Bieber's latest gig: prepaid card promoter

Teen singer Justin Bieber will use his star power to promote a new prepaid debit card.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Eighteen-year-old pop sensation, Justin Bieber, will promote a new prepaid debit card to his more than 30 million Twitter followers and 50 million Facebook fans, according to BillMyParents, the teen-focused financial company that's launching the card.

He's one of many celebrities to make a foray into the multi-billion dollar prepaid card market, following in the footsteps of Suze Orman, Russell Simmons, Magic Johnson and the Kardashians.

Prepaid cards are reloadable and provide an alternative to traditional bank accounts. BillMyParents CEO Mike McCoy said in a press release that Bieber's star power will help the company "empower countless families with teens to think about responsible spending in a new and better way." Bieber will also be producing videos about financial literacy for the company.

Related: Don't be misled by prepaid cards

But before falling head over heels for the new card, make sure to read the fine print. Prepaid cards are often loaded with fees that can really add up, and this card is no exception.

The Bieber-endorsed card isn't available yet, but it will carry the same fees as the SpendSmart prepaid card currently being offered on the BillMyParents' website, according to McCoy. The monthly fee on that card is $3.95, and withdrawing money from an ATM is $1.50 a pop (and checking your balance at an ATM is another 50 cents). If you don't use the card for 90 days, you're charged $3, and replacing a lost card costs $7.95.

These fees are high compared to those charged by many other prepaid cards on the market, credit card comparison site CardHub.com found. The Kaiku Visa Prepaid Card, for example, comes with a monthly fee of $1.95 and doesn't charge for ATM withdrawals, as long as they are made within the Allpoint network of 50,000 ATMs.

Related: 5 things to know about prepaid cards

John Ulzheimer, CEO of SmartCredit.com, said the fees on the SpendSmart card aren't the worst out there, but he recommends staying away from prepaid cards altogether and going with a conventional debit card from a bank that doesn't charge monthly fees or even a gift card instead.

"If you want to teach teens responsible spending then there are better, less expensive ways of doing so," said Ulzheimer. "Teaching teens that it's okay to pay a fee to use your own money is the exact opposite of what you should be teaching them."

More details about the card and launch date will be released later this month, when Bieber's campaign will also begin.

First Published: January 4, 2013: 5:30 PM ET

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Fed hawks hint at early end to bond buying

St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard thinks bond buying could come to an early end if the economy continues to improve.

SAN DIEGO (CNNMoney)

A day earlier, minutes from the Fed's December meeting hinted that some Fed members believe the central bank should halt its asset purchases as early as this year. Several of those members revealed themselves and clarified their opinions on Friday.

"If the economy performs well in 2013, the Committee will be in a position to think about going on pause," James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve told CNBC. "If it doesn't do very well then the balance sheet policy will probably continue into 2014."

The Fed has kept interest rates near zero for four years in an effort to stimulate the economy. After its December meeting, it announced it plans to keep them at those lows until the unemployment rate falls to 6.5% or inflation exceeds 2.5% a year.

It was the first time the Fed had issued such explicit goalposts for future policy.

Also at that meeting, the Fed expanded its stimulus program known as quantitative easing, which entails buying Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities. Unlike prior rounds of similar stimulus, that program was left open-ended, with the Fed saying only that it would continue the purchases until the job market improves "substantially."

Related: How to get to 6.5% unemployment

Stocks sunk shortly after the minutes were released Thursday, but then rallied Friday as investors turned their attention to the latest jobs report. That report showed the unemployment rate was 7.8% in December, unchanged from a month earlier.

Bullard said he believes the Fed could pull back on asset purchases this year if the unemployment rate falls to 7.1%.

Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser is even more optimistic. Speaking at the American Economic Association's annual meeting in San Diego, Plosser said he expects the unemployment rate to fall to between 6.8% and 7% by the end of the year.

If his forecast rings true, he said the central bank will have to stop asset purchases this year.

Separately at an event in Baltimore, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker reiterated his opposition to the Fed's asset purchases, noting he doesn't believe they will have a material impact on the economy. He said he expects the U.S. economy to grow moderately in 2013.

Lacker was a voting member on the Fed's policymaking committee in 2012, and the only one to formally dissent to the action the Fed took at the December meeting. But Lacker will no longer have a vote as the central bank rotates its voting roles among its regional presidents at the start of each year.

