This historical analysis of the relationship between African Americans and banks underscores the significance of banking black today (Black Enterprise)

Just days after the EU hit Apple with a $14.6 billion tax bill, CEO Tim Cook said he expects to transfer billions of dollars in profit to the United States next year. "We provisioned several billion dollars for the U.S. for payment for as soon as we repatriate it, and right now I would forecast that repatriation to occur next year," Cook said in an interview with Irish broadcaster RTE news. (CNN Money)

The ugly underside of the growth data is the fact that only 11 percent of minority-owned firms have employees. In other words, most of these firms are one-person businesses, providing consulting and other services from just one individual. Only 4 percent of African American owned firms – just 109,137 of the total 2.6 million businesses — have employees. (The Seattle Medium)

In an ever increasingly competitive world, sales professionals are constantly looking for ways to acquire more leads and drive more revenue.This sense of urgency, however, often causes employees to forget that they aren't simply selling a product or service. They are also selling themselves. (Business.com)

How many other candidates are you interviewing? What is your budget for this position? Why is this job open to begin with? As a job seeker, there are tons of questions you’d probably love to ask your interviewer but can’t without feeling like you’re coming off rude. Or can you? Your gut instinct that a potential question might be too forward is generally not something to ignore. That said, there are ways to approach the situation that can help you get away with more than you’d think. (The Muse)

Yet, diversity is not just a "right thing to do" issue; it’s not even a "good-for-society" issue. Diversity is absolutely integral when it comes to swiftly developing STEM industries, it’s good for always-growing marginalized groups which, combined, make up over half the country’s population and it’s financially beneficial to tech companies. Here’s why diversity matters in tech. (Forbes)

The European Commission is about to propose a law that would let news publishers across the EU try to charge companies like Google for reproducing parts of their articles. The idea has already been tried in Germany and Spain, and has failed both times. Now the German digital commissioner, Günther Oettinger, is about to include it in his long-awaited new copyright directive. (Fortune)

European equity funds have seen outflows for a record 29 consecutive weeks, amid poor earnings, struggling banks and political risk. (The Wall Street Journal)

B-school can equip budding entrepreneurs with the necessary skills for running and growing a business. (U.S. News & World Report)

Nearly two centuries after Georgetown University profited from the sale of 272 slaves, it will embark on a series of steps to atone for the past, including awarding preferential status in the admissions process to descendants of the enslaved, officials said this week. (The New York Times)

There are plenty of unanswered questions about how self-driving cars would function in the real world, like understanding local driving customs and handing controls back to a human in an emergency. Now a start-up called Drive.ai, based in Mountain View, Calif., is trying to address how an autonomous car would communicate with other drivers and pedestrians. The company is emphasizing what is known in the artificial intelligence field as "human-machine interaction" as a key to confusing road situations. (The New York Times)

Most people think that being an entrepreneur is about having that big idea. And it is. To start something new, you need to have an idea that works: something people need, something they’ll want, and most importantly — at least for the people investing in your idea — something that’s scalable. (Harvard Business Review)

Whether you’re looking for a personal or business loan, it’s important to plan ahead before you start the application process. You’ll want to set yourself up to have the best shot of getting approved in addition to getting the best interest rates. Thankfully, small business owners have so many different options than they had five to 10 years ago. (Business.com)

Ariell Johnson is the first black woman on the East Coast to own and operate a comic book store. The comic book world tends to skew heavily towards white males. That's true among comic book authors and owners. But when it comes to finding inspiration, Johnson didn't have to look far. She turned to the X-Men. (CNN Money)

Richmond was once the epicenter of black finance. What happened there explains the decline of black-owned banks across the country. (The Atlantic)

Where you live can have a big impact on your future prosperity. That's because the country's most expensive housing markets have appreciated at a much faster clip in the last 30 years than homes in the country's least expensive markets. (CNN Money)

Amid growing anxiety about the disappearance of factory jobs, thousands of them are going unfilled across the U.S. The number of open manufacturing jobs has been rising since 2009, and this year stands at the highest level in 15 years, according to Labor Department data. (The Wall Street Journal)

Troubling evidence is mounting that student debt is most burdensome for those who can least afford it. A 2015 report from the think tank Demos found that African-American and low-income students borrow higher amounts and more often for a bachelor's degree. At public institutions, 84 percent of graduates who received a Pell Grant graduate with debt, compared with 46 percent of those who did not receive a Pell. (U.S. News & World Report)

Is the cost of the education deductible? The odds are often stacked against it, especially if you’re pursuing an advanced degree. Nevertheless, an accountant in a new Tax Court case was able write off the costs of an MBA program. For starters, you may qualify for deductions only if you meet one of these two tests. (CPA Practice Advisor)

The increasingly high cost of higher education has a lot of parents in a very real dilemma: Should retirement savings efforts be put on a temporary hold (or reduced) in order to save for children’s education? (Nashville Business Journal)

Black chefs still account for a small fraction of kitchen leadership, but their presence is growing locally and across the country. In 2015, about 15 percent of chefs and head cooks nationwide identified as African American or black, according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, up 67 percent from 2011, when the group accounted for 9 percent of chefs nationally. In the past five years, black chefs saw the fastest growth of any minority in head chef roles, data show. (Baltimore Sun)

Responding to national outrage over high prices, Mylan announced plans this week to launch a generic EpiPen at a 50% discount to the branded version of the life saving allergy treatment. (CNN Money)

The United States accused the European Union of grabbing revenue intended for U.S. coffers when it ordered Apple Inc to pay up to $14.5 billion in back taxes, a decision that could come up at an international summit in China next week. (Fortune)

People can be notoriously reluctant to give up control. Managers often hesitate to delegate tasks and decision making to others, even when they would benefit from doing so. Yet anyone who has worked in a large organization will tell you that, just as often, decisions can get passed from person to person, making it difficult for everyone to get work done. So how do we encourage delegating when it’s beneficial and reduce it when it’s not? (Harvard Business Review)

Not every leader is comfortable in their position -- especially new leaders. In fact, a 2015 survey of 1,000 employees conducted by Saba Software and Workplace Trends found that only 11 percent of respondents aspire to C-level positions. (Entrepreneur)