Today In Data: Employees Steal, Earnings Reports Wow And Subscriptions Boom

Today in PYMNTS data, employees are stealing tens of billions from their employers every year, earnings reports show growth for tech and payments firms, business-to-consumer (B2C) subscription offerings are on the rise, Visa’s Everywhere Initiative is expanding and Hyperledger’s blockchain consortia is adding new members.

 

Here are the numbers:

$50 billion | Estimated amount employees steal from their employers every year, according to a survey from research firm Statistic Brain. It found 75 percent of workers admitted to having stolen from their employers, not including unmanaged spend they make on behalf of their companies for legitimate purposes.

$283 million | Adjusted revenues for Square Capital in Q4, representing 47 percent year-over-year growth and exceeding the $266.3 million estimated by analysts. Growth accelerated from the 45 percent seen in Q3, and gross payments volume (GPV) increased 31 percent to $17.9 billion. Larger sellers stood out, too, with GPV growing 44 percent year over year and representing 47 percent of the payments volume.

11 million | Number of subscription companies operating in the U.S. B2C subscription market, according to some accounts. The market is poised to expand further too, but subscription commerce isn’t what it used to be and not all forays into the subscription arena are successful. Just ask Blue Apron.

40 | Number of countries in which Visa’s Everywhere Initiative is available. The offering provides startups on five continents a chance to work with Visa to build the next generation of FinTech solutions for their local markets. It’s something of a global treasure hunt through which Visa casts a wide net looking for the best and brightest in startups to resolve upcoming commerce challenges, according to Shiv Singh, Visa’s SVP and global head of Innovation.

11 | Additions to the Hyperledger blockchain consortia this week, including several business-to-business (B2B) companies like 8Common, which explores blockchain for travel and expense (T&E) management and commercial card solutions, and supply chain technology company FORFIRM. Blockchain consortia exploded into the market in 2017, and that collaborative spirit does not appear to have waned.