Welcome to What’s Trending In Payments – a weekly look at the most popular, irreverent and important stories the payments industry had to offer over the past five days. Which companies grabbed the most headlines – for better or for worse – this week, and which topics have the industry abuzz with intrigue, laughter or disbelief? Featuring breakdowns from the PYMNTS.com staff and commentary by Karen Webster, here’s our take on what all of you payments peeps thought.
Pawn Shops The New Life Blood Of SMB Lending
Why It’s Hot: Small business people are forced to pawn the family heirlooms to get loans since they can’t get it from their banks anymore.
Karen’s Commentary: Well, if you ask me, it could be worse. There was another story I read this week that people are getting spare cash from selling hair, breast milk and other parts of their bodies. So, selling that ugly broach from Great Grandma Jones probably isn’t such a bad alternative, after all!
PYMNTS Team: Pawn shops made it into the 21st century?
Top Tweet: @Zillidy The oldest form of lending (#pawn) is making a comeback for small business owners: http://bit.ly/1dsKdzy #smallbusiness #loans
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Pre-Halloween Happenings Spook Retailers Before Holidays
Why It’s Hot: Leading indicator that the economy is in pretty dicey condition. Plus, if online is bad physical will be worse.
Karen’s Commentary: Hey, here’s an idea. Instead of giving out candy this year, we can all dump our spare change in those plastic pumpkins the kids carry around and then send it all to Washington to pay down the debt! Talk about crowdfunding! Trick or Treat for the U.S. Deficit! So, who will you dress up as?
PYMNTS Team: Uh oh. We just hope things get less scary by Christmas
Top Tweet: @mtoney: Ho-Hum Holiday Retail Outlook: It’s beginning to look a lot like a slow retail holiday season…
Bitcoin Still Not Accepted For Border Bribes
Why It’s Hot: There’s still crooks who only take cash.
Karen’s Commentary: I think I could make an app for that! A P2P bribe application for mobile phones that would enable those asking for bribes and those giving bribes to just bump their phones together. The Payola App! It would be killer if I could figure out how to put the bribe in escrow until the illegal stuff happened.
PYMNTS Team: We are so confused. So you can use bitcoins to hire a contract killer, but not to ask the border guard to look the other way? Sometimes we just don’t get this crazy world of ours.
Top Tweet: @bitcoinagency – #Motorcycle adventure will set up #Bitcoin exchanges in #Africa http://fb.me/UMlW7tap
