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Category: PaymentTrends

PaymentTrends

  • Shopify Evolving Into World’s First Retail Operating System

    Shopify Evolving Into World’s First Retail Operating System

    “Shopify is evolving into the world’s first retail operating system,” says Shopify COO Harley Finkelstein. “We think the future of retail is retail everywhere. A brand that’s going to be successful in 5, 10 or 15 years from now needs to sell across any platform and across any channel where they have customers. The idea is that it all feeds back in one centralized back-office, the retail operating system, which is Shopify.”

    Harley Finkelstein, COO of Shopify, discusses how COVID has dramatically sped up the timeline for commerce moving online and has also moved Shopify closer to its goal of becoming the world’s first retail operating system:

    Shopify Evolving Into World’s First Retail Operating System

    Most people assume that Shopify is an ecommerce provider. We have more than a million stores on Shopify. If you were to aggregate our stores in the US we’d be the second-largest online retailer in America. Of course, we’re not a retailer but we’re a platform. But we now have these great economies of scale that we’re using to level the playing field for entrepreneurs and small businesses. That being said, what really Shopify is evolving into is the world’s first retail operating system. 

    What we’re trying to figure out is what do brands and entrepreneurs and retailers need, not just now but in the future? We think the future of retail is retail everywhere. A brand that’s going to be successful in 5, 10 or 15 years from now needs to sell across any platform and across any channel where they have customers. This idea of enabling Shopify merchants to very easily push their products to the Amazon Marketplace or the eBay marketplace or now the Walmart marketplace, that gives them access to a new set of consumers. The idea is that it all feeds back in one centralized back-office, the retail operating system, which is Shopify. 

    Then we’ve gone ahead and asked what else can we do for these merchants? Can we do capital? We’ve now given out about a billion dollars worth of cash advances and loans to small businesses. We’re doing fulfillment and we’re doing shipping. We’re increasing the scope and the relationship that we have with the million stores on Shopify. This is allowing them to become category leaders.

    COVID Speeds Up The Ecommerce Revolution

    From our view, it seems like the commerce world that would have existed in the year 2030 has really been pulled into the year 2020 (as a result of the COVID crisis). We’ve seen ecommerce as a percent of total retail go from 15 percent to 25 percent in the last three months. That’s the same growth rate that we’ve seen over the last 10 years. What really has emerged here is sort of this tale of two retail worlds. On one side you have these resilient retailers that are doing great, they’re pivoting, and they’re expanding their businesses. On the other side, you have these resistant retailers who have not made it. In many ways, it’s probably the most exciting time for retail in a very long time. 

    We talk a lot about these direct to consumer brands that are becoming category leaders. The Allbirds and the Gymsharks who started on Shopify when they were very small and have grown to become the incumbents in their industry. Every 25 seconds a brand new entrepreneur makes his or her (products) for sale on Shopify. We talk a lot about those new startups, those new DTC brands. But actually, what we’re also seeing on Shopify are companies like Lindt Chocolate or Heinz ketchup or Chipotle. They are signing up for Shopify and basically from like five days from contract to launch they are completely changing their businesses. 

    This resiliency isn’t simply in the hands of just the smallest of brands. Big companies are also beginning to think a lot more about how to stay resilient in this time. They’re moving well beyond ecommerce or thinking about offline commerce now. They’re thinking about how do they sell across social media? How do they sell across different marketplaces? So no, I don’t think it’s too late (to enter ecommerce) but I do think they have to rethink their strategies.

    Shopify Evolving Into World’s First Retail Operating System Says Shopify COO Harley Finkelstein
  • Customers Will Be Able to Use Venmo for Amazon Purchases

    Customers Will Be Able to Use Venmo for Amazon Purchases

    Amazon is prepping support for Venmo as a payment option, with plans to make it available in time for the holiday season.

    Venmo is a popular secure payment platform owned by PayPal. Amazon announced that it will begin supporting Venmo on Amazon.com, as well as within the Amazon app. Support will begin rolling out to select Amazon customers today, with full support in the US in time for Black Friday.

    “We want to offer customers payment options that are convenient, easy to use, and secure—and there’s no better time for that than the busy holiday season. Whether it’s paying with cash, buying now and paying later, or now paying via Venmo, our goal is to meet the needs and preferences of every Amazon customer,” said Max Bardon, vice president of Amazon Worldwide Payments. “We’re excited to continue to offer customers even more options when it comes to how and when they want to pay for their order.”

    Once support is added, customers will be able to set up their Venmo account as a payment option and select it when making a purchase.

    Credit: Amazon
    Credit: Amazon

    “We know that the Venmo community of nearly 90 million users value the safety, security, ease, and familiarity that paying with Venmo helps to bring to the checkout experience,” said Doug Bland, senior vice president and general manager, head of consumer, PayPal. “The ability to pay with Venmo on Amazon continues our ongoing commitment to offer the community more ways to spend, send, receive, and manage their money with Venmo.”

  • Stripe Lets 14% of Its Staff Go

    Stripe Lets 14% of Its Staff Go

    Stripe is the latest company to conduct mass layoffs, letting 14%, or more than 1,000 employees go.