Bullard will rotate into a voting role at the next meeting, and Plosser remains a non-voting member until 2014.

First Published: January 4, 2013: 6:21 PM ET

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Toyota to reveal self-driving car research at CES

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The Japanese automaker recently revealed a five-second video of a Lexus-based research vehicle carrying a device similar to that used on Google's so-called self-driving car. Unlike Google's car, however, Toyota's research also involves vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, the automaker said in an announcement.

Those technologies allow cars to wirelessly communicate with one another and with things like traffic lights and stop signs. For example, a car could signal vehicles around it when it stops or turns or when it encounters a slippery road surface. Similarly, a traffic light could wirelessly signal that it is turning red so approaching cars can automatically apply their brakes.

Google's (GOOG, Fortune 500) research car was based on a Toyota Prius, but Google and Toyota have not been involved in each other's research projects, according to a source at Toyota.

The automaker will also exhibit a Lexus car with advanced pre-crash safety systems. A number of automakers, including Lexus, already offer systems that can signal drivers, apply brakes and even close windows when sensors detect that a collision is imminent.

Related: Cars of the future: Tiny and weird

Among the features of autonomously driven cars available in automobiles today, especially high-end luxury cars, is "active cruise control," which can automatically maintain a safe following distance behind cars. Some of these systems can even work in stop-and-go traffic, automatically applying the brakes and accelerator as needed.

German automaker Audi, part of the Volkswagen Group, is also expected to make its own announcement regarding autonomously driven cars at the show.

By eliminating human error, which causes the vast majority of car crashes, autonomous driving technology is seen as having the potential to greatly reduce traffic deaths on America's roadways.

Automakers generally prefer to use the term "autonomous driving" rather "self-driving" for these technologies because, even in the future, a human driver should remain at the controls of a vehicle, ready to take over as needed.

First Published: January 4, 2013: 5:43 PM ET

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Bieber's latest gig: prepaid card promoter

Teen singer Justin Bieber will use his star power to promote a new prepaid debit card.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Eighteen-year-old pop sensation, Justin Bieber, will promote a new prepaid debit card to his more than 30 million Twitter followers and 50 million Facebook fans, according to BillMyParents, the teen-focused financial company that's launching the card.

He's one of many celebrities to make a foray into the multi-billion dollar prepaid card market, following in the footsteps of Suze Orman, Russell Simmons, Magic Johnson and the Kardashians.

Prepaid cards are reloadable and provide an alternative to traditional bank accounts. BillMyParents CEO Mike McCoy said in a press release that Bieber's star power will help the company "empower countless families with teens to think about responsible spending in a new and better way." Bieber will also be producing videos about financial literacy for the company.

Related: Don't be misled by prepaid cards

But before falling head over heels for the new card, make sure to read the fine print. Prepaid cards are often loaded with fees that can really add up, and this card is no exception.

The Bieber-endorsed card isn't available yet, but it will carry the same fees as the SpendSmart prepaid card currently being offered on the BillMyParents' website, according to McCoy. The monthly fee on that card is $3.95, and withdrawing money from an ATM is $1.50 a pop (and checking your balance at an ATM is another 50 cents). If you don't use the card for 90 days, you're charged $3, and replacing a lost card costs $7.95.

These fees are high compared to those charged by many other prepaid cards on the market, credit card comparison site CardHub.com found. The Kaiku Visa Prepaid Card, for example, comes with a monthly fee of $1.95 and doesn't charge for ATM withdrawals, as long as they are made within the Allpoint network of 50,000 ATMs.

Related: 5 things to know about prepaid cards

John Ulzheimer, CEO of SmartCredit.com, said the fees on the SpendSmart card aren't the worst out there, but he recommends staying away from prepaid cards altogether and going with a conventional debit card from a bank that doesn't charge monthly fees or even a gift card instead.

"If you want to teach teens responsible spending then there are better, less expensive ways of doing so," said Ulzheimer. "Teaching teens that it's okay to pay a fee to use your own money is the exact opposite of what you should be teaching them."

More details about the card and launch date will be released later this month, when Bieber's campaign will also begin.

First Published: January 4, 2013: 5:30 PM ET

10.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Fed hawks hint at early end to bond buying

St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard thinks bond buying could come to an early end if the economy continues to improve.

