War Just Sent Oil Soaring, OpenAI Raised $110 Billion & Buffett's Mountain of Cash!

Money Masters' Market Kickoff Week 10

March 02, 2026

In partnership with

Dear Money Master,

Oil just had its biggest spike in years after strikes on Iran threatened the shipping lane that carries 20% of the world's oil. 🛢️ We break down why one narrow waterway can move the price of everything.

Then, OpenAI closed the largest private funding round in history at $110 billion.💰 We explain how you value a company with no stock price. And Warren Buffett just wrapped his final quarter as CEO of Berkshire Hathaway, sitting on $373 billion in cash and refusing to spend a dollar of it. 📊

📚 Money Masters Article of the Day

How To Get Out Of The Minimum Payment Trap 💳🔓

Did you know minimum payments can take up to 22 years to pay off your credit card balance and more than double what you originally owed? That $5,000 balance quietly becomes nearly $12,000. Today's article breaks down exactly how the math works against you and the two proven strategies to fight back.

One read a day to become financially literate: TAKE THE CHALLENGE!

📰 Your Daily Financial Digest - March 2nd, 2026

🌍 Economics:

Oil Prices Just Had Their Biggest Spike in Years. Here's Why One Shipping Lane Controls the Global Economy.🛢️ - Read More

Oil prices surged more than 9% on Monday after strikes on Iran continued over the weekend. Brent crude hit a new 52-week high near $80 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate climbed past $73. Tankers have been hit near the Strait of Hormuz and shippers are pulling back from the region.

Here's the concept: supply and demand in commodity markets. Oil is priced globally, so a disruption anywhere affects prices everywhere. The Strait of Hormuz is a narrow waterway between Iran and Oman, and roughly 20% of the world's oil supply passes through it every day. When that flow is threatened, traders don't wait for an actual shortage. They price in the risk immediately, which is why oil spiked before a single barrel went missing.

Some producers have backup pipelines, but analysts estimate only about 5 million barrels per day can be rerouted, leaving roughly 10 million potentially stranded. If energy infrastructure gets hit directly, oil could push toward $100. This matters because oil doesn't just power cars. It feeds into manufacturing costs, shipping rates, food prices, and inflation. When the world's most critical chokepoint is at risk, everything gets more expensive.

💻 Technology:

OpenAI Just Raised $110 Billion. Here's How You Value a Company With No Stock Price. 🤖 - Read More

OpenAI closed a $110 billion funding round, the largest private financing in history. Amazon invested $50 billion, Nvidia put in $30 billion, and SoftBank added $30 billion. The deal values OpenAI at $730 billion, nearly 50% higher than just months ago.

The key concept is private market valuation. Public companies like Apple have millions of buyers and sellers setting the price every second. A private company like OpenAI has no stock ticker. Its value is set during funding rounds, where sophisticated investors negotiate a price based on revenue, growth, and competitive position. OpenAI generates roughly $13 billion in annual revenue and projects over $280 billion by 2030. Those numbers, plus the belief that AI will reshape the economy, justify the price tag before the company has ever gone public.

Amazon's $50 billion isn't just a financial bet. It comes with a deep strategic partnership. Nvidia committed $30 billion, doubling down on the chips that power AI training. Softbank matched with another $30 billion.

💹Earnings:

Buffett's Final Quarter as CEO Showed a 30% Earnings Drop. Here's Why That's Not the Real Story. 💰 - Read More

Berkshire Hathaway reported Q4 operating earnings of $10.2 billion, down 29% from last year, mostly because insurance had a rough quarter. This was Buffett's final quarter as CEO before handing the reins to Greg Abel in 2026. Buffett remains chairman.

The concept here is operating earnings versus overall earnings. Operating earnings measure profit from running the actual businesses: insurance, railroads, energy, manufacturing. Overall earnings include gains and losses from Berkshire's stock portfolio, which swing wildly with the market. Berkshire itself tells investors to ignore that headline number. A market rally makes a weak quarter look great, and a dip makes a strong business look bad. Operating earnings strip that noise out.

The bigger story is what Buffett chose not to do. He didn't buy back a single share, and the company is sitting on $373 billion in cash. In Buffett's world, holding cash is a signal. It means the greatest dealmaker in history looked at every opportunity available and decided nothing was worth the price. Since 1965, Berkshire has compounded at 19.7% annually, nearly double the S&P 500. The question now: can Greg Abel keep that engine running?

Wall Street Just Named the Most Crowded Trades of 2026

AI stocks. Metals. Crypto.

Surprise, surprise; gold crashed 16%. Silver plunged 34%. Bitcoin dropped to 1 year lows.

All supposedly "uncorrelated" assets moving in lockstep largely because of overleveraged margin.

JPM strategists warn that the same leverage is still a risk.

Those markets may be recovering now, but cascading liquidations could trigger quickly across several asset classes simultaneously.

So much for diversifying away risk, right?

But get this–

70,819 everyday investors have allocated $1.3 billion fractionally across 500+ exclusive investments. 

Not real estate or PE… Blue-chip art. Sounds crazy, right?

Now it’s easy to invest in art featuring legends like Banksy, Basquiat, and Picasso, thanks to Masterworks.

They do the heavy lifting from acquisition to sale, so you can diversify with the strategy typically limited to the ultra-wealthy.

(Past sales delivered net returns like 14.6%, 17.6%, and 17.8% on works held longer than a year.)*

*Investing involves risk.  Past performance is not indicative of future returns. Important Reg A disclosures: masterworks.com/cd

Your Tax Data, Finally in One Place

Are you tired of hunting down data, fixing errors, and manually updating disconnected spreadsheets?

Tax reporting isn’t a simple as it used to be. You need real-time, flexible reporting so you can confidently make decisions backed by accurate, centralized data.

Learn how bringing all your tax information into one central system automates repetitive tasks, improves scenario planning, and frees your team to focus on strategy instead of data entry.

Whether you operate in one country or dozens, Longview Tax scales with you—reducing risk, speeding up your close process, and helping you optimize tax policies across all jurisdictions.

To your financial empowerment, The Money Masters Team

P.S. Stay connected! Don't forget to follow us on social media! 📱🌐

DISCLAIMER: This information is for educational purposes only and does not constitute financial advice. The publisher does not accept any responsibility for any losses incurred as a result of actions taken based on the information provided. Always conduct your own research or consult with a financial advisor before making any investment decisions.