Columbus
PYMNTS
Google Unveils New Gemini Live AI-Powered Assistant for Mobile Devices
Google unveiled an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered assistant for use on mobile devices. The new Gemini Live became available in English to Gemini Advanced subscribers on Android phones on Tuesday (Aug. 13) and will be expanded to iOS devices and more languages in the coming weeks, the company said in a Tuesday blog post.
Rental Payment Innovations Help Tenant Cash Flow
Earlier this year, PYMNTS Intelligence estimated that for consumers, and especially for paycheck-to-paycheck consumers, the cost of housing has been taking a significant chunk out of households’ take-home pay. In fact, as noted in this recent column penned by Karen Webster, paying to keep the roof over one’s head...
Citi Digital Assets Exec Shobhit Maini Reportedly Leaving Bank’s Market Unit
The head of digital assets for Citi’s markets unit is reportedly stepping down. Shobhit Maini, who has held that job since 2021, is leaving the banking giant after more than 14 years, Reuters reported Tuesday (Aug. 13), citing an internal memo. That memo, from Lee Smallwood, Citi’s head of...
Experian Expands Fraud Detection Capabilities With NeuroID Acquisition
Experian has added behavioral analytics to its fraud detection capabilities by acquiring NeuroID. Adding this new layer of insight into digital behavioral signals for both new and returning users will help combat artificial intelligence (AI)-enabled fraud, the companies said in a Tuesday (Aug. 13) press release. “Together with NeuroID, we’re...
Russian Central Bank Pulls Amex Subsidiary’s Banking License
Russia’s central bank has reportedly canceled the banking license of the in-country subsidiary of American Express. As Reuters reported Tuesday (Aug. 13), the central bank did so at the company’s request. American Express had filed a voluntary request to liquidate its Russian business in July, the report said, citing SPARK, Russia’s corporate registry.
Solana Says Regulated Industries Are Primed for Blockchain Use Cases
Blockchain technology, once synonymous with cryptocurrencies, is expanding into mainstream industries. The $943 billion projected market by 2032 has sparked a debate between public and private blockchains for regulated sectors like finance and healthcare. Historically, private blockchains, controlled by single entities or consortia, have been favored for their data privacy...
Oracle Adds Pricing Rules to Supply Chain Management Platform
Oracle has added new user experience (UX) enhancements such as pricing rules for order management to the Oracle Fusion Cloud Supply Chain & Manufacturing (SCM). These upgrades are built with the consumer-grade Oracle Redwood Design System and are designed to benefit procurement professionals, logistics managers, field service technicians and product managers, the company said in a Tuesday (Aug. 13) press release.
Trove Acquires Recurate to Expand Branded Resale Market Presence
Branded resale company Trove has acquired Recurate, a “significant” player in its industry. “This acquisition underscores Trove’s commitment to making branded resale more accessible and easier to launch and scale for brands,” the company said in a Tuesday (Aug. 13) news release. The deal, Trove said,...
Credit Unions vs Big Tech: Winner Gets the Customer
For banks — and especially for credit unions — the battle with Big Tech for the hearts, minds and wallet share of consumers may seem a more than challenging proposition. After all, Big Tech’s role across all facets of everyday life is pervasive, touching on everything from commerce to search to social media to the actual devices in one’s hand (think Android and Apple) where banking services and products can be delivered.
DoorDash Adds Max Streaming Service to DashPass Membership Program
DoorDash’s DashPass membership program now includes offers from Warner Bros. Discovery’s Max streaming service. A DashPass Annual Plan membership in the United States now includes Max With Ads at no additional cost and an offer to upgrade to a Max Ad-Free subscription for a discounted rate of $10.99 per month, the companies said in a Tuesday (Aug. 13) press release.
NFIB: Small Business Optimism Grows Amid ‘Plague’ of Cost Pressures
Small businesses in the United States are pessimistic about their prospects, but less pessimistic than two years ago. The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) Small Business Optimism Index rose 2.2 points last month to 93.7, the highest reading since February 2022, according to a Tuesday (Aug. 13) press release.
Home Depot Looks for B2B Buffer Against Softening Consumer Spend
Home Depot currently gets around half of its sales from professional builders and contractors. According to the company’s executives on Tuesday’s (Aug. 13) second-quarter 2024 earnings call, the world’s largest home improvement retailer will need to continue to win over a greater share of this valuable B2B segment, because regulator customers are continuing to spend less on home improvement projects, pressured by higher interest rates and concerns that the economy is getting worse.
Centime Adds High-Yield Bank Account to AP Automation Solution
Centime added a fully liquid, high-yield bank account to its accounts payable (AP) automation solution. With the new offering, businesses can earn interest on AP float, use those earnings to cover the subscription costs of the AP solution and transform their AP into a new revenue stream, the company said in a Tuesday (Aug. 13) press release.
Vista Equity Partners Buys Procurement Software Firm Jaggaer
Investment firm Vista Equity Partners acquired procurement software company Jaggaer. “This new partnership with Vista underscores Jaggaer’s strong momentum and the compelling value our intelligent software delivers by helping our customers manage and automate complex processes while enabling a highly resilient, responsible and integrated supplier base,” Jaggaer CEO Andy Hovancik said in a Tuesday (Aug. 13) news release.
Contextual Commerce Drives Omnichannel Engagement for Emerging Alcohol Brands
As alcoholic beverage brands look for ways to capture consumers’ attention and spending in the digital world, Purity Distillery sees contextual commerce help build these omnichannel connections. Tate Troelstrup, president and CEO of the spirits brand, explained in an interview with PYMNTS how the company originally focused more on...
Starbucks Appoints Chipotle Head Brian Niccol as CEO
Starbucks said Tuesday (Aug. 13) that it has appointed Chipotle Chairman and CEO Brian Niccol as CEO, effective Sept. 9, succeeding Laxman Narasimhan, who stepped down as CEO and director Tuesday. Niccol will leave Chipotle effective Aug. 31, at which time Chipotle Chief Operating Officer Scott Boatwright will become the...
Mastercard Debuts Enhancements to Open Banking Program
Mastercard is upgrading its open banking for lending program, powered by employment/income verifier Argyle. The new features, announced Tuesday (Aug. 13), lets Mastercard offer income and employment coverage to the estimated 95% of the U.S. workforce who are paid through direct deposit. “Securing a loan can be overwhelming, and those...
Cyber Insurers Escape Impact of CrowdStrike Outage
Last month’s worldwide tech outage disrupted organizations from airlines to banks to hospitals. However, one sector that seems to have escaped the impact of the event is the cyber insurance industry, as most of the costs were uninsured, the Financial Times’ Vanessa Houlder noted in an opinion piece Tuesday (Aug. 13).
Trustly UK Transaction Value Hits $16 Billion for H1 2024
Open banking payments firm Trustly says it has seen a surge in transaction value. The company announced Tuesday (Aug. 13) that it processed 13.1 billion pounds ($16 billion) in payments in the U.K. between January to June of this year. That’s compared to the 13.6 billion pounds Trustly handled over the entirety of 2023.
PYMNTS
44K+
Posts
91M+
Views
Online coverage of payments news and top industry trends. Insight and reporting on payments, commerce, FinTech and innovation.
It’s essential to note our commitment to transparency:
Our Terms of Use acknowledge that our services may not always be error-free, and our Community Standards emphasize our discretion in enforcing policies. As a platform hosting over 100,000 pieces of content published daily, we cannot pre-vet content, but we strive to foster a dynamic environment for free expression and robust discourse through safety guardrails of human and AI moderation.