Weekend Business and Blog Roundup – June 7

Expensive Night Out  – Read an article in the paper version of the Globe and Mail where a 16 year old Japanese adolescent went on quite the joy ride after spending $56,000 on his dad’s American Express credit card on a one night club binge. The teenager and a friend visited multiple hostess clubs, where he paid to sit and drink with women working there. At one of the venues, he spent a couple of thousand dollars on a single bottle of wine. The teenager’s dad pleaded with the local court to reduce the tab.

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Hostess clubs in Japan can’t allow minors to enter in the first place (must be 18+), so the clubs were partly responsible. The judge ruled that credit card companies should also flag questionable activities like racking up a large bill in a relatively short amount of time so American Express was also partly responsible. In the end the dad’s bill was reduced down to 800,000 yen ($8,200.) I wonder just how rich this family is (>_<) And I’m surprised credit card limits can even go up that high 🙂

Job Boom  – According to Statistics Canada, our economy had its best month for job creation in more than a decade last month in May, adding 95,000 new jobs thanks in large part to the construction industry 😀 It’s the equivalent to the U.S. adding over one million new jobs in a single month. Canada’s unemployment rate fell, but still remains stubbornly above 7%.

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Blog roundup – Personal finance and other interesting articles from around the web
Pauline from Reach Financial Independence writes about the importance of customer service
Mashed Thoughts reviews a local Oyster Bar in Vancouver

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Random Useless Fact: A zedonk is a crossbreed between a zebra and a donkey 😀

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myownadvisor (@myownadvisor)
06/08/2013 4:59 am

Thanks for the mention!

That was quite the joy ride for that teen…

krantcents
06/08/2013 6:03 am

Thanks for the links, I am in good company.

mochimac @ save. spend. splurge.

Amex cards are unlimited spending limits I think, but you have to clear the bill each month. Kind of like a hybrid between a credit card and a debit card.

Brian
Brian
06/08/2013 8:11 am

Thanks for including the wine, hope you get a chance to try it!

Vicky
Vicky
06/08/2013 9:49 am

Thanks for the mention! That hybrid can’t be real; my gullibility has been tried very often recently. 😛 It is pretty cute though!

Bridget
06/08/2013 10:04 am

bahaha omg would I have fun ringing up a $56,000 tab.

I have an Amex. When I got it the paperwork said it had no limit. Sometimes I’m tempted to go on a spending bender then declare bankruptcy but I always come to my senses 😉

Canadianbudgetbinder
06/08/2013 10:35 am

Wow, that’s crazy. If I ever did that my dad would have…. lol.. I always put see ID on the back of my cards. I don’t know how much that helps though any more. Thanks for the mention mate. Cheers Mr.CBB

Dividend Mantra
06/08/2013 3:22 pm

Thanks for the mention! Much appreciated.

That’s great to hear about the Canadian economy. Glad to see things going well up there for you guys!

Have a great weekend.

Best wishes!

studentdebtsurvivor
06/08/2013 3:51 pm

How cute is a Zedonk?! As I was reading the post I was thinking to myself, who lets a 16 year old into a place like that (I assume it’s like a gentleman’s club of sorts). Weird, gross and stupid were my first thoughts.

Financial Independence
06/09/2013 4:12 am

Well, his dad has $56,000 on his card, at least as limit. He was planning to spend it anyhow 🙂
At least some thing to remember 🙂 The most expensive wine I have ever had so far cost me $100 a bottle.

KC @ genxfinance
06/10/2013 6:00 am

It’s the first time that I’ve read about this story. Wow, the credit line must be really huge for spending that much in one night without triggering any red flags to the credit card company. Crazy.

Jordann @ My Alternate Life
06/10/2013 11:47 am

Wow that’s a pretty huge tab! Thanks for the mention!

Jenny @ Mashed Thoughts
06/12/2013 9:34 am

Holy smokes. Parents should not give teenagers their credit cards. lol

Thanks for the link! =)