Small businesses count on digital payments to drive growth

The Latest

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  Is there an expiration date on Visa's main growth engine?

  One analyst thinks so. Mizuho Securities Analyst Dan Dolev, who has been covering Visa for about three years, downgraded his rating on the largest U.S. card network company because he expects time is running out on consumers converting from cash to cards.

  Retail

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  Payments firms see slam dunk opportunity with sports venues

  Digital payments players are charging into the sports and events space, bringing new technologies to arenas they say can improve the fan experience and unlock a trove of data.

  Retail

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  Opinion

  Card reward programs are the rising tide to lift all boats

  The chairman of the Electronic Payments Coalition argues "Americans— regardless of income—love their credit card rewards programs." And the programs benefit consumers and merchants alike, he contends.

  Retail

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  Crypto, privacy lead legislative priorities for payment trade group

  The Electronic Transactions Association said legislative moves related to those issues will be among the most important it's tracking this year at the state and federal government levels.

  Banking

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  ATMs headed the way of the payphone

  As cash use declines, ATMs are disappearing. The U.S. count for such automated tellers peaked in 2019 and is headed down, according to data from the research firm Euromonitor International.

  Banking

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  The potential payments peril of punishing Russia

  The international community is weighing kicking Russia out of the Swift global payments network as a sanction for the country's aggression in Ukraine, but it could backfire.

  Banking

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  Payments deals pile up in 2021

  More than $50 billion in acquisitions were announced last year by companies in the payments arena. That wasn't a record, but it still ranked among one of the industry's busiest years for deal-making.

  Retail

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  American Express delays new work model due to omicron

  The company, which had expected to bring more employees back to U.S. offices later this month, isn't alone in postponing return plans due to another rise in COVID-19 cases.

  Regulations & Policy

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  7 payments trends for 2022 as innovation climbs

  From cross-border services to BNPL to cybersecurity tools, there will be no shortage of innovation and competition in the payments industry as businesses and their regulators shape new digital tools in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

  Retail

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  Opinion

  Payments are becoming invisible. Here's why that's a good thing.

  "The next great evolution will see payments fully disappear into simplified, holistic commerce platforms," according to a U.S. Bank payments executive. That new era "will be here faster than you think."

  Banking

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  Payments firms raised record sums in 2021

  It was a banner year for payments startups in 2021, as they raked in nearly $32 billion in investments, according to research firm CB Insights. This year could be even hotter.

  Retail

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  Green Dot, PayPal helped recover $400M in stolen relief funds

  Criminals have swindled nearly $100 billion through fraudulent applications since the start of the pandemic in the U.S., the agency said. Some payment companies aided in the effort to recover the money, CNBC reported.

  Regulations & Policy

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  Mastercard buys AI firm Dynamic Yield from McDonald's

  Combining Mastercard's payment expertise and Dynamic Yield's AI capabilities could help McDonald's strengthen its digital ordering strategy, as the fast-food chain pivots toward outsourcing its technology. The card company may benefit from further scaling the Yield AI business across other industries.

  Restaurants

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  Community banks group launches lower-cost P2P option

  Unlike other platforms, the new alternative to Zelle lets consumers send money over the platform of their choice.

  Retail

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  Tech trade group criticizes CFPB payments probe

  The Electronic Transactions Association, a trade group representing tech companies, asked the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to explain how the agency's inquiry fits within its authority.

  Regulations & Policy

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  BNPL growth prompts change from credit bureaus

  Paying in installments has become wildly popular, but many of these plans aren't reflected on consumers' credit reports. Credit agencies say adaptations are coming.

  Retail

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  Bankers group presses CFPB to expand tech probe

  Independent Community Bankers of America is urging the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau to sweep data aggregators into its inquiry into the practices of payment tech companies.

  Banking

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  Community banks form payments network to compete with Zelle: report

  Community bank innovation consortium Alloy Labs Alliance will manage the network in partnership with Payrailz, a digital payments company, Forbes reported. 

  Banking

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  Payhawk plans 2022 New York office opening

  The Sofia-based company raised more than $130 million this year, arming it to take on U.S. rivals in providing business clients with payments management tools.

  Banking

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  Feds increase scrutiny of buy now-pay later

  The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is concerned about consumers taking on too much debt, and about BNPL providers evading laws. As a result, it's demanding information from five of the biggest players in the emerging industry.

  Regulations & Policy

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  Gen Zers relied on buy now-pay later for holiday shopping. It's time to pay up.

  Look up #Klarna, #Afterpay or #Affirm on the social media site TikTok. Beneath some of those BNPL provider hashtags are videos of teens dancing and lip syncing to viral sounds, with the balances they owe in the background.

  Retail

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  Klarna extends BNPL to all online retailers

  After acquiring the Dutch marketing software company Piggy, the Swedish buy now-pay later company is folding automatic couponing and price drop notifications into its offering and expanding the reach of its services.

  Retail

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  Card industry faces $400B in fraud losses over next decade, Nilson says

  Fraud-fighting efforts kept card industry losses at bay last year, according to Nilson Report, but the research firm says don’t expect the same when this year wraps up. "The decline in the dollar amount of fraud losses in 2020 will not be repeated in 2021," the report said.

  Retail

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  How Elon Musk's mood drives crypto

  The world's richest man can send cryptocurrency prices soaring or plummeting depending on his mood. This year, Dogecoin has been the object of his affection, and derision.

  Regulations & Policy

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  Corcentric to grow through SPAC

  Payments technology company Corcentric aims to grow, including internationally, by way of a merger with a special purpose acquisition company that will raise capital and take the business public.

  Technology

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