When the Portland (Oregon) Seed Fund got its start four years ago, the concept of “going to City Hall for seed funding” was a bit of an eyebrow-raising idea. But it was one that started gaining traction in 2011 in Portland (and other U.S. cities),...
When people ask – “how hard is payments?” – there are a variety of ways to answer that question. There’s the simple and direct approach – “Insanely and unimaginably.” One could go into an intricate explanation of two-sided platform economics (and possibly win a Nobel...
When the history of the mobile revolution is written, the chapters on payments, media and small businesses will be among its richest reading. And while we anticipate that the complete history of the mobile wallet wars will be very interesting, for our part here at...
Establishing a credit history can be an unexpectedly tricky thing – to get a loan consumers need to demonstrate a past history of managing with debt well. To manage debt well, entities need to extend loans to consumers. Since the inception of credit, the above...
There is an old adage that says “March goes in like a lion but goes out like a lamb,” that one could conceivably imagine the staff at Apple trying to re-engineer these days. “March comes in like a hungry lion and goes out like a...
While there are many positive things to be said for the on-demand mobile economy, one that cannot be mentioned enough times is that going hungry is not an option for anyone with a functioning mobile phone. There are apps that deliver takeout, apps that deliver...
One of online gaming’s hottest rivalries is at an end. Yesterday, Optimal Payments – parent company of the Neteller digital wallet – announced its $1.2 billion dollar acquisition of Skrill – parent of the eponymously named mobile product. The deal will combine Neteller digital payments...
The biggest news in Apple Pay this week came courtesy of PYMNTS at this year’s Innovation Project – with big news on both the adoption and innovation fronts. On Day 1, IP delegates got a peek at the InfoScout/PYMNTS Apple Pay Transaction Tracker. That survey of...