Bitcoin, iBeacons, Digital Gift Cards...Experts Talk Change!

On Payments Podcast Interview Series – Recap and Round-Up

By Marc Dresner, Senior Editor, IIR

I don’t need to tell you that the world of payments is changing dramatically.

But with APEX—the All Payments Expo—kicking off next week in Las Vegas, it seems prudent to revisit what’s been kicking around in the heads of industry experts lately.

Over the past couple of months, On Payments—a special podcast interview series produced by APEX—has featured a variety of thought leaders at the forefront of the payments and stored value industries and retail.

To prime the pump for those stimulating conversations you’re sure to have at APEX next week, here’s a quick round up of the guests we've featured and the topics they covered.

I urge you to introduce yourselves to these fascinating folks in person and continue the conversation next week.

Safe travels and enjoy the show!

David Berger

EPISODE ONE

Bitcoin may be closer to a mainstream tipping point than you realize. David Berger, CEO of the Digital Currency Council, shares the latest on the growth of virtual tender and talks about his organization’s mission to equip lawyers, accountants and financial professionals for the emerging digital currency economy.

Check out the interview here

Chris Adamo

EPISODE TWO

Digital gift cards will overtake plastic in the next 1-2 years, says Chris Adamo, Manager of Partnerships & Gift Cards at 1-800-FLOWERS. In this episode, Adamo talks about the digital florist’s experience with e-cards thus far and why the impending consumer migration from plastic to digital is good news for retailers.

Check out the interview here

Ryan Craver

EPISODE THREE

Retailers are experimenting with iBeacons as both a marketing and a payments tool. Ryan Craver, former SVP of Corporate Strategy for Lord & Taylor/Hudson’s Bay, discusses how the retailer tested the technology and what he sees ahead.

Check out the interview here

Rik Willard

EPISODE FOUR

Cryptocurrencies are rapidly approaching an inflection point in emerging markets with dramatic implications for the rest of the world. Rik Willard, CEO of MintCombine, discusses how development of cryptocurrencies in emerging markets will disrupt the status quo and rewrite the rules, and what the future may look like.

Check out the interview here

Ryan Lazanis

EPISODE FIVE

Businesses are struggling with Bitcoin tax questions. Ryan Lazanis, CPA, CA and principal of Xen Accounting discusses the potential tax implications around using cryptocurrencies and offers tips for individuals and companies interested in expanding into digital currency payments.

Check out the interview here

Editor’s note: The folks interviewed in On Payments are but a few of the industry experts and thought leaders who will be a featured at APEX 2015—The All Payments Expo—taking place February 23-25 in Las Vegas.

IT’S NOT TOO LATE TO JOIN THEM!

Click here for an agenda or to here register for APEX. 

Or visit www.allpaymentsexpo.com.

SAVE $100 off registration TODAY with promo code: XU2848BLOG

ABOUT THE AUTHOR / INTERVIEWER 
Marc Dresner is IIR USA’s sr. editor and special communication project lead. He is the former executive editor of Research Business Report, a confidential newsletter for the market and consumer research industry. He may be reached at mdresner@iirusa.com. Follow him @mdrezz.

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Last Chance to Register for APEX | Save $100

All Payments Expo 2015 is taking place next week at Caesars Palace in Las Vegas, but is it not too late to register. Save $100 now by using the code XU2848LNKIN | Register here. 

All Payments Expo is the annual meeting place at the intersection of payments innovation, including emerging payments, prepaid, alternative financial services, retail and technology. APEX attracts the highest caliber of payment decision makers. Attendees span every link of the value chain, from merchants to card networks to banks to entrepreneurs - allowing you access to decision makers with several potential partners at once.

You do not want to miss this, see you in Las Vegas!

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The Retail Prophet will Keynote at APEX

Doug Stephens, one of the world's foremost retail futurists, has influenced some of retail's most recognizable brands, including Target, Home Depot, Disney, Crayola, Citibank and more.

Otherwise known as The Retail Prophet, Doug's keynote at APEX will explain how consumers' evolving expectations, desires and shopping behaviors should reinvent how retailers think, from bricks to clicks.