    Stripe CEO Patrick Collison sent a memo to employees Thursday to deliver the bad news:

    Today we’re announcing the hardest change we have had to make at Stripe to date. We’re reducing the size of our team by around 14% and saying goodbye to many talented Stripes in the process. If you are among those impacted, you will receive a notification email within the next 15 minutes. For those of you leaving: we’re very sorry to be taking this step and John and I are fully responsible for the decisions leading up to it.

    Collison blamed the decision on a changing world, including significant financial headwinds that have become more apparent throughout 2022.

    At the outset of the pandemic in 2020, the world rotated overnight towards e-commerce. We witnessed significantly higher growth rates over the course of 2020 and 2021 compared to what we had seen previously. As an organization, we transitioned into a new operating mode and both our revenue and payment volume have since grown more than 3x.

    The world is now shifting again. We are facing stubborn inflation, energy shocks, higher interest rates, reduced investment budgets, and sparser startup funding. (Tech company earnings last week provided lots of examples of changing circumstances.) On Tuesday, a former Treasury Secretary said that the US faces “as complex a set of macroeconomic challenges as at any time in 75 years”, and many parts of the developed world appear to be headed for recession. We think that 2022 represents the beginning of a different economic climate.

    The company is taking a number of steps to make the layoffs as painless as possible, including a minimum 14 weeks severance pay, with employees with more seniority receiving even more. The company will also pay all 2022 bonuses and pay employees for all unused PTO. Stripe will also “pay the cash equivalent of 6 months of existing healthcare premiums or healthcare continuation.” The company will also offer career support, immigration support for those on work visas, and more.

    No layoff is ever good, but Stripe certainly deserves credit for trying to make the transition as seamless as possible.

  • Challenges PayPal Will Be Facing in the Future

    Challenges PayPal Will Be Facing in the Future

    Traditional payment methods are increasingly evolving into digital payment methods. PayPal is one of the leading names today in the world of digital payments and arguably, the most popular one due to its competitive PayPal fees and numerous other benefits.

    Paypal earned its prominence by partnering with eBay and is widely recognized by most, if not all, online vendors today. It offers several features to help companies efficiently process and manage their finances and transactions. With digitalization increasing and e-commerce booming, the demand for platforms like PayPal has also been skyrocketing. Consequently, more competitors of PayPal are entering the market. This growing market saturation will likely make PayPal face challenges in the future:

    1. High Competition

    PayPal shared its plan to grow their average revenue per user (ARPU) by integrating new features and having the user hooked to platforms like Venmo, which provided peer-to-peer payment services to over 83 million users in the U.S. in 2021. However, Venmo faces intense competition in the market and threats from platforms like Zelle and Block’s Cash App.

    Zelle alone grew its transaction volume by 59% in 2021, which amounted to $490 billion. Compared to this, Venmo only increased by 44%, which amounted to $230 billion. The competition is rising, and PayPal may be knocked out of its leading position at this growth rate. 

    2. Frequent Layoffs 

    PayPal is reportedly laying off its employees and closing certain operative departments, especially within the research and development team. This team was in-charge of PayPal’s cryptography, quantum computing, and distributed ledger technologies that enabled PayPal to be ahead of its competitors. The reason behind the layoffs was to boost PayPal’s ARPU and reduce the inefficiencies within the company. However, these layoffs can potentially drain the company of its talent. Innovation can be hindered, and the company may face problems if it continues to let go of its existing employees.

    3. Inability To Meet Investor Targets

    PayPal claimed in an investor presentation that the growth in active users will double by 2025 as compared to 2020. The number was supposed to increase from 377 million users in 2020 to 750 million active users in 2025, enabling PayPal to increase its revenue from $21.5 billion to $50 billion and gain massive growth.

    However, PayPal’s active users only grew by 13% in 2021, with revenue growth of  $25.4 billion. It dropped its goal of increasing users in the last quarter, leaving investors confused and disappointed.  The under-delivery of results and inability to meet investor targets can lead to withdrawal of support from investors if frequent results are not delivered. This can also result in a large loss of goodwill for the company. Such decisions will likely have challenging consequences for PayPal. 

    Endnote

    PayPal is still one of the leading names in the world of digital payments and FinTech. However, it must evolve with time to keep up with the rising competition and meet the goals it has set to sustain its shareholders’ interests. If PayPal fails to do so, it may find itself falling behind in the market’s race. 

    PayPal’s stock is depleting each day as the company keeps on over-promising and under-delivering. However, PayPal can still maintain its position by focusing on innovation and partnering up with competitive supporting businesses. This can help PayPal give their business a much-needed boost and assist in gaining back investors’ confidence. 

  • How to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

    How to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

    Credit cards have become highly integrated in the lifestyles of many consumers. But there can be some nasty consequences for getting too comfortable with credit card debt. Here are a few ideas for how to pay off credit card debt, and why it should be a priority.

    Why Is Credit Card Debt So Dangerous?

    Outside of payday loans, credit card debt is just about the most dangerous form. There are several reasons why carrying a credit card balance can be so disastrous for your financial health. These reasons are so intense, that recent studies have shown that people with persistent credit card debt suffer from physical ailments later in life. According to an article from the New York Times:

    “The new research tapped Department of Labor data to analyze the financial health of almost 7,900 baby boomers over more than a decade, from age 28 to 40, as well as their physical health at age 50. It found that people who carried consistently high levels of unsecured debt were 76 percent more likely to have pain that interfered with their daily life than people with no unsecured debt.”

