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A leading payments industry news source for more than 17 years. Glenbrook curates the news and keeps you abreast of the important daily headlines in payments.
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January 12, 2026
Top Post
Google Announces a New Protocol to Facilitate Commerce Using AI Agents
TechCrunch
"Google announced a new open standard, called the Universal Commerce Protocol (UCP) for AI agent-based shopping, at the National Retail Federation (NRF) conference. The standard, developed with companies like Shopify, Etsy, Wayfair, Target, and Walmart, lets agents work across different parts of customer buying processes, including discovery and post-purchase support. The core idea is that the standard could facilitate these various parts of the process instead of requiring connections with different agents."
On the web
FIS Completes Strategic Acquisition of Global Payments’ Issuer Solutions Business and Sale of Worldpay Stake
FIS Global
"FIS® announced the completion of its acquisition of Global Payments' Issuer Solutions business, formerly known as TSYS, for an enterprise value of $13.5 billion, or a net purchase price of $12 billion including $1.5 billion of net present value of tax assets. Offerings from this asset, the world’s largest issuing business, will now go to market under the FIS® Total Issuing™ Solutions portfolio brand."
Why Do Businesses Still Use Paper Checks?
Atlanta Fed
"The 2024 Federal Reserve Payments Insight Business Study by Federal Reserve Financial Services (FRFS) found that paper checks remain a leading payment method among the nation's small businesses. Despite the growing availability of digital alternatives, businesses with less than $10 million in annual revenue continue to rely on checks for their outgoing payments. The study found that nearly 80 percent of "Very Small" firms with revenue under $1 million use checks while "Small" firms lead all segments with 83 percent using paper checks for business payments."
Americans Carry $1.21 Trillion in Credit Card Debt, with 73% Tied to Essentials and Median Interest Rates at 25.3%
Yahoo Finance
"Americans now carry a record $1.21 trillion in credit card debt – with 73% tied to essential living costs – as median interest rates reach 25.3%. In new research released today, Academy Bank reveals how persistent financial pressures are pushing households to rely more heavily on credit cards for everyday expenses, with the average user carrying a $5,595 balance. The bank's latest white paper, "Managing High-Interest Debt: How Cash-Out Refinances Can Help Homeowners Find Relief," analyzes national debt trends."
ACI Worldwide Enables Paze℠ for Online Checkout, Advancing Speed and Convenience for Digital Commerce
ACI Worldwide
"ACI Worldwide and Early Warning Services have announced a new partnership to enable Paze as a checkout option available to its merchants. Paze is an online checkout solution developed by Early Warning Services that is offered by leading banks and credit unions in the U.S. The convenient Paze checkout experience enables consumers to pay online with their preferred credit and debit cards via added security through tokenization, and streamlined digital authentication."
Ant International and Google to Soon Enable AI Checkout in Chat
Asian Banking & Finance
"Ant International has collaborated with Google’s Universal Commerce Protocol to expand its artificial intelligence (AI) capabilities. UCP establishes a common language for agents and systems to operate together across consumer surfaces, businesses, and payment providers to enable commerce, Ant International said in a press release."
BNY Goes Live With Tokenized Deposits
Ledger Insights
"Bank of New York Mellon (BNY) has launched its tokenized deposit offering, targeting tokenized collateral and margin payments. The initiative has been a work in progress for the bank for several years. Since 2023, BNY has participated in Singapore’s Project Guardian where it has been testing the interoperability of tokenized deposits and FX with OCBC Bank."
Global Payments Completes Acquisition of Worldpay and Divestiture of Issuer Solutions Business
Global Payments Inc.
"Global Payments Inc. announced the successful completion of its acquisition of Worldpay from FIS and GTCR, and the divestiture of its Issuer Solutions business to FIS. The transactions transform Global Payments into a pure-play, commerce solutions provider, serving the full spectrum of clients, from small businesses to global enterprises worldwide."
Federal Reserve Financial Services to Take New Actions to Support Penny Circulation
FRB Services
"Federal Reserve Financial Services (FRFS) today announced new actions to better support the circulation of pennies for commercial activity. Beginning on Jan. 14, the Federal Reserve will resume accepting pennies from banks and credit unions at commercial coin distribution locations providing services under arrangements with the Federal Reserve that were previously suspended."
Etsy Enables Direct Purchase in Microsoft Copilot AI Assistant
Chain Store Age
"Etsy is expanding its capability to let customers shop and make purchases within AI agents. The e-commerce retailer is partnering with Microsoft and payment processing provider Stripe to make eligible items available for purchase directly in Copilot Checkout on web browser for signed-in Microsoft users in the U.S. With this offering, Etsy is building on a partnership it launched with ChatGPT, the generative AI model from research and deployment company Open AI, in fall 2025."
