Google

Google is enabling cross-border payments within the Google Pay app through integrations with Western Union and U.K.-based remittance firm Wise.

Google will have to bring new leadership to initiatives like financial inclusion and its operations in India now that Caesar Sengupta, vice president and general manager of payments, has announced he will leave the company.

Large banks and aggregator sites, like Bankrate, tend to outperform regional and community banks, but smaller institutions can compete by publishing valuable content and creating web pages for individual branches.

Amex is giving consumers more details about certain purchases with Digital Receipts, starting with big-tech merchants and Square.

A showdown between megabanks such as JPMorgan Chase and the likes of Apple and PayPal could be the prelude to a broader fight.

Machine learning and innovations such as voice assistants can give the newly mature e-commerce industry an extra push, says Qualpay's Penny Townsend.

As business flocks online, voice tech and social are just two of many innovations that will become stable stakes for merchants, says Hatch's Joris Kroese.

Google has redesigned Google Pay to add new financial management and loyalty features; and to offer consumers checking and savings accounts from partner banks and credit unions in 2021.

Skipify is working with Google's Gmail to enable shopping and purchasing for email users.

There's going to be a strong emphasis on the creation of financial products underneath innovative, customer-centric innovation from big tech companies, says FIS' Raja Gopalakrishan.