Sat.Oct 12, 2019 - Fri.Oct 18, 2019

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Wearables That Read Your Mind

PYMNTS

The fact that our connected devices are getting to know us pretty well is, by now, well-known. A phone that can unlock a hotel room door. A smartwatch that can call an Uber. A connected car that can not only help the driver find the closest burger joint, but can also order ahead. A voice assistant that can add stuff to a shopping list and then order and arrange for its delivery.

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IMF: Synchronized global slowdown, growth weakest since 2008

Future CFO

IMF has downgraded global growth once again. Global growth is forecast at 3% for 2019, its lowest level since 2008–09 and a 0.3 percentage-point downgrade from the April 2019 World Economic Outlook. Growth continues to be weakened by rising trade barriers and increasing geopolitical tensions, IMF noted. . According to the fund, trade volume growth in the first half of 2019 has fallen to 1%, the weakest level since 2012.

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Trending Sources

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Suddenly Single: How to Plan with Female Clients

CFA Institute

We all start out single and most women, whether they marry or not, will end up that way. Barbara Stewart, CFA, considers the implications.

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Target: Process Optimization

Jedox Finance

A modern enterprise performance management strategy offers significant improvement to the functions of controlling. Having one helps modernize planning processes and provide a measurable advantage for organizations of all sizes and sectors. The New Face of Finance. Digital transformation affects almost every business unit. Above all, the role of the controller is changing significantly as a result of the new framework – away from the traditional accounting functions and towards becoming a strate

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The Human Side of Finance: The Intersectionality of People, Culture, Adaptability, and Resilience

Speaker: Melissa Hurrington

Finance isn’t just about the numbers. It’s about the people behind them. In a world of constant disruption, resilient finance teams aren’t just operationally efficient. They are adaptable, engaged, and deeply connected to a strong organizational culture. Success lies at the intersection of people, culture, adaptability, and resilience. Finance leaders who master this balance will build teams that thrive through uncertainty and drive long-term business impact.

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Paychex Wades Into Wearables, Real-Time Payments

PYMNTS

Payroll and human resource management solution provider Paychex has unveiled a range of new solutions and services at the 2019 HR Technology Conference & Exposition event late last month. In a press release , Paychex announced support for wearable technology through the planned debut of a smartwatch app that enables employees to automatically track time worked.

More Trending

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Veterans and Finance: The Value Proposition

CFA Institute

Won Palisoul talks to Jim Cemprola about what veterans can do for finance and what finance can do for veterans.

Finance 52
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Bringing Autonomous Smart Shuttles To the Masses

PYMNTS

There will be 41.6 billion Internet of Things (IoT)-connected devices around the world by 2025. Consumers and businesses have increasingly employed the technology in a variety of use cases as it becomes more sophisticated, from smart cars to sensors that can be utilized for smart cities. The rise of 5G networks will also enable these devices to communicate more data across longer ranges, which is one of the reasons why investment in IoT is picking up.

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How Crowds Can Drive Digital Economy’s Success

PYMNTS

As the digital economy grows, you can bet that crowdsourcing will become an even bigger part of innovation and disruption, along with hiring and investment — all of which will serve to help build only new companies but vital digital infrastructure. One big recent example in favor of such points comes from Goldman Sachs. A Goldman Sachs program called GS Accelerate enables Goldman employers to pitch their bosses on potential new companies, according to CNBC.

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Renault Pilots Self-Driving Ride-Hailing Service

PYMNTS

Renault has started a public trial of its on-demand car service on the Paris-Saclay urban campus, according to a press release on Monday (Oct. 14). A panel of around 100 people will use the service — provided by two electric, autonomous and shared Renault Zoe Cab prototypes — on the campus from Oct. 14 through Nov. 8. . Two cars with different features will be tested, with passengers able to hail them using the mobile app, Marcel Saclay, which was designed specifically for the ZOE Cab experiment

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Maximizing Profit and Productivity: The New Era of AI-Powered Accounting

Speaker: Yohan Lobo

In the accounting world, staying ahead means embracing the tools that allow you to work smarter, not harder. Outdated processes and disconnected systems can hold your organization back, but the right technologies can help you streamline operations, boost productivity, and improve client delivery. Dive into the strategies and innovations transforming accounting practices.

