Sat.Jan 05, 2019 - Fri.Jan 11, 2019

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Cherry Home CEO: The Future Of Smart Homes And Independent Senior Living

PYMNTS

When talking about advances in home automation and artificial intelligence (AI)-guided systems for consumers, the conversation has a natural tendency to drift toward younger consumers, particularly millennials. That focus isn’t unwarranted, as there are 75 million millennials, and the older half of that generation (the group PYMNTS has termed Bridge Millennials ) is much more likely than the average consumer to own a smart device, and more likely to use it to make a purchase.

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Robert J. Shiller on Bubbles, Reflexivity, and Narrative Economics

CFA Institute

Robert J. Shiller has shown remarkable prescience over the years. And with talk of inverted yield curves, overvalued stock markets, and imminent recession, the present struck us as an opportune time to see what was on his mind.

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Trending Sources

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How to use Connected Planning technology to maximize Salesforce data

Anaplan

An operational powerhouse in sales, marketing, quote-to-cash, and client support, Salesforce is widely accepted as a best-of-breed customer relationship management (CRM) platform.

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Amazon Plans Whole Foods Expansions In Closed Sears Stores

PYMNTS

Amazon has its eyes on expansion for its Whole Foods brand in closed Sears and Kmart stores, according to a report by Yahoo! Finance. The recent woes of Sears and other struggling retailers are seen as an opportunity for the online retail giant. Sources told Yahoo! that the company is visiting sites of now defunct retail spaces. For example, Whole Foods managers went to a site in Utah that used to be a Kmart.

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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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Credit Card Surcharges OK’ed In New York

PYMNTS

New York has banned the ban. In the wake of court filings this week that effectively ended a challenge to surcharges on credit card transactions in New York, merchants in the Empire State can indeed embrace those fees, contingent upon stating those costs to consumers up front. The merchant plaintiffs and the state of New York filed motions on Jan. 8 to dismiss a challenge to such charges, seemingly capping a battle stretching back years.

More Trending

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Alipay In X-Border Blockchain Pact

PYMNTS

The new year has dawned with a number of cross-border payment pacts, done across blockchain and other means. In Pakistan, as reported by Coindesk, Telenor Microfinance Bank and remittance firm Valyou Sdn Bhd (a Telenor subsidiary) have launched a payment platform based on Alipay’s blockchain offerings. That blockchain technology, in turn, had been developed by Ant Financial Services Group.

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How Fortnite Turned ‘Free’ Into $3B In Profits

PYMNTS

Until extremely recently, the word “fortnight” was a fancy way to say “two weeks” – and it wasn’t likely to come up unless one happened to be studying for the SATs. But in the year 2018, that changed – the word went from being a piece of anachronistic English to a certified cultural phenomenon (albeit spelled a bit differently) that almost no one was anticipating.

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How FinTech Startups Scale Servers On Demand

PYMNTS

Payments can be very cyclical for clients of FinTech startups – they can be flooded Monday morning after a quiet Sunday. With that sudden rush of information, the startups need to rapidly adapt to handle that flow of information. “We need the ability to scale our platform quickly and very effectively,” DadeSystems ‘ CTO Doug Hathaway told PYMNTS in an interview, adding that clients can all “feel like they’re No.1” and that their data is quickly processed.

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U.S. Startups Raised A Record $130 Billion In 2018

PYMNTS

U.S. startups had a great 2018 in terms of funding, with new data showing that venture capitalists deployed $130.9 billion, marking a new all-time high. According to new data from the PitchBook-NVCA Venture Monitor , the $130.9 billion deployed surpassed 2000, which was a record-setting year. “The venture ecosystem continued to slash records in 2018, further illustrating the maturation of the venture capital asset class, but also raising questions about the sustainability and health of these act

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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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Comcast Launches AI-Powered Cybersecurity Service

PYMNTS

Comcast is releasing an artificial intelligence-powered service that will monitor, block and tell customers about online threats to devices connected to home networks, the company announced on Tuesday (Jan. 8). The new service, called Xfinity xFi Advanced Security, was developed to protect numerous smart devices from potential hackers and malware attacks.

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Alternative Payments Gain Global Traction, But Cash Remains Tough Foe

PYMNTS

The recent announcement that China’s UnionPay and Huawei are teaming up to bring Huawei Pay to Russia stands as the latest example that alternative payments are spreading to different parts of the world. It also provides another sign that that cash is, generally at least, slowly losing its dominance as a payment method in all types of economies. But while alternative payment methods are certainly on the upswing in 2019, there are significant hurdles that promise to impede their progress in the d

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Amazon Turns To VR To Boost Furniture Sales

PYMNTS

Amazon is hoping to increase purchases of furniture online, rolling out a new feature dubbed Amazon Showroom that takes advantage of virtual reality tools. According to a report in Chain Store Age , the new feature lets online shoppers place 3D images of furniture into a virtual room to get a sense of how it would really look. The room’s wall colors can be changed, as well as the carpet and flooring.

Sales 75
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Honda Expands In-Vehicle Payment Partnerships

PYMNTS

Paying on the go — literally, as in on the road and in the car — is gaining traction. As noted yesterday in the PYMNTS Digital Drive Report, 99 million drivers — commuters, to be exact — are connecting to their dashboards and driving $230 billion in commerce, buying everything from groceries to coffee. To that end, Honda has debuted its Honda Dream Drive prototype, billed as the “next generation infotainment, commerce, services and rewards” experience for drivers and passengers.

