting compensated enough, or that the work is too hard. Then, they go through the pain of trying to find another role and can’t. You know why… because people don’t want to hire quitters.

When you go on interview and the hiring manager asks you the reason you aren’t working, what do you say? Think about it. There is always some excuse but, in reality, it is because you didn’t endure.

You are a quitter and that screws with your psyche. You no longer have an income, your identity is no longer intact, and then you realize what you had wasn’t that bad.  

When you quit, you are no longer in control, you are on defense. When you are on defense, you have lost your power, you become desperate and take a step back, rather than a step forward and settle for something that you wouldn’t normally settle for. Does it feel good to settle? Does it make you proud to say that you quit? When you look back on your previous role you begin to realize it wasn’t as bad as you made it out to be.

Think about how good you feel if had endured a hard battle. Think about how proud you would feel if you outlasted your boss, your client, or your role. Right when you are about to quit, realize that many times, that glory is one more step away. Just one step!

Ken Lubin
Managing Director
ZRG Partners, LLC
Americas I EMEA I Asia Pacific
C: 508-733-4789
klubin@zrgpartners.com
https://www.linkedin.com/in/klubin

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Simone Biles, the 27-year-old Team USA gymnast, has just added three more gold medals at the 2024 Paris Olympics to her collection, bringing her total to eleven Olympic medals and 30 World Championship medals. Hailed as one of the GOATs of the sport, Biles is not only the most decorated gymnast in U.S. history, but also worldwide.

Born in Columbus, Ohio, Biles was adopted along with her younger sister Adria by her grandparents and grew up in Texas. She had her first taste of gymnastics aged just six years old and competed for the first time in the American Classic in Houston in 2011, followed by her senior international debut at the American Cup in 2013, a FIG World Cup event. That same year, aged only 16, Biles was crowned as the all-around champion of the USA Gymnastics National Championships, marking the seventh time that an American woman had won the title and the first time for an African American woman.

To date, Biles has also been recognized with a host of titles including, but not limited to, Sportswoman of the Year by the Women's Sports Foundation's, Female Athlete of the Year by the Associated Press, Overseas Sports Personality of the Year by the BBC, Sportswoman of the Year by the Women's Sports Foundation and Best Female Athlete ESPY Award. At age 25, she was honored with the Presidential Medal of Freedom, making her the youngest person ever to receive the award.

Biles’ first Olympic event was the 2016 Summer Games in Rio de Janeiro, where she won four gold medals and one bronze. At the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, which were delayed to 2021 due to the Covid-pandemic, she added to her accomplishments with a silver medal in the team event and a bronze in the balance beam. However, Biles had to withdraw from the competition that year due to experiencing a phenomenon known as the “twisties”, a mental block where gymnasts become disoriented mid-air, which can prove extremely dangerous. Prioritizing her mental health, she decided to take two years off from competitions.

Share of U.S.Workers Earning Less than $17 Hour
Low-Wage Workers % of Workforce by State

Today, 30.6 million Americans, representing 21% of the workforce, earn under $17 an hour.

For the past 15 years, the federal minimum wage has remained unchanged, with its real value now at its lowest point in 67 years. While the pandemic fueled wage gains for low-paid workers due to tight labor markets and state-level minimum wage increases, this comes after decades of stagnant wage growth.

The above graphic shows the share of low-wage workers by state, based on data from the Economic Policy Institute.

Which States Have the Most Low-Wage Workers?

Below, we rank states by the share of workers earning under $17 an hour.

The $17 threshold was chosen because of the Raise the Wage Act of 2023, a bill that’s been proposed that would gradually increase the federal hourly minimum wage to $17 by 2028.

https://www.visualcapitalist.com/the-share-of-low-wage-workers-in-america/

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Watch at Home
by Fernando Croce, Leasing News Movie Reviewer

With the closing ceremony for the 2024 Olympics just around the corner, keep that athletic momentum going with our list of movies that, ranging from absorbing drama to fascinating documentary to crowd-pleasing comedy, reach for cinematic gold.

Downhill Racer (1969): Robert Redford gives one of his most underrated performances in this absorbing sports drama that marked the debut of director Michael Ritchie (“The Bad News Bears”). Redford stars as David Chappellet, a young American skier going for Olympic gold on the icy slopes of Switzerland. Though undeniably skilled, Chappellet displays a ruthlessly ambitious, arrogant attitude that puts him at odds with other members of the U.S. team, including coach Eugene Claire (Gene Hackman). His narcissistic approach results in a rivalry with the team’s top racer, Johnny Creech (Jim McMullan), a rivalry that turns dangerous as they head for the final competition with a German skier. Making use of alpine locations as reflective of the protagonist’s cold drive, the film takes a strikingly ambivalent look at the pursuit of glory.

Visions of Eight (1973): Though not as famous as Leni Riefenstahl’s majestic “Olympia,” thisunique documentary about the Munich Olympics (composed of short films from eight distinguished filmmakers) has its own fascination. Among the segmentsis Mai Zetterling’s “The Strongest,” which sees the weight-lifting team as a group of sinewy titans, and “Bonnie and Clyde” director Arthur Penn’s “The Highest,” which filters pole-vaulters through an abstract prism. Kon Ichikawa’s “The Fastest” analyzes the 100-meter dash, Milos Forman injects some whimsy into “The Decathlon,” while John Schlesinger’s “The Longest” acknowledges the terrorist attack that shook the events. In sharp contrast to the athletes’ victories, Claude Lelouch’s “The Losers” considers the weight of defeat. Splintering the games into shards of personal expression, the film is an imaginative collage.