• How can brick & mortar stores evolve to be as responsive as websites?
• How will channel fragmentation affect your current strategy, and how should you think ahead?
• What strategies work best to increase conversion, brand awareness and loyalty?
• How you should completely re-think your current gift card model

Don't miss his keynote on Tuesday, February 24 at 11 a.m. Register here to secure your spot. Remember, you can save $100 with the code XU2848BLOG.

RETAILERS: Doug is hosting a special retail-only lunch following his keynote. To request an invite, e-mail Diana Middleton at dmiddleton@iirusa.com

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Is 2015 the Year for the Bitcoin?

Alternative payment systems are becoming more prevalent in the payments world and there are many new systems that diminish the need for traditional banking processes. Bitcoins, which came about in 2009, are a currency used that are increasingly being looked at as another alternative payment system in the future.

Bitcoins are an online payment currency that have been revolutionary since their creation for being able to make peer to peer transactions without a middle man, i.e. not having to use a bank. Transactions can also be anonymous and there are no fees which make them very efficient and useful for consumers. ANX have recently issued a Bitcoin debit card which can be shipped to users and is the first Bitcoin debit card to allow users to pay with Bitcoins with the traditional credit card payment system, online and for carrying out cash withdrawals. The card supports 10 different currencies and sold out within 24 hours of being available.

The new card could mean an increase in interest in Bitcoins and their flexibility and versatility for payment could mean an upsurge in popularity. Being able to transfer money easily online without transaction fees or needing bank transfers is very useful for a consumer and so using Bitcoins means large savings on transaction costs. Also being able to pay now with Bitcoins means less dependency on banks and ATMs to get out cash.

However, there are still question marks regarding Bitcoins and the events of 2014 hit their credibility hard. Ross Ulbricht, the alleged creator of Silk Road, an online drug marketplace where Bitcoins are the currency, has recently been found guilty of charges related to drug trafficking, money laundering plus more and faces a minimum of 20 years in prison. Bitcoins are seen by many as a resource for illegal activity and is still generally not particularly well known globally.

An issue raised by many is the problem with the sporadic nature of the Bitcoin’s value. The value of the Bitcoin today is below $250 whereas at its peak in 2013 it reached a little over $1200. Will the volatility of the value affect a day to day consumer’s interest in getting an ANX debit card or even investing in Bitcoins in the first place? There has however been a lot of investment in Bitcoins by large investors, who say that there simply is a need for one ‘killer app’. In 2014, around $300 million was invested in Bitcoin startups, with startup apps such as ‘Purse.io’ which sources Amazon credits or gift cards and people can buy them off someone looking to get rid of them for Bitcoins.

2015 will be a very big year for the Bitcoin and the next year or two will be crucial to see whether it can evolve into a vital resource in the payment world. Better security and a stabilization of the value are important for whether other big companies such as ANX may invest and provide payment services that cater Bitcoins. This new card could mean even less reliance on traditional payment systems and pave the way for payment systems using Bitcoins.

Cryptocurrency has the potential to be the biggest commerce disruptor since the web. Now is the time to evaluate and leverage the inherent opportunities in Bitcoin's transactional currency applications and the underlying protocol.

All Payments Expo is rife with opportunities for cryptocurrency and mainstream payment systems to dissect potential partnerships and implementation challenges. Companies looking to invest, partner, or acquire new technologies will hear from the most provocative cryptocurrency leaders.

To see all APEX has to offer, download the agenda.

Register now and save $100 when you use the code XU2848BLOG.

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Businesses Struggle with Bitcoin Tax Questions

Accountant Prefers Payment in Bitcoin to Credit Cards

By Marc Dresner, Senior Editor, IIR

Until fairly recently, the only people who had to be concerned with the potential tax implications of using bitcoin were those buying, selling and “mining” the cryptocurrency—a niche population of highly tech savvy individuals.

But increasingly, companies are accepting bitcoin as payment and even paying their employees in it, which has opened an entirely new stream of prospective clients for accountants who can help them negotiate the persistent tax uncertainty surrounding cryptocurrencies.

Ryan Lazanis

“People and companies are having a difficult time navigating the tax environment since there is still so little guidance,” said Ryan Lazanis, CPA, CA and principal of Montreal-based Xen Accounting.

“Digital currency is a completely new concept. A lot of these new concepts are not applicable to existing tax law.”

