Sat.Dec 03, 2016 - Fri.Dec 09, 2016

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Viber UK Users Can Send Money Thanks To Western Union

PYMNTS

Western Union, the global payment services company, announced Wednesday (Dec. 7) it is enhancing its relationship with Viber, the mobile messaging app that counts 745 million unique users around the globe. In a press release , Western Union said it is enhancing its existing relationship with Viber by enabling Viber users in the U.K. to send money domestically and internationally to more than 200 countries and territories via the Viber app.

Leverage 105
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Hackers Take Crimeware-As-A-Service To New Heights

PYMNTS

Botnet attacks are not only growing in popularity among hackers, but they are also delivering a new level of sophistication and danger to businesses and consumers worldwide. In this week’s Hacker Tracker , PYMNTS caught up with security experts at digital security products provider Avast Software to gain insight into the rise of Crimeware-as-a-Service and why the industry should be taking notice of the growing threat of malicious botnets, like Avalanche and Mirai.

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Amex Acquires InAuth

PYMNTS

The American Express that exists today would look pretty foreign to its first employees of 166 years ago — since, to state the obvious, a lot has changed over that period of time. Long before American Express was a credit card issuer and a closed loop payments network, it was in the business of moving mail (and other things) quickly from one coast to the other.

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Circle Says Bye-Bye To Bitcoin

PYMNTS

There are pivots and then there are wholesale about-faces. Circle’s choice to halt bitcoin trading in favor of doubling down on more traditional mobile pay certainly counts as a bit more of the latter than the former. Circle launched three years ago mostly as a consumer finance firm built on a bitcoin backbone. Customers were able and encouraged to buy and sell bitcoin on the platform — and as a blockchain-based firm, Circle was able to snap up around $70M in investor funds.

Finance 81
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Planning Your Restaurants Path to Profitability

Speaker: James Kahler, COO of Full Course

Ever wondered where to splurge and where to safely conserve when it comes to operating and growing your restaurant? 🤔 Join James Kahler, COO of Full Course and industry visionary, in this new webinar where he'll talk all about best practices to invest in your restaurant's success! Whether you're a new business or an established restaurant, a seasoned pro or a rookie, you'll learn the keys to sustainable success in this competitive industry.

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When IoT And The Automotive Industry Collide

PYMNTS

The automotive industry just had a head-on collision — with technology. That’s what Marques McCammon , GM for connected vehicle solutions at Wind River , thinks anyway. He explained that the automotive industry is the one place where the concepts of IoT can be made very real to the mass market — where they will be able to see it, understand it and really feel its impact.

Math 80

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DA’s Office In Pennsylvania Pays Ransom In Bitcoin

PYMNTS

At a time when the IRS is trying to find out the identities behind bitcoin users, the Pennsylvania Allegheny County District Attorney’s office revealed it had to use bitcoin to pay a ransom to get its data back. According to a report by Forbes , the ransom was only $1,400, but the fact that a government agency paid a ransom and used bitcoin is something not seen before.

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Scotland Sheds Industrial Rep For FinTech Focus

PYMNTS

Scotland’s economy has excelled in industrial industries such as shipbuilding, steel and petroleum, but the country is turning its attention to developing a rising digital tech scene. In this week’s installment of PYMNTS’ Weekly Tech Center Roundup , one of the country’s thriving tech clusters, Glasgow, takes center stage. Before we jump into the post, here are a few quick facts about Glasgow and its tech scene: Glasgow it the largest city in Scotland and the third largest in the U.K., with an e

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It’s B2B FinTech’s Time To Shine For Investors

PYMNTS

Venture capital has hit a plateau, according to some analysts. “After $100M+ checks flowed freely to VC-backed companies through much of 2015, the mega-round trend has settled into a lower range through 2016,” concluded KPMG and CB Insights in their Q3 2016 venture capital report. Data suggests the trend is global: North America VC investments for the quarter were fairly flat compared to Q2, and while Europe saw an increase in the number of deals for VC funding, there was a decline i

B2B 79
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The Virtual Barista Is In: Starbucks’ Chatbot

PYMNTS

A chatbot is on the horizon for regular users of the Starbucks mobile app. Called My Starbucks Barista, the new technology’s announcement came out during an event for investors where current and future CEOs of the firm, Howard Schultz and Kevin Johnson, outlined the company’s five-year growth plan. During the investor event, Starbucks premiered a demo video of the technology, with a customer speaking into the phone to interact with a chatbot that asked contextual follow-up questions.

