Hey there weekday warriors,

What’s that? You thought your boss was an overbearing micromanager? Welp, according to a new book, there were rumors swirling at Bridgewater Associates that the company was planning to install listening devices in trees outside the office. That way, the hedge fund could keep tabs on employees having personal phone conversations in the wooded area near HQ…

Here’s what else we’re getting into…

• America needs to start listening to Dave Ramsey and cut up that credit card

• Another Meta whistleblower

• Steve Cohen’s new real estate development

Enjoy the next 4 minutes and 9 seconds of blue-chip news and commentary.

Keep on snapping necks and cashing checks,

- tyler

+ US stocks "ended higher Tuesday, notching a seven-day win streak underpinned by strength in big tech as Treasury yields fell despite Federal Reserve members signaling that rate hikes remain on the table." (Investing)

+ The 10-year Treasury yield "fell Tuesday as investors assessed the outlook for the economy and monetary policy as they awaited economic data and comments from Federal Reserve officials." (CNBC)

+ Oil "hit near seven-month lows on Tuesday, plunging to $70 territory, as disappointing trade data from China raised fresh concerns about the economic health of the world’s largest crude importer." (Reuters)

+ Bitcoin “jumped to $35,500 Tuesday as the widening altcoin rally and risk-on sentiment in traditional markets lifted the total cryptocurrency market's value to a 16-month high.” (Read)

+ The three most talked about stocks on WallStreetBets in the past 24-hours were: 1) Nvidia +0.45% 2) Rivian +1.40% (AH: +4.48%) 3) Tesla +1.33%.

New high score

Americans will literally go into crippling debt instead of going to therapy…

We already know American consumers went hard in the paint in Q3. Retail sales came in red-hot in September (+0.7% vs. +0.3% expected). And GDP rose 4.9% in Q3… powered by, you guessed it, consumer spending.

So it probably shouldn’t come as a surprise that credit card debt and overall debt are mooning as that excess pandemic savings goes the way of Pfizer’s vaccine profits.

The NY Fed dropped a bleak report on Tuesday. It showed that total household debt rose 1.3% to $17.29T in the third quarter.

Over the same period, credit card borrowing levels jumped 4.7% to $1.08T. That’s a new high score. Congrats, America.

Ok, but Americans are paying off their debt in a timely manner, right?

Not exactly…

Credit card delinquencies continue to increase… and you’ll never guess which age group is atop the leaderboard. Those in the 30 to 39 range (read: millennials) were the biggest deadbeats *boomers have entered the chat to say ‘I told you so’*.

And things probably aren’t going to get better any time soon. Uncle Sam put an end to stimmy checks. Cash reserves are dwindling. Sallie Mae is coming for her student loan payments again. And inflation continues to bend us over and show us the 50 states.

Oh, and credit card interest rates just keep moving higher…

Allow me to let you in on a little industry secret: most credit card rates are linked directly to the Fed Fund Rate, which is currently higher than a first-year associate at the Stratton Oakmont holiday party. The average APR hovers around 20%… an all-time high.

Join me at Benzinga’s Fintech Deal Day next week…

Let’s hang at Benzinga’s Fintech Deal Day (Monday, November 13th) and Future of Digital Assets (Tuesday, November 14th) in NYC.

The two days of events bring together 1k founders, operators, and investors to share the latest trends and opportunities in fintech and digital assets.

Confirmed speakers include big swingin d*cks from BlackRock, DTCC, OCC, State Street, Société Générale, Hedera, Citi, BMO Capital Markets, Northern Trust, Citibank, Amazon, S&P Global, Google, Fireblocks, Invesco, and Moody’s.

And did I mention I’ll be there?

TWC readers can get 20% off with code TYLER20.

If you buy a ticket, shoot me an email, and we can meet up to talk shop/hit the happy hour.

+ Gen Z, millennials have a much harder time ‘adulting’ than their parents did, CNBC/Generation Lab survey finds (Read)

+ The No. 1 ‘hidden’ skill behind billionaire Bill Gates’ success—it works ‘in any field,’ says psychology expert (Read)

+ ICYMI yesterday... 3 things you can learn about taxes from San Francisco 49ers’ Arik Armstead’s paycheck (Read)

+ Maybe it’s just me, but seems kinda soft to snitch on Meta when you know Zuck is laid up post-ACL surgery. A second Meta whistleblower testified before a Senate subcommittee yesterday. Arturo Bejar, a former FB engineer, laid out similar concerns as the first snitch, Frances Haugen…

He claims that not only is Meta leadership aware of how harmful apps like Instagram can be for teen users, but they give zero f*cks. Bejar shared an email that he sent to Meta’s bosses, including IG CEO Adam Mosseri. It included a survey of 13 to 15-year-old Instagram users that showed 21% felt worse about themselves because of others’ posts on the platform.

Of course, this isn’t something Congress isn’t aware of. There are multiple bills floating around that vow to protect teens from evil social media algorithms or force platforms to take responsibility for what is posted.

Shares of Meta were up ~1% on the day, because, presumably the only thing that will come of this is that Bejar will never get a job in Silicon Valley again… (Read)

+ What better way to get everyone to forget all about an absolute train wreck of a Mets’ season than dangling a shiny new casino in front of them? Yesterday, Mets owner and Point72 founder, Steve Cohen, unveiled his plans for Metropolitan Park. The proposed $8B project would reinvent the sh*thole that is the area of Queens that surrounds Citi Field into a capitalist playground. Think: a casino, concert venue, dining, shopping, and more. (Read)

+ Turns out, making it damn near impossible to cancel a membership is a really, really good business model. Isn’t that right, Planet Fitness? PF posted a yuge quarter… despite having fired its CEO unexpectedly. Not only did the discount gym beat on the top and bottom lines, but said it expects to post revenue growth above analysts’ expectations for the full year. Oh, and it’s considering a 50% price hike (from $10 to $15) for its core membership. Shares popped 13.4%. (Read)

+ Mentioning AI during an earnings call is a cheat code. Just ask Datadog. The maker of cloud monitoring software had itself a quarter, reporting a beat across the board and raising its full-year guidance. But what really had investors horned up was the CEO mentioning that AI native customers represented 2.5% of annualized revenue. Shares jumped 28.5%. (Read).

+ Microsoft out here getting its 2021 on. MSFT closed up for the 8th day in a row and hit a new ATH. Big tech has been ripping as of late. The tech-heavy Nasdaq is up 6% in November. And it probably doesn’t hurt that Microsoft hitched its wagon to the leader in the AI clubhouse (read: OpenAI). (Read)

Here's what I'm keeping an eye on today...

+ Warner Bros. Discovery, Ralph Lauren, Disney, Biogen, Take-Two Interactive, MGM Resorts, Roblox, AMC, Skillz, and Lyft report

+ J-Poww speaks at the Division of Research and Statistics Centennial Conference

Yesterday I asked Did you meet your significant other on an app or the old-fashioned way (drunk at a bar)?

71.4% of you met the old-fashioned way (drunk at a bar).

Here’s today’s question…

Gym memberships are an absolute pain in the a** to cancel, but…

Oh, and one more thing…

Does this look like the face of a guy you should take financial advice from?

No, it’s the face of a God-fearing family man with sh*t-for-brains. So, act accordingly...

This is not financial advice. Nothing in this newsletter is an investment recommendation. All content is created for entertainment, educational, or informational purposes only. Do your own research, or do yourself a favor and hire a professional.