SAN DIEGO (CNNMoney)

A day earlier, minutes from the Fed's December meeting hinted that some Fed members believe the central bank should halt its asset purchases as early as this year. Several of those members revealed themselves and clarified their opinions on Friday.

"If the economy performs well in 2013, the Committee will be in a position to think about going on pause," James Bullard, president of the St. Louis Federal Reserve told CNBC. "If it doesn't do very well then the balance sheet policy will probably continue into 2014."

The Fed has kept interest rates near zero for four years in an effort to stimulate the economy. After its December meeting, it announced it plans to keep them at those lows until the unemployment rate falls to 6.5% or inflation exceeds 2.5% a year.

It was the first time the Fed had issued such explicit goalposts for future policy.

Also at that meeting, the Fed expanded its stimulus program known as quantitative easing, which entails buying Treasury bonds and mortgage-backed securities. Unlike prior rounds of similar stimulus, that program was left open-ended, with the Fed saying only that it would continue the purchases until the job market improves "substantially."

Related: How to get to 6.5% unemployment

Stocks sunk shortly after the minutes were released Thursday, but then rallied Friday as investors turned their attention to the latest jobs report. That report showed the unemployment rate was 7.8% in December, unchanged from a month earlier.

Bullard said he believes the Fed could pull back on asset purchases this year if the unemployment rate falls to 7.1%.

Philadelphia Fed President Charles Plosser is even more optimistic. Speaking at the American Economic Association's annual meeting in San Diego, Plosser said he expects the unemployment rate to fall to between 6.8% and 7% by the end of the year.

If his forecast rings true, he said the central bank will have to stop asset purchases this year.

Separately at an event in Baltimore, Richmond Fed President Jeffrey Lacker reiterated his opposition to the Fed's asset purchases, noting he doesn't believe they will have a material impact on the economy. He said he expects the U.S. economy to grow moderately in 2013.

Lacker was a voting member on the Fed's policymaking committee in 2012, and the only one to formally dissent to the action the Fed took at the December meeting. But Lacker will no longer have a vote as the central bank rotates its voting roles among its regional presidents at the start of each year.

Bullard will rotate into a voting role at the next meeting, and Plosser remains a non-voting member until 2014.

First Published: January 4, 2013: 6:21 PM ET

10.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Toyota to reveal self-driving car research at CES

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The Japanese automaker recently revealed a five-second video of a Lexus-based research vehicle carrying a device similar to that used on Google's so-called self-driving car. Unlike Google's car, however, Toyota's research also involves vehicle-to-vehicle and vehicle-to-infrastructure communication, the automaker said in an announcement.

Those technologies allow cars to wirelessly communicate with one another and with things like traffic lights and stop signs. For example, a car could signal vehicles around it when it stops or turns or when it encounters a slippery road surface. Similarly, a traffic light could wirelessly signal that it is turning red so approaching cars can automatically apply their brakes.

Google's (GOOG, Fortune 500) research car was based on a Toyota Prius, but Google and Toyota have not been involved in each other's research projects, according to a source at Toyota.

The automaker will also exhibit a Lexus car with advanced pre-crash safety systems. A number of automakers, including Lexus, already offer systems that can signal drivers, apply brakes and even close windows when sensors detect that a collision is imminent.

Related: Cars of the future: Tiny and weird

Among the features of autonomously driven cars available in automobiles today, especially high-end luxury cars, is "active cruise control," which can automatically maintain a safe following distance behind cars. Some of these systems can even work in stop-and-go traffic, automatically applying the brakes and accelerator as needed.

German automaker Audi, part of the Volkswagen Group, is also expected to make its own announcement regarding autonomously driven cars at the show.

By eliminating human error, which causes the vast majority of car crashes, autonomous driving technology is seen as having the potential to greatly reduce traffic deaths on America's roadways.

Automakers generally prefer to use the term "autonomous driving" rather "self-driving" for these technologies because, even in the future, a human driver should remain at the controls of a vehicle, ready to take over as needed.

First Published: January 4, 2013: 5:43 PM ET

10.20 | 0 komentar | Read More

Switzerland's oldest bank pleads guilty to aiding U.S. tax evasion

Three bankers from Wegelin's Zurich branch face charges in connection with the case.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

The case marks the first time a foreign bank has been charged for aiding U.S. tax evasion.

