Opinions

As far as digital currency has come, the passing of bitcoin for purchases is still a relatively primitive transaction.

For all the attention nonbank fintech firms get, they still have a long way to go before winning over key customer segments, such as business banking customers.

A concept that predated bitcoin itself is becoming more than a thought exercise as blockchains explore ways to harness smart contracts for greater uses.

At the start of 2015, there was a sense that Silicon Valley would soon rule the world of finance and that banks risked irrelevance. A year later, a more balanced picture has emerged.

Banks claim bandwidth and security concerns led to interruptions for personal finance apps, but institutions still resist a more secure and efficient portal.

When it comes to online commerce, the point at which money changes hands has often been the moment a sale falls apart.

Holiday shopping doesn’t stop after December 25. It goes beyond that as many consumers buy goods post-holiday as well, boosting sales even more.

Despite increased investment and development in the consumer payments space around mag stripe, EMV and contactless payments solutions, there is still a huge concern when it comes to data theft.

The holiday shopping season may be over, but that doesn’t mean that consumers will stop using their credit or debit cards in 2016.

A trip to London reveals how far ahead British and other European regulators are in streamlining the licensing process for payments providers and other fintech firms.