[ News ]

[ With TikTok deal, Walmart could gain ‘a front row seat to the next generation of consumers’ ]

Brick-and-mortar giant Walmart may seem like an odd match for TikTok, an algorithm-driven social platform known for hosting memes and viral dance challenges. But a closer look at Walmart’s e-commerce and digital media moves shows that TikTok could help it blend the in-store and online shopping experience, while giving it an edge with young Americans. Walmart said Saturday that it has tenatively agreed to take a 7.5% stake of a newly created company based in the U.S. called TikTok Global. Walmart CEO Doug...

Posted: 09/22/20 [ Read More... ]

[ Chime is now worth $14.5 billion, surging past Robinhood as the most valuable U.S. consumer fintech ]

Chime, the start-up that delivers banking services through mobile phones, has closed a fundraising that values the company at $14.5 billion, CNBC has learned exclusively.
 That lofty figure makes Chime the most valuable American fintech start-up serving retail consumers. Robinhood, the popular free-trading app, raised money last month at an $11.2 billion valuation. The moves show that even as investors punish the shares of established U.S. banks — the KBW Bank Index has lost...

Posted: 09/21/20 [ Read More... ]

[ Square Becoming a Bank Is Brilliant. Here’s WhyThe last time any new type of bank appeared was 2010. ]

It may seem surprising that the fintech disruptor Square is reverting to an old format and become a bank. Square has helped so many small businesses expand their payment methods, embracing fintech ahead of other disruptors.

However, there is much more to this story. In fact, this strategic decision could be one of the best moves the company has made. Square's decision could start a revolution and revamp the entire financial institution structure to address the changes...

Posted: 09/18/20 [ Read More... ]

[ TikTok and WeChat: US to ban app downloads in 48 hours ]

TikTok and WeChat will be banned from US app stores from Sunday, unless President Donald Trump agrees to a last-minute deal.
The Department of Commerce said it would bar people in the US from downloading the messaging and video-sharing apps through any app store on any platform.
The Trump administration says the companies threaten national security and could pass user data to China.

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[ NBCUniversal’s Peacock streaming service has 15 million sign-ups, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts says ]

NBCUniversal’s streaming service Peacock has 15 million sign-ups, a 50% increase in six weeks, Comcast CEO Brian Roberts said Tuesday at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference Peacock is Comcast’s plan to monetize broadband-only subscribers through video. Peacock Premium costs $4.99 for non-Comcast and Cox subscribers and $9.99 per month without ads. It has hundreds of movies and TV shows, including past episodes of NBC staples such as “Saturday Night Live” and “30 Rock.” Former NBCUniversal Chairman Steve Burke said last year he...

Posted: 09/15/20 [ Read More... ]

[ JPMorgan’s WFH model changed worker productivity—especially on two days of the week ]

A troubling pattern emerged as most of JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s employees worked from home to stem the spread of Covid-19: productivity slipped. Work output was particularly affected on Mondays and Fridays, according to findings discussed by Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon in a private meeting with Keefe, Bruyette & Woods analysts. That, along with worries that remote work is no substitute for organic interaction, is part of why the biggest U.S. bank is urging more workers to return...

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[ Walmart’s Amazon Prime challenger is launching Sept. 15 ]

Walmart Inc.’s answer to Amazon Prime finally has a launch date. The new subscription program, dubbed Walmart+, will be available on Sept. 15, the world’s largest retailer said in a statement. The program costs $98 a year, a discount to rival Amazon’s $119 annual Prime membership, and includes unlimited free delivery from stores -- including groceries -- plus gasoline discounts. “We’ve tried to make a membership that makes it easier for customers to shop, manage their daily lives, and to...

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[ Amazon Finally Finds a Good Fit at the Mall ]

Converting abandoned department stores into warehouses has the potential to benefit the online retailer, its shoppers and mall owners. Amazon.com Inc. might soon be filling online orders from the kinds of shopping centers it has helped destroy.
 The e-commerce giant, according to the Wall Street Journal, is in talks with mall operator Simon Property Group Inc. about setting up fulfillment centers in spaces currently or formerly occupied by J.C. Penney and Sears, two once-mighty department stores...

Posted: 08/10/20 [ Read More... ]

[ New York MTA asks Apple for better masked iPhone unlocking with Face ID ]

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority has asked Apple to make it easier and faster for users to unlock their iPhones without removing their masks, a problem that Apple has already worked on as part of May's iOS 13.5 update.
 The New York MTA has sent a letter to Apple CEO Tim Cook about the problems it faces over passengers needing to unlock their iPhones to pay for transportation. As many use iPhones with Face ID, this has led to passengers removing their face...

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[ This is California’s reopening plan for stores, offices, schools, sports, concerts, theaters ]

SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California businesses seen as presenting less risk of spreading the coronavirus could open in the near future under a plan Gov. Gavin Newsom unveiled Tuesday, the first of what he suggested were several slow steps toward easing the statewide shutdown order. “We believe we are weeks, not months, away from making meaningful modifications” in the current restrictions, Newsom said. But Newsom’s announcement of a four-phase plan did not come with a guaranteed timetable. He said while current public health...

Posted: 04/29/20 [ Read More... ]