“The regulatory environment is definitely tricky,” Lazanis added. “Digital currency, on the whole, is a completely new concept. And a lot of these new concepts are not applicable to existing tax law.”

In 2014, a high-profile string of major companies—Microsoft, Dell, Expedia, PayPal and even Time, Inc., among others—announced they would accept payment from customers in bitcoin.

And last month, Overstock.com, which had already been taking payment in bitcoin for a year, announced it would offer employees the option of being paid in the cryptocurrency.

To be precise, none of these companies accepts bitcoin payment directly; they accept it through intermediaries like Coinbase and BitPay, who convert it to cash for them—a pretty clear indication that there’s still not much faith in the currency, whose value plummeted more than 54% in 2014.

Bitcoin-related inquiries have tapered in tandem with the currency’s drop in value.

Moreover, Lazanis says the volume of bitcoin-related inquiries his firm receives has tapered in tandem with the currency’s decline in value.

“[Bitcoin queries] come in waves. Back when Bitcoin prices were spiking, we were getting a ton of inquiries,” Lazanis told On Payments in a podcast interview.

Instability will doubtless continue to dog cryptocurrency adoption among businesses, but it may be that smaller companies realize the benefits and move the needle first.

Lazanis says that his firm enthusiastically accepts bitcoin because of its advantages over credit cards.

“We prefer to be paid in bitcoin over credit cards.”

“We prefer to be paid in bitcoin over credit cards,” Lazanis said.

“For most small businesses there are a few percentage points and fees attached to credit card payments that actually make a big impact at the end of the year,” he explained, “and some credit card gateways take up to seven business days to put that money in your bank.”

“With bitcoin there are zero fees and you receive that money immediately,” he added.

Lazanis, whose clients tend toward techier types, reports that Xen Accounting continues to receive inquiries from both tech-forward and more traditional companies that want to open themselves up to new markets.

These markets may need a nudge…

In some economies in the less developed world with fewer entrenched interests and infrastructure impediments, digital currency markets are rapidly growing.

But in the First World, these markets may need a nudge.

(Editor’s note: For more on the impact of digital currency in emerging markets, check out episode four of On Payments.)

Patrick Byrne

Indeed, one of bitcoin’s most outspoken corporate proponents, Overstock.com CEO Patrick Byrne—who recently had a bitcoin ATM installed in the company’s Salt Lake City headquarters—conceded as much when the company announced it would offer employees the option to be paid in bitcoin.

“Moving cryptocurrencies out of the realm of geeks and into the realm of the rest of us requires making changes.” 

– Patrick Byrne, CEO, Overstock.com

“Moving cryptocurrencies out of the realm of geeks and into the realm of the rest of us requires making changes at all levels of the financial ecosystem,” Byrne said in a press release.

Come April, those employees who take Byrne up on his offer will likely need some tax advice from people like Ryan Lazanis…

In this podcast for On Payments—the All Payments Expo (APEX) interview series—Ryan Lazanis discusses the potential tax implications around using cryptocurrencies and offers tips for individuals and companies interested in expanding into digital currency payments.

Access the podcast and a transcript here!

Editor’s note: Ryan Lazanis will be a featured speaker at APEX 2015—the All Payments Expo—taking place February 23-25 in Las Vegas.

Click here for an agenda or here to register for APEX, or visit www.allpaymentsexpo.com.

Ps. SAVE $100 on registration with promo code XU2848BLOG

ABOUT THE AUTHOR / INTERVIEWER
Marc Dresner is IIR USA’s sr. editor and special communication project lead. He is the former executive editor of Research Business Report, a confidential newsletter for the market and consumer research industry. He may be reached at mdresner@iirusa.com. Follow him @mdrezz.

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Eliminate Payments Risk at All Payments Expo

Rules, Regulation and Compliance

With innovation comes risk. And where there's risk, there's rules, regulation and compliance - plus, lots of uncertainty.



At All Payments Expo, you'll get the legal analysis and regulator face-time you need to decipher how new regulation developments, fraud trends and lingering uncertainties will impact your payments product or program.

