In this week’s news, we saw a report that the Justice Department is conducting a civil probe into whether some FinTechs distributing Payroll Protection Program (PPP) relief botched loan sizes. And new insights have emerged on cryptocurrency payments in addition to digital ordering. The Weekender is here to catch you up.
News
Report: Kabbage, FinTechs Under Justice Department Scrutiny For PPP Loan Distribution
The Justice Department is holding a civil probe into whether some financial technology firms distributing federal PPP relief botched loan sizes, according to a published report that cited multiple unnamed sources. Atlanta-based Kabbage is reportedly among the firms that the government is looking into, according to a wire service.
Walmart Acquires MeMD; Amazon Care Expands As Race For Consumer Healthcare Spend Intensifies
Walmart has revealed its newest big play in the race to shape the future of American healthcare, with the purchase of MeMD as part of its roadmap to expand telehealth offerings to patients throughout the country. The news comes as Amazon’s digital primary care business, Amazon Care, revealed that it has landed Precor as its first employer customer.
Leaked Walmart Memo Shows Grocery Lead Slipping
As consumers have moved their food spending in the direction of grocery during the last 14 months, major industry players have taken the opportunity to invest in their grocery offerings, and the sector has become more and more competitive. A leaked memo from Walmart shows that while the firm remains ahead of the pack, executives are starting to worry.
Bitcoin Plummets After Elon Musk Stops Taking Crypto Payments For Tesla
Bitcoin fell approximately 15 percent on the news that Elon Musk will no longer accept the digital currency for Tesla payments out of concerns for the environment.
AT&T 5G Isn’t About Thinking Outside The Box — It’s About Breaking And Rebuilding The Box
AT&T Director of 5G Center of Excellence Jason Inskeep told PYMNTS in a previous interview that 5G won’t only allow consumers to move smoothly between verticals on their increasingly omnichannel journeys so much as it will actually change how they live in those verticals.
GPay Teams With Western Union, Wise To Take P2P Global
Google, in collaboration with Western Union and Wise, revealed that it will now be possible to conduct peer-to-peer (P2P) payments to users in Singapore and India from inside of the Google Pay app.
Trackers And Reports
NEW DATA: 46 Million Consumers Plan To Use Cryptocurrency To Pay Merchants
Consumers’ interest in purchasing digital currencies and spending those tokens is on the uptick, and consumers want to harness these currencies to make payments for retail purchases.
NEW DATA: Pandemic-Related Health Concerns Shape Consumers’ Food Ordering Habits
While mass vaccination rollouts are well underway domestically, the pandemic keeps raging on — and so do peoples’ concerns in regard to how it might affect their wellness. The risk of contagion has led millions to shop, work and order food digitally from the safety of their residences.
Report: Debit, Digital Wallets Help Banks Keep Gen Z Customers
The pandemic is showcasing the unique and evolving payment preferences of various generations, with millennials and Gen Z members looking for frictionless debit-based mobile experiences.
These younger consumers have high expectations. A recent poll discovered that three-quarters of millennials say they would even be willing to change providers to access better mobile journeys.
Fun, Cool And Otherwise Interesting
Flywire’s SEC Filing Highlights $11.7T Payments Modernization Opportunity
Flywire filed earlier in May to go public in an arrangement that would raise as much as a reported $300 million. The company’s S-1 listing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission provides a glimpse into how the firm looks at its markets — and why large sectors like healthcare are ready for disruption.
The Rise Of Ransomware As A Service
According to a Massachusetts-based security firm, DarkSide hackers build and market ransomware hacking technologies, and sell them to other criminals who then conduct attacks harnessing them. DarkSide, it seems, is among the trailblazers in a completely new business opportunity on the dark web — ransomware as a service (RaaS).
Regulations Could Be In The Works For Stablecoins
As the digital currency environment is likely to be changed, at least a bit, by rules and new debates as to whether bitcoin and its alternatives are tokens or securities, the same regulatory gaze could be tightening around stablecoins.
Ripple Effects For Banks, Visa And Mastercard As Consumers Cut Card Balances
U.S. consumers are still borrowing — but not with their cards, which seem to have been left in their proverbial wallets. There is a reluctance to spend with cards, which could have ripple effects for financial institutions and payment networks.
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