Visa Inc. announced early Tuesday it is supporting stablecoins as a settlement option for issuer and acquirer banks in the United States, a major move in payment card finance and one observers see as an inevitable next step for the industry, though one that could come with complications. The use …
Read More »Merchant Groups Voice Their Objections to the Latest Visa-Mastercard Swipe Fee Settlement Offer
Merchant groups late Friday filed written complaints regarding the latest settlement offer in their two-decades old lawsuit against Visa Inc. and Mastercard Inc. challenging card swipe fees. The settlement offer, which follows a rejected offer in 2024, was made in November. Merchant groups filing complaints were The National Association of …
Read More »Crypto Kingpins Circle And Ripple Are Approved for National Trust Banks
Two major players in stablecoins, Circle Internet Financial Inc. and Ripple Labs Inc., received conditional approval Friday from the U.S. Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to establish national trust banks. Both companies coveted the approvals as key to establishing confidence in stablecoins among consumers and businesses as they …
Read More »Moves Emerge to Bring Crypto—Especially Stablecoins—Into Everyday Usage
Swipe Fees Are a Drain on Consumers’ Wallets, a Merchant Group Says
Fees paid by merchants to accept credit card and debit cards will dampen consumer spending power this holiday shopping season as sellers look for ways to offset the cost, says the Merchants Payment Coalition. Swipe fees are projected to cost merchants at least $19.9 billion this holiday shopping season, up …
Read More »NMI’s Business Capital Debuts and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/9/25
Network Merchants Inc., also known as NMI, has launched NMI Business Capital, aimed at allowing ISOs, payment facilitators, and merchant-service providers to offer financing through their existing merchant portals. NMI announced early Tuesday that Parafin, a fintech, is the latest client for the service. Buy now, pay later specialist Afterpay Ltd. added more than …
Read More »The FIDO Alliance Launches a Digital Credentials Initiative
The FIDO Alliance has launched an initiative to accelerate the adoption of verifiable digital credentials and identity wallets. The initiative will be led by the Alliance’s Digital Credentials Working Group (DCWG), EMVCo, the International Standardization Organization, The OpenID Foundation, and the Worldwide Web Consortium are also partnering on the initiative …
Read More »Klarna Challenges Rewards Card Issuers; Affirm Adds Pacsun to its Merchant Network
Seeking to provide an alternative to rewards credit cards, Klarna AB has expanded its Premium and Max membership programs in the United States. Klarna’s membership program is a monthly fee-based service that offers consumers such rewards as cashback, exclusive deals, and lifestyle rewards, as well as airport lounge access and …
Read More »RTP Tops $1.3 Trillion and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/4/25
The Clearing House Payments Co. LLC said its RTP instant payments network topped $1.3 trillion in total payments in 2025 through November, up 428% from 2024. TCH said RTP transactions account for 98% of all bank-to-bank instant payments. PAR Technology Corp. announced Abelardo’s Mexican Fresh, a restaurant chain with more than 50 …
Read More »Block Notes 10% BFCM Uptick and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/2/25
Black Friday through Cyber Monday shopping generated a 10% rise year-over-year for Block Inc.’s Square, Cash App, and Afterpay payments properties, to 124 million transactions, the company reported. Payments processor Nuvei Corp. announced it is expanding a partnership with Microsoft Corp. to enable its core payment processing APIs to run on Microsoft Axure and use Azure AI to …
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