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=E2=80=A6plus cord-cutting, carry t= rades, and coin mining
<= /tbody>
=
 
=
=
Scammers get Zelle-ous (Diego Thomazini/Shutterstock)
 
=
<= /table>

Hey Snackers,

You=E2=80=99ve heard of streaming-password moochers, but what about who= lesale-card moochers? Costco is doing a Netflix-style crackdo= wn, rolling out membership-card scan= ners at its warehouses nationwide to make sure folks aren=E2=80=99t= freeloading for free samples.

The S&P 500 closed out the week mostly f= lat after several days of wild swings by the major US indexes. This= week, investors have eyes on July=E2=80=99s consumer-inflation report, due= Wednesday.

=E2=9C=8F=EF=B8=8F Snacks Aptitude Test: not the S= AT you took junior year. See if you can get a perfect score on our Snacks Seven= Quiz, which covers the past week=E2=80=99s biggest biz news. T= ry the first Q:

Swiped
<= /table>
=

Regulators probe big banks on Zelle=E2= =80=99s fraud policies as payment-app scams pile up

What the Zelle=E2=80=A6 Big banks are getting heat from regulators = as scammers cash in on money-transfer service Zelle. Launched in 2017, Zell= e is owned by seven of America=E2=80=99s largest banks, including JPMorg= an Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo (it=E2=80=99s auto-in= cluded in many banking apps). Today, Zelle is one of the biggest players in= mobile payments, processing nearly 3x as many transactions as PayPal=E2=80=99s Venmo last year. But Zelle users have been complaining about sc= ams for years.= Now the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is investigating Zelle=E2=80= =99s partner banks over how they've handled the fraud surge.

  • The CFPB <= /b>is said to be looking into whether banks are shutting down scammers=E2= =80=99 accounts quickly enough and doing thorough screens of their customer= s.

  • Banks say that most Z= elle transactions are legitimate and that they=E2=80=99ve been taking steps= to boost safety (like: warning users about scams before they transfer $$).=

  • FYI: 2B+ people worldwi= de use mobile payments, and 60% of Americans use payment apps to shop.

    <= /li>

Zelle=E2=80=99ing into the void=E2=80=A6 Last year US co= nsumers lost $210M in scams across all payment apps. Deception methods have= included fraudsters posing as bank employees, dog breeders, and FB Marketp= lace merchants (and lots of email phishing links). The problem: payment app= s operate in a legal gray area. Banks can avoid reimbursing customers for f= unds lost to scams because users approved those transactions,=C2=A0even if = they were conned into doing so. A recent report said that JPMorgan, Wells F= argo, and Bank of America reimbursed only 38% of =E2=80=9Cunauthorized=E2= =80=9D transactions reported last year (nearly half of what they approved i= n 2019).

  • Check-out: Legislators introduced a bill this month that would = update electronic money transfer laws to protect customers from payment-app= fraud.

  • I(don=E2=80= =99t)OU: Banks are required to refund customers only for transactions t= hey didn=E2=80=99t authorize (like: charges on a stolen credit card).

THE TAKEA= WAY

Seamlessness = is a double-edged sword=E2=80=A6 Payment apps have allowed millions of = consumers and small businesses to easily send and receive payments quickly.= But they=E2=80=99ve also made it easier for scammers to rip people off, pr= ompting calls for more protections. It could be a lengthy battle: banks say= refunding scammed customers could attract more fraud and cost them billion= s. JPMorgan=E2=80=99s considering suing the CFPB over its Zelle investigati= on.

Read this o= nline

Event= s
<= /table>

Coming up this wee= k

Mine your business=E2=80=A6 Hut 8, = one of the largest bitcoin miners in North America, is set to report tomorr= ow. Its earnings will give a glimpse into an industry altered by last quart= er=E2=80=99s halvin= g. That shift in bitcoin=E2=80=99s code led to slashed miner revenues a= nd disappointing Q2 earnings from mining rivals Marathon Digital and= Riot Platforms (even with June=E2=80=99s near-record BTC price of $= 71K+). Last time it reported, Hut 8=E2=80=99s (pre-halving) quarterly reven= ues were up more than 3x on the year. Now the mining giant=E2=80=99s result= s could show an industry catching its breath =E2=80=94 or one poised for co= nsolidation.

