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April 22, 2025
Top Post
Affirm Expands Credit Reporting with TransUnion to All Pay-Over-Time Products
Business Wire
"Affirm Holdings, Inc. is expanding the credit reporting of its pay-over-time products to TransUnion, the companies jointly announced. All Affirm pay-over-time loans issued from May 1, 2025 onward, including Pay in 4 and longer-term monthly installments, will be reported to TransUnion."
On the web
Mastercard: Start Path’s Emerging Fintech Program Welcomes 8 New Startups
Mastercard
"Eight startups join Start Path, Mastercard’s award-winning startup engagement program: LetMePark, UbiRider, Asistobe, it’s electric, Krowd, Bluespine, ipaymy and Dataiera. As the newest additions to Start Path’s global portfolio — which is comprised of more than 450 startups from over 60 countries — these companies will participate in a dedicated Emerging Fintech program focused on supporting innovation in high-growth sectors of payment technology."
April 21, 2025
On the web
Samsung Wallet’s ‘Installment Payments’ and Money Sending Features Surface
9 to 5 Google
"While Samsung Wallet has remained steady in feature releases over the past couple of years, two new features in the pipeline are likely to change how users interact with the app on a daily basis. Those Samsung Wallet features include a new installment payment function and a money-sending tool. Both get an early look in a recent Samsung Wallet leak of the beta release."
Discover Financial Services Hit With $250 Million Penalty
Investing
"Discover Financial Services, a $40.16 billion financial services giant with a "GREAT" financial health score according to InvestingPro, and its affiliates have been ordered to pay $250 million in civil money penalties, as announced in a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing. The orders, dated April 16, 2025, for Discover Bank, and April 18, 2025, for Discover Financial Services and DFS Services LLC, resolve investigations by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System into a card product misclassification issue previously disclosed by the company."
Amazon Is Trialling a Major New Feature That Could ‘Revolutionise Shopping’
MSN
"Although you can get your hands on almost everything at Amazon, a new feature could see the retailer broadening its horizons even further. Currently being trialled in the US, the ‘buy for me’ button allows customers to browse and purchase items from across the internet – even those Amazon doesn’t sell. When searching for certain products, shoppers will be shown listings from other sites, with the option to buy the latter directly through Amazon."
April 18, 2025
Top Post
Federal Reserve Board Announces Approval of Application by Capital One Financial Corporation To Merge With Discover Financial Services and Issues a Consent Order With Discover
Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System
"The Federal Reserve Board announced its approval of the application by Capital One Financial Corporation, of McLean, Virginia, to merge with Discover Financial Services, of Riverwoods, Illinois, and thereby indirectly acquire Discover Bank, of Greenwood, Delaware."
On the web
AI in Commercial Banking: Transforming Payment Processing and Beyond
BAI
"Commercial banks have long struggled to balance cost optimization with revenue growth, a challenge particularly evident in payment routing. Generative artificial intelligence (gen AI) and agentic AI present a paradigm shift in how banks can approach payment routing and related processes. Gen AI excels at analyzing historical data from vast amounts of structured and unstructured sources (like audio, images, text) and predicting optimal routes for payments."
Gen Z: A New Economic Force
Bank of America Institute
"Despite strong wage growth, high cost of living is weighing on Gen Z, prompting them to spend twice as much as they are saving. Spending growth on necessary and discretionary items among Gen Z has been faster than the overall population, according to Bank of America credit and debit card data. While their bank deposit balances provide a buffer, Gen Z spending was nearly twice as much as they had in savings, possibly as the high cost of living exerts financial pressure."
Adyen Bets on AI and New Pix Features To Increase Online Sales
Finsiders Brasil
"Adyen is closely monitoring the evolution of Pix. The fintech already offers the modality via Open Finance, through the Journey Without Redirection ( JSR ), which debuted at the end of February and it is ready to work with some of its clients in the Automatic Pix pilot, starting on April 28th. In the view of company executives, the new functionality has the potential to include Brazilians who do not have a credit card, as well as reduce costs for businesses in the recurring model."
