Six Hundred Atlantic

What is the Beige Book? It’s the story of the economy that you can’t always see in the numbers. Eight times a year, each Federal Reserve Bank publishes a Beige Book after gathering real-world economic insight from regional business leaders and experts. Mary Burke is a principal economist and policy advisor with the New England Public Policy Center at the Boston Fed. She talks to Six Hundred Atlantic about what the Beige Book is and why it matters to the U.S. economy. Visit bostonfed.org to learn more about the Beige Book. For more interviews and analysis of the economy in New England and nationwide, visit BostonFed.org/SixHundredAtlantic.aspx. Subscribe to our email list to stay updated on new episodes.

The Fed’s latest small businesses survey found that 80% of respondents reported challenges related to how they send and receive payments, including credit card processing fees and slow payments systems. Brian Clarke is a payments analyst and deputy director in the Regional & Community Outreach department at the Boston Fed. He breaks down the most important findings from the survey – and how advancements in payments technology might help businesses address their top challenges. Visit bostonfed.org to learn more about payments-related findings from the Small Business Credit Survey. You can read the full report on fedsmallbusiness.org. For more interviews and analysis of the economy in New England and nationwide, visit BostonFed.org/SixHundredAtlantic.aspx. Subscribe to our email list to stay updated on new episodes.

https://www.bostonfed.org/publications/six-hundred-atlantic/interviews/synthetic-identity-fraud-how-ai-is-changing-the-gameSynthetic identity fraud is a fast-growing and costly type of financial fraud, and its threat is increasing – thanks to generative AI. Criminals use Gen AI to quickly create synthetic identities and make these fake identities seem more like real people so it’s easier to use them to steal. Federal Reserve payments fraud expert Mike Timoney discusses what synthetic identity fraud is and how it’s evolved. He says one of the best tools to stop thieves who use generative AI in synthetic identity fraud … is AI. Mike Timoney is a vice president of secure payments at the Boston Fed. Visit BostonFed.org to learn more about how the Federal Reserve is tracking the increase in synthetic identity fraud. You can also listen to a discussion with Timoney on why check fraud is rising, even as check usage declines. For more interviews and analysis of the economy in New England and nationwide, visit BostonFed.org/SixHundredAtlantic.aspx. Subscribe to our email list to stay updated on new episodes.

There are more ways to pay than ever, and payments are critical to the economy. Their safety and efficiency significantly impact the nation’s fiscal health. Boston Fed senior economist Joanna Stavins discusses the payments evolution and what to watch out for.

New Englanders love the lottery, and it’s long been an important source of public funding. But it’s not the only option for people’s gambling dollars. Boston Fed researcher Riley Sullivan talks about lottery history, policy, and trends.

The story after the pandemic started was that people were relocating more. But now, New Englanders just aren’t making as many moves, either short- or long-distance. Boston Fed economist Pinghui Wu talks about the trend and what it means.

How can smaller cities recover after their industry disappears? The Working Places initiative exists because Boston Fed researchers wanted to answer that question. On its 10 anniversary, director Colleen Dawicki discusses successes and lessons learned.

Check fraud is on the rise, even as the number of checks in circulation is dropping. Why? Boston Fed payments fraud expert Mike Timoney discusses why checks are an attractive target for thieves and how consumers can protect themselves.

Employers are reluctant to hire people with criminal histories, and that can be a drag on the economy, because they make up a surprisingly large part of the population. What can be done to reduce employer risks while giving this group a fair chance?

Research by a Boston Fed economist indicates that as many as 7 million “gig workers” aren’t being counted in the main survey that measures U.S. employment. Why? And how can policymakers get a more accurate view of their contributions to the economy?

The female workforce participation rate has flatlined in the U.S. over the last 30 years. Why? One reason is a lack of state-funded “family policies,” like child care. Meanwhile, the rise of so-called “performance pay” has left some women behind.

“Full employment” is often overshadowed by the better-known half of the Fed’s dual mandate from Congress: “stable prices,” but both are equally important to the Fed. This overview defines full employment and looks at why some groups are struggling to reach it.

Kenechukwu Anadu, who co-leads a group focused on bank, non-bank, and financial stability risks, discusses stablecoins – a type of crypto asset – and the potential impacts of their rapid growth on the stability of the financial system.

Can employers do more to solve the child care crisis? Some policy groups say child care and employer would benefit if they did. Boston Fed senior policy analyst Sarah Savage discusses what deeper employer involvement looks like and what it could mean.

The Boston Fed has long studied New England’s opioid crisis because of its economic impacts. In this episode, Boston Fed writer Amanda Blanco and photographer Steve Osemwenkhae discuss what they learned from talking with people fighting addiction and helping others overcome it.

The condition of U.S. currency–including whether it’s genuine–is the business of the Federal Reserve because healthy currency is essential to keep the economy moving. But how does the Fed know when notes aren’t “fit for commerce?” Or when they’re fake?

The pandemic could have wiped out cash, as people increasingly turned to online and touch-free transactions. Instead, cash usage fell, then held steady. Why? In this episode, we examine cash’s future and the Fed’s role in keeping it available.

Researchers have long investigated why some races have more wealth than others, and inheritances and other forms of intergenerational wealth are often seen as major factors. But Federal Reserve Bank of Boston economist Jeff Thompson says they play a minor role.

Personal excess savings in the U.S. reached extraordinarily high levels during the pandemic, peaking between $2.0 – $2.6 trillion in 2021. That’s equal to 10% of the nation’s gross domestic product. Economists believe these savings helped keep the economy moving during post-pandemic inflation because consumers could use that money to keep spending. But there’s wide disagreement about how much of these excess savings is left – and what happens when it’s gone. In this episode of Six Hundred Atlantic, Boston Fed economist Omar Barbiero discusses why excess savings matter, why estimates vary widely, and what surprised him when he studied how fast savings were being depleted across income groups.

Opioid-related deaths spiked more than 60% in two years during the pandemic, and that intensified the focus on treating opioid use disorder. But do some treatments impact employment prospects more than others? In this episode of Six Hundred Atlantic, Boston Fed senior economist Mary Burke discusses certain opioid use disorder medications and how they affect job prospects for patients and reduce the economic burden on society.