Opinions

The next decade should be a payments-industry renaissance, but thanks to established market shares and persistent consumer and merchant habits, familiar names will remain at the core.

While it is easy to vilify Target for its recent data breach, the card networks' refusal to take on real card security makes the retailer a victim along with consumers.

Voice activation could give consumers increased visibility into their accounts and keep them connected to their bank.

The two primary functions of banking should be to take deposits and to make loans; all other services should be supplementary to these two primary activities.

Policymakers say they want to bring "underbanked" groups into the traditional banking system for safer consumer options, small-business growth, a sound banking system and other laudable reasons. But today's rules and aggressive enforcement work against these goals.

If retailers want to reap the rewards of consumer sales, they should also take an active role in protecting their data.

With no more lines and far more banks to choose from, I want the one I select to handle my exceptional transactions exceptionally. I want to leave my bank knowing that my visit was and always will be worthwhile.

The biggest takeaway from a roundtable discussion PayPal hosted at its New York offices this week: Size matters.

When I am ready to commit to paying many thousands of dollars financing a home, a car or my kid’s education, I will offer my business first to those institutions that helped me – a 'high-transaction, low-balance customer' – get there.

Instead of trying to blame the Target breach on card companies and drag unrelated issues into the discussion, merchants should work with the payments industry to find solutions.