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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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March 16, 2026
On the web
FDIC Proposes Ban on Pass Through Stablecoin Insurance
Ledger Insights
"Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) Chair Travis Hill said the regulator is proposing a ban on pass through insurance for stablecoin reserves held at FDIC insured banks, and is inviting comments on the proposal. The GENIUS Act explicitly bans deposit insurance for stablecoins themselves. But there are two separate things here. There is the stablecoin, and then there is a deposit account holding reserves. Hill highlighted that the GENIUS Act is clear about the stablecoin itself, but doesn’t discuss the deposit accounts used for reserves."
March 13, 2026
Top Post
OCC Proposes Comprehensive Rules to Implement the GENIUS Act That Carry Substantial Market Implications
K&L Gates
"With the passage of the Guiding and Establishing National Innovation for US Stablecoins Act (the GENIUS Act or the Act) on 18 July 2025, Congress established a federal regulatory framework for payment stablecoins. The Act creates a bespoke supervisory regime for a category of digital assets widely regarded as one of the most commercially viable applications of distributed ledger technology. The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the OCC) has recently issued a comprehensive notice of proposed rulemaking (the NPRM) to implement major portions of the Act within its jurisdiction."
On the web
Next-Gen Payment Cards: Virtual Solutions With No Limits [UK]
Wales 247
"The massive trend of 2026 is no-limit virtual cards. They are totally shattering the traditional banking mold, offering unprecedented flexibility, global reach, and zero of the usual restrictions. These virtual solutions are tailor-made for the era of digital nomads, crypto investors, and global biz. They literally erase borders, letting you top up your balance with crypto, make worldwide payments without limits, and keep fees down to an absolute minimum. In this piece, a detailed breakdown and ranking of the top platforms issuing these next-gen cards in reviewed."
Buy Now Pay Later Usage Surges as New Products Proliferate, JD Power Finds
JD Power
"Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) adoption continues to grow rapidly, with 37% of consumers in the United States making a purchase using this method in the past 90 days, a 5-percentage-point increase in just one year. According to the JD Power 2026 U.S. Buy Now Pay Later Satisfaction Study released, as BNPL use matures and providers continue to launch new products, customers are increasingly using it to manage their day-to-day spending."
Swift: Transforming Consumer Payments: Banks Roll Out New Framework for Retail Transactions
Swift
"Last year, we announced plans to transform the cross-border payment experience with the launch of a new scheme, designed to ensure consistently fast, predictable and transparent payments worldwide. Thanks to progress in 2026, consumers and small businesses receiving payments across a range of countries, including five of the world’s ten largest remittance markets, will be among the first to benefit from a pioneering new framework for cross-border retail transactions."
Worldline and ABN AMRO Extend Partnership to Support Payment Services in the Dutch Market
Worldline
"Worldline will continue to enhance ABN AMRO’s customer payment solutions. This collaboration underscores the value both parties place in their long-term commitment to innovation and operational excellence. Under the renewed contract, Worldline will continue to drive critical payment services for ABN AMRO, overseeing card issuing and personalization activities, and a comprehensive suite of payment solutions. This encompasses SEPA Credit Transfers, Instant Payments, and support services ensuring seamless operations across the payment value chain."
Europe’s Agentic Commerce Shift: Why AI Agents Are Set to Become Economic Actors
Retail Banker International
"Europe has crossed a new threshold by allowing an AI agent to perform a regulated financial transaction. With Santander and Mastercard completing the region’s first live end-to-end AI-executed payment, the significance goes beyond the technology itself. This was not a simple API trigger but an autonomous system acting with delegated authority, marking a defining moment: AI agents are becoming economic actors."
Experian and OpenAI Launch the UK’s First Credit Score App in ChatGPT
Experian
"Experian announced the launch of the UK’s first ever credit score app within ChatGPT apps – introducing a new postcode based credit score comparison tool that brings Experian’s trusted data directly into one of the world’s most widely used AI platforms. The tool uses aggregated and anonymised Experian Credit Score data, the UK’s most trusted score, to show how typical scores compare across postcode areas and age groups. In a few seconds, consumers can see local and demographic score averages, providing helpful context as part of everyday financial education."
Education: Demystifying Stablecoins: The Use Cases, the Pegging Mechanism, and the Implications on Financial Market
JPMorgan
"Stablecoins are primarily used as the “cash” or “base asset” for on-chain trading. with emerging use cases in cross-border payments, treasury management, and tokenization - offering faster, lower-cost, and more flexible alternatives to traditional financial services. Stablecoins offer a unique blend of crypto asset benefits and stability through their pegging mechanisms. Whether backed by fiat, crypto, or controlled by algorithms, these pegs face challenges. Technological and regulatory advancements are expected to address many of these challenges, though potential conflicts of interest as well as profitability challenges from duration risks, remain critical considerations."