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What’s Wrong With The Attack On Gig Economy Pay

PYMNTS

Drivers can’t make ends meet. Given the median income of roughly $25,000 a year and the number of hours required behind the wheel to earn that, drivers’ wages fall well below the federal hourly minimum wage. As independent contractors, drivers also have no benefits. After taking into account expenses like gas and insurance, there’s barely enough left over to meet their daily living expenses.

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SoftBank, JP Morgan Discuss Bailout To Prevent WeWork Insolvency

PYMNTS

SoftBank and JP Morgan are in talks to rescue WeWork before it runs out of money, which is expected to happen by mid-November, CNBC reported on Tuesday (Oct. 15). Sources told CNBC that talks between SoftBank and JP Morgan have been ongoing ever since the startup’s IPO was pulled about two weeks ago. The bailout could involve equity from SoftBank and debt from J.P.

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Mastercard, Curb Launch Donation Campaign For American Cancer Society

PYMNTS

Mastercard is teaming with the taxi ride-hailing app Curb to help the American Cancer Society’s Road to Recovery program, which provides free rides to patients going for cancer treatment, Mastercard announced in a press release on Monday (Oct. 14). “Taxis have long been a primary means of transportation for those unable to drive themselves,” said Amos Tamam, CEO of Curb Mobility.

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Outback Steakhouse Pilots Machine Learning Tech

PYMNTS

At multiple restaurants operated by one of its franchisees, Outback Steakhouse is testing machine learning (ML) technology from Presto. The test is focused on the restaurant lobby, but could grow to the kitchen, curbside pickup and dining room areas, CNBC reported. Presto Founder and CEO Rajat Suri said the technology assists restaurants in fixing blind spots, noting that “managers can’t be everywhere at all times.

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Smarter Card Solutions: Meeting the Challenges of Mid-Market Travel & Expense

Our 2025 Center Travel Survey is clear: as corporate travel increases, so does corporate credit cards distribution, and a rise in off-platform travel booking. This 61% rise causes various challenges: compliance, spend control, reporting problems, and a lack of visibility across organizations. To evolve with the ever-changing needs of travelers, decision-makers need a better solution.

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Private Equity Firm Thoma Bravo Acquires UK’s Sophos For $3.8B

PYMNTS

British cybersecurity software company Sophos is being acquired for $3.8 billion by U.S. private equity firm Thoma Bravo , Bloomberg reported on Monday (Oct. 14). Sophos’s three biggest shareholders — Apax Partners and founders Jan Hruska and Peter Lammer — agreed to a cash offer of $7.40 per share. The takeover is among the biggest private U.K. tech deals in recent years.

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The Hidden Fraud That Spells Big Marketplace Losses

PYMNTS

Everyone loves a good, free introductory offer: the month of free access to a streaming service, the free lift from a ridesharing service, the free meal kit delivered right to the front door. Brands know that customers like these offers, which is, of course, why they offer them. They are a great way to get that foot in the door with a consumer, and give them a chance to consider how much they might like to continue using the service — for a reasonable fee.

Numbers 62
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Olo CEO: What Restaurants Don’t Know They Don’t Know About Delivery Aggregators

PYMNTS

The trouble with existential threats is they very rarely show up and announce themselves. When Amazon launched in 1995, it looked to most as a one-trick eTailer that sold books online. A quarter-century later, that online bookstore has profoundly changed the retail landscape and every player operating within it. It would take the better part of two decades for most retailers to see Amazon as much more than a niche business responsible for a tiny fraction of all retail sales on a channel they nev

Retail 61
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Mastercard Outlines Blockchain Principles After Leaving Libra Association

PYMNTS

Mastercard has outlined its intentions with blockchain after its high profile exit from the Libra Association, a coalition of many successful companies meant to help guide and foster oversight of Facebook’s proposed cryptocurrency. “Following our withdrawal from the Libra Association membership process last week, we’ve received a great deal of interest in understanding how we evaluate technologies, programs and partners that have the potential to evolve the payments industry and enhance the valu

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Bringing AI to Finance: How to Leverage Technology for Efficiency and Control

Finance teams are balancing more than ever, but manual processes shouldn’t slow you down. In this ebook from BILL, discover how AI is transforming finance—automating AP, expense tracking, and document management to reduce errors, increase efficiency, and improve financial control. Learn how real companies are using AI-powered automation to streamline workflows, detect anomalies, and gain deeper insights.

