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July 18, 2025
Top Post
RTP® Network Hits $481 Billion in Q2 as Higher-Value Instant Payments Surge
The Clearing House
"Instant payments adoption is accelerating—and payments are getting bigger. In Q2 2025, the RTP® network, the largest instant payments system in the United States operated by The Clearing House that averages 1.18 million payments each day, processed $481 billion in payments, a 195% leap in value from the previous quarter. What’s behind the surge? Businesses and financial institutions are embracing larger, faster transactions, thanks to the network’s increased transaction limit of $10 million, introduced in February."
On the web
Worldwide Golf Selects Adyen to Power Unified Commerce Payments
Adyen
"Worldwide Golf, the premier destination for golf equipment and apparel, has chosen Adyen, the global financial technology platform of choice for leading businesses, as its unified commerce payments partner.With Adyen’s single platform, Worldwide Golf can consolidate payments across its e-commerce channels and nearly 100 physical stores, gaining deeper insights into customer preferences and enhancing operational efficiency."
Rounding Up: The Impact of Phasing Out the Penny
Richmond Fed
"The U.S. government is expected to stop producing new pennies for circulation by early 2026. In 2024, the Treasury incurred a seigniorage loss of $85.3 million on penny production. As pennies phase out, businesses are likely to round cash transactions to the nearest 5 cents, resulting in a "rounding tax." Using data from the 2023 Diary of Consumer Payment Choice, we estimate that rounding tax could cost U.S. consumers approximately $6 million annually."
U.S. Bank Deepens Focus on CX Through Its Recent Embedded Payments Suite Expansion
Tearsheet
"Designed to operate behind the scenes — within websites, mobile apps, enterprise software, or fintech platforms — the new features of the embedded payments suite help businesses deliver a simplified payment experience without redirecting users to external sites or relying on multiple vendors. Whether it’s paying suppliers, disbursing funds to users, or employee transactions, the system is built to plug right into what companies are already using."
Citi and Ant International Pilot AI-enabled Forecasting Solution to Enhance FX Risk Management for Airline Customers
Ant International
"Citi and Ant International announced that they are piloting the use of Ant International's Falcon Time-Series Transformer (TST) Model to deliver an enhanced FX risk management solution for their customers. Developed with aviation clients as an initial use case, the solution aims to offer greater payment solutions for the airline industry, which processes billions of payment transactions annually."
FCA Proposes Stricter BNPL Rules Amid Debt Concerns [UK]
IBS Intelligence
"The UK’s Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has unveiled a series of new proposals aimed at tightening regulation of the country’s fast-growing Buy Now Pay Later (BNPL) market, as policymakers look to address mounting concerns over consumer debt and affordability. The proposed rules would see BNPL lenders required to carry out mandatory affordability checks to ensure that borrowers are able to repay loans without falling into financial distress."
July 17, 2025
Top Post
Generative AI at the Crossroads: Light Bulb, Dynamo, or Microscope?
Federal Reserve
"With the advent of generative AI (genAI), the potential scope of artificial intelligence has increased dramatically, but the future effect of genAI on productivity remains uncertain. The effect of the technology on the innovation process is a crucial open question. Some inventions, such as the light bulb, temporarily raise productivity growth as adoption spreads, but the effect fades when the market is saturated; that is, the level of output per hour is permanently higher but the growth rate is not."
On the web
ECB Publishes Third Progress Report on the Digital Euro Preparation Phase
European Central Bank
"The European Central Bank (ECB) has published its third progress report on the preparation phase of a digital euro, which was launched on 1 November 2023 and is laying the foundations for the potential issuance of a digital euro. Since the publication of the second progress report, the ECB has continued to make progress on the draft digital euro scheme rulebook, which aims to harmonise digital euro payments across the euro area and ensure a modern, user-friendly experience."
Pix Drives Sharp Decline in Cash Use in Brazil
Valor International
"Fewer Brazilians are using physical cash for payments as the country embraces what Google calls the “Cashless Era,” marked by a decisive shift from paper currency to digital transactions, according to the study Payments in Transformation: From Cash to Code. Regarding how Pix is used, 76% have used it for direct transfers, 75% for QR code payments, and 37% for contactless transactions."