Get Analysis on:

• CFPB-led presentation on its proposed rules for prepaid
• How fraudsters are gaining access to a wide variety of payment access devices, with insight from the FBI and the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta
• Analysis on EMV's maturation, and the subsequent impact on payment fraud
• The legal implications of Bitcoin, and how partnerships can satisfy compliance requirements
• How to improve the compliance relationships between prepaid program managers and issuers
• Eliminating gift card-based fraud in-store, online and third-party
• How to boost approval for your product innovations, enhancements and add-ons throughout the regulatory lifecycle
• How non-traditional payments companies and MSBs can better access financial services

View the APEX agenda.

At APEX, you'll have a tailored line-up of legal analysis, regulator access and real-world takeaways. Don't risk your program's growth - get ahead of regulation now by attending APEX.

Save $100 when you register with the code XU2848BLOG

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Are Disruptive Innovations Undermining Traditional Payment Processes?

The recent upsurge of disruptive innovations in the payment world have caused many to predict a fall in the importance and in some cases, extinction of banks. Clayton Christensen, who came up with the theory of disruption, predicts that "Banks, many of them, won’t exist ten years from now. Their functionality will be taken over by IT companies who don’t have the same assets and income statement challenges".  Banking hasn’t really changed that much over the last 100 years; the only real disruptive innovation that has come about was probably the introduction of the credit card. Apart from that banks have gradually changed and adapted with the times without having to deal with much competition.

However the recent rise in mobile payments are causing a real threat to traditional banking. Smartphones and mobile platforms operate in real-time, making payments straight away whereas traditionally banks process payments overnight or a couple of working days. Customers do not want to see one balance on a statement, another at the ATM and another online. Mobile payments create an easier and faster way of paying.


Below are three revolutionary payment innovations:

• Card Case app – This app is a payments system that could spell the end of even needing a wallet. It’s not an app where you have to pay with your phone but simply with your name. The app connects with the stores location and so when you go to the cashier, you say your name, your picture and name comes up and the cashier clicks it. A receipt gets sent instantly to your account and the payment is made. Obviously not every shop in the world has the payment system but after one year since its creation in 2010, 800,000 readers were sent out and the number is rising rapidly. https://squareup.com/

• TransferWise – This peer-to-peer payment system enables international transfers by acting as a middle man between parties for much lower costs than doing the transfer with a bank. Whereas with many big banks the cost for a transfer of around $1000 dollars could cost around $40; TransferWise will do the same from peer-to-peer for around $1. It is no surprise it has had interest from huge names such as Richard Branson and Facebook.  https://transferwise.com/us

• Uber – Uber, now worth over $18 billion, is a perfect example of frictionless payment as everything is done via mobile. The taxi is booked and paid for using the Uber app and the taxi comes to your exact GPS location. It negates any need for cash or trying to hail a cab in the street. https://www.uber.com/

Banks need to begin to understand the needs of their customers; Cisco carried out a survey that found "43 percent of U.S. customers believe their primary bank does not understand their needs; 31 percent feel their bank is not helping them reach their primary financial goals".

The three payment innovations shown above negate the need for banks and their ATM’s; banks need to start to revolutionize their approaches to payments or customers will simply use them as a place to store money.

Join us at the All Payments Expo February 23-25 at the Caesars Palace in Las Vegas. New to APEX 'The Disruptive Technology Forum' a devoted meeting place for mainstream payments and FIs to meet and discuss new business models and innovative ideas with new, disruptive technologies. Companies looking to invest, partner, white-label or acquire new platforms and technologies will hear from the most provocative and intelligent disruptors.

New payments and banking alternative companies are disrupting the very future of financial services and payments. Get a leg up on competition by hearing from the leading technologies. Meet potential partners who can help you achieve scale faster.

Download the full agenda here.

Register now and save $100 - Use the code XU2848BLOG


______________________________________________________
Sources:
Forbes - http://www.forbes.com/sites/stevedenning/2014/12/05/innotribeswift-can-banks-master-disruptive-innovation/ 
Cisco - http://www.cisco.com/c/dam/en/us/solutions/collateral/executive-perspectives/Internet-of-Everything-executive-summary.pdf

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Why More Retailers are Attending APEX Than Ever

More Retailers are Attending All Payments Expo Than Ever

All Payments Expo was built for retailers to meet their peers and discuss the issues that matter most. Whether in sessions, private boardrooms or exclusive member-only association meetings, only All Payments Expo has built an experience catered for retailers' unique industry concerns and networking needs.

