At the Motley Fool, we know our readers like to be informed. Here's a quick look at today's most relevant financial news, boiled down to what you need to know.

Greece is given an ultimatum
German Chancellor Angela Merkel and French President Nicolas Sarkozy gave Greece an ultimatum: Either stay in the euro currency union -- or forgo the next aid payment, as well as future aid by the EU and International Monetary Fund. Europe's leaders declared that the Greeks would not get any rescue aid until a decision has been made.

This comes on the heels of Greek Prime Minister George Papandreou's unexpected decision Monday to call a referendum on Greece's bailout plan -- a risky plan that increases the likelihood of a Greek default. Read the full story at The Wall Street Journal.

Filene's Basement to have its final sale
Discount retailer Syms (Nasdaq: SYMS) and its Filene's Basement subsidiary is going broke. The retailer filed for bankruptcy for the third time since 1988 and plans to close all of its stores by early next year. Read the full story at Time.

Qualcomm comes in ahead of expectations
Mobile device chip maker Qualcomm (Nasdaq: QCOM) beat Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter earnings. The company reported sales rose 39% to $4.12 billion in its fiscal fourth quarter, above what analysts expected. Read the full story at Reuters.

Amazon's new e-book library
Today, Amazon.com (Nasdaq: AMZN) announced plans to launch an e-book library for Amazon Prime members. The digital book-lending program will be limited to those using the company's Kindle and Kindle Fire with an Amazon Prime subscription, a service that costs $79 a year. Read more on this at The Wall Street Journal.

Market movers and shakers
Here is a look at the stocks with the biggest price gains and losses for the day yesterday.

Top Gainers

Last

Change

SYMS $9.72 26.73%
Codexis (Nasdaq: CDXS) $5.51 23.82%

Top Losers

Last

Change

Career Education (Nasdaq: CECO) $8.32 (47.84%)
ReachLocal (Nasdaq: RLOC) $7.44 (28.25%)

 Source: Finviz.com.

That's a wrap
So there you have it -- the top financial stories for this afternoon. If you are interested in getting all the news and commentary on these stocks, sign up to My Watchlist here --it's free!