Showing the receipt=E2=80=A6 Walmart reports this= week, after its Q1 sales rose 6% to ~$162B. The world=E2=80=99s largest re= tailer is gaining ground in groceries (which make up 60% of its US sales) a= s shoppers hunt for discounts: it captured a record 37% of US online grocer= y sales in Q2, beating all supermarkets. Walmart=E2=80=99s benefited as bar= gain-seeking consumers trade down to cheaper store brands. This year retail= ers including Walmart, Target, Amazon, and Walgreens have cut price= s on thousands of staples to lure shoppers. Analysts expect that Walmar= t will unbox more growth when it reports.

Zoom = out
<= /table>

Stories we=E2=80= =99re watching

More like slashing=E2=80= =A6 Cable cord-cutting=E2=80=99s heating up as streamers add live sport= s, bundles, and ads (aka=E2=80=A6 become more like cable). Last week, Wa= rner Bros. Discovery said its cable networks lost $9B in value, leading= the HBO parent to post an eye-watering $10B quarterly loss. Meantime, Paramou= nt Global=E2=80=99s revenue got dragged down by sagging cable subs and = TV ad sales. On the plus side, Warner=E2=80=99s streaming unit (think: Max)= gained 3.6M subs and Paramount=E2=80=99s had its first profit. Disney=E2=80=99s stream team (Disney+, Hulu, and ESPN+) also notched its first combined profit.

<= p>Yen it rains it pours=E2=80=A6 One factor that contributed to la= st week=E2=80=99s market mayhem could keep having ripple effects. After Japan raised its interest rate t= o a 15-year high, investors dumped hundreds of billions worth of assets bou= ght with borrowed yen. In other words, they rapidly unwound =E2=80=9Ccarry = trades=E2=80=9D =E2=80=94 borrowing in a currency with low interest rates t= o fund investments elsewhere in hope of higher returns. Even though Japan s= ignaled it=E2=80=99s done raising rates while markets are =E2=80=9Cunstable= ,=E2=80=9D carry-trade unwinding could continue: some analysts said the Chi= nese yuan could be next.

<= /table>
What else we're Snackin'

    Zapped: Americans=E2= =80=99 electricity bills in June were almost 16% higher than a year earlier= as heat waves roasted communities nationwide, AI data centers juiced power= demand, and more folks WFH=E2=80=99d (and cranked the AC).

  • Sick: 400M people= have had long Covid, according to a new report that estimated that the glo= bal economic costs of the chronic condition top $1T/year. Up to 4M people w= ere unemployed in 2022 because of it.

  • FlyHail: Air-ta= xi company Archer Aviation said it plans to launch its passenger ser= vice in LA in 2026 ahead of the World Cup. Jeep maker Stellantis wil= l reportedly provide $370M for Archer=E2=80=99s ramp-up.

=
<= /table>
Snack = Fact Of the Day

Wikipedia ge= ts 15B page views/month

<= /table>
This Week

  • Monday: Tour de France Femmes begins. Earnings expected from= Barrick Gold, Sun Life Financial, and BuzzFeed

  • Tuesday: Producer-price data for July= . Made by Google event. International Left-Handers=E2=80=99 Day. Earnings e= xpected from Home Depot

  • = Wednesday: Consumer-inflation report for July. National Financial Aw= areness Day. Earnings expected from UBS, Dole, Performance Food Group, <= /b>and Cisco Systems

  • = Thursday: Retail sales figures. US industrial production for July. Earn= ings expected from Alibaba Group, Walmart, JD.com, Deere, Applied Materi= als, and H&R Block

  • =

    Friday: University of Michigan consumer-sentiment survey for Augu= st. US housing starts. National Work from Home for Wellness Day. World Plou= ghing Championship.

Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and = shares of: Amazon, Barrick Gold, Disney, Riot Platforms, Warner Bros. Disco= very, and Walmart

<= !--[if mso | IE]>
 
<= div class=3D"mj-column-per-50 mj-outlook-group-fix" style=3D"font-size:0px;= text-align:left;direction:ltr;display:inline-block;vertical-align:top;width= :50%;">
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<= tbody> --777e83515768f78b40bf1c361b6e4fe31681395beac3e511cf13904d507a Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Type: text/html; charset=utf-8 Mime-Version: 1.0
=E2=80=A6plus cord-cutting, carry t= rades, and coin mining
Sherwood Media, LLC produces fresh and uniqu= e perspectives on topical financial news and is a fully owned subsidiary of= Robinhood Markets, Inc., and any views expressed here do not necessarily r= eflect the views of any other Robinhood affiliate... See more
<= /div>
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Scammers get= Zelle-ous (Diego Thomazini/Shutterstock)
 
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Hey Snackers,

You=E2=80=99ve= heard of streaming-password moochers, but what about wholesale-card mooche= rs? Costco is doing a Netflix-style crackdown, rolling out membership-card scanners at i= ts warehouses nationwide to make sure folks aren=E2=80=99t freeloading for = free samples.

The S&P 500 closed out the week mostly flat<= /u> after several days of wild swings by the major US indexes. This wee= k, investors have eyes on July=E2=80=99s consumer-inflation report, due Wed= nesday.

=E2=9C=8F=EF=B8=8F Snacks Aptitude Test: not the SAT y= ou took junior year. See if you can get a perfect score on our Snacks Seven Quiz, w= hich covers the past week=E2=80=99s biggest biz news. Try the first Q:

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  • Dolce &a= mp; Gabbana is launching its first fragrance for who? (Check your answer.)<= /p>

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    Regulators probe b= ig banks on Zelle=E2=80=99s fraud policies as payment-app scams pile up

    =

    What the Zelle=E2=80=A6 Big banks are getting heat= from regulators as scammers cash in on money-transfer service Zell= e. Launched in 2017, Zelle is owned by seven of America=E2=80=99s largest b= anks, including JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo = (it=E2=80=99s auto-included in many banking apps). Today, Zelle is one = of the biggest players in mobile payments, processing nearly 3x as many tra= nsactions as PayPal=E2=80=99s Venmo last year. But Zelle users have = been complaining about scams for years. Now the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is in= vestigating Zelle=E2=80=99s partner banks over how they've handled the= fraud surge.

    • The CFPB is said to be looking into whether banks are shut= ting down scammers=E2=80=99 accounts quickly enough and doing thorough scre= ens of their customers.

    • Bank= s say that most Zelle transactions are legitimate and that they=E2=80= =99ve been taking steps to boost safety (like: warning users about scams be= fore they transfer $$).

    • FYI:= 2B+ people worldwide use mobile payments, and 60% of Americans use pay= ment apps to shop.

    Zelle=E2=80=99ing into the void= =E2=80=A6 Last year US consumers lost $210M in scams across all payment app= s. Deception methods have included fraudsters posing as bank employees, dog= breeders, and FB Marketplace merchants (and lots of email phishing links).= The problem: payment apps operate in a legal gray area. Banks can avoid re= imbursing customers for funds lost to scams because users approved those tr= ansactions,=C2=A0even if they were conned into doing so. A recent report sa= id that JPMorgan, Wells Fargo, and Bank of America reimbursed only 38% of = =E2=80=9Cunauthorized=E2=80=9D transactions reported last year (nearly half= of what they approved in 2019).

    • Check-out: Legislators introduced a bil= l this month that would update electronic money transfer laws to protect cu= stomers from payment-app fraud.

    • I(don=E2=80=99t)OU: Banks are required to refund customers o= nly for transactions they didn=E2=80=99t authorize (like: charges on a stol= en credit card).

    =

    Seamlessness is a double-edged sword=E2=80=A6 Payment apps have allowed millions of consumers and small businesses to e= asily send and receive payments quickly. But they=E2=80=99ve also made it e= asier for scammers to rip people off, prompting calls for more protections.= It could be a lengthy battle: banks say refunding scammed customers could = attract more fraud and cost them billions. JPMorgan=E2=80=99s considering s= uing the CFPB over its Zelle investigation.

    Read this online

    Event= s
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    Coming up this wee= k

    Mine your business=E2=80=A6 Hut 8, = one of the largest bitcoin miners in North America, is set to report tomorr= ow. Its earnings will give a glimpse into an industry altered by last quart= er=E2=80=99s halving. That shift in bitcoin=E2=80=99s code led to slashed miner r= evenues and disappointing Q2 earnings from mining rivals Marathon Digita= l and Riot Platforms (even with June=E2=80=99s near-record BTC p= rice of $71K+). Last time it reported, Hut 8=E2=80=99s (pre-halving) quarte= rly revenues were up more than 3x on the year. Now the mining giant=E2=80= =99s results could show an industry catching its breath =E2=80=94 or one po= ised for consolidation.

