It’s that time again — the last unofficial weekend of summer. In this new edition of the PYMNTS Weekender you can read the news and topics and research that are making waves as Labor Day approaches. Learn about new approaches to fighting fraud, debit cards for kids, the world that Netflix created and is now in danger of losing, and other topics.
Top News
Visa: New Cyber Threats Require New Fraud Tools
The phenomenon of payments fraud is not a modern one — far from it. But as RL Prasad, SVP of payment system risk at Visa, told Karen Webster in a recent conversation, what is new today is the who and the how of fraud, particularly in a digital world.
Debit Cards For Kids — It’s A Thing
Allowances are a surprisingly big business in the United States. According to an early 2019 study from 70 percent of U.S. parents report giving their children a weekly allowance, and the average weekly take is $9.06
Mastercard: The Opportunity Ahead For ePayables
In the quest to streamline B2B processes, and to move beyond the way things have always been done — especially when it comes to managing payments and cash flow — ePayables are gaining traction with financial professionals.
How Square’s Orders API Became Central To Its Strategy
When Square released its first set of developer application programming interfaces (APIs) about five years ago, the focus was to attract partners able to give its sellers tools to more effectively manage their point of sale data.
Peloton’s IPO To Test Subscription Model’s Fitness
The word “subscription” appears more than 200 times in the Peloton S-1, which was recently filed with the SEC.
Girding for the $17 Trillion Negative Interest Rate Debt Trap
Trade wars. Currency wars. And amid it all, lots and lots of debt. Where and when — and, yes, even will — the shoes start dropping?
Trackers and Reports
New Report: Why 84 Percent Of Paycheck-To-Paycheck Gig Workers Want Early Pay
The paycheck cycle long favored by employers can wreak havoc on the finances of gig workers, whose schedules and workloads are often anything but regular. This is especially the case for workers who lack savings and struggle to pay their bills, or those considered to live “paycheck-to-paycheck.”
Spend Solutions That Drive Delivery’s Last Mile
Cash flow is the lifeblood for many small to medium-sized businesses (SMBs). Without it, many SMBs wouldn’t be able to cover their expenses, settle debts with suppliers or pay their employees for their work. Unfortunately, cash flow problems can be too much for some SMBs to bear. According to the latest findings from the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS), 20 percent of SMBs shutter within their first year of operation.
Trending: How Facebook Unfriends Ad Fraudsters
Digital fraud continues to be one of the most pressing issues that marketplaces face today. Experts estimate that total fraud losses in 2018 totaled $3.9 trillion — an increase of 49.5 percent over the last 10 years. However, there is no consistent way of measuring fraud, as many victims are either unaware that they have been defrauded or have a vested interest in keeping their victimization private for fear of scaring off customers.
Fun, Cool and Otherwise Interesting
The Cyber Hack From Space
This week marked a historical milestone that many Americans probably missed in the course of trying to follow a news cycle that is always full, to say the least. This week, allegedly, an American citizen’s bank account was hacked — from space.
The Commerce Magic of National Dog Day
There are the holidays we all more or less accept as real — Christmas, Thanksgiving, the Fourth of July. Then there are the holidays most people accept as real, though there is always a vocal minority that complain they are “made-up” or “Hallmark holidays” — Valentine’s Day, Mother’s Day, Father’s Day and Halloween tend to be the big ones in this category. And then there are the holidays that we all know are made-up, but still have a great time celebrating on social media.
Happy Birthday, Netflix! Good Luck Winning the Subscription Wars
Turn off that TV show or movie — even if you are binge-watching this holiday weekend, just take a minute away from the addictive content — and wish a hearty happy birthday to the force more or less behind all your home-entertainment enjoyment.
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