A new study of 5,235 colleges by the Hildreth Institute reveals that institutions in the same geographic markets publish markedly different living-cost estimates, complicating affordability assessments for prospective students, according to Inside Higher Ed's Joshua Bay. Here’s the deal…

➤ The analysis found that approximately half of the evaluated institutions reported allowances for indirect costs were more than 20% above local benchmarks, while higher-tuition and selective colleges frequently estimated miscellaneous expenses well below average rates.

➤ The discrepancies stem from varying institutional methodologies for estimating off-campus housing, food, and transportation, which directly dictate financial aid limits.

➤ Hildreth Institute Managing Director Bahar Akman Imboden emphasized how these inconsistent financial projections directly impact university enrollment and retention: "There is a very legitimate concern there that higher-cost living allowance could make an institution appear less affordable and potentially discourage enrollment. A budget that is too modest can make a college appear more affordable … so a student may enroll, even take out a loan based on this initial picture, only to discover that their actual expenses are beyond their means. If those financial pressures prevent students from completing, then we risk the most troubling kind of outcome of higher education, which is debt without a degree." (link)

An index tracking pending U.S. home sales fell 7.3% in September to its lowest level since 2001, representing an 11.3% decline from the previous year, according to the Financial Times' Peter Wells. Additional data via the National Association of Realtors showed housing starts dropping to 1.22M amid 30-year mortgage rates surpassing 7% for the first time since January 2025. Homebuilders KB Home and Lennar Corporation attributed third-quarter revenue declines to worsening buyer affordability, while Goldman Sachs estimated that 95% of current mortgage borrowers hold rates below the current market average, creating a disincentive for homeowners to move. National Association of Realtors Chief Economist Lawrence Yun: "Although job growth and income gains can support home purchases, housing affordability is more affected by changes in mortgage rates." (link)

Adidas lifted its full-year profit guidance following a windfall of roughly $224M from U.S. tariff refunds and a record Q3 performance, according to The Wall Street Journal's Andrea Figueras, who notes Q3 revenue grew 9% YoY—or 7% excluding currency movements—to €7.25B ($8.13B), while operating profit climbed 37% to a record €1.01B. Adidas now projects an operating profit of €2.5B in 2026, an increase from the previously forecasted €2.3B. Adidas CEO Bjorn Gulden credited the revised forecast to momentum across key product categories despite broader industry headwinds: "The company is experiencing strong and profitable growth in its soccer, running and training segments, while demand for apparel collections remains high." (link)

Blackstone and Apollo are in preliminary discussions with the NFL to join the league's roster of approved private equity investors permitted to acquire minority franchise stakes, according to Bloomberg's Randall Williams and Giles Turner, who note Blackstone previously withdrew from a consortium bid with CVC, Carlyle, and Dynasty Equity Partners, but is now attempting to secure approval independently. If authorized, the firms would join active investors like Ares, Sixth Street, and Arctos, the latter of which has already acquired stakes in four teams including the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Chargers. Apollo Sports Capital CEO Al Tylis confirmed the firm has committed $13B to the sector and set its sights on the league: "We’re interested in any great sports property anywhere in the world, which clearly includes the NFL." (link)

New York-based private equity firm Avenue Capital emerged as the leading bidder for a 10% stake in Serie A's new international media rights company, offering €320M to value the venture at €3.2B, according to Reuters' Elvira Pollina. Avenue Capital structured its bid as a common equity investment without priority protections on future cash flows, allowing it to lead a rival joint bid from Carlyle and Nextalia offering €650M for a 17% stake. Serie A generates approximately €250M annually from international broadcasting, sponsorship, and betting rights—lagging significantly behind the Premier League and LaLiga due to a crowded European fixture calendar. Any finalized deal requires approval from at least 14 of the league's 20 clubs. (link)

Meanwhile, Clara Vista Investment Partners, a primary backer of Premier League club Ipswich Town FC, is seeking to raise $250M for its Football and Technology Fund II to invest in additional soccer teams across Spain, Italy, France, and Mexico, according to Bloomberg's David Hellier. Led by Gamechanger 20 Ltd. board member Bob Gold, the firm first invested in Ipswich in 2024 before the club achieved promotion to English football's top division. Clara Vista also recently acquired a stake in Italian Serie A side Frosinone Calcio, though a representative confirmed the new capital will not be used to build a multi-club ownership model, maintaining that all portfolio teams will operate independently. (link)

