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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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August 25, 2026
On the web
What Is Meta Pay? A Complete Guide to Meta’s Payment Platform
Business
"Meta Pay is gaining momentum as a payment platform for companies that practice social selling via Meta’s platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, Messenger and WhatsApp. Businesses can also add a Meta Pay button to their e-commerce websites to provide another payment option to customers. In this guide, we’ll explain how Meta Pay works."
August 24, 2026
On the web
MoneyPass Group Becomes Independent ATM Services Company
ATM Marketplace
"MoneyPass Group recently began operating as an independent company, leaving a joint venture between Bridgeport Partners and Fiserv Inc. This company will offer ATM and cash management services. The group will combine the MoneyPass Network, ATM Management Services and Cash Intelligence businesses within the joint venture. It runs a network of 37,000 surcharge-free ATM locations, serving more than 160 million cardholders. BridgePort Partners will hold a 51% ownership stake in MoneyPass Group while Fiserv will hold a 49% stake."
Stablecoins Are Becoming Payment Infrastructure: How Visa, Banks, and Crypto Firms Are Rebuilding Global Payments
Big News Network
"Stablecoins have moved from trading tools into the operational backbone of global payments. In the first half of 2026, adjusted on-chain volumes reached $8.82 trillion, with June alone hitting a record $1.79 trillion, according to Visa's analytics. Market capitalization stabilized near $300-322 billion, dominated by USDT and USDC. Traditional networks and banks no longer treat these instruments as peripheral experiments. They are embedding them into settlement, treasury, and cross-border flows."
6 Ways to Future-Proof for FedNow’s Latest Update
RedCompass Labs
"Three years in, and the Federal Reserve has announced a set of additions to its instant payments service: payee name verification for FedNow, an industry-wide fraud forum, and enhanced ISO 20022 messaging. Around 1,800 financial institutions are now live, including seven of the 10 largest banks, reaching more than half of all US checking and savings accounts. Not a bad effort. Here are five of those announcements – plus one thing the Fed didn’t say – and what US banks can do about them."
August 21, 2026
Top Post
Walmart to Finally Start Accepting Apple Pay and Google Pay
TechCrunch
"Walmart said it will finally accept payments via both Apple Pay and Google Pay at its stores, including Walmart and Sam’s Club. The retail giant says that beginning August 24, it will begin adding Tap to Pay to its payment options at select Walmart stores and Sam’s Club locations. It expects the feature to reach all stores and clubs by the end of the year, and will then roll it out to all its fuel stations by the middle of 2027."
On the web
The Agent Wallet That Tencent Is Currently Testing Has Been Preempted by Amazon.
European Central Station
"On June 17, 2026, WeChat Pay publicly introduced the under-test "AI Exclusive Card". But news broke out today that Amazon has launched this product first. On August 19, Amazon AWS announced that Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Payments has officially reached general availability (GA). Previously, it only had preview features for some simple paid scenarios, but now it allows AI Agents to independently purchase paid APIs, MCP services, digital content and model inference capabilities under user authorization and budget constraints."
Citi, HSBC, Standard Chartered Adopt Ant International’s Forex AI Tool
Euronext
"Ant International launched an upgraded version of its artificial intelligence model, signing up major global banks as financial institutions accelerate the adoption of specialised AI to manage liquidity risks. The Singapore-based fintech giant rolled out its Falcon Time-Series Transformer Model 2.0 and has partnered with six large banks according to Kelvin Li, the firm's general manager of platform tech. The launch comes amid an accelerating global race among financial institutions to embed AI into their core operations."
Klarna Launches In-Store with Garage and Dynamite Across North America and the UK
Klarna
"Klarna is now available in-store at GARAGE and DYNAMITE locations across Canada, the United States and the United Kingdom. The expanded partnership brings the payment flexibility customers already enjoy online into more than 300 stores. Customers can now choose to pay in full or divide eligible purchases into interest-free installments directly at checkout using the Klarna app."
Beyond the PAN: What Merchants Need to Know About Network Tokens
Very Good Security
"Network tokens are becoming a dominant payment credential. Network tokens are designed to make transactions less disruptive, which is why there is an uptick in transactions using network tokenization. Instead of relying on the primary account number, or PAN, printed on a customer’s card, a merchant can use a payment credential issued through the card network. That credential can be managed throughout its lifecycle, restricted to an approved payment environment, and updated when the underlying card information changes."
The Voice Fraud Threat to Banking
ABA Banking Journal
"Voice fraud in banking increased by roughly 30 percent in 2025, with AI-powered synthetic voices capable of fooling even experienced professionals. Synthetic voice attacks against financial institutions rose sharply in 2024, increasing by a factor of approximately 20 compared to the prior year, as data from the same period indicated that roughly one in 750 banking calls was flagged as potentially fraudulent."
