Apple Pay, Android Pay and Samsung Pay have certainly increased awareness of mobile payments in the US – but the number of connected consumers actually paying this way is small indeed.

As we have seen with numerous other technologies, the consumer adoption process is multi-stage, as mainstream buyers become familiar with an idea, decide that they might be interested, and finally come to feel that they cannot live without it.

The idea of merging or eliminating, one of the worlds oldest “technologies”, cash, to one of the worlds newest technologies, the smartphone, is super intriguing. But, beyond that, looking into the merging role of cash into any ubiquitous device is even more exhilarating.

Why?

Let’s look at facts when it comes to payments:

 KBKG, a nationwide tax solutions firm headquartered in Pasadena, California, recently launched the Residential Cost Segregator™, an innovative cost segregation software which allows tax preparers and building owners to generate detailed cost segregation reports on smaller residential properties.

Putnam Investments today announced the appointments of Samuel Cox and Kathryn B. Lakin as Co-Directors of Equity Research, roles in which they will directly oversee the work of nearly 35 analysts who cover every major industry, providing critical fundamental research and analysis for the firm’s broader equity platform. Cox and Lakin will report to Aaron M. Cooper, Chief Investment Officer - Equities, who previously served as Director of Global Equity Research.

Ron Hartz has joined Grant Thornton LLP’s national Business Consulting and Technology Advisory practice as a director in the firm’s Philadelphia office – serving both regional and national clients.

Hartz will apply his decades of financial and corporate leadership experience to helping companies align organizational and technology strategy. Among his proven strengths are budgeting and forecasting as well as capital management and financial metrics. In addition, he has a background in internal reporting and financial-system design and implementation.

When I was growing up, America was the superpower that we followed and Russia was in a Cold War.  Today, there are two superpowers – America and China – and Russia is still in a bit of a Cold War that might be thawed by Donald Trump.

So when it comes to Fintech, there’s two major countries to watch – America and China – but China does it all rather different, because they can.

So, here’s a few highlights about Fintech China of late.

New research by mobile phone provider, Plusnet Mobile, has found that half of the UK respondents polled (50%) would feel stressed and anxious if they ran out of mobile data, with almost 1 in 5 (16%) finding the prospect more stressful than an argument with their partner.

The severity of FOND is directly related to how much consumers rely on mobile data to connect. The majority of Brits polled (71%) use mobile data every day for email, followed by catching up on messaging apps such as WhatsApp (47%).

A blurring of personal and business life is causing significant problems for the UK’s self-employed workforce, according to the first set of findings from the ‘Definitive Study of the Self-Employed’, commissioned by Intuit QuickBooks, the world’s leading online accounting software.

Technology and regulation are revolutionising the relationship between the buy and sell-sides, creating a ‘digitally led’ engagement model which will radically alter both the consumption and provision of investment recommendations.