Financial inclusion

The use of digital payments offers significant savings over check cashing. Payroll cards and public-sector prepaid cards issued for the deposit of government benefits are two of the best known examples, writes Andrew Gillen, vice president for Global Public Sector Payment Solutions for Mastercard.

Readers debate the Federal Reserve's potential entry into real-time payments, consider the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's guidance for assessing fines, discuss the efficacy of financial education programs and more.

Karen Andres at the Center for Financial Services Innovation talks about the financial problems of people over 50 and how banks can help.

Today’s global citizens face risks that extend far beyond crumbling highways. Although reliable physical infrastructure is necessary for economic growth, immature and anemic payment infrastructures may present another serious threat to the global economy, writes Tomas Likar, head of business development and strategy at Hyperwallet.

The Association for Black Economic Power will receive an interest-free forgivable loan and a grant from the city to help pay for a retail space and equipment for the effort.

These programs are becoming a more common employee benefit but many lack some of the tools users need to be successful.

Flourish, a fund backed by Pierre and Pam Omidyar, invests in startups that address social and financial inequities yet (key caveat) are still promising moneymakers, a top official of the fund explains.

Understanding how the payments ecosystem works is a basic tenet for anyone aspiring to work in the industry. Visa's Taira Hall has that understanding, plus she is ingrained with a trait many others may not have — she has experienced what happens when there is no accessible payments system in place.

Wegner Award winner Diana Dykstra was instrumental in the creation of the Global Women's Leadership Network and CU Direct in her more than 30-year career.

Both banks and credit unions in fact do a lot today to better the world. Collectively, they pour billions of dollars into their communities and causes that align with their respective mission, writes Elena Pierce, COO of In/PACT.