Competitive Strategies

E-commerce payments provider FastSpring announced it has introduced Cash App Pay as a payment method for its checkout. Block Inc. launched Cash App Pay on Square in 2021 and extended it to external sites the next year. Grocery chain The Kroger Co. launched its Kroger Rewards World Elite Mastercard, a credit card offering rewards good for …

As consumers ready for the holiday shopping season, many are making budgets a priority, according to new PayPal Holdings Inc. data. Meanwhile, Etsy, a popular e-commerce site for crafted goods, renewed its seller payout deal with Payoneer. PayPal says its 2026 Holiday Shopping Survey, which canvassed 2,005 U.S. adults in …

How common will agentic payments become, and how fast? Predictions vary, of course, but tech companies are releasing new advances in the autonomous technology almost daily. In the latest example, AppZen early Wednesday unveiled Autonomous Cards, intended for corporate card programs. According to the San Jose, Calif.-based company, the new …

Two-thirds of consumers walk away from a payment process that requires more than three steps, according to “The Competition for Consumer Payments,” a report from Datos Insights sponsored by SBT, a payments platform specializing in regulated industries. Datos surveyed 2,000 U.S. consumers in the second quarter for the report. 934 Ltd., …

The persistent need to provide the latest payment-acceptance tools and the pressure to keep an acquirer’s brand front and center often exist in parallel. North, a Troy, Mich.-based acquirer, is marking its launch of Embedded Checkout by North while competitor Kurv renews its sponsorship of the Cleveland Browns. North says …

Toast, known for its point-of-sale payments technology for restaurants, has launched Toast Fuel to support convenience stores in accepting payments in-store and at the pump. The expansion, which includes both retail and foodservice transactions, will enable all payments to be handled on a single platform, Toast says. C-stores sell an …

Bank of America Corp. said its transaction volume flowing on the RTP network, an instant payment service operated by The Clearing House Payments Co. LLC, increased 48% from January through July compared with the same period in 2025. Much of that is attributed to RTP’s transaction limit increase to $10 …

Processor and core banking services provider FIS Inc. is taking a step to make it easier for debit card users at banks and credit unions to understand debit card transactions on their statements. It’s a move that could reduce chargeback inquiries. Developed with Spade, a New York City-based transaction data …

American Express Co. announced its cards are now accepted at more than 190 million merchant locations globally, including 20 million added so far this year. Beyond its longtime base in hotels, restaurants, and airlines, AmEx says it is now accepted at an estimated 800-plus transit authorities globally. Chase said it has begun …

Near-field communication technology that has found its way into almost every credit and debit card could also be used to enable video gamers to pay for new games and movies with a tap of the card against a Sony PlayStation controller, according to a recent patent by the electronics giant. …