Over Half of US Shoppers Would Trust AI To Shop on Their Behalf, Shows Adyen Research
Adyen
"Adyen’s Retail Report reveals the use of AI assistants by US shoppers has more than doubled year-over-year, soaring from 12% to 35%. 51% of shoppers would be open to AI handling the entire shopping process, including making the final purchase. The vast majority of retailers (88%) are open to enabling AI to complete purchases on the shopper’s behalf, with 56% prioritizing this technology for the year ahead."
On the wires
Checkout.com Secures Georgia Banking Charter Milestone, Accelerating U.S. Investment to Win the Enterprise Digital Payments Market
PR Newswire
"Checkout.com's application for a Merchant Acquirer Limited Purpose Bank (MALPB) charter was accepted by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance. The charter will enable greater control, deliver improved digital payments performance for enterprise merchants, and allow Checkout.com to double down on US expansion plans."
January 9, 2026
Top Post
Inside Agentic Commerce: A New Way to Transact Raises New Questions
Mastercard
"As AI agents shop and pay on behalf of consumers, the payments ecosystem is tackling challenges around intent, fraud prevention and accountability."
On the web
Fiserv Launches Unknown Shopper at NRF, Helping Merchants Better Understand In-Store Customers
Fiserv, Inc.
"Fiserv, Inc. announced the launch of Unknown Shopper from Fiserv, a new analytics capability designed to help merchants and their marketing partners better understand in-store customer behavior and build actionable customer segments from card-present transactions."
Building a Smoother Path to Instant Payments in Ethiopia
AfricaNenda
"Ethiopia has been steadily advancing its digital payments landscape. Banks, microfinance institutions, and new market players are working hard to offer customers faster and more reliable ways to move money. But as the sector grows, many institutions face the same challenge: connecting their systems to the national Instant Payment System (IPS) in a way that doesn’t require major internal restructuring. EthSwitch’s new middleware initiative was created to address exactly this challenge."
Fireblocks Acquires TRES: Delivering the First Complete Operating System for Digital Assets
Fireblocks
"Fireblocks announced the acquisition of TRES Finance, a leader in crypto accounting, reconciliation, and financial controls for digital assets. Together, they are forming the foundational infrastructure for an onchain financial world, integrating financial controls into critical business operations."
Toast Delivers Precision Insights, Action, and Efficiency for Retailers
Toast
"Toast announced its latest platform updates for retailers, including retail-specific capabilities to its Toast IQ AI assistant and a host of core platform updates designed to help retailers operate faster and more efficiently, driving their businesses forward. The Toast IQ AI assistant enables retailers to move at the speed of conversation by instantly showing users what’s selling, what’s running low, and where margin opportunities lie in their business."
Visa and JPMorgan Use Solana Rails But One Risk Still Worries Banks
Yahoo Finance
"Major financial institutions, including JPMorgan and Visa, are increasingly turning to for real-world money settlements. One metric continues to raise questions among institutions: the degree of control over the network. Solana has hundreds of validators, but stake distribution matters more. The Nakamoto Coefficient, a measure of how many entities could theoretically disrupt the network, stands around 20-30 based on recent data. This indicates that a limited number of validators control a significant portion of staked SOL."
Penny Shortage Pushes Fed to Restart Coin Deposits
Axios
"The worsening U.S. penny shortage has prompted the Federal Reserve to resume accepting penny deposits on Jan. 14 at more coin distribution locations. The move could ease checkout friction for cash-paying shoppers, where a lack of coins has led to rounding, confusion and longer lines. The move is limited and does not restart penny production. It falls short of a fix, retailers say."
Visa’s New Stablecoin Payout Pilot
The European Business Review
"Visa’s recent announcement of a new pilot program marks a significant step in the crypto world, where businesses will be able to make USD-backed stablecoin payouts directly to vendors’ wallets. This pilot, in simple terms, enables companies to make payments in traditional fiat currencies, while recipients can choose to receive their payments in a US dollar-pegged stablecoin, such as USDC."
Deluxe to Implement Visa Direct to Enable Fast, Seamless Payments with dlxFastFunds
Deluxe Corporation
"Deluxe announced its collaboration with Visa to implement Visa Direct. This collaboration introduces dlxFastFundsSM, a funding solution that leverages Visa’s trusted payment network to help businesses take control of their cash flow by skipping the typical one- to two-day settlement delay. This integrated solution is designed to reinforce operations with quicker access to capital, ideal for covering inventory, payroll, or reinvestment opportunities."
