Historical exchange rates for most currencies can be found at the websites www.oanda.com and www.xe.com. Track your currency against the dollar. Which currency would have given you the best exchange rate five years ago? Which currency provides the best exchange rate today? How has the exchange rate changed over the course of five years?
> In 2006, Nintendo broke new ground in the video industry with the introduction of the Wii. Sony recently unveiled a virtual reality version of the PS4. If you were a member of the Microsoft marketing and R&D (research and development) team, what advice w
> How has Starbucks adapted to Chinese culture?
> What are the roles of supply and demand in this scenario?
> What would you do if you were actually faced with this situation?
> What are the underlying ethical issues?
> What is a sole proprietorship? What are the key advantages and disadvantages?
> What is a niche market, and why is it attractive to small businesses?
> What is the most significant reason for the large numbers of small business start-ups and successes?
> Identify six areas where small businesses are a significant presence in most economies.
> What threats might derail Netflix’s success? What steps might the firm take today to thwart those threats?
> Netflix is a corporation. Why do you think the firm uses this form of ownership?
> What are some of the primary reasons Netflix has been successful?
> What motivates companies like Starbucks to expand into international markets with little perceived interest for their product?
> As an independent advisor, what would you recommend that the four original designers do?
> What are the implications of adding three more people to the cooperative?
> What benefits are there to the four original designers of joining together as a cooperative?
> Many new businesses need external funding to make a successful launch. Some may have access to the necessary funds through partners, families, loans or other forms of finance; others look to venture capital companies. What do you think these venture capi
> Interview the owner/manager of a sole proprietorship or a general partnership. What characteristics of that business form led the owner to choose it? Does he or she ever contemplate changing the form of the business?
> Why would a business choose to introduce an employee stock ownership plan? What are the advantages to a business of such a decision?
> Would you prefer to buy an existing business or start from scratch? Why?
> What is the relative significance of the four major reasons why businesses fail?
> How does today’s view of the entrepreneur differ from the accepted view of yesterday’s entrepreneur?
> Insider trading is widespread and a global issue, yet few countries have the same definition and rules about taking advantage of non-public information in order to profit on the sale or purchase of stocks. Fines and penalties are inconsistent, and it is
> How might U.S. businesses best prepare themselves for a possible elimination of the embargo?
> Suppose that you are a business owner and you are seeking funds for expansion. From what sources could you gain the capital you need, and what are some of the characteristics of these sources? Are you limited by your form of doing business, and if so, ho
> Suppose that you are a business owner and you need new equipment and immediate funds to meet short-term operating expenses. From what sources could you gain the capital you need, and what are some of the characteristics of these sources? Are you limited
> A business has 200,000 shares trading at $88.00 each. It wants the share price to rise closer to $20 per share. Why would the company want to bring down the price of their shares? What are the implications for existing investors?
> If a lender is given an unsecured loan, what do they lack, and why is this risky to the lender?
> Which three values do you need to know in order to calculate the total return on an investment?
> What is an angel investor? Why would a company value their involvement in the business?
> Using the data provided from the web source in the previous step, is Gogo a small- or large-cap stock? How would this affect the risk associated with this investment?
> Use a Web source, such as Yahoo! Finance or www.nasdaq.com to obtain the current price of Gogo stock. What has happened to the price of the stock over the last six months? What about the last two years?
> What role did underwriters, such as Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and UBS, play in the IPO?
> Why would Gogo sell stock rather than taking on additional debt financing? Do you think that this was a good decision?
> How have changes in the structure of the global economy affected the U.S. embargo, which has been in effect for around 50 years? More specifically, how can U.S. companies deal with changing environmental challenges—economic, political and legal, and cult
> Given the risk, what would motivate an investor to purchase stock in Gogo?
> What are the three most common objectives of opening a mutual fund account? Why are they so popular and flexible?
> If an investor had bought stock during the IPO, what would that investment be worth today?
> Would you consider investing in Fogo de Chão? Why, or why not?
> What are the benefits of an IPO as a source of financing? What other options did the company have?
> After the sale of Fogo de Chão to Thomas H. Lee Partners, the board and management team decided to issue an IPO of common stock. What were the goals of the IPO?
> After the Coser brothers acquired the Ongaratto brothers’ shares of the company, they brought in GP Investments, a Brazilian venture capital firm. What are the advantages and disadvantages of using venture capital to build a business venture?
> When the Coser and Ongaratto brothers started Fogo de Chão, what were their primary sources of financing?
> What action should the board take?
> What are the main ethics issues in this situation?
> How has opening Cuba to international travel affected the travel industry in the United States and other countries? What are the potential benefits of virtually open travel to Cuba to Cuban citizens as well as the Cuban government?
> How would possession of the draft copies of the press releases be of value to the traders?
> There have been a number of high profile cases in recent years concerning insider trading. Use an online search to find a case involving insider trading. What is insider trading? Who was accused of insider trading and what was their relationship to the c
> Explain the difference between book value and market value.
> Start with a $2,500 deposit and assume a reserve requirement of 8 percent. Trace the amount of money created by the banking system after five lending cycles.
