We like to think that when we deposit a dollar at the bank, it goes into a big vault and we can pull out that same dollar at any time. But that¿s not how the U.S. banking system works. Banks take that money and invest it to make money themselves, so cash gets spread around. This, naturally, leads to a big risk: What happens if those investments go sour? Well, you¿d be out of luck. You can¿t get your dollar back.

The Federal Reserve doesn¿t like that scenario, so it prohibits banks from putting all the cash it has on deposit on the line. In fact, the Fed forces banks to keep a portion of their assets at the Federal Reserve itself, to make sure that some of your assets won¿t get squandered if the bank¿s bets go south. These are called ¿reserves,¿ (hence, Federal Reserve. Got it? Good), and usually amount to 10% of the total cash kept in checking accounts.

These reserves are never exactly 10%, and banks like to keep a little extra in reserve ¿ not, as you might think, to make you more comfortable that they¿re in good financial shape, but rather so they can take that excess and lend it to other banks and make money off it. (They¿re banks, they can¿t help themselves.) The rate at which they make these loans is called the Federal Funds rate, which is set by the Federal Reserve¿s Federal Open Market Committee.

When you hear people chattering about how the Fed cut or hiked interest rates, this is what they¿re talking about: the interest rate banks can charge for lending money from their reserves. This begs the question: If these are essentially loans between banks, why is the Fed Funds rate so important for the rest of the economy?

Well, simply put, because loans make the financial world go round. Bank A lends Bank B $10,000 at a Fed Funds rate of 5%. Bank B then lends out $10,000 to a small business at 7%. The small business then takes that money and expands the business and hires new workers. Now someone is employed, Bank B has made interest off the loan, and Bank A is the richer for making it all happen. It¿s perhaps overly simplistic, but you get the idea. When you want the economy to thrive, you make lending cheaper.

Of course, sometimes you don¿t want the economy to thrive. In fact, you might want it to cool down, mostly to avoid money flooding the system and causing inflation. In that case, the Fed raises interest rates, making it difficult to lend or borrow.

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Friday, August 15, 2008

Cadence Withdraws Proposal to Acquire Mentor Graphics

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SAN JOSE, Calif., Aug 15, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) ----Cadence Design Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: CDNS) today announced that it has withdrawn its proposal to acquire all of the outstanding shares of Mentor Graphics Corporation (NASDAQ: MENT) common stock and that its Board of Directors has authorized a $500 million increase to Cadence's stock repurchase program. The Company said:

"Our goal in pursuing a combination of Cadence and Mentor Graphics was to create a company that would offer customers a broader and more fully integrated product and technology portfolio in a timeframe that would better enable them to address urgent and complex challenges associated with their next-generation product development. It is unfortunate for Mentor Graphics shareholders, however, that despite our best efforts, Mentor Graphics' Board and management were unwilling to engage in substantive discussions on what we believe would have been a compelling opportunity to create significant value for both companies' shareholders and customers.

"Cadence is a disciplined buyer and will only pursue transactions that make sound financial sense for our shareholders. Mentor Graphics' failure to engage in substantive discussions on our all-cash premium proposal prevented us from confirming for our financing sources the significant synergies associated with this transaction. That, along with our revised outlook and the present economic climate, led us to conclude that financing terms for the transaction are no longer attractive for our shareholders. We remain focused on executing our strategy of delivering holistic solutions that address our customers' key challenges, while ensuring that Cadence operates in the most cost-efficient manner."

Cadence also announced today that its Board of Directors has expanded the Company's authorized share repurchase by up to an additional $500 million, subject to market conditions. Together with the Company's current share repurchase program, Cadence's total share repurchase authorization is now approximately $912 million.

Cadence will repurchase the shares from time to time for cash in open market transactions or in privately negotiated transactions in accordance with applicable federal securities laws. The timing and amount of the repurchases will be determined by the company's management based on their evaluation of market conditions, share price and other factors. The stock repurchase program may be suspended or discontinued at any time.

About Cadence

Cadence Design Systems, Inc. enables global electronic-design innovation and plays an essential role in the creation of today's integrated circuits and electronics. Customers use Cadence(R) software and hardware, methodologies, and services to design and verify advanced semiconductors, consumer electronics, networking and telecommunications equipment, and computer systems. Cadence reported 2007 revenues of approximately $1.6 billion, and has approximately 5,100 employees. The company is headquartered in San Jose, Calif., with sales offices, design centers, and research facilities around the world to serve the global electronics industry. More information about the company, its products, and services is available at www.cadence.com.

Cadence is a registered trademark and the Cadence logo is a trademark of Cadence Design Systems, Inc. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.

SOURCE: Cadence Design Systems, Inc.

Cadence Design Systems, Inc. Investors and Shareholders: Jennifer Jordan, 408-944-7499 investor_relations@cadence.com
   or Media and Industry Analysts: Adolph Hunter, 408-428-5882 publicrelations@cadence.com or Joele Frank, Wilkinson Brimmer
   Katcher Matthew Sherman / Ed Trissel, 212-355-4449 msherman@joelefrank.com