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
September 6, 2023
On the web
Google Pay Autofill in Chrome Will Actually Name and Show Saved Cards
9to5Google
August 23, 2023
On the web
Google Pay Triumphs In Delhi High Court, Clears Regulatory Roadblocks
Benzinga
June 21, 2023
On the wires
Google Cloud Launches AI-Powered Anti Money Laundering Product for Financial Institutions
PR Newswire
June 1, 2023
On the wires
Blackhawk Network (BHN®) Partners with Google Play to Bring Cash-to-Digital Payment Option to Japanese Consumers
PR Newswire
April 19, 2023
On the wires
Google to Open Up UK In-app Payments to Satisfy Regulator's Concerns
Reuters
January 31, 2023
On the wires
EU Studying Whether Big Tech Should Pay Network Costs -EU Document
Reuters
January 17, 2023
On the web
Google is Piloting its Own ‘Soundbox’ in India for Merchants to Get Audio-Based Payment Alerts
TechCrunch
Soundboxes — hardware used by merchants that emits sounds every time a mobile payment is made — have taken off in India, where point of sale activity can get busy and voice alerts from the soundbox help alert multitasking shopkeepers and assistants to a transaction going through. Now, to keep pushing ahead to build out its own payments business in the world’s second-largest internet market, Google is getting in on the act. The internet giant, which is currently one of the mobile transaction leaders in India with Google Pay, is piloting a soundbox of its own in the country to alert sellers of confirmations for UPI payments — a mobile payment standard developed and now ubiquitous in India for instant payments and transfers between banks, or two mobile users, or a customer and a merchant.
December 29, 2022
On the web
Chrome Now Supports Passkeys, the Password Killer
PC World
“The Google Chrome browser now supports something new to secure your life: passkeys, a stronger, leak-proof version of a password that can use your phone as a token to authorize you to websites. Passkeys can and will be stored inside the Google Password Manager, or inside apps that support passkeys within future versions of Android, Google said. Passkeys are enabled in the lastest version of Chrome in both Windows 11, macOS, and Android.”
December 23, 2022
On the web
Google Play Now Lets Children Send Purchase Requests to Guardians
TechCrunch
“Google already offers parents and guardians tools to restrict purchases their children make on Play Store using the family payment method. The company is now introducing an additional feature that will allow children to send a purchase request for the manager of the family account to approve when there is no present payment method. Children can ask for approval for both paid apps and in-app purchase when the family hasn’t set up a payments method.”
December 22, 2022
On the web
Google Wallet Adds Whimsical Pay Animations for the Holidays
9to5Google
“If you recently used Google Wallet on Android, you might have noticed a touch of holiday whimsy on the Pay screen. Normally, tapping your Android phone to an NFC reader shows the card used and a loading animation just above it. The blue circular progress indicator morphs into a checkmark with that circle, then shrinks to make way for the Google Pay logo. During the holidays, the blue checkmark can morph into any number of characters. One of the more elaborate animations is a cat wearing several holiday sweaters that rolls off your screen to reveal the G Pay icon. It features very smooth transitions, and you don’t even suspect it’s going to occur. The 3-second sequence nearly triples in length, though you can exit or lock your device at any time.”
December 8, 2022
On the wires
Brazil Central Bank Grants Google Pay Payment Institution Status
Reuters
“Alphabet’s Google Pay has received approval to operate as a payment institution in Brazil, Latin America’s largest economy, the country’s official gazette showed on Thursday, allowing it to initiate payment transactions. Payment initiators, according to Brazil’s central bank, initiate a transaction ordered by the final user but never manage the payment account, nor hold the funds of the transactions. A press spokesperson for Google confirmed the central bank’s authorization and said the move offered “more payment options to users through our platforms in Brazil.” Google Pay currently operates an app serving as a virtual wallet, which allows the user to include their credit and debit cards, vaccination cards and concert tickets, for example. The approval comes days after Brazil’s National Monetary Council also authorized fintechs to initiate payment transactions in the country.”
