Risk

Consumer spending rises despite inflation: Mastercard

While card issuers are bracing for economic headwinds, consumer spending has continued to rise recently, including for apparel, jewelry and travel.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • Aug. 8, 2022

Block pulls back on expenses

The parent of Square is cutting $250 million in planned expenses for the year, after reporting another quarterly net loss on Thursday.

By Caitlin Mullen • Aug. 5, 2022

Gucci expands crypto payment options to ApeCoin, Euro Coin

More brands have entered the cryptocurrency and NFT markets despite signs of declining consumer interest.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • Aug. 4, 2022

Fiserv whittles workforce

The payments processor cut employees in the first half of the year and shouldered higher severance expenses, following a string of acquisitions in recent years.

By Caitlin Mullen • Aug. 4, 2022

Will a swoon in valuations affect Block’s Afterpay?

Block acquired Afterpay for what was ultimately $13.9 billion in stock, but a string of fintechs writing down valuations in the face of economic pressures raises the possibility Block will be forced to do the same.

By Caitlin Mullen • Aug. 2, 2022

Global Payments buys Evo at a premium

Global Payments said it will pay $4 billion to buy Evo Payments as it sheds its Netspend consumer unit for $1 billion and takes a $1.5 billion investment from Silver Lake Partners.

By Lynne Marek • Aug. 1, 2022

Card CEOs react to macroeconomic threats

Amid talk of a recession, executives with Visa, Mastercard, American Express and Discover are keeping a close eye on inflation, consumer demand and unemployment levels.

By Caitlin Mullen , Lynne Marek • July 29, 2022

CEOs Sound Off: Payments execs navigate economic turmoil

CEOs of three payments companies share how macroeconomic headwinds are affecting their businesses and how they’re seeing their firms through the uncertainty.

By Jonathan Berr • July 29, 2022

Attorneys weigh case against Discover

After Discover disclosed an internal investigation into its student loan practices, the company’s stock price dropped more than 8% on July 21, attorneys noted.

By Caitlin Mullen • July 26, 2022

Discover CEO pelted with queries over loan probe

Discover Financial Services CEO Roger Hochschild said executives at the company “hope” an internal investigation of its student loan practices concludes this year, as he side-stepped analyst queries on the subject.

By Caitlin Mullen • July 21, 2022

Resolve CEO touts benefits of BNPL in B2B

As Resolve’s customers manage cash closely and navigate supply chain snags, CEO Chris Tsai expects the company’s BNPL model for B2B will stand out in a challenging economic environment.

By Caitlin Mullen • July 21, 2022

Feds crack down on improper payments

A federal government report released this week takes aim at the problem of fraudulent public benefit payments, which mushroomed to $281 billion for fiscal year 2021.

By Lynne Marek • July 20, 2022

Bank of America fined $225M over 'botched' disbursement of unemployment benefits

The CFPB accused the bank of implementing a faulty fraud filter that would trigger an account freeze over a “simple set of flags.”

By Anna Hrushka • July 18, 2022

Brainard urges more oversight of crypto

The Federal Reserve vice chair on Friday said the May collapse of the Terra stablecoin, which wiped out millions of dollars of value in a matter of days, was “reminiscent of classic runs throughout history.”

By Anna Hrushka • July 11, 2022

Walmart lashes back at FTC over money-transfer lawsuit

In a fiery rebuttal to the Federal Trade Commission lawsuit last week, the nation’s biggest retailer is already doing battle in the court of public opinion.

By Lynne Marek • July 6, 2022

Don't abandon stablecoins over Terra, CFO says

Fintechs and financial services players will "be the driver of innovations and regulations that enable stablecoins, crypto and other digital assets to scale," argues Metallicus Chief Financial Officer Irina Berkon.

By Irina Berkon • July 6, 2022

Congress takes on 'bro culture' in fintech

A congressional task force this week heard from fintech founders and venture capitalists about persistent inequities in funding for female- and minority-founded startups.

By Lynne Marek • July 1, 2022

EVO Payments finds deals harder to come by, CEO says

EVO Payments has grown over the past decade through dozens of acquisitions, but it’s not so eager to buy now.

By Jonathan Berr • June 23, 2022

Mastercard shareholders reject ghost guns proposal

A shareholder who is also a state official and candidate for Congress urged the card giant’s board to issue a report related to untraceable guns, but the proposal didn’t win enough support to pass at the company’s annual meeting.

By Caitlin Mullen • June 22, 2022

Friendly fraud: How should fintechs view the risks?

With friendly fraud, fintechs don’t always consider the whole picture when it comes to fraudulent disputes.

By Sarah Mirsky-Terranova • June 21, 2022

Discover eyes benefits of downturn

As smaller fintechs grapple with restructuring challenges, the card company expects there will be more opportunities for it in hiring talent and acquiring businesses.

By Caitlin Mullen • June 21, 2022

Payments startups still gaining value, for now

Payments companies “led the pack in valuation increases” and had the biggest average increase in valuation, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.

By Jonathan Berr • June 14, 2022

Don't count crypto out just yet

Cryptocurrency skeptics were undoubtedly delighted by TerraUSD’s collapse last month, but there are plenty of signs already this month that the crypto era is far from over. Maybe it’s just beginning.

By Lynne Marek • June 10, 2022

Toast heats up restaurant payments competition

As Toast adds services, the Boston startup is taking business from larger rivals and fintech peers, analysts say.

By Jonathan Berr • June 8, 2022

Foundation opines on crypto bill

The Stellar Development Foundation provided its take on this week’s bipartisan Senate bill to create a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies.

By Robin Bradley • June 7, 2022