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April 8, 2026
Top Post
Visa Opens the Door to AI-Driven Shopping for Businesses Worldwide
Visa
"Visa Inc. unveiled Intelligent Commerce Connect, a new solution that makes it easier for businesses to connect to and participate in AI-powered commerce. Intelligent Commerce Connect acts as a network, protocol, and token vault-agnostic ‘on ramp’ to agentic commerce for agent builders, merchants, and enablers. Through a single integration via the Visa Acceptance Platform, Intelligent Commerce Connect enables secure payment initiation, tokenization, spend controls, and authentication."
On the web
Bank of America: CashPro App Usage Rises 20% as Clients Approve $38,000 in Payments Every Second
PR Newswire
"Bank of America announced that its CashPro App has become an indispensable platform for corporate and commercial clients, attracting a record number of sign-ins and growing 20% year over year. Last year, clients approved a record $1.2 trillion in payment value through the app—an average of $38,000 every second—underscoring the scale of activity and the app's integral role in day‑to‑day treasury operations across industries and geographies."
BILL Extends Supplier Payments to Power a Connected B2B Ecosystem and Help Large Enterprise Suppliers Get Paid Up to ~7 Days Faster
Bill
"BILL announced the latest expansion of BILL Supplier Payments Plus. These new capabilities further extend the solution’s ability to automate and intelligently orchestrate payments and cash application for Enterprise Suppliers, streamlining SMB payments, reducing manual work, and supporting enterprise-grade controls. By sitting between buyers and suppliers, BILL absorbs complexity at scale to reduce friction across both sides of the transaction."
Circle Rolls Out USDC Payments Platform That Lets Users Pay Without Holding Stablecoins
The Block
"Circle launched a stablecoin settlement service that allows payment service providers, fintechs, and banks to benefit from the efficiency of using blockchain-based rails without having to hold digital assets like USDC. The platform is meant to facilitate cross-border settlement using USDC, help merchants accept stablecoin payments, and lower FX costs."
Lloyds Bank Uses Quantum Computing to Detect Money Mules
The Times
"Lloyds Bank has been experimenting with quantum computing to improve financial crime prevention, in an early test of whether the technology can deliver practical benefits for banks. The bank tested whether quantum algorithms could spot money mule behaviour within a large collection of transactions, a task that traditional computers tend to struggle with due to the complexity of detecting subtle patterns within large-scale transaction data."
Finastra and Marketnode Transform Credit Agreement Onboarding Through AI
Finastra
"Finastra announced a strategic partnership with Marketnode to digitize and automate the credit agreement onboarding process for corporate lenders. The collaboration brings together Marketnode’s LLM/AI‑powered intelligent document automation and Finastra’s Loan IQ platform through the Loan IQ Nexus Build module. It enables FIs to digitize the credit agreement onboarding process via an integrated, automated workflow."
Mastercard and Krungthai Card Complete First Live Agentic Transaction in Thailand
Mastercard
"Mastercard announced the completion of a pilot that delivered its first authenticated agentic transaction in Thailand with Krungthai Card Public Company Limited (KTC). The pilot demonstrated how AI can support consumers to complete everyday tasks — such as transportation — securely and seamlessly. In the inaugural test case, an AI agent booked a ride from Suvarnabhumi airport to Central Chidlom through Elife, a global mobility provider. The booking and agentic transaction were facilitated by an AI agent, which connects to Elife’s network of services."
April 7, 2026
On the web
Ahold Delhaize USA Makes Pay by Bank Available for Online Grocery Orders
Progressive Grocer
"Ahold Delhaize USA has grown its partnership with Fiserv Inc. to make Pay by Bank available on the grocer’s proprietary omnichannel platform, providing customers with a secure, streamlined digital payment option for online grocery orders directly from their bank accounts. The solution is currently available on the e-commerce websites and mobile apps of three Ahold Delhaize USA grocery brands: The Giant Co., Giant Food and Stop & Shop."
April 3, 2026
On the web
Small Business Sales Grew Steadily in March as Higher Ticket Sizes Offset Softer Foot Traffic, Fiserv Data Shows
Fiserv, Inc.
"Fiserv, Inc. has published the Fiserv Small Business Index for March 2026, indicating that U.S. small business sales continued to grow steadily in March, despite consumers being more selective in their spending. Higher average ticket sizes helped offset slower transaction volumes as small businesses closed out Q1 on solid footing."
Coinbase Locks in Conditional Approval to Become a Trust Bank
Yahoo Finance
"Crypto exchange Coinbase (COIN) Global said that the firm has received conditional approval from a key federal regulator to become a national trust bank. Final approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency brings a new threshold of legitimacy to Coinbase in the eyes of certain clients, vice president of Institutional Product Greg Tusar said in an interview."
The Infrastructure Layer for AI Agents in Institutional Finance
Fireblocks
"We are quickly entering an era where AI agents are executing B2B payments, moving capital, settling transactions, and managing treasury operations autonomously. While the use cases are exciting (think treasury rebalancing, liquidity management, and cross-border payment routing), there’s a gap that the industry is just now starting to uncover: these agents need to be able to move value, not just process information. That’s where AI infrastructure solutions enter the conversation."