TD Bank Advances Embedded Banking for Us Businesses With Workday Integration
Open Banking Expo
"TD Bank U.S. has expanded its embedded banking offering to include functionality in Workday for US business clients. In collaboration with FISPAN, TD is among the first US banks to deliver bank feeds directly in Workday, enabling clients to access near real-time banking features without requiring expensive treasury management systems. This empowers organisations to streamline financial operations, save valuable time, and maintain near real-time visibility, all within a platform they already use."
March 12, 2026
Top Post
PixRevolution Malware Hijacks Brazil's PIX Transfers in Real Time
Infosecurity Magazine
"A newly identified Android banking trojan capable of hijacking Brazil's instant payment transfers, targeting one of the country's most widely used financial systems, has been uncovered by security researchers. The malware, known as PixRevolution, silently monitors victims' smartphones and redirects funds during PIX transactions, according to a new analysis from mobile security firm Zimperium. The researchers said PixRevolution exploits the speed and irreversibility of those transfers. Once a PIX payment is completed it cannot be reversed, making it an attractive target for financial cybercrime."
On the web
Revolut Launches UK Bank
Revolut
"Following a successful mobilisation period, the PRA has lifted restrictions on Revolut’s banking licence, and given approval to launch its UK bank, Revolut Bank UK Ltd. Revolut Bank UK Ltd is set to roll out new banking services for its 13 million UK customers, with deposit accounts protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS). Current accounts to roll out gradually for new customers in the coming weeks; nothing currently changes for existing customers to ensure smooth transition."
European Central Bank Unveils Tokenized Finance Plan to Bolster EU’s Financial Autonomy
CoinDesk
"The European Central Bank set out a timeline for building a tokenized wholesale financial ecosystem centered on the euro to safeguard its role as a leading international currency. The strategy hinges on Pontes, a distributed-ledger-based transaction layer, and Appia, a long-term project to design the architecture, governance and standards of a tokenized financial system. The initiative aims to bolster the EU's financial sovereignty, strategic autonomy and resilience while adapting market infrastructure to blockchain-based assets."
Zelle® and Bank of America Partner to Accelerate Delivery of Charitable Donations to Nonprofits
Bank of America
"Zelle® and Bank of America announce a first-of-its-kind application of Zelle to enable charitable disbursements from Donor Advised Funds (DAFs). The new capability allows nonprofits to receive charitable grant funding in near real time, replacing the traditional multi-week, paper-based process with fast and reliable digital payments using the Zelle network. This new capability is part of Zelle® Forward, the network’s innovation agenda."
Finzly Unveils Token Galaxy: Unifying Money Movement for Traditional and Tokenized Banking
Finzly, Inc.
"Finzly announced the launch of Token Galaxy, a new suite within its BankOS platform designed to help banks operate seamlessly across traditional and tokenized forms of money, with the freedom to connect to multiple blockchains, issuers, and consortia as they choose. Finzly is bringing stablecoins and tokenized deposits alongside traditional assets into the same operational environment on its platform BankOS – its modern operating system that serves as the innovation core for several leading banks."
Mastercard Move Expands China Connectivity With New Bank of Shanghai Collaboration
Mastercard
"Mastercard announced a collaboration between Mastercard Move, its money movement platform, and Bank of Shanghai (BoS) to enable seamless, bi-directional payment flows between China and global markets. As international trade, migration and education continue to grow, people and businesses increasingly rely on fast, predictable and transparent global payments. The integration of BoS into Mastercard Move streamlines these cross-border flows, giving SMEs, students and families a more efficient way to move money into and out of China, strengthening a vital financial bridge between China and the world."
The Long Road to Going Passwordless
BankInfoSecurity
"Passwords should have disappeared a decade ago. They haven't. Legacy systems, fragmented IT infrastructures and the complexity of modern hybrid environments have kept them alive and kept organizations vulnerable, said Guido Gerrits, vice president of identity and access management for Europe at Thales."
Supercharged: AI and the New Age of Disruption
Citigroup
"Technology has always had the power to reshape societies. But the current wave of disruption – driven by advances in artificial intelligence – is unfolding at dizzying pace and on an unprecedented scale.Unlike previous technological revolutions, which generally took decades, AI is firing change across industries, institutions and societies in real time.It’s a challenge just to keep up. This Citi Institute report focuses on a few areas of disruptive technology, taking in innovations themselves, but also the shifts they will drive."
March 11, 2026
Top Post
Agentic Payments: A New Challenge for Europe’s Payments Ecosystem
Osborne Clarke
"The rapid development of AI-agent-initiated payment models signals a pivotal shift for the European payments ecosystem. While current implementations are pilot-based within the EU, market signals suggest production deployments are targeted as early as 2026. As AI-agent technology moves from the 'back office' to the 'front office' for payment institutions, the relevance of regulatory requirements increases significantly. In this context, questions arise around the regulatory classification of the service, the allocation of liability, and the satisfaction of authorisation requirements and Strong Customer Authentication (SCA)."
