Sat.Jul 02, 2016 - Fri.Jul 08, 2016

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Philippines-Based Bitcoin Remittance App Enters US Market

PYMNTS

Abra , the bitcoin remittance app, has made its way to the U.S. — via the iPhone and Android app options. What that means is that Abra customers in the U.S. or the Philippines can send money to each other using the app’s digital wallet that works with their bank accounts. The company noted in its release that this is the first move in helping it expand globally.

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How the New Revenue Recognition Rules Could Impact Budgeting and Planning

Planful

To date, most of the focus has been on the transactional accounting impact of the new guidelines. But Robert Kugel , SVP and Research Director at Ventana Research, recently published an article highlighting the impact the new guidelines can have on budgeting and planning. Background – What’s Changing and When? Revenue is one of the most important measures used by investors in assessing a company’s performance.

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Why Paris Has A Heart For FinTech

PYMNTS

In this week’s edition of PYMNTS’ Weekly Tech Center Roundup , we find ourselves back in Europe, where Brexit is all anyone can talk about. But we are heading to France, where the country’s capital city is making a name for itself as a booming tech center. Before we jump into the post, here are a few quick facts about Paris and its tech scene: Paris has an estimated population of 2,241,346.

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A Roadie For Everyone

PYMNTS

When the average person confronts broken bathroom tiles, they can be expected to go through something like the five stages of grief described by Elizabeth Kubler-Ross: denial, anger, bargaining, depression and acceptance. The important part is that the average person gets to that last phase, acceptance, and resigns themselves to ordering new tiles and hoping for a better outcome.

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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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Is Lyft Preparing To Sell?

PYMNTS

Ridesharing firm Lyft has been getting ready to capitalize on investor desire to delve into transports and has been exploring raising additional funding or even selling itself to outside interests, Reuters has reported. The newswire said that the firm has been working with investment bank Qatalyst Partners, which is based in Silicon Valley. Reuters cited unnamed people familiar with the dialogue.

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Amazon Prime Makes Carrier Bill Deal

PYMNTS

Amazon may be making it easier for Sprint users to add on the Amazon Prime loyalty service. Android Authority reported late last week that Amazon and Sprint now have an exclusive deal that will allow Sprint users to pay for their Amazon Prime subscription by tacking the fee onto their monthly bill. With an additional monthly charge of $10.99, Sprint customers can subscribe to Amazon Prime, and for a limited time, they can also receive Amazon Prime for free for 60 days.

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Can Smartwatches Make ATM PINs Open To Hackers?

PYMNTS

Time and time again, hackers have proven to be one step ahead. From bitcoin ransoms to EMV security, there are few areas that are out of bounds for the clever crew. A recent research study out of Binghamton University now suggests another potential target for hackers: wearable technology. Wearable technology has been a notable trend since the launch of the Apple Watch in April of 2015, but does donning the trendy tech also put the user at risk of getting their ATM PIN hacked?

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PCI Council Creates New Cyberattack Resources For SMBs

PYMNTS

Aiming to help small businesses protect themselves from payment data theft, the PCI Security Standards Council Small Merchant Taskforce announced Thursday (July 7) that it has developed a suite of payment protection resources geared toward small businesses. The resources are created with simple diagrams and everyday language to take the complexity out of it for small business owners.

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The Pop-Up Shop Boom Is Making Retail Concepts Sillier And Sillier

PYMNTS

Is retail heading to the dogs? Seriously. Have you noticed lately how ridiculous some of the concepts for new retail stores are getting? A renowned New York City chef recently teamed up with Kellogg’s to open a trendy cereal-themed restaurant near Times Square and is selling Fruit Loops and Frosted Flakes for $8 or more a bowl. An entire cottage industry has sprung up, both in eCommerce and brick-and-mortar locations, exclusively dedicated to men’s beards and the “art” of grooming them.

Retail 42
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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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Employers: The Other Payday Lender

PYMNTS

The payday lending market is at a bit of a crossroads as regulators flex their regulatory muscles and look to establish new rules for the payday lending industry. While much has been written — on these pages and beyond — about that debate, there are three universal truths about these short-term, small dollar lending products. First, consumers need them and use them.

