PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
The biggest benefactor of the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is a Dallas, Texas-based hotelier named Monty Bennett, who has received $59 million from the program intended to help small or medium-sized businesses with the economic crisis. Bennett is the chair of Ashford Hospitality Trust , which manages a number of hotels including Atlanta’s Ritz Carlton and the Marriott Beverly Hills.
Katz,Sapper&Miller
APRIL 23, 2020
The CARES Act (the “Act”) hallmark provision is the potential for loan forgiveness under the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). As PPP funds are received by businesses, now is the time to strategize for maximum loan forgiveness. The PPP has been advertised as a grant, and, in many respects, it can function like one. However, the onus is on businesses to earn 100% loan forgiveness.
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PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
If your $1,200 federal COVID-19 stimulus payment has been deposited into your bank account by the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), consider yourself one of the lucky ones. An IRS spokesman told PYMNTS that only about 80 million payouts – about half of the expected total – had been issued as of last Friday (April 17). That leaves many taxpayers waiting, but the spokesman couldn’t provide a schedule of when payments will be issued.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
COVID-19 has changed daily routines around the world as more consumers have had to stay at home, only venturing out into public for necessities. This is leading companies of all kinds to navigate how to reach them remotely. Financial institutions (FIs) are among the entities that are working to securely meet clients where they are through mobile and online channels to complete tasks that would more often be completed in person.
Speaker: Victor C. Barnes, CPA, MBA
In the climb from contributor to leader, the rules quietly change. But if you’re aiming for the summit, the air gets thinner, and what got you here won’t be enough to get you to the top. 🗻 What made you successful early in your finance career—technical accuracy, sharp analysis, flawless execution—won’t be what carries you to the next level. The higher you go, the more your effectiveness depends on how you connect, adapt, and communicate.
PYMNTS
APRIL 19, 2020
The hospitality group behind Ruth’s Chris Steak House — operator or franchiser of 159 restaurants — showed a profit of $42 million on $468 million in revenue in 2019 and a workforce topping 5,000, according to The Wall Street Journal. Yet, the company is one of many big conglomerates that bagged forgivable loans from the government’s $350 billion Paycheck Protection Program (PPP).
PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
Financial institutions (FIs) are feeling the pressure to offer increasingly personalized, digital-first services to keep customers satisfied. Crafting the seamlessness customers want means FIs are overhauling their digital infrastructures to enable access to fast, interactive and engaging banking experiences. More banks are therefore moving away from legacy core systems to embrace cloud-native architectures to power automation and meet the speed expected by consumers, securely.
Accountant Advocate brings together the best content for small business accounting professionals from the widest variety of industry thought leaders.
PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
While being the victim of fraud is never good, there is something to be said for at least being able to identify where exactly one went wrong. Clicked the wrong link in an email, trusted the wrong authoritative voice on the other end of the phone, downloaded the wrong app hiding a malicious little piece of malware. It doesn’t make the resulting data theft any more pleasant, but at least one can hope to learn something and resolve to do better in the future.
PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
The rise of FinTech, the increasing globalization of finance — and even ravages of the coronavirus, which is making us all bank and transact across phones — all have pointed to one simple, urgent question: Just what is a bank, anyway? We wouldn’t go so far as to say an existential crisis is in the works. But we would state that deal by deal, partnership by partnership, the evolution of the centuries-old industry is one that is quickening and is likely to be shaped at least in part by the current
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
There is a great deal of economic uncertainty in the world today, as many banking managers and executives are acutely aware. These circumstances have brought to the fore what has long been a central concern for lenders: assessing and managing credit risk. This vital task is complicated even in normal times due to the multitude of financial risk factors in play at any given time.
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
The coronavirus outbreak is still ravaging countries worldwide, but it has not eliminated consumers’ and businesses’ need to transact, finalize complex arrangements like trusts, or speak with their bankers about financial products. Financial institutions (FIs) are thus confronted with having to serve customers who can rarely venture outside amid stay-at-home and quarantine directives but may need to visit physical branches to complete certain actions.
