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NewsBriefs

This article contains excerpts from news stories recently posted under Electronics, clothing, and building materials saw notable
Breaking Industry News on our homepage. For links to these and other sales gains, reflecting a focus on home comforts. Promo-
full news stories, please visit www.greensheet.com/breakingnews.php. tions during November and Black Friday drew shoppers
seeking value, and online shopping surged in cities like
Tampa and Phoenix.

Mastercard highlighted heightened demand for dining
experiences and ecommerce options, with apparel leading
online sales.

The holiday season affirmed consumer resilience amidst
economic challenges. However, despite strong consumer
activity, fraud attempts doubled compared to last year.
Consumers ring in holiday spending growth
CFPB sues Walmart, fintech over
Preliminary data from Visa and Mastercard indicates ro- gig worker pay access
bust holiday spending growth in 2024. Visa reported a 4.8
percent overall holiday spending increase, while Master- The CFPB filed a lawsuit against Walmart and Branch
card noted a 3.8 percent retail sales rise, excluding auto- Messenger, accusing them of extracting over $10 million
motive. In-store shopping rebounded, with 77 percent of in "junk fees" from gig workers in Walmart's Spark Drive
U.S. retail spending happening in physical stores, up 4.1 program.
percent from last year. Online spending grew 7.1 percent,
slower than 2023's 10.34 percent. The complaint alleges Walmart required drivers to use
Branch for payments, often opening accounts without
consent. Workers faced unauthorized deductions,
misleading claims about same-day pay access
Snapshot of Upcoming Events and complex procedures to retrieve earnings.
Branch allegedly violated federal laws by mishan-
dling consumer accounts and failing to provide
required disclosures.

The CFPB aims to halt these practices, offer res-
titution and impose penalties. The lawsuit high-
lights broader concerns about fintech partner-
ships with banking-as-a-service providers.
February 5 - 7, 2025 Similar cases have targeted consumer protection

Rosen Shingle Creek Orlando, FL violations, underscoring the CFPB's commitment
to enforcing workplace financial rights under the
https://www.atmia.com/conferences/us/registration/ Consumer Financial Protection Act and related
laws.

X marks the spot

X, formerly Twitter, will launch X Payments in
2025, integrating payments with the X-Cart ecom-
merce platform. X CEO Linda Yaccarino empha-
sized X's intent to transform into an "everything
app" with services like X Money and X TV. X Pay-
ments aims to enhance security and support in-
feed payment options, potentially rivaling PayPal
and Venmo.
USA 2025 Symposium
February 12 - 13, 2025 Elon Musk's vision includes cryptocurrency in-
tegration, possibly featuring Dogecoin. X is ob-
The Ritz-Carlton, Tysons Corner Washington, DC taining state money transmitter licenses, though
key states like New York remain uninvolved. Le-
https://womeninpayments.glueup.com/event
114654/register/ gal and ethical concerns, including ties to Saudi
Arabia, have raised scrutiny over X's fitness for li-

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