QE vs QT: How the Fed Balance Sheet Actually Works
A plain-English guide to how the Fed creates reserves to buy bonds (QE) and lets them mature to shrink the balance sheet (QT), with 2026 numbers.
Market Education
Learn how stocks, bonds and capital markets work. Explore plain-English explanations, worked examples and charts, then follow related coverage to connect market concepts with current events. Find your way around ECMSource.
Bond Duration & Convexity: Why Long Bonds Move Most
What is bond duration? A plain-English guide with the rule of thumb, the formula, and a worked example using current Treasury yields.
POET Plunges 22% on $400M Raise, Eclipsing Lumilens Deal
POET Technologies tumbled 22% on May 15, 2026 as a $400M dilutive raise overshadowed a fresh AI-optics supply pact worth up to $500M with Lumilens.
Options 101: Calls, Puts, Strike, and Expiry Explained
A plain-English guide to stock options: how calls, puts, strike, expiration, and premium work, with payoff charts and a worked example.
Stock Buybacks vs. Dividends: How Companies Pay You Back
Buybacks and dividends both return cash to shareholders, but they work very differently. Here’s the math, the tax rules, and when each one wins.
Abel’s First 13F: Berkshire Drops UNH, Buys Delta and Macy’s
Berkshire Hathaway’s Q1 2026 13F closed 16 positions including UnitedHealth, Amazon, Visa and Mastercard while adding a $2.65B Delta stake and tripling Alphabet.
CLOs Explained: How Collateralized Loan Obligations Work
What is a CLO? How collateralized loan obligations slice up leveraged corporate loans into rated tranches and where the AAAs actually stand.
IPO vs Direct Listing vs SPAC: How Companies Go Public
A side-by-side guide to the three paths to public markets — traditional IPO, direct listing, and SPAC merger — with real examples and trade-offs.
What Is the P/E Ratio — and When Does It Mislead?
P/E in plain English: the formula, a worked example, sector ranges from NYU’s Damodaran, and why the Shiller CAPE near 42 sits within a whisker of the 1999 peak.
Private Credit vs Bank Loans vs Syndicated Loans Explained
Private credit, bank loans, and syndicated loans all finance the same companies. Here is how each channel actually works, and where the money sits.