Banks hit with fines over staff texting, Hasbro’s 'Selfie Series' offers personalized action figures

Yahoo Finance's Brian Sozzi and Julie Hyman discuss two news stories making the rounds, including banks having to pay $1 billion in fines and Hasbro letting users make their own action figures.

Video Transcript

[MUSIC PLAYING]

JULIE HYMAN: It's time for Cut for Time, two stories, one minute each. We start with this. I wish we were still talking about the Peloton ad, but we're not. Big banks getting hit with almost a billion dollars in fines for failing to monitor employees using unauthorized messaging apps. Finance firms are required to monitor employee communication to avoid improper conduct. Like, basically, you and I text. Nobody cares. It's just whatever.

But if you're working at a financial firm, and you text somebody who works with you, that could potentially be a record that the bank is required to save, just in case you've talked about a trade, work in some way. And so they got in big trouble for not saving all of that stuff.

BRIAN SOZZI: This makes a lot of sense to me. I understand where the fine is coming from. But, you know, I still talk to a lot of people on the Street. They're still using Blackberries. Blackberries are still the predominant phone.

JULIE HYMAN: No.

BRIAN SOZZI: Yes, they are still out there, Julie. They are still out there for their security. I don't make-- I'm not making it up. They are still walking around with Blackberries.

JULIE HYMAN: I haven't seen a Blackberry in a long time. They don't make new Blackberries anymore, right?

BRIAN SOZZI: I know. And they're letting some employees keep their Blackberries.

JULIE HYMAN: Huh.

BRIAN SOZZI: But they're old. I mean, these are old. They're antiques.

JULIE HYMAN: Well, it's easier--

[BUZZER]

--to save the communications on those, I would think.

BRIAN SOZZI: I know. I just went left turn with that. Whatever. And my dreams are coming true. I could finally turn myself into an action figure. OK, Hasbro has teamed up with a 3D printing company, FormLabs, to allow fans the chance to order collector-grade, six-inch action figures with their own face on them, calling this the Hasbro Selfie Series. And you get your hands on them. All you need to do is download the Hasbro app.

My team is very quick to think that all I'm interested in here is me making an action figure of myself. And that's partially true. But I will say this. I want to bring a little finance to it. I think there's a high margin opportunity for Hasbro at a time where it needs to find some high margin opportunities. I will pay for personalized goods. To me, this makes sense. Margin favorable.

JULIE HYMAN: I feel like this is something that already existed, although I didn't have time after I saw this to try and look it up. But I feel like there are other personalization--

BRIAN SOZZI: That's creepy.

JULIE HYMAN: --opportunities. Yeah, a little bit. A little bit. I mean, and I would argue, yes, this is, at the margins, perhaps, helpful. But in this environment, you need more than an action figure with your face on it, right, to juice sales.

BRIAN SOZZI: This had me thinking back. I had old-school action figures in the '80s, these giant rubber Hulk Hogan action figures. I used to beat the hell--

[BUZZER]

--out of my brother with them. It was scary, but they don't make them anymore. They were heavy. And I know he's got some bruises on his face.

JULIE HYMAN: You got buzzed. All right, that does it for us on this Friday.