Morning Download from Invincible Money 

Personal finance + economics + markets

5 minutes a day for better money decisions.

Good morning investors! 2 billionaires are pretty serious about a cage fight, while Janet Yellen said more bank mergers are likely. Big tech meets at the White House and how to invest in A.I.

📊 Economy 

Yellen says more bank mergers likely this year 

The U.S. Treasury Secretary, Janet Yellen, said she expects more bank mergers this year due to higher interest rates, which have resulted in deposits flowing out of banks and into money market funds.

• There have been 10 bank mergers so far in 2023 - This is up from 8 bank mergers in all of 2022.

• The trend is being driven by rising interest rates - Rising interest rates are making it more expensive for banks to borrow money, which is encouraging them to merge in order to achieve economies of scale.

• The mergers could lead to higher prices for consumers - Some experts worry that the mergers could lead to higher prices for consumers, as banks will have less competition. JP Morgan Chase seems to be gobbling up banks too.

📰 News

Zuck and Elon Billion dollar cage match?

UFC president Dana White said,

“This would be the biggest fight ever in the history of the world.”

• The fight was proposed by Musk in a tweet - Zuckerberg accepted the challenge, and the two billionaires have been sparring on Twitter ever since.

• The fight is expected to be a huge event - It is likely to draw a large audience, and it could generate up to $1 billion dollars for charity.

Update: Zuck tweeted to Elon: “send me location” and he responded with “Vegas Octagon.” No word yet on when it will happen.

Apple CEO Tim Cook and other tech executives met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi 

The CEOs from Apple, Alphabet, and Microsoft discussed ways to boost investment and innovation in India - They also discussed the potential for collaboration on areas such as artificial intelligence, cloud computing, and e-commerce. Modi also met with Elon Musk last week.

Modi said that India is open for business - He urged the executives to invest in India and help to create jobs. Tim Cook called India “a huge opportunity.”

The meeting was seen as a sign of India's growing importance as a tech hub - India is home to a large and growing pool of tech talent, and it is seen as a potential market for future growth for tech companies.

Qatari fund wants to buy stake in Wizards, Capitals and Mystics

Qatar Investment Authority (QIA) is in talks to buy a minority stake in Monumental Sports & Entertainment (MSE), which has a stake in those teams.

The deal would be worth around $500 million, giving QIA a 5% stake in MSE.

The deal would be a major coup for QIA, raising its profile on the world stage.

• Qatar has been investing in sports in recent years, including buying stakes in Paris Saint-Germain and Los Angeles FC.

• The proposed investment in MSE is a sign of Qatar's commitment to sports and its ambitions in the sports world.

📈 Stocks

S&P 500 4,348 (-0.77%)
DJIA 33,727.43 (-0.65%)
NASDAQ 13,492.52 (-1.01%)
VIX 13.44 (+4.11%)
* as of Friday close

Two crypto-related stocks had big days Friday after Bitcoin passed $30,000: Coinbase closed up 6.92% and Marathon Digital Holdings was up 7.44%.

CarMax, Inc [KMX +10.07%] had a good day after announcing better than expected earnings.

J.D. Power’s latest Initial Quality Study revealed car quality is getting worse with the number of problems per 100 vehicles increasing by 12 to 192. Last year it was up 18.

• 7 of the top 10 worst cars were EVs, with Tesla coming in 2nd to last.

• Likely due to most problems being driver-assistance and tech-related like wireless charing pads.

How to invest in A.I.

I did a livestream sharing some ideas on how to invest in A.I. on 3 different levels. Starting with Macro and going to Micro:

1. General index funds

2. A.I focused funds

3. A.I. focused companies

🔐 Crypto

Bitcoin $30,240.70 (-1.6%)
Ethereum $1,877.08 (-0.7%)
Total market cap $1.28 T (-1.0%)
* as of Sunday, Jun 25, 11pm EST

Tokenization could be a $5 trillion opportunity

Bernstein, a global investment research and analysis firm, estimates that the tokenization market could be worth $5 trillion by 2028 (or 2% of the global money supply).

Bernstein believes that stablecoins and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs) will be the two main drivers of the tokenization market.

They argue that tokenization could improve liquidity and accessibility for real-world assets, such as real estate and securities.

However, Bernstein warns that tokenization is still in its early stages and that there are a number of risks associated with the technology.

💵 Personal Finance

Real estate for retirement

I have a neighbor who bought 2 four-plexes as part of his retirement plan. In fact, that is his retirement plan. It’s going well for him, but he spends every Saturday taking care of the properties.

Could it be right for you?

Investing in multi-family real estate can be a great way to build wealth over time. Here are some of the benefits of investing in multi-family real estate:

• Passive income: Multi-family properties can generate a steady stream of income from rent payments. This can be a great way to generate passive income, which means you don't have to actively work to earn it.

• Capital appreciation: The value of multi-family properties can appreciate over time, which can provide you with additional profits when you sell the property.

• Tax benefits: There are a number of tax benefits available to real estate investors, including depreciation deductions and tax breaks for energy-efficient upgrades.

• Diversification: Investing in multi-family real estate can help to diversify your investment portfolio, which can reduce your overall risk.

• Economies of scale: When you own multiple units, you can benefit from economies of scale. This means that you can spread out the costs of things like property management, maintenance, and repairs over a larger number of units, which can save you money.

Of course, there are also some risks associated with investing in multi-family real estate, besides spending a lot of time and expenses on upkeep. These include:

• Tenant risk: If your tenants don't pay their rent, you may have difficulty collecting it. This can put a strain on your cash flow and make it difficult to make your mortgage payments.

• Property damage: Tenants may damage your property, which can be costly to repair.

• Market risk: The value of your property may decline if the market takes a downturn. This could make it difficult to sell the property or refinance your mortgage.

💰 Be a Better Investor

👩🏽‍⚖️ Legal Stuff
Nothing in this newsletter is financial advice. Always do your own research and think for yourself.