Finish 2025 strong with new or renewed expertise with an On-Demand Learning module or course!
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.
Search Payments News
December 12, 2025
On the web
Mobile & Digital Wallets: Updated U.S. Landscape and Strategic Guidance (2025 Edition)
U.S. Payments Forum
"The U.S. Payments Forum developed a white paper to provide clear, timely guidance for stakeholders navigating today’s rapidly evolving mobile and digital wallet landscape. The paper outlines the dominant wallet models in use today—including device wallets, EMV® Secure Remote Commerce (Click to Pay), platform and PSP server wallets, QR code wallets, and emerging crypto/Web3 wallets—and explains the technologies that enable them. Topics include interaction methods, credential storage, tokenization, cloud-based architectures, passkeys and biometrics, and the growing role of mobile identity credentials such as mDLs."
Alipay and Rokid Open Up ‘Look-And-Pay’ Smart Glasses Function to Developers
South China Morning Post
"Alipay and artificial intelligence glasses maker Rokid have jointly unveiled a smart glasses payment solution on the Rokid Lingzhu AI development platform, giving developers an easy path to build payment functions into their applications.Based on the Model Context Protocol (MCP), an open-source standard that connects AI applications to external systems, the service allowed developers to easily integrate pre-built capabilities, such as receiving payments, by adding plug-ins."
OCC Approves Paxos Application to Convert to OCC Trust; Paxos to Complete Conversion Imminently to Become a Federally Regulated Blockchain Infrastructure Provider
Paxos
"Paxos, the leading blockchain infrastructure platform for innovative institutions and enterprises, announced it has received approval to convert its New York Department of Financial Services (NYDFS) limited purpose trust charter to a national trust charter overseen by the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (OCC). Upon conversion, all of Paxos Trust Company’s US-based activity will be subject to OCC supervision."
Bidding Farewell to the Penny – Square Enables Cash Rounding in the U.S.
Square
"To help sellers get ahead of the transition away from the penny, and ensure a smooth holiday shopping season, Square is now piloting cash rounding functionality with sellers in the U.S. This functionality is already offered in Australia and Canada, which haven’t had pennies in circulation since 1992 and 2013, respectively. Cash transactions will be automatically rounded to the nearest 5¢. Square enables back-end transaction reporting to assist sellers with reporting the total dollar amount of tax collected."
Mastercard Unveils Open Finance Business Solutions in Australia to Power Small Business Growth Through Secure Real-Time Data Sharing
Mastercard
"Mastercard announced the launch of Open Finance Business Solutions, a suite of tools that helps small and medium-sized enterprises harness real-time financial data to work smarter, save time and drive sustainable growth. The launch comes as Australia sharpens its focus on productivity and smarter data sharing, with the Productivity Commission estimating that a mature data-sharing regime could unlock up to $10 billion in annual gains."
December 11, 2025
On the web
Apple Wins Ability to Charge Fees on External Payment Links as Appeals Court Modifies Epic Injunction
MacRumors
"Apple should be able to collect a reasonable commission on purchases made using external links included in iOS apps, the U.S. Court of Appeals ruled (via Reuters). The U.S. Court of Appeals partially reversed sanctions imposed on Apple after Apple was found to have willfully violated an injunction in the ongoing Epic Games vs. Apple legal battle."
Kinexys by J.P. Morgan Enables FX Programmable Payments
Market Media
"BMW Group has set a new benchmark in treasury management automation, becoming the first corporate to execute a fully pre-programmed FX transaction using Programmable Payments on Kinexys Digital Payments. BMW Group’s German and U.S. treasury teams pre-defined conditions through Programmable Payments that when met, enabled an automated, end-to-end FX transaction from EUR to USD*, which seamlessly transferred funds between Frankfurt and New York. The process was completed outside traditional settlement windows and without manual intervention."
