More News from Nowhere is the title of a Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds song, I thought it apropos of this entry.

A few things caught my eye reading the papers this morning (can we still call them papers if I read them on-line?):

-          I think we should all take underwriting tips from these guys. As Slate calls him, America’s Smartest Banker. Amidst all the crises here is a bank right under Wall Street’s nose that had a default rate of below 0.5%. Hudson City Bancorp just focus on their business, taking deposits.  Issuing and holding on to its customers’ mortgages. This got me thinking we see many resellers that try and provide both merchant cash advances as well as credit card processing. Much like Hudson City, the ones we see as best in field focus on one or the other.

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-          I liken the housing crisis in the U.S to the reverse of a merchant cash advance. The housing crisis is due in part (but not totally) to changes in the fixed monthly payments of mortgage holders. When I explain merchant cash advances I often use the example of a business that needs to pay their rent, wouldn’t it be great if the mortgage payment in February was different than July? In effect this is what happened here; home owners had their payment switched on them. Merchant Cash Advances do not switch rates and they adjust to the seasonality of your business.

-          Don’t forget, it is not too late to apply for merchant funding to kick-start your business’ back –to-school seasons.  Merchant Funding can be used to purchase inventory, market or any other needs your business might have in building up towards the fall.