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How Automation is Driving Efficiency Through the Last Mile of Reporting

Speaker: Jamie Eagan

As organizations strive for agility and efficiency, it's imperative for finance leaders to embrace innovative technologies and redefine traditional processes. Join us as we explore the pivotal role of digitalization and automation in reshaping what is commonly referred to as the “last mile of reporting”. We’ll deep-dive into why digitalization is no longer a choice, but a necessity for finance departments to stay competitive in a fast-paced environment touching on: 2024 trends for the Office of

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Millennials Reluctant To Give Personal Data, Businesses Depend On It

PYMNTS

Between the Instagram selfies, Twitter hashtags and Facebook posts, millennials seem to overshare. Their life is an open book on social media, and even the tiniest of details are never too much to provide. But when it comes time to hand over information to authenticate themselves to conduct a financial transaction, that door slams shut. “The more information that’s asked of them, the less likely it is that [millennials] will finish the application,” said Johnny Ayers, cofounder of Socure.

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Will Mobile Wallets Ever Be Wallet Of Choice?

PYMNTS

Vantiv and iModerate know that the word wallet has come to mean much more than just the accessory thrown in a purse or back pocket. Today, the word can also describe a mobile app that stores digital versions of a person’s payment cards, loyalty cards, gift cards and even coupons — enabling payment to take place with just a tap or scan. While mobile wallets can be a quick and convenient option to help consumers expedite checkout, keep their information secure, and streamline retailer discounts an

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Chase Pay And LevelUp Take On QSR Payments

PYMNTS

“Build a better mousetrap,” the expression goes, “and the world will beat a path to your door.”. Everyone knows the quote, including Chase Pay and LevelUp, and while not everyone knows it is a paraphrase of a longer quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson — “If a man can write a better book, preach a better sermon, or make a better mousetrap than his neighbor, though he build his house in the woods, the world will make a beaten path to his door,” — they know what it means.

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Xero’s Faith Lands In Artificial Intelligence

PYMNTS

SME accounting platform Xero has big hopes for artificial intelligence. A new report by IT-Online featured Xero South Africa Head of Accounting Colin Timmis, who mused on the topic of AI and how it can change accounting. “AI and smart machine-learning programs will be the next big thing, enabling automation to further disrupt the industry and the role of the accountant,” he said.

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Register Now: Sneak Peek Into Close Automation SkyStem Web Demo

Technology is rapidly changing the way accountants perform and manage month-end activities. Spreadsheets, email, and shared drives no longer have to slow us down. Join us as we present a "sneak peek" recorded demo of SkyStem's month-end close solution – ART. In under four weeks, your team can start reaping the benefits of month-end close automation by vastly reducing spreadsheets, cut down on reconciliation work, speed up the month-end close, and better manage your remote team.

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Attending To Unattended Retail

PYMNTS

Vending machines. They’ve come a quantum leap from the days when you’d plunk some change into the slot, watch the candy bar — or whatever you were hoping to buy to satisfy that impulse purchase itch — get stuck between the dispenser and the glass, shake the machine, risk death by flattening and eventually claim your slightly stale prize. In an interview with PYMNTS’ Karen Webster, Mike Lawlor, chief services officer of USA Technologies, dove into the innovations that have marked the unattended r

Retail 76
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High-Profile — But Secretive — Funding For B2B FinTechs

PYMNTS

For startups, 2016 wasn’t the best year in venture capital. Analysts say that investors’ wallets could be opening up as we enter 2017, though. “VCs used 2016 to manage costs, set priorities and valuations,” explained Rahul Khanna, managing partner at Trifecta Capital, in an interview with Business Standard published Wednesday (Dec. 7). “It was important for investors to pause, focus on the basics, which sent a message to the founders that raising money is not going to be easy.

B2B 76
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Singapore, Thailand Love Instagram, eCommerce

PYMNTS

Southeast Asia, including Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia, with its population of over 620 million, is predicted to be the next site of an eCommerce boom. The region’s internet economy is projected to become a $278 billion market by 2025 , with immense growth expected in all online sectors, but especially in mobile payments as companies across the region invest more in digital infrastructure.

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Are Banks Keeping Pace With The Speed Of Innovation?

PYMNTS

The speed at which digital banking is being transformed by new technologies is rapidly increasing. From behavioral biometrics to new selfie technology, financial institutions are being presented with even more ways to distribute their services across digital channels to meet customers where they want to interact. Whether that’s on their mobile device on the go or in their kitchen while they make dinner.

Banking 76
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Accounting Software and ERP Readiness Guide

In this white paper, we explore the factors to consider in deciding whether the time is right for your Company to consider a new ERP or accounting software, the total cost of ownership and plans necessary to make the potential leap to these systems.