Ant International and HSBC Test New Cross-Border Payments Solution Using Tokenised Deposits on Swift’s Network and Powered by ISO 20022
Yahoo Finance-Business Wire
"Ant International, HSBC and Swift have completed a successful Proof of Concept (POC) for the cross-border transfer of tokenised deposits using ISO 20022 standards. The initiative leverages Swift’s global messaging network and HSBC’s recently launched Tokenised Deposit Service, combined with Ant International’s blockchain technology."
Mollie to Acquire Gocardless, Creating Europe’s Most Complete Payment Platform
GoCardless
"Mollie, one of Europe's fastest-growing financial service providers, has signed an agreement to acquire GoCardless. The strategic combination creates one provider serving over 350,000 businesses that integrates card payments, local methods, and bank payments into a single solution. By combining forces, Mollie and GoCardless will give businesses access to a suite of tools from a single partner, designed to solve these problems and fuel growth."
Global Payments: 2026 Commerce and Payment Trends Report
GLlobal Payments
"The Global Payments 2026 Commerce and Payment Trends Report is about the next era of connected commerce. This report focuses on six key trends reshaping the future of commerce. From the rise of agentic commerce, where AI-powered systems anticipate and act on customer intent, to the evolution of point-of-sale (POS) technologies that extend beyond the countertop, and the expansion of embedded payments that make every interaction frictionless—these shifts are defining the next competitive edge."
Stripe Expands Crypto Push by Acquiring Valora Team to Boost Stablecoin Payments
TokenPost
"Stripe is accelerating its move into blockchain technology with the acquisition of the team behind Valora, a mobile-first crypto payments app built on the Celo network. Valora founder Jackie Bona announced the news in a Wednesday blog post, explaining that the partnership will help expand access to stablecoins and strengthen global payment infrastructure. According to Bona, joining Stripe became an obvious path forward as both companies share a mission to increase economic accessibility through crypto-powered financial tools."
Zilch Bags Payments Licence
Tech EU
"Zilch, the UK BNPL fintech, has received a licence which it says will remove its reliance on third parties and allow it to build more payment methods in-house. Zilch, which is backed by Goldman Sachs and eBay, also said it had strengthened its ties with Visa, which earlier this year replaced Mastercard as Zilch’s card network partner. The UK fintech has received a payments services licence from the UK's main financial regulator, the FCA."
Payments Leaders Unprepared for 2026 Disruption, Warns ACI Worldwide
ACI Worldwide
"Most global payments leaders lack a clear roadmap to navigate the seismic changes coming in 2026 , according to the latest Top Ten Payments Predictions from ACI Worldwide. With AI-driven intelligence, next-gen authentication, new regulatory frameworks, and soaring demand for instant, embedded, and secure payments, the industry is entering an era of structural disruption. However, ACI’s recent report Payments in Transition: Leadership in an era of transformation reveals that only 36% of payments executives have a clear long-term modernization roadmap, leaving many without a strategic vision for transformation."
December 10, 2025
Top Post
Agentic Payments: The Next Evolution in the Payments Value Chain
Amazon Web Services
"The payments industry stands at a transformative inflection point. Traditional payment systems built on rigid rules, manual processes, and legacy infrastructure find it difficult to navigate the evolving landscape of modern commerce. Agentic payments leverage AI to create autonomous, intelligent payment systems capable of learning, adapting, and deciding in real-time across the entire cards and payments value chain. This blog post explores: Key use-cases for agentic payments, focusing on common challenges where intelligent agents outperform traditional rule-based systems and manual decision processes and more."
On the web
U.S. Faster Payments Council Study Highlights Instant Payment Adoption Drivers and Opportunities
FedPayments Improvement
"A study of U.S.-based third-party enablers to financial institutions signals that instant payments are continuing to reach new heights due to interest in a widening and diversifying set of use cases for these types of transactions, according to the U.S. Instant Payments Adoption Quantitative Study published by the U.S. Faster Payments Council (FPC). In addition, the study shows that instant payment growth is being shaped by a combination of perceived benefits, access to the correct technology and emerging standards."
