*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)
Americans cut back on their spending last month as a surge in COVID-19 cases kept people away from stores.
Stocks closed lower on Wall Street Tuesday, ending a five-day winning streak by the S&P 500, as investors turned cautious amid more signs that the coronavirus pandemic is still holding back the U.S. economy.
Senior Analyst from The Motley Fool Jason Moser joins Closing Bell to discuss headwinds and tailwinds for Disney ahead of their third quarter fiscal earnings results.
The U.S. government has opened a formal investigation into Tesla’s Autopilot partially automated driving system after a series of collisions with parked emergency vehicles.
Stock indexes closed at record highs on Wall Street Monday, despite rising coronavirus infections in the U.S. and around the globe, as well as geopolitical concerns in Asia.
From Wall Street to Silicon Valley, these are the top stories that moved markets and had investors, business leaders, and entrepreneurs talking this week on Cheddar.
Stocks managed to eke out tiny gains after another day of wobbly trading, leaving the S&P 500 higher for the second week in a row.
Collapse of Afghanistan, Future of Fast Food & Britney Gets a Win
The Walt Disney Co. turned a profit in its most recent quarter as reopened parks provided a revenue bounce.
A cargo ship has broken into two pieces after running aground in a northern Japanese port and is spilling oil into the sea.
