7.27.18 Your morning briefing

Enjoy complimentary access to top ideas and insights — selected by our editors.

The information you need to start your day, from PaymentsSource and around the Web:

Fever pitch
Visa often uses major sporting events such as the Olympics to push new technology, and this year's World Cup was no exception.

The recently completed World Cup was notable for the penetration of contactless payments, according to the card brand, which reports contactless payments accounted for 45% of all Visa purchases in the 11 host cities. Poland was the top country, with 74% of in-stadium purchases coming via contactless, which Visa counts as contactless cards, mobile devices or wearables.

International travelers outspent Russians, Visa said, noting travelers spent 15% more in-stadium than Russian cardholders. This boosted Visa's business in lodging, airline and restaurant categories.

Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg

Gig worker insurance
Square's restaurant delivery service Caviar is adding occupational accident coverage to cover costs for on-the-job injuries, Engadget reports.

The policies provide up to $1 million per accident, $100,000 in accidental death and survival benefits and disability pay of 50% of weekly earnings.

The benefits start when the drivers start working, and could provide pressure on other gig economy employers to add insurance for drivers, according to Engadget.

Junk heap
Mastercard CEO Ajay Banga has added his voice to the chorus of financial executives that don't have much use for bitcoin.

Banga took his criticism a step further, telling the Times of India that bitcoin and cryptocurrency are "junk" and do not deserve to be considered as a medium of exchange.

The Mastercard chief also suggested cryptocurrency is responsible for 95% of the illegal activity on the dark web.

New mobile payment and app threat
The source code of banking malware Exobot has leaked and is on hacking forums, creating added risk for payment and bank account theft.

Finextra reports version 2.5 of the Exobot code, called "The Trump Edition," also raises the risk of a surge in attacks on mobile apps.

The code uses overlay attacks to obtain a user's credentials when an infected mobile device lands on a banking site.

From the Web

Chile reports hack of 14,000 credit cards
Yahoo News | Thu July 26, 2018 - Hackers gained access to some 14,000 credit card numbers in Chile and published them on social media, the government said late Wednesday. Hackers gained access to some 14,000 credit card numbers in Chile and published them on social media, the government said late Wednesday. The government's bank regulatory agency said the hack was carried out by a mysterious group called the Shadow Brokers, known for hacking the NSA in the United States in 2016.

Chinese E-Commerce Startup Fetches Nearly $24 Billion Valuation in Nasdaq IPO
The Wall Street Journal | Thu July 26, 2018 - A three-year-old Chinese internet startup earned a nearly $24 billion market valuation in an initial public offering in New York, drawing high investor demand ahead of a string of larger internet IPOs from the country in the coming months. Pinduoduo Inc., a Shanghai-based online discounter that some people call China’s Groupon, priced a $1.63 billion sale of American Depositary Shares at $19 apiece, the top end of their offered range, according to people familiar with the matter.

Dash to drop cash comes under review
BBC News | Fri July 27, 2018 - As the use of cash declines and digital payments increase, a new independent review has been set up to look at the impact on consumers. The Access to Cash Review will look at the impact of new technology, including contactless cards, over the next five to 15 years and examine future needs.

More from PaymentsSource

How a banker became the voice of the merchants
Mark Horwedel, the outgoing Merchant Advisory Group CEO, wasn't always on the merchants' side. Through much of the 1970s through 1990s, his career path placed him firmly in the world of bankers.

Reformed cybercrook hacks his audience at industry event
Forget the stereotype that a cybercriminal has to be tech-savvy to get the job done. Their true gift is in social engineering.

Why growth can be a bad thing for PayPal
The jewel in PayPal's crown — Venmo — has lost some of its shine.

Reformed cyber crook hacks his audience at industry event
Forget the stereotype that a cyber criminal has to be tech-savvy to get the job done. Their true gift is in social engineering.