> Customers who deposit their money in online-only checking and savings accounts can often get higher interest rates than at brick-and-mortar banks. Why do you think that online banks can offer these rates? What might be some drawbacks to online-only banki
> Should commercial banks be regulated, or should market forces be allowed to determine the kinds of loans and the interest rates for loans and savings deposits? Why?
> As a consumer, when would you favor a strong dollar? What about a weak dollar? Would you consider these factors differently as an employee or employer?
> What are smart cards, and what are their features?
> Explain the role of commercial banks. Which type of customer is offered the prime rate by them,
> What would you do?
> Consider Japan’s trading status as the fourth-largest source of U.S. imports, and the fourth-largest market for U.S. goods exports. Would you expect that status to change soon relative to other U.S. trading partners such as Canada, China, Germany, and ot
> How will Japan’s new monetary policies have an impact on the U.S. economy? Identify and discuss the ways those policies will be felt in the United States.
> Consider the ways that Japan’s economy would likely be affected by having a strong yen versus a weak yen. Compare and discuss the positive implications and the negative implications for both a strong and a weak yen.
> The Bank of Japan pumped lots of money into the Japanese economy using tactics similar to the Federal Reserve Bank in the United States. When the Fed wishes to put money into the economy, what tools do they use?
> What is deflation? How would increasing the money supply in Japan result in an end to deflation?
> Which measure of money contains its most liquid form?
> If banks are required to keep larger cushions of cash on hand (increased reserve requirements) rather than loaning out that money (as proposed in the Basel III Requirements), in what ways will the U.S. economy be affected?
> Why do economically stressed countries with massive debt have difficulty borrowing outside money needed for economic recovery? Explain.
> In 2017, the U.S. government was $20 trillion in debt. Should the government print money to pay off the debt? What effect would such a strategy have on consumers and business?
> The Fed is supposedly non-political body. Do you agree with this observation? Do you think it should be, or shouldn’t be? Why?
> What do you think managers of most parent companies would do in the situation described?
> Describe the differences between fiscal policy and monetary policy. What effects do you think each have on the day-to-day operations of a business? Should a business owner be concerned with these kinds of macro-economic issues? If so, why?
> As an officer for this bank, how would you handle this situation?
> Based on the scenario described for our bank, do you find any ethical issues in this situation? Or do you find the main issues legal and economic rather than ethical?
> From the standpoint of a commercial bank, can you find any economic justification for ATM access fees?
> What new services might Key Savings and Loan be able to offer if they go virtual?
> Transactions through digital technologies rose by 6.05 percent to INR1.06 billion in December 2017, according to the Reserve Bank of India. This marked the first time that digital transactions passed the INR1 billion per month mark in India. Research the
> Explain the three functions of money. Why do we need money, and what are the characteristics of money?
> Interview an accountant at a local business, nonprofit organization, or government entity. How does the firm use budgets? How does budgeting help managers plan business activities? How does budgeting help them control activities? Give examples.
> Modern economies routinely engage in cross-border transactions and require the free flow of capital. It is estimated that over 30 per cent of all financial transactions are cross-border. In this case, why it is vital that all countries adopt the same sta
> Use the accounting equation to determine the net worth of a company with assets of $36.6 million and liabilities of $28.2 million. What does the net worth suggest to potential investors?
> What are the key ethical issues in this situation?
> How can a company compete on a non-price basis and still retain or grow market share?
> If you were assessing the value of a business which two factors would you take into account and in which financial statement would you find them?
> How would you calculate the value of owner’s equity?
> What is the purpose of auditing and why it necessary?
> Which type of accountant could be involved in litigation support and what does it mean?
> If a firm prepares one set of financial statements using U.S. GAAP and another using IFRS, will the financial ratios based on the U.S. GAAP financials differ from those based on the IFRS financials? Explain.
> How should the FASB and IASB converge or harmonize their accounting practices?
> Would there be costs involved for a firm to change its financial reporting from U.S. GAAP to IFRS? If so, explain what these costs might be, and if not, explain why.
> Why do organizations need both financial and management accountants?
> What are the benefits that can be obtained if all countries in the world used one set of accounting practices?
> What ethical issues, if any, are involved in the decision to investigate a suspected case of fraud in a business’s accounting activities?
> China is one of the fastest-growing markets in the world. Use Web or database research to uncover how to best describe China according to the five cultural dimensions. Cite the sources for your information.
> Consider the antifraud training for a company’s employees. Which topics should be included in that training?
> An external auditor may suspect some irregularities in a client firm’s accounting practices. In what ways might a forensic accountant be of assistance?
> Suppose you are hoping for a career as a forensic accountant. How do recent trends in fraud provide new opportunities for such a career?
> What factors do you think are most important in protecting your business against fraud?
> What do you think that you should do in this situation?
> What are the basic arguments for and against your business partner’s suggestions as to how to handle the situation?
> What are the ethical issues in this situation?
> Interview the manager of a local retailer, wholesale business, or manufacturing firm about the role of ethics in that company’s accounting practices. Is ethics in accounting an important issue to the manager? If the firm has its own private accountants,
> What is the function of a comprehensive accounting information system (AIS)?
> Consider your daily activities—as a consumer, student, parent, friend, homeowner or renter, car driver, employee, and so forth—and think about the ways that you are involved with IT systems. Make a list of your recent IT encounters and then recall instan
