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May 5, 2025
On the web
European Central Bank Partners With Private Sector Through Digital Euro Innovation Platform
European Central Bank
"The European Central Bank (ECB) has established an innovation platform to collaborate with European stakeholders in the context of the digital euro project. Almost 70 market participants – including merchants, fintech companies, start-ups, banks and other payment service providers – have signed up to work with the ECB to explore digital euro payment functionalities and use cases."
Suppliers and the Demands of the Digital Economy: A Powerful Case for Commercial Card Acceptance
Mastercard
"Until recently, business-to-business payments hadn’t changed much — dominated by bank or wire transfers and paper checks, they were slow, inefficient and prone to error. Now more financial decision-makers are realizing that the value of digital payments, including cards, extends far beyond the transaction itself, from streamlining reconciliation to optimizing working capital to improving transparency to reducing fraud."
The Genius of the GENIUS Act
Banking Exchange
"When the US Senate Banking Committee approved the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins (GENIUS) Act on March 13, it overwhelmingly voted to move forward with issuing and regulating stablecoins. With the bill poised to pass a full Senate vote and be signed into law by President Trump, payment stablecoin is likely to become a reality in the United States sooner rather than later."
Cryptocurrency May Be Evolving Into a Shadow Banking System
MSN
"A recent study published by political scientists at Freie Universität Berlin, Christopher Olk and Louis Miebs, indicates that the global cryptocurrency system has been undergoing significant transformations. The crypto system, which was originally intended as an alternative to currencies that depend on a central authority like the state or banks, has developed into a credit-based shadow banking system."
“Better Than Cash”: PayPal Announces Plans to Revolutionize In-Store Payments in Germany
PayPal Newsroom
"PayPal is expanding in physical stores across Germany this summer. One of the most trusted brands in Germany, PayPal announced plans to bring everything consumers love and trust about PayPal in store. In the coming weeks, PayPal’s first-ever contactless mobile wallet will launch nationwide, available to PayPal consumers in Germany before anywhere else in the world."
April Small Business Sales Improved from March, Though Consumers Continue to Trim Discretionary Spending
Fiserv, Inc.
"Fiserv, Inc. has published the Fiserv Small Business Index for April 2025, with the seasonally-adjusted Index at 151, a one point increase from March. As National Small Business Week begins in the U.S., consumers are making notable shifts in purchasing behavior – spending more on the essentials, trimming back discretionary purchases, and spending less when they choose to dine out."
May 2, 2025
On the web
Apple Changes US App Store Rules to Let Apps Link to External Payment Systems
TechCrunch
"Apple has changed its App Store rules in the U.S. to let apps link users to their own websites so they can buy subscriptions or other digital goods. This change comes after a U.S. court ruled in favor of Epic Games in a case against the iPhone maker, ordering the latter not to prohibit apps from including features that could redirect users to their own websites for making digital purchases."
Venmo Gaining Ground in Payments as Cash App Struggles [Video]
CNBC
"In the increasingly crowded market for peer-to-peer payments, Venmo is showing momentum while Cash App has hit a rough patch. The parents of both businesses reported quarterly results this week. PayPal, which owns Venmo, reported an earnings beat and kept its forecast for the year. Block, meanwhile, plummeted in extended trading on Thursday after the Cash App parent missed on revenue and issued disappointing guidance. "
Klarna Hits 11 Million UK Customers as UK Revenue Soars 30% in Breakout 2024
Klarna
"Klarna crossed 11 million active customers and has doubled its merchant base in a year to 60,000, launching with names like Argos, eBay, Eurostar and John Lewis. The UK is now Klarna’s third-biggest market globally, with revenue up 30% in 2024 alone. It’s a major moment for the Swedish fintech giant as it cements its place in the British retail scene."
FCA Does Not Want Britons to Buy Crypto on Credit
Finance Magnates
"The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is exploring restrictions on UK residents purchasing cryptocurrencies on credit, and is now seeking public feedback on this and other proposed regulatory measures. However, the British agency would exempt authorised stablecoin purchases from these credit restrictions."
