Hey Rebels! Let's dive into this week's issue to help you become smarter about money, investing and business in less than 10 minutes.
Weekly Intel
Stay current with top news from the money, investing, and business world.
Top Stories
Can you really save money better in certain parts of the country? Check out the best and worst states to pinch your pennies.
Ooops... High Noon adult beverage mislabeled as a Celsius energy drink and FDA puts out a recall notice. Celsius stock stays unfazed and sober.
Zuck wants to run Meta's AI unit like a start up akin to his days of creating Facebook back in college.
By the numbers
Ouch! German shoe and apparel maker Adidas will experience about $231 million in tariffs in the second half of 2025.
Adam Sandler's Happy Gilmore 2 breaks a Netflix record in its film opening debut with nearly 47 million views.
America’s darlings are soaring as high as their kicks - Dallas Cowboys cheerleaders celebrate a 400% raise.
The Financial Rebellion Way
Knowledge and action to help you achieve a life you desire.
Discover Your Money DNA
Want to change your money habits and have more financial success? The answer might lie in your genes.
Your “money DNA,” or how we think about money, is formed between the ages of 8-18.
This "DNA" influences how you think and feel about money, and how you save, spend or invest money.
A sign you have poor money DNA? Beliefs that you need to come from family money or that you need to be super smart, super disciplined, or be a really good person to be financially successful (Cue Dwight Schrute: FALSE!).
The only requirement to become financially successful is a pulse. Improving your money DNA can happen within weeks or months at the most as you learn new money concepts to achieve a life you desire.
Financial Rebellion is here to help you do just that!
Check out our podcast interview with clinical psychologist Dr. Han Lim Kim as she discusses your money DNA and money dysmorphia.
Markets: stocks and crypto
Price for the week ending August 2, 2025
▼ S&P 500 | 6,238 | -2.47% |
▼ NASDAQ | 20,650 | -2.51% |
▼ BITCOIN (BTC) | 113,005 | -4.31% |
▼ ETHEREUM (ETH) | 3,417 | -9.95% |
▼ APPLE (AAPL) | 202.38 | -5.47% |
Stock Moves
Vans, Timberland and North Face parent company VF Corp (VFC) reports latest quarterly earnings as stock bounces higher.
Peloton (PTON), once the exercise/tech darling stock during Covid, shows signs of coming back to life after cost cutting and diminishing its showroom presence.
Video game maker Electronic Arts (EA) stock shows strength as analyst says robust growth ahead with new game releases.
Crypto Moves
Buy crypto instead of a flight with your credit card points. J.P. Morgan and Coinbase partner to enable customers to buy crypto with their bank account.
Happy Birthday Ethereum network! Ether just turned 10 years old. Why many see solid growth ahead as the stable coin market rolls out.
Never a day goes by without a new price prediction for Bitcoin.
Real Money Moves
Maddie, 24 - Salt Lake City, Utah
Each week, we feature a reader’s smartest and dumbest money moves. We’re all in this together, let’s at least learn from each other.
Smartest move – starting a side hustle: After feeling like I couldn’t make ends meet, I found a way to monetize my hobby.
I had always liked photography, and had a camera that I got as a birthday present. I started offering shoots to friends and family, and asked for referrals.
I spent my weekends doing shoots and found myself getting better and feeling comfortable charging more.
After a few years, I was making twice as much doing photography as my 9-to-5, with double the flexibility.
Dumbest move – renting a house we couldn’t afford: My wish list did not match our income.
I wanted to live in a cute house with a yard in a neighborhood that we liked. I justified the $3,000+ rent since I would use the spare room as my studio.
After a couple of months, we were barely making ends meet and had way more space than we needed.
The cuteness of the house was not worth the financial stress.
The bottom line: Every money move teaches you something, whether it builds your net worth or humbles your ego.
Got a story? Send it in. You might help someone dodge a mistake or make a smarter call.
Side Hustle Differently
Each week we focus on one or more money making opportunities for a side hustle that may become a full time hustle.
Photography = Picture Perfect Profits: High-quality images are essential — everybody needs them to capture their audience's attention, whether for their website or social media.
Why it matters: Photography is a lucrative side hustle if you have a good eye and a knack for capturing moments.
Companies and individuals constantly need content: product shots, event photos, headshots.
Freelance gigs let you build your portfolio and your bank account.
You don’t need to be a pro, just reliable and client-friendly.
Start where you are: Gone are the days when expensive gear was a barrier.
Leverage (see next section) what you have and upgrade as you go.
Tools like Lightroom and Photoshop help refine your photos to professional standards.
Find opportunities to learn and be confident in your prices.
The bottom line: In our increasingly visual world, photography is always in demand and can transform your free time into a lucrative business.
Check out the Financial Rebellion podcast to learn about more side hustles young people are doing.
Invest With Acorns
In under 3 minutes, start investing spare change, saving for retirement, earning more, spending smarter, and more.
It's as easy as when you set up your Venmo, Paypal or Cash account.
Acorns automatically invests your money into one of five investment portfolios based on your age so you don't have to choose the stocks, phew!
The Acorns Round Ups feature also enables you to invest spare change from normal daily purchases.
Click the image above or this link to get started on your investment journey and earn a special $40 bonus when you set up at least a $5 or more weekly or monthly recurring investment.
Word of the Week - Leverage
Going into the hole and using that dirt to build mountains.
What it means: Leverage in financial terms refers to the use of borrowed money (debt) to amplify the potential return on an investment. The more leverage used, the higher the potential return but also the greater the risk, which can result in large losses.
Example: taking out a business loan to start a company.
Powerful tool in both personal finance and entrepreneurship.
While it can magnify big wins, it also increases the potential risk of losses.
Contextual Use: Though the risk can be scary, leveraging can be the advantage you need.
Investing: by using leverage the investor could purchase more stocks than the capital they originally had, aiming to maximize potential gains.
Real Estate: real estate investors use leverage in the form of mortgage loans to acquire properties, betting on property price appreciation exceeding the cost of borrowing.
Trusted Partners
Where you bank is a big deal. We are big fans of credit unions to help you become financially rebellious. Here's some of our current partners that we work with around the country so you can get to know them and the value of becoming a member to help you achieve your financial goals and dreams.
Did you know the myths about credit unions versus banks? Debunked here.
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We’ll catch you next week. Rebels OUT.
Disclaimer: The advice provided in Financial Rebellion is not considered to be financial or legal advice of any kind. It is your responsibility to dig deeper on any opinions or recommendations given.