November 9, 2022
On the web
Amazon Pay Statistics 2022 – Market Share and Web Usage
Enterprise Apps Today
“Amazon being the world’s largest e-commerce website with millions of varied shopping articles has enabled Amazon Pay options for online payment platforms. Technology is stepping into advanced features, not long ago when Amazon was an online shopping site now, we can use it for paying other bills also. What is more exciting is that Alexa and amazon pay work very well together. You can simply ask Alexa to pay the bill and she will do it without you touching the device. This Amazon Pay statistics will give an insight into the features of Amazon Pay, its pros and cons, general statistics, and a comparison between Amazon pay and google pay.”
November 3, 2022
On the web
Paytm, PhonePe, Google Pay Divided on UPI Market Share Cap; Government Won’t Intervene
The Economic Times
“The Centre will not “actively intervene” in the matter of conflicting demands by India’s top payment providers over the issue of enforcing a 30% cap on the market share of. apps operating on the unified payment interface (UPI), top officials told ET. This follows contrasting demands on the issue by digital payment providers in recent weeks.While Paytm, the third ranking payment app “believes market capping should be implemented as per the timeline (December 2022), “ market leaders Walmart-owned PhonePe as well as Google Pay had independently approached UPI regulator National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) for an extension of the deadline by at least three more years.Senior officials told ET that the mandate to decide on this issue lies with the NPCI and the Reserve Bank of India. However, the Centre will monitor any decision that could potentially affect consumers, they added….As per latest NPCI data for the month of September, PhonePe and Google Pay had market shares of 46.7% and 33.3%, respectively, in terms of volumes of UPI transactions handled.”
October 14, 2022
On the web
Coinbase Inks Google Deal
CoinGeek
“Coinbase is celebrating a new deal with Google that appears a lot less than it seems, while critics are savaging a self-financed documentary on the cryptocurrency exchange’s founder Brian Armstrong. On Tuesday, Coinbase announced a deal with the Google Cloud platform that the exchange framed as “a strategic web3 partnership.” Coinbase claims the deal reflects the Google Cloud team’s recognition of “the importance of expanding crypto services and building in web3.” The deal has four components, including Google Cloud, allowing “select customers” to pay their cloud service bills via “select cryptocurrencies.” These payments will be handled by Coinbase Commerce, the exchange’s effort to expand non-crypto firms’ capacity to accept “crypto” based payments from their customers. This feature is expected to be rolled out early next year.”
October 12, 2022
On the web
Google To Allow Crypto Payments With New Coinbase Deal
Forbes
“While Google’s Cloud Next conference may not pull the crowds like Apple’s annual presentation or even Tesla’s AI Day, there have nonetheless been some interesting developments to come out of this year’s event. Given that Google is now one of the aging stalwarts in the tech industry, it may come as a surprise to some that they plan to begin to accept crypto as payment for some of their cloud computing services. They’ll be relying on Coinbase to facilitate these transactions, which is expected to be operational in early 2023.”
September 2, 2022
On the web
Google Allows Alternative Payment Systems in More Countries
TechCrunch
“Google announced today it’s expanding the user choice billing program for Play Store — which lets users choose alternative payment systems for in-app purchases — to India, Australia, Indonesia, Japan and the European Economic Area. The company is calling all non-gaming developers globally to apply for this program, and if they qualify, they can use third-party payment systems in the above-mentioned regions. The search giant introduced a similar policy for non-gaming developers and users in the EEA region in July. The new guidelines are an extension of that. The company gave a 3% discount on fees for developers using third-party billing in the EEA region. With the new announcement, Google is offering a 4% discount on fees to developers. The company said it will reveal more details about that in the coming weeks and months.”
August 23, 2022
On the web
Google’s Mobile Payment System, Google Wallet, is Now Available in South Africa
Techpoint Africa
“Google Wallet, a mobile payment system, has officially launched in South Africa today, Tuesday, August 23, 2022. It is a virtual wallet that allows users to pay and transfer money directly from their phones. In South Africa, Google Wallet is currently compatible with six banks: FirstRand, Absa, Nedbank, Standard Bank, Discovery Bank, and Investec. Google Wallet has partnered with four international airlines — United, KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, Air France, and Singapore Airlines — that serve South Africa, allowing digital boarding passes and tickets to be stored in Google Wallet and accepted by airlines.”
