Companies

Visa and World Bank Group Announce New Risk-Sharing Initiative to Expand Digital Payments and Financial Inclusion in Emerging Markets

Business Wire

“Visa and the International Finance Corporation (IFC), a member of the World Bank Group focused on the private sector, are partnering on an innovative risk-sharing initiative designed to help expand financial inclusion by increasing access to digital financial services in emerging markets. Under the agreement, IFC will share credit settlement risk for Visa transactions associated […]

Tags: Visa World Bank Group

CBDC Digital Currency European Union

Episode 301 - Casting Light on the Digital Euro, with Nicola Branzoli, Banca d'Italia

In this episode, Nicola Branzoli, Head of Division for the Digital Euro Regulation, Research, and Technical Support at the Banca d'Italia, joins Glenbrook's Ashley Lannquist and Simon Skinner for an in-depth exploration of the digital euro. Listen in as they cover the objectives and value proposition, design choices and pilot details, and what the digital euro means in the broader European payment context. 

ACH Artificial Intelligence Bitcoin Digital Currency Fast Payments Financial Inclusion Payments Fraud Payments on Fire Podcasts Tokenization

Episode 300 - Reflecting on 12 Years of Payments on Fire

2026 is a milestone year for Glenbrook as we celebrate the 25th anniversary of the firm. We also find ourselves airing the 300th episode of our Payments on Fire podcast - founded by George Peabody in 2014, nurtured by Yvette Bohanan, and now continued on through the hosting efforts of most of the team. We thought there would be no better way to mark the 12 year achievement - and pay respect to what George and Yvette built - than to revisit the journey with clips from the first 299 episodes. From early episodes on digital currency and AI, to fast payments evolution and financial inclusion efforts (and how could we leave out tokenization), listen in as Bryan Derman and Jill Wurst guide you through significant moments in the podcast’s history.

Companies

Stablecoins Can Transform the Global South by Reimagining Digital Finance, Trade, and Development

Brookings

“Emerging markets are the key holders and users of stablecoins, and they are especially important in economies that have struggled to maintain resilience around payment systems and remittances. Stablecoin technology can help fix broken payment systems and increase financial inclusion and access, but they also present some financial stability risks. Consistent and clear regulation will be critical […]

Tags: Brookings

Global

EthSwitch and SWIFT Partner to Revolutionize Ethiopia’s Cross-Border Instant Payments

FF News

“EthSwitch and SWIFT are collaborating to advance cross-border instant payments in Ethiopia. This strategic dialogue aims to enhance international remittance speed and security, leveraging global financial connectivity to drive financial inclusion and modernize the digital payment infrastructure for Ethiopian businesses and consumers.”

Tags: Ethiopia

Global

Mastercard Sees Africa’s Digital Future Taking Shape

CIO Africa

Africa’s payments landscape is entering a new phase, one that extends beyond digital transactions and into intelligent, interconnected financial ecosystems. According to Victor Ndlovu, Vice President and Head of Business Development for East Africa at Mastercard, the continent’s next chapter will be defined by broader financial inclusion, seamless cross-border payments, and the emergence of AI-powered […]

Tags: Africa

Global

MPs Spare M-Pesa Transfers From VAT as Mobile Money Matures

Tech Trends KE

“Kenyan lawmakers have moved to preserve the M-Pesa VAT exemption proposed under the Finance Bill 2026, shielding mobile money transfers from a tax change that industry players warned could make digital payments more expensive and undermine financial inclusion.  The recommendation by the National Assembly’s Finance Committee would exempt money transfer services offered by payment service […]

Tags: Kenya

Global

Instant Payment Platform Tops One Million Daily Transactions: EthSwitch

The Reporter Ethiopia

“EthSwitch, Ethiopia’s national payment switch, said its instant payment platform processed more than one million transactions in a single day, marking a milestone in the country’s push to expand digital payments and financial inclusion. The platform, EthioPay-IPS, handled transactions worth more than five billion Birr on the record day. The announcement comes as Ethiopia accelerates […]

Tags: Ethiopia

Cross-border Payments ECommerce Global Payments Merchants Payments Acceptance

Episode 293 - Unlocking Merchant Growth in Emerging Markets, with João Del Valle, EBANX

In this episode, Drew Edmond is joined by João Del Valle, CEO and co-founder of EBANX, to talk about the origin story of EBANX, why Brazil has historically been such a difficult market for non-Brazilian merchants, and what João has learned as the company has expanded into new regions. Listen in as they cover some of the biggest topics shaping the next phase of global payments, including Pix and Pix Automático in Brazil, payment optimization when looking at local payment methods, and perspectives on agentic commerce and stablecoins.

Peru, Chile and Argentina Enter a New Phase of Growth Driven by Real-Time Payments, ACI Worldwide Report Finds

Business Wire

“Peru, Chile and Argentina are entering a decisive stage of their real‑time payments modernization journeys, with adoption expected to drive economic growth and financial inclusion across the region, according to the Real-Time Payments: Economic Impact and Financial Inclusion report. The study was commissioned by ACI Worldwide, and conducted by the Cebr (Centre for Economics and […]

Companies

MoneyGram and Stellar Extend Partnership to Scale Real-World Stablecoin Utility Globally

PR Newswire

“MoneyGram and the Stellar Development Foundation (SDF) announced a multi-year extension of their partnership. This milestone marks more than five years of turning stablecoin potential into real-world utility and financial inclusion. Since 2021, MoneyGram and SDF have delivered industry firsts: The world’s largest cash on/off-ramp for digital assets The MoneyGram Ramps API, enabling developers to […]

Tags: MoneyGram

Global

EthSwitch Moves to Launch Merchant Portal and AI-Driven Credit Scoring System [Ethiopia]

Birr Metrics

“EthSwitch is preparing to introduce a merchant portal and a credit scoring framework as part of its next phase of infrastructure development, aimed at deepening payment interoperability and expanding financial inclusion in Ethiopia’s digital financial system. The national payments switch has already deployed the ETHQR interoperable QR standard and a Request to Pay (RTP) feature […]

Tags: Ethiopia

Companies

Early Warning Sharpens Financial Fraud Intelligence with Certos

Early Warning

“Early Warning Services LLC, the company behind Zelle® and the Paze® digital wallet, announced the launch of CertosSM, a unified brand portfolio of its fraud and identity risk solutions that help financial institutions stop fraud and expand financial access in the U.S. banking system. “Building on Early Warning’s proven scale, Certos brings together decades of […]

Tags: Early Warning

Glenbrook Innovation

Episode 288 - The First 25 Years of Glenbrook - Fanning the Flames with our Founders

For Glenbrook's 25th Anniversary, we speak with the three founding partners - Carol Coye Benson, Scott Loftesness, and Allen Weinberg - to celebrate the progress of the industry and the firm. Listen in as they recall the early days of the firm, discuss how Glenbrook’s strategy work expanded to form our education and global practices, consider the evolution of the “payments professional”, and reflect on payments industry shifts over their years both in and out of Glenbrook.

Companies

Ericsson and Mastercard Enhance Global Digital Money Movement and Accelerate Digital Financial Inclusion

Mastercard

“Ericsson and Mastercard announced a collaboration to reshape how money moves across the world. By integrating the Ericsson Fintech Platform (Mobile Financial Services) with Mastercard Move, Mastercard’s portfolio of money movement solutions, the collaboration will empower telecom service providers, banks and fintechs to expand digital wallet capabilities, launch new payment services and reach unbanked or […]

Tags: Mastercard