Australian Businesses Embrace Always-On, Real-Time Payments
Australian Payments Plus
"Corporate Australia embraces real-time payments as finance leaders look beyond speed, according to the latest research from Crisil Coalition Greenwich. Nearly three-quarters (73%) of Australia’s largest corporates are now aware of the transition to real-time payments, up from 51%. 43% of large Australian companies have started planning their transition, up by 48% Banks and technology partners are playing a critical role in supporting the transition."
India Built the World’s Biggest Digital Payments Miracle. Now Comes the Bill
BBC
"For most Indians, paying by Unified Payments Interface (UPI) has become almost absurdly routine. Scan a QR code, tap a few buttons and the money moves instantly. There is no card machine, no cash, and - most importantly - for the user, no visible fee. That may be about to change. India has paved the way for banks and payment companies to charge merchants a fee on UPI transactions, potentially ending a decade-long experiment in free digital payments."
Education: A Beginner's Guide to Reg E
FINBOA
"If you're new to the banking operations team, you're probably hearing a lot about something called "Regulation E" or "Reg E." It might sound daunting, but don't worry—we're here to break it down for you in plain English. By the end of this guide, you'll understand what Reg E is, why it's important, and how it affects your day-to-day work."
August 20, 2026
Top Post
New “Zombie Card” Flaw Lets Expired Visa Cards Make Contactless Payments
Cyber Security News
"Security researchers have demonstrated that an expired credit card is not as dead as most cardholders believe. A study from the University of Massachusetts Amherst reveals a practical NFC relay attack dubbed “Zombie Card” that revives expired Visa contactless cards, allowing them to complete real purchases at point-of-sale terminals across multiple US banks. The discovery is simple: card expiration in EMV contactless payments is enforced as a transaction policy check performed by the terminal, not as a cryptographic fact in the card itself."
On the web
Solana Stablecoin Active Addresses Hit Record 1.7 Million
CryptoRank
"Active addresses holding Solana-based stablecoins hit a record 1.7 million and total stablecoin supply on Solana reached $16.3 billion, including $6.8B in USDC, $2.9B in USDT and $1.2B in USDGO. This surge signals increasing crypto and DeFi adoption on Solana driven by low fees and high throughput, improving liquidity for trading, remittances and payments while potentially attracting greater regulatory scrutiny as the network competes with Ethereum and Tron."
Stablecoins Won’t Replace the Dollar: Mastercard CEO [Video]
Yahoo Finance
"Mastercard CEO Michael Miebach explains to Yahoo Finance Executive Editor Brian Sozzi how stablecoins could help suppliers in high-inflation countries and make difficult cross-border payments faster and more predictable, while also explaining why crypto still won't replace the dollar."
Stripe to Buy OpenRouter as Fintech Expands Deeper Into AI
CNBC
"Stripe said it’s acquiring OpenRouter, as the payments company expands into the artificial intelligence model market. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but the New York Times said the price tag is about $7.5 billion, with $1.5 billion allocated to OpenRouter’s founders. The deal will “maximize profitability by routing their requests intelligently and spending their tokens efficiently,” Stripe CEO Patrick Collison said in a statement."
Elon Musk’s X Explores Stablecoins for Creator Payouts
Crypton News
"Elon Musk-owned social platform X is discussing the use of stablecoins like $USDC to pay influencers and other content providers, CoinDesk reported Thursday, citing a person familiar with the discussion. Talks are ongoing, and X isn’t alone. Its peers are also testing stablecoins as a way to pay influencers and content creators, according to the source. Mark Zuckerberg’s Meta has begun paying select creators in $USDC on Solana and Polygon, reviving its stablecoin push after the collapse of its Libra/Diem project."
Stripe Launches Treasury In Australia To Unify Payments And Multi-Currency Money Management
SMBtech
"Stripe has launched its Treasury product in Australia, giving businesses a single platform to accept payments, hold and convert funds across multiple currencies and pay recipients in nearly 100 countries without leaving the Stripe dashboard. Businesses gain instant access to their revenue and can use it to pay suppliers, contractors and third parties using just an email address. The platform supports holding funds in AUD, USD, GBP and EUR, with instant conversion between ten supported currencies including HKD, SGD and NZD."
Shopify Expands Cross-Border Ecommerce Tools for Canadian Retailers
Retail Insider
"Shopify is expanding its Managed Markets cross-border ecommerce offering to Canadian merchants, giving eligible retailers and brands access to infrastructure designed to simplify international selling as duties, taxes and customs requirements become more complex. The Canadian expansion is being supported by Global-e Online, the cross-border ecommerce technology company behind the merchant-of-record infrastructure used by Shopify Managed Markets."
A Fintech App Built by Crypto Exchange Kraken Just Launched a Cash Back Debit Card in Bid for Consumer Wallets
CNBC
"Kraken is launching a cashback U.S. debit card, vying for a place in consumer wallets as crypto evolves from an asset class into infrastructure for mainstream financial products. The card, called the Krak Card and issued by the affiliate money app of the same name, offers up to 2% cash or bitcoin back, with the rate increasing based on the value of assets a customer holds. Rewards are paid directly as money rather than points. It also lets customers spend directly from more than 600 currencies and crypto assets."