Switzerland's Wegelin & Co., founded in 1741, will pay $74 million after pleading guilty to conspiracy to evade taxes. The bank admitted to helping more than 100 U.S. taxpayers hide their assets between 2002 and 2011.

"There is no excuse for wealthy Americans flouting their responsibilities as citizens of this great country to pay their taxes, and there is no excuse for foreign financial institutions helping them to do so," Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara said in a statement.

Three Wegelin bankers have also been charged for their alleged roles in the scheme. The men reside in Switzerland and remain at large.

A spokeswoman for the U.S. attorney's office declined to comment on whether American authorities are seeking their extradition.

In 2009, the U.S. government settled a tax evasion case involving American customers with Swiss banking giant UBS (UBS) that proved diplomatically challenging due to Switzerland's strict bank secrecy laws. UBS ultimately paid $780 million in fines and restitution and agreed to hand over the identities of a number of its U.S. customers.

Related: UBS to pay $1.5 billion for Libor fraud

Bharara said that as UBS and other Swiss banks stopped handling undeclared U.S. accounts in 2008 and 2009 amid scrutiny from American authorities, Wegelin moved "willfully and aggressively" to scoop up their business.

Wegelin said Thursday that it will cease operations once the case is formally concluded. The majority of its clients and staff have been absorbed by Notenstein Private Bank, a subsidiary of Raiffeisen Switzerland.

"Since learning that it was under U.S. investigation, Wegelin cooperated with the investigation within the bounds allowed for by Swiss law," Wegelin said in a statement. A Wegelin spokeswoman declined to comment on the case of the three men facing charges.

First Published: January 3, 2013: 3:13 PM ET

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Chevy Volt sales triple in 2012

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

GM sold 23,461 Volts in 2012 compared with just 7,671 in 2011. While it's an impressive jump, the Volt is still one of Chevy's lowest-selling cars. However, the Volt greatly outdid the Corvette, for instance, of which only 14,000 were sold last year.

Its 2012 sales also put the Volt well ahead of its nearest competitor, the Nissan Leaf. Nissan sold about 9,800 Leafs in 2012, an increase of just 1.5% over 2011.

The single biggest factor driving the sales increase, according to both GM and industry analysts, was the Volt's increased popularity in car-clogged California. Sales there jumped thanks to a few engineering tweaks that made the Volt eligible for California's highly desirable carpool lane stickers for the first time.

"More than half of all Volt sales are in California," said Alec Guitierrez, an analyst with Kelley Blue Book. The car has also been catching on in other markets, however, including Michigan and in the Chicago area, according to GM.

Besides the carpool lane stickers, the Volt has also been helped by aggressive leasing incentives offered in 2012. Last year, GM was offering the car for $289 a month with a $2,800 down payment. That was far less than a car with the Volt's nearly $40,000 purchase price would ordinarily lease for, even factoring in a $7,500 plug-in car tax credit.

"The math on the Volt starts to make sense to the masses at those prices," said Jesse Toprak, an analyst with the auto pricing Web site Truecar.com.

Chevy Volt owners routinely report getting triple-digit gas mileage, according to the Web site Voltstats.net.

Related: Cheapest cars to fuel

While even those fuel savings might not make up the car's relatively high cost at full sticker price, the low lease rates made the Volt's price more comparable to ordinary fully-gasoline-powered cars.

Following a full charge, the Volt can drive about 38 miles on plug-in electric power, according to EPA estimates, before a gasoline engine switches on to generate power for further driving.

The Volt faced some serious sales challenges in 2012, pointed out Tom Libby, an auto sales analyst with Polk. At the beginning of the year, GM voluntarily recalled the cars to fix a battery packaging problem that could, in some unusual crash circumstances, lead to a fire risk. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration later closed its investigation finding that the Volt, even before the recall, had posed no greater fire risk than other cars. Even so, said Libby, news of the investigation and recall caused significant negative publicity for the car which seems to have now been overcome.

Regardless of the good news, Libby said, it still bears remembering that sales of the Volt, which is now the best-selling plug-in car in America, are still miniscule compared to most other cars. In 2012, Chevrolet dealers sold almost exactly 10 times as many of the Chevrolet Cruze, the gasoline powered car on which the Volt is based.