Stripe Charges 1.5% for Stablecoin Transfers That Cost $0.0002 On-Chain
Crypto News
"Stripe launched stablecoin payment processing with a 1.5% fee for USDC transfers that cost fractions of a cent on-chain, sparking debate over pricing that critics call excessive and defenders justify as infrastructure abstraction."
Subscriptions are Reshaping the Ecommerce Landscape. Recurly Deepens Shopify Partnership to Lead the Shift.
Yahoo Finance
"Recurly, the subscription growth platform, announced an expanded investment in the Shopify ecosystem as ecommerce brands increasingly shift toward recurring revenue models. Recurly Commerce is built for this shift, giving merchants a flexible, enterprise-ready subscription engine that supports advanced use cases across replenishment, memberships, mixed-cart subscriptions, prepaid programs, and digital and physical goods."
NMI Launches Business Capital Offering Fast, Pre-Approved Merchant Financing to Help Businesses Accelerate Growth
NMI
"NMI announces NMI Business Capital, a new embedded lending solution that gives software companies, ISOs, payment facilitators and merchant service providers the ability to offer fast, pre-approved financing directly within their existing merchant portals. For partners, it’s an easy way to help merchants access the funding they need, earn extra revenue and avoid any lending risk or additional workload. For merchants, it means faster, simpler access to working capital to manage cash flow, buy inventory or invest in growth."
PNC First Major Bank to Launch Direct Bitcoin Access for Clients, Powered by Coinbase's Crypto-as-a-Service Infrastructure
PNC Financial Services Group
"PNC Bank announced the launch of direct spot bitcoin trading capabilities for eligible clients of PNC Private Bank®, making PNC the first to market with such an offering among the major U.S. banks. Powered by Coinbase's Crypto-as-a-Service ("CaaS") market leading infrastructure, PNC has enabled clients to buy, hold and sell bitcoin directly through PNC's own digital banking platform. The launch marks a key milestone in PNC's strategic partnership with Coinbase."
Stripe-Backed Blockchain Tempo Starts Testnet; Kalshi, Mastercard, UBS Added as Partners
CoinDesk
"Tempo, a payments-focused blockchain backed by Stripe and crypto investment firm Paradigm, has launched its public testnet, a key step in its effort in making stablecoin payments for mainstream use. Tempo has also unveiled a roster of new additions to the network’s partner group, including buy-now-pay-later firm Klarna, predictions market Kalshi, payments giant Mastercard and Swiss global bank UBS. They join a group of earlier design partners such as Deutsche Bank, Visa, Shopify, OpenAI and Nubank."
December 9, 2025
Top Post
Holiday Gifting Going Digital: Wells Fargo Study Reveals Growing Trend
Wells Fargo
"A new Wells Fargo survey released finds younger generations are driving a major shift toward digital cash gifts and holiday tips — favoring convenience and choice over traditional wrapped presents. Insights from the consumer survey look into the ways people give holiday gifts to family and friends, and holiday tips to service workers. The findings highlight gift giving and receiving preference. The study also reveals the median gift/tip to service workers is $50. Key insights from the survey..."
On the web
Amazon Is Rolling Out New Shopping Features for Alexa+, Because of Course It Is
Engadget
"Amazon is rolling out a new price tracking feature. Tell it the product you want and how much you’re willing to pay for it. As soon as the item goes on sale for below that price, Alexa+ will automatically order it for you using your default payment method and delivery address. Another feature that Alexa+ users can start trying is a Shopping Essentials tool on Echo Show 15 and 21. You'll be able to see real-time tracking for your orders, your recent orders, household essentials that it may be time to reorder, saved items and your shopping list."