Bringing Agentic AI to Payment Operations
Modern Treasury
"Today, we’re launching Modern Treasury AI: a product with AI-native features that address many of those asks—and, more importantly, fundamentally change how payment teams work. Modern Treasury AI blends a context-aware AI Agent with a powerful set of workspace capabilities that will become the cornerstone of daily work for all treasury and payment ops teams. The Agent will augment how teams work, and the AI Workspace will uplevel where teams work."
Finalize Your ISO® 20022 Preparedness and Contingency Plans
FRB Services
"Federal Reserve Financial Services (FRFS) will transition to the ISO 20022 format for the Fedwire® Funds Service on July 14, 2025. It is critical that you have a contingency plan in the event that you are not ready to send or receive ISO 20022 messages through the Fedwire Funds Service or your wire ecosystem is not ready for ISO 20022 messages beginning July 14."
Volt’s One-Click Payto Payment Solution Made Available to Shopify Customers in Australia
Volt
"Volt announced its expansion to the Australian market with Shopify. Volt is enabling Shopify merchants to offer Australian consumers a one-click checkout experience powered by PayTo. In Australia, Volt will be first-to-market on Shopify with a one-click checkout built on PayTo, a real-time payment system developed by the country’s New Payments Platform in 2022."
Growing Number of Retailers Adding on Extra Fees [Video]
NBC News/YouTube
"A growing number of retailers are adding on extra fees or surcharges to transactions. Some of the additional charges come with the cost of using a credit card to purchase while others are a result of tariffs. NBC News' Yasmin Vossoughian has more on the extra fees and the consumer reaction to the charges."
Stripe Radar Now Protects ACH and SEPA Payments From Fraud
Stripe
"Programmable financial services company Stripe announced an expansion of Radar, Stripe’s AI-powered fraud prevention product, for ACH and SEPA payments. Radar assesses more than 1,000 characteristics of a potential transaction in order to determine, in less than 100 milliseconds, the likelihood that it’s fraudulent. On average, Radar users see a 42% reduction in SEPA fraud and a 20% reduction in ACH fraud."
Why the Capital One/Discover Deal Is About Much More Than Payments
The Financial Brand
"The deal is as much a banking milestone as much as a major payments development, with reverberations that could impact everything from deposit generation to small business finance. Up next: Could Capital One make a grab for the Apple Card portfolio?"
May 1, 2025
On the web
FIS Harmonizes Payments with Launch of Unified Money Movement Hub
FIS Global
"Global financial technology leader FIS® announced the launch of its Money Movement Hub, an innovative payments solution that helps to simplify the back-end infrastructure of financial institutions by enabling them to connect to multiple payment networks and process payments in one place. Designed as a turnkey solution for a wide range of institutions - from super regional banks to community banks - the Money Movement Hub supports a modernized payments journey that can change with each client’s needs."
Bank of England: Bank’s Renewed RTGS Service Goes Live
Bank of England
"On 28 April, our renewed RTGS service – known as RT2 – went live. RT2 will support our strategic objectives for RTGS and CHAPS and act as an open platform for change and innovation, driving improvement in wholesale settlement efficiency and facilitating greater competition. Coupled with the introduction of ISO 20022 payments for CHAPS in 2023, this delivers enhanced resilience, greater interoperability, increased user functionality and greater access."
CIBC Launches CIBC Adapta™ Mastercard®, the First Credit Card in Canada That Automatically Adapts to Spending Behaviour, Rewarding Cardholders More for Everyday Purchases
Mastercard
"CIBC announced its innovative new, no annual fee CIBC Adapta Mastercard, the first credit card in Canada that automatically determines the cardholder’s top three spend categories each month based on where they spend the most, and rewards them with 50% more points on those categories."
How Fifth Third Uses Its AI-Powered Chatbot Jeanie to Talk Smarter and, More Importantly, Listen Better
Tearsheet
"Fifth Third is among the traditional banks leveraging AI via its chatbot, Jeanie, to manage customer inquiries and enhance service quality and satisfaction. From the AI that fuels Jeanie to the team behind the scenes, we explore how the chatbot came to life — and where it’s headed next."
