Amex takes on banks in bid for new generation of clients

With the launch of its new checking service, American Express aims to expand its relationship with cardmembers — and not miss out on attracting consumers drawn to debit cards. 

By Caitlin Mullen • April 11, 2022

CBDC will take years to develop, Yellen says

Despite new technologies, payments often take too long, the treasury secretary said in her first remarks on digital assets since a March executive order on the topic. Regardless of where assets are stored, regulation should be "tech neutral," she said.

By Dan Ennis • April 8, 2022

Explore the Trendline➔

Digital wallets proliferate as features advance

As more companies aim to offer digital wallets the rise in competition is sharpening their features.  

By Payments Dive staff

FDIC: Banks should alert agency of their crypto-related pursuits

The regulator said it supports safe and sound innovations, but is concerned that the risks associated with crypto assets and crypto-related activities are not well understood.

By Anna Hrushka • April 8, 2022

Bolt buys Wyre to get crypto in its wallet

With the $1.5 billion acquisition of cryptocurrency payments firm Wyre, Bolt aims to bring crypto front and center within its online checkout capabilities and digital wallet. Crypto "will be a major part of Bolt’s strategy going forward," said CEO Maju Kuruvilla.

By Caitlin Mullen • April 8, 2022

Amazon expands cashierless supermarket chain

The tech juggernaut opened its first full-size checkout free Fresh store on the East Coast last week in suburban Washington, D.C., bringing the chain total to 27 nationwide. That latest opening in Fairfax, Virginia, is the first of four in that suburban area that Amazon plans to open.

By Sam Silverstein • April 8, 2022

Crypto buyers see long-term investment value

As cryptocurrency adoption grows worldwide, many Americans are increasingly interested in it, according to several new surveys. However, many consumers acknowledge they still don’t fully understand cryptocurrencies.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • April 6, 2022

Startup Fast abruptly shuts down

The one-click checkout startup announced Tuesday it’s shutting down, despite the CEO promising heady growth this year as recently as January. Fast will "permanently discontinue" its Fast Checkout service on April 15, the company said.

By Caitlin Mullen • April 6, 2022

Checkout startup Fast seeks buyer: report

In January, CEO Domm Holland said his company was fielding "incredible demand" from investors and planning big growth this year. Now, the San Francisco-based one-click checkout startup has reportedly hired Morgan Stanley to consider a sale and may lay off hundreds of employees, according to the publication The Information.

By Caitlin Mullen • April 5, 2022

Digital outages resolved, Amex says

An American Express spokesperson said Wednesday all systems were working once again, after some customers had encountered website and mobile app outages that persisted through the weekend.

By Caitlin Mullen • Updated April 6, 2022

Sen. Cruz seeks to restrict Fed role for CBDC

Sen. Ted Cruz's legislation, which follows a companion House bill introduced earlier this year, would prevent the Federal Reserve from issuing a central bank digital currency directly to consumers.

By Jonathan Berr • April 1, 2022

Cross River reaches $3B valuation, eyes global expansion

The banking-as-a-service company, has a sweet spot in payments. Cross River's clients include payments juggernaut Stripe, buy now-pay later provider Affirm and crypto exchange Coinbase.

By Anna Hrushka • March 31, 2022

CEOs Sound Off: Confronting a lack of diversity in payments

Payments CEOs recognize the need to draw more women and people of color into the industry, and the need to promote them. To effect change, these CEOs are changing job descriptions, casting a wider net in recruiting and showcasing how they're different.

By Lynne Marek • March 31, 2022

Transit app incorporates Apple Pay, Google Pay for fares

An integration between public transportation app Transit and mobile ticketing provider Token Transit aims to make these mobile wallet payment methods available to more commuters across the U.S.

By Caitlin Mullen • March 30, 2022

Congress mulls a different digital dollar

While talk of a digital dollar has mainly focused on creation of a central bank digital currency through the Federal Reserve, a group of House Democrats on Monday proposed legislation that pivots in a different direction, creating an electronic dollar through a new program administered by the Treasury Department.

By Lynne Marek • March 29, 2022

OnPay Solutions acquired by Medius

The acquisition of Jacksonville-based OnPay Solutions is the latest in a string of business-to-business deals over the past year. For Medius, it provides entry into the U.S. market following other recent expansion moves.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • March 29, 2022

PayPal's Happy Returns to add service in Ulta stores

PayPal's Happy Returns services will now be available at the beauty products store chain. PayPal has integrated its returns services into multiple retailers’ brick-and-mortar locations over the past few years.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • March 28, 2022

Sightline taps JPMorgan Chase for gaming expansion

Sightline is hiring the big bank after raising significant equity capital last year. Payments processors have unveiled new services as online gambling has increased over the past few years.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • March 25, 2022

Fed's Powell lists 4 qualifications for a US CBDC

A digital dollar must ensure user privacy, be "identity verifiable," be "intermediated" and be widely accepted as a means of payment, the central bank chief said Wednesday during a panel discussion hosted by the Bank for International Settlements.

By Dan Ennis • March 24, 2022

PayPal nabs Intel exec for CIO role

The newly appointed Archana Deskus was most recently CIO and EVP at Intel. She will oversee global IT at the electronic payments pioneer, reporting to its CEO Dan Schulman.

By Roberto Torres • March 23, 2022

Affirm CFO leans in for CFPB inquiry

A top executive at Affirm, the biggest independent U.S. buy now-pay later company, says he understands the way in which the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is trying to get a handle on the new industry.

By Jonathan Berr • March 23, 2022

Payments firms battle for talent

Hiring and retention are a top challenge for payments companies right now. Here’s what they’re doing to stand out from the crowd and win talent.

By Caitlin Mullen • March 23, 2022

Fiserv, MX team up on open-banking effort

A partnership between Brookfield, Wisconsin-based payments giant Fiserv and fintech MX Technologies aims to expand their offerings for consumers eager to share data across service providers.

By Caitlin Mullen • March 22, 2022

ChargeAfter raises $44M as competition grows

The New York-based company is stockpiling dollars as new and old payments players arrive in the buy now-pay later arena. Consumers are predicted to increase their BNPL spending, but the service also faces regulatory scrutiny.

By Tatiana Walk-Morris • March 22, 2022

Stripe snags a new crypto customer

Payments software juggernaut Stripe said it has landed crypto company Blockchain.com as a new customer and that it's aiming to aid the digital currency client in international expansion.

By Lynne Marek • March 21, 2022

Fewer taxpayers plan to pay the IRS by check

The share of consumers planning to use mobile phones to pay their taxes increased over last year, while the portion preferring to pay by check declined, according to a survey from payments firm ACI Worldwide.

By Caitlin Mullen • March 17, 2022