Mobile Payments up in UK but Debit Cards Remain King—for Now
CoinGeek
"Debit cards remain the United Kingdom’s most frequently used payment method. Meanwhile, 91% of adults used at least one form of remote banking in 2025, and mobile contactless payment services such as Apple Pay and Google Pay continue to grow in popularity. The long-term decline of cash has continued, although the pace of change has slowed, and while debit cards continue to dominate, their growth is starting to level off, in contrast to the continued and more notable rise in mobile wallet use."
August 19, 2026
Top Post
AWS Launches AI Agent Payment Service With USDC Support
Bloomingbit
"Amazon Web Services has launched a service that allows artificial intelligence agents to make payments autonomously. AWS announced on August 19 the release of Amazon Bedrock AgentCore Payments, an autonomous payment service for AI agents. The company first previewed the service in May in collaboration with Coinbase and Stripe. The service enables AI agents to find and use paid data and application programming interfaces, or APIs, without human intervention and to pay for them directly."
On the web
DBS Hong Kong Partners with Visa, Preface to Empower Customers with AI Readiness Skills, for the Future of Intelligent Payments
Macau Business
"DBS Bank Limited announced a partnership with Preface, a leading tech-enablement company, to help customers build practical AI readiness for everyday life and work. Starting September 2026, DBS Credit Cardholders subscribing to the designated AI tools, can get a free chance to access an exclusive AI Experience Workshop via the “DBS Credit Cards Subscription Bonus Club”. Cardholders can also enjoy up to 15% off when enrolling in Preface AI courses with DBS Credit Card."
Nium Launches Card Issuance in the United States
Nium
"Nium , the global infrastructure leader for real-time cross-border payments, today announced the launch of domestic card issuance in the United States, extending its multi-region issuing platform to North America. Businesses can now issue local cards across APAC, Europe, Middle East, and North America while maintaining access to Nium's global payment network spanning 190+ countries – all on a single platform. Nium issued more than 41 million card credentials in APAC, Middle East, and Europe in the past 12 month."
Modulr Becomes the Only Non-Bank Payment Service Provider with Direct Access to All Three Major UK Payment Schemes
Modulr Finance
"Modulr announced it has become a direct participant in CHAPS, the UK’s same-day high-value payment scheme, settling directly at the Bank of England. CHAPS is a critical part of the UK’s payments infrastructure, enabling high-value, time-critical payments. Settling CHAPS payments directly at the Bank of England gives Modulr greater control over its payment flows. Modulr is the only non-bank payment service provider with direct access to all three of the UK’s major payment schemes: Faster Payments, Bacs, and CHAPS."
Visa’s Search for a New Stablecoin Partner Reveals a Strategic Divide
Forkast
"Visa is currently shopping for a new stablecoin settlement and over-the-counter partner. The RFP requirements demand a partner that holds cryptocurrency-exchange licenses in the U.S., Canada, the UK, and Singapore. The divergence in strategy between the two payment giants is stark. Mastercard has opted for vertical integration, buying its way into the infrastructure layer. Visa, is doubling down on its consortium-led approach, betting that the collective weight of the OUSD project will provide a more scalable path forward."
Coinbase CEO: x402 Payment Protocol for AI Agents Is ‘Going to Be Huge Eventually’
CryptoRank
"Coinbase CEO Brian Armstrong said the open x402 protocol, built on HTTP 402, could enable AI agents to make autonomous stablecoin onchain payments for APIs and digital services and predicted agents will eventually far outnumber humans. If adopted, x402 could reshape crypto payments and DeFi access by enabling machine-to-machine settlement and challenging traditional card networks and CEX payment rails, but the protocol is nascent and requires developer and AI platform integration before meaningful adoption or market impact."
Personetics Partners with Plaid to Help Banks Win Account Primacy with Open Finance Intelligence
Personetics
"Personetics, the AI Cognitive Banking Platform, announced a partnership with Plaid, the data network powering the digital financial ecosystem. The integration gives banks and credit unions something they’ve rarely had before: a comprehensive view of a customer’s financial life, combining their own account data with transactions, liabilities, investments, and related financial activity from wherever a customer’s money lives."
HSBC and Standard Chartered Execute First Live Tokenised Deposit Transaction on Swift’s Ledger
Asset Servicing Times
"HSBC and Standard Chartered announced the completion of bank-to-bank tokenised deposit interoperability through the first live cross-border transaction on Swift’s blockchain-based ledger. The transaction — conducted through exchange of payment messages between the two banks using Swift’s ledger — was recorded as tokenised deposit obligations on both HSBC’s Tokenised Deposit Service (TDS) and Standard Chartered’s tokenised-deposit infrastructure."
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