Banking 42
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Android’s Encryption Woes: Bad For Google, Worse For Everyone Else

PYMNTS

Apple might generate long lines at its stores every time it releases an iterative iPhone, but there’s no doubt that, when it comes to OS market share, Android has been stealing Apple’s lunch money lately. In May, Kantar Worldpanel confirmed that Q1 2016 sales of Android phones had grown in just about every major market that matters — 7.1 percent in Europe, 7.3 percent in the U.S. and 6 percent in China.

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Does A Fatal Crash Mean The End Of The Automated Driving Industry?

PYMNTS

Would you ride in a car driven by a computer? As cool as the idea and concept of automated driving sounds, there are still many people who feel uncomfortable with such a notion or who argue that it will never truly be 100 percent safe. Arguments that were thrust back into the spotlight last week after Tesla revealed that a driver using the Autopilot feature on its Model S was killed on a Florida highway in May after the vehicle drove into a tractor-trailer.

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Apple Pay Comes To Switzerland, Its Second European Country

PYMNTS

Apple isn’t resting on its laurels when it comes to expanding its mobile payment service beyond the U.S. The company announced Thursday (July 7) that Apple Pay has officially entered the Switzerland market. . This marks the first country in Europe outside of the U.K. to start accepting Apple Pay as a payment method. Currently, the service is available in the U.S., Canada, Australia, China and Singapore.

Banking 41
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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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Global Cybergangs Take The ‘Cyber Arms Race’ Lead

PYMNTS

It looks like the use of profitable malware fraud attacks is helping cybercriminals to remain one step ahead of authorities. In the release of its first Cyber Crime Assessment report on Thursday (July 7), the U.K.’s National Crime Agency (NCA) said that police and businesses are losing the “cyber arms race” to these sophisticated criminals. According to the data, the most significant and advanced threat to the U.K. is actually from a small group of international crooks that use “highly pro

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Want To Fake A Swiss Watch? Yeah, Maybe Not So Much Anymore.

PYMNTS

As most retailers know, few things can threaten a business’ or a product’s integrity like counterfeiting. But makers of high-end Swiss watches, which can sometimes run upwards of $10,000 or more, now have a new tool to help them guard their brand’s supremacy and fend off would-be counterfeiters — tiny, nanoscopic watermarks that are invisible to the naked eye, impossible to fake and only visible under an ultraviolet light as a hologram.

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Alexa Learns A New Skill – Ordering Millions Of Items Off Amazon

PYMNTS

Alexa , the voice-activated assistant for Amazon’s Echo, got mad skills, yo. Literally. Amazon revealed last week that Alexa has now learned more than 1,400 skills , everything from ordering Ubers to helping you organize a new playlist for the gym. Now you can add another skill to Alexa’s exponentially growing list: the virtual assistant can now be used to orders millions of items from Amazon itself, anything from batteries to deodorant, according to CNET.

Retail 41
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PYMNTS Daily Data Dive: Apple Pay’s Latest Move

PYMNTS

Apple Pay is officially in play in another country: Switzerland. For Apple, this is the first country in Europe outside of the U.K. to start accepting Apple Pay as a payment method. Currently, the service is available in the U.S., the U.K., Canada, Australia, China and Singapore. As for the latest figures that have been shared about how Apple Pay’s growth is coming along, we’ve gathered them in today’s Daily Data Dive 5-in-1. $10.9 Billion | Apple Pay’s usage volume in 20

Numbers 41
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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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European mPOS Player Sees US Opportunity Too Good To Pass Up

PYMNTS

The onset of the EMV liability shift last October didn’t just make ripples in the U.S. market – it also caught the attention of mPOS players across the pond. The massive payment infrastructure overhaul, which came with an estimated $8.65 billion price tag, led U.K based- payleven and SumUp , two mobile point of sale solution providers, to invest in the U.S. market.

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Inside The Mind Of The Matchmaker

PYMNTS

Matchmakers are the type of business that dares to go where many other businesses refuse to even try: as the intermediary that matches customers with a need with customers who can meet their needs. It only looks easy. Uber, Google, Visa, Airbnb, Facebook, Westfield Malls, NASDAQ and Microsoft are all matchmakers who’ve cracked the code on getting a critical mass of customers on board.

