I'll flip you for 'em.
"Banks, resolving not to fall behind, turn to Apple Pay; Mobile systems a priority after past’s missteps" by Deirdre Fernandes, Globe Staff January 19, 2015
Eager to cater to tech-savvy customers and hoping to shrug off their Luddite past, Massachusetts banks are rushing to embrace the new Apple Pay electronic payment system.
Hundreds of banks, in Massachusetts and nationwide, are frantically working with technology vendors and Apple Inc. to offer consumers the new electronic payment system, which securely stores their debit and credit information on the newest iPhone models.
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Financial institutions are also trying to avoid some of the missteps they made during the early days of mobile banking. Some banks were slow to realize how quickly consumers would begin using phones to check their accounts, pay bills, and deposit checks....
No worry of hackers whatsoever?
Banks “are not wanting to miss the boat on this,” said Ed O’Brien, a director at Mercator Advisory Group, a Maynard research firm. That’s especially true for those banks that are trying to appeal to millennials, or adults in their 20s and 30s, O’Brien said....
“It’s about staying relevant,” and getting their cut of the tran$action.
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Yes, the banks love you, readers. That's what their mouthpiece, apologist, and defender would have you believe!
What do you mean I can't deposit bitcoins?
"As bitcoin’s price slides, signs of a squeeze" by Sydney Ember, New York Times January 14, 2015
NEW YORK — The price of bitcoin slid further on Tuesday, to its lowest level since the spring of 2013.
The downward spiral, which began early last year, suggests that confidence in the virtual currency may be dwindling....
With no signs of a rally in the offing, the industry is bracing for the effects of a prolonged decline in prices. In particular, bitcoin mining companies, which are essential to the currency’s underlying technology, are flashing warning signs....
For the most part, bitcoin supporters are quick to dismiss the currency’s yearlong slide, saying the price — and the volatility — is only one aspect of the virtual currency.
Paying attention to price, they say, ignores the importance of bitcoin’s underlying technology, which is agnostic to its market value.
Still, the industry is starting to feel the effects of the sustained decline. Some mining companies that invested heavily in resources when the price of bitcoin was rising are struggling to keep their operations open....
Bitcoin miners are computers that run bitcoin’s open-source program and perform complex algorithms. If they find the solution before other miners, they are rewarded with a block of 25 bitcoins — essentially “unearthing” new bitcoins from the digital currency’s decentralized network.
Such mining operations, though potentially lucrative, are also very expensive, requiring huge amounts of equipment and electricity.
Now, these miners, who had bet on a higher price of the virtual currency to pay for resources, are selling their bitcoins to keep their electricity running and return money to their lenders.
“People have these very real fiat-based liabilities that they have to pony up for,” said Greg Schvey, a partner at TradeBlock, which provides data on virtual currency....
Like U.S. government debt.
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Also see: Despite decline, bitcoin fans keep the faith
Yes, have faith(?) in your currency.
