Apr 5, 2017

04/05/2017: Wall Street ethicists love to be bored

(BRYAN R. SMITH/AFP/Getty Images)

The New York Fed reports that total outstanding household debt in this country is juuuust about where it was in 2008. Remember 2008? We're thinking about debt a little differently now, though. Then, a conversation with a big bank ethicist, who tells us what he does and how he measures success. Plus, why Panera's worth $7.2 billion to the equity group JAB, and another dispatch from Erie, Pennsylvania.

Segments From this episode

Atlanta businesses are stuck while customers pass them by

by Marketplace Contributor

Apr 5, 2017

An interstate bridge closed by a fire may not be fixed until June.

Matt Kane, night manager at Fat Matt’s Rib Shack, says the restaurant has sold fewer ribs since the overpass collapse nearby.

Elly Yu

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Panera sold for $7.5 billion on success of mobile orders and healthy menus,

by Andy Uhler

Apr 5, 2017

In the most expensive U.S. restaurant deal in history, Panera, that spot that touts itself as a healthy fast-casual restaurant, has been acquired by private European investors JAB Holdings. The deal is reported to be worth $7.5 billion. Panera’s headquarters is in St. Louis, and the chain has about 2,000 locations in the U.S. It […]

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Why Amazon may eventually touch everything we do online

by Kai Ryssdal and Molly Wood

Apr 5, 2017

The company's market cap is nearly twice that of Wal-Mart, and it keeps growing.

Amazon has won the rights to stream "Thursday Night Football" for the upcoming NFL season. Above, founder and CEO Jeff Bezos.

David Ryder/Getty Images

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Why boredom is a bank ethicist's best friend

by Kai Ryssdal and Robert Garrova

Apr 5, 2017

Success is 'when your company is not in the pages for misconduct,' says Princeton's's David Miller.

When a bank asks David Miller for guidance, the first thing he wants to know is "are they serious?"

Spencer Platt/Getty Images

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U.S. household debt approaches $12.6 trillion, close to 2008 record

by Sabri Ben-Achour

Apr 5, 2017

Current household debt in the U.S. is at just about $12.6 trillion, according to the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. That’s how much we’re all taking out in loans. It’s 1 percent shy of the 2008 record. Mortgages still make up the largest amount of that debt. But it’s a trillion dollars less than […]

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As Chinese investment in U.S. grow, so do concerns

by Adam Allington

Apr 5, 2017

Chinese investment in the U.S. sometimes worries some lawmakers. The recent attempt by Chinese investors to purchase Westinghouse Electric’s bankrupt nuclear reactor unit is a case in point. One fear is that the Chinese could acquire sensitive technological secrets in the process. But also, the current high levels of Chinese investment could provide jobs, so […]

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The New York Fed reports that total outstanding household debt in this country is juuuust about where it was in 2008. Remember 2008? We’re thinking about debt a little differently now, though. Then, a conversation with a big bank ethicist, who tells us what he does and how he measures success. Plus, why Panera’s worth $7.2 billion to the equity group JAB, and another dispatch from Erie, Pennsylvania.