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- HashCash extends blockchain technology to aid the global retail industry in developing smart loyalty and rewards programs
- IHG Hotels & Resorts expands its luxury and lifestyle hotel portfolio via new partnership with Mr & Mrs Smith
- Marriott taps its loyalty program to roll out new "work from anywhere program"
- Inspire Brands has formally announced plans to acquire Dunkin Brands for $11.3 billion making it the biggest restaurant deal since 2014
- Postmates introduces new service which enables local retailers to set up a virtual storefront
- Walmart's PhonePe has assumed a "market leading position" as UPI surpasses 2B monthly transactions overall
- Visa sets up Payment Fraud Disruption program to protect customers within its network as digital fraud continues to rise
- Forter and FreedomPay partner to establish a joint network for online merchants and banks to combat fraud
- Some airlines are "giving seats away" as they attempt to fill seats and slow the cash burn
LOYALTY PROGRAM NEWS:
HashCash Extending Blockchain Aid to Retail Industries for Smart Loyalty Program
Quotable: “HashCash's loyalty program matches the exact requirements of particular retail businesses. Integrated with the values of blockchain technology and powered by distributed ledger technology, the blockchain-based rewards, and loyalty program helps increase engagement between consumers and brands. The smart loyalty and rewards program is vital for business growth. HashCash brings to you an ecosystem where you and your customers can reward each other through a particular program, and allow the profit and loss statement to do the final talking.”
IHG, Mr & Mrs Smith partner for loyalty program
Quotable: “IHG Hotels & Resorts has partnered with Mr & Mrs Smith, a travel club specializing in luxury boutique hotels, to give IHG Rewards members a broader selection of accommodations. The first selection of more than 400 Mr & Mrs Smith hotels are available to book by IHG Rewards members through IHG’s direct channels (including IHG.com and IHG mobile app). New hotels will be added each week, with the full selection of properties available to book by late November.”
Marriott Uses Loyalty Program to Roll Out New Work From Anywhere Program
Quotable: “Both the hospitality and airline industries have gotten creative to replace revenue lost by business travelers, a crucial segment for the travel industry. Offered as day passes, stay passes or play passes, each essentially allows Marriott guests the opportunity to work from the brand’s hotels without having to spend the night—though they can, of course, still spend the night—in exchange for loyalty benefits.”
RETAIL NEWS:
Inspire Brands to Acquire Dunkin’ Brands in $11.3 Billion Transaction
Quotable: “Inspire Brands, Inc. (“Inspire”) and Dunkin’ Brands Group, Inc. (“Dunkin’ Brands”) (NASDAQ: DNKN), parent company of Dunkin’ and Baskin-Robbins, announced today that they have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Inspire will acquire Dunkin’ Brands for $106.50 per share in cash in a transaction valued at approximately $11.3 billion including the assumption of Dunkin’ Brands’ debt.”
Postmates looks to solve local retail’s last mile
Quotable: “Under the program, Shop, local retailers create a virtual storefront on Postmates’ app, where they’ll be able to showcase their inventory with organized, configurable catalogs that feature high resolution images. Postmates will provide the retailer with a tablet to manage available inventory. Customers get access to a variety of options for getting their orders, including home delivery and in-store or curbside pickup.”
PAYMENTS NEWS:
Walmart’s PhonePe zips past Google Pay in India as UPI tops 2B monthly transactions
Quotable: “Unlike Google Pay, both Paytm and PhonePe also operate a wallet service. The wallet service is not powered by UPI. PhonePe said overall it processed 925 million transactions (UPI + wallet) last month and had more than 100 million monthly active users. PhonePe has recently seen a surge in its transactions as more offline shops open and merchants and consumers opt for a digital alternative to complete transactions. The app has also added a range of financing services, including 600,000 insurance policies, it said. PhonePe has also benefited from Flipkart’s festival sale and the growth of fantasy sports app Dream 11.”
DATA & PRIVACY NEWS:
Visa aims to curtail fraud for merchants, consumers
Quotable: “"One of the things we set up as a company is the Visa Payment Fraud Disruption program to protect our customers at all times. We are constantly looking at trends and patterns, and if we see something that looks fraudulent, we can use our tools and shut down the activity pretty quickly and stop the transaction from happening. We conduct real-time monitoring with our merchant partners and banks and investigate anything that looks suspicious."”
Forter and FreedomPay Partner to Connect Merchants and Banks Across a Global Network to Fight Fraud and Reduce False Declines
Quotable: “"Fraud prevention continues to be a pain point for merchants, and together FreedomPay and Forter provide a world-class solution,” said Chris Kronenthal, President and CTO at FreedomPay. “Forter’s fraud prevention capabilities protect merchants on FreedomPay’s Commerce Platform and ensure that only legitimate transactions are approved -- this not only increases the volume of transactions we are able to process, but also helps to build brand loyalty by providing an optimal consumer experience."”
AIRLINE NEWS:
Airlines’ New Pricing Strategy: Buy One, Get One Free
Quotable: “Airlines are resorting to a new tactic in navigating the pandemic-inspired collapse in travel: They are giving seats away...The deals can drum up demand and get travelers comfortable with flying again. They are also keeping at least some cash coming in the door, as airlines keep much of their fleets parked. Alaska Airlines usually runs 10 to 12 big promotions a year; it has recently been offering three a month.”
Read last week's newswire if you missed it: Loyalty Newswire – October 26th, 2020
The Loyalty Newswire is compiled and edited by the staff at The Wise Marketer.
