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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June 20, 2025
Top Post
United States: Plan For Remittance Tax Sparks Global Concerns
Global Finance Magazine
"A proposed 3.5% remittance tax on money sent from the US to noncitizens abroad has sent shockwaves through countries that rely on international transfers."
On the web
Disney Plans Virtual ‘Concession Stand,’ ‘Storefronts’ for Disney+, Hulu, ESPN Streamers
Variety
"Choosing a Marvel, Star Wars or FX program when surfing Hulu or Disney+? Pretty easy. Adding shopping into the mix? Not always so. Disney hopes to meld streaming and selecting by adding new virtual “storefronts” to its popular broadband venues that will allow viewers to order snacks or pick out products they’ve seen in their favorite shows, all while continuing to keep their binge on."
Samsung Rolls Out NFC P2P Payments in the US
NFCW
"Samsung Galaxy owners in the US can now transfer funds directly to a contact’s bank account by just tapping their two phones together — or by simply bringing the recipient’s contactless bank card into close proximity. “Samsung Wallet’s new feature, Tap to Transfer, enables you to send money to your friend’s or family member’s bank account associated with their debit card — even if they use Apple Wallet or Google Wallet. Just tap phones and they’ll be sent the funds within minutes.”
FTC Fines Payment-Processor Paddle $5 Million for Alleged Support of Schemes
Insurance Journal
"Paddle.com Market, a U.K.-based payment processor, and its subsidiary, Paddle.com, Inc., will pay $5 million and be permanently banned from processing payments for tech-support telemarketers, said the Federal Trade Commission this week. The FTC alleged that Paddle abused the U.S. credit-card system and enabled deceptive foreign operators to access it, costing consumers millions of dollars."
Worldline Reveals Eight Critical Payment Trends Shaping the Future of Mobility
Worldline
"Worldline has published a mobility payments white paper outlining the most significant trends that underpin how agile payment solutions can deliver smarter, more sustainable experiences."
dLocal Secures Key Payment Licenses in UAE, Turkey, and Philippines, Accelerating Global Expansion and Regulatory Leadership
dLocal
"dLocal, the cross-border payment platform specializing in emerging markets, announced the obtaining of three pivotal licenses and authorizations. These strategic approvals from regulatory bodies in the United Arab Emirates, Turkey, and the Philippines ignite a new chapter in dLocal's global expansion, reaffirming our steadfast commitment to navigating and upholding the highest standards of regulatory compliance in diverse markets worldwide."
Ant International Empowers Partners to Serve Over 15 Million Customers Globally with Intelligent Credit Tech Solutions
Ant International
"Through its credit tech solutions, Ant International has enabled financial institutions and fintech companies to extend credit access to over 15 million customers, including micro, small, and medium-sized enterprises (MSMEs) in emerging markets. The Ant Credit Engine, one of the core innovative offerings developed by Ant International, is an intelligent and automated credit engine."
June 19, 2025
Top Post
Standard Bank First in Africa to Offer Access to China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System
TechAfrica News
"In a first for the continent, Standard Bank Corporate and Investment Banking is the first authorised bank to offer transactions through China’s Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS). The payment system will allow for interbank payments between Africa and China using Chinese Renminbi (RMB) as the underpinning currency."
On the web
Visa Expands Stablecoin Initiatives in CEMEA
Visa
"Visa announced significant advancements in its stablecoin initiatives, with expanded settlement capabilities in the Central and Eastern Europe, Middle East, and Africa (CEMEA) region and a strategic partnership with Yellow Card, a leading pan-African fintech."
Matera Partners with Circle to Integrate USDC into Real-Time Banking
MSN
"Matera has announced an innovative partnership with Circle to accelerate the adoption of USDC, a dollar-backed stablecoin, within real-time banking systems. This landmark collaboration represents the first native integration of a real-time banking infrastructure in the region with a fully-reserved, transparent stablecoin."
Tipalti Acquires AI-Native Treasury Automation Provider, Statement
Tipalti
"Tipalti announced the acquisition of Statement, an AI-native treasury automation solution. With this addition, Tipalti deepens its treasury offerings with real-time cash intelligence capabilities. Tipalti accelerates its market leadership by providing a suite of automation solutions in one platform across accounts payable, global payouts, procurement, employee expenses, corporate cards, supplier management, tax compliance, and treasury."
