Today In Payments: Ant Group Launches Blockchain Trading Platform; Meal Delivery Companies Face New CA Rules

Main Street SMBs, Digital AP, GoodRx’s IPO Tops This Week’s News

In today’s top news, Ant Group launched a cross-border blockchain trading platform for businesses, and California introduced new regulations for food delivery startups. Plus, credit card delinquencies have fallen.

Ant Group Launches B2B X-Border Blockchain Trading Platform

As Ant Group, the online payment provider, prepares to go public, the China-based company has launched Trusple, a blockchain platform for cross-border trade by small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to accelerate order processing.

Meal Delivery Companies Face Strict New Rules In California

New laws in California require food delivery startups to collaborate with restaurants before advertising menus and ensure meal safety while in transit.

BoA CEO: More Consumers Keeping Credit Card Payments Current

Bank of America’s CEO said Thursday (Sept. 24) credit card delinquencies are “lower now than they were last year” as more people come off deferrals and consumers are starting to spend more.

Amazon Sidewalk Eyes IoT Beyond The Connected Home

eCommerce giant Amazon announced new details this week about Amazon Sidewalk, its bid to create a distributed (localized) Internet of Things (IoT) network. Sidewalk will use consumers’ in-home Wi-Fi bandwidth to connect devices across long distances, a move toward stitching smart homes together to form “smart neighborhoods” that hints at connectivity that extends beyond individual consumers to entire communities.

Report: Credit Unions Look Past FICO Scores To Unlock Member Credit

More consumers are looking to access loans during the pandemic, but some lack the credit histories needed to obtain them. Credit unions can step up, however, by relying on more than traditional scoring metrics when making lending decisions, says Eric Levine, CEO of Alternatives Federal Credit Union. In the latest Credit Union Tracker, Levine discusses how CUs can tap into alternative data sources to offer financial lifelines to members in need.

How The SBA Helps SMBs Go Cross-Border

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s Office of International Trade named Nick Nicholas of Genesis Water Technologies as 2020 SMB Exporter of the Year this week as the agency makes an aggressive push to help SMBs expand into foreign markets. Loretta Solon Greene, the office’s associate administrator says only 1 percent of America’s 30 million small businesses currently export at all. Here’s how they’d like to change that.

Amazon’s Latest Devices Zero In On The Power Of The Connected Home

Amazon has unveiled its latest hardware ahead of the holiday-shopping season, including new Alexa-powered devices, a Luna gaming system and a $250 flying drone to patrol homes when their owners are out. Here are all the details.