    So what about credit card debt specifically makes it so bad for you? There are two elements to credit cards that work in tandem, which, when left uncheck, can absolutely ruin your life.

    The first issue with credit cards is that they’re extremely easy to use and don’t force you to stop spending at a healthy limit—as is the case with debit cards or cash. When you pay with credit, you’re able to buy significantly more than what’s actually affordable for your budget. It only takes doing this one time to find yourself in a perpetual cycle of debt.

    And what keeps you in that cycle of debt? High interest rates. Credit card balances come with notoriously high interest rates, oftentimes over 20 percent. If you’re not paying off your balance in full each month, it can just keep growing and growing. It makes sense that credit card companies would want to charge a higher interest rate, since they’re offering unsecured debt with few requirements. But many consumers—whether out of want or need—are unable to keep themselves from overspending on their credit cards. Doing this can put you in a cycle so pernicious, it will affect your physical wellbeing.

    How to Pay Off Credit Card Debt

    If you’re looking for credit card debt help, you want to make a plan to pay it down as soon as possible. The longer you wait to take on your credit card debt, the more damage it will cause to your life.

    Utilizing debt repayment strategies such as the snowball or avalanche methods can be helpful in getting yourself on-track to freedom from credit card debt. With the snowball method, you pay off your smallest bills in whole first, and work your way up from there. The idea is that by gaining momentum, you’re more likely to follow through with your debt repayment. By using the avalanche approach, you’ll save the most money. This is because you pay off your debts in order of highest interest rates.

    Some people might also be able to utilize credit card balance transfer to help supercharge their debt repayment. This is where you move your credit card balances to a new account that offers a low introductory interest rate. Doing this can help you get ahead on your debts, without accumulating interest for a period of time.

    What to Do if You Can’t Pay Off Your Credit Cards

    Some people will find that none of these strategies are enough to help get them out of credit card debt. For individuals in this boat, it might be time to start looking for more intensive options, such as debt relief. Working with Freedom Debt Relief is in some respects the ultimate credit card debt help for consumers.

    When you find the right debt relief partner, you have the chance to finally get out from under your oppressive debt—and in only a fraction of the time. This is possible because companies like Freedom Debt Relief can negotiate with your lenders in order to reach a settlement. While this won’t be the right path for everyone, those who have been unsuccessful in finding credit card debt help elsewhere might finally be able to reclaim their finances. If you’re too deep in debt, it might be time to finally seek out help for your credit card debt. This can be a difficult decision, but will be worth it if you can get your life back on track.

  • The Need For Buy Now Pay Later

    The Need For Buy Now Pay Later

    A recent 2022 study revealed that Americans prefer delayed payments for dental and veterinary visits and supplementary charges, a preference driven by payment concerns of many types. Concerned about the costs of healthcare expenses, 3 out of 4 Americans, between the ages of 43 and 57, cite this as a driving force and comprise the highest proportion of any other age group. 2 in 3 U.S. adults acquainted with buy now pay later systems. They count on it as a substitute for traditional cash, credit, and debit payment methods, the switch to delays draws them.

    The Case for BNPL

    BNPL answers concerns about payment due dates, upfront costs, and sacrificing expenditures unexpectedly. These systems also afford consumers flexibility. It appeals to budgeters, which allows them to allocate and reserve expenses for big buys over time. 69% of consumers abide by a budget according to plan, with 78% of pet owners following strict ones. 77% of pet parents are aware of buy now pay later payment methods and 56% have tried it for themselves with success. By integrating expenses into long-term spending habits, instead of forfeiting large sums out of pocket, buy now pay later caters to consumers by allowing them to pay at the convenience of their calendar.

    Buy now pay later methods offer other lesser-known, but perhaps more exciting perks. Ones that are much appreciated by parents of furry friends. 43% express gratitude for the temporal flexibility delayed pay offers. Not only in providing a larger window for payment but even in extending the set end date as needed. 30% are attracted to these systems for their capacity to steer clear of credit card fees and prices paid due to interest, keeping those unforeseen charges afar. 22% of pet owners commend buy now pay later’s fixed and unwavering or tiered rates. These give everyone the same fair grounds and expectations for payment, without being blindsided by fine print policies.

    What Buy Now Pay Later is Used to Pay

    Both veterinarian and dental expenses need time to be paid in full. 38% of American pet owners pay for vet visits with a credit card. For only 18% of them, pet insurance covers the costs of vet fees in full. In dentistry, 40% of U.S. adults take one month, at minimum, to pay the full cost of a dentist visit. Both pet and people patients need more effective tools to help them cover healthcare expenses on their own time.

    Interestingly, American East Coast residents express a higher preference for the implementation of buy now pay later. 55% report being very interested and more likely to use buy now pay later as opposed to 42% of West Coast dentist patients and pet parents who share the same sentiment.

    In Conclusion

    The results of a decisive study that gauged American adults’ holistic preference point to buying now and paying later over the ways we’ve always paid. 71% of U.S. dentistry patients cite a preference for BNPL. A whopping 86% of pet owners preferring this way of covering veterinarian costs. It’s time that healthcare professionals, practices, and institutions cater to the people’s preferred way to pay by offering more time. Also, they should offer convenience, as patients pay when the time is right.