BNPL Tracker: 41% of Users Late in Past Year, More Using Loans for Groceries
LendingTree
"More than 4 in 10 (41%) users of buy now, pay later (BNPL) loans say they paid late on one of them in the past year, up from 34% just a year ago, according to a LendingTree survey. Along with increased late payments, we found a significant number of borrowers who take on these loans use them to buy groceries or takeout and believe that successfully managing one will boost their credit score."
On the wires
Coinbase Launches Stablecoin Payments Service for E-Commerce
Bloomberg
"Coinbase Global Inc. is launching a platform designed to make stablecoins a go-to payment method for online transactions, a potentially big leap forward in the mainstream adoption of cryptocurrencies meant to track the US dollar. The announcement follows the passage of landmark stablecoin legislation in the US Senate on Tuesday and comes as large retailers have expressed interest in exploring stablecoins for use as payments in online transactions, a roughly $6 trillion industry."
Fintech Klarna to Launch $40 per Month Mobile Plan in US
Reuters
"Swedish fintech Klarna on Wednesday said it would launch an unlimited mobile plan in the U.S., joining other finance companies moving into the telecoms business, including British rival Revolut. A number of fintechs, including Germany's N26 and Brazil's Nubank, have started offering mobile services in various countries as they seek to diversify their revenues."
Alipay+ Launches World’s First Smart Glasses-Embedded Payment Solution
Business Wire
"Alipay+ enables the world’s first successful e-wallet payment transaction on Meizu StarV Snap smart glasses via AlipayHK. The new feature expands use case scenarios for the AR glasses industry leader and creates new growth avenues for e-wallets and merchants. This adds to Alipay+’s payment innovation power suite, including Model Context Protocol (MCP)-powered AI payments and NFC-based integration of QR and card payments, among others."
June 18, 2025
Top Post
Zelle Owner Taps Fiserv to Jump-Start Mobile Wallet
American Banker
"Early Warnings Services wants a quick route to expand its Apple Pay rival Paze digital wallet by turning to the financial technology industry's massive distribution networks. Early Warning, which operates the popular Zelle transfer app and the newer Paze digital wallet, said that it is partnering with bank technology company Fiserv to expand Paze wallet beyond the immediate distribution channels provided by its seven owner banks. [Subscription Required]"
Senate Passes Cryptocurrency Bill, Handing Industry a Victory
The New York Times
"The Senate on Tuesday passed legislation to establish a regulatory framework for stablecoins, putting the cryptocurrency industry, which had long been viewed with suspicion by lawmakers in Washington, on the brink of a major policy breakthrough. Bipartisan approval of the bill, known as the GENIUS Act, followed an aggressive lobbying campaign aimed at transforming the cryptocurrency industry’s image from scandal-plagued experiment to legitimate financial sector. [Subscription Required]"
On the web
CIPS Signs Direct Participant Agreements With Six Foreign Institutions, Facilitating Use of Yuan in Cross-Border Transactions
Global Times
"China's Cross-Border Interbank Payment System (CIPS) signed direct participant agreements with six foreign institutions in Shanghai, marking the first time that the system's overseas foreign direct participant coverage extends to offshore yuan centers in Africa, the Middle East, Central Asia, and Singapore, which will facilitate the use of the yuan in cross-border transactions, China Media Group reported."
Real-Time Payments Are Testing the Limits of Compliance
The CFO
"Rocio Suarez, Director of Financial Crime Compliance at LexisNexis Risk Solutions, advises financial institutions across Europe on how to stay aligned with anti-money laundering rules, counter-terrorist financing policies, and customer due diligence standards. Speaking with The CFO at the sidelines Money20/20 Europe in Amsterdam, Suarez was clear on one thing. The acceleration of payments infrastructure, particularly in Europe, is placing compliance teams under strain."
NFC Release 15: The What, Why and How
NFC-Forum
"The latest version of NFC Forum specifications – NFC Release 15 – extends the operating volume of NFC Forum-compliant devices to 2 cm. We spoke with Preeti Ohri Khemani, NFC Forum Chair, on what this means, why it matters and how it will impact the industry."
A Hong Kong First: Airwallex Yield Fully Launches to Empower Businesses with Competitive, Highly Liquid Returns
Airwallex
"Airwallex, a leading global financial platform for modern businesses, announced the highly anticipated full launch of Airwallex Yield in Hong Kong. As the first global payments group to receive a licence from the Securities and Futures Commission of Hong Kong (SFC) to provide asset management services, Airwallex is empowering businesses to earn competitive returns up to 3.97%1 on their multi-currency balances – with no minimum lock-up period required."
