Clearing House urges caution on CBDCs

The Latest

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  Column

  Details emerge from presidential panel on stablecoin

  Tether and Diem were reportedly the focus of the meeting and last week's Treasury Dept. "act-quickly" directive. The Justice Department is also allegedly probing whether Tether executives hid transactions linked to cryptocurrency.

  Banking

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  Alaska, Colorado residents carry most card debt, study says

  In a ranking of states where residents have the biggest credit card balances, those two states' residents carry the largest debt loads while Wisconsin and South Dakota residents carry the lowest average balances, according to a WalletHub analysis.

  Banking

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  Payments M&A is hot, but deals could face antitrust scrutiny

  The fintech industry faces “a wave of consolidation” for the remainder of 2021 and 2022, according to an industry report.

  Retail

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  Mobile wallet use projected to surge

  Mobile wallet use among North American consumers is growing, but not at the heady rates in other parts of the world, according to a new study that projects a worldwide surge.

  Retail

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  Discover optimistic about robust growth in 2022, experiences low delinquencies

  Discover is looking to "substantially increase" its share repurchase authorization and is optimistic about its "modest loan growth in 2021 and more robust growth next year," according to its Q2 earnings report.

  Retail

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  Card companies go green, but hurdles remain

  Card issuers, networks and manufacturers are working to shrink their carbon footprint as consumers become more environmentally conscious and global carbon emissions climb.

  Retail

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  How the pandemic has accelerated digital payments in telehealth

  Digitalization can simplify the medical bill payment process and give patients more information, earlier on, about their financial responsibilities, experts say.

  Retail

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  Tap-to-phone payments expected to gain traction, industry experts say

  As the need for mobile point-of-sale devices grows, companies are looking toward smartphones to streamline contactless payments.

  Retail

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  Opinion

  Creating financial inclusion in banking and payments

  "A bank account opens up a consumer’s access to not only their own money and a lack of fees, but it is essential to creating long-term financial health," argues one Washington advocate attuned to unbanked issues.

  Regulations & Policy

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  Square launches business banking, savings products

  Banking will allow Square to strengthen client relationships and drive higher customer lifetime value as it targets sellers who use the company's payment devices and inventory-management products, analysts said.

  Retail

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  Payveris launches P2P solution for banks and credit unions

  Payveris contends that its P2P toolset is more cost-effective than that of its big, bank-backed rival Zelle, and less of a competitive concern for smaller institutions.

  Banking

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  Why cybersecurity keeps payments executives up at night

  Payments are a critical part of the nation's infrastructure, so executives in the industry are under pressure to understand the evolving threat landscape.

  Regulations & Policy

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  Failed payments cost over $33 billion for North American banks: report

  The problem is costing financial services firms money and customers, the Accuity report found.

  Retail

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  Discover invests $30 million in BNPL company Sezzle

  Discover becomes the latest card network company to jump into the burgeoning buy now-pay later space.

  Retail

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  Fed seeks to dismiss or move retailers' North Dakota lawsuit

  Retail associations' case against the Fed's setting of debit fee caps is resurfacing familiar arguments from a prior battle over the issue. 

  Retail

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  Card companies' earnings likely to reflect rebound

  U.S. consumers are boosting their credit card spending as the country emerges from COVID-19 pandemic restrictions, but that may not necessarily mean a windfall for card companies' second-quarter results being released over the next two weeks.

  Retail

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  Powell clarifies timeline on Fed CBDC paper

  In two congressional hearings this week, lawmakers grilled the central bank chair on digital dollar development and pressed for his second term — or a change in leadership.

  Retail

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  Onbe taps Janakiraman to replace Spottiswood as CEO

  Onbe’s new CEO plans to double down on the company’s strategy for digitizing corporate payments.

  Retail

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  Intuit's new Quickbooks card-reader joins the POS payments fray

  With the debut of new payments hardware, the accounting software company is bolstering its bid for small business clients amid a slew of competitors.

  Retail

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  It's CardX versus AmEx at state capitols nationwide

  The startup CardX is fighting American Express from coast to coast as states reassess whether merchants should be able to slap surcharges on credit card purchases.

  Retail

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  Visa rolls out BNPL for merchants

  The credit card network company is making the new installment payment option available to merchants in Canada, where buy now-pay later adoption has been growing fast.

  Retail

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  Sam's Club expands Scan & Go payment app

  The updated app lets shoppers scan purchases, pick a payment option and ship them directly to their homes.  

  Retail

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  Trade group seeks Biden antitrust focus on payments

  The Merchants Payments Coalition kept up its crusade to draw federal attention to what it calls "anti-competitive" swipe fees.

  Banking

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  CBDCs could give 'clean slate' for cross-border payments, BIS report says

  Global coordination for central bank digital currency "designs could lead to more efficient cross-currency and cross-border payments,” the Bank for International Settlements report this week said.

  Retail

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  Bank of America catches up to competitors with crypto push

  After a wave of rival banks spearheaded crypto earlier this year, BofA announced that it's put a research team on digital asset technologies.

  Banking

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