+20% More Retailers Registered for APEX 2015

+50% NEW Retailers Attending in 2015

With a retail attendee base spanning the IT, gift cards, corporate strategy, omnichannel and incentives functions, APEX is the best place to meet retailers and create new strategic relationships.

Want to see who is attending? Register now to get access to the full attendee list. Use the code XU2848BLOG to save $100!

Who you'll meet at APEX:

• Dominos • Gx • Kern • Harvard Card Systems • CPI Card Group • DineEquity • GiftCertificates.com • Maritz Motivation • Federal Bureau of Investigation • Progreso Financiero • Coin Capital Management • Amscot Financial • Ifeelgoods • Swift Prepaid Solutions Inc • ABNote • Discover • Dicks Sporting Goods • American Express • BitPay, Inc. • PULSE a Discover company • MasterCard Worldwide • Cadillac Fairview • OpenMarket • Cowen & Company • Regal Entertainment Group • EVO Payments International • Unidos Financial • SavedPlus • Mocapay • Skrill USA Inc • Store Financial • JIC • Group Voyagers Inc • Nike Inc • Buyatab • Rebellion Lab • EBG • The Cheesecake Factory •BP • Green Dot Corporation • Logbar Inc • RBC Financial Group • Locke Lord • OTI America Inc • Ethereum • AuthenticID • Pueblo Bank & Trust • Innovative Securities Ltd • Momentum Groups • TechCafe • Earls Rib Palace • Digital Currency Council • Metropolitan Commercial Bank • Banking Up • SpaFinder Wellness Inc • Systems & Methods Inc • Emerge Financial Wellness • Globoforce • Virtual Currency Systems • Yankee Candle Company • Aeropostale Inc • Aurora Financial Systems • BBVA Bancomer USA • Drizly • Delta Air Lines • Sunrise Banks • PSA • FreshPay • Overstock.Com • Oportun Inc • Choice Bank • Midco Connections • Stored Value Solutions • Walmart • Allergan • Compass Plus • Darden Restaurants • Landrys Inc • Webcash Co Ltd • Contact Solutions • InComm • Zihexin • Powerhouse Brands Consulting • WorldQuant • H E B Company • WaySpa • Kohls • Benefit Resource Inc • Whole Foods Market • IDT Finance • Google • Kahala Brands • Federal Reserve Bank of Boston • Galileo Processing • 1 to1 Card • Foot Locker • Cracker Barrel • Royal Performance Group • Lunex Telecom • Raise • Marketing Innovators • SVS • Hotels.com • IDology • RushCard • DataCo • Macys Inc • PSCU • MCX • Gift Card Network • Alta Produce • IMPACT Payments Recruiting • Sears Holding Company • Fiserv • Bank of America Merchant Services • @pay • Inmar CMS Promotions Services • Univision • Ingo Money Inc • Nordstrom • Wave Crest • PLS • Cardtronics • Meta Payment Systems • PayPay Financial • TeamBank • Ficentive • Card Compliant • SnipSnap • Buffalo Wild Wings • CardNotPresent.com • Jiffy Lube • The Manna Group • Vantiv • Hudson's Bay Company • Ceridian Stored Value Solutions • Perfect Plastic Printing • BitGo • PayTech Solutions • NoWait Inc • ARM Insight • Marqeta Inc • TAS Group USA • Coinsetter • GoBank • RK Incentives • Benefit Mobile Inc • Mercator Advisory Group • The Pay-O-Matic Corporation • Socure • AMC Theatres • US Bank • The Billing Project LLC • givex • Archway Marketing Services • Hyatt Hotels Corporation • H&R Block Bank • Academy Sports & Outdoors Ltd • Tally Capital • ACE Cash Express • National Gift Card • QVC • Verifone • Praxell Inc • Americhip • Travel Tags Inc • Currency Cloud • Neenah Paper • MT&L Card Products • Social Money • Bancorp Bank • ICON Capital Reserve SA • Multi Packaging Solutions • JCPenney Company Inc • Polaris Venture Partners • Wallaby Financial • Banesco Coral Way • Keefe, Bruyette & Woods • Plug N Play • Square • General Growth Properties Inc • Bass Pro Shops • Kount • GoCoin • Connexions Loyalty Inc • Corby & Company Inc • NexisCard • Bryan Cave LLP • E & S Consulting LLC • NBPCA • First Data • Spa Week Media Group • Target • Accion Venture Lab  • Cirque du Soleil • Elevate Credit • Chetu Inc • Enacomm • MetaBank • FSV Payment Systems • Xerox • Regions Bank • Toys R Us Inc • ID Analytics Inc • Mobetize Corp • Transaction Epins Limited • Transaction Wireless • Archway • CashStar • MintCombine • cadooz GmbH • Visa Inc • Datzing • InteliSpend Prepaid Solutions • CSP Business Media• Cuallix Financial Services • Prepaid Card Solutions • NetSpend Corporation • Bain Capital Ventures • Provident Payment Systems LLC • Best Buy • Geddes Group • Dorado Industries • Manatt Phelps & Phillips LLP • Plum Voice • Princess Cruises • Schurman Retail Group (Papyrus) • MGM Resorts International • CFSI • Chase Paymentech • TodoTicket 2004 CA • Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta • Aimia • Jumio • Access Development • MBXP ApS • Social Learning & Payments Inc • Coinsultants • Nelnet • Sí Vale México S.A. de C.V. • Paybefore • Arroweye Solutions • Active International • Fandango/NBCU • Peoples Card Services • Kofax • Paywith • Bitcoin Strategy Group • Banesco • Sparkpr • WorldPay US • Speedway LLC • i2c Inc. • Bath & Body Works • Dravis Group • Libra • TouchPoint Promotions • Ebay • Xen Accounting Inc • Allpoint • Davis Polk & Wardwell • Walgreens • Scrip Pro • Paychex • Lands End Inc • Vera Bradley • TangoCard • Amazon Web Services • Sustainable Cards LLC • MHD Furniture • IPS Nevada • Speedy Cash Holdings Corp • Central Bank Of Kansas City • Boom Financial • Hallmark Retail Services Inc • Cachet Financial Services • The Jones Company/Flash Foods • R&P Group • Hotel Voucher Shop • Global Processing Services • MTACC Inc dba • ePayService • Republic Bank • Young America Corporation • Allstate Printing & Graphics • GCA Savvian • Women's Annex Foundation • GiftCards.com • LL Bean Inc • PBM • Brightwell Payments Inc • Home Depot • Blackhawk Network • TJX Incentive Sales Inc • USA800 • Farmacias Fybeca • Mobinil • FIS • Cabela's Incorporated • Sole Financial • GFC Good Finance Company • Billhighway • Red Robin Gourmet Burgers • Veratad Technologies LLC • Groupon Incorporated • BitCash Inc • SeaWorld • YellowPay • Strategic Counsel Corp • FirstView Financial LLC • Stanton Consultancy
 