Education: Beyond Bitcoin: The Blockchain Story
Barclays
"Blockchain is a digital ledger that securely records and verifies transactions in a distributed network. The system’s decentralised structure ensures transparency, security and trust without the need for intermediaries. Given blockchain’s close association with cryptocurrencies, blockchain companies offer indirect exposure to crypto markets. However, as the technology expanded into new sectors such as healthcare, manufacturing and artificial intelligence (AI), blockchain companies now deliver more than just crypto exposure.
January 8, 2026
Top Post
Survey: Gen Z, Millennials Are Ditching the Credit Card for Other Payment Methods
US News
"A U.S. News survey shows that younger consumers are less inclined to use credit cards than baby boomers are. A significant percentage of respondents either missed a credit card payment or overdrew their checking account in the past year. Almost half of respondents mistakenly believe that debit cards help build credit."
JPMorgan to Replace Goldman as Apple Card Issuer
Yahoo Finance
"JPMorgan Chase and Apple on Wednesday announced a deal under which the bank will become the new issuer of the Apple Card, replacing Goldman Sachs, further expanding the biggest U.S. bank's credit card franchise. The move is estimated to bring over $20 billion in card balances to Chase's platform once completed, the companies said. JPMorgan expects to record a $2.2 billion provision for credit losses in the fourth quarter of 2025 tied to the forward purchase commitment of the portfolio."
On the web
Stripe Helps Power a New Shopping Experience in Microsoft Copilot
Stripe
"Stripe announced that it is helping power a new experience called Copilot Checkout. Copilot users in the US will be able to buy products from Etsy businesses and retailers like Urban Outfitters and Anthropologie, all without leaving the chat. When a Copilot conversation naturally leads to a shopping experience, a Stripe-powered checkout may appear natively within the chat. To populate the checkout, Microsoft communicates with Stripe through an integration. Stripe then connects with the seller via the Agentic Commerce Protocol, an open standard for agentic commerce codeveloped by Stripe."
CFPB: The Consumer Credit Card Market
Consumer Financial Protection Bureau
"This report represents the CFPB’s seventh biennial review of the consumer credit card market as directed by the Credit Card Accountability Responsibility and Disclosure Act of 2009. In this report, we analyze data from several sources to examine many aspects of the consumer credit card market as of the end of 2024. We revisit topics covered in earlier reports, such as deferred interest and innovations in the marketplace, while introducing new areas of focus this year. We analyze how cardholders spend by merchant category, review promotional interest rates, and take a deeper look into card transaction disputes."
Volante Technologies Unveils Low-Code Studio: A Game-Changer for Payment Implementation and Compliance
Volante Technologies
"Volante Technologies announced the launch of Volante Low-code Studio, an automated, low-code/no-code environment that redefines how banks design, deploy, and maintain payment workflows. Fully integrated with Volante’s cloud-native Payments Platform, the breakthrough solution equips financial institutions with pre-built capabilities and extensible patterns to take full control of their modernization journey and achieve unprecedented innovation and cost efficiency gains."
PayPal Powers Microsoft’s Launch of Copilot Checkout
PayPal
"PayPal announced that they are teaming up with Microsoft to support the launch of Copilot Checkout in Copilot, enabling shoppers to discover, decide, and pay—without ever leaving the Copilot experience. PayPal will power surfacing merchant inventory, branded checkout, guest checkout and credit card payments, starting with Copilot.com. Merchants’ product catalogs will seamlessly become purchasable leveraging PayPal’s store sync, a capability of PayPal’s recently launched agentic commerce services, which are designed to allow merchants to attract customers and future-proof their business in the new era of AI-powered commerce.
Bottomline Strengthens Business Payments Fraud Defense with Integrated, Multi-Layered Protection
Bottomline
Bottomline announced Payments Fraud Defense, an advanced and scalable payment fraud solution designed to facilitate industry collaboration and leverage AI-driven capabilities. It brings together behavioral analytics, interdiction precision, analytics tuning, and session replay into a single, integrated Payments Fraud Defense platform designed to complement existing fraud systems and accelerate detection.
Visa Launches Card-Based Trade Payment Platform
VIR
"Visa announced a partnership with VPBank, Shinhan Bank Vietnam, and MB to launch the Global Trade Payment Platform (GTPP), described as the market’s first global card-based solution for trade payments, enabling Vietnamese importers to pay South Korean suppliers using Visa Commercial Cards."
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