Unbeknownst to me, ING (the online based bank with the consistently good APY’s) has opened cafes in a bunch of major U.S. cities — complete with free wife and free personal finance seminars and webinars. Who knew!?

Investing in your retirement has never been more important than it is now. With the current state of the economy, there’s not much of a reason to have faith that you’re social security payments will provide much stability to you in your golden years. With the rising costs of living and pretty much everything else, social security contributions can’t and won’t keep up with inflation, and what may barely pay your bills now certainly won’t pay them when you’re 65.

Capcom, a video game distribution company, is now promoting a new VISA debit card designed to promote Capcom-Unity points for their Accelerated Rewards program to be used for auctions, raffles, and to take advantage of company promotions (like access to Beta tests and priority entrance at Capcom events).

Featuring popular Street fighter IV, Bionic Commando and Resident Evil 5 characters and scenes (in collector fashion), they’re targeting the hardcore gamer crowd — known for frequently purchasing novelty items. But video game fans should take a long second look before signing off on this card.

I’ve been reading more and more stories lately on how the high interest loans are putting an extraordinary burden on recent graduates paying off what they thought were federally controlled student loans. These loans were extended via private companies, but carried variable interest rates that, like a lot of mortgages, fluctuate with current interest rates. The ending result? Sky rocketing interest rates on loans for tens of thousands of dollars and none of the benefits you get with federal student loans like deferment and locked-in rates.