Independent Football Regulator chair David Kogan criticized the £547.8M spent on agents' fees across the Premier League, EFL, and National League last season—a 13% YoY increase—arguing the money should go to players instead of representatives. The figures, published in the IFR's draft State of the Game report, highlighted widespread overspending as 94% of men's professional clubs recorded financial losses last season, with Premier League teams alone accounting for over £460M of the agent payments. Speaking on The Rest is Football podcast, Kogan dismissed calls for wage limits while calling out the industry's commission outlays: "We are not in support of a salary cap — we certainly don’t have the powers to implement one. One of the things that’s so interesting about all of this is people always ask me about a salary cap. What they don’t ask me about is agents’ fees. Agents’ fees are ridiculous. Over £500million. It’s half a billion pounds. And frankly, would I object to that money being spent on players rather than agents? Hell, I’d much prefer to see it being spent on players." (link)

The National Association of Corporate Directors released its 2026 Blue Ribbon Commission report authored by 23 corporate directors and experts, urging CFOs to shift board presentations from backward-looking financial data to forward-looking insights. The report identifies an over-reliance on historical financial metrics as the primary barrier to executive oversight, noting that annual budgets often tether companies to past initiatives rather than aligning with real-time pivots. To navigate ongoing market volatility, Nortech Systems CEO and BRC co-chair Jay D. Miller recommends adopting rolling three-month budgets and increasing reporting frequency beyond traditional quarterly updates. The commission's authors argue that financial leaders must fundamentally adapt their planning models to modern market realities: "Events once considered isolated shocks are now continuous, interconnected, and harder to control. Many disruptions should not be viewed as isolated events with a clear disruption and recovery period, but as signs that the assumptions underlying the strategy may be changing and need to be tested." More from CFO Brew’s Courtney Vien. (link)

PwC reported global revenues of $60.2B for the year ending June 30, marking a 3.5% increase adjusted for currency fluctuations, according to the Financial Times' Stephen Foley. While the figure represents an acceleration from the 2.7% growth recorded in the previous 12 months, PwC lagged behind Big Four rivals Deloitte (3.8% growth) and EY (4.7% growth). Performance was weighed down by a 0.7% growth rate in the Europe, Middle East, and Africa region following conflict in the Middle East and a consulting slowdown with the Saudi Arabian government. Across divisions, advisory grew 3% to $25.8B, audit expanded 2.6% to $20.5B, and tax increased 6.3% to $13.9B, while total headcount rose to nearly 370,000. PwC Global Chair Mohamed Kande addressed the firm's trajectory amid regional economic headwinds: "We achieved robust growth, even in the face of geopolitical and economic uncertainty." (link)

Private equity firm Charlesbank acquired a majority stake in a newly formed management services organization for Los Angeles-based Wood Smith Henning & Berman, valuing the insurance defense law firm at $700M. The transaction utilizes a management services organization (MSO) model to bypass professional ethics rules prohibiting non-lawyer ownership of law firms by dividing the business into an attorney-owned legal practice and an asset-holding management company. The capital infusion will allow WSHB—which employs nearly 600 lawyers across 43 offices—to pursue mergers, expand headcount, and invest in artificial intelligence. The Financial Times' Stephen Foley and Antoine Gara note the deal has prompted other national insurance defense firms, including Freeman Mathis & Gary (FMG) and Tyson & Mendes, to solicit bidders. FMG Co-Founder Benton Mathis: "We have to look at the implications. If other law firms have significantly more capital than we do, that raises the question of how fast they can grow relative to how fast you can grow." (link)

CFO Dive's Alexei Alexis examines how recent cybersecurity incidents involving autonomous artificial intelligence models from OpenAI and Anthropic have exposed the risks of deploying AI agents without proper safeguards. Experts warn that AI agents can bypass intended controls through "reward hacking" to optimize their assigned goals, making them particularly dangerous when integrated into sensitive financial systems. To mitigate these vulnerabilities, security professionals from organizations like the Center for Strategic and International Studies and the University of Southern California recommend implementing strict data permissions, running agents in isolated environments, and requiring human approval for consequential financial transactions. Despite these risks, the pressure to adopt agentic AI remains high, prompting Credo AI CEO Navrina Singh to urge finance leaders to incorporate the price of strict oversight into their return on investment calculations: "If the projected return only works when those costs are excluded, you do not yet have a complete business case. Accountability still sits with the company even if the work has been delegated to agents." (link)

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(Posted from most recent over the last 30 days).

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