finfrastrcuture

isn't this misguided? good regulation would go after why sites are designed to be addictive / target children - targeted ads.

I understand this would theoretically stop the CCCP from getting info on US Consumers, but is there anything to this that actually limits the data collected? I assume not.

Parenting is so tough to discuss. Nothing is ever a best (or even 'right') answer. I agree with this take, with a "yes, and" -

I worry about apps / video games for children also stunting imagination. Yes, in a game like Minecraft you can build anything out of blocks, or with Photoshop draw anything. However, the entire 'universe of outcomes' is inherently bound to the mind(s) of the developers, compared with a bored kid who's possibilities are limited only by their own imagination. Children are therefore pressed to stretch and practice creativity. Its not a perfect analogy, but I'm reminded of the theme in the Matrix movies of bounded outcomes.

I personally think creativity through raw boredom - rather than directed distraction (especially through digital devices)- is essential to mental development.

The problem is fraud + disputes. Who's liable for people sending money to fraudsters? For letting fraudsters operate on the platform? See the fraud issues of Zelle, which is basically a free money moving service comparable to FedNow.

The service the networks provide is a way for all participants (banks, people, businesses, etc) to trust one another, as well as a healthy rules-based system to address disputes. Getting this working is not trivial.

Mastercard actually has higher coverage internationally.[0]

[0] https://wallethub.com/answers/cc/is-visa-or-mastercard-bette...

I doubt the existing products will change anytime soon given existing contracts, brand promises, etc. The impact will likely only be new products.

totally agree. but an amex focused on the non-affluent demographic. I think this actually increases competition in an area the FTC/CFPB cares about!

This is a generally unsurprising event to industry, but exciting nevertheless.

Cap One and Discover both focus on the nearprime / subprime / thin credit / credit invisible segments (think people who have bad credit, expats, students, etc.). Cap One is excellent in their analytics on understanding people, and likely sees Discover as an opportunity to acquire new customers + improve on Discover's operations.

The network side of Discover's business is intriguing. Its nowhere near as sophisticated as Visa/Mastercard, but it is something! The idea may be to turn into an Amex focused on everything but prime consumers, and use the improved economics (from owning both sides of the transaction) to give rewards (at least something) to cardholders who don't normally see them. I doubt their intention is to build a serious competitor to the card networks.

Agree, but let's not pass over that this is a great first step!

My grandfather invented / designed the bullets for the Phalanx. The dumbed-down idea is that smaller bullets with high kinetic energy can be more devastating to armored targets than larger, slower bullets releasing chemical energy. He used to take my mother out to the CA desert to help him test his latest designs on thick armored plates (they now decorate her front yard - metal!).

Reflecting on the Phalanx brings mixed emotion, given that the US Navy avoided paying patents on his designs and buried him in legal fees so that he never saw a dime (at least that's what I've been told). He was older at the time, and this absolutely took several years off his life. That said, I know he'd be proud to see his ideas still being relevant today, from implementation to video games.

The showrunners agonized over making the show historically accurate vs fitting the story into a TV format. It sounds like they traded the minor details to get the broad brushstrokes right - and especially dissect the themes around hubris, willful ignorance, and so on. The 'making of' podcast where they discuss this is quite interesting:

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-chernobyl-podcast/...

Can't find the referenced blog post, but find it surprising that Amazon is allowing badges in its checkout instead of biometrics (the whole point of their 'just walk out' check out experience).

I'm not one to wear a tin-foil hat, but the timing of this piece is interesting. the Credit Card Competition Act (CCCA) may be lumped into the upcoming spending vote [1]. basically, this would end card rewards under the premise that merchants would pass along interchange savings to consumers. the same argument was made for debit, yet of course the savings never materialized.

1. https://subscriber.politicopro.com/article/2023/09/senator-t...

some airlines have already done this, having fully owned subsidiaries. consider Lufthansa and their "Miles and More" subsidiary.

that said, I doubt airlines will ever fully relinquish control over their loyalty programs - they are too critical to the core business and offer a 'secret sauce' of differentiation to what is an otherwise commoditized product (i.e. flying from point A to B).

I think a nuance that's lost is the difference in addiction between a pharmacological substance vs a behavior. "Brain scans" and their equivalents will do a much better job revealing the former than the latter. That doesn't make behavioral addictions any less damaging from a holistic view of the patient's health (i.e. their overall quality of life).