Cash App Unveils P2P Pay Over Time With 7.5% Fee
NewsBytes
"Cash App just dropped a new pay-over-time feature, letting users split peer-to-peer payments over several weeks instead of paying all at once. If you're sending $25 or more, there's a 7.5% fee, and you can pay back weekly or in one go after six weeks."
Meeting Rising AI Expectations and Removing Friction Key to Meeting Needs of B2B Buyers Across Europe
TreviPay
"According to a new European Study 1 of 550 business buyers commissioned by TreviPay , the global B2B payments invoicing and payments network, friction in the B2B buying process in the form of slow onboarding and inconsistent invoicing along with rising expectations for AI-enabled processes are where businesses are experiencing threats to loyalty beyond price."
Solana Joins Linux Foundation’s Open Payment Platform, ‘x402 Foundation’
Block Chain Reporter
"The Solana Foundation, a non-profit organization behind the Solana blockchain, has joined the open payment network, x402 Foundation, of the Linux Foundation. The other participants of the newly developed x402Foundation include the global leaders like Visa, Stripe, Shopify, Microsoft, Mastercard, Google, Fiserv, Coinbase, Cloudflare, Circle, American Express, and Amazon. As per Solana’s official announcement, the development denotes a landmark in the internet-native payments’ evolution."
Western Union Completes Acquisition of Singtel’s Dash
The Edge
"Western Union has completed its acquisition of Dash, the Singapore-based mobile wallet owned by Singtel. The deal gives Western Union access to a platform with more than 1.4 million users in Singapore. Launched in 2014, Dash offers payments, remittances, savings, insurance and investment services within a single app. The acquisition marks Western Union’s first wallet in Asia Pacific. It is part of its strategy to expand beyond traditional money transfers by embedding cross-border capabilities into everyday financial use."
On the wires
SoFi Launches Big Business Banking to Power Fiat and Crypto Banking on a Single Regulated Platform
Business Wire
"SoFi Technologies, Inc. announced the launch of SoFi Big Business Banking, a new offering that gives enterprise partners the ability to manage both fiat and crypto banking from a single, nationally chartered bank. This launch builds on SoFi’s integration of blockchain into its core platform. Big Business Banking brings it all together, enabling any company operating across both traditional and digital finance to hold deposits, move money and settle transactions 24/7 within SoFi’s regulated banking platform."
April 2, 2026
Top Post
Swift Names 30 Ripple-Connected Banks in Its New Payment Framework
TechStock²
"SWIFT just announced the biggest overhaul to its retail payments infrastructure in years. It’s a new framework called “Global Payments for Consumer Payments” that brings together over 50 banks across over 25 corridors, with the first wave going live by mid-2026. The framework covers five of the world’s ten largest remittance markets, and it promises near-instant settlement, predictable fees, and full transparency on every transaction.The framework promises upfront fee certainty, full-value delivery with no deductions along the way, near-instant settlement where local infrastructure allows, and end-to-end traceability on every transaction."
On the web
Visa Defines the Next Era of Commerce: When AI Becomes the Customer
Visa
"A majority of business leaders are preparing for a world where artificial intelligence doesn’t just assist commerce, it participates in it. New research from Visa underscores how quickly that shift is gaining momentum. The Visa Business-to-AI (B2AI) Report, conducted in conjunction with Morning Consult, highlights how AI is already influencing demand. Nearly 40% of Americans have made a purchase they normally would not have considered as a result of using an AI agent or tool. This is an early indication that intelligent systems are beginning to shape how people discover and decide what to buy."
BIS, IMF Researchers Find Stablecoins Already Impact Traditional FX Rates
Ledger Insights
"A new working paper from the Bank for International Settlements and the International Monetary Fund provides the first causal evidence that stablecoin activity is spilling over into traditional foreign exchange (FX) markets. The effects include depreciating local currencies and raising the cost of dollar funding for banks and corporates that have never touched crypto. The paper uses daily data on four major USD pegged stablecoins traded against 27 fiat currencies across 64 centralized exchanges from January 2021 to November 2025."
Checkout.com Introduces Direct Acquiring Services in Canada
MSN
"Checkout has launched its direct acquiring operations in Canada, extending its reach within the North American market. The move enables Checkout.com Canadian customers gain greater control over their payment transactions, with the potential for higher authorisation rates and improved payment performance."
April 1, 2026
On the web
Gr4vy and Plaid Partner to Enable Pay by Bank Payments for Global Merchants
GR4VY
"Gr4vy announced a strategic partnership with Plaid, the global data network powering open-banking connections for fintechs and financial institutions. The collaboration enables merchants using Gr4vy to offer Pay-by-Bank, also known as account-to-account (A2A) payments, as part of their core checkout experience, providing a lower-cost alternative to card transactions without additional integration complexity."