On the wires
Ant International Expands Merchant Payment AI Functions With Antom Copilot 2.0
Business Wire
"Antom, Ant International’s merchant payment and digitisation services provider, announced a major upgrade to its flagship AI agent, Antom Copilot, with expanded capabilities across payment integration, onboarding, risk configuration, and chargeback solution. Antom Copilot is the world’s first merchant payment service AI agent, launched in June 2024."
NPCI International Expands UPI-PayNow Linkage to Drive Cross-Border Remittances
PR Newswire
"NPCI International Payments Limited (NIPL) the international arm of National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) has further enhanced the UPI-PayNow real-time payment linkage by adding 13 more banks on the platform, extending its reach and simplifying cross-border remittances between India and Singapore. With this development, users in both countries can remit funds to a wider base, making the service more accessible and convenient."
OpenAI Working on Payment Checkout System Within ChatGPT, FT Reports
Reuters
"OpenAI is planning to take a cut from online product sales made through ChatGPT by integrating a payment checkout system into the chatbot, the Financial Times reported on Wednesday, citing multiple people familiar with the proposals. Merchants that fulfill orders through the payment system will pay a commission to OpenAI, the report said."
Payabl. Expands Platform With SEPA Direct Debit for Businesses
Business Wire
"Payabl, a leading European financial technology provider, announced the launch of SEPA Direct Debit capabilities across its product suite. The new functionality enables businesses to automatically collect recurring euro payments from customers via Payabl’s gateway and automate recurring supplier payments through Payabl's business accounts, each optimised for different business needs and pricing structures."
July 16, 2025
Top Post
UPI Revolution in Bharat: 34 Key Milestones in Digital Payment Journey & Global Expansion
Organiser
"In a remarkable display of digital payment dominance, Bharat’s Unified Payments Interface (UPI) achieved a significant milestone in May 2025, surpassing global giant Visa with over 65 crore daily transactions. This makes UPI the fastest-growing payment system, expanding four times faster than its competitors. It processed an astounding Rs25 lakh crore, a figure 12 times greater than all card payments combined, cementing its position as the backbone of India’s digital economy by powering 85 per cent of the nation’s digital payments."
On the web
Fednow® Service Progress Update: Two Years of Growth, Innovation
FRB Services
"Happy birthday, FedNow Service! The pace of adoption on the FedNow Service since we launched two years ago has been incredible. We currently have more than 1,400 participants, up from 900 banks and credit unions at our one-year anniversary, and the network keeps growing every day. Along with adoption, we’re seeing volume continue to rise, and the number of senders — ranging from the biggest banks to the small credit unions — steadily climbs."
Shopify Adds Guardrails to Control Agentic Purchases
Retail TouchPoints
"Shopify has added new rules to the millions of merchant websites it powers, requiring that purchases made by agentic AI platforms aren’t completed without a “final human review.”"
The Promise and Perils of Agentic AI in Payments
Infosys
"Payment processing remains largely manual, leading to inefficiencies despite advancements in financial technology. Current automation lacks true end-to-end solutions, creating an opportunity for agentic AI, which operates autonomously. Promising solutions: Single-use virtual cards, programmable money, automated reconciliation, dynamic payment settlements."
Worldline Launches AI-Powered Routing to Boost Payment Authorisation Rates
Worldline
"Worldline announced the launch of its AI-powered routing solution, changing how businesses route payments globally. Following successful pilots, the solution has delivered increased authorisation rates by more than 2% in addition to the 3% improvement achieved with its rule-based routing."
Australia Looks to Scrap Surcharges on Most Card Payments
Yahoo Finance
"Australia's central bank proposed to scrap surcharges on most debit and credit card payments for consumers while lowering interchange fees paid by businesses, steps it estimated would save the two groups around A$2.4 billion ($1.57 billion) a year. In a consultation paper on the proposals, the Reserve Bank of Australia said surcharges and fees were no longer in the public interest and invited feedback from interested parties by August 26."
Stripe’s Bridge-Visa Card Offering Aims to Expand Global Financial Services Reach While Maintaining a Seamless User Experience
Fintech Magazine
"Neetika Bansal, Head of Money as a Service at Stripe, discusses how Stripe is positioning itself at the forefront of the stablecoin revolution with its Bridge-Visa card product, which the company believes represents a significant step forward in marrying traditional financial systems with digital currencies."
