Inside PayPal’s big investment into its employees – M&A trends to watch in 2021 – Futures contracts on NFL games

Welcome back! 

After a brief hiatus over the holidays, your favorite finance newsletter is back.

So what’d we miss? After much deliberation, a second stimulus check was approved. US stocks closed at record highs on the last day of trading in 2020. And bitcoin has been an absolute rocketship.  

By the way, we rounded up our best stories from 2020. If you haven’t already, check them out here.

If you’re not yet a subscriber, you can sign up here to get your daily dose of the stories dominating banking, business, and big deals.

Like the newsletter? Hate the newsletter? Feel free to drop me a line at [email protected] or on Twitter @DanDeFrancesco. 

PayPal workers were struggling to make ends meet. CEO Dan Schulman vowed to change that.

While it's tough to categorize anyone as a 'winner' as a result of the coronavirus, plenty of companies have done well during the pandemic. 

PayPal is one example. The payments giant was well positioned as the world went increasingly digital back in March. Its stock price and market cap reached record highs thanks to new accounts and massive payment volumes. 

A key to PayPal's recent success is a result of CEO Dan Schulman's decision to invest in his employees. That came following a financial-wellness survey of his workers that found many were barely making enough to save.

Shannen Balogh and Marguerite Ward take you inside PayPal's decision to invest in its workers, and how it paid off big time. 

Click here to read the entire story.

2021 is shaping up to be a big year for M&A. Here are 12 hot trends to expect.

Reed Alexander spoke to a dozen M&A experts, from bankers to investors and lawyers, about what to expect in 2021 as far as dealmaking. Here's a great breakdown of all the different trends to keep an eye out for. Read the entire list here.

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Top fintech investors are excited for a big year of hot IPOs after 2020 blew away their expectations

Speaking of deals, VCs are optimistic that dealmaking will keep rolling in 2021. As a result, they are eyeing some big exits. Shannen Balogh spoke to four investors about why they are so optimistic. Read more here.

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What's in store for 5 big banks like JPMorgan and Citi in 2021

And while we're on the topic of 2021 trends, Carter Johnson took a look at what to expect from the biggest retail banks in the new year. From changes in leadership, to spinning off non-core businesses, 2021 should be an eventful year for consumer banking. Get the full rundown here.

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Futures contracts on the outcome of NFL games could soon be a reality

Gambling has gone mainstream thanks to more states legalizing it. As a result, it was only a matter of time before Wall Street looked to get involved. Carter Johnson has a look at crypto exchange's proposal to list future contracts tied to the outcome of NFL games. Read more here.

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QR codes are catching on like crazy in restaurants. Now, PayPal wants to turn the tech into a new way to pay in-store.

Shannen Balogh with a nice look at PayPal's big bet on QR codes, and why it's paying off. Read more about why analysts are so optimistic about how crucial it will be to the company's growth. Check out the story here.

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Mastercard's new chief product officer has big plans for B2B payments and open banking

Shannen Balogh got the chance to chat with Craig Vosburg, Mastercard's new chief product officer. Get an inside look at what Vosburg will be focusing on at Mastercard. Read more here.

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