Financial services

Fast & Curious: Short Takes On Random Things

Fast & Curious: Short Takes On Random Things

May 6, 2022 at 9:30 am

Lord have Percy I don’t even know where to start with this baffling story. Freshii, the Canadian-based fast-food chain, is experimenting with a “virtual cashier” system called “Percy” that allows it to hire cashiers in Nicaragua and pay them US$3.75/hour instead of minimum wage in Ontario which is $15 (US$11.70)Read More

Bridging Finance Update

Bridging Finance Update

November 10, 2021 at 12:15 pm

I thought it might be time for an update on the Bridging Finance story but in case you’ve forgotten about Bridging, I’ll do a sort-of “previously on” recap. Bridging Finance is a Toronto-based “alternative lender” providing financing to projects considered too risky by traditional banks. It raises money through theRead More

Bridging Finance: Making Transportation History?

Bridging Finance: Making Transportation History?

July 14, 2021 at 12:49 pm

As you may recall, the Spectator reported some weeks ago on the local implications of the scandal rocking Toronto-based private debt firm Bridging Finance Inc (BFI); namely, that Membertou First Nation borrowed $6.8 million from Bridging to finance its purchase of a stake in Novaporte, Albert Barbusci’s imaginary Sydney harborRead More

Membertou Borrowed $6.8M from Bridging Finance for Novaporte Stake

Membertou Borrowed $6.8M from Bridging Finance for Novaporte Stake

June 23, 2021 at 12:21 pm

Membertou Chief Terry Paul, whose band borrowed $6.8 million from Toronto-based private lender Bridging Finance Inc to finance an investment in a proposed Sydney container terminal, says he is not concerned about the arrangement despite Bridging having been placed in receivership on April 30 amid allegations of fraud and misappropriationRead More

Novaporte Partner In Hot Water

Novaporte Partner In Hot Water

June 16, 2021 at 2:06 pm

This was going to be a story about CBRM council meeting in secret with Albert Barbusci of Sydney Harbour Investment Partners (SHIP) yesterday and then, during the regular meeting last night, approving a three-year extension to Barbusci’s exclusive contract with the municipality. (I’ve removed the SHIP Exclusivity Countdown Clock fromRead More

L-R: Vijai Karthigesu (Swarmio), Sydney-Victoria MP Jaime Battiste, Tanya Seajay (Orenda)

How Long Does Tech Take To ‘Emerge?’

March 4, 2020 at 2:32 pm

Editor’s Note: This space was supposed to be occupied by a “deep dive” into the Ekistics (sorry, Fathom Studio) report into the relocation of the NSCC Marconi Campus to downtown Sydney, but after a week of (politely) hassling the spokesperson for the Department of Education and Higher Learning for aRead More

Fast & Curious: Short Takes on Random Things

Fast & Curious: Short Takes on Random Things

January 24, 2020 at 11:18 am

Hidden agenda setting The CBC’s Tom Ayers had a pair of good CBRM council-related stories this week — and by “good” I mean, it’s good someone is covering this stuff not “This is good news!” Both stories are based on access to information requests to the CBRM. (Ayers didn’t leaveRead...

Fast & Curious: Short Takes on Random Things

Fast & Curious: Short Takes on Random Things

October 18, 2018 at 8:12 am

For-profit prisons This has to be the most unfortunate story pairing of the month — the journalistic equivalent of steak and white wine. Or Dr. Pepper. Or motor oil. First, on 11 October, the Chronicle Herald‘s John DeMont (whose writing I frequently enjoy) wrote a puff-piece about Geoffrey Rubin, theRead More

NDP Proposes Alternative to Payday Loans

NDP Proposes Alternative to Payday Loans

October 3, 2018 at 12:22 pm

Susan Leblanc, the NDP MLA for Dartmouth North, has introduced a bill that would see the provincial government guarantee personal, short-term, “micro-loans” for amounts up to $2,000 from credit unions. I spoke to Leblanc briefly, by phone, on Friday and she told me the guarantee would be similar to theRead More