Is Amazon ready to cut up their Visa cards?

Visa (V) shares dip 4.5% as Amazon feud over fees heats up

Tensions between Amazon (AMZN) and payments company Visa (V) have increased recently. On Wednesday, shares of Visa were down over 4.5% in trading after Amazon announced that starting on January 19, 2022, Amazon would no longer accept Visa credit cards that were issued in the United Kingdom. The move was made due to high fees and an Amazon spokesperson stated, “the cost of accepting card payments continues to be an obstacle for businesses striving to provide the best prices for customers.”

Consumers will still be able to use Visa debit cards issued in the United Kingdom. Amazon has offered consumers a £20 discount off their next purchase if they set a debit or non-Visa credit card as their default payment option.[1]  Amazon already imposes a surcharge on Visa transactions in Singapore and Australia.  Last week PayPal (PYPL) and Amazon reached an agreement where users could pay for purchases on Amazon using Venmo wallets.[2]  It is expected that consumers will be able to use this feature early in 2022.  Amazon is also reportedly considering switching its co-branded credit card from Visa to Mastercard (MA).[3]  

Bullish sentiments from JP Morgan and Goldman Sachs on European equities for sale

The MSCI Europe Index is on sale as it is trading at a 33% discount compared to the MSCI USA index when looking at forward P/E multiples. Graham Secker of Morgan Standly issued a note on Sunday that stated, ”European valuations look reasonable in absolute terms, very attractive in relative terms... increased macro crosscurrents suggest greater volatility next year, however, the underlying macro backdrop remains a solid one and investor sentiment remains muted despite equities at record highs.” JP Morgan Chase, Pictet Wealth Management, and Goldman Sachs have all come out as bullish on European equities in the past few weeks as well.[4]

Apple launches DIY repairs for iPhones. How long can you keep yours alive?

On Wednesday Apple (AAPL) announced that it would open up some iPhones and Macs to Do-it-Yourself repairs. You will first be able to repair the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 followed by Mac computers that contain M1 chips. It is expected that you will be able to buy over 200 parts and tools through the new Apple Self Service Repair Online Store. You will also be able to review a repair manual.  It is expected that consumers will be able to do most basic repairs on the iPhone 12 and iPhone 13 themselves including repair/replacement of the display, battery, and camera. However, the company said this program is meant for “individual technicians with the knowledge and experience to repair electronic devices.”[5]

If you are in the United States you can look for this to be available in the early part of 2022 and other countries will be available as 2022 progresses.[6]

Crypto Mining firm Bitdeer to go public in a blank check merger

Chinese billionaire Jihan Wu is bringing his Bitcoin mining company, Bitdeer Technologies Holding Co,  to the US markets in a merger with Blue Safari Group Acquisition Corp (BSGA).  Mr. Wu is renowned in the crypto industry for his support of Bitcoin Cash and was on the Forbes 2020 list as one of the five youngest billionaires in Asia and was one of the cofounders of Bitmain Technologies, LTD.  Bitdeer operates data centers in the United States and Norway.  Bitdeer’s main product claims to allow a user to set up a mining business at half the cost in half the time as a traditional mining farm.  

Mr. Wu said in a statement that, “As a leader in crypto mining, we will continue to solidify our leading position in the crypto mining space.  Today marks a significant milestone for Bitdeer, and we strive to create value for our broader group of stakeholders in the future, including our clients, employees and shareholders.”[7]  The deal is expected to close in the first quarter of next year and Mr. Wu will retain control of the company.  The deal values Bitdeer at $4 billion.  Shares will be listed on Nasdaq when the transaction is completed.[8]  

NVIDIA reports a solid quarter with shares up over 5%

Shares of NVIDIA were up over 5% after hours on Friday as the company reported solid quarterly results.  Adjusted EPS came in .06 above analysts’ expectations at $1.17 a share.[9]  Revenue came in at $7.10 billion vs $6.82 billion expected.  Revenue was up over 50% year over year.  The company also issued a bullish forecast for the current quarter that ends in January.  For example, the company said they expect revenue for the current quarter to come in at $7.4 billion vs expectations of $6.86 billion. The company saw sales in data centers up 55% compared to the same quarter last year.[10]  Gaming sales were up 42% year over year to $3.2 billion as sales of its GeForce  consumer graphics processors were in high demand.  Supply of the GeForce consumer graphics processors is currently limited.  Shares of NVIDIA are currently up more than 100% year to date.  

About the Writer

My name is Allen Spence and I have been working in the retail brokerage industry for over 16 years. I joined Alpaca in March of 2021 and am now the Manager of Alpaca Trading Services. Before joining Alpaca I have worked in a retail branch environment, call center for active traders, and spent over seven and a half years as the team lead on an equity trading desk for a large regional broker dealer. I’m excited to be at Alpaca helping bring the markets to investors worldwide. I live in Florida and enjoy traveling and spending time with my family.

About Alpaca

Alpaca is a globally distributed financial technology company that is democratizing global access to financial markets starting with our API-first stock brokerage. Alpaca offers commission-free stock trading via API, a suite of developer APIs for brokerages, advisors, and startups, as well as a market data API.

This article is solely for informational purposes only. Alpaca does not recommend any specific investments or investment strategies. Investments in securities involve the risk of losses and past performance does not guarantee future results. Before investing you should carefully consider your investment objectives, time horizon, and overall risk tolerance as well as the information stated in the product offering prospectuses.

Securities brokerage services are provided by Alpaca Securities LLC (“Alpaca”), member FINRA/SIPC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of AlpacaDB, Inc. Technology and services are offered by AlpacaDB, Inc.

1 Bloomberg. Nov. 17, 2021. https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-17/amazon-will-stop-accepting-visa-credit-cards-issued-in-the-u-k

2 Bloomberg. Nov. 8, 2021 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-08/paypal-lowers-revenue-profit-forecast-as-ebay-volume-fades.

3 Bloomberg. Nov. 17, 2021 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-17/amazon-brings-visa-feud-to-u-s-with-mastercard-defection-threat?cmpid=BBD111721_CUS&utm_medium=email&utm_source=newsletter&utm_term=211117&utm_campaign=closeamericas

4 Bloomberg. Nov. 15, 2021 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-15/european-stocks-have-never-been-this-cheap-versus-u-s-market

5 The Verge. Nov. 17, 2021. https://www.theverge.com/2021/11/17/22787144/apple-home-repair-iphone-mac-parts-tools-instructions

6 Apple. Nov. 17, 2021. https://www.apple.com/newsroom/2021/11/apple-announces-self-service-repair/

7 Bloomberg. Nov. 18, 2021 https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-18/influential-bitcoin-miner-seeks-u-s-listing-through-spac-deal

8 Markets Insider. Nov. 18, 2021. https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/currencies/bitdeer-bitcoin-mining-spac-public-4-billion-bitmain-blue-safari-2021-11

9 CNBC. Nov. 18, 2021. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/18/nvidia-shares-rise-following-q3-earnings-report.html

10 Finance Yahoo. Nov. 17, 2021. https://finance.yahoo.com/video/nvidia-rises-reporting-earnings-224154813.html

11 CNBC. Nov. 17, 2021. https://www.cnbc.com/2021/11/17/nvidia-nvda-earnings-q3-2022.html