SMITH BRAIN TRUST — In Switzerland, some customers are watching their bank accounts shrink each month, even if they don't make any withdrawals. In Denmark, when you repay your loan, you don't add interest to the payment, you subtract interest. The banks are literally paying people to borrow money. 

When stock markets fluctuate, investors get antsy. Sell before things get worse? Buy up the bargains? What’s the right strategy? In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up with the University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business, host Jeff Salkin sits down with David Kass, who explains why you should resist the impulse to guess where the market is headed.

The University of Maryland’s Robert H. Smith School of Business is a co-host for ‘a conversation’ with Council on Foreign Relations Co-Chairman Robert Rubin on Tuesday, Dec. 8, at 4 p.m. in the Gildenhorn Theatre at the Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center. UMD economics professor John Haltiwanger will moderate the discussion on “The U.S. Economy: Short- and Long-Term Outlook Challenges.”

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Founder-CEOs and CEOs related to the founder see the world differently than CEOs of non-family firms, and they pursue different strategies, according to new research from the Robert H.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST -- Nonbank mortgage lender LoanDepot cited "market conditions" for postponing an initial public offering of as much as $540 million of stock. "It begs the question of whether this a rewind to the (2008 subprime mortgage) precrisis period," says finance professor

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Last week, Fed chairwoman Janet Yellen said that raising interest rates before the end of the year was "a live possibility," given what she described as the relatively strong performance by the economy.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Is it time for the biggest consumer products group in the world to be broken up? Procter & Gamble may account for more than half of the market for laundry care in the United States (Tide, Gain, Downy), more than two-thirds of the market for razors and blades (Gillette), and 15.5 percent of the beauty and personal care market (Pantene, and on and on). That's added up to a market capitalization of more than $200 billion.

International markets have seen some tumultuous times lately. Much of the volatility stems from economic trouble in China, spilling over to other regions. In this edition of Smith Business Close-Up, host Jeff Salkin visits the Smith School to discuss market volatility with Kristen Fanarakis, assistant director of the Center for Financial Policy.

SMITH BRAIN TRUST -- Valeant Pharmaceuticals’ stock dive, after short-selling resea

SMITH BRAIN TRUST — Men getting in touch with their masculine selves — like in Wall Street’s male-dominated, competitive culture — breeds overconfidence and financial risk-taking,