    Buy Now, Pay Later
    Source: Opy.com
  • GSMA: Mobile Money Transactions Top $1 Trillion in 2021

    GSMA: Mobile Money Transactions Top $1 Trillion in 2021

    The GSM Association (GSMA) has released its 10th annual ‘State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money,’ showing the industry processed $1 trillion in 2021.

    The mobile money industry has been experiencing significant growth, according to the GSMA, registering 18% more accounts in 2021 over 2020, bringing the total to 1.35 billion accounts globally. The number of person-to-person transactions reached 1.5 million an hour.

    Merchant payment transactions, in particular, were a driving factor, reaching an average of $5.5 billion per month.

    “2021 was the year mobile money started to really diversify to B2B services. Beyond traditional person-to-person transactions, such as transferring money to family or friends, the industry is now central in helping small businesses operate more efficiently, and serve their customers better” said Max Cuvellier, Head of Mobile for Development, GSMA.

    To learn more, the full 2022 State of the Industry Report on Mobile Money here.

  • PayPal, Venmo, Cash App Will Start Reporting $600 Transactions to the IRS

    PayPal, Venmo, Cash App Will Start Reporting $600 Transactions to the IRS

    Popular payment apps will start reporting payments of $600 or more to the IRS to comply with a new tax law.

    While businesses have been required to report payments of $600 or more for years, this is the first time that online payment apps have been subject to that requirement. Previously, PayPal and others were required to report gross income exceeding $20,000 per year.

    Under the new rule, bar is now lowered to $600. Fortunately, according to Fox News, this new rule only applies to payments classified as goods or services. Money sent to friends and family, gifts, reimbursements, and products sold at a loss will not be included.

    For true income, however, users will need to be more careful when filing their taxes, as the IRS will now have a point of reference.

    “For the 2022 tax year, you should consider the amounts shown on your Form 1099-K when calculating gross receipts for your income tax return,” PayPal’s Q&A section says. “The IRS will be able to cross-reference both our report and yours.”

  • Sezzle Is the Creditization Of a Debit Card, Says CEO

    Sezzle Is the Creditization Of a Debit Card, Says CEO

    “Consumers love our product because it represents purchasing power but also budgeting for them,” says Sezzle co-founder and CEO Charlie Youakim. “They feel safe with it just like they do with the debit card. We’re driving a new wedge into payments between credit and debit. I call it the creditization of a debit card. I think it’s here to say because of that safety element that we give to the consumer.”

    Charlie Youakim, CEO and co-founder of Sezzle, discusses the massive growth of the Buy Now, Pay Later industry and how that is reshaping ecommerce and retail in general:

    Focused Uniquely On Credit Building

    Sezzle is generally focused on the ecomm space, that’s where we do most of our work. We are present on over 44,000 merchant websites. The Buy Now, Pay Later industry, in general, is typically focused on ecommerce. So as that push back into ecomm occurs (potentially due to increases in COVID causing more people to shop from home) we generally benefit from that.

    We compete in this space by really focusing on our stakeholders, focusing on the merchants, focusing on the consumers, and doing the right thing by both of them. We really stand on the high road for the consumer. We are the only player in the space that focuses on credit building which is totally unique. We love it, our consumers love it and our merchant partners love it. By focusing on their needs, these consumers’ needs, and doing right by them and right by the merchants, you have a chance to do a really strong job within the sector.

    Sezzle Pushing Into the Enterprise

    With SMB’s we’ve been growing like wildfire. It just continues for us. That’s how we have that big count of merchants and we expect that to continue. We’re doing a great job there and the merchants love us. It’s viral in that space. For us now the push is into enterprise and in Target, Bass Pro Shops, those are two great examples of that for us. The reason we’re doing that is that our consumer wants to shop with us everywhere so we have to be everywhere. That means we have to be with SMB, we’ve got to be with mid-market, and we’ve got to be with enterprise.

    That will be the push for Sezzle to continue to push in those spaces. If you look at the enterprise players in those spaces, what they want is they want a brand that they can believe in. That’s where you have Sezzle and our halo around doing right by the consumer helping them build their credit score up and being a partnerships player. That’s what really sets us apart.

    Sezzle: The Creditization Of a Debit Card

    The average order value per customer has been relatively stable. We’re around $100 per order. The only reason it’s been tracking a bit up for us is we’ve been expanding our services. We started with a pure ‘pay in four’ for over six weeks interest-free and so that’s where we tracked right around $100. But as we add long-term into the mix we’ve been starting to track upwards. The order values on a 12-month order or 12-month installment plan, tend to track towards $1,000. We feel it’s probably going to stay stable, it’s just going to be a mixed shift that creates any change for Sezzle.

    We see from our consumers that they love our product because it represents purchasing power but also budgeting for them. They feel safe with it just like they do with the debit card. We’re driving a new wedge into payments between credit and debit. I call it the creditization of a debit card. I think it’s here to say because of that safety element that we give to the consumer.

    Sezzle Is the Creditization Of a Debit Card, Says CEO Charlie Youakim
  • Fiserve CEO: From Large To Small There’s a Comeback In Payments

    Fiserve CEO: From Large To Small There’s a Comeback In Payments

    “It’s a great space a great and a great opportunity,” says Fiserv CEO Frank Bisignano. “You have to love the clients and you have to love the payment space. The opportunity to build things and grow is always a lot of fun. From large to small there’s a comeback in payments and we see growth going forward.”