April 17, 2025
Top Post
Global Payments Announces Agreements to Acquire Worldpay and Divest Issuer Solutions
Business Wire
Global Payments Inc. announced definitive agreements to divest its Issuer Solutions business to FIS and acquire Worldpay. On a combined basis, the company will have extensive global reach and scale, serving more than 6 million customers and enabling approximately 94 billion transactions and $3.7 trillion in volume across more than 175 countries.
On the web
It’s Time To Transform Exceptions and Investigations
Swift
"The industry has a lot to gain from transforming the way it processes exceptions and investigations. Through in-depth research with our community, we’ve quantified this huge opportunity and demonstrated how our enhanced Case Management solution can help achieve it."
Walmart’s Sam’s Club Drops Self-Checkout, Adds New Anti-Theft Tech
The Street
"Sam's Club is now gearing up to transform its entire checkout process. After a successful test run in its Texas headquarters, the wholesale grocer will begin to eliminate both cashier-run checkouts and self-checkout kiosks. Sam's Club is going to begin using its new Scan & Go system, which prompts members to scan products using their mobile app and pay for their goods directly there."
Leveraging Tokenisation for Payments and Financial Transactions
bis
"This report by the Consultative Group on Innovation and the Digital Economy (CGIDE) discusses theoretical and real-world use cases of tokenisation, which include initiatives run by the Central Bank of Brazil and the Central Bank of Colombia, and private sector-led initiatives discussed within the CGIDE during 2023-24. In addition to use cases and progress to date, the report also explores some preconditions and other considerations for tokenisation."
Visa Installments Visa Breaks Into BNPL... But is it Good for Business?
Chargebacks911
"Visa has officially thrown its hat into the ring to keep pace with rival brands in the BNPL landscape. This article will discuss the merits of the Visa Installments platform, from its basic functions to its potential upsides and pitfalls."
America’s Credit Divide Widens: Affluent Borrowers Rise While Millions Fall Behind
IBS Intelligence
"American consumers are splitting into two financial realities. On one side, a segment of affluent borrowers is securing larger mortgages and rising credit card limits. On the other hand, millions are falling behind, struggling with minimum payments, rising delinquencies, and stagnant credit access. New data from the Federal Reserve Bank of Philadelphia reveals that credit card delinquency rates have surged to record highs."
JP Morgan Launches Blockchain-Based Kinexys Digital Payments in GBP/UK
Ledger Insights
"JP Morgan has launched its blockchain-based bank account service, Kinexys Digital Payments (formerly JPM Coin), in a third currency, GBP. As a result, it can now provide 24/7 support for corporate payments and foreign exchange for dollars, euros, and pounds. The first clients to use the sterling services in London are LSEG’s SwapAgent and commodities trader Trafigura."
Barclays and Brookfield Enter Into Strategic Partnership To Transform the Bank’s Payment Acceptance Business
Barclays
"Barclays and Brookfield Asset Management Ltd., through its Financial Infrastructure strategy, announced a long-term strategic partnership to grow and transform Barclays’ payment acceptance business, previously referred to as its merchant acquiring business. Barclays and Brookfield will work to create a standalone entity over time."
Forget Your Smartphone or Smartwatch? Alipay’s PL1 Lets You Pay Using Your Palm Print
TechEBlog
"Forget your smartphone or smartwatch and need to make a contactless payment? Well, there’s Alipay’s PL1, which lets you pay using your palm print. This device comes from Ant Group, an affiliate of Alibaba, and is part of Alipay’s push to expand biometric payment options beyond QR codes and facial recognition."
MoneyGram and Plaid Partnership Drives Seamless Global Payments
PR Newswire
"MoneyGram announced a new partnership with Plaid, the data network powering the fintech tools millions of people rely on to lead a healthier financial life. MoneyGram customers in the United States can now use Plaid's technology to help authenticate their bank accounts, enabling fast and secure funding for both domestic and cross-border payments."
