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Essential Fintech News - August 2019

August 30, 2019|0 min read
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Transforming the Future of Banking

Digital Banking Week_08292019

Digital Banking Week, Sept. 17-19, includes 20+ presentations with new ideas and strategies with actionable takeaways that banking, credit union, and fintech execs can bring back to their institutions.

Visionary speakers include Dan Ariely, Brett King, Jim Marous, Theodora Lau, Brad Leimer, Ron Shevlin, Adrienne A. Harris, Ryan Caldwell, JD Schramm, Dan Latimore, Neff Hudson, Emma Steeley, Andrew Yarrow, and more. The virtual event is free and will be recorded and distributed on-demand afterwards. Secure a spot at www.digitalbankingweek.com.

Apple Card Rollout

August EFN - Apple Card

A little over a week ago, Apple rolled out its newest product, the Apple Card credit card. General media consensus is that the launch has been a bit bumpy. According to Bloomberg, the Apple Card’s white appearance, a big selling point, “is prone to discoloration and ugly scuff marks.” Another issue: If you apply for the card you’ll probably get approved for an Apple Card, but be wary, warns Gizmodo, as “23.99 percent is better than the sky-high 30 percent some subprime cards offer – but it’s still Not Great.”

Granted, some outlets are reviewing Apple Card favorably, such as Yahoo! Finance who opined how “signing up is incredibly fast and easy” and that the card is “a digital experience first and a physical experience second.” But The Washington Post, among others, expressed disappointment that the new card was lacking in important features such as privacy: “Apple [should have but] didn’t build new kinds of privacy technology to help counteract all the other categories of companies using each swipe.”

Whether a feature like privacy ends up making or breaking the card remains to be seen.

Could the Fed Stop a Recession? 

August EFN. - FedReserveBank

That’s a question many financial strategists are asking. In an insightful opinion piece in Bloomberg, columnist Tyler Cowen argues yes, the fed CAN stop the recession, as “the current obstacles to effective monetary policy are mainly political [and cultural], not economic or instrumental.”

On the flip side, CNBC quoted sources arguing that it’s not clear that the Federal Reserve “has enough firepower left” to head off the feared economic slowdown, despite the efforts from President Trump and others to cut interest rates even more.

What’s your opinion?

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