    Fiserv, a major fintech player worldwide, had a strong earnings report in the second quarter with 129 percent growth in revenue.

    Frank Bisignano, CEO of Fiserv, discusses how their Clover acquisition will help the company power their growth going forward. Fiserv announced that they completed their $22 billion purchase First Data which included Clover on July 29:

    From Large To Small There’s a Comeback In Payments

    Clover is an unbelievable platform. It continues to grow. It serves small businesses. We think it’s integral. Our bank partners love it since we announced the deal. We have 160 new banks that want to be Clover partners with us. It is growing. We talked about a 32 percent growth rate in July in the heat of a pandemic. It’s a tool that we help businesses manage their business through. It’s a great asset to help small businesses. We see it as an integrated solution for our company.

    We’ve seen growth with Clover. We talked about seeing what we call internal revenue growth which is driven by transaction volume. We see transaction volume up and there is obviously a large move to e-com. If you look at our Clover platform which has order ahead capabilities and virtual terminal that’s driving that growth. From large to small there’s a comeback in payments and we see growth going forward. There are still businesses coming back in the recovery. Lots of businesses are still working their way back. We’re here to help small businesses grow.

    Fiserve CEO Frank Bisignano: From Large To Small There’s a Comeback In Payments
  • South Korea Poised to Ban App Store Payment Monopolies

    South Korea Poised to Ban App Store Payment Monopolies

    South Korea is poised to become the first country to ban Apple and Google from locking developers into the use of their payment systems.

    Apple and Google are both facing pressure over their respective app stores, and especially over the fact that they try to force developers to use their payment systems exclusively. Doing so ensures developers continue to pay the companies the 30% commission they charge for apps, in-app purchases and ongoing services. Both companies are facing lawsuits in the US, but South Korea is set to take even more drastic action.

    According to AFP, South Korea’s National Assembly is set to vote on a bill — the “Anti-Google Law” — that would force Apple and Google to allow users to choose which payment service to use when making purchases.

    “This law will certainly set a precedent for other countries, as well as app developers and content creators worldwide,” Kang Ki-hwan, Korea Mobile Internet Business Association, told AFP.

    If the bill passes, it will likely encourage countries around the world to take up similar measures.

  • Venmo Redesigns App to Remove Global Payments Feed

    Venmo Redesigns App to Remove Global Payments Feed

    Venmo has redesigned its app to remove the global payments feed, after a high-profile incident in which President Biden’s account was discovered.

    Venmo is the digital payment app owned by PayPal. A key component of Venmo’s popularity is its social component. Users can see each other’s transactions in a social media-style feed. In previous versions of the app, it was even possible to see the transactions of strangers in the global feed.

    Unfortunately for the company, it was extremely easy to find President Biden’s account, leading it to make changes. The new app redesign completely ditches the global feed.

    Venmo has always been social at its core, designed to be a place where friends can split and share payments and experiences. As part of our ongoing efforts to continually evolve the Venmo platform, while staying true to the heart of the Venmo experience, we are removing the global feed, and the friends feed is now the only social feed that will appear in the app. The Venmo community has grown to more than 70 million customers, so this change allows customers to connect and share meaningful moments and experiences with the people who matter most. 

    The move is a welcome one, as far as privacy advocates are concerned, and brings the app a little more into the mainstream.

  • Verizon and Mastercard Team Up to Apply 5G to the Payments Industry

    Verizon and Mastercard Team Up to Apply 5G to the Payments Industry

    Verizon and Mastercard are partnering to bring the benefits of 5G to the payments industry.

    5G stands poised to revolutionize numerous industries, not the least of which is the financial sector. Like most carriers, Verizon has been moving ahead at full-speed in its efforts to deploy its 5G network.

    The two companies plan to use 5G to help “drive transformational solutions for the global payments and commerce ecosystem.” The next-gen wireless technology will help revolutionize new areas of the commerce industry, including contactless payments and autonomous checkout.

    In particular, the two companies’ efforts will help advance the use of smartphones for making and accepting payments, providing touchless retail experiences, VR/AR shopping and creating new ways to consume digital content.

    “Business needs and consumer demands constantly fluctuate. Critical components of long-term success are the ability to remain agile and align with strategic financial and payments partners that have the tools and capabilities to drive industries forward,” said Sampath Sowmyanarayan, CRO, Verizon Business. “Coupling Verizon’s leading global IP network and transformative 5G technology with Mastercard’s deep industry expertise, leading services and solutions, and a strong commitment to innovate, is a partnership that aligns perfectly with what we are striving to achieve at Verizon and one that can create game-changing solutions.”

  • PayPal and Fiserv Bringing Direct Deposit to PayPal and Venmo Accounts

    PayPal and Fiserv Bringing Direct Deposit to PayPal and Venmo Accounts

    Gig workers, and others who rely on PayPal, will be able to have payments direct deposited thanks to a partnership between PayPal and Fiserv.

    PayPal is one of the most popular options for many gig workers and small business owners to be paid. The company has been expanding its offerings to compete more with traditional banks, even offering a debit card that provides cash back. The missing piece, however, has been the ability to receive direct deposit payments, such as paycheck.

    PayPal and Fiserv are partnering to address that shortcoming, providing a way for businesses to send direct deposits to both PayPal and Venmo accounts, via Fiserv’s Carat commerce platform.

