Indian consumers and businesses would be best served if New Delhi confined itself to discrete interventions to reduce structural barriers to payments competition, rather than imposing price controls, dispensing subsidies and promoting national favorites, says Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

The most enlightened regulator or legislator can’t match the dynamic intelligence of billions of market decisions by consumers, merchants, banks, networks and processors, argues Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

A crypto-based payments system from Facebook would create more competition and pressure legacy companies to up their game, says Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

Financial institutions should focus on maximizing returns instead of feel-good initiatives to cut greenhouse gas emissions or reduce gun financing.

The FIS-Worldpay and Fiserv-First Data combos do provide notable scale, but the even-larger companies still won't produce the same pace of growth that younger nimble fintechs enjoy, says Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

In addition to conducting monetary policy and regulating banks, that the EU’s central bank should try to “drive innovation” in payments, writes Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

While payments firms must navigate political and regulatory waters, consumers and merchants are best served by a competitive free market free of politics, with minimalist regulators playing the role of the night watchman, writes Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

While the transaction will lower the cost of servicing First Data’s massive debt, the fintech and processing giant will be more complex and ponderous, writes Eric Grover, a principal at Intrepid Ventures.

The Federal Reserve has suggested it could join the market for instant interbank payments, but private-sector entrants would be better.

The Federal Reserve has suggested it could join the market for instant interbank payments, but private-sector entrants would be better.