August 4, 2022
On the web
EU Antitrust Regulators Quiz Developers on Google App Payments – Sources
Reuters
“EU antitrust regulators have asked app developers whether Alphabet (GOOGL.O) unit Google’s threat to remove apps from its Play Store if they use other payment options instead of its own billing system has hurt their business, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Critics say fees charged by Google and Apple (AAPL.O) at their mobile app stores are excessive and cost developers collectively billions of dollars a year, a sign of the two companies’ monopoly power…The U.S. tech giant has said apps would be removed from its app store starting June this year if developers do not use its billing system.”
July 21, 2022
On the web
Google Begins Rolling Out Its New Multifunction Mobile Wallet to 39 Countries
NFCW
“Google has begun rolling out a multipurpose digital wallet that enables users to store, use and present digital credentials such as identity cards and health passes as well as payment cards, transit and event tickets and hotel keys in 39 countries across Europe, the Americas and Asia. Google announced the new Wallet in May and has now begun rolling it out as an update replacing Google Pay in Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Bulgaria, Canada, Chile, Croatia, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hong Kong, Hungary, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Kazakhstan, Latvia, Lithuania, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Taiwan, Ukraine, UAE and the UK. Google is also launching Wallet in the USA and Singapore but Android users in both countries will also still be able to use Google Pay for peer-to-peer payments and money management.”
July 19, 2022
On the web
Google to Allow App Developers to Use Rival Payment Systems, to Cut Fees
Reuters
“Alphabet unit Google said it will from Tuesday cut fees to 12%, from 15%, for non-gaming app developers on its Google Play App Store which switch to rival payment systems, as it moves to comply with new EU tech rules. The world’s most popular internet search engine said the fee cut applies only to European consumers while the freedom to use another payment system will eventually be expanded to gaming apps as well. The move underscores a change in Google’s strategy since last year where it now prefers to bow to regulatory and antitrust pressure with offers of concessions rather than embark on lengthy and distracting fights. The EU rules known as the Digital Markets Act (DMA), which will come into force next year, require tech giants to allow app developers to use rival payment platforms for app sales or risk fines of as much as 10% of their global turnover.”
July 12, 2022
On the web
Apple’s Version of Virtual Cards Could Be Coming in iOS 16
Gizmodo Australia
“Just as Google announced it would be adopting virtual cards for shopping through Chrome, Apple is likely also implementing virtual cards in its Safari browser. The news comes from 9to5Mac, which is currently digging through the iOS 16 beta 3, released yesterday afternoon for developers. According to code the site has seen, Apple has apparently been working to implement virtual cards within Safari to keep your online shopping ventures secure across the board. Virtual cards are offered by some banks as an option while shopping online so that your actual card and account information isn’t what’s making the rounds when data breaches occur. It also makes it easier for banks and other institutions to cancel a card on a whim. And it’s a more straightforward mechanism for providing one-time use cards.”
May 12, 2022
On the web
Google’s Payments Strategy is Taking Another Twist as it Battles Apple
Protocol
“Google is launching a new Google Wallet app on Android and Wear OS, looking to streamline its payments products and lock users into Android more tightly. The move is part of a broader effort by tech giants Google and Apple to bind consumers more closely into their mobile devices by making the digital wallet as essential to consumers’ everyday lives as the physical wallet. That means making the digital wallet not just a way to pay at the point of sale with a credit card but also use tickets, IDs and other essential items. The new Google Wallet, announced Wednesday at Google I/O and available sometime in early summer, will handle all credit and payment cards as well as nonpayment items you would have in your physical wallet, such as driver’s licenses or state IDs, library cards, concert tickets, boarding passes, vaccine cards and loyalty cards. Google is also working on supporting other pass types, like hotel keys and office badges.”
May 11, 2022
On the web
Google Adds Virtual Credit Cards for Google Pay
Gizmodo
“Google will roll out virtual credit cards for Pay on Chrome and Android later this year, in an effort to better protect users’ financial information during online transactions. Virtual cards are randomly generated 15 or 16 digit numbers that can be used to obscure your true card information when making online payments. The idea is that if a business you transact with has a data breach or suffers a cyberattack, hackers will only be able to swipe your “virtual” number, not your real one. There are a number of companies, like Blur, Stripe, and banks, that provide these kinds of services—often for a price.”