    “Fiserv is helping organizations across the globe move money and information with the speed, flexibility, and convenience that today’s consumer is demanding,” said Nandan Sheth, Head of Carat and Digital Commerce at Fiserv. “With the addition of payouts to PayPal and Venmo accounts via our Carat ecosystem, businesses can benefit from enhanced visibility of their brand via a logo, tagline or customized message in Venmo’s social payments platform. This provides our clients with a unique opportunity to drive next generation customer experiences, with the simplicity of doing so at scale through a single API.”

    “With more than 400 million active accounts on the PayPal and Venmo platforms, we are able to provide companies with a fast, easy, and cost effective way to send money in situations such as insurance payouts or other disbursements,” said Dan Leberman, Senior Vice President of Partnerships, PayPal. “This integration is the next step in our long standing partnership with Fiserv and will provide substantial value to enterprises that need to send money directly to customers.”

    The announcement is good news for PayPal and Venmo users, and should help drive usage even more.

  • The Divorce is Final: eBay Sellers Can No Longer Use PayPal

    The Divorce is Final: eBay Sellers Can No Longer Use PayPal

    The end of an era has arrived as eBay is ending its support for PayPal for sellers.

    eBay first bought PayPal in 2002 before splitting the company off in 2015. The two companies continued to work together, but that appears to be coming to an end, at least for eBay sellers.

    According to The BBC, eBay has updated its terms to exclude sellers from receiving funds via their PayPal accounts. While buyers can use PayPal to purchase goods, sellers will need to link their account to an actual bank account.

    In terms of fees, the move has pros and cons for users. On the one hand, sellers will not have to pay PayPal fees. On the other hand, eBay will increase its fees slightly. As a result, the fees will likely be a wash for most sellers.

    One of the biggest tangible impacts will be the time it takes for payments to clear. Most payments will now take two business days to make their way into a bank account, as opposed to same day for PayPal. In addition, many sellers are not happy about being required to link their bank accounts with eBay.

    It remains to be seen if there will be any major fallout from the decision, or if the uproar will blow over. In the meantime, some users will be required to make the change as of June 1, while others will be notified in the coming weeks and months.

  • Shopify: We Are Arming The Rebels

    Shopify: We Are Arming The Rebels

    “We are arming the rebels… the entrepreneurs, the small business owners, the independent brands, and the rebels are winning,” says Shopify President Harley Finkelstein. “It feels like the retail world that would have existed in 2030 was pulled back to 2020. We have seen this massive catalyst to an acceleration in digitalization in commerce and retail. We are writing the future of commerce and entrepreneurs are really the heroes of the Shopify story.”

    Shopify President Harley Finkelstein says the rebels―the entrepreneurs and the small business owners―are the heroes of the Shopify story… and the rebels are winning:

    We Are Arming The Rebels

    There’s a lot to be optimistic about even in the second half of 2021. It feels like the retail world that would have existed in 2030 was pulled back to 2020. We certainly have seen this massive catalyst to an acceleration in digitalization in commerce and retail. But actually, we are writing the future of commerce and entrepreneurs are really the heroes of the Shopify story. We are arming the rebels… the entrepreneurs, the small business owners, the independent brands, and the rebels are winning.

    Consumers have been voting with their wallets for the last ten months or so to buy from independent brands wherever possible. In 2020, 47 million consumers purchased from a Shopify merchant. That’s up 52 from 2019. Our merchant’s performance helped expand Shopify’s lead on an aggregated basis to be the second-largest e-commerce retailer in the U.S. Shopify is now about nine percent of all US ecom. If you think about it, Shopify is a proxy for independent retail and for direct-to-consumer retail.

    Shop Pay Launches Accelerated Checkout

    We only succeed when our merchants do. This has led to us having more than 1.7 million merchants on Shopify. This includes people from first-time entrepreneurs making their first sale every 28 seconds to the likes of O’Neill and Hallmark and Herman Miller and Purina. Diageo, who also just launched in Shopify and in Q4 alone revenue nearly doubled year over year to $978 million. There’s a lot to be optimistic about. Actually, the future of retail and commerce we think is going to look a lot more like these independent brands than these sort of department stores that existed in the past.

    Shop Pay is our accelerated checkout. We just announced it last week. We know that it not only helps merchants get more sales, it helps buyers convert better and much faster. Now we think that providing it to the Instagram and Facebook platforms means that our merchants can not only access new customers on those platforms, and frankly anywhere where customers are, but now can transact in a more efficient way. Shopify is becoming far more than an e-commerce provider.

    Future of Retail Is Wherever Consumers Are

    We are trying to build the world’s first retail operating system, which makes it as easy as possible and where the cost of failure is as low as possible, so more people can participate in entrepreneurship. We think the future retail is not online or offline or anywhere, in particular, it’s wherever consumers are. That’s what we’re trying to build. Seeing Shop Pay move into Facebook and Instagram is a really great way to demonstrate where the future of retail is happening.

    We are trying to get to a point where we completely democratize entrepreneurship. We use a 100-year perspective and we want to build a 100-year company. We’re about 15 years into our journey right now and we have 85 years left to go. In the long run, we’re happy where Shopify is but frankly, on the topic of more participation in the equity markets, we think that is also entrepreneurial and we think that’s also democratizing.

