John Adams

Because Google Pay is already accepted at numerous mainstream merchants and is the default mobile wallet for many Android smartphone owners, it stands a strong chance of easing the friction of enrollment in a contactless fare system.

Small-business payments are an inefficient mess of unpaid invoices and paper processes that are causing substantial funds to languish and companies to stagnate. One possible solution is to address the cash flow, not the payment mechanism itself.

To detect and combat transaction laundering — the practice of hiding illegal activity behind a business that appears legitimate — American Express' investment group took a minority equity stake in EverCompliant.

The information you need to start your day, from PaymentsSource and around the Web: Google Pay's next steps, Applebee's breach, digitized rent payments and more.

The wave of payments fraud that's sweeping the globe shows no signs of abating. Martina King has an answer in an artificial intelligence-driven platform that has drawn the interest of some of the world's largest banks, payment processors, merchant acquirers, insurance companies and gaming organizations.

Madeline Aufseeser's background prepared her well for a career as an technology entrepreneur. In her previous role as a financial services industry analyst, Aufseeser was responsible for taking the temperature of an entire industry and knowing how an event in one area could spark opportunity in another.

They laughed at her. Now she's taking their customers.

Business payments are among the last major transaction types to cling to paper checks, an automation gap that's both an annoyance and an opportunity for Nicole Tackett.

Kim Schwendeman's story is one of toughness, learning, perseverance, and the special job that teachers perform every day.

This year, as PaymentsSource honors The Most Influential Women in Payments, a new pattern has emerged. This year's list recognizes the contributions of entrepreneurs who took their ideas directly to market, showcasing new ways of handling business in an industry that is forced to quickly adapt to rapid changes in technology and global culture.