Merchant

Data connectivity is key to adding products and addressing customers, says Flinks' Yves-Gabriel Leboeuf.

With so many personally and financially impacted by COVID-19, consumers have made it clear that the way customers pay for goods or services can no longer follow a one-size-fits-all approach, says eBay's Alyssa Cutright.

There's no overstating the impact the pandemic has had on travel, but there are innovative products that can help the recovery, says Nuvei's Yuval Ziv.

The retailer combines WeChat, digital checkout and coupons to reach a wider market, says Azoya's Franklin Chu.

The lack of federal legalization creates processing challenges, but there are emerging solutions, says Fincann's Nathaniel Gurien.

When bicycle purchases surged during the pandemic as people flocked to new outdoor activities, many bike dealers were frustrated by strained supply chains and tight access to capital.

The shift to digital is permanent, creating an opportunity to reassess long-term strategy, says Greynier Fuentes.

Local payment methods can win big at e-gaming

For years, many companies have spoken about becoming more digital, transforming their business and reducing waste, but always in the context of those journeys being multiyear projects.

Chinese e-commerce giant JD.com Inc. said it plans to spin off its JD Logistics shipping business in a listing on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

Mobile pay is embedded in social media platforms and large retailers, proving an e-commerce spending boom, says Azoya USA's Franklin Chu.

Retailers are often considered to be key beneficiaries of faster payments, but they may be among the last to reap its benefits in the U.S.

There's already an appetite for digital and consumers should quickly embrace Apple's range of services, says CellPoint Digital's Howard Blankenship.

Fintechs and challenger banks are small, nimble and tech-centric. However, incumbents have strong reputations, customer trust and loyalty built over many decades, says Twilio's Bijon Mehta.

Merchants are making a miscalculation on data management, says FreedomPay's Chris Kronenthal.

COVID-19 has taken a great deal away from us in the past 12 months, but from a digital payments perspective, it has also opened the doors for new innovation and activity, says Cognizant Softvision's Karla Ch'ien.

People are reluctant to use physical point of sale terminals, putting biometrics in the middle of the contactless payment wave, says Fingerprints' Christian Fredrikson.

Over the past 10 months the payment industry has seen several products and services of bygone eras that have been reconstituted, repackaged and positioned to help customers and small businesses to manage their finances and cash flow, says Avenue B Consulting's Maria Arminio.

The innovation recognizes inventory levels and uses machine learning and sales history to identify the ideal price point to incentivize a consumer to select the product with a limited shelf life, says Quicklizard's Pini Mandel.

As merchants navigate a rapidly evolving market, invisible payments are becoming a crucial means of offering customers the seamless, simple, and streamlined experiences they crave, says Credorax's Igal Rotem.