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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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October 31, 2025
On the web
JP Morgan Launches Private Fund Tokenization Solution
Ledger Insights
"Kinexys by JP Morgan has launched its latest offering, Kinexys Fund Flow, to streamline fund distribution, particularly for alternative funds. It partnered with fund administrator Citco for the first transaction, which involved tokenizing a private equity fund made available to clients of JP Morgan Private Bank. The solution uses JP Morgan’s Kinexys permissioned blockchain, the same distributed ledger that powers its blockchain-based bank account."
Splitwise and Tink Expand Pay by Bank Across Europe
IBS Intelligence
"Splitwise has partnered with Tink, a Visa Solution, to bring Pay by Bank to users in France, Germany, and Austria. Splitwise’s European growth strategy underscores both companies’ commitment to driving digital transformation and seamless financial experiences through open banking technology.
Tink and Coinbase Introduce Pay by Bank for Crypto in Germany
Fintech Schweiz Digital Finance News
"Swedish open banking platform Tink and Coinbase have partnered to enable crypto purchases via Pay by Bank in Germany. Pay by Bank is an open banking-powered payment method that allows consumers to transfer money directly between bank accounts without manual data entry."
October 30, 2025
On the web
Google Finally Opens Up the Play Store’s Gates in the US
Android Authority
"Google is opening up the Play Store in the US, allowing users to download apps and make payments outside it starting October 29, 2025. Developers can now link to external app stores or payment options and offer cheaper deals directly to users. The change follows a court order in Google’s legal battle with Epic Games and currently applies only in the United States."
A Deep Dive Into the QR Code Payment Revolution With Matera
Federal Reserve
"Picture this: Instead of waiting days or weeks to receive medical, utility and other bills in the mail, they are sent directly to your email via QR code. The QR code can be used with your bank’s mobile app, and after confirming payment details, your payment is processed and settled within seconds. Matera, a leading provider of QR code and payment technologies, and its banking partner, Payfinia, recently demonstrated the first QR code payment sent over the FedNow® Service."
Western Union Announces USDPT Stablecoin on Solana and Digital Asset Network
Western Union
"The Western Union Company announced its plan to launch U.S. Dollar Payment Token (USDPT), its new stablecoin, and an innovative Digital Asset Network designed to bridge the digital and fiat worlds, enabling real world utility for digital assets. Built on Solana and issued by Anchorage Digital Bank, Western Union aims to launch USDPT, expanding the ways to move money for customers, agents and partners, and to support the company’s treasury capabilities."
Toast Expands Toast IQ from Smart Features to Smart AI Assistant
Toast
"Toast announced a major expansion of the Toast IQ intelligence ecosystem with a conversational AI assistant for restaurants and food and beverage retailers. With access to real-time and historical data across approximately 148,000 customer locations, Toast IQ is purpose-built for hospitality and designed as an operator’s “right hand.” While many AI tools stop at answers, Toast IQ goes further—proactively surfacing insights and executing tasks directly within Toast."
IBM Announces New Platform for Financial Institutions and Regulated Enterprises Entering the Digital Asset Economy
IBM Newsroom
"IBM announced the launch of IBM Digital Asset Haven, a comprehensive platform for financial institutions, governments, and corporations to securely manage and scale their digital asset operations. Banks and governments now have a single solution to manage their digital asset lifecycle – from custody to transactions to settlement – that helps them meet compliance obligations while being integration-ready."
Real-Time Payments Systems: A Force for Transformation
OMFIF
"A vibrant, safe and innovative RTP ecosystem depends on conditions that are co-created by the public and private sectors. Success is defined by three core imperatives: security, interoperability and digital extensibility. A new report published by OMFIF and Mastercard, Future-proofing the architecture of real-time payments, finds that these three dimensions must be advanced in parallel to realise the promise of safe, inclusive and future-ready payments ecosystems that enable broad participation across stakeholders."
On the wires
CPI Card Group Partners With Karta to Deliver Groundbreaking Digital Security for Prepaid Cards
Business Wire
"CPI Card Group Inc. announced a strategic partnership with, and a minority equity investment in, Karta, an Australia-based prepaid program manager and payments technology firm. The partnership offers CPI clients a solution for prepaid card security by integrating Karta’s patent-pending SafeToBuy technology. SafeToBuy eliminates printed card numbers and details from gift card packaging with data and security embedded in an EMV chip, which helps mitigate the fraudulent draining of a prepaid card."
