*By Michael Teich*
Amazon inked a new partnership with American Express, but don't expect the financial industry to be the next area the tech giant jumps into.
"The thing that people misunderstand is that tech companies don't want to manufacture financial products," said Lex Sokolin, Global Director of Fintech Strategy at Autonomous Research. "It's about making the ecosystem and the platform more powerful, and finance is just a feature inside of that."
American Express announced Tuesday it will launch a co-branded Amazon credit card for small businesses. The move accelerates Amazon's foray into financial products and strengthens its position as a lender. The goal, Sokolin said, is to enable small businesses to finance their activities, getting more products on Amazon's platform, and ultimately driving more commerce.
Plus, the opportunity costs of devoting itself to the financial industry are too high.
"Amazon has tremendous high-growth, super interesting, blue oceans to explore,” he said. "They could be investing in building a mortgage business, or they can build artificial intelligence business."
For the full segment, [click here.](https://cheddar.com/videos/amazon-bolsters-financial-prowess-with-new-credit-card)
Virtual reality startup Sandbox VR recently announced it raised $37 million Series B funding round. It is a location-based VR company, a space that was hit hard during the pandemic. Sandbox was eventually forced to file for bankruptcy; however, the company is emerging from the pandemic with a fresh round of funding and plans to open new retail locations around the world. Sandbox VR CEO Steve Zhao joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss.
President Joe Biden signed into law today his landmark $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill, and it includes approximately $550 billion in new funding for increased broadband access, improving the power grid, and more. But what does this mean for the American economy, and American workers? Eliza Collins, Politics Reporter at The Wall Street Journal joins Cheddar News' Closing Bell to discuss what's included in the bill, which former mayor has been tapped to oversee how the bill is implemented, and how these new infrastructure investments will impact the economy.
It's been a job hunters market of late, as a mass resignation amid the pandemic has added to millions of openings across businesses. ZipRecruiter co-founder and CEO Ian Siegel explained what people currently are looking for in the labor market. "Survey after survey after survey, whether it's on ZipRecruiter or it's a third-party source, is telling us the same piece of information: over half of job seekers right now are looking for work that is either fully remote or hybrid," he said. "They got a real taste of it during COVID, and they liked it a lot. It's the number one perk that's being requested and you can already see employers starting to shift in that direction."
Celebrity butcher and the third-generation owner of Pat LaFrieda Meat Purveyors, Pat LaFrieda, joined Cheddar to dive into the rapid price surges for beef, poultry, fish, and eggs dubbed a "meatflation" by Bloomberg. LaFrieda noted that the increases were being accelerated by high fuel prices and a shortage of labor like truck drivers. However, he did express some hope that the post-holidays/pre-barbecue season lull in the meat sales market will help reset the market.
Booking.com has unveiled a first-of-its-kind sustainable travel designation for properties that might be on the itinerary of a climate-conscious traveler. CEO Glenn Fogel explained to Cheddar the key metrics a location has to achieve to earn a sustainability badge. Waste handling, energy and greenhouse gases, water usage, local community support, and protection of nature were the five top areas of concern he addressed, with an additional subset of 32 measures that properties can implement.
November is National Entrepreneurship Month. Sam Johnson, EY Americas Vice Chair of Markets and Accounts, joins Cheddar to discuss the winner for EY's National Entrepreneur of The Year award, why entrepreneurship is so important to the U.S. economy, and how entrepreneurs can contribute to the growth and success of Fortun 500 companies.
