“Sezzle, a Buy Now, Pay Later solution in Canada, has announced the expansion of Sezzle Up, a consumer credit product, into the Canadian market. Sezzle notes that many lenders are hesitant to extend credit to consumers without any credit history or score. Consumers may face a catch-22 situation –– unable to get that first credit product when they lack a credit history. Sezzle Up gives consumers the opportunity to build their credit profile if they choose to do so, bridging the gap between the credit underserved and the ability to use and build credit wisely.”

“New Mexicans will no longer be able to use “buy now, pay later” service Afterpay starting Jan. 1. Last week, Afterpay emailed New Mexico customers informing them that due to “regulatory changes” in New Mexico, the company would no longer be doing business in the state. “Due to a new state regulation effective January 1, 2023, Afterpay is unavailable to New Mexico residents,” read a statement provided to the Journal by an Afterpay spokesperson. “We hope to be able to offer our service to New Mexico customers in the near future.” The regulation in question is House Bill 132, “Interest Rates for Certain Loans,” an amendment to the New Mexico Small Loan Act and New Mexico Bank Installment Act.”

“Buying goods online is second nature to most of us. Using our payment card whilst we shop online rarely gives us pause, and the many millions who buy online generally trust the system.  However, the recent busy shopping season means it’s a good time to remind ourselves that there is an ongoing battle to make sure that the payment card data of your customers remains secure. The payment card industry has not sat still in the face of the threat of attack by criminal gangs. Their security standard (PCI DSS) is a contractual baseline for anyone that wants to accept payment cards, and is revised regularly to take into account both technological change and criminal attack methodology…”

“According to LendingTree’s latest holiday debt survey, 35% of Americans took on yuletide debt, down slightly from last year’s 36%, but the average amount of those who took some on this year is $1,549. That’s up 24% from last year and is the highest in the eight-year history of the report. Key findings….”

“The past year was an extremely turbulent one in several respects. Fintech companies in particular suffered greatly from the difficult market environment and resulting turmoil, with several high-flyers brought down to earth. Although 2023 will continue to be challenging, the fintech industry continues to evolve with market trends, and innovation in the fintech sector will continue to drive change in traditional financial services.”

“The popularity of buy now, pay later (BNPL) kept growing in 2022 as consumers sought out more flexible payment methods, merchant acceptance grew, and BNPL spread into new sectors. The total value of BNPL in the US increased 25.5% year over year in 2022, according to Insider Intelligence research. Here are five trends and events that shaped the BNPL industry this year:…”

“The days of organisations relying on insurance policies to pay out after suffering a cyber-attack, may be coming to an end.  This is the stark assessment from Mario Greco, chief executive at insurer Zurich, one of Europe’s biggest insurance companies, speaking to the Financial Times. Amid growing concern among industry executives about large-scale cyber-attacks, Greco warned that cyber-attacks, rather than natural catastrophes, will become “uninsurable”.”

“As we enter the last week of 2022, we look at some of the  biometrics and digital ID trends predicted by experts in the field. This was the year the world mostly emerged from the effects of the Covid pandemic, and numerous companies moved forward in creating innovative technological solutions. The trends and forecasts emailed to Biometric Update mostly reflect ongoing developments, but also suggest significant changes for how digital trust works in the near future.”

“American multinational financial services corporation, Fidelity, has filed three new trademark applications indicating further plans for the metaverse…the trademarks cover business marketing, referral services in the field of investment advice and financial planning, personnel placement and recruiting services, provision of an online marketplace for buyers and sellers of digital media, namely, non-fungible tokens (NFTs) featuring textual and graphic content, all in the metaverse and other virtual worlds…HSBC also filed Web3 trademark applications for its name and logo with the USPTO on Dec 15. The trademarks cove software to allow users to perform banking and electronic business transactions in the metaverse and other virtual worlds; downloadable virtual goods, namely, computer programs featuring bank cards, cash cards, cheque cards, debit cards, credit cards, charge cards for use online and in online virtual worlds; and downloadable digital files authenticated by NFTs.”