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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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Online Sports Gambling Makes Bet On Faster Payments

PYMNTS

Few things feel better than the rush of a winning streak — money bet on a football or baseball team, or a sporting event, that turns into a pile of dough after a victory or beating the spread. But that excitement can quickly deflate if the winning gambler then must wait for his or her winnings. That’s where reloadable cards and instant access to funds come in — especially as the worlds of payments and commerce move further toward the goal of frictionless transactions and sports betting in the U.

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UnionPay Launches Platform For Developers

PYMNTS

UnionPay International announced earlier in January that it rolled out the UPI Developer, which is a platform to create applications for cross-border payments. According to a report in Mobile Payments Today , the new platform is open and enables developers to create apps for cross-border mobile payments as well as other technologies. With the platform, developers can access UnionPay application programming interface so that UnionPay tech can be integrated into their own products. “With the

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Samsung Teams With Apple

PYMNTS

Samsung has announced that it will offer iTunes Movies and TV Shows and Apple AirPlay 2 support on all 2019 Samsung Smart TV models beginning this spring, while support on 2018 Samsung Smart TVs will launch through a firmware update. In addition, a new iTunes app will launch exclusively on Samsung Smart TVs in more than 100 countries, while AirPlay 2 will be available in 190 countries.

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How Finance Departments Can Mold Risk Mitigation Into Opportunity

PYMNTS

The enterprise is exposed to financial risks at just about every angle, with expansion across borders and into partnerships with unfamiliar firms upping the ante on both risk and reward. Analysts are urging corporates to enhance their risk management strategies in today’s particularly volatile climate. But enterprise risk management (ERM) isn’t just about playing defense; rather, strategic ERM enables professionals to identify new business opportunities that result from volatility, m

Finance 74
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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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HERE Releases New Social Transport App, SoMo

PYMNTS

HERE Technologies , a mapping and location data company, has released a new mobile transportation app called SoMo that hinges on a social aspect, according to a report from VentureBeat. Unlike, say, Uber or Lyft, SoMo allows users to plan trips based on events and friends. For example, if everyone is going to see a concert, they can coordinate in the app and carpool.

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The Reality Of Real ID

PYMNTS

At times, it seemed it would not get this far: the Real ID Act. States resisted the post-9/11 authentication law, and sought extensions to its deadlines. Citizens raised complaints to lawmakers about the hassle of collecting birth certificates to prove identity, and the prospect of taking time away from work or personal lives to stand in long lines for the new forms of ID.

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EU Works To Quell Chaos Post-Bank Failures

PYMNTS

Launched in 2016, the Single Resolution Board ( SRB ) aims to make sure that the failure of one major bank does not impact the EU’s entire banking system or require a bailout from taxpayers. In an interview with The Financial Times , the agency’s head, Elke König, said that while there has been progress in how the EU handles bank failures, it is still “an ongoing challenge.”.

Banking 73
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UK Tries Another Late Payments Tactic With Stoplight System

PYMNTS

The U.K. is launching a traffic-light warning system to spotlight large companies that fail to pay their suppliers on time. The Sunday Times reported that the plan will be revealed this week by the nation’s Small Business (SMB) Commissioner Paul Uppal. The only details released so far have said that a red light will be shown to identify repeat offenders, as well as for companies that fail to publish their payment terms, which they are obligated to do twice a year.

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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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Small Businesses At The Center Of Bots Vs Accountants

PYMNTS

Behind many shifting trends in small business (SMB) financial services — the rise of FinTech service providers, the emergence of artificial intelligence (AI), even regulatory efforts to promote bank switching — is a growing realization for the industry: Business owners don’t just want number crunchers and money holders; they want advisory services and guidance to help grow their firms.

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Taco Bell: Kiosks, The Ticket To QSR Order Customization

PYMNTS

To help modernize its restaurants and provide new ordering experiences to its diners, Taco Bell is bringing new technology into its brick-and-mortar restaurants across the country: The quick-service restaurant (QSR) chain is deploying self-service kiosks. The devices enable customers to peruse the Mexican-inspired chain’s menu and customize its selections to their tastes or dietary needs.

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With Appetite For Data And Social, Restaurant App Taste Gets Personal

PYMNTS

Entrepreneurs are constantly solving problems, and those challenges often come out of personal experiences. Kevin Vanderwarker, who co-founded dining recommendation platform Taste , traveled across the country for a number of jobs over the years and found it difficult to discover a good place to eat on the road. “The only way to find a good restaurant in my opinion was to call somebody you knew,” Vanderwarker told PYMNTS in an interview.

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Amazon Becomes World’s Most Valuable Company

PYMNTS

There’s a new king of the mountain in the seemingly endless tussle between the world’s four largest companies – Amazon, Microsoft, Alphabet and Apple. On Monday (Jan. 7), Amazon passed Microsoft as the largest company by market value, according to reports. Amazon was worth about $8 billion more than Microsoft on Monday, at $799 billion to Microsoft’s $791 billion.

Retail 71
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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.