thinkorswim Group Inc. (NDAQ: SWIM) shares jumped higher after the company reported preliminary operating metrics for September 2008 early due to extraordinary price volatility, regulatory intervention and liquidity concerns. During this time period, thinkorswim delivered its 24th consecutive month of record growth by opening 8,550 new accounts, 3,400 funded accounts, executive 63,600 retail DARTs and maintaining client assets of approximately $3.2 billion.

Trading volumes at thinkorswim exceeded 96,000 retail trades in a single day during the month and now expects to outperform analyst consensus for the third quarter. Many brokerages have benefited from from the increased market activity as they have collected more in commissions. However, some brokerages have failed to offset these gains with losses from margin accounts that have defaulted.

thinkorswim Group Inc., formerly Investools Inc. (Investools) operates in two segments: Investor Education and Brokerage Services. The Company offers investor education and brokerage and related financial products and services for self-directed investors. Its Investor Education segment offers a range of investor education products and services that provide learning in a variety of interactive delivery formats.

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Presidential candidates are gearing up for a good fight and environmental policy is near the top of the list of concerns. Many countries around the world are waiting to see whether or not the United States will sign the Kyoto Protocol this year that would require companies to reduce their carbon emissions between 2008 and 2012. This would put a relatively new, but growing carbon market into the forefront of the global financial system.

The carbon market represents an administrative approach used to control pollution by providing economic incentives for achieving reductions in the emissions of pollutants. Countries bound by the Kyoto Protocol can use carbon trading as a way to meet their obligations to reduce carbon trading and therefore mitigate global warming. To date, carbon trading is seen as one of the most viable approaches to control global warming through economics.

EcoloCap Solutions (OTC-BB: ECOS) is developing an integrated development approach that focuses on both existing and needed infrastructure facilities to produce substantial new value in the form of tradable CERs while also maximizing alternative energy generation co-products. Partnerships with owners of facilities that generate harmful greenhouse gases as well as environmental project owners in developing countries will allow the company to capitalize on opportunities emerging in carbon trading.

To the owners of these projects, EcoloCap offers its expertise in the United Nations certification process, engineering, project management and capital in exchange for rights to the carbon credits that are generated over the life of the project. The company makes money by purchasing these credits for far less than they are worth when sold on the open market. Often times, this differential can be significant, especially when accrued over the life of the project.

As a result, one company to watch during the upcoming presidential elections may be EcoloCap Solutions. Any actions by the United States to join the Kyoto Protocol would result in a substantial boost to the carbon market in general and would in turn benefit companies like EcoloCap that sell carbon credits in the open market. After all, demand would increase while supply would remain the same, thus driving up the price of carbon credits and the value of EcoloCap's inventory. Investors interested in learning more can view a research report by clicking here.

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Allied Capital (NYSE: ALD) is playing out by the book - that is, David Einhorn's book! Allied and David Einhorn have been involved in what some on Wall Street have regarded as an epic struggle between themselves, regulators, government officials, and several government organizations. In fact, Einhorn even wrote a complete book on the struggle called "Fooling Some of the People All of the Time". His premise is that Allied's loan portfolio (or that of its subsidiaries) has been impropertly valued - a thesis that may now prove to be true.

Allied Capital announced that Ciena Capital, one of its portfolio companies, voluntarily filed for bankruptcy protection today. The company said Ciena has continued to experience "significant deterioration" in the value of its assets due to the uncertainty of the financial markets and a reduction in the number of loan buyers. As a result, Allied said its unconditional guaranty of the obligations outstanding under Ciena's revolving credit facility may become due.

This is bad news for Allied Capital as it may be required to pay $320 million to the lenders in connection with the revolving credit facility. This is $150 million of the cash Allied gained on the sale of its good investments while it may have to borrow another $170 million of its unsecured revolving line of credit. Some believe that this could put the company's all-important dividend at risk - the dividend that so many investors have stayed in the stock to receive.

Allied Capital Corporation (ACC) is a closed-end, non-diversified management investment company that operates as a business development company. The Company’s investment objective is to achieve current income and capital gains. The Company is engaged in private equity business. ACC primarily invests in debt and equity securities of private companies in a variety of industries. From time to time, it may invest in companies that are public but lack access to additional public capital.

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