Opinions

Banks and merchants are under threat to lose millions of dollars in investment in their apps by allowing them to become obsolete because they don’t provide the most desired functionality of all: Payment.

There is lots of talk about mobile payments and where banks play, but the real opportunity has less to do with payments and more to do with “mobile commerce services," or all of those things banks (and merchants) can do via mobile to attract, engage, motivate and reinforce customer relationships to protect existing revenue streams and create new ones.

This is an exciting time to be in the payments industry. The U.S. deadline for the EMV chip-and-PIN migration is officially less than one year away, and Apple Pay recently became available to iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 Plus users.

The launch of Apple Pay last month was undoubtedly a defining moment in the evolution of mobile payments.

Every day, debt collectors deal with people who have found themselves in tough and sensitive financial situations.

As bitcoins become more popular, banks should consider the credit risks associated with borrowers who own digital currencies and take steps to mitigate potential pitfalls.

Consumers throughout the U.S. are embracing online shopping, shifting a significant portion of their purchases from retail stores to the web at an ever-increasing pace.

In the payments security industry, tokenization initiatives have started to emerge, which would have important ramifications for retailers if they were to take off.

Thanks to the rise of online and mobile banking, some banks now have significant customer bases in areas where they have little branch presence. The solution is to carve out a category of virtual banks that have tailored CRA responsibilities and examination standards.

The payments industry has long been creating new innovations to combat fraudsters in order to create a secure environment for financial transactions.