Industry News

Adyen NV early Monday began launching what its calls an intelligent-routing service for debit cards intended to reduce merchants’ debit-acceptance costs and increase authorizations for purchases. The service, which enables Adyen to choose which network to route transactions over, was developed primarily in response to the Federal Reserve’s 2023 statement reinforcing the mandate that all debit cards issued in the United States carry the brands of least two unaffiliated networks. The Federal Reserve’s decision came as a part of an amendment to Regulation II, also known as the Durbin Amendment, which caps interchange fees charged by debit card issuers. Late last year, the Federal Reserve’s Board of Governors announced it would revisit the debit fee cap During Adyen’s recently concluded pilot with 20 large merchants, including eBay Inc. and fitness chain 24 Hour Fitness USA LLC, participating merchants saw acceptance costs decline by 26% and authorization rates increase 0.22%, on average. To determine which…

Small businesses are the beating heart of the country, their contribution is significant, and they must be encouraged to flourish. Small businesses are not a monolith. Every small business owner faces a unique situation – a distinct set of challenges and opportunities, headwinds and tailwinds. The latest report from COSBOA and Square serves to highlight this reality. Looking across the data, we see businesses growing at different rates, all dependent on where they operate from, which sector they operate in, and how big their business is. The lesson for policymakers is clear: nuance is the name of the game. Policy supports must be tailored, targeted and timely if they are to foster productivity and sustainable growth among Australian small businesses. Indeed, policy prescriptions should reflect data-driven learnings gathered at the whole-of-economy level right the way through to what is observable in the many and varied cities, regions, communities and sectors…

Viva Energy has posted a rise of 10.3 per cent to $192.1 million in its half-year net profit, with a strong performance in its refinery business. In its 2024 half-year results, the company’s refinery business reported growth of 390 per cent to $112.4 million, up from $22.9 million on year prior. Despite the rise in net profit, the company has cut its dividend payouts by 21 per cent on the previous year to 6.7 cents per share. Scott Wyatt, CEO and Managing Director of Viva Energy, said it was a strong performance with both fuel sales and EBITDA growing by 6 per cent and 25 per cent respectively. “Cost of living pressures and illegal tobacco trade are having an impact on consumer demand within our convenience businesses, at the same time that wage and cost inflation are driving up the cost of doing business across all our business units.” “In…

Significant changes have commenced as of 26 August 2024, following amendments made to the Fair Work Act 2009 (Cth) (Act) by the Fair Work Legislation Amendment (Closing Loopholes No. 2) Act 2024. Two of the most pressing changes for employers are the introduction of the right to disconnect, and changes to casual employment. What is the right to disconnect? Before considering what the right to disconnect is, it may firstly be helpful to outline what the right to disconnect is not. The right to disconnect does not prevent employers from contacting their employees outside of the employee’s normal working hours. The right to disconnect instead gives employees the right to refuse to monitor, read, or respond to communications from their employer (or third parties related to their employment, such as suppliers) outside of their working hours, unless that refusal would be unreasonable. This entitlement is also a workplace right under the general protections provisions of…

APCO has published its 2030 Strategic Plan, setting a bold path to increase recycling and meet national packaging targets. The APCO 2030 Strategic Plan was unveiled on 19 August 2024. This plan will provide economic incentives for material circularity, establish mechanisms to achieve national packaging targets, and enhance the social license for brands using packaging. For the first time, a new fee model will create financial incentives for packaging design and direct the targeted expenditure of Covenant funds within the system. Our strategy introduces an innovative membership fee model, supporting increased recycling activities and fostering a sustainable packaging future. This will incentivise those brand owners that eliminate and reduce packaging, adopt reuse models, and transition to materials and formats that are easier to recycle. Importantly, funds raised through the new fee model will be invested in the downstream system to overcome economic barriers that have hindered progress towards national packaging…

Small businesses are increasingly concerned about sales of illicit tobacco and nicotine products in their community. The Commission receives regular contact from small business stakeholders voicing their concerns and is aware of the impacts of this issue. If you suspect a retailer is violating tobacco or e-cigarette laws, you should consider alerting the authorities. Small businesses that wish to report illicit sales can do so via the NSW Health website. Reporting these violations helps maintain a level playing field and supports lawful business practices. The Commission has previously highlighted this issue, alerting authorities to suspected sellers of illegal tobacco and e-cigarettes. While reports can be made anonymously, please contact us if you would prefer us to report on your behalf. We can also discuss other ways we may be able to assist your business. It is helpful if you can identify the name and address of the shop and specific details of any…