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Vantiv, PPRO Team On Alternative Payment Methods

PYMNTS

Vantiv, a provider of payment processing services and technology for merchants and financial institutions, announced it, along with PPRO Group, a cross-border ePayment provider, are partnering up to provide international alternative payment methods (APMs) to Vantiv’s merchants. In a press release, Vantiv said the new relationship enables Vantiv customers to be able to offer non-card payment methods — including direct debit, bank transfers, cash-based ePayments and eWallets — to international c

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India Government Wants Standard QR Code

PYMNTS

Quick response barcodes, or QR codes, are making their way to India, with the Indian government reportedly requesting payment providers in the country adopt a standard QR code. According to a report , the Indian government is asking RuPay, Mastercard and Visa, the three mobile payment providers in India, to adopt a standard QR code so that it can help with ePayments offline.

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US Finds Its Faster Payments Future

PYMNTS

Same Day ACH, the faster payments initiative for banks and other financial institutions in the United States, seems to be popular. According to NACHA, the network processed nearly $5 billion in 3.8 million transactions, with an average transaction value of more than $1,000, in the month of October alone. But the U.S. still has a long way to go and plenty of faster payment lessons to learn.

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Almost 1M Routers In Germany Hacked By Botnet

PYMNTS

The Mirai botnet strikes again. A new version of the Mirai computer worm knocked more than 900,000 German ISP Deutsche Telekom customers offline due to infected routers, Krebs on Security reported last week. A newly discovered vulnerability in the firmware of the devices is believed to be the entry point for the botnet, which then turns off the remote upgrade feature and complicates restoration efforts.

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Recruit and Retain New Blue-Collar Talent

Blue-collar jobs have a branding problem. One company, GEON, partnered with Paycor to find the solution. Learn how to attract, engage, and retain blue-collar employees, helping them build meaningful careers – and support your company’s goals.

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ACI Aggregator Services Expediate Fast Payments

PYMNTS

The Faster Payments scheme in the U.K. has changed the way payment service providers are approaching the immediate availability of funds. While the New Access Model provides the ability for payments players to offer their customers real-time payments 24/7, the initiative can still be a challenged for organizations that may not have enough resources and experience to run a payments system.

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Checking In On The Small Business Owner

PYMNTS

The world is preparing to enter into a new year, and small businesses are getting their New Year’s resolutions lists in order. PYMNTS checks up on the health of the small business in the U.S., U.K. and Australia and finds a few spots that could be cause for concern. Luckily, analysts expect that, with the conclusion of the U.S. presidential election and a clearer vision of what SMEs will face from markets and regulators next year, there is also a lot to be optimistic about. $62 billion in

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KPMG Aligns With Ivalua For Procure-To-Pay

PYMNTS

KPMG has tapped spend management firm Ivalua to enhance its procure-to-pay offerings. The companies said Tuesday (Dec. 6) that they have partnered to combine their perspective expertise in the procurement field. KPMG and Ivalua said they are looking to help procurement departments in companies of all sizes gain greater control of corporate spend, reduce procurement risk and add greater automation to their business processes. “This alliance will help clients deliver greater value from procu

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Align Commerce Links To Another Market

PYMNTS

Align Commerce has been gradually adding new markets connected into its B2B payments platform, and on Thursday (Dec. 8), the firm revealed its latest target. The U.K. is the newest country to link into the Align Commerce system, enabling SMEs to send and receive payments across borders to the more than 60 countries now integrated into its offering. Align Commerce offers multiple payment rails for international payments to streamline and accelerate the rate at which money is moved.

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PowerPoint Best Practices for Creating Stellar Presentations

Mastering data visualization in PowerPoint will help accelerate your career because it positions you as someone who can present data that drives business decisions forward. think-cell's PowerPoint Best Practices eBook was created specifically for professionals aiming to master the art and science of data-driven storytelling. What’s inside: Practical Insights: Uncover valuable tips for crafting engaging and persuasive presentations.

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What ‘Unscorable’ Consumers Really Look Like

PYMNTS

It may be easy to assume that the nearly 30 million–35 million consumers in the U.S. who can’t get a credit score through traditional scoring models are very different from those who can. But the truth is: Those impacted by exclusionary credit scoring models, also known as “unscorables,” actually have financial and credit capability profiles that are similar to those consumers who are able to obtain credit scores.

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Uber Creates AI Labs; Buys Startup To Staff It

PYMNTS

Ride-hailing app startup Uber announced Monday (Dec. 5) the creation of Uber AI Labs, which is a new unit of Uber that will be based in San Francisco and focused on research in artificial intelligence and machine learning. In conjunction with the new unit, Uber also announced it is acquiring Geometric Intelligence, an AI research startup that is 15-strong and will create the initial core of the AI Labs team.

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ThyssenKrupp Trade Secrets Stolen In Massive Hack

PYMNTS

ThyssenKrupp, the German steelmaker, disclosed Thursday (Dec. 8) that it was hacked and the bad guys stole technical trade secrets from its steel product and manufacturing plant design divisions. According to a report by Reuters , the cyberattacks occurred earlier in the year. The steelmaker said the attackers resided in Southeast Asia and that the hack was “organized, highly professional hacker activities.