Real-time Payments

January, 2026

• 6 January

  COMMENTARY: Stablecoins and Cards: Why the Either/Or Debate Misses the Point

  

  The stablecoin hype is real. The pitch sounds irresistible: instant settlement, lower costs, fewer intermediaries. So, will the world move on from cards to stablecoins? Nope. Why not? Because it’s more nuanced than that. Stablecoins and cards aren’t competing for the same job. Rather, they solve different problems in the …
• 5 January

  Digital Transactions 2025 Top 10 Countdown

  

  A recap of the top 10 posts on DigitalTransactions.net in 2025. #1 Eye on AI: Worldpay Adds AI Safeguards; Pushpay’s Approach to AI [Aug. 14] As artificial intelligence use builds in the commercial world, its manifestations in consumer-facing payments applications continue to emerge. The latest developments include processor Worldpay using Trulioo’s …
• 5 January

  Flutterwave’s Latest Move and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 1/5/25

  

  The U.S.-based payments-technology company Flutterwave Inc. announced it has acquired open-banking tech specialist Mono Technologies Nigeria Ltd. in an effort to support alternative payments across the African continent. Terms were not announced. SoundHound AI Inc., a specialist in conversational AI technology, said its Amelia 7 agentic AI technology will allow users inside …

December, 2025

• 31 December

  Routable Adds FedNow to Speed Accounts Payable

  

  [Aug. 15] Routable, a San Francisco-based accounts-payable platform provider, has expanded its support for real-time payments through connectivity to FedNow, the Federal Reserve’s 2-year-old real-time payments platform.  With the addition of FedNow, Routable says its customers have the ability to send instant payments to as many as 85% of bank …
• 30 December

  Stablecoin Giant Circle Launches Arc for Cross-Border Flows

  

  [Aug. 12] Stablecoin giant Circle Internet Group Inc. early Tuesday unveiled Arc, a new payments platform aimed at major money flows, including foreign exchange. The new service, part of the existing Circle Payments Network, will speed up foreign exchange while offering what the company calls “sub-second instant finality” in settlement, the …
• 22 December

  How Processors Are Turning to Stablecoins for Internal and Seller Funding

  

  The speed and apparent lower cost of stablecoins—coupled with the digital currency’s rising prominence as a payments method—has captured the imagination of payments companies. Now some are leveraging the coins for both internal and merchant funding. Shift4 Payments Inc. said early Monday it has launched a facility for stablecoin settlement …
• 19 December

  FedNow Reports Nearly 30,000 Daily Transactions and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/19/25

  

  As 2025 nears its end, the Federal Reserve’s FedNow real-time payments service now has almost 1,600 participating financial institutions, including 70% of the country’s largest banks, the Fed reported. Transactions have reached nearly 30,000 daily, according to the Fed. FedNow launched in 2023. Domain-name registrar GoDaddy Inc. launched its ANS Marketplace and new AI …
• 18 December

  Isaacman Finally Gets NASA OK and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/18/25

  

  Former Shift4 Payments Inc. chief executive Jared Isaacman was approved by a U.S. Senate vote of 67-30 to take over as administrator at NASA, the top position at the U.S. space agency. President Trump renominated Isaacman for the job in November after quashing his original nomination in May. Payments platform PSQ Holdings Inc. said …
• 17 December

  System Developer Enables ACH and other Digital Transactions News briefs from 12/17/25

  

  System Solutions LLC says an update to its integration with Microsoft Dynamics 365 Business Central cloud ERP software enables merchants to process automated clearing house transactions within 365 Central.  Sardine AI Corp., a risk-management firm, said it will offer real-time transaction monitoring, fraud interdiction, and other services through a partnership with …
• 16 December

  Visa Moves to Support Stablecoins for U.S. Settlement

  

  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 …