April 16, 2025
Top Post
FedNow® Service Continues Momentum in Q1 2025
Fed Now
"The FedNow Service saw continued strong growth in volume, transaction value and number of participants during Q1 2025. More than 1,300 participating financial institutions are live on the service today. Small and midsize financial institutions, including community banks and credit unions, make up more than 95% of participants on the network. Over the three-month period, more than 1.3 million transactions were settled on the FedNow Service. Consumers and businesses sent an average of $540 million through the service per day."
Visa's New Dispute Fee Changes
Chargeback Gurus
"On April 1, 2025, Visa made changes to dispute-related fees in the U.S. and Canada. While the fees are officially levied on acquirers, most acquirers pass on these costs to merchants. Understanding how these fees work — and how delays in responding to chargebacks can translate directly into increased expense — is critical for businesses trying to protect their margins."
On the web
Cash App Statistics And Facts (2025)
Electro IQ
"Block, Inc. (formerly Square) had developed Cash App, which quickly established itself as a main player in the digital finance sphere. Operational since 2013, the app has diversified into investing, Bitcoin transactions, and banking features in addition to P2P payments. The momentum maintained by Cash App during the year 2024 sees further measurable growth in its user base, revenues, and financial services."
Ant International’s WorldFirst Launches World Card to Simplify Payment for Global Commerce
Business Wire
"Ant International’s WorldFirst—an all-in-one digital cross-border payment and treasury account service for global businesses—has launched World Card, a Mastercard-enabled virtual card solution designed to help SMEs grow by simplifying global transactions and lowering operational costs."
Stripe Brings WeChat Pay to Businesses in 20 Countries
Tech in Asia
"Stripe has partnered with Tencent to integrate WeChat Pay into its Stripe Terminal service across 20 countries. This expansion includes markets such as Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Singapore, the UK, and the US. With this integration, businesses using Stripe can accept WeChat Pay for online and in-person transactions."
EBay Announces Global Payment Acquiring Partnership With Checkout.com
Checkout
"eBay announced its strategic partnership with Checkout.com, a leading global digital payments platform. Through this partnership, eBay expands its global payment platform to deliver seamless commerce experiences for its customers."
April 15, 2025
On the web
Stay On Track for the July 14 Fedwire® Funds Service Migration to ISO® 20022
Federal Reserve
"As the Fedwire Funds Service’s migration to ISO 20022 has been rescheduled to July 14, 2025, Federal Reserve Financial Services highly recommends that financial institutions use the next few months to enhance their readiness plans, test in the DIT2 environment and participate in peer testing to ensure they are ready for the transition."
PhonePe Rolls Out UPI Circle Feature for Secure Payments with Trusted Contacts
Startup News
"PhonePe has introduced a new feature called UPI Circle, allowing users to manage payments for family members and trusted contacts directly through its app. This feature enables a primary user to generate a UPI ID without linking a bank account, offering a digital payment solution to those with limited access to banking services."
CPI Card Group Adds Options for Loading Card Credentials to a Digital Wallet
CPI Card Group
"CPI Card Group Inc. has added Web Push Provisioning (WPP), giving card issuers more options to connect payment cards with cardholders’ digital wallets. Card issuers can now issue payment credentials to a cardholder’s digital wallet through a simple push of a button on their website."
Klarna Scales In-Store Offering With Clover, Expanding to Stores, Salons and Service Providers
Fiserv, Inc.
"Klarna has signed an agreement with Clover, the world’s smartest point-of-sale system, to auto-enable Klarna’s flexible payment options into shops and service businesses across the United States, with initial plans to enable over 100,000 merchant locations. With this strategic partnership, shoppers will be able to choose Klarna for payments on Clover devices for in-store purchases."
On the wires
FlexFactor and Spreedly Partner to Transform Payment Declines into Revenue Recovery
PR Newswire
"Spreedly and FlexFactor, the leading payment recovery platform, announced their strategic partnership designed to help merchants recover lost sales. With over $500 billion in sales lost each year due to false declines, this new collaboration aims to empower merchants to turn declines into revenue, enhancing shopping cart conversions and driving growth for the global merchant."
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