Chariots of Fire (1981): Winner of1981’s Best Picture Oscar, thisportrait of the contrasts between two British runners in the 1924 Olympics remains one of the mostcritically acclaimed filmsabout the subtleties of sportsmanship. On one side is Eric Liddell (Ian Richardson), a young missionary from Scotland who sees sprinting as a divine call. On the other is Harold Abrahams (Ben Cross), whose place on the racing strip embodies a challenge to the anti-Semitic bias of the Cambridge elite. Their first encounter strikes an antagonistic note, but, as the two men head over to Paris to take part in the Summer Games, they slowly develop a bond that transcends their backgrounds. Featuring a lovely performance by Ian Holm as a salty trainer, this remains a classy, stirring telling of a true story.

Cool Runnings (1993): One of the most unlikely teams in Olympics history is the subject of this crowd-pleasing, family-friendly comedy. The real-life story kicks off when a minor accident disqualifies Derice Bannock (Leon), a Jamaican runner who instead sets his hopes on representing the country on the first Olympic bobslead team. Putting together a ramshackle but enthusiastic team that includes Sanka (Doug E. Doug), Junior (Rawle D. Lewis) and Yul (Malik Yoba), Derice hires down-on-his-luck trainer Irving Blitzer (John Candy) to help shape them up. Though they're at first not taken seriously as tropical athletes aspiring to a sport best played in below-zero temperatures, they're soon on their way to Calgary, Canada, for the Winter Games. Striking the right balance between inspiration and laughs, thisis a lively ode to underdogs.

Foxcatcher (2014): The dark side of the competitive impulse the Olympics are built on is the topic of this meticulously crafted account of the Schultz-Du Pont scandal, from acclaimed director Bennett Miller (“Capote,” “Moneyball”). Taking place in the 1980s, the film focuses on the relationship between troubled, gold medal-winning wrestler Mark Schultz (Channing Tatum) and his new sponsor, reclusive millionaire John du Pont (Steve Carrell). Obsessed with restoring Olympic glory to the country, du Pont takes the younger man and his brother David (Mark Ruffalo) under his wing, with tragedy just beyond the horizon. Anchored by atrio of strikingperformances and building from its low-key tone to a devastating conclusion, Bennett’sfilm is a riveting drama that often plays like a rebuke to the feel-good clichés of most sports movies.

Fernando Croce is a nationally recognized film reviewer and has been contributing to Leasing News since 2008. His reviews appear each Friday.

News Briefs

S&P 500 Jumps 2.3%
    in Best Day Since 2022
https://www.wsj.com/finance/stocks/global-stocks-markets-dow-news-08-08-2024-555ce05b?st=hxcmqby5e4b3lsh&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

$1.45B federal loan helps power up new-age
    solar plant north of Atlanta
https://www.ajc.com/news/business/georgias-first-of-its-kind-solar-plant-getting-145b-federal-loan/B3JMNF6RIJF4BHYPLLBGWCA3RE/

Boston Hotel Workers Vote to Strike
4,500 Hotel workers at 36 Hotels
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/08/08/business/boston-union-hotel-workers-strike-vote/

‘Where is the accountability?’: Chaos at the Cannabis  
   Control Commission leaves $7 billion pot industry in the lurch
https://www.bostonglobe.com/2024/08/07/business/cannabis-commission-massachusetts-regulations

‘Cruisezilla’ passenger ships have doubled in
size since 2000, environmental group warns
https://www.cnn.com/2024/08/08/travel/how-cruise-ships-have-doubled-since-2000/index.html

McDonald’s introduces new meal deal with
nostalgic, collectible cups
https://nypost.com/2024/08/08/business/mcdonalds-introduces-new-meal-deal-with-nostalgic-collectible-cups/

Goldman Sachs Is Giving Select Clients Access to One of Its Hottest Businesses
    Asset-backed loans is part of bank’s plan to roughly double its private-credit assets
https://www.wsj.com/finance/banking/goldman-sachs-is-giving-select-clients-access-to-one-of-its-hottest-businesses-43af191c?st=id06d52p4nkholp&reflink=desktopwebshare_permalink

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Chesswood "Unable to meet its
    Filing Deadline of August 14, 2024”
https://ca.finance.yahoo.com/news/chesswood-provides-filing-financial-statements-213000108.html

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Sports Briefs---

Paris Olympics: Stephen Curry leads Team USA out
 of 17-point hole to beat Serbia, reach gold medal game
https://www.yahoo.com/sports/live/paris-olympics-stephen-curry-leads-team-usa-out-of-17-point-hole-to-beat-serbia-reach-gold-medal-game-180032496.html

Lyles competed in the Olympic 200 with COVID
and finished 3rd. What we know about his illness
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/sports/?ref=menu

49ers add another wide receiver amid Brandon Aiyuk’s
holdout, Ricky Pearsall’s injury
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/sports/49ers-wide-receiver-chosen-anderson/

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California News Briefs---

July was California’s hottest month ever,
as climate warms to dangerous new extremes
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2024-08-08/record-heat-in-july

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Gimme that Wine

 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJnQoi8DSE8

My ideal itinerary for one of Wine Country’s
     cutest downtowns
https://www.sfchronicle.com/food/wine/article/healdsburg-downtown-tasting-rooms-19607257.php

Get a taste of the future
   at this Napa winery
https://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/lifestyle/ai-wine-industry-napa-valley/

North Coast Harvest Begins in Uncertain Market,
but expect high quality vintage
 https://www.winebusiness.com/news/article/290981

Chandon Announces Start to Napa's 2024
Sparkling Wine Harvest
https://www.winebusiness.com/news/article/290946

A Historical Moment for the Texas Wine Industry:
Sagmor Vineyard receives Historical Designation

https://www.winebusiness.com/news/article/290953