October 29, 2025
Top Post
Introducing an Agentic Commerce Solution for Merchants From PayPal and Google Cloud
Google Cloud
"Modern consumers demand a seamless, personalized shopping journey, from initial product discovery all the way to final purchase. With the rise of agentic AI, merchants now have an opportunity to deliver a truly assistive and cohesive experience across every touchpoint. PayPal and Google Cloud have announced bringing agentic shopping experiences to life with a new offering that combines Google Cloud’s Conversational Commerce agent with payments powered by PayPal."
On the web
PNC Bank, Visa Announce Collaboration on Immediate Payment Capabilities Through Visa Direct
PNC Financial Services Group
"PNC Bank, N.A., and Visa Inc. announced a renewed strategic collaboration that will further expand immediate1 payments capabilities available to PNC Treasury Management clients. The initiative utilizes Visa Direct’s expansive U.S. network and PNC’s leading Treasury Management Platform to provide clients with access to differentiated payment capabilities, delivering streamlined and efficient money-movement and payment processes."
Bringing Agentic Payments to Life with Marqeta’s MCP Server
Marqeta
"As part of bringing agentic payments to life, Marqeta’s Model Context Protocol (MCP) Server allows our customers to connect to our extensive payment APIs. An MCP server is an open-source standard developed by Anthropic for connecting AI applications to external systems, allowing them to access key information and perform complex tasks."
On the wires
Thunes and Ecobank Group To Power Africa's Instant Payments for the Next Billion Users
PR Newswire
"Thunes and Ecobank Group, the leading pan-African financial institution, announced a collaboration which will enable instant cross-border payments for millions of individuals and businesses across Sub-Saharan Africa. The partnership operationalizes the landmark memorandum of understanding signed between Ecobank and TransferTo, Thunes' holding company, in 2024. That agreement envisioned a fundamental transformation of financial access and cross-border payment solutions across Africa."
October 28, 2025
On the web
Venmo and Bilt Unveil First-of-Its-Kind Partnership Reinventing Rent & Mortgage Payments Nationwide
PayPal Newsroom
"Venmo announced a partnership with Bilt, the nation's largest housing and neighborhood commerce platform, to expand how people use Venmo for everyday payments. The partnership brings rent payments, mortgage repayments, and neighborhood commerce into the Venmo experience, marking a major step in Venmo's evolution from a peer-to-peer payments app to an everyday commerce platform."
OpenAI and PayPal Team Up to Power Instant Checkout and Agentic Commerce in ChatGPT
PayPal Newsroom
"PayPal, Inc. announced it will adopt the Agentic Commerce Protocol (ACP) to expand payments and commerce in ChatGPT. Millions of ChatGPT users will be able to check out instantly using PayPal, and PayPal will support payments processing for merchants leveraging OpenAI Instant Checkout. PayPal will also connect its global merchant network to OpenAI, creating a platform for tens of millions of small businesses and the largest brands in the world to sell within ChatGPT."
October 27, 2025
Top Post
Worldpay Unveils Patent Pending AI-powered 3D Secure Optimization Service to Increase Payment Approvals
Business Wire
"Worldpay® announced the launch of its innovative Authentication Optimization Service, a patent-pending solution designed to maximize payment approval rates and minimize unnecessary friction for merchants using 3D Secure (3DS) to authenticate payments. This service is widely available to merchants that accept payments in non-3DS regulated markets."
On the web
Uber Selects Checkout.com to Deliver Fast, Reliable Global Payments Across Its Enterprise Platform
Checkout
"Checkout.com announced a new strategic partnership with Uber Technologies, Inc, the world’s leading digital mobility platform. The partnership will see Checkout.com provide acquiring and gateway services to Uber’s ridesharing and on-demand delivery platforms across multiple markets worldwide. Uber chose Checkout.com for its unique ability to combine global coverage with local expertise in a number of key markets."
Mastercard Introduces First-Ever Threat Intelligence Solution to Combat Payment Fraud at Scale
Mastercard
"Mastercard announced Mastercard Threat Intelligence. The solution brings together Mastercard’s fraud insights and global network visibility with curated cyber threat intelligence from Recorded Future's platform to help payment fraud and merchant compliance teams at banks proactively detect, prevent, and respond to cyber-enabled fraud. Key features: card testing detection, digital skimming intelligence, merchant threat intelligence, payment ecosystem threat intelligence, and payment intelligence reports. "
BofA’s AI-Driven CashPro Chat and Transaction Search Capabilities Reach Record Usage by Corporate Clients
Bank of America
"Bank of America announced record-breaking adoption of its AI-driven CashPro® Chat and transaction search capabilities as corporate clients increasingly turn to real-time insights and operational efficiency in treasury management. CashPro is the banking platform used by companies to manage their payments, deposits, loans and trade transactions. Client use of CashPro Chat has increased 21% year-over-year, with nearly 70% of corporate clients using this tool to access account information, for transaction tracking and service resolution."