 View the complete agenda here. 

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Emerging Markets Shaping Face of Global Cryptocurrency Revolution

 "Leapfrog Effect" Driving Rapid Adoption and New Disruptive Models

By Marc Dresner, Senior Editor, IIR

“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.”  

–  Lao Tzu

One of my favorite thinkers on the subject of change—author and inventor Ray Kurzweil—posits that the pace of technological change accelerates exponentially.

According to Kurzweil, we have reached the point where the technologies that move our world—it may not be on your radar yet, but it’s already out there—radically change every six months, and that rate will only increase.

Rik Willard

I mention this because I was reminded of it in a recent podcast interview I conducted with Rik Willard, a leading cryptocurrencies expert, who argues that alternative currencies are rapidly approaching an inflection point in emerging markets with dramatic implications for the rest of the world.

Willard, the CEO of MintCombine—a “think tank and product lab delivering blockchain solutions for brands and causes”—described what’s happening in markets in Africa, Southeast Asia and South America as defining moments in a global currency revolution.

“The way these emerging markets use new currencies will have a global influence that has never been seen in modern accounting.”

“The way these emerging markets use new currencies will define what the future looks like and have a global market influence that has never been seen in modern accounting,” Willard told me.

He emphasized that the lack of both infrastructure and entrenched institutional interests is producing a “leapfrog” effect in emerging markets, enabling swift adoption of cryptocurrencies and driving new models that encumbered first-world economies will have to catch up with.