    Shopify CEO: We Are Arming The Rebels

  • Blockchain App Factory Develops Futuristic DeFi Exchange Platform

    Blockchain App Factory Develops Futuristic DeFi Exchange Platform

    Blockchain App Factory announced that it developed a deFi exchange platform that offers security, speed, and transparency for every exchange with the power of distributed ledger technology.

    One of the trends in the cryptocurrency and blockchain arena in 2021 has effectively shifted how all traditional financial services, including saving, trading, insurance, loans, and exchanges work is Decentralized Finance, providing services globally in a permissionless system built on the Blockchain infrastructure. One of the projects within this DeFi landscape is Decentralized Exchange platforms (DEX).

    Built with Smart Contracts and integrated with Cryptocurrency wallets, DeFi DEXs automatically match buyers and sellers and provide fast and safe transactions for the users. This accessible and straightforward approach to managing funds was well accepted among users and is drawing more crypto enthusiasts to such platforms.

    The product offers futuristic Defi exchange services like binance supported wallet, web3 browser extensions, coin swap protocol, tradability, and so on. The entire DeFi exchange is transparent, and the blocks allow to track every transaction. The unlimited trade option enables you to set the value for your purchase and alert you with a notification once the price hits the value. The trading view offers technical analysis to have a successful trading experience. Also, the user has the freedom to track successful trade wallets and the wallet of your interest.

    Customized Tokens are generated from each exchange that allows the user to stake and invest through yield farming protocols for revenue generation. The interchangeable tokens will enable the user to swap tokens across any platform for a low cost. The product reaches the market cap of $97,333,797, which is fully diluted in the pool with a volume of $6,669,128.

    The product’s liquidity pool supports a binance network, which allows for seamless trade options and stake tokens in the liquidity pool. The top exchanges are MXC.COM, Hoo, Uniswap (V2), Biloxi, and Hotbit. The protocol’s unique liquidity engine offers rewards to liquidity providers, and it is integrated with uniswap exchange. This product allows you to integrate third-party wallets of your interest.

  • Required WhatsApp Change Shares Significant User Data With Facebook

    Required WhatsApp Change Shares Significant User Data With Facebook

     

    WhatsApp Privacy Policy
    WhatsApp Privacy Policy

    WhatsApp is making major changes to its privacy policy, including sharing significant user data with Facebook.

    WhatsApp users are seeing an in-app notification of changes to the privacy policy. When going to WhatsApps new terms, it’s clear the messaging platform will begin integrating more tightly with Facebook’s other companies and services, including sharing data between them.

    As part of the Facebook Companies, WhatsApp receives information from, and shares information (see here) with, the other Facebook Companies. We may use the information we receive from them, and they may use the information we share with them, to help operate, provide, improve, understand, customize, support, and market our Services and their offerings, including the Facebook Company Products.

    The information shared with Facebook is substantial, including:

    Your account registration information (such as your phone number), transaction data, service-related information, information on how you interact with others (including businesses) when using our Services, mobile device information, your IP address, and may include other information identified in the Privacy Policy section entitled ‘Information We Collect’ or obtained upon notice to you or based on your consent.

    The new policies will take effect on February 8. The changes are mandatory and individuals will not be able to use WhatsApp unless they accept the terms.

    This is the latest reason why users who value their privacy should switch to Signal for their secure, cross-platform messaging needs.

  • Luxury Online Retailer Farfetch Focusing on Technology to Improve the Consumer Experience

    Luxury Online Retailer Farfetch Focusing on Technology to Improve the Consumer Experience

    Luxury online retailer Farfetch, where product prices start at around a thousand dollars, had a breakout IPO on Thursday, raising $885 million while setting a valuation of $6.2 billion for the company. Then on Friday the stock surged 53 percent above their initial offering price and it’s up again this morning valuing the enterprise at $7.4 billion.

    Farfetch plans to use their IPO windfall to dramatically improve their technology which they see as the best way to improve the consumer experience.

    Farfetch Founder and CEO José Manuel Ferreira Neves recently discussed Farfetch and the online luxury brand industry on Bloomberg:

    Online Luxury is Growing 25 Percent a Year

    It’s a very unique opportunity. You have this amazing global industry. It’s $300 billion, the personal luxury goods industry and only 9 percent is online. There are two opportunities here really. One is the growth of online luxury which is going to grow to 25 percent a year for the next seven years. This is a $100 billion opportunity shift in online luxury.

    The big question is how is technology going to help brands and retailers really improve the consumer experience in the physical store. This is something at Farfetch that we are very passionate about.

    China is an Incredible Opportunity for Online Luxury

    China is a very exciting opportunity. Chinese citizens are at the onset of the luxury industry, whether they shop at home or when they’re shopping abroad. Online penetration is very low in China so this means that there is an incredible growth runway for Farfetch in the territory.

    That led to our partnership with JD.com where we have our own team. We have the Farfetch China app and website, we have local customer service, local payment systems, and local marketing. It’s a truly localized service. That is what’s driving incredible growth to the Farfetch brand in that region.

    WeChat is an amazing app with over 900 million users. It is the Instagram, plus WeChat, plus PayPal, etc. of China in one app. That is very powerful and very interesting. Now with our acquisition CuriosityChina we are powering the retail presence of 80 luxury brands. We think that is very interesting for the industry and we think that is probably something that we will see for the western world.

