Virtual payments events open peak tradeshow season

The payments industry's 2020 peak tradeshow season is kicking off with concurrent virtual events designed to connect industry professionals with thought leaders in technology, consumer trends, retail systems, cybersecurity and regulatory spheres. The venues reflect the industry's ongoing globalization and growing popularity of digital conference formats, according to conference representatives.

High-profile gatherings competing for attendees, speakers, exhibitors and sponsors this week include FinovateFall 2020, PayExpo Digital, the World Retail Congress, ETA's FinTech Policy Day and Latin America Summit Chapter One. These events share the theme of surviving and thriving throughout the global coronavirus pandemic.

Greg Palmer, vice president at Finovate, noted that event planners had already been hard at work expanding virtual access to the conference before the onset of the global pandemic. "In the past three months, we've spent massive amounts of time vetting and comparing dozens of new solutions," he said. "We're confident that we'll be able to deliver a strong digital experience at both FinovateFall and FinovateWest that gives tangible ROI to everyone involved."

Leveraging digital platforms

As payments professionals become more adept at navigating the advanced digital platforms that support virtual auditoriums, exhibit halls and live networking, platform providers are introducing new digital components to enliven venues and further engage participants.

Following are samplings and highlights from the September 2020 virtual conferences:

• FinovateFall 2020: FinovateFall planners pivoted to a digital event to enable participants to move their businesses forward despite business shutdowns during COVID-19. Finovate Vice President Greg Palmer vowed to make future venues accessible digitally around the world. For further information, visit informaconnect.com/finovatefall/the-future-of-finance-is-digital/ .

• PayExpo Digital: Retail Payments and COVID-19, a live virtual event on Sept. 15, 2020, explores innovative approaches to commerce. It is part of an ongoing digital series designed to provide vital insights and networking to help payments professionals weather the storm with seminars, panel discussions and networking. For additional details, see www.payexpo.com/digital .

• World Retail Congress Connected: This two-part digital event, hosted by Ascential, will run Sept. 15 to 17, 2020, providing three days of virtual content related to changing retail industry trends and the future of retail. Visit www.worldretailcongress.com for additional information.

• ETA's FinTech Policy Day: This half-day event, to be held Sept. 16, 2020, will start at 9 a.m. ET and conclude at 1 p.m. Policymakers and ETA members will discuss the intersection of the latest in fintech and public policy and discuss how fintech companies can strengthen financial inclusion, distribution of CARES Act money, international payments, and other important initiatives. For further information, see www.electran.org/eta-events-awards/2020-annual-eta-fintech-policy-forum .

• Latin America Summit, Chapter One: In this virtual event, scheduled for Sept. 17, 2020, Amazon, Spotify, Microsoft, Uber and other industry leaders will discussing emerging opportunities and trends in Latin America. This is a two-part series, with Chapter Two to be held on Oct. 15, 2020. For additional information, visit www.latinamericasummit.com .

The case for hackers

In his keynote address at FinovateFall, Pablos Holman, futurist, speaker and inventor at Intellectual Ventures Lab and founder of Turing AI, traced the long arc of human history from millions to billions of humans inhabiting the earth.

"We hit that hockey stick growth curve and go from millions to billions, almost overnight," Holman said. "And that curve defines everything we're experiencing in the world today. Humans have invented new technologies to solve those problems at a larger scale again and again. But if there's one thing all those extra humans are good for, it's making more problems."

Holman believes the job of innovation is to map new technologies to the problems to solve the world's problems at a larger and larger scale, which is why the world will always need hackers. These out-of-box thinkers will flip things over, take out all the screws, break things into lots of little pieces and figure out what to build from the rubble, he noted.

"Nobody's ever invented a new technology by reading the directions," Holman said. "These guys violate the warranty before they even get the shrink wrap off. We need them, because that's where all your new ideas come from; that's where you get your superpowers."

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