Some 41% of Americans think their finances will stay the same in the next 12 months, while 38% say their situation will get better, according to a survey by Discover Personal Loans, a unit of Discover Financial Services. But 20% expect to be worse off. The survey, conducted by Morning Consult, …
Read More »Samsung Enables Wallet Users to Exchange Money by Tapping Phones
Samsung Electronics America announced early Tuesday it is rolling out a new peer-to-peer payments capability for its digital wallets in the United States. Called Tap to Transfer, the new feature will enable Samsung wallet users to send money to one another by tapping their phones. Samsung wallet users can send …
Read More »CFPB Open Banking Revisit and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 5/6/25
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may revisit its new open banking rule, according to a report on Bloomberg Law, which indicated the review likely comes as banks ask about the potential liability for data breaches and being able to charge for access to their data. Bloomberg said it’s uncertain if the existing rule …
Read More »Despite BNPL’s Popularity, Consumers Are Encountering Problems
Nearly one quarter of consumers tend to spend more than they should when taking out a BNPL loan, says a new study by Bankrate.com. Overall, 24% of consumers say they overspent after getting BNPL funds. Gen Zers are the demographic most likely to feel that way, with 30% saying they …
Read More »Consumers Are Trimming Their Spending, Fiserv Small Business Index Finds
Small businesses experienced a single boost in April from March, according to the Fiserv Small Business Index. The metric increased from 150 in March to 151 in April, Fiserv Inc. says, reflecting activity from small businesses providing more essential services. Consumers, however, have pulled back on their discretionary spending. “Small …
Read More »ServiceMonster Payments Debuts and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 5/5/25
ServiceMonster, whose software serves carpet- and window-cleaning providers, launched ServiceMonster Payments, a platform allowing service providers to process payments within the ServiceMonster desktop or mobile app. Payment finance platform Infini has launched its Global Card, a virtual card that offers yields on stablecoin balances and spending through such wallets as Apple Pay, …
Read More »Despite Lower-Than-Expected Profit And Cash App Softness, Block Remains Bullish
Block Inc. remains bullish that its Cash App financial-services platform will remain a growth driver this year, despite its posting lower than projected gross profits during the first quarter, the company said during a conference call late Thursday to discuss its first-quarter results. Block is the parent company of the …
Read More »Crypto Operators Keep Chipping Away at a Merchant Acceptance Barrier
Cryptocurrency remains far from mainstream payments, but it keeps edging closer in the United States and worldwide. Further evidence emerged early Friday with news that the money-transfer platform MoneyGram International Inc. has launched MoneyGram Ramps, an application programming interface aimed at easing crypto-based transfers. Simultaneously, a crypto app called Bitget …
Read More »AI Commerce Gets a Boost From Visa, PayPal, and Mastercard
Visa Inc. late Wednesday introduced Visa Intelligent Commerce, an artificial intelligence-based shopping service that enables AI agents to shop and make purchases for consumers. AI agents are software programs that use artificial intelligence to gather information and take actions to achieve clearly defined goals with a minimum of human intervention. The …
Read More »Mastercard Reckons With a Cap One Impact As Its Crypto Investment Grows
The payments industry may soon be wrestling with the fallout from the upcoming $35-billion merger of Capital One Financial Corp. and Discover Financial Services, and one key question emerging from the deal is how it will affect Mastercard, the network for Cap One’s credit and debit cards. Early on Thursday, …
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