The world is a rapidly changing place for payments – consumer payments, B2B payments, cross-border payments. We are very much not in Kansas anymore when it comes to moving funds, and the old rules don’t work nearly so well in digital Oz. Consumers want to be safe –...
The good news about modern digital customers, particularly younger ones, is their consistent willingness to try new things, such as new stores and new delivery experiences. Novelty has a good deal of power for consumers constantly connected to a wide variety of commerce channels. And, as 4G is giving...
Freelance work is as old as work itself, but the more recent emergence of the digital marketplace dedicated to “gig work” has had effects beyond the world of employment. It’s turned up the pressure for faster payments and easier access to funds as they are...
There is much evidence to suggest that the only acceptable pace for digitization in payments and commerce is faster. Disbursements, wherever one may find them, are almost always improved by speed. But while benefits like enhanced access and greater efficiency are unlocked, the costs of speed are well-known as...
Faster payments in the U.S. and around the world are increasingly becoming the norm. Consumers and business want it and there is money to be made by offering it. But for all the powerful things that faster payments unlocks, in payments, in lending or in SMB transactions, there is the downside. Faster...
Hype is, and always has been, part and parcel to the world of tech. After all, almost no one bills their own innovations as the next medium-sized thing. But, as bitcoin and the blockchain have demonstrated over the last decade, sometimes the reality doesn’t live up to...
Consumers have historically needed a bit of prodding to get them into a mobile state of mind when it comes to payments. Digital transactions on the whole are up – eCommerce, financial services, bill payments – but fully embracing mobile has been a bit trickier. But, by...
One’s first thought at the word “Walmart” might not be “blockchain enthusiasts,” even though these days it would not be an inaccurate description. But Walmart isn’t taking bitcoin payments; they are using the blockchain to make their food networks safer and more transparent. And payment...
While innovation and advances are often expected to appear in explosive, disruptive form – as often as they seem to appear out of nowhere full formed – more really good ideas actually evolve over time. The first few generations of all-in-one smart credit cards crashed and...
