The financial news that actually matters
Hua Wang, a 48-year-old resident of Flushing, New York, pleaded guilty to running a $65 million fraud and money laundering operation that preyed on thousands of elderly victims across the United States. According to the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of California, Wang admitted responsibility for more than 2,000 cash packages mailed by…
Families sending a student to college this fall stand to cut their federal tax bill by as much as $2,500 per eligible student per year through the American Opportunity Tax Credit. The credit, established under 26 U.S. Code Section 25A, covers the first four years of postsecondary education and includes a refundable component that can…
A buyer scraping together a down payment in a housing market where median prices remain well above $400,000 can tap retirement savings for help, but the federal tax code caps that relief at just $10,000 per person. The penalty-free withdrawal for qualified first-time homebuyer distributions from an IRA has carried that same dollar limit since…
Texas residents lost more money to cryptocurrency kiosk scams in 2025 than victims in any other state, with 1,179 complaints totaling $56,802,197 in adjusted losses. Older adults bore a disproportionate share of those losses, often after receiving fake calls from scammers posing as government agents or tech-support workers. The scale of the problem has now…
Families who finalize an adoption can now claim a federal tax credit worth up to $17,280 for tax year 2025, and for the first time, a portion of that benefit is available even to households that owe little or no federal income tax. The change, which makes up to $5,000 per qualifying child refundable, stands…
People who booked travel through the Hopper app and were hit with unexpected charges now have a path to get money back. The company has agreed to pay $35 million to settle Federal Trade Commission allegations that it tacked on fees without user consent and misrepresented the costs and benefits of certain add-on products. The…
Hua Wang, the lead defendant in a multinational fraud and money laundering operation that caused $65 million in losses, pleaded guilty in federal court in San Diego. The scheme targeted elderly victims across multiple states through India-based call centers, crypto wallets, and fake identification documents. Ten co-defendants also entered guilty pleas, capping one of the…
Texans lost roughly $56 million through cryptocurrency kiosk scams in a single year, according to FBI complaint data, and the Texas Legislature has responded with a bill that would cap transactions at $3,000 per customer every 24 hours. S.B. 1705, filed during the 89th legislative session, targets a payment channel that state and federal officials…
Millions of sole proprietors, partners, and S corporation shareholders filing their 2025 tax returns can still claim a deduction worth up to 20 percent of their qualified business income. The provision, codified at Section 199A of the Internal Revenue Code, has not expired and remains on the books as of July 2026. But the income…
Thousands of importers who paid tariffs under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act are now watching $20.6 billion flow back to a narrow group of businesses that filed suit in federal trade court, while the vast majority who paid the same duties receive nothing. The U.S. Court of International Trade ordered the refunds on April…