"They realize the need to do better," he said.

First Published: January 3, 2013: 8:02 PM ET

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Google chairman Eric Schmidt will visit North Korea

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Rumblings of the visit first surfaced Wednesday in an AP report but little was known about the intent of the trip. But sources who confirmed the details of the trip to CNN said it is a "private humanitarian visit" and it is not on behalf of the Obama administration.

The sources indicated that they believe Richardson's objective will be to try and negotiate the release of an American prisoner who was captured last month.

The visit comes at an interesting time for both countries: Not just because of North Korea's increased interest in technology, but also because the isolated communist country just completed another round of rocket testing. Some experts believe the rockets have the range to reach the U.S., but North Korea maintains they are only for peaceful space exploration.

Asked about the trip on Thursday, a representative of the U.S. State Department said the trip is ill-timed.

"Frankly we don't think the timing of this is particularly helpful, but they are private citizens and they are making their own decisions," State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters. "They are well aware of our views."

This isn't the first trip to North Korea for Richardson, who has visited the country numerous times since 1994. Former presidents Bill Clinton and Jimmy Carter have also traveled to Pyongyang in the past three years, successfully freeing American prisoners in both instances.

New North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has expressed a desire to increase the country's technological and industrial standing in the world. Google has been expanding its presence throughout Asia in recent years but it has run into problems in China due to censorship concerns. It is unclear if Schmidt will meet Kim during his visit.

-- CNN's Wolf Blitzer contributed to this report.

First Published: January 3, 2013: 3:44 PM ET

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The Ubuntu smartphone (which no one will use) is a glimpse of the future

Ubuntu's new mobile software will let users run their PC from their phone.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney)

Ubuntu developer Canonical unveiled a new interface on Monday reimagined for touch devices, with a design that borrows cues from Android and Windows 8. The hard sell here isn't simply that Ubuntu now works on mobile devices. Canonical hopes that future devices (read: arriving sometime in 2014) will not only run the new mobile OS, but will also boot the desktop variant of Ubuntu when docked to a keyboard, mouse and monitor.

That would let you literally use your phone to power your PC.

This concept isn't entirely new, as Canonical revealed similar plans last year to attach its desktop software to devices running Android. Before that, Motorola tried to turn Android phones into laptops with its Atrix line of phones and docks. And let's not forget the hybrid operating system experiment that is Windows 8.

But no one -- not even Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500) -- has attempted to serve up its own phone OS and desktop OS in a single package. Despite its desktop-like features, Android considers itself a phone and tablet system, while Microsoft still has Windows Phone 8 operating autonomously from the tablet and desktop-centric Windows 8.

Is Ubuntu's new creation good enough to make even the tiniest inroads against the likes of Android, Apple's iOS and Windows Phone?

Video footage previewing the new software shows off an attractive user interface and some clever ideas for navigation, but there's no indication that the wheel has been reinvented.

You'll be able to swipe from the edges of the phone to switch apps and access menus. You can log in to your favorite online services, and Ubuntu will assimilate that data into its own framework. In general, the emphasis seems to be on getting you the info you need in a quick and easy-to-digest way. From the looks of things, the desktop build will have its own interface tailored to mouse and keyboard, but Canonical envisions a single installer app having both desktop and mobile builds.

This would all be great if the only challenge for a mobile operating system was offering up a solid product. It's not. Carving out a niche in the seemingly unshakable mobile space -- ruled by the Android-and-Apple duopoly -- still requires a critical mass of users and a lively ecosystem of app developers.

Realistically speaking, the chances of this even upstaging Windows Phone or BlackBerry 10 are slim. At best, Ubuntu seems like a sandbox for the most enthusiastic early adopters and a cheap enterprise solution for companies on a tight budget.

Still, pushing aside the concerns about market viability, this could be a very real glimpse of how we compute in the future. The central brain for all our computing needs might eventually live in our smartphones, and we'd simply attach them to whatever form factor the situation calls for.

That differs from some current experiments, like Microsoft's vision for the Surface tablet: a single piece of hardware that can be used in multiple ways. It seems just as valid a solution, though, for the inevitable convergence of mobile and desktop computers.

First Published: January 2, 2013: 5:07 PM ET

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