' Hey, Linas here! Welcome to another special issue of my daily newsletter. Each day I focus on 3 stories that are making a difference in the financial technology space. Coupled with things worth watching & most important money movements, it's the only newsletter you need for all things when Finance meets Tech. If you're reading this for the first time, it's a brilliant opportunity to join a community of 310k+ FinTech leaders: 2024 has been a remarkable year for many financial technology stocks, driven by a combination of factors including increased consumer adoption, innovative product offerings, and favorable market conditions. Sezzle SEZL 0.00%' : Sezzle's stock surged 1,146% in 2024, fueled by strong financial performance and increasing adoption of its Buy Now, Pay Later (BNPL) services. The company's robust business model and ability to capitalize on the growing BNPL market have contributed to its impressive growth. ICYMI: Sezzle's masterclass on how to make BNPL profitable ' [old but still accurate strategy worth stealing]...

Leading teams in a hybrid work environment is still a relatively new science ' and presents many types of challenges. Hybrid team leaders need to identify the best team norms around communication, refine the workplace culture to foster collaboration and community, decide on smart ways to manage accountability, and more. However, hybrid work also presents valuable opportunities for leaders trying to deliver on ambitious business goals. Hybrid work teams enjoy more flexibility and work-life balance, experience increased productivity and focus, and ultimately realize improved employee satisfaction and retention, compared with fully onsite workers. These benefits are tangible and wide-reaching, according to Jordan Birnbaum, an industrial and organizational psychologist and behavioral economist. 'When employees are engaged, they try harder, and it shows up everywhere that matters: profitability, productivity, innovation, customer satisfaction, safety, and retention,' he asserted in a recent MIT SMR article....

Looking ahead to 2025, the potential for increased tariffs is top of mind for many executives. But despite widespread concerns, few leaders have developed robust plans to understand the second- and third-order effects and to steer their businesses through potential scenarios. Those who understand tariffs'and their likely impacts'will be better positioned to navigate the ambiguities of 2025 and beyond. In this article, we look at a brief history of tariffs, some recent examples, reasons why governments impose tariffs, and a range of responses that businesses can take to seize potential opportunities. Tariffs are nothing new, of course. At certain points in its history, the Roman Empire taxed imports of foreign goods at a rate 25 times higher than domestic trade. The current status quo of global trade has its roots in the 20th century. After the US stock market crash of 1929, Congress increased almost 900 tariffs, sparking tit-for-tat retaliation from other countries in the form of more tariffs. As a result, global trade contracted by two-thirds within five years. In 1947, to improve economic prospects in the wake of World War II, 23 countries signed the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade, or GATT, which would be a precursor to the World Trade Organization (WTO). In the 21st century, the global consensus for expanding free trade began to ebb when, in 2001, China joined the WTO. This trend culminated in 2011 with the WTO's Doha Round, during which countries failed to agree on lower agricultural and textile subsidies after years of negotiations....

Every year, ahead of Davos, McKinsey Global Publishing's Raju Narisetti, an alumnus of the World Economic Forum's Young Global Leaders (YGLs)'a group that includes professionals in business, media, nongovernmental organizations, and not-for-profit organizations from around the world'has asked a wide range of YGLs about the one topic they think deserves more attention in Davos than it will likely receive. This year, 22 YGLs highlighted topics from the gender gap and women's health to the importance of humanitarian law, the value of science and medicine, and autonomous warfare, as worth more of our attention....