Top News In Payments: House Passes SAFE Banking Act, SoftBank Mulls $1B WeWork Investment

Today in the payments news roundup, the U.S. House of Representatives passed the Secure And Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act that provides cannabis businesses with banking access. Also, SoftBank Group reportedly intends to put an extra $1 billion or more into WeWork. And Peloton is hoping for an $8.2 billion valuation as it goes public.

SoftBank Considers $1B WeWork Investment Following Stalled IPO

SoftBank Group is reportedly intending to put an extra $1 billion or more into WeWork by renegotiating a warrant agreement.  The warrant agreement was made prior to the stalled initial public offering (IPO) and falling valuations. SoftBank reportedly wants to change the warrant agreement so that it will get a bigger slice of WeWork’s stock at a reduced price.

Passage Of SAFE Banking Act Gives Cannabis Businesses Access To Banking

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Secure And Fair Enforcement (SAFE) Banking Act on Wednesday (Sept. 25). The bill was sponsored by congressmen Denny Heck of Washington, Ed Perlmutter of Colorado, Warren Davidson of Ohio and Steve Stivers of Ohio. The legislation looks to make sure that state-authorized and regulated cannabis businesses don’t have to operate with only cash.

On-Demand Fitness Startup Peloton Pursues $8.2B Valuation

Peloton is hoping for an $8.2 billion valuation as it goes public. The fitness company will float 40 million shares of class A common stock on Nasdaq on Thursday (Sept. 26) priced at $29 per share under the PTON ticker. It will reportedly raise $1.2 billion with the stock offering, nearly doubling its $4.2 billion valuation.

DOJ Seeks Facebook Antitrust Probe

U.S. Attorney General William Barr is reportedly urging the U.S. Justice Department to probe Facebook to see if it violated federal antitrust laws. This new investigation comes on the heels of a Federal Trade Commission probe aiming to uncover if Facebook stifled competition.

How Dunkin’ Uses AI For Order Ahead Analytics

Dunkin’ has 11,300 locations in 36 countries and is one of the biggest quick-service restaurant (QSR) chains in the world. One of the tools fueling its omnipresence is the DD Perks loyalty program. And a sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) network that harnesses data analytics to send customers targeted offers at specific times works behind the scenes. For a feature story, PYMNTS spoke with Stephanie Meltzer-Paul, Dunkin’s vice president of digital and loyalty marketing, on powering DD Perks with AI and the insights the program offers.

Why Being ‘Invisible’ Won’t Be Enough For Payments In The 2020s

If for nothing else, Lyft and Uber will be remembered for making payments all but invisible via a seamless transaction process that was pretty much revolutionary. But being invisible is not nearly enough for payments operators as the new decade nears, as Tom Villante, CEO and co-founder of Yapstone, recently discussed with Karen Webster from PYMNTS.

Beyond the invisible nature of payments these days, Villante said, it’s important to offer something to stand out from the crowd — differentiating factors that appeal not only to consumers but also to the businesses that serve them.