Western Union Initiates Stablecoin Transfers as Fed Targets Payment-Only Breakthrough
99Bitcoins
"Western Union is jumping on the stablecoin bandwagon to avoid being left behind and perhaps even rendered obsolete. During Western Union’s Q3 2025 earnings call, CEO Deven McGranahan said the financial services company had launched a pilot that leverages stablecoins for value transfer. The CEO notes that the trial program will specifically focus on leveraging the blockchain and stablecoins to “reduce dependency on legacy correspondent banking systems.” In turn, this will shorten settlement times and, most importantly, improve capital efficiency."
Zelle’s Stablecoin Play Spurs More Questions Than Answers
American Banker
"Zelle has plans to incorporate stablecoins as it expands to international payments. What's at stake: Banks are still trying to find their place in the emerging stablecoin industry. Forward look: Early Warning said more information would be released in the "coming weeks and months. [Subscription Required]"
From Automation to Autonomy: How Agentic AI is Revolutionizing Payments
Visa
"Payments have evolved from the universal reliance on cash to cards, which brought enhanced security and convenience, and driving global card transactions to $3.12 trillion in 2025, or roughly 10% of global GDP. Agentic AI promises a transformative leap by enabling frictionless, autonomous payments. The retail and e-commerce Agentic AI market is projected to reach $175 billion by 2030, signaling a fundamental shift in how payments and AI interplay"
Visa Unveils Key Partnerships and World-class Payment Innovations at Global Fintech Fest, 2025
ptinews
"Visa unveiled a range of cutting-edge solutions at the recently concluded Global Fintech Fest (GFF) 2025. Across the three days Visa made multiple announcements and product launches, highlighting their commitment to shaping the next chapter of digital payments in India, focusing on security, cross-border convenience, and the transformative potential of AI."
On the wires
NMI Launches Developer-First Environment to Simplify Embedding Payments for SaaS Platforms
Business Wire
"NMI® announced the launch of its developer-first experience, a modern, self-service integration environment that helps SaaS builders and software platforms embed payments easily and deliver products to market faster. The new developer environment introduces a simpler way to integrate payments, combining intuitive onboarding, dynamic sandbox testing and frictionless partner sign-up. Designed for both developers and business teams, it allows users to build, test and launch payments quickly, without the traditional complexity or compliance hurdles."
Citi and Coinbase Join Forces to Boost Digital Asset Payment Capabilities for Global Clients
Business Wire
"Citi and Coinbase are collaborating to develop digital asset payment capabilities for institutional clients. The collaboration will first focus on streamlining fiat pay-ins/pay-outs and payments orchestration, enhancing the bridge between traditional and digital finance for Coinbase's on/off ramps."
Klarna Launches Memberships: Premium Perks Without Expensive Credit
Klarna
"Klarna unveiled its new global membership program, introducing Premium and Max. The program delivers premium benefits like cashback, travel perks, and lifestyle rewards in a transparent, monthly plan, without the need to take on expensive credit. The launch marks a major step in Klarna’s evolution into a full-scale digital bank helping consumers manage their money with greater value and control."
October 24, 2025
Top Post
Zelle® Goes International: Early Warning Expands $1T Payments Network with Stablecoin Initiative
Early Warning
"Early Warning Services, the network operator of Zelle®, announced a new initiative to enable Zelle to deliver faster and more reliable cross-border money movement. The effort marks an important step in expanding the reach of Zelle globally by leveraging stablecoins. Zelle is a preferred way of moving money to people they know and trust, designed to support the needs of consumers, small businesses and banks and credit unions of all sizes within the Zelle Network®, and is relied on by millions of Americans for fast and easy payments."
On the web
JPMorgan to Let Institutional Clients Pledge BTC and ETH as Loan Collateral by Year-End
The Block
"JPMorgan reportedly plans to allow institutional clients to use bitcoin and ether as collateral for loans by the end of 2025. The shift brings crypto closer into bank lending plumbing and follows wider Wall Street moves to expand digital asset services to clients."
Affirm Expands Partnership With Worldpay for Platforms With Embedded Payments Integration
Affirm Holdings, Inc.
"Affirm announced an expanded partnership with Worldpay. The new deal will integrate Affirm into the company’s embedded payments offering for software platforms. Worldpay for Platforms provides embedded payments for more than 1,000 SaaS companies, and over the last 12 months has processed more than $400 billion in payment volume and 4.6 billion in transactions. With this integration, platforms will now have the ability to offer Affirm as a payment method to their merchants, giving eligible end customers more flexible, transparent ways to pay."
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