Monzo to Shut Down US Operations in ‘Deliberate’ and ‘Strategic’ Move
Yahoo Finance
"Monzo has made a “deliberate” and “strategic” decision to shut down its business in the US after struggling to push into the market. The digital bank will stop bringing in new customers in the region, and existing customers can continue to use their accounts until June. A spokesperson said: “With a fast-growing customer base of 15 million in the UK and the growth opportunity our European banking licence creates, we’re making a deliberate, strategic decision to focus on scaling in our home market and Europe and to step away from the US."
Visa: Money Travels: 2025 Digital Remittances Adoption Report Money Travels: 2025 Digital Remittances Adoption Report
Visa
"As digital payments become increasingly prevalent in daily life, remittances have similarly evolved. Traditional remittance methods such as checks, money orders, and cash are becoming less favored and seen as less secure than digital remittance methods. Visa’s Money Travels: 2025 Digital Remittances Adoption Report survey of nearly 44,000 remittance senders and receivers across 20 countries, looks at some of the progress, and challenges, that exist today. This is part of a series of annual reports tracking remittance trends around the world."
On the wires
Gen Z Driving the Shift from Cards to Digital Wallets, New Research from Global Payments Suggests
Business Wire
"Global Payments announced that its Worldpay® business released its 11th annual Global Payments Report, revealing that Americans remain attached to plastic – even as younger generations are swapping physical wallets for digital. Some notable trends from this year’s study include: Plastic Preferred — For Now The U.S. remains one of the world’s most card-led markets: In the U.S., direct use of cards accounted for 49% of all online spending and 71% of in‑store spending in 2025. In the U.S. in 2025, people spent twice as much online using credit cards than debit cards, and in stores, credit card spending outpaced debit by 43%."
Elavon and Liberis Expand Partnership Enabling Small Businesses to Access Fast Funding
Business Wire
"Liberis announced an extended partnership with Elavon to launch Quick Capital, a seamless funding solution for small businesses across Canada. Following a successful launch in the U.S. in 2025, this partnership will provide access to capital to more than 202,000 Canadian small to medium sized businesses (SMBs), offering fast, flexible revenue-based financing from Liberis through an easy-to-navigate application that starts within the Elavon merchant portal. "
March 31, 2026
On the web
Billtrust Report: Navigating Economic Headwinds Why Cash Generation Has Become the Ultimate Competitive Edge in 2026
Billtrust
"With 67% of customers paying slower than six months ago, rising costs and tariff pressures are making fast, efficient cash generation the defining priority. Finance leaders are pulling back hard on spending and growth, and at the same time, pouring money into AI and automation like the future depends on it. That push and pull is the story of 2026."
Small Businesses Can Soon Enjoy New Rewards With the Prime Business and Amazon Business Credit Cards [U.S. Bank & Mastercard]
Amazon
"Amazon announced a new Prime Business Card and a new Amazon Business Card, coming this spring, with a suite of new features designed for small business customers. The cards will be issued by U.S. Bank as part of the Mastercard network. Customers can choose between two options: the Prime Business Card, offering Prime members 5% back on Amazon purchases, or the Amazon Business Card, offering 3% back for customers without a Prime membership*. Both versions of the card offer more rewards when shopping off-Amazon, flexible credit terms, and no annual fees."
Alipay’s AI Pay Surpasses 100 Million Users
MSN
"Alipay’s AI Pay has surpassed 100 million users as of 23 February, according to an announcement by Ant Group. AI Pay earlier surpassed 120 million transactions between February 5-11, 2026. Launched in 2025, AI Pay transactions through AI agents. Consumers can pay via voice command, eliminating the need to switch between pages."
Stablecoins: Reimagining Money Movement for a Digital Economy
Visa
"According to the Visa Onchain Analytics Dashboard, the data suggests an increase in retail-sized stablecoin transfers and purchases (transactions below $250), occurring at a frequency similar to everyday consumer spending.¹ Retail‑sized volumes for stablecoins USDC, USDT and PYUSD* climbed from about $0.5 billion in 2019 to $69.8 billion in 2025, roughly matching the size of the Uganda economy. However, this still represents a small portion of global payments; for instance, stablecoins account for around 0.1 percent of U.S. cashless payments. Over the same period, retail‑sized transaction counts jumped from around 4.7 million to about 1.3 billion. In 2025, retail-sized volume makes up only about 0.6 percent of total adjusted stablecoin volume, but retail-sized transactions account for 57 percent of total transaction count."
SWIFT Blockchain Pivot Puts XRP Back in Cross-Border Spotlight
Yahoo Finance
"SWIFT is building blockchain-based cross-border payment infrastructure with more than 40 global banks targeting a live scheme by mid-2026, and the plumbing it is laying quietly positions XRP crypto as an optional liquidity rail inside that network. The mechanism is not a partnership announcement or a headline integration, it runs through Thunes, a payments company now embedded in SWIFT’s network, whose connections reach Ripple’s payment products and, by extension, XRP’s on-demand liquidity functions."