May 9, 2022
On the web
Google Cloud Assembles Web3 Team to Leverage Emerging Metaverse
“Google Cloud Platform is putting together a Web3 specialist team to take advantage of cryptocurrency and blockchain technology. The cloud computing services suite says its new Web3 team will focus on building services for developers running blockchain applications. In addition, the team will also provide blockchain services to enterprises and customers looking to leverage the technology. The new Google Cloud Web3 division, to be helmed by former Citigroup executive James Tromans, already has a descriptive agenda set out. This reportedly includes better management of blockchain nodes as well as software for exploring blockchain data in third-party applications. Back in January, Google already hinted at this specialist division with pre-existing and established partnerships with blockchain projects. The company believes that the emerging metaverse and all its trappings offer so many untapped opportunities to exploit.”
November 5, 2021
On the web
Google to Allow Third Party App Payments for First Time in S.Korea
Reuters
“Alphabet’s (GOOGL.O) Google said on Thursday it plans to allow third-party payment systems in South Korea to comply with a new law, marking the first time the U.S. tech giant has amended its payment policy for a specific country. Google’s announcement comes after a Korea Communications Commission’s (KCC) request for Google and Apple Inc (AAPL.O) to come up with compliance plans for the new law, which bans major app store operators from forcing software developers to use their payments systems. Most of the new law went into effect in mid-September.”
October 11, 2021
On the web
Google to Invest $1 Billion in Africa Over the Next 5 Years | TechCabal
TechCabal
“At the first virtual Google for Africa event today, Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google and Alphabet, announced a plan to invest $1billion over 5 years to support digital transformation in Africa. The investment focuses on enabling fast, affordable internet access for more Africans; building helpful products; supporting entrepreneurship and small business; and helping nonprofits to improve lives across Africa.”
October 1, 2021
Top Post
WSJ News Exclusive | Google Is Scrapping Its Plan to Offer Bank Accounts to Users
Wall Street Journal
“Google is abandoning plans to pitch bank accounts to its users, marking a retreat from an effort to make the tech giant a bigger name in finance. The Alphabet Inc unit announced almost two years ago that users of its Google Pay digital wallet would be able to sign up for enhanced checking accounts and debit cards at a handful of financial institutions large and small, including Citigroup Inc. and Stanford Federal Credit Union.”
July 8, 2021
On the web
New Google Pay Debit Card Lets You Actually Spend the Money People Send You
Ars Technica
“According to a new report from 9to5Google (Google does not seem to have a blog post about this yet), starting this week, US Android users can request a “Google Pay Balance Card” that will allow them to spend their Google Pay balance directly on purchases…The new Google Pay card is a virtual Visa debit card that you can set as an NFC card, so now spending that money a friend sent you is as easy (and presumably quick) as setting your Google Pay balance as your NFC card and tapping your phone against a store payment terminal.”
June 21, 2021
On the web
Google Pay Announces Cards Tokenization With SBI, IndusInd Bank in Collaboration With Visa
India Today
“Google has roped in more banks for card tokenization on the Google Pay app. Cards tokenization is a feature that lets users make debit or credit card payments through a secure digital token attached to their phone without having to physically share their credit or debit card details. Google Pay had earlier rolled out the feature with Kotak Mahindra Bank, SBI Cards and Axis Bank. However, Google Pay has now added SBI, Induing Bank and Federal Bank and Credit cards by IndusInd Bank and HSBC India to its slate. Google Pay card tokenization would let users Near-field communication (NFC) capable devices/ phones make contactless payments at over 2.5 million Visa merchant locations. It will also let users scan and pay at more than 1.5 million Bharat QR enabled merchants. Users can also pay their bills and recharge their numbers using credit cards. Google says that the feature also works with online merchants, provides seamless OTP experiences without redirecting users to 3D Secure sites.”
May 21, 2021
On the web
Google Partners With Shopify on Online Shopping Expansion
TechCrunch
“Google announced it’s partnering with Shopify, giving the e-commerce platform’s more than 1.7 million merchants the ability to reach consumers through Google Search and its other services. The integration will allow merchants to sign up in just a few clicks to have their products appear across Google’s 1 billion “shopping journeys” that take place every day through Search, Maps, Images, Lens and YouTube. The company didn’t offer extensive details about the integration when it was announced during Google’s I/O Developer event…But the news follows a series of updates to Google Shopping resulting from Amazon’s increased investment in its own advertising business , which threatens Google’s core ads business.”