BofA Launches Enhanced Workplace Benefits Solutions for Business Owners and Their Employees
Bank of America
"Bank of America is launching an enhanced digital platform for business owners and their employees, offering greater access to a suite of retirement plans – including 401(k), IRA and more – as well as health benefit solutions and financial wellness resources. Through Bank of America Workplace Benefits, business owners can now explore affordable, easy-to-manage plans and access tools that help enable them to identify the best plan for their businesses and their employees."
Fifth Third and Brex Partner to Bring AI-Powered Finance to Businesses, Unlocking $5.6B in Commercial Card Volume
Business Wire
"Fifth Third Bank and Brex, the intelligent finance platform, nnounced a multi-year partnership that unlocks $5.6 billion in annual commercial card payment volume. Built on Brex Embedded, Brex’s proprietary API-driven payments infrastructure, the Fifth Third Commercial Card powered by Brex will become the default commercial card solution for Fifth Third Bank’s Commercial Banking clients."
On the wires
Aspire Launches Fast, Low-Cost International Payments in Hong Kong, Expanding Partnership With Wise Platform
PR Newswire
"Aspire, the all-in-one finance platform for modern businesses, is taking its mission to build a truly connected financial ecosystem further with the launch of fast, low-cost international payments in Hong Kong. Powered by Wise Platform, Wise's global payment infrastructure for banks and enterprises, the new integration enables customers to send money in more than 40 currencies, including to countries like Singapore, the United States, Australia, Japan and Korea — directly from the Aspire platform."
December 8, 2025
On the web
TenPay Global and Mastercard Collaborate to Enable Fast and Secure Remittances to Weixin Pay
Mastercard
"TenPay Global, Tencent’s cross-border payment platform, and Mastercard Move, Mastercard’s money movement business, have announced a collaboration to facilitate fast, secure and transparent digital remittances directly to Weixin Pay, a leading mobile payment service within the Weixin ecosystem in China. Through Mastercard Move, eligible senders around the world will be able to send salaries and family support directly to Weixin Pay Wallet Balance or linked bank cards in Weixin Pay."
Big Firms Bet on Agentic Artificial Intelligence (AI) in Payments
Atlanta Fed
"Agentic AI has the potential to reshape the payments landscape. It refers to autonomous systems that can work together toward a goal. They learn to make decisions that spark actions and adapt to situations based on their programming and data gathering. So, is this technology a significant improvement for the US payment system, or is it accelerating an already complex system of payments innovation?"
Socure Acquires Qlarifi, Establishing the First Real-Time BNPL Credit System
Business Wire
"Socure announced it has acquired Qlarifi, the first real-time Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) consumer credit database. The combination establishes the industry’s first unified identity, anti-fraud, and BNPL credit infrastructure. This enables consumers to build credit responsibly through BNPL repayment, reduces first party fraud losses for lenders and merchants by up to 70 percent, while providing the transparency regulators have been seeking as BNPL becomes one of the fastest growing forms of credit globally."
Worldline Announces the Contemplated Divestment of Its Payments Orchestration Platform PaymentIQ to Incore Invest
Worldline
"The disposal of PaymentIQ marks a further step in Worldline’s strategic refocus on core European payment activities. This transaction will simplify operations, optimise resource allocation, and enable increased management focus on core payment activities for merchants and financial institutions. Proceeds will strengthen the Group’s financial profile, enhance strategic flexibility in the medium term, and support redeployment of capital towards core activities."
December 5, 2025
On the web
IMF: Understanding Stablecoins
International Monetary Fund
"Stablecoins, a type of crypto asset, have seen significant growth and attention recently. This paper provides a comprehensive overview of stablecoins. It discusses market developments, use cases, potential benefits, associated risks, and the evolving international regulatory landscape. Stablecoin issuance has doubled over the past two years, driven by their use in crypto trades."
Take us with you
Payments on Fire is available on iTunes, Spotify, Google, Stitcher, Pocket Casts, and other podcast apps and services. Or just say “Alexa, play Payments on Fire podcast.”
