Pandemic Supply Chain Pivots, Cross-Border Conversion, P2P Payments Top This Week’s News

It’s the end of the work week, and the PYMNTS Weekender is here to make sure you didn’t miss anything with the latest in payments and commerce news. We have deep dives on pandemic supply chain pivots, cross-border conversion and peer-to-peer (P2P) payments.

Top News

Sam’s Club On Bringing The Digital Shift To Warehouse Stores

Sam’s Club Scan & Go app debuted in 2016 and lets shoppers scan barcodes and show staffers digital receipts as they leave stores. Eddie Garcia, the retailer’s senior vice president and chief product officer, says use of the app has jumped almost fivefold as of March.

Visa, Facebook Link Up For P2P Payments, eCommerce On WhatsApp

Visa is at work with Facebook so that consumers can completely harness the new payments functionality on WhatsApp in Brazil.

FDIC: US Banks See Chargebacks Soar, Profits Tank Due To Pandemic

Bank profits in the United States took a 69.6 percent hit for Q1 compared to the same period in 2019. The profits just hit $18.5 billion as the COVID-19 health crisis keep making lenders write off debt and stash billions to prevent losses at a later time.

US Casinos To Go Cashless, Citing Pandemic Fears

American casinos are going in the direction of cashless gaming to keep visitors and staff safe from the coronavirus.

Why Digital’s 3.0 Shift May Take Longer Than We Think

There is a rush to capitalize on a digital shift powered by the pandemic, and it isn’t about providing physical a digital channel. It’s about integrating the physical into a digital-first experience. And the shift won’t happen overnight.

Trackers And Reports

NEW DATA: A 20-Step Guide To Boosting Cross-Border Conversion

IP recognition technology is one method, among others, that retailers can use to make the cross-border payment experience streamlined for shoppers. The newest Cross-Border Merchant Friction Index explores which checkout features international online shopping retailers can prioritize when they design their checkouts.

From T-Shirts To PPE — What Hanes Learned From Its Supply Chain Pivot (B2B Payments Tracker)

Attire brands are working to help combat shortages of personal protective equipment (PPE), but Hanes Vice President and Chief Communications Officer Matt Hall says that smoothly and quickly handling these transitions requires making new designs, harnessing local supply chains and having manufacturing facilities reopened as well as running.

eBay’s Head Of Payments On Localizing Buyer-Seller Experiences (Payments Orchestration Tracker)

The support of local payment methods, while ensuring know your customer (KYC) and anti-money laundering (AML) compliance as well as tracking currency exchange rates can put pressure on the resources of retailers. eBay Head of Global Payment Services Keala Gaines explains how the marketplace seeks to mitigate the logistical hurdles for sellers on its platform.

Fun, Cool and Otherwise Interesting

Walmart, Shopify And The Shot Across Amazon’s (Marketplace) Bow

Walmart has teamed with Shopify in an effort to bolster its digital marketplace presence.

Can Telehealth And Other Innovations Cure America’s Post-Pandemic Medical-Cost Woes?

Medical offices and hospitals first closed their doors for all except the most essential services early in the pandemic due to worries over spreading the coronavirus. Now, an inability to pay after layoffs related to the pandemic is keeping patients away.

Will ‘Zombie Companies’ Eat The US Economy?

Zombie companies are still in businesses but are no mired in debt they will never catch up. Enterprises of all sizes, however, are tapping into the debt markets – a move that could make a corporate landscape full of zombie companies.

How The Global Pandemic Fast Tracked Mobile Payments In India

The pandemic has strengthened mobile payments in India and set them to soon overtake card payments.