On the wires
Some Big US Banks Plan to Launch Stablecoins, Expecting Crypto-Friendly Regulations
Reuters
"Some large U.S. lenders, including Bank of America and Citibank, are working on launching stablecoins at a time when the country is looking to adopt more crypto-friendly regulations. BofA CEO Brian Moynihan said on Wednesday the bank is working on launching a stablecoin, and investors can expect the lender to move forward with it, without giving a timeline."
Elevating Cardholder Experiences Worldwide With the Mastercard Collection and Introduction of World Legend Mastercard
Business Wire
"New Mastercard research reveals a powerful paradigm shift: consumers are prioritizing connection and spending time and money on what genuinely fulfills them – experiences with people who matter the most. To meet these evolving needs, Mastercard is unveiling a new suite of elevated benefits – The Mastercard Collection – across its World, World Elite and newly created World Legend Mastercard cards."
July 15, 2025
Top Post
Federal Reserve Financial Services Completes ISO® 20022 Migration for Fedwire® Funds Service, Advancing U.S. Payments Modernization
Federal Reserve
"Federal Reserve Financial Services announced the completed migration to the ISO 20022 message format for the Fedwire Funds Service, a major advancement in the evolution of the nation’s payments infrastructure. As global e-commerce grows and evolves, broad adoption of this new message format aligns U.S. payment transactions with an industry standard that enables greater end-to-end efficiency of transactions, further encouraging innovation across the payments landscape."
On the web
Payments Vision Delivery Committee Update [UK]
GOV.UK
"The National Payments Vision set out the government’s ambitions for a world-leading payments ecosystem which drives innovation, supports competition and ensures security, in line with the Growth Mission. It established the Payments Vision Delivery Committee to enhance regulatory coordination and drive implementation of key activities – including setting out the approach for the development and delivery of the UK’s retail payments infrastructure needs."
Shopware Launches Agentic Commerce Alliance to Ensure Merchant Autonomy
Digital Commerce 360
"As artificial intelligence rapidly transforms the global ecommerce landscape, Germany-based ecommerce platform Shopware has launched the Agentic Commerce Alliance. The new initiative aims to protecting merchant independence and preserving diversity in both European and U.S. digital markets. Announced July 9, the alliance brings together 15 founding partners from across ecommerce, retail, and technology. They seek to counter what Shopware describes as a growing risk of AI monopolization by dominant players like Amazon, Google, and OpenAI."
Shopify Has Quietly Set Boundaries for ‘Buy-For-Me’ AI Bots on Merchant Sites
Digiday
"Shopify is drawing a line in the sand on agentic AI — a type of bot that autonomously completes tasks on its own, without human inputs — with new language across merchant websites that appears aimed at blocking agentic AI systems. Shopify now includes a warning in the code that powers merchant storefronts, telling bots what they can and can’t do."
Bank of England Governor Warns Banks Not to Issue Stablecoins – Report
Ledger Insights
"In an interview with UK newspaper The Times, the Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, warned the world’s largest banks not to issue stablecoins. Rather than issuing stablecoins, Governor Bailey would prefer that banks stick to tokenized deposits, in part because they are blockchain equivalents of conventional deposits."
No More Card Surcharges: What the Reserve Bank’s Proposed Changes Mean for Your Wallet [Australia]
The Conversation
The Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) has proposed a sweeping reform: abolishing card payment surcharges. The central bank says it’s in the public interest to scrap the system and estimates consumers could collectively save $1.2 billion annually. After an eight-month review, the bank’s Payments System Board has concluded the surcharge model no longer works in a predominantly cashless economy. The proposal now on the table is to phase out surcharges and instead push for simplified, all-inclusive pricing.
Unicredit Taps Wise to Power International Payments
IBS Intelligence
"UniCredit, a European commercial bank, has partnered with Wise, a global technology company specialising in cross-border payments, to launch an innovative international payments solution. This milestone positions UniCredit as the first major European bank to offer retail customers fast, secure, and competitively priced foreign-currency payments directly through its mobile banking app."
On the wires
Cash App Enables Over A Million Sellers to Accept Contactless Payments Using Only an iPhone
Business Wire
"Cash App announced the launch of Tap to Pay on iPhone for Cash App Business sellers, allowing them to accept contactless payments – including credit and debit cards, Apple Pay, and other digital wallets – directly on their iPhone using the Cash App iOS app, with no additional hardware required. "
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