Central Bank of Kenya Extends Kenya Electronic Payment and Settlement System (KEPSS) Payment Hours to 7PM Starting July 1 to Support 24/7 Economy
Kenyans
"The Central Bank of Kenya (CBK) has announced a major change to the country’s banking operations as part of its broader strategy to modernise and strengthen Kenya’s financial infrastructure. Effective July 1, 2025, the Kenya Electronic Payment and Settlement System (KEPSS) working hours will be from 7am to 7pm on all business days. This is a considerable increase from the current 8:30am to 4:30pm schedule."
Indonesia’s Payments Evolution: The Rapid Rise of Dynamic QR Codes for Payments, What Next?
Stanchion
"Indonesia is a fascinating market with huge retail payments opportunities. Its population of circa 285 million makes it globally the fourth largest country, whilst Jakarta is approaching 12 million people making it the 28th most populous city. An interesting fact is that the country has the largest Muslim population in the world with 87% of her people identifying with the faith. Indonesia is also the largest economy of all the South-East Asian markets."
Gr4vy to Enhance Payment Flexibility for Grammarly
GR4VY
"Gr4vy , the cloud-based payment orchestration platform, announced that Grammarly has chosen the company’s no-code cloud system to create bespoke checkout experiences for its millions of users. Grammarly needed a solution that would allow it to optimize its payment performance by integrating multiple payment service providers (PSPs) without the complexity of direct integrations—an effort that would otherwise require extensive development resources and ongoing maintenance."
On the wires
China Talks up Digital Yuan in Push for Multi-Polar Currency System
Reuters
"The head of China's central bank pledged to expand the international use of the digital yuan and called for the development of a multi-polar global currency system, where several currencies dominate the world economy. China will establish an international operation centre for e-CNY in Shanghai, People's Bank of China Governor Pan Gongsheng said on Wednesday at the Lujiazui Forum, a high-profile gathering of local and foreign financial industry executives and regulators."
Cardless Unveils Embedded Credit Card Platform, with Coinbase as First Partner
Business Wire
"Cardless announced the launch of its embedded credit card platform, a breakthrough solution designed to help brands build their own credit card programs. Coinbase, the largest U.S.-based cryptocurrency platform, is the inaugural partner utilizing this infrastructure to build the Coinbase One Card, a premium consumer credit offering for Coinbase loyalty members integrated directly into the Coinbase digital experience."
June 17, 2025
Top Post
One Month to Go! Have You Finalized Your ISO® 20022 Preparedness and Contingency Plans?
FRB Services
"In less than one month, Federal Reserve Financial Services (FRFS) will transition to the ISO 20022 format for the Fedwire® Funds Service on July 14, 2025. As part of your overall readiness preparations for the upcoming migration, we highly recommend that you finalize your preparedness and contingency plans as soon as possible. It is critical that you have a contingency plan in the event that you are not ready to send or receive ISO 20022 messages through the Fedwire Funds Service or your wire ecosystem is not ready for ISO 20022 messages beginning July 14."
On the web
A Retail CBDC Design for Basic Payments: Feasibility Study
Bank of Canada
"We frame the wide spectrum of possible system architectures for an online retail central bank digital currency (CBDC) and identify a promising architecture well-suited for basic payments. We select OpenCBDC 2PC, a representative system design that fits this architecture and analyze it using a range of criteria to assess the feasibility of such system designs."
On the wires
eTip Collaborates with Visa to Deliver Rapid, Secure Digital Tip and Wage Payments to Digital Wallets
PR Newswire
"eTip, the award-winning benefits platform specializing in digital tipping for hospitality and service industries, today announced a new collaboration with Visa to help deliver funds directly to participating digital wallets in real-time. Now, service industry professionals—from hotel staff to restaurant workers—can quickly send funds to their participating financial apps such as Venmo and PayPal without waiting multiple business days to access their earnings."
VGS, The World’s Leader in Payment Tokenization, Celebrates A Decade of Payments Innovation and 5 Billion Tokens Stored
Business Wire
VGS, the world's leader in payment tokenization and a trusted credential management platform for global businesses, celebrates the 10-year anniversary of its founding. In addition to celebrating 10 years of payment innovation, VGS has proudly reached another significant milestone: surpassing 5 billion tokens stored.
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