Amazon refunds $2.5B for Prime ‘mistakes’

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They say patience is a virtue… but your Amazon payout? 

Totally worth speeding up.

• Want $75 and a sales growth secret? 🍕
• Amazon pays $2.5B to customers 💸
• Shein and Temu are losing ground 📉
• Want your money tomorrow? 💰

BLACK MARKET

Amazon has begun issuing refunds to Prime members following a $2.5B FTC settlement over how Prime subscriptions were enrolled and canceled.

🥜 FTC settlement, in brief

The FTC says Amazon enrolled millions into Prime without clear consent.

• Amazon will:
  • Pay $1.5B in customer refunds
  • Pay a $1B civil penalty
  • End the practices flagged by regulators
• Refund timeline:
  • Automatic refunds: Sent November–December 2025
  • Claims-based refunds: Notices started January 2026; payouts expected later in 2026

Eligible customers may receive up to $51. Amazon determines eligibility automatically.

🚨 Why this matters to YOU

This may be consumer-facing news, but it’s also a signal flare for sellers:

• Stricter platform oversight is coming
• Cleaner UX expectations,  less tolerance for gray-area tactics
• Higher transparency standards across listings, promos, and subscription-like offers

Now’s the time to double-check your listings, disclosures, and cancellation flows.

TOGETHER WITH LEVANTA

Book a Demo with Levanta. Get a $75 Gift Card.

Not all external traffic nourishes growth. Sometimes it shows up, eats the budget, and leaves.

Many sellers invest in seemingly promising traffic, but never achieve ROI.  Marketing clicks don't always turn into sales. And without clear visibility, it’s hard to know what’s actually worth scaling.

Levanta helps modern e-commerce brands turn affiliate and creator partnerships into a measurable, performance-based revenue channel, not wasted budget.

Instead of chasing clicks and impressions, sellers pay only when partners drive sales — while managing everything in one platform.

With Levanta, sellers can:

• Partner with 50,000+ vetted creators and affiliates.
• Track clicks, sales, and ROI with clear actionable analytics.
• Double down on what works — and stop paying for what doesn’t.
• Manage creators, samples, commissions, and payouts with ease.

That’s streamlined affiliate marketing, without the manual work or messy spreadsheets.

If you’ve been looking for a purpose-built platform, learn how Levanta works in a short walkthrough. Qualified sellers who book a demo will receive a $75 Uber Eats or DoorDash gift card on the house. 

Gift card available for qualified sellers. Eligibility confirmed after booking.

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AMAZON NEWS

Amazon still rules US ecommerce

$394.6B. That’s Amazon’s U.S. ecommerce GMV in 2024. Walmart, Shein, Temu? Scrambling to keep users, shipments, and margins in check.

📉 Temu and Shein struggle in ‘25–’26

The Asian rivals’ decline shows the risks of leaning on ultra-low-cost imports. Across 2025, Temu and Shein faced mounting challenges:

• Monthly active users: Fell from 25–35M to under 10M
• Costs: Higher tariffs slowed deliveries, raised prices
  Consumer confidence: Dropped over quality/provenance worries
• Marketing: Budgets cut up to 20%, focus shifted from growth to survival

Amazon used local inventory, domestic logistics, and AI recommendations to maintain strong traffic and margins into 2026.

🛍️ Carrying over from 2025

Data from 2025 shows Amazon isn’t the only winner. 

• Platform gains: Target traffic up 24% YoY; Costco +3.6%, Walmart +2.1%.
• Cross-border caution: 44% avoid foreign platforms; 35% support tariffs.
• Payment trends: BNPL and mobile payments grow, led by Apple Pay & PayPal.
• AI adoption: 61% of U.S. ecommerce firms use AI for service, 60% for marketing, 40% for content.
• Quick commerce impact: Electronics and fashion sellers without local operations or strong logistics struggled.

🛒 Amazon isn’t just surviving

It’s thriving. 

Key lessons for 2026: prioritize local fulfillment and fast delivery, use AI for marketing and personalization, and focus on trust and quality.

CASH CORNER

Get your Amazon payouts in 24 hours

Amazon is rolling out Express Payout, letting U.S. sellers get their money within 24 hours, any day of the week, even weekends.

This is a big deal for sellers who want faster access to funds without waiting for standard ACH timelines

⚡ How it works

Normally, eligible payouts take up to five days via ACH. With Express Payout, Amazon Pay uses a network of banks, credit unions, and Visa to deposit funds within a day:

• Payments in 24 hours, including weekends
• Payouts up to $1M qualify; larger payouts still follow standard ACH
• Funds can go directly to an in-network bank account or a seller-designated Visa debit card

To enroll, you need:

• An Amazon Pay account
• A valid U.S. business address (territories excluded)
• An in-network U.S. bank account
• Transactions of $1M or less at payout initiation

Currently, Express Payout is free for eligible sellers.

Amazon may introduce a $0.50 per transaction fee in the future, but you’ll get advance notice and can deactivate the service anytime.