To me, I feel as though that behavioral addiction is completely disregarded by the medical community. If someone is lighting up every night / having a drink and want to stop, they need an alternative way of closing out the day. Otherwise of course it'll be difficult.

that seems like the right answer...

however, the payment itself is almost besides the point. the tricky part is the scheme / governance surrounding payments. who is liable for what, preventing fraud, etc. these large payment actors + the middlemen are more about fostering trust networks than moving the actual dollars and cents.

fraud in P2P payment networks (e.g. Zelle) is already a huge issue because a lack of a governing actor like a card network.[0] a different question is would the government ever provide this mediating role / lay out guidelines? would we want it to?

https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/06/business/payments-fraud-z...

the entire reason FedNow exists is because (simplifying somewhat) the large banks launched their own real-time payments system (RTP through the Clearing House) and small banks in the US lobbied the govt HARD to get a government option out of the reasonable concern they would get squeezed by the majors.

nearly all banks in the US should support FedNow within the next few years, if not much sooner, as it is seen as tablestakes for most bankers.

regarding the 'feeling for robots' line of thought...perhaps modern technology has made the trope of "creator and creation" too tangible and muddied what was once an effective metaphor about life, spiritual relationships, creation, parenthood, etc. The trope is ancient: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pygmalion_(mythology).

Its a precaution for when you turn the bed into a safe zone, they don't re-infest the bed (provided you are being super careful about what you're putting on your bed).

Less of his full agenda, but here's an article I felt was helpful on the current state of Belarus: https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/30/magazine/belarus-mural.ht...

Frauds like this one all-too-often wrap and camouflage themselves in some social good. Its so revolting, and brings down not only the cause but the people suffering from whatever the subject is (e.g. students applying for financial aid, cancer patients getting their blood tested, etc.)

Its unfair and awkward but ventures which heavily push the mission like this one should be pushed harder on their fundamentals by the investor / startup community.

Getting hung up on the transactional piece of this is tragic. Ukraine constitutes a society that has embraced (evidenced by their revolution, stiff resistance so far, etc.) enlightenment values - the worth of an individual, a rules based society, meritocracy, etc. Before we run to all the counterfactuals, these values are generally instilled in the culture (particularly the younger demographics). NATO essentially exists to protect this common, values-based order.

Not granting membership earlier was those countries (mentioned in other comments) over-rotating on transactional-based benefits, over value-based ones. That's why there's such frustration now over getting Ukraine into NATO now. Will it happen? No, diplomatically impossible while they're engaged in hot war. But the moral outrage is reasonable given the bloody price they've paid in defense of the values NATO exists to protect. To clearly connect the dots...considering Ukraine as part of NATO benefits NATO in that it allows them to uphold those values it exists to serve, giving it purpose and strength from the unity of its member countries (and moral investment of the individuals who serve its armies).

That said, EVs must be economically sustainable for everyone for society to reap the environmental gains. Otherwise switching from ICEs to EVs won't work.

I'm by no means a BNPL advocate, but this isn't true. BNPL providers have proliferated because they offer the merchant a new avenue to win new businesses (aka get consumers who wouldn't buy to buy) and in exchange receive a heft % commission of the purchase, much higher than card interchange. They also are fighting to reposition themselves as marketplaces in their own right, and earn associated merchant marketing fees, rather than be just a button a check out.

According to the BNPL industry, fees and interest make up a small portion of their overall revenues. Whether that's wholly accurate is another story.

In sum, they would indeed exist. Its more a question of how large and profitable they would be.

Check out Klarna's financial reporting to get a sense of this: https://www.klarna.com/international/press/klarna-reports-fo...

This reminds me of Brazilian banks which have introduced "Street Mode" to secure your banking app while out of the home:

https://www.riotimesonline.com/brazil-news/brazil/nubank-wil...

Fact. But you left out the part where it turns out they've been right about their exposes.

Its like with Private Equity. A part of me hates the concept and much of what's out there, but when done correctly it brings efficiency to the market.

Basically, short-sellers, PE, etc. are all just more ways of monetizing investigative journalism. They're like a 'virus' for capitalism, forcing good behavior and punishing the bad.

Half Life: Alyx

It stands for "Environmental, Social and Governance" - basically, a for-profit entity incorporating these factors into business decisions. The argument is that since companies exist in societies and have externalities beyond financials, they should take a stand on various non-business topics (e.g. a factory sponsoring environmental cleanup near their factory which they aren't technically liable for)

This is controversial as it cuts to the core of what a company should optimize for, as some argue businesses should leave regulation / societal issues to governments.

My understanding [0] from speaking with locals throughout SE Asia is a general resentment towards mainland Chinese tourists which boils down to - what else - money.

It turns out most Chinese tour operators throughout SE Asia run a completely vertical business, wherein they own all touchpoints their guests interact with (e.g. the restaurants, the bus company, the gift shops, etc.). Further, these are all staffed by immigrant Chinese. This results in all tourism profits being captured by Chinese nationals and businesses (and being exported back home as remittances) while burdening local infrastructure. Locals hate this.

For what its worth, I never heard / witnessed any hostility towards local ethnic Chinese (Peranakans), whose status, as the parent comment notes, is locally prominent. (Though there have been some bloody clashes in the past: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Discrimination_against_Chinese...

[0] Living in SE Asia, lots of extended chats with locals throughout the region.

Spot on, a ton of Directors / MDs are rushing to push this in front of their leadership (whoever 'leads' the acquisition will no doubt burnish their personal brand / career path /s).

That said, if I'm an SVB customer...do I want to stick with the bank that's had this issue? Even so, would I want to bank with the acquirer?