    Showing the receipt=E2=80=A6 Walmart r= eports this week, after its Q1 sales rose 6% to ~$162B. The world=E2=80=99s= largest retailer is gaining ground in groceries (which make up 60% of its = US sales) as shoppers hunt for discounts: it captured a record 37% of US on= line grocery sales in Q2, beating all supermarkets. Walmart=E2=80=99s benef= ited as bargain-seeking consumers trade down to cheaper store brands. This = year retailers including Walmart, Target, Amazon, and Walgreens have cut prices on thousands of staples to lure shoppers. Analysts ex= pect that Walmart will unbox more growth when it reports.

    Zoom = out
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    Stories we=E2=80= =99re watching

    More like slashing=E2=80= =A6 Cable cord-cutting=E2=80=99s heating up as streamers add live sport= s, bundles, and ads (aka=E2=80=A6 become more like cable). Last week, Wa= rner Bros. Discovery said its cable networks lost $9B in value, leading= the HBO parent to post an eye-watering $10B quar= terly loss. Meantime, Paramount Global=E2=80=99s revenue got= dragged down by sagging cable subs and TV ad sales. On the plus side, Warn= er=E2=80=99s streaming unit (think: Max) gained 3.6M subs and Paramount=E2= =80=99s had its first profit. Disney=E2=80=99s stream team (Disney+,= Hulu, and ESPN+) also notched its f= irst combined profit.

    Yen it rains it pours=E2=80=A6 O= ne factor that contributed to last week=E2=80=99s market mayhem could keep having ripple e= ffects. After Japan raised its interest rate to a 15-year high, investors d= umped hundreds of billions worth of assets bought with borrowed yen. In oth= er words, they rapidly unwound =E2=80=9Ccarry trades=E2=80=9D =E2=80=94 bor= rowing in a currency with low interest rates to fund investments elsewhere = in hope of higher returns. Even though Japan signaled it=E2=80=99s done rai= sing rates while markets are =E2=80=9Cunstable,=E2=80=9D carry-trade unwind= ing could continue: some analysts said the Chinese yuan could be next.

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    What else we're Snackin'

      = Zapped: Americans=E2=80=99 electricity bills in June wer= e almost 16% higher than a year earlier as heat waves roasted communities n= ationwide, AI data centers juiced power demand, and more folks WFH=E2=80=99= d (and cranked the AC).

    • Sick: 400M people have had long Covid, according to a new repor= t that estimated that the global economic costs of the chronic condition to= p $1T/year. Up to 4M people were unemployed in 2022 because of it.

      • =

    • FlyHai= l: Air-taxi company Archer Aviation said it plans= to launch its passenger service in LA in 2026 ahead of the World Cup. Jeep= maker Stellantis will reportedly provide $370M for Archer=E2=80=99s= ramp-up.

    =
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    Snack = Fact Of the Day

    Wikipedia ge= ts 15B page views/month

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    This Week

    • Monday: Tour de France Femmes begins. Earnings expected from= Barrick Gold, Sun Life Financial, and BuzzFeed

    • Tuesday: Producer-price data for July= . Made by Google event. International Left-Handers=E2=80=99 Day. Earnings e= xpected from Home Depot

    • = Wednesday: Consumer-inflation report for July. National Financial Aw= areness Day. Earnings expected from UBS, Dole, Performance Food Group, <= /b>and Cisco Systems

    • = Thursday: Retail sales figures. US industrial production for July. Earn= ings expected from Alibaba Group, Walmart, JD.com, Deere, Applied Materi= als, and H&R Block

    • =

      Friday: University of Michigan consumer-sentiment survey for Augu= st. US housing starts. National Work from Home for Wellness Day. World Plou= ghing Championship.

    Authors of this Snacks own bitcoin and = shares of: Amazon, Barrick Gold, Disney, Riot Platforms, Warner Bros. Disco= very, and Walmart

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