    Brands Now Using Social and Digital Marketing Extensively

    I think brands move cautiously and they choose their marketing channels very carefully. As these newer channels have developed the brands have adapted to them and their now using social media and digital media extensively to create desire, to drive discovery of new products obviously transactions as well.

    It’s a gradual pace but it’s really exciting that were at that inflection point where the brands see this as a tremendous opportunity.

  • DOJ Suing to Block Visa’s Plaid Acquisition

    DOJ Suing to Block Visa’s Plaid Acquisition

    The Department of Justice (DOJ) is suing to block Visa’s acquisition of Plaid, citing concerns over Visa’s monopoly in the online payments market.

    Plaid is a service that allows users to securely connect their bank accounts with the finance apps they use. This allows them to send and receive money, as well as interact with their accounts.

    Given Visa’s stranglehold on the debit and online payments market, Plaid could be seen as competition and threat to Visa’s business. In fact, according to the DOJ, Visa’s CEO saw the acquisition of Plaid as an “insurance policy” and a way to protect against a “threat to our important US debit business.”

    That threat has come into clear focus as Plaid has been planning a service that would more directly compete with Visa. Although the new service has yet to be released, it is believed to be an online debit service, one that would directly challenge Visa’s dominance.

    Visa’s attempt to buy a potential competitor, to the tune of $5.3 billion, is not going over well with the DOJ.

    “American consumers and business owners increasingly buy and sell goods and services online, and Visa – a monopolist in online debit services – has extracted billions of dollars from those transactions,” said Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim of the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division. “Now, Visa is attempting to acquire Plaid, a nascent competitor developing a disruptive, lower-cost option for online debit payments. If allowed to proceed, the acquisition would deprive American merchants and consumers of this innovative alternative to Visa and increase entry barriers for future innovators.”

  • Apple Will Eventually Fall Apart If It Doesn’t Back Down

    Apple Will Eventually Fall Apart If It Doesn’t Back Down

    “I think taking 30 percent from app developers is egregious,” says Alex Kantrowitz, publisher of the Big Technology newsletter. “It feels like protection money to me. As long as the company continues to rely on other people’s money to make its bottom line it’s going to turn slodgy, slow, bureaucratic, and I think it will eventually fall apart. Apple should back down because rent collecting is bad for its business long term.”

    Alex Kantrowitz, founder and publisher of Big Technology, believes that Apple should back down in its battle with developers like Epic Games because it is bad for their brand and could lead to epic failure for Apple in the long term:

    Epic Had Public Relations Campaign Ready To Go

    I don’t think it’s any accident that Epic went right after Apple’s brand which Apple has worked very hard to cultivate. Apple is a luxury product. What Epic is doing is trying to make this a battle for Apple where it says, do you want 30 percent of our revenue in the app store? Now you have to go from a company that everybody looks up to to a company that owns what it does, which is rent collects on the app store and takes 30 percent of our revenue.

    That’s why Epic has had this public relations campaign ready to go. It’s why it spoke about Apple’s history in the lawsuit. It’s why this was so planned, one move after the other, to show the public that this is actually what Apple is. If Apple is going to take our money they better own what they’re doing.

    Apple Taking 30 Percent From Developers Is Egregious

    What do developers get from the 30 percent that they pay Apple in terms of the revenue that they hand over to stay on the app store? They get the right to exist, that’s one thing. They get quick payments, that’s another. What else are they getting and is that amount of money actually worth it? Would they be paying anybody else that amount of money unless that other person had a monopoly?

    I don’t think it is worth it. I think 30 percent is egregious. It feels like protection money to me. Maybe we get somewhere in the 10 -15 percent range, that seems like the right amount for a developer to pay to Apple because Apple does provide some value. But the number right now is just totally out of whack and it exists because Apple has a monopoly on that store. It’s good that we are seeing somebody challenge what Apple’s doing.

    Apple Is The Only Show In Town For Developers

    Apple is basically the only show in town. If you don’t like what’s going on inside Walmart you go to your neighborhood store. If you don’t like what’s going inside the Apple app store where are you going to go? Maybe you can go to Google but Google is doing the same exact thing. I do think that Apple should definitely charge developers for what they’re getting.

    The question is do developers have any wiggle room so that they can have an opportunity to negotiate with a company like Apple? What Epic is showing is that is not really the case. This is how markets (should) work. You want to have the ability for the supplier and the demander to figure out a price that makes sense versus the supplier just setting the price and your sort of out of the market otherwise.

    Apple Will Eventually Fall Apart If It Doesn’t Back Down

    Apple should back down because rent collecting is bad for its business long term. You have to decide as a business, do you want to make your money milking your asset or do you want to make your money innovating into the future? Right now Apple has decided that it wants to be a rent collector. It’s worked out fine under Tim Cook, I won’t deny that. If you think about Apples’ long term sustainability does it want to build a culture where it’s business is taking a fee off of other people’s businesses or does it want to force itself to invent its way into the future?

    If I’m Apple I’m thinking long term. I want to have a more inventive culture, not a more asset milking culture. As long as the company continues to rely on other people’s money to make its bottom line it’s going to turn slodgy, slow, bureaucratic, and I think it will eventually fall apart. If I’m Apple, the case right here is to back down and think about where I’m going in the long term and it should be in an inventive way and not a rent seeking way.

    Alex Kantrowitz of Big Technology: Apple Will Eventually Fall Apart If It Doesn’t Back Down