For example, he pointed out that it took just six months to get BitPesa up and running in Kenya, where almost 90% of the population is unbanked and about 80% have cell phones.

For venerable, traditional financial services providers like Western Union these types of developments could be category killers, he warned.

“Rules are being rewritten right now.”

“Rules are being rewritten right now,” said Willard.

“You have to put away your old thinking and look at what’s happening around the world or you will quickly find yourself three or four steps behind in a very, very fast race,” he added.

Willard predicts there won’t be one single world currency—say Bitcoin—but a plethora of alternative currencies, perhaps thousands, based on everything from basketing of commodities in mineral-rich nations to regional, municipal, industrial and even corporate coins.

“You have Overstock.com playing with the idea with Counterparty right now of having their own currency. Not just accepting Bitcoin. That was the first phase. They are actually trying to decide if they have enough equity that they can spread around in a currency,” Willard noted.

“It’s a time of flux and that has always presented opportunities for people in finance,” he added.

In this podcast for On Payments—the All Payments Expo (APEX) interview series—Rik Willard discusses how development of cryptocurrencies in emerging markets is shaping up to disrupt the status quo and what the future of alternative currencies may look like.

Access the podcast and a transcript here!

Editor’s note: Rik Willard will be a featured speaker at APEX 2015—the All Payments Expo—taking place February 23-25 in Las Vegas.

For an agenda or to register for APEX, please visit www.allpaymentsexpo.com.

Ps. REGISTER and SAVE $100 with promo code XU2848BLOG

ABOUT THE AUTHOR / INTERVIEWER 
Marc Dresner is IIR USA’s sr. editor and special communication project lead. He is the former executive editor of Research Business Report, a confidential newsletter for the market and consumer research industry. He may be reached at mdresner@iirusa.com. Follow him @mdrezz.

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Starbucks Leading the Way With Their Gift Card Strategy

Starbucks are leading the way with their gift card initiatives, attracting many new customers since their introduction. The Starbucks e Gift cards can be sent for Valentine’s Day, weddings, the Lunar New Years and more. They can be sent via email, text or with a physical card. These gift cards which have a certain amount of credit will encourage people who may not usually be customers to visit a Starbucks store to redeem. From there these customers often just find it convenient to simply top up the cards for easier and quicker future purchases.

Many of these gift card users have then gone on to sign up for Starbucks ‘My Starbucks Reward’ program. The program allows members early access to new products, free drink or food rewards and easy payments with the online app. In Q1 alone there has been 0.9 million new MSR members, bring the total number of members to a staggering 9 million. These numbers show the huge success that the scheme has had due to the customer being able to have a quicker and more efficient experience. The other advantage of having so many people sign up for schemes such as MSR program keeps a loyal base of customers that know they will keep coming back as it is in the customer’s interest to buy from Starbucks as it helps their reward points.

However in a study carried out in January of 2014, only 3% of retailers said that gift card strategies were its main priority in their retail plan. Only 17% of retailers said that gift card purchase or redemption were a priority at all in their future strategies. Most were more focused on their online platform, making sure that was a tool that keeps customers coming back. The Starbucks online app has managed to incorporate their gift card redemption scheme into it as well as being able to order coffee and manage your Rewards Program. There is soon to be a delivery service as well in the second half of 2015.

Understandably many of the smaller retailers do not have the financial power to have such a large all-encompassing online service, however Starbucks can be used as an example that is leading the way in terms of omnichannel retail as they are constantly striving to provide a service that not only makes the customers life easier but gives them rewards for their loyalty.

APEX is where merchants rule. As new companies create new iterations of payments that combine mobile capabilities, loyalty, closed-loop currencies, wallets, acceptance devices and lower transaction costs, it is the retailer that decides what is successful and what is an also-ran. At APEX, retailers can view the latest technology alongside their peers and discuss the challenges and feasibility of implementation that are unique to this industry.

Download the complete agenda.

Register with the code XU2848BLOG and save $100!

___________________________________________________________

Sources:
Forbes - http://www.forbes.com/sites/greatspeculations/2015/01/26/starbucks-gift-cards-initiative-and-mobile-commerce-drive-customer-traffic-in-q1-2015/
Accenture - http://www.accenture.com/us-en/landing-pages/Documents/Seamless/Accenture-hybris-Forrester-new_2014.pdf

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