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Brazil FinTech Nubank Expands User Base

PYMNTS

The largest FinTech startup in Latin America — Brazil’s Nubank — is reporting a 25 percent increase in the number of clients since August, Reuters reported on Friday (Oct. 11). The digital bank said at the Brazil Investment Forum in Sao Paulo that it has 15 million clients, according to Nubank founder and CEO David Vélez. Vélez said that 10 million out of the 15 million clients are holders of the bank’s credit card.

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UK Contactless Payments Grow 18 Pct. YOY

PYMNTS

New data from U.K. Finance shows that contactless payments in the country continue to grow. In fact, almost 50 percent of all debit card payments are contactless. In July of this year, cardholders in the U.K. made 1.5 billion transactions with their debit cards, which is a jump of 8.9 percent from the previous year. The total amount of the transactions was £50.7 billion ($63.8 billion), which is an increase of 1.4 percent from a year ago.

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China’s Club Factory Raises $100M To Grow Online Sales In India

PYMNTS

Chinese eCommerce platform Club Factory has raised $100 million in a Series D funding round as it plans expansion into India, sources reported on Friday (Oct. 11). The new funding was led by Qiming Venture Partners, Bertelsmann, IDG Capital “and other Fortune 500 companies from the U.S. and Asia,” the startup said. . Club Factory has raised about $220 million to date and has more than 70 million users.

Sales 58
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Fixing Fresh-Cut Flowers With A New Supply Chain

PYMNTS

In what is one of retail’s more amusing ironies, the floral industry is not particularly green. The products are, of course, but the industry itself – particularly the segment of the market dedicated to the delivery of fresh-cut flowers – does not have a particularly inspiring environmental record. Flowers are water- and power-intensive to grow – and delivering them on demand can burn a lot of fuel.

Retail 57
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Say ‘Goodbye’ to Clunky Spreadsheets and Say ‘Hello’ to Month-End Automation

Technology is rapidly changing the way accountants perform and manage month-end activities. Spreadsheets, emails, and shared drives no longer need to slow you down. 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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Disrupting The $31 Billion Toilet Paper Industry

PYMNTS

While toilet paper seems like a product that should have been around for as long as there has been commerce, it actually is a fairly modern invention. Before 1857, the most common “toilet paper” in the United States actually consisted of pages from the Sears Roebuck catalog. That finally changed when one brave innovator, entrepreneur Joseph Gayetty, got the idea that a better alternative could be created.

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Blazing A Trail Of eCommerce Innovation With Cargo Bikes

PYMNTS

Bunch Bikes Founder Aaron Powell went on vacation with his family three years ago and visited Copenhagen, Denmark and Malmo, Sweden. His family chose those locations because they are very bike-friendly cities, and they were interested in biking. While he was in those locations, Powell noticed there was a cargo bike (defined by one website as any bike designed to carry a load), family bike or something similar on “almost every single street corner,” he told PYMNTS in an interview.

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How To Turn Every Supply Chain Into A Custom B2B Marketplace

PYMNTS

The emergence of online shopping and eCommerce inevitably seeped into the B2B world, leading to rising demand for corporates to make purchases online the same way they do as consumers. For some firms, particularly smaller ones, or those with one-off purchases of simple products like office supplies, the translation of B2C eCommerce to B2B is relatively straightforward.

B2B 56
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Walmart To Reimburse Vendors For Price Cuts To Gain Edge Over Amazon

PYMNTS

Price wars usually only have one winner: Consumers. Price wars tend to be decent short term strategies to lock in customers. But then, what happens when the price wars stop and pricing levels return to some degree of normality? Welcome, perhaps, to the eCommerce platform pricing wars. Bloomberg reported Monday (Oct. 14) that retail juggernaut Walmart is subsidizing some of its third-party vendors that sell across its online marketplace.

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Outsourcing Vs. In-House: The Ultimate Battle For Better Collections

Speaker: Susan Richards

Your past-due accounts are growing, cash flow is tightening, and the pressure is on. The big question: Do you handle the collections internally or outsource to experts? Both strategies come with advantages and risks - but which one delivers the best impact for your business? In this session we’ll dive deep into the in-house vs. outsourcing debate, examining cost-effectiveness, efficiency, compliance risks, and overall recovery success rates.