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Apple’s Spotify Subscription Rules Spat

PYMNTS

Tech giant Apple has issued a heated three-page response to a letter from streaming music company Spotify which had accused Apple of putting in place App Store policies that are ‘anticompetitive.’. Spotify had sent the ‘anticompetitive’ accusation letter to Apple earlier last week, after Apple blocked an update to Spotify’s iOS app, allegedly to thwart any potential competition to its Apple Music service.

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Economic Turmoil Propels SME Crowdfunding In Brazil

PYMNTS

There may be one bright spot for Brazil’s financial services industry as political and economic turmoil rattle the nation. Reports by Newsweek on Friday (July 1) said entrepreneurs are looking to online funding, crowdfunding and alternative lending to start their businesses as Brazil endures its worst economic recession in decades. One company operating in this market is Kickante, whose founder, Candice Pascoal, said she was inspired by U.S. crowdfunding sites Indiegogo and Kickstarter b

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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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Treasurers, CFOs Raising Their Payments Expectations

PYMNTS

Corporate treasurers and chief financial officers are on the hunt for a better way to make payments, especially internationally. That’s according to corporate software firm FIS , which published the findings of its latest survey on corporate payments needs last week. According to the data, more than half (53 percent) of treasurers said they have standardized at least three-quarters of their payments volumes.

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UPS Lockers Will Make It Easier To Pick Up Packages

PYMNTS

Ever had a UPS delivery that you’ve missed because you were working, out running errands, or had some other perfectly normal reason why you were not at home between the typical 9-5 hours? Or maybe you live in an apartment that UPS can’t access or an address that UPS doesn’t ship to. We all know how annoying missing a UPS package can be (because, of course, you have to drive miles and miles out of your way to the warehouse, which seemingly can only be accessed during certain late night and

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This Charity’s Trick To Raising Money Via Venmo

PYMNTS

It’s not easy for nonprofits to advertise, particularly because of their tight budgets and often lean staff. It’s also not always easy to raise money. That’s why one charity, Water Is Life, wanted to use Venmo to collect small payment donations. There was only one problem: Venmo doesn’t enable advertisements on its app. But the team at Water is Life found a loophole, a little one that they have now dubbed the “Venmo Micro Hack.” And to be clear, the company di

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Hotels Take On Travel Booking Services

PYMNTS

Sometimes buying direct pays — and that is increasingly true when traveling to certain hotels. In an effort to lower the payments hotels pay to online travel websites, Hilton Worldwide Holdings Inc. and Marriott International are offering exclusive discounts to members of their loyalty programs. According to a report in The Wall Street Journal , the discounts can be as high as 25 percent, granted the loyalty members book their stays through the hotel website instead of an online travel operator

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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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Mobile Banking SMEs More Confident In Growth, Says Survey

PYMNTS

The travel and expense management space has earned a place as a top adopter of mobile solutions for the enterprise. But new data says other aspects of corporate finance are quickly joining the mobile solution bandwagon. Data released by Raddon Financial Group found an increasing demand for mobile banking solutions, especially among small businesses.

Banking 40
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Sizzle Or Fizzle: Walmart Pays Pays Off, Marketplace Lending Falls Off

PYMNTS

You gotta admit, the best sizzle of all is a short work week – especially in the summer. The second best could be reading this weekly feature. Here goes. SIZZLE. Walmart Pay. Walmart Pay released its six-month report card , with some pretty interesting stats: ubiquity at all 4,600+ stores, high usage, high repeat usage, rave reviews from their users and a growing crop of brand evangelists that, Walmart Pay execs say, have become an effective recruiting engine.

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Why Wells Is Calling Rejected Small Biz Loan Applicants

PYMNTS

Small businesses today have struggled to access working capital loans from traditional lenders, giving way for alternative and marketplace lenders to enter the sphere. The lag in small business lending by banks is no secret; earlier this year, the U.S. Federal Reserve found that, while bank lending to small businesses was up, it has yet to return to pre-recession levels.

Banking 40