Visa Launches AI Agents for Shopping [Video]
YouTube
"Visa announced that it is allowing customers to use AI platforms to make purchases and is collaborating with Anthropic, Microsoft Corp, OpenAI and other AI firms on the product launch. Visa CEO Ryan McInerney speaks with Bloomberg Technology's Caroline Hyde about how the company is enabling AI agents to help customers save time on finding and paying for the ideal item or service online."
JPMorgan’s Blockchain Unit Expands Into MENA With 8 Major Bank Deals
The Block
"JPMorgan's blockchain business unit, Kinexys, has expanded its footprint in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), securing partnerships with eight of the region's leading banks. The development signals a broader shift toward blockchain integration in banking infrastructure. The banks are using Kinexys to enhance cross-border payments, treasury functions and transaction efficiency."
Sam Altman’s Eye-Scanning Project Launches Cryptocurrency in the US
The Verge
"Beginning this week, Worldcoin (WLD) will be available in most of the US for the first time, including via exchanges like Coinbase. Those who scan their eyes at a World orb will receive 16 WLD. The Sam Altman co-founded startup behind the project, Tools for Humanity, is also working with Visa to release a debit card later this year that converts WLD to fiat currency at checkout."
On the wires
Affirm Announces Strategic Global Partnership with UATP
Business Wire
"Affirm announced a new, long-term global partnership with UATP, a global network owned and operated by the world's airlines. This collaboration integrates Affirm’s flexible and transparent pay-over-time options directly into the UATP network, which includes thousands of leading airlines, rail carriers, and travel agencies."
April 30, 2025
Top Post
Find and Buy with AI: Visa Unveils New Era of Commerce
Visa
"AI is transforming how we shop and pay. Visa is bringing the power of its network and decades-long expertise to bring trust and security to AI-driven commerce. Introduced today at the Visa Global Product Drop, Visa Intelligent Commerce enables AI to find and buy. It is a groundbreaking new initiative that opens Visa’s payment network to the developers and engineers building the foundational AI agents transforming commerce."
The Future is Here: Visa Announces New Era of Commerce Featuring AI
Visa
"Visa kicked off its Global Product Drop by sharing how the combination of AI and digital commerce will mark a significant shift in the way consumers discover and buy products and services. In the near future, consumers will enable AI agents to browse, select, purchase and manage on their behalf. For this to be possible, agents will need to be trusted with payments, not only by users, but by banks and sellers as well."
Visa and Bridge Partner to Make Stablecoins Accessible for Everyday Purchases
Visa
"Stablecoins – once a technology confined to crypto communities – are making their way into headlines, dinner party conversations and soon, everyday transactions. Visa, and Bridge, a leading stablecoin orchestration platform and a Stripe company, announced a new card-issuing product. Fintech developers using Bridge can now offer stablecoin-linked Visa cards to their end customers in multiple countries through a single API integration."
On the web
Walmart’s Pay by Bank Project Remains on Track for 2025
Digital Transactions
"A test this past September of a real-time pay by bank payments option inside the Walmart app indicates the service is on track for a broader debut in 2025, Digital Transactions News has learned. Speaking at the Nacha Smarter Faster Payments 2025 conference in New Orleans, Sarah Arnio, Walmart Inc. director of digital payments, tells Digital Transactions News the project is current."
Survey: Innovative Use Cases Drive Businesses to Instant Payments
FedPayments Improvement
"Businesses are actively using instant payments. Nearly two-thirds of U.S. businesses (66%) are likely to use instant payments if offered by their primary financial institution, according to a Federal Reserve Financial Services survey. And when they can do so, they rate their financial institution higher: Businesses that use instant payments reported 10% greater satisfaction with their primary financial institution than businesses that do not."
PayPal Brings Together Developers, AI Leaders to Power Agentic Commerce at Dev Days
PayPal
"PayPal Holdings, Inc. announced it is leading the agentic commerce revolution by providing developers and merchants with innovative tools to create next-generation shopping experiences. Developers can now enable agentic AI experiences that allow customers to pay, track shipments, manage invoices, and more, all powered by PayPal and within an AI agent."
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