On the web
Coinbase-Backed AI Payments Protocol Wants to Fix Micropayment but Demand Is Just Not There Yet
Coindesk
"The x402 protocol aims to enable "agentic payments" by embedding stablecoin micropayments directly into the internet’s communication layer so AI agents and software can pay each other automatically. Despite a roughly $7 billion ecosystem valuation, onchain data shows that x402 currently processes only about $28,000 in daily volume, much of it from testing and "gamed" transactions rather than real commerce. Supporters argue that x402’s true utility will emerge as more AI-driven, pay-per-use services come online, but for now the narrative around agentic commerce is running ahead of actual adoption."
Amazon Opens up New AI-Enabled Buy for Me, Shop Direct Options for Merchants
Digital Commerce 360
"As Amazon’s agentic commerce strategy continues to evolve, the online retail giant is building out its Buy for Me and Shop Direct tools as well, now with new options for third-party feeds that connect merchants with those buyer experiences. The Buy for Me option introduced a means for Amazon to help a shopper initiate associated purchases faster, using artificial intelligence (AI)."
Amazon Wins Court Order to Block Perplexity’s AI Shopping Agent
CNBC
"Amazon won a temporary injunction against Perplexity to block its Comet AI browser from scraping its website. The company sued Perplexity in November, accusing the startup of concealing its AI shopping agents. A federal judge ruled that Amazon provided “strong evidence” that Perplexity’s Comet browser accessed its website without its authorization."
Wells Fargo Files ‘WFUSD’ Trademark Covering Crypto Trading, Payments and Tokenization Services
The Block
"Wells Fargo has filed a U.S. trademark application for “WFUSD” covering digital asset software, crypto exchange services, software for processing stablecoin and other digital asset transactions, and tokenization platforms. The application follows the bank’s prior investments in crypto infrastructure and a recent report from its investment institute classifying digital assets as an “investable” portfolio option."
New Report Finds AI-Generated Identities Are Already Passing Digital Onboarding at Scale
Business Wire
"Identity verification systems across Latin America’s digital banking ecosystems are entering a structural risk phase as generative AI enables synthetic identities to be created faster than verification infrastructure can adapt, according to a new threat intelligence report released by DuckDuckGoose. The report, When Identity Becomes Generatable, analyzes generative AI and finds that identity creation has shifted from manipulation toward real-time synthetic human generation capable of passing onboarding and authentication systems."
Cross-Border Payment Technologies: Innovations and Challenges
BIS
"Cross-border payments (XBP), particularly remittances and retail transactions, remain more costly, slower, less accessible, and less transparent than domestic payments. The continued inefficient XBP arrangements, in contrast to progress made in domestic payments using new technologies and innovative models, reflect that private actors alone cannot overcome the many market failures that hinder XBP."
Early Warning Submits Comments on the Future of Fed’s Check Service
Early Warning
"Early Warning Services, LLC, submitted a comment letter responding to the Federal Reserve Board’s Request for Information on the future of its check services, urging a measured transition that preserves nationwide stability while also supporting a shift to digital payment alternatives. In its letter, Early Warning emphasized that the Federal Reserve plays a unique role in providing nationwide reach, predictable settlement, and system-wide coordination. Any modernization effort should avoid abrupt changes that could shift costs, increase disputes, or disproportionately impact community banks, credit unions, small businesses, and underserved populations."
Mastercard Advances Its Agentic AI Strategy With Virtual C-Suite, Bringing Executive Level Intelligence to Small Businesses [Video]
Mastercard
"Mastercard is advancing a new era of AI with capabilities that span the full commerce lifecycle, from understanding how money moves to predicting risk and opportunity to recommending and executing next best actions. Mastercard’s growing suite of AI-powered capabilities is designed to pioneer the shift from insight to action — all with privacy, trust, and human oversight at the core."
Ripple to Acquire Australian Financial Services License as APAC Payments Volume Doubles
CoinDesk
"Ripple plans to acquire BC Payments Australia to secure an Australian Financial Services License, enabling it to offer its full payments stack in the country through a single integration. The company says payments volume in the Asia-Pacific region nearly doubled year-over-year in 2025, contributing to a reported $100 billion in total processed volume across 60 markets."
On the wires
Global Virtual Travel Card Program Launched by Visa and Trip.com to Make Travel Payments Simpler and More Seamless in Asia Pacific
PR Newswire
"As international travel rebounds across Asia Pacific, Visa and Trip.com Group have entered into a new global agreement designed to make booking and paying for travel more seamless for consumers and partners worldwide. Through this collaboration, Trip.com Group will introduce a virtual travel card program issued in partnership with Visa via Trip.com Group's fintech arm, TripLink."
BofA AI and Digital Innovations Fuel 30 Billion Client Interactions
PR Newswire
"AI-driven solutions, global payments, and personalized financial planning tools have propelled Bank of America clients' digital engagement to record levels. Clients connected with their finances approximately 30 billion times last year through a combination of digital logins and proactive alerts, marking a 14% year-over-year increase. More consumers and businesses moving money digitally: Zelle adoption reached 25 million active users. Zelle users sent and received a record 1.8 billion transactions worth a record $556 billion in 2025, growing 16% and 18% year-over-year respectively. "
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