Speaker: Kim Beynon, CPA, CGMA, PMP
The most overlooked, yet most critical, element of transformation is preparing people for change. Automation and AI aren't just technical upgrades, they’re cultural shifts which can challenge identities. That’s why change management isn’t a side project—it’s the foundation. In finance, where precision and process rule, navigating change can feel especially disruptive.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
A partnership between The University of Oxford , Saïd Business School and Mastercard will launch an online education program to teach business leaders about the strengths and perils of the modern day internet. Called the Oxford Cyber Future Program , the six-week class will cover artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, threat analytics, data privacy and digital ethics, a press release states.
PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
Paay, a startup credit card database storing millions of transactions, has been unsecured for weeks and only now closed again, according to a TechCrunch report. The database works with other payment processors, verifying payments to make sure there is no fraud going on for outside vendors. Paay’s mistake was not having a password installed on its server, which allowed anyone to see the data inside.
PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
Money transfer firm Western Union has further expanded its global network for real-time payments and transfers to 50 additional countries when paid into certain banks and digital wallets. Hikmet Ersek, president and CEO of Western Union, said the company has been stepping up the expansion of its digital money transfer capabilities, which is especially important “given the critical nature of money movement” during the coronavirus pandemic.
PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
In some ways, the rapid onset of the coronavirus pandemic in the U.S. and around the world has meant massive changes for the gig economy — both for the platforms that power it and the workers that staff it. But the effects of those changes complex and nuanced, Wonolo Head of Supply Monica Plaza noted during PYMNTS’s latest On The Agenda conversation with Payoneer CEO Scott Galit; Roadie Founder and CEO Marc Gorlin; and Karen Webster.
Speaker: Mark Gilham, FCCA, CPP
Finance used to be the function that counted, now it's the one that’s counted on. 📊 For accounting firms, controllers, and finance leaders, expectations are rising faster than headcount. Businesses want agile forecasts, granular analysis, seamless reporting, and smart automation—often without added resources while demanding uncompromised accuracy and compliance.
PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
While the digital age has opened up doors for businesses to expand internationally, it’s a bit misleading to say that it’s easier than ever for small firms to step foot into new geographic markets. Online-native companies and the cloud-based applications they run on have indeed lowered barriers for small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) to connect with customers, business partners and even employees across borders.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
Ripple announced on Tuesday (April 21) that it is filing a lawsuit against YouTube , alleging that the popular video platform isn’t doing its due diligence to identify and remove crypto-related scams, according to a company blog post. Ripple said it wants to protect its customers from disingenuous online giveaways and impersonations pretending to be from the company.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
In times of turmoil, you go toward whom you trust. The coronavirus pandemic — which has forced all of us online — is exposing just who in financial services has embraced digitization, and who is truly digital native. We now must bank entirely online, by necessity. And many of us must transact entirely online, by necessity, to get the goods and services we need on a daily basis.
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
The Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said on Friday (April 24) that another eight million Americans have received their coronavirus stimulus payments over the past week. The agency said it has issued 88.1 million of the stimulus payments as mandated by Congress, which approved $1,200 for most Americans. That’s up some eight million from one week ago, bringing the total value of payouts to nearly $158 billion, according to the IRS.
Advertiser: Paycor
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PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
Branch visits are vital to customers’ financial lifestyles, despite mobile and online banking’s growing popularity. All generations, including 64 percent of baby boomers and 56 percent of those from Generation Z, largely prefer opening accounts in person rather than doing so online, for example, meaning in-branch experiences at financial institutions (FIs) need to be just as advanced as their online offerings.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
The retail bankruptcy watch intensified Tuesday (April 21) as the department store sector was hit by reports of yet another major player looking at that option. Lord & Taylor, now joining Neiman Marcus, is considering a bankruptcy filing as the COVID-19 lockdown continues to decimate non-essential retail. According to Reuters , chapter 11 protection is one of several options being explored including relief from creditors and alternative financing.
PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
California became the first state to issue a stay-at-home order on March 19. All 50 states have since issued social distancing guidelines, with consumers everywhere wondering when the mandates will be lifted, when the economy will reopen and whether it will be possible to resume living their pre-COVID-19 lives. But regardless of their states of residence, consumers’ lives had already changed dramatically since the pandemic was first announced.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
Cybersecurity experts are scrambling to fight the sheer number of different digital fraud forms that are on the rise, and the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has only exacerbated this problem. Approximately 22 percent of U.S. consumers have been targeted by fraud attempts related to the virus, such as phishing emails claiming to be guidance on how to avoid infection that actually contain malware.
Speaker: Cheryl J. Muldrew-McMurtry
Distributed finance teams are rewriting how the back-office runs, and attackers are taking notes. Disconnected workflows, process blind spots, and rising cyber threats are more than just growing pains—they’re liabilities. The challenge isn’t just going remote. It’s building resilient systems that protect accuracy, control, and speed across every transaction and touchpoint.
PYMNTS
APRIL 23, 2020
Expedia Group has announced a new CEO and said it has agreed to a buyout, according to The Wall Street Journal. Vice Chairman Peter Kern will take the helm of Expedia, which contains Travelocity, Orbitz and Vrbo under its umbrella, and has been without a CEO since last December. Acting Chief Financial Officer Eric Hart will now serve in his role permanently.
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
Inertia is a powerful force in the world of payments and commerce, and one that explains the persistence of things that seem like they should have been disrupted long ago. Paper checks , the biweekly pay cycle, contact-based payments — the technology has long existed to banish those antiquated ideas and replace them with a digitized variation that is faster, smoother, more accessible and more secure.
PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
Hard Rock International is not expecting business to rebound before 2021. “There’s going to be a real challenge, especially here in the United States, as far as ramping the business back up,” Hard Rock Chairman James Allen told CNBC Wednesday (April 22) regarding the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. “We’re planning on that taking a year.”. Founded in London in 1971 and based in Florida, Hard Rock operates hotels, casinos and restaurants in 76 countries, according to the Hard Rock website.
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
The People’s Bank of China (PBOC) is launching a pilot program to trial its new digital currency yuan with 19 local businesses, including the U.S. chains Starbucks, Subway and McDonald’s. The digital currency trial is being held in Xiong’an New Area, a city being built south of Beijing. China is the first country to launch a central bank digital currency (CBDC) or digital currency electronic payment (DCEP).
Speaker: Frank Taliano
Documents are the backbone of enterprise operations, but they are also a common source of inefficiency. From buried insights to manual handoffs, document-based workflows can quietly stall decision-making and drain resources. For large, complex organizations, legacy systems and siloed processes create friction that AI is uniquely positioned to resolve.
PYMNTS
APRIL 22, 2020
Global concern over the coronavirus spreading on contaminated surfaces in public places is unleashing rapid development of innovative biometric products that could assist a touchless society. The New York City Police Department recently stopped using its fingerprint identification security procedure for employees entering buildings, for example, contributing to a spike in demand for contactless identification alternatives.
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
Representatives from Colorado and Oregon, states known for liberal cannabis laws, want the cannabis industry to be included in future Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) legislation. Reps. Earl Blumenauer (D-OR) and Ed Perlmutter (D-CO) introduced legislation this week to ensure that that happens, allowing cannabis companies to be eligible for the PPP, along with Economic Injury Disaster Loans and other emergency loan advances.
PYMNTS
APRIL 21, 2020
Call it “technology debt” — legacy systems and architecture, hardware and software — that has to be worked down. As banks increasingly go digital, as they seek to leverage mobile devices to reach consumers where they live — and especially as the coronavirus has kept us all hunkered down and sheltered in place — they’ve got to pay down their technical debt.
PYMNTS
APRIL 24, 2020
Digital transformation is essential for financial institutions’ (FIs) success, but what such a transformation entails has shifted in recent years. Consumers and small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are not just searching for financial partners with online platforms and mobile apps, but rather those offering such tools with greater degrees of efficiency, personalization and support for their specific needs.
Speaker: Claire Grosjean, Global Finance & Operations Executive
Finance teams are drowning in data—but is it actually helping them spend smarter? Without the right approach, excess spending, inefficiencies, and missed opportunities continue to drain profitability. While analytics offers powerful insights, financial intelligence requires more than just numbers—it takes the right blend of automation, strategy, and human expertise.
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